What's On at UWA

Applications CLOSE 30th November for the Science Experience 2013. Current year 9 and 10 students apply on-line at the Science Experience website. Late applications will be accepted if a place is available. To check whether a program is fully booked at any time go to www.scienceexperience.com.au/when-where/wa

The Science Experience is a three day program of events for students about to enter Year 10 and Year 11. The program is held Tuesday 15th - Thursday 17th January 2013 and is designed to excite students about science and technology and introduce the students to the variety of career options in science and engineering, with the aim that more will choose to study and pursue a career in science.

The Islamisation phenomenon that has been occurring around the world in recent decades has had a significant impact on Muslim communities, whether they are in Muslim-majority countries, or as immigrant communities in host countries such as Europe, the US and Australia. It has also had an indirect impact on the non-Muslim communities of the above- mentioned countries. Both types of impact have at times been negative.

Malaysia has also been affected by this phenomenon, and over the last forty years or so has seen some significant changes as a consequence. The question arises if the generally modern professional Muslim classes of Malaysia are comfortable with this phenomenon, or not? The lecture sets out the context for exploring their reactions by discussing the extent and nature of the Islamisation phenomenon in Malaysia.

Bob Olivier is a doctoral candidate at the Centre for Muslim States and Societies, and Political Science and International Relations at the University of Western Australia. He is undertaking research into the nature and extent of the Islamisation phenomenon in Malaysia, why and how it occurred, and probes with a selection of the “professional classes” their response to what is happening. Bob founded an executive search company, ASPAC, in Kuala Lumpur. ASPAC grew very rapidly, at its peak having about 60 employees, mostly in Kuala Lumpar, but about 7 in Singapore. Offered services to all sectors, but particularly strong in Financial Services, and Technology. Bob now divides his time equally between Kuala Lumpur and Perth.

Controversy continues to surround national student assessment in Australia. However, I argue that testing is neither good nor bad: the devil lies in what people – teachers, school, systems and even parents – do about the tests and the data they generate. I report the experiences of principals, teachers and curriculum consultants in one educational authority to describe how responsibility for interrogating, interpreting and applying data has gradually shifted from an external top-down approach to an internal bottom-up model in a planned, sustained and centrally supported manner, during the past eight years.

South-western Australia was a part of Gondwanaland, and some of the most ancient parts of the Earth’ crust can be found here. Other parts of the landscape originated more recently from calcareous marine deposits [1]. Therefore, the soils of Western Australia are amongst the most heavily leached and nutrient-impoverished in the world. Moreover, the soils on lateritic profiles tightly bind phosphate, so that, phosphorus (P) is also poorly available to plants that are not adapted to these conditions. The old, climatically buffered ancient landscape (OCBIL) of south-western Australia is also one of the world’s hotspots of higher plant species diversity [2]. Therefore, this environment offers a unique opportunity to study plant adaptations to nutrient-poor conditions [3, 4].

A relatively large proportion of species from the P-poor environments in Western Australia cannot produce an association with mycorrhizal fungi, but, instead, produce cluster roots or dauciform roots [5, 6]. These specialised roots are an adaptation both in structure and in functioning; they release large amounts of exudates, in particular carboxylates [7]. Cluster-root-bearing Proteaceae in Western Australia occur on the most P-impoverished soils, whereas the mycorrhizal Myrtaceae tend to inhabit the less P-impoverished soils in this region [8].

The functioning of cluster roots in Proteaceae and Fabaceae has received considerable attention. Dauciform roots in Cyperaceae have been explored less [9, 10], but they appear to function in a similar manner [11]. The growth of specialised cluster or dauciform roots in species of the Cyperaceae, Fabaceae and Proteaceae is stimulated when plants are grown at a very low P supply, and suppressed when leaf P concentrations increase [5, 7]. These specialised roots are all short-lived structures, and they release large amounts of carboxylates during an ‘exudative burst’ at rates that are considerably faster than reported for non-specialised roots of a wide range of species. The carboxylate release plays a pivotal role in mobilisation of P from P-sorbing soil [5].

