A conditional probability approach to risk assessment for child sexual offenders with different classes of victim

Specific scales were developed for discriminating child sexual offenders with different classes of victim. The project demonstrates a method of individualising scores on actuarial risk assessment measured in a way that makes them more meaningful for those involved in decision-making about individual child sexual offenders. At present, the only quantifiable approach to specific decision-making relies on a general prediction of future behaviour, based on group data. The Bayesian approach is one method that can be used to assist decision-makers to use this information in ways that lead to the more appropriate management of risk. Ultimately, the better management of known child sexual offenders will lead to fewer offences and a reduction in the number of children who lives are profoundly affected by sexual victimisation.

No evidence of expression of two classes of natural antibiotics (cathelicidins and defensins) in a sample of platypus milk

Marsupial neonates are born without a fully functioning immune system, and are known to be protected in part by natural antimicrobial peptides present in their mother's milk. Monotreme neonates hatch at a similar stage in development, and it has been hypothesised that their survival in a non-sterile burrow also relies on the presence of natural antibiotics in their mother's milk. Here we review the field of monotreme lactation and the antimicrobial peptide complement of the platypus (Ornithorhynchus anatinus). Using reverse transcriptasepolymerase chain reaction of milk cell RNA from a sample of platypus milk, we found no evidence for the expression of cathelicidins or defensins in the milk. This was unexpected. We hypothesise that these natural antibiotics may instead be produced by the young platypuses themselves.

An analysis of student engagement when taught in classes of different sizes in rural, regional and metropolitan campuses of an Australian university

This study investigates the impact of class size on student engagement and student performance. It is based on an analysis of student university enter scores, student grades and student evaluations in metropolitan, regional and rural campuses of an Australian universityduring trimester 1 of years 2008, 9 & 10. Past literature appears to support the predominant influence of the class size effect on learning, though some findings are mixed and inconclusive. Contrary to the accepted view that higher entry level scores result in higher grades and, conversely, lower entry level scores result in lower grades, the findings suggest that factorsother than entry level scores, contribute to student outcomes and student engagement. The study reveals that student satisfaction of teaching quality is higher in the rural and regional campuses where the cohorts are smaller than at the metropolitan campus. This may be an indication that class size seems to have a predominant influence on student engagement and learning outcomes.

A framework for identifying affinity classes of inorganic materials binding peptide sequences

With the rapid development of bionanotechnology, there has been a growing interest recently in identifying the affinity classes of the inorganic materials binding peptide sequences. However, there are some distinct characteristics of inorganic materials binding sequence data that limit the performance of many widely-used classification methods. In this paper, we propose a novel framework to predict the affinity classes of peptide sequences with respect to an associated inorganic material. We first generate a large set of simulated peptide sequences based on our new amino acid transition matrix, and then the probability of test sequences belonging to a specific affinity class is calculated through solving an objective function. In addition, the objective function is solved through iterative propagation of probability estimates among sequences and sequence clusters. Experimental results on a real inorganic material binding sequence dataset show that the proposed framework is highly effective on identifying the affinity classes of inorganic material binding sequences.

Identifying affinity classes of inorganic materials binding sequences via a graph-based model

Rapid advances in bionanotechnology have recently generated growing interest in identifying peptides that bind to inorganic materials and classifying them based on their inorganic material affinities. However, there are some distinct characteristics of inorganic materials binding sequence data that limit the performance of many widely-used classification methods when applied to this problem. In this paper, we propose a novel framework to predict the affinity classes of peptide sequences with respect to an associated inorganic material. We first generate a large set of simulated peptide sequences based on an amino acid transition matrix tailored for the specific inorganic material. Then the probability of test sequences belonging to a specific affinity class is calculated by minimizing an objective function. In addition, the objective function is minimized through iterative propagation of probability estimates among sequences and sequence clusters. Results of computational experiments on two real inorganic material binding sequence data sets show that the proposed framework is highly effective for identifying the affinity classes of inorganic material binding sequences. Moreover, the experiments on the structural classification of proteins (SCOP) data set shows that the proposed framework is general and can be applied to traditional protein sequences.

A simple method for measuring carbon-13 fatty acid enrichment in the major lipid classes of microalgae using GC-MS

A simple method for tracing carbon fixation and lipid synthesis in microalgae was developed using a combination of solid-phase extraction (SPE) and negative ion chemical ionisation gas chromatography mass spectrometry (NCI-GC-MS). NCI-GC-MS is an extremely sensitive technique that can produce an unfragmented molecular ion making this technique particularly useful for stable isotope enrichment studies. Derivatisation of fatty acids using pentafluorobenzyl bromide (PFBBr) allows the coupling of the high separation efficiency of GC and the measurement of unfragmented molecular ions for each of the fatty acids by single quadrupole MS. The key is that isotope spectra can be measured without interference from co-eluting fatty acids or other molecules. Pre-fractionation of lipid extracts by SPE allows the measurement of13C isotope incorporation into the three main lipid classes (phospholipids, glycolipids, neutral lipids) in microalgae thus allowing the study of complex lipid biochemistry using relatively straightforward analytical technology. The high selectivity of GC is necessary as it allows the collection of mass spectra for individual fatty acids, including cis/trans isomers, of the PFB-derivatised fatty acids. The combination of solid-phase extraction and GC-MS enables the accurate determination of13C incorporation into each lipid pool. Three solvent extraction protocols that are commonly used in lipidomics were also evaluated and are described here with regard to extraction efficiencies for lipid analysis in microalgae.

