News Alerts

The 2009 Prime Minister’s Prizes for Science

On 28 October 2009, the Prime Minister of Australia, The Hon Kevin Rudd and Senator Kim Carr, the Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research, presented the 2009 Prime Minister’s Prizes for Science.

The 2009 recipients are:

Prime Minister’s Prize for Science
John O’Sullivan: How astronomy freed the computer from its chains

Nearly a billion people use John O’Sullivan’s invention every day. When you use a WiFi network—at home, in the office or at the airport—you are using patented technology born of the work of John and his CSIRO colleagues.

They created a technology that made the wireless LAN fast and robust. And their solution came from John’s efforts to hear the faint radio whispers of exploding black holes.

Today John is working on technology that will allow us to look back almost to the beginning of time itself.

Malcolm McIntosh Prize for Physical Scientist of the Year
Amanda Barnard: Testing new technologies in the computer not the real world
Every new technology brings opportunities and threats. Nanotechnology is no exception. It has the potential to create new materials that will dramatically improve drug delivery, medical diagnostics, clean and efficient energy, computing and more. But nanoparticles—materials made small, just a few millionths of a millimetre in size—could also have significant health and environmental impacts.

Amanda Barnard hopes to predict which nanoparticles will work most efficiently and which could be dangerous. Using supercomputers, she’s making the particles in the virtual world and testing how they interact in various environments before they get made in the real world. Her peers told her it couldn’t be done. But this young scientist proved them wrong and now leads the world in her field of nanomorphology—predicting the shape, structure and stability of nanoparticles.

Science Minister’s Prize for Life Scientist of the Year
Michael Cowley: Breaking the link between fat and diabetes
Why do we get fat? What’s the link between obesity, diabetes and hypertension? Can we break the link? These are critical questions for Australia’s long-term health, and Michael Cowley may have the answers. He’s shown how our brains manage our consumption and storage of fat and sugar and how that can go wrong. He’s created a biotech company that’s trialling four obesity treatments.

Michael has shown unequivocally that losing weight isn’t just a matter of will power.

Now with his colleagues at Monash University he is discovering why obesity increases risks of heart disease and diabetes. And he’s developing therapies to break the connection between these conditions.

Prime Minister’s Prize for Excellence in Teaching in Secondary Schools
Len Altman: Creating new careers in the rocks
Geoscience is at the heart of some of humanity’s biggest challenges in the 21st Century: access to water; alternative energy sources like geothermal and hydro; and adapting to climate change. "So why," asks Len Altman, "Are students in our schools more likely to learn about the moons of Jupiter or the rings of Saturn than about the planet Earth and its history?"

Len is changing that at Marden Senior School and at the schools in his region and state. Along the way he is helping more young people discover science, and helping mature students discover new careers in the minerals industries.

Prime Minister’s Prize for Excellence in Teaching in Primary Schools
Allan Whittome: Living science
Badgingarra Primary School is perched on a hill three hours north of Perth, looking out across fields of canola and wheat. The approach to the school is lined with sculptures of native animals and a model of the Solar System made in limestone, set amongst native plants. In the classroom the students are fine- tuning model racing cars they’ve designed and manufactured online. All this is due to the work of Allan Whittome.

Students participate in competitions, awards programs and community projects including the NATA Young Scientist of the Year awards, the Earthwatch Teachlive Whale Sharks of Ningaloo project, Community Hydrogen Fuel Vehicle Challenge and the F1in Schools program.

Nominations for 2010
Nomination round for 2010 will commence sometime in early February. It provides research organisations, universities, Education Departments and schools with a unique opportunity to seek public acknowledgement of the outstanding efforts of their colleagues.

More information available on http://www.innovation.gov.au/scienceprizes

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NHMRC grants announced

This year’s NHMRC funding for health and medical research and infrastructure has been announced, with $380 million of a total of $508 million awarded to 675 Project Grants.

Other funding includes:

• 13 Enabling Grants totaling $18 million for research facilities and resources such as the Twin Registry and brain and cancer tissue specimen collections;
• 54 Career Development Awards totalling $20.7 million to support early career researchers;
• Research Fellowships totaling $53 million for 75 new Fellowships, 19 sixth-year Fellowships (funding an extra year for existing Fellows) and six grants-in-aid;
• 16 Practitioner Fellowships, totalling $6.5 million, for researchers who also work as clinicians or in public health;
• 55 Standard Equipment Grants totalling $9 million; and
• $50,000 for Australia’s membership of the Human Genome Organization.

The funding is in addition to $21 million announced last month for Partnership for Better Health grants.

