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Bioacoustic and multi-locus DNA data of Ninox owls support high incidence of extinction and recolonisation on small, low-lying islands across Wallacea

- Gwee, Chyi, Christidis, Les, Eaton, James, Norman, Janette, Trainor, Colin, Verbelen, Philippe, Rheindt, Frank

  • Authors: Gwee, Chyi , Christidis, Les , Eaton, James , Norman, Janette , Trainor, Colin , Verbelen, Philippe , Rheindt, Frank
  • Date: 2017
  • Type: Text , Journal article
  • Relation: Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution Vol. 109, no. (2017), p. 246-258
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  • Description: Known for their rich biodiversity and high level of endemism, the islands of Wallacea serve as natural laboratories for the study of spatio-temporal evolution and patterns of species diversification. Our study focuses on the owl genus Ninox, particularly the Southern Boobook (N. novaeseelandiae) and Moluccan Boobook (N. squamipila) complexes, which are widely distributed across Australasia. We conducted bioacoustic and multi-locus DNA analyses of 24 Ninox owl taxa to evaluate relationships and levels of divergence within the two complexes and ultimately assess the relationship between patterns of taxonomic differentiation and bioclimatic factors. We found that taxa that are vocally and/or genetically distinct from populations on the Australian mainland are found on islands that are significantly larger and higher in altitude than taxa that are vocally and/or genetically indistinct from populations on the Australian mainland. This pattern suggests that taxa occurring on small, low-lying Wallacean islands are likely to be recent colonisers that have dispersed from Australia. Overall, our observations demonstrate that the genus Ninox is likely to have colonised the Wallacean region multiple times as small, low-lying islands undergo frequent extinction, whereas populations on large and high-altitude islands are more resilient. (C) 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Hc-daf-2 encodes an insulin-like receptor kinase in the barber's pole worm, Haemonchus contortus, and restores partial dauer regulation

- Li, Facai, Lok, James, Gasser, Robin, Korhonen, Pasi, Sandeman, Mark, Shi, Deshi, Zhou, Rui, Li, Xiangrui, Zhou, Yanqin, Zhao, Junlong, Hu, Min

  • Authors: Li, Facai , Lok, James , Gasser, Robin , Korhonen, Pasi , Sandeman, Mark , Shi, Deshi , Zhou, Rui , Li, Xiangrui , Zhou, Yanqin , Zhao, Junlong , Hu, Min
  • Date: 2014
  • Type: Text , Journal article
  • Relation: International Journal for Parasitology Vol. 44, no. 7 (2014), p. 485-496
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  • Description: Infective L3s (iL3s) of parasitic nematodes share common behavioural, morphological and developmental characteristics with the developmentally arrested (dauer) larvae of the free-living nematode Caenorhabditis elegans. It is proposed that similar molecular mechanisms regulate entry into or exit from the dauer stage in C. elegans, and the transition from free-living to parasitic forms of parasitic nematodes. In C. elegans, one of the key factors regulating the dauer transition is the insulin-like receptor (designated Ce-DAF-2) encoded by the gene Ce-daf-2. However, nothing is known about DAF-2 homologues in most parasitic nematodes. Here, using a PCR-based approach, we identified and characterised a gene (Hc-daf-2) and its inferred product (Hc-DAF-2) in Haemonchus contortus (a socioeconomically important parasitic nematode of ruminants). The sequence of Hc-DAF-2 displays significant sequence homology to insulin receptors (IR) in both vertebrates and invertebrates, and contains conserved structural domains. A sequence encoding an important proteolytic motif (RKRR) identified in the predicted peptide sequence of Hc-DAF-2 is consistent with that of the human IR, suggesting that it is involved in the formation of the IR complex. The Hc-daf-2 gene was transcribed in all life stages of H. contortus, with a significant up-regulation in the iL3 compared with other stages. To compare patterns of expression between Hc-daf-2 and Ce-daf-2, reporter constructs fusing the Ce-daf-2 or Hc-daf-2 promoter to sequence encoding GFP were microinjected into the N2 strain of C. elegans, and transgenic lines were established and examined. Both genes showed similar patterns of expression in amphidial (head) neurons, which relate to sensation and signal transduction. Further study by heterologous genetic complementation in a daf-2-deficient strain of C. elegans (CB1370) showed partial rescue of function by Hc-daf-2. Taken together, these findings provide a first insight into the roles of Hc-daf-2/. Hc-DAF-2 in the biology and development of H. contortus, particularly in the transition to parasitism. © 2014 Australian Society for Parasitology Inc.

