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UWA NEWS
6 SEPTEMBER 2010 Volume 29 Number 13
by Lindy Brophy
The French Revolution, the end of
World War II, the death of Princess
Diana – all events in history
characterised by towering emotion.
But are the same emotions felt by
people across the globe and across the
centuries? How do emotions change
over time? To what extent do emotions
influence social, political and economic
development?
How does our heritage from the
medieval and early modern period
underpin modern Australian emotional
culture – our music, art, literature and
theatre?
These big questions have led to the
largest ever research grant to the
humanities in Australia for a seven-year
international collaboration to investigate
the history of emotions.
The Australian Research Council’s
Centre for Excellence in the History of
Emotions is headquartered at UWA –
a $24.5 million coup for the School of
Humanities. With collaborating
institutions and industry partners
contributing more than $6 million, the
total is more than $31 million.
This compares with the ARC’s previous
biggest humanities grant of $7 million to
the Queensland University of Technology
for research into creative industry a few
years ago. Six years ago, the ARC
awarded UWA $1.6 million to host the
Network for Early European Research
(NEER) over five years.
It was the multi-disciplinary
collaborations formed through NEER
that helped to develop UWA’s bid for this
huge cross-disciplinary Centre. It will
create many new roles over seven years,
and cement Australia’s place at the top
of research in medieval and early modern
studies.
The Centre for the History of Emotions
will focus on European emotional ideas
and experiences from 1100 to 1800.
Australians still engage closely with
pre-modern emotions, especially through
creative arts: the music of Bach, Vivaldi
and Mozart, the theatre of Shakespeare,
the literature and mythology associated
with King Arthur.
continued on page 2
Emotions
have shaped our lives
… now we find out how
The stage is set for some of the
most exciting research in the
humanities: Yasmin Haskell (left)
and Susan Broomhall in the New
Fortune Theatre
In this issue P3 INDIGENOUS TREASURES MOVE HOUSE P7 GOOGLE AWARDS P8 BEHIND BIOMEDICAL RESEARCH

Chief investigators have
already written extensively
on emotions
Emotions have shaped our lives
continued from page 1
This is where researchers can start to examine continuities and discontinuities between modern
and pre-modern emotions and emotional responses.
“Emotions are fundamental to individual and social well-being, and understanding their history,
origins and changes over time and how they vary between individuals and mass emotions has
a lot to tell us about who we are today and how we react to social, political, environmental and
other modern day challenges,” said Winthrop Professor Susan Broomhall, deputy director of
the new Centre, which will start work at the beginning of next year.
The Centre’s director, Winthrop Professor Philippa Maddern, is in Europe, negotiating with
partners and collaborators, one of which is the Globe Theatre in London.
“Our research activities will be designed with practical knowledge transfer in mind, working with
creative arts industries and we hope that the Globe will become another of our partners,”
Professor Broomhall said.
Other industry partners are the National Gallery of Victoria (NGV), ABC TV and WA Opera.
The Centre’s research will be conducted and presented through three major performance/
exhibition events: a Shakespearean drama production at Australia’s only replica Jacobean
theatre, UWA’s New Fortune; a Baroque opera in 2015 (partnered by WA Opera); and a major
exhibition of Australia’s relevant pre-modern art holdings in 2016-17 (partnered by the NGV).
Part of UWA’s contribution to the Centre will be the refurbishment of the New Fortune Theatre.
“The Centre will have practitioners-in-residence and vice-versa,” said Professor Broomhall.
“Our researchers will go out into industry and work with them.”
Allied with the practical approach, the Centre will pioneer new methods of interdisciplinary
research called collaboratories: innovative communication events at which, unlike usual
symposia, research will be produced – not just reported – through intensive exchanges of
disciplinary approaches, theories, methods and findings.
Four main research programs will form the framework of the Centre’s work.
Meanings, a program to determine how emotions have been identified, described and
expressed through intellectual, literary and social practices in Europe 1100 to 1800, will be led
by UWA’s Professor Bob White, an internationally renowned scholar of Shakespeare and early
modern English literature and drama.
Change will be led by Professor David Lemmings from the University of Adelaide. The program
will investigate the drivers of emotional changes in society and the power of collective emotions
to produce major cultural, social, political and economic change.
UWA’s Professor Jane Davidson, an outstanding creative practitioner and musicologist, will lead
the Performance program, to interrogate how emotions were performed and expressed in
pre-modern times. Her group will use reflective performances to enhance the understanding of
how pre-modern performers and artists constructed and expressed emotion.
The fourth and final program leader is Professor Stephanie Trigg from the University of
Melbourne, whose program, Shaping the Modern, will explore Europe’s legacy for emotional
understandings and practices in Australia today.
Professor Yasmin Haskell, UWA’s Cassamarca Foundation Chair in Latin Humanism, is one of
four free-floating chief investigators, the others based at the universities of Melbourne, Sydney
and Queensland.
International investigators are joining the Centre from Sweden, Germany, Switzerland, and
London and Newcastle in the UK.
Professor Haskell said the Centre’s research would include addressing mental health problems,
bringing in practitioners and researchers from the disciplines of psychology (including UWA’s
Professor Colin MacLeod, Director of the new Elizabeth Rutherford Memorial Centre for the
Advancement of Research into Emotion), psychiatry and population health.
Renowned neuroscientist, Professor German Berrios (Cambridge) is only
one of several stellar international figures excited to be joining the
Advisory Board of the Centre.
“It’s wonderful to get support from the whole university. One of our
greatest champions has been Pro Vice-Chancellor Professor Alistar
Robertson (an agricultural scientist), who has consistently argued
for the importance of humanities research and encouraged us to
persevere with our ideas,” Professor Haskell said.
2
UWA NEWS 6 September 2010
The University of Western Australia

