Modern airplanes use up to half their fuel to overcome the drag caused by turbulence at the surface of an airplane.
The University of Melbourne’s specialised wind tunnel is helping them unlock the mysteries of boundary layer turbulence. Credit: The University of Melbourne
In 2010, Professor Ivan Marusic’s team of engineers at the University of Melbourne became the first in the world to predict and model the behaviour of the eddies that cause this drag—known as boundary layer turbulence. And now they are trying to control them.
“Even a five per cent reduction could save billions of dollars, and millions of tonnes of carbon dioxide,” says Ivan, “which is a big deal to aircraft operators like Qantas.”
For years we’ve been identifying genetic markers linked to mental disorders. Now it appears those same markers could also tell us who will best-respond to treatment.
Genetic data are another piece in the puzzle of personalised treatment for anxiety. Credit: Chris Stacey, Macquarie University
A study of over 1,500 children, as part of the international Genes for Treatment collaboration, found those with a specific genetic marker were more responsive to psychological therapy than those without.
A unique national centre is working to build an emotionally healthy community through science and practice.
From four-year-olds with anxiety, to 90-years-olds with depression, the Centre for Emotional Health at Macquarie University takes a ‘lifespan approach’ to mental health.
They’ve spent the past 20 years studying, developing, testing and rolling out mental health programs – which are now available in eight languages and 15 countries including Denmark, the UK and Norway.
A new mapping tool will help shape a healthier Australia through sport and recreation.
Developed by researchers at Victoria University and Federation University Australia, the Sport and Recreation Spatial tool is a consolidated national database combining data on exercise, recreation and sport participation as well as demographic and health statistics. It also includes information on existing sports venues and organisations.
Across the world, the race is on to develop the first quantum computer and an Australia research centre is at the front of the pack.
The Australian Government, Telstra and the Commonwealth Bank of Australia have recently recognised the pole position of the ARC Centre of Excellence for Quantum Computation and Communication Technology (CQC2T) by investing $46 million towards a targeted goal of realising a 10-qubit quantum integrated circuit in silicon within the next five years.
In this feature we explore some of the Centre’s advances in quantum information research.
The search for the first stars and the hunt for dark energy both feature in a new planetarium show narrated by Geoffrey Rush. The show premiered in March 2016 at the Melbourne Planetarium and will be seen in planetariums around the world.
“I hope this show conveys some of the wonder of the Universe we live in,” says Professor Elaine Sadler, Director of the ARC Centre of Excellence for All-sky Astrophysics (CAASTRO).
The Murchison Widefield Array telescope is discovering when the first stars and galaxies formed Credit: Alex Cherney/Museum Victoria
‘Capturing the Cosmos’ was created by Melbourne Planetarium and CAASTRO, and features the work of two of Australia’s new telescopes, the Murchison Widefield Array and Skymapper.
A new type of paint is keeping Australian warships cool and reducing their visibility.
Australian warships were painted Storm Grey, a British Navy colour suited to overcast skies of the North Atlantic rather than Australia’s tropical waters.
“The previous colour is a historical artefact, but the conditions in our waters are quite different,” says Stefan Danek from Defence Science and Technology Group.
“So in the new Royal Australian Navy (RAN) Haze Grey, we now have a colour much more suited to the Australian environment, and a paint that’s better for it too.”
Airplane fuel consumption, shipping costs, climate change, engine noise, blue green algae spread, windfarm efficiency, and the speed of Olympic rowing boats could all change dramatically if scientists can crack the 150-year-old mystery of boundary layer turbulence.
And that’s what University of Melbourne engineers are hoping to achieve with a supercomputer model that can do 3,000 years’ research in one year, a purpose built wind tunnel, and a new air-sea interaction facility.
A drug based on a molecule naturally present in infants – but which declines in adulthood – can halve the scarring in brains of those who have suffered stroke. And it can be delivered up to a week afterward.
Enlarged cell bodies (pink), with increased scar-forming (green) following stroke. Credit: Leon Teo
“We hope our work will improve the recovery of the elderly, as well as people in rural and remote communities, who haven’t had access to speedy treatment following a stroke,” says Associate Professor James Bourne at the Australian Regenerative Medicine Institute (ARMI ), and Chief Investigator of the research. Continue reading Fighting stroke damage→
How much fish move around is critical information for fisheries managers—for example they need to know if fish caught off Brisbane are a separate population to those caught off Cairns. Different tracking techniques, such as physical tags or genetic mapping, can be used but each method has its weaknesses.
A team of mathematicians is using pre-existing data on Spanish mackerel, using their hitchhiking parasites to track fish movements and model the populations.