A technique for parallel share-frequent sensor pattern mining from wireless sensor networks

- Rashid, Md. Mamunur, Gondal, Iqbal, Kamruzzaman, Joarder

  • Authors: Rashid, Md. Mamunur , Gondal, Iqbal , Kamruzzaman, Joarder
  • Date: 2014
  • Type: Text , Conference paper
  • Relation: 14th Annual International Conference on Computational Science, ICCS 2014; Cairns, Australia; 10th-12th June 2014; published in Procedia Computer Science p. 124-133
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  • Description: WSNs generate huge amount of data in the form of streams and mining useful knowledge from these streams is a challenging task. Existing works generate sensor association rules using occurrence frequency of patterns with binary frequency (either absent or present) or support of a pattern as a criterion. However, considering the binary frequency or support of a pattern may not be a sufficient indicator for finding meaningful patterns from WSN data because it only reflects the number of epochs in the sensor data which contain that pattern. The share measure of sensorsets could discover useful knowledge about numerical values associated with sensor in a sensor database. Therefore, in this paper, we propose a new type of behavioral pattern called share-frequent sensor patterns by considering the non-binary frequency values of sensors in epochs. To discover share-frequent sensor patterns from sensor dataset, we propose a novel parallel technique. In this technique, we develop a novel tree structure, called parallel share-frequent sensor pattern tree (PShrFSP-tree) that is constructed at each local node independently, by capturing the database contents to generate the candidate patterns using a pattern growth technique with a single scan and then merges the locally generated candidate patterns at the final stage to generate global share-frequent sensor patterns. Comprehensive experimental results show that our proposed model is very efficient for mining share-frequent patterns from WSN data in terms of time and scalability.

Interrelationships of the Rothbart's temperament model constructs with revised-reinforcement sensitivity theory constructs

- Gomez, Rapson, Watson, Shaun, Gomez, Andre

  • Authors: Gomez, Rapson , Watson, Shaun , Gomez, Andre
  • Date: 2016
  • Type: Text , Journal article
  • Relation: Personality and Individual Differences Vol. 99, no. (2016), p. 118-121
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  • Description: Relationships between the constructs in Rothbart's temperament model and the revised-reinforcement sensitivity theory (r-RST) were examined. A group of 329 adults from the general population completed the Adult Temperament Questionnaire and the Behavioural Inhibition System/Behavioural Activation System Scales. Correlation analyses showed that temperament negative affectivity was relatively highly associated with the RST constructs of the behavioral inhibition system (BIS) and fight-flight-freeze system (FFFS) and temperament extraversion/surgency was relatively highly associated with the behavioral approach system (BAS) construct of reward responsiveness. Temperament effortful control showed no association with the RST constructs. The overlap between the constructs in Rothbart's temperament and r-RST models is discussed. © 2016 Elsevier Ltd.

Characterization of organic compounds in biochars derived from municipal solid waste

- Taherymoosavi, Sarasadat, Verheyen, Vincent, Munroe, Paul, Joseph, Stephen, Reynolds, Alicia

  • Authors: Taherymoosavi, Sarasadat , Verheyen, Vincent , Munroe, Paul , Joseph, Stephen , Reynolds, Alicia
  • Date: 2017
  • Type: Text , Journal article
  • Relation: Waste Management Vol. 67, no. (2017), p. 131-142
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  • Description: Municipal solid waste (MSW) generation has been growing in many countries, which has led to numerous environmental problems. Converting MSW into a valuable biochar-based by-product can manage waste and, possibly, improve soil fertility, depending on the soil properties. In this study, MSW-based biochars, collected from domestic waste materials and kerbsides in two Sydney's regions, were composted and pyrolysed at 450 °C, 550 °C and 650 °C. The characteristics of the organic components and their interactions with mineral phases were investigated using a range of analytical techniques, with special attention given to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and heavy metal concentrations. The MSW biochar prepared at 450 °C contained the most complex organic compounds. The highest concentration of fixed C, indicating the stability of biochar, was detected in the high-temperature-biochar. Microscopic analysis showed development of pores and migration of mineral phases, mainly Ca/P/O-rich phases, into the micro-pores and Si/Al/O-rich phases on the surface of the biochar in the MSW biochar produced at 550 °C. Amalgamation of organic phases with mineral compounds was observed, at higher pyrolysis temperatures, indicating chemical reactions between these two phases at 650 °C. XPS analysis showed the main changes occurred in C and N bonds. During heat treatment, N-C/C=N functionalities decomposed and oxidized N configurations, mainly pyridine-N-oxide groups, were formed. The majority of the dissolved organic carbon fraction in both MSW biochar produced at 450 °C and 550 °C was in the form of building blocks, whereas LMW acids was the main fraction in high-temperature-biochar (59.9%). © 2017 Elsevier Ltd