Indigenous treasures
in safe keeping
The Berndt Museum of Anthropology
is on the move.
At the moment, the journey is more
important than the destination. Plans are
still being discussed for the eventual
location of the Museum, which will be a
major part of a new Indigenous gateway
to the University.
But safe storage for the treasures of the
Berndt Museum in the meantime is a
priority.
The collection has grown from 1,700
objects in 1978 to 11,500 this year. The
Museum still occupies the same space
it was given more than 30 years ago.
Director John Stanton said that 95 per
cent of the Indigenous art and cultural
materials acquired since 1978 have not
been displayed.
“We simply don’t have the space,”
Dr Stanton said. “It got to the stage
where it was so crowded that not only
could visitors not appreciate the
collection, but it had become a health
and safety issue. And it was too difficult
for our staff to do much.”
The extensive and unique collection is
now going through the lengthy and
painstaking process of being recorded.
Staff are measuring, checking,
photographing and carefully packing
thousands of objects for storage in a
conservation facility off-site.
The Museum will move, with some of its
collection, to temporary premises in The
Dr Harold Schenberg Art Centre
(incorporating the Lawrence Wilson Art
Gallery) by the middle of next year, where
they will stay for up to five years before a
permanent home is ready.
“We will have the use of the Holmes à
Court gallery for our exhibitions,”
Dr Stanton said. “It is only half the size of
our existing gallery but at least visitors
will be able to see some of our treasures
and we will be able to change the
exhibitions regularly.”
Dr Stanton said the potential for damage
in the original gallery, in the basement of
the Social Sciences building (“We have
had a few floods over the years”), and
the inability to be able to verify and audit
the collection had made the move
inevitable.
“We have put on two new staff and
Facilities Management has provided
three staff for the relocation,” he said.
Feathered and ochred items and bark
paintings are the most fragile objects in
the collection. These will be packed for
the move to the Shenberg Centre but
not stored.
“Any unnecessary movement is the
biggest danger to any art collection,” Dr
Stanton said.
While they are recording the collection,
staff are digitising it and at least part of it
will be put on the Web and made
available to visitors to the Museum at
LWAG and to UWA staff. They hope to
develop a virtual tour for visitors while
the bulk of the collection is inaccessible.
The Museum was named after two of
Australia’s greatest anthropologists,
Ronald and Catherine Berndt, who
worked together at UWA from the late
1950s to the early 1980s. It is a centre
for research and exchange of knowledge
about Indigenous art and culture.
The biennial Berndt Lecture will be held
at the University Club on October 21.
UWAnews will run more information on
the lecture in future issues.
John Stanton supervises packing of the
Marmarie man, made for him by
Noongar woman Joyce Ainslie. Artist
Nalda Searles helped Joyce to make the
spirit man out of grass and it was the
start of a new art form.
In the background, Berndt staff continue
packing: Kelly Rowe (assistant curator,
collections), Fiona Gavino (manager
relocation project) and Eve Chaloupka
(assistant curator, digitisation).
The University of Western Australia UWA NEWS 6 September 2010 3

Serving a
growing
community
Our University has always taken our
mission of serving the community
very seriously. Almost a century ago,
that community was largely local –
the people of Western Australia.
However, as we near our centenary,
our mission is continuing to broaden to
include more of the global community.
This is evidenced by the fact that we are
collaborating with individual universities
and university networks around the
world. Through these partnerships,
we are dedicated to making significant
advances in knowledge and
understanding in areas of global
concern, bringing together the
experience, equipment and expertise
necessary to tackle the big issues facing
societies, governments, corporations
and education.
In a timely development, a delegation
from our University – including Winthrop
Professor Kadambot Siddique, Director
of our Institute of Agriculture – is visiting
Kerala Agricultural University (KAU) in
south-western India to launch KAU’s
new Master of Science course in Climate
Change Adaptation, building on a formal
relationship established last year.
We are only too aware that millions of
people in neighbouring Pakistan are
currently facing one of the biggest
humanitarian disasters in history, brought
on by the devastating August floods.
Regions in India are also affected by
floods.
In Russia, by contrast, people have
recently been battling wild fires and
drought, leading to an estimated loss of
up to 30 per cent of cereal crops. Parts
of China and Europe have also been
severely affected by disastrous weather.
Canada is experiencing harvest
damages due to unusual wet conditions.
And in Australia, too, we face climate
change, with more frequent droughts,
high temperatures and bush fires.
These catastrophic events highlight the
fact that the problem of feeding the
Alan Robson
Vice-Chancellor
world is becoming more urgent – and
universities around the world are
stepping up to meet the challenge.
Half of the population of more than
30 million people in the State of Kerala
depend on agriculture, including rice,
coconut, tea, coffee, rubber and
spices. KAU’s aim is to enhance
agricultural development and the
livelihood of agricultural communities
through education and research.
KAU was established in 1971 and is
ranked in the first three of India’s
57 agricultural universities. And UWA’s
high international standing in life and
agriculture sciences is reflected in our
University having been ranked 34th in
the world by the Shanghai Jiao Tong
Academic Ranking of World
Universities this year – the highest
ranking of any Australian university.
We look forward to collaborating with
KAU to find strategies by which
farmers and people around the world
can adapt to these immense
challenges.
Since our establishment, our
University has supported agricultural
industries across our State, and our
nation, and – increasingly – we are
supporting international efforts through
significant research programs and the
training of the agricultural
professionals of the future.
Building
before
Landscape architecture students
went to the wheatbelt last month
with a specific building project in
mind.
They spent a week building a rapport
with the people of the wheatbelt town of
Pingelly – ahead of a shire meeting with
UWA about the nearby Future Farm.
Each year, second-year students of
Associate Professor Grant Revell visit
a regional community to run a rural
landscape architecture design studio.
“We had been asked to help design the
UWA Future Farm,” A/Professor Revell
said. “But before we could do that,
I wanted the students to meet the
community and learn about the issues
involved in living in a town like Pingelly
and the region.
“That’s what our annual Rural Studio is
all about: introducing students to the
rural scale, helping them to understand
rural issues of land management and to
comprehend the link that rural
communities have with the land.
Students are encouraged to learn ways
of working with rural communities and to
appreciate the possibilities of community
development through land design.
“This time it was an opportunity for the
people of Pingelly to also learn about
UWA, as we are going to be their
neighbours on the Future Farm.”
The students stayed in the town for a
week and ran projects to benefit both
partners, UWA and the people of
Pingelly.
4
UWA NEWS 6 September 2010
The University of Western Australia

elationships
building the farm
Students and Pingelly locals record oral
history at the exhibition
A Pause for Pingelly was a photographic
project where everybody in the town was
asked to stop at 10am on a Tuesday
and photograph where they were or
what they were doing. More than 80
townspeople took part and the students
whipped the 120 photographs into an
exhibition in the Town Hall by Friday.
“Then we ran a storytelling project,”
A/Professor Revell said. “The students
met social commentator Susan Maushart,
who brings together oral histories for ABC
radio’s StoryCatcher program. They
learned about the methods and
techniques of recording oral histories and
had to come up with at least 10 people
for Susan’s radio program and website.
“Over the week the students and
townsfolk all got together with Susan and
her radio team to share their respective
skills and to professionally record a set of
BELOW: Some of the wooden block
prints that captured the Pingelly mystery
personal stories about Pingelly and its
people. One big aim of this exercise was
to assist the community with its own
program of storytelling beyond the Rural
Studio.”
Some of the stories were also part of the
exhibition at the Town Hall.
One of the great stories of Pingelly is the
‘falling stones’. A/Professor Revell said
that on March 20, 1957, stones, ranging
in size from pebbles to duck eggs,
began raining down from the sky. The
extraordinary event made the pages of
newspapers including The Paris Tribune.
“This mysterious phenomenon also
happened in other wheatbelt
communities between 1946 and 1962,”
he said. “There have been all sorts of
extravagant theories and scientific
explanations, but the traditional
custodians of the land generally believe
that it was a sign that the land was being
misused.”
The students produced laser-cut
wooden block prints with their responses
to the falling stones mystery.
“All these activities broke the ice with
the locals, who then started talking to
us about the town, the greater district
and the Future Farm. They were then
really open to the students’ designs for
their town and surrounds, which
included a new civic park and wetlands
area to manage stormwater, as well as
to create a meeting place for continued
sharing of stories; and planted
walkways throughout the town to
connect significant and beautiful places.
“Other design projects included
rejuvenating sites and facilities for
visiting scholars’ accommodation, an
environmental research and renewable
energy facility and recycling disused
buildings and empty lots for greater
civic enjoyment.
“I like to think we laid the foundations for
the meeting between the Shire of
Pingelly and the University this month,”
A/Professor Revell said.
“Next time I hope the Rural Design
Studio will go to the Future Farm – and
we’ll be taking the community with us.”
The University of Western Australia UWA NEWS 6 September 2010 5

