UNIVERSITY OF MELBOURNE

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2021 · 2021-01

Nowcasting outbreaks leveraging genomic and epidemiological data. This project aims to inform outbreak response planning by developing new models of infectious disease outbreaks. The project expects to generate new knowledge on the processes driving ongoing outbreaks including those of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) and African swine fever by integrating the latest advances in Bayesian outbreak inference alongside unique simulation approaches. Expected outcomes should include a shift in how models are developed and used to inform the response to outbreaks as they unfold. This should enable more rapid outbreak containment in Australia and overseas, leading to reduced impacts on public and animal health, and associated industries. Field of research: 0603 - Evolutionary Biology This interdisciplinary project aims to provide public and animal health, environmental and economic benefits by improving how outbreaks of infectious diseases of international concern are modelled, understood and controlled in Australia and overseas. Responding to the threats of the ongoing globally spreading outbreaks of novel coronavirus in China and African swine fever are costing the Australian economy millions of dollars in biosecurity, surveillance, prevention and preparedness planning. If large outbreaks of such agents occur in Australia, widespread impacts would be experienced, across multiple sectors. The new knowledge and models developed will guide how outbreak response decisions are made, leading to more effective control. The project will also benefit Australia by fostering collaborations with leading research groups in the United States, Japan, Vietnam and Europe. This will result in Australian researchers setting new standards in outbreak modelling, and demonstrating how model outputs should be used to inform outbreak responses in close collaboration with animal and public health authorities.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2021 · 2021-01

Singular spaces in analysis and geometry. Singularities arise naturally in many areas of mathematics, as models of symmetry, degeneracy, and asymptotic collapse. The aim of this project is to provide powerful, generlisable tools to elucidate the interplay between modes of singularity formation and solutions to the important differential equations which arise in geometric analysis. The proposed framework builds upon the established success of microlocal analysis, initiated by Melrose in the 1980's, in the generalisation of landmark theorems like the Atiyah-Singer index theorem to more general Riemannian manifolds. This project will benefit Australia by increasing its capacity in pure mathematics in this highly active research area. Field of research: 0101 - Pure Mathematics It is well within the national interest of Australia to support fundamental research in pure mathematics. Pure mathematics research has downstream impact on all aspects of the Australian science research and training system, as mathematics underlies and provides rigorous structure to phenomena arising in most areas of the natural sciences. This project in particular will provide research training at high international standards to postgraduate researchers at the masters, PhD, and postdoctoral levels, and will increase the capacity of Australia in pure mathematics research by brining top-notch pure mathematics researchers to Australia. It will raise the profile of Australian math research by producing cutting-edge research in an active area of international import. Microlocal analysis is also used in image processing and tomograrphy, and Fourier analysis in general. Those trained by this project will be in a position to find employment in medical imaging fields or any signals data field. The problems solved in this project may have downstream impact in machine learning where singular sets also arise.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2021 · 2021-01

Digitally networked dynamical systems: Performance and robustness analysis. The project aim is to advance mathematical and computational tools for analyzing collections of dynamical systems that interact with each other by the digital exchange of information. The significance of this aim stems from the emergence and growing complexity and scale of such cyber-physical networks in diverse domains, including agriculture, manufacturing, transport, and infrastructure management. The expected outcomes will broaden the scope for exploring achievable performance in the design and deployment of systems that leverage networked interaction for operational gains. Beyond the technical advances, benefits will include sustaining Australia's strong reputation in systems engineering research and researcher training in this area. Field of research: 0102 - Applied Mathematics Examples of numerous physical systems interacting by the digital exchange of information are emerging in advanced manufacturing, agriculture, transport, water and power distribution, building automation, tele-robotics, and other domains that involve machine-machine and human-machine co-operation. This is fuelled by the potential performance, flexibility and cost benefits of digitally networked interaction. Advances in methods for managing the growing complexity and scale of these so-called cyber-physical networks can lead to impact in both economic and social terms. It is therefore in the interest of Australia to be engaged in research that is aligned with the engineering of such systems. The expected outcomes of this project are fundamental mathematical and computational tools for use in engineering design and network deployment. With a view to sustaining Australia’s strong international reputation in systems and control theory research, and the diverse applications thereof, an integral part of the project is the training of researchers and engineers with expertise in this important area.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2021 · 2021-01