Because the world P reserves are being depleted whilst vast amounts of P are stored in fertilised soils, there is a growing need for crops with a high efficiency of P acquisition. Some Australian native species have traits that would be highly desirable for future crops. The possibilities of introducing P-acquisition efficient species in new cropping and pasture systems are currently being explored [12, 13]. In addition, possible strategies to introduce traits associated with a high P-use efficiency into future crop species are considered promising.

High P-use efficiency in Proteaceae includes a highly efficient and proficient mobilisation of P from senescing leaves [14]. In addition, many species operate at extremely low leaf P concentrations exhibiting rates of photosynthesis similar to crop plant; expressed per unit leaf P, their rates of photosynthesis are extraordinarily high [4, 14]. I will explore what traits these species have that allow them to exhibit high rates of photosynthesis at very low leaf P concentrations.

Biography

I was born on a farm in the Netherlands in 1950 and completed my undergraduate degree in biology (1976), with a bachelor’s degree in biochemistry, followed by research projects in plant physiology and microbiology. I finished my PhD degree (1979) at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands, working on (cyanide-resistant) plant respiration and effects of flooding. My PhD supervisors were Dr Rinie Hofstra, and Professors Pieter Kuiper and Rienk Brouwer.

After completion of my PhD, I did postdoctoral work at the University of Western Australia, with Professor John Pate, Melbourne University, with Dr Michael Dalling, and the Research School of Biological Science at the Australian National University, with Professor Barry Osmond, working on various aspects of the metabolism and transport of carbon and nitrogen in wheat, white lupins, and a range of other species. After two years as a postdoctoral fellow back in Groningen, I was offered the chair in Ecophysiology at Utrecht University (in 1985).

While in Utrecht, I continued work on plant respiration and started a new program on the physiological basis of variation in plant growth rate and productivity. Twenty eight fascinating theses have come to fruition under my supervision during that great time.

My teaching activities in ecophysiology have led to the completion of a textbook, Plant Physiological Ecology, Springer, New York, just before I moved to UWA. The textbook was translated in both Chinese and Persian. The second, completely revised edition of this book appeared in 2008.

For three years, after my move to UWA, I maintained a fractional appointment at Utrecht University, to promote exchange of students between Utrecht University and UWA and to build collaborative research programs.

PS* This seminar is free and open to the public & no RSVP required.

****All Welcome****

Prospective students are invited to attend one of our info sessions to learn more about how to achieve an engineering career with UWA. These sessions will explain course details, career opportunities, prerequisite subjects and how to apply, as well as providing the opportunity for attendees to ask questions and meet Faculty staff.

Whether you're coming to the end of your time at high school and are considering your university study options, or you already have an undergraduate degree and are looking to re-skill or complete postgraduate study, our 'Becoming an Engineer with UWA' information sessions will provide you with the information you need to get your career in engineering headed in the right direction.

If you can't make it to this session, a further session will be held in on 28 November.

Please visit the website for more information and to register your attendance.

Be transported away from the everyday with our exciting line-up of Thursday 1.10pm, free lunchtime concerts. This year's revamped Lunchtime Concert series features the best of our students in solo and small ensemble performance.

In the late 1970s pioneering art teacher Steve Culley transformed the Fremantle Prison art program from traditional watercolour painting into a course where ‘ideas unfold in the mind and lock into the creator’s hands, as each pursues his own style of art.’ (Shackles prison newsletter, Spring 1984). Jimmy Pike developed his unique style as a pupil of Steve Cully’s whilst serving time at Fremantle Prison. In this evening talk, Fremantle Prison’s curatorial staff will speak about the history of the prison art program at Fremantle and explore the richness and diversity of the Fremantle Prison art collection, which encompasses graffiti, murals, painted furniture, and more traditional works on paper and canvas.

