Queensland University of Technology

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2020 · 2020-01

ARC Centre of Excellence for the Digital Child. Our vision is for Australian children to be healthy, educated and connected. This Centre will integrate child health, education, and digital and social connectedness, innovating across disciplines to meet Australia’s ongoing challenges of supporting young children growing up in a rapidly changing digital age. The Centre’s world-leading team investigates children’s digital practices through three interconnected research programs supported by a longitudinal family cohort study and children’s technology laboratories. The Centre will address tensions in a contested field to inform government and non-government policy, technology innovation, and develop programs and guidelines for children, families, educators and technology developers. Field of research: 1301 - Education Systems

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2020 · 2020-01

How the brain produces speech: Neuronal oscillations to neuromodulation. Speech is crucial for facilitating human communication through language, yet there is a lack of clarity about where, when and what type of activity occurs in the brain during key stages of production. This project will use intracranial recordings to characterise neuronal oscillations in combination with direct electrical stimulation, functional neuroimaging and non-invasive brain stimulation to establish critical areas and their timecourses with millisecond resolution. The outcome will be a better theoretical account of the brain mechanisms involved in spoken production. The benefit of this new theoretical account will be a better basis for prevention of post-surgical language impairment and neuromodulatory treatments after brain injury. Field of research: 1702 - Cognitive Sciences This project will enhance Australia’s knowledge-base, capability and technical innovation in investigating and manipulating the brain mechanisms involved in producing speech. It will increase Australia's research standing internationally by leading collaborative research with colleagues in the United States of America and the Netherlands. It will offer high quality postgraduate training in the increasingly competitive field of neuroscience that attracts dedicated funding internationally, conducted in a world-class intellectually stimulating environment. The findings will inform future clinical research and improve the advice given to clinicians, patients and the broader community about the nature of speech production and its impairments. The potential benefits include knowledge gain that might prevent post-surgical language impairments and support more effective and economical treatments of speech problems following brain disorders such as stroke or dementia using brain stimulation techniques that are currently applied without knowledge of neuronal oscillations (brainwaves).

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2020 · 2020-01

Mathematical models of 4D multicellular spheroids. Mathematical models have a long, successful history of providing biological insight, and new mathematical models must be developed to keep pace with emerging technologies. Modern experimental procedures involve studying 3D multicellular spheroids with fluorescent labels to show both the location of cells and the cell cycle progression. This 4D data (3D spatial information + cell cycle time) provides vast information. No mathematical models have been specifically developed to interpret/predict 4D spheroids. This project will deliver the first high-fidelity mathematical models to interpret/predict 4D spheroid experiments in real time, providing quantitative insight into innate mechanisms and responses to various intervention treatments. Field of research: 0102 - Applied Mathematics New mathematical modelling technologies are required to facilitate the design and interpretation of experiments. As new technologies emerge, so too must new mathematical models and mathematical modelling methodologies be continually developed to assist in the interpretation of experiments. High-fidelity mathematical models and mathematical modelling methodologies have immense potential for economic and commercial benefit since mathematical models can be used to provide rapid, inexpensive screening tools to both generate and test in silico hypotheses. This process provides rapid and meaningful insights before more complicated experiments are required to test the mathematical predictions and mathematical hypotheses. The use of mathematical models in tandem with biological research also provides significant environmental, social and cultural benefits since mathematical models have the potential to reduce wet-laboratory experimentation and associated hazardous waste. Furthermore, working with mathematical models completely circumvents ethical issues associated with purely experimental approaches.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2020 · 2020-01

