Uncovering the processes underlying human category learning. There is a pervasive belief that complex tasks can somehow be learned via a 'smart' implicit or procedural learning mechanism, which operates independently of memory and attention. This idea has important implications for our understanding of cognition. If true, there seems little point in providing explicit instruction in such tasks, and efforts to do so are, at best, wasted time and, at worst, detrimental to the learning process. Th ....Uncovering the processes underlying human category learning. There is a pervasive belief that complex tasks can somehow be learned via a 'smart' implicit or procedural learning mechanism, which operates independently of memory and attention. This idea has important implications for our understanding of cognition. If true, there seems little point in providing explicit instruction in such tasks, and efforts to do so are, at best, wasted time and, at worst, detrimental to the learning process. This project will provide much-needed scrutiny of this idea and will help not only to re-orient our understanding of how we deal with complex information, but will also highlight issues about data interpretation that are fundamental for the research and wider communities.Read moreRead less
Are two processes one too many? An investigation of the viability of the dual-process model of recognition memory. Memory is the glue that holds together our lives and personal identities. While psychologists are developing better and more sophisticated accounts of how it works, many deep questions remain. The present research examines some of these questions in relation to how memory can be decomposed into its component processes and how we are to understand these processes. An appropriate unde ....Are two processes one too many? An investigation of the viability of the dual-process model of recognition memory. Memory is the glue that holds together our lives and personal identities. While psychologists are developing better and more sophisticated accounts of how it works, many deep questions remain. The present research examines some of these questions in relation to how memory can be decomposed into its component processes and how we are to understand these processes. An appropriate understanding of these questions is vital to the development of interventions (both psychological and pharmacological) designed to halt or even reverse memory decline associated with normal aging and age-associated brain disease (such as Alzheimer disease).Read moreRead less
Investigation of the component distributions of pause duration in spontaneous speech: Constraints for models of language production. We have discovered that the distribution of pause durations in spontaneous speech of individual speakers can be decomposed into at least two log-normal distributions. Our project will investigate this finding and provide a foundation for new research relevant to language production models. This will be achieved by determining the semantic, lexical, psycholinguistic ....Investigation of the component distributions of pause duration in spontaneous speech: Constraints for models of language production. We have discovered that the distribution of pause durations in spontaneous speech of individual speakers can be decomposed into at least two log-normal distributions. Our project will investigate this finding and provide a foundation for new research relevant to language production models. This will be achieved by determining the semantic, lexical, psycholinguistic, physiological, and acoustic concomitants of each component distribution and by investigating the impact of selected variables on the shape and location of each. The project has important implications for models of language production and applied problems involving automatic speech recognition, forensic speaker identification, and human communication disorders.Read moreRead less
Single and dual process models of recognition memory: Reconciliation of behavioural, electrophysiological, and neuroimaging data. Advanced brain scanning technologies are increasingly used to study human memory. As well as being important for our basic understanding of memory, they also tell us how memory is affected by normal development, ageing, disease, and injury. Unfortunately, because these technologies are so new, a gap has opened up between our psychological understanding of memory and t ....Single and dual process models of recognition memory: Reconciliation of behavioural, electrophysiological, and neuroimaging data. Advanced brain scanning technologies are increasingly used to study human memory. As well as being important for our basic understanding of memory, they also tell us how memory is affected by normal development, ageing, disease, and injury. Unfortunately, because these technologies are so new, a gap has opened up between our psychological understanding of memory and the physiological events measured by the scanning technologies. This has created a problem for how we should interpret the results that are found. The present project aims to close this gap by applying new research methodologies and theoretical insights based on our previous research.Read moreRead less
Novel Methods For Promoting Organ Development And Growth
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$390,203.00
Summary
A revolutionary new therapy for treatment of growth restricted fetuses and premature babies is being developed through the administration of Colony Stimulating Factor (CSF-1). We have evidence that CSF-1 therapy can promote kidneys and lungs to continue development and maturation after birth. This exciting new finding allows for the application of CSF-1 therapy for both the treatment of premature babies and unborn babies with kidney defects.
