Indeed, our international reputation is built on the excellence of the research undertaken here, across a broad spectrum of activity and disciplines, by some the nation’s best minds.

The prestigious Macquarie University Research Excellence Awards are designed to reward this important and pioneering work as they recognise staff and postgraduate research students for outstanding performance and excellence in research and innovation.

Applications and nominations for the 2017 Research Excellence Awards are now open and close Tuesday 20 June.

Professor Sakkie S. Pretorius, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) says this year’s awards have been updated to reflect changes at the University.

“We have aligned the categories with the new academic promotions criteria, reduced the length of the applications and increased the prize awards,” Professor Pretorius said. “With all the positive changes, I hope to see more applications and nominations in 2017 and encourage researchers to apply.”

The 2017 awards are:

• The Jim Piper Award for Excellence in Research Leadership, which recognises, encourages and rewards those researchers who are on a path to becoming research leaders at Macquarie.
• The Excellence in Research: Five Future-shaping Research Priorities, which awards recognise excellence in scholarly research, the creation and application of research outcomes, the discovery of new knowledge or the use of existing knowledge in a new and creative way to generate new concepts, methodologies and understanding. One award will be allocated per priority.
• The Excellence in Higher Degree Research Supervision award, which recognises our outstanding Higher Degree Research (HDR) supervisors who enable our HDR candidates to achieve their highest potential.
• The Early Career Researcher award, which recognises outstanding performance in research by an early career researcher who is within five years post-completion (formal award) of their PhD or MPhil degree.
• The Excellence in Higher Degree Research award, which recognises outstanding research undertaken by a current or former higher degree research candidate. The research activity can be in any field and must have been developed at Macquarie in the past four years.

More information and links to the application forms online, or by contacting Dr Erin Semon – erin.semon@mq.edu.au or x6847 – in the office of the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research).

The two-day event saw more than 600 attendees across the two days, with the keynote by Dr David Skellern AO and panel discussion ‘Taking discovery beyond research’ incredibly popular, as well as great attendance across the tours and workshops.

Senior Project Manager (Research) Dr Erin Semon was delighted at the positive response.

“I met so many people who were excited to be involved and wanted to learn more about Macquarie. One of the primary aims of this event was to foster a stronger sense of community around the University, and I think we accomplished that,” she says.

Semon was particularly proud of the efforts of volunteers and others involved in the event.

“There was so much work happening in the background. The various people involved in the event worked so hard to make every detail count. Vice-Chancellor Professor S Bruce Dowton and Professor Sakkie Pretorius, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) paid tribute to this effort, which was a really special moment for me.”

Initial feedback from the event has been overwhelmingly positive, with participants reporting that they had fun and learned new things.

“My favourite session was the panel discussion on taking discovery beyond research. It was a brilliant showcase of our research strengths at Macquarie and profiled some of our superstars! It was inspiring to hear about some of the incredible work happening across the university,” says Caitlin Crockford, Trusts and Foundations Specialist from the Office of Advancement.

“The sessions left me inspired about the future we are working towards,” echoes Belinda Bean, Sustainability Officer. “With a focus on the nexus between pure and applied research, they discussed the practical, real-world use of the knowledge presented. For example, the research being done at Centre for Emotional Health not only has implications for how we foster emotional stability within our own families, but also intervention strategies for schools.”

“There is appetite for events like this at Macquarie and we need to be ready to deliver more great initiatives like this to our community,” concluded Semon.

Missed out on the showcase? Check out photos below or visit the Macquarie University Facebook page for videos.

Dr David Skellern AO provided the keynote address on Tuesday.

Mikey Robins facilitated the panel session – Taking discovery beyond research – that featured Dr Julian Droogan, Professor Orsola De Marco, Professor Jennie Hudson, Associate Professor Sean Turnell, Professor Mike Heimlich and Professor Catharine Lumby.

Staff, students and members of the community attended events in the Macquarie Theatre.

Event volunteers were integral to the success of Macquarie Minds. 

Movies at MQ featured a screening of ‘Lucy’ followed by a panel discussion facilitated by SBS’s Marc Fennell.

Following the key note address by Dr David Skellern AO, Macquarie academics will be appearing in a panel on taking discovery beyond research. We asked our panelists the same question – “When did chance or good fortune lead you to something exciting?” Here is what they said.