Moduli, invariants, and algebraisation. This project is in pure mathematics. It aims to address gaps in our knowledge in the modern geometries and their associated algebraic structures that arise in classification problems that pervade mathematics and its applications. This project expects to generate new knowledge in modern algebra and geometry. Expected outcomes of this project include major progress in our understanding of invariants of derived categories of algebraic stacks and the relationship between algebraic and other geometries. The benefit will be to enhance the international stature of Australian science. Field of research: 0101 - Pure Mathematics The primary benefits of this project to Australia are cultural and economic. The cultural aspect is that the project would enhance Australia's reputation as a center of cutting-edge research in mathematics - and mathematics is central to all of science. The project will also train young Australians to work and think as mathematicians, more specifically as modern algebraic geometers. And the economic importance is that research in pure mathematics eventually leads to unforeseen, but vital, transformative technologies. A currently relevant example is that modern algebraic geometry now underpins such vital economic interests as cybersecurity. To elaborate on the economics part - modern mathematics enters into the way we store information on computers, the way we secure this information, the way we break into other countries' secrets and the way we protect our information from spies. As it happens the branches of mathematics, algebraic geometry and moduli theory, are now particularly relevant.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2021 · 2021-01

Nano-optics and ultra-thin materials for an infrared spectrometer-on-a-chip. Aims: This project aims to advance optical nanoresonators and ultra-thin materials in the infrared spectral region. The project aims to use this knowledge to demonstrate an infrared spectrometer on a chip. Significance: Infrared spectroscopy is a powerful method for identifying and study matter but is carried out using instruments that are generally large, heavy, power hungry and costly. Expected outcomes: It is expected that this project will generate knowledge that will allow dramatic reductions in the size, weight, power consumption and cost of infrared spectrometers. Benefits: This should allow infrared spectrometers to be used in applications for which the size/weight/power consumption/cost of current approaches prevent their use. Field of research: 1007 - Nanotechnology Infrared spectroscopy is used for numerous applications in Australia, including agriculture, defence, forensics and environmental monitoring. The equipment that is necessary is however large, heavy, power-hungry and costly. We propose to develop infrared photodetectors and spectral filters that will allow this equipment to be reduced in size, weight, power consumption and price. This will contribute to Australia’s national interest. First, it will allow infrared spectroscopy to be employed for applications for which it is currently impractical. These applications include mobile monitoring devices related to fruit ripening, medical breath diagnostics and automotive exhaust monitoring, in alignment with some of Australia’s Science and Research Priorities. Second, intellectual property protection will be applied for to ensure that the technologies developed in this program can be commercialised. This could lead to a specialised and high-value technology, thereby contributing towards advanced manufacturing in Australia.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2021 · 2021-01

Nature futures: mapping pathways to prosperity for people and nature. Population growth, consumption and trade are direct socio-economic drivers of land use change and climate change, which determine where species can persist. The UN Sustainable Development Goals and national policies acknowledge the dependence of people on nature and the impact of socio-economic drivers on nature. However, few analyses of impacts on nature explicitly incorporate socio-economic drivers. Utilising a novel modelling framework and high-performance computing we will integrate economic, land use and biodiversity models to evaluate: (i) policies and incentives for increasing national vegetation cover for carbon sequestration and habitat, and (ii) global risks to nature posed by land use change under future geopolitical scenarios. Field of research: 0502 - Environmental Science and Management This project will provide insights into the environmental, social and economic implication of policy options and incentives for promoting broad scale vegetation restoration, carbon sequestration, and increasing habitat for animals and plants. In collaboration with lead government and industry bodies (Greening Australia, The Nature Conservancy, CSIRO), we will utilise our predictive machinery to analyse policy options such as carbon pricing and land stewardship incentives, taking into account macroeconomic shocks such as new trade agreements or international commitments to limit carbon emissions. The assessment tools we develop could be brought to bear on a range of policy challenges such as the design of incentives to reduce sediment and nutrient run-off to the barrier reef or increase environmental flows in the Murray-Darling Basin. Our work will provide tangible benefits toward Australia’s Strategy for Nature (2019-2030) which states the desire to “Share and Build Knowledge” (Goal 3) “to enable well-informed decision making and the development of targeted management strategies” (Objective 11).

