18 Apr: Vol 24, #4 - UWA News staff magazine - The University of ...

UWA18newsThe University of Western Australia ESTABLISHED 191118 APRIL 2005 Volume 24 Number 4Fishing boats on Lake Victoria…the lake supports millions of people through its fishing industrySource of the Nileunder threatUWA’s part insaving Lake VictoriaA port town on the banks of Lake Victoriaby Lindy BrophyLake Victoria, the source of the River Nile andthe lifeblood of forty million African people, isunder pressure.An almost sevenfold increase in the population of the Lake’scatchment over the past 50 years, and increased agriculturalpollution from the three countries that share the lake has seenthe World Bank step in to save this important water body, thesecond largest freshwater lake in the world.UWA’s Centre for Water Research (CWR) has won acontract worth nearly a million dollars, from the World Bank, tohelp out with one part of the study.CWR’s Professor Jörg Imberger, Dr Jason Antenucci, projectmanager Dr Jose Romero and field operations manager MsSheree Feaver are examining the flow and exchange of waterbetween Winam Gulf (an area of water about twenty five timescontinued on page 2

2 UWAnewsDr Jose Romero and Dr Jason Antenucci prepare the equipment for shipping to Winam Gulfcontinued from page 1the size of Sydney Harbour in the north-east corner of the Lake)and the main body of the Lake (about the size of Tasmania).Their study of the hydraulic conditions in the Rusinga Channel,which links Winam Gulf to the rest of the Lake, is needed todetermine how much flushing of nutrients from the Gulf to theLake occurs. Then decisions can be made about what needs tobe done in the environment surrounding the Gulf to improve thewater quality.Dr Romero, who has formerly worked at Lake Victoria on aproject with the University of California, said their experiments,to be conducted over the next eight months, were coming nearthe end of a seven-to-eight year funding phase by the WorldBank, which has emphasised fisheries and pollution, but not muchhydraulics or water movement.“We really need a hydraulic study to understand the ecology,”Dr Romero said.Dr Antenucci said part of their field work would becommunicating with the locals, including fisherfolk, and explainingto them that this study would lead to an improved understandingof the lake and, in the long run, would be beneficial to them. Theywill include the local community in their work where possible,and work on building the scientific capacity of the people. SomeKenyan scientists will be trained at CWR during the project.(Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania border Lake Victoria though WinamGulf lies entirely in Kenya.)Dr Romero said that, in 1960, about 400 different species offish lived in Lake Victoria and nowhere else in the world. “Thesewere small fish, with no real commercial value, but good forfeeding families who lived around the Lake,” he said. “Then NilePerch (a big fish related to barramundi) was introduced in the1950s, and it led to the highest rate of vertebrate extinction everwith perhaps an 80 per cent loss of the native fish fauna duringthe 1980s. While the Nile Perch now provides a commercialcommodity for the fisherfolk, there has been a huge loss ofbiodiversity.”During their experiments, the CWR team will deploy twoautomated moored stations in the Rusinga Channel, and collectspatial data with profiling instruments from boats. Theseinstruments, like the F-probe (pictured), measure temperature,salinity, turbidity, dissolved oxygen and other characteristics ofthe water.The team hopes their work will result in a significant increasein understanding the ecology of Winam Gulf and the causesof eutrophication (high levels of nutrients that encourage algalgrowth).Dr Romero and Ms Feaver left last week for the first of theirfield campaigns.The research vessel is prepared for the CWR studyTHE UNIVERSITY OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA • 18 APRIL 2005

UWAnews 3Documenting griefJust as Susannah Thompson was starting workon her PhD two years ago, a personal tragedychanged not only her life, but the direction ofher research.Susannah is a historian and was thinking about an aspect ofNed Kelly for her thesis. Then she had a stillborn baby boy.“I realised that, even though we hear very little about it in oursociety, it is a monumental event for women and their families,”Susannah said.“People came out of the woodwork to comfort me and tellme their stories of stillborn and miscarried babies. Women cameto me crying over the babies they had lost up to 50 years ago,and then I knew I had to write about it.“There is nothing in historical scholarship about these families’personal tragedies. Although many historians have written aboutthe history of pregnancy and childbirth, miscarriage and stillbirthremain silent in history, and nothing has been written to helpthese families and help raise community awareness.”Susannah, now the mother of a ten-month-old daughter,Olivia, is looking into Stillbirths, Miscarriages and NeonatalDeaths in Australia, between 1890 and 2000. She hopes it willcontribute to and enlarge on existing historical research intopregnancy and childbirth.“I think miscarriages and stillbirths were more common in theearlier period of my research, but, because they weren’t talkedabout, I feel there was a misconception then that losing a babydidn’t mean anything,” she said. “The psychological literature saysit is as monumental as losing a spouse.”Susannah is looking for women to tell her their stories. “Itmight help them to know that I’m not just a casual observer, thatI can relate to their grief. People have told me of many womenwho have been through it, but it’s such a personal grief, that Idon’t want to approach anybody. I want women to come to mevoluntarily.”She has already talked to many young women and isparticularly keen to speak with older women, who lost theirbabies many years ago.“I want to trace the changes in how this situation has beenunderstood over a century, and changes in how it’s beenmanifested in rituals and ceremonies.”Susannah said from the scant literature about miscarriages,stillbirths and neonatal deaths, she had found that one in fourwomen experienced one of them. “But some women havemultiple miscarriages, while many have none, so it’s not a verygood statistic.”She said that young women had been quite open with herabout their experiences but she still needed older and maturewomen, for their particular perspectives. She is also gatheringinformation through medical records, psychologists’ records,social workers’ notes and the Sudden Infant Death Syndromegroup.“I realise that it is not just a woman’s experience; it affectsHistory of a silent lossSusannah Thompson…inspired by her daughter Oliviafathers as well, but our society doesn’t tend to recognise fathers’grief in these situations.“One day, I would like to look at it from a father’s perspective,but just now, my terms of reference are already very wide.”Susannah has a Dean’s Postgraduate travel grant to go tothe eastern states to broaden her research and to gather oralhistories. Her PhD is being supervised by Dr Andrea Gaynor andDr Charlie Fox.If you can help with an oral history of a stillbirth, miscarriageor a neonatal death, please contact Susannah on 9242 2037 or byemail, at sthomp@cyllene.uwa.edu.auTHE UNIVERSITY OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA • 18 APRIL 2005

