Optimal Training Methods for Lexical Tone Perception by Children with Cochlear Implants: Application of Experimental Psychology Techniques. Cochlear implants (CIs) stimulate the auditory nerve via electrodes in the cochlear to provide auditory information to people who would otherwise be functionally deaf. Cochlear site stimulation is at a constant rate so, despite the genius of the CI, it cannot convey pitch information effectively. Such information is essential for perceiving and speaking ton ....Optimal Training Methods for Lexical Tone Perception by Children with Cochlear Implants: Application of Experimental Psychology Techniques. Cochlear implants (CIs) stimulate the auditory nerve via electrodes in the cochlear to provide auditory information to people who would otherwise be functionally deaf. Cochlear site stimulation is at a constant rate so, despite the genius of the CI, it cannot convey pitch information effectively. Such information is essential for perceiving and speaking tone languages, in which word meaning depends on consonants, vowels, and tones (conveyed mainly by pitch). A training method to improve tone perception will be developed with non-tone language non-CI through to tone language CI children drawing on experimental psychology methods, auditory and visual (lip & face) speech information, exaggerated tone cues, and metalinguistic instruction.Read moreRead less
Filters reveal what flicker conceals: temporal processing in the human visual system. I have recently discovered a new form of camouflage using 10Hz luminance flicker. This project will quantify this effect and examine the extent to which it generalises across colour and spatial dimensions and to video sequences depicting natural scenes. This information is expected to provide foundational information to technologies relating to national security that rely on visual concealment. This research wi ....Filters reveal what flicker conceals: temporal processing in the human visual system. I have recently discovered a new form of camouflage using 10Hz luminance flicker. This project will quantify this effect and examine the extent to which it generalises across colour and spatial dimensions and to video sequences depicting natural scenes. This information is expected to provide foundational information to technologies relating to national security that rely on visual concealment. This research will examine the extent to which filtering out these camouflaging frequencies enhances our sensitivity to low temporal frequency information. This decamouflaging aspect of my research is expected to improve the clarity of digital video-based technologies including ultrasound, educational, info-tainment and defence applicationsRead moreRead less
The Perception and Production of Timing in Speaking and Other Actions. The planned research seeks to develop a theoretical account of the mechanism that controls the initiation of spoken utterances and their unfolding in time, both when spoken in isolation and when spoken in rhythmic contexts. It uncovers the relationship between the perception of speech and its production, and also aims to discover whether the mechanism that controls speech timing is a general property of action or is unique t ....The Perception and Production of Timing in Speaking and Other Actions. The planned research seeks to develop a theoretical account of the mechanism that controls the initiation of spoken utterances and their unfolding in time, both when spoken in isolation and when spoken in rhythmic contexts. It uncovers the relationship between the perception of speech and its production, and also aims to discover whether the mechanism that controls speech timing is a general property of action or is unique to speech. This work has implications for our understanding of the on-line mechanisms that control speaking and other kinds of action, and thus our understanding of disorders of these human capabilities.Read moreRead less
Beyond the Beach: What it means to be Australian - A critical analysis of national, transgenerational, multicultural and self perspectives. The question ?What does it mean to be Australian?? raises issues of deep significance about our values, goals, loyalties, behaviours, and international image. Identity conceptions are fundamental to diverse national interest issues (e.g., social cohesion, multiculturalism, defence, promoting industry, social action/reform, immigration) and imagining our futu ....Beyond the Beach: What it means to be Australian - A critical analysis of national, transgenerational, multicultural and self perspectives. The question ?What does it mean to be Australian?? raises issues of deep significance about our values, goals, loyalties, behaviours, and international image. Identity conceptions are fundamental to diverse national interest issues (e.g., social cohesion, multiculturalism, defence, promoting industry, social action/reform, immigration) and imagining our future. This study will characterise: national identity; personal, ethnic, generational, regional and gender commonalities and variations; preferred futures; and moderating influences on identifying as Australian. Outcomes include new knowledge about contemporary national identity, multi-identity constructions, and processes underpinning identity formation; and advances in identity theory/research that will inform social, economic, and educational policy and practice.Read moreRead less
Establishing how head and face movement properties contribute to the perception of speech and identity. The proposed studies provide an extensive research program into audio-visual speech processing and person identification: key components of face-to-face communication. The likely impact and benefits of the project concern its contribution to perceptual theory (linking signal, brain and behaviour) and its practical implications: For determining the viability of multimodal biometric identificati ....Establishing how head and face movement properties contribute to the perception of speech and identity. The proposed studies provide an extensive research program into audio-visual speech processing and person identification: key components of face-to-face communication. The likely impact and benefits of the project concern its contribution to perceptual theory (linking signal, brain and behaviour) and its practical implications: For determining the viability of multimodal biometric identification procedures by assessing the distinctiveness and permanence of AV speech characteristics. In the development of a visual dubbing technique that has potential for communication in noisy environments (and for the deaf) and for the development of a morphable model for AV presentation that has application for both first and second language learning.Read moreRead less
Rape victims on trial: understanding police officers' and jurors' beliefs about sexual assault, victims, and perpetrators. This project will enhance justice in cases of sexual assault. This project will discover the extra-legal factors that influence how victims of sexual assault are viewed by police and jurors, and test two ways to reduce the influence of these misconceptions in the criminal justice system.
