THE UNIVERSITY OF QUEENSLAND

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2025 · 2025-01

Realtime Three-Dimensional Near-Field Microwave Imaging System. The project aims to develop a three-dimensional microwave system that can image and monitor the internal structure of objects in real-time. It will be portable, non-invasive, non-destructive, and non-ionizing, making it ideal for many key applications. It will have a compact antenna array designed to uniformly irradiate the object and collect microwave data that are processed using a combination of compressive sensing and physics-informed deep learning methods for fast and reliable imaging, whereas time-space analysis will enable tracking any changes in the object. The technique will revolutionize microwave imaging and sensing and is a game-changer in many fields such as healthcare and infrastructure, products, and materials inspection. Field of research: 4006 - Communications Engineering This innovative project will place Australia at the forefront of advanced manufacturing by developing cutting-edge microwave technology designed to create three-dimensional images of objects in real time, much like an advanced camera that can see inside things without taking them apart. It’s a leap forward in medical technology and non-destructive testing, which are crucial for maintaining high standards in manufacturing and healthcare. The gap this project fills is significant: currently, there’s no real-time way to get a 3D view of an object’s internal structure without physically dissecting it or using time-consuming methods or ionization radiation. By addressing this, the project aligns with the Australian Government’s national innovation agenda, promoting the country’s skills in creating new technologies. For Australians, the benefits are manifold. Economically, it means better quality control in manufacturing, leading to less waste, and higher profitability. Socially, it offers educational opportunities for students with skills in a high-demand field. Environmentally, improved efficiency translates to reduced resource use. Commercially, the technology can be licensed, creating new businesses or enhancing existing ones. Culturally, it cements Australia’s reputation as a leader in global innovation. In essence, this project will not only enable seeing the unseen but will also secure a brighter, more efficient, and more innovative future for Australia.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2025 · 2025-01

Discovering how nerve cells resist mechanical forces. This project aims to discover the molecular mechanisms protecting nerve cells from mechanical force. Using C. elegans as a tractable model system, combined with state-of-the-art microscopy and sophisticated genome engineering approaches, the project aims to advance our knowledge of how these fragile cells resist the forces imparted on them during development and body movement. Outcomes include a mechanistic understanding of how tissues co-operate to withstand physical strain, the molecules involved and how force is buffered by the nervous system. This will provide significant benefits by generating fundamental knowledge, informing technological advances, and increasing research capacity. Field of research: 3101 - Biochemistry and Cell Biology For any animal, its survival depends on an ability to detect and respond to surrounding stimuli, such as food and predators. Once detected, these stimuli are relayed to the brain where a response is formed and sent to muscles to trigger a behaviour. This communication occurs via electrical signals that travel through long cable-like structures protruding from neurons called axons. Axons span large distances, reaching up to 1 metre in humans and 30 metres in some species of whale. How these structures can resist the many forces imparted on them during normal growth and body movement to remain intact and sustain life across decades is not currently known. This project aims to shed light on the biological mechanisms that keep axons intact to discover new knowledge that will be critical for a range of fields, including developmental and cell biology, neuroscience, engineering, and materials science. Understanding the biological consequences of mechanical force also has the long-term potential to impact industries such aerospace and defence, where the impact of force on the human body is a major consideration in the design of new technologies. Also, without knowledge of how a healthy system functions, changes that occur in diseased states can neither be recognised nor corrected. The fundamental cellular mechanisms discovered here will therefore be essential to guide future studies aimed at understanding neurological disorders and diseases that involve axon health.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2025 · 2025-01

Re-Mapping the Lost Literary Capital: Darwin/Larrakia Nation. This project yokes together the scores of novels, plays, short stories, poems, and genre fiction titles that have portrayed Darwin from Federation to the present. In so doing, it aims to pull Darwin from the literary void it has sat in for much of the twentieth century and restore it to the national imaginary. We will work with AustLit and AusStage to offer a series of public lectures and exhibitions at the NT Library, guided literary tours of Darwin, and a monograph that organises the literary texts into a series of accessible themed chapters for future educators, students and researchers. Other benefits include increased cultural visibility for north Australian writers and increased capacity for cultural tourism to the regions. Field of research: 4705 - Literary Studies This project encourages us to reconsider the way we view Darwin/Larrakia Nation in cultural terms. People who grow up in the major southern capitals do so studying novels and plays about their home cities at school, or having versions of their lived experience and landscapes mirrored back to them in plays, genre fiction novels, popular literature, films and television series. People who have grown up in the northern capital do so in a relative representational void. This project aims to boost cultural, economic and educational activity in the NT and beyond by: offering the NT Tourism industry a series of guided literary tours and digital 'cultural maps' of Darwin; offering the general public a series of themed exhibitions at the NT Library and public lectures at CDU; offering major arts festivals (NT Writers Festival, Festival of Darwin) and book clubs access to forgotten writers and texts of national standing to rediscover and celebrate; offering educators a symposium and monograph to introduce their students to the novels, plays, short stories and screen adaptions about Darwin in a series of easy-to-follow themed chapters; and offering lovers of literature and cultural tourists the nation over fresh ways and means to encounter the northern capital. In future, this research will not only offer a permanent literary record for an overlooked capital city, but add to a wave of post-pandemic cultural and economic activity that is revitalising the nation's regional centres.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2025 · 2025-01

