T
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378.9431 103
ISSUE No. 11
Queensland Institute of Technology, George Street, Brisbane 4000. Telephone 123 2111.July 5, 1985
QIT and U of Q
prestigious Key
A joint submission fro~ QIT, the University of Queensland and a Stat~ Government de~art~ent has resulted in securing one of the seven prestigious 'Key Centres of Teachmg and
Res~archwhich have been allocated among Australia's 100 universities and colleges of advanced education.
The facility, to be known as the Key Centre in Land Information Studies, is being set up by the Surveying Departments at QIT and the University of Queensland and the Research and Development Cell of the State Government's Depart- ment of Mapping and Surveying.
The centre will be the only one in Australia and the Asia/Pacific region specialising in high quality teaching at undergraduate and postgraduate levels, in continuing e ucation, and in research and
a,
\:fi{onnat\on.
The seven key centres nationally, are to share about $3 million in federal funding over the next three years. Funding for the Land Infor- mation Studies Centre will amount to about $150 000 per annum over three years.
QIT submitted two other pro- posals, in its particular areas of strength: the fields of information technology and immunology, which were unsuccessful.
One of the functions of the key centre will be to centralise and syn- thesise land-related information.
At present it is acknowledged that there is a lack of compatible and reliable data and what there is is held in many different files by many government bodies/depart- ments, rendering it unavailable to others to use for decision making.
Australia's export potential in the area of land information systems, estimated to be worth millions of dollars annually.
"For example, tenders for work worth millions of dollars are presently being offered for exten- sive land information/computer mapping systems in Thailand, Malaysia, the Philippines, Brazil and Tunisia."
The centre will be located at both institutions, and is subject to an agreement between the two institu- of undergraduate teaching and pro- fessional practice at QIT, and for postgraduate teaching and research at the University of Queensland.
A powerful influence behind the Queensland centre was Mr Kevin Davies, State Surveyor General and also Deputy Chairman of QIT
Council. .
Mr Davies said he had been a supporter of reform of the educa- tional model for surveying and mapping for some time.
First discussions had taken place in the early 1970s but the oppor- tunity arose when staff changes oc- curred about five years ago.
"I am now ready to recommend support to the centre with depart- mental funds," he said.
Mr Davies is extremely en- thusiastic about the key centre's potential:
"In fact this is a potential that has not existed before. It has a very exciting and marketable future if we are willing to exploit it," he said. "If we had not undergone this rationalisation, mapping and surveying here was destined to become a cottage indus
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i!!W::;As it is, the Department of Map- ping and Surveying has already had approaches from international equipment manufacturers who want to focus their southern hemisphere operation on the new key centre. They have offered to provide valuable equipment almost free of charge.
Among the immediate advan- tages Mr Davies sees to the setting up of the key centre are the economic gains.
"It will make more effective use of our educational dollar because it will free money that went into duplication of equipment, so that it may be diverted into research for the State as a whole," he said.
· Mr Davies said it would also free up staff for research and would allow academics to be engaged in
. .
score
Centre
those parts of the educational model that best suited their skills.
While QIT and the Universit~ of Queensland are finalising their preparations, the Department of Mapping and Surveying is under- taking its own rationalisation ~f ~he
para-professional and trammg aspects of surveying.
"When we have an uninterrupted educational flow from Grade 12 to doctorate level, we will turn our at- tention to developing distance education. A key institute for this will be the Darling Downs because of its accommodation facilities.
The same academics who teach the course here will be teaching the
there," Mt Davies said.
~
at
building a training centre adjoining the Wivenhoe Reservoir to meet the field training needs of the industry.
All graduates will go through this training centre which is to be run by practitioners.
"There is a difference between education and training," said Mr Davies. "The training model will be run by the industry but ad- ministered by the academics."
The proposal for the Land Infor- mation Studies Centre was sup- ported by all mainland state governments, federal government departments involved in implemen- ting land information systems, and major hardware, software and Con- sultancy firms specialising in this area.
The principal aims of the new government initiative to set up these
Surveyor General, Mr Kevin Davies.
key centres are to improve teaching and research standards through concentration of effort, with par- ticular emphasis on undergraduate work; to assist the transfer of high- quality students and staff between higher education institutions; to help higher education respond to demands for expertise, particularly in areas relevant to national development; and to promote cooperation between higher educa- tion and industry.
Competition for allocation of the centres was extremely strong, with more than 120 detailed proposals being submitted. Final selection followed consultation with relevant Commonwealth departments and agencies and with other specialist organisations. Institutes of technology are involved in five of the seven key centres.
Vice-Chancellor at the University of Queensland, Professor Brian Wilson, and the Director of the QIT, Dr Dennis Gibson, said in a joint statement that the centre would be an efficient and cost- effective cooperative venture bet- ween Queensland's two surveying schools.
"We were faced with the dilem- ma of having four institutions meeting the educational needs, at all levels, for the industry in this State. Because there was little or no cooperation between them, there was a great deal of duplication and overlapping. It was an inefficient use of educational resources," Mr
Davies said. ·
"At the same time, they were all lobbying us for research money.
We could not oblige them because we could not justify reinforcing an inefficient system."
Messages to the . ~~.!~!.~; .. ;., ....
· of the Civil Engineering building on
"The combined skills and resources of the University, the QIT and the State Government and in- dustry will provide unique teaching and research opportunities.
''The centre will provide great educational benefits through ad- vanced training in the fields of land and geographical information systems, remotely sensed en- vironmental data and computer assisted mapping."
The centre would supplement its staff with personnel and equipment support from industry and govern- ment, and would attract visiting specialists. It would offer under- graduate teaching, postgraduate teaching and research, and would offer credit and non-credit courses to the industry throughout Australia.
Professor Wilson and Dr Gibson said the centre would also boost
When CTEC financed an evaluative study into surveying and mapping education in Queensland, Mr Davies was able to add these findings to the already considerable body of support for change.
