Dirt Babylon

Construction of a school room installation and immersive performance as part of Dirt Babylon Glebe Park (commissioned by Robyn Archer for the Centenary of Canberra) in collaboration with Rebecca Rutter and ex- Splinters artists, November 2013

From video recordings to whisker stable isotopes: a critical evaluation of timescale in assessing individual foraging specialisation in Australian fur seals

Estimating the degree of individual specialisation is likely to be sensitive to the methods used, as they record individuals' resource use over different time-periods. We combined animal-borne video cameras, GPS/TDR loggers and stable isotope values of plasma, red cells and sub-sampled whiskers to investigate individual foraging specialisation in female Australian fur seals (Arctocephalus pusillus doriferus) over various timescales. Combining these methods enabled us to (1) provide quantitative information on individuals' diet, allowing the identification of prey, (2) infer the temporal consistency of individual specialisation, and (3) assess how different methods and timescales affect our estimation of the degree of specialisation. Short-term inter-individual variation in diet was observed in the video data (mean pairwise overlap = 0.60), with the sampled population being composed of both generalist and specialist individuals (nested network). However, the brevity of the temporal window is likely to artificially increase the level of specialisation by not recording the entire diet of seals. Indeed, the correlation in isotopic values was tighter between the red cells and whiskers (mid- to long-term foraging ecology) than between plasma and red cells (short- to mid-term) (R (2) = 0.93-0.73 vs. 0.55-0.41). δ(13)C and δ(15)N values of whiskers confirmed the temporal consistency of individual specialisation. Variation in isotopic niche was consistent across seasons and years, indicating long-term habitat (WIC/TNW = 0.28) and dietary (WIC/TNW = 0.39) specialisation. The results also highlight time-averaging issues (under-estimation of the degree of specialisation) when calculating individual specialisation indices over long time-periods, so that no single timescale may provide a complete and accurate picture, emphasising the benefits of using complementary methods.

Examining the prevalence of type-D personality in an Australian population

© 2015 The Australian Psychological Society. Objective: Type-D personality is a construct that describes a tendency to simultaneously experience negative emotions and inhibit self-expression for fear of negative social judgement. The link between type-D and poor health outcomes may be partly mediated by two prominent psychosocial mechanisms, poor-quality health-related behaviour and poor perceived-social support. Method: The present study replicated and extended a 2008 UK and Irish prevalence study, utilising a sample from the Australian general population. The study aimed to investigate the relationship between type-D personality and subjective levels of social support, health-related behaviours and neuroticism, as well as examining the estimated prevalence rate of type-D in the general Australian population. Nine hundred and fifty five Australian participants over the age of 18 (194 male and 761 female) completed four measures assessing levels of type-D personality, quality of health-related behaviours, perceived-social support and neuroticism. Results: As hypothesised, the estimated prevalence rate was not found to be significantly different from the rate obtained by Williams etal. (2008). In addition, type-D individuals reported significantly lower perceived-social support and poorer-quality health behaviours than non-type-D individuals. Conclusions: The results of this study provide further support for the association of type-D personality with poor health-related behaviours and poor perceived-social support, as well as demonstrating the applicability of the type-D construct to the Australian general population for the first time. General healthcare applications are discussed, as well as the potential for type-D personality research to influence public illness prevention in general.

The effects of topographic variation and the fire regime on coarse woody debris: insights from a large wildfire

Coarse woody debris (CWD) is a common structural component of terrestrial ecosystems, and provides important habitat for biota. Fires modify the distribution of CWD, both spatially and temporally. Changes in fire regimes, such as those arising from prescribed burning and changing climatic conditions, make it critical to understand the response of this resource to fire. We created a conceptual model of the effects of fire on logs and dead trees in topographically diverse forests in which trees often survive severe fire. We then surveyed paired sites, in a damp gully and adjacent drier slope, ~3.5. years after a large wildfire in south-eastern Australia. Sites were stratified by fire severity (unburnt, understorey burnt and severely burnt), and fire history (burnt ≤3. years or ≥20. years prior to the wildfire). Both components of the fire regime influenced CWD availability in gullies. Severe wildfire and fire history ≤3. years reduced the volume of small logs (10-30. cm diameter) in gullies, while severe wildfire increased the number of large dead trees in gullies. CWD on slopes was not affected by fire severity or history at ~3.5. years post-fire. Log volumes on slopes may recover more quickly after wildfire through rapid collapse of branches and trees. Gullies generally supported more logs than slopes, but longer inter-fire intervals in gullies may allow fuel loads to accumulate and lead to comparatively larger fire impacts. Given that fire severity and fire interval are predicted to change in many fire-prone ecosystems in coming decades, this study highlights the importance of understanding the interacting effects of multiple components of the fire regime with landscape structure. In particular, variation in fire interval and fire severity in relation to topographic position will influence the pattern of accumulation of coarse woody debris across the landscape, and therefore the structure and quality of habitats for biota.

