News from Adelaide University

AdelaideanDecember 2001Volume 10 Number 11

The Lord of the Rings

page 7

A sound solutionfor carp

page 5

Spinelessinvaders

page 9

I N S I D E

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THE Vice-Chancellor, Professor CliffBlake, has announced a series ofinitiatives aimed at strengtheningAdelaide University's position as one ofAustralia's foremost research andeducation institutions.The initiatives include: a comprehensivebudget strategy to restore the University'scapital base and secure its financial future; astronger marketing effort to build on anincrease of nearly 30% in total studentapplications for 2002 [see story page 3]; astaff renewal strategy, incorporating arecruitment drive and voluntary earlyretirement scheme to reinvigorate theacademic staff profile; a new GraduateSchool for postgraduate research students[see story page 3]; new budget controlmeasures; a $20 million capital worksprogram [see story page 4]; a new UniversityPlanning Office with responsibility forstrategic planning, resource allocation andcapital management; more partnershiparrangements with overseas institutions tobuild on the University's position as thelargest onshore provider of internationaleducation in South Australia.

Professor Blake said the measures weredesigned to strengthen the University'sperformance in key strategic areas and toensure that it was positioned to meet new andemerging challenges.

"The budget strategy provides acomprehensive resolution of the financialissues faced by the University," he said."The major issue was the emergence of adeficit of an estimated $3.2 million whichwill need to be carried over from the 2001calendar year."Adelaide University's financial position isfundamentally sound. It has a strong balancesheet, but the issue of the declining surplushas been recognised for some time andreconfirmed and re-emphasised by Counciland senior management. The 2002 Budget isthe next step in addressing this challenge."The new financial management systemswhich we have put in place will ensure that the

University achieves a balanced budget in 2002and significant surpluses in subsequent years.This will enable us to rebuild our cash reservesand look to the future with confidence."

The budget strategy aims to boost revenue byattracting more fee-paying internationalstudents and reduce costs through tighterinternal controls, an early voluntaryretirement scheme, and amalgamation ofsome small schools/departments.

"Adelaide University is recognised nationallyand internationally as one of Australia's greatuniversities," Professor Blake said.

"The initiatives announced ensure that theUniversity will be better able to meet thechallenges of the 21st century and continueto make a significant contribution to SouthAustralia and the nation."

A total of 47 Adelaide University staff hadbeen accepted for early retirement under theUniversity’s voluntary early retirementscheme, Professor Blake said.

The group included academic as well asgeneral staff; some are among the University’slongest serving staff members, and manyhave made enormous contributions to theinstitution, Professor Blake said.

Applications from other staff were still underconsideration, and it was expected that totalacceptances would exceed 50. Most of theearly retirees would leave the University earlyin the New Year.

"The staff renewal strategy will enable somestaff to retire early and will also involve theappointment of new staff in areas of strongstudent demand or in areas of identifiedresearch strength," Professor Blake said.

Among the initiatives announced by theVice-Chancellor was an expansion ofinternational activities in 2002, building onthe University’s position as the largestonshore provider of international educationin South Australia.

Currently around 1600 students from morethan 70 countries study at Adelaide University.

Continued Page 3

Securing the future:major initiativesannounced for 2002

Two scenes in the latest film to star Robert Carlyle (Hamish Macbeth, The Full Monty) havebeen shot at key locations at Adelaide University. Pictured above is Director Craig Lahiff(centre) discussing a scene in the Mitchell Building with actor Colin Friels. Turn to page 8 tolearn more about the film, and Adelaide University’s involvement.

Vice-Chancellor tackles budget issues

Lights, campus, action!

FOR the second year in a row, AdelaideUniversity is sponsoring the YouthLeadership Award as part of the SAYouth Awards Showcase.There are eight awards in total being offeredin the Showcase, which is an initiative ofParadise Community Services andsponsored by the South AustralianGovernment.

The Adelaide University Youth LeadershipAward is aimed at recognising theachievements of young people who havemade a significant contribution as a leaderwithin any sphere of their community.Those who nominate for the award willhave already reached the finals in anotheryouth award in the last two years, notnecessarily in this field.

Other award categories featured as part ofthe Showcase include youth achievement,youth and community service, naturalresources and environment, youth initiative,youth inspiration, sports, and the overallwinner, the South Australian Young Personof the Year.

Prizes include $2500 cash in each of theShowcase categories, and the overall winner will receive an additional $2500 cash plus an overseas travel package for two, flying Qantas and staying withNovotel.

Entry forms are available now, with entriesclosing on February 28, 2002.

For more information about entry detailscontact Paradise Community Services on(08) 8336 0066, or email: pcs@pcs.org.au.

Youth leadership supported

ADELAIDEANPAGE 2 DECEMBER 2001

Adelaidean

Room G07 Mitchell Building, South Australia, 5005.Tel (08) 8303 5174; Fax (08) 8303 4838; Email:david.ellis@adelaide.edu.au

Website: http://www.adelaide.edu.au/pr/publications/Adelaidean/

Material may be reproduced without permission butacknowledgement must be given to the Adelaidean.

EditorDavid Ellis

Layout Julie Ryke

Printed by Cadillac Color

WritersRob MorrisonBen OsborneJohn Drislane

ContributorsSheila BryceSharna PearceJane RussellLee Welch

AdvertisingExternal advertising is now handled by KRLMediaTel: +61 8 8231 5433Fax: +61 8 8212 1238 Email: info.krl@katron.com.au

G R A D U A T I O N SPRIZES FOR EXCELLENCE IN TEACHING

LIFE has come full circle for Stephen Colethe Elder 2001 teaching prize recipient, MrAnthony Pohl.As a teenager growing up in South Africa, hewas fortunate enough to able to satisfy hiscuriosity in medicine thanks to a friendlysurgeon, who once a week allowed Mr Pohlto watch him perform surgical procedures.Now, as Director of Orthopaedic Trauma atthe Royal Adelaide Hospital and seniorclinical lecturer in orthopaedics at AdelaideUniversity, Mr Pohl has in turn beenrecognised for his contribution as an educator.Mr Pohl came to Australia in 1978 to pursuean orthopaedic career after being educatedand working in South Africa, and said theway he was educated has had a significantbearing on the way he now teaches."I was fortunate enough that by the time Iwas able to go to medical school, I alreadyhad years of "hands-on", if you like,education in surgery by being able to watch avery good surgeon, and talk to him about

what he was doing," he said.

"With my Adelaide University medicalstudents, I like to be as open as I can, and usethe knowledge of what I and others haveexperienced throughout our careers to helpstudents better understand clinical conditionsand their management."

"I like to incorporate lots of examples and"for instances" in my teaching so students areaware of the real-life situations that occur."

"And wherever possible, I also like toincorporate the experiences of relevantmedical practitioners. I believe it is of greatvalue to be exposed to other people’sexperiences, particularly if they have been

working in the field for some time.

"Succinct summaries of principles ofmanagement in clinical medicine can savestudents a lot of time and unnecessary effortearly in their careers."

IT’S a hat-trick of success for AdelaideUniversity’s Department of Chemistry, withone of its staff members receiving a StephenCole the Elder Prize for excellence inteaching for the third consecutive year.

This year’s winner, Dr Simon Pyke, joins DrGeoff Crisp and Dr Mark Buntine as arecipient of the prestigious award.

Dr Pyke joined Adelaide in 1992, aftercompleting undergraduate and postgraduatecourses at the University of Sydney, andworking as a post-doctoral fellow in England.

Dr Pyke said Adelaide was his first serioustaste of teaching after being concernedmainly with research, and that he developedhis passion for teaching virtually straightaway.

"I hadn’t done much teaching before so Ilearnt an awful lot in a hurry," he said. "DavidWard and Geoff Crisp have been excellentmentors in that regard, encouraging me to trynew things.

"To me, students are really important to whatI do—they’re people, not just numbers. I tryto be as open with them as I can, to alwayshave time to talk to them if they would like todiscuss anything.

"The teaching style that I have developedencourages students to become active

learners—they just can’t sit there and besponges, they have to get involved and engagewith the material."I really enjoy getting involved with what thestudents are thinking and doing. I think thegreatest reward in teaching is seeing the pointwhere a student understands a new concept ormethod—that’s just a fantastic feeling."

Dr Pyke said it was a thrill just to benominated, as "I’m just doing my job".

"There’s been some terrific people that havereceived this award in the past, and to be inthe same company as them is a great honour,"he said.

—Ben Osborne

In August, the Adelaidean ran a feature ontwo of the four staff members to receive thisyear’s Stephen Cole the Elder Prizes forTeaching.The $5000 prizes recognise excellence inteaching, and nominations come from studentsand fellow staff members.As the prizes are normally presented duringgraduations, and with December graduationsnow approaching, we now welcome readers tothe remaining two winners of this year’steaching prizes:

Mr Anthony Pohl. Dr Simon Pyke.

MORE than 2300 Adelaide Universitystudents will this month attend one of thehighlights of the university year, theDecember graduation ceremonies.Nine ceremonies are being held this year, allat Bonython Hall. This year’s ceremonies arenoteworthy for the introduction of some newfeatures, including:• the singing of the national anthem as

part of each ceremony;• a graduand or thanking speaker, chosen

from the graduands from each of theceremonies, who will speak briefly afterthe main speaker to thank them for theirattendance and speech.

The dates, times and speakers for theDecember ceremonies are as follows:Friday, December 14, 10am: School ofMedicine, School of Dentistry. Speaker:Professor Basil Hetzel AC; graduandspeaker: Jane Chalmers.Friday, December 14, 3pm: School ofMathematical and Computer Sciences,Faculty of Agricultural and Natural ResourceSciences. Speaker: Professor Malcolm Oades;

graduand speaker: Brendan James King.

Monday, December 17, 10am: Faculty ofHumanities and Social Sciences (Familyname A-K, plus all Department of Educationcourses). Speaker: The Most ReverendPhillip Wilson DD JCL; graduand speaker:Henry Jones.

Monday, December 17, 3pm: Faculty ofHumanities and Social Sciences (Familyname L-Z, and all other courses excludingDepartment of Education courses). Speaker:Professor Fay Gale; graduand speaker: SusanLemar.

Tuesday, December 18, 10am: GraduateSchool of Management, School ofEconomics, Elder Conservatorium – Schoolof Performing Arts, and Australian MusicExamination Board. Speaker: ProfessorCharles Bodman Rae; graduand speaker:John Robert Crawford.

Tuesday, December 18, 3pm: School ofCommerce. Speaker: Mr Ross Adler AO;graduand speaker: Damien Arthur.

Wednesday, December 19, 10am: School ofEngineering. Speaker: Professor John

Simmons; graduand speaker: Vai Tak VictorWong.

Wednesday, December 19, 3pm: Faculty ofScience. Speaker: Professor Peter Rathjen;graduand speaker: Leonie Kay Heilbronn.

Thursday, December 20, 10am: School ofArchitecture, Landscape Architecture andUrban Design, and School of Law. Speaker:Professor Judith Brine; graduand speaker:Elysia Ryan.

This year, extra measures will be put in placeto counteract problems caused by possible hotweather, including selling bottled water priorto the ceremonies, and increasing the numberof ceremonies to ensure less people in the hallat any one ceremony.

—Ben Osborne

Graduation month is here!

The Uni Budget

The large cuts in the salariesbudget will have an adverseeffect on academic programs.Two justifications have been

proposed: enterprise bargaining and a lowstudent-staff ratio. I would find it easier tobelieve that enterprise bargaining was afactor if our salaries were much higher thanin other universities in this country, but it isnot so.

This brings us then to SSRs [student-staff ratios]. Our SSR is 14.7, which is

close to our GO8 comparators, all betweenabout 15 and 17, except for UWA which is14.4. Obviously, there are two ways toincrease the SSR. One is to reduce staff,which seems to be the favoured strategy atpresent. But there is another strategy, whichis to increase fully funded enrolments. Thisis not so implausible: the Government haspromised an extra 28,000 fully fundedplaces, and demand is well up across thesector.

A rise of just 1 point in our fully funded SSRwould generate well over $10m. Supposehowever that DETYA were to refuse, as theymight. Then the source of our oppression

would be revealed to be DETYA. Theywould be saying your SSR is too low but wewon't let you increase it by funding greaterstudent numbers: unless you get rid of staff wemay put in an administrator and sack staff foryou.

In that event there is the fall-back to thetried-and-true alternative of increasing over-quota enrolments. This is a sensible optionas long as the marginal cost of the extrastudent is less than what we get for suchenrolments. While eventually the marginalcost goes up due to overcrowding, back-of-the-envelope analysis suggests that we couldget away with it to a reasonable extent. It

wouldn't solve all our problems, perhaps, butit would help.

On another matter, there is the question ofamalgamating academic units. Time andagain this surfaces, and I am confident that Ispeak for the big majority of us when I saythat we are sick of constant reviews andproposals for change. We're not naive aboutthe issue, we've discussed it at length withcolleagues here and elsewhere, and thearguments for and against have beenrehearsed ad nauseam. It has been amplydemonstrated that there are no financialbenefits.

Continued Page 4

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

ADELAIDEAN DECEMBER 2001 PAGE 3

Rise in applications: studentsvote ‘yes’ to study at AdelaideADELAIDE University's reputation asthe premier university in South Australiahas been reinforced by the latest studentapplication figures, which show an almost30% increase in total preferences for 2002compared with this time last year.The figures, from SATAC (South AustralianTertiary Admissions Centre), show that thenumber of students who have put AdelaideUniversity as their first preference hasincreased by 14.4%, while the total number ofpreferences for Adelaide has jumped by29.5%."We believe there are many reasons for themarked improvement in applications," saidthe Executive Director of Student & StaffServices at Adelaide University, Ms SusanMacIntosh.

"The University has been responding tomarket demand by providing more flexibilityof study and new academic programsdesigned to meet students' needs, and thereare more places available in some programs.Double degree options are attracting manynew students.

"The Bachelor of Media, one of the newprograms, has received an excellent numberof applications, and the 239 first preferencesfor the Bachelor of Psychology (Honours)reflects the level of interest in the study ofPsychology at the University.

"Law at Adelaide continues to be a popularchoice among school leavers, withapplications almost double those of last year.

"We are also seeing a marked increase in thenumber of applications from non-schoolleavers, such as mature age students and thosetransferring from other tertiary institutions,"Ms MacIntosh said.

