You're hot, then you're cold: Creative industries policy making in Australia

Much compelling evidence has emerged over the last two decades demonstrating the importance of Australia’s creative industries. In 2014, the Australian Bureau of Statistics confirmed that culture is ‘big business’ in this country. Yet despite this, interest by policy makers at all levels of government has been intermittent, at best. This chapter gives a brief history of policy development, and offers a number of reasons for why policy and politics have not focussed more resolutely on Australia’s creative economy. It finishes with a discussion of Australia’s ‘unfinished agenda’, one which demands attention not only by government, but also industry and higher education, if we are to properly meet both the challenges and opportunities before us.

The creative fulcrum : Where, how and why the creative workforce is growing

Contrary to the view that the creative workforce is shrinking, a decade of detailed research by the ARC Centre of Excellence for Creative Industries and Innovation (CCI) shows that the number of workers in creative occupations is growing strongly, and that these workers are spread right across the whole economy. Furthermore, these occupations can be thought of as a ‘creative fulcrum’ for innovations that leverage competitiveness in all sectors, and create positive job spirals that stimulate opportunities for many other occupation categories.

Investigation and application of methods for enumerating heterotrophs and Escherichia coli in the air within piggery sheds

Aims: To investigate methods for the recovery of airborne bacteria within pig sheds and to then use the appropriate methods to determine the levels of heterotrophs and Escherichia coli in the air within sheds. Methods and Results: AGI-30 impingers and a six-stage Andersen multi-stage sampler (AMS) were used for the collection of aerosols. Betaine and catalase were added to impinger collection fluid and the agar plates used in the AMS. Suitable media for enumerating E. coli with the Andersen sampler were also evaluated. The addition of betaine and catalase gave no marked increase in the recovery of heterotrophs or E. coli. No marked differences were found in the media used for enumeration of E. coli. The levels of heterotrophs and E. coli in three piggeries, during normal pig activities, were 2Æ2 · 105 and 21 CFU m)3 respectively. Conclusions: The failure of the additives to improve the recovery of either heterotrophs or E. coli suggests that these organisms are not stressed in the piggery environment. The levels of heterotrophs in the air inside the three Queensland piggeries investigated are consistent with those previously reported in other studies. Flushing with ponded effluent had no marked or consistent effect on the heterotroph or E. coli levels. Significance and Impact of the Study: Our work suggests that levels of airborne heterotrophs and E. coli inside pig sheds have no strong link with effluent flushing. It would seem unlikely that any single management activity within a pig shed has a dominant influence on levels of airborne heterotrophs and E. coli

Invasion impacts on biodiversity: responses of ant communities to infestation by cat’s claw creeper, Macfadyena unguis-cati (Bignoniaceae) in subtropical Australia

Ants are the dominant soil faunal group in many if not most terrestrial ecosystems, and play a key role in soil structure and function. This study documents the impacts of invasion by the exotic cat’s claw creeper vine, Macfadyena unguis-cati (L.) Gentry (Bignoniaceae) on surface-situated (epigaeic) and subterranean (hypogaeic) ant communities in subtropical SE Queensland Australia where it is a major environmental weed of riparian areas, rainforest communities and remnant natural vegetation, smothering standing vegetation and causing canopy collapse. Soil ants were sampled in infested and uninfested areas at eight sites spanning both riparian and non-riparian habitats in subtropical SE Queensland. Patterns of ant species composition and functional grouping in response to patch invasion status, landscape type and habitat stratum were investigated using ANOVA and non-metric multidimensional scaling ordination. The epigaeic and subterranean strata supported markedly different ant assemblages, and ant communities also differed between riparian and non-riparian habitats. However, M. unguis-cati invasion had a surprisingly limited impact. There was a tendency for ant abundance and species richness to be lower in infested patches, and overall species composition was different between infested and uninfested patches, but these differences were relatively small, and did not occur consistently across sites. There were changes in functional group composition that conformed to known functional group responses to environmental change, but these were similarly limited and inconsistent across sites. Our study has shown that ant communities are surprisingly resilient to invasion by M. unguis-cati, and serves as a warning against making assumptions about invasion impacts based on visual appearances.

