Of Navies and Navels: Britain as A Mental Island

In this paper, the conception of .Great Britain. — a wholly unsatisfactory nomenclature — as an island nation is examined. In this case, a relatively small land mass acted as an originary point of departure for outward‐bound Great Power projections across the open spaces of seas. This paper further explores the varied implications for nationalism within Britain of the diverse island ‘roots’ of the British navel and the ‘routes’ of British navalism. Three themes recur in the popular mobilization of British maritime island nationalism: the besieged island, the island as universal exemplar of civilization, and the navy as national protector. Some consideration is given to the significance of island symbols such as Britannia as a marker of the fate of great island nationalism.     

Morphological comparisons of metacarpal I for Australovenator wintonensis and Rapator ornitholestoides: implications for their taxonomic relationships

WHITE, M.A., FALKINGHAM, P.L., COOK, A.G., HOCKNULL, S.A. & ELLIOTT, D.A., 2013. Morphological comparisons of metacarpal I for Australovenator wintonensis and Rapator ornitholestoides: implications for their taxonomic relationships. Alcheringa 37, 1 - 7. ISSN 0311-5518.

Various comparisons of left metacarpal I of the Australovenator wintonensis holotype have been made with Rapator ornitholestoides. These specimens were identified as being morphologically more similar than either was to that of the neovenatorid Megaraptor namunhuaiquii. Owing to the poor preservation of A. wintonensis and R. ornitholestoides, distinct morphological separation between the two appeared minimal. The recent discovery of a near perfectly preserved right metacarpal I of A. wintonensis enables a direct and accurate comparison with R. ornitholestoides. Distinct morphological differences exist between the metacarpals of the two species. A re-evaluation of the age of the A. wintonensis holotype site (AODL 85 ‘Matilda Site’) with zircon dating reveals a maximum age of 95 Ma, 10 Ma younger than the Griman Creek Formation at Lightning Ridge, from which R. ornitholestoides was recovered. This age difference detracts from the probability that the specimens belong to the same genus.

Matt A. White? [fossilised@hotmail.com], School of Engineering, The University of Newcastle, Callaghan, New South Wales 2308, Australia; Peter L. Falkingham? [pfalkingham@rvc.ac.uk], Department of Comparative Biomedical Sciences, Structure and Motion Laboratory, Royal Veterinary College, London, UK; Alex G. Cook [alex.cook@y7mail.com] and Scott A. Hocknull [scott.hocknull@qm.qld.gov.au], Ancient environments, Queensland Museum, Hendra, Queensland, 4011, Australia; David A. Elliott [david.elliott@aaod.com.au], Australian Age of Dinosaurs Museum of Natural History, The Jump Up, Winton, Queensland, 4735, Australia. ?Also affiliated with Australian Age of Dinosaurs Museum of Natural History, The Jump Up, Winton, Queensland 4735, Australia. ?Also affiliated with Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Division of Biology and Medicine, Brown University, USA. Received 22.9.2012; revised 13.1.2013; accepted 17.1.2013.     

Book reviews

PARTY LEADERSHIP AND REVOLUTIONARY POWER IN CHINA. John Wilson Lewis (ed.) Cambridge University Press, 1970. viii, 422 pp. 25s.

CONFLICT ANALYSIS. Michael Nicholson. English Universities Press, 1971. viii, 168 pp. £1.45 (29s.).

PHILIPPINE NATIONALISM. EXTERNAL CHALLENGE AND FILIPINO RESPONSE, 1565–1946. Usha Mahajani. University of Queensland Press, 1970. xv, 530 pp. $12.00.

THE SIEGE OF THE PEKING LEGATIONS: A DIARY. Lancelot Giles. With introduction: CHINESE ANTI‐FOREIGNISM AND THE BOXER UPRISING. L. R. Marchant (ed.). University of Western Australia Press, Nedlands, Western Australia, 1970. xxvii, 212 pp. $9.60.

MICROSTATES AND MICRONESIA: PROBLEMS OF AMERICA'S PACIFIC ISLANDS AND OTHER MINUTE TERRITORIES. Stanley A. de Smith. New York University Press, 1970. 193 pp. $7.50.

NEW ZEALAND AND AUSTRALIA: FOREIGN POLICY IN THE 1970s. Bruce Brown (ed.). Price Milbum, Wellington, for the New Zealand Institute of International Affairs, 1970. 91 pp. $1.50.

LANG AND SOCIALISM. Robert Cooksey. Australian National University Press, 1970. xiii, 96 pp. $2.50.

THE ARMY IN PAPUA‐NEW GUINEA. Robert J. O'Neill. Australian National University Press, 1970. 31 pp. $1.50.

A HISTORY OF MALAYA. J. Kennedy. Macmillan Student Editions, London, 1970. xi, 364 pp. $3.40.

LENIN'S CHILDHOOD. Isaac Deutscher. Oxford University Press, Melbourne, 1970. 67 pp. $4.25 hard cover.

SELECTED LETTERS OF HUBERT MURRAY. Francis West (ed.). Oxford University Press, Melbourne, 1970. 255 pp. $6.50.