Professor Nydén will be returning to his native Sweden to be reunited with his family and to take up a new dual position as Head of Innovation Strategy and External Liaison and Head of Digital Science at global, science-led, biopharmaceutical company AstraZeneca.

“I am leaving Macquarie with the heaviest of hearts, especially as it’s during a time of growth for the Faculty of Science and Engineering and the University as a whole. However, I am proud of the work our Faculty’s leadership team has achieved over the last 18 months under very difficult circumstances. I have so much confidence that the future for the Faculty will be promising and bright,” he says.

For Professor Nydén, the strong sense of community at Macquarie will underpin his time as Executive Dean. This is reflected in his fondest memories at the University, which include serving up a Swedish delicacy, meatballs with all the trimmings, for the FSE leadership team and celebrating the winners of the 2021 Faculty of Science and Engineering Excellence Awards in a ceremony at the end of last year.

“Macquarie is such a purpose-driven organisation, which is what initially drew me back to Aussie shores. Having purpose placed firmly at the centre of everything we do is so important to me both professionally and personally,” says Professor Nydén.

“Our work goes beyond education and research; we have the power to really generate impactful change that is far bigger than ourselves.”

Vice-Chancellor Professor S Bruce Dowton has recognised the significant contribution Professor Nydén has made to the University since joining in June 2020.

“Magnus has led the reorganisation of the Faculty of Science and Engineering into a new School and Department arrangement and worked very diligently in managing change during the difficult times of recent years,” says the Vice-Chancellor.

“He has also been integrally involved in the University’s collaboration with UTS, Microsoft, and TAFE NSW in the IAT-Digital project at Meadowbank.”

“I understand completely and can empathise with Magnus’ desire to no longer be separated from members of his family in Sweden, particularly in the fluid environment of the COVID-19 pandemic. I wish him and his family all the best for the future.”

Despite leaving the University, Professor Nydén sees the potential to remain closely connected to Macquarie through his new role. “There’s a lot of innovation going on at Macquarie. With this in mind, I can certainly see that opportunities to collaborate and align under a common sense of purpose may easily arise in the future,” he says.

Professor Dowton has announced the appointment of current Pro Vice-Chancellor (Research Integrity and Development) Distinguished Professor Lesley Hughes as interim Executive Dean.

Professor Hughes has a long association with Macquarie University, having completed her PhD and ARC Postdoctoral fellowships here. She took up an academic position in Biological Sciences in 1997 on her return from Harvard University and has held a number of University leadership positions since that time, including Head of the Department of Biological Sciences (2009-2011). Professor Hughes is currently Pro Vice-Chancellor (Research Integrity and Development), a position she has held since 2014.

Professor Hughes is greatly respected both within Macquarie University and outside it, where her expertise in the impacts of climate change on species and ecosystems is widely sought. She was Federal Climate Commissioner 2011-2013 and is now a Councillor with the Climate Council of Australia.

A search process for a permanent Executive Dean of the Faculty will be undertaken in the coming months.

Every month we celebrate some of the impressive achievements in the Macquarie community. Got something to share for next month? Tell us.

Congratulations to Dr Liz Schroeder who has been appointed as a Commissioner on the National Mental Health Commission.

Dr Schroeder, Senior Research Fellow at Macquarie University’s Centre for the Health Economy, says: “It’s a privilege and honour to be appointed to the role, and I look forward to serving thoughtfully and strategically, and to making a positive contribution.”

The National Mental Health Commission provides advice to the Federal Government on ways to continuously improve mental health and suicide prevention, and reports on ongoing reforms of the mental health system in Australia.

In announcing the appointment, the Federal Health Minister, The Hon. Greg Hunt said the new commissioners were appointed for their experience. “Dr Schroeder has extensive local and international experience in applied research in the economics of complex public health interventions, including mental health and suicide prevention,” he said.

Last month marked the commencement of the autumn graduation series where several honorary doctorates were awarded to Australian and internationally-esteemed community leaders acknowledging their exceptional contributions to society in their fields.

Highlights include Professor Jim Patrick AO receiving a Doctor of Science (Honoris Causa) for his contributions to the field of hearing, and broadcaster, author and comedian Wendy Harmer receiving an honorary doctorate in recognition of her ground-breaking work in journalism and comedy.

To view the full list of honorary doctorates visit our Newsroom.

Maria Kovaleva has graduated with a PhD in Electronic Engineering and with the Vice-Chancellor’s Commendation – the highest honour at Macquarie University for a PhD student.

