List of Titles

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Start up and beyond : Evolving training needs for rural women in small business

- Newton, Janice, Gottschalk, Lorene, Wood, Glenice

Authors: Newton, Janice , Gottschalk, Lorene , Wood, Glenice
Date: 2004
Type: Text , Journal article
Relation: Journal of New Business Ideas and Trends Vol. 2, no. 1 (2004), p. 29-42
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Description: The rural decline in Australian industry restructuring and the withdrawal of infrastructural services (ABS, 1998), gives rise to the hope of a turnaround in regional and rural Australia arising from the growth of new business ventures. There has been a trend towards an increase in both small business and the involvement of women in recent years (ABS 1301.0, 1997). This combination is important for a sustainable rural future, and therefore, a greater understanding is needed of how women stand in relation to sound business preparation, and attitudes to professional training.
Description: C1
Description: 2003000792

Statistical calibration of long-term reanalysis data for australian fire weather conditions

- Biswas, Soubhik, Chand, Savin, Dowdy, Andrew, Wright, Wendy, Foale, Cameron, Zhao, Xiaohui, Deo, A

Authors: Biswas, Soubhik , Chand, Savin , Dowdy, Andrew , Wright, Wendy , Foale, Cameron , Zhao, Xiaohui , Deo, A
Date: 2022
Type: Text , Journal article
Relation: Journal of Applied Meteorology and Climatology Vol. 61, no. 6 (2022), p. 729-758
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Description: Reconstructed weather datasets, such as reanalyses based on model output with data assimilation, often show systematic biases in magnitude when compared with observations. Postprocessing approaches can help adjust the distribution so that the reconstructed data resemble the observed data as closely as possible. In this study, we have compared various statistical bias-correction approaches based on quantile–quantile matching to correct the data from the Twentieth Century Reanalysis, version 2c (20CRv2c), with observation-based data. Methods included in the comparison utilize a suite of different approaches: a linear model, a median-based approach, a nonparametric linear method, a spline-based method, and approaches that are based on the lognormal and Weibull distributions. These methods were applied to daily data in the Australian region for rainfall, maximum temperature, relative humidity, and wind speed. Note that these are the variables required to compute the forest fire danger index (FFDI), widely used in Australia to examine dangerous fire weather conditions. We have compared the relative errors and performances of each method across various locations in Australia and applied the approach with the lowest mean-absolute error across multiple variables to produce a reliable long-term biascorrected FFDI dataset across Australia. The spline-based data correction was found to have some benefits relative to the other methods in better representing the mean FFDI values and the extremes from the observed records for many of the cases examined here. It is intended that this statistical bias-correction approach applied to long-term reanalysis data will help enable new insight on climatological variations in hazardous phenomena, including dangerous wildfires in Australia extending over the past century. © 2022 American Meteorological Society.

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Stock market predictions based on quantified intermarket influences

- Tilakaratne, Chandima

Authors: Tilakaratne, Chandima
Date: 2007
Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
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Description: This research investigated the feasibility and capability of neural network-based approaches for predicting the direction of the Australian Stock market index (the target market). It includes several aspects: univariate feature selection from the historical time series of the target market, inter-market analysis for finding the most relevant influential markets, investigations of the effect of time cycles on the target market and the discovery of the optimal neural network architectures. Previous research on US stock markets and other international markets have shown that the neural network approach is one of most powerful techniques for predicting stock market behaviour. Neural networks are capable of capturing the non-linear stochastic and chaotic patterns in the stock market time series data. This study discovered that the relative return series of the Open, High, Low and Close prices of the target market, show 6-day cycles during the studied period of about 14 years. Multi-layer feedforward neural networks trained with a backpropagation algorithm were used for the experiments. Two major testing methods: testing with randomly selected test data and forward testing, were examined and compared. The best neural network developed in this study has achieved 87%, 81% 83% and 81% accuracy respectively in predicting the next-day direction of the relative return of the Open, High, Low and Close prices of the target market. The architecture of this network consists of 33 input features, one hidden layer with 3 neurons and 4 output neurons. The best input features set includes the relative returns from 1 to 6 days in the past of the Open, High, Low and Close prices of the target market, the day of the week, and the previous day’s relative return of the Close prices of the US S&P 500 Index, US Dow Jones Industrial Average Index, US Gold/Silver Index, and the US Oil Index.
Description: Doctor of Philosophy

