Novel water treatment processes. The objective of this project is the discovery of novel methods for the treatment and reuse of water for both industrial and household applications. Improved treatment systems with the potential for water reuse offer significant improvements to our overall water management potential. The first part of the project is designed to focus on the study of hot bubble column evaporators for solute decomposition, sterilisation and the de-watering of heavily contaminated i ....Novel water treatment processes. The objective of this project is the discovery of novel methods for the treatment and reuse of water for both industrial and household applications. Improved treatment systems with the potential for water reuse offer significant improvements to our overall water management potential. The first part of the project is designed to focus on the study of hot bubble column evaporators for solute decomposition, sterilisation and the de-watering of heavily contaminated industrial wastewater. The second part would be based on the study of a suitable depth filter medium for the treatment of partially treated household sewage water. This is designed to form part of an on-site household sewage water treatment and reuse system which is currently being developed.Read moreRead less
A cross-national study of the relative impact of an oral component on PhD examination quality, language and practice. High quality doctoral degrees call for the most effective forms of assessment. This project investigates the role of oral examination in PhD assessment, common internationally but not in Australia, and is the first to compare the relative impact of oral and 'no oral' models on examination quality, language and practice.
Min/Max Autocorrelation Factors in Time Series Studies of the Adverse Health Effects of Ozone. The annual health costs associated with exposure to air pollution in Australia have been estimated at between $3 and 5.3 billion. Given these costs, it is vital to conduct research that ensures public health officials and policy makers stay fully informed of Australia’s air pollution problem. The project proposes to address this need by developing methodology to detect trends in air pollution concentra ....Min/Max Autocorrelation Factors in Time Series Studies of the Adverse Health Effects of Ozone. The annual health costs associated with exposure to air pollution in Australia have been estimated at between $3 and 5.3 billion. Given these costs, it is vital to conduct research that ensures public health officials and policy makers stay fully informed of Australia’s air pollution problem. The project proposes to address this need by developing methodology to detect trends in air pollution concentrations and reduce measurement error in recorded air pollution concentrations. This will enable relevant authorities to produce more accurate estimates of air pollution health costs and implement more appropriate pollution regulations and health warnings.Read moreRead less
Using national surveys to uncover and assess potentially harmful sexual practices in Southeast Asia. Studies in Southeast Asia have revealed a wide variety of sexual practices carrying risks to the reproductive health of women and men. This proposal builds on that base to design methods for population level analysis of behaviour and attitudes. It will address key hypotheses related to gender and the assessment of risk, harm and disadvantage. The Australian Aid program and national health depart ....Using national surveys to uncover and assess potentially harmful sexual practices in Southeast Asia. Studies in Southeast Asia have revealed a wide variety of sexual practices carrying risks to the reproductive health of women and men. This proposal builds on that base to design methods for population level analysis of behaviour and attitudes. It will address key hypotheses related to gender and the assessment of risk, harm and disadvantage. The Australian Aid program and national health departments will use the data on unhealthy practices for reproductive health programs. Major beneficiaries include individuals who will be guided away from unhealthy practices, and medical providers who will have more evidence to guide their practice.Read moreRead less
Air pollution: do modern statistical model selection techniques make the silent killer speak too loud? Air pollution is estimated to cause 2400 deaths annually in Australia with an associated cost to the community of $17.2 billion. The outcomes of this project will enable an improved understanding of the association between air pollution and mortality in Australia, thereby allowing government, public health authorities, and regulatory agencies to implement better air pollution standards and pro ....Air pollution: do modern statistical model selection techniques make the silent killer speak too loud? Air pollution is estimated to cause 2400 deaths annually in Australia with an associated cost to the community of $17.2 billion. The outcomes of this project will enable an improved understanding of the association between air pollution and mortality in Australia, thereby allowing government, public health authorities, and regulatory agencies to implement better air pollution standards and provide more informed advice to the public on the necessity of avoiding exposure to air pollutants. These two outcomes are particularly important given Australia's ageing population and the fact that the elderly are among those most susceptible to harm from air pollution exposure.Read moreRead less