Maria’s supervisor, Professor Karu Esselle expressed his pride and said: “This is believed to be the first ever Vice Chancellor’s Commendation in Engineering at Macquarie University and most likely the first and only Vice Chancellor’s Commendation since PhD research in Electronics was started at the University by Professor Skellern over 25 years ago.

“It is extraordinary to see a woman getting it first in Engineering – a discipline highly dominated by men.”

Dean of the School of Engineering, Professor Darren Bagnall spoke to ThisWeek last year about its ambitious drive to seek out and recruit talented females.

Each year the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) Circle of Excellence Awards recognise institutions whose talented staff members advanced their institution’s last year through innovative, inspiring and creative ideas. During the last round, Macquarie University was lucky enough to win a CASE Silver Circle of Excellence Awards in the category of Fundraising Programs: Targeted Campaigns in recognition of the Firefighters Climb for MND.

In 2015, Macquarie University began a partnership with firefighters from Fire and Rescue NSW to create the Firies Climb for MND event. Held in October each year, firefighters climb the 98 storeys, or 1504 stairs of Sydney Tower Eye wearing the full 20kg firefighting equipment to raise funds for motor neurone disease (MND) research at Macquarie University. At a vertical rise of 250 meters, the climb to the observation deck is a gruelling challenge. Each floor of the stairwell hosts dedicated patients of MND both past and present. It’s a harrowing journey but nothing compared to what families living with MND go through every day.

Since its inception, each year the event smashes its fundraising targets and is huge credit to all involved. In 2015 the event raised an incredible $180,000 for MND research, far exceeding the original goal of $50,000. In 2016 a further $510,990 was raised, in 2017 another $630,100, and in 2018 $779,000 was raised thanks to the overwhelming support from the firefighting community and the general public. This makes over $2,200,000 raised since 2015. Most importantly, the funds raised from the event, along with other fundraising income, have been part of enabling two new MND clinical trials to begin at Macquarie University, along with vital MND research, giving hope to those living with this terrible disease.

Check out our article on the event last year.

Professor Bagnall brings to Macquarie a strong research vision and a passion for education reform – of the importance of offering degrees that focus on practical experience over the lecture room.

Originally from Stoke-on-Trent, England, Professor Bagnall’s research and education background covers more than 30 years: starting with a Bachelor of Engineering and a PhD in photovoltaics at the University of Salford in Manchester; then research positions at universities in Scotland and Japan; lecturing at England’s Southampton University; and most recently, as Head of School and Professor at the University of NSW School of Photovoltaic and Renewable Energy Engineering.

Along the way, Professor Bagnall has acquired a strong background in university administration and management; written more than 130 refereed journal papers; supervised PhD students with theses focussing on subjects including solar cells, photovoltaic systems, plasmonics and nano-structures; and conducted pioneering research across a range of semiconductor devices, photonics and nanotechnologies, including a demonstration of the world’s first zinc-oxide laser.

Professor Bagnall says he was attracted to Macquarie by the opportunity the new School of Engineering will provide for growth and investment in research and education.

“It’s a great opportunity to be bold and grow engineering in a very distinct and innovative way; that’s what I’m looking forward to most,” he says.

“To be leading and excellent in research or education, you need scale. The new school offers enormous opportunity to grow and to gain critical mass in research areas and across the educational platform.”

Professor Bagnall says he’s also eager to evolve the focus of degrees away from the classroom and towards the practical.

“I am really keen, very early on, to develop innovation around education; to really think about how we should be teaching a modern engineer,” he says.

“I’m also looking forward to working towards a new pedagogical model for modern engineering education, so one of the first things I intend to do is work with staff to think about what that might look like at Macquarie.”

“Personally, I’d like to see students have more hands-on experience and more project-based assessment. We need to focus less on what students have memorised for an exam and more on letting them show us what they can do in a real-life situation.”

“I think Macquarie is well-placed to attract ambitious and talented students who can thrive if we create the right opportunities, and given the strong industry presence that surrounds the campus it should be possible to work with the real world in order to create real-life opportunities.”

“If you can get industries as partners in education rather than people that we just send students to when they’ve graduated, that will be a very positive experience for everybody.”

Faculty of Science and Engineering Executive Dean, Professor Barbara Messerle has welcomed Professor Bagnall’s appointment and paid tribute to the Department of Engineering’s current head, Professor Iain Collings who becomes the new school’s first Deputy Dean.

