The world through the prism of language: a cross-linguistic view of genders, noun classes, and classifiers. Australia is one of the most multilingual and multicultural countries in the world, with several hundred indigenous and immigrant languages. Noun classification devices - ranging from gender systems in familiar Indo-European languages to numeral classifiers in Southeast Asian languages - offer a unique insight into people's categorisation of the world around them. In-depth knowledge of how ....The world through the prism of language: a cross-linguistic view of genders, noun classes, and classifiers. Australia is one of the most multilingual and multicultural countries in the world, with several hundred indigenous and immigrant languages. Noun classification devices - ranging from gender systems in familiar Indo-European languages to numeral classifiers in Southeast Asian languages - offer a unique insight into people's categorisation of the world around them. In-depth knowledge of how speakers of different languages classify objects around them will promote intercultural understanding within Australia and world-wide, allowing us to overcome potential miscommunications due to different language backgrounds, and advancing our understanding of the region and the world (within the National Priority 'Safeguarding Australia'). Read moreRead less
Immigration, technology and literacy: key challenges for language policy in a changing Japan. Australia needs a sophisticated understanding of social and cultural dynamics in a regional partner with whom we have substantial economic, political and cultural relations. This project will problematise current language policy in Japan to take account of important recent areas of social transformation and associated key cultural beliefs about language. It will produce a body of significant individual ....Immigration, technology and literacy: key challenges for language policy in a changing Japan. Australia needs a sophisticated understanding of social and cultural dynamics in a regional partner with whom we have substantial economic, political and cultural relations. This project will problematise current language policy in Japan to take account of important recent areas of social transformation and associated key cultural beliefs about language. It will produce a body of significant individual research and policy recommendations; will bring together high profile international researchers and Japanese policy makers and educators in two collaborative exercises which will strengthen links between the two countries at both academic and government levels; and will launch the research career of a postgraduate student. Read moreRead less
The measurement of primary traits in second language oral proficiency in second language acquisition research. The proposed research will help to inform high-quality learning outcomes for international ESL (English as a Second Language) students and students who study Japanese or Spanish as a second language in Australian universities. Improved effectiveness in current second language teaching pedagogy will result from a deeper understanding of the role that the key language traits (syntactic co ....The measurement of primary traits in second language oral proficiency in second language acquisition research. The proposed research will help to inform high-quality learning outcomes for international ESL (English as a Second Language) students and students who study Japanese or Spanish as a second language in Australian universities. Improved effectiveness in current second language teaching pedagogy will result from a deeper understanding of the role that the key language traits (syntactic complexity, lexical range, accuracy and fluency) play in the attainment of advanced proficiency. Read moreRead less
The Ancient Today: Living Traditions of Classical Language Education. This project aims to compare, for the first time, ancient language education across world cultures with ‘classical’ literatures. It expects to illumine the purpose and value of classical language education in Chinese, Greek, Latin, and Sanskrit historically and within global education systems today by comparing pedagogic ideals and practices across times and cultures. It aims to test the potential of inclusive classical langua ....The Ancient Today: Living Traditions of Classical Language Education. This project aims to compare, for the first time, ancient language education across world cultures with ‘classical’ literatures. It expects to illumine the purpose and value of classical language education in Chinese, Greek, Latin, and Sanskrit historically and within global education systems today by comparing pedagogic ideals and practices across times and cultures. It aims to test the potential of inclusive classical language learning to boost educational outcomes for disadvantaged students. Other expected outcomes include two books, scholarly articles, education policy reports, and PhD student training. This should strengthen intercultural understanding and benefit school students, educators, policy makers and the wider public.Read moreRead less
Understanding and Combatting 'Dark Political Communication'. This project examines an emergent series of tactics used by political actors (i.e. politicians, lobbyists, political groups, etc.) that we are calling 'Dark Political Communication' (DPC). DPC differs markedly from existing, well-established modes of political communication, as it often involves the deliberate spread of disinformation, use of highly inflammatory language, antagonism towards the press and democratic institutions, as wel ....Understanding and Combatting 'Dark Political Communication'. This project examines an emergent series of tactics used by political actors (i.e. politicians, lobbyists, political groups, etc.) that we are calling 'Dark Political Communication' (DPC). DPC differs markedly from existing, well-established modes of political communication, as it often involves the deliberate spread of disinformation, use of highly inflammatory language, antagonism towards the press and democratic institutions, as well as actions that seek to exacerbate social discord. In this project, we will provide the first-ever complete account of DPC tactics, and provide a series of recommendations to journalists about how their practice can best evolve to address this novel communication paradigm. Read moreRead less
Textual traditions, identity and cultural production in contemporary Bali. This project investigates contemporary interest in Bali's unique textual heritage as a marker of ethnic, religious and cultural identity and highlights the political and social consequences of new technologies in this process. It will provide new understandings of regional concerns with identity and cultural difference in Indonesia.
Do-it-yourself popular music archives: an international comparative study of volunteer-run institutions that preserve popular music's material culture. Enthusiasts play a crucial role in the way that popular music and its culture is remembered. This project looks at instances of community-based, volunteer-run archives which are working to assemble material related to popular music and explores the contributions of these 'DIY institutions' to the preservation of these artefacts for the future.
The emotional register of liberal culture in the long nineteenth century. This project aims to advance our understanding of liberal culture, a concept central to the humanities and to modern social and political discourse. It will address the problem of liberalism's perceived rationalism by investigating the role of emotion as a core characteristic of liberal culture during its formation and subsequent development over the course of the long nineteenth century. The project will focus on periodic ....The emotional register of liberal culture in the long nineteenth century. This project aims to advance our understanding of liberal culture, a concept central to the humanities and to modern social and political discourse. It will address the problem of liberalism's perceived rationalism by investigating the role of emotion as a core characteristic of liberal culture during its formation and subsequent development over the course of the long nineteenth century. The project will focus on periodicals as a vital medium for the cultivation and dissemination of progressive liberal ideas and values, as well as for the expression and discussion of the emotions. The project will benefit scholars in political, literary, and cultural studies and contribute to current debates in Australia about liberal culture and its sustainability.Read moreRead less
Using machine vision to explore Instagram’s everyday promotional cultures. The advertising-driven business models of social media platforms increasingly depend on automation. The technologies used by platforms are rapidly advancing, and include ‘machine vision’ systems that automatically classify faces, expressions, objects, and brand logos in images. The results are used to provide targeted content to users, often without their knowledge and without sufficient public oversight. Using a novel co ....Using machine vision to explore Instagram’s everyday promotional cultures. The advertising-driven business models of social media platforms increasingly depend on automation. The technologies used by platforms are rapidly advancing, and include ‘machine vision’ systems that automatically classify faces, expressions, objects, and brand logos in images. The results are used to provide targeted content to users, often without their knowledge and without sufficient public oversight. Using a novel combination of computational and cultural research methods, this project aims to: examine how machine vision works in platforms like Instagram; explore its role in everyday visual contexts through qualitative case studies of festivals, food, and lifestyle sports; and improve public understanding of machine vision systems.Read moreRead less
Politics, media and democracy in Australia: public and producer perceptions of the political public sphere. At a time of widespread criticism of the role of the media in informing and enabling Australian democratic processes, this study explores the perceptions of ordinary Australians about the performance of the variety of media forms in which politics is reported, analysed and discussed.