Australian Scientists Research Articles

Promising the earth: Forms of capital promised and pursued in Australian-Chinese research collaborations

Science is a space of both collaboration and competition, illustrated by international research collaboration (IRC) and its advantages for individual countries, institutions and scientists. IRC also brings together countries positioned unequally in global epistemic hierarchies. Little is known about how scientists navigate these tensions within IRC. We explore this through a study of Australian–Chinese IRC, drawing on interviews with Australian scientists and Bourdieu's theoretical framework. We identify specific capitals that are sought and promised in Australian–Chinese IRC, namely, scientific, economic and ‘environmental’ capital, with successful collaboration depending also on social and cultural capital. Differences in how Australia and China are positioned in global academic and scientific fields, and differences between national scientific fields, mean that collaboration facilitates access to forms of capital unobtainable in scientists’ home settings. Because the benefits of IRC are fundamentally relational and promissory, these will change alongside the global hierarchies that are, themselves, being reshaped by IRC.

What drives public engagement by scientists? An Australian perspective

There is an increasing expectation for more scientists to engage with industry, government, and communities to solve climate change. A group for whom these calls are now prevalent are marine (natural and social) scientists working on environmental change, including climate change. Yet, there is limited empirical evidence of what drives them to embrace or avoid engaging distinct publics, including policymakers. Here, we examined via twenty-eight in-depth qualitative interviews factors affecting how Australian scientists engage the public about climate change. We found that nineteen contextual variables constrain and enable public engagement by scientists. These variables co-occur and interact at the individual, organizational, and systemic levels to affect how they prioritize, mobilize resources, and decide to engage the public. We found that while the scientists saw it rewarding to share their findings with others, they found it hard to deal with conflict, face skeptics, and navigate organizational politics and structures to engage others in a public-facing role. Also, a lack of institutional support and engagement culture, role ambiguity, unequal power relations, and a legacy of past encounters led many scientists to engage in tokenism. These findings and insights have implications for individual scientists, institutional policy, and the practice of engaging others about global environmental change. They reveal why scientists might not engage others in a public-facing role and what might be needed to transform engagement.

DNA barcoding of Australian cereal cyst nematode populations with comments on likely origin and taxonomy (Tylenchoidea: Heterodera)

A species of Heterodera has been known to parasitise cereals in Australia since the 1930s. It caused significant yield losses across Australia’s cereal growing regions until resistance breeding largely brought it under control, although it still occurs occasionally, especially in South and Western Australia. Australian cereal cyst nematode has long been considered to represent Heterodera avenae. However, in 2002 the name Heterodera australis was proposed for Australian cereal cyst nematode, as it could be distinguished from all non-Australian populations of H. avenae via biochemical and molecular methods. This new species proposal came with speculation that both H. avenae and H. australis might occur in Australia, and that H. australis might represent a native species. The name H. australis has generally not been accepted by Australian scientists, nor the notion that it is native. There remains some uncertainty as to the validity of H. australis and whether more than one species of cereal cyst nematode occur in Australia. Using a molecular barcoding approach (COI, 18S, ITS, 28S) we examined the species composition of cyst nematodes present in soil samples collected between 1989–2023 from Australian cereal growing regions. We find only one species of Heterodera parasitising cereals and, based on phylogenetic analyses, accept the validity of H. australis as the name best representative of this species. We also argue that, based on presently available evidence, H. australis is not native and was most likely introduced into Australia from Asia in the 1850s, rather than from Europe as has been generally assumed.

THE STUDY OF COSSACKS IN THE INTELLECTUAL STUDIES OF THE UKRAINIAN DIASPORA IN AUSTRALIA IN THE SECOND HALF OF THE TWENTIETH CENTURY

