The emerging serious health problem of chronic kidney disease will be examined during a public lecture in Griffith in May. The lecture on Wednesday 27 May coincides with national Kidney Health Week 2009 being held from Sunday 24 May to Saturday 30 May. Associate Professor Ann Bonner from the Charles Sturt University (CSU) School of Nursing and Midwifery in Wagga Wagga will explain chronic kidney disease, its risk factors, optimal healthcare requirements and its impact on individuals, society and the Australian healthcare system. Associate Professor Bonner has practiced for more than 20 years as a renal nurse and has developed postgraduate renal nursing courses for universities in NSW and Queensland. Dr Bonner is also involved in collaborative research projects with renal health care clinicians in these states.

Are books becoming extinct? That is the question which will be posed by the School of Education at Charles Sturt University (CSU) at Wagga Wagga during a public forum on Wednesday 27 May. In the first Edversations Professional Forum for 2009, CSU academics will join representatives from schools, education support agencies and the wider community to discuss the topic. While the next generation of children has embraced new technologies such as Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and SMS, the expert panel will explore the significance of hard copy texts. “The issue is important for educators and parents alike as children are being immersed in a technological world and we need to ensure that they are equipped with the skills to navigate that world,” said one of the forum’s facilitators Ms Letitia Galloway from the School of Education. “We need to ask ourselves 'What place do books have today in the education and development of children?'” The forum is hosted by CSU and Wagga Wagga City Council.    

Actor and author Mr Brendan Cowell, who graduated in 1997 from the theatre/media course at the School of Communication at Charles Sturt University (CSU) at Bathurst, narrowly missed out on the Play Award when the winners of the NSW Premier's Literary Awards 2009 were announced at the Art Gallery of NSW in Sydney last night, Monday 18 May. Mr Cowell’s play Ruben Guthrie  was one of six plays short-listed for the prestigious award. Theatre/media lecturer, Mr Jerry Boland, said Brendan Cowell is an immense talent whose success is highlighted by the calibre of the other nominees and by the public acclaim for his work. “Brendan has enjoyed major success both within Australia and abroad, and I congratulate him for his nomination with such illustrious company.”

Students at Charles Sturt University (CSU) at Wagga Wagga will this week have an opportunity to mark Drug Action Week 2009. An initiative of the Alcohol and other Drugs Council of Australia, the national awareness campaign aims to this year highlight the broad range of issues surrounding alcohol and other drugs (AOD) and draw attention to the achievements of frontline AOD workers. CSU students will be able to learn more at a free barbecue on Wednesday 20 May. Through a number of fun activities, students will be able to simulate the effects of AOD. The activities and barbecue will be held from 11am to 2pm near the Student Cafeteria at CSU at Wagga Wagga.

The driving force behind the establishment of a student ‘vegie’ patch at Charles Sturt University (CSU) at Wagga Wagga envisages not only a space for students to grow and harvest vegetables, but a place for art installations, sculptures and quiet contemplation. Ms Gemma Hawkins, a third year veterinary science student and student representative on CSU’s Environmental Management Advisory Committee said, “I believe that having a creative space will allow students to feel they have an influence and lasting legacy at Charles Sturt University, whether it be through creating art or growing plants.”  Ms Hawkins is establishing a vegetable garden student committee to oversee planting and harvest. “We have many ideas about how to run the garden and may eventually hire out plots, like a community garden.” The project has been jointly supported by the University’s Division of Student Services and the Division of Facilities Management whose staff cleared and levelled the land and provided the compost soil base, made from scraps collected and composted at CSU.

The process of how mathematics is learnt by school students has long been investigated by Charles Sturt University (CSU) senior lecturer Dr Tamsin Meaney. The academic has worked with non-English speaking students in Sydney, Indigenous students in the Northern Territory, teachers in the Republic of Kiribati, and in a Maori school in New Zealand. At a public lecture in West Wyalong on Wednesday 27 May, Dr Meaney will discuss how children come to school with a wealth of mathematical experiences learnt outside the classroom. She will examine the common measurement experiences at home and how they assist school lessons. “The more that parents and teachers work together, the more likely that children will learn with confidence,” said Dr Meaney. ”Often with mathematics, this has lead to an emphasis on the parents having to learn about what happens in schools. However, teachers can also learn a lot about what happens at home and use this in planning more tailored learning opportunities.”  

Is it possible to exercise to improve thinking skills? This is being investigated by researchers at Charles Sturt University (CSU). “The high school jock stereotype is not usually associated with great intelligence, but maybe they are smarter than if they didn’t exercise,” explained Dr Matthew Thomas from the School of Social Science and Liberal Studies at CSU at Bathurst. “We know there are benefits in aspects of mental processing from a short bout of exercise and also for people who exercise over several months. What we want to test in this study is whether there is an effect on the mental performance of healthy young and middle-age adults with just four weeks of exercise.” Residents of Coffs Harbour and Bellingen in northern NSW are being invited to participate in this new study. “We’re looking for people who don’t usually exercise. Couch potatoes if you like,” said Dr Thomas. Assessments of participants’ mental processing will be conducted by local resident, Ms Jenny Grant, as part of her Bachelor of Social Science (Psychology). “It’s like having your brain fitness tested,” said Ms Grant.

It’s hoped a trip to the Philippines will contribute knowledge towards research currently underway into plant breeding for disease resistance. E H Graham Centre for Agricultural Innovation research student Mr Ray Cowley will travel to the major rice producing country this Saturday 16 May to participate in a three-week workshop into the practical aspects of plant breeding at the headquarters of the International Rice Research Institute. “The challenges faced by plant breeders are common across many agricultural crops and I’m hoping to learn the practical aspects of plant breeding and genetics and how they manage the breeding and plant selection process in rice,” Mr Cowley said. “Despite focusing on lupins, the research addresses universal problems relating to breeding crops which are disease resistant.” He said the outcome of this type of research can mean the development of better plant varieties which leads to improved crop yields, which in turn improves the livelihood of farmers, not only in Australia but overseas.

Residents around Albury-Wodonga with peripheral vascular disease – a common complication of diabetes - are sought to assess an early detection system being developed by Charles Sturt University (CSU) researchers. With diabetes now the most likely chronic disease to affect people over 50 years old, for the past 10 years Dr Herbert Jelinek and his team have been studying new and more accessible methods for detecting diabetes in patients in regional Australia. “Peripheral vascular disease constricts blood flow in the extremities of our bodies, particularly feet,” said Dr Jelinek.”We are assessing the use of a simple, hand held instrument to measure blood flow into feet and so detect this condition before nasty complications, such as infections and gangrene, can develop.” The study is being conducted through the Diabetes Complications Research Initiative at CSU in Albury-Wodonga. People already affected by peripheral vascular disease and who would like to take part in the study should contact Ms Bev de Jong on 02 6051 6858.