''Rationalisation of the educa-·
tiona! model has also been facilitated because the Surveying Departments in both QIT and the University of Queensland are head- ed by two academics who are com- mitted totally to reform of the ex- isting system. I find it most refreshing to find two academics who are so committed to a single objective," Mr Davies said.
He said that the final details on the centre were ''wending their way through the bureacratic maze" but thought that final agreement had been helped by the selection of the enterprise as a key centre.
page 2: Teaching Co. Scheme for QIT
~~ ~ , fM
page 5: New directions in power and energy res9_urces- - - -· Photo courtesy Daily Sun
June 5 to mark 20 years of engineering education at QIT, as part of Professional Engineers Week celebrations.
The time capsule, to be resur- rected in 2005, contained messages from the Premier and the Lord Mayor to their successors in 20 years' time.
Messages were also included from the President of the Queensland Division of the In- stitute of Engineers, Australia, Mr Peter Phillips, QIT Council Deputy Chairman, Mr Kevin Davies and from the QIT Engineering School.
Among the other contents of the one-metre-long and about 30cm diameter capsule were electronic circuit boards, concrete samples, aerial surveying photographs of Brisbane, a 'Women in Engineer- ing' brochure, a sample of Brisbane water, a student alternative hand- book and even a copy of 'Inside QIT'.
Civil Engineering lecturer, Mr Cliff Button, closes the time capsule while (left to right) Alderman Phil Denman, Mr Peter Phillips, President of the Institute of Engineers Australia (Qid) and Attorney General, Mr Harper look on.
QIT's engineering and computing schools fared well in bids for funding under new Commonwealth Tertiary Education Com- mission programs introduced in 1985 (the start of the 1985·87 triennium).
The new programs include the participation and equity pro·
gram, the key centres for teaching and research and the teaching company schemes.
The programs highlight the change in emphasis from guaranteed funding for traditional research and marginal academic programs
to a
competitive bidding situation wherea
pool of funds is allocated accordingto
the merit of proposals in achieving government objectives for each program. Instead of many programs receivinga
taste of funding, a-few programs are receiving the level of funds needed to succeed.QIT's successful bids are the Women in Engineering Par·
ticipation Program, the Key Centre in Land Information Studies (shared with Queensland University) and a teaching company
scheme in electronics and computing with Eracom Pty Ltd.
While they might reflect particular strengths of QIT, the con- siderable amounts of money involved with each of these suc- cessful bids ($250 000, $428 000 and $45 000 respectively) are sure
to
make other academic departments envious.It is clear that the new programs are not restricted to univer·
sities. In fact institutes of technology are involved with five of the seven key centres. Judgment on merit of proposals is something all academic departments should welcome.
Computing Studies awarded Teaching Company Scheme
QIT has secured one of the twelve new 'Teaching Company Schemes' approved throughout Australia. .
Financed by the Federal Depart- chips which use the same secret key.
ment of Industry, Technology and This secret key has to be changed Commerce, the schemes are design- fairly regularly. The question is, ed to encourage greater technology how do you communicate the transfer between industry and ter- changed key from branch to branch tiary institutions. safely? It has to be done in such a The scheme involves SOOJo way that only authorised people government sponsorship of the cost receive it and they have to be sure of a commercial company employ- that what they are receiving is in- ing a graduate who will undertake deed the authorised key.
research under academic supervi- "The traditional way of doing sion towards a postgraduate award. this is to send it by a completely dif-
QIT will receive $45 000 over ferent network - by courier for ex- three years for the supervision of a ample. This research will look at computing graduate who will economical ways of sending it over undertake a research project for the the same network.''
Gold Coast electronics firm, Eracom Pty Ltd. Supervisor will be Dr Dennis Longley, Head of QIT's School of Computing Studies.
It was one of two submissions made by the Institute, the other be- ing from the Engineering School.
Eracom is a medium-sized Australian company with an inter- national reputation in the field of encryption systems. The Eracom Security Module was named the Systems Innovation of the Year at . the Australian Computer Society's Australian Information Tech- nology Awards in 1984.
The research project involves development of systems which will guarantee the security and privacy of confidential data during transmission over public com- munication networks. No such systems exist at present.
Dr Longley explained that the most insecure part of computer systems was the communication
between them, and cited the exam- Dr Dennis Longley pie of banks which had to send
•... LOOK ! THIS NEW fYIOTOR.C'ICLE HELmET
C fit./ WIT"'51'RND THE /IY)PRCI OF R
/IIIICK ~CI(!
QIT has received a grant to test the effectiveness of motorcycle helmets, with the view to developing new standards.
Council Profile: Greg Gore
By Sandra White
QIT Council member, Mr Greg Gore, believes that external members of Council can make a significant contribution to the Institute.
"Being removed from the day-to- As an outside member of Coun- day running of the Institute and its cil, Mr Gore has had substantial ex- problems, outsiders can provide perience in his field. He completed lateral thinking about a scheme or a the Bachelor of Engineering degree problem that comes up," Mr Gore at QIT, being part of QIT's second
said. intake of engineering students.
"External members come from a wide range of professions and oc- cupations and have direct knowledge of their own area of ac- tivity as it exists in the commercial world. Therefore they are able to ensure QIT activities remain rele- vant to the community.
"Many of the external members , of Council run their own businesses and the application of real-world business or result-oriented thinking is a necessary balance to the academic input which comes from the Institute," he said.
After graduating in 1969, he com- pleted a Bachelor of Economics at the University of Queensland. Mr Gore then spent four years as an engineer for Queensland Railways in Rockhampton, and worked for a further four years with Leighton Contractors, a construction firm.
Mr Gore spent the next five years as Queensland manager of Fessel Pty Ltd, a railway construction and maintenance company. In 1983 he formed Gore and Law Associates, a firm of consulting civil and struc- . tural engineers of which he is
director.
As a member of Council, chair- man of the Q Search Committee and member of the Finance Com- mittee, Mr Gore sees his main role as maintaining the relevance of courses offered at QIT. Another of his functions is to overview the ac- tions of the paid staff of QIT to en- sure that there is proper manage- ment and that the interests of the community are being protected.
