Organisation, expression and diversity of the sub-telomeric regions of the ancient eukaryote, Giardia duodenalis. We propose to extend our findings on the extreme plasticity of the structure and organisation of the sub-telomeric region of the complete genome of Giardia by more extensive chromosome walking, and comparison of different isolates. These regions are subject to gene conversion, transcriptional silencing, gene mobility, recombination, variable surface protein expression, subtelomeric i ....Organisation, expression and diversity of the sub-telomeric regions of the ancient eukaryote, Giardia duodenalis. We propose to extend our findings on the extreme plasticity of the structure and organisation of the sub-telomeric region of the complete genome of Giardia by more extensive chromosome walking, and comparison of different isolates. These regions are subject to gene conversion, transcriptional silencing, gene mobility, recombination, variable surface protein expression, subtelomeric instability and the insertion of transposable elements, a dynamic balance between structural conservation and rapid evolution. This is a rare opportunity to understand the forces at work in moulding eukaryotic sub-telomeric sequences because Giardia is not constrained by sexual homogenisation and the dynamic variability is retained.Read moreRead less
Connections/Disconnections: Australia - India comparative studies. A program of staff and postgraduate exchanges to build systematic research links between the Universities of Wollongong and Madras in the Humanities & Social Sciences. Current Wollongong projects will benefit from access to the Centre for Indian Studies and Madras will be able to develop further its Centre for Australian Studies.
The project will explore several historical, social and cultural connections between both countrie ....Connections/Disconnections: Australia - India comparative studies. A program of staff and postgraduate exchanges to build systematic research links between the Universities of Wollongong and Madras in the Humanities & Social Sciences. Current Wollongong projects will benefit from access to the Centre for Indian Studies and Madras will be able to develop further its Centre for Australian Studies.
The project will explore several historical, social and cultural connections between both countries, viz.:
- relations between Indian and Australian troops in the First world war
- comparisons of negotiations between the state and indigenous minorities
-textiles, trade and postcolonial texts
-comparative labour studies
-the writing of David Malouf
Outcomes will include:
- research papers,
- an international conference and proceedings,
- M.Phil and Doctoral theses,
- a reader on Australian Studies for Indian students.Read moreRead less
Open Cities: urban citizenship in Sydney and Berlin. This collaboration will contribute directly to National Research Priority "Safeguarding Australia: Understanding our region and the world". By analysing the differential dynamics of cultural citizenship in global cities such as Sydney, researchers, community service providers and policymakers will be given contemporary knowledge to invigorate their efforts to create and maintain a shared sense of security and belonging in a highly diverse cont ....Open Cities: urban citizenship in Sydney and Berlin. This collaboration will contribute directly to National Research Priority "Safeguarding Australia: Understanding our region and the world". By analysing the differential dynamics of cultural citizenship in global cities such as Sydney, researchers, community service providers and policymakers will be given contemporary knowledge to invigorate their efforts to create and maintain a shared sense of security and belonging in a highly diverse context. Drawing upon the latest research from European contexts will add rigour and validity to the research program and open opportunities for connecting with emerging EU research priorities concerned with managing identity formation across national boundaries.Read moreRead less
Kingdom switching microbial pathogens: the bioinformatics of mutation in the genomes of viruses and bacteria affecting crops, livestock and people. Some organisms that cause infectious diseases have moved between plants and vertebrates, either recently or repeatedly over evolutionary time. Switching between plants and vertebrates strongly influences the way these microbes mutate and evolve. We will search the genomic sequence databases for information about how the choice of host influences muta ....Kingdom switching microbial pathogens: the bioinformatics of mutation in the genomes of viruses and bacteria affecting crops, livestock and people. Some organisms that cause infectious diseases have moved between plants and vertebrates, either recently or repeatedly over evolutionary time. Switching between plants and vertebrates strongly influences the way these microbes mutate and evolve. We will search the genomic sequence databases for information about how the choice of host influences mutations in viral and bacterial genomes and model the evolutionary processes involved. This project will advance our understanding of the fine structure of microbial genomes and the importance of selection pressures on genes. It will lead to better disease management strategies for humans, and for domestic crops and livestock.Read moreRead less
Consumer Culture: the influence of economics on modern theories and practices of sexual psychology. The project has implications for a wide range of public debates in Australia today, including debates about the ethics and psychology of the pornography industry and the pervasive use of the ‘sex sells’ principle in marketing and entertainment. It will produce new knowledge and understanding of how psychological theory has been used to rationalise the commercialisation of sex in consumer culture a ....Consumer Culture: the influence of economics on modern theories and practices of sexual psychology. The project has implications for a wide range of public debates in Australia today, including debates about the ethics and psychology of the pornography industry and the pervasive use of the ‘sex sells’ principle in marketing and entertainment. It will produce new knowledge and understanding of how psychological theory has been used to rationalise the commercialisation of sex in consumer culture and how modern rhetoric of sexual liberation have been shaped by the very economic concerns they purport to repudiate. Finally, the project will advance the knowledge-base of key disciplines in the new humanities and enhance Australia's reputation for groundbreaking research in cultural history and analysis.Read moreRead less