In many cases, students applying for universitystudy have been putting Adelaide as their first,second and third preference, showing a greatinterest in earning a degree from AdelaideUniversity regardless as to whether or not theyreceive their first preference.

"This shows a recognition by students thatAdelaide University is the place to study inSouth Australia, and that students areinterested in the wide range of high-qualitydegrees and other programs that we offer.They know that by earning a degree fromAdelaide University, their qualifications willbe recognised world wide," Ms MacIntoshsaid.

Students who wish to find out moreinformation about academic programs atAdelaide University can attend theInformation Evening on Wednesday, January2, 2002. There will be talks in Elder Hallabout academic programs and opportunitiesfor one-to-one counselling and advice in

Bonython Hall. This information eveningwill be vital for students in helping them withchoosing final preferences for application touniversity study.Some programs offered at AdelaideUniversity were not advertised in the SATACguide when students made their initialchoices for study. For instance, the Bachelorof Business Information Technology is nowopen to local applicants.For more information about study atAdelaide University, students can phone theStudent Centre on 8303 5208 or freecall1800 061 459 (country and interstatestudents only).

—David Ellis

Adelaide wins$25m in medicalresearch fundingADELAIDE University has emergedas the nation's biggest winner from thelatest round of medical researchfunding from the National Health &Medical Research Council(NHMRC).The University has secured more than$25.7 million in funding for 37 researchprojects—the best figure for anyAustralian university on a per capita basis.

The projects funded span the breadth anddepth of medical and health research at theUniversity, and range across thedepartments of dentistry, medicine,molecular biosciences, obstetrics andgynaecology, paediatrics, pathology,pharmacology, physiology, psychiatry,psychology, surgery, and across theteaching hospitals.

The success rate for Adelaide's fundingapplications for project grants was 33.0%,up from 24.8% last year and well above thenational average (just under 25%).

In actual dollar terms, Adelaide wasranked only behind Sydney andMelbourne universities, with Sydneyreceiving just 0.3% more funding thanAdelaide. However, on a per capita basisAdelaide received more funding than anyother university—its per capita fundingwas 80% above the average for otherGroup of Eight universities and 25% morethan the next closest university (UWA).

"This is an incredibly strong result forAdelaide University, and one thatcontinues to reflect the University'sposition as one of Australia's leadingnational research universities," said theVice-Chancellor, Professor Cliff Blake.

"For its size, Adelaide is doingtremendously well, and is showing the restof the nation that quality research of aninternational standing is being conductedhere."

Adelaide's successful research grantsincluded two major program grantstotalling more than $12 million. Thesetwo were among 16 announced nationallyby the NHMRC, and are:

• Understanding the Human Genome—researching a number of areas of thehuman genome linked to geneticallyinherited illnesses, such as epilepsy,some forms of intellectual impairment,and tumours (particularly breastcancer). The funding is $7.7m over fiveyears, awarded to Professor GrantSutherland (Paediatrics).

• The Early Origins of Adult Disease—looking at how certain factors inchildren, such as hormones that restrictgrowth before and soon after birth, canimpact on the development of diseaseslater in life (such as high bloodpressure, insulin resistance anddiabetes). The funding is more than$4.5m over five years, awarded toProfessor Jeffrey Robinson (Obstetrics& Gynaecology), Professor CarolineMcMillen (Physiology) and AssociateProfessor Julie Owens (Physiology).

Many other projects have also been funded(37 in total), including research intomethadone, fluoride, heart disease, sleeprhythms, premature delivery of babies,hormone replacement therapy, the nervoussystem, human jaw movements, childbehaviour problems, brain injury, bones,psychological trauma, cancers andhepatitis C.

"The diversity and depth of the researchprojects shows that there are many areas ofstrength within the University's faculties ofHealth Sciences and Science," ProfessorBlake said.

—David Ellis

A NEW Graduate School forpostgraduate research students will openat Adelaide University next year.The School, which will cater for postgraduateresearch students from across all Faculties,will build on the University's strengths as oneof Australia's foremost research and researchtraining institutions.

The Vice-Chancellor, Professor Cliff Blake, said the School would offer resourcesand services designed to meet the specialneeds of postgraduate research students as agroup.

"It will constitute a resource centre forpostgraduate students, a focal point forstudents and staff and will operate inpartnership with Faculties across theUniversity," Professor Blake said."Co-location of the core postgraduateadministrative and support functions within asingle School will provide a clear focus forresearch education within the institution. Itwill also ensure that our quality assuranceactivities are directed towards those prioritiesthat are consistent with the expectations of theFederal Government and the new QualityAssurance Agency."

Professor Blake said Adelaide University'sresearch strengths had been recognised yetagain this month in the latest round offunding from the National Health &Medical Research Council (NHMRC). [seeseparate story this page].Professor Blake said that the new GraduateSchool would sit within the portfolio of theDeputy Vice Chancellor (Research) andwould encompass all matters pertaining toresearch education, including management ofcontinuing students and postgraduatescholarships.

—John Drislane

New graduate school to boost research

From Page 1

The University’s Pro Vice-Chancellor(International) Professor Ian Young said all graduates today needed to work within an international environment, andinternational students had become anessential element of the life of modernUniversity campuses.

"The University intends to continue toexpand its international activities in order tofurther enrich student life andinternationalise the campus," ProfessorYoung said.

"To this end, the University is continuing todevelop collaborative relationships with anumber of partners throughout Asia.

Agreements have already been signed inSingapore and Malaysia and theseagreements will be expanded to Vietnam andIndonesia in 2002.

"The recently announced University Senior College will also provide an excitingnew pathway for international studentswishing to study at Adelaide University. TheCollege will provide a clearly focused pathfrom school to university for internationalstudents, thus overcoming the cultural and language difficulties faced by somestudents.

"Adelaide University prides itself on thesupport services provided to all its students,including career advice, course informationand general counselling. In the international

area, a comprehensive International StudentCentre has been established to supportstudents in areas as diverse as findingaccommodation, managing their studies andunderstanding cultural norms withinAustralia.

“In addition, the Centre for Professional andContinuing Education runs a series ofpreparatory English language programs,aimed at ensuring international students areadequately prepared for their studies.These various services are being coordinatedacross the University to ensure maximumsupport is provided to international students as they undertake their studies," hesaid.

—John Drislane

Major initiatives announced for University

ADELAIDEANPAGE 4 DECEMBER 2001

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Major capital works and facelift plannedADELAIDE University’s capital worksprogram for 2002 includes provision ofteaching facilities for the new ElderSchool of Music and completion of thenew School of Petroleum Engineeringand Management building at the NorthTerrace campus.The Elder School of Music, which will beheaded by the Elder Professor of Music,Professor Charles Bodman Rae, is beingcreated through the merger of the FlindersStreet School of Music and the ElderConservatorium. During 2002 and 2003, theSchulz, Hartley and Madley Buildings will beadapted to accommodate the increasedstudent and staff numbers. AdelaideUniversity will contribute $2 million to thecost of this work.

Construction of the new School of PetroleumEngineering and Management (supported by$25 million from Santos) is due to becompleted by June 2002. The School willenrol its first students next year. It will alsohouse the National Centre for PetroleumGeology and Geophysics and joint researchfacilities with the oil company Schlumberger.The completion of the School will open up anew boulevard and vista from Frome Street to

the Barr Smith Library doors, adding thefinal element to the Lower Level Sitedevelopment.A new Plant Biotechnology building at theWaite campus is one of the other majorcapital works planned for 2002. The $4.2million building will be shared by theUniversity, the South Australian Researchand Development Institute, and theAustralian Genomic Research Facility.

Other significant capital works planned fornext year include maintenance work athistoric Urrbrae House at the Waite Campus;and the start of the relocation to the PhysicsBuilding of the Centre for SubatomicStructure of Matter.

In addition, the University has injected anextra $500,000 into the buildingsmaintenance program, bringing to $1.5million the total amount available forbuilding maintenance over the next threeyears.Meanwhile, Adelaide University is backingthe North Terrace facelift plan, announcing aseries of improvements to link in with StateGovernment and Adelaide City Councilinitiatives.Improvements planned for the North Terrace

campus include:• new paving at the front of the University• opening up more views of historic

University buildings• replanting and additional seats along the

campus's North Terrace frontage• moving the bust of Sir Douglas Mawson

to a location more appropriate to its scale• moving the University carpark entrance

away from the Pulteney Streetintersection (in cooperation withAdelaide City Council and the StateGovernment).

The chairwoman of the Vice-Chancellor'scampus design panel, Professor Judith Brine,said the University had commissionedAdelaide architects Woods Bagot Pty Ltd todraw up a master plan for the campus. Shesaid this would ensure that improvementswere carried out in an orderly and consistentmanner and would fit with the vision ofNorth Terrace as a cultural boulevard."The University is working closely with theState Government and Adelaide CityCouncil," Professor Brine said."As well as the aesthetic considerations weare considering issues such as safety, both for

pedestrians and road users in the vicinity ofthe campus. Moving the University carparkentrance will make the NorthTerrace/Pulteney Street intersection muchsafer for pedestrians, including students fromthe new University Senior College who willbe crossing back and forth to classes."

—John Drislane

ADELAIDE University has establishedofficial links with Khon Kaen University(KKU), Thailand.Since its foundation in 1964 as part of adecentralised development plan for highereducation in Thailand, KKU has been theleading educational and research institutionin Northeastern Thailand.Located at the heart of the poorest and least-developed region in the country, theuniversity strives to prepare its students sothat they can make a positive and activecontribution to society. One of the majorresponsibilities of KKU is to serveapproximately 20 million people living in thenortheast, people whose per capita income isonly 40% of the national average.From small beginnings, KKU has grownenormously (the campus coversapproximately 900 hectares) and is todayhome to 17 faculties, three academic supportcentres and a research institute, and togetherwith Adelaide University is ranked within thetop 2.6% of 2000 Asian universities.KKU places a great deal of emphasis onacademic collaboration with overseasuniversities and institutions."We firmly believe in such exchange as ameans to improve mutual understanding

between Thailand and other countries," saidthe President of KKU, Professor PrinyaChindaprasirt."KKU’s commitment is not only to educateits students, but also to promote research andto carry out community work for the benefitof the local society."Adelaide’s links with the Thai universitystretch back more than 20 years, when threepostgraduate students from FlindersUniversity, Drs Ross Andrews and TrevorPetney (now at Adelaide and Germany) andAssociate Professor Rojchai Satrawaha (fromKKU), set in process foundations to achieveofficial South Australian/Thailand links ineducation and research. Dr Andrews, fromAdelaide’s Department of EnvironmentalBiology, has established at KKU reciprocalprograms and an international base for the"Pathogen Identification and DiagnosticsProgram" that he directs.During the past two years the sustained effortand focus by Dr Andrews and RojchaiStarawaha to realise their vision hasculminated in the signing of a Memorandumof Understanding (MOU) by AdelaideUniversity’s Vice-Chancellor, Professor CliffBlake, and Professor Prinya. This was madepossible thanks to the endorsement andsupport from Adelaide’s Pro-Vice Chancellor

(International), Professor Ian Young, and thepresident, deans and staff of five majorfaculties at KKU.

"What sets this MOU apart from the norm isthat it provides official links between the twouniversities and the mechanisms to activelypursue mutually beneficial programs acrossfive educational and research areas," DrAndrews said."These include postgraduate researchprograms, undergraduate programs, staffexchanges/training, specialist workshops andcollaborative research programs."This provides both universities with excitingopportunities to establish long-term links inmutually beneficial programs," he said.

The most immediate interaction is likely totake the form of students from KKU studyingtowards PhD degrees at Adelaide University.These students may either be fully enrolled atAdelaide or may be in joint PhD programs.

Adelaide’s links with quality universities indeveloping countries also provide thepotential for access to support from agencies,such as the Asia Development Bank, WorldBank and AusAid. This form of funding cansupport the research activities of bothinstitutions and assist the development ofThailand.

Building ties with a Thai university

5UV Radio Adelaide 101.5FM hasagain topped the awards at the nationalcommunity broadcasting conference,winning three awards at the recentevent in Hobart.The station won awards for:Excellence in music broadcasting—for twolive broadcasts from this year’sWomadelaide festival, networked to morethan 50 radio stations nationally.General excellence in music broadcasting—for the station’s wide-ranging featureprogram strategy, recognising a range ofspecial features made for local and nationalbroadcast and an innovative approach toproduction including multi-media, CD andinternet delivery.Excellence in spoken word broadcasting—for comprehensive coverage of the 2001Adelaide Festival of Ideas, in partnershipwith the Festival and the State Library ofSA.These awards followed hot on the heels ofa special commendation at the recent SAInstitute of Justice Awards for the 20-partseries "The Law Spot", and make a total ofeight national and State awards for RadioAdelaide in 2001."These awards cap off an exciting year forus, with our long-awaited conversion toFM in October and a raft of special eventsthroughout the year," said StationManager Ms Deborah Welch."What many of these awards recognise isthe capacity of our station to bring newsounds and ideas to our growing localaudience, and also to the huge nationalaudience out there listening to communityradio stations around the country."In December, Radio Adelaide willpremiere a new series, "Live at the Gov: 10brilliant concerts of Australian music",recorded at the Governor HindmarshHotel throughout 2001. The series kicksoff with prolific independent singer-songwriter Ed Kuepper on Saturday,December 8 at 6pm. Other artists to befeatured in the series include Renee Geyer,the Dave Graney Show and Jeff Lang, allat 6pm Saturday nights throughoutsummer on 101.5FM.

www.radio.adelaide.edu.au

More nationalawards for 5UVRadio Adelaide

LETTERS TO THE EDITORFrom Page 2

The issue of the university's finances shouldnot be linked with the issue ofamalgamation. Academic programs have tocontinue to run themselves, andamalgamation is a proven recipe for conflictbetween heterogeneous groups whostruggle to maintain the academic integrityof their programs. It is also bad for themorale of staff and students, particularlypostgraduates who want and needidentification with their professions.

The very recent Review of Structures whichlooked at this question did not attempt toamalgamate Departments into Schoolsagainst their wishes, and indeed warnedagainst erecting another tier ofadministration. In short, there is no waybut to respect academic disciplines with theautonomy to run their own programs.

Chris MortensenPhilosophy

Leggy

I refer to the picture on the front page ofthe November Adelaidean.