Dr Julian Droogan, Department of Security Studies and Criminology

“I remember when I was asked quite unexpectedly by the US Department of Defence to lead a project compiling a book on emerging transnational security challenges in the Asia Pacific. I met so many fascinating authors and researchers from across our region, I was exposed to many alternative perspectives and points of view, and made a collection of friends that I still keep to this day. This project really directed my interests in the direction of Asia Pacific security, and has influenced my work and life ever since.”

Professor Jennie Hudson, Director, Centre for Emotional Health

“I was on a pathway to be a clinician. Having finished my honours year and having tasted the thrill of research, I just happened to pass Professor Ron Rapee in the corridors of C3A and he suggested I consider doing a PhD. That was the start of a long and successful research collaboration that has led to improved knowledge about children’s emotional health.”

Professor Orsola De Marco, ARC Future Fellow, Department of Physics and Astronomy

“After my first post-doc in Switzerland I returned to University College London, my alma mater, to take up a fellowship position. A couple of (rainy) months into the new job, an advert for a research position at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City caught my attention. Despite the fact that I had just started a new and very good position, I mailed the scientist in charge for that job search. They seemed uninterested in me, but suggested that if I ever passed by New York, we should have lunch together. Irked, I bought a ticket and went to New York… to have lunch.

After a little transaction we decided that I could have a year of funding to work at the Museum, something that I readily accepted. On a whim I left the security of a large group at a top university and went solo, to do research in a museum, an unlikely place for an astronomer. I have never put my finger on why exactly I took such a career risk, but curiosity drove me. The wonderful years that followed emboldened my research and made me far more daring in my work than I could ever have been: every good astro-thought that I had since, I owe to that crazy move.”

Professor Mike Heimlich, Associate Dean, International and Corporate Engagement, Faculty of Science and Engineering

“By ‘chance’, I was in my third year of my Bachelor of Engineering and I was failing a required course in probability and statistics for my computer engineering major. My dreams of one day designing computer chips for Intel seemed shattered. My academic advisor suggested that I move to microwave (now wireless) engineering as my academic strengths would make this an easier major for me. Well, I somewhat reluctantly did what he said and found that he was in fact right.  Fast forward 30 years and my career in wireless engineering enabled me to be on a three-year research collaboration with Intel, helping define requirements for a brand new generation of chips!  Oh, the irony of it all…….”

Professor Catharine Lumby, Department of Media, Music, Communication and Cultural Studies

“I was sitting in my office in 2010 when a Professor of chemical engineering knocked on my door and said ‘I saw you on TV last night. I want to change public attitudes to water recycling. You know about public communication – want to work with me?’. I did. We brought in a $3 million grant which saw scientists and humanities scholars collaborate to change the face of science communication in Australia.”

Associate Professor Sean Turnell, Department of Economics

“Rather than be inspired by chance, my research came about as part of a conscious effort to use the insights of economics to bring about an end to decades of economic mismanagement and human rights abuses in Burma. This led to a decade of policy work on economic reform in Burma, culminating in my appointment in 2016 as economic adviser to the country’s new democratic government, led by 1991 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, Aung San Suu Kyi.”

Time is running out! Register now for the key note address by Dr David Skellern AO, the panel discussion on taking discovery beyond research and other exciting events during the Macquarie Minds Showcase.

Mikey Robins, one of Australia’s most well-known and loved media personalities, will be joining as moderator for the panel talk ‘Taking Discovery Beyond Research’ where Macquarie researchers will share their stories of the many paths to discovery.

And Marc Fennell, award winning journalist, broadcaster, author, Australia’s most listened-to film critic and the host of SBS’s live nightly news show The Feed, will be hosting Movies at Macquarie as part of the Showcase. The film ‘Lucy’ will be screened and it will be followed with an engaging panel discussion with Associate Professor Jennifer Cornish from the Department of Psychology, as well as Dr Penny Van Bergen from the Department of Education, and Dr Carol Newall from the Institute of Early Childhood.

We sat down with Mikey and Marc where we talk career highlights and the importance of research – and the greatest lesson they’ve ever learnt.

What has been the highlight of your career to date?