Mr Gore says he also believes that members of Council provide a poiqt, external to the Secretariat of QIT, to which appeals can be made within QIT.
Mr Gore has had a long associa- tion with QIT, being the only member of Council who is a graduate of the Institute. While at QIT, he was vice-president and president of the student union.
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ball Club for two years.Mr Gore says he has seen many changes over the 20 years of his association with the Institute.
"When QIT started, the com- munity and employers were pre- judiced in favour of Queensland University. It is my view that QIT has used this prejudice to its advan- tage in that it felt the need to try harder. It did try harder and has succeeded. We owe that success to the firm and dedicated management from the top and the talent and commitment of staff.
"There is no doubt in my mind that employers today regard graduates from QIT as being of a standard equal to the best in Australia," he said.
Safety helmets go under the hammer
at Civil
details of financial transactions from branches to head office.
"These details have to be en- crypted to stop outsiders from 'get- ting in' and sending financial tran- sactions of their own and to main- tain confidentiality," he said.
'~However, one of the problems is tliat at both ends of the network you have encrypting and decrypting
Terotechnology Centre tor QIT
Two research projects valued at a total of $19 000 have been awarded to QIT by the Federal Office of Road Safety (FORS).Acknowledgments
'Inside QIT' is published by the Public Relations Office, QIT (U Block), George Street, Brisbane, phone 2231 2386. Postal address: G.P.O. Box 2434,' Brisbane 4001.
A number of the articles are written by communication students at QIT, as indicated.
Production by Press Etching Pty Ltd.
Printed by Sunshine Coast Newspaper Co. Pty Ltd.
A proposed 'Terotecbnology Centre' within the Department of Mechanical Engineering at QIT may be established as the first in Australia to deal with pro- blems associated with wear, lubrication and maintenance engineering in heavy industry.
The Terotechnology Centre will bring together multidisciplinary skills within QIT in order to improve research facilities that will cater to the needs of outside industry,
Mr Rod Kirkcaldie, lecturer in mechanical engineering, said the ap- plications of terotechnology were ex- tremely broad and specialists from other departments were needed to help with the projects received from industry.
"We help industry in areas such as wear studies, lubricant evaluation and condition monitoring of equipment,"
he said. "As these areas expand, we need specialists who can help us with other factors affecting industry today.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::=====-_:F:_:o:r_:i:n:st:a::.nc:e::._:, accountants have the ex- Page 2 INSIDE QIT, July 198~
By Helen Thew
pertise to cost the depreciation of equip- ment. The idea of terotechnology is to form a compatible group serving the needs of heavy industry at a cheaper rate."
Mr Kirkcaldie explained that students would play a large part in the Terotechnology Centre.
"Students will be involved in projects given to us by industry," he said. "But first we need those industries to invest money in our research-orientated group. We want the companies to elect members for a steering committee which will guide our organisation to suit their needs."
Mr Doug Baddeley, lecturer in mechanical engineering, is already ap- plying for grants to help get the Terotechnology Centre off the ground.
Mr Baddeley, who worked with the A.M.A.X. National Research Laboratory before joining QIT, said he was working in co-operation with the first honorary member of staff at QIT, Dr Don Lakeland.
"Dr Lakeland is an expert in the study of wear-resistant castings," he said. "Together we have received a Commonwealth grant to continue with research on wear-resistant alloys. If in- dustry chooses to invest in our opera- tion we could be saving them a lot of money in machinery maintenance."
This research has already achieved promising results. Mr Rod Kirkcaldie, who has been introducing companies to the idea, said the benefits of the pro- gram to industry, students and educa- tion was invaluable. ·
"This program will save industry money, improve methods of testing equipment and provide a valuable feed- back exercise for all students in the course," he said. ·
- - - · - - - -
One is a strength-testing project, aimed at improving motorcycle safety helmet specifications. The research will involve testing a whole range of helmets with an impact striker. The existing standards will then be reviewed to assess the relevance of existing test specifica- tions of Australian standards.
The second project is a post- crash analysis which examines trauma suffered by crash helmets in realistic crashes. The work will be carried out in close cooperation with the Queensland Department of Health to ensure that it is an exten- sion of the existing neurological studies funded by the Brain Foundation.
Both projects are being con- ducted by Q Search.
New Pls will. co-ordinate business masters degrees
Mr Tony Stevenson Mr Ken Leo
The QIT's School of Business their particular interests, and com- Studies has made three senior ap- plete a thesis or two dissertations,"
pointments at the newly created he said. "In fact they can largely principal lecturer level. The prin- specialise in their own fields."
cipal lecturers will co-ordinate the "We will be experim~nting with : School's new specialist masters new communication research degree programs in communica- techniques which are more prescrip- tion, accountancy, and manage- tive for action than purely
ment. descriptive.
They are Mr Tony Stevenson "I hope QIT will become a pro- (Communication), Mr Ken Leo blem solving centre for mass com- (Accountancy) and Dr Gill Palmer munication in Australia." he said.
(Management). The accountancy masters com-
The communication masters, the menced in February this year with first of its kind in Australia, will part-time students including commence on July 24 and chartered accountants, commercial enrolments are now being finalised. and government accountants and a
The program, part-time only at stockbroker.
this stage, is the only practically- Mr Leo, an MBA Graduate from oriented masters degree, by a com- Queensland University with 16 bination of course work and thesis, years' lecturing experience at the to be offered within a business University and QIT, will take over school in Australia. It is. designed the accountancy postgraduate for graduate professionals in com- program.
munication fields of advertising, Mr Leo was co-author of a text journalism, public relations and released last year, 'Company Ac- public policy. counting in Australia', which has
Mr Stevenson who will be pro- already been adopted by 26 univer- gram co-ordinator as well as prin- sities and institutes throughout cipal lecturer, hotds a masters Au tralia.
e
degree in communication from the papers for the Accounting Research University of Hawaii. A former Foundation.
