Welcome to the March 2008 edition of Science Matters bringing you all the latest in Australian science news and information.
This issue features the announcement of the Defence Future Capability Technology Centre, the Indian Minister for Science and Technology and Earth Sciences visits Australia, and the opening of the 2008 round for the Prime Minister's Prizes for Science.
Also, read about Australian research to supply year round green fodder during the drought to the CSIRO's Big Day In, part of a CSIRO collaboration with Doshisha University in Japan.
Science Matters welcomes suggestions and articles for publishing and is committed to providing science news.
In this issue
- Defence Future Capability Technology Centre
- Native plants show promise during drought
- 2008 Prime Minister’s Prizes for Science
- Indian Minister visits Australia
- Move over C-3PO, here comes Snakebot
- About Science Matters
- Submit an article
- Contact us
Defence Future Capability Technology Centre
On 20 December 2007, the Minister for Defence Science and Personnel, Mr Warren Snowdon MP, and the Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research, Senator the Hon Kim Carr, announced the establishment of an $82 million Defence Materials Technology Centre (DMTC), the first centre to be established under the DFCTC Program.
The DMTC will enhance the nation’s Defence capability and Australia’s international reputation for innovation bringing together the combined expertise and resources of key industry representatives, universities and publicly funded research agencies.
Four research areas will be the focus of the DMTC:
- air platforms
- maritime platforms
- armour applications
- propulsion systems.
The Centre will deliver improved armour protection for military personnel carriers – vital for the protection of Australian troops deployed around the world – and new high-tech materials for use in major Defence acquisitions such as the Joint Strike Fighter.
Small-to-medium enterprises (SMEs) will benefit from DMTC’s technology transfer program, designed to help SMEs compete on the global manufacturing market.
An education and training program has been designed to develop a pool of future engineers and scientists with skills attractive to Defence industry and other research providers.
Technologies developed through the Centre will have applications in areas such as civilian aerospace, marine and power generation, as well as general manufacturing industries. The Centre will primarily be located in Victoria and will receive Australian Government funding of $30 million, with a further $52 million from collaborative partners.
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Native plants show promise during drought
A group of Australian native plants has demonstrated its potential to supply year-round green fodder during the drought-prone summer and autumn on deep sandy soils in Australia’s wheat growing regions.
Future Farm Industries Cooperative Research Centre (FFI CRC) PhD Student (The University of Western Australia) Richard Bennett has been assessing the ability of native legume species in the Cullen genus, collected from the wild, to provide profitable perennial pasture systems over acidic or waterlogged soils in low rainfall areas of the Western Australian (WA) wheatbelt.
Richard said that while introduced perennial legumes have traditionally had difficulties in growing in this region, Cullen has shown exciting results at two trial sites, one at Shenton Park and one at Buntine (located in the north eastern WA wheatbelt).
“There has been a high enough level of drought stress at Buntine during the summer and autumn to make it obvious which plants are better suited to survival and growth in the targeted environment – and there has been a few of them,” Richard said.
“Where a paddock of Cullen is integrated with annual pastures or even annual weeds, the animals will most likely select the annual pastures and weeds during winter and spring, when they are available, and leave the Cullen as a green-feed store to be used in the summer and autumn, when feed is scarce,” Richard said.
Further results will be collected during the next two years with glasshouse trials planned to specifically test the selected species’ ability to tolerate acidic soils and waterlogging.
Richard’s research work has been supported by Meat and Livestock Australia, The University of Western Australia and the AW Howard Memorial Trust.
A detailed article about Richard’s work with the Cullen species of native legumes can be found in the latest edition of FFI CRC’s research-in-progress newsletter Focus on Perennials
FFI CRC was formed in July 2007 to build on the former Cooperative Research Centre for the Plant based Management of Dryland Salinity’s work to make dryland agriculture in southern Australia more adaptable through innovative research, education and training, and commercialisation.
FFI CRC has received funding under Australian Government funded Cooperative Research Centre Program.
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2008 Prime Minister’s Prizes for Science
The Prime Minister's Prizes for Science are Australia’s most prestigious science and science teaching awards, and are awarded to those who have made outstanding contributions to science and science teaching.
Information about the prizes, nomination process and previous recipients is available on the Prime Minister's Prizes for Science website
For any inquiries, please contact the Science Prizes Secretariat, Department of Innovation, Industry, Science and Research:
Phone: (02) 6240 5066
Fax: (02) 6123 6168
email: Science Prize Secretairat
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Indian Minister visits Australia
Senator the Hon Kim Carr, Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research hosted Indian Minister for Science and Technology and Earth Sciences, Mr Kapil Sibal. Minister Sibal visited a number of key research facilities and institutions in New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland.
India is an important partner for Australian science and technology and provided an excellent opportunity to hear India’s focus and investment in science and technology. It provided the Australian Government with an opportunity to convey its position and direction in innovation, science and technology.
A highlight of Minister Sibal’s visit was the announcement of bilateral initiatives to strengthen the relationship between India and Australia. This included jointly funded workshops, the Australia-India Strategic Research Fund and a renewed commitment to strengthen ties working closely to identify and develop large-scale collaborative opportunities.
Minister Carr announced support for two collaborative workshops in biotechnology where we have complementary strengths. These included a joint workshop next month sharing developments in the research fields of nutraceuticals and functional foods and further workshop in April on commercialised transgenic crops as well as those under development.
The Australian Government remains committed to the relationship with India through bilateral research arrangement - the Australia-India Strategic Research Fund (AISRF). Applications to the fund's second round are currently being assessed in Australia and India.
The Australian Government has invested more than $4 million for projects under round one of the AISRF. Announcements for successful projects are expected in April 2008 following the completion of the joint decision making process with India.
Further information on AISRF can be accessed from the website.
email: AISRF program
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Move over C-3PO, here comes Snakebot
Daniel Barrett, a robotics engineering student from UNSW working at CSIRO this summer, is one of 72 vacation students participating in CSIRO's Big Day In.
Mr Barrett’s project, part of a CSIRO collaboration with Doshisha University in Japan, has taught him that C-3PO, Marvin the Paranoid Android and the robot from 'Lost in Space' wouldn't work well in real life.
"They were developed for TV and movies to cater for what people thought a robot should be like," he says. "Snakebot is modular, so it’s less likely than C-3PO to trip over rubble. And unlike Marvin, Snakebot can fix itself if it needs repairs. Snakebot is a currently only a computer simulation but, when fully tested, a prototype may follow.”
The Big Day In, held in Sydney on 14 and 15 February 2008, is the culmination of two to three months' work by top students on real research projects with CSIRO experts in maths and stats, IT, materials science, manufacturing and physics. During the two days, students from CSIRO and the Australian Mathematical Sciences Institute presented their findings and hear about science careers.
Other student projects include computer modelling of tsunamis, making catamarans that drive themselves and detecting Alzheimer’s disease earlier.
For more information: 2007-2008 vacation scholarship projects
Images and Snakebot animation available at: Move over C-3PO, here comes Snakebot
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