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Strike me lucky : Social difference and consumer culture in Roy Rene’s only film

- Speed, Lesley

Authors: Speed, Lesley
Date: 2009
Type: Text , Journal article
Relation: Screening the Past Vol. 26, no. (2009), p.
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Description: Strike Me Lucky (Australia 1934) presents an imaginative view of Australian society and consumer culture in the 1930s. The only film starring vaudeville star Roy Rene, it has been largely dismissed because of its poor box office performance and perceived artistic failure. Yet Strike Me Lucky is significant for centring on a prominent Jewish Australian comedian and for being an early screen example of Australian ethnic humour. The film’s diverse view of Australian society undermines perceptions of the 1930s as culturally homogeneous and Anglocentric. Its depiction of a modern consumer culture reflects upon Australia’s relationship to Hollywood and modern capitalism.
Description: 2003008037

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Student perceptions of podcasting to enhance learning and teaching in an information systems course

- Miller, Charlynn, Newnham, Leon

Authors: Miller, Charlynn , Newnham, Leon
Date: 2007
Type: Text , Conference paper
Relation: Paper presented at 14th International Conference ALT-C 2007: Beyond Control. Learning Technology for the social network generation, Nottingham University EMCC, Nottingham, England, UK : 4th-6th September 2007 p. 104-115
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Description: Universities are challenged to seek methods to improve student learning. Leading edge technologies, such as podcasts, that put the focus on learner-chosen activities may be one way to accomplish this. This study explored student perceptions of podcasting as a learning and teaching tool in a first semester information systems course within an Australian university. Students were provided with a short podcast to supplement face-to-face lectures. Students were then surveyed to determine their perceptions of the impact of this podcast on their learning. A high number of respondents agreed that they used the podcast, that it increased their understanding of the lecture material and that it assisted their learning in the unit overall. The findings in this preliminary study lend support to the concept that podcasting can enhance learning when used as a supplement to traditional teaching methods.
Description: 2003002687

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Suicide in rural Australia : are farming-related suicides different?

- Kennedy, Alison, Adams, Jessie, Dwyer, Jeremy, Rahman, Muhammad Aziz, Brumby, Susan

Authors: Kennedy, Alison , Adams, Jessie , Dwyer, Jeremy , Rahman, Muhammad Aziz , Brumby, Susan
Date: 2020
Type: Text , Journal article
Relation: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health Vol. 17, no. 6 (2020), p.
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Description: Rural Australians experience a range of health inequities—including higher rates of suicide—when compared to the general population. This retrospective cohort study compares demographic characteristics and suicide death circumstances of farming-and non-farming-related suicides in rural Victoria with the aim of: (a) exploring the contributing factors to farming-related suicide in Australia’s largest agricultural producing state; and (b) examining whether farming-related suicides differ from suicide in rural communities. Farming-related suicide deaths were more likely to: (a) be employed at the time of death (52.6% vs. 37.7%, OR = 1.84, 95% CIs 1.28–2.64); and, (b) have died through use of a firearm (30.1% vs. 8.7%, OR = 4.51, 95% CIs 2.97–6.92). However, farming-related suicides were less likely to (a) have a diagnosed mental illness (36.1% vs. 46.1%, OR=0.66, 95% CIs 0.46–0.96) and, (b) have received mental health support more than six weeks prior to death (39.8% vs. 50.0%, OR = 0.66, 95% CIs 0.46–0.95). A range of suicide prevention strategies need adopting across all segments of the rural population irrespective of farming status. However, data from farming-related suicides highlight the need for targeted firearm-related suicide prevention measures and appropriate, tailored and accessible support services to support health, well-being and safety for members of farming communities. © 2020 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.