Using machine vision to explore Instagram’s everyday promotional cultures. The advertising-driven business models of social media platforms increasingly depend on automation. The technologies used by platforms are rapidly advancing, and include ‘machine vision’ systems that automatically classify faces, expressions, objects, and brand logos in images. The results are used to provide targeted content to users, often without their knowledge and without sufficient public oversight. Using a novel combination of computational and cultural research methods, this project aims to: examine how machine vision works in platforms like Instagram; explore its role in everyday visual contexts through qualitative case studies of festivals, food, and lifestyle sports; and improve public understanding of machine vision systems. Field of research: 2001 - Communication and Media Studies Australians are enthusiastic adopters of social media, with image-sharing platforms like Instagram seeing rapid growth. These mostly US-based platforms are largely funded through advertising, and are invested in developing methods to profile and micro-target users with content. Platforms have begun to use artificial intelligence to detect visual objects such as faces, objects and logos in everyday user-generated images. Brands, including those in regulated markets such as alcohol, have responded by creating marketing campaigns that encourage the sharing of images containing distinctive visual brand objects that can be used to profile user activity. There is limited public knowledge or oversight of these new technologies in Australia, and our regulatory frameworks are inadequate. This project will provide the first critical account of the role played by these machine vision algorithms in everyday Australian social media. Our research will inform policy-makers, improve Australia’s digital literacy, and help to ensure that public debates about the impacts of social media keep pace with technological change.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2020 · 2020-01

Mitigating Vehicular Crashes into Masonry Buildings . Around 2000 vehicles crash annually into school, home and shop buildings located at close proximity to heavily trafficked roads in Australia and cause significant distress to occupants of building and vehicle. The impacted walls mostly of masonry, suffer severe damage often with vehicle intrusion into the building. Despite this, the intrusion mechanism is not understood and no effective mitigation strategies exist at present. This project will uncover the mechanics of vehicle intrusions through masonry walls and develop novel mitigation strategies using high energy absorbing auxetic composite render and innovative vibration isolation at wall edges. These innovations will lead to new theories that can save lives in the building and vehicle. Field of research: 0905 - Civil Engineering Population increase and land scarcity in major Australian population centres have led to buildings positioned close to road boundaries. This and driver frustration contribute to ongoing increase in vehicle intrusions into buildings with severe consequences, including the recent deaths of two primary school pupils in Sydney. Based on reported Australian incidents, it is estimated that around 2000 such intrusions occur in Australia/year, costing the public nearly $49M/year with a loss of 12,600 years of productive life due to incapacitation and death. This project aims to save the building and vehicle occupants as well as property by first discovering the intrusion mechanism of vehicles through building walls and then mitigating the intrusion severity through structural innovations of energy absorption at impact zone and detailing vibration isolators at wall edges. The discovery of the intrusion mechanism through masonry walls and the proposed mitigation strategy will be the first of their kind that will bring international prominence with significant societal and economic benefit to Australian communities.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2020 · 2020-01

Framing and Enabling Children’s Active Play using Novel Technology. This project aims to address inactivity in the 3-5 age group through understanding and exploring innovative interactive active play experiences for children, with a view to increasing their physical activity over the long term. This project will be based on empirical research with real children undertaking real interactive experiences in real contexts, in order to understand issues around sustained engagement with these types of systems. We will design and develop solutions that may address the issues and test those interventions in a longitudinal manner. The outcome will be a framework which can be applied in a variety of situations and modalities by designers and developers of such systems, and feed into childhood technology guidelines. Field of research: 0806 - Information Systems Enabling more effective digital technologies for Physical Activity will address an issue of national importance, that being the tackling the sedentary lifestyles of Australian children. With only 8.1% of Australian 3- to 5-year olds meeting the Australian 24-Hour Movement Guidelines for the Early Years for both physical activity and sedentary screen time, there is a critical need to reduce children’s exposure to passive digital technologies and develop new interactive technologies that fully engage children and promote greater levels of age-appropriate physical activity and positive child development. The proposed program of research will produce timely and novel evidence to assist designers/programmers/educators to understand what characteristics of interactive technologies are necessary to promote long-term engagement and increase physical activity in Australian children. The findings can be used to inform the design of future technologies which can be deployed in a whole range of settings (e.g. homes, childcare, public spaces, etc.), and to inform future physical activity guidelines.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2020 · 2020-01

