The enthustiastic geologist
Douglas Mawson was born in England and went to school in Sydney. He was allowed to enter Sydney University when still 16. After graduating in geology, he went on to further study and then was appointed lecturer in geology at Adelaide University. He became infected with the "Antarctic bug". He was in the first party to climb Mt Olympus in Antarctica.

One of the greatest sagas of polar exploration was the survival by Mawson in 1912, when he returned alone from a four month expedition which claimed the lives of his two companions.
Ninnis died (13/12/1912) when his sled carrying provisions plunged into a crevasse.
Mawson and Mertz were left with little to eat, so they killed sled dogs and ate them.
Mertz died (8/1/1913) from the combined effects of extreme exertion and vitamin A toxicosis, resulting from over consumption of dog livers. Mawson lost all the skin on the soles of his feet.
The last 160 km of the journey were trudged solo by a severely depleted but determined Mawson, pulling by hand a sled that he had cut in half with a pocket saw (like a SwissArmy knife) after Mertz's death.
On his return to main base, he was greeted by the sight of the supply ship "Aurora" steaming towards the horizon. Mawson and a small group, left behind to search for him, survived at the base another year before returning home.

At Adelaide University he became known for his dry wit.
He wanted his students to love geology, not just study it. He encouraged his first year students to go out on their holidays and collect unusual rocks and minerals.
On the first lecture after the holidays, he would identify all specimens left on the demonstration bench.
One "bright spark" decided to test "Dougie". He put a piece of broken brick among the specimens.
After his lecture, Sir Douglas moved over to the specimens and in a monotone identified the specimens:
".. a piece of granite from Victor Harbour,
..a piece of Mt Gambier limestone,
..a piece of confounded impudence,
..a piece of gneiss from Radium Hill…"
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