“The new School of Engineering will enable the Faculty to increase its strategic focus and support for the development and expansion of both research and teaching endeavours within the Engineering discipline,” Professor Messerle says.

The positions commence on 1 August 2017 with the opening of the new School.

Briardo and Thomas were among eleven researchers from universities across Australia to be included in the recent round of fellowships:

• Briardo for work on Synthebiont: Travelling back in time to the origin of photosynthetic eukaryotes
• Thomas for the project From one to many: Synthetic yeast chassis for C1 metabolism

Synthetic Biology is one of the fastest growing areas of modern science with a wealth of potential for developments in fields such as healthcare, industrial biotechnology, agriculture and food research.

Through its Synthetic Biology Future Science Platform (SynBio FSP), CSIRO is establishing a collaborative community of practice extending across the Organisation, Australia more broadly, and linking into international efforts in the field.

The fellowships are designed to position Australia as a major international leader in Synthetic Biology by attracting outstanding national and international early-career post-doctoral researchers to expand our research capacity in the field.

*What is Synthetic Biology?

Synthetic biology is essentially the application of engineering principles to biology.

It involves the design and construction of biological systems and devices, as well as the re-design of existing, natural biological systems, usually based on DNA-encoded componentry, and their application for useful purposes.

Components include DNA, RNA, and proteins (commonly enzymes); these are used to build genetic circuits encoding cellular machinery, which may be applied either in vivo (inside cells) or ex vivo (in test tubes or other non-cellular environments).

It is a highly interdisciplinary science, drawing on biology, engineering and computer science, as well as many other fields, and has potential application in areas as diverse as manufacturing, human health, agriculture and protecting ecosystems.

In Australia, there are a number of research and development projects in the design or implementation phase across agricultural, industrial and environmental applications.

*Source: CSIRO

Once again, the observatory – which opened on 3 May 1997 – is hosting its annual open-night, complete with family friendly events and activities for all ages.

As well as the telescopes and stargazing, activities include:

• Planetariums
• Aboriginal astronomy
• Illustrated and short talks
• Robotics demonstrations

Keynote speaker on the night will be Swinburne University of Technology’s Professor Matthew Bailes, Pro Vice-Chancellor at the Centre for Astrophysics and Supercomputing.

Event details:

Date: 20 May, 2017
Time: 6.30pm to 10pm
Special late session: 10pm to midnight
Location: E7B courtyard.

NB: Tickets should be bought on-line to avoid disappointment as tickets at the door will be strictly limited.

Macquarie University’s FIRST* Robotics Team 3132, aka Thunder Down Under, is a group of high school students and mentors who share a passion for Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM).

The students, from years 8-12, come from more than 40 high schools across Sydney.

They are advised and guided by mentors from industry and academia as they design and build robots from gears, motors, metal and electronics, with the aim of competing in the FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC): the annual ‘Olympics’ for young people competing to build and program robots to perform tasks.

This year’s challenge began in the summer with an intensive six-week robot ‘build session’. In April, team members joined around 15,000 students from around the world in the US city of Houston to compete with their robot in the FRC.

For their efforts, Thunder Down Under won the competition’s highest honour, the Chairman’s Award for the team best representing a model for other teams to emulate and that best embodies the FIRST purpose and goals for inspiration and recognition of science and technology.

The award is a huge achievement for Team 3132, being the first winner from outside North America and the first to win so quickly after its formation.

Click here to see the team’s competition submission.

_{FIRST® (For Inspiration & Recognition of Science & Technology) Robotics is an internationally acclaimed robotics program that inspires a passion for Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths in young people.
FIRST® Australia was established at Macquarie University in 2006 and has partnered with schools and universities across Australia with teams and competitions held in Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth.}

This week on the Pioneering Minds podcast we speak to Luan Heimlich, Director of FIRST^® Australia, about the future of robotics and the importance of the FIRST robotics program in inspiring a young generation of technologically-minded creators. Listen and subscribe:

Listen to previous Pioneering Minds episodes on Soundcloud.

Announced at the recent Science in Australia Gender Equity (SAGE) symposium, Macquarie becomes an official participant in the pilot program, which is supported by the Australian Academy of Sciences and based on the Athena SWAN charter. The charter has seen gender equity practices in United Kingdom higher education and research institutes greatly improve over the last decade. Macquarie will now work towards Bronze accreditation of the Athena SWAN Charter.

Macquarie’s SAGE self-assessment team will be chaired by Pro Vice-Chancellor (Research Integrity and Development) Professor Lesley Hughes.