ABC journalist with more than 20 "With the volume of legal and years' experience as a public rela- professional matter required to tions and 'issues management' con- ~ practise in the profession today, ac- sultant in Sydney and Brisbane, he countants require more than a favours the 'teaching hospital' ap- . three-year undergraduate degree,"
proach to the specialist degree for Mr Leo said.
professionals. The masters degree in manage-
"Our aim is to bridge the gap ment will commence in February, between theory and practice in ad- \ 1986, but Dr Gill Palmer has a con- vanced organisational and mass . siderable planning and preparation communication," he said.
!
task ahead."Too many professional people "It will be a specialist manage- have the practical background but ment masters, in contrast to a are afraid of the theory and vice generalist MBA program," she versa," he said. "The masters said. "Applicants will need an course will help them overcome undergraduate management degree these kinds of problems and equip and management experience."
them for senior professional roles." In the meantime she is lecturing Mr Stevenson said the course of- part-time in masters programs at fered considerable flexibility. Queensland University and in
"Students must complete 14 sub- human resource management at jects, most chosen according to QIT.
Biologists solve avgas contamination
QIT expertise solved a recent pro- blem for the oil company, BP Australia Ltd, which could have resulted in shortages of aviation fuel in Queensland with serious
economic consequences.
The mystery contamination of a large holding tank of aviation fuel was a problem unprecedented in BP's 30 years of international ex- perience in handling this substance.
BP were aware that if the con- tamination remained unchecked, there would be serious implications not only for the company but for the State.
A vgas is an extremely refined form of fuel and once it has been contaminated it cannot be repurified. However, it can be downgraded into motor fuel by us- ing additives.
BP were forced to downgrade 1500 tonnes of their contaminated avgas with a loss of revenue, plus
processing and shipping, of bet- ween $35 000 and $50 000 for the company. They needed a speedy and reliable solution to avoid fur- ther major losses.
An approach to Q Search resulted in referral of the problem to Dr Garth Everson, Head of the Department of Biological and En- vironmental Science. The depart- ment was able to identify the bacteriological agents responsible and recommend a range of correc- tive measures, both immediate and long-term, including controls to eliminate the reactor components, withholding substrates and treat- ment with specific biocides.
Queensland Operations Manager of BP, Mr Dale Suter, said that the company had been fortunate to get access to the expertise QIT was able to provide.
"We consider we got out of a potentially disastrous situation quite cheaply." he said.
Dr Gill Palmer
Dr Palmer, an industrial rela- tions expert and author, comes to QIT from City University Business School in the UK, where she was a lecturer for 11 years. She has also been a researcher, worked for government commissions and has run her own business consultancy.
The new QIT masters programs follow a market survey among the business community indicating a need for the advanced degrees.
We've heard of block bookings but this is ridiculous. A letter from American Express addressed to Mr L. Block, QIT, George Street, Brisbane, invites him to join "a select number of senior executives and professional people ... who enjoy the prestige of a valuable personal credential."
What we'd like to know is, what is it that Mr L. Block has that the rest of us Blocks lack?
*
Nice to see some of our students have their priorities right. QIT law student, Andrea Sissons won a record $768 904 on the pools in May but that didn't interrupt her pre-examination studies.
Now people are wondering whether she'll turn out to be a Friend of the QIT as well as a devoted student.
* * *
Mr Greg Evans, who won the Marketing Education Trust Fund Prize at QIT in 1983, has gone on to further academic achievement.
He enrolled in a Master of Business Management course at California State University, Long Beach, and has graduated among the top one per cent with 'honours' on the 1985 Graduate Dean's list.
Commercial backing for Health Science interactive videodisk
The first application in Australian health science education of interac- tive videodisk is being developed with $15 000 backing from Control Data Australia Pty Ltd.
The advantage of interactive videodisk is that it combines computer-aided learning with ins-
Dazzle'm with ta-lk about the
weather
A new 'Introductory Meteorology' subject, offered for the first time in the coming semester, will be available as a free elective to QIT students and on a paid basis to ex- ternal people.
The project is being undertaken in co-operation with the University
"'-... , .. ..,.,..'"' ...
eanacta.~disk will be marketed to other in- stitutions by Control Data.
tant video imagery, action and stereo sound to provide an effective and inexpensive alternative to prac- tical experience. It enables self-
••uaacd
'what· ·~Mtii. ~~~·,.~-.-...,~;4with consequences immediately and realistically shown on TV using microcomputer-linked video disk.
The course, which will run for 14 consecutive Monday evenings, commencing on July 29, will cost
$50 to outsiders, who may obtain registration through Q Search.
Head of the School of Applied Science and course organiser, Dr Ron Gardiner, said that although the weather was ubiquitous and af- fected our lives and lifestyles in countless ways, few people possess- ed even a basic understanding of what constituted weather, or of the physical principles which governed the complex behaviour of the atmosphere.
Introductory Meteorology is designed to describe and explain, in a non-technical way, a number of important meteorological phenom- ena.
Following an historical introduc- tion, the course will discuss the composition of the earth's at- mosphere, heat transfer processes of meteorological importance, the gas laws, the physics of water vapour, atmospheric stability and instability, cloud formation and classification, precipitation (rain, hail, snow) atmospheric electricity, the basic theory of winds, meteorological observations, the production and interpretation of weather maps, air masses and fronts, high and low pressure systems (anticyclones, lows, troughs, cyclones, tornadoes), an introduction to weather forecasting and selected atmospheric optical phenomena.
One or two excursions will be ar- ranged to places of interest such as the Bureau of Meteorology and a few specialist lectures will be given by Mr Ray Wilkie, formerly Regional Director of the Bureau of Meteorology in Brisbane and cur- rently a member of the TVO Eyewitness News team.
The health science videodisk will
· have applications in teaching across the whole range of health profes- sions, according to Dr Tony Web- ber, Head of QIT's School of Health Science.
"It will include an immense range of material on anatomy, pathology and cytology, relevant to teaching medicine, physiotherapy, nursing, optometry and so on," he said.
QIT's Computing School will develop software to allow a com- puter to control the videodisk which will initially be used in a nurse training system at QIT.
