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The pulp and paper making industry is looking for new main raw material based on its physical, chemical and morphological characteristics. Currently in this industry, bagasse is the most useful raw material in pulp and paper industry. The objective of this study is to determine its suitability for pulping. Acacia auriculiformis is a fast-growing tree normally found in Indonesia and Australia. Acacia auriculiformis leaf contains of cellulose, hemi-cellulose and lignin. The range of lignin content in Acacia auriculiformis is 19%-20%. The hemi-cellulose and lignin contents was removed by soda-pulping process using different concentrations as followed; 3%, 5%, 10%, 15% and 20%. In order to determine the optimum pulping conditions for Acacia auriculiformis craft paper, several tests were conducted such as apparent density, tear test, tensile strength test and moisture absorption. It was found that the Acacia auriculiformis fibre treated with 3% sodium hydroxide (NaOH) solutions gave good tear test of the paper. For apparent density test, the best concentration of NaOH used for treating Acacia auriculiformis pulping is at 15%. From the study, the optimum concentration of NaOH in treating Acacia auriculiformis fibre is at 5% for best result in tensile strength. Hence, from the overall tests, 5% concentration of NaOH is the optimum value. From the findings, Acacia auriculiformis fibre has a potential to be used in paper making and food packaging industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Australia is one of the driest continents on earth, which often suffers from long droughts and also devastating floods. To support water resources development and ongoing management in Australia, a national guideline called Australian Rainfall and Runoff (ARR) is available to engineers, planners and relevant professionals. This paper presents how ARR has been developed over the last 60 years; its first edition was published in 1958, which was followed by its 2nd, 3rd and 4th editions, published in 1977, 1987 and 2019, respectively. Engineers Australia oversees its development and update. In the 4th edition of the ARR, a dedicated research team worked for about ten years to develop and test new methods of design rainfall estimation, flood modelling, urban stormwater management and other rainfall-runoff related topics. The authors of this paper were heavily involved in the preparation of the 4th edition of ARR. There were 24 projects in relation to the preparation of ARR. The first author led Project 5 Regional flood methods of ARR update for eight years, and the second author served as the principal researcher of this project. Both the authors also developed an important statistical model to link short duration and long duration rainfall, which was an important component in the derivation of design rainfalls as a part of ARR Project 1 Development of Intensity Frequency Duration Information across Australia. The first author also contributed significantly to Project 6 Losses in Design Flood Estimation, also his research formed the foundation of the Monte Carlo simulation/joint probability approach to design flood estimation, which has been included as the preferred rainfall-based design flood estimation method in the ARR. This paper also proposes how a national guideline for Bangladesh can be prepared following the example of ARR. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Global warming has an impact on people all around the globe, which has a substantial impact on them and is hastening climate change. An accurate forecasting system is required for early detection and enhanced agricultural land management. Rainfall forecasting is a challenging job in reality, and the findings must be precise. Rainfall forecasting is a major problem because of the unreliability of existing methods for predicting rainfall. The purpose of this paper to build an accurate model for the daily prediction of the rainfall in Australia using Python In order to find the optimal model based on testing accuracy, four machine learning algorithms are utilised for training and testing (Logistic Regression, Gaussian Naive Bayes, XGboost classifier, and Random Forest). The data was collected at a variety of meteorological stations around Australia using Kaggle. This data collection has 145460 records and 22 attributes. As a result, in order to find the best suitable technique, a comparative study was undertaken after applying four methodologies. Furthermore, a variety of techniques are used, including multiple linear regression and support vector regression, which may provide the most accurate results (up to 78 %). We observed that our model is less accurate when we compared it to this study. With an accuracy of 84.61 %, the XGBoost classifier surpasses rival approaches. There are several misconceptions, according to the matrix. It will be necessary to combine diverse methodologies in the future to increase prediction accuracy. In addition, new datasets are being used, and new areas are being explored. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to identify the global research trends on Medical Physics published during 1989-2020. The 2221 data were retrieved from web of science database and further analysed in Ms-Access, Excel and Biblioshiny. The study shows that very few research conducted before 2004 but exponentially growth shows after 2004 and highest no. (189) publications published in 2020. Health Physics contributed 270 publication and become most preferred journal for researchers. Study also shows that Switzerland is the most cited country, as it received 14019 total citations with 519.22 average article citation. Study highlight-ed that Univ Wollongong from Australia ranked first with the contribution of 52 articles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Production and utilization of environmentally sustainable fuels instead of conventional fossil fuels in varieties of applications have recently attracted researchers' attention. Bioethanol and biodiesel are two of these sustainable alternative fuels. A complete replacement of fossil fuels with biofuels is not economically and practically feasible yet. Diesel fuel has very similar fuel characteristics to biodiesel but different fuel characteristics with bioethanol. Also, bioethanol and diesel fuel are not soluble and cannot be mixed in high proportion. Biodiesel can be used as a co-solvent in bioethanol and diesel fuel blends. Lubricity and cetane number of diesel - bioethanol blend, which decreases with an increase in bioethanol, can be compensated by adding some proportion of biodiesel to the bioethanol-diesel fuel blend. Gaps and areas for improvements on previous research work regarding the performance and emission analysis of diesel engines fueled with ternary fuel blends are reviewed in this paper. The review includes both experimental and computational investigations and the emphasis was given to the research works done in Australia. This paper presents an overview of the performance and emissions investigation on a diesel engine fueled with diesel, biodiesel, and bioethanol fuels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

On April 10th, 2021, 3296 houses suffered light damage, 1964 houses suffered moderate damage, and 1552 houses suffered severe damage due to the earthquake that occurred in Malang, Indonesia. The iMPact on public facilities included 203 damaged schools, 16 damaged health facilities, 171 damaged places of worship, and 40 other damaged public facilities. Most of the damaged buildings were non-engineering buildings with various types of damage. In Pacitan Regency, there are many low-rise to medium-rise non-engineering buildings. In addition, Pacitan Regency has a coastline that is part of the Indonesian Ocean and is located very close to the subduction zone between the Indo-Australia plate and the Eurasian plate. The main potential sources of earthquake and tsunami events in this region are thrust systems. Seismic fragility curves play a pivotal role in the assessment of the comprehensive vulnerability of civil infrastructure to prospective seismic events, as well as in the anticipation of the consequential socioeconomic repercussions. This paper presents an analysis of the fragility of non-engineering buildings and estimates of their collapse using the finite element method. Seismic fragility analysis produces fragility curves that show the probability of structure damage under various damage conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Education for children with special needs, especially with mild intellectual disabilities, has not received much attention from researchers and practitioners. The education of intellectual disabilities children also has the same right to develop according to the needs of the times as regular children's education in general. The changing and evolving needs of the times should also be followed by changes in the curriculum used, considering that one of the learning goals in special schools for intellectual disabilities children is to make the children who can live independently. In special schools for intellectual disabilities children in Indonesia, mathematics learning is combined with other lessons to discuss specific themes in everyday life. Based on an extensive literature search on the mathematics curriculum in special schools for intellectual disabilities children, this paper aims to review the literature involving two things: (1) mathematics education curriculum in special schools for intellectual disabilities children in Indonesia, and (2) mathematics curriculum in special education in Australia and Singapore. A view is also provided. This paper concludes that: (1) learning in special schools for intellectual disabilities children in Indonesia uses thematic learning where mathematics learning is focused on its usefulness in everyday life, (2) numeracy is the focus of education in Australia, not least for intellectual disabilities children, and learning Mathematics for mild intellectual disabilities children in Singapore includes the concepts of numbers, spaces, arithmetic procedures, problem solving and measurement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The cost of variable renewable power in certain applications is now lower than 'new build' fossil power (1). However, the value of variable renewable power has plummeted even further when demand is low. While renewable energy generation (wind and PV) is only 9.5% of global power (2), this value reaches over 50% in certain locations at certain times, contributing to significant problems with grid