Details of this years NHMRC grants are at http://www.nhmrc.gov.au/grants/rounds/index.htm#Part

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$235 million funding for renewable energy projects

Grants totaling $235 million have been awarded to four commercial-scale renewable energy projects from the Renewable Energy Demonstration Program (REDP).

The four successful lead companies are MNGI Pty Ltd (Petratherm), Geodynamics Pty Ltd, Victorian Wave Partners Pty Ltd and the Hydro-Electric Corporation (Hydro Tasmania).

The funding will be combined with money from the successful applicants to make a total investment of $810 million in renewable energy technologies including wave technology, geothermal sources, and an integrated mini-grid project involving wind, solar, biodiesel and storage technologies.

The successful projects are:

MNGI Pty Ltd - $62.762 million grant subject to successful offer negotiations. The 30MW Paralana Geothermal Energy Project is an engineered geothermal system (EGS) project, based on Petratherm’s ‘Heat Exchanger Within Insulator’ (HEWI) model. The Paralana project is located adjacent to the Beverley uranium mine.

Geodynamics Limited - $90 million grant subject to successful offer negotiations. The Geodynamics Cooper Basin 25 MW Geothermal Demonstration Project will demonstrate the potential for hot-rock geothermal energy to be a major generator of zero-emission, base-load power. The Project will be the world’s first multi-well hot fractured rock power project.  The Project will be located in the north east corner of South Australia in the Cooper Basin, between Moomba and Innamincka, where Geodynamics has assessed its resource as holding geothermal energy sufficient to support several thousand megawatts of electricity generating capacity.

Victorian Wave Partners Pty Ltd - $66.465 million grant subject to successful offer negotiations.  Ocean Power Technologies (Australasia) and its partner Leighton Contractors will construct the first commercial scale ocean energy project in Australia. The 19 MW Victorian Wave Power Demonstration Project involves the staged construction and demonstration of wave power generation using Ocean Power Technologies PowerBuoy technology off Portland, Victoria.

The Hydro-Electric Corporation (Hydro Tasmania) - $15.280 million grant subject to successful offer negotiations. The King Island Renewable Energy Integration Project will demonstrate the potential for enabling technologies to help integrate renewable technologies into established electricity networks and mini-grid systems in remote areas. The King Island project is to integrate wind, solar and storage with a biodiesel generator to provide baseload and peak power for the King Island mini grid system, which currently uses diesel generators for its primary energy supply. The integration of these energy sources will require the provision of innovative control mechanisms for load and frequency control.

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New chief for CSIRO Food and Nutritional Sciences

Professor Martin Cole has been appointed Chief of CSIRO’s Division of Food and Nutritional Sciences.

Professor Cole is currently Director of the National Centre for Food Safety and Technology (NCFST) in the United States and Research Professor of Biology at Illinois Institute of Technology.

Between 1999 and 2004 he was based at Food Science Australia (FSA), a joint venture between CSIRO and the Victorian Government and the predecessor to FNS. His time at FSA included 15 months as acting CEO.

Professor Cole will take up the position in January, taking over from interim Chief and FSA CEO Professor Alan Bell, who has overseen the move from Food Science Australia to CSIRO Food and Nutritional Sciences. Professor Bell will return as Chief of CSIRO Livestock Industries.

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Executive Director appointed to Australian Solar Institute

Mark Twidell has been appointed Executive Director of the $100 million Australian Solar Institute (ASI), the Australian Government’s primary mechanism for supporting research and development of solar technologies in Australia.

Mr Twidell worked with BP for over 20 years, most recently as BP Solar’s Performance Unit Leader for global commercial operations outside of Europe and the USA.

The ASI and three foundation projects based at the Australian National University, the University of New South Wales and CSIRO were announced in January this year. The ASI Company was registered on 10 August 2009 and a call for the first round of competitive grants closed on 16 October 2009.

Mr Twidell will take over from Dr Bruce Godfrey who has been interim Executive Director, and he will be a member of the ASI Board. Another new appointment to the Board is Dr Alex Wonhas, Director of CSIRO’s Energy Transformed Flagship.

A Research Advisory Committee has also been appointed, to be chaired by Dr Godfrey. It will comprise Professor Martin Green (UNSW), Professor Andrew Holmes (University of Melb), Professor Andrew Blakers (ANU), Mr Wes Stein (CSIRO) Professor Phillip Jennings (Murdoch University), Mr Peter Meurs (Worley Parsons) and Dr Muriel Watt (IT Power). Professor Keith Lovegrove (ANU) and Dr Gerry Wilson (CSIRO) will temporarily join the RAC for its initial round of application assessments. The ASI also expects to draw on selected international experts as needed to assist in assessing funding applications.

