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Queensland University of Technology Newspaper Issue 295 July 14 - August 3, 2009
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www.news.qut.edu.au www.twitter.com/QUTmedia George Street Brisbane 4000 Telephone (07) 3138 2361 Registered by Australia Post – Publication No. QBF 4778. CRICOS No 00213J
Community engagement
OLD Government House in the heart of QUT’s Gardens Point campus has emerged from its $15 million renovation as a magnifi cent centrepiece of Queensland’s colonial history and a living, working building for people of all ages.
The restored elegant, sandstone house, which was built in 1862 and home to Queensland’s fi rst 11 governors, was opened by Premier Anna Bligh in June, in the presence of the state’s current governor, Her Excellency Penelope Wensley AO.
The public can now visit Old Government House from Sundays to Fridays and immerse themselves in
Queensland’s heritage.
Visitors can step back in time by exploring the beautifully restored rooms – and also utilise futuristic technology to “wander through” the house as it was around the 1900s in a virtual reality room.
Vice-Chancellor Professor Peter Coaldrake, pictured, who is also chair of Q150 – Queensland’s 150th celebrations – said the revival of Old Government House for use by the people of Queensland was fitting for the State’s fi rst signifi cant public building.
“Old Government House has been restored with a blend of historical detail, public spaces, and futuristic technolog y to appeal to today’s
generation,” he said.
“QUT is custodian of this wonderful building and it is open for the people of Queensland to enjoy and use.
This has been a heartfelt project for QUT because we strongly believe in engaging with the community and contributing to the cultural life of the State.”
Q U T ’s r e s t o r a t i o n o f O l d Gover nment House is a major initiative for Queensland’s 150th anniversary celebrations and QUT acknowledges the support of the Queensland Government and the National Trust of Queensland in this project.
Continued Page 5
Model students
ARLOU Arteta admits f inding a solution to global poverty may not be achieved in her lifetime but that’s not stopping her from trying.
The 21-year-old is one of seven QUT students to be selected to attend the fi rst ever United Nations organised Global Model United Nations Conference to be held in Geneva, Switzerland, from August 5 to 7.
“This is really a dream come true for me,” the arts/law student said.
“I have a keen interest in human rights and an interest in engaging with others to fi nd solutions to the world’s problems.”
Arlou said the conference would provide an opportunity for more than 1000 students from about 70 countries to come together and share views, experiences and knowledge about global poverty.
She said the theme of the conference was “The Millennium Development Goals: Lifting the Bottom Billion out of Poverty” and students would participate in simulated sessions of the UN General Assembly as well as other multilateral bodies in the UN system.
“It’s going to give us skills that we will be able use throughout our lives.
It will teach us to work together, to participate in problem solving and the value of cooperation,” she said.
With hopes of one day becoming the Secretary General of the UN, Arlou said she saw this trip as a stepping stone to achieving her career aspirations.
“I come from a migrant background, I was born in the Philippines and we moved to New Zealand before coming to Australia, so I know the challenges of having to start a new life in a new country,” she said.
“But Australia is a lucky country.
People don’t have to worry if there is
food on the table or if they are going to be displaced by war, because it is simply not a daily reality here.
“So I can envision that during this conference there will be a lot of stories about what is happening in the world and how people in other countries are struggling every day just to survive.”
- Sandra Hutchinson
Welcome to Old Government House
Trip to fi ght world poverty
Students attending the Global Model United Nations Conference in Geneva, left to right, Liam Scanlan, Shaan Stone, Jamie Nuich, Arlou Arteta, Lara Soldi and Mark Hillman.
COMMENT
THE offi cial opening of the refurbished Old Government House on our Gardens Point campus on Sunday June 7 was an important event for the Queensland community, as well as a very special occasion for QUT.
The completion of the restoration of the House – the first major public building of the Colony of Queensland – coincides with Queensland’s celebration of its 150th anniversary.
QUT is proud to have partnered with the Queensland Government and the National Trust of Queensland in this important endeavour.
We particularly appreciate the
$5m support received from the Queensland Government toward the project which, together with a contribution of close to $8m from QUT, as well as the generous assistance of a number of private benef actor s, has ensured the achievement of the restoration.
While Old Government House is located within the Gardens Po i n t c a m p u s , i t s p r ev i o u s dilapidated condition discouraged the community from engag ing this building or a ppreciating its importance as the work ing
home of Queensland’s fi rst eleven Governors, as the original home of the University of Queensland, the headquarters for many years of the National Trust, and now a wonderful asset of QUT.
We were delighted that Premier Anna Bligh, in the presence of the Governor, Her Excellency Penelope Wensley, offi ciated at the opening ceremony.
We were also very pleased then to welcome State Cabinet, which held its 9 June meeting in the House’s old Billiard Room.
I encourage everyone to engage with the House by exploring its various spaces, enjoying a tea or a coff ee in the Tea Room, or by visiting the Interpretative Centre (where exciting technology brings to life the history of the House itself as well as certain aspects of our Colonial past).
We now look forward to the next exciting element of the transformation of Old Government House, namely, the opening of the William Robinson Gallery by Therese Rein, on 26 August.
Professor Peter Coaldrake Vice-Chancellor
Queen’s Birthday honour
A LEADING QUT academic was made a member of the Order of Australia (AM) in the Queen’s Birthday honours list announced last month.