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2021 · 2021-01

A unified approach to the design of minimum length networks. This project aims to develop a new approach to designing minimum length interconnection networks by analysing their geometric structure. These networks form the basis of communication, power and transport systems. Optimising the design of such networks is a mathematically challenging problem of high computational complexity. This project will use an innovative method based on a relationship between the geometry of networks and a type of partitioning of the plane called an oriented Voronoi diagram. The outcome will be efficient new algorithms for designing physical networks, which, in practice, will ultimately lead to a reduction in network infrastructure costs for industries in Australia. Field of research: 0101 - Pure Mathematics This project will contribute to the academic discipline of discrete geometry by producing new fundamental theory in geometric network design. In turn, this will provide a theoretical platform for further advances by researchers and engineers across the world, thereby enhancing Australia's international academic standing in this field. Ultimately, this project will improve the infrastructure networks that influence everyday life, such as electricity, transportation and communications. Optimal minimum-cost designs lead to more efficient network construction and maintenance, with the potential of saving millions of dollars in infrastructure costs. In the medium to long term, efficient network design will provide economic, environmental and social benefits throughout Australia.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2021 · 2021-01

Soft-Rigid Bonded Granular Mixes: Particle Scale Study to Field Predictions. Globally 1.5 Billion and in Australia 56 million tyres reach their end of life with less than 5% recycled. This project aims to create new knowledge and predictive models for the behaviour of bonded soft tyre and rigid rock aggregates through a multi-scale approach from particle scale investigation to large-scale observation and modelling. This will create new knowledge into the behaviour of this unconventional three-phase granular mixes; soft, rigid aggregates bonded with polymer binders. The project will provide significant benefits in diverting millions of tyres from landfills and illegal dumps and a more competitive and environmentally sensitive infrastructure industry. Field of research: 0905 - Civil Engineering Every two seconds in Australia, three tyres are destined to landfills. With less than 5% recycled, the majority end in landfills or exported for fuel recovery. The national announcement by Federal government on ban on waste export, requires new solutions to be developed. This comes at a time of record investment in the infrastructure sector across Australia. Waste tyre aggregates carry the intrinsic characteristics of car tyres including high elasticity, supreme strength, and resilience to temperature and pressure change, highly desirable characteristics in many civil works. This project will create new knowledge on field performance of waste tyre and crushed rock aggregates bonded for use in a range of civil and geotechnical engineering applications from permeable pavements to road and rail fills. This project will provide the research and professional communities with design tools and confidence in uptake of this unique unconventional mix for the infrastructure industry leading to significant cost and energy savings, reduced waste streams by at least 30% and national economic and environmental benefits.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2021 · 2021-01

Oxygenation history of the Earth and the evolution of complex life. This project will investigate how and when the atmosphere became oxygen-rich by analyzing ancient barrier reefs and other rocks that formed between 1000 to 300 million years ago, spanning the appearance and diversification of animals and plants. The project is significant because the buildup of oxygen in the atmosphere was arguably the most important chemical process ever to have occurred on Earth and controlled the evolution of environments, climate and life. A major outcome will be an improved understanding of how the Earth's atmosphere and climate are regulated by geological processes. This project will generate new knowledge about how sedimentary zinc, lead and copper ore deposits form, which may guide exploration for these commodities. Field of research: 0403 - Geology In addition to having strong scientific goals, the project also has direct implications for Australian and global ore deposit exploration. The abundance of oxygen in seawater strongly influences the timing and distribution of base metal enrichment in sedimentary systems. A greater understanding of the oxygen content of these ancient oceans may therefore help in exploration for these ore deposit types. Australia's economy benefits enormously from mineral exports like iron and zinc ores. Any geological knowledge that improves the success rate in exploration for these commodities is likely to be of benefit to Australia's economy. In addition, this project will build research strength in environmental geology and may provide a greater understanding of how the modern atmosphere-ocean system works. This has implications for understanding Australia's modern and future climatic regime.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2021 · 2021-01