The View From Somewhere: embodied agents and the quantum perspective. Motivated by recent results in quantum foundations, this project aims to develop a novel approach to objective reality by taking seriously the agent perspective in our scientific worldview. Our interdisciplinary team of philosophers and physicists will investigate the physics of embodied agents, exploring how agents learn about the world, codify this knowledge, and navigate their environment. We expect our project to significantly advance knowledge in quantum foundations and embodied agent learning. Our foundational research could underpin future breakthroughs in the research and development of the next generation of embedded intelligent machines, with the potential to unlock the enormous wealth creation capacity of Artificial Intelligence. Field of research: 5003 - Philosophy Whilst Australia has become a world leader in quantum computing through heavy investment, Australia's potential to be a world leader in artificial intelligence (AI) is as yet unmet, with the Kingston AI Group concluding that the "development of sovereign AI is of critical importance to Australia's future security and prosperity". Our project establishes a novel metaphysics of AI: a framework for understanding physical learning agents that will revolutionise design principles for machine intelligence. Our research is foundational, and our key innovation is to situate learning agents in physics rather than cognitive science: our team of philosophers and physicists investigate the physics of beings that act in the world, both robot and human, to establish how these agents learn about the world, codify this knowledge, and navigate their environment. We expect our project investigating cutting-edge quantum foundations, the philosophy of how human agents systematise their environment, and how robots learn about the world to underpin future breakthroughs in the next generation of physical intelligent machines, with the potential to unlock the enormous wealth creation capacity of AI and establish Australia as a world leader in this space. As AI systems become increasingly capable and autonomous, our novel metaphysics of AI will be essential for ensuring these transformative technologies responsibly and reliably serve our society, rather than pose existential risks.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2025 · 2025-01

Next Generation Engineered Antiviral Coatings. This project aims to engineer an environmentally friendly antiviral nanocoating designed with new and universal mode of viral inactivation for broad-spectrum and long-lasting viral protection. Using a combination of synthesis, computational modelling, and cutting-edge visualisation and quantitative analysis techniques, this project expects to provide new antiviral design principles to guide surface coatings development. Expected outcomes include mechanistic understanding of virus properties and behaviour on coatings, leading to a next generation antiviral nanocoating to optimally bind and rupture viruses. This should provide economic and health benefits through protecting Australians by halting transmission of known and new viral outbreaks. Field of research: 3403 - Macromolecular and Materials Chemistry Viruses pose significant health and economic impacts to the Australian community. While vaccines may be considered the holy grail for preventing viral infection, they come with inherent limitations such as adverse side effects, incomplete protection and need for annual boosters. The most effective antiviral solution is a protective system that prevents viruses from entering the human body in the first place either from contaminated surfaces or through the air. This project aims to meet this need by developing a surface coating that destroys any virus upon contact. Using a water-based formulation, the proposed antiviral coating is environmentally friendly, non-toxic and cost-effective and can be easily applied to surfaces and impregnated in face masks to stop airborne transmission. Beyond the obvious health benefits of protecting society from viral pathogens, the project expects to also deliver economic benefits by reducing annual costs associated with an incapacitated workforce and the burden on public health systems. Additionally, antiviral coatings are considered Mission Critical Technology by space agencies to prevent serious crew illness and interplanetary contamination from opportunistic microbes. If this antiviral coating is successfully developed, two multinational industry partners are ready to translate our research into commercial products through development, manufacturing, and global supply, delivering further economic benefits to Australia in the future.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2025 · 2025-01

Controlling superfluid transport with spatially engineered dissipation. The goal of the flourishing field of atomtronics is to build useful superfluid circuits in analogy to electronics. However, there is the opportunity to develop innovative devices that go beyond merely imitating their electronic counterparts. The aim of this project is to use spatially shaped current drains to study emergent superfluid transport and design novel superfluid circuit elements. The expected outcomes are (1) a conceptual understanding of how emergent superfluid transport behaviour can be controlled using particle loss, and (2) proposals to demonstrate new circuit elements in the lab. The benefits include formulating design principles for developing sensors based on superfluids for the Australian quantum industry. Field of research: 5108 - Quantum Physics Scientists can now trap and cool samples of millions of identical atoms down to ultracold temperatures only a few billionths of a degree above absolute zero. Under these extreme conditions new collective quantum behaviour can arise such as the ability to flow without any friction – the atoms become a superfluid. This project will design new methods to force superfluids to flow in a circuit by creating patterns of drains where the atoms are removed. This will cause the superfluid flows to have previously unexplored features that could be utilised for new applications of superfluid circuits. Ultracold atoms are extraordinarily sensitive to inertial forces and are used to measure accelerations and rotations with unprecedented accuracy. They are already used for precision mapping of the Earth’s gravitational field to provide information about what is under the surface. The novel features of the superfluid circuits we design could lead to new techniques for quantum sensing, such as gravitational sensors that can perform fast contactless weighing of e.g. large trucks and trains, contributing to transportation efficiency and logistics. In May 2023 the Australian government launched the National Quantum Strategy, forecasting the sector could be worth $6 billion annually and employ 19,400 people by 2045. This project will contribute towards the two Strategy themes of developing a skilled quantum workforce, and building a trusted, ethical, and inclusive quantum ecosystem.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2025 · 2025-01