Author, researcher and commentator Distinguished Professor John Hartley, pictured left, was recognised for his contribution to education in the fi eld of journalism, culture and media studies.
“I was delighted when I heard I was receiving the award,” Professor Hartley said.
“I was pleased for my discipline because it gives national recognition to journalism, culture and media studies, which is an area not always acknowledged.
“And I was personally pleased because it is a great honour that a migrant (from the UK) such as myself can receive such an important acknowledgement.”
Infrastructure
ABOUT 530 staff members have relocated from Margaret Street and Gardens Point over the semester break to the brand new 88 Musk Avenue building at Kelvin Grove.
Areas moved were the Division of Research and Commercialisation, the Human Resources Department, qutbluebox, Division of Finance and Resource Planning and Information Technology Services.
The decision to relocate staff was in large part due to the upcoming
major construction of the Science and Technology Precinct at Gardens Point.
Development of the $200 million precinct and community hub has been bolstered with the recent Federal budget delivering $75 million to the project.
Vice-Chancellor Professor Peter Coaldrake said the funding would help build an internationally significant centre for the development of science, technology, engineering and mathematics disciplines.
“With a theme of sustainable and secure infrastructure, the precinct will focus on research and teaching
and learning in the key priority areas of climate change; infrastructure;
and food, water and energy security,”
Professor Coaldrake said.
“The project’s exciting new facilities will also ensure the reinvigoration of the community life of the Gardens Point campus.”
Construction of QUT’s ambitious development is already underway with demolition of fi ve buildings and a multi-million dollar upgrade of laboratories commenced.
The precinct is due to be completed by 2012.
Doctor of the University
QUT’s Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic) Professor David Gardiner has been awarded the title of Doctor of the University for his contribution to QUT and the Australian higher education sector.
The honorary doctorate, which recognises distinguished service and community contribution, was presented to Professor Gardiner at a special ceremony during the Senior Staff Conference in May.
Professor Gardiner joined QUT (then QIT) in 1976 after a successful career as a barrister and was a foundation member of the QUT Law
New Distinguished Professor
QUT has conferred the title of Distinguished Professor on Stuart Cunningham, director of the ARC Centre of Excellence for Creative Industries and Innovation.
The title of Distinguished Professor was awarded to Professor Cunningham, pictured right, in recognition of his outstanding achievements as a leading researcher and his contribution to humanities both nationally and internationally.
The award also recognises his eminence in leading both the successful bid and a subsequent re-bid, for Australia’s only ARC Centre of Excellence in the Humanities arena.
As one of Australia’s leading proponents of the new and applied humanities, Professor Cunningham is internationally known for his work in demonstrating the relevance of media, communications and cultural studies to industry practice and government policy.
Prestigious transport medallist
EMERITUS Professor Rod Troutbeck has been awarded the prestigious Engineers Australia Transport Medal for 2009, which aims to promote and recognise outstanding individual contribution in the fi eld of Australian transport engineering.
As one of only nine people to have been awarded the medal in the past 20 years, QUT’s Professor Troutbeck, pictured left, said he was honoured to be a recipient.
“I have been researching all of my life and have played an important part in the development of operations and safety of roads in Australia and the United States. My research focus has been on improving road safety and relieving traffi c congestion through engineering,” he said.
Our honour roll of professors
Teaching and Learning
QU T h a s b e c o m e t h e o n ly Australian university to have its teaching excellence recognised with more than one prestigious fellowship in the 2009 program announced by the Australian Learning and Teaching Council.
The ALTC awarded nine teaching fellowships to the nation’s most outstanding university teachers, including two to QUT lecturers – Professor Des Butler from the Faculty of Law and Associate Professor Chris Collet from the Faculty of Science and Technology.
Professor Butler will use his fellowship to conduct a project a d d re s s i n g t h e e n g a g e m e n t of students using innovative technology. The law lecturer has already received accolades for his work creating multimedia fi ctional worlds to help his students learn
and practise real-world skills.
Professor Collet, who specialises in teaching biotechnology and bioentrepreneurship, has received his fellowship for a project titled Entrepreneurship Education in Non-Business Schools.
Th e n i n e fe l l ow s h i p s a re collectively worth $1.65 million and will fund further work by each recipient in areas critical to improving student learning and learning outcomes.
QUT’s Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Teaching Quality), Professor Vi McLean, congratulated Professor Butler and Professor Collet, and also acknowledged the other QUT academic staff who were nominated for fellowships.
“To make it into this pool is, in itself, a form of recognition for an impressive record of prolonged teaching leadership,” she said.
- Mechelle McMahon
Meet our
top teachers
School. He was appointed Dean of the Faculty of Law in 1989, served as Pro Vice-Chancellor (Planning and Resources) and Pro Vice-Chancellor
(Research and Advancement) at QUT, and in 2003 was appointed to his position as Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic).
Move to Musk Ave
Left to right, Chancellor Peter Arnison, Professor David Gardiner and V-C Professor Peter Coaldrake
Professor Des Butler, left, and Associate Professor Chris Collet
QUT staff member Darryl Crawford moves into 88 Musk Avenue
Science
NEW treatments to ease or even cure the most common cancer aff ecting Australian men are a step closer to reality with a $1.25 million grant awarded to QUT prostate cancer researcher Professor Colleen Nelson.
