Celebrating success

Underwater study’s final report reveals ancient Europe, alumnus leads the ramp-up of elective surgery, stormwater research win, medical device lecturer shares winning paper at international conference, and creative professor is lauded for dance company’s innovative approach. 

Underwater study finale reveals ancient Europe to all

Fig. 5.12 from The Archaeology of Europe’s Drowned Landscapes – a shaft hole axe from Neustadt, Germany, made of amphibolite, widely used by the earliest Neolithic cultures of northern and central Europe. Photo: Sönke Hartz, Museum for Archaeology Schloss Gottorf

UK-based Professor Geoff Bailey has led the final output of a major European archaeology study, delivering a peer reviewed production he co-authored which has now been published as an open access volume.

SPLASHCOS – Submerged Prehistoric Archaeology and Landscapes of the Continental Shelf – was an enormous four-year research project (2009 to 2013) funded by the European Commission, that brought together archaeologists, marine geoscientists, heritage agencies, and industry to research and preserve the archives of archaeological and palaeoclimatic information locked under the sea on the European continental shelf.

The Archaeology of Europe’s Drowned Landscapes, downloadable through SpringerOpen, is a benchmark volume that will serve students and researchers well into the future. It provides, for the first time, a comprehensive description and evaluation of underwater archaeological finds representing human occupation around the coastlines of Europe when sea levels were lower.

These represent the largest body of underwater finds worldwide, which range from stone tools to entire underwater villages, dating from the Lower Palaeolithic period to the Bronze Age.

The publication is arranged by country, with regional summaries, information on the discovery of finds, conditions of preservation, relationship to regional changes in sea-level, and the institutional arrangements for their protection.

Professor Bailey has been a pioneer in submerged landscape archaeology for forty years and is currently working with Associate Professor Jonathan Benjamin on the ARC Deep History of Sea Country (DHSC) project in WA.

Alumnus leads elective ramp-up

Flinders University alumnus Professor Chris Baggoley AO (BMBS 1980, BSocAdmin 1984 and DUniv 2012) – pictured above – is heading up a newly-established surgical advisory group that will guide the return of elective procedures in South Australia, which were put on hold due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The group includes public and private sector surgeons, anaesthetists and theatre nurses, as well as senior management across metropolitan and rural hospitals.

Professor Baggoley was formerly the Chief Medical Officer of Australia and took charge of Australia’s response to the 2014 Ebola outbreak. He is Chief Medical Advisor at Calvary Health Care, and a member of the Governing Board of SALHN.

Stormwater research centre wins award

Flinders University, the City of Marion and the Managed Aquifer Recharge consortium have won the Stormwater SA Excellence Awards 2020 for Excellence in Research and Innovation, for the creation of the Oaklands Park Wetlands Education Centre.

Judges for the awards were impressed that the joint research program between Flinders University (led by Professor Howard Fallowfield) and the City of Marion through the Oaklands Park Wetlands Education Centre represents a novel research collaboration between local government and university that promotes broad community engagement and education.

The Centre, which enables STEM outreach associated with stormwater management to primary and secondary school children, enables impactful research through strong collaboration, improves education outcomes by targeting multiple levels of education and provides a means to engage the entire community in water management.

An ongoing benefit of the Centre’s research projects relate to the long-term financial planning and budgeting of the wetlands and managed aquifer recharge operation.

Medical device doc shares gaming tech research at international event

Dr David Hobbs from the Medical Device Research Institute (MDRI) shared his research with a talk at the Australasian Academy of Cerebral Palsy and Developmental Medicine (AusACPDM) conference in March, following his prestigious PhD Platform Award win last year.

Dr Hobbs’ talk was based on his winning paper, and titled ‘Can a Novel ‘Serious Gaming’ Technology Improve Upper Limb Sensation and Function in Children with Cerebral Palsy? A Population-based Cohort Study and Pilot Randomised Controlled Trial’.

Every two years, the Academy selects two winners who have recently completed their PhDs, who present their research at its biennial conference.

With the conference taking place just before physical distancing restrictions set in, a highlight was the event’s gala dinner featuring a masquerade theme. Read more

Dr David Hobbs (centre) at the conference dinner

ADT earns plaudits for online performance innovation

Professor of Creative Arts Garry Stewart has employed his creative nous in ensuring continued success of his other ongoing commitment as creative director of Australian Dance Theatre (ADT).

ADT has made the bold move to present its 2020 season of performances online – cleverly reaching its audience in spite of COVID-19 restrictions currently preventing live performances taking place in conventional theatre spaces.

ADT’s launch of ADAPT – a special online season of seven filmed ADT performances being streamed for free – is being presented via the ADT website from May 1.

Showing the type of innovative adaptability that will be a hallmark of the coming creative arts centre at Flinders University (to be led by Professor Stewart), he has won national attention for ensuring ADT remains in the spotlight during 2020, by using technology to its best advantage.

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