No wonder there is interest in the anatomyof that horse. It appears to have five legs.

Brian Fotheringham

ADELAIDEAN DECEMBER 2001 PAGE 5

Catch of the day: a sound solution for carp

European carp must be Australia’s mosthated fish. Introduced to the River Murrayabout 20 years ago, they have become such anenvironmental threat that they now bear thenickname of "river rabbits".

Carp are bottom feeders, stirring up mud,engulfing invertebrates in their large mouthsand dislodging weeds, which float to thesurface and die. This makes the fishparticularly troublesome in the shallowwaters of wetlands that border the river.

The Murray’s flow was always episodic, andthese wetlands periodically flooded anddrained—a natural cycle that promptednative trees to germinate and native birds andfish to breed. The erection of locks and weirsended that cycle, and the river is now a seriesof ponds. Only a fraction of its normal flowremains; its mouth has all but closed, andmany of its wetlands are now dustbowls.

Some, however, are being reclaimed. Riverwater is diverted to flood them artificially,then drained months later to simulatedroughts. But carp come with the water.

Some wetland access points are fitted withcarp screens, which admit only the smallest ofcarp (no larger than a human finger). Thesedie when the wetlands are drained and beforethey can grow large enough to causeproblems, but excluding carp meansexcluding most native fish as well. Othergates, built with larger mesh, admit largercarp.

Civil & Environmental Engineering studentsat Adelaide University have been researchinga series of deterrents which they hope mayselectively prevent carp from enteringwetlands under rehabilitation.

"We feel that we might be able to use one ofour deterrents to exclude or at least reducecarp movement into wetlands, and that oneof these behavioural methods might notaffect native fish so much," said Amy Ide, oneof the team of Honours students.The researchers are examining a range ofoptions, including light, sound, bubblecurtains and physical barriers. A giant flumein the department is flooded with water, andcarp introduced to it, their behaviour

monitored as each test is run."We found that light can be a barrier to carpmovement, and it has the potential to be abarrier to them moving into wetlands," Amysaid.So does sound. Through an underwaterspeaker the researchers subject the fish to arange of sounds."After testing frequencies from zero to athousand Hertz (cycles per second), we foundthat carp were deterred most by 20 Hertz,"said Nadine Kelly. "We think that maybenative fish won’t be deterred as much by thisfrequency, so it might prove to be a species-specific barrier," she said.

Tim Champion has been exploring theeffectiveness of bubble curtains. "These havebeen tried overseas with some success toprevent fish from entering the openings ofhydroelectric stations," said Tim.

"We thought we’d try to see how carpresponded to them, and they do seem to actas a deterrent to their movement."

Startle reactions among the carp showed thatthese deterrents are more effective when theyare turned on suddenly, rather than beingconstantly applied. They can also be usedtogether, and appear to enhance each other inrepelling carp. But bubble curtains, lightsand hydrophones rely on electricity, and their

effectiveness is limited in regions without apower supply.

The researchers were encouraged to find that,of all the deterrents, a simple low physicalbarrier proved the most effective, theprototype being nothing more sophisticatedthan chicken wire. A physical barrier’seffectiveness may well relate to the bottom-dwelling habit of carp, and be less of adeterrent to native fish which swim morefreely in open water. It is this demand forselectivity that makes the application of thesedeterrents so challenging.

The researchers have also been developing anelectronic detector that can register themovement of fish through a point of entry toa wetland. It consists of three electrodesrunning across the waterway. As a fish passesover them, the electric field between them isaffected, revealing the direction and speed ofa fish’s movement as a trace on a monitoringcomputer screen. A wave generator at oneend of the flume can even create choppyconditions for the trials.

"The detector lets us work out what time ofday or night fish are moving in and out ofthese wetland structures so that we can getbetter ideas of when, and at what time of year,to implement these control devices," saidJames Cox.

"We won’t want the devices to be turned onall the time, and there are going to beparticular periods when carp are moving. Ifwe can work out when those times are, wecan activate the deterrent devices then."

Using the detectors in conjunction with otherdevices, even to activate them, may proveespecially valuable where electricity supply islimited to the small output available frombatteries or solar devices.

"If we had these detectors just a smalldistance before the deterrent devices theycould be triggered to turn on and it mightstartle the fish more, as we saw with thebubble curtain," said James. "It worked a lotmore effectively if we turned it on just as thefish were approaching and, with a detector, itwould be quite simple to do thatautomatically. But we need to find that itdoesn’t have the same effect on native fish."

The work by these student researchersfeatures in a series on the Murray currentlyairing on Radio Adelaide, FM 101.5, and willbe in the first series of “Cutting Edge”, a newtelevision series to be broadcast throughoutAsia next year.

Left to right: James Cox, Tim Champion, Amy Ide and Nadine Kelly introduce carp to the testingtank to study how they are affected by different sound frequencies.

THE Adelaide branch of theCooperative Research Centre (CRC) forPlant-based Management of DrylandSalinity has been officially launched bythe Minister for Water Resources, MrMark Brindal.Based at the University’s Waite Campus, theCRC is a partnership between severalresearch institutes across southern Australia,including Primary Industries and ResourcesSA (PIRSA) and Adelaide University.The State Government has invested$700,000 in cash funding into the CRC,with a further $7 million in-kind supportthrough PIRSA. Adelaide University hasinvested $525,000 in cash support with afurther $3.7 million in in-kind support.Mr Brindal said salinity threatened up to 17million hectares of land across Australia,"but significantly for South Australians itimperils our very existence bycompromising our water resources"."Our State is making a significantinvestment in salinity management throughthe National Action Plan for Salinity andWater Quality—$100 million over sevenyears. That is on top of what we'recontributing to other ongoing projects such

as Murray Darling 2001 and saltinterception schemes."He said the CRC would play a vital role inimproving the understanding of how nativeplant systems controlled salinity beforeEuropean settlement. Information gainedwould be used to develop improvedagricultural systems, enabling farmers andland managers to better manage salinity."This is a substantial and exciting SouthAustralian investment," he said."The great thing about the CRC is that itbrings together such a vast array of scientifictalent from several academic disciplinesacross the nation to address many issues.We bring to the CRC the excellent SARDIfacilities and its staff, besides the prestigiousWaite and Roseworthy resources ofAdelaide University."In addition to its scientific work, the CRCwill be responsible for training many of thenext generation of technical experts andadvisers through graduate and post-graduate courses. The CRC will alsodevelop and encourage strong networksbetween scientists, farmers, land managersand government to ensure that technologytransfer is efficient and effective.

CRC to fight salinityINNOVATIVE solutions to researchand design problems were the order of theday for Mechanical Engineering studentsrecently.Fourth-year Mechanical and MechatronicEngineering students displayed projectssolving problems as defined by industry orengineering staff, with previous students’solutions having led to patentable systems.

The overall winners for 2001 were JeremyGlaros and Mark Hergott for their design ofan active vibration isolation unit for opticalapplications.

In second place were David Harvey andBenjamin Longstaff for their development ofa prosthetic arm, and third were JamesTelford and Daniel Tucker for their work ona RAAF P3 Orion multi-site repairassessment.

There were joint winners in the MechTestcategory of the exhibition: Kathrin Peter, BenTattersall and Tom Poole for their design, testand manufacture of a synthetic heel pad; andOwen Lucas and Karel Meeuwissen for theirdesign and construction of a thermoacousticdevice.

The Postgraduate Poster prize was awardedto Alasdair McLean.

Engineering students put to the test

Engineering students at Adelaide Universityare investigating methods of reducing carpnumbers in River Murray wetlands.

Science journalist Dr Rob Morrison reports onthe hi-tech and simple solutions to the "curse ofcarp".

ADELAIDEANPAGE 6 DECEMBER 2001

Summer School takes the witness stand

LEARNING how to provide expertevidence in court headlines the excitingline-up of 2002 Summer Schoolprograms at Adelaide University thissummer.Another feature of this year’s offerings is thebrand-new range of Community Courses, aswell as 65 other courses aimed at improvingpersonal and professional development.

Internationally regarded barrister IanFreckelton will present the Expert Evidencecourse over five days, detailing thegroundwork needed to be an expert witnessto the courts, as well as providing informationabout alternative dispute resolution.

Professor Freckelton is a barrister in full-timepractice, and is Vice-President of theInternational Institute of Forensic Studies at

Monash University’s Law Faculty.

The new range of Community Courses hassomething for everyone.

Aspiring writers will love the CreativeWriting course, no matter if they are abeginning or developed writer. Experiencedauthor Steve Evans will present a fun week ofhands-on activities, which includes a Writers’Week function at the 2002 Adelaide Festival.

The five-day drawing workshop TheGarden: Landscape Drawing will bring outthe artist in you—in your own garden! Usingthe garden as inspiration, participants willwork in the open air in a number of gardensaround Adelaide and Hahndorf, under thetutelage of painter David Reid. Differentphilosophies used by both Western andEastern artists in ordering the landscape will

be examined.

Since the terrorist attacks on September 11,the notion of Western democracy and valueshas been increasingly under the spotlight.Where have these ideas and values comefrom? The Great Books: Summer withSocrates course will examine the work ofsuch vaunted writers as Plato, Socrates, Kant,Dante and Voltaire, and the impact theirthinking has had on what we now know asthe Western World.Elizabeth I was one of the most interestingpeople to ever rule Britain—even becomingthe subject of a recent Hollywood filmstarring Australian Cate Blanchett. Find outthe truth about this complex person and thetimes she lived in with Sex, Politics and theSingle Queen: The Reign of Elizabeth I ofEngland, 1558-1603.

Don’t be caught out - becoming an expert witness takes some skill. Photo from Legally Blonde, courtesy of 20th Century Fox.

For more information about any of Adelaide University’s 2002 Summer School offerings please contact Professional and Continuing Educationon 8303 4777, email: pce@adelaide.edu.au, or visit Adelaide University’s website: www.adelaide.edu.au

Have you gotan enterprisingidea?THE Enterprise Education Group atAdelaide University is once againrunning its successful three-day NewVenture Feasibility Assessmentcourse as part of the University’sSummer School for 2002.This practical course is aimed at anyonewho wishes to pursue theirentrepreneurial spirit and assess thefeasibility of their own business ventureor self-employment opportunity.

The course is designed to assistentrepreneurs in increasing profits,market share and sales of new productsand services, while reducing the cost andtime needed to achieve success.

The course also provides a strongintroduction to the many issuessurrounding the establishment,management and growth of a newventure.

For those who have a strong interest indeveloping their entrepreneurial skills,the course also represents two unitstowards the University’s GraduateDiploma in Business Enterprise.

The new Postgraduate Education LoansScheme (PELS) can make studying moreaffordable than you think.

The feasibility assessment course now has a number of success stories to boastabout.

Previous students who have gone through this course, and havecompleted or are studying towards theGraduate Diploma in BusinessEnterprise, include:

• Ramy Azer (Papyrus Australia):an innovative paper-makingtechnology company that has securedgovernment research anddevelopment funding and $125,000from AusIndustry to commercialiseits technology.

• Pearl Field (Gorgeous Kid):developing contemporary popularmusic to help teach children with speech and communicationdifficulties has earned this SAentrepreneur and business partners$30,000 from the HewlettPackard/Adelaide UniversityEntrepreneurs Challenge.

• Leonie McKeon (Chinese Languageand Cultural Advice): providinglanguage and cultural consultancyservices to Australian businessesdealing with Chinese partners,and is now forging a strong path intothe Australian-Chinese educationsector.

• More than 20 businesses have beenestablished as a result of this courseand the Graduate Diploma inBusiness Enterprise.

If you have a burning ambition to create your own business, change career direction, or just want to explore your options, contact theEnterprise Education Group on (08)8303 3094, or email: shane.cheek@adelaide.edu.au, website: www.eeg.adelaide.edu.au

See the Adelaide University SummerSchool Brochure for more details.

A NEW workshop being held thissummer can help you gain a betterunderstanding of human behaviour.Aimed at anyone who wishes to improvetheir understanding of others andthemselves—especially practitioners,managers, or service providers who may needto solve problems that involvemisunderstandings or bias betweenindividuals or groups—the workshop is beingrun by Adelaide University anthropologistDr Jon Telfer from February 11-13, 2002."By understanding how ‘culture’ works, wecan appreciate and respond differently tovarious predicaments," Dr Telfer says."Comprehending ‘culture’ can increase ourinsight into the ways people and social groupswork, as well as the ways fears and desires can

become embedded in our lives throughcontexts such as museums.

"This interactive workshop provides anintroduction to the discipline ofanthropology and the idea of ‘difference’ (andsimilarity) between groups and persons. Bysystematically studying variations in socialand cultural characteristics, anthropologybuilds skills in discernment, formingperspectives and the analysis of socialsituations and phenomena. As well ashelping us understand others, we also cometo better understand ourselves."The workshop explains concepts that can bepractically applied in various work contexts,as well as enhancing appreciation in our livesas family members and citizens," he says.This interactive workshop will introduce

participants to media analysis, theappreciation of socio-cultural phenomena,the study of difference and conflict and somepatterns of everyday life that may surpriseyou.

Understanding others – and ourselves

OTHERS - ANDOURSELVES: FROMCULTURE TOANTHROPOLOGY11-13 FEBRUARY 20029.30am to 4.00pm

For more information contact Ms ColleenSolly on (08) 8303 5730, or email:colleen.solly@adelaide.edu.au

ADELAIDEAN DECEMBER 2001 PAGE 7

One tale to rulethem all and in thedarkness bind themAFTER the events of September 11, it’snot hard to imagine a world in whichthose who represent freedom anddemocracy are threatened by a source ofgreat power and evil.It’s a feeling that was shared, no doubt, bythose who lived through or were born duringWorld War Two, the people who were thefirst in history to read a book that many nowregard as one of the greatest stories everwritten.

Since its publication in 1954, The Lord of theRings by JRR Tolkien has endured as a tale ofheroism in a world of increasing darkness.Although a "fantasy", its themes of goodversus evil, the changing nature of the worldand heroism are still just as applicable toWestern society today as they were half acentury ago.

This month The Lord of the Rings, consideredthe grandfather of modern fantasy literature,comes to life on the silver screen. One fanlining up at the box office to buy a ticket willbe Adelaide University PhD student KerrieLe Lievre from the Department of English.

