The Kids in Communities Study: national investigation of community level effects on children's developmental outcomes. This project (a cross-disciplinary collaboration) will investigate community level factors influencing early childhood developmental outcomes using a mixed methods approach in up to 10 communities across Australia. This will result in a potential set of measures or indicators that reflect communities that are good for children.
Integrated Kids Hubs - Ensuring Equity of Access for Children. The Integrated Kids Hubs - Ensuring Equity of Access for Children project aims to determine if integrated Hubs are effective in increasing access to child and family services for disadvantaged urban and regional families with children aged 3 years and under, thus improving early identification of developmental vulnerability, parental wellbeing and capacity, and addressing unmet psychosocial needs. If these issues are not identified a ....Integrated Kids Hubs - Ensuring Equity of Access for Children. The Integrated Kids Hubs - Ensuring Equity of Access for Children project aims to determine if integrated Hubs are effective in increasing access to child and family services for disadvantaged urban and regional families with children aged 3 years and under, thus improving early identification of developmental vulnerability, parental wellbeing and capacity, and addressing unmet psychosocial needs. If these issues are not identified and addressed early, these children will go on to struggle in school and life. We will use a pragmatic trial design (meaning the research is embedded in our usual practice), determine the social return on investment, and establish what is needed to scale up the Hubs across NSW and Australia.Read moreRead less
Control and learning for enhancing capabilities of quantum sensors. This project aims to develop new theories and algorithms to enhance capabilities in engineering quantum sensors from the perspective of systems and control. The project is significant because it is anticipated to advance key knowledge and provide systematic methods to enable achievement of high-precision sensing for wide applications, e.g., early disease detection, medical research, discovery of ore deposits and groundwater moni ....Control and learning for enhancing capabilities of quantum sensors. This project aims to develop new theories and algorithms to enhance capabilities in engineering quantum sensors from the perspective of systems and control. The project is significant because it is anticipated to advance key knowledge and provide systematic methods to enable achievement of high-precision sensing for wide applications, e.g., early disease detection, medical research, discovery of ore deposits and groundwater monitoring. The intended outcomes are fundamental theories, effective control and learning algorithms for achieving highly-sensitive sensors. These outcomes should make important contributions to and deliver new knowledge and skills for Australia's sensing industries, which could benefit Australia's economic growth.Read moreRead less
New quantum and robust control theory with applications to quantum optics. The application of quantum mechanics to the creation of quantum technology promises to be one of the most exciting technological developments of this century. Possible applications of quantum technologies include vastly improved sensors to search for minerals or gravity waves, secure quantum cryptography, and quantum computing. Quantum feedback control is a key tool in quantum technology. This project will lay the fou ....New quantum and robust control theory with applications to quantum optics. The application of quantum mechanics to the creation of quantum technology promises to be one of the most exciting technological developments of this century. Possible applications of quantum technologies include vastly improved sensors to search for minerals or gravity waves, secure quantum cryptography, and quantum computing. Quantum feedback control is a key tool in quantum technology. This project will lay the foundations of systematic theories of robust, coherent and nonlinear quantum feedback control and lead to advances in the control of highly resonant systems which underlie experimental quantum and nano technology. This will enable Australia to reap great benefits as this new technological area emerges.Read moreRead less
Creating pathways to child wellbeing in disadvantaged communities. This project aims to test, in nine disadvantaged communities, a model for action that blends new human and digital resources to support respectful, data-driven collaborations between schools, families and community agencies.
The project expects to generate new knowledge in the area of translational prevention science about how to influence risk and protective factors for child wellbeing in a cost-efficient manner and at a scale ....Creating pathways to child wellbeing in disadvantaged communities. This project aims to test, in nine disadvantaged communities, a model for action that blends new human and digital resources to support respectful, data-driven collaborations between schools, families and community agencies.
The project expects to generate new knowledge in the area of translational prevention science about how to influence risk and protective factors for child wellbeing in a cost-efficient manner and at a scale within existing service systems. Project benefits should include a methodology for achieving lasting improvements in child wellbeing, behaviour and school success.