Catastrophic shifts: the value of knowing more about ecosystem feedbacks. Ecosystems respond to gradual change in unexpected ways. Feedback processes between different parts of an environment can perpetuate ecosystem collapse, leading to potentially irreversible biodiversity loss. However, it is unclear if greater knowledge of feedbacks will ultimately change environmental decisions. The project aims to identify when feedbacks matter for environmental decisions, by generating new methods that predict the economic benefit of knowing more about feedbacks. Combining ecological modelling and value-of-information theory, the outcomes of these novel methods will provide significant and broad environmental benefits, by enabling managers to make informed decisions and stay one step ahead of potential ecosystem collapse. Field of research: 0502 - Environmental Science and Management

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2020 · 2020-01

Precision ecology: the modern era of designed experiments in plant ecology. This project aims to develop the field of precision ecology, forging a new era of designed experiments where sampling is informed by research questions and what is known about the ecological process being studied. Through the development of novel statistical methods, new experiments globally will be designed to answer important ecological questions including what influence abiotic and biotic factors have on plant communities over time and different spatial scales. Expected outcomes include new methods and tools that will modernise how future experiments will be conducted in plant ecology. This will provide significant transdisciplinary benefits including new statistical methods that target scientific discovery in ecological studies. Field of research: 0104 - Statistics Long term and extensive experimentation is needed in ecology and agriculture where evidence across highly variable environmental conditions is essential to strengthen decision-making for resource management and adaptations to climate variability. In this project, we will develop and make widely available an innovative approach to experimental design in ecological science, called precision ecology. We will demonstrate the value of this approach to design and test new experiments in the Nutrient Network, a globally distributed experiment consisting of over 100 sites across 25 countries, including 4 sites in Australia. These new experiments will significantly enhance our understanding of ecosystem health and resilience by enabling targeted and informative experimentation over longer-time periods and different spatial scales. Further, these new methods will provide significant economic, environmental and social benefits through reduced use of resources in ecological studies, and new knowledge to better maintain ecosystem health in grasslands.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2020 · 2020-01

Evaluating the Challenge of ‘Fake News’ and Other Malinformation. Encompassed by the disputed term ‘fake news’, overtly or covertly biased, skewed, or falsified reports claiming to present factual information present a critical challenge to the effective dissemination of news and information across society. This project conducts a systematic, large-scale, mixed-methods analysis of empirical evidence on the dissemination of, engagement with, and impact of ‘fake news’ and other malinformation in public debate, in Australia and beyond. It takes a triangulated approach, combining computational big data analytics with deep forensic analysis, to reveal the complex ‘fake news’ ecosystem, replace 'fake news' with more precise terminology, and provide recommendations for policy responses based on robust evidence. Field of research: 2001 - Communication and Media Studies This project represents the first large and systematic examination of the 'fake news' problem in Australia, generating significant new knowledge of national importance. The project produces substantial social, societal, and policy benefits for the Australian and international community: it determines the extent to which international trends towards the dissemination of malinformation are replicated in Australia; investigates what individual and institutional actors are involved in such efforts; assesses how online and social media users contribute to the transmission of such information; and recommends approaches to combatting the spread of 'fake news'. It builds on the excellent institutional support, internationally recognised methodological expertise, 'big social data' research infrastructure, and unique background data available at the partner institutions to generate important outcomes and impacts throughout its lifetime. The results from this research enable Australian research to maintain and extend its international leadership in the field of journalism, media, communication, and Internet studies.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2020 · 2020-01

When every second counts: Multi-drone navigation in GPS-denied environments. The aim of this research is to develop a framework for multiple Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV), that balances information sharing, exploration, localization, mapping, and other planning objectives thus allowing a team of UAVs to navigate in complex environments in time critical situations. This project expects to generate new knowledge in UAV navigation using an innovative approach by combining Simultaneous Localization and Mapping (SLAM) algorithms with Partially Observable Markov Decision Processes (POMDP) and Deep Reinforcement learning. This should provide significant benefits, such as more responsive search and rescue inside collapsed buildings or underground mines, as well as fast target detection and mapping under the tree canopy. Field of research: 0901 - Aerospace Engineering UAVs (drones) are the fastest growing sector in aerospace increasing fivefold since 2015. The UAV market was valued at USD 18.14 Billion in 2017 and is projected to reach USD 52.30 Billion by 2025, at a CAGR of 14.15% from 2018 to 2025. Drones have been used and considered for a number of civilian applications which can greatly benefit the Australian public and industries, including SAR, surf patrol, disaster management, police patrol, bushfire monitoring and plant biosecurity tasks. However, existing drones and navigation systems for drones have limitations when flying in GPS-denied environments. By developing a safer, more adaptable multi-drone navigation system, this project will have substantial impact on how the government, law enforcement agencies, search and rescue teams conduct surveillance tasks in time critical situations. The outcomes of this project will both strengthen the growing autonomous systems industry in Australia, and deliver significant economic benefits to the way the government and industry manages disaster management, bush-fire monitoring, biosecurity and the environment.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2020 · 2020-01