"Nurse training is in the process of transfer to colleges of advanced education and interactive video disk will help us in coping with the transfer," Dr Webber said.
The system should be operational during 1986.
Left to right: Dr Tony Webber and QIT Director, Dr Dennis Gibson, accept a $15 000 cheque from the Managing Director of Control Data Australia, Mr Nate Dickinson.
QIT -Health Science display
The School of Health Science par- ticipated in a week-long Health Fair at City Hall during Health Week (April 29 to May 3).
The theme of the fair was 'Healthy Youth: Our Best Resource' and the QIT Health Science display carried the message further with its own theme: 'School of Health Science Training Health Professionals'.
At the fair, the school joined with such organisations as the Queensland Institute of Medical Research, the Division of En- vironmental and Occupational Health, the National Heart Foun- dation and the Red Cross to pro- mote an awareness among the general public of the broad spec- trum of health centres operating in .·.Brisbane.
INSIDE QIT, July 1985 Page 3
QIT researcher investigates age-related eye disease
Dr Brian Brown, senior lecturer in QIT's -Department of Optometry, travelled to the U.S.A. in April to give a paper on an eye condition which is
istence and so it is extremely hard to find what aspects of personal lifestyle induced the condition," he said.
becoming increasingly significant.
The paper, 'Cone Adaptation in Age-related Maculopathy' was written jointly by Dr Brown, Neil Roche and Christopher Tobin, both of whom were final year students in Optometry in 1984, and Dr Andrew Wolanowski, lecturer in mathematics at QIT. It was deliver.ed by Dr Brown at the an- nual conference of the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology at Sarasota, Florida attended by 3000 people.
On his return, Dr Brown explain- ed why the study of age-related maculopathy was becoming a more urgent research subject.
"Maculopathy is a condition in- volving the loss of central, as op- posed to peripheral, vision. It is un- treatable and leads eventually to legal blindness. The condition oc- curs mainly in people over the age of 55 and incidence increases dramatically with age: about 300Jo of people over the age of 80 have the disease," he said.
''With increased life expectancy, we have an increasingly older population and so more and more people can expect to suffer from maculopathy eventually.''
The cause of the disease is unknown and researchers are in a primitive stage of understanding the problem. So far it has been sug- gested that some possible factors are blood supply to the cones and
Internships offer job prospects
During July, third year students from the Bachelor of Business- Communication course will be undertaking four-week internships.
This gives each student the oppor- tunity to work for a client as a part of the curriculum.
Dr Chip Karmatz, senior lecturer in public relations, said the intern- ships benefited the students because they offered them the chance to ex- perience the difference between the working world and college life.
"Of course it helps them make contacts for job purposes," he said.
"But it also lets them see what the real world is like."
According to Dr Karmatz the ·in- ternships offered in communica- tions had been very successful with one in every five obtaining employ- ment as a result of their internship.
"For instance, half the Public Relations Department in the State Government office comes from QIT," he said.
Dr Karmatz said iiiternships were also offered to part-time students already working in the field.
"Part-time students have to
~ndertake a work-related project outside their normal working hours to complete the internship," he said.
Dr Karmatz pointed out that most internships were completed in the July/ August semester break, and that a significant proportion of · students were paid for their efforts.
"Not everyone gets paid, but a number of students receive between
$100 to $300 a week for their work."
And the destinations? Dr Kar- matz said overseas destinations were possible but took a long time to arrange. Most students preferred reputable companies in Sydney, Melbourne or Queensland.
rods at the back of the eye or loss of function in the pigment epithelium at the back of the eye.
"A major obstacle to finding a· solution is the fact that the disease has barely been described," Dr Brown said. "This is w:1at we are trying to do here at QIT. We believe that correct diagnosis depends on measuring the right things. Selec- ting which measurements are necessary and appropriate will help us to come up with more accurate diagnoses.''
"Yet another aspect of the pro- blem is that the disease has a slow and insidious onset. The conditions which may have precipitated it ten years previously are no longer in ex-
Two other research teams in Australia are working on different aspects of age-related macu- pathology. One is in N.S.W. and one in Victoria. All three groups have been funded by the National Health and Medical Research Council.
During his stay in the U.S.A., Dr Brown found that an American research team working on the 1Jro- blem was interested in various aspects of metabolism. They believe a deficiency of the element selenium could be involved.
"This is an interesting proposi- tion and one that I intend to follow up here at QIT with our nutrition experts," Dr Brown said.
Rural Press scholarship to Communication Dept.
QIT student, Tania Price, has received one of the four journalism scholarships awarded annually throughout Australia by Rural · Press Limited.
Selection was made from 90 applicants.
Value of the scholarship is $5000 per year for three years.
So far there are nine of the scholarships in operation national-
ly. Four of these are at the Western Australian Institute of Technology, three at Mitchell College of Ad- vanced Education in N.S.W., one at Hawkesbury Agricultural Col- lege in N.S.W. and now one at QIT.
Executive Editor of Rural Press, Mr David Sommerlad, said QIT could probably expect another scholarship next year.
Mr David Sommerlad of Rural Press (left) with Dr Bruce Molloy, Head of the Communication Department.
QIT graduate puts his sociology into
practice ay Helen Thew
A past graduate from QIT, Mr Chris Souvlis, has organised a health and beauty course at Myer, Indooroopilly that boasts a different flavour.
The course, which runs from July 1 to July 5 and is aimed at teenage girls aged 15 to 17, emphasises self- motivatioJI and health.
"In the past Myer has held make- up courses for women with the aim of targeting sales," he said.
"However, this is becoming less popular and that is why we decided to aim the course at educating teenage girls.
"The course examines health, motivation and natural beauty as opposed to the superficial look en- couraged in make-up classes," Mr Souvlis explained. "I have also OJ:ganised a number of guest lec- turers to add interest and credibility to what we are doing."
One of those guest speakers is Ms Pam Byde, lecturer in sociology at QIT. Ms Byde said she would be talking about the changing role of women in our society.
