13 July 2005
13 July 2005
Australia's Minister for Education, Science and Training, Dr Brendan Nelson, has visited Monash University Malaysia as part of his official visit to Malaysia to explore the changing nature of the Australia-Malaysia relationship.
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| Dr Brendan Nelson (centre) was received by Professor Richard Larkins and Professor Merilyn Liddell. |
Dr Nelson and his entourage were received by the vice-chancellor, Professor Richard Larkins, Monash Malaysia pro vice-chancellor Professor Merilyn Liddell, and senior officials of the university.
Also present were the Australian High Commissioner to Malaysia, His Excellency James Wise, and chairman of the Sunway Group of companies Tan Sri Dato' Seri Dr Jeffrey Cheah.
Dr Nelson congratulated Monash and its partner, the Sunway Group, on setting up the first Australian offshore campus in Malaysia.
He said he would share the insights and success of Monash's Malaysia campus with Australian universities keen to undertake a similar venture abroad.
It was Dr Nelson's first ministerial visit to Malaysia to strengthen bilateral relations in education.
13 July 2005
Cutting-edge banknote technology is being used to help make Monash academic transcripts less susceptible to fraud.
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As of second semester this year, students who graduate or request copies of their transcripts will receive new-look transcripts printed on a polymer similar to that used for Australian bank notes.
Client Services manager Mr Terry Hogan (pictured) said the new transcripts would help prevent people trying to copy or alter transcripts.
"This is one way we can protect the integrity of our transcripts for the sake of our students and the university," he said.
"These documents contain a number of security features that make them next to impossible to copy or change in any way."
"Some of the features are obvious, such as the complex see-through window and the shadow image, but there are a number of other features that are hidden. For instance, if you try and photocopy the document, the copy will have the word 'copy' written across it, although this is not obvious to the naked eye on the transcript," Mr Hogan said.
The document also becomes unusable if chemicals are used to lift information from it.
The transcripts are being printed by Note Printing Australia, which also prints Australia's banknotes and passports.
Monash collaborated with the University of Melbourne and the University of New South Wales on the production of the transcripts after two Monash graduates approached the university and recommended the use of the polymer.
Mr Nuwan Kalpage (BCom(Mgt) 1999) from Note Printing Australia and Mr Josh Nemeth (BE 1999, BCom 1999) from Securency (a polymer substrate manufacturing company) made the approach, as they believed the technology could help improve the security of university transcripts.
13 July 2005
Monash achieved second place in the Southern University Games in Gippsland last week, taking home gold medals in Australian Rules football, men's rugby 7s, women's soccer and men's table tennis.
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| Monash hockey player James Billet (centre) competing against Victoria University. |
Students from all Monash campuses were represented in the 240-strong team and competed in 15 sports. Most of the Monash competitors stayed at the Gippsland campus during the games.
Monash received an overall score of 433 points, just 12 points behind the University of Melbourne.
As well as the four gold medals, Monash won five silver and five bronze.
About 1600 competitors from 17 universities across Victoria, Tasmania and South Australia competed over four days in the games, which are a qualifying event for the Australian University Games.
Sport Services manager Ms Briony Schofield said she was proud of the Monash athletes' efforts.
"We're now looking forward to further success at the Australian University Games and other inter-university sport events," she said.
"Seventeen teams have qualified for the games in Brisbane to be held in September. It is estimated that Monash will have more than 400 athletes at the event."
Monash has competed in the Australian University Games since the games' inception in 1993.
Further information, including a full list of results, is available at www.sport.monash.edu.au.
13 July 2005
A Monash research team has been awarded $7.8 million in the NHMRC Program Grants scheme for a five-year research program into why premature birth causes so many problems for baby's lungs.
The grant, awarded to Professor Richard Harding and his team in the Departments of Physiology and Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at Monash and at the Royal Women's Hospital, will also be used to help improve the treatment of premature babies with lung problems.
Professor Harding said the research aimed to improve outcomes for very premature babies through less lung injury, better respiratory health and shorter stays in hospital.
"Very premature birth is the most common cause of illness and death in newborn babies, making it one of the most serious and costly issues in perinatal medicine," he said.
"The major problem suffered by very premature babies is lung immaturity and its associated harmful effects on brain development. Most very premature babies require resuscitation followed by ventilatory support, often for several weeks.