4 UWAnewsVice-Chancellor’scolumnThe potential fornew players in a newframeworkEarlier this year, the Federal EducationMinister indicated his desire for thereto be a broader range of highereducation providers in Australia.He linked this to redefining the keycharacteristics of a ‘university’, believingthat greater diversity needs to beencouraged ‘if Australia is to remaininternationally competitive’.Our Registrar is finalising a responseto the Minister’s issues paper based ondiscussion at Senate, Academic Counciland the Executive which has seenconsensus emerge around some keyelements.We would like the term ‘university’to be reserved for institutions in whichthrere is a strong nexus betweenteaching and research across awide range of disciplines. However,pragmatically, we recognise that theterm ‘university’ will continue to applyto a variety of institutions engaged inteaching, research and scholarship, fromcomprehensive teaching and researchintensive institutions to predominantlyteaching-only institutions.There is also general agreement hatthe terms ‘public’ and ‘private’ providerare not particularly helpful, since highereducation is both a public and a privategood supported by a mix of public andprivate funding. Private providers inAustralia receive public funding and viceversa. The nature of higher education isthat it requires both public and privateinvestment to optimise both public andprivate benefits. We believe that thefundamental principles which shouldguide the provision of higher educationare quality, access and diversity. To theextent that higher education is a publicgood, government has a legitimate stake inregulating for quality, access and diversity.We also support the view that thequality assurance process can and shouldaccommodate diversity through theapplication of a fitness for purposeapproach whereby quality is evaluatedagainst institutional mission The issue ofensuring standards at internationally competitivelevels for Australian providers is amore complex, but achievable, dimensionof quality assurance.In relation to funding, the policysettings and funding mechanisms tosupport quality, access and diversityare critical. In general terms, highereducation providers should be able tocompete for both public and privatefunding under similar competitive andaccountability conditions.Of particular significance is researchfunding. Research funding should beallocated to support high quality research.This must involve rigorous peer review asthe primary determinant of competitiveresearch funding and targeted researchinfrastructure funding to support highquality research environments.The same principle should applyto research training. The provision ofresearch student places should reflectthe quality of the research environmentso that research students are trained onlywhere there are research-active staff withdemonstrated research performance, andhigh quality research facilities.We also argue that the governmentshould not pre-empt any of theseoutcomes by pre-ordaining institutionalmissions or characteristics but shouldensure that competitive fundingmechanisms and rigorous qualityassurance processes are driven byperformance. This will be the best wayto ensure quality and diversity.The University’s response will beposted on our web site when it iscomplete.Alan RobsonVice-ChancellorUWA EndeavoursTwo graduate students– one from UWA and onecoming to UWA from Italy --have won Endeavour Awards.The Endeavour Programme is anAustralian Government initiative toshowcase the excellence of Australia’seducation sector worldwideRoberto Busi, a postgraduate studentfrom the University of Turin in Italy,will be undertaking research across theWestern Australia wheatbelt investigatingtwo herbicide resistant weeds, Raphanusraphansistrum and Lolium, as an EndeavourResearch Fellowship recipient.Mr Busi hopes to identify mutationsin the weeds’ genes and provide practicalinformation of direct relevance to thesuccessful management of these herbicideresistant populations.Stuart Pearse, a Plant EcophysiologyPhD candidate from UWA’s School ofPlant Biology, will be travelling to Chinaon his fellowship.He will conduct research onphosphorous levels in Chinese soils andconverting phosphorous in an unavailablestate (for plant uptake) to a form easilyutilised by vegetation. Mr Pearse willbe carrying out this research under anEndeavour Australia Cheung Kong Award.He plans to examine the potentialof lupin and faba bean species to accesssparing soluble phosphorus in Chinesesoils, and facilitate increased phosphorusuptake by a wheat species.His research will benefit bothAustralian and Chinese cropping systemsbecause it examines the potential fornew grain legume species to be used inintercropping systems applicable to bothChinese and Australian agriculture.“The Endeavour scholarship offers aunique and exciting opportunity to spendthree months living and working in China.It will diversity my cultural experience,assist my professional development, andallow me to enhance my network withinthe field of plant ecophysiology andphosphorus research”, he said.The Endeavour Australia Cheung KongAwards, valued at $25,000, are available toscholars from Asia to come to Australiato undertake short-term research and forAustralians to do the same in Asia.THE UNIVERSITY OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA • 18 APRIL 2005

Students show theirwork to the worldGraduate students in Natural and AgriculturalSciences now have a simple way of letting theworld know what they’re doing.The Faculty has created an easy to use website template forMasters and PhD students, so they can produce a website that isstandardised, includes the Faculty logo and information, and haslinks to the students’ supervisors, all automatically.“All they have to do,” says Diane Arnott, prospective studentsofficer for the Faculty, “is find the template through our homepage. They need their student number and a pin to gain access,then it’s simply a matter of clicking boxes, adding a picture, animage and their CV, which is optional.”The students can also provide up to four links to other areasof research, publications or websites that are relevant to theirwork.When they have completed the template, it is submittedto Diane for approval. Once approved, the website appears,complete with Faculty colours, logo and contact details, on thehome pages of the students’ schools or centres. If studentsare pursuing a higher degree through more than one school orcentre, their websites appear on the homepages of both thoseschools, sporting the appropriate branding.“We are hoping that Google will list these websites,” Dianesaid. “Then they could really provide some opportunities for thestudents, as well as disseminating information about the Faculty,UWAnews 5the Schools, the staff, the students, and the fantastic researchthey’re doing.”The Faculty has about 250 graduate students. About 30 ofthem have already taken the opportunity of creating a websitewith the new template, which went live in February.Natural and Agricultural Sciences is the first faculty to offerits students the ease of a template for producing their ownsites. Diane said Professor Robyn Owens, Dean of the GraduateResearch School, was delighted with the initiative, and that theBusiness School was interested in a similar project.“A lot of people have worked on this to bring it to fruition,”Diane said. “Graduate students Stuart Pearse and ShaneKenworthy helped with the first drafts and developments; WebOffice and DUIT staff Grant Malcolm, Rodney Ng and SimoneCollins did the programming and overall design of the sites; andSue Heng and Bruce Kirkby extracted the data we needed fromthe Student Record System.“It’s been a very successful collaboration and we hope that allour students will soon have their own place in the world wideweb.”To see the student’s Websites, visit the home pages of any ofthe Schools in the Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciencesand click on Postgrad Student Websites.Graduate Students websites (clockwise from top left): Stewart Ford,Stuart Pearse, Jessica Oates and Lindsay Bell, from Plant Biology andAnimal BiologyTHE UNIVERSITY OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA • 18 APRIL 2005