Climate variability in south-eastern Australia over the last 1500 years inferred from the high-resolution diatom records of two crater lakes

- Barr, Cameron, Tibby, John, Gell, Peter, Tyler, Jonathan, Zawadzki, Atun, Jacobsen, Geraldine

  • Authors: Barr, Cameron , Tibby, John , Gell, Peter , Tyler, Jonathan , Zawadzki, Atun , Jacobsen, Geraldine
  • Date: 2014
  • Type: Text , Journal article
  • Relation: Quaternary Science Reviews Vol. 95, no. (July 2014 2014), p. 115-131
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  • Description: Climates of the last two millennia have been the focus of numerous studies due to the availability of high-resolution palaeoclimate records and the occurrence of divergent periods of climate, commonly referred to as the 'Medieval Climatic Anomaly' and 'The Little Ice Age'. The majority of these studies are centred in the Northern Hemisphere and, in comparison, the Southern Hemisphere is relatively under-studied. In Australia, there are few high-resolution, palaeoclimate studies spanning a millennium or more and, consequently, knowledge of long-term natural climate variability is limited for much of the continent. South-eastern Australia, which recently experienced a severe, decade-long drought, is one such region.Results are presented of investigations from two crater lakes in the south-east of mainland Australia. Fluctuations in lake-water conductivity, a proxy for effective moisture, are reconstructed at sub-decadal resolution over the past 1500 years using a statistically robust, diatom-conductivity transfer function. These data are interpreted in conjunction with diatom autecology. The records display coherent patterns of change at centennial scale, signifying that both lakes responded to regional-scale climate forcing, though the nature of that response varied between sites due to differing lake morphometry. Both sites provide evidence for a multi-decadal drought, commencing ca 650 AD, and a period of variable climate between ca 850 and 1400 AD. From ca 1400-1880 AD, coincident with the timing of the 'Little Ice Age', climates of the region are characterised by high effective moisture and a marked reduction in inter-decadal variability. The records provide context for climates of the historical period and reveal the potential for more extreme droughts and more variable climate than that experienced since European settlement of the region ca 170 years ago.

Effect of schwertmannite and jarosite on the formation of hypoxic blackwater during inundation of grass material

- Vithana, Chamindra, Sullivan, Leigh, Shepherd, Troy

  • Authors: Vithana, Chamindra , Sullivan, Leigh , Shepherd, Troy
  • Date: 2017
  • Type: Text , Journal article
  • Relation: Water Research Vol. 124, no. (2017), p. 1-10
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  • Description: This study focused on understanding the effect of schwertmannite and jarosite, commonly found in floodplains containing acid sulfate soil materials, on the characteristics of the hypoxic blackwaters that can form when floodplain vegetation experiences prolonged inundation. The formation of these ‘blackwaters’ was simulated in the laboratory by inundating flood-intolerant pasture grass leaf material in both the presence of schwertmannite/jarosite (schwertmannite and jarosite treatments) minerals and their absence (control treatment) at 27.5 °C for 32 days. The presence of either schwertmannite or jarosite was able to decrease the concentrations of DOC, nutrients (e.g. NH3 and PO4 3−) and the biological oxygen demand (BOD) in the incubating water compared to the control treatment. Being fresh and labile, the pasture grass material liberated DOC immediately following inundation with a concomitant decrease in dissolved O2 thereby resulting in anoxic and reducing conditions in the incubating water. With the onset of anoxic and reducing conditions, the biogeochemical cycling of DOC in schwertmannite and jarosite treatments might have proceeded via microbially mediated iron(III) and sulfate reduction and electron shuttling processes. Under anoxic, slightly acidic conditions, microbially mediated iron(III) reduction and subsequent dissolution of schwertmannite and jarosite were triggered by liberating Fe2+, SO4 2− and alkalinity to the incubating water. The resultant increase in pH led to SO4 2− reduction in schwertmannite, and the Fe2+ catalysed transformation of both schwertmannite and jarosite to goethite. Schwertmannite almost completely transformed to goethite within two weeks of incubation. Iron(III) in goethite (formed from schwertmannie transformation) was also reduced and likely proceeded via direct microbial reduction or via electron shuttling using the humic acids in the incubating water derived from pasture grass. These findings are highly useful in managing the coastal low lying acid sulfate soils landscapes which are subject to frequent flooding during wet seasons. © 2017 Elsevier Ltd