Our young legal eagles spre
Hayden Teo’s fledgling law career
has taken flight, just a few years
after Hayden himself was flying
across the stage, in his short
career as a dancer.
Hayden has accepted one of the best
jobs that could be offered to a law
graduate, that of judge’s associate to
a High Court Judge. He is one of an
unprecedented number of four
graduates to be offered these positions
in the High Court this year.
When he completes his Honours thesis
this year (under the supervision of
Associate Professor John Tarrant),
Hayden will do a six-week internship
with the Aurora Project, working on
native title. He will then to go Melbourne
for his graduate (or articles) year, after
which he can be admitted to the Bar.
After that, he begins 12 months work
with UWA graduate Justice Robert
French in Canberra.
It is a very different career to the one
that he tasted when he left school,
completing a certificate in dance at
the WA Academy of Performing Arts,
followed by a year of full-time ballet at
a studio in Sydney.
“But I’d always loved reading and
writing and I think if you do what you
love, it will lead you to a career that
you will love,” said Hayden, who won
a silver medal for his argument skills at
the international finals of the Jessup Law
Mooting competition in Washington last
year.
This year, he led the UWA Students In
Free Enterprise team to a second
consecutive national victory.
“I think I was able to transfer the
confidence I learned from dancing on
stage to public speaking and advocacy,”
Hayden said.
Hot on Hayden’s heels is the inaugural
Law Student of the Year, Clare McKay.
Like Hayden, she is researching an
Honours project, which she will complete
by the middle of next year. And she has
just been chosen as a member of UWA’s
Jessup Moot team, which will occupy
her entire summer.
Clare will follow Hayden to Melbourne for
her articles, or graduate year, with
Mallesons Stephen Jacques, then take
up a similar offer of a 12-month position
as a High Court Judge’s associate. She
will start work for Justice Susan Crennan
in October 2012.
Hayden and Clare have both studied
Arts alongside their Law degrees. And
both have been active in volunteer
community service.
The former head girl of Shenton College,
Clare won the national title Law Student
of the Year for excellence, innovation and
leadership in the Australian legal
profession.
Two other Law students have scooped
positions as Associates to High Court
judges. They are Jackie McArthur, who
will be working with Justice Susan Kiefel
in 2012, and Laurentia McKessar, who
will be Justice French’s associate next
year, before Hayden takes over in 2012.
Deputy Dean of the Law School,
Winthrop Professor Peter Handford, said
the offering of four High Court Associate
positions was very unusual.
“It certainly says something about the
high standards of our Law students, as
witnessed also by the number of Rhodes
Scholarships won by our graduates and
the success of our students in the
Jessup International Moot competition,”
he said.
UN calls
Law student Amy Barber was on
holiday in Patagonia when she received
a call asking her to phone the United
Nations about a job in Geneva.
“I had applied for an internship with the
Office for the Commissioner of Human
Rights, but I didn’t think I’d get it,” said
Amy. “I was at the other end of the earth
and had to talk to the Commissioner,
Mariana Katzarova, by Skype, on my
iPod.”
Hayden Teo
Clare McKay
6
UWA NEWS 6 September 2010
The University of Western Australia

ad their wings
Young guns grab
global Google award
Google champions from left: (rear) Nicky Chua, Mohammed
Assiri, Lauren Williams; (front) Jeanna Atmarow, Alison
Miller, Ganesh Chaudhari
Amy Barber at the UN in Geneva with Mariana Katzarova
Two weeks later, she was in Switzerland, taking a semester
off her studies at UWA to work for five months on the issue of
human trafficking in the Women’s Rights and Gender Unit of
the Office.
“I have always been drawn to international affairs and
particularly human rights,” she said. “This is where I see my
career going.”
While at the UN, Amy organised a two-day seminar for
experts from around the world to discuss guidelines on
trafficking; co-ordinated a photo exhibition on domestic
servitude in collaboration with the permanent missions of
Switzerland, France and Austria; and found seven survivors
of human trafficking from around the world to testify to a
Human Rights Council panel.
“It was incredibly intense, but invaluable professionally,
academically and personally,” she said. “I am so grateful to
the Vice-Chancellor, the Dean and other staff in the Law
School for their support.”
Amy worked for the International Criminal Tribunal for
Rwanda in Tanzania for the first two months of last year. After
completing her final full year of Law studies at UWA, she went
off travelling with friends, ending up in Geneva.
She is now finishing her final semester at The University of
Sydney and has secured a position for next year with the law
firm Baker and McKenzie.
“I was lucky enough to receive the Baker and McKenzie
international clerkship, so I have chosen to go to Kazakhstan
in January to work in their office there and plan to do some
human rights work in Kyrgzstan.”
Sales of a children’s book are likely to soar after a
hugely successful online marketing campaign that
won a UWA team a global competition.
Six students from Professor Jamie Murphy’s postgraduate
eMarketing unit beat 3,034 teams around the world to win
this year’s Google Online Marketing Challenge.
Their strategies increased visitors to the website of
children’s book The Adventures of Charlie and Moon by a
staggering 800 per cent.
Each team was given the equivalent of $200 to spend on a
Google AdWords campaign over three weeks. The
AdWords program allows business to run sponsored links
on Google searches based on key words that users are
likely to type in when searching for products or services.
Ganesh Chaudhari, one of the winning team, said the highly
competitive children’s book market posed a big challenge
for the students. “Big multinational companies spend good
money and usually have full-time professionals working on
their online marketing campaigns,” he said “Throughout this
challenge, we were competing with them, but with
restrictions of budget and time.”
Professor Murphy, who initiated the competition in 2008,
along with a former student and Google employee, Lee
Hunter, said the Challenge was a great teaching and
learning experience.
It is the second time UWA has won the Challenge, with a
team winning the inaugural competition in 2008. They beat
1,620 teams. This year, the size of the competition almost
doubled.
The winning team’s prizes are a trip to Google headquarters
in California in October and a laptop each.
Business students were also successful in the local Deloitte
Dream Team competition, winning second and third prizes.
The students, all studying commerce or economics, applied
online to enter the competition to address a realistic
business case study.
The University of Western Australia UWA NEWS 6 September 2010 7