A Micro-Physiological System to Mimic Human Microbiome-Organ Interactions. This project aims to mimic gut microbiome-organ interactions by developing a microbial-gut coculture chip, which can reversibly interface with other organs-on-chips. This is achieved through the systematic integration of highly customisable biofabrication and microfluidic technologies. This project fills a critical technological gap in the availability of an animal-alternative system to investigate microbiome-host interactions, which will greatly complement existing meta-omics approaches. The deliverables include a proof-of-concept system validated for gut-liver axis as well as the creation of new knowledge and framework to assimilate design thinking and advanced manufacturing to elevate tissue engineering into physiology engineering. Field of research: 0910 - Manufacturing Engineering This project aligns closely to Australia’s national research priorities in Advanced Manufacturing. By leveraging and integrating 2 key research strengths in biomaterials and microtechnology at QUT and the greater Brisbane area, the project will deliver a first-in-class R&D research tool, which provides a cost effective, animal-alternative means to study microbiome-host interactions. This is expected to not only distinguish the region as a hub for advanced bio-fabrication technologies internationally, but also create commercial translation opportunities as start-ups or industry partnerships. The project also synergises with Australia’s strategic thrusts in microbiome research in the future. In addition, a new knowledge framework rooted in design thinking and system engineering will be generated to assimilate the body of multi-disciplinary knowledge into a complex bio-engineering system. More importantly, the project will train a new generation of bio-engineers to expand beyond well-established bio-fabrication disciplines into the realm of human physiology engineering.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2020 · 2020-01

Unlocking Mass Mobile Video Analytics with Advanced Neural Memory Networks. This project will develop neural memory architectures and dense spatial-temporal bundle adjustment to predict movement, behaviour, and perform multi-sensor fusion across large asynchronous video feeds. This capability will allow us to better interrogate and analyse mass video information recorded from the vast number of smartphones, action cameras, and surveillance cameras which exist at public events of interest. Outcomes include the ability to ingest multiple video feeds into a dense and dynamic 3D reconstruction for knowledge representation and discovery, and analysis of events and behaviour through new spatio-temporal analytic approaches. This will offer significant benefits for video forensic analysis, policing, and emergency response. Field of research: 0801 - Artificial Intelligence and Image Processing To protect critical infrastructure and ensure public safety is one of highest priorities of the nation. When there is a threat to security in a public place, video feeds from CCTV cameras along with the numerous footage collected by the public using hand held mobile devices provide vital information for security agencies. Unfortunately, no proven techniques yet exist to automatically analyse and extract actionable intelligence from a large, disjoint video collection captured at different resolutions, frame rates, timings, and across different views. Our research, using advanced neural memory networks and deep learning, will enable for the first time the ability to ingest mass mobile video feeds along with static CCTV feeds into a system to densely reconstruct the scenes, objects and actors in an event of interest; and subsequently mine this for information on the events being performed at various granularities, from what an individual is doing at a given instant to the overall behavior of the crowd. Outcomes will provide significant benefits for forensic video analysis, policing, and emergency response.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2020 · 2020-01

