Globalisation, Sustaining Rural Livelihoods and Organics: The Impacts of the Transformation in the Production and Consumption of Organic Foods. The production and consumption of organic foodstuffs has been transformed in recent years, from a focus on small-scale production for local consumption to a global industry dominated by large agribusiness companies and supermarkets. This not only raises questions about the role of organic agriculture in achieving sustainable development in Australia and ....Globalisation, Sustaining Rural Livelihoods and Organics: The Impacts of the Transformation in the Production and Consumption of Organic Foods. The production and consumption of organic foodstuffs has been transformed in recent years, from a focus on small-scale production for local consumption to a global industry dominated by large agribusiness companies and supermarkets. This not only raises questions about the role of organic agriculture in achieving sustainable development in Australia and elsewhere, but is also creating relationships of dependency within the less developed world which may well reduce food security and make the problem of feeding growing populations more difficult. This study seeks to develop a range of policy alternatives in order to enhance sustainability through organic farming.Read moreRead less
Habitat degradation on coral reefs. This project aims to determine how reef degradation modifies predator-prey dynamics in fish communities, and how parental effects may help species to cope with habitat change. Live corals are ecosystem engineers that support the world’s most biodiverse communities, but anthropogenic factors have led to unprecedented global declines in live coral. The transition from live to dead coral-dominated habitats is associated with a modified sensory landscape of fear f ....Habitat degradation on coral reefs. This project aims to determine how reef degradation modifies predator-prey dynamics in fish communities, and how parental effects may help species to cope with habitat change. Live corals are ecosystem engineers that support the world’s most biodiverse communities, but anthropogenic factors have led to unprecedented global declines in live coral. The transition from live to dead coral-dominated habitats is associated with a modified sensory landscape of fear for resident fishes, via chemical interference emanating from degraded coral. Inter-generational advantages would help management to regulate reef usage to promote resilience.Read moreRead less
The nature of self-recognition: novel approaches to vexing questions. Mirror self-recognition has often been interpreted as evidence for the presence of some form of self-concept/awareness. Children from age 2 onwards investigate their own bodies after seeing a novel mark on their heads in the mirror (surreptitiously placed in their hair by the experimenter). Younger children and most animals do not respond to their images in such a way (instead, for example, treating it as another individual). ....The nature of self-recognition: novel approaches to vexing questions. Mirror self-recognition has often been interpreted as evidence for the presence of some form of self-concept/awareness. Children from age 2 onwards investigate their own bodies after seeing a novel mark on their heads in the mirror (surreptitiously placed in their hair by the experimenter). Younger children and most animals do not respond to their images in such a way (instead, for example, treating it as another individual). The present experiments probe the nature of self-recognition using novel digital video technology rather than mirrors. This technology allows us to manipulate the contingency and appearance of the image. Five studies investigate the performance of 2 to 4-year-old children, autistic children, chimpanzees and dolphins to determine whether they recognize themselves and what underwrites their performance on the tasks. The innovative use of modern technology is expected to answer some of the most persistent questions in psychology.
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Resilience of eucalypts to future droughts. This project aims to examine how resilient Eucalyptus species are to future droughts by combining data synthesis, manipulative experiments and modelling. Climate change is expected to increase the frequency, magnitude and duration of future droughts, with major environmental and socio-economic consequences for Australia. Current predictive capacity is extremely limited: experiments are limited in scale and cannot capture important global change interac ....Resilience of eucalypts to future droughts. This project aims to examine how resilient Eucalyptus species are to future droughts by combining data synthesis, manipulative experiments and modelling. Climate change is expected to increase the frequency, magnitude and duration of future droughts, with major environmental and socio-economic consequences for Australia. Current predictive capacity is extremely limited: experiments are limited in scale and cannot capture important global change interactions, whilst models do not represent the functional characteristics and adaptions of eucalypts. This project will develop a strong evidence- and process-based understanding to quantify the functional behaviour of drought-adapted Eucalyptus species and leverage this insight to make future model projections.Read moreRead less
The function and maintenance of aggressive mimics: the cleaner fish - fangblenny system. Mimicry is an important biological phenomenon, which is studied extensively by scientists. However, only 5% of papers that were published on mimicry systems in the last five years were from Australian institutes, yet mimicry is ubiquitous in Australia. Therefore, this study will enhance the recognition of Australian research on the international stage in mimicry studies, animal communication systems and beha ....The function and maintenance of aggressive mimics: the cleaner fish - fangblenny system. Mimicry is an important biological phenomenon, which is studied extensively by scientists. However, only 5% of papers that were published on mimicry systems in the last five years were from Australian institutes, yet mimicry is ubiquitous in Australia. Therefore, this study will enhance the recognition of Australian research on the international stage in mimicry studies, animal communication systems and behavioural ecology. This work will aid communication of biology to the general public, as mimicry is a celebrated example of Darwinian adaptation and stories about coral reefs are interesting and intuitive. This study will also provide empirical data to support theoretical development of mimicry theory. Read moreRead less
HIDE AND SPEAK - COLOUR COMMUNICATION IN REEF FISH. Fish play an important role in many Australian's lives, they are a source of recreation for scuba divers, snorkelers and fishermen, they are a draw card for tourists as well as a healthy source of food. This project will investigate the visual world of fish, unravelling their use of colour communication, thereby identifying environmental factors affecting successful communication. Such a study will provide insight into the impact on reef fish o ....HIDE AND SPEAK - COLOUR COMMUNICATION IN REEF FISH. Fish play an important role in many Australian's lives, they are a source of recreation for scuba divers, snorkelers and fishermen, they are a draw card for tourists as well as a healthy source of food. This project will investigate the visual world of fish, unravelling their use of colour communication, thereby identifying environmental factors affecting successful communication. Such a study will provide insight into the impact on reef fish of changes in water quality (e.g. river runoff) and temperature (e.g. bleaching events), as well as factors that affect the successful rearing of fish in aquaculture.
