A former Charles Sturt University (CSU) student has discovered the value of research isn’t just the results but the skills learnt along the way. The Bachelor of Science (Agriculture) Honours, student from the School of Agricultural and Wine Sciences at CSU in Wagga Wagga, Mr David Gale investigated using compost as a replacement for synthetic fertilisers. His research involved a glasshouse trial at CSU in Wagga Wagga and a four month field trial in the Mekong Delta in Vietnam in late 2010. Mr Gale found compost can increase plant yields but because large volumes need to be applied, the strategy is not likely to be widely adopted in the short term. He said while the research has added to industry knowledge, the real benefit is a personal one. “People were right when they said that I couldn't expect to change the world through this project,” said Mr Gale. “But it's also about thinking critically about one aspect of the world in which we live, which ultimately results in a deeper thinking and understanding of the world as a whole.” Mr Gale is now a Graduate Trainee with NSW Primary Industries at the Elizabeth Macarthur Agricultural Institute at Camden.

A Charles Sturt University (CSU) postgraduate student is hoping people will take a ‘hands-on’ approach to finding beauty in germs when visiting an exhibition of her work at the Wagga Wagga Art Gallery. The exhibition, Pathogenesis by Wagga Wagga based textile artist Ms Marita Macklin, is inspired by the forms and textures of organisms that infect the human body.  Featuring sculptural pieces with embroidered silk and organza, the exhibition is designed to be touched. “I’d like people to see there is so much we don’t know about the microscopic world,” Ms Macklin said. “Something beautiful can be inspired by something we think of as being disgusting.” The exhibition is the culmination of two years of study for her Master of Arts Practice through the School of Communication and Creative Industries at CSU. “It’s definitely allowed me to develop my artwork to get to a professional standard and to delve into one area to push it as far as you can,” Ms Macklin said.

Six separate ceremonies at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Bathurst will see about 1 000 graduates awarded degrees and higher qualifications for their studies completed at the University by the end of 2010. As in past years, thousands of friends and family members are expected to visit Bathurst to share the graduation celebrations. The morning and afternoon ceremonies are on Wednesday 11 (Faculty of Business), Thursday 12 (Faculty of Education), and Friday 13 May (Faculties of Science and Arts). In a move to more closely align graduation ceremonies with the year of completion of studies, CSU will introduce graduations in December, starting in 2011.

A Charles Sturt University (CSU) academic has been recognised for the vigorous pursuit of his profession to help improve health outcomes of rural and remote Australians. The Rotary 9700 District Vocational Excellence Award was presented to Professor Patrick Ball in front of several hundred Rotarians during the District’s annual conference, which was hosted by The Rotary Club of Orange North on Saturday 2 April. “While I am named on the award, this honour is made possible by team work,” said Professor Ball. “I could not do my job as Professor of Rural Pharmacy without the support and dedication of the entire pharmacy team at Charles Sturt University in Orange and Wagga Wagga.” The Vocational Excellence Award recognises those “who have demonstrated very high achievements in their vocation, and contributed significantly to the advancement of that vocation in their community, nationally or globally.”

A special weekend ‘camp’ for developers of applications for mobile devices such as phones and hand-held computers will be held at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Bathurst on Saturday 7 and Sunday 8 May. Event organiser Mr Martin Hale is an adjunct senior lecturer in computing at CSU and the chief executive officer of The IT Masters Pty Ltd, a partner organisation with the University. “The development of games and applications for mobile phones and tablets is a booming area and we expect about 150 information technology professionals from around Australia will attend the Mobile Camp Oz event,” said Mr Hale. “Mobile Camp Oz is a free, developer community-driven event which allows people with interests in developing for mobile devices to come together in one location and interact with expert speakers who will deliver presentations on a wide range of mobile developer topics.” For more information, click here, or telephone 1300 885 685.

A production by first-year theatre/media students at the Charles Sturt University (CSU) School of Communication and Creative Industries in Bathurst this week explores what happens when online fantasy transcends reality. The Right to be Forgotten, a Cycle Productions devised theatre performance directed by lecturer Ms Kate Smith, is a dark parody that aims to provoke the audience to confront their own online reality. “Social media is an inescapable and often controversial aspect of daily life,” Ms Julia Patey, the assistant director, said. “Facebook stalking, ‘Frape’ (Facebook rape), identity theft, our online reputations and privacy - or lack of - are pivotal issues directly affecting many of us. As one character observes, ‘We have moved our lives online and it is risky. People forget that our data is being logged and there are people watching’. We challenge the audience to ask themselves, who is watching you online? What if you were given the chance to construct a new identity? How do you want to be remembered? The Right to be Forgotten is a blend of cabaret, circus, dance and comedy that explores these themes in a funny and insightful pastiche of the virtual world.”

Prizes and awards for high-achieving Charles Sturt University (CSU) students in the Faculty of Business for the 2010 academic year will be presented at the Dean’s List Award ceremony in Bathurst on Tuesday 10 May. The new Dean of the Faculty of Business, Professor Lesley White, said, “In any given semester, there are students who achieve an outstanding academic record in Faculty of Business courses in the on campus, distance education, or offshore tutorial modes. The Dean’s Awards are the formal recognition of these outstanding achievements, and we are able to award 155 individual prizes for the 2010 academic year to graduating and continuing students.” A total of 124 students were nominated across all the University’s campuses for inclusion on the Dean’s List for the 2010 academic year. Twenty-nine students are expected to attend the presentation luncheon in Bathurst to receive their prizes and awards, 11 students from the School of Accounting, 13 from the School of Business, and five from the School of Computing and Mathematics. One outstanding Bachelor of Business (Finance) student from Bathurst is Ms Rebecca Hood who is graduating with distinction. Ms Hood has been a Dean’s List award recipient in 2008 and 2009, and has again achieved outstanding results in 2010, recognition of 19 high distinctions and four distinctions achieved while completing her degree.

The latest in animation and visual effects will be shown in Wagga Wagga during the 8th annual Australian International Animation Festival, hosted by Charles Sturt University (CSU) in May. “The 2011 event at the Forum 6 Cinema has secured amazing exclusives from more than 2 000 submissions from all around the world,” said festival organiser Mr Andrew Hagan from the School of Communication and Creative Industries  at CSU in Wagga Wagga. The festival will premiere on Friday 13 May at 6pm with the first International Competition program. On Saturday 14 May, there will be a special presentation by Australian filmmakers. “We’ve enticed as many of the filmmakers as we could to take the stage after the screening so they can talk about animating in Australia and to answer questions. There are programs for younger audiences and even a late night event for those whose tastes lurch to the truly odd and unfathomable.” There will also be free talks and workshops by filmmakers from local and international filmmakers. See the full program here.

The Charles Sturt University (CSU) School of Communication and Creative Industries will co-host, with the Centre for Media History, a two-day interdisciplinary symposium in Bathurst on Thursday 5 and Friday 6 May to mark the centenary of the ‘bible of the bush’ in NSW, The Land newspaper. Ms Margaret Van Heekeren, lecturer in journalism at the School of Communication and Creative Industries in Bathurst, said the symposium, titled The Land: Past, Present and Future, will bring together media scholars to reflect on how the media sees rural and regional Australia. “The idea for the symposium was sparked by The Land anniversary but the symposium is really a broader look at how rural and regional areas have been represented in media, and how they interact with media. We have presentations covering newspapers as well as radio and film,” Ms Van Heekeren said. Academics from several universities will present papers on a range of topics related to The Land newspaper, and the general media coverage of issues affecting rural Australia in the last 100 years.