Chemical mass closure and source-specific composition of atmospheric particles

It has been known for decades that particles can cause adverse health effects as they are deposited within the respiratory system. Atmospheric aerosol particles influence climate by scattering solar radiation but aerosol particles act also as the nuclei around which cloud droplets form. The principal objectives of this thesis were to investigate the chemical composition and the sources of fine particles in different environments (traffic, urban background, remote) as well as during some specific air pollution situations. Quantifying the climate and health effects of atmospheric aerosols is not possible without detailed information of the aerosol chemical composition. Aerosol measurements were carried out at nine sites in six countries (Finland, Germany, Czech, Netherlands, Greece and Italy). Several different instruments were used in order to measure both the particulate matter (PM) mass and its chemical composition. In the off-line measurements the samples were collected first on a substrate or filter and gravimetric and chemical analysis were conducted in the laboratory. In the on-line measurements the sampling and analysis were either a combined procedure or performed successively within the same instrument. Results from the impactor samples were analyzed by the statistical methods. This thesis comprises also a work where a method for the determination carbonaceous matter size distribution by using a multistage impactor was developed. It was found that the chemistry of PM has usually strong spatial, temporal and size-dependent variability. In the Finnish sites most of the fine PM consisted of organic matter. However, in Greece sulfate dominated the fine PM and in Italy nitrate made the largest contribution to the fine PM. Regarding the size-dependent chemical composition, organic components were likely to be enriched in smaller particles than inorganic ions. Data analysis showed that organic carbon (OC) had four major sources in Helsinki. Secondary production was the major source in Helsinki during spring, summer and fall, whereas in winter biomass combustion dominated OC. The significant impact of biomass combustion on OC concentrations was also observed in the measurements performed in Central Europe. In this thesis aerosol samples were collected mainly by the conventional filter and impactor methods which suffered from the long integration time. However, by filter and impactor measurements chemical mass closure was achieved accurately, and a simple filter sampling was found to be useful in order to explain the sources of PM on the seasonal basis. The online instruments gave additional information related to the temporal variations of the sources and the atmospheric mixing conditions.

Chemical and source characterisation of size-segregated urban air particulate matter

Recent epidemiological studies have shown a consistent association of the mass concentration of urban air thoracic (PM10) and fine (PM2.5) particles with mortality and morbidity among cardiorespiratory patients. However, the chemical characteristics of different particulate size ranges and the biological mechanisms responsible for these adverse health effects are not well known. The principal aims of this thesis were to validate a high volume cascade impactor (HVCI) for the collection of particulate matter for physicochemical and toxicological studies, and to make an in-depth chemical and source characterisation of samples collected during different pollution situations. The particulate samples were collected with the HVCI, virtual impactors and a Berner low pressure impactor in six European cities: Helsinki, Duisburg, Prague, Amsterdam, Barcelona and Athens. The samples were analysed for particle mass, common ions, total and water-soluble elements as well as elemental and organic carbon. Laboratory calibration and field comparisons indicated that the HVCI can provide a unique large capacity, high efficiency sampling of size-segregated aerosol particles. The cutoff sizes of the recommended HVCI configuration were 2.4, 0.9 and 0.2 μm. The HVCI mass concentrations were in a good agreement with the reference methods, but the chemical composition of especially the fine particulate samples showed some differences. This implies that the chemical characterization of the exposure variable in toxicological studies needs to be done from the same HVCI samples as used in cell and animal studies. The data from parallel, low volume reference samplers provide valuable additional information for chemical mass closure and source assessment. The major components of PM2.5 in the virtual impactor samples were carbonaceous compounds, secondary inorganic ions and sea salt, whereas those of coarse particles (PM2.5-10) were soil-derived compounds, carbonaceous compounds, sea salt and nitrate. The major and minor components together accounted for 77-106% and 77-96% of the gravimetrically-measured masses of fine and coarse particles, respectively. Relatively large differences between sampling campaigns were observed in the organic carbon content of the PM2.5 samples as well as the mineral composition of the PM2.5-10 samples. A source assessment based on chemical tracers suggested clear differences in the dominant sources (e.g. traffic, residential heating with solid fuels, metal industry plants, regional or long-range transport) between the sampling campaigns. In summary, the field campaigns exhibited different profiles with regard to particulate sources, size distribution and chemical composition, thus, providing a highly useful setup for toxicological studies on the size-segregated HVCI samples.