Evolving the nitrogen-nitrogen three electron bond as a technology enabler. Chemical discovery underpins technological advances that benefit society. This project aims to generate a transformational chemical platform of innovative nitrogen atom containing molecules capable of supporting stable and long-lived radicals that can be used in electronic applications. Expected outcomes include an understanding of methods for tuning the unique redox chemistry of these molecules and their conversion into materials with practical applications such as for solar cells and rechargeable batteries. This should provide game changing molecular tools for reducing the cost of energy generation and storage, along with uniquely trained scientists in a range of chemistry sub-disciplines having an entrepreneurial chemical instinct. Field of research: 3405 - Organic Chemistry The objective of this research is to harness and pioneer atypical nitrogen atom bonding to provide high-density electrochemical energy storage molecules. These unique chemical building blocks feature an exciting new dimension in utilising charged species for use in next generation chemical oxidation-reduction (redox) based devices e.g. organic batteries. Their development requires a combination of sophisticated organic synthesis, spectroscopy, AI based computational design, and energy storage analysis methods. Storing Australia’s future renewable energy reserves will require improvement in battery performance, which necessitates new chemical based technological advances. Successful translation of the proposed concept has the potential to provide society with highly innovative electronic technologies based on environmentally friendly, non-toxic and abundant organic feedstocks. The technology would be applicable to powering a range of electronic Internet of Things devices aimed at improving quality of life. It is multifaceted translational research programs such as these that open opportunities for future Australian researchers to critical disciplinary chemical thinking and training, which is key to cultivating entrepreneurship. Landmark scientific contributions in the rapidly growing area of organic electronics are expected outcomes of this project, attracting local, domestic and international attention and broad collaboration founded on atypical nitrogen bond redox chemistry.

GrantConnect (Australian Government grants) · FY 2025 · 2025-01

Venoms to drugs: translating venom peptides into human therapeutics Category: Medical Research

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2025 · 2025-01

Molecular control of a bacterial fight or flight response. This research aims to use forefront molecular microbiology and structural biology approaches to advance fundamental knowledge on a group of bacterial transcriptional regulators that control contrasting phenotypes ranging from antibiotic resistance and adaptation, to motility. The major goals of this project are to characterise the mechanisms by which these regulators sense and respond to stress, elucidate the structural basis for their multifaceted function, and define unique features of different regulators in this large family. The outcomes will advance our understanding of a widespread group of transcriptional regulators and decipher how they contribute to bacterial survival and antibiotic resistance. Field of research: 3107 - Microbiology Bacteria cope with different environments and stresses by coordinating the transcription of specific sets of genes generally associated with related functions, resulting in a ‘fight’ or ‘flight’ response. In the ‘fight’ response, bacteria activate the transcription of genes that lead to enhanced fitness and survival in a specific condition, while the ‘flight’ response involves activation of motility genes to escape the condition. These adaptations enable bacteria to survive in industrial, environmental, animal production and clinical settings. Using advanced microbiology, molecular biology, biochemical and structural biology methods, this study will dissect how bacteria sense and respond to environmental stresses such as antibiotics, biocides, salts and metal ions. Enhanced understanding into the mechanisms that control bacterial adaptation to these stresses could lead to the development of new therapeutics to block resistance pathways used by pathogens that cause disease in veterinary and agricultural settings. This new knowledge has the potential for social and economic benefits, such as protecting Australia's food manufacturing and unique environmental ecosystems, as well as improving the well-being of Australians. Beyond its research implications, this project will create a range of high-skills training opportunities and has the potential to bolster multiple Australian industrial sectors, driving scientific and economic advancement.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2025 · 2025-01

Harvesting fluorine from fluorocarbons: Developing transfer fluorination. Methods to introduce fluorine into organic molecules are highly developed as fluorocarbons are vital to many modern technologies. Such methods rely upon the use of fluorine gas (F2), hydrogen fluoride (HF) or reagents made from F2 or HF. Concurrently, fluorocarbons generated on a megaton scale pose a unique environmental hazard. This project aims to ‘harvest’ the basic fluorine synthons (F-, F2, F+) from waste fluorocarbons to circumvent the need for hazardous fluorine reagents and recycle the fluorine that has already been incorporated into existing fluorocarbons. The success of this project will result in new methods for transfer fluorination and a new family of carbon-based fluorination reagents that will be readily commercializable. Field of research: 3402 - Inorganic Chemistry Fluorocarbons are essential components of many modern chemicals used by Australians including refrigerants, soaps, cosmetics, plastics, pesticides, herbicides and pharmaceuticals. As potent pollutants, the megatons of fluorocarbon waste generated each year present a significant environmental hazard and Australia has committed to limiting the release of fluorocarbon waste as a signatory of the Montreal and Kyoto Protocols. Most fluorochemicals industry (worth over $100 billion/year) is foreign with limited Australian capability for producing new fluorocarbons or processing fluorocarbon waste. This project aims to invent new methods to harvest fluorine from waste fluorocarbons and then transfer it to other compounds to generate new fluorochemicals (waste-to-asset). Such a technological development would allow Australia to become a major economic benefactor of the global fluorochemicals market and lead to several customised commercial fluorinating reagents. It would also reduce Australia’s dependence on foreign fluorochemical imports and provide a new avenue for the recycling of fluorocarbon waste. Discoveries arising from this project will be patented and communicated in open access media to ensure that the benefits of this project remain within Australia and that Australians are able to access and understand these scientific advances.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2025 · 2025-01