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Towards a climate theory of tropical cyclone formation. In Earth's current climate, about 80 to 90 tropical cyclones form every year around the globe, but the reasons why cyclones form at this rate are unknown. This project will use a combination of theoretical techniques and numerical simulation to elucidate the links between large-scale climate and the rate of tropical cyclone formation. A series of climate model experiments will be performed that also have the potential to improve confidence ....Towards a climate theory of tropical cyclone formation. In Earth's current climate, about 80 to 90 tropical cyclones form every year around the globe, but the reasons why cyclones form at this rate are unknown. This project will use a combination of theoretical techniques and numerical simulation to elucidate the links between large-scale climate and the rate of tropical cyclone formation. A series of climate model experiments will be performed that also have the potential to improve confidence in our predictions of tropical cyclone incidence in a future, changed climate.Read moreRead less
Electrophysiological correlates of verbal and visuospatial working memory. Successful interaction with the world is dependent on "working memory". This memory system holds things in mind, while relating them to the past and planning for the future. A carefully controlled task, presented on a computer screen, systematically increases the number of items to be kept in mind. Accuracy and speed of matching the items are measured. The results will contribute to a theory of what processes are used ....Electrophysiological correlates of verbal and visuospatial working memory. Successful interaction with the world is dependent on "working memory". This memory system holds things in mind, while relating them to the past and planning for the future. A carefully controlled task, presented on a computer screen, systematically increases the number of items to be kept in mind. Accuracy and speed of matching the items are measured. The results will contribute to a theory of what processes are used in working memory and how the human brain manages these processes.Read moreRead less
Sex is important in adaptation to environmental change. Aims: This project will use novel experiments with the aim of determining the potential for plasticity to be adaptive with sexual selection and how non-genetic effects transfer across generations by establishing genomic mechanisms. Significance: Plasticity (or acclimation) is often hailed as the saviour for species in the face of rapid climate change, but it is problematic if it is not adaptive in nature. Expected outcomes: Expected outcome ....Sex is important in adaptation to environmental change. Aims: This project will use novel experiments with the aim of determining the potential for plasticity to be adaptive with sexual selection and how non-genetic effects transfer across generations by establishing genomic mechanisms. Significance: Plasticity (or acclimation) is often hailed as the saviour for species in the face of rapid climate change, but it is problematic if it is not adaptive in nature. Expected outcomes: Expected outcomes include an enhanced ability to predict adaptation of fish under environmental change. Benefits: This project will provide significant benefits to Australian and international communities that rely on fish for nutrition, economic and social values, through an improved evidence base to inform management.Read moreRead less
Thinking about the future: The nature and development of mental time travel. This project is one of the first systematic investigations into the development of the human capacity to consider future events. A variety of novel tasks will probe what children know about the future and how it relates to their ability to reason about past events. Comparisons between children and apes will further inform us about the nature of this crucial mental skill. The findings will provide valuable information fo ....Thinking about the future: The nature and development of mental time travel. This project is one of the first systematic investigations into the development of the human capacity to consider future events. A variety of novel tasks will probe what children know about the future and how it relates to their ability to reason about past events. Comparisons between children and apes will further inform us about the nature of this crucial mental skill. The findings will provide valuable information for developing appropriate educational approaches and for our understanding of abnormalities. As international leaders in this field, we are in an ideal position to conduct this research, offer unique opportunities for postgraduate training, and to continue in Australia's outstanding tradition of excellence in basic research.Read moreRead less