6 UWAnewsMore than the GalapagosThe young Charles Darwinspent five years at sea on hishistoric voyage on board theBeagle.What he saw and noted on more than40 islands around the world formed thebasis for his Theory of Evolution, publishedin On the Origin of the Species, in 1859.Geographer and ecologist PatrickArmstrong spent 20 years studyingDarwin’s diaries, field notes andcorrespondence, and following in hisfootsteps to almost half of those islands.And the result is a book, Darwin’s OtherIslands, that is set to become the definitivetext on the 19 th century naturalist’sgeographical and philosophical voyage.Darwin’s visit to the GalapagosIslands has been the subject of manystudies, but Dr Armstrong, an honoraryresearch fellow in the School of Earthand Geographical Sciences, says thatthe significance of Darwin’s experienceson the other islands has not beendocumented.In what he says is the most importantbook he’s written, Dr Armstrong drawssome surprising conclusions, which hesupports with a wealth of evidencegathered very much in the spirit ofDarwin’s own methods.He took photocopies of Darwin’soriginal field notes and trod the verypaths that Darwin took, on 17 islands,including Cocos, the Falklands, Tahiti andthe Azores.“Darwin was not yet an evolutionistwhen he stepped ashore on the first islandon the Beagle’s voyage,” Dr Armstrongsaid. “He had been employed to takenatural history observations on what wasessentially a hydrographic survey, designedto expand Britain’s overseas trade.“But he was a person who wasinterested in everything he saw: plants,animals, rocks, water and people. Hecollected specimens and information oneverything.“It was his habit of comparison thatwas the key to his success.”When Darwin returned from his yearsat sea, he spent years analysing his notesand specimens. “He was very fortunatethat he didn’t need to work to supportViews of Port Louis, East Falklands: a sketch made at the time of Darwin’s visit;and a current photograph taken from the same placehimself. His father had been a doctorwho specialised in diseases of the rich,and had left Darwin and his siblings a richinheritance,” Dr Armstrong said.“There are vague traces in his notesfrom the Beagle voyage that point to ideasof natural selection, but it was as if he hadthought about evolution, then rejected it.“It was one day in 1837, around StPatrick’s Day, that he noted, while lookingat some of his specimens, that differentcreatures lived on different islands.Then, in May that year, he talked to theGeological Society about coral islands,and hinted strongly at the idea, butnobody picked it up.The voyage of The Beagle, 1831–1836THE UNIVERSITY OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA • 18 APRIL 2005

UWAnews 7Agriculture’s winning womenPatrick Armstrong … knowsCharles Darwin very well“He was on the right track. In 1842he wrote a long longhand draft of theessay that, when revised in 1844, set it allout. Before he could publish his book, hereceived a paper, out of the blue, froma young land surveyor named Wallace,that included many ideas about naturalselection.“Darwin’s and Wallace’s idea appearedin a cobbled-together joint paperpresented to the Linnean Society , thenOn the Origin was published a year later.”Dr Armstrong said Darwin’sconventional upbringing and place insociety helped him to have his ideasaccepted. “He was landed gentry,educated at Edinburgh Medical School,Shrewsbury School and Christ College,Cambridge.“And it was an exaggeration that hisideas set the Church totally against him.Some members of the Church found hisideas liberating.”He said Darwin wrote 15 books andpublished dozens of papers on topicsincluding geology, animal behaviour,barnacles, orchids and psychology.After following in his footsteps andreading his original notes, Dr Armstrongfeels he knows Darwin very well. “I knowhim as a young man, in middle life and inhis old age – all at the same time! And Ilike him,” he said.Darwin’s Other Islands (publishedby Continuum) was launched in bothhemispheres, celebrating the momentousvoyage that was the beginning of modernevolutionary thought.It is available at the Co-op Bookshopfor $199.UWA women are leading the field in agricultural science: Bronwyn Edmunds, MeganChadwick and Belinda ThomsonUWA students have won a state agriculture award for thefourth year in a row.The Australian Institute of Agricultural Science and Technology (AIAST) hostsa forum each year for Young Professionals in Agriculture, where students from UWA,Murdoch University, Muresk Agricultural College and Curtin University presenttheir Honours-level research.For the past three years, young women from the Faculty of Natural andAgricultural Sciences (FNAS) have won first prize. The previous year’s first prizewas won by another FNAS student, Ben Biddulph, who is now completing his PhDin the faculty.Professor Graeme Martin, from FNAS, and Chair of the Academic Boardand Council, said the awards were one of many indications that women wereperforming extremely well in the sciences.“The swing towards women excelling in science could lead to changes in howscience is managed in the future, as the numbers of women in higher level jobsincreases,” Professor Martin said. “But regardless of that, the quality of sciencecoming out of this University remains uniformly high.”The swing towards numbers of women studying agricultural sciences at UWAhas been marked over the past 20 years. In 1985, the Faculty had two malestudents for every female. A decade on, it was 1.5 males to every female, and,last year, numbers were even (actually 165 males and 177 females enrolled in theFacutly).The AIAST first prize winner was Megan Chadwick, who presented apaper showing that colostrum of twin-bearing maiden ewes is improved bysupplementation with cereal grains in the last week of pregnancy. Megan will soonbegin a PhD with the Centre for Plant Based Management of Dryland Salinity,studying the effect of salinity on the grazing of sheep.Bronwyn Edmunds took second place with a paper on how lecithin improves thetenderness of pork by destabilising intramuscular collagen. Bronwyn is travellingoverseas for two years and plans to return to UWA for her PhD.All five finalists in the Forum were women, three from UWA, one fromMurdoch, one from Curtin.The third UWA finalist was Belinda Thomson, who is now a policy director withthe Pastoralists’ and Graziers’ Association.THE UNIVERSITY OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA • 18 APRIL 2005

8 UWAnewsFremantleDiabetesStudyA world modelfor communityhealth researchDiabetes is a multi-systemdisease, one that affects everytissue in the body. It is bornof a complex interactionbetween genes and theenvironment. And it’s on theincrease in Western society.Tim Davis, Professor of Medicine andPharmacology at Fremantle Hospital,knew this when he decided, in the early1990s, to set up a longitudinal study ofdiabetes in the Fremantle region.He had just arrived at Fremantle, avery young professor, aged just 35 whenhe was given the Chair in Medicine.And he proceeded to earn that positionwith a unique decade-long communityresearch project.“I wanted to get a natural history ofdiabetes out there in the community,not simply from patients in clinics andpharmaceutical intervention trials,” hesaid.The diversity of Fremantle makes it a perfectplace for a community studyWith a priming grant from the RaineFoundation, Professor Davis started theFremantle Diabetes Study in 1993. Itwas to become the most comprehensiveassessment of diabetes in an urbancommunity, undertaken anywhere in theworld.After nine years, Professor Davisand his team (Associate ProfessorDavid Bruce, Head of the School ofMedicine and Pharmacology at Fremantleand a specialist in geriatric medicine,biostatistician Wendy Davis, and, overthe years, several research nurses andPhD students) closed out the study andcontinued writing up their findings.They hope to complete the projectwithin a couple of years. “We havepublished 25 major papers in internationalpeer-reviewed literature and we stillhave another 30 or so papers to write,”Professor Davis said.“We hope that our data will help inthe identification of and management ofdiabetes patients in a multidirectional way.We looked at as many aspects of diabetesas possible. However, once the Rainegrant was used up, we were faced withlean times financially. Funding agenciesdidn’t seem keen on supporting cliniciansdoing a largely epidemiological study. Wemanaged to complete the study on ashoestring budget but it did subsequentlyattract NHMRC funding in the form of a3-year grant for a project looking at thecognitive function of the older patientsfrom the original cohort.”One of those attracted by theFDS’s unique work was a Swiss traineeendocrinologist, who has come toAustralia to work with the team.They have presented their workat American and European diabetesconferences over the past ten years.Professor Davis recently returned fromCopenhagen where he presented a paperon lung function that was published inProfessor Tim DavisDiabetes Care, which has the highestimpact factor of all diabetes journals.This paper has particular implicationsfor inhaled insulin, a way of avoidinginjections.“We found that the diabetes impairslung function in proportion to the levelof blood glucose,” Professor Davissaid. “There isn’t a tissue in the bodythat diabetes doesn’t affect. We havepublished papers on retinopathy, heartdisease, diabetes and the elderly, kidneys,nerves, and now lungs. We have alsolooked at the health economics – the costof diabetes to the community.”Their latest published paper is onthyroid function.The wide-ranging success of the studyhas been dependent on the large numbersin the study and the broad spectrum ofpatients.“In our primary catchment area,from North Fremantle to Kwinana andeast to Melville, there were 120,000people when we started the study. Werecruited as many diabetic people aswe could, through clinic lists, hospitalrecords, general practitioners, alliedTHE UNIVERSITY OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA • 18 APRIL 2005