The jugular vagal sensory connectome regulating visceral function. Internal body organs have a rich supply of sensory nerve fibres that serve important roles in monitoring the local environment for normal and abnormal sensory stimuli. These nerve fibres have different origins and wire into brain circuits that regulate widely diverse physiological responses. In this study we aim to study the neural circuits and responses mediated by a group of these sensory nerves which has not been investigated appreciably in the past. We believe that these sensory neural circuits will reveal important new insights into how internal organs perform their diverse and essential functions to sustain life. Field of research: 1109 - Neurosciences Understanding how the nervous system operates is at the forefront of biological, psychological and biomedical research globally. Many fundamental questions remain unanswered. We will investigate the organisation and function of neural circuits that are instrumental in controlling and protecting our internal organs. The project is not medical as it seeks to answer basic questions relating to the wiring of the brain. The results will contribute significant new knowledge to fundamental neuroscience, advance modern technologies for studying the nervous system, produce internationally-recognized outputs, train new scientists and lead to larger national and international collaborative projects. Because we will describe neural processes that protect us from environmental harm, the project will have significant long-term societal and economic benefits for maintaining human health. For example, the work will improve our understanding of how the nervous system helps to protect us from environmental pollutants, such as poor air quality or ingested contaminants. This has far reaching impact.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2021 · 2021-01

Central Representation of Electroacoustic Stimuli. Cochlear implantation, initially only provided to profoundly deaf individuals, is now routine in people with substantial residual hearing. Although stimulation via a cochlear implant and hearing aid in the same ear has been shown to improve speech understanding, particularly in noise, and to increase the aesthetic quality of sound, almost nothing is known about the physiological mechanisms underlying these benefits. The broad aim of our project is to address this deficiency by measuring the patterns of neural activity evoked by speech sounds across the tonotopic axis in the inferior colliculus and auditory cortex and assess the extent to which the pattern of neural activity allows discrimination between the different speech sounds. Field of research: 1109 - Neurosciences This project will provide the first detailed knowledge of the way in which electroacoustic stimulation is processed in the central auditory system. This fundamental knowledge is critical to our understanding of the way multiple modalities are integrated by the brain and will have potential impact on a range of neuromodulation technologies. The project will also advance our understanding of neurobiology and plasticity resulting in high quality peer-reviewed publications and community and stakeholder engagement. Importantly, this project also has the potential to provide a foundation for testing future developments in speech encoding strategies that underpin cochlear implants. Australia, already a world leader in medical bionics and cochlear implant technology, will benefit from additional job creation, increased revenues and continued leadership of the field of neuromodulation technologies, an industry projected to be worth US$13+ billion in 2022.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2021 · 2021-01

Understand ion-specific effects under nanoconfinement by multiscale models. Different types of ions with the same charge can behave distinctively in many ionic applications. This so-called ion-specific effect is essential to ion separation, ion sensing, electrochemical energy storage, chemical and biomedical processes and many other industrial applications. Confining ions in nanopores and modulating them via surface electric potential can give rise to new ion-specific effects, enabling novel applications. Capitalising on our recent experimental discoveries, this project aims to integrate new multiscale models to understand ion-specific effects in electroconductive nanoporous materials. The new models will be used to quantitatively predict ion-specific effects in supercapacitor design. Field of research: 1007 - Nanotechnology Specific ion effects play a significant role in applications in mining, chemical and biomedical processing and have long been an active research topic in Australia. Complementing Australia's existing world-leading research strength in this area, this project will initiate a new research direction to deal with ion-specific effects under nanoconfinement, It will not only help strengthen Australia's leading position in this research field but also will establish new theoretical models to accelerate the design of next-generation ionic technologies such as chemical/pharmaceutical production processes, water desalination, mineral extraction and capacitive energy storage devices. It will provide a multidisciplinary, contemporary environment to train highly skilled postgraduate students and postdoctoral researchers, constituting a strong workforce to bridge fundamental studies into real-world use. The new knowledge and intellectual property produced from this project as well as talents trained will support emerging Australia's knowledge-based manufacturing industry.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2021 · 2021-01