Mikey: Having the opportunity to interview the Dalai Lama and going to Afghanistan to entertain the troops. Both experiences had a profound effect on me.

Afghanistan, I may as well have been on the moon with the disconnect and isolation from my real world. But it was the bravery and brilliance of our troops that was a real inspiration especially as they were so young. Plus, it was that situation many performers find themselves in where you remove yourself from the politics of a situation and concentrate on the men and women who are risking their lives and doing their best in very difficult circumstances.

Sitting on stage with the Dalai Lama in front of 13,000 people and asking him questions that had been sent in by the Australian public was a true honour. He is a very funny man and even got me with a fat gag. I’m not a spiritual person but I couldn’t deny that he has a certain aura around him.

Marc: I love meeting people and big ideas. Conveniently, I work in two jobs that allow me to do a lot of both. Obviously, a big part of my life is film. Sitting down to pick the brains of intelligent creators like Tarantino, Matt Damon, Alan Alda and Jodie Foster has been a huge highlight. I’ve interviewed the creator of the world wide web Sir Tim Berners-Lee and the co-founder of Apple Steve Wozniak.

But sometimes the best moments are the people that aren’t known. I spent a day in a jail interviewing an indigenous prisoner earlier this year and it was eye opening. Equally so, meeting a 22 year old app developer on the Autism spectrum who was developing an app to help others on the spectrum better navigate job interviews. I love seeing people take their life experience and use it to create something or solve a problem.

What is the greatest lesson you’ve ever learned?

Mikey: I’m still learning it.

Marc: The best opportunity is the one that’s right in front of you. Do the most with whatever opportunity you have presently and people will take notice.

Why is it so important for young people to take an interest in research?

Mikey: It’s the base of all learning. A curious mind is a happy mind, and as story teller I love finding out where our stories come from.

Marc: Because we need to make decisions in our lives and in government that are based on actual facts. Not the ‘feelpinions’* of a crossbencher.

*Marc assures us that ‘feelpinions’ is a thing.

Register for the panel talk ‘Taking Discovery Beyond Research’ and Movies at Macquarie as part of the Macquarie Minds Showcase 13-14 December 2016.

Here, Dr Titia Benders from the Department of Linguistics and Dr Yeshe Colliver from the Institute of Early Childhood discuss the importance of childhood foundation building and how academic researchers and those engaging directly with children, such as parents and guardians, need to work together.

The first years of children’s playing, interacting, and learning lay the foundations for the rest of their lives to come. But how can we continue building and improving these foundations for every single child?

There are many stakeholders in these early foundations, but they don’t interact often, if at all. As an example, some aspects of education (such as teaching numbers to children) are studied by researchers in early childhood education while the development of language skills is of interest to researchers in linguistics. As there is still so much to find out within each individual discipline, representatives of the disciplines don’t often seek out or get the chance to share their interests and insights in early childhood development across disciplines.

And, even rarer is a conversation between academic researchers and those who actually engage with children: parents, guardians and caregivers in the home and in the childcare industry. The people that engage with children on a daily basis are often highly aware of the interactions between all aspects of child development.

The conversation between academics on the one hand and educators and caregivers on the other will be facilitated by recognising the different approaches and developing a shared vocabulary.

As such, at our Macquarie Minds panel session we will be opening up communication avenues, and discovering insights from academic research that can be translated back to the front line educators. All in all, this will result in more evidence-based practices in early education.

If we don’t work together, we will never be able to understand child development as a whole, and we will never be able to give our children the best possible foundations for learning and life.

Building these foundations requires taking in observations from those who engage with children on a daily basis, as well as sharing expertise across academic disciplines.

Register for Titia and Yeshe’s panel ‘Building Solid Foundations: How Different Environments Impact Children’s Learning And Lives‘ as part of the Macquarie Minds Showcase 13-14 December 2016.

Neuroscience research is undergoing a revolution, thanks to the recent proliferation of EEG headsets used to record brain activity for video gaming. We sat down with ARC Centre of Excellence in Cognition and its Disorders Postdoctoral Research Fellow Nicholas Badcock in advance of his hands-on workshop to understand the concept of “readiness to learn” and the many benefits of connecting children and adults with their optimal learning or working states.