UWAnews 9health professionals, word of mouth, adsin pharmacies, stories in local newspapers.“We identified 2,200 diabetic patientsin the area and persuaded 1,500 of themto come in for an initial screening, to befollowed up with annual reviews.“Forty per cent attended for at leastfive annual visits. With an average age of63, a lot of them died during the study.About 350 patients died between 1993and 2001. The oldest patient in the studywas 100, the youngest was 13 at thebeginning of the study. Most had type 2diabetes, which affects more than 90 percent of people with the disease and isusually diagnosed later in life.”Professor Davis said there had beenlots of research into diabetes but it wasusually studies of selected groups ofpatients, not across a broad communityspectrum.“Some community studies have alsolooked at diabetes, but not in the numbersthat we have. The Busselton Studyhas only about 200 or 300 diabeticpatients and even the famous Framinghamstudy (near Boston) has about the samenumber.”He said the UK Prospective DiabetesStudy (of which Professor Davis is anassociate investigator) had kept recordsof over 3,000 patients for 20 years, butit was looking only at treatments andinterventions in referred patients, not atdiabetes in the community.“Nobody’s done as comprehensive astudy in the community,” he said. “Andthat’s where our strength and the breadthof our work lies.”When the Fremantle Diabetes Studyis completed, Professor Davis plans tolook at Type 2 diabetes in young adults.“The legacy of the obesity epidemic is theearlier presentation of type 2 diabetes andwe need to understand more about thisgroup. They face dealing with diabetes formost of their lives.”Some of the original researchers on the Fremantle Diabetes Study:Denise Jackson was both a research nurse who worked on the project and a volunteerdiabetes patient. She is discussing the study with Dr David BruceEarly days of the Study with Dot Ridley (standing) and Kim Jacobsen“… the mostcomprehensiveassessment ofdiabetes in anurban community,undertakenanywhere in theworld.”THE UNIVERSITY OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA • 18 APRIL 2005

10 UWAnewsLesTroisGrandesDamesRetired academics fromFrench Studies: NoeleneBloomfield, BeverleyNoakes and RosemaryLancaster enjoy a café aulait at the University ClubStudents from faculties all overcampus are lining up to studyFrench.Three retired academics fromEuropean Languages and Studies said theestablishment of the European Union,and business opportunities within it,are inspiring students of commerce,economics, law and even science andmedicine to study French so they can bepart of the global network.Honorary Research Fellows, NoeleneBloomfield and Dr Rosemary Lancaster,and former Associate Professor BeverleyNoakes believe that French is the newJapanese or Indonesian.But they do admit to bias. Betweenthem, they have 87 years of teaching andresearch in French language and culture atUWA. They all retired within 12 months,around 2002. And this month, the FrenchGovernment has honoured their workwith the coveted Palmes Academiques– one for each of them.“They are given to people whomthe French government considers havedone a great job of promoting Frenchlanguage and culture outside France,”Mrs Bloomfield said. “They are usuallypresented to teachers and academics,but they are not the sort of honour thatyou just expect. We were very surprisedwhen we found out that we had all beenchosen.”Dr Lancaster worked at UWA for 20years, Mrs Bloomfield for 35 years andformer A/Professor Noakes for 32 years.The three were quick to praise eachother’s work. Mrs Bloomfield said DrLancaster had done great work withprimary school French teachers, takingthem on language immersion tours toFrance and inspiring and training them tobe excellent teachers.Dr Lancaster said A/Professor Noakeshad opened up the study of Frenchfrom a narrow focus on France to postcolonialFrench culture in Africa and theCaribbean. “Beverley set up incrediblecourses and her work influenced otheruniversities to follow her example,” shesaid.She also said that Mrs Bloomfieldhad introduced an excellent course inbeginners’ French when they found outthat many rural high schools were nolonger teaching the language. It became,and remains, the most popular coursein the School of Humanities’ EuropeanLanguages and Studies.Now in semi-retirement, Dr Lancasterand Mrs Bloomfield are both still workingon research projects on campus. DrLancaster is studying Australian womenwho went to France between 1880 and1950 for a reason other than tourism.Her research includes artists whowent to study in France and nurses whoworked there during World War I. Fromthe letters, diaries and even novels thatthey wrote, she is piecing together theirexperiences of the culture, the languageand the history of France.“I’m really enjoying doing somethingon the French-Australian connection,especially with women who were doingenterprising things,” she said.Mrs Bloomfield is continuingher research into the French oceanexpeditions to Australia. “There werealmost 20 expeditions between 1500and the mid 1800s,” she said. Initiallystirred to find out the origins of so manyFrench names in Western Australia, MrsBloomfield became an expert on theexplorations of Baudin.“But there were many others, includingd’Entrecasteaux, who preceded Baudin byeight-and-a-half years. He circumnavigatedAustralia one-and-a-half times searchingfor the lost explorer La Perouse, whoturned out to be lost in the PacificOcean,” she said.A/Professor Noakes recently helpedco-ordinate the Australian Association forCaribbean Studies conference at Trinity.She also works as a volunteer helpingasylum seekers, being especially useful forthe many refugees from African countrieswho speak French.All three of them agree thatlanguage teachers generally forge closerrelationships with their students thanteachers in other disciplines.“A language has be very nurturing,”said Dr Lancaster. “You have to getclose to your students to lure theminto speaking the language,” said MrsBloomfield. “And you help them not tomake fools of themselves,” added A/Professor Noakes.All three won Excellence in TeachingAwards while at UWA and were thrilledthat the Palmes Academiques would captheir careers.THE UNIVERSITY OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA • 18 APRIL 2005

