1.
Hierarchy
–
A hierarchy is an arrangement of items in which the items are represented as being above, below, or at the same level as one another. A hierarchy can link entities either directly or indirectly, and either vertically or diagonally, indirect hierarchical links can extend vertically upwards or downwards via multiple links in the same direction, following a path. This is akin to two co-workers or colleagues, each reports to a superior, but they have the same relative amount of authority. Organizational forms exist that are alternative and complementary to hierarchy. A hierarchy is a system or organization in which people or groups are ranked one above the other according to status or authority, Hierarchies have their own special vocabulary. Most hierarchies use a more specific vocabulary pertaining to their subject, for example, with data structures, objects are known as nodes, superiors are called parents and subordinates are called children. In a business setting, a superior is a supervisor/boss and a peer is a colleague, degree of branching refers to the number of direct subordinates or children an object has a node has). Hierarchies can be categorized based on the degree, the highest degree present in the system as a whole. Categorization in this way yields two broad classes, linear and branching, in a linear hierarchy, the maximum degree is 1. In other words, all of the objects can be visualized in a lineup, note that this is referring to the objects and not the levels, every hierarchy has this property with respect to levels, but normally each level can have an infinite number of objects. An example of a hierarchy is the hierarchy of life. In a branching hierarchy, one or more objects has a degree of 2 or more, for many people, the word hierarchy automatically evokes an image of a branching hierarchy. Branching hierarchies are present within numerous systems, including organizations and classification schemes, the broad category of branching hierarchies can be further subdivided based on the degree. A flat hierarchy is a hierarchy in which the maximum degree approaches infinity. Most often, systems intuitively regarded as hierarchical have at most a moderate span, therefore, a flat hierarchy is often not viewed as a hierarchy at all. For example, diamonds and graphite are flat hierarchies of numerous carbon atoms which can be decomposed into subatomic particles. An overlapping hierarchy is a hierarchy in which at least one object has two parent objects. Pseudo-Dionysius used the related Greek word both in reference to the hierarchy and the ecclesiastical hierarchy
2.
Sydney Basin
–
The Sydney Basin is both a structural entity and a depositional area, now preserved on the east coast of New South Wales, Australia and with some of its eastern side now subsided beneath the ocean. It has also lost area on its side by erosion. The Sydney Basin consists of Permian and Triassic sedimentary rocks and it is named for the city of Sydney which is centred within it and stretches from Newcastle in the north to Batemans Bay in the south, and west to the Great Dividing Range. The basin is home to the major centres of Newcastle and Wollongong. Sydney’s famous harbour and the cliffs of the Blue Mountains are signature formations of relatively hard upper strata of sandstone. The basin contains the UNESCO World Heritage-listed Greater Blue Mountains Area, definitions of the boundaries and what comprises the Sydney basin vary significantly. The Australian Government classifies the basin as an interim Australian bioregion consisting of 3,629,597 hectares, according to NSW Primary Industries, the basin extends through approximately 350 kilometres of coastline from Newcastle in the north to Durras Lake in the south. From Durras Lake the western boundary continues in a line through Lithgow to around Ulan, to the north the boundary extends 120 kilometres along the Liverpool Range to a point 80 kilometres north of Muswellbrook, and then runs 200 kilometres back to the coast at Newcastle. To the east the basin continues to the edge of the continental shelf, the total area of the basin is approximately 44,000 square kilometres onshore plus 5,000 square kilometres offshore. The centre of the basin is located around 30 kilometres west of the Sydney central business district at Fairfield, in addition, some of the rivers of the Hunter-Central Rivers catchment and the Southern Rivers catchment also lie mainly in the basin. In the Hunter-Central Rivers catchment, the Hunter River sub-catchment forms the boundary of the basin. In the Southern Rivers catchment, the Illawarra sub-catchment and the Shoalhaven sub-catchment forms the southern boundary
3.