"Women no longer play the housewife/hostess role in society,"
she said. "My lecture ·will concen- trate on this changing role and the
influence it has had on the family, the male and the workforce."
Ms Byde, who lectured Mr Souvlis two years ago, said she was proud a past graduate was doing something constructive with sociology.
"When you hear a student is put- . ting your words into practice it :makes it seem all worthwhile," she
·said.
Mr Souvlis said other guest lec- 1turers included people from the
Heart-Beat Centre, Clinique, . Aspect Marketing and the Cancer
Society.
"We're aiming to teach these girls things they should know at this age,"he said. "There are ten topics which take an hour each and we think we have chosen a good range."
Mr Souvlis described this course as a way of promoting Myer through a useful service to the com- munity. He said the course had substance and he hoped every par- , ticipant would find it worthwhile.
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Page 4 INSIDE QIT, July 1985
Mrs Wendy Mathieson, recently appointed as Coordinator of the Women in Engineering Participation Program, will bring valid current experience to the position.
She received her Associate Diploma in Mechanical Engineering at QIT in Aptil, graduating with distinction and as top graduate and also as winner of the Australian Institute of Engineering Associates Prize.
As a recent graduate, Mrs Mathieson says she is still very much aware of what it is like to be a full-time, mature age woman student in a male-
dominated program. ,
Mrs Mathieson has .been an instructor in mechanical drawing at QIT during the past six months and will continue to instruct in this and in the separate drawing subject for the women students. However, her main role will be to liaise with the five departments within the Engineering School itself and the three departments from Applied Science which will be involv- ed in the program.
She will also be available to assist students with problems during this bridging level and on into the first year.
Student field trip to Japan, Korea
By He len Thew
Japan and Korea are the destina- tions of this year's optional field trip for 27 students from the School of Built Environment. Mr Don Kells, lecturer in biology and built environment, will lead the excursion.
The trip, the third of its kind, will last four weeks commencing on June 22, 1985.
Mr Kells said the field trip had definite advantages for the students involved.
'·'So many Australians do not have a proper perspective of the world situation," he said. "This makes it difficult for students to ap- preciate what other nations have achieved in this area of study.
"As well as this, overseas trips offer a range of experiences for students that broadens their whole outlook on life."
However, according to Mr Kells, there are more immediate advan- tages for visiting Japan and Korea in 1985.
"Tokyo is presently holding an Expo '85 based on architecture and landscaping which will be in full sw- ing when they arrive," he said.
"This has two advantages for the students. Firstly, it revolves around the themes we study here at QIT, and secondly it prepares students for the Brisbane Expo which is to be held in 1988."
Mi Kells also explained why Korea held such an attraction for this year's students.
"Korea will be hosting the Olym- pic Games in 1988 and planning is well under way," he said.
"Brisbane wants them in 1992.
Therefore students on this trip will gain experience about the planning and development a host city must undergo for such a huge event."
Students from all departments in the School of the Built Environ- ment have responded en- thusiastically to the proposed field trip.
Mr Kells said that because the students had many different in- -terests, he was organising the trip
on an independent basis.
"I have people in JapM\""
establishing contacts for the students, and I will be encouraging the students to follow these through," he said. "The students will be responsible for their own
programs~ but I will be offering suggestions and encouragement throughout the trip."
Mr Kells also said he had arrang- ed discount accommodation and travel arrangement for the students.
"As the students meet all the costs themselves it is important I try to make it as cheap as possible with limited inconvenience," he said.
"This year the cost is $1 600 per student which I consider to be quite reasonable."
Lecturer exchange with Japan
Reg Hardman, senior lecturer in the Department of Management, left Australia in mid June to investigate staff exchange possibilities in the U.S.A. and Japan.
"We are already successfully organising exchanges of lecturers with the U.S.A. and I want to con- tinue this," he said. "But this will be a pilot operation as far as Japan is concerned."
Mr Hardman is going to Osaka where a former student has offered to help him with introductions.
"I will be approaching private colleges on this occasion and hope to secure the organisation of two or three exchanges," he said.
Mr Hardman said that language was not necessarily a problem.
"Most Japanese students have studied English and many staff speak acceptable English," he said.
"However, we will have to look at the compatibility of syllabuses bet- ween Australia and Japan."
Mr Hardman suggested that con- tact with Japanese students and lec- turers would be very useful to Australian students.
"Being exposed to their kind of work ethic might be quite an eye- opener," he said.
FEATURES
New direct • tons tn • power and energy
resources By Dr Mike Chambers
Dr Mike Chambers lectures in chemical technology/chemical engineering in QIT's Chemistry Department. Prior to joining the QIT, he was a project leader with BP Chemicals International in the U.K. He is currently developing computer modelling techniques for use both in assessing technological change, and in energy planning and policy analysis.
Dr Chambers was a contributor to the recent Federal Department of Resources and Energy sponsored workshop on the future directions of energy planning and modelling in Australia.
This year's Queensland power black- outs and continuing power industry disputes have stimulated a new interest in self-sufficiency. Most people have speculated, even if only vaguely, about how they could insulate themselves from future electricity supply interruptions.
In this article I would like to examine the immediate possibilities of self- sufficiency and relate them to the much broader issues of future energy limita- tions and resources on a national and in- ternational scale.
On a domestic level, some measure of self-reliance is readily obtainable with solar hot water, a wood stove (for space heating, cooking and hot water), bat- teries (for lighting, TV, radio, and other appliances) and perhaps a small generator (shared, say, between a group '1'!!mifies to get around that refrigerator and freezer problem).
Having proceeded this far, we may well contemplate the relative economics between such self-reliance and a dependency upon a centralised energy supply. Extending this lateral thinking may lead us to start asking how possi- ble, and how soon, it will be before we have some measure of individual or cor- porate control over all our energy supp- ly and utilisation needs. This includes thermal (for cooking, space and process heating, and transportation) as well as electrical energy.
