Transforming Queensland VET : Challenges and Opportunities (Volume 3)

The volume is the third in a series that addresses change and development in the delivery of VET programs in Queensland. The chapters address a breadth of issues that relate to the changing landscape for teaching and learning in VET programs through e-learning. Organisational change is a key focus of this volume. James Waterson examines business and pedagogical perspectives for SkillsTech Australia to create teaching and learning environments that will enrich the learning experience for staff and students. Kerry Emerson explores the ways in which printing teachers might change current practices in order to deliver their training to apprentices and trainees – off-the-job, onthe- job and online, through e-learning. The chapter by Erik Dodwell takes up issues of user-friendly RPL interviews and the challenges to develop a model that may be applied consistently across all industry areas using conversational interviews. The chapters by Linda Roberston, Nina Woodrow, and Anushka Weerackody discuss teaching and learning for specific groups of students. Linda Roberston proposes a vision for learning support teachers in which the learner is encouraged to be a self-directed and autonomous learner who is capable of utilising e-learning resources and is information literate. Nina Woodrow presents a case for the diminished sense of occupational identity by adult literacy teachers and the implications of this loss of expertise across the VET sector. Constructive strategies for change are outlined. The chapter by Anushka Weerackody explores ideas to enhance the practices of ESL teachers in TAFE Queensland through an online community of practice. The issues of on-the-job training through e-learning for various trades is considered by Anne-Louise Johnston and the benefits and challenges for SkillsTech Australia in developing training partnerships with industry to deliver these changes. These papers were completed by the authors as a part of their postgraduate studies at QUT. The views reported are those of the authors and should not be attributed to the Queensland Department of Education and Training. Donna Berthelsen and Lauren Vogel Faculty of Education Queensland University of Technology December 2009

Why new business development projects fail : coping with the differences of technological versus market knowledge

Managing through projects has become important for generating new knowledge to cope with technological and market discontinuities. This paper examines how the fit between the creation of technological and market knowledge and important project management characteristics, i.e. project autonomy and completion criteria, influences the success of new business development (NBD) projects. In-depth longitudinal case research on NBD projects commercialised from 1993 to 2003 in the consumer electronics industry highlights that project management characteristics focusing only on the creation of technological knowledge contributed to the failure of those NBD projects that required new market knowledge as well. The findings indicate that senior management support and engaging in an alliance with partners possessing complementary market knowledge can offset this misalignment of the organisation of NBD projects.

Analysis of phasor measurement method in tracking the power frequency of distorted signals

This paper presents an analysis of phasor measurement method for tracking the fundamental power frequency to show if it has the performance necessary to cope with the requirements of power system protection and control. In this regard, several computer simulations presenting the conditions of a typical power system signal especially those highly distorted by harmonics, noise and offset, are provided to evaluate the response of the Phasor Measurement (PM) technique. A new method, which can shorten the delay of estimation, has also been proposed for the PM method to work for signals free of even-order harmonics.

The Sun gives without ever receiving

A small scale sculpture that contributes towards my ongoing explorations into how our collective ability to sustain (the future) is as much a cultural problematic as it is an economic or technological one. The curatorial brief of the project was a technical one - in that each curated artist was to design a piece in CAD suitable for 3D resin printing - The object should be entirely generated through 3D visualisation and modelling tools and should be machined and shipped within the dimensions of 6cm x 6cm x 6cm. My design for this brief was influenced by recent research I had conducted in Mildura in the Sunraysia irrigated region of NW Victoria. Each name set within the work is an Australian soldier/settler – who, on returning from the ‘Great War’ was duly awarded a ‘block’ in Australia’s new inland irrigated settlements - with the explicit task of clearing it to plant and reap. Through their concerted and well-intentioned efforts, these workers began to profoundly re-shape Australia’s marginal country - inadvertently presaging the bleak future faced today by many of Australia’s inland lands and river systems. Furthermore, through that time's predominant colonial conception of ‘terra nullius’ (this land is unoccupied and therefore free to be claimed) they each played a small but formative part in building the profound cultural divide between land and peoples that still haunts Australia today. THE EXHIBITION: Inside Out is a compelling international touring exhibition featuring forty-six miniature sculptures produced in resin using 3D printing technologies. Developments in virtual computer visualisation and integrated digital technologies are giving contemporary makers new insight and opportunities to create objects and forms which were previously impossible to produce or difficult to envisage. The exhibition is the result of collaboration between the Art Technology Coalition, the University of Technology Sydney and RMIT University in Australia along with De Montfort University, Manchester Metropolitan University and Dartington College of Arts at University College Falmouth in the United Kingdom.

