Genetic Basis of Variable Expression of Glycan Xeno-Autoantigens by Cattle. Meat and dairy products from cattle contain sugar structures (glycans) that are not made by humans. These structures can be recognised by the immune system and lead to allergic reactions, inflammation and potentially cancer. These non-human structures are called xeno-autoantigens or XAs. We have discovered individual cattle that do not produce one of these XAs. We will study the gene required to make XA in the XA-free ca ....Genetic Basis of Variable Expression of Glycan Xeno-Autoantigens by Cattle. Meat and dairy products from cattle contain sugar structures (glycans) that are not made by humans. These structures can be recognised by the immune system and lead to allergic reactions, inflammation and potentially cancer. These non-human structures are called xeno-autoantigens or XAs. We have discovered individual cattle that do not produce one of these XAs. We will study the gene required to make XA in the XA-free cattle to find the underlying mutation. The same approach will be used to look for natural XA-free individuals in other food species. This knowledge may enable us to create a test to facilitate the natural breeding of non-GMO, XA-free livestock to benefit Australian primary producers and provide safer food for consumers.Read moreRead less
Maximizing male fertility: the role of CRISP proteins. This project aims to investigate the function of cysteine rich secretory protein (CRISP) family members in fertility. It is expected to generate new knowledge on the role CRISP1 and 4 play in sperm competition in vivo, and thus, evolutionary processes; to define the role seminal plasma CRISPs play in fertility; and identify the mechanism underpinning their biological activities. This will be achieved using a range of innovative, state-of-the ....Maximizing male fertility: the role of CRISP proteins. This project aims to investigate the function of cysteine rich secretory protein (CRISP) family members in fertility. It is expected to generate new knowledge on the role CRISP1 and 4 play in sperm competition in vivo, and thus, evolutionary processes; to define the role seminal plasma CRISPs play in fertility; and identify the mechanism underpinning their biological activities. This will be achieved using a range of innovative, state-of-the-art approaches. Expected outcomes and benefits include an enhanced knowledge of the mechanisms underpinning fertility and infertility, enhanced collaboration and research knowhow, and an evidence base for future applied projects aimed enhancing fertility in agricultural species.Read moreRead less
Combining Time Bands and Teleo-Reactive Programs for Advanced Dependable Real-Time Systems. Society is becoming increasingly reliant on sophisticated real-time computer systems in applications ranging from car stability control to critical infrastructure, such as railway signalling systems. Further, there is a demand for ever greater automation and sophistication in the software controlling these systems. The research challenge in this project is to provide robust implementations of these system ....Combining Time Bands and Teleo-Reactive Programs for Advanced Dependable Real-Time Systems. Society is becoming increasingly reliant on sophisticated real-time computer systems in applications ranging from car stability control to critical infrastructure, such as railway signalling systems. Further, there is a demand for ever greater automation and sophistication in the software controlling these systems. The research challenge in this project is to provide robust implementations of these systems in a way that allows one assess their dependability.
Australia industry is actively working in these areas through companies like Ansaldo Australia, in automated railway systems, and Boeing Australia, in the defence sector.Read moreRead less
Transaction Oriented Computational Models for Multi Agent Systems. Agent systems are a very promising technology for constructing complex, large-scale software. Australian researchers have made key
contributions in this area, particularly with reference to one mature and commonly adopted agent architecture known as BDI (Belief, Desire, Intention). To make this technology suitable for use in advanced applications, it has to be provided with robust and predictable behaviour. This project wil ....Transaction Oriented Computational Models for Multi Agent Systems. Agent systems are a very promising technology for constructing complex, large-scale software. Australian researchers have made key
contributions in this area, particularly with reference to one mature and commonly adopted agent architecture known as BDI (Belief, Desire, Intention). To make this technology suitable for use in advanced applications, it has to be provided with robust and predictable behaviour. This project will address that need by designing and implementing a novel agent language for BDI, based on contributions using transactional concepts for agents developed at The University of Melbourne. This will contribute to the development of robust and predictable agent software, that can be used in complex and large scale applications of the future.
