Featured research opportunities
This page contains a selection of featured research opportunities existing within the Faculty of Life and Social Sciences. This list is by no means exhaustive. Other staff research interests can be found for individual staff in our staff listing. For enquiries, contact one of the supervisors listed for the topic you are interested in, or Research Administration Coordinator, phone 9214 5017. email: LSSresearch@swin.edu.au
- Isolation and characterization of bioactive compounds from Australian plant endophytes
- Genetic basis of grain hardness in cereals
- Determining the genetic basis of tolerance of plants to salinity, drought, metals and other abiotic stresses
- Contemporary communications law and policy
- Informal economies and audiovisual industries: histories, dynamics, legal and policy responses
- Youth media enterprises and social development
- Biotechnology networks and clusters: innovation and commercialization far from the world biotechnology hubs
- Settler Colonialism: A Global Phenomenon
- Social memory and historical justice
- Mobility, memory, citizenship and identity (particularly in relation to refugees)
- Housing and affordability
- Sustainable Urbanism
- Thrift, gift and recycling: cultural lives and social economies
- Topic
- Isolation and characterization of bioactive compounds from Australian plant endophytes
- Supervisor(s)
- Assoc Prof Enzo Palombo, Prof Mrinal Bhave, Dr Peter Mahon
- Description
- There is an urgent need for new chemical entities that can be developed into novel drugs or useful biotechnological compounds. Traditionally, such chemicals (commonly referred to as 'natural products') have come from the natural environment, such as microorganisms, plants and invertebrates. However, a recent trend has been to screen libraries of synthetic chemicals for bioactivity. Although this approach has brought some success, the general consensus is that outcomes have been generally disappointing. Therefore, interest is once again turning to natural products for the discovery of new drugs and chemical compounds. Without doubt, natural products have been the single most productive source for the development of new drugs, particularly anti-cancer and anti-infective agents. Surprisingly, the vast majority of natural products have not been tested for relevant biological activities. The unique Australian environment provides an opportunity for discovery of new bioactive compounds. While there has been much activity in the search for new compounds from Australian plants and marine organisms, there has been little effort devoted to the chemically active compounds produced by endophytes - microorganisms that live within plant tissue. Recent studies have demonstrated that endophytes produce an amazing array of novel chemicals, many of which have valuable biological activities. The aim of this project is to discover, isolate and investigate Australian plant endophytes producing novel bioactive compounds.
- Topic
- Genetic basis of grain hardness in cereals
- Supervisor(s)
- Prof Mrinal Bhave
- Description
- Grain hardness (texture) of wheat is an important characteristic that dictates its end-use (e.g. the type of food product it can be used for, e.g., bread or cookies) and commercial value. Two genes called puroindoline a and puroindoline b (Pina and Pinb) are the main factors determining grain hardness, and a third gene (Gsp-1) is also possibly involved. Additional Pin genes are also being discovered. The genetic basis involves the lipid-binding ability of the encoded proteins, which, interestingly, is also related to antimicrobial properties. The work will involve molecular and biochemical analysis of these genes, their promoters, their positions on chromosomes, expression patterns, analysis of the encoded proteins, and protein-protein interactions, in order to assess the functional roles of these genes in grain hardness and antimicrobial properties.
- Topic
- Determining the genetic basis of tolerance of plants to salinity, drought, metals and other abiotic stresses
- Supervisor(s)
- Prof Mrinal Bhave
- Description
- Abiotic stresses such as salt, drought, cold, high temperature and heavy metals result in adverse effects on all facets of plant life including root, shoot and leaf parameters, plant health, biomass, and yield. A number of genes are found to be involved in biochemical mechanisms of tolerance to these stresses, including aquaporins, heat shock proteins, various 'foldase' enzymes, chaperone proteins and osmoprotectant compounds, as well as a number of interactive signaling pathways and gene regulation events. Individual projects can be designed within this major theme, to focus on one or a few of these genes, and on crop plants or Australian native plants. The work will typically involve a combination of experiments on molecular and biochemical analysis of the relevant genes and proteins, gene mapping, protein expression, enzyme assays, and/or protein interactions.
- Topic
- Contemporary communications law and policy
- Supervisor(s)
- Prof Jock Given
- Description
- We are seeking postgraduate students interested in working on a number of projects related to contemporary communications law and policy. These include digital TV and radio, broadband, media ownership. Work on international trade in media and communications services would also be welcome, as would research proposals related to the history of the multinational media enterprises.
- Topic
- Informal economies and audiovisual industries: histories, dynamics, legal and policy responses
- Supervisor(s)
- Prof Julian Thomas and Dr Ramon Lobato
- Description
- From streetside DVD vendors to file-sharing networks, informal distribution circuits play a major role in today's global media environment. These circuits are poorly understood, yet they connect with mainstream industries in ways that, now more than ever before, are crucial to the future of media. Our project investigates the structural and historical connections between formal and informal audiovisual markets, and the degree to which they are increasingly interdependent. We welcome proposals from prospective students who are interested in researching particular informal, subterranean or pirate film/TV/online media circuits, especially (though not exclusively) in the Asia-Pacific region.
- Topic
- Youth media enterprises and social development
- Supervisor(s)
- Prof Denise Meredyth, Dr Ellie Rennie, Dr Aneta Podkalicka, Dr Liza Hopkins
- Description
- This project is about Australian and international enterprises, such as Youthworx, Youth Radio and One Economy, amongst others, which are experimenting with new social enterprise business models in community media. These enterprises offer alternatives to formal education for vulnerable young people, including refugee, indigenous and disadvantaged youth, enabling them to develop new skills as pro-am media creators, broadcasters, journalists, entrepreneurs and organizers, while helping local communities develop culturally relevant content. We are seeking students who would like to investigate aspects of this phenomenon, in various national contexts.