Already, break-even periods for solar hot water systems, for instance, are down to about six years. Furthermore, it doesn't take a financial whiz-kid to assess what the effects of centralised electricity generating interruptions and the huge State debt (about $3.4 billion, of which $2.7 billion is due to electrici- ty) will be on consumer prices. It is con- siderations such as these that kick technological change and innovation along.
We are still mostly beholden to the large vehicle manufacturers and the large mining and oil companies ...
Pursuing this bottom-up approach a bit further, we may also harbour certain misgivings about the blatant lack of solar design in our dwellings, offices and factories and about that significant major energy guzzler, our transporta- tion modes.
After 80 years the motor car has not advanced very much. True, we now have greater mechanical efficiency, comfort and safety, but energy efficien- cy and overall pollution effects have im- proved only marginally, if at all.
We are still mostly beholden to the large vehicle manufacturers and the large mining and oil companies whose collective main concern is to maintain the status quo.
In spite of the current status of vehi- cle technology, the consumer is provid- ed with no real cost choice between LPG and gasoline-fuelled vehicles. It is significanr that TV car commercials do not extol the virtues of LPG (where run- ning costs are about 600fo oL gasoline vehicles, and supplies are secure for decades because LPG is wholly available indigenously).
In effect, the economic infrastructure in the so-called developed world is lock- ed in to the production, maintenance and running of the motor car, at the convenience and behest of car manufac- t-urers and the oil companies.
A similar inertia appears to exist in the architectural design of new buildings. In Melbourne, for instance, office blocks need cold air-conditioning in the middle of a freezing winter and, even in equable Brisbane, inadequate design increases our heating, cooling and lighting bills.
Although some short term (up to five years) remedies and solutions begin to emerge, much of the world's trade and economic well-being is rooted in, and lubricated by, petroleum. Any con- sideration of energy alternatives must take a top-down look at the petroleum scene, since any deteriorations here will provide another kick to technological change.
••• worldwide there is a massive over- supply of petroleum ... but ...
Petroleum is still the world's major energy source, providing about 50% of total needs. It is used essentially for electricity and process heat generation, for transportation, and also for petrochemicals.
However, future world supplies and prices seem uncertain and Australia's indigenous resources are rapidly being depleted. Consequently, questions being asked increasingly are, How soon will it be before the oil runs out?, What form will the alternatives take? and, How will our balance of payments and standard of living be affected?
It would be ideal if we could treat energy like any other common com- modity and have some direct control over our own individual energy provi- sion and utilisation. In fact, this may not be too far down the track for some nations. But, for the present, the realities show quite clearly that, worldwide, there is a massive oversupp- ly of petroleum.
This is due to a sustained decline in world oil consumption, to smaller cars, to increases in non-OPEC production and, strangely, to the shut-in of some OPEC oil caused by the Iran/Iraq war.
The indications are (according to the U.S. Energy Administration) that supp- ly and demand will take five years to normalise. The oversupply position will be aggravated further once the Iran/Iraq war finalises and by any other perturbations in this war-stricken and highly sensitive region.
To cushion and mitigate any supply shocks, the developed nations have built up supply stocks to last 100 to 200 days.
Consequently, for the next five years or so, barring further Middle East upsets, the world oil price is expected to remain constant at around U .S.$26 to
$28 per barrel. By 1990, demand is ex- pected to exceed supply and the price to start rising dramatically from U.S.$40 in 1990 to $50 in 1995, and to U.S.$115 per barrel in the year 2000 (at constant 1984 U.S.$).
The forecasting of future events and prices is beset by so many variables that it may appear to be an impossible and futile task. However, the application of supply-demand equilibrium economics to indicate normalised base-case price movements and expectations can assist both national and corporate energy planning and policy making.
This is crucially important today when it is recognised that practically all nations, whether developed or develop- ing, are highly vulnerable to petroleum
imports. This vulnerability applies in- creasingly to ourselves.
Some dependencies are: Japan, West Germany, France and Italy (all 100%), Australia (350fo), America (30%) and, by comparison, Russia and U.K. (0%).
Within ten years our petroleum posi- tion is Jikely to deteriorate rapidly ...
In Australia, our current petroleum import bill is $3200 million. About 65%
of total petroleum in Australia is con- sumed in the transportation sector, which is 90% dependent upon petroleum. Within ten years, our petroleum position is likely to deteriorate rapidly and, at current pro- jections and prices, our petroleum im- port bill will rise to a collosal U.S.$9000 million.
This spectre poses some very con- siderable challenges to enterprise Australia. As any industrialist will tell us, ten years is not a very big lead time.
CHALLENGES AND ALTERNATIVES
Current methods of attacking the pro- blem include increased consen'Mioa, the use of more coal (for thermal and electricity requirements) and uranium for electricity generation. However, these alternatives are not without their problems. For instance, each tonne of coal produces about 3.4 tonnes of car- bon dioxide and about IO kg of suphur dioxide when used.
Since the world currently consumes about II 000 million tonnes per year of coal equivalent (this includes natural gas and petroleum as well as coal) and this at an exponentially increasing rate, it is not surprising that there are severe pollution problems.
The effects of acid rain on ancient monuments, forests and lakes are of particular concern in the Northern Hemisphere. Globally, there are worries about a possible 'greenhouse' warming effect caused by carbon dioxide emis- sions. An expected one degree Celsius rise in the next few decades is expected to cause oceans to rise perceptibly and the wheat belts to creep further towards the poles and into less fertile regions.
Despite this, Australia, with its huge coal and oil shale (another fossil fuel) deposits, can expect to see intense lob- bying for development. The interesting question is, at what stage will the rising marginal cost and disbenefit cost of these fuels match the environmentally benign, but currently more expensive, soft energy technology options?
In addition, nuclear power, with all its claims to cleanliness, cost effec- tiveness and safety, is not accepted without its share of misgivings. There are nagging doubts about those claims of safety (would you really be happy for a nuclear power station to be built at, say, Redcliffe or Redland Bay?) There are also threats from terrorism and a disposal problem. (Is it right and proper to dump nuclear wastes in mid-ocean or down disused coal and other mines?)