Tolkien’s novel plays a major role in Ms LeLievre’s PhD thesis, which examines anumber of "high fantasy" novels and thethemes common to them all. Her thesis istitled Worlds and Mirrors of Worlds, andexplores how fantasy writers use thesecondary worlds they create to critique andchallenge the dominant paradigms of modernWestern society, and to provide alternativemodels. The other novels dealt with are theEarthsea trilogy by Ursula K Le Guin andThe Riddle-masters’ Game by Patricia AMcKillip.

"I’m working on a close reading of the threehigh fantasy texts," Ms Le Lievre said."Because they’re all high fantasies, they’re allclosely related in terms of their structure andthe issues that they deal with, and there’s alsoa sense in which both Le Guin and McKillipcan be seen as writing back to Tolkien; theyboth took inspiration from The Lord of theRings and started thinking about it indifferent ways."

For the uninitiated, The Lord of the Rings isdivided into three books: The Fellowship of theRing, The Two Towers and The Return Of TheKing. The first of these will be seen oncinema screens around Australia fromDecember 26, with the others to follow in2002 and 2003.

Fellowship tells the tale of Frodo Baggins, aHobbit (about half the size of a normal man)who discovers he possesses a ring of greatpower. This ring is being sought after by theevil Sauron, a dark lord who hopes to ruleover all of Middle-Earth (the fictional"secondary world" created by Tolkien). Withhis friends and with the help of the wizardGandalf, Frodo leaves his home and seeks torid himself of the ring. He is then entrustedwith the mission of destroying the ring, andto do so he must enter the very heart ofdarkness itself: the land of Mordor whereSauron lives.

In its most basic form, The Lord of the Rings isa grand adventure, a tale of against-the-oddsheroism. But Tolkien has created a worldwith such depth that scholars like Kerrie LeLievre continue to search its text for themeand meaning. So strong was the influence ofTolkien’s novel that it can be seen again andagain in other works of fantasy, even in theHarry Potter novels by JK Rowling. Likethose novels, in its time The Lord of the Ringswas also a huge commercial success.

"I guess you could say it’s been a mixedblessing," said Ms Le Lievre.

"The first effect The Lord of the Rings had onthe general field of fantasy literature is that itseparated it from the body of mainstreamfiction. The precursors of Tolkien’s work,authors such as Lewis Carroll, WilliamMorris, Robert Louis Stevenson, wrotesomething that was generally called"romance", but it was also part of themainstream. There was no sense in whichStevenson’s romance writings wereconsidered different from his moremainstream or gothic writings.

"The Lord of the Rings was a massivecommercial success, and that meant that itstarted having imitators very quickly. Theimitators were published because peoplewanted to read more things like The Lord ofthe Rings, and they started being bracketedaway to this strand of publishing, ormarketing, which got labelled "fantasy".People started thinking of fantasy as onlythings that were roughly like the The Lord ofthe Rings, and that went on until it startedbecoming only things that were like The Lordof the Rings.

"The problem is that a lot of the imitationsweren’t the best; they tended to understandthe rough shape of Tolkien’s creation butmissed the subtleties and complexities thatTolkien built into it. The Lord of the Ringsdoes have a very replicable form, but itcombines that with a unique andextraordinary content that nobody has beenable to surpass," she said.

While Tolkien claimed that his work was notspecifically a retelling of World War One or,even more likely, World War Two, he is onrecord as saying the issues and themes dealtwith in his works were applicable to themodern world.

"Many of the issues that were current inTolkien’s day remain current today," Ms LeLievre said.

"Things like industrialisation—that wasdefinitely a big one. Mordor as a culture or asan image is very much to do withindustrialisation. There are also issues to dowith the environment, damage to theenvironment and how the world is changing because of the industrialisationprocess; with the changing nature of evil andhow that’s perceived in the world; with theneed for a different model of heroism, onethat doesn’t focus on a central hero butbecomes a shared sense of heroism; andrelated to that are the issues about our sense of community and a sharedresponsibility for the world.

"Tolkien's rethinking of the nature ofheroism in the modern world is one of themost important strands of The Lord of theRings," she said.

"A lot of his heroes look like old-fashionedepic heroes striding off into battle withswords and so forth, but really they’re not.Tolkien’s heroes are always collective, so thejourney into Mordor isn’t just about Frodo,it’s about Frodo, Sam and Gollum workingtogether as a unit. At the same time, theother strand of the story isn’t just aboutAragorn; although Aragorn is the hero hewouldn’t be able to function without Legolasand Gimli backing him up. And there aremany other characters added into the mix,each from different races of elves and men,dwarves and hobbits. So it’s not just anindividual who sets things right, it’s a groupof people who stand against an

incoming enemy or a moral wrong. They allplay an important role in the scheme ofthings, and without their collective effort theheroes, plural, would not win through to theend."

While the upcoming film of The Fellowship ofthe Ring will not have any bearing on Ms LeLievre’s thesis, like many Tolkien fans andscholars she is both enthusiastic and reservedabout her feelings on the film.

"I’m approaching it as though I’m going tosee a particular production of a play. When

you go to see a performance of Hamlet it’salways going to be somebody else’s Hamlet,not the one I have in my head. So if you seethe movie of The Lord of the Rings you’reseeing one interpretation of it.

"A lot of the changes that I’ve heard of [frombook to screen] seem to make sense accordingto the logic of film. I’m comfortable withwhat I know about the film so far, but I’msuspending judgement until I see the results,"she said.

—David Ellis

Gandalf (Sir Ian McKellen) examines the One Ring. From The Fellowship of the Ring, directed byPeter Jackson and released by New Line Cinema these holidays.

Kerrie Le Lievre with some of the fantasy novels she’s examining for her thesis. Photo: David Ellis.

ADELAIDEANPAGE 8 DECEMBER 2001

Carlyle on campus for racial injustice filmA FILM about the controversial trial ofan Aboriginal man charged with the rapeand murder of a country schoolgirl in the1950s will feature Adelaide University intwo key scenes.Rupert Maxwell Stuart was found guilty ofthe rape and murder of a Ceduna schoolgirland sentenced to hang. It was revealed that aconfession had been beaten out of him, andhis case was appealed all the way to the PrivyCouncil in London.

The film, with the working title Black AndWhite, is about efforts to establish Stuart’sinnocence. Currently shooting in and aroundAdelaide, it stars Robert Carlyle, mostfamous for his roles in Hamish Macbeth,Trainspotting and The Full Monty, as DavidO’Sullivan, an Irish-Catholic lawyer whocomes to Stuart’s defence. Also among thecast are Kerry Fox as O’Sullivan’s partner,Colin Friels as a sympathetic Catholic priest,and Ben Mendelsohn as a young RupertMurdoch.

The $7 million film is based on a screenplayby Louis Nowra and directed by CraigLahiff.

Two scenes have been shot at the University’sNorth Terrace Campus: one in the PhysicsBuilding, and another in the foyer of theMitchell Building.

The Physics shoot involved re-creating theoffice of linguist Dr Strehlow, who was ascholar of Aboriginal language and society.To carefully represent the era, the productioncompany’s Art Department enlisted the helpof the University’s Archives.

Helen Bruce, Archives Officer, was able tofurnish the film-makers with photographsand documents dating back to the 1950s and‘40s. These included photographs fromexpeditions to Aboriginal settlements, copiesof the minutes from academic meetings,reports from field trips, and even old copies ofTheatre Guild programmes.

Many of these items were carefully placedthroughout the ground-floor office thatdoubled as a movie set, adding a strong senseof 1950s realism. Aboriginal artefacts werealso used, representing some of the manyartefacts collected by Dr Strehlow in histravels. Some were in fact from Strehlow’sown collection.

In the Mitchell foyer, portraits of formerVice-Chancellors were taken down andreplaced with portraits of eminent figuresfrom the Catholic Church, transforming the building into the house of a Catholicbishop.

Prints from the Law School and furniturefrom the Waite Campus have also been usedto help recreate the era and establishauthenticity in other scenes filmed both onand off campus.

The Production Designer for Black And Whiteis Murray Picknett, a two-time winner of theAFI award (for Bootmen and Passion) whoseother projects include the controversial BlueMurder.

"Craig, the director, is from Adelaide, and sois the location manager, and he liked the lookof the University," Murray said. "Because thefilm is set in 1958 it narrows down what youcan use, and this particular building [thePhysics building] has really good corridors,real period corridors. And the rooms havegreat windows.

"Period movies are always interesting. Powerpoints, light fittings, everything has to beright. Light switches are the absolute bane ofour lives, and exit signs—and see the lock onthat door? We have to take that off and putfinger plates over it. You have to go to thatdetail otherwise it gives the game away," hesaid."With the Mitchell Building we had to findsomething that says Catholic Bishop, and it’sgot a sensational stained-glass window. Itsays religion instantly."

Art Director Sarah Gilligan said she enjoyedresearching Black And White, and found thatAdelaide University was closely involved inthe Max Stuart saga.

"Father Dixon, who was a priest [played byColin Friels], and Adelaide University gotvery involved in a campaign to actuallyquestion the judgement against Max Stuart.There were many meetings held at thisUniversity about the issue," she said.

Father Dixon and David O’Sullivan alsovisited the University to seek advice from DrStrehlow, who had been out of town duringthe initial court case. It’s this scene that wasfilmed in the Physics building.

Set Decorator Robert Webb praised theUniversity staff for their help during theproduction."Everyone has been fantastic. The Lawdepartment has helped us with a number ofprints, and the Archives, they were just sowilling to help us. We’re very grateful forthat. We’ve had some incredible restrictions on scheduling and we’ve had tomake last-minute changes, and theUniversity has been very accommodating," hesaid.

Anyone at the University inconvenienced by the filming should spare a thought for the people of Port Wakefield, one of thetowns used by the film-makers as a substitutefor Ceduna.

"We took over the town, but the locals werereally helpful, very friendly," Murray said."Except when we asked them to move theirTV aerials on Melbourne Cup Day. Theyweren’t very thrilled about that."

—David Ellis

The Black And White crew sets up a shot in the Mitchell Building, for a scene involving actorsColin Friels and Paul Sonkilla. Photo: David Ellis.

An office in the Physics Building is transformed into Dr Strehlow’s office in the 1950s.

GIFTED and exceptionally motivatedsecondary school students will benefitfrom an Adelaide University schemedesigned to give them a challenge beyondthe Year 12 curriculum.The Headstart Scholarship Program (orHSP) exempts successful applicants fromtuition fees for a half-year’s workload of first-year university study.

The main benefit of the scheme will be theextra challenge and stimulation provided byuniversity study, although HSP students willattend classes and sit examinations on thesame basis as other students.

Courses available to HSP students are basedin a wide range of faculties, includingCommerce, Economics, Humanities andSocial Sciences, Mathematical and ComputerSciences, Music and Science.Grades will be recorded, and can be used for

status if the student is later admitted to anacademic program. This will enable studentsto fast-track their academic program or takea wider range of courses than usual.

If a HSP student withdraws from a course atany time, or fails that course, this will notaffect their chances of university selection.No record of failure or withdrawal will beregistered on the University’s database.

Each HSP student will have a staff memberfrom their home school as a mentor. Thementor’s role will be to monitor the student’sprogress and act as a contact person linkingthe University to the student within theschool.

To be eligible for a HSP place in 2002,students should be completing SACE Stage2 or the International Baccalaureate (IB) atYear 12, with less than a full year’s workload.In addition, they must have attained certainscores for SACE Stage 2 or IB subjects

already undertaken. Applicants must also berecommended by their school principals.Applications are due by February 8, 2002.Only a limited number of places will beoffered, and each application will be assessedon its merits.HSP recipients do not have to pay any fees.For the purpose of their enrolment, they willbe recorded as non-award students and allcosts associated with their tuition will beabsorbed by the Faculty or School providingthe course they are studying.Upon enrolment, students will receive anAdelaide University Union Card whichprovides full borrowing rights at the BarrSmith Library and a range of services offeredby the AUU.For more information, or to obtain anapplication form, contact the ProspectiveStudents Office: Paula Ritchie on phone (08)8303 4379 or email <paula.ritchie@

adelaide.edu.au>, or Julie Hayford on phone(08) 8303 4204 or email <julie.hayford@adelaide.edu.au>.

Adelaide Uni gives Year 12 students a head start

ADELAIDEAN DECEMBER 2001 PAGE 9

Spineless invaders under the microscopeINVERTEBRATES are not everyone’sfavourite animals. Cockroaches andmosquitoes get a bad press, snails andslugs destroy gardens. A spider cantrigger a phobia while locusts were one ofthe biblical plagues.But invertebrates include oysters, prawns andcrayfish. Earthworms enrich our gardensand, just as the great food chains of the seaare based on tiny invertebrate plankton,insects and other small invertebrates providethe foundation for terrestrial ecosystems thatwould collapse without them.

Invertebrates will be the subject of the FifthInvertebrate Biodiversity and ConservationConference, to be held at AdelaideUniversity’s Waite Campus from December1-4. It will bring together leading nationalinvertebrate researchers as well as many fromoverseas.

The invertebrates are also extremelynumerous, both as individuals and species.They comprise more than 90% of speciesdiversity on the planet. Despite this, fewerthan 20% of their species have been formallyidentified and described, and more are beingdiscovered every day.

"Invertebrates, particularly the insects, arepart of our everyday lives, but most people donot know this," said Dr Andy Austin, fromthe University’s Department of Applied &Molecular Ecology. Dr Austin is also head of the organising committee andDirector of the Centre for EvolutionaryBiology and Biodiversity at AdelaideUniversity.

"On the one hand, they cause problems byspreading disease, eating crops and disruptingour social life at barbeques, yet they areresponsible for pollinating many plants,keeping the numbers of other animals andplants in check, and helping to create fertilesoil," he said.

While the conference will discuss importantacademic aspects of invertebrate classificationand biology, a significant part of it will dealwith the impact of invasive species. Thekeynote speaker, Dr Dennis O’Dowd, willpresent a paper on Invasional Meltdown—Lessons From Islands, which will reveal the

devastating impact of the ‘crazy ant’ on theecology of Christmas Island.

This is an extremely topical concern forAustralia, where the invasion of fire ants, firstreported in Queensland, now appears to havespread into New South Wales.

Other important invaders to be discussed atthe conference are marine organisms thatcome to Australia attached to ship hulls or intheir ballast water. These have the potential to cause millions of dollars worth ofdamage.

