Use of anthropogenic sea floor structures by Australian fur seals: potential positive ecological impacts of marine industrial development?

Human-induced changes to habitats can have deleterious effects on many species that occupy them. However, some species can adapt and even benefit from such modifications. Artificial reefs have long been used to provide habitat for invertebrate communities and promote local fish populations. With the increasing demand for energy resources within ocean systems, there has been an expansion of infrastructure in near-shore benthic environments which function as de facto artificial reefs. Little is known of their use by marine mammals. In this study, the influence of anthropogenic sea floor structures (pipelines, cable routes, wells and shipwrecks) on the foraging locations of 36 adult female Australian fur seals (Arctocephalus pusillus doriferus) was investigated. For 9 (25%) of the individuals, distance to anthropogenic sea floor structures was the most important factor in determining the location of intensive foraging activity. Whereas the influence of anthropogenic sea floor structures on foraging locations was not related to age and mass, it was positively related to flipper length/standard length (a factor which can affect manoeuvrability). A total of 26 (72%) individuals tracked with GPS were recorded spending time in the vicinity of structures (from <1% to >75% of the foraging trip duration) with pipelines and cable routes being the most frequented. No relationships were found between the amount of time spent frequenting anthropogenic structures and individual characteristics. More than a third (35%) of animals foraging near anthropogenic sea floor structures visited more than one type of structure. These results further highlight potentially beneficial ecological outcomes of marine industrial development.

Envisioning Indochina : the spatial and social ordering and imagining of a French colony

The emergence of Indochina in the French imagination was articulated in both representational and institutional modes. Representation involves the transmission of colonial ideals through more obtuse means; that is, through literary texts, travelogues, exhibitions, film and advertising. However, these textual sites feed from and invest in a material situation, which was the institutional arm of colonialism. Indochina was institutionally articulated in cartographic maps and surveys, in the new social spaces of cities and towns, in architectural and technological forms, through social technologies of discipline and welfare and in cultural and religious organisations. The aim of this thesis is to analyse, across a number of textual sites, the representation and institutionalisation of Otherness through the politics of space in the French colony of Indochina, Indochine in this sense becomes a spatial discourse. The French constructed a mental and physical space for Indochina by blanketing and suffocating the original cultural landscape, which in fact had to be ignored for this process to occur. What actually became manifest as a result of this projection stemmed from the French imagination. Just as the French manipulated space, language also underwent the same process of reduction. The Vietnamese script was latinised to make it more 'useable' and ‘accessible’. Through christening the union of Indochina; initiating a comprehensive writing reform; and renaming the streets in the colonial cities, the French used language us another tool for 'making transparent'. Furthermore, the colonial powers established a communication and transport network throughout the colony in an attempt to materialise their fictive (artificial) vision of a unified French Indochinese space. The accessibility and design of these different modes of transport reflected the gendered, racial and class divisions inherent in the colonial establishment. At the heart of representing and institutionalising Indochina was the desire to control and contain. This characterised French imperial ordering of space in the city and the rural areas. In rural areas land was divided into small parcels and alienated to individuals or worked into precise grids for the rubber plantation. In urban centres the native quarter was clearly demarcated from the European quarter which functioned as its modern, progressive Other. The rationale behind this segregation was premised on European, nineteenth century discourses of race, class, gender and hygiene. Influenced by Darwinian and neo-Lamarkian theories of race, this biological discourse identified the 'working class', 'women' and 'the native' as not only biologically but also culturally inferior. They were perceived as a potential, degenerative threat to the biological, cultural and industrial development of the nation. In the colonial context, space was thus ordered and domesticated to control the native population. Coextensively, the literature which springs from such a structure will be tainted by the same ideas, and thus the spaces it formulates within the readers mind feed on and reinforce this foundation. Examples of gender and indigenous narratives which contest this imaginative, transparent topography are analysed throughout this thesis. They provide instances of struggle and resistance which undermine the ideal/stereotypical level of architectural and planned space and delineate an alternative insight into colonial spatial and social relations. The fictional accounts of European women and indigenous writers both challenge and reaffirm the fixity of some of these idealised colonial boundaries. In various literary, historical, political, architectural and cinematic discourses Indochina has been und continues to be depicted as a modern city and exotic Utopia. Informed by the mood of nostalgia, exotic images of Indochina have resurfaced in contemporary French culture. France's continued desire to create, control and maintain an Indochinese space in the French public imagination reinforces the multi-layered, interconnected and persistent nature of colonial discourse.