Cosmic Cartography to Counter Cosmic Conundrums. This project aims to make a comprehensive map of cosmic structure spanning four billion light years around our Milky Way, and analyse it to measure how our galactic neighbourhood warps our view of the Universe beyond. Using innovative machine learning methods to combine galaxy positions with galaxy motions this project should reveal hidden structures and determine their impact on our measurements of the expansion rate of the Universe. Expected outcomes include a 3D cosmic map that can be used by astrophysicists in perpetuity; this awe-inspiring new view of our cosmos is expected to provide social and cultural benefits, in addition to economic benefits arising from applying the new statistical methods to big data in industry and government. Field of research: 5101 - Astronomical Sciences The field of cosmology is undergoing a revolution, with multiple lines of evidence indicating that our standard cosmological model needs revision. One of the most pressing issues is the "Hubble Tension" in which different techniques of measuring the Universe's expansion rate disagree. Building on two decades of Australian leadership in galaxy surveys, this project aims to use our established access to world-leading data to make the most comprehensive map of our local Universe - and thus reveal whether hidden structure has biased expansion measurements, or whether a step-change in our cosmological model is needed. This project aims to create the most breath-taking map of our Universe to date. By collaborating with software engineers, we plan to release our data as a downloadable resource for all cosmologists in perpetuity and as a public app- and web-based "Cosmic Atlas" (like a "Google Maps" for the Universe). This will provide a real way of achieving the Government's vision of engaging and inspiring the Australian community about science, and cultural benefit will flow from the public's ability to explore the wonders of our nearby Universe. Through leadership in major international surveys the project aims to create long-term collaborations and leave a legacy to enhance Australia's capacity for future astrophysics discoveries. Economic benefits are expected to follow from enabling the next generation of innovators to develop new tools for industry and data science.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2025 · 2025-01

Reconfigurable Medium-matched Antenna for Structural Abnormality Detection. This project aims to improve the detection capabilities of microwave-based Non-Destructive Testing devices using a multi-element scanning setup. Each element will address existing challenges such as polarisation mismatch, scanning speed, surface reflection and penetration depth. In this system the phase front of the electromagnetic wave emitted by the antenna is shaped using a lens and the surface of the material being tested is given a specialised anti-reflection coating. This two-stage process ensures the emitted wave has sufficient directed power and is effectively transmitted inside the material to reach deep targets. Outcomes are expected to advance antenna system design and open new application areas for microwave technology. Field of research: 4006 - Communications Engineering Non-destructive testing systems are crucial parts of infrastructure monitoring and maintenance in Australia. The existing non-destructive testing methods use a wide range of probing signals including radio waves, sound waves, electric currents, X-ray or gamma rays, or a combination of methods to wirelessly detect sub-surface anomalies in an object or medium such as ground. The variety of measurement conditions multiplies the cost by requiring maintaining a fleet of different instruments to monitor a wide range of infrastructure objects. This project aims to develop a design methodology that will facilitate the design of a generic modular non-destructive microwave-based testing system for different scanning environments. These challenges will be addressed in the form of interchangeable bespoke components to steer and focus the probing beam, while reducing surface reflections, allowing deeper testing with radar-based analysis instruments. By developing a scanning system that can be adapted to its test environment, the project will improve the convenience and reliability of non-destructive testing. This will enhance public safety by enabling more frequent and accurate inspection of critical infrastructure such as bridges or underground pipes, thus significantly reducing the risk of failures and accidents. This will support informed decision-making on maintenance budget, and timelines for development of new standards by regulatory authorities and commissioning partners.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2025 · 2025-01

Investigating how boys and young men experience their digital lives. Recently, there have been significant concerns regarding what boys and young men are exposed to online and how it may influence their social and emotional development. The rise of the digital has led to new concerns regarding cyberbullying, body image dysmorphia, self-harm, depression, extremism, social anxiety and suicide. There is a need to learn more about what boys and young men are consuming online and how they interpret it. The proposed research aims to discover new knowledge regarding masculinities/boyhood in an era of technology-mediated societal transformations with a diverse cohort of boys and young men. This proposed research is both timely and of national benefit as it will enhance how we safeguard boys and young men. Field of research: 4405 - Gender Studies Australian boys and young men spend almost five hours per day on a myriad of digital spaces. Increasingly, they are drawing upon online content to define masculine norms and gender dynamics which has issues for the increase in issues with misogyny, extremism, and gendered violence. Yet very little research has attempted to understand how boys and young men consume digital spaces, to understand how they critically analyse their digital lifeworlds and what this means for their identities, relationships and wellbeing. The new knowledge gained from the project will capture how a diverse cohort of boys and young men navigate digital environments allowing educators, parents/caregivers and policymakers to make informed decisions about the e-safety of Australian boys. In discovering new knowledge, the project will raise awareness and foster a national conversation beyond academia. The research is student voice-driven and aims to discover new knowledge around an issue of significant concern we know little about. In accordance with the ARC Medical Research Policy, this is not an intervention and will not diagnose, monitor or manage the treatment of mental illness. The proposed research may contribute to the National Research Priority of 'Health', specifically ‘building healthy and resilient communities’ as we hope to gain insight into how boys and young men can effectively safeguard themselves in digital spaces.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2025 · 2025-01