Special symposia will deal with invertebratebiodiversity in the arid zone and ephemeralwaters, the importance of habitatfragmentation, molecular tools used ininvertebrate conservation and invertebratelegislation and education.

"Rather than dealing with esoteric aspects ofinsects, spider and marine invertebrates, theconference will bring together many of thebest national and international researchers,"said Dr Austin.

"They are at the front line in trying to mangenumerous invasive invertebrate pests, as wellas conserve both the phenomenal biodiversityof invertebrate and the critical functions they

perform in all ecosystems."

The conference is being supported, and partlysponsored, by a number of important SouthAustralian organisations, including SARDI,SA National Parks, the SA Museum andWMC.

—Rob Morrison

Details of the full scientific program areavailable on the University’s website at:www.waite.adelaide.edu.au/bio2001/

Biology centre now anational benchmarkTWELVE months on, the Centre forEvolutionary Biology and Biodiversityis, according to Director Andy Austin,"poised to usher in a new era ofresearch collaboration".The centre has proven to be a greatattraction to the innovative joint SAMuseum—Adelaide Universityappointments, including ARC Fellows DrsMike Lee and Greg Rouse, fromQueensland and Sydney universitiesrespectively. Their expertise willsignificantly build on the research strengthsof Dr Austin and ARC Professorial FellowBob Hill at Adelaide University, andevolutionary biologists Drs SteveDonnellan, Steve Cooper, and MuseumDirector Tim Flannery, who also holds aprofessorship at the University. Apart fromhis ARC Fellowship, Professor Hill hasalso recently been appointed as the Head ofScience in the SA Museum.Dr Austin said Adelaide’s physicalgeography, with the SA Museum and theUniversity as neighbours on North Tce,had been a key factor in the developmentof the centre’s collaborative nature."We are now the benchmark nationally fordeveloping close working relationshipsbetween research institutions of this type,"he said."The over-arching mechanism of thecentre has enabled and encouraged thedevelopment of a critical mass of staff nowworking so closely together that soon itwill be difficult to tell who works for whichinstitution, rather they come together as ateam to work on specific projects."Dr Austin said this gathering of expertisehad put Adelaide at the forefront ofresearch in evolutionary biology."Almost overnight, Adelaide has becomethe pre-eminent centre for this area inAustralia," he said.

—Lee Welch

A stick insect.

Cave crickets.

Wasps on a nest.

A NEW program to help GPs andpatients better manage hypertension hasresulted in a national communicationsaward for Adelaide University'sDepartment of General Practice.The General Practice Department and itspartner Foundation Studios have received asilver 2001 Serif Award, Australia's leadingnational awards from the communicationsindustry.The annual awards are presented by theAustralian Institute of Communicators andthe Society of Business CommunicatorsAustralia, and recognise excellence ininnovation for professional communicationactivities.General Practice and Foundation Studiosworked jointly on a project called ADAGE,which provides a new approach to GPs andpatients dealing with hypertension.Chronic hypertension (high blood pressure)is a major public health problem that affectsup to 30% of people in Western nations.Around 44% of men and 52% of women agedbetween 65-69 years have high bloodpressure.

The ADAGE program encourages patientsto take charge of their own health, andprovides support for both doctors andpatients. It also reinforces the need for a

more systematic and managed approach tothe use of medication and lifestyle changes inorder to better help patients and to save costs.

ADAGE, developed with funding andsupport from four pharmaceutical companies(Astrazeneca, Aventis, Bayer and Pfizer)provides information to GPs and patients viathe internet and on CD-ROM. It alsoprovides information for other practitioners,such as nurses and dietitians.

"The project has developed a DiseaseManagement Program for hypertension witha sound theoretical foundation and based onbest practice," said Dr Justin Beilby, Head ofthe Department of General Practice.

"Such a program can only improve thequality of health care provided to patients,and helps to raise their awareness of theirown health."

Dr Deborah Turnbull, senior lecturer inGeneral Practice and co chief investigator ofthe project, said: "We are very pleased to behonoured with the Serif award. It is strongrecognition from the commercial arena forwork that we have done with industry. It alsohighlights how research and clinical expertisein our department can be applied to themedical profession and the wider communityto produce benefits for all."

—David Ellis

Hypertension projectwins silver Serif award

HOSTS are being sought for overseasstudents participating in 2-4 weekEnglish language and cultural exchangeprograms run by Professional andContinuing Education.Home stay is a crucial part of the success of the programs because students areactively involved in a family environmentand gain an understanding of the Australianlifestyle.Hosts may be single-parent families,couples with and without children, or

single people.Hosts are currently paid an honorarium tocover the costs of having a student in theirhome. The personal benefits of hosting anoverseas student are also significant, asmany host families have discovered.If you are interested in hosting an overseasstudent, know of someone who might be, orwould like more information, please contactSusan Boehm from Professional andContinuing Education on 8303 5236 orRebecca Glen on 8303 3344.

Hosts needed for students

1.00pm Friends of the State Library Talk:Speaker: Angela Heuzenroeder (Author/Teacher/Librarian). $6.60/ $5.50 Conc/$4.00 members.The Auditorium, rear of SA Art Gallery.

12noon Hanson Institute Seminar: Title tobe advised by Professor Perry Bartlett (Head,Neurobiology Group, The Walter & Eliza HallInstitute, Melbourne). Robson Lecture Theatre,Level 1, Eleanor Harrald Building, RAH.1.00pm Chemical Pathology Seminar:The effects of recombinant osteogenic protein-1on growth plate repair in a sheep model by MsBelinda Thomas (PhD student, OrthopaedicSurgery). The turnover of chondroitin sulphateby Mr Julian Adams (PhD student, MatrixBiology Unit). Semianr Room 1, 4th Floor,Reiger Building, WCH.

4.00pm Applied and Molecular EcologySeminar: A novel approach for theidentification of coagulation proteins in Galleriamellonella by Ms Dongmei Li (PhD finalseminar). McLeod Lecture Theatre, WaiteCampus.

11.30am Social Inquiry Seminar: TheMetropole as Antipodes: Australian Women inLondon and Constructing National Identity in theearly 20th century by Professor AngelaWoollacott (History, Case Western ReserveUniversity, USA). Seminar Room, Level 3, 10Pulteney Street.

1.00pm Microbiology & ImmunologySeminar: Title to be advised by ProfessorAmanda Goodman (School of BiologicalSciences, Flinders University). Room 102,Molecular Life Sciences Building.

12noon Hanson Institute Seminar:Scavenger receptor CD36 - control of expression and possible functions in lipidmetabolism by Associate Professor GrahamMayrhofer (Molecular Biosciences). Robson

Lecture Theatre, Level 1, Eleanor HarraldBuilding, Royal Adelaide Hospital.1.00pm Chemical Pathology Seminar: ABrief History of Coopers Brewery in SouthAustralia by Coopers Brewery. Seminar Room1, 4th Floor, Reiger Building, Women’s &Children’s Hospital.4.00pm Applied & Molecular EcologySeminar: St John’s what? The implications ofgenetic variation for biological control ofHypericum perforatum by Ms Gwen Mayo (PhDfinal seminar). McLeod Lecture Theatre, WaiteCampus.

1.00pm Centre for the MolecularGenetics of Development Seminar: Out ona limb: putting muscle and nerves in place byCatherine Krull (Division of Biological Sciences,University of Missouri). Room 102, MolecularLife Sciences Building.

ADELAIDEANPAGE 10 DECEMBER 2001

C O M I N G E V E N T SD e c e m b e r 2 0 0 1

WEDNESDAY 5 DECEMBER

THURSDAY 6 DECMEBER

FRIDAY 7 DECEMBER

MONDAY 10 DECEMBER

THURSDAY 13 DECEMBERFRIDAY 14 DECEMBER

G E N E R A LN O T I C E S

Christmas Cards

Copies of the University Christmas card are nowavailable ($2.25 each) from the Media,Marketing & Publications Unit. Method ofpayment is by internal transfer only. To order,please email Pue-San Ng <puesan.ng@adelaide.edu.au> with the internal transfercode of phone her on ext 36479.

FarewellsThe Department of Environmental Biologyinvites colleagues and friends of:

David ChristophelRuss SinclairMike Tyler

to attend a farewell function to be held onTuesday 18 December from 4.00 - 6.00pmat the Staff Club.

Nibbles will be provided and a cash bar isavailable.

RSVP: Bec Dunstan, ext 5576 or email<rebecca.dunstan@adelaide.edu.au> byFriday 7 December.

Adelaidean 2002 schedulepublication date printing/distribution editorial deadline(Monday) (Thursday) (Thursday)

FEBRUARYFebruary 4 January 31 January 24

MARCHMarch 4 February 28 February 21

APRILApril 2* March 28 March 21

MAYApril 29 April 26* April 18

JUNEJune 3 May 30 May 23

JULYJuly 1 June 27 June 20

AUGUSTAugust 5 August 1 July 25

SEPTEMBERSeptember 2 August 29 August 22

OCTOBERSeptember 30 September 26 September 19

NOVEMBERNovember 4 October 31 October 24

DECEMBERDecember 2 November 28 November 21

* April 1 and April 25 are public holidays. Official publication date of the April issue is April 2 (Tuesday) and the printingdate for the May issue is April 26 (Friday).

MORE than 10 years ago, theInvestigator Science and TechnologyCentre opened its doors at Wayville,Adelaide for the first time.Brain-child of Adelaide's Dr BarbaraHardy, AO, the Investigator has a mission"to establish and maintain a centre ofexcellence which will facilitate a spirit ofscientific enquiry and strengthen thetechnological and engineering capabilityand understanding of the community".Over the past 10 years more than onemillion people have visited the centre, there

have been more than 9250 school visits andmore than 50 exhibitions staged.Prestigious visitors have included Sir DavidAttenborough, Sir Jack Brabham, Sir MarkOliphant, Dr David Suzuki, Dr AndyThomas, Dr Alan Hale, David Malin, DrKathy Sykes, Dr Brian Gaensler and DrMamoru Mohri.Information about the centre andexhibitions can be found at:www.investigator.org.auAdelaide University is a key sponsor of theInvestigator Centre.

Investigator Centre celebrates10-year educational milestone

ADELAIDE University has launched anew gene technology resources website,providing vital information for staff andstudents involved in gene technologyeducation and research.The site explains the responsibilities ofresearchers and biosafety officers under newgovernment legislation and sets out some ofthe penalties for breaches. The aim of the siteis to make staff and students aware of theirobligations and the regulations governingthem.Regulation of gene technology in Australiahas changed from a system conducted by an

advisory body to one operated by aGovernment agency with wide powersbacked by legislation. This legislationprovides for increased public access toresearch in gene technology and geneticallymodified organisms.

Pictured here clicking on the site are theDeputy Vice-Chancellor (Research),Professor Edwina Cornish, and the Secretaryof the University’s Institutional BiosafetyCommittee, Mr John Perkins.

The website can be found at:www.adelaide.edu.au/VCO/staff/biosafety/index.html

Gene technology resources—just a click away

ADELAIDEAN DECEMBER 2001 PAGE 11

M S McLEOD RESEARCH FUNDPOSTGRADUATE STUDY AWARD

(PhD SCHOLARSHIP)As a result of a bequest from the estate of the late Murdoch Stanley McLeod, theWomen’s and Children’s Hospital has established the M.S. McLeod Research Fund.The purpose of this fund, in accordance with the wishes of the benefactor, is tosupport in perpetuity the furtherance of research in the field of paediatrics, andchild and youth health.

The Trustees of the M S McLeod Research Fund will fund a PhD scholarship at theWomen’s and Children’s Hospital, to be known as the M.S. McLeod Research FundPostgraduate Study Award, for a period of three years, commencing in 2002.Applications for this scholarship are invited from University graduates with anappropriate honours degree in science. Intending applicants should approach aDepartment of the Women’s and Children’s Hospital to discuss the proposed PhDtopic and programme of research.

The AWARD will be for three years from the date of commencement, with thepossibility of an extension for up to a further six months. The SALARY will beequivalent to the Australian Postgraduate Awards and Adelaide UniversityPostgraduate Scholarships for PhD students, commencing at $17,609 per annumin 2002.

FURTHER INFORMATION about this Award, including documents describingthe conditions of the Award and the application format, can be obtained from MsNikki Johnson, Research Secretariat,Women’s and Children’s Hospital [Telephone(08) 8161 6390, Facsimile (08) 8161 6112, E-mail: johnsonn@wch.sa.gov.au].

APPLICATIONS must be made in the prescribed format. Completed applications(four copies) should be forwarded to the Research Secretariat, Women’s andChildren’s Hospital, 72 King William Road, North Adelaide, S.A. by no later thanFriday 4 January, 2001.

The Trustees of the M.S. McLeod Research Fund reserve theright to make any enquiries of any person regarding anyapplicant’s suitability for this Award, not to grant the Award, orto grant the Award by invitation.

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Advertisement

Religion course puts understanding on the agendaHOW have religious beliefs and practicesshaped the concept of "Chineseness", andhow has being Chinese shaped people’sreligious beliefs and practices?Was it Buddhism that changed China orChina that changed Buddhism? IsConfucianism a religion? What is thereligious significance of yin and yang? IsFalun Gong an evil cult? Why do Chinesepeople worship their ancestors? Can ghoststurn corners? What is fengshui?

A new course called Religions of China,offered for the first time this semester, hasallowed students at Adelaide University totake a closer look at these and a range ofother questions and themes.

The course, run by the Centre for AsianStudies, introduces students to the basicpremises of the major traditions ofConfucianism, Daoism, Buddhism andChinese folk religions, by examining aspectsof Chinese religious theory and practice fromancient times until the present. The focus ison the unique assumptions that informChinese religious practice and how they haveinfluenced the development of Chinesesociety and culture.

Themes explored include, "shamans, monksand immortals", “ancestors", "ghosts","scripture and holy books", "drugs,immortality and meditation", "ritual", "secretsocieties, "sacred space and place", and"communism as a religion?"

The course has been taken by a wide cross-section of students, including thosestudying Asian Studies, Anthropology,Architecture, Classics, History, Law,Mathematics, Philosophy, Politics, andScience, as well as members of the wider

community. Religions of China is taught bya variety of methods, including temple visits and having representatives of localChinese religious communities givepresentations.