Supporting LGBTIQ+ students in higher education in Australia : diversity, inclusion and visibility

- Waling, Andrea, Roffee, James

Authors: Waling, Andrea , Roffee, James
Date: 2018
Type: Text , Journal article
Relation: Health Education Journal Vol. 77, no. 6 (2018), p. 667-679
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Description: Objective: Using student narratives of experiences of exclusion and non-inclusion at university, this paper builds an evidence base for, and explores ways in which universities can respond to, the contemporary concerns of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender/transsexual, intersex and queer/questioning (LGBTIQ+) undergraduate students. Design: Qualitative exploratory study of undergraduate students who identify as LGBTIQ+ regarding their experiences of exclusion and non-inclusion at university. Setting: Large metropolitan university in Australia. Methods: Sixteen semi-formal interviews with undergraduate students who identify as LGBTIQ+ attending a large Australian university. Data were analysed using phenomenological analysis. Results: Students indicated university-level gaps in service provision and failures to support them in their attempts to access, or create opportunities to access, information regarding sexual and mental health and improve inclusion. They also indicated the importance of queer visibility and its impact in creating a positive experience for LGBTIQ+ members of a campus community. Conclusions: Universities should be aware of the need for formalised diversity and inclusion programmes to tackle contemporary experiences of exclusion. Universities can harness and support student initiatives to better serve the LGBTIQ+ campus community, responding to gaps in knowledge, resources and service needs. These gaps include resources and information regarding sexual health, the provision of gender-neutral toilets and other facilities, and support for peer-led programmes to enhance inclusion. Universities should help increase the visibility of a diverse queer presence on campus to help prevent experiences of exclusion. © The Author(s) 2018.

Synonymies of anomalous species of Arrhopalites from Australia and New Zealand

- Greenslade, Penelope

Authors: Greenslade, Penelope
Date: 2011
Type: Text , Journal article
Relation: Zootaxa Vol. , no. 2996 (2011), p. 66-68
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Description: Characters of two species, described more than seventy years ago in the genus Arrhopalites Börner, A. coccineus Salmon, 1941 and A. adelaidica Womersley, 1933, are not consistent with the current diagnosis of the genus. Instead, the holotype of A. coccineus and two cotypes of A. adelaidica, but not the lectotype, are consistent with characters of Stenacidia violacea (Reuter, 1881) following the description of the genus and species published by Bretfeld (1999). Stenacidia violacea is the type species of its monotypic genus. As the characters of the genus Stenacidia, following Bretfeld (1999), are very different to those of Arrhopalites, but are consistent with the characters of A. coccineus and two cotypes of A. adelaidica, A. coccineus is synonymised with S. violacea here and identification of the cotypes of A. adelaidica corrected.

Taxonomy of the Proisotoma complex. II. A revision of the genus Subisotoma and a description of Isotopenola gen. nov (Collembola: Isotomidae)

- Potapov, Mikhail, Babenko, Anatoly, Fjellberg, Arne, Greenslade, Penelope

Authors: Potapov, Mikhail , Babenko, Anatoly , Fjellberg, Arne , Greenslade, Penelope
Date: 2009
Type: Text , Journal article
Relation: Zootaxa Vol. , no. 2314 (2009), p. 1-40
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Description: A taxonomic revision of the genus Subisotoma Stach, 1947 is presented. Subisotoma pusilla (Schaffer, 1900), S. tenuis (Dunger, 1982), and S. asiatica (Martynova, 1970) are re-described based on type and fresh material. Eight new species of the genus are described; S. pomorskii sp. nov., S. homonomica sp. nov., S. bisensillata sp. nov., S. guzeriplica sp. nov., S. posteriomollis sp. nov., S. multisensillata sp. nov., S. cruda sp. nov., and S. erratica sp. nov., using material from Eurasia. A key to the known species of Subisotoma is given. A new genus, Isotopenola gen. nov., is erected for some southern representatives of the 'Cryptopygus' complex related to Subisotoma: I. australis (Womersley, 1934) comb. nov., I. loftyensis (Womersley, 1934) comb. nov., I. nilgiris (Denis, 1947) comb. nov. They are re-described based on type and fresh material. A new species I. delicata sp. nov. is described from Australia. A key to the known species of Isotopenola is given.