Professor Nelson received the top Smart Futures Premier’s Fellowship, worth $1.25 million over fi ve years, which she said would be used to develop new, advanced treatments for prostate cancer.
“I couldn’t be more honoured to have received this award,” Professor Nelson said.
“I think it will be a good message to send across the state that we care about this disease.”
During the awards ceremony, Queensland Premier Anna Bligh said Professor Nelson was regarded as a world leader in prostate cancer research and her work was helping us to treat and better understand prostate cancer.
“One in nine men will develop prostate cancer in their lifetime, and almost 3000 men die of prostate cancer every year,” Premier Bligh said.
“Professor Nelson’s ground-breaking work is attempting to pinpoint more effective treatments for advanced prostate cancer and is exploring the
disturbing links between diabetes and obesity in males and prostate cancer.”
Professor Nelson is director of the Australian-Canadian Prostate Cancer Research Alliance which has previously received $2 million in funding from the State Government and is supported by the Prostate Cancer Foundations of Australia and Canada.
A number of other QUT researchers were also awarded.
Professor John Bell, from the Institute of Sustainable Resources and the Faculty of Built Environment and Engineering, received a Level One Smart Futures Fellowship worth
$300,000 over three years for his research into incor porating solar power into a new energy supply system for Queensland.
Dr Karla Ziri-Castro, from the School of Eng ineering Systems, received a Level Two Smart Futures Fellowship worth $150,000 over three years to develop an efficient and cost-eff ective high-speed wireless broadband communications platform for rural and regional Australia.
And Dr Marcus Foth, from the Creative Industries Faculty, also received a Level Two Smart Futures Fellowship to investigate how best to motivate and encourage people to pursue a sustainable and environmentally- friendly lifestyle.
Engineering
A $1.3 MILLION State Government grant will help QUT create a new class of solar-powered nano-sensors capable of detecting pollution and monitoring the environment in remote areas.
Lead researcher Professor Nunzio Motta, from the School of Engineering Systems, said nanotechnolog y
had the potential to revolutionise current farming and environmental management techniques.
Professor Motta, pictured below, said up until now it had been too costly and very diffi cult to collect and monitor data revealing the environmental conditions experienced in remote areas.
“These sophisticated nano-sensors which we are developing and which will use very little power, will provide
a more accurate picture of what is happening in the environment, and will help farmers monitor their crops in remote areas,” he said.
Professor Motta said the nano- sensors, which were located in a self-contained box and could be placed where needed, were based on microscopic tubes and wires too small to be seen by the naked eye.
“The nano-tubes being developed at QUT are tiny carbon tubes with
a diameter of a few millionths of a millimetre, much smaller than a human hair, and will be covered by the sensing molecules,” he said.
“The nano-wires which are being developed in Italy, are metallic oxide needles of the same size, and will not require sensing molecules.
“Their hair-like structure increases the sensitivity of the detector because of the huge surface exposed with respect to conventional fl at sensors.”
Professor Motta said the sensors would be powered by a new kind of solar cell developed in Australia by Dyesol, and would transmit data to monitoring stations using radio or Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) technology.
“This will provide a low-cost method to monitor air, water, land and crop conditions, and assist in the control of pollution levels and gas and carbon emissions,” he said.
“What we have proposed is that in the fi rst year we will develop the nano-structures, in the second year we will work on the electronics, and in the third year we will deploy the sensors for testing.”
The project is a collaboration involving QUT, Central Queensland University, the Brescia and Roma Tor Vergata universities in Italy, and Dyesol, one of Australia’s leading suppliers of solar technology.
The project is funded by the State of Queensland under the National and International Research Alliances Program (NIRAP).
- Sandra Hutchinson
Research capacity boon
Funding
QUT achieved its most outstanding results to date in the latest Australian Research Council Linkage Grants round.
QUT was awarded 17 grants worth a total in ARC funding of $7.35 million, with matching cash and in-k ind contributions from partners bringing the total to over $11 million.
This r anked QUT as second nationally in terms of total dollars awarded.
A diverse range of research projects received a f unding boost: from investigating Australian’s sun safe practices, to looking at the eff ect of traffi c emissions on children’s health, to investigating the rural skills crisis.
“I think this is a great outcome for QUT and it refl ects QUT’s strength in
research that is relevant to the needs of end users,” said Professor Arun Sharma, QUT’s Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research and Commercialisation).
“The spectr um of the g r ants represents a wide range of research strengths at QUT, and the quality, high- impact research conducted here.”
A total of 59 external partners were involved in the successful QUT projects.
One of the major projects was the Airports of the Future proposal, led by Professor Prasad Yarlagadda with industry partner Brisbane Airport Corporation, which was awarded $2.4 million over four years.
Airports of the Future aims to enhance the capabilities of Australian airport operators to design and manage complex airport systems.
A major aim of the project will be to
lessen the cost of mandated security, estimated to grow to $152 million by 2010 for the fi ve major Australian airports.
QUT is also a signifi cant benefi ciary of a $2.2 million Linkage grant awarded to the University of Melbourne in the area of early childhood education and care, with Professor Karen Thorpe as a co-investigator.