Aquaculture effluent : impacts and remedies for protecting the environment and human health

Knowledge in the field of environmental health is growing rapidly. Within the context of external factors that define its boundaries, environmental health has evolved over time into a complex, multidisciplinary and ill-defined field with uncertain solutions. Many of the key determinants and solutions to environmental health lie outside the direct realm of health and are strongly dependent on environmental changes, water and sanitation, industrial development, education, employment, trade, tourism, agriculture, urbanization, energy, housing and national security. Environmental risks, vulnerability and variability manifest themselves in different ways and at different time scales. While there are shared global and transnational problems, each community, country or region faces its own unique environmental health problems, the solution of which depends on circumstances surrounding the resources, customs, institutions, values and environmental vulnerability. This work will contain critical reviews and assessments of environmental health practices and research that have worked in places and thus can guide programs and economic development in other countries or regions.

The roles of social bonds in the Australian tourism network

There is limited published research on the social bonds between employees in two organizations. This paper aims to examine 1) relationships in the Australian tourism industry, 2) the nature and role of social bonds and commercial friendships, 3) the nature and roles of the investments in economic and social resources, and 4) the nature of personal relationships in the tourism network. The perspective and attitudes of the tourism network participants become clear and their vested interests are highlighted. Network pictures are developed for the 5 key sectors of this industry. The adaptations of these sectors are also discussed. The nature and role of social bonds and commercial friendships is examined. The Leximancer program is used to qualitatively analyze interview transcripts. Findings show the centrality of relationships in this industry and the importance of social bonds to the travel agency sector. This study provides additional insight into the nature of social bonds in the development of successful business to business relationships. A discussion of antecedents and outcomes of social bonds will be further developed.

The development of a neo-industrial organisation methodology for describing and comparing structural and behavioural characteristics of construction supply chains

The model draws from theories of industrial economics and supply chain literature, and is an attempt to advance the construction supply chain field through the development of an industrial organisational methodology to describe construction supply chains.
Empirical studies have examined the industrial organisation of other industries, typically forming descriptions based upon vertical integration and horizontal market concentration. A review of the trends in the supply chain literature indicate there is a need to develop a model to describe the industrial organisation of the construction industry through supply chain structure. The merging of the supply chain concept with the industrial organisation model as a methodology for understanding the structural characteristics is an important contribution to construction economic theory. The paper begins to develop a language for describing the structure and behaviour of supply chains specific to the construction industry and is so doing suggests a neo-industrial organisation approach.

Improved synthesis of commercially valuable opiates : development of reactions for industrial applications

Describes the synthesis of thebaine and noroxymorphone - key intermediates in the synthesis of opiate drugs. The design and optimisation of these synthetic pathways were developed keeping in mind the concerns of industry.

Industrial and economic development : a holistic study of Brunei Darussalam

The primary objective of this research is to provide a framework for industrial and economic development with respect to Brunei Darussalam. The study is both novel and unique as it is potentially the most comprehensive holistic study performed to date with respect to industrial and economic development in Brunei.

Adopting a computational approach to identifying and modelling future development initiatives within the urban context

In 2002 the State Government of Victoria, in partnership with the City of Greater Geelong and Deakin University, initiated and urban design framework to explore development opportunities of a series of redundant industrial sites adjacent to Geelong's central activities area (CAA). One of the objectives of the framework was to explore a range of initiatives based on the expansion of Deakin University Waterfront campus from 700 students to an expected cohort of 5000 students. Working with a set of predefined constructs for different types of city-based user groups, such as net floor space requirements and time/travel distances between facilities, the following paper presents a simple computational approach to assist in identifying, mapping, and spatially exploring different development scenarios.

Mortgages and bonds: the asset management practices of Australian life insurers to 1960

Recent studies of the experience of the British life insurance industry indicate that a period of transition, and the development of more diversified investment strategies, began in the interwar period. Australian life insurers lagged behind their British counterparts in the introduction of such strategies. This paper investigates why this was the case. It argues that in the Australian market there was both a lack of opportunity and incentive to broaden asset portfolios. However, this did not mean that asset management practices did not advance. Australian life offices became progressively more sophisticated in their approach to portfolio management during this period. Developments in the interwar period provided a grounding for post-war expansion into the equity market.