Evensong for All Saints' Day featuring Britten's Hymn to St Cecilia

Introit: Victoria O quam gloriosum

Responses: Smith

Canticles: Noble in b minor

Anthem: Britten Hymn to St Cecilia

Rare insights into the demolition of the iconic Perth Entertainment Centre and the intriguing ideas behind the design of new Perth Arena will be revealed at an exhibition at UWA's Australian Urban Design Research Centre for the month of November. As the Perth Arena begins to host its very first events, the exhibition, In My Beginning is My End, presents the first public glimpse of the secrets within its design while exploring the memory of its predecessor, which for 28 years provided Perth audiences with their first concerts, the bands that influenced them and dates that marked their lives. The exhibition including still and moving image photographs, video, animation, drawings and sculptural constructions brings together renowned West Australian artist, UWA lecturer Dr Jon Tarry and Australia’s most inventive and controversial architects, ARM Architecture with joint venture partners Cameron Chisholm & Nicol.

Free entry, weekdays throughout November 10.00am - 5.00pm

Professor Trapani is a world leader in cancer research. His research interests include the immunopathology of viral and auto-immune diseases and cancer immunotherapy. Professor Trapani has published over 230 research papers.

Professor Trapani’s address will focus on the future of cancer treatment. If researchers are claiming so many ‘breakthroughs’, why are so many of my friends getting cancer? Are we really making progress? The answer is a definite ‘yes’ there is much hope and good news… come to hear about how we can work together to reduce the burden of cancer on patients and carers.

The Oration has been established in memory of the late Harry Perkins, who was WAIMR’s inaugural Chairman and the driving force behind the formation of the Institute, whilst he was also Chairman of Wesfarmers. He believed that without a high quality research environment in WA, it would be difficult to recruit and retain the best doctors and, as a consequence, service delivery to the community would suffer.

The Harry Perkins Oration is a FREE event for the community but registration is essential as places are limited.

The School of Music invites you and your guests to join us as we celebrate the musical achievements of students from across UWA, who have chosen to broaden and enrich their degrees with music!

In a concert that will take you on journey from the heady lights of Broadway, to the carnival beats of Brazil and beyond. Under the direction of Lee Stanley and Aaron Hales, the Percussion Ensemble and Show Choir will entertain you in a performance showcasing their semester’s work.

Friday 2 November - 4:00- 5:00pm Callaway Music Auditorium Entry is Free

A public lecture by Ashley Stevens, President, Focus IP Group, LLC Lecturer, School of Management, Boston University.

Over a decade ago, the President and Trustees of Yale University woke up one Monday morning to find themselves portrayed in a very unfavorable light in the lead story of the Business Section of the New York Times. A license they had granted Bristol-Myers Squibb to develop d4T to treat AIDS, which BMS had successfully developed into Zerit, was now being used to prevent Médécins sans Frontiéres from purchasing generic d4T to treat the poor in sub-Saharan Africa. BMS quickly backed down and agreed not to assert their South African patent, and the socially responsible licensing movement was born out of this incident.

However, despite the fact that the policies and procedures Yale followed were and still are the norms in academic licensing, few academic institutions have included protections to prevent such incidents in the future. Why not? Should they?

Free, but RSVP essential via http://www.ias.uwa.edu.au/lectures/stevens

The annual PhD Conference in Economics and Business attracts national attention and has significantly enhanced PhD studies for a large number of students.

The Confererence was established as a response to the widespread feeling that PhD students could benefit from interacting with their peers at other universities and being exposed to a broader group of scholars. The students present papers on their research and receive comments from prominent scholars in the area. The tone of the conference is scholarly and highly professional, but constructive and supportive, with the students the focus of attention.

The conference was initiated by the UWA Business School in 1987 and is now a joint venture between UWA, the Australian National University, the University of Queensland, and from 2012 Monash University. The 25th Conference will be held at UWA in November 2012.

Over the last 25 years, the Conference has provided the opportunity to gain valuable exposure for, and feedback on, the work of around 700 PhD students from most Australian and New Zealand universities, as well as a number of prominent universities such as Chicago, MIT, Queen’s, Cambridge, Oxford and the London School of Economics. The Conference also acts as an informal job market with major employers sending representatives to the event.