$1.3m for nano-sensors development
Fellowship support for cancer work
Big possibilities with nano
network
QU T h a s j o i n e d w i t h t h e four other universities in the Australian Technology Network (ATN), to establish the ATN- I S TA N a n o N e t wo r k w i t h the Inter national Str ateg ic Technology Alliance (ISTA) of universities in China, which has members in more than 20 universities.
The agreement allows QUT nanotechnolog y researchers and those from other ATN universities to partner with Chinese universities in the fi eld of nanotechnology.
The priority research themes for the network will be health diagnostics, environment and renewable energy. QUT’s fi rst NanoNetwork project will investigate the eff iciency of organic photovoltaics and dye- sensitised solar cells which use nanostructured elements to transport electrical charge through the devices.
Dr Karla Ziri-Castro
Dr Marcus Foth
Professor John Bell
Banana boost
THE second phase of the project aimed at boosting the nutritional value of bananas in Uganda has received funding support of $4.5 million over three years from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
U g a n d a ’ s N a t i o n a l A g r i c u l t u r a l R e s e a r c h Organisation and ProCell Inc (USA) are project partners with the Tropical Crops and Biocommodities domain of the Institute of Health and Biomedical Innovation, under the leadership of Professor James Dale.
Professor Colleen Nelson, left, and Premier Anna Bligh
Architecture
GREEN algae, red mud and a some
‘positive development’ techniques could transform concrete ventilation stations over the Clem Jones tunnel into biofuel-producing, hanging gardens thanks to a concept developed by QUT architecture students.
Maree-Elizabeth Lewis, Matthew Dau and Matthew den Exter, all fi fth-year students in the School of Urban Development, were given the hypothetical challenge to “eco retrofi t”
any structure in Brisbane city.
They chose the ventilation tower in Woolloongabba and put the carbon
monoxide in the vehicle emissions to good work while beautifying the stack with a bamboo lattice supporting food gardens.
Miss Lewis said the team employed the principles of “positive development”
as outlined by QUT’s Professor Janis Birkeland in her book Positive Development: from Vicious Circles to Virtuous Cycles through Built Environment Design for the concepts for their fi nal year project.
“Positive development holds that minimising environmental damage is not enough, design and architecture should actually leave the environment in a better state than it was found in,”
Miss Lewis said.
“This means we had to devise a system that went beyond just fi nding a better way to vent the gases and to ridding the air of them, but to also produce food and fuel.”
Matthew Dau said they had to capture the carbon monoxide and other gases from the tunnel and use them to run a new living system that produced clean water and replaced carbon dioxide with oxygen.
“Algae is at the heart of our system.
They are the world’s fastest growing plants and store the greatest amount of carbon dioxide. Plus the lipids produced by some algae species are 50
per cent oil which can be used as a bio fuel,” Mr Dau said.
The students designed the Air Water Food Project, a system in which carbon dioxide from the tower is bubbled through water in transparent “walls” of recycled plastic tubing where it is taken up by algae that feed on the carbon and release oxygen.
“The system uses greywater from the local community which is treated by a series of ‘living machines’ - fi ltered through red mud, broken down further by algae in the tubes and then passed through an aquaponic system where clams take out further impurities,” Mr den Exter said.
“The cleaned greywater goes into vertical fruit and vegetable gardens made from bamboo that surround the tower. We chose bamboo because it has low embodied energy, is highly sustainable and can be used to make an attractive woven structure to shroud the tower. And a further bonus is the oil from the algae could be used as a renewable biofuel.”
The students said the system could be used to capture carbon and return oxygen to the atmosphere on any ventilation stack or factory as well as beautify them.
- Niki Widdowson
Interior design
TAKE a bright idea to put fairy lights inside a plastic dummy from a former shopfi tter, dress it up with some copper wire and you have “Vintage Louis”, the ingenious reply to the second-year project on colour and light for an upmarket retail store by three QUT interior design students.
F o r t h e i r practical lighting assignment Natasha P a s c o a , A n n e t t e Noud, and Amanda McNamee, pictured left to right, used simple materials to create a light and a store mannequin in one that could grace the
interior of any high-end retailer for a mere $75 from recycled materials.“Our piece was to be a part of a window display to help attract customer attention and provide visual interest,”
Annette said.
“It’s also an item open to inter pr eta tion and so can be used in various thematic contexts in a fashion retail environment.” Annette said the light had received many compliments and off ers to buy.
“We have had lots of positive comments about its form and delicate light patterning within the torso.
Some people say it appears magical and looks as though there are fi refl ies in there,”
she said.
Students design the light fantastic
Design
‘COLOUR my world’ and ‘light up my life’. It’s no accident these phrases are used to describe intense feeling because colour and lighting evoke emotion and infl uence behaviour, says QUT interior design lecturer Marisha McAuliff e.
It’s an understanding that Ms McAuliff e, pictured, from the School of Design, has highlighted with her students through a second-year Colour and Light project to design and construct lighting for a variety of settings, from prisons to retail, and children’s hospitals to dementia care facilities.
The students’ designs have been so successful they have been invited to exhibit them in upmarket lighting showrooms and have received off ers to buy them.
“The project aimed to raise students’
understanding of the way colour and lighting aff ects our emotions in ways we are often not aware of,” Ms McAuliff e said.
“The students’ brief was to research and experiment with the way colour and
lighting can have a positive infl uence on people in diverse environments.