The influence of time since fire and distance from fire boundary on the distribution and abundance of arboreal marsupials in Eucalyptus regnans-dominated forest in the Central Highlands of Victoria

The impact of time since fire after two consecutive wildfires 44 years apart (1939 and 1983) within the same area, and the distance from the fire boundary «100 m or 500-2000 m), were investigated in relation to the distribution and abundance of arboreal marsupials in 1994. Arboreal marsupials were censused by stagwatching and spotlighting in two relatively young age classes of mountain ash (Eucalyptus regnans) dominated forest in the Central Highlands of Victoria. Five species of arboreal marsupial were detected, but only three were detected in sufficient numbers to determine habitat preferences. Petauroides volans (greater glider) was statistically more abundant in 1939 regrowth forests, while Trichosurus caninus (mountain brushtail possum) showed no significant preference for either age class of forest. All but one record of Gymnobelideus leadbeateri (Leadbeater's possum) came from young forest, though the effect of age-class was not statistically significant. Distance from fire boundary explained little or no variation in mammal distribution or abundance. While the actual number of hollow-bearing trees was similar in both age classes of forest, the long-term lifespan of hollow-bearing trees in more recently burnt forest is predicted to be lower than in unburnt or not recently burnt forest. Post-fire salvage logging following the 1983 wildfires appears to have reduced the number of hollow-bearing trees at sites burnt in 1983.

Lack of genetic divergence found with microsatellite DNA markers in the tarakihi Nemadactylus macropterus

Three classes of molecular markers are commonly employed during population genetic studies of marine taxa: allozymes, mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA), and microsatellite DNA. These markers differ in their levels of polymorphism, and the ease and cost of their application. Nemadactylus macropterus is a commercially important marine fish from New Zealand and southern Australia that has been the subject of genetic (allozyme, mtDNA) and non-genetic (otolith microchemistry, larval advection) studies of stock structure. We collected microsatellite DNA data from this species to compare the utility of these molecular markers with those genetic methods previously applied to N. macropterus. Microsatellites did not indicate significant divergence among Australian samples, or between Australian and New Zealand samples. The latter is incongruent with the allozyme and mtDNA studies, and it is suggested that allelic homoplasy has hindered the resolution of population structure when using microsatellites.

Facets of the polytope of the asymmetric travelling salesman problem with replenishment arcs

The Asymmetric Travelling Salesman Problem with Replenishment Arcs (RATSP) is a new class of problems arising from work related to aircraft routing. Given a digraph with cost on the arcs, a solution of the RATSP, like that of the Asymmetric Travelling Salesman Problem, induces a directed tour in the graph which minimises total cost. However the tour must satisfy additional constraints: the arc set is partitioned into replenishment arcs and ordinary arcs, each node has a non-negative weight associated with it, and the tour cannot accumulate more than some weight limit before a replenishment arc must be used. To enforce this requirement, constraints are needed. We refer to these as replenishment constraints.

In this paper, we review previous polyhedral results for the RATSP and related problems, then prove that two classes of constraints developed in V. Mak and N. Boland [Polyhedral results and exact algorithms for the asymmetric travelling salesman problem with replenishment arcs, Technical Report TR M05/03, School of Information Technology, Deakin University, 2005] are, under appropriate conditions, facet-defining for the RATS polytope.

A conceptual framework of e-fraud control in an integrated supply chain

The integration of supply chains offers many benefits; yet, it may also render organisations more vulnerable to electronic fraud (e-fraud). E-fraud can drain on organisations’ financial resources, and can have a significant adverse effect on the ability to achieve their strategic objectives. Therefore, efraud control should be part of corporate board-level due diligence, and should be integrated into organisations’ practices and business plans.
Management is responsible for taking into consideration the relevant cultural, strategic and implementation elements that inter-relate with each other and to coordinating the human, technological and financial resources necessary to designing and implementing policies and procedures for controlling e-fraud. Due to the characteristics of integrated supply chains, a move from the traditional vertical approach to a systemic, horizontal-vertical approach is necessary. Although the e-fraud risk cannot be eliminated, risk mitigation policies and processes tailored to an organisation’s particular vulnerabilities can significantly reduce the risk and may even preclude certain classes of frauds.
In this paper, a conceptual framework of e-fraud control in an integrated supply chain is proposed. The proposed conceptual framework can help managers and practitioners better understand the issues and plan the activities involved in a systemic, horizontal-vertical approach to e-fraud control in an integrated supply chain, and can be a basis upon which empirical studies can be build.