A new form ofinternational tradeart foreducationWA’s most outstanding artists are supportinga project to build a school for the children of anomadic Tibetan community.Many of the artists had recently been asked to donate theirwork for the tsunami relief fund, but coordinator of the Tibetanproject, Dr Dave Webb, said they were extraordinarily generousin donating to the Tibetan Support Programme (TSP) as well.Paintings, drawings, photographs and works in ceramic, wood,glass and fabric will be auctioned over a three-week period,starting this Friday, April 22. The auction will be launched at theUniversity Club, during its Fridays on the Foreshore sundowner.Dr Webb, a senior lecturer in Marketing, founded the TSPafter meeting a Tibetan monk and visiting the region of Kharnang.“Kharnang is home to thousands of ethnic Tibetan nomads whohave struggled to survive, through environmental disaster andother changes that have hugely impacted their lives,” he said.The Gesar Sherab school in Kharnang, which the TSP isbuilding, will offer boarding facilities for teachers and 250children. The school will open in July and the first 30 studentswill the first of the nomads of Kharnang to learn to read andwrite.Dr Webb hopes the school will be able to accommodate 60Parents (are) welcomeMore than a thousand parentsof commencing studentsresponded to an invitation tocome and make themselvespart of the UWA experience.It was the biggest response to theParents’ Welcome the University has had inDeputy Vice-Chancellor Professor MargaretSeares chats with Noleen Bott, Karen andBill HarperUWAnews 11the seven years the event has been running.Coordinator Ian Lilburne, from PublicAffairs, said the day ran smoothly withhappy parents and enthusiastic staffvolunteers.“I want to thank the staff who gaveup their time on the weekend to be tourleaders and presenters. The parentsreally appreciate this opportunity,” Iansaid.“The weather smiled on us too. Afteran unseasonal storm the day before, theclouds parted and the sunshine cameout, an hour before the parents startedarriving,” he said.They were greeted in Winthrop Hallby the Vice-Chancellor, Professor AlanRobson, the Director of Development,Peter Leunig and the President of theStudent Guild, Natalie Hepburn.THE UNIVERSITY OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA • 18 APRIL 2005Tenzin Drunkal (8) at the Gesar Sherab school gates, as constructiongets under way. She will be one of the first students to start at theschool in July.children by the end of the year, and gradually build up numberswhen funds allow the building program to progress. TSP needs$87,000 to complete its building program this year.He combines his work in Tibet with his work in the School ofInformation Management and Marketing. “My current researchis looking at the effects on quality of life of providing alternativetechnology products, like solar cookers, to remote communitieson the Tibetan plateau,” he said. Some of his colleagues andstudents have joined him in his community work.The works of art for auction will be displayed at the UniversityClub from Friday, for the three weeks of the silent auction via theWeb. You can also see them on the TSP website, where you canmake a bid or a donation or just find out more about the projectto educate the children of the nomads. It is at www.tibetsupport.orgBidders will also be able to lodge a bid for one of the worksof art at the University Club. They will be sold to the highestbidders at the end of the period, on May 13.Local artists who have donated their work include HansArkeveld (who also works at the School of Anatomy and HumanBiology), Tania Ferrier, George Haynes, Ross Miller, Theo Koning,Helen Clarke and Murray Gill.Dean of Architecture, Landscape and VisualArts, Dr Clarissa Ball gets to know Karina andJohn FrippParents then toured areas where theirchildren would be studying, and had thechance to ask people from those facultiesquestions about campus life. They finishedup with afternoon tea and drinks at theLawrence Wilson Art Gallery, where theywere joined by many more staff.The feedback from parents has beenexcellent, complimenting the Universityon its initiative and helpfulness.

12 UWAnewsPaul Roberts Singapore MBA …and in full flight with Perth Glory.Glory on the fieldand in the classroomThe flexibility of programs at the GraduateSchool of Management has helped Paul Robertssuccessfully combine life as a professionalsoccer player with his studies across severalcountries.Paul, who received a Director’s Letter for Academicexcellence when he graduated with a Master of BusinessAdministration (MBA) in Singapore, now works with one ofAsia’s leading television networks, ESPN STAR Sports. Hiscommentary of football games reaches about 180 million viewersacross Asia and ESPN covered his MBA graduation.Early in his career, Paul, known on the soccer ground as PJ,spent three years at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, on asoccer scholarship. He captained Australia’s national team at the1996 World FIFA Futsal (five a side soccer) Championships inSpain. PJ played for Perth Glory between 2000 and 2002.He then took the field for Sarawak, Malaysia, transferred toGeylang United in Singapore, before retiring from the game latein 2003, due to injury.PJ started his MBA while he was still a Perth Glory player andthe GSM worked with him to match his study program with hissoccer lifestyle.“I went about it the hard way, beginning in Perth with a fewsubjects, then transferring to a club in Malaysia, where I did somedistance learning subjects with another university,” PJ said. “Oneof the main reasons I moved to Singapore was to continue mystudies through UWA, because graduating through a prestigiousMBA program was very important to me.“The people at the GSM really bent over backwards to helpme out in my situation. Without their support and cooperation itwould have been extremely difficult for me to have graduated.“One thing I’ve taken out of my MBA studies is that, if youapply yourself, you can surprise yourself with what you canachieve.”PJ is now investigating a range of business opportunities wherehe can put his MBA experience to best use.“… if you apply yourself, you can surprise yourselfwith what you can achieve.”THE UNIVERSITY OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA • 18 APRIL 2005