The purpose of this article is to investigate how Ukrainians in Australia perceived the Cossacks and popularized knowledge about the Cossacks. The tasks of the article are to write about those persons who mentioned the Cossacks, what they wanted, the circumstances and directions of their activities. The sources for writing the article are materials from the periodical press of the Ukrainian Australian diaspora, some archival materials, works of representatives of the Ukrainian diaspora, articles about their activities in the memoir direction (memoirs, obituaries). In historiography, there is no statement of the question that is the topic of consideration of our article. However, individual comments are contained in personal articles about some of the heroes of our article. It is also worth noting as a historiographical base the articles devoted to the general development of Ukrainian studies (Ukrainian studies) in Australia It was concluded that against the background of the work of Ukrainian humanitarians, poets, writers. artists of Canada, the USA, and Western Europe, Cossack studies in Australia developed at a catch-up pace, which was due to the relative youth of the diaspora on the fifth continent. Most of the mentioned characters developed their previous work in Australia (first of all, we are talking about Ivan Rybchyn). Some of the scientists who had the potential for relevant studies (S. Narizhnyi, E. Zavalynskyi) did not show activity for various reasons. However, the very presence of a trace of Cossack studies in the activities of the Australian intelligentsia eloquently testifies to the potential of the Cossack idea for the consolidation of Ukrainians. The most original work among Australian scientists belongs to O. Zybachynskyi, who managed to include the Cossacks in a broad historiosophical context. The merit of I. Rybchyn was the analysis of the phenomenon of Cossacks in a psychological context. He also subjected the phenomenon of Cossacks to a more objective and at the same time neoconservative analysis. But in the discourse of the Australian diaspora, as well as other diasporas, a neo-populist and neo-romantic view of the Cossacks prevailed. Undoubtedly, the numerous remarks of Australian Ukrainians about the nation-building activities of the Cossacks and their struggle against Russian imperialism are relevant in the conditions of the current Russian threat. In general, Australian Cossack studies have demonstrated an original synthesis of interdisciplinarity.

Review on Helicobacteriosis Associated Diseases

Helicobacteriosis is a bacterial infection caused by Helicobacter pylori (H.pylori)(HP). which was discovered in 1982 by Australian scientists Barry Marshall and Robin Warren, who were later awarded the Nobel Prize in 2005.Epidemiological evidence has shown that H.pylori colonizes the upper gastrointestinal tract(GIT), and the infection is one of the most common human bacterial pathogens worldwide, with 4.4 billion infected individuals in 2015, but the prevalence varies according to situation and hygiene principles. Since this first isolation, it has become apparent that this organism may be one of the most common bacterial pathogens of humans, and it is one of the risk factors for adenocarcinoma. Thus, it was categorized as a group 1 carcinogen in 1994 by the World Health Organization (WHO). New infections with H.pylori are thought to occur as a consequence of direct human-to-human transmission, via either an oral-oral or fecal-oral route or both. H.pylori has been detected in stool, saliva, vomitus, and gastric refluxate, the material that has been subject to reflux, principally stomach acid that has leaked up into the esophagus. Clinically, H. pylori infection in humans is related to chronic gastritis, peptic ulceration, duodenal ulcer, and gastric cancer in addition to mucosa-associated lymphoid malignancies.According to the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates available at that time, it was supposed that about 4.4 billion infected individuals in 2015 were infected with H. pylori. These estimations can vary and are subject to change over time as recent investigations and information become obtainable. The prevalence of H. pylori is complex and affected by several factors, comprising age, clinical outcomes, geographical location, and socioeconomic status. A higher incidence was reported in unhygienic and economically poor areas; the rate of H. pylori infection in Africa, South America, and Asia was significantly higher than that in Western Europe, North America, and Australia. However, the disease spectrum of H. pylori infection shows a wide range of clinical aspects, including gastrointestinal diseases and extra gastric manifestations. In this review, we have described the general scope of these diseases.

Quantum Entanglement of the Brain, Dynamics of Information, and Intelligent Finance

Our research forms two directions, the first considers two approaches to the brain, one based on classical mechanics, the second using quantum physics, the second direction of research refers to the dynamics of0 information as an interaction between differential geometry, mathematical statistics, probability theory. and quantum mechanics which led to the construction of classical and quantum information geometry. Financial entanglement is multidimensiona in time and space, dynamic, less understood and interesting because it functions in real life, like the brain. Neuroscientists who focus on mathematical frameworks for how the brain’s shape affects its activity—an area of mathematical neuroscience called neural field theory  will begin to understand the relationship between brain shape, structure, and function in yet another way. Analysis of research into the geometry of the brain’s contours, that is, the way in which brain activity resonates over and through its architecture, is perhaps more significant than the connections between neurons. Research by scientists from the University of Sydney and Monash University showed that the overall shape and geometry of the human brain – its contours and curvature – has a greater influence on brain dynamics than the internal connectivity of brain cells (Our brain shape influences how it works, 2023) in short, Australian scientists indicate the possibility of predicting brain function directly from its shape. “We have long thought that specific thoughts or sensations elicit activity in specific parts of the brain, but this study reveals that structured patterns of activity are excited across nearly the entire brain, just like the way in which a musical note arises from vibrations occurring along the entire length of a violin string, and not just an isolated segment,” (Dr J. Pang,2023).”We found that eigenmodes defined by brain geometry – its contours and curvature – represented the strongest anatomical constraint on brain function, much like the shape of a drum influences the sounds it can make” (A. Fornito, 2023). “Using mathematical models, we confirmed theoretical predictions that the close link between geometry and function is driven by wave-like activity propagating throughout the brain, just as the shape of a pond influences the wave ripples that are formed by a falling pebble” (A. Fornito, 2023).