Conserving koalas: A review of the contrasting regional trends, outlooks and policy challenges

The koala (Phascolarctos cinereus), one of the world's most iconic faunal species, was recently listed under Australian government legislation as vulnerable in the northern states of Queensland and New South Wales and in the Australian Capital Territory, but not in the southern states of Victoria and South Australia. This review synthesises empirical evidence of regional koala population trends, their conservation outlook, and associated policy challenges. Population declines are common in the northern half of the koala's range, where habitat loss, hotter droughts, disease, dog attacks and vehicle collisions are the major threats. In contrast, some southern populations are locally overabundant and are now subject to managed declines. The koala presents the problem of managing a wide-ranging species that now primarily occurs in human-modified landscapes, some of which are rapidly urbanising or subject to large-scale agricultural and mining developments. Climate change is a major threat to both northern and southern populations. The implementation of policy to conserve remaining koala habitat and restore degraded habitat is critical to the success of koala conservation strategies, but habitat conservation alone will not resolve the issues of koala conservation. There needs to be concerted effort to reduce the incidence of dog attack and road-related mortality, disease prevalence and severity, and take into account new threats of climate change and mining. Many of the complex conservation and policy challenges identified here have broader significance for other species whose population trends, and the nature of the threatening processes, vary from region to region, and through time.

Persistence of a threatened species in a modified alpine resort environment: the broad-toothed rat

Habitat change due to resort development threatens rare and endemic fauna of alpine and subalpine regions. There is an urgent need to understand species persistence in such areas. The broad-toothed rat (Mastacomys fuscus) is a rare, specialist species found in alpine and subalpine regions of Australia. We conducted fecal pellet surveys in an alpine resort to determine the species' distribution and habitat requirements. Eight individuals were radiotracked to investigate movement patterns and habitat use. Fecal pellets were found in areas of dense vegetation cover up to 1 m above ground. Home ranges were small (1,488-6,106 m²) and encompassed managed indigenous vegetation on or beside ski runs. Five individuals regularly crossed a narrow (3-5 m) cleared track. Two adult males dispersed (including traversing a wide grassy ski run) up to 1 km. The ability to cross modified areas and move throughout the landscape is proposed as a key factor facilitating the persistence of M. fuscus in the resort. Enhancing the capacity of species to move between habitat patches should be incorporated into alpine resort management plans. Such management will become increasingly important as anthropogenic disturbance increases in alpine regions.

A model of pilgrimage tourism: process, interface, people and sequence

Purpose – This paper aims to examine the elements of the main process of pilgrimage tourism (PT), occurring between pilgrims, hikers and tourists along a trail towards a holy site. PT is defined as a process consisting of three sub-processes over time and across contexts: pre-process, main process and post-process. Design/methodology/approach – Explores the core reasons for PT through active participation and observation. Findings – This study reveals different layers, levels, views, approaches and perspectives involved in people-based processes. The study attempts to conceptualize the elements involved between people committed and dedicated to PT. Research limitations/implications – The introduced model of PT stresses the processes and interfaces involved over time and across contexts between people, with the same or different sequences. There is, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, no previous research that explores and describes the processes and interaction between pilgrims, hikers and tourists. Practical implications – The ultimate experience at an individual level differs, depending upon the outcome of the PT-elements of the model of PT (i.e. processes, interfaces, people and sequences). Social implications – From a social science perspective, the research examines the motives of different traveller types and looks at their different perspectives of being involved with the same physical activity of travel. The study emphasises that we can be involved in the same physical activity, but embrace it with different levels of personal and emotional engagement. Originality/value – A conceptualized model of PT containing four elements (process, interface, people and sequence) – all of which offer a foundation for structuring and assessing empirical research, and provide additional insights and knowledge into the dynamics and complexity involved specifically in a people-based process consisting of interfaces and sequences when travelling.

