Efficiency of research performance of Australian universities : a reappraisal using a bootstrap truncated regression approach

The motivation of the study stems from the results reported in the Excellence in Research for Australia (ERA) 2010 report. The report showed that only 12 universities performed research at or above international standards, of which, the Group of Eight (G8) universities filled the top eight spots. While performance of universities was based on number of research outputs, total amount of research income and other quantitative indicators, the measure of efficiency or productivity was not considered. The objectives of this paper are twofold. First, to provide a review of the research performance of 37 Australian universities using the data envelopment analysis (DEA) bootstrap approach of Simar and Wilson (2007). Second, to determine sources of productivity drivers by regressing the efficiency scores against a set of environmental variables.

Efficiency of lexical access in children with autism spectrum disorders : does modality matter?

The provision of visual support to individuals with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is widely recommended. We explored one mechanism underlying the use of visual supports: efficiency of language processing. Two groups of children, one with and one without an ASD, participated. The groups had comparable oral and written language skills and nonverbal cognitive abilities. In two semantic priming experiments, prime modality and prime–target relatedness were manipulated. Response time and accuracy of lexical decisions on the spoken word targets were measured. In the first uni-modal experiment, both groups demonstrated significant priming effects. In the second experiment which was cross-modal, no effect for relatedness or group was found. This result is considered in the light of the attentional capacity required for access to the lexicon via written stimuli within the developing semantic system. These preliminary findings are also considered with respect to the use of visual support for children with ASD.

The equity and efficiency of the Australian share market with respect to director trading

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the extent of directors breaching the reporting requirements of the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX) and the Corporations Act in Australia. Further, it seeks to assess whether directors in Australia achieve abnormal returns from trades in their own companies. Design/methodology/approach – Using an event study approach on an Australian sample, abnormal returns for a range of situations were estimated. Findings – A total of 13 (seven) per cent of own‐company directors trades do not meet the ASX (Corporations Act) requirement of reporting within five (14) business days. Directors do achieve abnormal returns through trading in shares of their own companies. Ignoring transaction costs, outsiders can achieve abnormal returns by imitating directors' trades. Analysis of returns to directors after they trade but before they announce the trade to the market shows that directors are making small but statistically significant returns that are not available to the market. Analysis of returns to directors subsequent to the ASX reporting requirement up to the day the trade is reported shows that directors are making small but statistically significant returns that should be available to the market. Research limitations/implications – Future research should investigate the linkages between late reporting by directors and disadvantages to outside shareholders and the implementation of internal policies implemented to mitigate insider trading. Practical implications – Market participants should remain vigilant regarding the potential for late/non‐reporting of directors' trades. Originality/value – Uncovering breaches of reporting regulations are particularly important given that directors tend to purchase (sell) shares when the price is low (high), thereby achieving abnormal returns.

On the efficiency of impingers with fritted nozzle tip for collection of ultrafine particles

The aim of this study was to determine the collection efficiency of ultrafine particles into an impinger fitted with a fritted nozzle tip as a means to increase contact surface area between the aerosol and the liquid. The influence of liquid sampling volume, frit porosity and the nature of the sampling liquid was explored and it was shown that all impact on the collection efficiency of particles smaller than 220 nm. Obtained values for overall collection efficiency were substantially higher (~30–95%) than have been previously reported, mainly due to the high deposition of particles in the fritted nozzle tip, especially in case of finer porosity frits and smaller particles. Values for the capture efficiency of the solvent alone ranged from 20 to 45%, depending on the type and the volume of solvent. Additionally, our results show that airstream dispersion into bubbles improves particle trapping by the liquid and that there is a difference in collection efficiencies based on the nature and volume of the solvent used.

Assessing the energy efficiency of gear oils via the FZG test machine

Energy efficient lubricants are becoming increasingly popular. This is due to a global increase in environmental awareness combined with the potential of reducing operating costs. A new test method of evaluating the energy efficiency of gear oils has been described in this report. The method involves measuring the power required by an FZG test rig to run while using a particular test lubricant. For each oil that was being evaluated, the rig was run for 10 minutes at a load stage of 10. Six extreme pressure (EP) industrial gear oils of mineral base were tested. The difference in power requirements between the best and the worst performing oils was 2.77 and 3.24 kW, respectively. This equates to a 14.6% reduction in power, a significant amount if considered in relation to a high powered industrial machine. The oils of superior performance were noticed to run at reduced temperatures. They were also more expensive than the other products of lesser performance.

Using a current source to improve efficiency of a plasma system

This paper presents the possibility of utilizing a current source topology instead of a voltage source as an efficient, flexible and reliable power supply for plasma applications. A buck-boost converter with a current controller has been used to transfer energy from an inductor to a plasma system. A control strategy has also been designed to satisfy all the desired purposes. The main concept behind this topology is to provide high dv/dt regardless of the switching speed of a power switch and to control the current level to properly transfer adequate energy to various plasma applications.

