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BATHURST
Home > Regional News > Bathurst
Evolution: a significant advance for the modern world
10 Feb 2009
 Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution is one of the most significant advancements in our understanding of the natural world, according to the Dean of the Faculty of Science at Charles Sturt University (CSU), Professor Nick Klomp. “This breakthrough in scientific understanding still affects many facets of modern life, despite first being published 150 years ago.” CSU will lead the regional scientific communities in celebrating Darwin’s 200th birthday during the week commencing Monday 9 February. Professor Tom Frame in Canberra can discuss Darwin’s life and travels in Australia, including his visit to Bathurst, and his influence on society, while Professor Ben Bradley in Bathurst can discuss Darwin’s seminal work, On the Origin of Species, which was published in 1859. CSU scientists will also be available on the University’s Bathurst and Orange campuses to discuss how Darwin’s theories have influenced their work and the modern world, including Professor Frank Marino and the role of evolution in being able to run faster and longer and Professor Geoff Gurr on evolution and insect management.
Media Note: To arrange interviews with CSU scientists on the importance of Darwin’s theory of evolution and its place in the modern world contact CSU Media. Print this story Chinese university delegation visits
10 Feb 2009
 The national flag of China will again fly at Charles Sturt University (CSU) at Bathurst on Thursday 12 February when a high level delegation from the Yunnan University of Finance and Economics (YUFE) in Kunming, China visits the University. The Dean of CSU’s Faculty of Business, Professor John Hicks, said the visit is an important link in the further development of relations with the tertiary education sector in China. “CSU is well placed to provide its expertise across a range of courses, particularly in business, and this visit will help strengthen the excellent relationship that the University has already established with YUFE,” Professor Hicks said. “Despite the global financial crisis, China remains an important trading partner for Australia. China has a dynamic higher education sector, and both CSU and YUFE benefit from the partnership that has been established.”
Media Note: Contact CSU Media to arrange interviews. The Yunnan University of Finance and Economics delegation will include Professor Luo Mingyi (Chairman, University Committee), Professor Lin Hao (Director, University Office), Professor Xu Nanyuan (Dean, Tourism School), Professor Wang Min (Vice Dean, International Business School), and Professor Yan Gang (Director, International Cooperation and Exchange Office). They will be joined by Ms Lei (Catherine) Zhang and Professor John Dai from Tertiary Education International (TEI). Print this story Media expert joins communication school
10 Feb 2009
.jpg) Jane Mills, a media practitioner with extensive industry experience, has joined the Charles Sturt University (CSU) School of Communication as Associate Professor in Communications, Research and Teaching. The Head of School, Associate Professor Rod McCulloch, welcomed the appointment of Professor Mills, saying it is a major step in the development of the School’s higher degree programs and adds considerable depth to the professional and practical experience the School brings to its research and teaching. “Jane’s teaching experience includes film, television, digital media, documentary, radio and journalism, an interdisciplinary approach that will be fundamental to her teaching role within the School,” said Professor McCulloch. Dr Mills’ career roles include Head of Screen Studies at the Australian Film Television and Radio School, arts program presenter for Granada Television in the United Kingdom, and a producer for BBC and Channel 4. She has also been a freelance journalist for The Guardian, The Daily Mirror and The Sunday Times.
Media Note: Contact CSU Media to arrange interviews with Dr Jane Mills. Dr Mills has a production background in documentary film and has written on cinema, censorship, feminism, sex education, sociolinguistics and human rights. Print this story Natural disasters postpone Timor-Leste President's CSU visit
09 Feb 2009
The planned State visit to Australia and to Charles Sturt University (CSU) on Saturday 14 February by His Excellency the President of Timor-Leste, Dr José Ramos-Horta, has been postponed due to the ongoing natural disasters in Australia, including the devastating bushfires in Victoria. The Acting Vice-Chancellor of CSU, Professor Lyn Gorman, said that the University has been advised by representatives of the President that, after consultation with the Office of the Governor-General of Australia, the visit will be postponed to a mutually convenient time later this year. Professor Gorman said, “We fully understand the position of the President and thank him for his wishes for the victims of the Victorian bushfires. We thank the President for his commitment to reschedule his visit later in the year and look forward to welcoming him at that time. Given that this visit was to be the inaugural event of CSU’s 20th anniversary year, the celebrations will now begin with the Official Opening Ceremony at CSU at Wagga Wagga on Thursday 12 March.”
Media Note: Contact CSU Media to arrange interviews with Professor Lyn Gorman. CSU will host a range of celebratory events throughout 2009 at its campuses, including the Official 20th Anniversary Opening Ceremony at CSU at Wagga Wagga on Thursday 12 March; the 20th Anniversary Commemoration Dinner at CSU at Bathurst on Tuesday 2 June; the opening of new facilities; a book launch; and other commemorative presentations. Print this story Timor-Leste Consul General visits CSU Bathurst
04 Feb 2009
, Thurs 22.1.09 (re-sized).jpg) The Consul General of Timor-Leste in Australia, Mr Abel Guterres, visited Charles Sturt University at Bathurst recently to discuss plans for the coming visit to the University by His Excellency the President of Timor-Leste, Dr José Ramos-Horta. Head of Campus at CSU Bathurst, Mr Col Sharp, said that Mr Guterres met CSU officials to consider details for Dr Ramos-Horta’s delivery of the 2009 Charles Sturt Oration on Saturday 14 February as the inaugural event of the 20th anniversary year of celebrations at CSU. “We are very excited to have such a distinguished guest as Dr Ramos-Horta visit the University,” Mr Sharp said. “Discussions with Mr Guterres also extended to whether and how the University might be able to assist the development of Timor-Leste by providing courses, training, scholarships and the exchange of academics.”