Are SC-FDE systems robust to CFO?

This paper investigates the impact of carrier frequency offset (CFO) on Single Carrier wireless communication systems with Frequency Domain Equalization (SC-FDE). We show that CFO in SC-FDE systems causes irrecoverable channel estimation error, which leads to inter-symbol-interference (ISI). The impact of CFO on SC-FDE and OFDM is compared in the presence of CFO and channel estimation errors. Closed form expressions of signal to interference and noise ratio (SINR) are derived for both systems, and verified by simulation results. We find that when channel estimation errors are considered, SC-FDE is similarly or even more sensitive to CFO, compared to OFDM. In particular, in SC-FDE systems, CFO mainly deteriorates the system performance via degrading the channel estimation. Both analytical and simulation results highlight the importance of accurate CFO estimation in SC-FDE systems.

Creation of a validated 3D finite element model of an ovine tibia

Introduction Ovine models are widely used in orthopaedic research. To better understand the impact of orthopaedic procedures computer simulations are necessary. 3D finite element (FE) models of bones allow implant designs to be investigated mechanically, thereby reducing mechanical testing. Hypothesis We present the development and validation of an ovine tibia FE model for use in the analysis of tibia fracture fixation plates. Material & Methods Mechanical testing of the tibia consisted of an offset 3-pt bend test with three repetitions of loading to 350N and return to 50N. Tri-axial stacked strain gauges were applied to the anterior and posterior surfaces of the bone and two rigid bodies – consisting of eight infrared active markers, were attached to the ends of the tibia. Positional measurements were taken with a FARO arm 3D digitiser. The FE model was constructed with both geometry and material properties derived from CT images of the bone. The elasticity-density relationship used for material property determination was validated separately using mechanical testing. This model was then transformed to the same coordinate system as the in vitro mechanical test and loads applied. Results Comparison between the mechanical testing and the FE model showed good correlation in surface strains (difference: anterior 2.3%, posterior 3.2%). Discussion & Conclusion This method of model creation provides a simple method for generating subject specific FE models from CT scans. The use of the CT data set for both the geometry and the material properties ensures a more accurate representation of the specific bone. This is reflected in the similarity of the surface strain results.

Acute and long-term effects of exercise on appetite control: Is there any benefit for weight control?

Purpose of review: To examine the relationship between energy intake, appetite control and exercise, with particular reference to longer term exercise studies. This approach is necessary when exploring the benefits of exercise for weight control, as changes in body weight and energy intake are variable and reflect diversity in weight loss. Recent findings: Recent evidence indicates that longer term exercise is characterized by a highly variable response in eating behaviour. Individuals display susceptibility or resistance to exercise-induced weight loss, with changes in energy intake playing a key role in determining the degree of weight loss achieved. Marked differences in hunger and energy intake exist between those who are capable of tolerating periods of exercise-induced energy deficit, and those who are not. Exercise-induced weight loss can increase the orexigenic drive in the fasted state, but for some this is offset by improved postprandial satiety signalling. Summary: The biological and behavioural responses to acute and long-term exercise are highly variable, and these responses interact to determine the propensity for weight change. For some people, long-term exercise stimulates compensatory increases in energy intake that attenuate weight loss. However, favourable changes in body composition and health markers still exist in the absence of weight loss. The physiological mechanisms that confer susceptibility to compensatory overconsumption still need to be determined.