Numerical study on the surface depression of the concrete runway pavement under impact load

Airport runway pavement always subjected to huge impact loading due to the hard landing of aircraft on the pavement surface. Therefore runway pavements should have sufficient impact resistance capability to avoid damage causing by hard impact like surface deflection in downward or penetration since the repair works is cumbersome within the operating condition of airport and also increases the service life cost of the pavement structure. Several research works have been carried out on airport runway pavement to measure the present condition of pavement and also to predict future performance of it. However, most of the works are confined by pavement response under moving aircraft loading. Nevertheless, no comprehensive research work is yet conducted to identify the controlling factors which might have significant effect in changing the common pavements damage like surface penetration depth under impact of aircraft. Therefore, a 3D FE study is conducted to determine some effective factors in controlling the top surface penetration depth of runway pavement. Among the exterior factors, mass of the impactor, velocity of the impactor, impact angle and boundary conditions are selected and as interior factors, thickness of the runway pavement, compressive strength and density of materials used in the runway pavement are selected.

A study on the variations of optical and physical properties of aerosols over a tropical semi-arid station during grassland fire

The present paper records the results of a case study on the impact of an extensive grassland fire on the physical and optical properties of aerosols at a semi-arid station in southern India for the first time from ground based measurements using a MICROTOPS-II sunphotometer, an aethalometer and a quartz crystal microbalance impactor (QCM). Observations revealed a substantial increase in aerosol optical depth (AOD) at all wavelengths during burning days compared to normal days. High AOD values observed at shorter wavelengths suggest the dominance of accumulation mode particle loading over the study area. Daily mean aerosol size spectra shows, most of the time, power-law distribution. To characterize AOD, the Angstrom parameters (i.e., alpha and beta) were used. Wavelength exponent (1.38) and turbidity coefficient (0.21) are high during burning days compared to normal days, thereby suggesting an increase in accumulation mode particle loading. Aerosol size distribution suggested dominance of accumulation mode particle loading during burning days compared to normal days. A significant positive correlation was observed between AOD at 500 mn and water vapour and negative correlation between AOD at 500 nm and wind speed for burning and non-burning days. Diurnal variations of black carbon (BC) aerosol mass concentrations increased by a factor of similar to 2 in the morning and afternoon hours during burning period compared to normal days.

High-pressure Raman and infrared spectroscopic studies of ZrP2O7

High-pressure Raman and mid-infrared spectroscopic studies were carried out on ZrP2O7 to 23.2 and 13 GPa respectively. In the pressure range 0.7-4.3 GPa the lattice mode at 248 cm(-1) disappears, new modes appear around 380 and 1111 cm(-1) and the strong symmetric stretching mode at 476 cm(-1) softens, possibly indicating a subtle phase transition. Above 8 GPa all the modes broaden, and all of the Raman modes disappear beyond 18 GPa. On decompression from the highest pressure, 23.2, to 0 GPa all of the modes reappear but with larger full width at half maximum. Lattice dynamics of the high temperature phase of ZrP2O7 were studied using first principles method and compared with experimental values. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Molecular dynamics studies of nanoparticle impacts

