447159
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Rundfunkrede über australischen Wissenschaft 1949 [Radio Broadcast Talk on Australian Science]
Description
Series[UMA-SRE-20190021] RESEARCH AND UNPUBLISHED PAPERS OF FRITZ LOEWEAccession[1988.0020] Consolidated Papers of Fritz Philipp LoeweIdentifierUMA-ITE-2019002100304Scope and ContentEnvelope containing typescript copy of radio broadcast talk given by Fritz Loewe in July 1949.
Topics include: Fritz Loewe's upbringing and background; Experiences of meteorological flying; Experiences on The Exploratory Ship Meteor (in the Atlantic Ocean) for ocean research in 1925; The Wegener Expedition; Alfred Wegener's death during the expedition; Being dismissed from duty by the Nazi Party in 1933; The treatment of Jews in Nazi Germany; The brutality of concentration camps; Learning of the methods of the secret police whilst in custody; His temporary incarceration in 1934 (accused of spreading anti-Nazi propaganda); His fleeing Germany (and the difficulty he felt in doing so, particularly leaving his Jewish comrades back in Germany "We did not leave the land of our birth with an easy heart and fitting in to our new nation was not something that could be achieved without difficulty"); The Scott Polar Institute in Cambridge and his work there in 1934 ("For the movement of a German person to Britain there can be no better place to think of than Cambridge, in whose university representatives of the most varied races and languages of the world come together"); His move to Melbourne ("a path that many followed after me"); His brief trip back to Germany before leaving for Melbourne ("Before I finally left England I returned, half secretly, to Germany and took my leave from the snow covered pines of the German central mountains from the ancient city of Frankfurt and Goethe's home and from the grave of my father"); His work and teaching on climate and weather in Australia; Distances in Australia; Scientists, philosophers, doctors and lawyers at the University of Melbourne (and Australia in general) that came from Europe; His feeling of obligation and gratitude towards Melbourne University ("I feel a duty of gratitude to talk about the great lack of prejudice I faced from local university authorities. Which in all these years, in particular during the war, made no distinction between the treatment of me and other co-workers who had come from enemy countries and those who had been born in the British Empire"); The respect given to German science in Australia (demonstrated by science students being required to learn German); The potential to feel academically isolated being lessened by "the wide frame which the German scientific style puts around its work"; Post-war immigration to Australia (especially by the scientific community) expanding the scope and scale of scientific research and developments in Australia (particularly optics and neon research); His observation that "the average Australian has remarkably changed itself. Before the war it was common to find an instinctively distancing reaction from local Australians whereas now new arrivals are met with an extraordinary friendly approach"; His view that "immigration is necessary in this country so that the settlement of those areas that are suitable for white immigration in this continent, which is largely empty of humanity, can be fulfilled"); The teaching methods at the university and the way the university balances teaching and research; The role of CSIRO and the importance of government funding for scientific research; Australia paying less respect to academic work than other countries ("...let us not neglect to mention that in Australia the work of the mind and its representatives, especially if they do not have immediate practical aims for their work, is not held in the same respect as in lands of more ancient traditions. Australia is by far prouder of its tennis and cricket players -and especially of its racehorses- than of its great thinkers, whether they are artists or academics. This part of the world for example has no literary magazine of quality. It is true that in no land can a worker of the mind compete in income with the successful businessman. In many countries, including the Germany that I knew, the academic was highly thought of in society. That lacks in Australia and this lack of recognition has the unhappy result that the best heads in the country frequently seek the greater opportunities available overseas than the ones that are offered here at home"); His view that Australian academics are often satisfied with research that could be taken further but also his view that Australian academics are more practical and constructive than their European counterparts ("Australians have a tendency towards improvisation. A trait which comes from the limited possibilities of the earliest times of white habitation of this country"); His reflections on the growth of science in Australia and his hopes that academic work will come to be more highly regarded in the future; His hoping for developing relationships "between old Australians and the new arrivals from all the lands of Europe. The new Australian will have to accustom himself to a new way of life but he can also bring with him the feeling that in his new home he's not only a receiver but a giver. Perhaps many of my listeners or their children will feel attracted by this call to communal giving and receiving").Access StatusOpen for public accessRequest TypeRequest unitUnit2019.0021 Unit 0022