Cisplatin-induced formation of biocompatible and biodegradable polypeptide-based vesicles for targeted anticancer drug delivery

Novel cisplatin (CDDP)-loaded, polypeptide-based vesicles for the targeted delivery of cisplatin to cancer cells have been prepared. These vesicles were formed from biocompatible and biodegradable maleimide-poly(ethylene oxide)114-b-poly(L-glutamic acid)12 (Mal-PEG114-b-PLG12) block copolymers upon conjugation with the drug itself. CDDP conjugation forms a short, rigid, cross-linked, drug-loaded, hydrophobic block in the copolymer, and subsequently induces self-assembly into hollow vesicle structures with average hydrodynamic diameters (Dh) of ∼ 270 nm. CDDP conjugation is critical to the formation of the vesicles. The reactive maleimide-PEG moieties that form the corona and inner layer of the vesicles were protected via formation of a reversible Diels-Alder (DA) adduct throughout the block copolymer synthesis so as to maintain their integrity. Drug release studies demonstrated a low and sustained drug release profile in systemic conditions (pH = 7.4, [Cl(-)] = 140 mM) with a higher "burst-like" release rate being observed under late endosomal/lysosomal conditions (pH = 5.2, [Cl(-)] = 35 mM). Further, the peripheral maleimide functionalities on the vesicle corona were conjugated to thiol-functionalized folic acid (FA) (via in situ reduction of a novel bis-FA disulfide, FA-SS-FA) to form an active targeting drug delivery system. These targeting vesicles exhibited significantly higher cellular binding/uptake into and dose-dependent cytotoxicity toward cancer cells (HeLa) compared to noncancerous cells (NIH-3T3), which show high and low folic acid receptor (FR) expression, respectively. This work thus demonstrates a novel approach to polypeptide-based vesicle assembly and a promising strategy for targeted, effective CDDP anticancer drug delivery.

Use of expert knowledge to elicit population trends for the koala (Phascolarctos cinereus)

Aim: The koala is a widely distributed Australian marsupial with regional populations that are in rapid decline, are stable or have increased in size. This study examined whether it is possible to use expert elicitation to estimate abundance and trends of populations of this species. Diverse opinions exist about estimates of abundance and, consequently, the status of populations. Location: Eastern and south-eastern Australia Methods: Using a structured, four-step question format, a panel of 15 experts estimated population sizes of koalas and changes in those sizes for bioregions within four states. They provided their lowest plausible estimate, highest plausible estimate, best estimate and their degree of confidence that the true values were contained within these upper and lower estimates. We derived estimates of the mean population size of koalas and associated uncertainties for each bioregion and state. Results: On the basis of estimates of mean population sizes for each bioregion and state, we estimated that the total number of koalas for Australia is 329,000 (range 144,000-605,000) with an estimated average decline of 24% over the past three generations and the next three generations. Estimated percentage of loss in Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia was 53%, 26%, 14% and 3%, respectively. Main conclusions: It was not necessary to achieve high levels of certainty or consensus among experts before making informed estimates. A quantitative, scientific method for deriving estimates of koala populations and trends was possible, in the absence of empirical data on abundances.

Letters, green cards, telephone calls and postcards: systematic and meta-analytic review of brief contact interventions for reducing self-harm, suicide attempts and suicide

BACKGROUND: There is growing interest in brief contact interventions for self-harm and suicide attempt. AIMS: To synthesise the evidence regarding the effectiveness of brief contact interventions for reducing self-harm, suicide attempt and suicide. METHOD: A systematic review and random-effects meta-analyses were conducted of randomised controlled trials using brief contact interventions (telephone contacts; emergency or crisis cards; and postcard or letter contacts). Several sensitivity analyses were conducted to examine study quality and subgroup effects. RESULTS: We found 14 eligible studies overall, of which 12 were amenable to meta-analyses. For any subsequent episode of self-harm or suicide attempt, there was a non-significant reduction in the overall pooled odds ratio (OR) of 0.87 (95% CI 0.74-1.04, P = 0119) for intervention compared with control. The number of repetitions per person was significantly reduced in intervention v. control (incidence rate ratio IRR = 066, 95% CI 0.54-0.80, P<0001). There was no significant reduction in the odds of suicide in intervention compared with control (OR = 0.58, 95% CI 0.24-1.38). CONCLUSIONS: A non-significant positive effect on repeated self-harm, suicide attempt and suicide and a significant effect on the number of episodes of repeated self-harm or suicide attempts per person (based on only three studies) means that brief contact interventions cannot yet be recommended for widespread clinical implementation. We recommend further assessment of possible benefits in well-designed trials in clinical populations.

Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists clinical practice guidelines for mood disorders

© 2015 The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists. Objectives: To provide guidance for the management of mood disorders, based on scientific evidence supplemented by expert clinical consensus and formulate recommendations to maximise clinical salience and utility. Methods: Articles and information sourced from search engines including PubMed and EMBASE, MEDLINE, PsycINFO and Google Scholar were supplemented by literature known to the mood disorders committee (MDC) (e.g., books, book chapters and government reports) and from published depression and bipolar disorder guidelines. Information was reviewed and discussed by members of the MDC and findings were then formulated into consensus-based recommendations and clinical guidance. The guidelines were subjected to rigorous successive consultation and external review involving: expert and clinical advisors, the public, key stakeholders, professional bodies and specialist groups with interest in mood disorders. Results: The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists clinical practice guidelines for mood disorders (Mood Disorders CPG) provide up-to-date guidance and advice regarding the management of mood disorders that is informed by evidence and clinical experience. The Mood Disorders CPG is intended for clinical use by psychiatrists, psychologists, physicians and others with an interest in mental health care. Conclusions: The Mood Disorder CPG is the first Clinical Practice Guideline to address both depressive and bipolar disorders. It provides up-to-date recommendations and guidance within an evidence-based framework, supplemented by expert clinical consensus. Mood Disorders Committee: Professor Gin Malhi (Chair), Professor Darryl Bassett, Professor Philip Boyce, Professor Richard Bryant, Professor Paul Fitzgerald, Dr Kristina Fritz, Professor Malcolm Hopwood, Dr Bill Lyndon, Professor Roger Mulder, Professor Greg Murray, Professor Richard Porter and Associate Professor Ajeet Singh. International expert advisors: Professor Carlo Altamura, Dr Francesco Colom, Professor Mark George, Professor Guy Goodwin, Professor Roger McIntyre, Dr Roger Ng, Professor John O'Brien, Professor Harold Sackeim, Professor Jan Scott, Dr Nobuhiro Sugiyama, Professor Eduard Vieta, Professor Lakshmi Yatham. Australian and New Zealand expert advisors: Professor Marie-Paule Austin, Professor Michael Berk, Dr Yulisha Byrow, Professor Helen Christensen, Dr Nick De Felice, A/Professor Seetal Dodd, A/Professor Megan Galbally, Dr Josh Geffen, Professor Philip Hazell, A/Professor David Horgan, A/Professor Felice Jacka, Professor Gordon Johnson, Professor Anthony Jorm, Dr Jon-Paul Khoo, Professor Jayashri Kulkarni, Dr Cameron Lacey, Dr Noeline Latt, Professor Florence Levy, A/Professor Andrew Lewis, Professor Colleen Loo, Dr Thomas Mayze, Dr Linton Meagher, Professor Philip Mitchell, Professor Daniel O'Connor, Dr Nick O'Connor, Dr Tim Outhred, Dr Mark Rowe, Dr Narelle Shadbolt, Dr Martien Snellen, Professor John Tiller, Dr Bill Watkins, Dr Raymond Wu.

Effects of the fire regime on mammal occurrence after wildfire: site effects vs landscape context in fire-prone forests

Wildfires have major impacts on ecosystems globally. Fire regimes (including fire frequency, intensity, season and type of fire) influence the status of species by altering habitat suitability at the site scale, and by creating heterogeneity at the landscape scale. The relative effects of site and landscape-scale fire attributes on animal species are rarely examined together. Such knowledge is important, given that fire regimes are sensitive to changing land management practices; and that fires are predicted to become larger and more frequent in some regions as a result of climate change. Here, we tested the relative influence of elements of the fire regime (fire severity, fire history) at the site-scale, and the landscape context (extent of surrounding unburnt forest, fire heterogeneity) on the occurrence of native terrestrial mammals after severe wildfire in south-eastern Australia. We conducted surveys by using automatically triggered, infrared cameras at 80 sites in fire-prone eucalypt forests, 2-3. years post-wildfire. Thirteen native mammal species were recorded, eight of which were detected with sufficient frequency for analysis. Most species were widespread (35-90% of sites) and recorded in all fire severity classes. Fire effects at the site-level were more influential than landscape context effects arising from heterogeneity in the fire regime (e.g. extent of surrounding unburnt forest). Fire severity was the most influential of the fire-regime elements investigated, but it affected different species in different ways. This study highlights three main points relevant to conservation of terrestrial mammals after wildfire. First, spatial variation in fire severity associated with wildfire (ranging from unburned to severely burned stands) is an important contributor to the post-fire status of species. Second, post-fire environmental conditions are significant: here, rapid regeneration of vegetation following drought-breaking rains greatly influenced the suitability of post-fire habitats. Third, it is valuable to consider the effects of the fire regime at multiple scales, including both the site (forest stand) and its landscape context. Insights from short-term surveys, such as this, will be enhanced by complementary longitudinal studies, especially where they encompass environmental variation through the post-fire succession.