Including the voice of boys and young men in their well-being education. Despite significant concerns about the mental health and well-being of boys and young men, we know very little about how to make health-related education more effective for them. We know existing programs often fail to resonate with boys and young men yet they are rarely given a voice in their mental health and well-being education in schools. This research is student voice-driven and aims to include a diverse cohort of boys and young men (e.g. age, sexuality, ethnicity, disability, location) at the secondary level to understand what can be done to enhance their well-being education. The aim of the project is to begin to build a collection of open-access resources to improve the effectiveness of mental health education for boys. Field of research: 4405 - Gender Studies Using a student voice approach, the proposed research will capture an important gap in knowledge concerning what boys and young men want in their wellbeing education. We know many males will not seek help for issues related to poor well-being due to societal stigmas. The research is of social and economic benefit as it intends to develop resources which may be used to reduce the stigma and foster a productive conversation at the community and national level. Presently, school-based wellbeing programs remain almost exclusively gender-neutral, externally designed and implemented using a top-down approach. For many boys and young men, these programs are ineffective. The information gained will hopefully be useful to the future of wellbeing education for boys and young men. In accordance with the ARC Medical Research Policy, the resources generated from the project are not an intervention and will not diagnose, monitor or manage the treatment of mental illness. The project does not modify a human health condition or behaviour of humans and it is not a clinical trial.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2025 · 2025-01

Controlling the lifetime of biodegradable polymers in natural environments. Plastic waste in the environment is a massive global problem. One key solution is to substitute nondegradable plastics with bioderived and truly biodegradable polymers. Tailoring the rate of biodegradation of these polymers is essential for optimizing their functional performance and environmental impact. Yet the fundamental mechanisms of polymer biodegradation are poorly understood, with little current control over bioplastic lifetimes. This project will create model materials with a variety of surface topologies and chemistries in order to better understand biodegradation mechanisms and develop strategies to manipulate biodegradation rates and predict plastic lifetimes, paving the way for more sustainable solutions to plastic pollution. Field of research: 4016 - Materials Engineering More than 420 million tonnes of plastic are produced every year, and this is forecast to triple by 2060. Yet our waste management systems are not able to adequately handle these flows. As a result, plastic pollution is now a global crisis, with 19-23 million tonnes per annum of plastic waste already leaking into aquatic ecosystems, according to conservative UN estimates – 130,000 tonnes per annum in Australia alone. In light of this, the search is on for materials that can replace those that are likely to end up in the environment, with a focus on bioderived plastics that will biodegrade instead of remaining as macro- or micro/nanopollutant hazards for decades. However, the biodegradation lifetimes, rates and mechanisms of these emerging plastics are still poorly understood. If we want to control and manipulate these processes, we need to develop a deeper understanding of the drivers for biodegradation, using model materials that can help us understand the factors that accelerate or slow biodegradation rates. This project expects to lay the necessary scientific foundations for the development of environmentally friendly biodegradable plastic products to support Australia to achieve more sustainable management of plastic materials and to help position Australia as a leader in circular economy innovation. The adoption of this technology also enables Australian manufacturers to produce high-value materials with tailored biodegradability for this massive global market.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2025 · 2025-01

Biodegradable and bioderived coatings for controlled release fertilisers. Given the need to feed 9.7 billion people by 2050, it is vital to create a sustainable agricultural system. However, our current, essential fertilizer use has caused significant environmental challenges due to nutrient solubility. Better nutrient use efficiency is urgently required. Yet current coated fertilizers produce nondegradable microplastic residues. This project will deliver the first bioderived and biodegradable thin polymer coatings for high-efficiency fertilizers using innovative polyurethane chemistry, reactive extrusion processes, and in-house coating technologies. Nutrient release and transformations in soil and water will be quantified and modeled, along with plant yields, leading to advanced, sustainable fertiliser products. Field of research: 4016 - Materials Engineering More than half of the 1.9 million tonnes of urea fertiliser currently applied to Australian soils is not used by plants but is lost to the environment through leaching, volatilization, and denitrification. This causes massive environmental issues, such as water pollution, soil degradation, greenhouse gas impacts through potent N2O emissions, and reduced biodiversity in soils and coastal waters, as well as health effects associated with nitrates in groundwater. This is a national and global issue and is of urgent concern for the Great Barrier Reef catchment, with high nutrient loads leading to crown-of-thorns starfish outbreaks and accelerated coral bleaching. Current controlled release alternatives are coated in nondegradable plastics, leaving up to 40 kg/ha/yr of undesirable microplastic pollution after use. This project aims to produce novel, cost-effective, biodegradable, and bioderived coatings for urea that slow fertiliser release to match crop demand, increasing nitrogen use efficiency without leaving harmful residues. Industry appropriate processing approaches will be developed, ready for commercialisation. These environmentally friendly fertilisers could support Australian agricultural industries to achieve more sustainable management of soil and water, and help position Australia as a leader in circular economy innovation. With >100 million t/year of synthetic N fertiliser applied globally, this is also a massive market opportunity for Australian businesses.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2025 · 2025-01

