27 July 2005
27 July 2005
Monash University Malaysia's new head of Arts and deputy head of the School of Arts and Sciences, Associate Professor Gil-Soo Han, is committed to building one of the most reputable and research-intensive humanities schools in South East Asia.
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Dr Han (pictured), who began his appointment on 14 July, will be responsible for maintaining the quality of teaching, research and management within Arts as well as assisting the head of the School of Arts and Sciences.
He hopes to introduce a PhD in Arts, a Master of Arts by research and a Master of Arts by coursework and thesis as part of his vision to build one of the most impressive arts and social sciences schools in the region.
Dr Han is also developing new projects for the school -- consolidating the current program centred on communication, writing, and international studies and introducing more subjects. He also plans to establish strong and constructive links with local industries.
A sociologist by training, Dr Han is an advocate for an interdisciplinary social scientific approach towards understanding and improving the conditions of society.
Prior to joining Monash University Malaysia, Dr Han was a lecturer and researcher in the sociology of health, illness and medicine at the School of Rural Health at the university's Gippsland campus.
27 July 2005
Three Monash students have been selected to compete at the World University Games in Turkey next month.
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| The sky is the limit: Monash students Ms Caroline Marton (left) and Mr Louie Trajkoski prepare for the World University Games. |
Ms Caroline Marton, Mr Louie Trajkoski and Mr Adam Underwood have been selected for the Australian taekwondo team and will travel to Izmir -- a busy Turkish tourist city -- to compete.
They were chosen as part of the team of four men and six women based on their competition results over the past 12 months.
Ranked number one in Australia, Ms Marton will be one of 158 women to take part in the taekwondo competition. It will be her first World University Games.
"It hasn't really dawned on me that I'm going yet, but it's slowly sinking in," Ms Marton, a Bachelor of Communications student, said.
"I'm keen to find out who I'll be competing against, but I won't know until I get to Turkey."
Mr Trajkoski, who is undertaking a Diploma in Legal Practice, and Mr Underwood, who is completing a Bachelor of Business and Commerce/Bachelor of Communication, are both in the Australian top three.
Mr Trajkoski said the strongest male competitors were likely to be from Korea, Iran and Turkey.
"I lost in round one to the Korean middleweight at my first World University Games, so I'm hoping I'll get a better draw this time around," he said.
Competitors are divided into categories according to their weight, with all fights for each category held on the same day.
This means the Monash students could face up to five challengers in one day. A win is needed in each fight to progress to the next stage and ultimately be declared champion.
The games run from 11 to 21 August, with more than 7000 students from 300 countries expected to attend.
27 July 2005
Monash's 2005 Community Fitness Events Program is officially under way following last week's launch by vice-chancellor Professor Richard Larkins.
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| Members of the Monash Sport team competing in the 2005 Mother's Day Classic -- a community event also supported by Monash. |
Monash Sport general manager Mr Martin Doulton said the program was part of the university's commitment to providing opportunities for the Monash community to engage in a healthy lifestyle.
"We hope the program will raise awareness of the opportunity for Monash staff, students and alumni to participate in a range of community fitness events," Mr Doulton said.
"Monash Sport will again be coordinating the university's participation in the Around the Bay in a Day cycling event, the Melbourne Marathon and the Portsea Swim Classic.
"We're very excited to announce we will also be entering a team in an international event for the first time -- the Singapore Marathon, to be held on 4 December."
Mr Doulton said more than 650 Monash walkers, runners, cyclists and volunteers had taken part in community fitness events around Melbourne in the past 12 months, raising money for charity.
"The events not only promote a fit and active lifestyle, they also allow participants and their families to become more involved in the Monash community and meet new people," he said.
"For 2005, we want as many people to participate as possible and to realise they don't necessarily have to run the entire marathon or cycle all the way around Port Phillip Bay.
"There are a variety of options available at all events to suit everyone's fitness levels. For those who aren't up for running, cycling or swimming, there are lots of opportunities to volunteer and support our participants," Mr Doulton said.
Professor Larkins said he was pleased to be involved in such a positive initiative.
"We all know how important it is to be active and involved in sport, not only for our physical health but also for our mental health," he said.
"It's important we have a healthy work/rest/play balance, and a program like this gives us the extra motivation we often need."
Further information is available at the Monash Sport website.
27 July 2005
More than 120 national and international delegates discussed clinical legal education, ethical awareness and community service at a conference in Melbourne hosted recently by Monash's Law School and Northumbria University in the UK.
Justice educators, clinical legal educators, legal aid lawyers and legal ethicists examined the challenges and opportunities facing clinical legal education at the 'Flowers in the desert' conference earlier this month.
Clinical legal education gives law students practical experience.
