Through the Lens: A Cultural Study of Women's Fashion Photography in Australia, 1890 to 2000. This study supports growing academic interests in Australian fashion and provides the nascent fashion industry, and the media, with a cultural and historical context for their current practices. It sets up debate and expands available information about local fashion photography, challenging the assumption that it is solely dependent on overseas ideas and practices. It has the further potential to export ....Through the Lens: A Cultural Study of Women's Fashion Photography in Australia, 1890 to 2000. This study supports growing academic interests in Australian fashion and provides the nascent fashion industry, and the media, with a cultural and historical context for their current practices. It sets up debate and expands available information about local fashion photography, challenging the assumption that it is solely dependent on overseas ideas and practices. It has the further potential to export understandings of Australian fashion and its photographic representation, including its creative and aesthetic aspects, and by implication will assist the fashion industry, and the public, develop understanding of its workings.Read moreRead less
Development of novel reagents that specifically counteract EphA4 to enhance axonal regeneration. This project will examine the role of EphA4, an important guidance protein, in neural cell regeneration. The goal is to understand the signalling mechanisms that inhibit regeneration in the central nervous system and to develop novel biological agents to overcome these processes and promote functional recovery after nervous system injury or disease.
Understanding the generation of hypothalamic sleep neurons. This Project aims to investigate the mechanisms controlling the formation of the sleep neurons in the hypothalamus. We all sleep, and normal sleep-wake cycles play a central role in our biology. The functional role of these sleep neurons in the mature brain are well established. However, how the neurons are generated during development is very poorly defined. This project aims to address this critical knowledge gap, and will greatly inc ....Understanding the generation of hypothalamic sleep neurons. This Project aims to investigate the mechanisms controlling the formation of the sleep neurons in the hypothalamus. We all sleep, and normal sleep-wake cycles play a central role in our biology. The functional role of these sleep neurons in the mature brain are well established. However, how the neurons are generated during development is very poorly defined. This project aims to address this critical knowledge gap, and will greatly increase our understanding of how the development of this critical aspect of organismal function is orchestrated during development. This project will also develop bioinformatics tools with broad utility within the biosciences field and enhance the capacity for interdisciplinary international collaborations.Read moreRead less
Sustaining neuronal communication through bulk endocytosis. Brain activities such as learning and memory rely on the ability of neurons to communicate. This research will improve our understanding of how synaptic vesicles recycle during periods of intense synaptic activity. This is a fundamental process relevant to neuronal communication, insulin release, hormone secretion, and allergic responses in health and disease and therefore has broad significance. This work will enhance Australia's exist ....Sustaining neuronal communication through bulk endocytosis. Brain activities such as learning and memory rely on the ability of neurons to communicate. This research will improve our understanding of how synaptic vesicles recycle during periods of intense synaptic activity. This is a fundamental process relevant to neuronal communication, insulin release, hormone secretion, and allergic responses in health and disease and therefore has broad significance. This work will enhance Australia's existing strength in cell biology and neuroscience and provide high quality training for an undergraduate student and post-doctoral scientist.Read moreRead less
Neural circuits that mediate fear conditioning and extinction. Understanding of how the brain processes, stores and retrieves information and produces behavioural outcomes is in its infancy. This project will use electrophysiology and molecular techniques to understand the circuits that mediate one form of emotional learning.