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Teaching science content in nursing programs in Australia: a cross-sectional survey of academics

- Birks, Melanie, Ralph, Nicholas, Cant, Robyn, Hillman, Elspeth, Ylona Chun, Tie

Authors: Birks, Melanie , Ralph, Nicholas , Cant, Robyn , Hillman, Elspeth , Ylona Chun, Tie
Date: 2015
Type: Text , Journal article
Relation: BMC Nursing Vol. 14, no. 1 (2015), p. 1-9
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Description: Background: Professional nursing practice is informed by biological, social and behavioural sciences. In undergraduate pre-registration nursing programs, biological sciences typically include anatomy, physiology, microbiology, chemistry, physics and pharmacology. The current gap in the literature results in a lack of information about the content and depth of biological sciences being taught in nursing curricula. The aim of this study was to establish what priority is given to the teaching of science topics in these programs in order to inform an understanding of the relative importance placed on this subject area in contemporary nursing education. Method: This study employed a cross-sectional survey method. This paper reports on the first phase of a larger project examining science content in nursing programs. An existing questionnaire was modified and delivered online for completion by academics who teach science to nurses in these programs. This paper reports on the relative priority given by respondents to the teaching of 177 topics contained in the questionnaire. Results: Of the relatively small population of academics who teach science to nursing students, thirty (n = 30) completed the survey. Findings indicate strong support for the teaching of science in these programs, with particular priority given to the basic concepts of bioscience and gross system anatomy. Of concern, most science subject areas outside of these domains were ranked as being of moderate or low priority. Conclusion: While the small sample size limited the conclusions able to be drawn from this study, the findings supported previous studies that indicated inadequacies in the teaching of science content in nursing curricula. Nevertheless, these findings have raised questions about the current philosophy that underpins nursing education in Australia and whether existing practices are clearly focused on preparing students for the demands of contemporary nursing practice. Academics responsible for the design and implementation of nursing curricula are encouraged to review the content of current programs in light of the findings of this research.

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Teeth Tales : A community-based child oral health promotion trial with migrant families in Australia

- Gibbs, Lisa, Waters, Elizabeth, Christian, Bradley, Gold, Lisa, Young, Dana, De Silva, Andrea, Calache, Hanny, Gussy, Mark, Watt, Richard, Riggs, Elisha, Tadic, Maryanne, Hall, Martin, Gondal, Iqbal, Pradel, Veronika, Moore, Laurence

Authors: Gibbs, Lisa , Waters, Elizabeth , Christian, Bradley , Gold, Lisa , Young, Dana , De Silva, Andrea , Calache, Hanny , Gussy, Mark , Watt, Richard , Riggs, Elisha , Tadic, Maryanne , Hall, Martin , Gondal, Iqbal , Pradel, Veronika , Moore, Laurence
Date: 2015
Type: Text , Journal article
Relation: BMJ Open Vol. 5, no. 6 (2015), p. 1-13
Relation: http://purl.org/au-research/grants/arc/LP100100223
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Description: Objectives: The Teeth Tales trial aimed to establish a model for child oral health promotion for culturally diverse communities in Australia. Design: An exploratory trial implementing a communitybased child oral health promotion intervention for Australian families from migrant backgrounds. Mixed method, longitudinal evaluation. Setting: The intervention was based in Moreland, a culturally diverse locality in Melbourne, Australia. Participants: Families with 1-4-year-old children, self-identified as being from Iraqi, Lebanese or Pakistani backgrounds residing in Melbourne. Participants residing close to the intervention site were allocated to intervention. Intervention: The intervention was conducted over 5 months and comprised community oral health education sessions led by peer educators and follow-up health messages. Outcome measures: This paper reports on the intervention impacts, process evaluation and descriptive analysis of health, knowledge and behavioural changes 18 months after baseline data collection. Results: Significant differences in the Debris Index (OR=0.44 (0.22 to 0.88)) and the Modified Gingival Index (OR=0.34 (0.19 to 0.61)) indicated increased tooth brushing and/or improved toothbrushing technique in the intervention group. An increased proportion of intervention parents, compared to those in the comparison group reported that they had been shown how to brush their child's teeth (OR=2.65 (1.49 to 4.69)). Process evaluation results highlighted the problems with recruitment and retention of the study sample (275 complete case families). The child dental screening encouraged involvement in the study, as did linking attendance with other community/cultural activities. Conclusions: The Teeth Tales intervention was promising in terms of improving oral hygiene and parent knowledge of tooth brushing technique. Adaptations to delivery of the intervention are required to increase uptake and likely impact. A future cluster randomised controlled trial would provide strongest evidence of effectiveness if appropriate to the community, cultural and economic context.