Experiences and inequalities in Indonesia’s transition to hospital birth. This project aims to explain inequalities in maternal health by investigating the hospital birth experiences of diverse and disadvantaged Indonesian women. Nearly 80% of Indonesian births take place in a health facility but the maternal mortality ratio remains the highest in Southeast Asia. Working with Indonesian researchers, this project expects to produce in-depth knowledge of women’s birth experiences and interactions with maternity care systems. Expected outcomes include new knowledge of why some women avoid health facilities or have negative experiences, and how to improve birth experiences. This benefits Australian and Indonesian agendas to create equitable, inclusive maternal health care and advance equality in our region. Field of research: 4401 - Anthropology Globally and in Australia, rates of maternal mortality and birth trauma are worse for disadvantaged women and cultural minorities. This indicates that current approaches to maternity care are not doing enough to address diversity or improve equity. Indonesia’s maternal mortality ratio is the worst in Southeast Asia despite most births occurring in a health facility. This project aims to explain the social and cultural factors that hamper Indonesian women from receiving adequate maternity care and develop new knowledge of what respectful or harmful care means to diverse populations. This will benefit Australia by informing our international development aid programmes. Indonesia is a top recipient of Australian Overseas Development Assistance (about $300 million AUD annually); this research will benefit the ‘Partnership Toward Inclusion’ initiative and ‘Australia’s International Development Policy’ (2023) by identifying ways to improve the accessibility and quality of services for women and people with disabilities and sharing this with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) and others. This research also benefits Australia by sharing knowledge on how to eliminate discrimination and abuse in maternity care, a problem that costs Australia $877 million per year through social, health, and economic impacts of birth trauma.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2025 · 2025-01

Aphantasia, imagined experiences and the interconnectivity of human brains. Some people cannot have imagined sensory experiences – Aphantasics. This project aims to reveal pre-requisites for conscious awareness of imagined sensory experiences by measuring and comparing the structural connectivity and power of oscillatory activity in the brains of Aphantasics and Neurotypical people. As an inability to have imagined sensory experiences is a key dimension of the most popular metric of Autistic traits, greater understanding of the benign dysfunction of this psychological dimension in the general population will increase our understanding of Autism. Field of research: 5204 - Cognitive and Computational Psychology Most people can have voluntary imagined experiences, of images and of themselves speaking. But a minority of people - Aphantasics, cannot. This project will determine if this form of neurodiversity is related to the expression of Autistic traits in the general population, test if Aphantasics are resistant to intrusive thoughts, and identify neural correlates of Aphantasia. This project will deliver important new basic knowledge, that will be important for theory and will create important long-term translation opportunities to advantage society. Visualisation is among the world's most popular psychological interventions to benefit mental health and performance, but it is unclear if Aphants can equally benefit from this. So, by validating protocols to detect Aphants, we may create knowledge that can be translated to guide treatment decisions and resource allocation. Moreover, while Aphantasia is not a clinical condition, an inability to have imagined visual experiences is a key dimension of the most popular metric of Autistic traits in the general population. So, by creating greater understanding of visual imagery, and its benign dysfunction, we may increase understanding of ‘fact thinking’ Autistics. Finally, this project will bring together some world leading experts, in Autism research and fMRI data analyses, and they will train promising Australian research students in these skills.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2025 · 2025-01

The mobile DNA origins of gene regulation. Genes are the building blocks for complex life. Millions of mobile DNA sequences compose approximately half of the mammalian genome, yet their influence on gene expression remains largely unexplored. The project proposed here will 1) develop a novel system to predict how strongly a given mobile DNA sequence will promote its own expression and that of adjacent genes, 2) test those predictions using long-read functional genomics applied to various cell types generated in vitro and 3) discover new regulatory elements underpinning development in vivo. The expected outcomes are an unprecedented understanding of gene regulation, which will benefit biotechnology applications of genetic engineering, as well as enhanced international collaboration. Field of research: 3105 - Genetics Mobile DNA sequences can copy themselves from one genomic location to another and are particularly abundant in animals and plants. For more than 50 years it has been hypothesised that most genes are regulated in eukaryotes by mobile DNA sequences. Until recently we have lacked the tools to systematically test this overarching theory in biology. Exploiting recent technological advances, we will here apply CRISPR gene editing, long-read DNA sequencing and other cutting-edge tools to human cells to finally decide the contribution made by mobile DNA sequences to gene control and development. This work has the potential to enhance the Australian biotechnology sector as, for instance, bioengineering cells for drug production or new yeast strains for commercial brewing requires a full picture of how genes are regulated. As well, because all livestock and crop species contain mobile DNA, and these elements can dramatically impact phenotype via gene regulation, the insights we gain from human cells could in the future be applied to boost agricultural production and overcome environmental challenges. The researchers leading this project will here continue their track record of communicating scientific outcomes to mainstream audiences nationally and internationally, for example via social media and by providing interviews to the popular press. Finally, by involving postgraduate students, the project will contribute to higher education and training in the life sciences in Australia.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2025 · 2025-01