Even more speculatively, how would you feel about central Western Australia becoming the world's dump- ing ground for nuclear waste? Of course, it is argued that the dump would be embedded safely in rock deep underground. Acceptance of this pro- posal would mean that our balance of payments problem would disappear pvernight. This is a tempting political hot potato which is likely to surface soon at future elections.
The question of energy alternatives is complex and the transitions to, and solutions for, a post petroleum economy will be tempered by local con- ditions and national carrying capacity
and capabilities. Choice of these alter- hatives will be influenced by political ex- pediency and the need to avoid economic hardship and environmental catastrophe, and be hedged by the realities of sunk investments, industrial transition rates and the will to meet new challenges.
Soft energy pathways (hi-tech, essen- tially based on solar energy) have many adherents, but their entry costs are con- sidered to be ·prohibitively high at pre- sent. To be more accurate, the capital costs are much higher and, although the operating costs (and hence the amortis- ed cost into perpetuity) are much lower than for conventional systems, the in- dustrial economist will discount long- term benefits as being virtually valueless.
Some kicks may hurt badly enough to overcome conventional economic dogma. For instance, electricity and petroleum prices could rise inexorably;
or there might be a need to curtail the worldwide use of fossil fuel because of pollution and its real cost of contain- ment. If these situations emerge, what new energy resources can we exploit?
Let us assume that improvements in functional technology continue; that the butldin and architecture professions design for optimum energy efficiency as well as for functionality, style and life- cycle costs in our buildings and that the transportation sector strives for greater technical and systems efficiency as well as for utility and cost effectiveness.
Developments such as these will all help to moderate demand for fuels.
However, we have said little so far about the nature of these fuels.
... possibilities for hydrogen-based economies .•.
Quite naturally, there has been a con- centrated effort to find liquid-for-liquid fuel substitutes since this would cause minimal disturbance to existing utilisa- tion modes and infrastructures. This is apparently how the traditional large oil and mining companies see the develop- ment of our huge coal and oil shale resources: in .terms of coal liquids and shale oil production and their subse- quent upgrading into gasoline and diesel fuel, and to the synthesis of methanol.
But the reality is that the sheer size of the solids handling, pollution and in- vestment problems are daunting. About u:S.$2.5 billion would be needed for each 50 000 barrel per day facility.
(Australia currently consumes about 600 000 barrels per day of oil.) With break-even prices for synthetic fuels currently hovering around U .S$65 to
$70 per barrel, and very much subject to petroleum price drag effects, even the U.S. Congress is blanching and is now cutting back its Synthetic Fuels Pro- gram from U.S.$19 'billion to $9.5
billion. · •
Other options are being investigated, including possibilities for hydrogen- based economies. In France, Germany and Italy, consideration is being givep to coupling the hydrogen vector to nuclear power. In Canada, hydrogen may complement the. hydro-electricity and nuclear power systems. Japan has designs on hydrogen's compatibility with both nuclear and solar systems.
There is virtually no interest in hydrogen in Australia, since the nation is preoccupied with building up its coal and uranium supply base and with assessing its shale oil prospects. But there are relatively few technical im- pediments preventing a coupling of hydrogen to solar energy and hydro- electricity systems in Australia.
Proponents of hyrogen point out that:
• the feedstock (i.e. water) is univer- sally available (covering 71% of the earth's surface);
Dr Mike Chambers
• it is environmentally benign, pro- ducing water on combustion;
• it is a convenient and safe form of energy (It has been piped and used as 'town gas' in Europe and America for over 50 years.);
• it is also relatively inexpensive.
Hydrogen produced from coal and steam, or via electrolysis of water us- ing hydro-electricity, is cheaper than gasolines produced from petroleum today and, a fortiori, is cheaper than any proposed natural gas, coal and oil shale-based synthetic fuels routes.
Hydrogen is used presently 'for mak- ing ammonia-based fertilisers and ex- plosives, in petroleum processing, and is also used in NASA space shuttles. Ex- tensive trials are also underway for use in other, more down-to-earth, transpor- tation modes. These include trials in modified Jumbo 747s (a Manchester- Frankfurt-Middle East-Dallas 'milk- run'), prospective designs for passenger supersonic transports, Canadian-Pacific railroad haulage simulations, and in road vehicles.
Results are promising. Compared with existing operations, the cost per passenger/km are lower, and pollution is virtually eliminated.
Additionally, hydrogen can be used in flameless space heating and cooking (utilising catalyst-impregnated ceramics and other new materials).
Even at this early stage, and using ex- isting technology, trials in California in- dicate that a house and a hydrogen- fuelled vehicle can operated in- dependently, on a photovoltaic storage battery-hydrogen production and storage facility at costs only slightly greater than our conventional centralis- ed gasoline and electricity supplies.
If hydrogen is to become a significant option, then clearly its safe production, storage, transportation and utilisation will create challenges ranging through science (for instance, in catalysts, materials, electrochemistry, and photo and thermal physics) and engineering (mechanical and electronic design).
These notions may prove rather dif- ficult for the large multinationals and mining companies to grasp and to iden- tify with. These people give the impres- sion, in Australia, that they are really only good at exploration, digging holes in the ground, traditional production methods, and marketing large tonnage commodities nationally and internationally.
Understandably, there is inertia and resistance to change. However, if our life-styles are to be threatened and our development curtailed essentially because fossil fuel real costs are too high, nuclear energy is too hazardous and bio-energy is insufficient, then perhaps a solar-hydrogen option will be kicked into our daily lives before long.
Interestingly, those Californians oc- cupying their solar-hydrogen designed houses would not be affected directly by electricity, gas and gasoline supply in- terruptions. In addition, since their up- front costs are included in their mor- tgages (at reduced interest rates because it is a U.S. solar-designed dwelling) there are no worries about increasing fuel bills.
Could this, or should this, type of development take place here? Imagine the tangled web of political interests: the
·mining lobby, energy supplier concerns, the legislative predicaments and the rights of individuals, and the technological and educational challenges. And this is just for one · possible option. It doesn't bear thinking about. Or does it?