- Topic
- Biotechnology networks and clusters: innovation and commercialization far from the world biotechnology hubs
- Supervisor(s)
- Prof Michael Gilding
- Description
- There is a lot of research about networks and clusters in world high biotechnology hubs, and their role in innovation and commercialization. There is much less research about what happens in locations such as Australia, far from the world biotechnology hubs. This project investigates the distinctive structure and dynamics of biotechnology networks and clusters in Australia, through a Linkage Grant with the peak industry body AusBiotech. Proposals are welcome from students who are interested in researching particular aspects of biotechnology networks and clusters, or networks and clusters in other industries.
- Topic
- Settler Colonialism: A Global Phenomenon
- Supervisor(s)
- Dr Lorenzo Veracini
- Description
- "Settler colonialism" and "settler society" have entered public discourse and have recently been the subject of extensive debate. Unlike other migrant groups, settler collectives are founders and shapers of political orders. As a growing scholarly literature is now focusing on different aspects of this global phenomenon, this project will engage with this literature and contribute to this debate.
- Topic
- Social memory and historical justice
- Supervisor(s)
- Prof Klaus Neumann
- Description
- How is the victimisation of groups - say, on account of race or ethnicity or religion or politics - remembered in democratic societies? How do such societies work towards historical justice? How do communities actively negotiate the legacies of the past? What characterises particular memorial cultures? How do collective and individual memories interact? This project is concerned with these and other related questions across a wide range of countries, ranging from Australia to Chile, from Austria to Canada, and from Indonesia to Spain. Currently, five PhD students are working on aspects of this project (in Peru, Mexico, Argentina, Germany and Australia) at the ISR, four of them under my supervision. I am looking for students who are theoretically literate, intensely curious, hard-working, keenly interested in writing and conversant in at least two languages, and who consider themselves independent thinkers. Ideally students should have a Masters degree in a humanities or social sciences discipline such as history or anthropology. I am particularly interested in students who would like to do ethnographic research.
- Topic
- Mobility, memory, citizenship and identity (particularly in relation to refugees)
- Supervisor(s)
- Prof Klaus Neumann
- Description
- How do the life-histories and memories of immigrants feature in broader 'national' memories and histories? How do recent immigrants draw on or suppress their pre-migration past? How do those who do not or no longer identify as immigrants reimagine themselves and their society in response to the presence of new arrivals? I am particularly interested in finding answers to these and related questions in relation to forced migrants (refugees and asylum seekers). Currently, I am supervising three PhD students in this area. I am looking for students who are theoretically literate, intensely curious, hard-working, keenly interested in writing and conversant in at least two languages, and who consider themselves independent thinkers. Ideally students should have a Masters degree in a humanities or social sciences discipline such as history or anthropology. I am particularly interested in students who would like to do ethnographic research.
- Topic
- Housing and affordability
- Supervisor(s)
- Prof Terry Burke, Assoc Prof Kathleen Hulse, Prof Peter Newton, Dr Angela Spinney
- Description
- Australia is confronting severe housing problems. Affordability is a major issue for renters and purchasers and compounding this issue is that it potentially conflicts with that of another pressure, the provision of multi unit housing in our expanding cities. At the same time there is a national shortage of social housing with a whole range of social impacts ranging from homelessness to social exclusion. The ISR is looking to initiate research projects on (1) the causes and social impacts of the affordability problem for all tenure groups and the community at large (2) the opportunities for, impediments to, and implications of new forms of urban housing and (3) the need, delivery, and reform of social housing Both quantitative and qualitative research is appropriate for these broad topics but the ISR is particularly interested in thinking about these topics from new directions and within new paradigms.
- Topic
- Sustainable Urbanism
- Supervisor(s)
- Prof Peter Newton
- Description
- The sustainability challenge of the 21st century will be primarily won or lost in the
cities --- where over 70% of the world's population will live by 2050 and where over 85%
of global economic output will be centered. PhD research projects are being sought in a
range of areas where interventions can best effect transformative change. These include:
- Green industries: what is the genesis of a green economy? Does a basis exist in Australia? What sectors, industries, technologies, geographies etc are involved? What are the barriers?
- Sustainable consumption: what are the drivers of contemporary consumption? And what are the prospects for more sustainable patterns of living, working and leisure activity in Australia?
- Sustainable cities: why do some human settlements exhibit smaller ecological footprints than others? Greater liveability, competitiveness, social inclusiveness etc? How can we most effectively regenerate our cities in the 21st century?
- Topic
- Thrift, gift and recycling: cultural lives and social economies
- Supervisor(s)
- Prof Denise Meredyth and Dr Aneta Podkalicka
- Description
- The expansion of the Internet and the recent economic downturn has seen the growth of second-hand markets, both across standard second-hand retail outlets and online sites such as eBay, Amazon or freecycle. Empirical studies have recorded a change in consumption patterns, with more people than before willing to buy second-hand goods, but also to alter, mend, and DIY. At the same time, analysts have begun to explore a new economy of cultural gift and collaborative networking based on the principle of reciprocity (e.g. Murdoch, 2010; Meroni). We are looking for a student to conduct a study of the social economy of thrift, working with us to explore issues at the intersection of second-hand circulation, everyday consumption and participation in social and economic networks. Thrift and its appeal to citizens and consumers needs to be reconsidered in the context of concerns about sustainability and in connection with the expanding digital economy. The student could explore this in various contexts, possibly with reference to The Salvation Army's charity shops in Melbourne and to some web-based thrift sites.