How to get into print …All notices, classified ads and redundant equipment should be sent to our newemail address:staffads@uwa.edu.auWe are no longer publishing Campus Diary, as these events are now available on the Webat http://events.uwa.edu.auInstead of the Info Lift-out, we have made the magazine bigger by four pages, and all theinformation that used to be in the lift-out (except for Campus Diary) is now in the insideback pages.Please call Maryvonne Bestel in Public Affairs (6488 1900) or Lindy Brophy, editorUWANews (6488 2436) if you have any queries.RESEARCHGRANTS ANDCONTRACTSAINSE RESEARCH TRAININGProf Sidney Bradshaw, MrsFelicity Bradshaw, Animal Biology:‘Measurement of Protein Turnoverin Free-Ranging Honey Possums’—$6,525 (2005)Prof John Dodson, Prof RobertGilkes, Prof Henk Heijnis,Dr Geraldine Jacobson, Earthand Geographical Sciences,External: ‘Late QuaternaryPalaeoenvironments and VegetationHistory of Lake Gore, Esperance,Western Australia’—$9,935 (2005)AUSTRALIAN RESEARCHCOUNCIL LINKAGEINTERNATIONALDr Mark Cassidy, Dr Itai Einav,Dr B Byrne, Prof G Houlsby,D r C h r i s t o p h e r M a r t i n ,Centre for Offshore FoundationSystems, External: ‘LX0560459- Development of Cyclic LoadingModels for Application in OffshoreGeotechnics’—$29,000 (2005-07)Dr Karol Miller, Dr K Chinzei,Mechanical Engineering, External:‘LX0560460 - Biomechanics of NeedleInsertion’—$28,048 (2005-07)AUSTRALIAN RESEARCHCOUNCIL: LINKAGEINFRASTRUCTUREEQUIPMENT FACILITIESDr Andrew Millar, Prof DavidBlair, Prof Sydney Hall,Prof Gregory Ivey, Dr DylanJayatilaka, Prof Svend P Klinken,Dr Karen Haines, Prof IgorBray, A/Prof Andrew Rohl, ProfMark Spackman, Prof JulianGale, Dr M Bellgard, Mr DavidReynolds, Prof Arcady Dyskin,Dr Allan Mckinley, Dr JamesWhelan, A/Prof Amitava Datta,Biomolecular and Chemical Sciences,computer Science and SoftwareEngineering, Civil and ResourceEngineering, External, WaterResearch, Physics: ‘LE0561219 -Western Australian SupercomputerProgram (WASP)’—$1,362,295(2005)Prof Geoffrey Stewart, ProfLynda Beazley, Prof SusanB e r n e r s - P r i c e , A / P r o f EHelmerhorst, Prof A Thompson,Prof Ralph Martins, Dr PaulWatt, A/Prof Sarah Dunlop,Biomolecular and Chemical Sciences,Animal Biology, Faculty of Medicineand Dentistry, External: ‘LE0560712- State-of-the-Art BiophysicalTool for the Characterisation ofMolecular Interactions’—$630,837(2005)AUSTRALIAN RESEARCHCOUNCIL: DISCOVERYPROJECTSProf Colin Raston, Biomolecularand Chemical Sciences: ‘DP0556376- APF Raston - Integrated SelfAssembly Processes and SpinningDisc Reactor Technology’—$1,225,000 (2005-09)AUSTRALIANNEUROMUSCULARRESEARCH INSTITUTE ANDSIR CHARLES GAIRDNERHOSPITAL, DEPARTMENT OFNEUROSURGERYDr Bruno Meloni, Dr AnthonyBakker, Clin/A/Prof NevilleK n u c k e y , N e u r o m u s c u l a rand Neurological Disorders,Biomolecular and Chemical Sciences,Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry,Medicine and Pharmacology:‘Characterisation of NCX functionfollowing cerebral ischaemia(ANRI)’—$20,000 (2005)ECU EX ARCProf D Allen, Prof MichaelM c A l e e r , E c o n o m i c s a n dCommerce, External: ‘ModellingStock Market Liquidity in Australiaand the Asia Pacific Region’—$147,500 (2004-07)NHMRCDr Grant Waterer, Medicineand Pharmacology: ‘NHMRCUWAnewsDeadlinesUWAnews 13353573 - Genetic Determinantsof Interleukin-10 Response AfterInfectious Stimuli’—$272,250 (2005-07)A/Prof Michael Hobbs, A/ProfMatthew Knuiman, A/ProfJoseph Hung, Ms Judith Finn,Dr J Rankin, Dr Peter Sprivulis,Population Health, Medicine andPharmacology: ‘NHMRC 353671 -Population Monitoring of CoronaryHeart Disease in the Modern Era’—$626,126 (2005-07)Dr James Semmens, A/ProfMichael Hobbs, Prof DavidFletcher, Mr M Lawrence-Brown, Prof Cashel D’ArcyHolman, Population Health,Surgery and Pathology: ‘NHMRC353511 - The WA Safety and Qualityof Surgical Care Project: Improvingthe Safety, Quality and Provision ofSurgical Care’—$574,125 (2005-07)Prof David Wood, Prof NilsNivbrant, Surgery and Pathology:‘NHMRC 353626 - In VivoPatellofemoral Joint MeasurementUsing Kinematic RadiostereometricAnalysis (RSA)’—$139,000 (2005-07)NHMRC: EQUIPMENTGRANTSA/Prof P Hart, A/Prof SusanPrescott, Prof Patrick Holt,Prof Wayne Thomas, WA Centrefor Child Health Research, Faculty ofMedicine and Dentistry, Institute forChild Health Research, Paediatricsand Child Health: ‘NHMRCEquipment Grant - Victor 1420-040Mulitlabel Counter’—$59,400Dr Paul Rigby, BiomedicalImaging and Analysis Facility(BIAF): ‘NHMRC Equipment Grant- Flow Cytometer Workstationsand Confocal Microscope LaserUpgrade’—$52,159 (2005)THE UNIVERSITY OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA • 18 APRIL 2005NEW STAFFWelcome to the new staff who haverecently joined the university:Dr Snezana Agatonovic-Kustrin,Senior Lecturer, Biomedical andChemical SciencesDr Rhonda Clifford, SeniorLecturer, Biomedical and ChemicalSciencesDr Charlene Kahler, SeniorLecturer, Biomedical and ChemicalSciencesDr Harry Sakellaris, Lecturer,Biomedical and Chemical SciencesTreslyn Hansen, Technical andCourse Co-Ordinator Manager,Clinical Training and EducationCentre (CTEC)Lucas Bradstreet, ResearchAssociate, Computer Science andSoftware EngineeringDr Alan Crake, Lecturer,Economics and CommerceTracey Horton, Dean, UWABusiness School, BusinessDr Rita Armstrong, AdministrativeOfficer, Engineering, Computing andMathematicsChee Keong Leong, InformaticsTeam Leader, Medicine andDentistryZarrin Siddiqui, Lecturer,Medicine and DentistryLisa Mayer, AdministrativeAssistant, Natural and AgriculturalSciencesKatherine Edhouse, AdministrationOfficer, LawIrma Larma, Research Assistant,Medicine and PharmacologyMichelle Murphy, Research Nurse,Medicine and PharmacologyKaren Farrelly, Dental ClinicAssistant, Oral Health Centre ofWAJoanne Murphy, Dental ClinicAssistant, Oral Health Centre ofWATanya Swift, Dental ClinicAssistant, Oral Health Centre ofWADavid Ford, Associate Lecturer,Population HealthJane James, AdministrativeAssistant, Primary, Aboriginal andRural Health CareHerbert Ludewick, ChiefTechnician, Psychiatry and ClinicalNeurosciencesDr Alison Bartlett, SeniorLecturer, Social and Cultural StudiesSharon Mackie, Medical Receptionist,Student ServicesKathleen Davern, M LaboratoryManager, WA Institute for MedicalResearchWEDNESDAY April 20 for May 2 publicationWEDNESDAY May 4 for May 16 publicationWEDNESDAY May 18 for June 6 publicationWEDNESDAY June 1 for June 13 publication