What drew you to your research field?


I grew up in a family of teachers – my Gran, parents, aunty, uncle, and now my sister and three cousins are teachers – which likely shaped my value for education. Then I studied psychology in year 12 and it seemed that understanding cognition and the brain might not only be able to help people who struggle with learning but maybe even augment the process for all individuals. I find this important and exciting.

What would be an ‘elevator pitch’ of your research area?

Readiness to learn fluctuates in all individuals. Some people are early birds and some are night owls, but readiness also varies from hour to hour and minute to minute. Imagine if we could measure this readiness then alert learners and their teachers when they’re ready to learn. It could be as subtle as a buzz from wearable technology or a little ‘louder’ with a flashing sign over the student’s head, letting the teacher know to ‘Teach me now!’.  My research is aimed at understanding these patterns and implementing the technology.

In layman’s terms, what is the wider impact of your research?

Connecting children and adults with their optimal learning or working states will lead to more efficient education and work places. We’ve all had those days or afternoons when we’re just not into it. It’s likely we’d be better off switching tasks, doing something to re-motivate ourselves, or maybe it’s a sign that we’re getting sick and we should head home to rest. Alerting people to this information in a measurable and scientifically supported form will benefit the individuals as well as those with whom they interact. It would result in increased productivity but a wider implementation of this research would increase wellbeing, reducing negative physical and mental health outcomes.

Who has been your most significant research mentor?

Gen McArthur. She’s gone above and beyond to help me and my family settle in Sydney, and then there are the hours spent work-shopping ideas and being available, realistic, and excited about what we do.

If you were given one million dollars in research funding, what would be the first thing you would do?


Our research is a big task which will require lots of data from lots of people in lots of situations so one million dollars would allow us to employ research assistants to speed this up and get us closer to putting it in classrooms.

What has been your favourite and/or proudest research moment?


My favourite moments are when I’ve helped someone with a tricky task like programming, then they go off and expand on it, demonstrating that the help has spring-boarded them well beyond the original assistance.

Register for Nicholas’ workshop When Gaming Meets Neuroscience: Unlocking The Potential Of Mind Mapping Using Mobile EEG as part of the Macquarie Minds Showcase, 13-14 December.

Here, Sophia Aharonovich, PhD student in the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, talks about her time on board an international drilling vessel, collecting samples that reconstruct past climates to inform future climate modelling.

I find the correlation between human evolution and climate change fascinating; by using small pieces of information preserved in sediments, we can recreate a full picture of the environment thousands of years ago.

After studying pollen grains and phytoliths (silica remains of plants) in soil during my Masters in Archaeology at the University of Haifa, Israel, I discovered that it is possible to reconstruct past climates using organic molecules preserved in soils and rocks, going back not thousands, but millions of years.

One of my favourite parts of my PhD research at Macquarie University was the 60 days I spent on-board the JOIDES Resolution, an international scientific drilling vessel, for the International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP) Expedition in the Arabian Sea last year. The JOIDES Resolution has a fully equipped coring facility and laboratory.

I was on-board as an organic geochemist and was the only Australian among 30 scientists from a mix of languages and cultures and at different career stages. We all had something in common – a passion for science. We worked hard during our 12 hour shifts and had a lot of fun in between. Some of us saw 60 sunrises over the Indian Ocean and some saw 60 sunsets. We left the JOIDES Resolution as good friends and research collaborators. We collected samples in seas 3.5 km deep and drilled down over one kilometre into sediments and rocks that were dated to more than 13 million years old. We discovered signs of correlation between uplift of the Himalayas and changes in the summer monsoon intensity, a weather period that currently impacts 70 per cent of the world’s population.

With a better understanding of past climate changes and human influence on the planet, we can predict future climate changes. In my Macquarie Minds session, we’ll explore the geological evidence of past climate change episodes, their correlation with global patterns of extinction and the rise and fall of civilisations, as well as impacts on human technological evolution.

Register for Sophia’s session Is Climate Change Really Much Ado About Nothing?, as part of the Macquarie Minds Showcase 13-14 December 2016. Dr Kira Westaway, Professor Simon George and Professor Michael Gillings are also participating.

In honour of Mental Health Month in New South Wales, we continue to share information to help remove the stigma associated with mental health and anxiety.