The scientific ape: the evolution of the animal fable after Darwin. This project will contribute to national and international debates over the understanding of human nature, the human propensity for violence towards other beings and the possibility of mutually supportive relations with our natural environment. By demonstrating literature's capacity to intervene meaningfully into conceptual debates about the literary representation of animals, it will enhance Australia's international scholarly ....The scientific ape: the evolution of the animal fable after Darwin. This project will contribute to national and international debates over the understanding of human nature, the human propensity for violence towards other beings and the possibility of mutually supportive relations with our natural environment. By demonstrating literature's capacity to intervene meaningfully into conceptual debates about the literary representation of animals, it will enhance Australia's international scholarly profile in the emerging field of animal studies. It will also contribute to the international renown of Australian scholarship in traditional literary studies by producing the first theoretically informed reassessment of the literary genre of the fable.Read moreRead less
Antarctic Imaginations: A Study of Creative Responses to the Continent for Science. Antarctica has for two centuries been the subject of numerous novels, poems and plays, both by writers who have never seen the continent, and by expeditioners and explorers themselves. Apart from a small number of canonical nineteenth-century texts, these representations of the continent have been subject to very little analysis. This project examines creative written responses to Antarctica, drawing on both publ ....Antarctic Imaginations: A Study of Creative Responses to the Continent for Science. Antarctica has for two centuries been the subject of numerous novels, poems and plays, both by writers who have never seen the continent, and by expeditioners and explorers themselves. Apart from a small number of canonical nineteenth-century texts, these representations of the continent have been subject to very little analysis. This project examines creative written responses to Antarctica, drawing on both published works and archival material, and focussing particularly on the cultural significance of Antarctica's construction as a ?continent for science?. Research outcomes will include innovative interdisciplinary contributions to Antarctic studies and English studies.Read moreRead less
Studies of the degradation of dyes and pigments in inks on paper, in photographic media, and on painted surfaces. The National collecting institutions (the National Archives of Australia, the National Museum of Australia,Screen Sound Australia, the National Library of Australia, and the Australian War Memorial) have collections important to our national heritage on paper, photographic film and other media which they are required by law to preserve for future generations of Australians. Surveys ....Studies of the degradation of dyes and pigments in inks on paper, in photographic media, and on painted surfaces. The National collecting institutions (the National Archives of Australia, the National Museum of Australia,Screen Sound Australia, the National Library of Australia, and the Australian War Memorial) have collections important to our national heritage on paper, photographic film and other media which they are required by law to preserve for future generations of Australians. Surveys of their collections have shown that a significant proportion of their most important collections is in need of conservation. This project aims at determining ways of conserving these valuable artefacts, and developing strategies for their display and storage.Read moreRead less
A Generic Study of Colette's Short Writing. The study uses "genre" as a key to a literary-historical account of Colette's short writing in its cultural context. The corpus is generically ambiguous, since it first appeared as "articles" in magazines and was later collected in volumes, thus acquiring a more "literary" status as "essays". Taking into account both the conditions of publication and the rhetoric of these pieces, I shall investigate the network of cultural relations in which they parti ....A Generic Study of Colette's Short Writing. The study uses "genre" as a key to a literary-historical account of Colette's short writing in its cultural context. The corpus is generically ambiguous, since it first appeared as "articles" in magazines and was later collected in volumes, thus acquiring a more "literary" status as "essays". Taking into account both the conditions of publication and the rhetoric of these pieces, I shall investigate the network of cultural relations in which they participate, and their command of their readership. This will show how Colette made a place for "women's knowledge" in public culture and what that place was.Read moreRead less
Making and Unmaking Woman:Boccaccio's De mulieribus claris [Famous Women] in its medieval and Renaissance contexts. Giovanni Boccaccio's De mulieribus claris, [Famous Women] composed in the 1360s is the first attempt at female biography in the history of post-classical Western literature. It over-writes medieval misogyny with a humanistic vision of women. Contemporary criticism has generally treated the text contemptuously. Famous Women, it will be argued, is an example of the ideological comple ....Making and Unmaking Woman:Boccaccio's De mulieribus claris [Famous Women] in its medieval and Renaissance contexts. Giovanni Boccaccio's De mulieribus claris, [Famous Women] composed in the 1360s is the first attempt at female biography in the history of post-classical Western literature. It over-writes medieval misogyny with a humanistic vision of women. Contemporary criticism has generally treated the text contemptuously. Famous Women, it will be argued, is an example of the ideological complexities of humanism in its formative stages. It is the aim of this project to show that the text played a pivotal role in reassessing the conception of woman in early modern Europe. The project will produce the first major monograph on Famous Women.Read moreRead less