Australian story : catalysts and inhibitors in the achievement of new women professors

Women are substantially under-represented in the professoriate in Australia with a ratio of one female professor to every three male professors. This gender imbalance has been an ongoing concern with various affirmative action programs implemented in universities but to limited effect. Hence, there is a need to investigate the catalysts for and inhibitors to women’s ascent to the professoriate. This investigation focussed on women appointed to the professoriate between 2005, when a research quality assessment was first proposed, and 2008. Henceforth, these women are referred to as “New Women Professors”. The catalysts and inhibitors in these women’s careers were investigated through an electronic survey and focus group interviews. The survey was administered to new women professors (n=255) and new men professors (n=240) to enable a comparison of responses. However, only women participated in focus group discussions (n=21). An analysis of the survey and interview data revealed that the most critical catalysts for women’s advancement to the professoriate were equal employment opportunities and mentoring. Equal opportunity initiatives provided women with access to traditionally male-dominated forums. Mentoring gave women an insider perspective on the complexity of academia and the politics of the academy. The key inhibitors to women’s career advancement were negative discrimination, the culture of the boys’ club, the tension between personal and professional life, and isolation. Negative discrimination and the boys’ club are problematic because they favour men and marginalise women. The tension between personal and professional life is a particular concern for women who bear children and typically assume the major role in a family for child rearing. Isolation was a concern for both women and men with isolation appearing to increase after ascent to the professoriate. Knowledge of the significant catalysts and inhibitors provides a pragmatic way to orient universities towards redressing the gender balance in the professoriate.

On the contemporary position of the Indigenous peoples of Australia

This paper highlights the contemporary disadvantaged position of Indigenous peoples of Australia.∗ It discusses a number of data quality issues on Indigenous data, before examining Indigenous disadvantage across five key areas: (1) education; (2) employment; (3) housing and living conditions; (4) health and wellbeing; and (5) crime and justice. Given the call for all governments to implement a framework to overcome Indigenous disadvantage, we recommend that future research begin with an investigation of non-Indigenous attitudes towards, and knowledge of, the position of Indigenous peoples in Australia. This is essential towards developing an understanding of the general public’s current perceptions of Indigenous peoples’ position in Australia, particularly where the development of policies pertaining to Indigenous peoples requires cooperative action and the support of the broader Australian population.

Research in action for community informatics : A matter for conversation (editorial introduction)

This special issue of the Journal of Community Informatics brings together people from a diverse range of disciplines to discuss how academic researchers and community practitioners and activists can work together to explore the use of information and communication technologies, social media, augmented reality, and other forms of network technologies for research and action in pursuit of social responsibility. The aim is to connect people with ideas, ideas with research projects, and harness new media to further inquiry into socially just outcomes in our community. Some of the papers are based on presentations given at the "Research for Action: Networking University and Community for Social Responsibility" workshop chaired by Matthew Allen and Marcus Foth, at the Making Links 2010 conference in Perth, WA on 15 Nov 2010.

Investigation of methods for increasing the energy efficiency on unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVS)

In recent years, development of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) has become a significant growing segment of the global aviation industry. These vehicles are developed with the intention of operating in regions where the presence of onboard human pilots is either too risky or unnecessary. Their popularity with both the military and civilian sectors have seen the use of UAVs in a diverse range of applications, from reconnaissance and surveillance tasks for the military, to civilian uses such as aid relief and monitoring tasks. Efficient energy utilisation on an UAV is essential to its functioning, often to achieve the operational goals of range, endurance and other specific mission requirements. Due to the limitations of the space available and the mass budget on the UAV, it is often a delicate balance between the onboard energy available (i.e. fuel) and achieving the operational goals. This thesis presents an investigation of methods for increasing the energy efficiency on UAVs. One method is via the development of a Mission Waypoint Optimisation (MWO) procedure for a small fixed-wing UAV, focusing on improving the onboard fuel economy. MWO deals with a pre-specified set of waypoints by modifying the given waypoints within certain limits to achieve its optimisation objectives of minimising/maximising specific parameters. A simulation model of a UAV was developed in the MATLAB Simulink environment, utilising the AeroSim Blockset and the in-built Aerosonde UAV block and its parameters. This simulation model was separately integrated with a multi-objective Evolutionary Algorithm (MOEA) optimiser and a Sequential Quadratic Programming (SQP) solver to perform single-objective and multi-objective optimisation procedures of a set of real-world waypoints in order to minimise the onboard fuel consumption. The results of both procedures show potential in reducing fuel consumption on a UAV in a ight mission. Additionally, a parallel Hybrid-Electric Propulsion System (HEPS) on a small fixedwing UAV incorporating an Ideal Operating Line (IOL) control strategy was developed. An IOL analysis of an Aerosonde engine was performed, and the most efficient (i.e. provides greatest torque output at the least fuel consumption) points of operation for this engine was determined. Simulation models of the components in a HEPS were designed and constructed in the MATLAB Simulink environment. It was demonstrated through simulation that an UAV with the current HEPS configuration was capable of achieving a fuel saving of 6.5%, compared to the ICE-only configuration. These components form the basis for the development of a complete simulation model of a Hybrid-Electric UAV (HEUAV).