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Paving the way for effective public health interventions for bulimic eating disorders: Understanding stigma and mental health literacy. This research contributes to promoting and maintaining good health. The burden of bulimic eating disorders in the community is high, frequently ignored and increasing. Our research will pave the way for improved understanding of eating disorders and a reduction of stigma in relation to these problems. In so doing, it will lead to reduced shame and suffering for ....Paving the way for effective public health interventions for bulimic eating disorders: Understanding stigma and mental health literacy. This research contributes to promoting and maintaining good health. The burden of bulimic eating disorders in the community is high, frequently ignored and increasing. Our research will pave the way for improved understanding of eating disorders and a reduction of stigma in relation to these problems. In so doing, it will lead to reduced shame and suffering for people with eating disorders and enhance appropriate treatment seeking and the quality of advice received from family, friends and health professionals. A public health intervention based on our findings will contribute to a more tolerant and understanding community.Read moreRead less
Leadership, social identity and the dynamics of influence in intergroup relations: A new understanding of social continuity and social change. Understanding how social change occurs (or continuity prevails) and the role of leadership in this process is paramount to any social system (e.g. nation, state, organization, team). This project provides a new social psychological understanding of leadership and social change dynamics, including when more radical leaders and social relations emerge, as w ....Leadership, social identity and the dynamics of influence in intergroup relations: A new understanding of social continuity and social change. Understanding how social change occurs (or continuity prevails) and the role of leadership in this process is paramount to any social system (e.g. nation, state, organization, team). This project provides a new social psychological understanding of leadership and social change dynamics, including when more radical leaders and social relations emerge, as well as how different groups become more united around a common cause. Given ethnic, religious, social and political diversity of Australian society, these questions are fundamental to strengthening Australia's social fabric. This research also has cross-disciplinary applications, builds international collaborations, and supports emerging Australian research talent.Read moreRead less
Control of network systems with signed dynamical interconnections. New technologies such as online recommendations, smart grids, and cyber-physical systems are becoming backbone infrastructure. Such systems are operated as network systems with interconnected functioning units (agents) where cooperative and adversarial agent relations often coexist. This project aims to develop the theories and tools for designing and building dynamic networks with signed interactions that arise from a variety of ....Control of network systems with signed dynamical interconnections. New technologies such as online recommendations, smart grids, and cyber-physical systems are becoming backbone infrastructure. Such systems are operated as network systems with interconnected functioning units (agents) where cooperative and adversarial agent relations often coexist. This project aims to develop the theories and tools for designing and building dynamic networks with signed interactions that arise from a variety of applications where both cooperative and adversarial agent interactions coexist. By developing theories and algorithms for control and identification over such systems, this project will contribute directly to their safe and robust operation. The resulting theories will provide deeper understanding of network control systems and the resulting algorithms will enable the elimination of attackers and malicious users for online review systems and smart grids. This project will contribute to increased cybersecurity for all Australians.Read moreRead less
Generalised Energy Based Robust and Nonlinear Control Systems. This project aims to develop new energy-based theories of robust stability analysis and controller design for both linear and nonlinear systems, building on passivity and negative imaginary system theories and their physical interpretations along with stochastic optimal control theory. These control theories would allow for a wide range of plant dynamics in the design of high-performance robust control systems, enabling advances in e ....Generalised Energy Based Robust and Nonlinear Control Systems. This project aims to develop new energy-based theories of robust stability analysis and controller design for both linear and nonlinear systems, building on passivity and negative imaginary system theories and their physical interpretations along with stochastic optimal control theory. These control theories would allow for a wide range of plant dynamics in the design of high-performance robust control systems, enabling advances in emerging technologies including nanopositioning, micro-electromechanical systems and opto-mechatronics. The project plans to combine these theoretical advances with numerical methods involving advanced optimisation tools and the experimental implementation of nanopositioning control systems in atomic force microscopy.Read moreRead less