The ASI is part of the Government’s $4.5 billion Clean Energy Initiative (CEI), which includes the Solar Flagships initiative and supports research, development and demonstration of low- emission energy technologies, including solar energy.

More information is at http://www.australiansolarinstitute.com.au/

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Tropical marine research boosted by MOU

Charles Darwin University, the Australian Institute of Marine Science, The Australian National University and the Northern Territory Government have signed a Memorandum of Understanding covering cooperative research, academic and training activities, and expanded research infrastructure in the area of tropical marine resources.

Funding of $5.5 million has been allocated to the Arafura Timor Research Facility from the Australian government’s Super Science Marine and Climate which includes includes $387.7 million for marine research and climate change research, of which $55 million is for tropical marine science infrastructure at AIMS.

Under the MOU, AIMS and NTG staff will be appointed to adjunct academic positions at CDU and/or ANU, and CDU, ANU and NTG staff will be appointed to adjunct research positions at AIMS. The four participating organizations will undertake cooperative and collaborative research activities, and will share access to research infrastructure and equipment and funding of joint appointments of research staff. They will participate in joint research training activities including the funding of scholarships for Higher Degree by Research students and supervision of Higher Degree by Research students.

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Victorian funding for health research projects

The Victorian Government has announced funding for ten new health projects under its $41 million Science Agenda (VSA) Investment Fund.

The grants include $2.95 million for a project led by the Australian Tissue Engineering Centre which will attempt to find an alternative to silicon in breast reconstruction after mastectomy.

The technique involves the insertion of a customised biodegradable chamber which is contoured to match the woman’s natural breast shape within which the permanent fat found in breasts can be grown. Where there is insufficient fat, the researchers intend to develop Myogel, a muscle derived tissue that induces fat tissue production.

Partners in the project include Anatomics, Cogentum, Bernard O’Brien Institute of Microsurgery, St Vincent’s Hospital Melbourne, the University of Melbourne’s Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering and the Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine Tissue Bank.

Other projects to be funded under the VSA Investment Fund are:

• Australian Collaborative Care Cluster for chronic disease;
• Collaboration to develop next generation pharmaceutical formulations;
• High-value clinical products for oncology diagnosis and therapy;
• Electronic tracking for cryogenic storage of cord blood and stem cells;
• Capturing the therapeutic value of dairy bioactives;
• A continence management technology system;
• Nanosecond laser treatment for vision loss from age-related macular degeneration;
• Early stage ovarian cancer diagnosis; and
• The Victorian stroke telemedicine program for rural and regional Victoria.

More information about the  Victorian Science Agenda (VSA) Investment Fund is at  www.business.vic.gov.au/scripts/nc.dll?BUSVIC:STANDARD:1001:pc=pc=PC_63087.html

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Conferences & Events

Tertiary & Higher Education Conference 2010

16-17 March, 2010

Dockside, Cockle Bay,Sydney

The Government is committed to making Australia one of the most educated and highly skilled workforces in the world in order to secure national long term economic prosperity.

In March 2008, the Government initiated a Review of Higher Education to examine the future direction of the higher education sector, its fitness for purpose in meeting the needs of the Australian community and economy, and the options for ongoing reform. The Review was conducted by an independent expert panel, led by Emeritus Professor Denise Bradley AC

As part of the 2009 Budget, on 12 May the Government announced it would provide an additional $5.4 billion to support higher education and research over the next 4 years in a comprehensive response to the Bradley Review, Transforming Australia’s Higher Education System. The quantum leap in resourcing is designed to support high quality teaching and learning, improve access and outcomes for students from low socio economic backgrounds, build new links between universities and disadvantaged schools, reward institutions for meeting agreed quality and equity outcomes, improve resourcing for research and invest in world class tertiary education infrastructure.

This two day conference will cover the key areas outlined in the Government’s funding system with an additional day (bookable separately) devoted to University marketing strategies.

Major themes include:

• Ministerial address on transformation in the Australian Higher Education system
• Challenges of applying the Bradley Review recommendations
• Revising academic standards in line with the new funding (“compacts”)
• How research intensive universities should be organised in the 21st Century
• Defusing the Indian student’s fear on security 
• Recruiting overseas students from China & India vs USA
• Regulating off-short educational agents
• Effect of proposed Government funding on TAFE institutes

Who will be attending:

• Federal Government
• State Government
• Universities
• Higher Education Institutions
• Finance Companies
• Education Companies
• Education Suppliers
• Banking Institutions
• Management Schools
• IT Companies
• Business Schools
• Trainers
• Corporate Business Schools

For further information go to www.highered.com.au or contact Helen on 02 8923 8003 or events@hallmarkevents.com.au

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Marketing & Funding Universities Today 2010

March 17, 2010

Dockside, Cockle Bay Sydney

The Rudd government has committed to full university research funding, adopting Bradley’s recommendation that Research Infrastructure Block Grant (RIBG) amounts should be raised from 20 to 50 cents for every dollar won through competitive grants.

