Work in Antarctica
If you’ve always dreamed of working in Antarctica (the only continent you can’t be a native of, and yet which doesn’t officially belong any other country: a treaty made in 1961 suspends all claims of ownership, in favor of promoting valuable scientific research rather than arguing over whose flag flies where…and the penguins don’t care), now’s your chance. The British Antarctic Survey is seeking field assistants for terms of between 6 and 18 months — depending on whether you go for a summer or winter term. Applications are open until the 8th of May. The pay doesn’t seem to be great, but it would be a fantastic experience.
(While the UK has no particular restrictions on Antarctic missions, for ladies, US Antarctic employment now comes with mandatory pregnancy testing: if you test positive, you are positively staying behind. While according to the article, other bases allow pregnant women and births (including Australia, which records 7 babies born on-base in Antarctica), the possibility of complications during pregnancy and birthing being compounded by isolation, untrained medical personnel, and cold makes one think twice about rushing to the Antarctic without giving birth control a good hard think.)
(Speaking of Australia, the Australian Antarctic Territory comprises a large part of the landmass of Australia, and was given to Australia by the UK in 1933. Only 4 states other than Australia recognize Australia’s ownership of Antarctica: the UK, New Zealand, Norway, and France. So if you’re from one of those places, Australia owns Antarctica.)
February 15th, 2011 at 12:51 am
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