Advances in Sequential Monte Carlo Methods for Complex Bayesian Models. This project aims to develop efficient statistical algorithms for parameter estimation of complex stochastic models that currently cannot be handled. Parameter estimation is an essential component of mathematical modelling for answering scientific questions and revealing new insights. Current parameter estimation methods can be inefficient and require too much user intervention. This project will develop novel Bayesian algorithms that are optimally automated and efficient by exploiting ever-improving parallel computing devices. The new methods will allow practitioners to process realistic models, enabling new scientific discoveries in a wide range of disciplines such as biology, ecology, agriculture, hydrology and finance. Field of research: 0104 - Statistics Statistical models are ubiquitous across Australia’s government, industry and research sectors across many fields. For example, models are useful for weather forecasting, assessing financial risk, understanding biological systems, risk calculations for invasive species, assessing the impact of medical interventions, and so on. Our ability to make accurate predictions, gain new insights and properly quantity uncertainty is limited by the statistical model’s ability to capture complex real life processes. This project will develop automated and efficient statistical algorithms for handling complex models. This will allow practitioners and researchers across Australia in fields such as, but not limited to, biology, ecology, finance and meteorology to consider more realistic models. This will enable them to address scientific questions relevant to advancing their discipline, yielding economic, commercial and environmental benefits. This project will train students and researchers to build a critical mass in statistics/data science, which are the in-demand skills of the Australian economy.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2020 · 2020-01

Illuminating the microbial world using genome-based fluorescence microscopy. Our understanding of microbial diversity on Earth has been fundamentally changed by metagenomic characterisation of natural ecosystems. Traditional approaches for visualising microbial communities are time-consuming and provide limited information about the identity of specific microorganisms. The proposed research aims to combine single cell genomics and super resolution microscopy for novel, high-throughput, genome-based techniques to visualise microorganisms, plasmids and viruses, with strain level specificity. The application of these highly scalable approaches will provide comprehensive and unprecedented insight into the fine-scale dynamics and evolution of environmentally and biotechnologically important microbial communities. Field of research: 0605 - Microbiology The techniques developed in this project will become the new gold standard for visualisation in microbiology. The ability to simultaneously track microorganisms and their plasmids and viruses will give unprecedented insights into the dynamics and evolution of key functional complex microbial communities. Our understanding of such microbial communities, and our consequent ability to manipulate them for our advantage, is essential to most of the critical challenges facing mankind, many of which are central to Australia’s research priority areas of Soil and Water, Environmental Change, Human Health, Energy (e.g biogas) and Food (e.g. agriculture). The application of these new visualisation techniques to the temporal monitoring of wastewater treatment will provide a better understanding of the role of these systems in the spread of antibiotic resistance-encoding plasmids and the influence of viral predation on periods of process inefficiency or failure. The thousands of probes targeting microorganisms, plasmids and phage will also be made available for use by other research groups.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2020 · 2020-01

Augmented Sociality: Enabling a Socialised Experience of Augmented Reality. This project will explore new socialised uses of Augmented Reality (AR) that expand creativity, social relations, and participation. We seek to better understand how AR content can be leveraged by people to create their own new ways of learning, collaborating, and relating with each other. To do so we will study and prototype new tools and platforms to allow non-experts to create their own AR media. We aim to enable people of all ages, education, and background, to imagine and create, and not just passively consume, AR contents, services, and applications. We will generate new applications of AR, a new platform to collaboratively create these applications, and a new theory of 'Augmented Sociality' to guide AR design. Field of research: 0806 - Information Systems Augmented Reality is set to become a dominant technology in the years to come, sustained by current investments from key actors. This project will create new opportunities for economic growth connected to Augmented Reality by developing new open source tools, design methods, and skills to generate and exploit the future market of services and applications. This project caters specifically for under-served users (children and older adults) and has a distinct focus on socialisation, creativity, and engagement. As such it will foster well being by promoting digital literacy and participation in the growing offer of AR technologies for people of all ages, educations, and background. Finally, the new theories generated in this project will inform and give a human centred approach to future designs of AR applications and platforms, as well as services, both in the public and private sector, therefore ensuring that this new technology becomes a motor of community building, participation and equality, accessible to all, and to everyone's benefit.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2020 · 2020-01