Screening of the ‘Open Scaffolds’ collection from Compounds Australia identifies a new chemical entity with anthelmintic activities against different developmental stages of the barber's pole worm and other parasitic nematodes

- Preston, Sarah, Jiao, Yaqing, Baell, Jonathan, Keiser, Jennifer, Crawford, Simon, Koehler, Anson, Wang, Tao, Simpson, Moana, Kaplan, Ray, Cowley, Karla, Simpson, Kaylene, Hofmann, Andreas, Jabbar, Abdul, Gasser, Robin

  • Authors: Preston, Sarah , Jiao, Yaqing , Baell, Jonathan , Keiser, Jennifer , Crawford, Simon , Koehler, Anson , Wang, Tao , Simpson, Moana , Kaplan, Ray , Cowley, Karla , Simpson, Kaylene , Hofmann, Andreas , Jabbar, Abdul , Gasser, Robin
  • Date: 2017
  • Type: Text , Journal article
  • Relation: International Journal for Parasitology: Drugs and Drug Resistance Vol. 7, no. 3 (2017), p. 286-294
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  • Description: The discovery and development of novel anthelmintic classes is essential to sustain the control of socioeconomically important parasitic worms of humans and animals. With the aim of offering novel, lead-like scaffolds for drug discovery, Compounds Australia released the ‘Open Scaffolds’ collection containing 33,999 compounds, with extensive information available on the physicochemical properties of these chemicals. In the present study, we screened 14,464 prioritised compounds from the ‘Open Scaffolds’ collection against the exsheathed third-stage larvae (xL3s) of Haemonchus contortus using recently developed whole-organism screening assays. We identified a hit compound, called SN00797439, which was shown to reproducibly reduce xL3 motility by ≥ 70%; this compound induced a characteristic, “coiled” xL3 phenotype (IC50 = 3.46–5.93 μM), inhibited motility of fourth-stage larvae (L4s; IC50 = 0.31–12.5 μM) and caused considerable cuticular damage to L4s in vitro. When tested on other parasitic nematodes in vitro, SN00797439 was shown to inhibit (IC50 = 3–50 μM) adults of Ancylostoma ceylanicum (hookworm) and first-stage larvae of Trichuris muris (whipworm) and eventually kill (>90%) these stages. Furthermore, this compound completely inhibited the motility of female and male adults of Brugia malayi (50–100 μM) as well as microfilariae of both B. malayi and Dirofilaria immitis (heartworm). Overall, these results show that SN00797439 acts against genetically (evolutionarily) distant parasitic nematodes i.e. H. contortus and A. ceylanicum [strongyloids] vs. B. malayi and D. immitis [filarioids] vs. T. muris [enoplid], and, thus, might offer a novel, lead-like scaffold for the development of a relatively broad-spectrum anthelmintic. Our future work will focus on assessing the activity of SN00797439 against other pathogens that cause neglected tropical diseases, optimising analogs with improved biological activities and characterising their targets. © 2017 The Authors