The first of these visits was from a Chinese Buddhist priest, the Venerable ShiJie Wen. A priest from the Zhu-Lin Temple in Ottoway, the Venerable’s talk wasgiven in Chinese and translated by coursecoordinator Dr John Makeham. His visit wasfollowed by a class excursion to the Zhu-LinTemple.

"After surveying the students' reaction to the course in the last workshop we found thatthe visit by the monk, our class visit to histemple and a visit by Falun Gongpractitioners were regarded as highlights by alarge number of students," Dr Makehamsaid.

"Some students found that the course greatlyincreased their understanding of Chinesesociety and culture and that this also helpedprovide a basis for comparing Australianreligious traditions in which they had grownup.

"One student claimed this process was quite revealing and served to strengthen herexisting faith. This comparison of Christian and Chinese beliefs also providedthe basis for animated class discussion," hesaid.

Dr Makeham said the course served a furtherpurpose than simply satisfying students’curiosity of Chinese religions.

"Well-founded knowledge of the religions of other peoples is invaluable for helping tominimise potential culturalmisunderstanding. An understanding of

other religious traditions (particularly thoseas exotic as Daoism, Confucianism, andforms of Chinese Buddhism) providesdifferent perspectives—often radically so anda degree of detachment from which to view

our cultural biases and how far we fall shortof our professed ideals."To borrow a popular Buddhist image, itprovides a mirror to reflect on our ownculture."

The Venerable Shi Jie Wen (centre) was a visitor to Adelaide University to give a talk to studentsas part of the new course in Chinese religions. Photo: Alyssa Sawyer.

ADELAIDE University has crowned anoutstanding year of researchachievements by winning a majorcollaborative award in the 2001 BusinessHigher Education Round Table(BEHRT) Awards.The awards promote research collaborationbetween industry and higher education.The Departments of Chemical Engineeringand Mechanical Engineering have beenhonoured, along with Adelaide company Fueland Combustion Technology (FCT), fortheir work on the development of advancedcombustion systems. The partnership hasbeen named winner of the BEHRT Awardfor Outstanding Research and Developmentinvolving a small-medium sized company anda program that has been in train for morethan five years.Researchers involved in the project wereresponsible for developing the fuelcombustion technology for the flame of the

Olympic torch as well as for the cauldronused at the 2000 Sydney Games.

Congratulating all of those involved, theDeputy Vice-Chancellor (Research),Professor Edwina Cornish, said it waspleasing to see such recognition for Adelaide’sresearch expertise.

"This year has also seen the establishment ofAdelaide Research and Innovation,combining the University research branchwith its commercial arm (formerly Luminis).The stronger links between our researchactivities and commercialistaion activities willopen up new opportunities for researchers,"she said.

"During the year we have also put in place arange of support strategies for early careerresearchers. The opening of a new GraduateSchool for postgraduate research studentsnext year promises to ensure that our strongfocus on research and research training ismaintained into the future."

Olympic team awarded forindustry-linked research

ADELAIDEANPAGE 12 DECEMBER 2001

A D E L A I D E A C H I E V E R SRecognition for suicide prevention

Dr Sheila Clark from theDepartment of GeneralPractice has received theprestigious Farberow Awardfrom the InternationalAssociation for SuicidePrevention.

The award is given "in recognition ofoutstanding contributions in the field ofbereavement and survivors after suicide", andis given for both research and clinical work.Dr Clark is an expert in grief and suicide andhas worked in the field since 1986, when shewas asked to help establish a support group inAdelaide for people bereaved through suicide.Her experiences led her to write a book, AfterSuicide: Help for the Bereaved, which has beenadopted by many suicide preventionprograms in Australia and overseas.Dr Clark has been actively involved in suicideprevention programs and has establishedsupport networks for those experiencinggrief, in particular the Grieflink websiteproject in 1998 and as a member of the KeepYourself Alive national educational program.She has published papers on suicide and griefin medical journals and co-authored achapter with Professor Bob Goldney in thenew International Handbook of Suicide andAttempted Suicide. A member of SuicidePrevention Australia and chairperson of theassociation’s bereavement stream, she hasrecently finished a term as president of theNational Association of Loss and Grief forSouth Australia. For the last three years DrClark has been a member of the SouthAustralian Suicide Prevention AdvisoryGroup, which advises the Minister forHuman Services.Dr Clark said the award was a great honour."I value the award because of the recognitionthat it gives to a previously neglected area ofhealth care," she said.

Awards recognise staff effortsDr Eileen Scott from the Department ofApplied & Molecular Ecology has beennamed Adelaide University’s Supervisor ofthe Year.The annual awards are made by thePostgraduate Students' Association inrecognition of excellence among those staffwho support the research and education ofpostgraduate students. Nominations for theawards are made by students and colleagues.While not all nominees can be winners, toreceive a nomination is an honour in itself.Lecturer of the Year went to Dr MargaretSecombe from Education. Dr Ray Petersonfrom the Medical Education Unit received aSpecial Commendation; particularly citedwas his care and attention to newinternational students.Mr Rikki Wilde, the President of the PGSA,awarded Dr Michael Thalbourne, a VisitingScholar in the Department of Psychology, thespecial President's Award for excellence insupervision.The General Staff Award was presented toMr Gordon Crabb, from Clinical &Experimental Pharmacology, who wasnominated by many postgraduate studentsfor "keeping the department functioning".There were many nominees for awards thisyear, and each were presented withcertificates by the Deputy Vice Chancellor(Research), Professor Edwina Cornish.

Computer vision takes the prizeComputer Science PhDstudent Darren Gawley hasbeen rewarded by Compaqfor the quality of his work inthe field of computer vision.Darren was one of a numberof postgraduate students to

present papers at the Cooperative ResearchCentre for Sensor Signal and InformationProcessing, Mawson Lakes. AdelaideUniversity is a partner in the CRC along withother universities, DSTO and industry.The winner of the PhD competition wasjudged based on the novelty and quality ofscientific content, the quality of theirpresentation, the appropriateness of deliveryto an audience of technical and non-technicalbackgrounds, and the evidence of potential forcommercialisation of their research project.Darren was chosen the winner from a strongfield. His topic, "Parameter Estimation forComputer Vision Models", has majorimplications for the accurate reconstructionof scenes from multiple images, and is findingincreasing application around the world invisual security and surveillance. The use ofmultiple cameras to enable a computer, orrobot, to better estimate distance and shapecould also have many applications in otherindustries—even in space.Darren’s prize was a hand-held computernotebook from Compaq.

Librarian elected to AcademyAdelaide University’s Librarian, Mr RayChoate, has been elected an HonoraryFellow of the Australian Academy of theHumanities.He was one of four outstanding scholarsnation-wide to become an Honorary Fellowto the Academy last month.Mr Choate has been the University’s Librariansince 1990 and has taken a leading role inpromoting books in Australian humanistic life.He has also played a prominent role in theAustralian Library Publishers’ society, of whichhe is the founder, and in fostering scholarlypublishing in Australia.

Public health teacher appointed togene technology board

Dr Neville Hicks, Reader inPublic Health, has beenappointed by theC o m m o n w e a l t hgovernment to serve on thenational Gene TechnologyEthics Committee.

Dr Hicks, who teaches graduate courses inPublic Health Policy and Public HealthEthics, said the publication of the ‘script oflife’ by the Human Genome Project raised anumber of questions for public health.

"There has been understandable excitementabout the science," he said, "but, perhaps, someover-excitement about its consequences."For example, the Chief CommonwealthMedical Officer has warned that the specifictherapies arising from the Human GenomeProject may be few and expensive—and theapplication of screening tests widespread andvery expensive."That is not a new problem," Dr Hicks said."The influence of genes relative toenvironment in human health may be ascontroversial in the 21st century as the claimsfor drug therapy, relative to clean water andpure food, were in the 20th century."Similarly, he said, "a language of eugenics,which ebbed and flowed during the 20thcentury, retains significant grip on the way inwhich some aspects of genetics are discussed,even now".Dr Hicks believes that "much of theargument, so far, has used religious orindividualist moral language: Should we playGod? Why can’t we have the kind of baby wewant? Similarly, some of the debate aboutgenetic modification of food plants andanimals has concentrated on property rights,to patents, to private profit from ‘commonuse’ genetic material, and so on"."Those are valid questions," he said, "butthere are also questions about how the costs

and benefits of new technologies are to bedistributed, what public costs or benefits willarise and how wide a political debate ispossible."Earlier this year Dr Hicks was AcademicAdviser to the Federation History of theCommonwealth Department of Health."That experience made me think again aboutwhat is important in health policy," he said,"and I’m excited about the new issues forpublic health ethics which work with thegene technology committee offers."

Physics and Maths medals toresearchers

Associate Professor TonyWilliams, from theDepartment of Physics &Mathematical Physics, hasbeen awarded the WalterBoas Medal for 2001 by theAustralian Institute ofPhysics.

The award is for research deemed by theawards committee to be "the most importantcontribution to physics" carried out inAustralia over the past four years.Dr Williams, who is the Deputy Director ofthe Special Research Centre for theSubatomic Structure of Matter (CSSM),received the medal for his work in subatomicphysics, in particular for advances inunderstanding of the quark and gluonsubstructure of matter."It is very pleasing to have this kind ofprofessional recognition for my work at theCentre over the past four years," Dr Williamssaid."It's also a great reflection on the quality ofwork being done here in Physics at AdelaideUniversity," he said.

Dr Williams’s research in theoreticalsubatomic physics requires a major effort inhigh-performance computing. This iscurrently being carried out using the Orionsupercomputer. He has recently becomeDirector of the Centre for High-Performance Computing and Applications(CHPCA). The CHPCA is a newly formedUniversity Research Centre aimed atfacilitating inter-disciplinary research usingadvanced supercomputers.

"The University is well-poised to develop amajor research strength in the application ofhigh-performance computing to cutting-edge scientific research," Dr Williams said.

"The advanced techniques are applied acrossmany fields of study and the resultinginterdisciplinary nature of the research effortis a major plus for all of us," he said.

Meanwhile, Dr Peter Bouwknegt, an ARCSenior Research Fellow also in theDepartment of Physics and MathematicalPhysics, has won the AustralianMathematical Society Medal for 2001. Thismeans that two researchers from the onedepartment have won both the Physics andMathematics medals in the same year—quitean achievement!

Life fellowship for architectProfessor Judith Brine, theUniversity’s Pro Vice-Chancellor, Special Projects,has been awarded a LifeFellowship to the RoyalAustralian Institute ofArchitects.

The citation for the life fellowship saidProfessor Brine’s life "has been one ofcontinued achievement and selflesscontribution to the profession and relateddisciplines, architectural education, and thecommunity through the agency of localgovernment".Professor Brine has held key positions in anumber of tertiary institutions in Australia

and overseas, and is regarded by manyarchitects as an early mentor."Her prolific output and industry areremarkable not just for volume but forquality, which is evidenced by the seniorpositions she has held in prestigiousuniversities and the demand for her servicesfrom government," the citation said.Professor Brine said she was very honouredto receive her life fellowship.

Music Council electionGraham Strahle has been elected to theMusic Council of Australia. He isrepresenting Music criticism/journalism onthe Council.Dr Strahle, a Visiting Research Fellow withthe Elder Conservatorium, is the Adelaidemusic critic for The Australian and alsowrites regularly for the Adelaide Review.The Music Council of Australia is a peakmusic organisation for Australian music,representing various styles of music and themany categories of activity surrounding thesestyles: performance, composition,presentation, recording, publishing,broadcasting, education, musicology,criticism, copyright, and others. It seeks toaccelerate and enhance the development ofAustralian musical life by buildingcommunications and cooperation within themusic community and by advocating itsinterests to decision-makers and the widernational and international community.

Kym off to CambridgeLaw graduate Kym Taylorhas been awarded aChevening Scholarship tostudy the Master of Laws atCambridge University.

The Chevening ScholarshipsProgram is financed by the

British Foreign and Commonwealth Office.Administered by the British Council, theprogram offers outstanding graduates andyoung professionals ("the future leadershipgeneration") the opportunity to study atBritish universities.

Ms Taylor, who until recently was working asa solicitor at Wallmans Lawyers, decided toundertake the Masters degree to further herknowledge of human rights and internationallaw."I greatly enjoyed studying Arts and Law atAdelaide University," Ms Taylor said.

"My studies and involvement in studentrepresentation sparked my interest in law andjustice, in particular the rights of thedisadvantaged. Studying at Cambridgeprovides me with an invaluable opportunityto learn more about human rights. InAustralia, human rights issues such as illegalimmigrants and refugees are becomingincreasingly important and I hope that whatI learn overseas I will be able to use to helpaddress problems at home."Upon completing her studies at Cambridge,Ms Taylor hopes to utilise a grant she hasbeen awarded by the Foundation of YoungAustralians to undertake an unpaidinternship with a non-governmentalorganisation working in the area of humanrights.

Ms Taylor studied at Adelaide Universityfrom 1993 to 1999 obtaining a Bachelor ofArts and Bachelor of Laws (Hons). She wasPresident of the Students’ Association in1996 and a member of University Councilfrom 1997-1998. She was Associate to theHonourable Justice Duggan in the SupremeCourt of South Australia before joiningWallmans Lawyers.

Further information on the Foundation forYoung Australians or the CheveningScholarships can be found at the followingwebsites: http://chevening.fco.gov.uk, andhttp://www.youngaustralians.org.