The new Reform, billed as ‘Sustainable research excellence in universities’, will be phased in over five years with the initial outlay being – $30.5 million next financial year, rising to $120.5 million in 2010-11 and progressively increased until it reaches $301 million in 2013-14.

Universities’ relative success in attracting research income – the current means of allocating RIBG funds – will be given only 20 per cent weighting in allocating the extra money. The remaining 80 per cent of the additional funding will be conditional on universities undertaking activity-based costing of the indirect costs of research, and meeting performance targets to be negotiated over the next financial year.

The Institutional Grants Scheme (IGS), will be replaced by the Joint Research Engagement Scheme in a cost-neutral reform designed “to get university researchers working more effectively with industry – and with each other” and the government will establish another new program, the Collaborative Research Networks Scheme, to help “smaller, regional and less research-intensive universities” increase their research capacity.

This one day Summit will deliver answers to many of those questions concerning marketing and funding of universities today and how to obtain the maximum funding dollar for research projects and diversify their funding sources. 

Who attends?

• Vice Chancellors
• Deans
• Heads of Departments
• University Marketing Staff (Marketing Officer/ Manager/ Administrator/ Coordinator/ Assistant)
• Associate Deans (Marketing and Admissions)
• Faculty Marketing Officers
• Managers of International Marketing
• Directors of International Strategy, Marketing and Communications
• CIOs and Senior IT Managers
• Managers of Development and External Relations
• Senior Administrators
• Financial Managers

Further information about registering for the Conference is available at www.unifund.com.au/

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Further Education

Graduate Diploma in Drug Evaluation & Pharmaceutical Sciences: 2010

Graduate Diploma in Drug Evaluation & Pharmaceutical Sciences: 2010
University of Melbourne, Australia

Today’s potent drugs, combined with the complex issues of their production and use has created a growing need for evaluation of their safety and efficacy. For such evaluation, wide ranging expertise is required in the areas of Chemistry, Pharmaceutics, Pharmacology and Toxicology, Clinical Medicine, Epidemiology and Legal and Ethical Considerations.

This diploma course gives a systematic overview of these areas and how they affect the very practical issues of drug evaluation and is aimed at Pharmacists, Research Nurses, Scientists, Medical Practitioners and others involved in regulatory affairs.

For more information please contact Mrs Nicola Cash Ph: +61 3 9496 3420, Fax: +61 3 9459 3510 or Email: njcash@unimelb.edu.au

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Positions Vacant

High Performance Computing (HPC) Systems Architect

CSIRO Information Management and Technology

Location: Perth, Western Australia
Ref. No: 2009/786
Salary: Negotiable

DO YOU HAVE:

• A strong background in High Performance Computing?
• Experience in a research environment?
• •Exceptional interpersonal, communication and presentation skills?

As part of its Super Science Initiative, the Australian Commonwealth Government is providing funding to establish the Pawsey HPC Centre for SKA Science, which will be located at the Australian Resources Research Centre (ARRC) in Perth. The Pawsey Centre will be managed by iVEC and will comprise a shared petascale supercomputing facility to serve the needs of leading Australian computational researchers, with a special focus on radio astronomy and the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) project. As the iVEC centre agent, CSIRO will employ the HPC Systems Architect.

The position:
As the successful appointee you will be responsible for the analysis, design, procurement and implementation of the supercomputing systems required for the Pawsey Centre. The position will report to the Pawsey Centre Project Director under the authority of the iVEC Board.

Further information about this role is available here.

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Research Scientist - Nutrition

CSIRO Food and Nutritional Sciences

The Position:
We have an opportunity for an experienced Nutritional Scientist to initiate and progress scientific research to substantiate the nutritional properties and health benefits of new cereal grains and the foods derived from them. A major focus is on determining the impact of grain components on indices improved health.

You will have responsibility for the development and application of appropriate biomarkers in cellular and animal models and volunteers to elucidate the biological mechanisms through which cereal-based foods and their functional components promote health and well being and modulate the course of nutrition-linked diseases.

Location: Adelaide, SA
Salary: $91K - $106K + Superannuation
Ref. No: 2009/901

Further information about this role is available here.

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Publications

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As we run out of easy-to-extract oil, scientists look for unconventional sources. These sources include oil shales, gas to liquids, coal to liquids and heavy oil (such as tar sands). However there’s still a lot to consider about what technologies would make these sources possible and what the environmental costs are. The rumour is that Shell has already taken on these unconventional sources for the future.

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