Behind
biomedical
research:
the two-legged and f
(from left) Geoff Billiewicz (operations coordinator), Malcolm Lawson (Manager Animal Care Services), Lauren Callahan (veterinary
officer), Marilyn Davies (quality control manager) and Simone Chapple (facilities manager): leading the Animal Care staff.
A cancer researcher has paid
$25,000 for a custom-bred mouse for
his work.
Another group is having guinea pigs
brought in from Germany because the
local ones have characteristics that
compromise specific research.
These are the specialist animal services
provided every day by UWA staff at the
Biomedical Research Facility at Shenton
Park.
They also care for and prepare for
research about 10,000 (non-specific)
mice, 2,000 rats, up to 1,000 guinea
pigs, a couple of hundred rabbits, up to
800 sheep at a time, wallabies, quokkas,
ducks, pheasants, emus, pigeons,
ferrets, pigs, goats and alpaca.
“There are millions of dollars tied up in
animal acquisition, breeding, housing,
quality control and care behind the
research at UWA,” said Animal Care
Services Manager, Mal Lawson. “But
very few people ever hear about us.”
Dr Lawson said remarkable progress
had been made over the past few years
in the care of animals but using them for
research was still an emotional issue for
many people. So it was understandable
that, despite excellent facilities and
systems, little was heard about that
aspect of research.
“For example, a recent issue of
UWAnews featured seven researchers
and their groups who use our facilities
and expertise,” he said.
The award-winning Biomedical Research
Facility was opened nearly four years
ago, and safety and wellbeing of both
staff and animals is constantly under
review.
“We provide the best animals for research
and the best conditions for those
animals,” Dr Lawson said. “For example,
our rabbit behavioural enrichment
program means we constantly have
rabbit playtime sessions going on. We are
trying different nesting and bedding
materials for our mice to try to recreate
real life conditions. And although our
animals can’t be free-ranging outside
(because we have to supervise them
closely), we are always evaluating and
developing new and different systems,
such as the best flooring for the comfort
and welfare of our sheep.
“We work with industry partners to come
up with the best designs for both the
animals and the staff.”
Other universities make use of the UWA
facilities, which helps to pay for the
maintenance of the animals. “An
enormous amount of money and effort
goes into this facility,” Dr Lawson said.
About 40 people work at the facility and
hundreds of researchers are in and out
every week.
8
UWA NEWS 6 September 2010
The University of Western Australia

There are millions of dollars tied up in animal
acquisition, breeding, housing, quality
“control and care behind the research at UWA
our-legged support
“
Photos by Malcolm Lawson
“
We provide the
best animals for
research and
the best
conditions for
those animals
“
“They all have different requirements. For
example, we are trying to source some miniature
pigs for dental work. And Animal Biology wants
some quail for work on reproduction. But quail
are a consumer item now and bred for the table,
so it’s difficult finding the right birds.”
Animal Care Services has a resident
veterinarian and they use the services of
Murdoch University Veterinary School for
specialist skills.
Dr Lawson and facilities manager Simone
Chapple are setting up staff training for their
mostly female, mostly school-leaver junior
staff.
“We are starting a certificate course for animal
technicians,” Ms Chapple said. “TAFE doesn’t
run this any more. But we would like to help
our staff to improve their skills and their
chances of employment elsewhere.”
They plan to take 20 students into the first
course next year and eventually to run the
animal technician course for other universities.
The University of Western Australia UWA NEWS 6 September 2010 9

Gypsies help glaucoma research
Gypsies are helping medical researchers to pinpoint the
cause of a disease that can blind babies and young
children.
Congenital glaucoma is a rare subtype of the eye disease, in
which children are born with a raised intraocular pressure that
causes glaucoma. If it is diagnosed early, it can be rectified.
Otherwise, babies can go blind within months.
An international collaboration which includes the Lions Eye
Institute Professor of Ophthalmology, David Mackey, and the
WA Institute of Medical Research’s Professor Luba Kalaydjieva,
has discovered a new gene associated with congenital
glaucoma.
Professor Kalaydjieva has an international reputation for her
genetics research into the European gypsy, or Roma,
populations. And Professor Mackey is renowned for his work
on the genetics of glaucoma.
They started work together last year with their research
partners.
“The group had already identified one gene, that was found in
about 20 per cent of Australian children with congenital
glaucoma,” Professor Mackey said. “A second gene was
identified in families from Pakistan and India, but we couldn’t
find it in European Australians.
“Then Professor Kalaydjieva joined us and we found the gene in
gypsy families.”
Congenital glaucoma is common in the Roma population, with
up to one in every 2,000 children being affected, compared
with the general Australia population of one in 30,000.
Professor Kalaydjieva explained that gypsies are a founder
population, derived from a small number of ancestors. They
intermarry and remain relatively isolated from surrounding
populations.
“The resulting limited genetic diversity makes it easier to find the
genes responsible for all sorts of diseases,” she said. “It is
easier than using a heterogeneous population.”
There are between eight and 10 million European gypsies but
probably only 200,000 Roma people in Australia, although there
is no accurate census data.
Professor Kalaydjieva is originally from Bulgaria and started her
genetic research with Roma people nearly 20 years ago. She
found that they had some diseases that were unique to them
(such as the high incidence of congenital glaucoma), while they
often did not suffer diseases found in the wider population.
“We must be careful, with out research, not to increase the
stigmas already suffered by the Roma people but, at the same
time, it is good news for them that we can work out how their
problems are caused and help them to minimalise them with
genetic screening,” she said.
Luba Kalaydjieva from WAIMR and David Mackey from LEI are
collaborating
Celebrate your safety
Do you feel safe at work?
If so, perhaps the person or team who is responsible should be rewarded.
UWA’s annual Safety Awards are seeking nominations of individuals and groups
who deserve to be recognised for controlling risks, identifying hazards and
safety planning, training and management.
Nominations of individuals and groups should be based on the criteria used by
WorkSafeWA: management commitment, planning, consultation, hazard
management and training. Details of these can be found on the UWA Safety
and Health website.
A UWA Safety Leadership Award and a UWA Safety Recognition Award are
also up for nomination. Written nominations for each of the four awards must
be submitted to Safety and Health by Friday October 1.
They will be announced during Safe Work Australia Week, October 24 – 30.
The University Co-Operative Bookshop will again donate book vouchers for the
winners.
If you would like help with writing your nomination, please call Safety and Health
on 6488 3938.
New Courses 2012
Feedback Wanted
With UWA Open Day still fresh
in your mind, please take a few
minutes to forward any
feedback on how information
about New Courses 2012 was
managed at this year’s event.
This may include questions you
were asked on the day, how
useful you found the ‘Pocket
Guide for Staff’ and pre-event
staff forums, or a suggestion for
improvement.
Feedback can be emailed to
publicaffairs@uwa.edu.au or
contact Rachel Schmitt on 6488
7241.
Visit http://www.newcourses2012.
uwa.edu.au/register to register for
updates on the new courses.
10
UWA NEWS 6 September 2010
The University of Western Australia

