Life or death decisions: making fast, accurate choices in a complex world. This project aims to understand how hoverflies and honey bees, with tiny brains and sensory systems, excel at making fast and accurate decisions while on the fly in a complex world. The project will combine brain recordings with flight analyses and computational modelling to generate new knowledge on how animals may utilize movements to simplify information sampling. Expected outcomes are a novel, comprehensive understand ....Life or death decisions: making fast, accurate choices in a complex world. This project aims to understand how hoverflies and honey bees, with tiny brains and sensory systems, excel at making fast and accurate decisions while on the fly in a complex world. The project will combine brain recordings with flight analyses and computational modelling to generate new knowledge on how animals may utilize movements to simplify information sampling. Expected outcomes are a novel, comprehensive understanding of how animal movements could enhance decision speed and accuracy. This should provide substantial benefits for neuroscience, and for enhancing performance of autonomous robotic systems operating in challenging environments, such as disaster relief, mining and remote exploration. Read moreRead less
Size matters, but at what cost? Role of male sex hormones in the placenta. This project aims to understand molecular pathways regulated by male sex hormones in the placenta that may contribute to sex-specific fetal growth and survival outcomes in response to reduced oxygen and/or glucose. Through this project, we expect to generate new knowledge of the mechanisms that drive sex-specific placental molecular function using interdisciplinary approaches. The application of this advanced understandin ....Size matters, but at what cost? Role of male sex hormones in the placenta. This project aims to understand molecular pathways regulated by male sex hormones in the placenta that may contribute to sex-specific fetal growth and survival outcomes in response to reduced oxygen and/or glucose. Through this project, we expect to generate new knowledge of the mechanisms that drive sex-specific placental molecular function using interdisciplinary approaches. The application of this advanced understanding of the sex-specific regulation of placental molecular function and fetal growth may be targeted in future studies to improve fetal growth outcomes in placental mammals such as livestock, domestic pets, and humans.Read moreRead less
Opening and closing doors in the fetal circulation impacts brain metabolism. This project aims to measure blood flow from the umbilical cord through special shunts or doors to the fetal brain and to understand how changes in delivery of oxygen may impact fetal brain metabolism. This fundamental phenomenon will be measured with novel MRI protocols developed by a multidisciplinary, international team. Expected outcomes of this project include world-leading advances in measuring fetal blood flow ....Opening and closing doors in the fetal circulation impacts brain metabolism. This project aims to measure blood flow from the umbilical cord through special shunts or doors to the fetal brain and to understand how changes in delivery of oxygen may impact fetal brain metabolism. This fundamental phenomenon will be measured with novel MRI protocols developed by a multidisciplinary, international team. Expected outcomes of this project include world-leading advances in measuring fetal blood flow and brain metabolism with exchange of expertise between leading researchers in Australia and Canada and their trainees. In the long-term, this should provide significant benefits in enhancing Australia’s research capacity in fetal physiology and may lead to new tools for monitoring or supporting fetal development.Read moreRead less