Real time, perceived time and time online : a review of student experiences of time over thirty years of distance and online education

This paper examines how students use and perceive time when studying in distance education modes and what affects this perception of time and the reality of time. We examine 30 years of student involvement on distance and online education, their comments on both their learning experiences, and the technology requirements of distance education/online learning. Our University has been involved in distance education since its formation in 1974. The online technologies offer increasingly sophisticated and immersive experiences for our students, both on campus and off campus, but many of our students continue to complain of time squeeze, and fail to predict the time it will take them to complete our subjects. We research how the technologies we use for online learning are contributing to this time squeeze perception and the student's "real" time to learn.
Research is drawn from both the Australian Bureau of Statistics and surveys of our students' experiences (we have 32,000 students online, with single online classes of over 1300 students), to examine student use and perceptions of their available time to study and how the technologies used in online learning affect this.

Handling of absorbent information by aggregation operators

We propose a generalization of the notion of the absorbent element of aggregation operators. Our construction involves tuples of values that are absorbent, that is, that decide the result of aggregation. We analyze some basic properties of this generalization and determine the absorbent tuples of some popular classes of aggregation operators.

Handling of neutral information by aggregation operators

We generalize the notion of a neutral element of aggregation operators. Our construction involves tuples of values that are neutral with respect to the result of aggregation. Neutral tuples are useful to model situations in which information from different sources, or preferences of several decision makers, cancel each other. We examine many popular classes of aggregation operators in respect to their neutral sets, and also construct new aggregation operators with predefined neutral sets

Ontogeny of diving behaviour in the Australian sea lion: trials of adolescence in a late bloomer

1.Foraging behaviours of the Australian sea lion (Neophoca cinerea) reflect an animal working hard to exploit benthic habitats. Lactating females demonstrate almost continuous diving, maximize bottom time, exhibit elevated field metabolism and frequently exceed their calculated aerobic dive limit. Given that larger animals have disproportionately greater diving capabilities, we wanted to examine how pups and juveniles forage successfully.
2.Time/depth recorders were deployed on pups, juveniles and adult females at Seal Bay Conservation Park, Kangaroo Island, South Australia. Ten different mother/pup pairs were equipped at three stages of development (6, 15 and 23 months) to record the diving behaviours of 51 (nine instruments failed) animals.
3. Dive depth and duration increased with age. However, development was slow. At 6 months, pups demonstrated minimal diving activity and the mean depth for 23-month-old juveniles was only 44 ± 4 m, or 62% of adult mean depth.
4. Although pups and juveniles did not reach adult depths or durations, dive records for young sea lions indicate benthic diving with mean bottom times (2·0 ± 0·2 min) similar to those of females (2·1 ± 0·2 min). This was accomplished by spending higher proportions of each dive and total time at sea on or near the bottom than adults. Immature sea lions also spent a higher percentage of time at sea diving.
5. Juveniles may have to work harder because they are weaned before reaching full diving capability. For benthic foragers, reduced diving ability limits available foraging habitat. Furthermore, as juveniles appear to operate close to their physiological maximum, they would have a difficult time increasing foraging effort in response to reductions in prey. Although benthic prey are less influenced by seasonal fluctuations and oceanographic perturbations than epipelagic prey, demersal fishery trawls may impact juvenile survival by disrupting habitat and removing larger size classes of prey. These issues may be an important factor as to why the Australian sea lion population is currently at risk.

Effects of fish oil substitution with a mix blend vegetable oil on nutrient digestibility in Murray cod, Maccullochella peelii peelii

The replacement of fish oil with vegetable based oils is a strategy which is increasingly being adopted by the aquafeed industry as an essential component to reduce the reliance on a limited supply of a natural resource, which in turn also provides cost benefits. The aim of the present investigation was to evaluate the lipid and fatty acid digestibility of a mix blend vegetable oil in juvenile Murray cod; an emerging species of increasing interest in the Australian aquaculture sector. Five semi purified experimental diets were formulated with 17% lipid originating from fish oil (FO) which was substituted in 25% increments by blended vegetable oil (VO), formulated using olive oil (12%), palm oil (43%) and linseed oil (45%) to match the major fatty acid classes of the FO.

Significant differences between the dietary treatments with regard to the lipid and individual fatty acid digestibility were recorded. This study clearly demonstrated that in Murray cod fatty acid digestibility decreases with chain length, and inversely increases relative to the degree of unsaturation. The combination of chain length, degree of unsaturation and the melting point of individual fatty acids resulted in the digestibility of PUFA > MUFA > SFA and short chain > longer chain fatty acids. Therefore, the inclusion of a mixed blend vegetable oil resulted in significantly reduced lipid digestibility in juvenile Murray cod.