What's On at UWA

"Student Sound Bites" will be shown daily from Monday 7 May - Friday 18 May between 1:00 - 2:00pm on public screens around the University. Come and hear what students have to say about teaching at UWA.

A public lecture by Ruth Seifert, Professor of Sociology, University of Applied Sciences, Regensburg, Germany.

Rape and sexual torture of women in times of war and crisis is not a new phenomenon. However it was only recently, following reports of mass rapes perpetrated during the conflicts in the former Yugoslavia and in Rwanda, that the use of rape and sexual violence as a weapon of war has been widely discussed.

It has largely been assumed that there is a continuum between civilian and wartime rapes, but research has shown that war rapes can be considered to be part of a cultural script that comprises a variety of messages.

In the course of this debate, gender-specific violence has been primarily discussed as a human rights issue, culminating in UN resolution 1325 in 2000, the first formal and legal document from the Security Council dealing with violence against women in the context of armed conflict. This issue has been addressed many times since with the most recent UN resolution 1960 in 2010.

Despite the strong efforts to problematize, scandalize and persecute these atrocities, reports of the use of sexual violence as a weapon of war keep emerging. Most recently, scattered news has emerged from Libya indicating that sexual violence is being used as a tool of war, prompting International Court Special Prosecutor Ocampo to launch investigations into these accounts.

This lecture will examine why sexual violence appears to be such a pervasive and effective weapon of war, what cultural symbolisms are drawn on in its enactment, and what theoretical approaches may be useful in furthering understanding of this phenomenon.

Cost: Free, no RSVP required.

UWA's new Learning Management System (LMS) uses the Moodle Software. Martin Dougiamas is the creater of Moodle in its humble beginings as a PhD project designed to put educational principles of social constructionism into a learning management system. Now Moodle is a rapidly expanding, world-wide, open-source software with a community-based focus on development and learning. Martin will speak to us about the phenomenon of Moodle, and develop the UWA community understanding of the principles on which it is based, current development and future directions.

UWA's new Learning Management System (LMS) uses the Moodle Software. Martin Dougiamas is the creater of Moodle in its humble beginings as a PhD project designed to put educational principles of social constructionism into a learning management system. Now Moodle is a rapidly expanding, world-wide, open-source software with a community-based focus on development and learning. Martin will speak to us about the phenomenon of Moodle, and develop the UWA community understanding of the principles on which it is based, current development and future directions.

Dr Una Mcllvenna of the ARC Centre of Excellence for History of Emotions will explore emotional responses to public execution in the early modern period, looking specifically at the use of song and verse in broadside and pamphlet accounts of crime and execution across Europe.

A public lecture by Professor Serhiy Kvit, President, National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy (NaUKMA), Ukraine.

In 2005 the Orange Revolution in Ukraine made international headlines, with the streets of Kyiv teeming with people protesting the result of a presidential election that seemed far from democratic. The Ukrainian Famine of 1932-33, known as the Holodomor, or Stalin Famine, was a man-made famine, that some historians have estimated cost the lives of seven million people. Unknown to many in the West, the headquarters and spiritual nerve-centre for this protest movement was the National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy (NaUKMA). This lecture will discuss the role of this institution in the context of the famine.

Each year we are reminded of Gallipoli and the ANZAC tradition. But have you ever wondered why we were there fighting the Turks? Come along and hear the intriguing, sad and little known story.

Professor James Chin will address these questions in his lecture. Prof. James Chin is Head, School of Arts & Social Sciences, at the Monash University, Malaysia Campus. His current research interests include minority rights, elections, ethnic politics, democratization and political and economic development of non-Western states, and good governance issues.

A public lecture by Donna Riley, Associate Professor of Engineering Picker Engineering Program, Smith College.

Professional ethics for engineers as traditionally conceived focuses narrowly on the decisions and actions of individual professional engineers, leaving little room for meaningful public participation. A social justice framework is helpful for opening up the conversation to the public and to the ethics of organisational or societal level questions about engineering and technology. Questions such as who benefits and who bears the cost of technology in society come to the fore, and create a reflexive moment for engineers to critique and re-imagine our own practices.

As an example of this critique and new directions that might be created through the social justice lens, we will consider the case of the Grand Challenges of Engineering put forth by the United States’ National Academy of Engineering. By examining the process of how these global priorities for the profession were identified, how they were justified, and the proposed processes for meeting the challenges, we might envision a new set of processes for determining more socially just ends for engineering, as well as more just means for achieving those ends.