Evaluating compensation for harm to Indigenous culture in Queensland. In the wake of the High Court's (HCA's) decision about compensation for 'cultural loss' in Northern Territory v Griffiths [2019] HCA 7, research is urgently needed on the different forms of harm to Indigenous culture suffered as a result of colonisation. This project aims to undertake the first ethnographic investigation of harm outside the context of litigated compensation claims. By investigating the complexities of Indigenous experiences of colonisation, including frontier violence, incarceration on missions and reserves, and contemporary experiences of heritage destruction and interrupted knowledge transmission, this project will establish the knowledge base to resolve the coming wave of compensation claims by First Nations peoples. Field of research: 4505 - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples, Society and Community Compensation for 'cultural loss' is a major focus of negotiations between governments and First Nations groups across Australia. With over 300 determined native title holding groups eligible to claim compensation, the Commonwealth, states, territories and other respondent parties (e.g., mining companies) face hundreds of future compensations claims worth billions of dollars. Treaty discussions across multiple jurisdictions have also raised the possibility of reparations for colonisation, including for harm suffered prior to the date (1975) after which acts resulting in cultural loss may be subject to compensation under the Native Title Act (1993). Yet there is a lack of independent academic research about Indigenous cultural loss, especially in anthropology, which has avoided the topic for a generation. By investigating the complexities of cultural loss in the Gulf Country of northwest Queensland, focusing on how Indigenous people feel about loss and how the experience of loss changes over time in who it affects and the kinds of feelings associated with it, this project aims to refine research methodologies relating to compensation in both the Gulf Country and the wider nation. As well as benefiting Indigenous peoples by enabling the negotiation of full, just, and fair settlements with claimant groups, this project aims to improve the practice of applied anthropology in this area, saving time and money, and avoiding the trauma associated with unsuccessful litigation.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2025 · 2025-01

Understanding human brain plasticity and sensory perception. This project will examine how sensory areas of the human brain alter during sensory learning and how such changes in brain structure and function lead to improvements in sensory perception performance. We use cutting-edge methods that we have developed for ultra-high resolution functional brain imaging (7 Tesla MRI) and computational modelling to study markers of brain plasticity at a level never previously possible in the living human brain. The project therefore investigates the fundamental basis of human brain plasticity for sensory learning. This will provide critical new understanding of the micro-level function in sensory areas of the human brain that underpin sensory learning and perception. Field of research: 5202 - Biological Psychology This project will answer fundamental questions about how the brain adapts and changes in response to everyday life experiences, known as brain plasticity. The brain’s ability to adapt and learn through sensory experience is essential for normal human development throughout life, for learning and acquisition of new skills, and for recovery of abilities following injury. As such, this research provides a crucial knowledge-base for applications in sensory learning and training programs, human-machine robotics developments, and interventions for rehabilitation following stroke or amputation. Our research will also develop MRI technology and computational methods that allow examination of the living human brain with unprecedented detail. We use ultra-high field MRI, using one of only two such MRI scanners in Australia (a major resource under the National Imaging Facility). Through our research program, we provide an advanced training ground for Australian scientists and MRI-technologists in human brain imaging, as well as translation into new medical imaging capabilities and clinical applications. Our research outcomes and computational tools will be promoted and shared through open-source repositories and open-access reports/publications, allowing broad and immediate translation and adoption. MRI advances will also be translated commercially through our existing MRI industry partners.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2025 · 2025-01

Unlocking crop epigenomics to uncover and engineer hidden diversity. Considering the immense pressure to meet global food demand, this project aims to explore new avenues to boost the production of Australia’s most important crops. We aim to utilise revolutionary new technology to understand how hidden factors beyond the sequence of genes could be harnessed for crop improvement across generations and environments. Expected outcomes of the project include world-first deep insight into the fundamental biology of epigenomics in sorghum, barley and wheat and development of novel technological approaches to high-throughput DNA methylation profiling and genome engineering. Foreseeable benefits include knowledge and technological capacity to fine-tune underexploited yield components for improved grains production. Field of research: 3108 - Plant Biology Australia’s agriculture industry generates $80B annually and has the ambitious goal of reaching $100B by 2030. Grains, including sorghum, wheat and barley, are the second most profitable component of the industry, making up approximately 28% of the gross value. Powered by genetics, producers have steadily increased the yields of grain crops over decades; however, gains are stagnating and it is clear that genetics alone cannot explain the differences in yields between our newest varieties. Enabled by a world-first Australian-innovated technology, this project will investigate if the chemical structure of DNA itself can explain yield differences. This is akin to testing if changing the grammar in a sentence can more efficiently convey its meaning. Project outcomes, including understanding the basis of improved yield, combined with our diagnostic tools, have great potential to help producers to develop higher yielding crops more rapidly, potentially increasing yield beyond current limits. Our technology is a breakthrough in cost-effective screening of plants, and through our connections with Australian crop improvement programs we will explore the potential for industry adoption. The approaches developed in this project could have broad applicability to challenges faced by Australian farmers including crop quality, nutrition, disease tolerance and climate resilience, which could increase the future profitability and sustainability of food production.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2025 · 2025-01