Radicalisation, Counter-Radicalisation, and De-Radicalisation: Developing a New Understanding of Terrorism in the Australian Context. Concentrating on the unique drivers of extremism within Victoria (and Australia), the study will enhance counter terrorism stakeholders' understanding of domestic radicalization. This will assist in designing policies appropriate for Australian circumstances that can: 1. pre-empt, prevent and detect radicalisation without jeopardising social cohesion and 2. reduce ....Radicalisation, Counter-Radicalisation, and De-Radicalisation: Developing a New Understanding of Terrorism in the Australian Context. Concentrating on the unique drivers of extremism within Victoria (and Australia), the study will enhance counter terrorism stakeholders' understanding of domestic radicalization. This will assist in designing policies appropriate for Australian circumstances that can: 1. pre-empt, prevent and detect radicalisation without jeopardising social cohesion and 2. reduce Australia's reliance on overseas counter-radicalisation and de-radicalisation models, where practitioners confront different community dynamics. Working towards understanding what causes radicalization in Australia, the project offers to enhance national security and by addressing local circumstances carries the prospect of creating more cost-efficient counter terrorism practices.Read moreRead less
The roles of spectral cues and auditory plasticity in auditory localisation, speech segregation and speech intelligibility. Our recent work shows that high frequency energy in speech is important for the localisation of speech and may also aid in improving speech intelligibility in noisy environments. The work proposed here will systematically explore this somewhat surprising new finding and the results will be incorporated into a predictive model of speech intelligibility under spatial listenin ....The roles of spectral cues and auditory plasticity in auditory localisation, speech segregation and speech intelligibility. Our recent work shows that high frequency energy in speech is important for the localisation of speech and may also aid in improving speech intelligibility in noisy environments. The work proposed here will systematically explore this somewhat surprising new finding and the results will be incorporated into a predictive model of speech intelligibility under spatial listening conditions. This work includes a systematic study of auditory functional plasticity to changes in the spatial cues. Taken together, the outcomes of this work will unlock a range of new approaches to enhancing spatial hearing in multi-channel communication devices and spatial hearing aids.Read moreRead less
Acoustic, spatial and informational cues used to solve the cocktail party problem. Speech is the principal mode of human communication and yet we understand little about how we are able to concentrate on one talker against a noisy background. Significant improvements in supporting listening by the hearing impaired, in teleconferencing systems and computer speech interfaces are dependent on a more advanced understanding of how we solve this cocktail party problem. This research explores the acous ....Acoustic, spatial and informational cues used to solve the cocktail party problem. Speech is the principal mode of human communication and yet we understand little about how we are able to concentrate on one talker against a noisy background. Significant improvements in supporting listening by the hearing impaired, in teleconferencing systems and computer speech interfaces are dependent on a more advanced understanding of how we solve this cocktail party problem. This research explores the acoustic, spatial and informational cues used by the healthy auditory system to achieve this remarkable feat of signal processing. There is significant potential for commercialization of the IP that will arise from this research.Read moreRead less
Identification and Examination of Visual Cues for Aircraft Glideslope Control. While aviation safety has improved dramatically over the last 50 years, accidents are still more common during landing than any other stage of flight. This project aims to improve our understanding of the way pilots use visual information to land an aircraft. Once our findings have been incorporated into existing training programs, this much-needed information should result in: (i) reduced pilot training time and cost ....Identification and Examination of Visual Cues for Aircraft Glideslope Control. While aviation safety has improved dramatically over the last 50 years, accidents are still more common during landing than any other stage of flight. This project aims to improve our understanding of the way pilots use visual information to land an aircraft. Once our findings have been incorporated into existing training programs, this much-needed information should result in: (i) reduced pilot training time and cost; (ii) increased trainee pilot safety and confidence; and (iii) reduced aircraft maintenance costs. A PhD student, who will be trained in visual perception and aviation, should contribute significantly to future aviation research in this country.Read moreRead less