Trees start work on the
Future Farm
The ground is ready for 14,000 saplings
While many staff were helping out at
Open Day, others were getting their
hands dirty down on the farm.
Funding for tree planting at the Future
Farm co-incided with the start of
Professor Richard Hobbs’ Australian
Laureate project work, so he decided to
turn the tree-planting into a large-scale
on-going experiment.
Research Assistant Professor Rachel
Standish is overseeing the plant aspect
of ecosystem restoration on the farm
near Pingelly. She and Professor Hobbs,
together with Research Associates Mike
Perring and Kris Hulvey (all Plant
Biology), co-ordinated the planting of
14,000 trees over two days, with a team
of about 23 people each day.
Staff and student volunteers joined
members of Men of the Trees to plant
eucalypts, wattles and banksias on
20-odd hectares of farmland previously
used for cropping and grazing.
“My research group decided to take
advantage of seed funding from our
Dean Professor Tony O’Donnell and the
Faculty of Natural and Agricultural
Sciences to set up an experiment to
examine the effects of different
combinations of plants on various
aspects of ecosystem functioning,”
Professor Hobbs said.
These aspects include carbon storage,
soil processes and resistance to invasion
by non-native species.
“We planted different combinations of
trees and trees and shrubs in 128 plots,
each about 25 metres square,” he said.
“Depending on how fast they grow,
we will see some results quickly, but the
whole idea of the farm is to look to the
future and we are laying the foundations
for an experiment that will last for
decades.”
A/Professor Standish said they used the
vegetation that had existed before the
land had been cleared for farming as a
guide for restoration. “York Gum
woodland existed on the site prior to
agriculture, so we selected plants from
that vegetation type,” she said.
The experiment will look at how different
species assemblages and their microcommunities
interact and affect carbon
storage, the physical, chemical and
biological properties of the soil, including
the work of soil microbes and
macrofauna (for example, termites),
as well as pollination, recolonisation by
native plants and animals and the
invasion of weeds.
Wattles fix nitrogen in the soil, while
banksias extract nutrients in what
Professor Hobbs describes as a
peculiarly Western Australian way.
“They have an odd mechanism for
extracting nutrients from impoverished
soil,” he said.
The Future Farm’s own Open Day will be
on October 1st, with a theme of
showcasing research on reducing
greenhouse gas emissions. Visitors will
be able to see research being done in
this area through cropping, livestock
innovations and tree planting.
ABOVE: Students, staff and locals
all pitched in together RIGHT: Rachel Standish
Photos by Richard Hobbs and Cristina Ramalho
The University of Western Australia UWA NEWS 6 September 2010 11

Dogs win hearts and medals
It was not so much ‘first past the
post’ as ‘first to sniff the post’ when
UWA hosted its first dog show, on
election day.
The Gundog Club of Western Australia
exhibited 140 well-behaved dogs across
17 breeds, including Labrador
Retrievers, Cocker Spaniels, German
Short-Haired Pointers and Irish Setters.
The Premier shows his preference for
yellow labradors
The show was opened by the Premier,
Colin Barnett, a Labrador Retriever
enthusiast. He said he had not brought
his two yellow Labradors because they
would not be competitive in obedience!
Professor of Chemistry George
Koutsantonis is the President of the Club
and Gabe Gooding, senior scientific
officer in Biomedical, Biomolecular and
Chemical Sciences, is the Vice
President. George breeds German
Short-Haired Pointers and won Best of
Breed and Runner-up in that category
and Best Open of all breeds with his
Grand Champion Dog.
Gabe’s family has bred Cocker Spaniels
for 50 years. Her dogs also won Best of
Breed and Runner-up in that breed. She
also won Best Baby Puppy of all breeds.
The dogs were judged by Carole Coode,
an eminent judge from the UK.
There are 29 breeds of dogs that fall
under the category of gundog. “Of
course, there is no hunting these days,”
said George.
He said gundogs included the most
popular pet breeds. “They make
excellent pets because the standards
One of Gabe Gooding’s pups, Yunbeai
Spell Weaver, takes out Best Baby
Puppy (three to six months)
call for the dogs to be ‘steady, reliable
and dignified’. They need to have a good
temperament and be well-balanced to
achieve this, and that’s what most
people look for in a pet.
“Most of our members breed their dogs
for pets, not for hunting these days.”
“The rain held off until lunchtime and we
had plenty of spectators come down
from the Save the Children booksale,”
Gabe said. “It was a really good day at a
lovely venue.”
Free Banking for UWA Staff
Unicredit is your free banking
service, both on-campus and off. *
There are no transaction fees for counter service, and when
you’re not on campus, you’ll have free access to the second
largest ATM network in the country: rediATM and NAB ATM.
Why not join the 4.5 million Australians who bank at a place
which is not a bank at all. As a ‘mutual’, all profits are retained
to provide better rates and service for all members.
- Friendly personal service on campus - no long queues
- Visa Access with no application or ongoing fees
- No hidden fees for internet transfers and bill payments
- Unlimited free ATM withdrawals on a huge ATM network
Photos by Diana Anderson www.animalimages.com.au
5 s t a r a w a r d w i n n i n g
“Outstanding Value”
Visa Access &
On-Call Savings
UWA Branch
Nedlands Branch
1st floor, Guild Building 80 Broadway
11am - 3pm, Mon - Fri 9am - 4pm, Mon - Fri
Ph 6488 1218 Ph 9389 1011
Call into your UWA branch
for friendly personal banking
service, or phone 9389 1011.
www.unicredit.com.au
Car Loans - Home Loans - Term Deposits - Xmas Saver - Financial Planning - Insurance - Visa Access
* UWA Staff who open a new membership are exempt from member maintenance fees for the first year. Thereafter a $2 monthly fee applies only if total balances are less than $500. Offer available for a limited time
and subject to change, terms apply. This information does not take into account your personal needs or financial circumstances and you should consider if it is appropriate for you. To decide if a product is right for
you, Unicredit recommends you read our Terms and Conditions and fees brochures which are available from www.unicredit.com.au or by visiting a branch. The University Credit Society Ltd. AFSL/ACL 244168
12
UWA NEWS 6 September 2010
The University of Western Australia