The implications of resistance training for the control of movement. Resistance training (or weight lifting) is an essential element of comprehensive rehabilitation programs in a wide range of clinical settings. However, because we know little about how the organization of the nervous system is affected by training with high loads, the consequences of resistance training for our ability to control functional movements are unclear. The ultimate goal of this research is to generate basic knowledge ....The implications of resistance training for the control of movement. Resistance training (or weight lifting) is an essential element of comprehensive rehabilitation programs in a wide range of clinical settings. However, because we know little about how the organization of the nervous system is affected by training with high loads, the consequences of resistance training for our ability to control functional movements are unclear. The ultimate goal of this research is to generate basic knowledge about the impact of resistance training on nervous system function. The research will lead to the design of injury prevention and rehabilitation programs that are maximally effective, and provide a genuine benefit to the community.Read moreRead less
Novel Applied Bayesian Statistics for Monitoring Neuromuscular Diseases. Neurological diseases such as motor neurone disease are caused by the progressive death of motor units serving a muscle. Currently there are no ways of quantifying and detecting change in the number of motor units serving a muscle which are non-invasive. Our research will provide an objective method for the progression of neuromuscular diseases to be monitored with minimal inconvenience to patients. This will allow clinic ....Novel Applied Bayesian Statistics for Monitoring Neuromuscular Diseases. Neurological diseases such as motor neurone disease are caused by the progressive death of motor units serving a muscle. Currently there are no ways of quantifying and detecting change in the number of motor units serving a muscle which are non-invasive. Our research will provide an objective method for the progression of neuromuscular diseases to be monitored with minimal inconvenience to patients. This will allow clinical trials for possible effective treatments of neurological diseases such as motor neurone disease to be conducted with an objective measurement of disease progression. Read moreRead less
Representing Kanaks: Generic Variation, Identity, and the Politics of the Everyday Semiotic. The project hypothesizes that representational struggles over indigenous identity are crucially shaped by the range of genres in which identity is asserted. Through the case of Kanaks in New Caledonia, as represented by several everyday genres hitherto neglected by scholarship, the representational politics of indigeneity are interrogated with the aim of demonstrating that Kanak existence is constituted ....Representing Kanaks: Generic Variation, Identity, and the Politics of the Everyday Semiotic. The project hypothesizes that representational struggles over indigenous identity are crucially shaped by the range of genres in which identity is asserted. Through the case of Kanaks in New Caledonia, as represented by several everyday genres hitherto neglected by scholarship, the representational politics of indigeneity are interrogated with the aim of demonstrating that Kanak existence is constituted in the semiotic detail of everyday generic variation. The project's significance lies in its radical reconception of identity and representational politics: going beyond indigenous versus colonial binaries, it reveals the complexity of day-to-day competition over and consolidation of indigenous identity through representational systems.Read moreRead less
Old brain cells perform new tricks to allow life-long learning. In the brain, nerve cells transmit electrical signals more quickly and reliably when they are insulated. The insulating cells undergo small adaptive changes that speed up information transfer during learning, and the faster the electrical signal, the better the learning outcomes. This project aims to understand the signals that direct insulating cells to adapt and support life-long learning. In the longer term, this knowledge may be ....Old brain cells perform new tricks to allow life-long learning. In the brain, nerve cells transmit electrical signals more quickly and reliably when they are insulated. The insulating cells undergo small adaptive changes that speed up information transfer during learning, and the faster the electrical signal, the better the learning outcomes. This project aims to understand the signals that direct insulating cells to adapt and support life-long learning. In the longer term, this knowledge may be used to: develop interventions that improve learning and educational outcomes; counteract age-related memory decline and enable longer work force participation; develop strategies to circumvent the memory loss caused by brain diseases, or improve the design of computer hardware.Read moreRead less
Molecular control of adult neural stem cell quiescence. The objective of this project is to improve our understanding of adult neural stem cell biology and function. Within the central nervous system of the brain, neural stem cells persist throughout adult life. These cells continually produce new neurons that are pivotal for processes including learning and memory, and deficits in adult neurogenesis have been linked to age-related cognitive decline. Adult neural stem cells are predominantly qui ....Molecular control of adult neural stem cell quiescence. The objective of this project is to improve our understanding of adult neural stem cell biology and function. Within the central nervous system of the brain, neural stem cells persist throughout adult life. These cells continually produce new neurons that are pivotal for processes including learning and memory, and deficits in adult neurogenesis have been linked to age-related cognitive decline. Adult neural stem cells are predominantly quiescent, dividing rarely to ensure that they are not prematurely exhausted. However, the factors that maintain this quiescence are very poorly defined. The project aims to understand how stem cell quiescence is controlled at both a molecular and cellular level in vivo within the adult mouse brain.Read moreRead less