“Their challenge was to research colour and lighting in context, taking in the historical, cultural, psychological and fashion trends of the setting.”
The students’ lighting designs included various materials like leather, wire, perspex, timber, glass and newspaper for environments such as French hotels, designer stores, chang ing rooms, pubs and clubs, children’s health facilities, gambling settings and even for colour-blind people.
Ms McAuliffe said lighting was used to infl uence people’s behaviour, particularly in marketing.
“Retailers know and use lighting – consider supermarkets – the lights in the fruit and vegetable section are diff erent from those over the meat which is diff erent from other groceries.
Change rooms that provide soft, diff used light will probably produce more purchases than those with a stark overhead light in the wrong colour,”
she said.
She said the students had to delve into the needs of the users of each
environment before beginning the design process.
“One team researched a prison environment. It is important to remember a prison cell is somebody’s place of dwelling and awareness of the person’s psychological wellbeing and the appropriate use of colour and lighting should be considered,”
she said.
“ H e a l t h e nv i r o n m e n t s d i ffe r markedly. For example, in dementia units colour and lighting helps to build
‘lines of familiarity’ for people who can be confused about where they are or where they are going. Also we would choose cool colours because the psychological response to them is calming.
“In contrast, children’s health e nv i r o n m e n t s s h o u l d p r ov i d e distraction from fear, sadness or anxiety and so the students came up with designs with bright colours that changed shape such as a helix of fairy lights that softly twists to trigger the imagination and create a fairy land in the child’s mind.”
- Niki Widdowson
Colour
my world
Tunnel vision
Left to right, Matthew Dau, Maree-Elizabeth Lewis and Matthew den Exter
Method
Grease 23cm square slab pan. Beat eggs in medium bowl until thick and creamy.
Gradually beat in sugar, dissolving after addition. Fold in triple-sifted fl ours.
Spread mixture into prepared pan;
bake in moderate oven about 30 minutes. Turn cake onto wire rack to cool.
Icing: Sift icing sugar and cocoa into heatproof bowl; stir in butter and milk.
Stir icing over pan of simmering water until it is of a coating consistency.
Cut cake into 16 squares, dip squares in icing, drain off excess icing, toss squares in coconut. Place lamingtons on wire rack to set.
Open House
The Battle of the Lamington
TOOWOOMBA, Brisbane and New Zealand all claim the lamington – that cube, sometimes fi nger, of stale- ish sponge dipped in chocolate and swathed in coconut that has become the quintessential Australasian cake – as their own.
The truth is, says Dr Katie McConnel, historian and curator of Old Government House, that the lamington came into being in 1900 at Old Government House.
“It has to be. Governor Lord Lamington and his wife Lady Lamington brought Armand Galland, the French chef who invented the lamington back with them to Queensland from the UK in 1900,” Dr McConnel said.
“The Lamingtons took Monsieur Galland with them to their summer home in Toowoomba but Government House in Brisbane is where they would have had large numbers of unexpected guests and the lamington was first whipped up in a hurry to disguise the staleness of the sponge.
“The New Zealand claim comes from Galland’s stay there when he accompanied the Duke and Duchess of York in June 1901 after the Lamingtons had returned to England.”
- Niki Widdowson
A SPECIAL part of
Queensland’s history has been restored at QUT and is now open to the public.
Top things for visitors to Old Government House to enjoy:
• Take free guided tours of the House
• Check out the cascading Swarovski crystal chandelier in the Reception Hall
• Experience interactive displays that reveal intriguing stories of the people who lived and worked there
• Take high tea at The
Tearoom at Old Government House
• Explore the function rooms for weddings and other signifi cant events
• Picnic on gracious lawns under the historic bunya tree planted in 1861
• Visit www.ogh.qut.edu.au.
The Original Lamington Recipe The cake is easier to handle if it’s a little stale; day old cake is ideal. Sponge or butter cake can also be used.
Ingredients 6 eggs
2/3 cup caster sugar 1/3 cup cornfl our 1/2 cup plain fl our 1/3 cup self-raising fl our 2 cups coconut
4 cups icing sugar 1/2 cup cocoa 2 tbsp butter, melted 2/3 cup milk
Lady Lamington
Courtesy State Library of Queensland
in BRIEF...
QUT on Twitter
QUT staff, students and the general public can now keep up-to-date with all the latest university news and events by “following” QUT media releases on Twitter. View our tweets at: www.twitter.com/
qutmedia.
Fruit fl y experts in Vienna Two QUT fruit fl y experts spent last week in Vienna to address an international meeting at the United Nations’ European headquarters. Associate Professor Tony Clarke and Dr Mark Schutze, both from the School of Natural Resource Sciences, were two of only 10 people worldwide who were invited to share their knowledge and research.
The meeting was hosted by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) of the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) to discuss a new international fruit fl y project on two species of fruit fl y, Bactrocera and Anastrepha.
Associate Professor Clarke was invited to Vienna as project leader for a $726,000 fruit fl y project with the Cooperative Research Centre for National Plant Biosecurity.