Effective and efficient contour-based corner detectors

- Teng, Shyh, Najmus Sadat, Rafi, Lu, Guojun

  • Authors: Teng, Shyh , Najmus Sadat, Rafi , Lu, Guojun
  • Date: 2015
  • Type: Text , Journal article
  • Relation: Pattern Recognition Vol. 48, no. 7 (2015), p. 2185-2197
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  • Description: Corner detection is an essential operation in many computer vision applications. Among the contour-based corner detectors in the literature, the Chord-to-Point Distance Accumulation (CPDA) detector is reported to have one of the highest repeatability in detecting robust corners and the lowest localization error. However, based on our analysis, we found that the CPDA detector often fails to accurately detect the true corners when a curve has multiple corners but the sharpness of one or a few of them is much more prominent than the rest. This detector also might not perform well when the corners are closely located. Furthermore, the CPDA detector is also computationally very expensive. To overcome these weaknesses, we propose two effective and efficient corner detectors using simple triangular theory and distance calculation. Our experimental results show that our proposed detectors outperform CPDA and nine other existing corner detectors in terms of repeatability. Our proposed detectors also have a relatively low or comparable localization error and are computationally more efficient. © 2015 Elsevier Ltd.

Quasistatic thermoviscoelastic problem with normal compliance, multivalued friction and wear diffusion

- Gasi, Ochal, Anna, Shillor, Meir

  • Authors: Gasi , Ochal, Anna , Shillor, Meir
  • Date: 2016
  • Type: Text , Journal article
  • Relation: Nonlinear Analysis: Real World Applications Vol. 27, no. (2016), p. 183-202
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  • Description: This paper presents and analyzes a model for quasistatic frictional contact between a thermoviscoelastic body and a moving foundation that involves wear of the contacting surface and the diffusion of the wear debris. The constitutive law includes temperature effects and the evolution of the temperature is described by a parabolic equation with a subdifferential heat exchange boundary condition. Contact is modeled with normal compliance together with a subdifferential frictional law. The rate of wear of the contact surface is described by the differential form of the Archard condition. The effects of the diffusion of the wear particles on the contact surface are taken into account. Such situations arise in mechanical joints and in orthopedic biomechanics where the wear debris is trapped, diffuses and influences the properties of joint prosthesis and implants. The variational formulation of the problem leads to a system with a time-dependent hemivariational inequality for the displacement, a parabolic hemivariational inequality for the temperature and a parabolic equation on the contact boundary for the wear diffusion. The existence of a unique weak solution is proved by using recent results from the theory of hemivariational inequalities, variational diffusion equation, and a fixed point argument. © 2015 Elsevier Ltd.

Curriculum learning designs : Teaching health assessment skills for advanced nursing practitioners through sustainable flexible learning

- Fitzgerald, Les, Wong, Pauline, Hannon, John, Solberg Tokerud, Marte, Lyons, Judith

  • Authors: Fitzgerald, Les , Wong, Pauline , Hannon, John , Solberg Tokerud, Marte , Lyons, Judith
  • Date: 2013
  • Type: Text , Journal article
  • Relation: Nurse Education Today Vol. 33, no. 10 (2013), p. 1230-1236
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  • Description: Background: Innovative curriculum designs are vital for effective learning in contemporary nursing education where traditional modes of delivery are not adequate to meet the learning needs of postgraduate students. This instance of postgraduate teaching in a distributed learning environment offered the opportunity to design a flexible learning model for teaching advanced clinical skills. Aim: To present a sustainable model for flexible learning that enables specialist nurses to gain postgraduate qualifications without on-campus class attendance by teaching and assessing clinical health care skills in an authentic workplace setting. Methods: An action research methodology was used to gather evidence and report on the process of curriculum development of a core unit, Comprehensive Health Assessment (CHA), within 13 different postgraduate speciality courses. Qualitative data was collected from 27 teaching academics, 21 clinical specialist staff, and 7 hospital managers via interviews, focus groups and journal reflections. Evaluations from the initial iteration of CHA from 36 students were obtained. Data was analyzed to develop and evaluate the curriculum design of CHA. Results: The key factors indicated by participants in the curriculum design process were coordination and structuring of teaching and assessment; integration of content development; working with technologies, balancing specialities and core knowledge; and managing induction and expectations. Conclusions: A set of recommendations emerged as a result of the action research process. These included: a constructive alignment approach to curriculum design; the production of a facilitator's guide that specifies expectations and unit information for academic and clinical education staff; an agreed template for content authors; and the inclusion of synchronous communication for real-time online tutoring. The highlight of the project was that it built curriculum design capabilities of clinicians and students which can sustain this alternative model of online learning. © 2012 Elsevier Ltd.

