Bernadette Conlon, Jan Janssen and Professor David Wilkinson at ‘Partnership in the Age of Innovation’.  

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Partnership in the Age of Innovation

Last month, Macquarie University hosted a corporate lunch on campus with the Australia-Israel Chamber of Commerce (AICC). Themed ‘Partnership in the Age of Innovation,’ discussions included ways in which business can better engage with universities, and Professor David Wilkinson, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Corporate Engagement and Advancement) encouraged the more than 100 attendees to think differently and innovatively. Professor Wilkinson highlighted strong examples of collaboration by citing the Macquarie Park Innovation District, the Optus Macquarie University Cyber Security Hub, and the Centre for Workforce Futures. The occasion also underlined the appetite for such events to be held in our area and Macquarie is proud to be able to facilitate these opportunities.

Speakers included:

• Professor David Wilkinson, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Corporate Engagement and Advancement), Macquarie University
• Michelle Blum, CEO, Australia-Israel Chamber of Commerce (AICC)
• Dr Gil Davis, Director of the Program for Ancient Mediterranean Studies, Macquarie University
• Bernadette Conlon, Director of Marketing, Customer Experience and Innovation, Optus Business
• Jan Janssen, Senior Vice President, Research and Development, Cochlear

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Highlighting new technology

Modular Photonics hosted a showcase and networking event earlier this month to formally launch and demonstrate their new technology which enables a 100x boost in data transmission rates (40G)  over legacy multimode fibre networks. This new capability will prevent the foreshadowed data capacity crunch, due to the growth in Internet data exceeding improvements in fibre optic technology,  from occurring. The event was attended by representatives from CSIRO, NSW Chief Scientist and Engineers office, Macquarie University and various other organisations.

Modular Photonics was founded in early 2015 by leading optics and telecommunications researchers Professor Mick Withford (MQ), Dr Simon Gross (MQ), Dr Nicolas Riesen (Uni of Adelaide) and Professor John D. Love (ANU), and formally registered as a company in January this year.

(Pictured: Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) Professor Sakkie Pretorius and Professor Mick Withford)

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Macquarie students advance to top four in national competition

The University was represented by the student group Enactus Macquarie at the Enactus Nationals Competition in Sydney. Macquarie has a long tradition of involvement with Enactus, spanning almost a decade, and at this year’s competition, our Macquarie group upheld that tradition by advancing all the way to the top four against the score of universities participating. Enactus is a global organisation, with member groups drawn from the students of dozens of universities, along with academic staff and representatives of industry and commerce. Its purpose is to be of service to the community, especially with projects based on principles of entrepreneurial spirit and business innovation.

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NSW Chief Scientist and Engineer comes to campus

Mary O’Kane, NSW Chief Scientist and Engineer (pictured) visited Macquarie in July to deliver a lecture entitled ‘What government needs from university researchers’. The lecture identified areas of scientific research that are becoming increasingly politicised and explored techniques to better communicate these topics to the public and government audiences. The lecture, and subsequent focus groups were attended by over 150 Macquarie staff and students, and was organised as a part of Macquarie’s Research Enrichment Project.

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Global Alumni Impact Series

Healthy minds for all ages was the theme at the recent Global Alumni Impact Series that attracted 200 of the university’s alumni and its community back to the Macquarie University campus on 19 July. The audience had the opportunity to hear from and ask questions of the expert panel (pictured) including Professor Simon Handley, Professor Nick Titov, Professor Jennie Hudson and Associate Professor Viviana Wuthrich. A key focus of the event was the University programs including Mindspot and the Centre for Emotional Health.

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Important milestone for the da Vinci Xi Surgical System

Macquarie University Hospital (MUH) successfully completed its first Off-Pump Coronary Artery Bypass Graft (OPCABG) using the da Vinci Xi Surgical System, the most advanced available surgical robot. Leading Sydney heart surgeon, Professor Michael Wilson (pictured), who has been one of the pioneers of an off-pump approach to bypass surgery, performed the procedure. Although Professor Wilson and his team have done OPCABG procedures robotically at Macquarie University Hospital using the older SI System, the Macquarie University Hospital case was the first time that the latest model – the da Vinci Xi – had been used.