Improving Interactions for Digital Browsing of Large Collections. Browsing for information is an established and fundamental part of how people find the knowledge that they need. However, our current understanding of how browsing succeeds or fails is poor. This is because we have limited empirical data, and until recently, the available technologies to create detailed data on what people actually look at and when were very limited. As a result, digital browsing methods have been almost universally inferior to real-world counterparts. Given the lack of fundamental theories to inform design, this is unsurprising. After creating a detailed and systematic account of user behaviour in browsing, we will create novel designs that will accelerate the discovery of information, particularly for innovative work. Field of research: 0807 - Library and Information Studies Australia's economic dependence on arriving at creative solutions and ideas is growing rapidly. Coming up with novel approaches in any profession or industry requires workers to gather information on concepts that are fundamentally hard to articulate. In these cases, browsing for information signficantly outperforms interactive search. However, while digital search tools are highly refined, digital browsing tools are manifestly ineffective. This project will create new insights into how people visually scan when browsing. That fundamental knowledge will help us design new, effective tools for digital browsing that will significantly impact all Australian information providers, and the industries that depend on innovating through information to succeed, from agriculture to banking.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2021 · 2021-01

Harm inflation: Making sense of concept creep . This project aims to investigate our culture’s rising preoccupation with harm and clarify its causes and consequences. It will apply innovative computational tools for understanding cultural change which will create new knowledge of how concepts of harm have broadened their meanings in recent decades. It will explore societal and cultural drivers of these changes and their effects on diverse phenomena including help-seeking, over-diagnosis and polarized moral judgment. The project will generate insight into important ongoing social changes and awareness of their positive and negative ramifications. It will provide significant benefits for our understanding of key challenges to mental health and social well-being. Field of research: 1701 - Psychology Australia faces growing challenges involving rising rates of mental illness, political polarisation and social conflict. The public is increasingly concerned about the growing vulnerability of young people and how to address it. Many of these challenges are associated with changes in how members of the public understand concepts of harm such as mental disorder, trauma, bullying, prejudice and hate, and with disagreements about those definitions. The project will enable the development of strategies for enhancing the population’s mental health and social cohesion in several ways. It will clarify sources of over-diagnosis of mental illness and illuminate how education campaigns can alter people’s concepts of mental illness in ways that improve appropriate help-seeking among under-served groups. By revealing precisely how different ways of defining harm underlie many heated social and political conflicts between individuals and groups, it will afford a new target for designing community-level interventions that increase common ground, shared understanding and mutual respect.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2021 · 2021-01

Fortifying animal and plant germ cells against proteotoxic stress. Cellular stress is responsible for widespread inefficiencies in plant and animal reproduction. Using high resolution proteomics and cryo-electron microscopy, this project aims to investigate how plant and animal germ cells respond to environmental stresses that are known to disrupt fertility, and assess two novel strategies to decrease the sensitivity of cells to stress. This project is expected to generate new global knowledge in the area of fertility regulation with the potential to improve the tolerance of crop species to heat stress, prevent economic losses and help to secure future food production. Further, this project has the intended benefit of improving the fertility of animal species that suffer from stress-induced infertility. Field of research: 0608 - Zoology This project will make significant contributions to the future prosperity of Australia by developing novel strategies to fortify our plant crops, and animal species against environmental stresses that affect reproduction. This work will enhance our knowledge of cellular stress pathways and how these affect the fertility of plants and animals and in doing so, will help to consolidate the strong standing of Australian research in the field of reproductive biology. Moreover, through the development of new national and international collaborations this project will enhance the impact of precious ARC funding and improve the reach of ARC objectives. This project will generate a critical knowledge base for applied research in which stress pathways can be modulated to improve assisted reproduction in horses and cattle, fortify crop species against abiotic stresses. Moreover, this project will provide outstanding, industry relevant training opportunities for PhD candidates at The University of Newcastle.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2021 · 2021-01

