Analysis of lightning current characteristics to investigate lightning strike damages to energy pipeline

Australia is one of the most lightning prone area on earth. Lightning strikes have been identified as one of the most common cause of energy pipeline damage in Australia. Therefore, a suitable protection schemes and mitigation strategies against lighting strike damage is very important for Australian pipeline industry. There are a number of research on lighting protection of establishment such as, power systems, buildings, and telecommunications systems, however, very few publications could be found which discuss about protection of pipeline from lightning strike. Assessment of effects in buried pipeline, due to lighting strikes is important. Existing models do not account adequately the effect of the characteristics of soil breakdown channels intercepted by the buried object. This paper aims to investigate the characteristics of lightning current on metal object under the soil of strike point so that lighting attachment to energy pipeline could be understand and a protection technique could be developed. Along with lightning current characteristics, lightning attachment process, distribution method, soil resistivity, propagation of lightning current in soil with a buried pipeline, pipeline electrical properties and other related areas and technologies is explored. The study shows that though there are some research on characteristics of induced on simple buried structures like narrow telephone cable or residential gas pipe, but no substantial research have been done on large comparatively complex structures like buried energy pipelines. Also dynamic behavior of soil and the object to be protected not been considered in protections schemes and experiments.

The suburbanisation of the coastal communities of Sorrento and Queenscliff : measuring the effects of overdevelopment.

Architecture is often read as a marker of change. The Victorian towns of Sorrento and Queenscliff are undergoing immense change as a result of rapid modernisation and building due to the ‘sea-change’ phenomenon. It has been argued that this is adversely affecting place, diminishing ‘sense of place’, destroying neighbourhood character and leading to unsustainable development. Planning strategies such as Melbourne 2030 have exacerbated this trend by advocating increasing population densities without regard to specific local environmental or historical conditions. Richard Neville comments generally that ‘Architecture is a lightning rod for passions about community, development, taste and lifestyle. Few issues engage and enrage people more than development – whether a prominent public site … or a more local issue such as housing design or density.’ Anecdotally the increase in building footprint is one measure of cultural lifestyle change that has occurred in the last half century in the coastal areas of the Mornington and Bellarine Peninsulas. While the change from the 1950s ‘fibro shack’ to the 2000s supersize ‘McMansion’ in Sorrento and Queenscliff demonstrates increasing prosperity and sophistication, these developments show little awareness of the local coastal landscape or place identity. If the impacts of this ‘sea change’ phenomenon on place are to be considered as more than anecdotal, ways of evaluating these impacts are required. Monitoring and documenting the impact of changes to place will enable the researchers to quantify overdevelopment as site specific and recommend that modern planning schemes need to value and address place differently.

Methods and technologies to promote information-centered knowledge construction

This alternative event for the 2013 iConference is a combination of lightning talks, a demonstration of an assessment technology for knowledge construction in complex domains, and a hands-on exercise in using the tools discussed. The unifying logic for this presentation is that meaningful learning often involves solving challenging and complex problems that allow for multiple solution approaches and a variety of acceptable solutions. While it is important to prepare students to solve such problems, it is difficult to determine the extent to which various interventions and programs are contributing to the development of appropriate problem-solving strategies and attitudes. Simply testing domain knowledge or the ability to solve simple, single-solution problems may not provide support for improving individual student ability or relevant programs and activities. A reliable and robust methodology for assessing the relevant knowledge constructions of students engaged in solving challenging problems is needed, and that is our focus.

The pioneering years of Australian animation (1900–1930): from animated sketches to animation empire

This article describes the very earliest beginnings of Australian animation, detailing the events, processes, and the people who pioneered this medium from approximately 1900 to 1930. It examines these early achievements, which range from the first ‘animated lightning sketches’ to the rise and subsequent demise of a major animation studio. Much of this article focuses on the innovative work of Harry Julius (1885–1938) who is generally regarded as the chief pioneer of animation in Australia. However, as this article reveals, there were others who experimented with animation before Julius, and there were a number of artists and animators who worked alongside him in those early decades. Together, Julius and team built the very successful Sydney-based studio, Cartoon Filmads, which developed into what could only be described as an ‘animation empire’ with a robust national and international reach. This article details some of the authors’ extensive research surrounding these previously overlooked cinematic efforts, and carefully analyses these in terms of content, production, audience reception and international context.