“Macquarie is extremely committed to driving gender diversity in STEMM and increasing the level of women in leadership positions,” Professor Hughes says.

Vice-Chancellor Professor S Bruce Dowton welcomed the announcement and says the University’s involvement in the pilot will strengthen our commitment to leading the sector in gender equity.

“While Macquarie performs well in comparison to the sector average in terms of women in senior academic positions, the University is undertaking in 2016 to accelerate achievement of a truly gender balanced organisation,” Professor Dowton notes.

Women comprised 31 per cent of all Macquarie staff at Level E in 2015¹ compared to a university sector average of 25 per cent², and 37 per cent at Level D¹ compared to a sector average of 30 per cent².

Learn more about the Science in Australia Gender Equity (SAGE) Pilot in Australia.

^{1. ‘Women in Macquarie: Gender Equity Data 2015’, report by the Equity and Diversity Unit, October 2015.}

^{2. Universities Australia}

Famous mathematical physicist Sir Michael Berry was a distinguished guest of Macquarie in April, after being invited by the Macquarie Research Centre of Quantum Science and Technology and the Department of Physics and Astronomy to share his extensive knowledge of quantum mechanics and his own mathematical discoveries.

Sir Michael formulated the geometrical phase, better known as the ‘Berry phase’, a phenomenon in quantum mechanics for which he was awarded the prestigious Wolf Prize – often equated to a Nobel Prize among mathematicians. Now, Sir Michael can add another prize to his collection, having just been awarded the prestigious Macquarie University Moyal Medal last week.

“I never met Joe Moyal, but knew what he is best known for: expressing quantum mechanics in an unusual way. Indeed I cited and developed this work in a paper exactly 40 years ago. Now, visiting Macquarie, I discover that his scientific achievements range far more widely, and moreover that he was a strong and fascinating character. Therefore it is a particular honour to be chosen to receive the medal named after him,” explained Sir Michael.

An avid science communicator, Sir Michael now travels the world speaking about quantum mechanics to fellow professors and the public alike. At his recent public lecture on campus he discussed how combining technology with quantum physics can lead to an array of discoveries. His own ‘Berry phase’ has led to applications in aviation, the rotation of pendulums, and quantum computers.  He has also been heavily involved in expanding the culture of science in developing countries, a project which deeply reflects his ability to foster the desire to understand our world.

“Scientists who communicate science to non-experts should realise that there are several such publics: practical technical people (electricians, plumbers, builders), nonscientific intellectuals (literary, artistic, philosophical), taxi-drivers (my father was one). They require different approaches. Common to all is respect for their mentality and the need to avoid the technical jargon that is familiar to us but turns them off. It’s a challenge, but worthwhile,” said Sir Michael.

“The Eureka Prizes are some of Australia’s most prestigious awards for science research, and Macquarie is at the forefront of Australia’s great scientific research,” says Professor Sakkie Pretorius, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research). “I expect we will be well represented on the awards night and I encourage all of our researchers, especially our early career researchers, to get in contact with their faculty leadership and put their names forward.”

Peter Nelson, Pro Vice-Chancellor (Research Performance and Innovation) and Professor of Environmental Studies, leads the selection team for the Eureka Outstanding Early Career Researcher prize.

“I’d say that in the ECR (Early Career Research) category most of the applicants would be worthy winners and that even getting on to the short list is a major achievement,” says Professor Nelson. “These accolades can be individually career defining moments and enhance Macquarie’s growing reputation and visibility in impactful research.”

In the past two years Macquarie researchers have demonstrated impact at the Awards with a number of wins and finalists. In 2015, Professor David Raftos from the Department of Biological Sciences received the inaugural Rural Research and Development Corporations Eureka Prize for Rural Innovation for his work safeguarding and improving Australia’s iconic oyster industry. A team including Adjunct Professor Dayong Jin from the Department of Chemistry and Biomolecular Sciences received the Eureka Prize for Excellence in Interdisciplinary Scientific Research.

A further two academics were announced as finalists: Associate Professor Andrew Barron from the Department of Biological Sciences and The Bee Team (with the University of Sydney) and Dr Lee Spitler from the Department of Physics and Astronomy. In 2014 Distinguished Professor Lesley Hughes was honoured with the Australian Government Eureka Prize for Promoting Understanding of Australian Science Research.

If you are interested in being nominated for the 2016 Australian Museum Eureka Prizes, please contact your Faculty Research Manager.