"In order to reduce the health burden caused by very premature birth on the community, we need to know more about how it alters the normal development of the lungs in the newborn period and into later life. In particular, we need to understand the cellular and molecular processes involved in lung development so that we can identify gene networks and developmental processes that are disrupted by severe premature birth," Professor Harding said.
The NHMRC grant is for five years and will start in January. The research team includes Associate Professor Stuart Hooper and Dr Tim Cole, both from Monash, and Professor Colin Morley and Associate Professor Peter Davis from the Royal Women's Hospital.
The university also received $789,836 in standard equipment grants.
13 July 2005
Monash has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences to undertake academic and research collaborations.
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| Mrs Alison Crook and delegation leader Professor Leng Rong (seated). The other delegates, standing, from left are: Professor Zhang Youyun, Professor Li Jingyuan and Professor Hung Ping. |
The agreement was signed last week by Mrs Alison Crook, deputy vice-chancellor (Resources), and Professor Leng Rong, executive president of the academy.
Mrs Crook said Monash and the academy recognised the excellent potential and value of academic collaboration and exchange between the two institutions.
With 4000 researchers, the academy is China's largest official think tank on economic, social and political issues.
"Both sides will seek opportunities to cooperate in research in social sciences, humanities and other areas of common interest," Mrs Crook said.
That collaboration could include short-term academic staff exchanges, joint seminars and conferences and the exchange of academic publications and research materials.
Academy delegates at the signing were Professor Zhang Youyun, director of the Division of American and Oceanic Studies; Professor Li Jingyuan, director of the Institute of Philosophy; and Professor Hung Ping, senior fellow and director general of the Bureau of International Cooperation.
Monash staff at the signing were Professor Gill Palmer, Business and Economics dean and chair of the North Asia Steering Group; Professor Max King, pro vice-chancellor (Research and Research Training) and director of the Monash Research Graduate School; Professor Owen Hughes, director of the Graduate School of Business; Professor Amrik Sohal, associate dean, Research Degrees, Business and Economics faculty; Dr Heinz Kreutz, dean, Academic Programs and External Affairs; and Mr Clive Vernon, acting vice-president, Monash International.
13 July 2005
The inaugural Monash New Enterprise Challenge is under way, with six teams of postgraduate students from across the university competing for the chance to start their own business.
The challenge, which required graduate students to submit a proposal for a new business venture, was launched in April as a university-wide competition.
It is being coordinated by the Monash University Graduate School of Business and aims to foster a spirit of entrepreneurship for graduate students throughout the university.
The competing teams are cross-disciplinary, involving PhD students from engineering, science and business as well as MBA students and masters students from engineering, business and applied finance.
They are required to develop a realistic new business proposal and present a business plan seeking start-up funds from investors.
The competition will culminate with the teams presenting their business plans to a group of venture capitalists, entrepreneurs and chief executive officers.
Challenge co-coordinator Associate Professor Peter Reed said the competition served as an incubator for new businesses.
"It is not an academic exercise -- there is an expectation that the business proposals will be capable of proceeding to commercialisation," Dr Reed said.
The winning team will be announced on 28 October and will receive $10,000 and the chance to start its own enterprise. Team members will also represent Monash at the national John Heine Entrepreneurial Challenge later this year.
The Monash New Enterprise Challenge is sponsored by Monash Commercial and supported by the National Awareness Strategy, an Australian government initiative.
13 July 2005
Two Monash PhD researchers have been recognised for their work into cystic fibrosis, receiving inaugural state and national research awards.
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Dietitian Ms Susannah King (pictured) has been awarded the inaugural Cystic Fibrosis Victoria Research Award for PhD students, and Dr Alan Young has been awarded the Cystic Fibrosis Australia PhD Studentship Grant.
The students, who are based at The Alfred hospital and are undertaking their PhDs in the Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences, received $5000 as part of their awards, which are intended to support research aimed at improving the lives of people with cystic fibrosis.
Ms King is investigating the factors contributing to the development of malnutrition and the impact of gastrointestinal disorders on diet and nutritional status, under the supervision of Associate Professor John Wilson and Ms Ibolya Nyulasi.
She has been invited to speak at the North American Cystic Fibrosis Conference later this year in Baltimore, US.
Dr Young, a part-time consultant physician, is studying the influence of ventilation and sleep on the quality of life in adults with cystic fibrosis. His supervisors are Associate Professor Matthew Naughton and Associate Professor John Wilson.