Real-time PCR assay for Tetranychus evansi and multiplex with three other Tetranychus species

Spider mites are significant agricultural and horticultural pests. Among them, Tetranychus urticae Koch (Acari: Tetranychidae) is the most important one and has a cosmopolitan distribution. The tomato red spider mite (TRSM), T. evansi Baker and Pritchard is a worldwide pest of solanaceous crops and has become a major invasive agricultural pest. Tetranychus evansi originates from South America and has recently invaded many other parts of the world, including countries of Africa, Europe, Asia and North America. Recently, it has spread to Australia and New Zealand. TRSM has a high intrinsic rate of increase and completes a generation in less than 15 days. It is reported that T. evansi has replaced T. uritcae and other endemic spider mites as the dominant pest and also colonised new host plants in the invaded countries. Furthermore, T. urticae, T. ludeni and T. lambi shared the same host as T. evansi. Tetranychus species are difficult to distinguish using traditional morphological methods, and the molecular techniques such as mitochondrial COI and ITS sequences have greatly assisted in the diagnosis of those species. However, the methods include post-PCR steps and are time-consuming. In contrast, real-time PCR assays which omit those post-PCR steps can provide rapid detection. The real-time PCR assay to identify T. urticae, T. ludeni and T. lambi were already developed and validated by us (Li et al., 2015) and by Australian scientists (Chen et al., 2020), but no assay targeting T. evansi is available. Therefore, we developed and validated a TaqMan real-time PCR protocol for rapid detection of T. evansi, by targeting ITS1 gene region. The assay specificity was tested against the closely related species, i.e., T. collyerae, T. lambi, T. ludeni, T. kanzawai, T. parakanzawai, pueraicola, T. truncatus, T. turkestani and T. urticae. Plasmid DNA containing ITS1 sequence of T. evansi was used as standards for sensitivity tests of the real-time PCR assay. The detection limit of the assay is 10 copy of the target region, indicating that it can detect DNA from different life stage of the target species, i.e. an egg, a larva, a nymph or an adult. Furthermore, multiplex assay targeting T. evansi, T. ludeni, T. lambi and T. urticae have been validated for detection of the four species. The validation showed that the assay against T. evansi can run as singleplex and also as multiplex by targeting the four species simultaneously. This multiplex assay has been used in the surveillance programme in New Zealand and demonstrated its efficiency in detection of the target species. Moreover, the assay will be very useful for the quick identification of intercepted specimens at border and post border.

My Research Collaborations with Australian Scientists over the Past Half Century

Over the past half century, I have maintained research collaborations with Australian scientists while pursuing an academic career focusing on scientific investigations of the physical properties of minerals at high pressures and temperatures. From 1970-1976, I was a member of the research faculty of the Australian National University; initially in the Department of Geophysics and Geochemistry and later in the Research School of Earth Sciences. In subsequent years, I have maintained connections with many laboratories in Australia in addition to the ANU, including those in Brisbane, Hobart, Melbourne, Perth and Sydney. The objective of this paper is to relate this history.

The ‘two cultures’ in Australia

ABSTRACT This article considers Australian receptions of C. P. Snow’s The Two Cultures and the Scientific Revolution (1959), and of the controversy over the literary critic F. R. Leavis’s combative 1962 response to it. Taking a lead from conceptual insights in global histories of science and the history of knowledge, the paper considers the ways knowledge claims iterate differently in different geographic and cultural contexts. Elements of the Snow–Leavis dispute resonated among Australian scientists, cultural critics, journalists and poets, while others did not. Snow’s diagnosis of a disciplinary antagonism between the humanities and the sciences was central to Australian receptions of the controversy, but wider political issues, emphasised in much of the more sophisticated historiography of the ‘two cultures’ as a British-American controversy, were largely ignored. This reception reflected the post-war expansion of Australian higher education, and the shifting relations within it between the humanities and the sciences.