Info for Saudi students The Saudi Arabian Deputy Ambassador and other senior embassy offi cials visited QUT last month as part of a seminar on life in Australia that was aimed at Brisbane- based Saudi Arabian students. The seminar attracted students from QUT, UQ and Griffi th and included guest speakers from the Queensland Police Service, Education Queensland International, the Department of Immigration and
Citizenship, and QUT Student Services. The event was hosted by QUT International and Development and International Student Services.
Legal fairytales QUT law students were among those lending a hand at Brisbane Magistrates Court recently for an open day during Law Week.
Student ambassadors studying law took part in moot court trials, which were open to the public and based on fairytales such as The Three Little Pigs and Snow White. Law and business student Luke Swetman, pictured, said the day gave students the experience of being in a courtroom, acting for the prosecution and for the defence. The students also ran information sessions for people thinking about studying law at QUT.
Hospital stats QUT and St Andrew’s Medical Institute hosted a half-day workshop last month to discuss how statistical methods could provide vital information on how to improve hospital processes and clinical outcomes. Organiser Dr Mary Waterhouse, from the School of Mathematical Sciences, said the workshop highlighted the usefulness of control charts in identifying not only underperformance, but also cases where outcomes were better than expected. “Improvements can be made to hospital processes by studying the causes of good and bad outcomes,” she said.
The workshop included presentations by speakers from QUT, Queensland Health and some of Brisbane’s top hospitals. Another workshop will be held later this year.
Staff
WHEN Pat Stevens turned up for his fi rst day at work at the Queensland Institute of Technology in 1965 it was as a temporary laboratory attendant and one of his jobs was to make the tea for the lecturers.
Forty-four years later, and a teapot was nowhere in sight as Mr Stevens, pictured, retired from his position of technical coordinator of laboratory technicians in E Block at Gardens Point Campus on June 30.
Apart from brewing hot beverages, Mr Stevens said he also had to “put stuff out and prepare a few solutions” for the classes in physical chemistry and medical laboratory technology laboratories on the top fl oor of G Block.
“I arrived in QIT’s foundation year,
just after it changed from being the Central Technical College, and in those days there were only two laboratory courses off ered in the Department of Chemistry leading to either a career in industrial chemistry or as a medical laboratory technologist,” Mr Stevens said.
He has seen vast changes in the way campuses are run. He remembers how things were done differently then, especially in terms of workplace health and safety.
“One day, for instance, one of the part-time demonstrators, who was a keen crabber, brought in a hessian bag full of live muddies he’d caught on the way to work to be babysat in the lab’s sink for the day,” he said.
“Most people drove to work then and you just angle-parked against the
buildings or wherever you could fi nd.
The campus was open until 10pm because a lot of people studied after work but it was a bit grim - the lighting was poor, there was little paving and the drive was pot-holed.”
He moved to E Block in 1969 after deciding to stay with the chemistry laboratory and was then conscripted for two years’ national service in the army.
When he returned he finished a Certifi cate in Chemistry and Associate Diploma in Chemistr y covering analytical, organic and physical chemistry.
Mr Stevens is retiring to his fl ourishing organic vegetable garden, which has been featured on ABC’s Gardening Australia.
- Niki Widdowson
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Comparison rate
5.03 % p.a.
‘Temporary’ technician farewelled after 44 years
Creative industries
LIZ Skitch is about to embark on a unique adventure.
The QUT g r aduate, and now occasional teaching artist with the Creative Industries Faculty, recently received a Churchill Fellowship which will allow her to combine her two great passions, theatre and Japanese culture.
Over the coming months she will travel around Japan researching children’s theatre.
“I am very excited and feel really honoured to be doing this,” Liz said.
“I have been interested in Japan since high school and was a Rotary Exchange Student there for a year.
“Since that experience it feels like
a second home and I always feel very welcomed when I return – I love Japanese people.”
She will be following the children’s theatre group Kazenoko as they tour schools, interviewing members of the group and researching how they adapt their work for an international audience – Kazenoko shows tour the world.
Liz, pictured, will also be attending an international children’s theatre festival in Okinawa, where she will look at how theatre companies from other countries adapt their shows for a Japanese audience.
She left in early July and will be back in September, when she will share her fi ndings with theatre companies, festivals
and organisations that support and foster theatre for young people and children.
“Every morning the first thing I do when I wake up is study Japanese, then I work through a long list of tasks relating to various projects throughout the day, much of it at the moment in preparation for Japan,” she said.
Liz said this level of self-discipline was important for any performing artist who wanted to pursue their dream. She has had to put in the hard yards to get to where she is today, working as a professional artist.
“I graduated from drama at QUT in 1997, and my fi rst paid gig was not until 2000,” she said.
- Sharon Thompson
Living the
dream
Information security
TRAWLING through computers in search of criminal activity is no longer a time-consuming activity, with new computer software designed by a QUT researcher.
PhD information security researcher Andrew Marrington, pictured, under the supervision of Adjunct Professor George Mohay from the Information Security Institute, has designed automated processing software to help save valuable time for computer forensics investigators.
Mr Mar rington said existing approaches to computer forensics could involve an investigator sitting at the computer and searching manually through the fi le system fi le by fi le, which was time-consuming.
“Police examiners and private companies spend hundreds of hours searching computers for evidence of crime,” Mr Marrington said.
“To help them, I have developed automated software which searches through the computer in just a few hours and g ives a prof ile of the computer’s activity and whether that
activity was suspicious.
