The Objects of Probabilities. Probabilities impact almost every aspect of our lives. Actuaries calculate probabilities of property loss due to bushfires, while climatologists warn that such probabilities will increase alarmingly. Probabilities abound in engineering, medicine, the law, the sciences and social sciences, and much philosophy. Yet we lack a proper understanding of the kinds of things that receive probabilities: the objects of probabilities. This project will provide such understandin ....The Objects of Probabilities. Probabilities impact almost every aspect of our lives. Actuaries calculate probabilities of property loss due to bushfires, while climatologists warn that such probabilities will increase alarmingly. Probabilities abound in engineering, medicine, the law, the sciences and social sciences, and much philosophy. Yet we lack a proper understanding of the kinds of things that receive probabilities: the objects of probabilities. This project will provide such understanding. It will rethink the foundations of probability and decision theory, with potential ramifications for the philosophy, science, and public policy that are based on these theories. It thus aims to strengthen Australia's research profile and international standing in these areas.Read moreRead less
Decision theory in crisis. Decision theory's goals are to characterise and to guide rational decision-making—from the minor decisions of daily life, to the major decisions of industry and government— which, in its current state, it is unfit to do. This project will refine decision theory so that it may better achieve these goals.
New frontiers in statistical mechanics. The chiral Potts model has been introduced in 1981 as a model for commensurate-incommensurate phase transitions in a layer of atoms or molecules adsorbed to a solid surface. If the adsorbed atoms all fit to holes between the surface atoms, the added layer is frozen, commensurate with the surface. If the added atoms are unable to fit holes, the added layer is no longer commensurate with the surface and could be in a floating state. A deeper understanding of ....New frontiers in statistical mechanics. The chiral Potts model has been introduced in 1981 as a model for commensurate-incommensurate phase transitions in a layer of atoms or molecules adsorbed to a solid surface. If the adsorbed atoms all fit to holes between the surface atoms, the added layer is frozen, commensurate with the surface. If the added atoms are unable to fit holes, the added layer is no longer commensurate with the surface and could be in a floating state. A deeper understanding of this and similar phenomena in layered systems has nanotechnological implications. This may affect the design of new small electronic devices or could apply to small biological systems and the development of new medicines. The project will surely lead to new applicable mathematics.Read moreRead less
Design of dynamic visual signals. Models of the design of visual signals depend heavily upon analyses of static ornaments. Nothing is known about dynamic visual signals. We will use an array of new techniques to tackle this problem for the first time. Motion analyses will define the task faced by the visual system. Sensory limitations will be measured to identify constraints on signal evolution. Digital video playback studies will assess recognition and explain aspects of signal design. Results ....Design of dynamic visual signals. Models of the design of visual signals depend heavily upon analyses of static ornaments. Nothing is known about dynamic visual signals. We will use an array of new techniques to tackle this problem for the first time. Motion analyses will define the task faced by the visual system. Sensory limitations will be measured to identify constraints on signal evolution. Digital video playback studies will assess recognition and explain aspects of signal design. Results will test the generality of principles that have been developed in studies of female mate choice and extend these ideas to address intra-sexual selection operating through opponent assessment.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE160100174
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$805,000.00
Summary
Urban Analytics Data Infrastructure. Urban analytics data infrastructure:
This project aims to develop an urban analytics data infrastructure that builds on the Australian Urban Research Infrastructure Network. This digital data infrastructure intends to enable the integration, harmonisation, connectivity and scalability of multi-source urban datasets. This infrastructure is required to underpin the next generation of data-driven modelling and decision-support tools to enable the design of smar ....Urban Analytics Data Infrastructure. Urban analytics data infrastructure:
This project aims to develop an urban analytics data infrastructure that builds on the Australian Urban Research Infrastructure Network. This digital data infrastructure intends to enable the integration, harmonisation, connectivity and scalability of multi-source urban datasets. This infrastructure is required to underpin the next generation of data-driven modelling and decision-support tools to enable the design of smart, productive and resilient cities. These capabilities are predicated on the adoption of ISO standards, development of new ontological frameworks and an urban data dictionary to enable semantic inferencing of datasets and the development of data structures and services. This framework would then be applied to data relevant to people, land and urban infrastructure to support comparative and multi-dimensional analytics. Read moreRead less