ADELAIDEAN DECEMBER 2001 PAGE 13

New approach to prevent brain drainADELAIDE University is the firstuniversity in Australia to establish its ownResearch Staff Association—anorganisation that not only gives staff avoice, but could also help stem the "braindrain" from South Australia.The Research Staff Association (RSA) wasestablished to fulfil the needs of researchstaff.Research staff are often "forgotten" withinany university; they take on much of theresearch work but many are not tenured andtherefore have less security than otheracademic staff. The tasks handled byresearch staff are many and varied: theyconduct research, supervise postgraduatestudents, teach, write papers, and writefunding applications for research."Research staff are the people who make thisplace work, with new, fresh ideas," said DrNicole Morcom, a member of the RSAworking party.Dr Morcom is a postdoctoral staff member inthe Department of Geographical &Environmental Studies. Her research wasfeatured in a profile in the May issue of theAdelaidean this year."The aim of the RSA is to improve the careerprospects of all Adelaide research staff. Eventhough we are considered academic staff, weare not tenured staff, and that makes oursituation precarious," Dr Morcom said."A number of us thought that research staff

at the University needed a voice and neededto come together to discuss common issues".Not only is the association unique amongAustralian universities, "it's also uniquebecause the University is supporting it", DrMorcom said. "We are in regularcommunication with the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research), Edwina Cornish[who officially launched the RSA in August],and with the Director of the ResearchBranch, Janet Dibb-Smith, both of whomhave offered great support to our efforts."Membership of the RSA includes more than100 of the 250 or so research staff at theUniversity, who range across all faculties andacross all campuses."The networking has been very beneficial,"Dr Morcom said. "It gives us a chance toshare information and hold seminars on, forinstance, early career advice, job security,grant applications, and other things ofinterest to our members."Dr Morcom believes the association couldhave another spin-off for the University: byhelping to prevent the "brain drain" ofresearch staff to overseas or other universities."One of the issues that always comes up indiscussions about researchers taking up otheropportunities is that, provided they'resatisfied in their work here, most of them arenot going to chase jobs overseas," DrMorcom said."The Research Staff Association helps to

provide a level of satisfaction for researchstaff and helps them to feel more involved,not just within their own departments but ata University-wide level. Hopefully we willsee that having some impact on staff whodecide to remain here in South Australia."

Dr Nicole Morcom. Photo: Ben Osborne.

For more information about the RSA, contactDr Nicole Morcom on (08) 8303 3795 or email: nicole.morcom@adelaide.edu.au, or check out the RSA web site:www.adelaide.edu.au/RSA.

DISTINGUISHED economist andauthor Hugh Stretton, in associationwith the Don Dunstan Foundation, willthis month launch a new book on leftpolitics, Left Directions: Is There a ThirdWay?Edited by Adelaide University AssociateProfessors Paul Nursey-Bray and CarolBacchi, the book explores the debate aboutthe Third Way within the Australian context.The Third Way idea came to prominencewith the victory of Tony Blair in the UnitedKingdom, and emerged out of the new typeof thinking by the left of British politics post-Thatcher. It advocates a middle passage,between a commitment to a socialist concernfor equality and community and anacceptance of capitalist market society andprivate property as the basis for liberal

democratic freedoms.Tony Blair was inspired in part by theAustralian Labor governments of BobHawke and Paul Keating and he made anumber of visits to Australia and helddiscussions with members of the AustralianLabor Party.Australian proponents of the Third Wayargue that it is now time for Australia todebate the issues engendered by aconsideration of Third Way politics.Left Directions: Is There a Third Way?canvasses the arguments of prominent ThirdWay proponents, including politicians MarkLatham and Geoff Gallop, and presents a

series of critical responses to it.The impetus for the book came from aconference on the theme of 'Left Directions'held at Adelaide University in 1999,sponsored by the Politics Department andthe Don Dunstan Foundation.The Foundation sponsors projects like 'LeftDirections' to foster more widespreaddiscussion of issues influencing public policy,by facilitating exchanges between theacademic community, policy-makers and thewider community.Left Directions: Is There a Third Way? ispublished by the University of WesternAustralia Press. It will be launched at5.30pm on Thursday, December 6, AdelaideUniversity Staff Club, North TerraceCampus, Adelaide.

—Jane RussellDon Dunstan Foundation

New book: is there a Third Way?

DR TÜRKER obtained his Bachelorof Dental Surgery (BDS) from theFaculty of Dentistry, AegeanUniversity (Izmir, Turkey) in 1973and PhD from the Institute ofPhysiology, Glasgow University in1978.He was a Lecturer at HecettepeUniversity (Ankara, Turkey) for four yearsand was conferred a Doçent degree(similar to DSc) from the TurkishUniversities Commission.

In March 1983 he took up the position ofResearch Associate with Dr TimothyMiles in the Department of Physiology,Adelaide University.

Dr Türker subsequently became aResearch Officer, and eventually SeniorResearch Officer in that department.

In January 1991 he was appointed aNational Health and Medical ResearchCouncil (NHMRC) Research Fellow inPhysiology, which enabled him to set uphis own laboratory in the PhysiologyDepartment.

Dr Türker has established himself as oneof the leading researchers in the field ofcontrol of human muscles in general andcontrol of human mastication inparticular.

He has made significant breakthroughs for normalising reflexmeasurement in human subjects, and has recently worked out a way to estimate the profile of the synapticpotentials in motoneurons in humanvolunteers, which was not possiblepreviously.

Acknowledging the advancements he has achieved in the area of humanmotor control, Dr Türker has beenregularly invited as key speaker atinternational conferences and symposia.

POSTDOCPROFILE

Dr Kemal Türker (Physiology)

$22 million for Whyalla and the regionADELAIDE University and theUniversity of South Australia havesecured funding totalling $22 millionover the next five years for the SouthAustralian Centre for Rural andRemote Health (SACRRH) and theAdelaide University Rural ClinicalSchool, based in Whyalla.Centre Director Professor DavidWilkinson said a new contract valued at$7.5 million over the next five years hadbeen secured from the Federal Departmentof Health and Aged Care for SACRRH,allowing it to continue the work started in1998.

"The contract secures around 20 jobs andensures several major project initiatives willcontinue," Professor Wilkinson said.

"These include recruitment of rural doctorsin partnership with the state workforceagency; development of new models ofrural medical practices run by theUniversity (such as those in Whyalla,

Coober Pedy and Ceduna); and a multi-siteprogram developing novel models ofchronic disease self-management."

In addition, a contract valued at $ 2.5million per year for five years (totallingalmost $13.5 million) has been secured forthe new Rural Clinical School. The Schoolwill be based in Whyalla but will also havelearning centres in Port Augusta, PortPirie, the Yorke Peninsula, BoolerooCentre, Coober Pedy and Ceduna.

Already substantial capital works have beencompleted on the Whyalla Campus of theUniversity of South Australia and theWhyalla Hospital, with new offices andstudent learning space developed.

Major new information technologyinfrastructure has been established, andseveral new jobs created. A $1 millioncontract to refurbish offices, studentlearning space, and accommodation hasbeen signed, and work will begin in alllearning centres in the next few months.

The Rural Clinical School will providesubstantial clinical training for AdelaideUniversity medical students in generalpractice, obstetrics, surgery, medicine,paediatrics and Aboriginal Health.Students will go to the country for severalweeks on clinical placement.

Through SACRRH, students in nursing,pharmacy and allied health disciplines suchas physiotherapy and podiatry will also goto the country on placement.

The Centre will continue its wide range ofprojects in partnership with manycommunity groups and professionalorganisations. To date, these projects havegenerated $6 million in grant income forthe region.

For organisational reasons, the twouniversities have now created the SpencerGulf Rural Health School, comprisingSACRRH and the Rural Clinical School.

—John Drislane

ADELAIDEANPAGE 14 DECEMBER 2001

National and international recognition in any area ofexpertise can attract many opportunities for those who areable to present and promote their work with style andprofessionalism. And what better backdrop is there thanthe attractions of Adelaide’s internationally renownedentertainment, food and wine regions?

Which is why the Adelaide Convention & TourismAuthority (ACTA) provides free assistance through itsUniversity Project to attract and stage outstandingconferences. Our services include:

• Preparation of proposals to attractregional, national and internationalconferences to South Australia;

• Conference facilities, venue andcatering advice;

• Videos, posters and brochures forpublicity, delegate satchels andconference promotion;

• Conference budgeting, organisationand planning advice;

• Intensive conference training throughthe “Essential conference organiser’sworkshop”, held each quarter.

The opportunity to successfully promote your expertise andresearch to industry, government and the community willalways be important.With our local knowledge and an idealsetting to help, you will be able to focus on what you do best.

Find out more by contacting ACTA’s UniversityProject on (08) 8303 2333 or uni@acta.com.auAdelaide Convention and Tourism AuthorityLevel 2, 18 King William St, Adelaide SA 5000Phone +61 8 8303 2333Facsimile +61 8 8303 2355http://www.visit.adelaide.on.net

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Music ensemble prepares for world stageTHERE'S high praise from some of theworld's leading music figures forAdelaide's Elder New Music Ensemble.The ensemble, which comprises studentperformers conducted by ElderConservatorium senior lecturer Mr GrahameDudley, featured recently at this year's BarossaMusic Festival.The ensemble was the resident group ofperformers at the Barossa Festival, and wasled in a major concert by guest conductorLorraine Vaillancourt.Ms Vaillancourt is the director of Montreal'sNouvel Ensemble Moderne (NEM) and isone of the world's most respected figures inthe field of new music. Her role with themusic festival came about as part of anongoing collaboration with Mr Dudley.

She had nothing but praise for the Adelaidestudents, and compared them with her ownensemble.

"The students were so very giving; we workedvery hard, but when you are generous yougive it your best. I was so happy to work withthe students. NEM is really working withthis kind of spirit. It is hard to find in theprofessional world this same willingness; toooften professional musicians have a lazyattitude, especially with new music," MsVaillancourt said.

"When you work with young people like thisthey are willing to try—they trust the musicand the composer. The challenge is to findprofessionals still able to do that, so it wasnice to have that with these students, to workhard, to push things as far as possible, butalways having fun. They respond to that."

Because of the number of performances theywere involved in, and with rehearsals,sometimes the Elder New Music Ensemblewas playing and performing for many hourswith few breaks."It was quite demanding on them," MsVaillancourt said. "The repertoire was alsoquite demanding, but they accepted it andpushed the limits, and when you do that and

everybody's doing that, you can feel it in themusic."So much that is being played today is somediocre, but here everybody was challengingthe others at the same time, and the studentsrealised that they can go over their limits."Mr Dudley said the experience for thestudents was tremendous."In the time they spent with Lorraine, theyspent as many hours with her as they havewith me for the whole year. And eight weeksbefore she came we were doing preparatorywork, so they have had a wealth of experiencefrom it," he said.Ms Vaillancourt went so far as to say that theElder New Music Ensemble is a betterensemble than some professional ones she'sseen and worked with."It's a very special experience working withyoung people like this. It went very wellbecause of their attitude and because theywanted to be the best," she said.More praise has come for the Adelaideensemble, in the form of an invitation fromworld-renowned composer Sir Peter MaxwellDavies. A former teacher at AdelaideUniversity and now a colleague of GrahameDudley, Max Davies was so impressed withthe ensemble's work at the Barossa MusicFestival last year that he composed a piece forthem. He has extended an invitation to theensemble to his annual St Magnus Festival inOrkney, Scotland, in June next year."That invitation means quite a lot to thestudents, because they are in esteemedcompany in being invited to play at the StMagnus Festival," Mr Dudley said.The Helpmann Academy will next yearorganise a fundraising concert for the ElderNew Music Ensemble to help pay for thestudents’ trip to Scotland. Mr Dudley said hewould also welcome donations from interestedmembers of the public and organisations.For more information phone Libby Raupach atthe Helpmann Academy on (08) 8463 5013.

—David Ellis

The director of Montreal’s Nouvel Ensemble Moderne, Lorraine Vaillancourt (centre) with GrahameDudley (far right) and the Elder New Music Ensemble at this year’s Barossa Music Festival.

...and at last year’s Barossa festival, with leading composer Max Davies (centre). Photo courtesyof Chateau Yaldara.

AT THE start of the year, the Adelaideanran a story about plans to deliver onlineeducational material in 2002.That vision is now taking a step closer toreality.MyUni is the name given to the entry pointto online learning at Adelaide University.MyUni provides students and staff withaccess to course materials, discussionforums, announcements, online assessmentand many other features to help managestudy or teaching.

The trial period for MyUni is nearingcompletion, and the Online Learning and

Teaching Unit and Project Plato are lookingto a full implementation in 2002.There will be an entry in MyUni for allcourses with enrolments by the start ofSemester 1, 2002. This will enable all staff tohave a managed email list for their courses inorder to facilitate communication and anannouncement page for important reminders.Staff can also use additional featuresavailable in MyUni. Training sessions forstaff are scheduled for December, withothers planned for January and February.More information about MyUni will beavailable in the Adelaidean and online inInside Adelaide next year.

AT A TIME of renewed controversy overAustralia’s federal finances, a new studyof the history and future of Australia’sfederal finance system has beenpublished.The study argues that some recent criticismsof Australia’s federal financial system aremisplaced.

Called Financing the Federation, the studywas published by the South AustralianCentre for Economic Studies and written byJim Hancock (an economist at the centre)and Julie Smith (a tax historian at theAustralia Institute and the Research Schoolof Social Sciences at ANU). It wascommissioned by the South AustralianDepartment of Treasury and Finance as itscontribution to the Centenary of Federation.

"Two features of Australia's federal financialsystem stand out in contrast to othernations," said Mr Hancock

"The first is that unavoidable differences inthe financial capacities of State Governmentsare offset by the distribution ofCommonwealth grants (otherwise known as"fiscal equalisation") and the second is a highdegree of State Government reliance onCommonwealth grants.

"These features have attracted criticism in thepublic debate, but our report shows thatmuch of the criticism is unfounded," he said.

"There has long been a view in official circlesthat fiscal equalisation has merit on groundsof equity and in the interests of viability of all

the States. And indeed this has beenreflected in the fiscal equalisation processesthe Commonwealth has operated since the1930s. However, an important conclusion ofthis study is that there is also a strongefficiency case for fiscal equalisation."

Mr Hancock goes on to argue that the largevolume of Commonwealth grants to theStates is not likely to seriously undermine theaccountability of State Governments.

"The reality is that the existing structurerequires that, at the margin, States fund theirown discretionary spending decisions dollar-for-dollar from their own revenue or savingsefforts."

However, they say some reforms to theallocation of taxation powers are still worthconsideration, "such as giving the Statesmodest access to the income tax base,including some capacity to vary the tax takeaccording to State priorities".Julie Smith explains the origins and evolutionof the federal finance system to 1970. Sheshows that the framers of Australia’sConstitution deliberately provided flexibilityto deal with the different economic andbudgetary circumstances of the federatingStates."Fiscal equalisation was not, as some wouldhave it, a compensation for uneven impact ofAustralia’s now defunct protective tariff.Rather the system was to protect ourfledgling nation against political andfinancial instability due to excessivegeographic economic disparities."