Assessment of potentially toxic metal contamination in the soils of a legacy mine site in Central Victoria, Australia

- Abraham, Joji, Dowling, Kim, Florentine, Singarayer

  • Authors: Abraham, Joji , Dowling, Kim , Florentine, Singarayer
  • Date: 2018
  • Type: Text , Journal article
  • Relation: Chemosphere Vol. 192, no. (2018), p. 122-132
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  • Description: The environmental impact of toxic metal contamination from legacy mining activities, many of which had operated and were closed prior to the enforcement of robust environmental legislation, is of growing concern to modern society. We have carried out analysis of As and potentially toxic metals (Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Hg, Mn, Ni, Pb, and Zn) in the surface soil of a legacy gold mining site in Maldon, Victoria, Australia, to reveal the status of the current metal concentration. The results revealed the median concentrations of metals from highest to lowest, in the order: Mn > Zn > As > Cr > Cu > Pb > Ni > Co > Hg > Cd. The status of site was assessed directly by comparing the metal concentrations in the study area with known Australian and Victorian average top soil levels and the health investigation levels set by the National Environmental Protection Measures (NEPM) and the Department of Environment and Conservation (DEC) of the State of Western Australia. Although, median concentrations of As, Hg, Pb, Cu and Zn exceeded the average Australian and Victorian top soil concentrations, only As and Hg exceeded the ecological investigation levels (EIL) set by DEC and thus these metals are considered as risk to the human and aquatic ecosystems health due to their increase in concentration and toxicity. In an environment of climate fluctuation with increased storm events and forest fires may mobilize these toxic metals contaminants, pose a real threat to the environment and the community. © 2017 Elsevier Ltd

Crack propagation prediction of CFRP retrofitted steel plates with different degrees of damage using BEM

- Yu, Qian Qian, Zhao, Xiao, Chen, Tao, Gu, Xianglin, Xiao, Zhigang

  • Authors: Yu, Qian Qian , Zhao, Xiao , Chen, Tao , Gu, Xianglin , Xiao, Zhigang
  • Date: 2014
  • Type: Text , Journal article
  • Relation: Thin-Walled Structures Vol. 82, no. (2014), p. 145-158
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  • Description: Although carbon fibre reinforced polymer (CFRP) materials have proven effective in strengthening steel structures especially when used to improve fatigue behaviour, further study is required to investigate their effectiveness when applied at different stages of crack propagation in steel elements. This paper presents a numerical study on CFRP retrofitted steel plates with different degrees of damage using the boundary element method (BEM). The numerical results compared well with the experimental data, which demonstrated that the BEM is reliable for crack propagation analysis of CFRP laminate retrofitted steel plates. Finally, a parametric analysis was conducted to investigate the influence of bond length, bond width, CFRP stiffness and adhesive shear modulus on stress intensity factor (SIF) values. © 2014 Elsevier Ltd.

A critical examination of the reliability and validity of the SZTPI-15 in British, American and Australian samples

- McKay, Michael, Worrell, Frank, Temple, Elizabeth, Perry, John, Cole, Jon

  • Authors: McKay, Michael , Worrell, Frank , Temple, Elizabeth , Perry, John , Cole, Jon
  • Date: 2014
  • Type: Text , Journal article
  • Relation: Personality and Individual Differences Vol. 69, no. (October 2014 2014), p. 168-172
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  • Description: As an individual difference variable assessing the extent to which attitudes towards past, present and future influence behavior, time perspective is a potentially useful construct. However, its development and utility has been compromised by measurement issues. Recently, a short form of the Zimbardo Time Perspective Inventory (ZTPI), the SZTPI-15 has been suggested to yield valid and reliable scores. Using three independent samples from America, Australia, and the United Kingdom, the present study tested the psychometric properties of SZPTI-15 scores. Confirmatory factor analyses did not support the 5-factor structure and internal consistency estimates for four of the subscales were low. Fit indices obtained from exploratory structural equation modeling were better, suggesting that permitting items to load on multiple factors improved model fit. Correlations with variables shown to be related to ZTPI factors broadly supported the concurrent validity of the SZTPI-15. Results suggest that further psychometric examination of SZTPI-15 scores is required.
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Ritual, remembrance and war: Social memory at Tyne Cot