The conference co-convenor and head of Monash Law School's clinical program, Associate Professor Adrian Evans, told the conference that three processes and values -- clinical legal education, legal ethics and community service -- needed to be included in the mix of legal education.
"This will produce lawyers who are more likely to value justice, rather than those who are simply looking to create wealth," Dr Evans said.
"Clinical legal education allows students to obtain hands-on practical experience, which is more likely to produce lawyers with a conscience.
"It puts them in touch with real clients and allows them to make a contribution to society by providing legal assistance to those who can't afford to pay for it and might otherwise take the law into their own hands," he said.
Dr Evans said he was pleased so many people had come together to discuss these important issues.
"People travelled from all over the globe to attend the conference, from countries such as South Africa, the UK, the US, Nigeria, Canada, Japan, China, Israel and Norway," he said.
Law dean Professor Arie Freiberg said the conference provided an opportunity to exchange knowledge and ideas relating to innovative clinical education programs.
"The conference also allowed the Monash Law School to highlight our commitment to clinical legal education, during this, our 30th year of providing this form of education," Professor Freiberg said.
"I'm very pleased to have been involved in this forum, which has made an important contribution to the debate and scholarship relating to clinical endeavour."
27 July 2005
Renowned Dutch jeweller Paul Derrez is the latest participant in the 2005 Faculty of Art and Design Artist/Designer in Residence Program at the Caulfield campus.
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| Master jeweller and artist in residence Paul Derrez. |
Mr Derrez lives in Amsterdam and is the director of Galerie Ra, which exhibits works by local and international jewellers.
Although initially interested in industrial design and drama studies, Mr Derrez trained as a goldsmith in the early 1970s at the Vakschool in Schoonhoven. In 1975, he went to Amsterdam to complete his practical training -- and never left the city.
Since establishing Galerie Ra in 1976, Mr Derrez has continued his work as a jeweller, despite the demands of running a gallery and hosting eight exhibitions a year.
In recent years, he has developed an interest in creating small objects with special significance. He favours silver but also works with aluminium and plastics.
"I am interested in objects such as silver spoons, bowls and rattles that relate to a particular moment, a place, a person or a memory," Mr Derrez said.
"Their preciousness adds to the ceremony and the importance of the role they play. There is also that connection with the past and the present.
"I also like promoting jewellery as a contemporary thing and something that can be linked to design and fashion."
Mr Derrez's work is held in public collections around the world, including the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam, the New Collection in Munich, Germany, and the Powerhouse Museum in Sydney.
Monash metals and jewellery course coordinator Ms Marian Hosking said Mr Derrez had established an excellent rapport with contemporary jewellers in Australia, having visited the country five times and exhibiting Australian work at Galerie Ra for many years.
"Paul is a highly influential contemporary jewellery designer, and it's a great opportunity for Monash to have someone of his calibre and experience working in the metals studio," Ms Hosking said.
Mr Derrez will talk about his work with Galerie Ra on Wednesday 10 August at 12.30 pm at Caulfield campus, as part of the Lunchtime Art Forum series conducted by the Faculty of Art and Design. For details, visit the Lunchtime Art Forums website.
27 July 2005
A powerful software tool designed by academics in Monash's Faculty of Information Technology is being used in the UK to help develop cancer treatments and improve aircraft engine design.
Nimrod/G, developed by Professor David Abramson in the School of Computer Science and Software Engineering and the CRC for Enterprise Distributed Systems, enables users to harness multiple computers, often distributed around the world, for large-scale simulations.
The software is being used, in collaboration with the Welsh e-Science centre and Velindre Hospital, both in Cardiff, to optimise research into X-ray cancer treatment.
A computer model of an X-ray beam is being used to help focus the beam so it maximizes the death of tumours while minimising damage to healthy surrounding tissue.
In a radically different application, Cranfield and Cambridge Universities are using the Nimrod/G technology to improve the design of aircraft engines. The software is being used to develop optimal blade design for maximum engine output while minimising fuel consumption, pollution and noise.
The projects are part of a collaboration with the UK's e-Science program. The collaboration has been funded by the Department of Education, Science and Training, and aims to give Australian researchers access to global research and technology.
The two UK collaborations sprang out of the DEST program.
Monash researchers ran a workshop on Nimrod/G in Cardiff in June to educate scientists about the potential uses of the technology. The workshop attracted scientists from around the UK and Europe.
Professor Abramson said the software was generic enough for a range of applications and had already been applied to a wide range of problems, ranging from quantum chemistry to public health policy.
"What we add is the ability to harness distributed computers allowing more realistic simulations," he said.
"We add value to the work of scientists because they can focus on their science while we provide the grid computing systems."
27 July 2005
Researchers will hear of exciting new opportunities to build networks with their European Union counterparts at a Clayton seminar next week.