UWA News classified
Print?
Whatever you need to print, UniPrint
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an annual report. A brochure to a flyer.
What’s more, we can also design it,
create quality artwork and see the
whole job through from start to finish.
See UniPrint too for all your copying
and binding needs. UniPrint is your
printer on campus.
UniPrint-it!
6488 7790
uniprintjobs@admin.edu.uwa.au
uniprint.uwa.edu.au
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The University of Western Australia UWA NEWS 6 September 2010 13

UWA News classified
NEW STAFF
Please welcome the following new
staff who joined the University
between July 29 and August 25.
Daniel Baker, Information Architect,
Website Office
Eve Chaloupka, Curatorial
Assistant, Berndt Museum of
Anthropology
Denise Dalton, Administrative
Assistant, Humanities
Emma Gillespie, Project Officer,
Financial Services
Michelle Gorman, Administrative/
Research Assistant, School of
Surgery
Tamara Haynes, Administration
Officer, Geraldton Universities Centre
Laura Keenan, Editor, University of
WA Press
Kristy Kleins, Administrative
Assistant, Student Services
Amy Maslij, Administrative
Assistant, Student Services
Linh Nguyen, Dental Clinic
Assistant, Oral Health Centre of WA
Gilberto Sanchez, Research
Assistant Professor, School of Earth
and Environment
Dr Megan Saunders, Research
Associate, School of Environmental
Systems Engineering
Dr Christin Sawstrom, Research
Assistant Professor, School of
Environmental Systems Engineering
Zoran Siriski, Plumber, Facilitiess
Management, Maintenance
Workshop
Evgeny Stepanov, Scientific Officer,
School of Earth and Environment
Ploy Tangtulyangkul, Information
Analyst, Planning Services
Ng Wen Qi, Program Assistant,
Primary, Aboriginal and Rural Health
Care
Ben Wylie, Graduate Research
Assistant, Medicine and
Pharmacology
Kanako Yoshikawa, Dental Clinic
Assistant, Oral Health Centre of WA
NOTICES
CONVOCATION, THE UWA
GRADUATES ASSOCIATION
invites all graduates and other
members of Convocation to attend
its Second Ordinary Meeting to be
held on Friday, September 17, 2010
at 6.30pm for a 7pm start in the
Lawrence Wilson Art Gallery with
reports from the Vice-Chancellor,
Professor Alan Robson the Warden
of Convocation, Simon Dawkins
and the Guild President, Emma
Greeney.
Guest Speaker: Professor Jessica
Meeuwig, Inaugural Director, Centre
for Marine Futures who will speak on
Science and conservation for
Western Australia’s unique fish
RSVP on (08) 6488 3006 or via
convocation@uwa.edu.au
Refreshments will follow the meeting
If you will be attending we advise you
to ensure that you are warmly
dressed, as it can be quite cool in
the Gallery due to the need to
maintain a constant temperature for
the collection.
Also, should you require assistance
with accessing the Gallery, please
call the Convocation Officer, Juanita
Perez on 6488 3006.
Campus postcards
Surprise a friend overseas or
interstate.
Instead of sending an email, write a
postcard. UWA Friends of the
Grounds have some beautiful cards
for sale at the Visitors Centre and
online, featuring images of the
campus grounds.
The Friends have also published a
2011 calendar with as yet
unpublished photographs from the
competition for the first calendar,
along with images from University
archives.
The calendar and postcards
celebrate the centenary of The
University of Western Australia Act,
passed by WA State Parliament in
1911.
Calendars are $12 each and the
postcard are $1 each.
Find them online at the UWA website.
Click on Alumni and Friends, then go
to Friends of the Grounds.
Do you own a shed?
Overseas Biologist doing long-term
field work in WA needs space to
store a 14ft field-research lab /
caravan and 4WD starting ASAP.
Willing to help with or pay for shed
clean-out. Conditions to be
negotiated. Please leave message at:
08 93897448 or 0438401213 (Greg)
KENT STREET REUNION
Kent Street Senior High School is
celebrating its 70th anniversary on
Saturday October 30
Canteen Quadrangle from 1.30pm
For more information call the school
on 9262 0500 or email
kentstreunion@hotmail.com
Libraries in late antiquity
Michael Champion
Friends of the Library Tuesday 14
September 2010 at 7:30pm for
8pm Science Library meeting
room, Third floor
Many romanticise the Library at
Alexandria as one of the marvels of
the ancient world. Its reputed size
and the various tales of its
destruction at the hands of alleged
philistines from Julius Caesar,
Christian monks or Muslim invaders
capture the imagination.
The mundane probability that the
collection fell victim to damp and
rodents is rarely accepted, although it
draws attention to problems of
preserving ancient literary collections.
But Alexandria was only one of many
libraries in antiquity.
This talk will look at libraries of
antiquity, the communities around
them and their lasting symbolic and
material significance.
Michael lectures in Classics and
Ancient History
Contact: Susan O’Connor on 6488
2272
Partnerships in Practice
PHCRED Annual Research
Conference November 12 2010
University Club
The Primary Health Research
Evaluation and Development
(PHCRED) annual conference is for
anybody with an interest in primary
health care research.
It provides an opportunity for general
practitioners, researchers, health
professionals and medical students
to share ideas, form collaborations
and networks.
For more information, contact Lyn
Brun, PHCRED coordinator, on 9956
0200 or at lyn.brun@cucrh.uwa.edu.
au
Professional Video
Production
Is now available to all departments on
campus, and off. With the everincreasing
demand for more
professional Multimedia productions,
we have never been busier. While we
mainly work within Science, we can
write and produce broadcast quality
footage on any subject.
For more information, please
contact Simon Harris at
sjharris@iinet.net.au
Red Cross Blood Service
Staff and students at UWA have
contributed to saving nearly 450 lives.
The Australian Red Cross Blood
Service reports that each individual
blood donation can help save three
lives. And last month, 149 staff and
students donated their blood at the
mobile donor van on campus.
The Red Cross has thanked the
University and rebooked its van to
visit UWA next year from Monday
March 21 to Friday March 25.
Mark it in red in your diaries
What are your ideas for
equity and diversity?
UWA’s Diversity Initiatives Fund can
help you to get an equity or diversity
project up and running.
Applications for this year’s grants are
now open. They are invited from
individuals, groups, schools or
faculties seeking funding to assist in
the development of targeted diversity
initiatives that will enhance equity for
students and/or staff.
The purpose of the Fund is to provide
financial assistance to new projects that
aim to enhance educational and
employment access, participation and
outcomes for groups of students and
staff identified as priority areas of focus:
Women and men in non traditional
work or study areas
Culturally and linguistically diverse
staff/students
People with a disability
Indigenous staff and students
Flexible work practices and life
balance
Sexual orientation and gender identity
The Diversity Initiatives Fund has
been in operation for fourteen years
and over that time has served to kick
start many UWA projects and
initiatives that have proved so
successful they have become
ongoing.
Applications for funding close on
Friday September 25.
An application form can be
downloaded from the Equity and
Diversity web site at www.equity.uwa.
edu.au or by contacting Lesley
Roberts on 6488 3873. Applications
should be sent to Equity and
Diversity, MBDP 350.
PROMOTION BRIEFS
Provided by Elizabeth Hutchinson,
Executive Officer, Academics
Promotion Committee, Human
Resources
PROFESSOR
Susan Gourvenec (Centre for
Offshore Foundation Systems)
Professor Gourvenec’s research
focuses on geotechnical design
issues of offshore infrastructure
including foundations, anchors and
pipelines using a combination of
experimental, numerical and
analytical techniques. Her work has
been adopted for use in industry in
Australia and overseas, has led to
international awards and selection to
the Shallow Foundations task group
within the Geotechnical Resource
Group of the API, the industry’s key
regulatory body.
Professor Gourvenec leads the
delivery of specialist courses on
offshore geomechanics for industry
and at undergraduate and masters
level at UWA.
Adrian Keating, (Mechatronics
Engineering, School of
Mechanical and Chemical
Engineering)
Professor Keating’s area of expertise
is in electronics, RF systems,
opto-electronics, photonics,
microelectromechanical systems
(MEMS), and micromachining. He has
focused his research on the theme of
advanced sensing technologies,
leveraging his optical and MEMS
expertise. He has led the optical
design effort for micromachined
devices at UWA, developing
infrastructure and capabilities,
building expertise and a strong
foundation for the characterisation of
advanced micromachined
technologies. He is currently
collaborating at UWA with teams in
biochemistry, soil science and
medicine and externally with
researchers at the University of
Southampton and ITT Madras.
RESEARCH PROFESSOR
Sergey Samarin (School of
Physics)
Professor Samarin’s area of research
interest has been based primarily on
fundamental physics phenomena and
physics of solid surfaces. Present
research focuses on the development
of spin-polarized two-electron
spectroscopy technique for surface
14
UWA NEWS 6 September 2010
The University of Western Australia