Media Note: Contact CSU Media to arrange interviews with Mr Col Sharp. Print this story Mining job losses to impact regions
03 Feb 2009
 Communities and regions where mining occurs will be severely affected by the downturn in the Australian mining sector due to the global financial crisis. Mr Tom Murphy, Chief Executive Officer of the Western Research Institute (WRI) at Charles Sturt University at Bathurst, says that with the current contraction of the Chinese economy, the largest customer for Australia’s mineral resources, Australia will face increasing and probably prolonged reduction of revenue from mining. “Our studies indicate that mining jobs create economic multipliers of four to six in surrounding community economies, or more in some instances,” he said. “That means for each mining job lost you can have four to six other jobs lost in a community. This is because mine wages and local spending are so high. Other industries typically have multipliers of around two to three or even less, so mine jobs are very hard to replace.”
Media Note: Contact CSU Media to arrange interviews with Mr Tom Murphy. Print this story Dengue fever not a plague marching south
28 Jan 2009
 Recent media reports of a dengue fever ‘plague’ in northern Queensland are an overstatement of what periodically occurs in that State, according to a senior Charles Sturt University (CSU) academic and member of the Institute for Land, Water and Society. “I don’t see dengue fever marching south from tropical Australia as a great plague, but rather gradually moving with the fluctuations and movements of climate change over many years,” says Professor Kevin Parton. “My work on Ross River fever, a similarly mosquito-borne disease endemic to parts of southern Australia, shows that the virus is present in humans across NSW – which would surprise many people. It becomes more common in certain weather conditions, hence the appearance of an ‘outbreak’. Sure, take public health precautions such as use insect repellent, fix fly screens and tip out standing water around your house, but some current reports are a little sensationalist.”
Media Note: For interview with Professor Kevin Parton, contact CSU Media. See details here on Professor Parton’s work on Ross River fever. Print this story CSU telescope showcases the southern sky in 2009
20 Jan 2009
 The Remote Telescope at Charles Sturt University (CSU) at Bathurst has a full calendar of observation events plotted for the UNESCO 2009 International Year of Astronomy, which celebrates 400 years since Galileo first turned a telescope to view the night sky. The initiator and administrator of the CSU telescope, Associate Professor David McKinnon at the CSU School of Teacher Education says that images of the southern night sky through the telescope can be seen via the Internet, weather permitting, around themes that depend on which celestial objects are visible at that time. “The observation calendar centres on special events such as the particular phases of the Moon and planets, as well as requests that are lodged via the Remote Telescope website,” Professor McKinnon said. “This year is a wonderful opportunity for school students and anyone interested in astronomy to access the telescope and website to see planets and other objects as they may never have seen them before.”
Media Note: Contact CSU Media to arrange interviews with Associate Professor David McKinnon. The next scheduled observations are on the first clear night between Tuesday 3 and Thursday 5 February when the CSU Remote Telescope will observe the Moon, ‘deep sky objects’ (such as nebulae, star clusters and galaxies), and the planet Saturn with its rings. The first session was broadcast on the night of 3 January, with participants from Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the Netherlands. The CSU Remote Telescope has featured in national and international scientific education awards. Print this story Advertising executive joins communication school
20 Jan 2009
.JPG) An executive with over 25 years experience in the Australian advertising industry says she understands why Charles Sturt University (CSU) advertising and advertising/marketing graduates are so highly sought by the industry. Ms Anne Llewellynn has joined the CSU School of Communication at Bathurst as lecturer in advertising after a career as a senior account director for major agencies including McCann-Erickson, MDO (Mojo) and DDB, where her expertise contributed to the success of a range of national and international products and services in the pharmaceutical, cosmetics, consumer goods, banking and finance sectors. “Last year I worked with final year students in the School’s advertising agency Kajulu Communications to prepare complete communications recommendations for real clients,” Ms Llewellynn said. “The presentations and the calibre of the work produced by some of these students were industry standard. The students graduating from this School enter the industry with the highest academic qualifications and hands-on industry experience.”
Media Note: Contact CSU Media to arrange interviews with Ms Anne Llewellynn. Print this story Falcon chick prepares for the plunge
13 Jan 2009
 Having survived wind, rain, freezing cold, searing heat and a lightning strike, the Peregrine Falcon chick at Charles Sturt University’s (CSU) in Orange has come of age and is preparing for its first flight from the campus’ 50 metre-high water tower. “By all recorded accounts, Peregrine Falcons first fly between six to eight weeks old,” says Dr Cilla Kinross, Adjunct Lecturer in Environmental Management at the CSU School of Agricultural and Wine Sciences. “The chick has reached the six week mark so its first flight could happen any minute. It is likely to stay close to the nest-site for the next several weeks and with its parents for two to three months to learn to hunt before becoming independent.” The chick has been named Migii, the Aboriginal name for ‘lightning’, and was the sole survivor of two eggs hatched in October last year.
Media Note: Dr Cilla Kinross is available for interviews at 10am on Wednesday 14 January at CSU in Orange. For more information contact CSU Media. It is thought that this is the closest-ever footage of a wild pair of breeding Peregrine Falcons and their young, as the nesting box contains concealed video cameras with audio. Still photos, a blog journal and links to video footage of the falcons can be found here, including video of the chick preparing for its first flight. Print this story |
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