Ecological-epidemiological models of feral swamp buffalo control in northern Australia. This research is locally, nationally and internationally significant because it 1) improves the capacity of the Northern Territory and its traditional aboriginal owners to manage together this prevalent species in an effort to minimise disturbance to native flora and fauna and to understand the long-term implications of continued proliferation, 2) provides a nationally relevant system to monitor and project t ....Ecological-epidemiological models of feral swamp buffalo control in northern Australia. This research is locally, nationally and internationally significant because it 1) improves the capacity of the Northern Territory and its traditional aboriginal owners to manage together this prevalent species in an effort to minimise disturbance to native flora and fauna and to understand the long-term implications of continued proliferation, 2) provides a nationally relevant system to monitor and project the spread of disease through feral animal populations in Australia, and 3) combines quantitative data and robust analytical tools that can be used as a template for solving many broad-scale feral animal problems around the world.Read moreRead less
Understanding And Ameliorating The Human Health Effects Of Exposure To Air Pollution: From Knowledge To Policy And Public Health Practice
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$2,584,848.00
Summary
Urban consolidation and sprawl, traffic congestion, mining, climate change, heating and cooling living environments, and power generation – these manifestations of modernity produce regular headlines. Air pollution and its effects on human health are the focus of much popular concern. This CRE will build an integrated research capacity in the field of air pollution and its effects on human health that will allow Australia to address these major challenges - now and in the future.
The Healthy Brain Project: A Prospective Cohort Study To Examine How Later-life University Education May Affect The Trajectory Of Ageing-related Cognitive Decline
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$1,085,742.00
Summary
Previous research has indicated that higher levels of education in early adulthood are associated with lower risk for dementia in older adults. This world-first project will examine if older adults who undertake university education have reduced rates of age-related cognitive decline than older adults who do not undertake further education. This would support the notion that boosting cognitive reserve in later life is protective against age- and disease-related neurodegenerative change.
The Lively Regional City: Mapping City Centre ‘Assemblages’ that Work. This project analyses city centre revitalisation processes and policies in the context of regional Australia. Working with Wollongong City Council, the project aims to provide an evidence-based analysis of how the Wollongong city centre is perceived, regarded and used by its residents and visitors, paying particular attention to those aspects considered either 'lively' or 'dead'; its goal is to interrogate revitalisation poli ....The Lively Regional City: Mapping City Centre ‘Assemblages’ that Work. This project analyses city centre revitalisation processes and policies in the context of regional Australia. Working with Wollongong City Council, the project aims to provide an evidence-based analysis of how the Wollongong city centre is perceived, regarded and used by its residents and visitors, paying particular attention to those aspects considered either 'lively' or 'dead'; its goal is to interrogate revitalisation policy frameworks and create decision-making tools to inform planning processes for long-term city centre revitalisation and sustainable economic growth; and identify opportunities for innovative city centre planning in Wollongong to contribute to the regions sustainable transformation, long-term growth, employment and community development.Read moreRead less
Energy Transitions, Air Pollution And Health In Australia
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$2,491,229.00
Summary
Emissions from burning biomass (including fossil fuels) are major features of our environment and are the 4th leading global risk factor for premature death. As countries shift their patterns of energy use in response to global warming, new challenges are emerging. Understanding this is crucial to our ability to maintain health and stability in uncertain times. This CRE will examine the health consequences of (1) fossil fuel combustion, (2) landscape fires and (3) alternatives to fossil fuels.
From risk factor analysis to translation: multiple sclerosis and vitamin D deficiency. This research on multiple sclerosis will focus on its causes and lifestyle factors that affect it and will trial vitamin D supplementation as a treatment. Studies on vitamin D deficiency in healthy populations aim to develop new public health recommendations on sun exposure and vitamin D that balance risk of skin cancer against vitamin D deficiency.
Critical windows: understanding changes in eating and physical activity over the transition from secondary school to young adulthood. This project will explain changes in eating, physical activity and sedentary behaviour during the critical period of transition from secondary school to young adulthood. It will provide important information on how we can assist adolescents to maintain a healthy lifestyle over a time characterised by several major life changes.
Does mother know best? Unifying proximate causation and ultimate explanation in mammalian sex allocation. The study of parental effects is a fundamental area in evolutionary ecology, but is characterised by poor integration of theory (ultimate causation) and physiology (proximate causation). This is true in sex allocation research that focuses almost exclusively on ultimate causation without integrating the physiological mechanisms for sex ratio adjustment. Using a combination of experiments and ....Does mother know best? Unifying proximate causation and ultimate explanation in mammalian sex allocation. The study of parental effects is a fundamental area in evolutionary ecology, but is characterised by poor integration of theory (ultimate causation) and physiology (proximate causation). This is true in sex allocation research that focuses almost exclusively on ultimate causation without integrating the physiological mechanisms for sex ratio adjustment. Using a combination of experiments and modelling, the project addresses this gap in understanding mammalian sex allocation, specifically: the lack of known mechanism; the connection between proximate mechanistic explanation and adaptive fitness explanations; and, knowledge on constraints. This project argues that one mechanism, pre-implantation glucose levels, links adaptive hypotheses with proximate causation. Read moreRead less
Maternal effects and sex allocation: an integrated approach. This project will produce research of a high international standard combining a number of key fields in evolution and ecology. The team we have assembled provides a link between Australian-based researchers and leading overseas theoreticians facilitating integration between evolutionary theory and empirical research on the unique Australian fauna. Furthermore, while climate change is identified as a priority area for research, Australi ....Maternal effects and sex allocation: an integrated approach. This project will produce research of a high international standard combining a number of key fields in evolution and ecology. The team we have assembled provides a link between Australian-based researchers and leading overseas theoreticians facilitating integration between evolutionary theory and empirical research on the unique Australian fauna. Furthermore, while climate change is identified as a priority area for research, Australia typically lacks the history of long-term phenological monitoring that is required to understand climate change impacts. This project takes an important step towards addressing this shortcoming.Read moreRead less
Flexibility in the timing of parturition: the key to viviparity in lizards? Embryos of viviparous lizards usually gain adequate nutrients from yolk. Why then has placentotrophy evolved in some species, and what new opportunities has it opened up? The answer may lie in the advantages gained from flexibility in the timing of birth, made possible by supplementary transfer of storage lipids to embryos during gestation. We argue that this provides a pivotal opportunity for evolutionary divergence: so ....Flexibility in the timing of parturition: the key to viviparity in lizards? Embryos of viviparous lizards usually gain adequate nutrients from yolk. Why then has placentotrophy evolved in some species, and what new opportunities has it opened up? The answer may lie in the advantages gained from flexibility in the timing of birth, made possible by supplementary transfer of storage lipids to embryos during gestation. We argue that this provides a pivotal opportunity for evolutionary divergence: some alpine species exploit flexible parturition; other species replace optional placentotrophy with obligate transfer. Our unique experimental approach, using two well-researched clades of viviparous skinks, will result in new testable hypotheses about the evolution of viviparity.Read moreRead less