Internet traffic-matrix synthesis. This project will enhance research and development in Internet engineering by providing basic inputs to test and validate new ideas. The result will be a more efficient, reliable, and robust Internet.
The paradox of choice: Unravelling complex superannuation decisions. Australia has been a world-leader in retirement savings policy, but there remains a pervasive lack of understanding about how best to communicate complex financial information to decision-makers, along with a push by government for clearer disclosure and greater financial literacy. This project will inform regulators and the superannuation industry on how choices are made and how to present clearer, better-designed information ....The paradox of choice: Unravelling complex superannuation decisions. Australia has been a world-leader in retirement savings policy, but there remains a pervasive lack of understanding about how best to communicate complex financial information to decision-makers, along with a push by government for clearer disclosure and greater financial literacy. This project will inform regulators and the superannuation industry on how choices are made and how to present clearer, better-designed information to be understood by ordinary participants, thus encouraging active, well-informed participation rather than passive 'default' decisions. More efficient investment and benefit choices will improve the economic welfare of retirees, reduce the burden on the working-age population and improve fiscal sustainability.Read moreRead less
A new perturbation method for solving singular operator equations with applications to complex systems. This project will develop new methods for analysis of web-based search routines such as Google PageRank, a new algorithm for optimal estimation of random signals, more accurate error analysis in the approximate solution of singular systems of equations and enhanced understanding of models for the simulated management of urban stormwater. The project will involve collaboration between two Aus ....A new perturbation method for solving singular operator equations with applications to complex systems. This project will develop new methods for analysis of web-based search routines such as Google PageRank, a new algorithm for optimal estimation of random signals, more accurate error analysis in the approximate solution of singular systems of equations and enhanced understanding of models for the simulated management of urban stormwater. The project will involve collaboration between two Australian universities and a leading European Research Institute. It will provide employment and vital training for two postdoctoral Research fellows and research projects for three postgraduate students and two honours students.Read moreRead less
Understanding middle-aged women’s responses to alcohol/breast cancer risks. This project aims to identify the nature of alcohol consumption patterns by Australian women aged 45-64 in different socio-economic status groups, and how these are shaped in response to considerations of trust and future health risks. The project will focus on the known risk of alcohol for the development of breast cancer, which is particularly important given that Australian culture is saturated by alcohol use, marketi ....Understanding middle-aged women’s responses to alcohol/breast cancer risks. This project aims to identify the nature of alcohol consumption patterns by Australian women aged 45-64 in different socio-economic status groups, and how these are shaped in response to considerations of trust and future health risks. The project will focus on the known risk of alcohol for the development of breast cancer, which is particularly important given that Australian culture is saturated by alcohol use, marketing and social acceptability. This project aims to identify new strategies to transform behaviour change initiatives, which may differ by socio-economic status group. The project will be a model for national and global initiatives that seek to develop highly effective alcohol reduction messages and reduce alcohol-related harms.Read moreRead less
Exploring Consumers' Switching and Loyalty Behaviours: Brand Relationship Dynamics. For marketers and academics, understanding the ways that consumers develop relationships with brands is of utmost importance. Brands may inspire loyalty, repeat purchases, continued use, and switching behaviour over time. Yet, continued brand usage and switching behaviours have not yet been studied systematically from a relationship perspective. Fournier's (1998) perspective on brand relationships is used to unde ....Exploring Consumers' Switching and Loyalty Behaviours: Brand Relationship Dynamics. For marketers and academics, understanding the ways that consumers develop relationships with brands is of utmost importance. Brands may inspire loyalty, repeat purchases, continued use, and switching behaviour over time. Yet, continued brand usage and switching behaviours have not yet been studied systematically from a relationship perspective. Fournier's (1998) perspective on brand relationships is used to understand changes in brand behaviours as changes in underlying consumer-brand relationships. This study, using qualitative semi-structured interviews and longitudinal brand diary keeping, will uncover the personal, social, and cultural meanings associated with brand-related changes, significantly advancing our understanding of brand relationship dynamics.