stability and demand-supply mismatch. These factors can, at times, trigger curtailment of renewable generation capacity, making their variable power worthless. This is impeding the expansion of renewable energy generation, since asset utilization and the return on investment is decreasing. If we are to reach zero emissions by at least 2050, clean electricity must contribute over 60% to global electricity supply (3). To achieve this, the value of solar power must be restored such that profitable business can drive the necessary 5-fold expansion of PV alone in the next 10 years (3). This requires both flexible stabilizing storage and market recognition of the value that this brings. A key enabler to restore the value of variable renewable power will be low cost, long duration power storage which is flexible and clean. The authors have devised a method of exploiting the unique synergies between central receiver PV, heat engines and simple water storage to enable an integrated, dispatchable power storage system. This system permits solar power delivery 'on demand', and can also take excess, low-cost power from the grid to stabilize (and thereby maintain the value of) other renewable energy sources, such as wind or PV. This paper describes the high-level features of such a system which uses proven off the shelf equipment to provide GWh scale, long duration storage at a fraction of the cost of batteries. A 4MWe central receiver PV plant with integrated 17-hour storage of 3MWe-50MWhe is being constructed in Australia to demonstrate our concept for 'dispatchable PV' power. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The rate of childhood obesity in Australia has increased dramatically since the 1960s when only 5% of children were classified as overweight or obese. These figures indicate a dire need to provide more opportunities for children to be physically active daily through active school travel, free play and peer-play so that they can develop better all-round fitness, a wider range of social skills, and greater mental resilience. Schools and communities have attempted to design programs to encourage healthy lifestyles through walking and cycling to school. Despite these efforts however, child health statistics have not dramatically improved and suggest that a new approach is needed. Real and perceived issues of road safety and hazards are a major barrier to community buy-in to walk and cycle to school programs. Research undertaken in the ACT from 2016-2018 show that engaging children in the process of designing new solutions for their health and wellbeing can be a way forward in establishing healthy habits and social norms around walking and cycling to school. This paper outlines several projects that enabled co-design with children and practitioners as well as strategies for engaging local government and schools in the design process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research has found that core discipline areas continue to be taught separately as school subjects with little or no integration [1]. However, students' immersion in authentic, integrated STEM education in "rich" cross-curricular tasks is an aspirational way of learning. Using a Makerspace approach, the researchers created a community of experts, comprising pre-service teachers, through workshop training sessions. They then provided opportunities for school students to apply their subject knowledge to create hands-on, engaging artifacts influenced by an integrated STEM approach and Maker influence. This paper examines the experiences of primary school students who participated in a STEM-based project. A model of reflective identity formation was used to support the hands-on learning of pre-service teachers in Australia and Indonesia. The Wigglebots project engaged 385 primary school students from Australia and Indonesia, emphasizing their technological and scientific skills and knowledge by tasking them with creating a 'wiggle bot.' Following the completion of the project, the students were asked to complete a survey that gauged their confidence, engagement, and ability to identify and apply scientific knowledge. The results revealed that the Makerspace hands-on approach successfully engaged the students in STEM education. Moreover, all the surveyed students successfully created the bots and collaborated efficiently in groups mentored by pre-service teachers. Groups of students in Australia reported engagement at slightly lower levels than the Indonesian students; however, the Australian students were more able to represent and explain the underpinning science concepts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although Australia has no Beamed Energy Propulsion programs at the present time, it is accomplishing significant scientific and technological activity that is of potential relevance to Beamed Energy Propulsion (BEP). These activities include: continual upgrading and enhancement of the Woomera Test Facility, Which is ideal for development and test of high power laser or microwave systems and the flight vehicles they would propel; collaborative development and test, with the US and UK of hypersonic missiles that embody many features needed by beam-propelled flight vehicles; hypersonic air breathing propulsion systems that embody inlet-engine-nozzle features needed for