The theories of reasoned action and planned behaviour applied to business decision : a selective annotated bibliography

Purpose: This paper provides a selective annotated bibliography that summarises journal articles which have employed either the theory of reasoned action or the theory of planned behaviour to circumstances which are relevant to business activities. Design/methodology/approach: Searches were conducted on the EBSCO Host and ProQuest databases to identify papers that had used either the theory of reasoned action or theory of planned behaviour in their methodology. The bibliography was separated into three categories- financial decision making, strategic decision making, and professional decision making. Implications: The information presented in this paper is intended to assist and facilitate further research by broadening the awareness of the literature and providing examples of the application of the theory as it has been employed in prior research.

Investigation of phenol degradation : True reaction kinetics on fixed film titanium dioxide photocatalyst

This study of photocatalytic oxidation of phenol over titanium dioxide films presents a method for the evaluation of true reaction kinetics. A flat plate reactor was designed for the specific purpose of investigating the influence of various reaction parameters, specifically photocatalytic film thickness, solution flow rate (1–8 l min−1), phenol concentration (20, 40 and 80 ppm), and irradiation intensity (70.6, 57.9, 37.1and 20.4 W m−2), in order to further understand their impact on the reaction kinetics. Special attention was given to the mass transfer phenomena and the influence of film thickness. The kinetics of phenol degradation were investigated with different irradiation levels and initial pollutant concentration. Photocatalytic degradation experiments were performed to evaluate the influence of mass transfer on the reaction and, in addition, the benzoic acid method was applied for the evaluation of mass transfer coefficient. For this study the reactor was modelled as a batch-recycle reactor. A system of equations that accounts for irradiation, mass transfer and reaction rate was developed to describe the photocatalytic process, to fit the experimental data and to obtain kinetic parameters. The rate of phenol photocatalytic oxidation was described by a Langmuir–Hinshelwood type law that included competitive adsorption and degradation of phenol and its by-products. The by-products were modelled through their additive effect on the solution total organic carbon.

Using participatory action research in a community-based initiative addressing complex mental health needs

Objective: This paper describes the first phase of a larger project that utilizes participatory action research to examine complex mental health needs across an extensive group of stakeholders in the community. Method: Within an objective qualitative analysis of focus group discussions the social ecological model is utilized to explore how integrative activities can be informed, planned and implemented across multiple elements and levels of a system. Seventy-one primary care workers, managers, policy-makers, consumers and carers from across the southern metropolitan and Gippsland regions of Victoria, Australia took part in seven focus groups. All groups responded to an identical set of focusing questions. Results: Participants produced an explanatory model describing the service system, as it relates to people with complex needs, across the levels of social ecological analysis. Qualitative themes analysis identified four priority areas to be addressed in order to improve the system's capacity for working with complexity. These included: (i) system fragmentation; (ii) integrative case management practices; (iii) community attitudes; and (iv) money and resources. Conclusions: The emergent themes provide clues as to how complexity is constructed and interpreted across the system of involved agencies and interest groups. The implications these findings have for the development and evaluation of this community capacity-building project were examined from the perspective of constructing interventions that address both top-down and bottom-up processes.