A Novel Multilevel Modelling Framework to Design Diamond Nanothread Bundles. This project aims to develop a novel, computationally-based framework to optimally and efficiently design new fibre materials based on the diamond nanothreads synthesized by the PI in 2014. The CIs (and others) have demonstrated the tremendous promise these materials hold to replace common carbon fibres. The proposed framework will combine advanced computer modelling, statistical learning, genetic algorithm-based optimal design and experimental validations. It will accelerate the design of these new carbon-based fibres as game-changing materials in a wide range of areas. Ultimately this project has the potential to deliver significant economic benefits and will place Australia at the forefront of the industrial revolution of the future. Field of research: 0913 - Mechanical Engineering This project will provide enabling technology for the efficient and optimal design of novel diamond nanothread-based nanofibres, which current research indicates having the potential to overcome limitations in reliability and strength of present carbon-based fibres. This will underpin significant economic benefit from manufacturers and users of these new materials in areas such as biomedical devices/implants, aerospace, civil, automotive. This pioneering research aims at exploring the recently synthesized diamond nanothreads, and will lead to new knowledge in materials science. It will produce a novel materials design tool, which will be available to support research on a diverse range of nanomaterials such as those used for 3D printing, and greatly benefit cutting-edge industries in Australia.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2020 · 2020-01

Optimising catalyst performance by tuning adsorption with light. This project aims to utilize visible light to control reactant adsorption on catalyst surfaces for accelerating reactions and tuning product selectivity. Visible light irradiation of plasmonic metal nanoparticles can generate a force that attracts reactant to the nanoparticles in a catalyst, and causes desorption of other reactant-types from the particles. These compound-selective effects can alter the concentrations of reactants at the catalyst surface, a new paradigm for optimising catalytic performance. This project expects to open new capabilities within fields of catalysis and light-matter interaction. The anticipated outcomes include significant advancement of knowledge in catalysis and new approaches for important chemical synthesis. Field of research: 0306 - Physical Chemistry (Incl. Structural) Verification of the proposed concept for altering surface concentrations of reactant molecules on catalysts will stimulate new developments in photocatalysis. The innovative nature of this research will contribute to maintaining the high profile of scientific research in Australia in this field. The research program has been devised to provide a meaningful contribution to the advancement of scientific knowledge in Australia in the fields of catalysis, chemical synthesis, optical physics and reaction kinetics. We are well-positioned to develop innovative, advanced chemical technologies using plasmonic photocatalysts in this field. The successful project will yield profound insight into a new way that photocatalysis can be harnessed, providing an advantage that can be used to increase the competitiveness of our knowledge-based economy. The proposal offers a significant opportunity train high-quality young researchers in a field that can contribute to Australia, by maintaining its strong base of expertise and technological capacities in a fundamental science that will be key to new technologies in the future.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2020 · 2020-01

Light steel roof and wall systems under combined wind and bushfire actions. The project aims to investigate the complex behaviour of light cold-formed-steel roof and wall systems involving localized failures under the combined action of wind and bushfire using wind suction tests at elevated temperatures combined with advanced numerical modelling. It will generate new knowledge of the behaviour and strength of cold-formed-steel roof and wall systems under bushfire conditions. Expected outcomes include new design models for wind, bushfire and cold-formed-steel Standards. This will significantly improve the bushfire safety of buildings, since non-combustible steel roof and wall systems are used as building envelopes in bushfire prone areas, but are not designed to withstand recently discovered bushfire-enhanced winds. Field of research: 0905 - Civil Engineering Extreme bushfires are increasing in frequency in Australia as evident from the recent Queensland bushfires. Scientific and field studies have shown that bushfire-enhanced winds are real and have compromised the building envelope, increased ember attacks and caused significant building damage. However, the non-combustible cold-formed steel roof and wall systems used as the building envelope in both steel and timber-framed buildings in bushfire prone areas are designed to withstand bushfires alone and not the combined action of bushfire enhanced wind and bushfire. This project will provide new strength data and design models to enable the design and development of improved bushfire-resilient buildings using cost-effective cold-formed steel roof and wall systems. Early use of these models will give the Australian construction industry a competitive advantage in international markets, will provide safer housing to the community and significantly reduce bushfire damage costs and loss of lives. This project will contribute to the Australian government’s goal of increasing community resilience to bushfire events.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2020 · 2020-01