Processing mathematics tasks: the nature and role of visual and non-visual reasoning in digital and non-digital environments. Within the next four years, it is likely that the National Assessment Plan for Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) will be administered in a digital mode. This project identifies differences between the delivery of mathematics assessment in pencil-and-paper and computer-based modes. Primary students' mathematics reasoning is compared across these modes and to cohorts from Sing ....Processing mathematics tasks: the nature and role of visual and non-visual reasoning in digital and non-digital environments. Within the next four years, it is likely that the National Assessment Plan for Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) will be administered in a digital mode. This project identifies differences between the delivery of mathematics assessment in pencil-and-paper and computer-based modes. Primary students' mathematics reasoning is compared across these modes and to cohorts from Singapore.Read moreRead less
Processing dynamic graphics: Visuospatial reasoning in mathematics. Increasingly, mathematics competence will be measured in digital and dynamic contexts. Students who possess high visuospatial reasoning are expected to become even better equipped to succeed in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) related disciplines as technological advances shape how we interpret and decode information. This project explores those aspects of visuospatial reasoning critical for success when s ....Processing dynamic graphics: Visuospatial reasoning in mathematics. Increasingly, mathematics competence will be measured in digital and dynamic contexts. Students who possess high visuospatial reasoning are expected to become even better equipped to succeed in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) related disciplines as technological advances shape how we interpret and decode information. This project explores those aspects of visuospatial reasoning critical for success when students encounter dynamic mathematics tasks, and attempts to determine whether different forms of visuospatial reasoning are required to decode static and dynamic information. The project aims to better understand how students process mathematics tasks, so the inevitable move toward digital assessment can be managed effectively to promote assessment for learning.Read moreRead less
Simultaneous localisation and image fusion for robotic explorations. Australia has played a leading role in the field of autonomous system research that s becoming increasingly prevalent in industrial applications such as environment monitoring, remote sensing, and battlefield intelligence. Unstructured and landmark-deficient operating conditions impose significant challenges in achieving accurate mapping and localisation. This research will develop a framework for image-based mapping and fusion ....Simultaneous localisation and image fusion for robotic explorations. Australia has played a leading role in the field of autonomous system research that s becoming increasingly prevalent in industrial applications such as environment monitoring, remote sensing, and battlefield intelligence. Unstructured and landmark-deficient operating conditions impose significant challenges in achieving accurate mapping and localisation. This research will develop a framework for image-based mapping and fusion, thus contributing to the key enabling technologies for autonomous systems. The outcomes of this project will contribute to the current international leadership of Australia in this fast-evolving technology.Read moreRead less
Defeating Radio Frequency Interference. The radio spectrum is a valuable resource. Development of techniques which minimize the impact of various users on one another, allowing this resource to be shared, will benefit the entire community. For astronomy in particular, shared use is essential because of the very wide bandwidths needed to obtain sufficient sensitivity. Usage of the radio spectrum is increasing rapidly and radio telescopes are becoming more and more sensitive, compounding the probl ....Defeating Radio Frequency Interference. The radio spectrum is a valuable resource. Development of techniques which minimize the impact of various users on one another, allowing this resource to be shared, will benefit the entire community. For astronomy in particular, shared use is essential because of the very wide bandwidths needed to obtain sufficient sensitivity. Usage of the radio spectrum is increasing rapidly and radio telescopes are becoming more and more sensitive, compounding the problems. The digital signal processing techniques developed under this project will be widely applicable, not only to future radio astronomy facilities such as the Square Kilometer Array, but also to the communications industry generally.Read moreRead less
Environmental geodesy: variations of sea level and water storage in the Australian region. It is essential for Australia's long-term planning and security that the effects of global warming on our nation's water resources and coastlines are quantified. Sea level variations projected into the future vary around Australia and have large uncertainties, yet the impacts have substantial social and financial ramifications for our community. Australia hasn't yet quantified accurately its critical water ....Environmental geodesy: variations of sea level and water storage in the Australian region. It is essential for Australia's long-term planning and security that the effects of global warming on our nation's water resources and coastlines are quantified. Sea level variations projected into the future vary around Australia and have large uncertainties, yet the impacts have substantial social and financial ramifications for our community. Australia hasn't yet quantified accurately its critical water resources nor how they are changing. This proposal will address both these issues, providing for the first time valuable and accurate information for planning appropriate strategies to mitigate the impact of sea level rise and water storage on the Australian society.Read moreRead less