An Investigation of Organic Factors in the Neuropsychological Functioning of Patients with Borderline Personality Disorder

The hypothesis to be tested in this study was that the cognitive deficits that have been documented in patients with Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) are largely the consequence of organic insult, either developmental or acquired. Using a cross–sectional design, 80 subjects (males and females) who met the criteria for BPD participated in the study. They completed a battery of neuropsychological tests and a comprehensive interview assessing organic status as well as measures of the potentially confounding factors of current levels of depression and anxiety. It was expected that BPD-patients with a probable history of organic insult would perform significantly worse than would BPD patients without such a history. Analyses of the results provided partial support for the hypothesis. Subjects with both BPD and a history of organic insult were significantly more impaired on several measures including measures of attention than were BPD only subjects. The results suggested that the impaired cognitive performance of persons diagnosed with BPD may, in part, be attributed to organic factors.

Quantitative fit assessment of a precontoured fracture fixation plate : its automation and an investigation on the borderline cases

Virtual methods to assess the fitting of a fracture fixation plate were proposed recently, however with limitations such as simplified fit criteria or manual data processing. This study aims to automate a fit analysis procedure using clinical-based criteria, and then to analyse the results further for borderline fit cases. Three dimensional (3D) models of 45 bones and of a precontoured distal tibial plate were utilized to assess the fitting of the plate automatically. A Matlab program was developed to automatically measure the shortest distance between the bone and the plate at three regions of interest and a plate-bone angle. The measured values including the fit assessment results were recorded in a spreadsheet as part of the batch-process routine. An automated fit analysis procedure will enable the processing of larger bone datasets in a significantly shorter time, which will provide more representative data of the target population for plate shape design and validation. As a result, better fitting plates can be manufactured and made available to surgeons, thereby reducing the risk and cost associated with complications or corrective procedures. This in turn, is expected to translate into improving patients' quality of life.

Walking when intoxicated : an investigation of the factors which influence individuals' drink walking intentions

Annually, in Australia, 10-15% of all road-related fatalities involve pedestrians. Of those pedestrians fatally injured, approximately 45% were walking while intoxicated or 'drink walking'. Drink walking is increasing in prevalence and younger persons may be especially prone to engage in this behaviour and, thus, are at heightened risk of being injured or killed. Presently, limited research is available regarding the factors which influence individuals to drink walk. This study explored young people's (17-25 years) intentions to drink walk, using an extended Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB). Participants (N = 215), completed a self-report questionnaire which assessed the standard TPB constructs (attitude, subjective norm, perceived behavioural control) as well as the extended constructs of risk perception, anticipated regret, and past behaviour. It was hypothesised that the standard TPB constructs would significantly predict individuals' reported intentions to drink walk and that the additional constructs would predict intentions over and above the TPB constructs. The TPB variables significantly predicted 63.2% of the variance in individuals' reported intentions to drink walk, and the additional variables, combined, explained a further 6.1% of the variance. Of the additional constructs, anticipated regret and past behaviour, but not risk perception, were significant predictors of drink walking intentions. As one of the first studies to provide a theoretically-based investigation of factors influencing individuals' drink walking intentions, the current study's findings have potentially significant implications for understanding young people's decisions to drink walk and the design of future countermeasures to ultimately reduce this behaviour.

The subtropical residential tower: An investigation by Design Charrette

QUT's Centre for Subtropical Design (CSD) partnered with a major developer to bring together some of Brisbane’s most experienced and creative architects and designers in a two-day intensive design charrette to propose innovative design strategies for naturally-ventilated high rise residential buildings. An inner-urban renewal site in Queensland’s capital city Brisbane gave four multi-disciplinary teams the opportunity to address a raft of issues that developers and consultants will confront more and more in the future in warm humid climates. The quest to release apartment dwellers from dependence on energy-hungry air-conditioning and artificial lighting was central to the design brief for the towers. Mentored by Richard Hassell of WOHA, the creative teams focussed on climate-responsive design principles for passive climate control including orientation, cross-ventilation and outdoor living in order to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and offset occupants’ rising energy costs. This article discusses how outcomes of the charrette take their cue from the city’s subtropical climate and demonstrate how high-density high-rise living can be attractive, affordable and sustainable through positive engagement with the subtropical climate’s natural attributes.