“Examiners then know where to look and do not waste their time looking at clean computers.”
Mr Marrington said the computer profi ling software could reconstruct computer activity, look for evidence about who had used the computer, which fi les and applications they had used and whether they had tampered with computer logs.
“The software detects whether people have tried to cover their tracks,”
he said.
“Already there is technology to detect deleted and hidden fi les, but this prototype can reconstruct time lines of computer activity and check them for internal consistency.
“This f unctionality allows the prototype to detect attempts to cover-up the download of illegal material (such as pornography or pirated music), attempts to appear as a diff erent computer user when sending f iles like threatening emails, and attempts to cover-up the unauthorised access of restricted material in a corporate environment.”
- Rachael Wilson
Philanthropy
THE latest Tax Deductible Giving re p o r t by QU T ’s A u s t r a l i a n C e n t r e f o r Philanthropy and Nonprofi t Studies shows the average tax- deductible donations claimed by Australian taxpayers in 2006-07 were $440.01, up 21.1 per cent on the previous year.
Nearly 4.3 million Australians claimed a total of $1.885 billion in tax deductible gifts in their 2007 tax returns.
For the fi rst time, the report analyses the occupations of those who donate as revealed on personal income tax returns as well as by postcode.
“ W i t h t h e m a s s i v e outpouring of donations t o t s u n a m i re l i e f m a ny organisations feared individual donors would suff er ‘fatigue’
and donations would drop,”
Professor McGregor-Lowndes said.
“In fact, the opposite was true – the Tax Deductible Giving report’s fi gures show individual Australians expanded their giving as the need arose and did not cut back on their overall level of support for charities. Some individual charities may have suff ered a drop in giving, but overall the fi gures are up for the years after that disaster.”
P r o f e s s o r M c G r e g o r - Lowndes said the big question wa s wh e t h e r t h e g l o b a l fi nancial crisis would mean a drop in giving or if the trend of increasing personal gifts would continue.
Key points:
Australians’ tax deductible donations up 21 per cent in 2007
Circus performers, actors and strippers second most generous occupation group 4.3 million Australians claim
$1.9 billion in donations or an average of $440.01
Millionaires claim an average of $48,000 or 1.3 per cent of their income
H ow g e n e r o u s i s yo u r postcode? – new website tells all.
The Tax Deductible Giving report is at http://www.bus.
qut.edu.au/research/cpns/
publications/currentissue.
jsp.
F o r p o s t c o d e a n d occupation searches visit http://www.bus.qut.edu.
au/research/cpns/postcode.
php.
- Niki Widdowson
Australia’s generosity breaks
record:
report
Breathe deeply
to relieve anxiety
Psychology
MANY Eastern therapy devotees h ave re c og n i s e d t h e p owe r o f
“breathwork”, a combination of breathing, meditation and relaxation, to help stabilise moods and improve mental health, and a new QUT study will seek empirical evidence to prove its effectiveness.
PhD psychotherapy researcher Lloyd Lalande, pictured above, from the School of Psychology and Counselling, said many people seek alternative approaches to drugs to help alleviate anxiety and depression.
He said if breathwork therapy could be proved eff ective, it could be a valuable addition to existing mainstream Western therapy practices.
“We suppress our breathing in response to stress and trauma,” Mr Lalande, a trained therapist of 21 years, said.
“Holding our breath can then become a habit, which reduces serotonin production in the brain.
“Serotonin is a neurotransmitter that plays an important role in regulating our moods and a lack of it can bring on depression.”
Mr Lalande said breathwork therapy
could be very eff ective in helping to alleviate depression and anxiety.
He is seeking people who have anxiety and depression and want to attend free breathing and meditation sessions to help with the study.
“A pilot study in France has already shown breathwork therapy to be aff ective,” he said.
“Breathwork ther apy involves mindful meditation with a therapist to guide the breathing. It involves focusing on breathing and letting the muscles relax on the exhalation to bring complete relaxation.
“Emotions and body sensations will
emerge, but all the client has to do is observe them.
“A trained therapist will stay with the person throughout the session to provide support and guidance.”
People who have anxiety and d e p re s s i o n a re e n c o u r a g e d t o participate in the study, which will involve up to 10 one-hour sessions of breath therapy with a trained therapist.
If you are interested in participating in the study or finding out more information, phone 0402 715 934 or email breathwork@qut.edu.au.
- Rachael Wilson
Forensics software
saves police time
Come one and all
- QUT Open Day
Find out about courses, career options, support services and university life at the QUT Open Day from 9am to 3pm on July 26 at Kelvin Grove campus. For details, visit openday.qut.com.
Events
JULY 13 - 17 QUT will welcome 2500 new students in July when Orientation Week is held across its three campuses.
Activities include lunch-time festivals and a BBQ and bush dance before watching the State of Origin rugby league game on the big screen. For more details, visit www.
gettingstarted.qut.
edu.au/orientation/
program.jsp.
Talks
JULY 21 The Governor of Queensland, Her Excellency Ms Penelope Wensley AO, will address the QUT Faculty of Law free public lecture from 5pm at The Undumbi Room, Parliamentary Annex, Parliamentary House, Alice Street, Brisbane.
For details, email qutlawpubliclectures@
qut.edu.au.