Reframing the issue of participation in engineering as issue of public ethics in a social justice frame similarly leads to a critique of current discourse around underrepresentation of women and minorities and points to direct conversation and action to dismantle exclusionary systems of power and privilege in the profession of engineering.

This lecture is a part of the Institute of Advanced Studies 2012 lecture series ‘Global Transformation and Public Ethics’. This series of free public lectures aims to stimulate considered debate about urgent issues in public ethics and policy as well as reflecting on ways we can improve public discourse about such issues. For more information, visit: http://www.ias.uwa.edu.au/lectures/ethics

Sisters Jasmin and Sophie Parkinson-Stewart, winners of the People's Choice Awards in last year's Vose competition, perform a selection of duos for violin and cello.

Visiting scholar Dr Ueili Brunner has spent many years working in Yemen and shares with us his insights into the Sabean culture.

A short introduction sheds light on the environment and characteristics of the Sabean culture. The wealth of the Sabeans was generated by trade but the backbone of their economy was a well adapted agriculture. The Qu’ran reports in sura 34 of two gardens which were irrigated from a large dam. The flooding of the fields led to a continuous sedimentation of clay and silt in the oasis. These irrigation sediments are the most prominent remains of ancient times. They not only show the extension of irrigated agriculture but they are also a valuable instrument for datations and bear information about the planted crops.

Inscriptions tell of a form of a ritual hunt. Large stone structures, similar to the desert kites of North Arabia, give witness of these game drives. Some stone arrangements indicate that the Royals even kept wild animals in zoo-like gardens in order to have game available when the time for the ritual hunt had come. Speculations about the wide spreading of these Sabean traditions will end the presentation.

Born in 1970 in Algiers in a Berber family, Amara Lakhous is the sixth of nine children. He studied at Koran school for four years where he learned classical Arabic. He learned French at junior school. He was influenced from an early age by authors like Mahfouz, Flaubert and Hemingway, and after finishing school decided to study at the Faculty for Philosophy in Algiers. He moved to Rome in 1995, where he graduated in cultural anthropology from the University la Sapienza, Rome. He recently completed a Ph.D. thesis entitled “Living Islam as a Minority.”

The UWA Winthrop Singers perform choral Evensong on Thursdays at 6pm during semester. These currently take place at St Thomas More College chapel.

This week's service features an extraordinary work for triple-chorus by 16th century Italian composer Andrea Gabrieli, and music by Gustav Holst, composer of "The Planets" suite.

Responses: Smith

Psalm 27

Old Testament Reading: Genesis 47:7-12

New Testament Reading: Hebrews 6:13-20

Magnificat - Andrea Gabrieli

Nunc Dimittis - Gustav Holst

Anthem: Brumel - "Benedictus"

Dr Shelley Gorman from Telethon Institute for Child Health Research will give a talk on "UVR-induced vitamin D: essential for immunoregulation?" in the Microbiology & Immunology Seminar room, Friday, 11 May 2012 at 09.00am. Vitamin D is synthesised in the skin after exposure to ultraviolet radiation (UVR) found in sunlight, and can suppress immunity in a similar manner to UVR. Our studies show that topically-applied vitamin D can increase the suppressive activity of regulatory T cells through interleukin-2 and skin-derived dendritic cell mechanisms. However, the role of vitamin post-UVR in suppressing immunity has not been determined and I will discuss our recent findings, which indicate that UV-induced vitamin D may not be essential for immunoregulation.

Abstract: The disadvantage suffered by Aboriginal people in this country remains a high priority for all. An assumed major barrier to addressing the needs of Aboriginal people are cultural differences. Difference between groups, whether they be groups based on race, gender, age, location, etc., should be considered, but only after considering commonalities between groups. Sadly, differences between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people have been put ahead of commonalities, much to the detriment of the Aboriginal people. Further, the significance of any differences are sometimes exaggerated or distorted. Political correctness has contributed to this situation. The best contributions that researchers, educators, leaders, etc., can make when addressing the needs of Aboriginal people is to view them as people first, and Aboriginal second.

Biography: Anthony Dillon is a researcher and lecturer at The University of Western Sydney, as well as the University of Sydney. He identifies as an Aboriginal Australian. Originally from Queensland, he has lived in Sydney for the past 8 years. He has a doctorate in the behavioural sciences (psychology) and is actively involved in Indigenous affairs. Anthony has previously taught many Indigenous students and taught on Indigenous health issues.

