Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE120101126
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$375,000.00
Summary
More than meets the egg: environmental effects on sperm quality, sperm competitive success, and offspring fitness. Can a male's environment affect his sperm quality and the health of his offspring? By experimentally testing how the paternal environment affects sperm quality, this project will help us understand (1) why sperm vary so much, and (2) what consequences variability in sperm quality has for paternity success and offspring fitness.
Evolution and development of a lateralised brain: A behavioural ecology perspective. Little research on fish behavioural ecology is conducted in Australia despite our imperilled, unique aquatic ecosystems. Studies examining cerebral lateralisation using our native species as model organisms will help determine how animals classify and process information, providing a novel method of examining how native fishes respond to invasive predators and competitors. Increased understanding of lateralised ....Evolution and development of a lateralised brain: A behavioural ecology perspective. Little research on fish behavioural ecology is conducted in Australia despite our imperilled, unique aquatic ecosystems. Studies examining cerebral lateralisation using our native species as model organisms will help determine how animals classify and process information, providing a novel method of examining how native fishes respond to invasive predators and competitors. Increased understanding of lateralised cognitive function will shed light on its selective advantage as a fundamental aspect of brain function in all animals including humans. This multidisciplinary proposal will facilitate international collaborations, see the return of a home-grown scientist and ensure that Australia remains a world leader in scientific research.Read moreRead less
Evolution, learning, and the use of multiple cues in desert ant navigation. This research on desert ants benefits Australia by fostering an international collaboration with one of the best European scientists, training students, and increasing knowledge about Australia's unique fauna, helping us to appreciate and better manage our fragile desert environments. With this international link, students working on this and related projects benefit intellectually from mingling with an international com ....Evolution, learning, and the use of multiple cues in desert ant navigation. This research on desert ants benefits Australia by fostering an international collaboration with one of the best European scientists, training students, and increasing knowledge about Australia's unique fauna, helping us to appreciate and better manage our fragile desert environments. With this international link, students working on this and related projects benefit intellectually from mingling with an international community of scientists.Understanding insect behaviour also has benefits for robotics. Work on desert ants has already resulted in robotic applications, and our outcomes concerning the optimal integration of multiple spatial cues are especially relevant.Read moreRead less
Towards a behavioural ecology of navigational memories in desert ants. Navigational memories (path integration, systematic search, and landmark use) in a Central Australian desert ant (Melophorus bagoti) and a North African desert ant (Cataglyphis fortis) are studied at the ants? natural habitats. The project tests predictions about behavioural properties of memory (how quickly it can be acquired, how long it lasts, and how a conflicting event affects it), based on a cost-benefit analysis of the ....Towards a behavioural ecology of navigational memories in desert ants. Navigational memories (path integration, systematic search, and landmark use) in a Central Australian desert ant (Melophorus bagoti) and a North African desert ant (Cataglyphis fortis) are studied at the ants? natural habitats. The project tests predictions about behavioural properties of memory (how quickly it can be acquired, how long it lasts, and how a conflicting event affects it), based on a cost-benefit analysis of the functions of each memory system. The project launches the first systematic cost-benefit analysis of memory, to establish a behavioural ecology of memory. We hope that it inspires cost-benefit analyses of other functions of the brain.Read moreRead less
The human face as an evolved signalling system. This project will, for the first time, thoroughly investigate the role that facial movement plays in human non-verbal communication. It will uncover the subtle, dynamic signals that are exchanged in almost all everyday social encounters, enriching our understanding of human communication and forming a solid basis for detecting intentions from an analysis of facial movements, with the obvious security benefits that entails.
Multi-modal signals: an experimental analysis. This project is built upon innovations that permit the first exploration of an important, but previously-inaccessible, problem. We will continue to develop techniques with wide applicability for the analysis of movement, and will make them available to other research groups. The proposed work addresses a hot topic that is generating international attention; it will hence make a distinctive Australian contribution to a rapidly expanding research area ....Multi-modal signals: an experimental analysis. This project is built upon innovations that permit the first exploration of an important, but previously-inaccessible, problem. We will continue to develop techniques with wide applicability for the analysis of movement, and will make them available to other research groups. The proposed work addresses a hot topic that is generating international attention; it will hence make a distinctive Australian contribution to a rapidly expanding research area. Results will be communicated through the WWW and science documentaries. Animal Behaviour is of great interest to the general public. This can be engaged to attract more young people to careers in science. We will continue to train postgraduates in a well-resourced and stimulating environment.Read moreRead less
The Evolution of the Social Brain: How Emotions and Moral Judgement Interact in the Generation of Cooperative Behaviour. Understanding the psychological forces that underpin human interactions is a necessary step to knowing how to improve those interactions. Comprehending the complex interplay of emotions and moral judgements lying behind decision-making in the social sphere will help explain such things as corruption, risk-taking, domestic violence, and political affiliation. Such knowledge can ....The Evolution of the Social Brain: How Emotions and Moral Judgement Interact in the Generation of Cooperative Behaviour. Understanding the psychological forces that underpin human interactions is a necessary step to knowing how to improve those interactions. Comprehending the complex interplay of emotions and moral judgements lying behind decision-making in the social sphere will help explain such things as corruption, risk-taking, domestic violence, and political affiliation. Such knowledge can guide the design of effective social policy, and is vital for a realistic educational strategy. This project will strengthen Australia's excellent reputation in philosophy, bring here leading scholars from diverse fields, build international research networks, and in particular forge an ongoing partnership between the ANU and the California Institute of Technology.Read moreRead less