Multiobjective optimisation of reservoir operations under uncertainty. This project aims to address a crucial water resources management problem: how to manage reservoirs under uncertainty. This project expects to develop an optimisation-based framework to improve the delivery of water resources from optimised reservoir operational strategies. Expected outcomes include an innovative tool for multiobjective decision-making under uncertainty, and robust operational strategies catering for real-world operational situations, including conflicting objectives, natural variability in system inputs, and future uncertainty due to climate change and population growth. The improved decisions will protect lives and assets, and postpone expensive infrastructure upgrades by maximising benefits from current systems. Field of research: 0905 - Civil Engineering This project contributes to Australia’s Science and Research Priorities in “Soil and Water” by developing an optimisation framework to support reservoir operations. Reservoirs are one of the most important infrastructure in managing our valuable water resources. The proposed framework enables reservoir operational strategies to be developed considering real-world operational context. The project will provide significant social, economic and environmental benefits to Australia from 1) reduced flood risk; 2) increased productivity of our limited water resources for human consumption and the environment; and 3) postponed expensive infrastructure upgrades from optimised use of current system capacity. This project will improve Australia’s resilience to future challenges due to climate change and population growth.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2021 · 2021-01

Extracting the hidden structure of glass from particle vibrations. Predicting the rigid behaviour of glass from its disordered, amorphous atomic structure remains a challenge in materials science. This project aims to define an innovative measure of structure based on how constrained each particle is, which can be quantified by measuring the particles’ vibrations. Using this new measure of structure, this project expects to link the microscopic structure of glass to its macroscopic properties via computer simulations. Expected outcomes of this project include a new methodology for characterising amorphous materials and an improved understanding of the nature of glass. This should provide significant benefits, such as an increased ability to rationally design amorphous materials with desired properties. Field of research: 0307 - Theoretical and Computational Chemistry This project is expected to drive innovation in scattering experiments, which will provide significant benefit to material characterisation. Such experiments will allow more value to be extracted from Australia’s existing microscopy and neutron scattering facilities. The new methodology proposed in the project could lead to experiments capable of fast measurement of the properties of an amorphous material, without the need to destroy the sample. This has the potential to save significant amounts of time and resources in Australia’s design and manufacturing industries. Additionally, it is expected that the results of this project will lead to a better understanding of how the structure of an amorphous material determines its properties. This could allow for the smart design of amorphous solids with an extremely large range of behaviours. Great economic and social benefits could result from such a breakthrough, and contributing to the science underpinning this development at an early stage would give Australia the opportunity to be at the forefront of a possible materials revolution.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2021 · 2021-01

Synthetic microbiome: improving crop nitrogen acquisition and productivity. Challenges to food security under conditions of global climate change are forcing us to increase crop production to feed the growing population. Focusing on the plant–microbe interactions, represent a promising area in the search for tools to address this challenge. This project aims to develop a three-step- framework that allows researchers to systematically and reproducibly investigate crop microbiomes to enable us to design a ‘Beneficial Biome’, a biologically based solution for improving agricultural productivity and environmental sustainability under constrained conditions, where limited resources are available to fertilize. Field of research: 0503 - Soil Sciences Biotic and abiotic stresses cause declines in crop productivity, which significantly compromise global food security. Chemical fertilizers do not provide a sustainable way to alleviate these stresses and could even be ineffective or unavailable in some areas. The crop microbiome as the second genome of the plant, can influence host phenotypes such as growth and tolerance to pathogens, pests, and environmental stresses. This project aims to develop a framework based on available techniques including culture-dependent and culture-independent microbiology approaches coupled with single cell sorting technology, to systematically exploring the crop microbiome and its interaction with the host’s fitness. In doing so, the outcome of this project will provide a biologically based approach to boost crop production sustainably and offer opportunities to reduce fertilizer use and increase economic benefits for Australian farmers.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2021 · 2021-01

Creating shellfish reefs for hazard risk reduction and habitat restoration. Living shorelines are a potentially powerful solution to two pervasive problems: an increased need for coastal protection; and the restoration of lost habitats. This project aims to investigate the effective application of living shorelines using shellfish reefs. It expects to generate new knowledge to ensure living shorelines achieve both hazard risk reduction and habitat restoration goals. Expected outcomes of this project include an enhanced capacity within Australia for the application of nature-based coastal defence, and a better understanding of effective living shoreline design. This should provide significant socio-economic and environmental benefits through the development of a sustainable and adaptive method of coastal defence. Field of research: 0602 - Ecology This research will improve Australia’s capacity to adapt to an increase in coastal hazard risk caused by climate change and coastal urbanisation. Half of the Australian coastline (> 30,000 km) is vulnerable to erosion from sea level rise alone, jeopardising more than $226 billion worth of infrastructure. Diverse and sustainable solutions are needed to protect coastlines at this scale. This project will lead the way nationally in developing living shoreline tools for coastal management to provide the following benefits: (1) more economical construction and maintenance costs of coastal defences; (2) preservation and restoration of natural ecosystems; and (3) maintenance of natural land-sea boundaries that connects the community to the ocean. Investment in this project will help Australia become a key player in solutions-focused research for climate adaptation in response to coastal hazards and move forward from the hard structures that continue to dominate Australia’s coastal management practices.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2021 · 2021-01