One important feature of the conference is the outstanding quality of the discussants’ comments. The student papers are circulated beforehand and discussants prepare written comments, typically devoting several days to this task. As there is substantial professional prestige in being invited to be a discussant, there are strong incentives for discussants to work hard at the conference and help the students by proving detailed comments and advise. Additionally, there is the highly-valued “Best Discussant Prize” for which the competition is vigorous.

Please see below link for more information.

Nutrient loss from terrestrial ecosystems causes nutrient enrichment in receiving waterways (eutrophication) threatening their water quality and biodiversity values. The Peel-Harvey estuary (WA), RAMSAR-listed wetlands and their contributing waterways in coastal plain catchments in the Peel-Harvey area are an example of the above issues. Fertilizer application on sandy soils has been targeted for Best Management Practices (BMPs) for phosphorus (P) due to their poor nutrient retention ability. Traditionally, conceptual and numerical models for catchment hydrology and P transport processes have been used to assess and implement BMPs that achieve “targeted P loading” at the catchment’s outlet. Validity of the model results is often questioned as model internal structures and process representations cannot be contrasted due to lack of comprehensive datasets.

New field sampling strategies, based on eco-hydrological concepts, have recently become a stepping stone in unlocking key first-order control processes in nutrient cycling (nutrient availability, pathways and transport mechanisms) in catchments by simultaneously monitoring water movement and nutrient cycle processes along a topo-sequence (from uplands to riparian and stream zones). In this talk, I will present results of the implementation of such approaches to investigate the effect that the seasonality on rainfall inputs, plants, and soil types exert on hydrological and biogeochemical pathways for P within hillslopes of coastal plain landscapes (Mayfield drain catchment, Harvey River, WA). Detailed documentation of water movement in surface and shallow subsurface pathways, passive tracers, biogeochemical parameters and P concentrations (total, total dissolved, and soluble reactive P) was undertaken from April 2011-October 2012 at several hillslopes representative of different land uses and soil types in the area.

The preliminary results highlighted: 1) significant differences in the way and timing at which the hydrological connectivity of upland-riparian zones via shallow subsurface flow takes place in different landscapes, 2) seasonal changes on the interaction of shallow subsurface flow in riparian zones with surface water in the drains, and 3) changes on biogeochemical functioning of upland and riparian zones in relation to P cycle and P forms (organic or inorganic). The implications of the findings for our current understanding and previously proposed conceptual models for hydrological and P pathways in coastal plain catchments in the Peel-Harvey area will be discussed.

This work was conducted within a trans-disciplinary project (plant-soil-water sciences) during 2011-2012 founded by Greening Australia-ALCOA Foundation US to investigate the use of novel plants to mitigate P losses towards sustainable landscapes in the Peel-Harvey catchment, and it will continue (2012-2015) under an ARC Linkage Project “Farming in a biodiversity hotspot – harnessing native plants to reduce deleterious off-site phosphorus flows” (J. Lambers and M Ryan, School of Plant Biology, UWA).

Bio

Dr Carlos Jorge Ocampo is a Research Assistant Professor at the Centre for Ecohydrology (UWA). Carlos holds an Engineering Degree in Water Resources (Hydrology/Hydraulic) from the Universidad Nacional del Litoral (UNL, Argentina) and a PhD in Environmental Engineering from UWA on the topic of hydrological and biogeochemical controls on catchment nitrate response.

On completion of his PhD, Carlos returned to Argentina where he was an Assistant Professor at UNL and a Research Scientist at the National Research Council (CONICET). He returned to UWA in 2010. Carlos is a field-oriented hydrologist (hillslope-catchment hydrology) but he has a strong background in numerical modelling in urban hydrology, catchment hydrology, and historical flood reconstruction in large river systems.

His research interests lie in linking hydrology and biogeochemistry (nutrient cycles) at catchment scale, by using a combined approach of hydrometric, passive and isotopic tracers, and numerical modelling. He has conducted field work in a number of sites in Australia and Argentina on nitrogen and phosphorus cycling, hydrological connectivity of shallow-transient groundwater systems, and surface/groundwater interactions.

PS* This seminar is free and open to the public & no RSVP required.