beam-riding agility by air breathing craft; and research on specially conditioned EM fields that could reduce beamed energy lost during atmospheric propagation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper summarizes the methodology and results of a study performed in 2018. The aim was to calculate and compare current (2018) and future (2030) LCOE for CSP plants in all G20 countries. Individual DNI resources for the best region in each country, as well as an alternate location closer to demand for Australia and Saudi Arabia were used as basis for the annual performance calculations. Country-specific installed costs were developed for 2018 and 2030, with local content shares and international equipment cost assumptions varied by price indices to complete the picture. Sensitivity of the results to both the relative price index and DNI are also shown. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is well-known that the efficiency of Concentrating Solar Power (CSP) plants depends strongly on maintaining a high level of heliostat reflectivity. To inform cleaning policies, an online assessment of heliostat reflectivity is highly desirable to provide real-time updates of current mirror conditions and optimise the cleaning policy, as necessary. There is currently, however, a lack of an economically feasible technique for performing a detailed online heliostat reflectivity assessment. In this paper, a low-cost heliostat reflectivity monitoring method based on already-installed targeting calibration cameras (e.g. CCD cameras) is proposed and tested. The key idea is to compare calibration camera images to detect the differences of image power caused by losses in heliostat reflectivity. Unlike previous beam characterization systems, the accuracy and sensitivity of reflectivity estimation for individual mirrors under increasingly soiled conditions is tested, and does not require additional sensors (e.g. radiometers or flux gauges). Using data obtained from field experiments conducted at the CSIRO Energy Centre in Newcastle, Australia, a methodology for estimating the mirror reflectivity from filtered calibration camera images was developed, calibrated, and validated. The model predictions showed a maximum absolute reflectivity error of 1% based on 4 consecutive soilings, which is comparable to the variability of (as accurate as) the reflectometer measurements themselves. The results of this study demonstrate the feasibility of using simple calibration camera images for economical reflectivity monitoring by removing the need for extensive manual measurements or expensive additional equipment. Such a methodology would allow assessment of cleaning benefits in the real-time operational context (e.g. weather, electricity market prices) and enable dynamic, data-driven cleaning decisions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes the optimization of conductor size and the voltage regulator location & magnitude of long rural distribution lines. The optimization minimizes the lifetime cost of the lines, including capital costs and losses while observing voltage drop and operational constraints using a Genetic Algorithm (GA). The GA optimization is applied to a real Single Wire Earth Return (SWER) network in regional Queensland and results are presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper outlines the development of a novel and patented serpentine receiver design for the application in the billboard-style solar receiver with liquid sodium heat transfer fluid. The results of steady-state simulation and empirical testing at the Vast Solar pilot plant in Jemalong, Australia are described, showing the reduced temperatures and stresses lead to improved creep and fatigue lifetimes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tourism is one of the largest and fastest developing industries in the world. As most protected areas have the purpose of both nature conservation and providing recreational opportunities, national parks and a variety of protected areas have become popular destinations for tourists worldwide. This paper critiques the appropriateness of current tourism developments of iconic National Parks in Australia and South Africa. The methods applied to this study include (a) analyzing case studies on different national parks to understand the management situation, (b) criticize existing tourism developments in Australia and South Africa with evidence, using conceptual model for situation analysis and suggestions for more rational management plans, and (c) comparing and contrasting Australia with South Africa. The theoretical method of ecological micro-landscapes is also presented to the study of protection and management of national parks and protected areas. The study could become a useful guide for the improvements on present protected area governance practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Managing sensitive information between partners collaborating to address an exotic disease outbreak is crucial in preserving the medical, economic and social well-being of the affected population (whether it is human, animal or plant). Further, the ability to respond quickly to the outbreak by providing real-time, interactive access to shared (collaborative) information will minimise the impact of an outbreak. The sharing of information