Last week, Professor Jennie Hudson, Director of the Macquarie University Centre for Emotional Health, gave tips for adults on how to manage stress.

This week on the Pioneering Minds podcast, she discusses the genetic markers that indicate anxiety in children and the most effective ways that parents can help their children avoid and overcome anxiety and depression.

Register for Jennie Hudson’s presentation ‘Happy People? Improving our Children’s Emotional Health’ as part of the Macquarie Minds Showcase.

What drew you to your research field?

Growing up at a time before the popularisation of social media, the TV screen was almost the only window for me to view and learn about the outside world. I recall a variety show introducing different countries that held me agog with interest. I was figuratively glued to it for many years. On graduation from university, I worked in the media industry for several years but my curiosity about the world and my place in it is what crystallised my decision to do a PhD.

My current research project is in an area where international communication, international relations and soft power overlap. My interest in international relations and soft power was kindled by my supervisor, Professor Naren Chitty. He has made significant contributions in all three fields. My research on his body of work made me realise that the perspective he has developed provides a useful platform to launch my own project and research.

What would be an ‘elevator pitch’ of your research area?

 Media discourse is an important element by which individuals construct meaning. My thesis project, taking China’s ‘One Belt One Road’ initiative as a case study, investigates how a country’s discourse is constructed in different communities through international media and what elements influence the mechanism.

In layman’s terms, what is the wider impact of your research?

 I hope my research can firstly offer a better understanding between China and other communities that view China and Chinese culture as potential threats. This will contribute to a minimisation of misperceptions among different communities, and more importantly, can offer an analytical framework for understanding a country’s behaviour and its relations with other states.

Who has been your most significant research mentor?

 That would have to be my supervisor, Professor Naren Chitty. He is the kind of supervisor who can not only give you specific guidance on your research based on his experience in supervising dozens of PhD students, but also influence you in a more profound way. He draws on several genres of experience – including as a diplomat and scholar – which I believe to be one of the reasons behind his inclusiveness, innovativeness and depth and breadth of research. He has the magic to make many things happen.

What has been your favourite and/or proudest research moment?

My proudest moment in recent times was when, together with other team members, I was awarded first prize by the Henan Province Social Science Association for research on senior people’s media needs, uses and gratifications in the context of new media.

Register for Mei Li’s session/workshop ‘Soft Power: The Power of Attraction?’ as part of the Macquarie Minds Showcase 13-14 December 2016.

While lifespans are increasing, attitudes to the aged and ageing have not kept pace, with incorrect and often harmful stereotypes colouring public perceptions and potentially contributing to cognitive decline in older people. At the Macquarie Minds Showcase, Katya Numbers will be discussing common myths around ageing and how we all benefit from a re-think on growing older.

“My research broadly aims to describe and understand the process by which ageing stereotypes are internalised in younger adults and then later become harmful self-stereotypes in older adults.

Numerous examples exist in the literature of a general tendency to dismiss information believed to have come from an older adult, even if that information is mostly correct. This is likely due to pervasive negative stereotypes of ageing, which characterise older adults as mentally slower than the general population. Thus, if we believe a source is less credible or untrustworthy, we are more likely to dismiss information they are providing.

Not only is this stereotype incorrect, it negatively impacts older adults’ perceptions of their own memory abilities, and in some cases, can disrupt their actual memory performance. My other area of research explores how older adults view the ageing process, and in turn, how they embody or reject negative age stereotypes. For these studies I visit older adults in their homes, and collect data on a series of subjective and objective memory measures. This allows me to assess the difference between older adults’ beliefs about their memory abilities and their actual memory performance.

Of all of the stereotyped and sub-stereotyped groups that exist in our culture, “senior” is the group we are most likely to join during our lifetimes. That is, we are unlikely to change our race, gender, sexual orientation or even religious affiliation during our lives. However if we are lucky, we are all likely to become old.

Consider the harmful effect of belonging to a group that is discriminated against on a daily basis, and the urgency to change negative beliefs about ageing become obvious. I hope my research is a small step towards this change.”

Register for Katya’s workshop New ways of growing older: Rethinking healthy ageing as part of the Macquarie Minds Showcase, 13-14 December.