- Winter, Caroline

  • Authors: Winter, Caroline
  • Date: 2015
  • Type: Text , Journal article
  • Relation: Annals of Tourism Research Vol. 54, no. September (2015), p. 16-29
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  • Description: One of the social memories of the Great War of 1914-1918 focused on soldiers killed in battle, with military cemeteries forming important sites for remembrance. This paper reports the results of an analysis of the visitor books at Tyne Cot Cemetery in Belgium, that was built by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission to hold almost 12,000 graves, most of which contain unidentified remains. Tourist's comments in the books evidenced a strong linguistic ritual, expressing sadness, gratitude, approval of the site and promises to remember and never forget the dead. Very little critique of war, or overt nationalistic sentiment was indicated. While some national preferences for ritualized phrases were shown, there was also an indication of a globally shared memory. © 2015 Elsevier Ltd.

Dynamic operation of post-combustion CO2 capture in Australian coal-fired power plants

- Bui, Mai, Gunawan, Indra, Verheyen, Vincent, Meuleman, Erik, Feron, Paul

  • Authors: Bui, Mai , Gunawan, Indra , Verheyen, Vincent , Meuleman, Erik , Feron, Paul
  • Date: 2014
  • Type: Text , Conference paper
  • Relation: 12th International Conference on Greenhouse Gas Control Technologies, GHGT 2014 p. 1368-1375
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  • Description: Flexible operation of post-combustion CO2 capture (PCC) plants can improve efficiency through coordinating the balance between consumer demands for electricity and CO2 emission reductions. This strategy however, will impose process disturbances and the immediate and long term impact is unclear. There is a justified need for the development of accurate dynamic PCC models, as well as practical experience in dynamic operation of PCC pilot plants. This paper presents CSIRO PCC pilot plant data from the 2012 and 2013 dynamic campaigns using MEA solvent. The step-change approach to dynamic plant operation was implemented and the use of density meters to instantaneously measure CO2 loading instantaneously was investigated.

Evidence for extreme floods in arid subtropical northwest Australia during the Little Ice Age chronozone (CE 1400-1850)

- Rouillard, Alexandra, Skrzypek, Grzegorz, Turney, Chris, Dogramaci, Shawan, Hua, Quan, Zawadzki, Atun, Reeves, Jessica, Greenwood, Paul, O'Donnell, Alison, Grierson, Pauline

  • Authors: Rouillard, Alexandra , Skrzypek, Grzegorz , Turney, Chris , Dogramaci, Shawan , Hua, Quan , Zawadzki, Atun , Reeves, Jessica , Greenwood, Paul , O'Donnell, Alison , Grierson, Pauline
  • Date: 2016
  • Type: Text , Journal article
  • Relation: Quaternary Science Reviews Vol. 144, no. (2016), p. 107-122
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  • Description: Here we report a ~2000-year sediment sequence from the Fortescue Marsh (Martuyitha) in the eastern Pilbara region, which we have used to investigate changing hydroclimatic conditions in the arid subtropics of northwest Australia. The Pilbara is located at the intersection of the tropical Indian and Pacific Oceans and its modern rainfall regime is strongly influenced by tropical cyclones, the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) and the Indo-Pacific Warm Pool. We identified four distinct periods within the record. The most recent period (P1: CE ~1990-present) reveals hydroclimatic conditions over recent decades that are the most persistently wet of potentially the last ~2000 years. During the previous centuries (P2: ~CE 1600-1990), the Fortescue Marsh was overall drier but likely punctuated by a number of extreme floods, which are defined here as extraordinary, strongly episodic floods in drylands generated by rainfall events of high volume and intensity. The occurrence of extreme floods during this period, which encompasses the Little Ice Age (LIA; CE 1400-1850), is coherent with other southern tropical datasets along the ITCZ over the last 2000 years, suggesting synchronous hydroclimatic changes across the region. This extreme flood period was preceded by several hundred years (P3: ~CE 700-1600) of less vigorous but more regular flows. The earliest period of the sediment record (P4: ~CE 100-700) was the most arid, with sedimentary and preservation processes driven by prolonged drought. Our results highlight the importance of developing paleoclimate records from the tropical and sub-tropical arid zone, providing a long-term baseline of hydrological conditions in areas with limited historical observations. © 2016 Elsevier Ltd.