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Switching Dynamics Approach for Distributed Global Optimisation . This project aims to create a breakthrough switching dynamics approach and new technology to speed up finding optimal solutions. It will develop a distributed switching dynamics based optimisation scheme for global optimisation problems in industrial big-data environments where timely decision making is required. It will result in a practical technology for industry optimisation problems such as economic energy dispatch in smart g ....Switching Dynamics Approach for Distributed Global Optimisation . This project aims to create a breakthrough switching dynamics approach and new technology to speed up finding optimal solutions. It will develop a distributed switching dynamics based optimisation scheme for global optimisation problems in industrial big-data environments where timely decision making is required. It will result in a practical technology for industry optimisation problems such as economic energy dispatch in smart grids and optimal charging and discharging tasks in a large network of electric vehicles, helping Australian power industry improve efficiency and security, as well as training the next generation scientists and engineers for Australia in this emerging field.Read moreRead less
Social practices of oral health in Australian preschool children. The aim of the study is to explore "social practices" of oral health in Australian (Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal) preschool children. We use this emerging theory to move away from focusing on individuals and individual behaviour (and blame) to identify and map social practices: actions, materials and meanings families attribute to
child’s oral health. Expected project outcomes include identifying practices promoting or underminin ....Social practices of oral health in Australian preschool children. The aim of the study is to explore "social practices" of oral health in Australian (Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal) preschool children. We use this emerging theory to move away from focusing on individuals and individual behaviour (and blame) to identify and map social practices: actions, materials and meanings families attribute to
child’s oral health. Expected project outcomes include identifying practices promoting or undermining children’s oral health that can inform upstream and downstream policy directions and practices to improve health outcomes. This offers a new approach to "wicked" problems such as oral health where extensive
effort has not reduced morbidity and cost despite rhetoric that oral health is preventable.Read moreRead less
Global dementias: Examining structural vulnerability and dementia outcomes. This project aims to examine the social and cultural dimensions of dementia by using a comparative ethnographic approach to examine the experiences of people living with dementia in Australia, Malaysia and India. The project expects to generate new anthropological knowledge about structural inequalities by examining how dementia is responded to in diverse geographic, cultural and social settings. Expected outcomes of thi ....Global dementias: Examining structural vulnerability and dementia outcomes. This project aims to examine the social and cultural dimensions of dementia by using a comparative ethnographic approach to examine the experiences of people living with dementia in Australia, Malaysia and India. The project expects to generate new anthropological knowledge about structural inequalities by examining how dementia is responded to in diverse geographic, cultural and social settings. Expected outcomes of this project include the creation of a new evidence-base on dementia and the production of briefing documents to guide global health frameworks. The project should provide significant benefits for people living with dementia by providing locally-relevant strategies to respond to dementia and resultant disability.Read moreRead less
Sharing values and the co-creation of brands: Towards a new consumer driven branding paradigm. The project proposes a paradigm shift from traditional image building towards a full understanding and integration of consumer values into a deliberate process of co-created brand meanings. Brands thus managed can become iconic and symbolic of consumers' existing subcultures or may even define micro-cultures of consumption of their own (as in the case of Harley Davidson).
Should managers understand t ....Sharing values and the co-creation of brands: Towards a new consumer driven branding paradigm. The project proposes a paradigm shift from traditional image building towards a full understanding and integration of consumer values into a deliberate process of co-created brand meanings. Brands thus managed can become iconic and symbolic of consumers' existing subcultures or may even define micro-cultures of consumption of their own (as in the case of Harley Davidson).
Should managers understand the process by which such co-created brands develop, more Australian brand success stories (eg. Rip Curl, Penfold's Grange) would evolve and be better placed to tap the increasingly diversified sub-cultural landscape that characterises the Australian marketplace and many of our major trading partners.
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New Theory and Algorithms for Nonsmooth Optimisation with Application to Integer Programming. Mathematical optimisation plays a key role in a wide variety of applications in business, industry, engineering and science. For example, airlines cannot fly and radiation treatment for cancer cannot be delivered without solving (a series of) optimisation problems. Some classes of optimisation problem are very well solved, with clear mathematical foundations, efficient algorithms, and reliable software ....New Theory and Algorithms for Nonsmooth Optimisation with Application to Integer Programming. Mathematical optimisation plays a key role in a wide variety of applications in business, industry, engineering and science. For example, airlines cannot fly and radiation treatment for cancer cannot be delivered without solving (a series of) optimisation problems. Some classes of optimisation problem are very well solved, with clear mathematical foundations, efficient algorithms, and reliable software implementations. Both nonsmooth and integer optimisation problems have a good mathematical basis, but there are "gaps"; existing methods cannot always solve real industrial problems. This project will deliver better methods, built on better theory, and so will yield better solutions for important applications.Read moreRead less