Mathematical Modelling of the Mechanobiology of Arterial Plaque Growth. Plaque growth is a chronic inflammatory response induced by the interactions between endothelial cells, lipids, monocytes/macrophages, smooth muscle cells and platelets in the arteries. It involves many different biological processes, such as lipid deposition, inflammation and angiogenesis, and their interactions with the microcirculation. To understand the underlying mechanobiology, we propose to develop a mathematical model to interpret plaque growth by integrating these dynamic biological processes. It will offer a systematic rational understanding of plaque growth. New models will be provided to better interpret biological data and contribute to our knowledge in quantifying complex biological mechanisms during growth and development. Field of research: 0102 - Applied Mathematics This project falls within the Science and Research Priority in Health. Cardiovascular disease remains as the No.1 cause of morbidity and mortality and a huge economic burden of the healthcare system in Australia. Growth and rupture of plaques often cause acute cardiovascular syndromes such as heart attack and stroke. This project will gain a quantitative knowledge of plaque growth and can serve as a theoretical platform for future in-depth exploration of plaque progression. This will improve our ability to early detect the high-risk plaques and predict such acute events, contributing to prediction, prevention and management of health threats. 14% of Australian economic activities relies directly on advances in the physical, mathematical and biological sciences. This project integrates mathematical and biological sciences and uses mathematical tools to understand biology. It can guide biological experimental deign and reduce research costs. The models and methods developed will be applicable to problems in biological and engineering sciences involving multi-scale, multi-physics, growth and moving geometries.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2020 · 2020-01

Integrated design optimization of novel photovoltaic envelope for buildings. The research will couple the building integrated renewable application with traditional architectural passive design strategies. A new indoor environment quality index will be proposed as an objective function to be optimized together with the net building energy consumption. Surrogate models trained for each modelling software will be incorporated into the proposed optimization algorithm to improve the calculation efficiency and provide a convenient tool to assist sustainable building designs. In addition, significant urban context parameters will be incorporated to quantify their impact. Research findings will serve as significant guidance to effectively promote the application of the passive design in green building projects. Field of research: 1202 - Building

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2020 · 2020-01

2D heterostructures with ultrafast interlayer transport for energy devices. This project aims to design novel 2D heterostructures with ultrafast interlayer transport properties and to modulate the associated optical, electric, catalytic, surface and storage properties by using a combination of experimental and computational approaches for sustainable energy applications, such as fuel generation and energy conversion and storage devices. This project expects to generate new knowledge in materials science and nanotechnology and make fundamental breakthroughs in new sustainable energy technologies. The outcomes of this project will facilitate the development of novel materials and low-cost sustainable energy in Australia with access to an enormous global market. Field of research: 0912 - Materials Engineering This project will develop novel advanced nanomaterials via a combination of theoretical and experimental approaches and address the global energy challenges in sustainable energy conversion and storage. This project will produce significant new knowledge in materials sciences, nanotechnology, and green energy and environment. This project aligns well with Australian Science and Research Priority of "Advanced Manufacturing", particularly the practical challenge of "Specialised, high-value-add areas such as high-performance materials, composites, alloys and polymers", and "Energy", particularly the practical challenge of "New clean energy sources and storage technologies that are efficient, cost-effective and reliable". The outcomes of this project will be very promising to transfer to energy-related industry and provide commercial benefit to Australian and international community. The implementation of this project has potential to decrease the cost of electricity for Australian families, maintain a green environment in Australia by reducing CO2 emission, and boost the Australian economy.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2020 · 2020-01