St George (Sydney)
–
St George Area is an unofficial name applied to a group of southern suburbs in Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The area includes all the suburbs in the government area of Georges River Council. The eastern boundary of the district is Lady Robinson Beach on Botany Bay, the first inhabitants of the St George area were Australian Aborigines. At the time of the arrival of the First Fleet, the Eora tribe inhabited land from Port Jackson to Botany Bay, there is evidence to suggest that these people belonged to the Gweagal, Bidjigal and Cadigal clans. James Cook sailed the HMS Endeavour into Botany Bay in 1770 for his first landing on the continent of Australia, the ridge between the Cooks River and Georges River was covered in a dense forest which first attracted timber cutters to the area. Wood gatherers, bark collectors, sawyers and charcoal burners moved into the area to work the forests of Simeon Lord, by the 1840s, Major Mitchell was building the Illawarra Road on the ridge through ‘Lord’s Bush’, which required enormous amounts of trees and bush to be cleared. Irishman Michael Gannon was innkeeper at Cooks River in the 1840s and he acquired land in the area, part of which became known as ‘Gannons Forest’ which later was the centre of Hurstville. By 1851 it was estimated that 50 to 100 carts of timber, St George Parish was one of the original parishes within Cumberland County. There were eight other parishes named after saints, but St George, a map of the parish revealed that the land was cut into areas ranging from 30 to 500 acres and a few large land grants of 2,000 acres. The regional identity was reinforced by the creation in 1949 of a federal electorate, the Division was abolished in 1993. The areas identity is maintained mostly through the St George Illawarra Dragons who play in the National Rugby League, the St George area is a culturally diverse region. Major centres feature a number of Asian migrants and their families. In terms of sport, the area is known as the home of the St George Illawarra Dragons, the biggest commercial areas in the St George area are located at Hurstville, Kogarah and Rockdale. Hurstville is the largest central business district in southern Sydney and features a shopping centre called Westfield Hurstville. Additionally Rockdale features another large shopping centre, Rockdale Plaza, the St. George Area very well serviced by public transport. The Illawarra Line, South Coast Line and Airport Line have frequent services to the city via Wolli Creek, the population of the St George area is 216,895
4.
Botany Bay
–
Botany Bay, an open oceanic embayment, is located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia,13 km south of the Sydney central business district. The total catchment area of the bay is approximately 55 km2, despite its relative shallowness, the bay serves as greater metropolitan Sydneys main cargo seaport, located at Port Botany, with facilities managed by Sydney Ports Corporation. Two runways of Sydney Airport extend into the bay, Botany Bay National Park is located on the northern and southern headlands of the bay. The area surrounding the bay is generally managed by Roads and Maritime Services, the land adjacent to Botany Bay was settled for many thousands of years by the Tharawal and Eora Aboriginal peoples and their associated clans. On 29 April 1770, Botany Bay was the site of James Cooks first landing of HMS Endeavour on the mass of Australia. Later the British planned Botany Bay as the site for a penal colony, out of these plans came the first European habitation of Australia at Sydney Cove. Archaeological evidence from the shores of Botany Bay has yielded evidence of Aboriginal settlement dating back 5,000 years, the Aboriginal people of Sydney were known as the Eora with sub-groups derived from the languages they spoke. The people living between the Cooks River and the Georges River were the Bidjigal clan, on the shores of the bay were the Gweagal clan. An artefact collected on Cooks first voyage in Botany Bay is the bark shield left behind by a member of a local Aboriginal tribe. This very rare object is now in the British Museums collection and was the subject of a programme in the BBC radio series A History of the World in 100 Objects. Lieutenant James Cook first landed at Kurnell, on the banks of Botany Bay, on Sunday 29 April 1770. Cooks landing marked the beginning of Britains interest in Australia and in the colonisation of this new ‘southern continent’. Initially the name Sting Ray Harbour was used by Cook and other journal keepers on his expedition and that name was also recorded on an Admiralty chart. Cooks log for 6 May 1770 records The great quantity of these sort of found in this place occasioned my giving it the name of Stingrays Harbour. Eighteen years later, in 1788, Governor Arthur Phillip sailed the armed tender HMS Supply into the bay on 18 January, two days later the remaining ships of the First Fleet arrived to found the planned penal colony. However, the land was ruled unsuitable for settlement as there was insufficient fresh water. Phillip decided instead to move to the excellent natural harbour of Port Jackson to the north, on the morning of 24 January the French exploratory expedition of Jean-François de Galaup, comte de Lapérouse was seen outside Botany Bay. On 26 January, the Supply left the bay to move up to Port Jackson, on the afternoon of 26 January, the remaining ships of First Fleet arrived at Sydney Cove
5.
