In another life Anthony Bayes was an electrical engineer with a strong interest in the Earth's magnetic field, the magnetosphere, especially as it was affected by the sun and solar winds. From this he developed a further interest in astronomy generally.

Tony's U3A courses have included Stargazers for Star Ships and Discover the Heavens' Secrets.  In 2006 he had sixteen students at his weekly Penrith class and fifteen at Springwood.

In 2007 Tony continued his Secrets of the Heavens but added Imagine the Universe—The Cosmic Connection. This latter course was a non-mathematical, self-contained exposition and practical guide to Cosmology including The Big Bang and a subject with an intriguing name:  The Theory of Everything.

The "Theory of Everything" sounds so ambitious that it deserves, and has had, more than one name. It was first called M-Theory and later became more widely known as String Theory, even Super String Theory. Briefly, it is the theory in which particles are described as waves on strings. Strings have length but no other dimension. (If that sounds impossible compare it to an inept politician's time in office—that also has length but no substance.)

But Imagine the Universe was much more than String Theory. It was a practical guide to Cosmology, including the Big Bang, Light and Matter, Elements, the Sun, Stars, Novae, Neutron Stars, Pulsars, Black Holes and, really, anything you ever wanted to know about the cosmos but never took the time to learn.

The Secrets of the Heavens was held weekly in the VAD Room, Penrith School of Arts on Tuesdays from 11.30-1.00. Imagine the Universe was held at the same venue on Tuesdays from 9.30-11.00 and at Springwood Neighbourhood Centre on Thursdays from 10.00-12.00.

Both courses included some evening visits to Kings Tableland observatory, Wentworth Falls.

In 2008 Tony's courses will be Time Machine and Exploration of the Earth's Magnetosphere.

When this page went on line I received an email from Tony Bayes requesting that the following brief note about his hero, William Gilbert, should be placed with it:

In 1600, four hundred years ago William Gilbert (pictured at right), later physician to Queen Elizabeth I of England, published his great study of magnetism, De Magnete – On the Magnet. It gave the first rational explanation to the mysterious ability of the compass needle to point north-south: the Earth itself was magnetic. De Magnete opened the era of modern physics and astronomy and started a century marked by the great achievements of Galileo, Kepler, Newton and others.

If you lived in London in 1600, you could have purchased De Magnete for seven shillings and sixpence. To read it, of course, you would have had to know Latin, the language of science at that time. You might also have had the rare privilege of attending first runs of Shakespeare's plays in the Globe Theatre—sitting in the balcony if you could afford it, standing in front of the stage if not. However, you might have had to weigh this pleasure against the peril of bubonic plague, which usually spread in the city during summer months.

An exhibition in Colchester, titled "William Gilberd 1544 - 1603 Celebrating a Magnetic Mind" (that was how his name was spelled in Colchester) marked the 400th anniversary of his death. It was held from 25 July 2003 to 25 January 2004 in Colchester Castle Museum, Essex,, England.