must be done carefully, with agreement between the partners and enforced by specific protocols. This paper presents an overview of a new joint project between EU partners and AU partners, total value of around €8.64 million, which is examining the issue of authentication and authorisation required to ensure that collaborative information in such situations is kept within the control of the collaborating partners and that accidental (or deliberate) release to unauthorised partners can be mitigated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Whistles play an important role in Indo-Pacific humpback dolphins' social interactions, and function as individual identifiers. Therefore the investigation of their whistles will be beneficial for acoustic monitoring and for estimating their seasonal occurrence and abundance, which will be one of the very basic requirements for successful management of Indo-Pacific humpback dolphins. In this paper, whistles of Indo-Pacific humpback dolphins recorded in Leizhou Bay, Guangdong Province were analyzed. Five parameters of Indo-Pacific Humpback Dolphin whistles, which included time duration, starting and ending frequencies, minimum and maximum frequencies, were extracted through time-frequency analysis. Comparison of the whistles of Indo-Pacific Humpback Dolphins in Leizhou Bay, China and in the waters of Queensland, Australian showed that the whistle parameters of the two types of dolphins varied significantly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The recently developed triplecloud and exponential-random overlap schemes are evaluated in the ACCESS coupled-model. It has been shown that both schemes have a positive impact on modelled climate. Both surface radiation and SST fields in the ACCESS model have been significantly improved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes some of the polarimetry done with the Australia Telescope Compact Array (ATCA). Comparatively low and stable instrumental polarization allows high quality polarimetric images to be formed. The instrument has proven particularly successful in studying low level circular polarization. The instrument has also proven itself excellent for widefield imaging of galactic polarization. We consider some of the techniques used in widefield polarimetry of an interferometer. © 2002 American Institute of Physics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Thermochemical conversion of algae, using solar-assisted supercritical water gasification (SCWG), into liquid fuels is a promising route for reducing the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions associated with the transportation sector. This study attempts to combine CST and SCWG, and identify the key constraints in designing a solar cavity receiver/reactor for on-sun SCWG of algae. A detailed model of a tubular plug-flow receiver/reactor, operating at 24 MPa and 400–600°C with a solar input of 50 MWth is presented here. An optimised polar heliostat field is designed using SolarPILOT, for developing a pseudo-steady state model for summer solstice noon conditions in Geraldton, WA, Australia. Monte-Carlo Ray Tracing is used to determine the flux distribution on the reactor tubes and also to determine the view-factor matrix. The radiosity calculations are coupled with the hydrodynamic model, which consists of equilibrium prediction, mixture property calculation, and heat/mass transfer in the reactor. A parametric evaluation of the steady state performance and quantification of the losses through wall conduction, external radiation and convection, internal convection, frictional pressure drop, mixing and chemical irreversibility, is presented. The model additionally incorporates material constraints based on the allowable stresses for a commercially available Ni-based alloys for the cavity reactor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this report, Proton induced X-ray emission (PIXE) analysis of various elements, functional groups and morphological study on a naturally occurring polymeric fiber are presented. The common name of Ichnocarpus frutescens (IF) in odisha is SUAN NAI and black creeper in English. It is available in India, China, Asia and Australia. It is considered as an important medicinal and fiber plant that belongs to the family of Apocyanaceae. The medicinally important various metal and non-metal elements of the IF stem is investigated using PIXE technique. The result shows that the stem contains multi elements like Si, S, P, Cl, K, Ca, Ti, V, Mn, Fe, Cu and Zn as shown in fig.1, each having different medicinal properties and generally nontoxic in nature. The findings shows that stem of IF can be used for the treatments of various diseases such as cholera, cough, fever, skin trouble, jaundice, measles and headaches, loss of sensation, demulcent, syphilis and purification of bloods. IF fiber is a natural fiber that was extracted from stem by sinking the stem in 4% NaOH solution for a week. So far as our knowledge is concerned, there is no report of PIXE, FTIR, and SEM on fibers of IF plants. Therefore, the study is important, encouraging and confirming the possibilities of IF as an ayurvedic plant for treatment of various diseases because of the presence of various pharmaceutical complexes. These complexes are condensed system of various elements present in the IF stem. FTIR analysis of IF fiber shows that the presence of alcohol, carbonyl, hydrocarbons and halogen groups. It was observed that there is no absorption band around 2260-2200cm-1. This shows that there is no cyanide group (CN) present in the fiber as a result of which it is nontoxic in nature. Morphological analysis, fiber uniformity 2-phase structure of the plant fiber was analyzed using SEM technique. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Volatility implied by an option pricing model is seen as the market participants' assessment of volatility. Past studies documented that implied volatility based on an option pricing model is found to outperform the historical volatility in forecasting future realised volatility. Thus, this study examines the implied volatility smiles and term structures in the Australian S&P/ASX 200 index options from the year 2001 to 2010, which covers the global financial crisis in the mid-2007 until the end of 2008. The results show that the implied volatility rises significantly during the crisis period, which is three time the rate before crisis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A three year laser-propelled vehicle analysis and design investigation has been begun in June, 2009 by Faculty and graduate students at the University of Adelaide under a Grant/Cooperative Agreement Award to the University of Adelaide by the Asian Office of Aerospace Research and Development (AOARD). The major objectives of thsis investigation are: (a) development of hypersonic, air breathing “lightcraft” with innovative air inlets that enable acceptable airflow capture and combustion, and acceptable cowl-lip heating rates during hot, high-speed, high angle-of-attack hypersonic flight; (b) yest of the most promising lightcraft and inlet design in the high power laser beam that is part of the shock tunnel facility at CTO Instituto in Brazil; and (c) plan a series of laser guided and propelled flights that achieve supersonic or higher speed at the Woomera Test Facility (WTF) in South Australia—using the existing WTF launching and tracking facilities and sponsor-provided laser pointing and tracking and illumination systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Motivated by the need for megapixel high definition trace element imaging to capture intricate detail in natural material, together with faster acquisition and improved counting statistics in elemental imaging, a large energy-dispersive detector array called Maia has been developed by CSIRO and BNL for SXRF imaging on the XFM beamline at the Australian Synchrotron. A 96 detector prototype demonstrated the capacity of the system for real-time deconvolution of complex spectral data using an embedded implementation of the Dynamic Analysis method and acquiring highly detailed images up to 77 M pixels spanning large areas of complex mineral sample sections. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The next European mission to Mars, ExoMars (2016), is dedicated to the search for past and/or present traces of life. This is one of the primary goals of exo/astrobiology. Similarities in the environmental conditions of early Mars and the early Earth mean that life forms on the early Earth are good analogues for potential martian life. However, the oldest traces of terrestrial life are extremely small and highly sophisticated scientific equipment is required to reveal their subtle traces. Instruments that could observe biosignatures on in situ missions are, however, limited in resolution. In this study, various techniques are used to analyse martian analogue rocks containing traces of life. These rocks are 3.5-3.3 billion-years old volcanic sediments from the Pilbara in Australia and Barberton in South Africa. High magnification instruments were used to demonstrate the biogenicity of the fossilised structures. Space-adaptable techniques were then used in order to investigate larger scale biosignatures. Special emphasis was placed on Raman spectroscopy. This technique is extremely promising in the search for traces of life in situ on Mars. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The direct effects of terrorism on Australians have been small. We lost 88 Australians in the Bali terror bombings of 2002. However, the effect on other parts of the world have been greater, with 2973 people killed in New York after al-Qaeda bombers flew into the World Trade Centre, 198 people losing their lives (1400 injured) to terrorist bombs in Madrid and about 50 in London. In total, about 40,000 individuals worldwide were either killed or wounded by terrorist attacks in 2005. However, we should put these figures into context and perspective. In 2005, 1635 Australians were killed in road fatalities. Since record-keeping began in 1925, there have been over 169,000 road fatalities in Australia. There were 254 people murdered in Australia in 2004. More dramatically, in comparison to the 88 Australians killed, or even the 3200 killed in 911, Madrid and London combined, let us look to the potential for loss of life and other effects from Climate Change. Hurricane Katrina, which hit New Orleans in the US, killed 1300 people in January 2006 and the recent Philippines mudslide killed about 1800. On an even greater scale, if Greenland melted, or the ice of Greenland broke up and