AUGUST 1 Sessional academics at QUT are encouraged to take part in the Sessional Academic Program to examine and explore teaching and learning experiences at QUT.
The full-day program begins at 8.30am at Level 4 Z block, Gardens Point. For details email teach@
qut.edu.au or phone 3138 9797.
AUGUST 3 Learn about QUT’s acclaimed creative writing course from lecturer, novelist, playwright, fi lmmaker and literary critic Craig Bolland, 5pm-6pm at The Glasshouse, Creative Industries Precinct. For details, visit www.ciprecinct.
qut.com.
Exhibitions
JULY 14 -JULY 22 View the video artworks of QUT visual arts graduates, including Grant Stevens and Claire Robertson, every night from dusk until 8pm at the Parer Place screens, Creative Industries Precinct.
For details, phone 3138 5495.
JULY 24 - AUGUST 8 Learn to VJ and see innovative new media artworks from around the world at the exhibition IDAProjects presents Transverse at The Block, Creative Industries Precinct.
For special Transverse events, follow the link on www.ciprecinct.
qut.edu.au.
Visit www.
whatson.qut.edu.au for more event listings and to submit your upcoming event.
WHAT’S on...
Janne Rayner (Editor) 07 3138 2361 Sharon Thompson 07 3138 4494 Niki Widdowson 07 3138 1841 Rachael Wilson 07 3138 1150 Sandra Hutchinson (Tue/Wed) 07 3138 2994 Mechelle McMahon (Mon/Tue) 07 3138 2130 Erika Fish, Sonja de Sterke
(Photography) 07 3138 5003 Marissa Hills (Advertising) 07 3138 2999 Richard de Waal (Design)
about IQ
Inside QUT is published by QUT’s Marketing and Communication Department.
Our readership includes staff, students and members of the QUT community. The paper is also circulated to business, industry, government and media. Opinions expressed in Inside QUT do not necessarily represent those of the university or the editorial team.
Marketing
DO you poke, play or simply ignore?
According to a new study by QUT, the popularity of a Facebook application will largely depend on whether you are male or female, and if it meets the criteria of being “cool”.
Associate Professor Rebek ah Russell-Bennett and Dr Larry Neale, from QUT’s School of Advertising, Marketing and Public Relations, studied the value of applications such as Scrabble, Mousehunt and Superpoke, which allow people to interact with social networking sites and other users.
Dr Russell-Bennett said when it came to uncovering what made social networking applications successful, it seemed women wanted to express themselves, while men enjoyed the thrill of social competition.
“Facebook users want to possess and share cool applications that enhance their standing within their network of friends,” Professor Russell-Bennett said. “For women this is about self-
expression, for men it is about who is the best.”
The results of the study, titled What value do users derive from social networking applications? were presented at the UK Academy of Marketing conference in Leeds in July.
Dr Russell-Bennett said the study was important because from a commercial view, organisations were struggling to understand how to develop a cool application and identify the features that would encourage people to recommend cool applications to friends.
“Popular applications can attract tens of millions of views and uses per month, and given that applications are relatively cheap to develop and are distributed virtually cost-free, this makes them an attractive substitute to traditional advertising,” she said.
But she said the goal for application developers was to get social networking site members to pass them on to their friends, and this only occurred when the application was considered to have
“value”.
“The study found value is measured
for women according to the ability of the application to facilitate self- expression of interests, values or personality, and for men according to the ability to facilitate competition and comparison. Both want novelty and rarity,” she said.
Professor Russell-Bennett said applications were also considered cool when they allowed self-categorisation such as discovering which movie star you are, applications which change daily or regularly, applications which allow high levels of interactivity such as scrabble or bowling, and applications which were exclusive and rare.
“A n e c d o t a l l y we k n ow t h a t companies are spending a lot of money on applications but they aren’t necessarily working,” she said.
Professor Russell-Bennett said now that they were armed with the knowledge of what motivated people to use and recommend applications, companies could better tap into the social networking market.
- Sandra Hutchinson
Paving Main Drive with gold
Staff supported a new event held by the QUT Staff Giving Committee in May by helping to “Pave Main Drive with Gold” on the last day of the annual fundraising Coffee Week. A gold trail along Main Drive was formed amidst an array of street entertainers and
$16,534 was raised.
Facebooking the truth
V-C unveiled
An offi cial university portrait of the V-C Professor Peter Coaldrake by leading Australian painter and QUT alumnus William Robinson was unveiled recently.
William Robinson, pictured with the V-C, has previously won two Archibald Prizes for portraiture.
Doors opened
to Confucius Institute
Queensland’s fi rst Confucius Institute, which is based at Kelvin Grove campus, was offi cially opened last month by the Premier of Queensland, the Hon Anna Bligh, in the presence of a number of delegates from China’s Hanban, the Jiangsu Provincial Education Department and from the Shandong Publishing Company.
QUT Motorsport revs up students every year, and now that this year’s race car design has been unveiled, it is full steam ahead for the dedicated group who are preparing to race their vehicle in the Formula SAE event in
Melbourne later this year. A crowd of sponsors, students and V8 Supercar team reps attended the launch event, including Elicia Douglas, Ashley Miller (driver) and Daniel Naylor, below.
QUT Motorsport ready to race
Around campus
Dr Larry Neale, left, and Associate Professor Rebekah Russell-Bennett.