UWA News classified
analysis and its application to
magnetic and nonmagnetic
structures, the first instrument of this
kind in Australia. In this project he is
the leading scientist in Perth. His
mobility and ability to adapt to
different research environments in
Russia, Germany and Australia has
resulted in high quality physics work.
His extensive background and
hands-on experience assists his
teaching activities and inspires and
motivates students to develop in the
field of surface science and other
related applications.
ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR
Shayne Loft (School of Psychology)
Associate Professor Loft’s research is
to understand the cognitive
processes underlying performance
and human error in safety critical work
contexts (for example, air traffic
control, defence and piloting). The
outcomes of this research inform
training and job design practices to
reduce human error in work settings
and strengthen Australia’s and the
University’s reputation for cutting
edge research that extends basic
science to applied domains.
His exceptional record of research
achievement was formally recognised
by the Australian Psychological
Society (APS), in 2008 with the award
of the Early Career Research Award.
ASSISTANT PROFESSOR
Melville Thomas (School of
Indigenous Studies)
Assistant Professor Thomas joined
the School of Indigenous Studies at
UWA in 1999 as a full time law tutor
to Aboriginal students in the Bachelor
of Laws degree. His primary role was
as the main tutor to Indigenous Law
students, many of mature age.
Assistant Professor Thomas and his
colleagues won an Australian
Learning and Teaching Council
Excellence in Teaching Award for
UWA’s highly successful Aboriginal
Pre-Law Program. He has made a
substantial contribution to research
planning and development within the
School in his role as Associate Dean
(Research) for the School and as the
Co-ordinator of the Aboriginal
Pre-Law Programme.
RESEARCH ASSOCIATE
PROFESSOR
Thea Shavlakadze (School of
Anatomy and Human Biology)
Associate Professor Shavlakadze’s
research has focused on the role of
different IGF-1 isoforms in normal
dystrophic and aged skeletal
muscle. There is great interest in
the use of IGF-1 as a therapeutic
agent, especially to reduce muscle
atrophy resulting from disuse,
ageing and various inflammatory
conditions. Her other current major
research projects investigate the
contribution of the following factors
to loss of muscle mass in different
situations: inflammatory signalling,
oxidative stress, muscle and nerve
interaction and proliferative ability of
stem cells.
In a campus emergency
dial 2222
She was invited to work for a year
with the Global Head, Muscle
Diseases, Novartis Institute for
Biomedical Research, Boston, USA
from June this year. The links with
Novartis are possible due to her
musculoskeletal research work which
is highly valued and recognised for its
potential clinical significance.
RESEARCH ASSISTANT
PROFESSOR
Noel Boylan (Centre for Offshore
Foundation Systems)
Assistant Professor Boylan’s research
interests and activities are divided into
several areas of offshore geotechnics,
geohazards and centrifuge modelling.
He has developed a facility to model
the run-out process of submarine
slides in the drum centrifuge and
conducted experiments which have
provided insight into the processes
that soil undergoes during these
events. He is also developing
independent research on maximising
the potential of penetrometers in site
investigations and foundation design
and was recently awarded a UWA
small grant to support this research.
RESEARCH ASSISTANT
PROFESSOR
Alice Devillers (Pure Mathematics,
School of Mathematics and
Statistics)
Assistant Professor Devillers’ research
interests are the interaction between
permutation groups and incidence
structures, such as graphs, partial
linear spaces, designs and buildings.
To date, this has included studying
(ultra) homogeneous structures, rank
3 partial linear spaces, locally
s-distance transitive graphs, and
buildings.
She is part of the new Centre for the
Mathematics of Symmetry and
Computation, working with 2009 WA
Scientist of the Year Cheryl Praeger
and other colleagues in the Centre.
Her recent work focuses mostly on
Graph Theory.
RESEARCH GRANTS
AND CONTRACTS
Grants awarded August 7 – 20
AARHUS UNIVERSITY EX DANISH
NATIONAL RESEARCH
FOUNDATION
Professor Mark Spackman, School
of Biomedical, Biomolecular and
Chemical Sciences: ‘Center for
Materials Crystallography’ –
$475,000 (2011-14)
ADVANCED GEOMECHANICS
Professor David White, Associate
Professor Christophe Gaudin,
Centre for Offshore Foundations
Systems: ‘AG ‐ Ichthys Centrifuge
Modelling of Pipe Soil Interaction’ –
$186,750 (2010)
AUSTRALIAN POWER INSTITUTE
Professor Victor Sreeram,
Associate Professor Herbert Iu,
Professor Tien Nguyen, Dr Ba
Tuong Vo, Dr Gregory Crebbin,
Dr Octavian Dranga, School of
Security staff will call the emergency services, direct them to you
and come to help you while waiting for their arrival.
It is more efficient and effective to dial 2222 than to call 000.
Electrical, Electronic, and Computer
Engineering: ‘A Miniature Model of
Smart Grid’ – $20,000 (2010)
CHARLES DARWIN UNIVERSITY
EX DEPARTMENT OF
ENVIRONMENT WATER
HERITAGE AND ARTS DEWHA/
NERP
Professor Peter Davies, Centre of
Excellence in Natural Resource
Management: ‘TRaCK Research
Program ‐ Transition Phase Harvest
Project’ – $119,742 (2010)
GEOLOGICAL SURVEY OF
WESTERN AUSTRALIA
Winthrop Professor Michael
Dentith, Professor Annette
George, Winthrop Professor
David Lumley, School of Earth and
Environment: ‘Canning Basin Project’
– $1,644,476 (2010-11)
UWA RESEARCH
COLLABORATION AWARDS
Assistant Professor Deirdre
Gleeson, Jennifer Carson,
Dr John Moreau, School of Earth
and Environment, University of
Melbourne: ‘Deep Biosphere
Geomicrobiology ‐ A New Frontier
For UWA’ – $5,000 (2010)
WA DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH
Dr Karen Martin, School of
Population Health: ‘Starter Grant ‐
Child’s Play: Factors that Encourage
Play in Neighbourhood Parks and
Playgrounds’ – $30,000 (2010)
WA ENERGY RESEARCH
ALLIANCE (WA: ERA) EX
CHEVRON
Winthrop Professor David Lumley,
School of Earth and Environment:
‘Time Lapse Geophysical Monitoring
of Gas Depletion and CO2
Sequestration’ – $30,000 (2010)
When life is not plain sailing ...
The Employee Assistance Program
offers free confidential counselling
to UWA staff & immediate family,
for personal or work problems.
To arrange an appointment contact one
of the following service providers
For further information on the UWA Employee Assistance Program see
www.safety.uwa.edu.au/policies/eap
WA HEALTH PROMOTION
FOUNDATION
Assistant Professor Hayley
Christian, Assistant Professor
Lisa Wood, Winthrop Professor
Billie Giles‐Corti, School of
Population Health:‘Starter Grant
– Physical Activity Minimal
Intervention Targeting Dog
Owners’ – $30,000 (2010)
WHEATBELT NATURAL
RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
INCORPORATED
Assistant Professor Colin
MacGregor, Centre of Excellence
in Natural Resource Management:
‘Wheatbelt Natural Resource
Management Annual Community
Survey 2010 to 2011’ – $25,486
(2010-11)
WORLDWIDE UNIVERSITIES
NETWORK (WUN)
Professor Peter Davies, Centre of
Excellence in Natural Resource
Management: ‘Climate Change”
Global Partnerships for Better
Understanding Adaptation of
Freshwater Ecosystems’ – $8,240
(2010)
STAFF ADS
Classified advertising is free to
staff. Email: staffads@uwa.edu.
au
HOUSESITTING
UK academic couple visiting UWA
would like to arrange a house-sit
from mid-December 2010 until
mid-January 2011. We are
responsible homeowners, quiet,
non-smoking, with no
accompanying children, and are
able and willing to look after pets,
plants and pools. Email
T.A.Unwin@bristol.ac.uk
PPC Worldwide
Level 16, 251 Adelaide Tce, Perth
Tel 1300 361 008 (24hrs)
Web www.au.ppcworldwide.com
UWA Counselling & Psychological Service
2nd Floor, South Wing, Guild Village
Tel +61 8 6488 2423 (Office Hours)
Web www.counselling.uwa.edu.au
UniPrint 66321
The University of Western Australia UWA NEWS 6 September 2010 15