Terrorism and simulation of terrorist incidents across Critical Infrastructure

- Birkett, Dave, Mala-Jetmarova, Helena

Authors: Birkett, Dave , Mala-Jetmarova, Helena
Date: 2011
Type: Text , Conference proceedings
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Description: Terrorism has progressed to a global phenomenon as a terrorist attack has an immediate effect on society not only in the targeted area, but also across the rest of the world. Acts of terrorism are extremely difficult to predict or provide early warning in most cases. In consideration of Australia, which is to a certain extent insulated from the rest of the world by virtue of the sea barrier, there is a history of terrorist incidents reported back to the 1970s. Since the attack on New York in September 2001, the level of terrorism alert to Australia has increased significantly with a current 'Medium' national level of threat. Critical Infrastructure (CI), which is considered essential for contemporary social human existence, has been impacted by multiple and variable external threats in modern times. The destruction at Chernobyl in 1986 and more recent events such as the terrorist incidents at Madrid in 2004, London in 2005, Moscow in 2011 and the tsunami in Japan in 2011 indicate the vulnerability of this infrastructure. Such events translate to threats from both natural disasters referred to as all hazard origin and human interventions such as terrorism. Subsequently, some private and government organisations of CI now regularly rehearse and simulate models of both terrorist incidents and all hazard events as a proactive protection strategy and business continuity process. These models are implemented in a form of scripted Crisis Simulation Exercises (CSE) which simulate a crisis within an organisation in order to strengthen an organisation's ability to manage crisis situations. CI organisations which adopt these strategies are able to mitigate impact of these crises and therefore, are considered to reflect a more resilient organisation to the effects of external impact. CSEs test plans, procedures, equipment and personnel to industry standards required. Within the spectrum of counter-terrorism in particular, the CSEs are becoming more sophisticated and reflective of reality with incorporation of live actions to ensure credibility and reality. The simulated scenario may include a variety of attack methodologies such as biological, chemical, cyber and conventional bombs/blasts and bullets to maintain exercise standards with continuously developing technology of terrorist attacks. This paper defines the topic of terrorism with the profile of terrorists, and examines the terrorism concept and environment both in Australia and internationally including future considerations. It also provides an overview of the simulated framework for mitigation of crisis associated with CI protection with an Australian perspective, suitable for CI protection worldwide. Additionally, this paper examines the concept of terrorism simulation, illustrating a strong case for future simulation progression with some innovative ideas and futuristic predictions as to where terrorist simulations may advance to across the future.

The abode of malevolent spirits and creatures - Caves in Victorian Aboriginal social organization

- Clark, Ian

Authors: Clark, Ian
Date: 2007
Type: Text , Journal article
Relation: Helictite Vol. 40, no. 1 (2007), p. 3-10
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Description: A study of Aboriginal associations with Victorian caves finds that there is a rich cultural heritage associated with caves. This association has been found to be rich and varied in which caves and sink holes featured prominently in the lives of Aboriginal people - they were often the abodes of malevolent creatures and spirits and some were associated with important ancestral heroes, traditional harming practices, and some were important in the after death movement of souls to their resting places. Aboriginal names for caves, where known, are discussed.
Description: C1
Description: 2003005213

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The accessibility/remoteness index of Australia (ARIA) and lifeline Australia's calls