Modelling the impact of coal seam methane on the Mongolian economy

Energy independence is one of the most important issues for almost every country and the world. Mongolia strives to have various types of energy sources and reduce energy dependence. Energy dependence always influences economic dependence of any country. Utilising its own country’s resources is optimal to reduce energy dependence. In recent years, the Mongolian Government has been encouraging unconventional oil and gas exploration and foreign investment and implementing supporting policies, such as coal bed (seam) methane. As a result of these activities, unconventional oil and gas investment and exploration have been intensified in the last few years in Mongolia, especially during pandemics. There are 32 oil and gas blocks in Mongolia and coal bed methane exploration and foreign investments have been invested in eight blocks. In 2022, some foreign investment companies are going to introduce proven reserves of coal bed methane to the Mongolian Government and Parliament. Therefore, we have to model the positive and negative impacts of coal bed methane on the Mongolian economy and find methods to increase the positive sides. Unfortunately, there is no experience in any situation for unconventional oil and gas exploration, extraction, and field development. Because of it, we have cooperated with Australian scientists and experts and completed some studies for making a model of the impact of coal seam methane on the Mongolian economy. For today’s condition, the Mongolian Government or Mongolian private companies can’t process coal bed methane activities because of lack of capital expenses and experience. To raise the positive impacts of coal bed methane, foreign investment is of course very important. There are some main purposes to model the impact of coal seam methane on the Mongolian economy.

Australian scientists vent frustrations ahead of national election

Australian scientists vent frustrations ahead of national election

Advanced technologies in studying plant photosynthesis: principles and applications.

sion="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?> FP Functional Plant Biology Funct. Plant Biol. 1445-4408 1445-4416 CSIRO Publishing 36 Gardiner Road Clayton VIC 3168 Australia FP22050 10.1071/FP22050 Foreword Advanced technologies in studying plant photosynthesis: principles and applications A. Zavafer et al . https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8905-1618 Zavafer Alonso A Fan Dayong B * https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8150-9535 Murakami Keach C Handling Editor Shabala Sergey Plant Science Division, Research School of Biology, The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT 2001, Australia. Hokkaido Agricultural Research Center (HARC), National Agriculture and Food Research Organization (NARO), 1 Hitsujigaoka, Toyohira, Sapporo 062-8555, Japan. College of Forestry, Beijing Forestry, University, Beijing 100083, China. * Correspondence to: Dayong Fan Hokkaido Agricultural Research Center (HARC), National Agriculture and Food Research Organization (NARO), 1 Hitsujigaoka, Toyohira, Sapporo 062-8555, Japan Email: dayong73fan@163.com 9 May 2022 49 6 Special Issue i iii 9 May 2022 Published: 9 May 2022 © 2022 The Author(s) (or their employer(s)). Published by CSIRO Publishing 2022 The Authors The foreword to this special issue on the advanced technologies in studying photosynthesis focuses on the main contributions of Fred Chow, one of the key Australian scientists studying light reactions in plants.

Modern foreign studies of the phenomenon of successfulness

Analysis of foreign research material conducted in 2015-2021 by Indian, American, Czech, Polish, Australian and other scientists aimed at studying successfulness phenomenon is presented in this article. Main approaches to understanding successfulness and directions in its study are reviewed. It is established that successfulness is a multidimensional construction directly correlated with various positive personality characteristics that contribute to effective coping with stress and increased life satisfaction. The main conceptual areas of investigations studying the phenomenon of personal successfulness in various spheres of life activities are presented. Analysis and systematisation of approaches to personality successfulsness study are conducted, and also the prospects for further study of this phenomenon are outlined.

Comparing science communication theory with participatory practice: case study of the Australian Climate Champion Program

While short-term participatory science communication activities have been well researched, long-term programs have received scant attention. Analysing survey data and participant discussions, I investigated interactions between Australian farmers and scientists engaged in the Climate Champion Program (2009–2016). I compared their interactions to three theorised science communication models: deficit, dialogue and participatory. I found their interactions illustrated a mix of the characteristics of all three models. While farmers and scientists appeared to be motivated to interact by deficit and dialogue objectives, respectful and trusting relationships emerged from long-term participation, which was key to making deficit- and dialogue-style communication more effective.