14 UWAnewsNOTICESAustralian SenateThe Richard Baker Senate Prize 2005The President of the Australian Senate, Senator the Hon Paul Calvert, invitesentries for the Richard Baker Senate Prize, valued at $3000, for the bestessay, article, thesis, dissertation, book or journalism (in any medium) relatingto the work of the Australian Senate.There are no age or other restrictions on eligibility for the prize. Entries maybe submitted by their authors or nominated by any other person.Entries for the prize must be submitted by 22 July 2005. Details of entryconditions may be found at http://www.aph.gov.au/Senate/dept/index.htmFor further information contactKay WalshActing Director, Research Section,Department of the Senate,Parliament House, Canberra, ACT 2600Phone 02 6277 3164 or e-mail research.sen@aph.gov.auBring out your booksBooks, books and more books are once againneeded for the University Branch’s Save theChildren book sale.The Sale, as always, will be in the Undercroft of Winthrop Hall, from FridayJuly 15 to Wednesday July 20.The branch can only continue its outstanding success if they continue toreceive donations of books, CDs, DVDs, videos, records and sheet music.Please don’t donate school texts, encyclopaedias, weekly magazines orReaders’ Digest condensed books.Books can be dropped off at the SCF depot, the old Shenton Park fieldstation house, diagonally opposite Perry Lakes Stadium. It is on the cornerof Brockway Road and Underwood Avenue with the entrance off BrockwayRoad. Donations can be left on the verandah at any time. They will besheltered from the rain.To arrange for books to be picked up or to offer your help to sort them,please call 9440 6411, 9312 3119 or 9385 9070.Money raised from the sale helps disadvantaged children throughout WesternAustralia and the world.UniPrint is UWA’s in-house printshop. We provide a friendlyand efficient print, copy and design service to all areas withinthe University.• Graphic design and typesetting• Digital copying• General printing• Sale of course readers• Assistance with UWA and faculty branding guidelines• On-campus copying• Daily delivery and pickupContact Ray Horn on 6488 8790to discuss all your printing needs.Email uniprintjobs@admin.uwa.edu.auWebsite www.uniprint.uwa.edu.auCLASSIFIEDADSClassified advertising is free toall university staff. To place youradvertisement, please email:staffads@uwa.edu.auFOR SALEHOLDEN NOVA SEDAN 1993, 5speed manual, EFI motor, white duco,power steering, air conditioning,tinted windows, immobilizer. Fullservice history, log books, 6 monthsregistration. Garaged, immaculatethroughout. Lady owner. $4950.Contact Andrew or Amanda on Tel:9377 3648 or alindsay@admin.uwa.edu.au.ANTIQUE LOUNGE: Club Style1930s, 3 seater and 2 singles, solidJarrah frame, scrolled arms, goldembossed fabric, excellent condition.$1,200 ono. Contact: Victoria ext1259 or mobile 0414 747 755; e-mail: vwilkinson@bigpond.comENGAGEMENT RING: 18ct y/g,centre round brilliant diamond0.36ct, 2 princess cut diamondon shoulder 0.15ct, valuationcertificate $3130. PLUS DIAMONDWEDDING RING channel set with9 diamonds. Total value both $4000,sell $2,000 ono. Contact: Victoriaext 1259 or mobile 0414 747 755;e-mail: vwilkinson@bigpond.comAPARTMENT: Enjoy city glimpsesfrom this ground floor fullyrenovated and furnished onebedroom, open plan living apartmentwith private courtyard. Enjoyrelaxing times around the B/G pooland barbeque area. Situated in afully secured high rise complex, within-house caretaker, secure parkingand excellent tenant, it is an idealinvestment. Located in VictoriaPark close to public transport,schools, universities, shops and cafés.Can e-mail photos. Inspection byappointment only. $159,000. Phone:Victoria ext 1259 or 0414 747 755or e-mail: vwilkinson@bigpond.comLAPTOP: Toshiba Satellite Pro 4600,PIII 850 MHz, 20GB Hard Drive,384 MB memory, 14” Screen, DVD-ROM, 10/100 LAN, Wireless Card802.11b, Sound. Carrying Case, 56KModem, 2x Batteries, Windows XPHome. Excellent condition. $850ono. Contact Adrian Tel: 6488 3925FOR SALE / SWAPCIRQUE DU SOLEIL, performance“Quidam” - Thursday 7th of July at8pm. 3-A reserve tickets @ $99each. Bought for the wrong day. Willsell or swap for any performanceafter 12 of July. Please email atelzbieta@cyllene.uwa.edu.au orphone Elizabeth on 2573.FOR RENTDUNCRAIG: Furnished 4 bedroom,2.5 bathroom house availableJuly-Dec 2005 while owners onstudy leave, $250/wk. Two cargarage, swimming pool, across fromelementary school, ADSL internetconnection. Car also available.Contact: L.Borle@ee.uwa.edu.au or6488-1767.DAGLISH: Furnished and equipped3 bedroom home available fromearly April to late July (or partthereof). Includes: lounge, dining, 21/2 bathrooms, large family/diningkitchen area and ducted reversecycleairconditioning. Situated ina very pleasant area with manyparks and Subiaco shopping area ashort walk away. Few minutes walkto Daglish station and various busroutes. Jolimont primary schooland Shenton College (high school)are about 5 minutes walk. UWA isa short drive away. Please contactBronwyn at: bronniejh@telstra.com or 0411 774 991 for furtherinformation.CRAWLEY.Furnished accommodation.Short and long term. Twobedroom self-contained apartmentin Fairway, next to UWA. Fullyfurnished and fitted out (includinglinen). Air-conditioning, heating,TV, telephone; undercover parking.$375 per week; lower ratesfor long duration (6 months ormore); telephone charges extra.Mobile: (+61) 0418 914 204 Email:crawley-apartment@iinet.net.auWeb Address: www.goodstay.com/perthapartmentNEDLANDS: Beautiful character4brm/3bathroom fully equippedhouse with river views available 6May to 13 July. Walking distance toUWA. Suit visiting academic. Modestrent negotiable, if you’ll mind cat andpool. Tel: 9386 7438 Email: joyhill@bigpond.net.auARDROSS: Executive, near new fullyfurnished and equipped 3 bedroom,2 bathroom house. Car (optional)for rent. Available short term fromthe 17th of May for up to 10 weeks.Close to Garden City. Sorry, nopets. $350/week. Please contact: DrSemyon Kobets on 9364 4223 or E-mail to: semyon@kobetsviolins.comHOUSESITTINGHOUSE EXCHANGE in UKrequired 2005/2006, preferablythe months of December, Januaryand February but can extend toinclude March. Luxury near newhome within 5 minutes walkingfrom Swan River, in elite riversidesuburb of Applecross, 10 minutesby car from Perth, 15 minutes bycar from Nedlands (The Universityof Western Australia). Three doublebedrooms (main with en suite),study, en suite bathroom, modernkitchen with Miele equipment.Stunning outdoor entertainingarea with barbeque facilities andsmall, easy care garden. Close toupmarket restaurants, boutiques,supermarket, doctor, dentist. Wouldprefer home within easy distance ofMilton Keynes/Dunstable/Hockcliffeor surrounds, where daughters live.Contact - wifeofjb@hotmail.com.THE UNIVERSITY OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA • 18 APRIL 2005