Call to preserve strengthsof federal financial system

Online learning a step closer at MyUni

ADELAIDEAN DECEMBER 2001 PAGE 15

Chance meeting, renewed contact for alumnusIAN WING is one of those AdelaideUniversity graduates whose job hasimportant spin-offs for Adelaide and thenation.Mr Wing, who graduated in 1973 with aBachelor of Economics with Honours, is theSenior Trade Commissioner - USA with theAustralian Embassy in Washington DC. Hisduties involve helping Australian companiesto win export business and generateinvestment for Australia.

He remembers his studies at Adelaide fondly,and was reminded of them again earlier thisyear when he happened to meet theUniversity’s delegation at the Bio2001biotech convention in the United States.

"I was very surprised and at the same timevery pleased to see Adelaide Universityrepresented at Bio2001," Mr Wing said. "Itwas good to see the University reaching outand pushing its expertise commercially at theconference."One of the Adelaide delegates, Ms JanetDibb-Smith, Director of Research Policy andSupport with the newly formed AdelaideResearch & Innovation (ARI), hasmaintained links with Mr Wing and met

with him again on his recent trip to Adelaide.Mr Wing said he enjoys walking through theUniversity’s North Terrace Campus wheneverhe comes back to Adelaide."I made a lot of friends here and it’s always agood feeling to be back on campus. Thegrounds haven’t really changed that much,but obviously there are major changes at thisuniversity, as in many other universities, incommercialising research," he said.Although Mr Wing’s own children haveattended universities in the United States,"it’s just a matter of geography"."If I’d still been living in Adelaide I wouldhave sent my kids here, because the goodquality of the education, the rigour anddiscipline of study compares very favourablywith universities in the US," he said.Mr Wing, like many, has been affected by theterrorist attacks in New York andWashington on September 11. He said themood in Washington was "subdued, butthere’s also determination there"."Many people have become security-aware,but the reaction of most is very consistentwith the US spirit—in some ways it’s broughtout the best in the community," he said. Mr Ian Wing. Photo: David Ellis.

THE 1951 Golden JubileeCommemoration Ceremony was held inBonython Hall on Friday, October 19 tohonour those graduates celebrating the50th anniversary since graduation fromAdelaide University.The ceremony was set to reflect a similarformat to that of the original graduationceremony in held in 1951.This was the 15th Golden JubileeCommemoration, the first having been heldin 1986 to coincide with the 50th anniversaryof the opening of Bonython Hall. Seventy-eight graduates travelled from overseas andinterstate, as well as many parts of SouthAustralia, to attend the event.

Guest speaker at the commemorationceremony was fellow 1951 graduate Dr Rex JLipman, who received a Bachelor Degree inDentistry from Adelaide University and is awell-known member of the Adelaidecommunity. The Golden Jubilee celebrationwas an enjoyable experience for guests andgraduates alike, enhancing the many fondmemories of their University days.

Following the commemoration ceremony,graduates and guests attended an afternoontea which included a presentation of imagesand reminders of their student days. Theafternoon tea offered a wonderfulopportunity to catch up after many years, toswap old stories and to share new ones.

1951 Golden Jubilee A L U M N I N E W SNEW SENIOR DEVELOPMENT OFFFICERThe Alumni and Community Relations staff are pleased to welcome Elaine Baker as thenewly appointed Senior Development Officer. Elaine brings a wealth of experience andvaluable knowledge in the field of fundraising and development to the Alumni andCommunity Relations office. She has previously held development positions at theMultiple Sclerosis Society of South Australia, Wilderness School, the Muscular DystrophyAssociation, the Crippled Children’s Association and, most recently, as the DevelopmentOfficer at St Peter Girls Collegiate."It is with much pleasure that I have joined the enthusiastic and vibrant team in the Alumniand Community Relations office," Elaine said. "I look forward to helping AdelaideUniversity build rewarding philanthropic relationships with its alumni and friends so thatthey may have the opportunity to make a significant contribution towards the Universityachieving its goals for the future."

KEEPING IN TOUCH… AdelaidE-LinkHave you received your first edition of AdelaidE-Link? The Alumni and CommunityRelations office has just released its enewsletter, a new and effective way to stay in touchwith our many and varied alumni! To register your email address and to read the news andinformation in our first edition visit our website: www.adelaide.edu.au/alumni

AFTER- HOURS PARKING PERMITSThe Alumni and Community Relations office is now offering Alumni After Hours ParkingPermits for 2002. These permits allow you to park on our North Terrace Campus before9.15am and after 4.30pm Monday to Friday, as well as all day Saturday, Sunday and PublicHolidays and are available for an annual fee of $75.00 (including GST). To apply for apermit, apply online at www.psb.adelaide.edu.au/parking.

MARES-EADEN FUNDThe Mares-Eaden Fund has been established as a memorial to the life and work of TimMares and Robin Eaden following their tragic deaths in a car accident in February. BothTim and Robin were former members of staff at Adelaide University’s Department ofEnglish. Their contribution to literary scholarship is valued by friends and colleagues hereand overseas.The Mares-Eaden Fund has been established to provide perpetual endowment for a prizefor an undergraduate essay or honours thesis in Shakespearean and Elizabethan Studies, forstudents enrolled in the Department of English at Adelaide University.Further information on the Mares-Eaden Fund and how you can contribute can beobtained from the Alumni and Community Relations office, ph (08) 8303 5800.

HAVE YOU THOUGHT ABOUT MAKING A GIFT TO THE UNIVERSITY?A bequest is a gift to the future generations of students and scholars who will continue ourtradition of excellence. For information contact: Ms Carol Ible, Development Officer,Alumni and Community Relations, Level 1, 230 North Terrace , Adelaide University SA5005. Tel: 8303 6356, Fax: 8303 5808. Email: development@adelaide.edu.au.

HOLIDAY MESSAGE FROM THE DIRECTOROn behalf of the staff in the Alumni and Community Relations office and the AlumniAssociation I would like to thank the many members of our alumni community who havededicated their time and effort towards the achievement of a progressive and successful yearin 2001. The University gets its strength from its relationship with alumni, friends andstaff and we have been proud to foster some of those ties in 2001. May I take thisopportunity to wish each of you a safe and peaceful festive season. We look forward to theexciting year ahead in 2002.

—Rachael Oliphant.

THERE’S A GENEIN MY FOOD!PROFESSOR Peter Langridge of theDepartment of Plant Science will be theguest speaker in the final presentation forthe 2001 series Evening Talks organised bythe Sciences and Mathematical SciencesChapter of the Alumni Association.Professor Langridge has an internationalreputation as a leading research worker inthe occasionally controversial field ofgenetically modified foodstuff production.From its earliest days genetic engineeringwas viewed by scientists as a powerfultechnique for improving the quality of lifeand the environment, and also as atechnology with the potential for harm.After a long period of relative disinterest inthe technology by the Australiancommunity, the techniques of geneticengineering have recently attractedconsiderable attention and concern. Therole and use of genetic engineering in cropand food production has raised particularconcerns and led to strong opposition byseveral groups. This science talk willsummarise the current status of geneticengineering in crop and food productionand look at some of the major areas ofconcern that have developed in recent years.The presentation will be on Wednesday,December 12 in the Rennie LectureTheatre, Johnson Building, AdelaideUniversity at 6pm. Admission is free andbookings are not necessary. For moreinformation call the Chapter Chair on8303 4965 or the Alumni and CommunityRelations office on 8303 5800.

UK ChapterreceptionTHE UK Chapter held its firstChristmas function in London at theArt Workers Guild on November 16,with up to 100 alumni attending.The function venue was a beautifullypreserved Victorian hall and created aunique atmosphere for the alumni present,most of whom had graduated fromAdelaide University in the last two decades.

The Hon Greg Crafter, Chair of theAdelaide University Alumni Association,provided an update on progress withAlumni Chapters around the world as wellas the positive developments taking placeat the Elder Conservatorium and in theLaw School at Adelaide University. Theevent also gave alumni a chance to networkand meet old friends over a glass of SouthAustralian wine or Coopers Pale Ale.

Guests included alumni from the twoother South Australian universities as wellas Sydney University and the MenziesCentre, Kings College London. Ahighlight of the night was the 'Oz Raffle',which was made up of a basket ofAustralian goods not readily available inthe UK.

The evening was generously supported bya number of South Australian companies:Penfolds Wines, Coopers, LindemansWines, The Australia Shop and TwoDogs, as well as the Office of the AgentGeneral for South Australia.

ADELAIDEANPAGE 16 DECEMBER 2001

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Melbourne Festival successTHE WINNING streak enjoyed by a teamof five young percussionists from AdelaideUniversity’s Elder Conservatoriumcontinues unabated with a series of wins atthe International Percussion Festival heldduring the recent Melbourne Festival.The team of Nick Parnell, Joseph Fragnito,Jamie Adam, Paul Butler and AndrewBuchan spent five days in Melbournepicking up awards, attending workshops andgiving concerts.First to win was Nick Parnell who claimedfirst place in the Open IndividualCompetition with Jamie Adam second andPaul Butler in fourth place.In the Open Ensemble section JosephFragnito, assisted by Paul Butler, Jamie Adamand Andrew Buchan, won second prize.Nick Parnell, 24, is a Masters student and hisrecord of achievements continues to grow.Earlier this year he was a finalist in theYoung Performers Award and currently is afinalist in the Arts category for The YoungAustralian of the Year. He performed withthe percussion group Hormingo in Malaysiaand in Musica Viva's new season's openingconcert.While still only in his first year of study, PaulButler, 18, is already showing his mettle as atalented percussionist. Earlier this year Paulwon first prize in the Open Solo section ofthe Sydney Eisteddfod followed by hissuccesses in Melbourne. Not bad when upagainst the best of the country's studentpercussionists.Jamie Adam, 21, already has two other winsthis year under his belt from the SydneyPercussion Eisteddfod, where he came firstin the Two Mallet Marimba section andsecond in the Open Snare Drum section.Jamie gave his recital in November in theScott Theatre and performed in the DavidGalliver Memorial Awards final, in theElder Hall [see story below].Both Joseph Fragnito and Andrew Buchan

are Honours students and are both seasonedperformers and consistent winners of awards.This tight-knit group supports andencourages each other in their work and overa short period have established themselves asaccomplished percussionists and achievers ofawards for their skill. Asked the secret oftheir success, they all say "practice and morepractice—every day if possible".Having more or less conquered the local scene,the group is now turning their attentions tointernational competitions. Already membersof the group are drawing up plans for anequally successful sortie on the competition atthe Stuttgart Percussion Festival next Mayand an international percussion festival in theUnited States. The US trip, funded by theHelpmann Academy, will take in Nashville,San Francisco and New York.Closer to home over the next two months

will be a round of recitals and a Riverlandtour with the award-winning AdelaideUniversity Wind Ensemble.The group claim that they owe it all toPercussion lecturer Jim Bailey, who heads theElder Conservatorium's PercussionDepartment and has made this one of theleading departments in the country in terms ofconsistency and standards. He agrees with thestudents when they say it's all about practice"Dedication, training and a passion forpercussion is what it all boils down to," saysJim, "and with these we're created someremarkable musicians."Admissions to Elder Conservatorium 2002courses are open until December 10, 2001.The Elder Conservatorium is a HelpmannAcademy partner.

—Sheila Bryce, Helpmann Academy

The successful team. Photo courtesy of the Helpmann Academy.

PERCUSSIONIST Jamie Adam (secondfrom left) is the winner of the inauguralDavid Galliver Memorial Awards, heldrecently at the final Elder Hall LunchHour Concert Series for 2001.Jamie, who came second in the annualawards last year, performed Prism Rhapsodyby Keiko Abe, and was presented with hisprize by Professor Galliver’s widow,Gabrielle Galliver.Previously known as the ElderConservatorium Classical Music Awards,the awards were renamed in memory ofProfessor Galliver, who died earlier this year.He was Elder Professor from 1966 to 1983.Other finalists were cellist Pei-Sian Ng (farleft), pianist Yuh T’Sun Wu (second fromright) and Pei-Jee Ng (far right). Alsopictured is the current Elder Professor ofMusic, Charles Bodman Rae.

An irrigation technique developed byAdelaide University and CSIRO scientistshas made it on to the list of the 100 mostimportant innovations of the 20th century(The Advertiser, November 20). PartialRootzone Drying (or PRD) was jointlyinvented by Dr Peter Dry (Horticulture,Viticulture & Oenology) and Dr BrianLoveys from CSIRO, and enables grape yieldto be maintained with half the normalamount of water, while at the same timepossibly significantly increasing wine quality.PRD is now being used commercially invineyards in Australia, USA, Argentina,Spain, Israel and South Africa. The list ofinnovations was a joint project of theAustralian Academy of TechnologicalSciences and Engineering and Sydney's

Powerhouse Museum.

The thorny media issue of koala culling onKangaroo Island kept Dr David Paton(Environmental Biology) busy in the earlypart of November. Among others, Dr Patonwas featured on Triple J (November 8),Channel Nine’s A Current Affair (October31), and The Advertiser (November 2) todescribe how the island’s population of koalasis literally eating itself out of its habitat, withculling the only real solution. The StateGovernment has ignored Dr Paton’s findings,saying the State’s tourism industry wouldsuffer badly if koalas were culled.

Another animal-related story received strongmedia attention in early November—theMelbourne Cup. Adelaide University gained

exposure during this time with its own horsestory, that of using breath testing on horses todetect a disease that causes particularproblems in the racing industry. Dr DavidTivey (Animal Science) told ABC South East(November 6) about the work of Honoursstudent Belinda Argent to use breath testingto find traces of Inflammatory AirwayDisease in horses.

Proposed changes to house energy ratings inSouth Australia saw Dr Terry Williamson(Architecture, Landscape Architecture &Urban Design) gain an appearance in theFinancial Review (November 22). DrWilliamson tested the accuracy of acomputer-based rating system, to beintroduced to all homes built in SA after July

2002, on 31 houses and found the system didnot correlate to the actual energy beingconsumed. "We got zero correlations. It’s thefirst time the scheme’s computer modellinghas been compared to reality and it has shownto be incomplete," he said.

Adelaide University Science student andintrepid adventurer Ben Kozel reflected inThe Advertiser (November 24) on his history-making rafting expedition down the world’sfifth-longest river, the Yenisey, in Mongoliaand Siberia recently. He said even afterspending four months in such isolated places,he felt as if he hardly knew the place and itspeople at all: "On a map, we cut through thevery heart of Mongolia and Siberia. In reality,we barely managed to glimpse their souls."