Automatic speaker recognition under adverse conditions

Speaker verification is the process of verifying the identity of a person by analysing their speech. There are several important applications for automatic speaker verification (ASV) technology including suspect identification, tracking terrorists and detecting a person’s presence at a remote location in the surveillance domain, as well as person authentication for phone banking and credit card transactions in the private sector. Telephones and telephony networks provide a natural medium for these applications. The aim of this work is to improve the usefulness of ASV technology for practical applications in the presence of adverse conditions. In a telephony environment, background noise, handset mismatch, channel distortions, room acoustics and restrictions on the available testing and training data are common sources of errors for ASV systems. Two research themes were pursued to overcome these adverse conditions: Modelling mismatch and modelling uncertainty. To directly address the performance degradation incurred through mismatched conditions it was proposed to directly model this mismatch. Feature mapping was evaluated for combating handset mismatch and was extended through the use of a blind clustering algorithm to remove the need for accurate handset labels for the training data. Mismatch modelling was then generalised by explicitly modelling the session conditions as a constrained offset of the speaker model means. This session variability modelling approach enabled the modelling of arbitrary sources of mismatch, including handset type, and halved the error rates in many cases. Methods to model the uncertainty in speaker model estimates and verification scores were developed to address the difficulties of limited training and testing data. The Bayes factor was introduced to account for the uncertainty of the speaker model estimates in testing by applying Bayesian theory to the verification criterion, with improved performance in matched conditions. Modelling the uncertainty in the verification score itself met with significant success. Estimating a confidence interval for the "true" verification score enabled an order of magnitude reduction in the average quantity of speech required to make a confident verification decision based on a threshold. The confidence measures developed in this work may also have significant applications for forensic speaker verification tasks.

Nitrogen fertilizer rate management as a nitrous oxide mitigation strategy: Development of a nitrous oxide emission reduction protocol (NERP)

Nitrous oxide (N2O) is a potent agricultural greenhouse gas (GHG). More than 50% of the global anthropogenic N2O flux is attributable to emissions from soil, primarily due to large fertilizer nitrogen (N) applications to corn and other non-leguminous crops. Quantification of the trade–offs between N2O emissions, fertilizer N rate, and crop yield is an essential requirement for informing management strategies aiming to reduce the agricultural sector GHG burden, without compromising productivity and producer livelihood. There is currently great interest in developing and implementing agricultural GHG reduction offset projects for inclusion within carbon offset markets. Nitrous oxide, with a global warming potential (GWP) of 298, is a major target for these endeavours due to the high payback associated with its emission prevention. In this paper we use robust quantitative relationships between fertilizer N rate and N2O emissions, along with a recently developed approach for determining economically profitable N rates for optimized crop yield, to propose a simple, transparent, and robust N2O emission reduction protocol (NERP) for generating agricultural GHG emission reduction credits. This NERP has the advantage of providing an economic and environmental incentive for producers and other stakeholders, necessary requirements in the implementation of agricultural offset projects.

Nitrogen fertilizer management for nitrous oxide (N2O) mitigation in intensive corn (Maize) production: an emissions reduction protocol for US Midwest agriculture

Nitrous oxide (N2O) is a major greenhouse gas (GHG) product of intensive agriculture. Fertilizer nitrogen (N) rate is the best single predictor of N2O emissions in row-crop agriculture in the US Midwest. We use this relationship to propose a transparent, scientifically robust protocol that can be utilized by developers of agricultural offset projects for generating fungible GHG emission reduction credits for the emerging US carbon cap and trade market. By coupling predicted N2O flux with the recently developed maximum return to N (MRTN) approach for determining economically profitable N input rates for optimized crop yield, we provide the basis for incentivizing N2O reductions without affecting yields. The protocol, if widely adopted, could reduce N2O from fertilized row-crop agriculture by more than 50%. Although other management and environmental factors can influence N2O emissions, fertilizer N rate can be viewed as a single unambiguous proxy—a transparent, tangible, and readily manageable commodity. Our protocol addresses baseline establishment, additionality, permanence, variability, and leakage, and provides for producers and other stakeholders the economic and environmental incentives necessary for adoption of agricultural N2O reduction offset projects.