UWAnews 15The Asthma and Allergy Research Institute2005 Medical Research Seminar SeriesAARI is pleased to present the following program of presentationsby leading Western Australian scientists. Individuals with aninterest in these topics are warmly invited to attend.TIME12:30pm – 1:30pmA light lunch is served at 12.LOCATIONJoske Seminar RoomUniversity Department of Medicine& Pharmacology4th Floor, G BlockSir Charles Gairdner Hospital9 May 2005 Mechanism of Transrepression of TNF-alpha promoter inMacrophages by Glucocorticoids.Prof David Joyce, School of Medicine and Pharmacology,UWA.23 May 2005 Understanding Hormone Action: Some Insights and ManyQuestions.Prof Peter Leedman, Western Australian Institute of MedicalResearch.13 June 2005 Cytokines and Inflammation.A/Prof Prue Hart, Inflammation Group, Institute of ChildHealth Research.27 June 2005 TBA.Dr Paul Watt, Leukemia and Cancer Research Unit, Institute ofChild Health Research.The Asthma and Allergy Research Institute (Inc).Ground floor E Block, Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital , Hospital Avenue, Nedlands WA, 6009Ph: 08 9346 3198 email: aari@aari.uwa.edu.au www.aari.uwa.edu.auREDUNDANT EQUIPMENTBids should be accepted by Monday 18 April with schools to have first optionITEM PRICE AGE COND. SECTION CONTACTRicoh FT8982 Heavy duty photocopier Offers 5 2 Maths and Stats Val Moore Ext 2400Nashuatec 4345 photocopier Offers 8 2 Maths and Stats Val Moore Ext 24005 x iMacs 400Mhz G3, 64MB RAM, 10GB harddisk, slot-loading CD Drive, USB, zip drive, MacOS 9.123 x cisco 1900 switches, 24x10mbps ports,2x10/100mbps ports1x cisco 1900 switch, 24x10 mbps ports,1x10/100 mbps port, 1x100 mbps fibre opticport1x cisco 4000, includes 4003 chassis, one PSU,X4012 supervisor module1 x PSU, X4012 supervisor module, X4148-RJethernet switching module (48x10/100mbpsports), X4232-GB-RJ ethernet switching module(32x10/100mbps ports, 2x GBIC expansionports with 1gbit fibre module)3 x Allied Telesyn Media Convertors (AT-MC102XL) 100BaseTX to 100BaseFX2 x Dlink DE-816TP 10Base-T 16port hub withBNC and AUI$300 (each) (ono) 5 2 MechanicalEngineering$70 (each) (ono) 6 6 MechanicalEngineering$200 (each) (ono) 6 2 MechanicalEngineeringOffers 6 2 MechanicalEngineeringOffers 6 2 MechanicalEngineering$150 each 6 1 MechanicalEngineeringFree 6 2 MechanicalEngineering1 x Dlink DE-804 4port AUI/BNC repeater Free 6 2 Mechanical1 x UMAX S-6E scanner with SCSI terminator $100 (ono) 6+ UnknownEngineeringMechanicaland cableEngineeringAngus Stewart Ext3126Angus Stewart Ext3126Angus Stewart Ext3126Angus Stewart Ext3126Angus Stewart Ext3126Angus Stewart Ext3126Angus Stewart Ext3126Angus Stewart Ext3126Angus Stewart Ext3126THE UNIVERSITY OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA • 18 APRIL 2005

16 UWAnewsthe last wordWendy Were Producer, Words & Ideas2005 UWA Perth International Arts FestivalWriters’ Week, the crownjewel of the Perth InternationalArts Festival’s Words &Ideas: a Curtin Celebrationprogramme finished foranother year with recordattendances at the PerthConcert Hall.There was glowing feedback floodingin from a reading public eager to hearinternational, national and local authorsspeak about and read from their work,and generally immerse themselves in thevibrancy and hubbub that characterisesliterary festivals.Australia is one of the central hubsof literary festival activity, with majorfestivals in capital cities, and a fastgrowing regional component of emergingsmall and successful festivals. AdelaideWriters’ Week can still lay claim to thetitle of the most well-known Australianliterary festival; like our Writers’ Week,it remains attached to the city’s majorinternational arts festival, whereas Sydneyand Melbourne writers’ festivals are nowstand-alone entities. Both are successfuland very different, reflecting the citiesin which they are situated: Sydney isbold, brassy and unashamedly celebrityoriented, whereas Melbourne takes amore understated approach, with anemphasis on crime and nonfiction.After a varied history with numeroushomes including the Fremantle ArtsCentre, the Perth Festival’s Writers’ Weekis now firmly established as one of thepremier events in the Australian literarycalendar. Our interstate and internationalreputation is rapidly increasing throughword of mouth and national press, andaudiences are really starting to takenotice of the little gem that has emergedin Perth. Guests over recent years haveincluded Nobel Laureate J.M. Coetzee,Michael Palin, war correspondent KateAdie, revolutionary dub poet Linton KwesiJohnson, ethicist Peter Singer, Bill Brysonand hundreds of writers from around theworld, the country and our own city.One of the key attractions of a writers’festival is its success as a focal point forwriters and readers to connect. Australianaudience appetites are robust, to cheekilyborrow a word critiqued by Don Watsonin his Writers’ Week lecture on ModernLife and Language. There is a healthyrevival in enthusiasm levels for literaryfiction and poetry, as well as nonfictionincluding biography, journalism, andcurrent affairs. In a world where we areincreasingly distrustful of the informationwe receive daily in the media, a literaryfestival provides an interactive oasiswhere ideas can be floated, exchanged,debated, refined, reviewed.This year’s Festival theme of‘transcendence and transformation’ wasfertile ground for literary programming.Sessions ranged from panels with authorsdiscussing the adaptation of their novelsinto film; the exploration of createdworlds by historical novelists, andfantasy and speculative fiction writers;authors from India, Sri Lanka and Nigeriadiscussing the aftermath of empire; asession considering the transformation ofthe Australian political landscape; and asession whimsically entitled ‘The Grocer’sApostrophe’ with Don Watson, Mem Foxand Amanda Lohrey thrashing out themodern battleground of communication,from SMS language to email etiquette.A three-part session series focussingon Faith, Hope and Love was wellattended. Gregory David Roberts, authorof the biographical novel Shantaram wasundoubtedly one of the star attractionsand he did not disappoint his clamouringfans, literally spending hours after hissessions signing and conversing withecstatic audience members.A personal highlight was a readingsession with three authors whose novelshad been longlisted by the Booker Prize:David Mitchell, Chimamanda Adichieand UWA’s Gail Jones. In a postmodernworld of high production values, lightingand stage directors and visual saturation,for me there is something gloriously purein hearing brilliant authors reading theirwork. Reading sessions have often beenviewed as the poor cousins of discussionsessions at festivals, but attendances andfeedback from this session reveals that I’mnot alone in my desire for the strippedback quiet majesty of good words.Western Australia has more bookclubs per capita than any other state.Our attendance figures and book sales atliterary events are relatively high comparedto other festivals. The friendliness andenthusiasm of the audience is also regularlycommented on by visiting writers –perhaps behind this is the fact that Perthoften misses out on author tours, butwe’re also a state of ardent readers: thesuccess of the Festival’s One Book projectis testimony to this.Despite the obvious enticements ofa well-known international arts festivaland the draw of a summer holidayto pull international authors to ourshores, competition for authors is fierceamongst the Australian festivals. Carefulprogramming renders excellent results– an author speaking with passion andenthusiasm produces animated and vitalsessions. For me as a programmer, anapt metaphor is throwing seeds outaround the writers’ spectacular talents tocreate a garden. Though I provide a pointof focus for each event, I never knowwhat new work will be created at thatmoment on stage. It’s nerve-wracking butalso profoundly thrilling to witness theevents taking place, and I’m always deeplyhumbled at the unexpectedness of whatemerges as the sessions unfold.Wendy Were is now Deputy Director of theInstitute of Advanced StudiesUniPrint xxxxxTHE UNIVERSITY OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA • 18 APRIL 2005