Aerodynamics of ribbed bicycle racing helmets

- Alam, Firoz, Chowdhury, Harun, Wei, Hozhi, Mustary, Israt, Zimmer, Gary

  • Authors: Alam, Firoz , Chowdhury, Harun , Wei, Hozhi , Mustary, Israt , Zimmer, Gary
  • Date: 2014
  • Type: Text , Conference paper
  • Relation: 2014 Conference of the International Sports Engineering Association p. 691-696
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  • Description: In competitive cycling, aero-helmets have been used around since 1980 to reduce aerodynamic resistance. Considerable design effort has been made to improve the aerodynamic efficiency of racing bicycle helmets over the years. However, the demand for further improvement has forced helmet manufacturers and designers to introduce new designs progressively. Recently several helmet manufacturers (e.g., LG, Lazer and Giro) have introduced dimples on the outer shell of helmet mimicking the so called 'Golf-ball' dimple effects with a view to further reduce aerodynamic drag of the helmet. However, no independently verifiable research so far has been reported in the public domain about the aerodynamic performance of ribbed bicycle helmets compared to smooth surfaced helmets. Hence, the primary objective of this work was to undertake an experimental study on four smooth aero-helmets including two latest model ribbed aero-helmets to understand their aerodynamic performance and the effect of dimples on helmets. The investigation was undertaken in an wind tunnel environment over a range of wind speeds, pitch and yaw angles. The experimental data indicate no measurable advantage between the smooth and ribbed helmets under varied pitch angles and at zero yaw angle.

Effects of prescribed fire and post-fire rainfall on mercury mobilization and subsequent contamination assessment in a legacy mine site in Victoria, Australia

- Abraham, Joji, Dowling, Kim, Florentine, Singarayer

  • Authors: Abraham, Joji , Dowling, Kim , Florentine, Singarayer
  • Date: 2018
  • Type: Text , Journal article
  • Relation: Chemosphere Vol. 190, no. (2018), p. 144-153
  • Full Text: false
  • Reviewed:
  • Description: Prescribed fire conducted in fire-prone areas is a cost-effective choice for forest management, but it also affects many of the physicochemical and bio-geological properties of the forest soil, in a similar manner to wild fires. The aim of this study is to investigate the nature of the mercury mobilization after a prescribed fire and the subsequent temporal changes in concentration. A prescribed fire was conducted in a legacy mine site in Central Victoria, Australia, in late August 2015 and soil sample collection and analyses were carried out two days before and two days after the fire, followed by collection at the end of each season and after an intense rainfall event in September 2016. Results revealed the occurrence of mercury volatilization (8.3–97%) during the fire, and the mercury concentration displayed a significant difference (p < 0.05) before and immediately after the fire. Integrated assessment with number of pollution indices has shown that the study site is extremely contaminated with mercury during all the sampling events, and this poses a serious ecological risk due to the health impacts of mercury on human and ecosystems. In times of climate fluctuation with concomitant increase in forest fire (including prescribed fire), and subsequent precipitation and runoff, the potential for an increased amount of mercury being mobilized is of heighted significance. Therefore, it is recommended that prescribed fire should be cautiously considered as a forest management strategy in any mercury affected landscapes. © 2017 Elsevier Ltd

Agreement of adolescent ratings with mother ratings and teacher ratings of ADHD symptom groups: A correlated trait-correlated method minus one analysis

- Gomez, Rapson, Gomez, Andre

  • Authors: Gomez, Rapson , Gomez, Andre
  • Date: 2015
  • Type: Text , Journal article
  • Relation: Personality and Individual Differences Vol. 82, no. (2015), p. 131-135
  • Full Text: false
  • Reviewed:
  • Description: This study examined the level of agreement of adolescent ratings with mother ratings, and adolescent ratings with teacher ratings of the inattention (IA) and hyperactivity/impulsivity (HI) symptom groups of ADHD. A total of 214 adolescents provided self-ratings of IA and HI, and their IA and HI were also rated by their mothers and teachers. The correlated trait-correlated method minus one model was applied, with adolescent ratings as the reference method, and the other two ratings as the non-reference methods. The findings indicated no additional variance in adolescent ratings for IA and HI that could not be accounted by mother ratings of IA and HI, respectively. In contrast, there was additional variance in adolescent ratings for IA and HI that could was not accounted by teacher ratings of IA and HI, respectively. The findings suggest that when diagnosing ADHD in adolescents, their reports of their own ADHD behaviors are not needed when mother reports of such behaviors are used. © 2015.