The mathematics and physics of interacting systems. Much of the world around us involves the networked interaction between a large number of components. For example, such complex networks may be physical, biological, social or technical in nature and represent connections between magnetic spins, species, people or computers. This Project will provide a firm theoretical foundation for such complex interacting systems through an investigation of the fascinating mathematics and physics behind them. ....The mathematics and physics of interacting systems. Much of the world around us involves the networked interaction between a large number of components. For example, such complex networks may be physical, biological, social or technical in nature and represent connections between magnetic spins, species, people or computers. This Project will provide a firm theoretical foundation for such complex interacting systems through an investigation of the fascinating mathematics and physics behind them. This perspective from mathematical physics, in particular using the tools of statistical mechanics, will lead to a better understanding of many real-world complex systems.Read moreRead less
Solvable models on regular and random lattices in statistical mechanics and field theory. There are only a few solvable models in statistical mechanics and field theory, but those that are known give deep insights into the cooperative behaviour that characterizes a critical point, as well as
leading to fascinating mathematics. The two chief investigators have been at the forefront of this field for many years. Currently there are many notable exciting challenges they wish to address:
the re ....Solvable models on regular and random lattices in statistical mechanics and field theory. There are only a few solvable models in statistical mechanics and field theory, but those that are known give deep insights into the cooperative behaviour that characterizes a critical point, as well as
leading to fascinating mathematics. The two chief investigators have been at the forefront of this field for many years. Currently there are many notable exciting challenges they wish to address:
the relationship between Tutte's work on dichromatic polynomials and matrix models, the outstanding problem of calculating the order parameters of the chiral Potts model, and the eigenvalue spectra of the transfer matrices that occur in integrable models.
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Solvable models and pattern formation: quantum spin ladders, combinatorics and stromatolite morphogenesis. The aim of this project is to develop new applications of exactly solved models in statistical mechanics. These include the study of quantum spin ladders of great interest in condensed matter physics. The physical properties of new and existing models will be derived to provide valuable benchmarks and predictions for future theoretical and experimental work. We will also undertake the study ....Solvable models and pattern formation: quantum spin ladders, combinatorics and stromatolite morphogenesis. The aim of this project is to develop new applications of exactly solved models in statistical mechanics. These include the study of quantum spin ladders of great interest in condensed matter physics. The physical properties of new and existing models will be derived to provide valuable benchmarks and predictions for future theoretical and experimental work. We will also undertake the study and development of a set of remarkable conjectures relating the properties of a solvable model to an established area of combinatorics. Another aspect of this project involves the investigation of the origins, growth and form of ancient stromatolites.
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Handling unreliable, uncertain and inadequate data for Intelligence led Investigation. Intelligence led investigation has been successful recently in drug and people smuggling, preparation or instigation of acts of terrorism, and can benefit profoundly from the techniques we will develop, in the timely management and inference from many sources and kinds of uncertain information. This work will assist in making Australia a safer and more secure country.
E.g., Australian Bureau of Statistics ....Handling unreliable, uncertain and inadequate data for Intelligence led Investigation. Intelligence led investigation has been successful recently in drug and people smuggling, preparation or instigation of acts of terrorism, and can benefit profoundly from the techniques we will develop, in the timely management and inference from many sources and kinds of uncertain information. This work will assist in making Australia a safer and more secure country.
E.g., Australian Bureau of Statistics figures show that for 2004, investigations of some 35% of murders, 63% of kidnappings, and 80% of robberies are incomplete at 30 days. Terrorism investigations are harder in that usually there is no initial crime trigger for an investigation. Any assistance our tools can provide in will be of significant benefit to Australia.Read moreRead less
Data Adaptive Geophysical Inversion. The goal of this project is to develop new techniques for extracting information about the interior structure of the Earth from large geophysical data sets. These methods will be adaptive so that they allow the definition of the physical model to be constrained by the character of the data. The project will utilize advances in computational geometry, nonlinear inversion and interactive computer visualisation to extract robust information from data sets with v ....Data Adaptive Geophysical Inversion. The goal of this project is to develop new techniques for extracting information about the interior structure of the Earth from large geophysical data sets. These methods will be adaptive so that they allow the definition of the physical model to be constrained by the character of the data. The project will utilize advances in computational geometry, nonlinear inversion and interactive computer visualisation to extract robust information from data sets with variable resolving power. The resulting algorithms will be applicable to a wide range of problems in the physical sciences.Read moreRead less