Read moreRead less
Derivation and timing analysis of concurrent real-time software. Safety-critical computer systems are commonly controlled by concurrent real-time software. Assurance of such systems requires rigorous methods for deriving the software and verifying its logical and timing correctness. This project will directly address this problem via a new paradigm for real-time programming that is based on a machine-independent concurrent real-time programming language, that explicitly represents timing deadlin ....Derivation and timing analysis of concurrent real-time software. Safety-critical computer systems are commonly controlled by concurrent real-time software. Assurance of such systems requires rigorous methods for deriving the software and verifying its logical and timing correctness. This project will directly address this problem via a new paradigm for real-time programming that is based on a machine-independent concurrent real-time programming language, that explicitly represents timing deadlines within programs. This allows a partitioning of the development process into a machine-independent phase that derives a program to meet a high-level specification, and a machine-dependent phase that checks that the timing deadlines within the generated machine code are guaranteed to be met.Read moreRead less
A formal foundation for security architecture. Security of computer systems is essential for the maintenance of privacy, confidentiality and integrity of personal, commercial and government data, and the trustworthiness of the computational devices that are embedded in critical societal infrastructure. However, current theoretical understanding of secure systems development is poor. The project will develop our understanding of an emerging approach to the design of secure systems and develop ver ....A formal foundation for security architecture. Security of computer systems is essential for the maintenance of privacy, confidentiality and integrity of personal, commercial and government data, and the trustworthiness of the computational devices that are embedded in critical societal infrastructure. However, current theoretical understanding of secure systems development is poor. The project will develop our understanding of an emerging approach to the design of secure systems and develop verification methods that may be applied to guarantee systems security. Its outcomes will contribute to processes for certifying systems at very high levels of security, a requirement in defence and government settings that will become increasingly significant in the commercial sector.Read moreRead less
Compilation of Specifications. Computer software now controls critical systems worldwide. International standards require such programs to be produced from mathematically-precise specifications, but the techniques and tools involved are highly complex and unfamiliar to most programmers. This project will show how a tool already used by software developers, the program compiler, can be extended to undertake much of the task automatically. This will be done by devising a compilation strategy, b ....Compilation of Specifications. Computer software now controls critical systems worldwide. International standards require such programs to be produced from mathematically-precise specifications, but the techniques and tools involved are highly complex and unfamiliar to most programmers. This project will show how a tool already used by software developers, the program compiler, can be extended to undertake much of the task automatically. This will be done by devising a compilation strategy, based on program refinement theory, that automatically translates specification statements in programs into executable code. Such an outcome will ultimately improve the speed, accuracy and cost-effectiveness of critical software development.Read moreRead less
A Formal Approach to Resource Allocation in Service Oriented Marketplaces. There was a strong opinion at the 2004 World Economic Forum that interorganisational computing was a major factor in productivity improvements underpinning continuing economic growth in the developed world, and will continue to be so for the foreseeable future. The results of the proposed research are directed to advanced systems of this type, and will add momentum to Australia's Information Technology research community. ....A Formal Approach to Resource Allocation in Service Oriented Marketplaces. There was a strong opinion at the 2004 World Economic Forum that interorganisational computing was a major factor in productivity improvements underpinning continuing economic growth in the developed world, and will continue to be so for the foreseeable future. The results of the proposed research are directed to advanced systems of this type, and will add momentum to Australia's Information Technology research community. Increased international recognition will positively impact on future interactions with the service composition research groups in Europe and the USA.Read moreRead less
The architecture of networks: Characterisation and visualisation of complex systems as fluctuating networks. Complex systems comprise many mutually interacting components, characterised by a range of different interactions over time and space. They are dynamical systems, whose features are reminiscent of a web, with fluctuating links of varying strengths. The natural paradigm for such systems is a generic network, or a graph. A suite of novel measures from statistical physics, graph theory, top ....The architecture of networks: Characterisation and visualisation of complex systems as fluctuating networks. Complex systems comprise many mutually interacting components, characterised by a range of different interactions over time and space. They are dynamical systems, whose features are reminiscent of a web, with fluctuating links of varying strengths. The natural paradigm for such systems is a generic network, or a graph. A suite of novel measures from statistical physics, graph theory, topology, geometry, and computer graphics will be developed to characterise system/graph growth and stability. The aim is two-fold: first to reduce real complex systems (mainly financial systems) to computationally manageable structures (including direct visualisation) and second to construct realistic models of the evolution of such systems.Read moreRead less
Implementing Feferman-Landin Logic. The objective of this project is to utilise computer based verification tools (such as PVS and Rewritting Logic) to develop a software engineering environment for specifying and verifying systems written in high-level programming languages such as Java, Scheme, and ML. The project will thus subtantially advance the use of formal computer based tools to develop reliable programs and specifications for life-critical systems. The project will also develop form ....Implementing Feferman-Landin Logic. The objective of this project is to utilise computer based verification tools (such as PVS and Rewritting Logic) to develop a software engineering environment for specifying and verifying systems written in high-level programming languages such as Java, Scheme, and ML. The project will thus subtantially advance the use of formal computer based tools to develop reliable programs and specifications for life-critical systems. The project will also develop formally
based interoperability between the PVS and Maude systems, two widely
used computer tools for reasoning about complex systems.Read moreRead less