Hills District
–
The Hills District is a general term for the north-western suburbs of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Actual suburbs and localities that are considered to be in the Hills District can be somewhat amorphous, for example, the Hills District Historical Society restricts its definition to the Hills Shire local government area, yet its study area extends from Parramatta to the Hawkesbury. At its most generous, the term Hills District is applied to the area generally west of Pennant Hills Road and north of Windsor Road, extending out as far as Boundary Road Vineyard. Several of its suburbs have the word Hills in their names, such as Baulkham Hills, Beaumont Hills, Castle Hill, Pennant Hills, Rouse Hill, West Pennant Hills, according to the 2011 ABS Census, The Hills Shire is home to 169,872 permanent residents. The Census of Population and Housing states that as much as 22% of the population is over 55 years of age. As the name indicates, the Hills District is an area of elevation above sea level. This leaves the Hills District with slightly higher rainfall than the rest of Sydney and creates a shadow for some places in the Blacktown district, including Marayong. This climate characteristic was well suited to production of stone fruit. The area was notable for a time for having the highest rate of religious service attendance in Australia, the populations strong dislike for liquor made Castle Hill a temperance town where much of the land was covenanted to prohibit manufacture, storage or consumption of alcohol. This area now has a high concentration of hotels and evangelical Christians. The strong evangelical Christian tinge of the region has made the Hills strongly conservative, an extensive number of bus routes operate in the district, operated by Hillsbus, Busways and Sydney Buses. The region is served by the North-West T-way, connecting the Hills District with Blacktown, Parramatta, the Carlingford railway line, operated by Sydney Trains, is the only railway line located in the district. Infrequent services operate on the line from Carlingford to Clyde, where an interchange is required to continue to the city, the deficiency of public transport in the area is often criticised. Due to low density planning the bus service within many of the suburbs is slow, however, the long-promised North West Rail Link is under construction with a proposed opening in 2019. Hills District travel guide from Wikivoyage Out of the Mouths of Locals - article discussing the geography of the area and the snob value associated with the designation
6.
Cooks River
–
The Cooks River, a semi-mature tide dominated drowned valley estuary, is a tributary of Botany Bay, located in south-eastern Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The course of the 23 kilometres long urban waterway has been altered to various developments along its shore. It serves as part of a system for the 100 square kilometres of its watershed. The tidal sections support significant areas of mangroves, bird, and fish life, the river begins at Graf Park, Yagoona, then flows in a roughly north-easterly direction to Chullora. It reaches its northernmost point at Strathfield, where it leads into an open canal, no more than one metre wide. It then heads towards the south-east, where Cooks River runs through Strathfield Golf Course, the concrete lining has been partly removed. Here the plants have returned and have created an environment where the water is filtered and runs clean, one section here is called the Chain of Ponds. At Belfield it joins with the Cox Creek Channel and flows in an easterly direction, the canal widens and deepens as it picks up stormwater from surrounding suburbs, such as Campsie and becomes influenced by tidal action. At Canterbury, it is joined by Cup and Saucer Creek, industrial areas line the Cooks River at Canterbury. In the past, factories discharged their waste directly into the water, the valley becomes more pronounced as the river reaches Tempe, where it is joined by Wolli Creek and the Alexandra Canal. The Princes Highway crosses the Cooks River and links Tempe to the suburb of Wolli Creek, also here is the low-lying Fatima Island, which is submerged at high tide. The course of the final south-flowing section of river is entirely artificial, Cooks River connects with Botany Bay at Kyeemagh. Many of the lower lying areas have been filled and are parks, in spite of this the river and adjacent lands are being recognised for their beauty, history, amenity, environmental value, if not also for potential for improvements. The walkway and cycleway beside much of the river is part of the path connecting Sydney Olympic Park with Botany Bay, the river also has a number of community-based organisations which assist its maintenance, in particular The Cooks River Valley Association. The CRVA grew from The Cooks River Improvement League, founded in 1925, the League recommended cleaning up the river by developing a canal system and removing of the footings of Tempe Dam, proposal which had been made originally by engineer H B Henson, in 1896. In 2010 the Cup and Saucer Wetlands were built in Canterbury to create an environment for the native wildlife. Selected areas of the Cooks River which is lined with concrete will be replaced in 2013 and 2014 with a natural bank with sand stone rocks. The Cooks River has a catchment area of 100 square kilometres, within the areas of Sydney enclosed by urban environments