the last word …
Computers are
about people
“You’re young – you can run the computer labs.”
And so began my career in e-learning when, as a postgrad
student, I was asked by the French Department at UWA to
design language lessons for the newly-built Arts Multimedia
Laboratory.
Since that day in 1995 when I struggled to find the ‘on’ switch
on the newest computers, I’ve been on a long journey through
successive generations of digital technology, and I’ve been
privileged to both teach and learn from successive generations
of students as they’ve interacted with the technology. Along
the way I’ve learned a lot about computers – but much more
about people.
As the informational web has morphed into the social web, it’s
become clear that computers, and the internet they give us
access to, are all about people: people communicating with
people, in multiple languages, registers and media. It’s as if
books, magazines, radio and TV have been rolled into one and
the reins handed over to anyone who wants to take them.
We’re no longer limited to reading the words, listening to the
voices, or looking at the videos of the tiny elite who were
traditionally published, recorded and filmed.
But not everyone is happy. We’re told the internet leads to
empty chatter (as we were told, some 150 years ago, about
the telegraph). We’re told it destroys face-to-face relationships
(as we were told, 100 years ago, about the telephone). We’re
told it stultifies thought (as we were told, 50 years ago, about
television).
Everywhere there are politicians, parents and self-appointed
public guardians who want to clamp down on this new medium
in which they themselves are effectively illiterate: to sideline it,
block it, filter it. And everywhere there are young people who
insist on using it anyway: to engage, share and, most of all, to
say what they want to say how they want to say it. Not
everything expressed online is worth hearing. Far from it.
Like pens or cameras, computers can be used to express the
best and the worst of ourselves. But the key word here is
‘express’: each new generation of communications
technologies has given more people more opportunities to
make their voices heard.
Effective self-expression isn’t easy: not in print, not in art, and
certainly not in multiple media spread across networked
environments.
As technologically adept as they sometimes are, today’s youth
still have much to learn, not just about the technology itself, but
about how to interact with, learn from and even teach other
people online – and how to do all of these things safely. The net
does have its risks, even if most are digital inflections of
analogue risks that have been around for decades, if not
centuries. That means young people need guidance on many
levels. As a teacher trainer in new technologies, I believe the
greatest gift I can impart to my students is the digital literacy to
support their own present and future students in making the
Mark Pegrum
Assistant Professor Graduate School of Education
best of, and avoiding the worst of, the communicating and
amplifying machine that is the internet.
Not long ago I spoke to one of my former Dip. Ed. students
who’s now teaching English to recent migrants to Australia.
At the same time she’s teaching them language, she’s teaching
them about and through the latest technologies like blogs and
Twitter.
For some of these students, the journey to her classroom
began in the killing fields and refugee camps of their former
homelands. Supported by a dedicated teacher, they’re now
getting the chance to learn, to talk, to write, to express
themselves. One of these days, they’ll have both the language
and the technology to get their messages out to whoever wants
to listen. I wonder what they’ll have to say?
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UWA NEWS 6 September 2010
The University of Western Australia