****All Welcome****

A public lecture by Dr Jeremy Hill, Head of Research, The British Museum.

Following the internationally successful British Museum & BBC Radio 4’s History of the World in 100 Objects, JD Hill offers a rare behind the scenes look at the making of this series. JD led the team who helped Neil MacGregor write this landmark BBC Radio 4 history. As well as looking at how the project grew, he will explore the challenges of writing history aimed at a very wide audience, and how telling this through objects is both harder and easier than writing more conventional history.

J D Hill PhD, MPhil, BA, FSA is Head of Research for The British Museum and is responsible for all the research at the Museum across a wide range of disciplines. From 2007 to 2010 he was the lead curator the British Museum/ BBC project A History of the World in 100 Objects. A visiting lecturer at the Centre for Maritime Archaeology at the University of Southampton, where he previously was based, he is also a member of the executive of the Nautical Archaeology Society. His own research has included studies of the archaeology of religion, social change and foodways in Iron Age and early Roman Britain. His current interests concentrate on interface between archaeology, world history and the sea.

SOLD OUT

The Lloyd’s Register Educational Trust (The LRET) funds education, training and research programmes in transportation, science, engineering, technology and the safety of life, worldwide for the benefit of all.

The Centre for Offshore Foundation Systems carries out fundamental research in the areas of the mechanics of seabed sediments, offshore geohazards and of offshore foundation and engineering systems and use our expertise to service the offshore petroleum and renewable energy industries. We currently host The Lloyd’s Register Educational Trust Centre of Excellence and Chair of Offshore Foundations.

Following the talk there will be an informal cocktail function outside the lecture theatre until 9pm.

RSVP by 18 October to Eileen Rowles.

'It is one of the singular weaknesses of our mind that we can’t judge objects and see them in the clear light of day unless we place other objects next to them.' - Alexis de Tocqueville

Cultural institutions such as galleries, archives and museums can have long or short histories, but all have heritage – of their origin, their mission, their successes and failures and their place in our society. The 2012 Day of Ideas will explore cultural institutions thinking in two directions to the past and the future.

Some of the ideas we will examine include: How does the heritage of institutions play a role in their functions? What is the legacy of collections? How does the weight of context make objects ambassadors from the time of collection? How do cultural institutions become agents for social innovation? What is the future of objects? Shall museums and galleries become increasingly virtual and digital? Does social media offer a radical future, or more of the same? What is the future for collecting?

SOLD OUT

The final of 3 FREE seminars on past, current and planned research in the Kimberley

Afternoon tea provided.

SEMINAR 3: FRIDAY 9 NOVEMBER

Dr Chris Simpson (DEC) The WAMSI Kimberley Marine Research Program: A once in a lifetime opportunity

Recent resource development proposals by oil and gas companies to process and export Browse Basin hydrocarbons on the Kimberley mainland and offshore islands have recently put the entire Kimberley region under the spotlight. Although the number of people living in the Kimberley and visitors to this region is still relatively small, the natural and cultural values of the Kimberley region are very well known by Australians.

The Kimberley region is considered widely as one of the world’s last great wilderness areas, a biodiversity ‘hotspot’ and a centre of Aboriginal culture. The resource development proposals provided impetus for the State Government’s Kimberley Science and Conservation Strategy (KSCS) that would help ensure that any development would be compatible with the maintenance of the natural and Aboriginal heritage values of this region.

The WAMSI Kimberley Marine Research Program (KMRP) is a key element of the KSCS and is a once in a lifetime opportunity to undertake and integrated program of marine research in this region. The KMRP is focused on providing the scientific information to underpin the conservation and management of the marine environment of the Kimberley in general and the proposed regional network of marine parks and reserves in particular. The KMRP began formally with the endorsement of KMRP Science Plan by the WAMSI Board in December 2011. The KMRP Science Plan was preceded by several other documents and reports, including the 2008 WAMSI a turning of the tide report, highlighting the urgent need for a program of marine research in the Kimberley coastal waters.

The presentation will briefly outline the history, objectives, geographical focus, research directions and outcomes of the KMRP. The operational and logistical difficulties of undertaking marine research in such a large and remote location will also be discussed.