Adapting a generic BEAMnrc model of the BrainLAB m3 micro-multileaf collimator to simulate a local collimation device

This work is focussed on developing a commissioning procedure so that a Monte Carlo model, which uses BEAMnrc’s standard VARMLC component module, can be adapted to match a specific BrainLAB m3 micro-multileaf collimator (μMLC). A set of measurements are recommended, for use as a reference against which the model can be tested and optimised. These include radiochromic film measurements of dose from small and offset fields, as well as measurements of μMLC transmission and interleaf leakage. Simulations and measurements to obtain μMLC scatter factors are shown to be insensitive to relevant model parameters and are therefore not recommended, unless the output of the linear accelerator model is in doubt. Ultimately, this note provides detailed instructions for those intending to optimise a VARMLC model to match the dose delivered by their local BrainLAB m3 μMLC device.

Nitrogen pools and fluxes in grassland soils sequestering carbon

Carbon sequestration in agricultural, forest, and grassland soils has been promoted as a means by which substantial amounts of CO2 may be removed from the atmosphere, but few studies have evaluated the associated impacts on changes in soil N or net global warming potential (GWP). The purpose of this research was to ( 1) review the literature to examine how changes in grassland management that affect soil C also impact soil N, ( 2) assess the impact of different types of grassland management on changes in soil N and rates of change, and (3) evaluate changes in N2O fluxes from differently managed grassland ecosystems to assess net impacts on GWP. Soil C and N stocks either both increased or both decreased for most studies. Soil C and N sequestration were tightly linked, resulting in little change in C: N ratios with changes in management. Within grazing treatments N2O made a minor contribution to GWP (0.1-4%), but increases in N2O fluxes offset significant portions of C sequestration gains due to fertilization (10-125%) and conversion (average = 27%). Results from this work demonstrate that even when improved management practices result in considerable rates of C and N sequestration, changes in N2O fluxes can offset a substantial portion of gains by C sequestration. Even for cases in which C sequestration rates are not entirely offset by increases in N2O fluxes, small increases in N2O fluxes can substantially reduce C sequestration benefits. Conversely, reduction of N2O fluxes in grassland soils brought about by changes in management represents an opportunity to reduce the contribution of grasslands to net greenhouse gas forcing.

Spatial variability of soil carbon in forested and cultivated sites: Implications for change detection

The potential to sequester atmospheric carbon in agricultural and forest soils to offset greenhouse gas emissions has generated interest in measuring changes in soil carbon resulting from changes in land management. However, inherent spatial variability of soil carbon limits the precision of measurement of changes in soil carbon and hence, the ability to detect changes. We analyzed variability of soil carbon by intensively sampling sites under different land management as a step toward developing efficient soil sampling designs. Sites were tilled crop-land and a mixed deciduous forest in Tennessee, and old-growth and second-growth coniferous forest in western Washington, USA. Six soil cores within each of three microplots were taken as an initial sample and an additional six cores were taken to simulate resampling. Soil C variability was greater in Washington than in Tennessee, and greater in less disturbed than in more disturbed sites. Using this protocol, our data suggest that differences on the order of 2.0 Mg C ha(-1) could be detected by collection and analysis of cores from at least five (tilled) or two (forest) microplots in Tennessee. More spatial variability in the forested sites in Washington increased the minimum detectable difference, but these systems, consisting of low C content sandy soil with irregularly distributed pockets of organic C in buried logs, are likely to rank among the most spatially heterogeneous of systems. Our results clearly indicate that consistent intramicroplot differences at all sites will enable detection of much more modest changes if the same microplots are resampled.

Hospital beds : A primer for counting and comparing

There is considerable public, political and professional debate about the need for additional hospital beds in Australia. However, there is no clarity in regard to the definition, meaning and significance of hospital bed counts. Relative to population, there has been a total decline in bed availability in Australia over the past 15 years of 14.6% (22.9% for public hospital beds). This decline is partly offset by reductions in length of stay and changes to models of care; however, the net effect is increased bed occupancy which has in turn resulted in system-wide congestion. Future bed capability needs to be better planned to meet growing demands while at the same time continuing trends for more efficient use. Future planning should be based in part on weighted bed capability matched to need.