- Watson, Robert, McDonald, John, Pearce, Dora

Authors: Watson, Robert , McDonald, John , Pearce, Dora
Date: 2005
Type: Text , Conference paper
Relation: Paper presented at the 8th National Rural Health Conference, Alice Springs : 10th - 13th March, 2005
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Description: Nationally there are more than 50 member centres and sub-centres of Lifeline Australia’s telephone counselling and referral service, providing an equitable, free, anonymous, and highly accessible primary health resource. The accessibility of this service may mean that it has a particularly important role to play in contributing to the health and well-being of rural and remote Australians. The trained volunteer counsellors of the service receive more than 400 000 calls annually. Information on many of these calls is recorded by telephone counsellors in Lifeline’s Client Service Management Information System (CSMIS). The purpose of this study was to establish if a relationship between the Accessibility/Remoteness Index of Australia (ARIA) and calls to Lifeline Australia could be found. Population standardised areal call rates to Lifeline Ballarat were compiled using Telstra exchange service area to test the hypothesis that a positive relationship between the call rates to the service and the ARIA would be found. 90 128 CSMIS cases from 2003 were examined to explore if any linear relationship between caller characteristics and a centre’s ARIA score were apparent. A number of significant associations with the ARIA scores and CSMIS call variables were observed. However, the hypothesis that a positive relationship between call rates to the service and the ARIA would be found was not supported. An important implication of this exploratory study is that Lifeline’s telephone counselling and referral service may need to be promoted more widely to rural clients and health care providers.
Description: E1
Description: 2003001236

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The applicability of networks in Australian adult and vocational learning research

- Golding, Barry

Authors: Golding, Barry
Date: 2004
Type: Text , Conference paper
Relation: Paper presented at Learns and Practitioners: The Heart of the Matter, Canberra : 17th March, 2004
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Description: Networks have increasingly been recognised by educators as important in adult and vocational learning contexts, in that they have the capacity to help potential learners engage and become better connected with a wide range of learning organisations through their families, jobs and communities and also with opportunities for future learning and work. The importance of ‘being connected’, including through networks to and between learning organisations, has come into higher relief with a recent increase in theorising about aspects of social capital including learning networks, the growth of lifelong learning and an identification of the particular penalties associated with several forms of disengagement from learning for people of all ages. This paper begins with a scan of research literature on networks in adult and vocational learning. The paper identifies some new techniques involving networks, found by experience to assist in the process of adult and vocational learning research: particularly for identifying potential research interviewees within learning organisations and communities, strengthening relationships between learning organisations and identifying opportunities for future collaboration. It also provides some insights from new data on organisational networks derived from a number of recent research studies about learning networks in TAFE, adult and community education and public safety organisations in small and remote towns. The paper finally provides a number of tentative, general findings about the broader applicability of network theory to research and theories about learning in such contexts.
Description: E1
Description: 2003000774

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The association between social support and medication adherence in patients with hypertension : a systematic review

- Shahin, Wejdan, Kennedy, Gerard, Stupans, Ieva

Authors: Shahin, Wejdan , Kennedy, Gerard , Stupans, Ieva
Date: 2021
Type: Text , Journal article
Relation: Pharmacy Practice Vol. 19, no. 2 (2021), p.
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Description: Background: Medication adherence is a primary determinant of treatment success in hypertensive patients. One of the challenges for healthcare providers that has received little attention is the impact of patients’ social supports on medication adherence. Objective: This review evaluates the impact of patients’ social supports on medication adherence in hypertensive patients. Methods: A systematic review methodology was used. Pubmed, CINAHL, Embase, and PsycINFO databases were searched systematically for relevant articles. The outcome measure in the studies was medication adherence in hypertension. Results: From 1155 articles, 238 were retained for further assessment, and finally, 14 met the inclusion criteria. Statistically significant positive associations between medication adherence and social support were found in nine studies (p<0.05). Conclusions: This review evaluated the impact of social support on medication adherence and highlighted gaps in the literature regarding the impact of social support on adherence. Family members or peer support may promote better adherence in some patient groups. This review suggests that healthcare providers may need to consider whether patients have appropriate social supports in place which will assist them adhering to and benefiting from treatment recommendations. © the Authors.

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