This thesis concerns the dynamics of nanoparticle impacts on solid surfaces. These impacts occur, for instance, in space, where micro- and nanometeoroids hit surfaces of planets, moons, and spacecraft. On Earth, materials are bombarded with nanoparticles in cluster ion beam devices, in order to clean or smooth their surfaces, or to analyse their elemental composition. In both cases, the result depends on the combined effects of countless single impacts. However, the dynamics of single impacts must be understood before the overall effects of nanoparticle radiation can be modelled. In addition to applications, nanoparticle impacts are also important to basic research in the nanoscience field, because the impacts provide an excellent case to test the applicability of atomic-level interaction models to very dynamic conditions. In this thesis, the stopping of nanoparticles in matter is explored using classical molecular dynamics computer simulations. The materials investigated are gold, silicon, and silica. Impacts on silicon through a native oxide layer and formation of complex craters are also simulated. Nanoparticles up to a diameter of 20 nm (315000 atoms) were used as projectiles. The molecular dynamics method and interatomic potentials for silicon and gold are examined in this thesis. It is shown that the displacement cascade expansionmechanism and crater crown formation are very sensitive to the choice of atomic interaction model. However, the best of the current interatomic models can be utilized in nanoparticle impact simulation, if caution is exercised. The stopping of monatomic ions in matter is understood very well nowadays. However, interactions become very complex when several atoms impact on a surface simultaneously and within a short distance, as happens in a nanoparticle impact. A high energy density is deposited in a relatively small volume, which induces ejection of material and formation of a crater. Very high yields of excavated material are observed experimentally. In addition, the yields scale nonlinearly with the cluster size and impact energy at small cluster sizes, whereas in macroscopic hypervelocity impacts, the scaling 2 is linear. The aim of this thesis is to explore the atomistic mechanisms behind the nonlinear scaling at small cluster sizes. It is shown here that the nonlinear scaling of ejected material yield disappears at large impactor sizes because the stopping mechanism of nanoparticles gradually changes to the same mechanism as in macroscopic hypervelocity impacts. The high yields at small impactor size are due to the early escape of energetic atoms from the hot region. In addition, the sputtering yield is shown to depend very much on the spatial initial energy and momentum distributions that the nanoparticle induces in the material in the first phase of the impact. At the later phases, the ejection of material occurs by several mechanisms. The most important mechanism at high energies or at large cluster sizes is atomic cluster ejection from the transient liquid crown that surrounds the crater. The cluster impact dynamics detected in the simulations are in agreement with several recent experimental results. In addition, it is shown that relatively weak impacts can induce modifications on the surface of an amorphous target over a larger area than was previously expected. This is a probable explanation for the formation of the complex crater shapes observed on these surfaces with atomic force microscopy. Clusters that consist of hundreds of thousands of atoms induce long-range modifications in crystalline gold.

Investigations on the melting and bending modulus of polymer grafted bilayers using dissipative particle dynamics

Understanding the influence of polymer grafted bilayers on the physicomechanical properties of lipid membranes is important while developing liposomal based drug delivery systems. The melting characteristics and bending moduli of polymer grafted bilayers are investigated using dissipative particle dynamics simulations as a function of the amount of grafted polymer and lipid tail length. Simulations are carried out using a modified Andersen barostat, whereby the membrane is maintained in a tensionless state. For lipids made up of four to six tail beads, the transition from the low temperature L-beta phase to the L-alpha phase is lowered only above a grafting fraction of G(f)=0.12 for polymers made up of 20 beads. Below G(f)=0.12 small changes are observed only for the HT4 bilayer. The bending modulus of the bilayers is obtained as a function of G(f) from a Fourier analysis of the height fluctuations. Using the theory developed by Marsh Biochim. Biophys. Acta 1615, 33 (2003)] for polymer grafted membranes, the contributions to the bending modulus due to changes arising from the grafted polymer and bilayer thinning are partitioned. The contributions to the changes in kappa from bilayer thinning were found to lie within 11% for the lipids with four to six tail beads, increasing to 15% for the lipids containing nine tail beads. The changes in the area stretch modulus were also assessed and were found to have a small influence on the overall contribution from membrane thinning. The increase in the area per head group of the lipids was found to be consistent with the scalings predicted by self-consistent mean field results. (C) 2010 American Institute of Physics.