Exploring the Nature of Dark Matter. This project aims to address one of the key fundamental questions in physics: what is dark matter? Dark matter makes up 84% of the matter in the universe, but we do not know its identity. This project expects to improve our understanding of the fundamental properties of dark matter and how it interacts with ordinary matter. Expected outcomes include new theoretical models of dark matter that will guide future experiments, and precision calculations of interactions between dark and ordinary matter that are needed to interpret experimental results. Benefits include enhancing Australian research capacity in an internationally active area of research and advanced student training. Field of research: 0202 - Atomic, Molecular, Nuclear, Particle and Plasma Physics This project aims to increase our understanding of the universe by generating new fundamental scientific knowledge about the composition of dark matter, which has an important role in the evolution of the universe. Findings from this exploratory study will contribute to the national interest through potential downstream applications in the development of instrumentation and detection devices for high precision engineering and advanced manufacturing. These are critical to driving industry and economic innovation in Australia. Additionally, the project will bring national benefits though harnessing widespread curiosity in understanding the universe to engage school students though integrated outreach and education programs that aim to enhance participation in STEM subjects, with a longer view to build future technological capability in the Australian workforce.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2021 · 2021-01

Resilient design flood estimation for Australia. The total costs of natural disasters in Australia are forecast to more than double in the next 20 years - with floods one of the costliest natural disasters faced. The damage and cost of floods can be managed, but rapid developments in the understanding of rainfall and flood projections has resulted in national flood guidelines that are not consistent with current science. This project proposes a novel but practical technique for design flood estimation that will accommodate the key changes to flood behaviour that are expected in the future. This will include consideration of changes in extreme rainfall intensities, catchment wetness, and patterns of storm behaviour. Field of research: 0905 - Civil Engineering The Australian Business Roundtable for Disaster Resilience and Safer Communities consisting of the Australian Red Cross, IAG, Westpac, Munich Re, Optus, and Investa recommend embedding resilience across all aspects of policy and decision-making by “prevention and preparedness through data collection and provision, infrastructure and land use planning, building codes and community initiatives”. This proposal represents a world first attempt to develop methodologies for infrastructure design in the face of changed flooding due to increased extreme rainfall intensities and changed antecedent conditions. By allowing the cost of future flooding to be managed through appropriate infrastructure design this proposal represents significant economic benefit. The proposed approach would be tested through the development of state-of-the-art data sets for flood engineering giving confidence to the outcomes derived.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2021 · 2021-01

Robust strategies to achieve sustainable savannas under rapid global change. This project aims to design approaches for financial incentive programs that are robust to uncertainties in global climate and economic change, while delivering multiple ecosystem services. Despite billions of dollars allocated to landholders, these schemes have not been evaluated under a range of potential futures. This project expects to incorporate an unprecedented range of uncertainties into incentive program design, and test program performance using spatial simulations of Australia’s dynamic savanna rangelands. This should lay the groundwork for applications to other environments facing similarly uncertain futures, and may prove vital to ensure we can adapt and thrive in a changing climate Field of research: 0699 - Other Biological Sciences This project focuses on the development of robust strategies for sustainable land management, with direct environmental and economic benefits to the Australian community. In the context of global climatic and economic changes, accounting for uncertainty in the design of financial incentive schemes can deliver broadscale land management that provides multiple ecosystem services with a relatively low risk of failure across all future scenarios. Developing methods for robust financial incentive schemes can have major real-world impacts across extensive privately held lands. Improving the spatial allocation of payments will be valuable for land management funds in Australia, such as the $2.55 billion Emissions Reduction Fund, or Queensland’s recently announced $500 million Land Restoration Fund. In northern Australia in particular, vast areas of extensively grazed savannas have relatively low levels of livestock production, so the opportunity to diversify income streams through participation in incentive schemes may prove vital in a changing climate.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2021 · 2021-01