Outsourcing Foreign Policy: Consultants and Contractors in Australian Aid. Consultants and contractors are central to achieving Australia’s foreign policy goals via international development finance, but little is known about their impacts on the program. This project aims to address this crucial gap by utilising innovative methods for analysing contracts data and conducting interviews across Australia’s development constituency. It expects to produce a novel understanding of outsourcing’s impact on foreign policy and how to optimise it to meet policy goals. Expected outcomes include recommendations for delivering Australian aid, a publicly accessible database, and enhanced capacity for international collaboration and knowledge transfer. It will contribute to Australian development finance’s effectiveness. Field of research: 4408 - Political Science Geopolitical tensions are intensifying globally. In Australia's region, these tensions manifest largely through foreign aid and development financing. To maintain its influence in the region, the Australian government is reshaping its development program to compete with China. Private sector consultants and contractors are central to achieving Australia's foreign policy goals in this domain, implementing many projects, and also often developing and evaluating programs and policy. Little is known systematically, however, about their role within Australia’s development program and their impact on its goals and performance. This project aims to investigate consultants and contractors’ impact on Australia’s international development program and identify how their involvement could be optimised to ensure it best serves Australia’s foreign policy goals. Benefits include recommendations on how the government can optimise its use of consultants and contractors to achieve its foreign policy goals in the region, and rebuild the Australian Public Service's capacity. The project aims to contribute to Australian aid's effectiveness and quality, and inform the national debate over outsourcing state functions. Findings will be disseminated to practitioners via stakeholder workshops, a policy report, and seminars to DFAT. Findings will also be made available to the wider public via a policy report, medoa opeds, a website and a searchable database of Australian projects.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2025 · 2025-01

Towards Standards and Benchmarks for Reproducible Neuroimaging Research. This project aims to address the reproducibility crisis in neuroimaging by developing methodologies and standards for defining reproducible, benchmarked analysis pipelines. It expects to generate new knowledge about the extent of reproducibility challenges and develop standardised methods for describing analyses from raw data to outputs. Planned outcomes include implementing and integrating these standards with established neuroimaging platforms like Neurodesk and Brainlife for community dissemination. This should provide significant benefits by enabling researchers to reuse, build upon and trust published findings, accelerating scientific discovery and positioning Australia's neuroimaging scientists to lead in reproducible neuroscience. Field of research: 4003 - Biomedical Engineering Neuroimaging research is crucial for understanding brain structure and function, unlocking breakthroughs that impact our daily lives, and influencing everything from health to how we process information and interact with the world. However, a major hurdle in neuroimaging research is its reproducibility—the ability to achieve consistent results using the same data and methods in repeated experiments. This reproducibility is essential for scientists to verify findings, stand on the shoulders of giants, and drive forward with new discoveries. Our project aims to investigate reproducibility practices, develop methodologies that enable analytical reproducibility, and identify how these can be disseminated to and adopted by the neuroimaging community. This understanding will lead to new analysis standards that enable scientists to reliably reproduce, validate, and build upon each other's work, significantly accelerating progress in neuroimaging research. These outcomes will bolster Australia's reputation as a leader in open science and neuroimaging, fostering international collaborations and attracting future investments. Additionally, our project will enhance Australia's neuroimaging infrastructure and standards development capabilities. We will share our findings through academic publications, workshops, and conferences, publish our standards to encourage community involvement, and integrate our solutions into established analysis platforms to directly benefit researchers.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2025 · 2025-01

Understanding avian innate immunity to improve avian influenza surveillance. Highly pathogenic avian influenza virus (HPAIV) threatens Australian livestock and wild animal populations. Aberrant innate immune responses cause tissue damage in susceptible, but not tolerant species. This project will reveal the molecular mechanisms underpinning innate immune signalling differences between HPAIV-susceptible (chicken) and tolerant (duck) species. This project will also determine if these differences in innate immune signalling are conserved in predicted HPAIV-susceptible and tolerant wild bird species. Expected outcomes include novel insights into avian immunology and innate immune signalling and new strategies to predict species susceptibility to HPAIV for significant agricultural, conservation and biosecurity benefits. Field of research: 3204 - Immunology Emerging viruses, like highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAIV), cause severe disease and death in domestic poultry livestock and wild birds. Some species, such as ducks, can carry HPAIV with minimal disease, meaning they can easily spread viruses. The immune response is the best protection against viral infection, yet in HPAIV-susceptible species (such as chickens), immune overactivation may cause collateral tissue damage, driving disease. We have identified an immune pathway that is overactive in chickens compared with ducks. This research project will uncover why this immune pathway is overactive in chickens but not ducks and whether this immune pathway is also overactive in native Australian birds. With this knowledge, we can better predict which native birds may act as HPAIV carriers (like ducks) and which birds are at high risk of death (like chickens). Our findings will improve HPAIV surveillance and Australian biosecurity to protect our poultry and livestock industries and our wild birds. This research proposal will also generate fundamental new knowledge about how this immune pathway functions in infection, which we anticipate may also generate new intellectual property. The project will employ and train Australian scientists in immunology and increasing their employability in academia, industry and government. Project outcomes will be published in open-access journals and will be shared with government (e.g. Biosecurity QLD), wildlife organisations and industry.