QUT News & Events Wrap

NEWS

QUT launches O Week with indie-pop band Cub Sport: QUT will welcome about 14,000 new students (domestic and international) this week during orientation celebrations, including this afternoon's Official Welcome Party featuring Brisbane indie band Cub Sport.

Higher folate diet may reduce migraine frequency: Eating more folate, found in various green leafy vegetables such as spinach and kale, may reduce migraine frequency, a QUT research team has found.

QUT microbiologist helps Ethiopia evaluate ebola preparedness: Ebola outbreaks are always possible but next time many African countries will be better prepared to stymie the spread and mortality rate, thanks to people like QUT microbiologist Dr Belinda Herring.

How religious or not are you? Psychology survey seeks answers: Whether you're a regular Sunday church goer, a Christmas and Easter only visitor or never darken a church door type of person, a QUT psychology student is seeking help to investigate what makes people feel they have a personal relationship with god.

QUT unmanned aircraft flights gain CASA approval: A QUT-led aerospace research facility, based in Brisbane, is the first facility of its kind in Australia to be granted CASA certification to fly unmanned aircraft (UA).

Government on the knife-edge: A Labor minority government in Queensland will be on a constant knife-edge but must use the situation as an opportunity to restore the public's faith in politics.

What we learnt from the Mackay 2008 flood: Seven years on: A QUT study of the impact of the 2008 Mackay flood on victims found delays in rebuilding and difficulties dealing with insurance companies had increased post-traumatic stress disorder, depression and anxiety, over and above the trauma of witnessing the waters inundating their homes and businesses.

Testing the boundaries: study reveals inner workings of cricket teams: Do batsmen put personal glory before their team? A study by QUT researchers found cricket batsmen who were close to reaching personal milestones were likely to alter their strategy in a way which, at first sight, seems detrimental to the team.

QUT cricket expert on call for World Cup washouts: QUT statistician Professor Steve Stern could play a crucial role in the cricket World Cup after unexpectedly writing his name into the game's official rulebook regarding weather-interrupted limited-overs matches.

More rate cuts won't stem unemployment surge: The latest surge in unemployment tells the story of a faltering economy with weak consumer and business sentiment that interest rate cuts alone cannot reverse, a QUT economist says.

Australia needs a national hospital infections monitoring system: Australia is missing out on the benefits to patients of a national program to monitor HAI (healthcare-associated infection) rates which are largely preventable infections people acquire while in hospital or other healthcare facility, QUT health PhD researcher Philip Russo says.

Innovation the key to winning leadership race: A willingness to challenge established approaches is the key to being successful in sport and leadership, Olympic gold-medallist Lord Sebastian Coe KBE has told a QUT Business Leaders' Forum during a visit to Brisbane which also included meeting some of QUT's elite athletes (pictured below).

QUT lecturer and poet awarded prestigious US Fellowship: QUT creative writing academic, award-winning poet, editor and critic Sarah Holland-Batt will join the most prestigious writers' colony in the United States for a five-week fellowship at the end of February.

EVENTS

Now-Feb 20: O-Week @ QUT
Feb 16: Official Welcome Party, featuring Cub Sport (free) @ QUT Gardens Point
Feb 18 - March 13: SHAPE of Things to Come: Adapt or Die graduate showcase (free) @ Creative Industries Precinct
March 4: QUT Twilight Wedding Showcase @ Room Three Sixty & Old Government House
March 10: 10th annual Slater and Gordon Medical Law Forum @ QUT Gardens Point
March 26-27: qutbluebox Innovation Transfer Workshop (for postgraduate research students) @ Sea World Resort
Now - March 1: Performance Now exhibition (free) @ QUT Art Museum
Now - July 2015: William Robinson: Infinite sphere (free) @ William Robinson Gallery

MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS

- Aviation Business reported on Professor Duncan Campbell's ARCAA team becoming the first facility of its kind in Australia to be granted CASA certification to fly unmanned aircraft.
- ABC radio, the Latrobe Valley Express and The Fifth Estate reported on Assoicate Professor Adrian Barnett's new analysis of the Morwell coal fire, which shows a 94% probability there were increased deaths in the 3844 postcode. The Australian and The Medical News also noted his latest research into the NHMRC grant application process.
- Lord Sebastian Coe's address at the QUT Business Leaders' Forum was reported by AAP, whose story ran on websites including SBS.com.au, Brisbane Times and in The Courier Mail's Citybeat column. Lord Coe also spoke to ABC 612.
- Brisbane Times examined Deanna Hood's fascinating work on improving literacy through letting children teach robots to write.
- Microbiologist Dr Belinda Herring spoke to 612 ABC's Tim Cox about her experience as a volunteer with the World Health Organisation.
- Professor Lyn Griffith's research into how folate can help prevent aural migraines featured nationally on Seven News.
- Brisbane Times, AAP, 4BC, Sky News and ABC News 24 sought Clive Bean's expertise for stories about Labor being invited to form a government in Queensland.
- Dr Gary Mortimer's take on the psychology of pricing was covered in the Sydney Morning Herald, Canberra Times, 4BC, ABC Canberra, 2UE and 3AW. He was also on 4BC regarding Kogan's move into the grocery business.
- Masters student Chantelle Warren was on ABC 612 on Saturday taking calls from the public and talking about her survey on how religious people are.
- Kelly Dixon's research into how the Mackay floods affected local residents emotionally ran on ABC, Weatherzone and across APN newspapers in regional Queensland.
- WIN News and APN papers across Queensland featured the videos and photos QUT's Electrical Engineering Student Society took during their project to send a weather balloon into the stratosphere.
- India's Business Standard news site, which attracts 1.5 million unique visitors every month, reported on a study led by QUT's Associate Professor Monika Janda into using text messages to improve skin cancer prevention and promote sun protection.
- The Age reported on Professor Paula McDonald joining a human rights inquiry into sexist and predatory conduct in the Victorian police force.
- Professor Steve Stern talked to The Courier-Mail, ABC 612 and 4BC about his role as official custodian of the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern method.
- There was more cricket-related coverage for QUT, with Professor Lionel Page and Romain Gauriot's research into batsmen's "nervous nineties" covered by outlets including Brisbane Times, Sydney Morning Herald, Fox Sports, Cricket.com.au and India's Business Standard. Professor Page also spoke to ABC 612.
- QUT student Tiona Pemberton's invitation to showcase her jewellery at the Oscars was covered by ABC 612, Brisbane Times and the Daily Mail.
- John Mickel explained to APN papers why it's not the ECQ's fault an undisclosed bankrupt managed to stand in Ferny Grove. But he questioned why the ECQ was taking so long to deliver a final election result in a Guardian article.
- Peter Black was on Seven News and in Business Spectator regarding constitutional law matters and the state election.
- Professor Brian McNair's Conversation piece on Malcolm Turnbull's comments about politicians being bullied by the media was picked up by The Sydney News, Big News Network, Knoxville Times and Toronto Telegraph.
- Dr Linda Graham's Conversation piece on the dangers of rating kids by 'ability' was picked up by Essential Kids.
- Professor Terry Flew predicted the Huffington Post Australia would win over young readers, in his Conversation piece which was picked up by the Tasmanian Times.
- John Willsteed told Ten News a fall in One Direction's popularity was inevitable and also spoke to Brisbane Times about new live venues in Fortitude Valley.
- 3AW sought the expertise of Dr Kathy Mills for its story about literacy tests for teachers (Feb 11, 45:02).
- The Courier-Mail and 612 ABC featured news of QUT poet and lecturer Sarah Holland-Batt being awarded a fellowship at the prestigious Yaddo writer's retreat in New York.
- Australian Teacher featured a story about a shortage of teacher-librarians Australia-wide with QUT's Masters of Education Teacher-Librarianship course co-ordinator Mandy Lupton who said teachers can adopt leadership positions through the role.

Release date: February 16, 2015
Media contacts: media@qut.edu.au or, after hours, Rose Trapnell, 0407 585 901

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