slipped into the sea, or half of Greenland and half of Antarctica melted or broke up and slipped into the sea, sea levels worldwide would increase by 5–7 metres. In Beijing, 20 million people would have to be evacuated. In Shanghai and the surrounding area, 40 million people would be forced to move. 60 million people would be displaced in Calcutta and Bangladesh—120 million people displaced in these areas alone. The scourge of terrorism is real and important, but climate change has the potential to end life on Earth as we know it, within the lifetimes of our children. In my opinion, it is actually far more important, in that context, than terrorism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author reflects on the solar houses which was denied to homebuyers in Australia. He stated that solar house is defined by its unique proactive ability to harvest ideal spatial temperatures from the climate in which it is built. He also added that application of energy efficient measures or adding green products to a house that does not intentionally collect preferred temperatures as best possible is not a solar house, neither is a solar house characterized by the quantity of energy consumed.

This study concerns an investigation into the thermal performance of prefabricated lightweight houses for peri-urban villages in the Perth Metropolitan region of Western Australia. Several styles of residence were selected for comparison taken from three constructed “lifestyle villages”. National Lifestyle Villages Pty Ltd (NLV) is committed to quadruple bottom-line sustainability and the aim was, therefore, to provide indicators of how old and new dwellings compared under the same external conditions. The buildings themselves are prefabricated and brought to site in two halves, framed in steel clad with fibre-cement boarding, roofed in zincalume sheeting, and timber floored with applied fibre-cement sheeting. Although designed using passive solar design principles and other energy conservation measures they possess little thermal mass to improve the thermal performance. Research by the author indicated several feasible and low-budget innovative improvements for future designs, and how best to retrofit existing dwellings. NLV's aim is to provide homes for over 40,000 people in 100 villages Australia-wide by the year 2025. Any improvement in residential thermal performance can be translated not only into energy savings and greenhouse gas reduction on a significant scale, but can enhance comfort levels for residents whilst reducing their energy costs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We propose here a versatile and innovative solution for monitoring and controlling a space-based nuclear reactor that is based on technology already proved in ground based reactors. A Wide Range Neutron Detector (WRND) allows for a reduction in the complexity of space based nuclear instrumentation and control systems. A ground model, predecessor of the proposed system, has been installed and is operating at the OPAL (Open Pool Advanced Light Water Research Reactor) in Australia, providing long term functional data. A space compatible Engineering Qualification Model of the WRND has been developed, manufactured and verified satisfactorily by analysis, and is currently under environmental testing. © 2007 American Institute of Physics [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A horizontally driven beam extraction mirror will be used to collect 58 (h) × 17 (v) milliradians of infrared radiation from the Australian Synchrotron storage ring. Both bending magnet radiation and edge radiation will be collected, and the beam separated equally between two endstations operating a mid infrared microspectrometer and a far infrared high resolution spectrometer. © 2007 American Institute of Physics [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the last years we witnessed an increasing trend in miniaturization of electronic, mechanical, optical and magnetic components. Currently, the ultimate Critical Dimension (CD) of such components is rapidly approaching the 10 nm length scale, with a growing interest in integrating different components in complex systems. Advanced fabrication techniques are thus required to rapidly pattern substrates on the 10–100 nm length scale, and soft X-Ray Lithography (XRL) has proven its patterning ability down to 40 nm, with the possibility to be further extended. The construction and commissioning of the Australia Synchrotron, that will be operational in 2007, gives the possibility to build such a facility on a powerful third-generation synchrotron source. This work is a comparative study of three possible beamlines devoted to XRL, one of which could be installed at the Australian Synchrotron. The optical layout and the thermal load have been studied, under the constraints given by the storage ring, the ultimate patterning ability, the current mask technology and two possible exposure stations, aiming at replicating structures in the sub-100 nm level. Ray tracing simulations have been performed in order to assess the optical layout and the performances of the beamlines, which in principle can cover a wide lithographic window between 1 and 8 keV incoming photon energy. © 2007 American Institute of Physics [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]