Topics include: Fritz Loewe's upbringing and background; Experiences of meteorological flying; Experiences on The Exploratory Ship Meteor (in the Atlantic Ocean) for ocean research in 1925; The Wegener Expedition; Alfred Wegener's death during the expedition; Being dismissed from duty by the Nazi Party in 1933; The treatment of Jews in Nazi Germany; The brutality of concentration camps; Learning of the methods of the secret police whilst in custody; His temporary incarceration in 1934 (accused of spreading anti-Nazi propaganda); His fleeing Germany (and the difficulty he felt in doing so, particularly leaving his Jewish comrades back in Germany "We did not leave the land of our birth with an easy heart and fitting in to our new nation was not something that could be achieved without difficulty"); The Scott Polar Institute in Cambridge and his work there in 1934 ("For the movement of a German person to Britain there can be no better place to think of than Cambridge, in whose university representatives of the most varied races and languages of the world come together"); His move to Melbourne ("a path that many followed after me"); His brief trip back to Germany before leaving for Melbourne ("Before I finally left England I returned, half secretly, to Germany and took my leave from the snow covered pines of the German central mountains from the ancient city of Frankfurt and Goethe's home and from the grave of my father"); His work and teaching on climate and weather in Australia; Distances in Australia; Scientists, philosophers, doctors and lawyers at the University of Melbourne (and Australia in general) that came from Europe; His feeling of obligation and gratitude towards Melbourne University ("I feel a duty of gratitude to talk about the great lack of prejudice I faced from local university authorities. Which in all these years, in particular during the war, made no distinction between the treatment of me and other co-workers who had come from enemy countries and those who had been born in the British Empire"); The respect given to German science in Australia (demonstrated by science students being required to learn German); The potential to feel academically isolated being lessened by "the wide frame which the German scientific style puts around its work"; Post-war immigration to Australia (especially by the scientific community) expanding the scope and scale of scientific research and developments in Australia (particularly optics and neon research); His observation that "the average Australian has remarkably changed itself. Before the war it was common to find an instinctively distancing reaction from local Australians whereas now new arrivals are met with an extraordinary friendly approach"; His view that "immigration is necessary in this country so that the settlement of those areas that are suitable for white immigration in this continent, which is largely empty of humanity, can be fulfilled"); The teaching methods at the university and the way the university balances teaching and research; The role of CSIRO and the importance of government funding for scientific research; Australia paying less respect to academic work than other countries ("...let us not neglect to mention that in Australia the work of the mind and its representatives, especially if they do not have immediate practical aims for their work, is not held in the same respect as in lands of more ancient traditions. Australia is by far prouder of its tennis and cricket players -and especially of its racehorses- than of its great thinkers, whether they are artists or academics. This part of the world for example has no literary magazine of quality. It is true that in no land can a worker of the mind compete in income with the successful businessman. In many countries, including the Germany that I knew, the academic was highly thought of in society. That lacks in Australia and this lack of recognition has the unhappy result that the best heads in the country frequently seek the greater opportunities available overseas than the ones that are offered here at home"); His view that Australian academics are often satisfied with research that could be taken further but also his view that Australian academics are more practical and constructive than their European counterparts ("Australians have a tendency towards improvisation. A trait which comes from the limited possibilities of the earliest times of white habitation of this country"); His reflections on the growth of science in Australia and his hopes that academic work will come to be more highly regarded in the future; His hoping for developing relationships "between old Australians and the new arrivals from all the lands of Europe. The new Australian will have to accustom himself to a new way of life but he can also bring with him the feeling that in his new home he's not only a receiver but a giver. Perhaps many of my listeners or their children will feel attracted by this call to communal giving and receiving").Access StatusOpen for public accessRequest TypeRequest unitUnit2019.0021 Unit 0022
Provenance
CreatorLoewe, Fritz P.RoleProvenance
Dates
DateJuly 1949
Description Control
Previous System ID2019.0021.00304Finding Aid Reference1988.0020 Unit 17/10
Characteristics
Language of MaterialGerman (ger)
Loewe, Fritz P., Rundfunkrede über australischen Wissenschaft 1949 [Radio Broadcast Talk on Australian Science] (July 1949), [UMA-ITE-2019002100304]. University of Melbourne Archives, accessed 18/04/2026, https://archives.library.unimelb.edu.au/nodes/view/447159