Bacterial cell invasion factors as vaccine targets. This project aims to determine the virulence factors responsible for cellular invasion and systemic spread of Mycoplasma bovis, and use genome editing technologies (CRISPR-Cas9) to create gene knock out mutants that cannot invade host cells and test their potential as vaccine candidates in animals. Mycoplasma bovis is an emerging cause of mastitis, the most important infectious disease in the dairy industry, and causes significant economic losses. The vaccine candidates developed in this project are expected to be used to control outbreaks of mastitis, and to improve biosecurity, production and animal welfare in the Australian and global dairy industries. Field of research: 0707 - Veterinary Sciences Mastitis is the biggest problem in dairy industry, costing the global dairy industry $26-42 billion per annum. Studies have shown that at least 50% of Australian dairy herds have significant levels of subclinical mastitis and this problem costs the industry over $60 million/year. The outcomes of this project will enhance our understanding of cellular invasion and systemic dissemination and unlock new insights into the host-pathogen interactions of Mycoplasma bovis, a pathogen responsible for outbreaks of mastitis throughout the world in the past 20 years including in Australia. The gene knock-out mutants developed in this project will be vaccine candidates that could be used to enhance control of outbreaks of mastitis caused by the pathogen. Better control of this disease will have a direct and positive impact on the economy, biosecurity, production and animal health and welfare in the Australian and global dairy industries and will assist in reducing use of antibiotics in agriculture.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2021 · 2021-01

Turning points? Life events and trajectories of later-life loneliness. This project aims to investigate whether and how significant life events generate temporary or sustained changes in loneliness, using rich panel survey data and the collection of in-depth interviews. This project expects to generate new knowledge on dynamics of later-life loneliness using an innovative multi-level, mixed-methods approach examining household and community characteristics that may also shape changes in loneliness. Expected outcomes includes documenting and explaining how life events generate variations in loneliness, identifying new directions for understanding this pressing topic. Findings are expected to provide significant benefits, including improved economic and social outcomes for individuals, families, and Governments. Field of research: 1603 - Demography Loneliness in older adults has been recognised as a significant social problem and carries large economic costs to Governments. This research will contribute to understanding loneliness from a longitudinal and life course perspective, providing evidence on whether the experiences of different life events may render older Australians more susceptible to a sustained path to increased loneliness and isolation. While life transitions and events may be experienced by individuals, the proposed project will innovate by moving the analysis beyond the individual level, incorporating characteristics across households and neighbourhoods. This will allow for assessing whether these contexts work to buffer or magnify fluctuations in loneliness. New knowledge from the project will help to address some of the practical challenges associated with population ageing. Findings from the project would be of benefit and interest to a range of aged care providers and government departments, as well as families, communities and individuals.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2021 · 2021-01

Decoding the enigmatic biology of human gamma-delta T cells. The immune system surveys our body examining molecules that signal whether or not everything is ok. T cells are a central to this and use their receptors to monitor these molecular signals. A specialised subset of T cells known as gamma-delta T cells are critical to detecting infection and cancer, yet their fundamental biology is poorly understood. This project aims to unravel this elusive biology. The aims are to understand 1. The diversity in function between gamma-delta T cell subsets, and 2. The diversity in gamma-delta T cell receptors and the molecules that these receptors detect. This work is essential for understanding gamma-delta T cell immunology which is critical if we ultimately wish to harness this to improve human health. Field of research: 1107 - Immunology This project contributes to Australia’s national interest by creating important new knowledge informing our understanding of a specialised component of the immune system known as gd T lymphocytes. These cells survey tissues for evidence of infection, cancer or damage leading to an appropriate immune response. The research will determine how these functions are achieved at a molecular level, resulting in high impact publications, novel intellectual property and potential downstream applications. The work will leverage collaborative relationships with Australian and International industry partners, including CSL. The research findings are likely to generate commercial opportunities with these and other potential industry partners.