The seminar follows the successful application by Professor Jim Walter, head of the School of Political and Social Inquiry, and the Institute of Commonwealth Studies in London for nearly $500,000 project funding from the British Economic and Social Research Council.
The 'European Network Forum: European Research Funding' seminar is a joint initiative of the Europe Network, chaired by pro vice-chancellor (Planning) Professor Merran Evans, and the Research Office.
Dr Neil Hamilton, executive director of the Forum for European - Australian Science and Technology Cooperation, will present the seminar.
Professor Evans said Monash researchers had increasing opportunities to work on EU-funded projects with European-based colleagues under the Union's Sixth and Seventh Framework Programmes.
"This is the central funding body for research and development in Europe with FP7 funding proposed at 75 billion euros ($AU119 billion)." she said.
"It is also significant that many of the research priorities in Europe are similar to those identified as national priorities in Australia, so there are likely to be some synergies."
The European Framework programs cover a wide range of research themes including information and communications technology, environment, energy, transport and aeronautics, life sciences, health, nanotechnology, materials and new production technologies, social sciences and the humanities.
Subjects to be discussed at the forum include how to build collaborations with partners in EU countries, EU research priorities now and in the future, and how to build links with individuals.
The first session of next Wednesday's (3 August) seminar includes a general outline and overview of the EU's Sixth Framework Programme for research and development (FP6) and emerging opportunities under its successor programme, FP7.
Session 1: General outline and overview
When: noon -- 2pm, Wednesday, 3 August 2005
Where: Banquet Rooms, Campus Centre, Clayton
RSVP: 5pm, Friday, 29 July to kelly.drayton@monint.monash.edu
Session 2: Life sciences, genomics and biotechnology for health. 2.30pm - 3.30pm, Sir George Lush Room, Building 3a, Clayton Campus.
Session 3: Information Society Technologies. 3.45pm - 4.45pm, Sir George Lush Room, Building 3a, Clayton Campus.
Attendance at the general session is strongly recommended.
The full details of the seminar, and a flyer can be viewed at: European Research Funding website.
27 July 2005
Monash alumnus and Australian Workers' Union national secretary Mr Bill Shorten has discussed the governance issues and challenges facing trade unions at a Monash-hosted forum.
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| From left: Associate Professor Vivek Chaudri, Mr Bill Shorten, Professor Julian Teicher and Dr Ken Coghill at the forum. |
Mr Shorten told forum attendees that abolishing collective industrial rights and institutional workplace regulation would create a national crisis in confidence.
"Rarely has the regulation of industrial relations been as significant in national politics and consequential to the lives of millions of Australians as it is now," he said.
Monash Governance Research Unit co-director Dr Ken Coghill said the forum was well received.
"More than 30 people from a broad variety of areas attended," Dr Coghill said. "There were people from major businesses, people from the union movement and academics."
Mr Shorten said there was evidence that some employers could not be counted on to treat workers fairly and equitably in a free market situation.
He then discussed the Federal Government's industrial relations reform proposals, arguing the changes would tip the balance in favour of employers, leaving the workforce with weak bargaining powers.
The forum was jointly organised and sponsored by Monash University 's Australian Centre for the Research of Employment and Work and the Monash Governance Research Unit.
After graduating from Monash with a Bachelor of Arts in 1989 and a Bachelor of Laws in 1992, Mr Shorten was admitted as a practising solicitor. After four years as an organiser with the Victorian Branch of the AWU, he was elected as Victorian branch secretary and later national secretary.
27 July 2005
Australian Rules football legend Tommy Hafey shared stories of his success with the Peninsula business and education community at a breakfast seminar hosted recently by Monash.
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| Motivating the masses: Mr Tommy Hafey with guest Ms Lyne Taulla at the breakfast seminar. |
During his career, Mr Hafey coached four Victorian Football League/Australian Football League teams and is one of only three men to have coached more than 500 VFL/AFL games.
His seminar, presented by the Monash Peninsula Business Associate Program, addressed how businesses could use the motivation skills used in sport to gain a competitive advantage.
The head of the Faculty of Business and Economics at the Peninsula campus, Associate Professor Ron Edwards, said Mr Hafey had motivated thousands of individuals to high levels of personal performance over the past 25 years.
"Tommy identified principles of leadership, self-development and teamwork by using football analogies, but he applied them to educational and business settings," Dr Edwards said.
The Monash Peninsula Business Associate Program aims to link Monash with the local business and education community and provide interesting and motivational speakers.
"The program is Monash's way of giving something back to the community, which in turn encourages them to support us and our students," Dr Edwards said.
More than 100 people attended this latest seminar, including staff and students from local schools, local business people and Monash staff.
Further information on upcoming seminars is available at the Business seminars website.