Australian cultural and creative activity: A population and hotspot analysis. This project aims to grasp the contemporary dynamics of cultural and creative activity in Australia. It represents a major innovation, bringing together population-level and comparative studies of local cultural and creative activity. The comprehensive project will advance the integration of quantitative and qualitative research strategies, painting a complete national picture, while also exploring the factors that are ....Australian cultural and creative activity: A population and hotspot analysis. This project aims to grasp the contemporary dynamics of cultural and creative activity in Australia. It represents a major innovation, bringing together population-level and comparative studies of local cultural and creative activity. The comprehensive project will advance the integration of quantitative and qualitative research strategies, painting a complete national picture, while also exploring the factors that are producing local and regional creative hotspots. The project will deliver outputs such as reports and forums that are framed in close collaboration with partners in order to deliver outcomes such as better-targeted policy and program initiatives. This will provide national cultural and policy benefits from placing the creative sector in front of policy makers as a vital contributor to high growth, labour-intensive economic activity in the context of the Australian economy in transition.Read moreRead less
Engaging Students during the Early Years of Secondary School. This project aims to design, test and share sustainable strategies to support teachers and enable students from low socioeconomic communities to achieve success. The greatest decreases in students’ interest and effort occur when they transition into secondary school, with students from low socioeconomic communities at greatest risk of disengagement. What can teachers do to engage their students during this key life transition? This pr ....Engaging Students during the Early Years of Secondary School. This project aims to design, test and share sustainable strategies to support teachers and enable students from low socioeconomic communities to achieve success. The greatest decreases in students’ interest and effort occur when they transition into secondary school, with students from low socioeconomic communities at greatest risk of disengagement. What can teachers do to engage their students during this key life transition? This project plans to identify teacher behaviours that motivate students in their first year at secondary school. Using an experimental design with a representative sample of 150 teachers and 1500 students in low socioeconomic areas across three states, the project plans to test whether an online professional learning program for teachers can improve student engagement and achievement. This cost-effective and scalable intervention is designed for widespread dissemination to Australian teachers.Read moreRead less
Understanding The Causes Of Childhood Congenital Anomalies Of The Kidney And Urinary Tract
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$609,748.00
Summary
Congenital anomalies of the kidney and urinary tract (CAKUT) is a common cause of renal failure in children. The majority of patients with CAKUT do not know the underlying cause of their renal anomalies. In this proposal we will characterise the developmental events that are perturbed in three mouse models of CAKUT and identify the causal gene responsible in each mouse model. We will translate this information to the clinic by screening patients with CAKUT for mutations in these newly identified ....Congenital anomalies of the kidney and urinary tract (CAKUT) is a common cause of renal failure in children. The majority of patients with CAKUT do not know the underlying cause of their renal anomalies. In this proposal we will characterise the developmental events that are perturbed in three mouse models of CAKUT and identify the causal gene responsible in each mouse model. We will translate this information to the clinic by screening patients with CAKUT for mutations in these newly identified genes.Read moreRead less
Effective clinical handover communication: improving patient safety, experiences and outcomes. Communication in clinical handover (transfer of responsibility for patient care) plays a causal role in many adverse events. This project will contribute new knowledge for improvements in handover communication which will be shared across hospitals and health departments nationally to improve patient safety and reduce healthcare costs.
Special Research Initiatives - Grant ID: SR0354622
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$20,000.00
Summary
Genes and Environment in Development. Interactions between the early environment and the genetic regulatory program of the early embryo have major consequences for the development of individuals. The aim of this Network is to harness the resources of leading researchers from the previously distinct disciplines of developmental biology and developmental physiology to better understand developmental regulatory networks and how environmental factors impinge on them. The formation of such a Network ....Genes and Environment in Development. Interactions between the early environment and the genetic regulatory program of the early embryo have major consequences for the development of individuals. The aim of this Network is to harness the resources of leading researchers from the previously distinct disciplines of developmental biology and developmental physiology to better understand developmental regulatory networks and how environmental factors impinge on them. The formation of such a Network is unique, timely and strategic in that it will generate new insights into the mechanisms by which events in early life determine the risk of adverse outcomes in perinatal and adult life.Read moreRead less