Design and analysis of group key exchange protocols

A group key exchange (GKE) protocol allows a set of parties to agree upon a common secret session key over a public network. In this thesis, we focus on designing efficient GKE protocols using public key techniques and appropriately revising security models for GKE protocols. For the purpose of modelling and analysing the security of GKE protocols we apply the widely accepted computational complexity approach. The contributions of the thesis to the area of GKE protocols are manifold. We propose the first GKE protocol that requires only one round of communication and is proven secure in the standard model. Our protocol is generically constructed from a key encapsulation mechanism (KEM). We also suggest an efficient KEM from the literature, which satisfies the underlying security notion, to instantiate the generic protocol. We then concentrate on enhancing the security of one-round GKE protocols. A new model of security for forward secure GKE protocols is introduced and a generic one-round GKE protocol with forward security is then presented. The security of this protocol is also proven in the standard model. We also propose an efficient forward secure encryption scheme that can be used to instantiate the generic GKE protocol. Our next contributions are to the security models of GKE protocols. We observe that the analysis of GKE protocols has not been as extensive as that of two-party key exchange protocols. Particularly, the security attribute of key compromise impersonation (KCI) resilience has so far been ignored for GKE protocols. We model the security of GKE protocols addressing KCI attacks by both outsider and insider adversaries. We then show that a few existing protocols are not secure against KCI attacks. A new proof of security for an existing GKE protocol is given under the revised model assuming random oracles. Subsequently, we treat the security of GKE protocols in the universal composability (UC) framework. We present a new UC ideal functionality for GKE protocols capturing the security attribute of contributiveness. An existing protocol with minor revisions is then shown to realize our functionality in the random oracle model. Finally, we explore the possibility of constructing GKE protocols in the attribute-based setting. We introduce the concept of attribute-based group key exchange (AB-GKE). A security model for AB-GKE and a one-round AB-GKE protocol satisfying our security notion are presented. The protocol is generically constructed from a new cryptographic primitive called encapsulation policy attribute-based KEM (EP-AB-KEM), which we introduce in this thesis. We also present a new EP-AB-KEM with a proof of security assuming generic groups and random oracles. The EP-AB-KEM can be used to instantiate our generic AB-GKE protocol.

Civic engagement and associationalism : the impact of group membership scope versus intensity of participation

The relationship between participation in civic and political activities and membership of voluntary associations is now well established. What is less clear is the relative impacts of how much time people spend on group activities (associational intensity), and the number and type of groups that individuals are involved with (associational scope). Does it matter in terms of civic engagement, for example, whether one is a member of a quilting-circle or trade union? Does it matter whether association ‘membership’ is simply an annual payment or a major commitment of time and energy? In this article, we use a large survey to explore these questions empirically by focusing on the membership patterns and civic engagement practices of 4,001 citizens drawn from eight suburbs across Greater Melbourne, Australia. Our findings indicate that, while associational intensity is positively related to civic engagement, associational scope (the number of group memberships per person), is a more influential determinant of the level of civic and political participation. The results also suggest that while all forms of associationalism are important in terms of fostering greater levels of civic activity, not all forms have the same impact.

Enhancing agrobacterium-mediated transformation efficiency of sugarcane : progress towards an efficient, genotype-independent method

Several key issues need to be resolved before an efficient and reproducible Agrobacterium-mediated sugarcane transformation method can be developed for a wider range of sugarcane cultivars. These include loss of morphogenetic potential in sugarcane cells after Agrobacterium-mediated transformation, effect of exposure to abiotic stresses during in vitro selection, and most importantly the hypersensitive cell death response of sugarcane (and other nonhost plants) to Agrobacterium tumefaciens. Eight sugarcane cultivars (Q117, Q151, Q177, Q200, Q208, KQ228, QS94-2329, and QS94-2174) were evaluated for loss of morphogenetic potential in response to the age of the culture, exposure to Agrobacterium strains, and exposure to abiotic stresses during selection. Corresponding changes in the polyamine profiles of these cultures were also assessed. Strategies were then designed to minimize the negative effects of these factors on the cell survival and callus proliferation following Agrobacterium-mediated transformation. Some of these strategies, including the use of cell death protector genes and regulation of intracellular polyamine levels, will be discussed.

Effect of group formation on performance, task management and social loafing

Engineering graduates of today are required to adapt to a rapidly changing work environment. In particular, they are expected to demonstrate enhanced capabilities in both mono-disciplinary and multi-disciplinary teamwork environments. Engineering education needs, as a result, to further focus on developing group work capabilities amongst engineering graduates. Over the last two years, the authors trialed various group work strategies across two engineering disciplines. In particular, the effect of group formation on students' performance, task management, and social loafing was analyzed. A recently developed online teamwork management tool, Teamworker, was used to collect students' experience of the group work. Analysis showed that students who were allowed to freely allocate to any group were less likely to report loafing from other team members, than students who were pre-allocated to a group. It also showed that performance was more affected by the presence or absence of a leader in pre-allocated rather than free-allocated groups.

Motivational Interviewing changes the treatment trajectory of group Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy for anxiety

Anxiety disorders have been viewed as manifestations of broad underlying predisposing personality constructs such as neuroticism combined with more specific individual differences of unhelpful information processing styles. Given the high prevalence of anxiety and the significant impairment that it causes, there is an important need to continue to explore successful treatments for this disorder. Research indicates that there is still room for significantly improving attrition rates and treatment adherence. Traditionally Motivational Interviewing (MI) has been used to facilitate health behaviour change. Recently MI has been applied to psychotherapy and has been shown to improve the outcome of CBT. However, these studies have been limited to only considering pre- and post-treatment measures and neglected to consider when changes occur along the course of therapy. This leaves the unanswered question of what is the impact of pre-treatment MI on the treatment trajectory of therapy. This study provides preliminary research into answering this question by tracking changes on a weekly basis along the course of group CBT. Prior to group CBT, 40 individuals with a principal anxiety disorder diagnosis were randomly assigned to receive either 3 individual sessions of MI or placed on a waitlist control group. All participants then received the same dosage of 10 weekly 2 hour sessions of group CBT. Tracking treatment outcome trajectory over the course of CBT, the pre-treatment MI group, compared to the control group, experienced a greater improvement early on in the course of therapy in their symptom distress, interpersonal relationships and quality of life. This early advantage over the control group was then maintained throughout therapy. These results not only demonstrate the value of adding MI to CBT, but also highlight the immediacy of MI effects. Further research is needed to determine the robustness of these effects to inform clinical implications of how to best apply MI to improve treatment adherence to CBT for anxiety disorders.