Human-Machine Teaming:Designing synergistic learning of humans and machines. This proposal investigates the design of systems in which humans and machines use their different abilities to learn together for mutual benefit. Machine learning has been commoditised, applied in areas such as medical image reading and autonomous vehicles, however it typically operates separately from humans, supplanting human skills and leading to deskilling. Using human-computer interaction research techniques, co-design and iterative prototyping in the domains of radiology training and environmental learning, we will devise and evaluate exemplar systems that support humans to interactively frame problems, explore and learn, while utilising and improving machine models, leading to a guiding framework for designing human-machine teaming. Field of research: 0806 - Information Systems Australians are concerned about the growing use of automation and machine learning to supplant their skills. People across a range of professions and levels of expertise are at risk of becoming de-skilled, disengaged, displaced, depressed, and disenfranchised if technology development continues a narrow focus on squeezing increased performance from machine learning and AI algorithms in the quest for automation at all costs. This project proposes a radical shift in focus, by researching the design of human-machine learning systems in which people are helped by machines to think critically and up-skill, improving individual and combined performance of both human and machine. We aim to create more powerful human-machine systems that boost overall performance, create more satisfying jobs and products, and mitigate deskilling. The project directly addresses Australia's Research Priority in Advanced Manufacturing, with clear economic and social benefits. Furthermore the project will directly contribute expertise to Australia’s medical device industry, currently an $8 Billion industry in Australia.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2020 · 2020-01

Mathematically optimal R&D for coral reef conservation. This project aims to develop mathematical methodologies for optimising Research & Development (R&D) of technologies that will secure complex and uncertain ecosystems into the future. Current conventional management approaches will not prevent the degradation of threatened ecosystems like the Great Barrier Reef, so new technologies are needed. The biggest challenge in choosing these technologies is the long delay between development and deployment, in which time ecosystem function may collapse and complex, dynamic ecological and social systems will change. The mathematical methods and theory developed will inform a Great Barrier Reef case study, and will be ready for rapid application to other ecosystems as the urgent need arises. Field of research: 0102 - Applied Mathematics

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2020 · 2020-01

Statistical methods for quantifying variation in spatiotemporal areal data. This project aims to develop new statistical methods for extracting insights into spatial and temporal variation in areal data. These tools will extend the Australian Cancer Atlas which provides small area estimates for 20 cancers across Australia. The project is significant because it will allow government and other organisations to reap dividends from investment in collecting spatial information and it will enable modelled small-area estimates to be released without compromising confidentiality. The expected outcomes include new statistical knowledge and new insights into cancer. The results will benefit the many disciplines, managers and policy makers that make decisions based on geographic data mapped over space and time. Field of research: 0104 - Statistics The project will contribute to the Australian Government priority area of Health, and the practical challenge of “better models of health care and services that improve outcomes [and] reduce disparities for disadvantaged and vulnerable groups”. The new methodology developed in the project will be more widely applicable to other priority areas that employ areal data and need to make decisions based on insights into spatial variation. These areas include Food, Transport, Resources and Environmental Change. The project will contribute directly to understanding patterns of variation in cancer across Australia, which can facilitate more locally targeted health management strategies, reduce health costs and save lives by reducing inequities in cancer survival. The project will also contribute to expanding knowledge and capacity in mathematical sciences, which is one of the key STEM fields. It will intentionally focus on encouraging women in STEM.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2020 · 2020-01

Condition-Based Maintenance Optimisation for Queensland’s Railways. Rail maintainers currently use time-based (scheduled) approaches to balance the costs and benefits of inspections and maintenance. Changing to condition-based maintenance has the potential to reduce costs and improve track condition. This project aims to enable this approach for rail by developing: 1) new track degradation prediction techniques combining Big Data and engineering knowledge; 2) new on-board sensing capabilities for frequent, low-cost track monitoring; 3) novel inspection and maintenance optimisation methods to efficiently allocate resources. The knowledge generated by this project is expected to decrease maintenance costs, safety risk, and track closures and therefore enhance the affordability and reliability of rail travel. Field of research: 0905 - Civil Engineering The Australian rail industry is a large part of the national economic infrastructure, contributing more than $26 billion to the national economy and is responsible for more than one billion passenger journeys. However, operation and maintenance costs of this infrastructure are large and disruptions due to maintenance can lead to significant inconveniences for passengers. The impact of this project will be most tangible in reducing these maintenance costs (and service disruptions) without compromising safety, which could translate into increased ridership (and decreased transportation carbon footprint) by enabling reduced fares, expanded coverage, and/or more reliable timetables. The project will also strengthen the connection of the rail industry with both Australian and international experts on maintenance, laying the foundation for future collaboration by training new staff and students to work on projects relevant to Australian rail.