Mr James Brown (Kimberley Marine Research Station) An insider’s perspective on marine research in the Kimberley

The Kimberley Marine Research Station (KMRS) was first established in 2009 with guidance from WAMSI in an endeavour to support and contribute to an enhanced marine science effort throughout the remote Kimberley region of the far north-west. KMRS was founded upon the overarching ethos of generating the highest standard of truly independent, peer-reviewed scientific output for the greater public good, working towards bridging relevant knowledge gaps on this remarkable yet largely under-studied marine region. Located at Cygnet Bay Pearl Farm on the tip of the Dampier Peninsula, 200km by road north of Broome, the KMRS venture was pioneered by Kimberley born-and-bred marine biologist and third generation pearl farmer James Brown. Today, KMRS represents one of only five marine research stations along WA’s 27,000km coastline; the first and only fully operational marine research facility along the 13,500km contours of Kimberley coastline; and the only privately funded marine research facility in the country. Along with resident marine scientists based permanently on-site year round, the Station offers a mainland base, vessels, infrastructure, support personnel and 65 years’ worth of local knowledge and marine expertise to researcher teams with boating, diving and aquarium facilities available for research use. This talk will provide insight into the opportunities, logistics and exciting potential for marine scientists interested in operating in and on Kimberley waters through KMRS.

There are two extreme positions traditionally taken with respect to the relationship between art and morality; one is autonomism, or aestheticism, which is the view that it is inappropriate to apply moral categories to artworks, and that only aesthetic categories are relevant, while at the other end of the scale is moralism, the view that aesthetic objects should be judged solely with respect to moral standards. Both autonomism and moralism are problematic, as they are based on inadequate conceptions of art and aesthetic value. I examine Leni Riefenstahl’s Triumph of the Will and Jacque Callot’s Miseries of War both to illustrate the issue and to come to some conclusion about it.

Michael Levine is professor of philosophy at the University of Western Australia. He is author of the following books: Prospects for an Ethics of Architecture, with Bill Taylor (2011), Doing Philosophy, Watching Movies, with Damian Cox (2011), Politics Most Unusual: Violence, Sovereignty and Democracy in the “War on Terror,” with Damian Cox and Saul Newman (2009), Integrity and the Fragile Self, with Damian Cox and Marguerite LaCaze (2003), and Pantheism: A non-theistic concept of deity (1994). Levine has also edited Racism in Mind, with Tamas Pataki (2004), and The Analytic Freud: Philosophy and Psychoanalysis (2000).

“Shakespeare: Anonymous or Synonymous?” is a presentation developed in response to a fairly recent film entitled Anonymous in which the authorship of Shakespeare has been challenged. In the nineteenth century, when very little was known about Shakespeare’s life, a number of theories grew up around the authorship of plays attributed to Shakespeare. So much is now known, however, that to most people familiar with the works there is no doubt: quite simply the plays were by William Shakespeare of Stratford. Rather than seeking to validate Shakespeare as author, which is not difficult, the presentation will be more directed towards the phenomenon of conspiracy theories, with special reference to Shakespeare. More specifically, the following question will be addressed: why do some of the world’s literati, including a number of distinguished Shakespearean actors of today, still subscribe to outmoded theories of alternative authorship in the face of powerful arguments to the contrary?

About the Speaker

Christopher Wortham retired from UWA as Emeritus Professor in 2005 after 30 years in the Department of English and remains active as Senior Honorary Research Fellow. He has published extensively, chiefly on topics concerning medieval and Renaissance poetry and drama. Since 2009 he has held the position of Professor of Theatre Studies and English Literature at the University of Notre Dame Australia in Fremantle. His most recent publications include a co-edited volume of essays entitled This Earthly Stage (2011) and chapter in European Perceptions of Terra Australis (2012), which he also co-edited. He is a former President of the ANZ Association for Medieval and Renaissance Studies and was editor of its journal, Parergon, during formative years of its development. Among other activities, he is Chairman of the Board of Directors of Shakespeare WA.