Professor Pattison will review the impact of significant curriculum change at the University of Melbourne, with a particular focus on students’ experiences of new undergraduate and graduate courses. She will describe how students have reacted to new courses and reported on their experiences, and reflect on the broader impacts of the new curriculum on the educational mission of the University, including social inclusion priorities. Professor Pattison will also point to: some lessons learned along the way; what the University of Melbourne believe they have achieved; and what they see as ongoing challenges.

Biography: Professor Pip Pattison is Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic) and a Professor in the School of Psychological Sciences at the University of Melbourne. As Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic) at the University of Melbourne, Pip is responsible for the implementation of the Melbourne Model curriculum at undergraduate and graduate level, including embedding of graduate attributes. She leads development of the University's learning and teaching strategy, and works closely with the University's Academic Board by providing management oversight of the University’s quality assurance of learning and teaching and related systems and policies.

A public lecture by Associate Professor David Glance, Director, UWA Centre for Software Practice.

From July 2012, Australians will be able to register for their own Personally Controlled Electronic Health Record (PCEHR). The PCEHR will potentially allow consumers to have access to a summary of their medical information including medications, medical history, information about allergies and adverse drug reactions and letters and documents. In contrast to a summary record like the PCEHR, the Kimberley Aboriginal Medical Services Council (KAMSC), in collaboration with The University of Western Australia, is using a web-based electronic health record called MMEx for 22,000 mostly Aboriginal people in the Kimberley region of Western Australia. The difference between this approach and the PCEHR is that everyone is working off the same record. Practitioners have to work collaboratively, because their changes are immediately seen by everyone involved in the care of the patient. It is very unlikely that the PCEHR will revolutionise health care in Australia any more than its equivalent did in the United Kingdom. From an e-health perspective, this will only come from a single shared electronic health record with clinical protocols and governance that allow health providers to collaborate with a patient in managing their health and wellbeing.

Cost: Free, no RSVP required.

Although the risk of developing dementia increases with age – in most people with dementia, symptoms first appear after age 60. Dementia is not a part of normal aging. It is caused by a fatal disease that affects the brain. Dementia is an irreversible, progressive brain disease that slowly destroys memory and thinking skills. International Health and dementia expert Professor Passmore will reveal the causes of brain degeneration in dementia.

A public lecture by Peter Passmore, Professor of Ageing and Geriatric Medicine, Queen’s University Belfast.

Once considered a rare disorder, dementia is now seen as a major public health problem that is seriously affecting thousands of older Australians and their families.

Although the risk of developing dementia increases with age – in most people with dementia, symptoms first appear after age 60. Dementia is not a part of normal aging. It is caused by a fatal disease that affects the brain. Dementia is an irreversible, progressive brain disease that slowly destroys memory and thinking skills. International Health and dementia expert Professor Passmore will reveal the causes of brain degeneration in dementia.

The lecture is co-sponsored by the Institute of Advanced Studies and the WA Centre for Health and Ageing and is free and open to the public.

Cost: Free, no RSVP required.

Robert Humphries1, Tom Long1, Katrina Walton2 and David Allen3 Water Corporation of Western Australia1, Chemistry Centre of Western Australia2, MBS Environmental3

Most Australian water utilities strive to direct stabilized wastewater sludges, or biosolids, to beneficial uses. However, the “solutions” to the problems of biosolids utilization are often expensive, inefficient in terms of transport distances, and unstable because of constantly changing perceptions regarding the health risks and environmental safety of biosolids.

This Water Corporation project has determined the social, environmental, technical and economic feasibility of converting annual pastures on grey acid sands in the nutrient-enriched Ellen Brook catchment into perennial-plant based farming systems by using a combined soil conditioner /slow-release fertiliser based on a blend of lime-amended biosolids, or LAB with clay. The new product is called Lime-amended BioClay®, or LaBC®.

LaBC® corrects soil acidity, soil water repellence and significantly improves soil water holding capacity. It also provides a valuable source of organic matter, slow release nutrients and trace elements to improve soil biology and reduce leaching losses of nutrients – a major issue with conventional soluble fertilisers.

There are many benefits from using LaBC® on acid sands. These include reducing excessive nutrient loads to groundwater and surface waters, facilitating economically and environmentally beneficial land use change, and converting a business problem into a valuable resource.

The research phase of the work is complete, and community acceptance of LaBC® is growing, with farmers impatient to use the product.



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

****All Welcome****