Prime-ministerial leadership rankings: the Australian experience

ABSTRACT Leadership ranking exercises, which have a storied history in the United States, have recently gained a foothold in Westminster democracies. In 2020, the author conducted a major survey of Australian political scientists and historians to gauge their opinion of the leadership performance of the nation’s past prime ministers. Read in tandem with the results of earlier surveys, particularly that conducted out of Monash University in 2010, the 2020 rankings indicate that expert opinion about who have been Australia’s most successful prime ministers is largely settled. The 2020 results also suggest that the experts believe that the policy legacy of a leader is a more important indicator of prime-ministerial success than is the longevity of office.

Australian chemistry and drug discovery towards the development of antimalarials

Malaria, a disease caused by the Plasmodium parasite, accounts for more than 450 000 deaths annually. The devastating impact of this disease is compounded by the emergence or risk of widespread resistance to current antimalarial drugs, underscoring the need to develop new therapies. Australian scientists are at the forefront of fundamental, clinical and surveillance research, and have made significant contributions to advancing the field of malaria research. A significant component of this research has been directed toward the development of new antimalarial therapies. This perspective summarises the recent endeavours by Australian researchers in chemistry and drug discovery sciences in the identification and development of new antimalarial therapies in the global challenge to treat and eliminate malaria.

The Australian Coral Reef Society: the last 40 years of a century working with Australia’s coral reefs

On the 100-year anniversary of the Australian Coral Reef Society (ACRS), previously known as the Great Barrier Reef Committee (GBRC), we provide an overview of ACRS activities throughout its history, with a detailed account of key milestones in the last 40 years. We outline how the ACRS as promoted the protection and conservation of reefs, through expert advice, reviews, and submissions to enquiries. Examples are provided under the following themes: ACRS consultancy on zoning the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) Marine Park, marine protected area design, water quality on the GBR, port expansions along the Queensland coastline and environmental reform for the offshore oil and gas industry. We illustrate how scientists over recent decades have worked to better understand and encourage policy responses to the impacts of climate change on Australia’s coral reefs. For a hundred years, the GBRC-ACRS has provided an avenue for Australian coral reef scientists, managers and conservationists to influence reef governance through policy. While these unique avenues for delivering timely and targeted expertise have helped to reduce proximate threats to reefs at local scales, their outcome in relation to climate change, arguably the largest threat to Australia’s coral reefs, remains to be seen.

Hans Charles Freeman 1929–2008

Hans Freeman was born in Germany and arrived in Australia with his parents in 1938. A brilliant student at the University of Sydney, he spent a seminal year at the California Institute of Technology before joining the staff at Sydney and initiating research on bioinorganic chemistry, studying metal ion complexes of compounds of biological significance such as amino acids, peptides and proteins. In his use of X-ray crystallography he was a pioneer in Australia, constructing his first crystallographic apparatus and mastering the necessary computing, at first by hand but soon with electronic computers. The culmination of his work with a series of collaborators was the structure of the blue, copper-containing metalloprotein, plastocyanin. Freeman also employed another advanced technique—X-ray spectroscopy and the study of X-ray absorption fine structure. He was a leading figure in Australia and internationally, and played an important role in gaining access for Australian scientists to international facilities such as synchrotron radiation sources at the dawning of the era of ‘Big Science’.

The Search for a Schistosomiasis Vaccine: Australia's Contribution.

Schistosomiasis, a neglected tropical disease caused by parasitic flatworms of the genus Schistosoma, results in considerable human morbidity in sub-Saharan Africa, in particular, but also parts of the Middle East, South America, and Southeast Asia. The anti-schistosome drug praziquantel is efficacious and safe against the adult parasites of all Schistosoma species infecting humans; however, it does not prevent reinfection and the development of drug resistance is a constant concern. The need to develop an effective vaccine is of great importance if the health of many in the developing world is to be improved. Indeed, vaccination, in combination with other public health measures, can provide an invaluable tool to achieve lasting control, leading to schistosomiasis elimination. Australia has played a leading role in schistosomiasis vaccine research over many years and this review presents an overview of some of the significant contributions made by Australian scientists in this important area.

Camelid Antibodies May well be effective Against SARS-CoV-2 variants

Are camels at the origin of a new treatment against Covid-19? What is certain is that these animals have small antibodies, absent in humans, which neutralize SARS-CoV-2 and some of its variants, according to Australian scientists.