Ms King said cystic fibrosis was the most common life-threatening genetic condition in Caucasian populations, affecting about 3000 Australians.
"The major manifestations of the condition are chronic lung disease and malnutrition," she said.
"Despite significant advances in the understanding and treatment of CF, there is as yet no known cure.
"The support of research by the CF community and organisations such as Cystic Fibrosis Australia and Cystic Fibrosis Victoria is invaluable," Ms King said.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]13 July 2005
A special seminar to commemorate the founding director of the Monash Centre for Increasing Returns and Economic Organisation (CIREO), Professor Xiaokai Yang, has been held on the first anniversary of his passing.
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Professor Yang (pictured) was internationally recognised as a leading theorist in economic analysis and was nominated for the 2002 and 2003 Nobel Prize in Economics. He died on 7 July 2004.
Professor Yang came to Monash as a lecturer in 1988 and was awarded a personal chair in 2000.
His work is highly regarded by fellow economists and won considerable attention and international repute for Monash.
Dr Wenli Cheng, a student of Professor Yang's who has taken up a position as a senior lecturer in the Department of Economics, presented a paper at the seminar in which he recognised Professor Yang for his important contributions to economics, as well as for his extraordinary career.
Dr Christis Tombazos, CIREO's incoming executive director, said Dr Cheng's presentation was an important extension of Professor Yang's research.
"The paper utilises inframarginal analysis to investigate a typical firm's outsourcing decisions, an issue that marginalist orthodoxy has not been able to sufficiently clarify," he said.
"The presentation was well attended by students and staff from the Department of Economics, the CIREO and the Centre of Policy Studies and was followed by a vigorous and lengthy discussion on the paper's findings and policy implications."
Situated within the Department of Economics, the CIREO was created to promote research on the implications of increasing returns for economic analysis, economic organisation and policy.
A Xiaokai Yang Memorial Lecture will be will given as a plenary presentation on 27 September in Melbourne as part of the National Conference of Economists.
13 July 2005
The inaugural Monash New Enterprise Challenge is under way, with six teams of postgraduate students from across the university competing for the chance to start their own business.
The challenge, which required graduate students to submit a proposal for a new business venture, was launched in April as a university-wide competition.
It is being coordinated by the Monash University Graduate School of Business and aims to foster a spirit of entrepreneurship for graduate students throughout the university.
The competing teams are cross-disciplinary, involving PhD students from engineering, science and business as well as MBA students and masters students from engineering, business and applied finance.
They are required to develop a realistic new business proposal and present a business plan seeking start-up funds from investors.
The competition will culminate with the teams presenting their business plans to a group of venture capitalists, entrepreneurs and chief executive officers.
Challenge co-coordinator Associate Professor Peter Reed said the competition served as an incubator for new businesses.
"It is not an academic exercise -- there is an expectation that the business proposals will be capable of proceeding to commercialisation," Dr Reed said.
The winning team will be announced on 28 October and will receive $10,000 and the chance to start its own enterprise. Team members will also represent Monash at the national John Heine Entrepreneurial Challenge later this year.
The Monash New Enterprise Challenge is sponsored by Monash Commercial and supported by the National Awareness Strategy, an Australian government initiative.
13 July 2005
Professor On Kit Tam, associate dean (International) in the Faculty of Business and Economics, and senior research fellow Ms Joanna Chen, the faculty's China Region executive, visited Monash South Africa last week to prepare for a TV documentary to be filmed by China's Central TV (CCTV) network.
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| From left: Ms Joanna Chen and Professor On Kit Tam with Ms Audrey Mutambirawa, corporate affairs manager, Monash South Africa, and Monash South Africa marketing manager Mr Andre Lubbe. |
Last year, CCTV produced a 30-minute documentary on Monash University for its 'World's Famous Universities' series. Plans are now under way at CCTV to produce part two of the Monash documentary, which will focus on the international activities that distinguish Monash from other universities.
CCTV plans to be filming on the Monash South Africa campus in September.
Professor Tam and Ms Chen have been meeting CCTV representatives to work out a production plan and script ideas. They have also been liaising with Monash's international campuses and centres.
"During our visit to Monash South Africa, we investigated and canvassed various filming ideas including the potential for interviews," Professor Tam said.
"We also had very productive meetings with staff and students to develop ideas for promoting this and other international campuses and centres and received many excellent suggestions."