Intangible assets and the underpricing of industrial company initial public offerings

This study analyses 262 industrial company initial public offerings (IPOs) in Australia from 1994 to 1999. It finds that the identification and valuation of brand name, trademark, patent and capitalized research and development cost intangible assets in the prospectus significantly reduces underpricing. The identification of goodwill and license cost intangibles does not appear to be significant to underpricing. This paper supports the Beatty and Ritter (1986) argument that IPOs may display financial and nonfinancial characteristics that lower the uncertainty about the value of the lPO and hence lower the underpricing of that IPO. Our findings suggest implications for the issuer who wants to maximize the value of the firm at the time of the lPO, the underwriter who is required to guarantee the success of the capital raising and for the initial investors who are looking to reduce their uncertainty about the valuation of the lPO.

Managing social and intellectual capital to inform design and development of learning objects : issues, applications and technologies

The purpose of this paper is to present and analyse a case example of the development and implementation of a digital learnmg object in context with academic literature in the field. The paper's content describes the creation of a multimedia learning object from conception in 2004 to completion m 2006. Provided is the rationale and outcome of a strategically funded University project aimed at illuminating an industrial case study of good management and communication practices for use in classrooms throughout the entire university. This paper is intended to act as a guide for others. Our experience as academics in successful dialogue With educational technologists will inspire and inform those embarking on similar projects, and aspects of it will generalise to development and implementation Issues for other kinds of learning objects.

Catholic social thought and labouring ideals in Australia's new industrial context

This article sets out the principles of Catholic social doctrine as they pertain to the rights of employees, the duties of the employers and the obligations of the state. It relates these to the historical development of industrial work and employment in Australia, noting the close proximity of the principles to the social and political arrangements that emerged over the period of the Australian Settlement. It goes on to identify the more recent demise of Catholic activism, which, in combination with the pursuit of neo-liberal policy solutions and market reforms, has purged previous arrangements of their former notions of `fairness' and equity. It concludes that those opposing such solutions and reforms should think beyond simply framing arguments in terms of the economic or the instrumental, and might usefully draw on the labouring ideals set out in Catholic social doctrine to develop a more thorough set of moral and ethical principles to support their cause.

Monitoring and motivating outworkers : the case of the AMP and the sale of industrial life insurance 1905-1940

The development of labor management practices in the financial services sector provides an interesting insight into how problems associated with agency issues were overcome. Within financial institutions and other white collar occupations, the use of internal labor markets emerged as an effective means of both controlling and motivating employees. However such management techniques were only effective in cases where work tasks could be internalized. The business of some types of organizations necessitated a division of work tasks between those undertaken within the office and those undertaken outside the office. The management and sale of insurance products is a case in point. This paper explores the development of processes implemented to resolve a specific type of labor management issue, namely the control of workers under conditions of uncertainty. Using the example of the Australian Mutual Provident (Australia's largest life insurer), it analyses how and why particular work relations procedures were developed.

Development of a stable continuous flow immobilized enzyme reactor for the hydrolysis of inulin

A 23.5-fold purified exoinulinase with a specific activity of 413 IU/mg and covalently immobilized on Duolite A568 has been used for the development of a continuous flow immobilized enzyme reactor for the hydrolysis of inulin. In a packed bed reactor containing 72 IU of exoinulinase from Kluyveromyces marxianus YS-1, inulin solution (5%, pH 5.5) with a flow rate of 4 mL/h was completely hydrolyzed at 55 °C. The reactor was run continuously for 75 days and its experimental half-life was 72 days under the optimized operational conditions. The volumetric productivity and fructose yield of the reactor were 44.5 g reducing sugars/L/h and 53.3 g/L, respectively. The hydrolyzed product was a mixture of fructose (95.8%) and glucose (4.2%) having an average fructose/glucose ratio of 24. An attempt has also been made to substitute pure inulin with raw Asparagus racemosus inulin to determine the operational stability of the developed reactor. The system remained operational only for 11 days, where 85.9% hydrolysis of raw inulin was achieved.