College of Science & Engineering

Sophia Love

Sophia Love

Romain Vaucher

Romain Vaucher

Jenny Fisher

Jenny Fisher

Ambili Narayanan

Ambili Narayanan

Sarfaraz Ali

Sarfaraz Ali

Mikaeylah Davidson

Mikaeylah Davidson

Liuxin Chen

Liuxin Chen

Rafael Cabral Carvalho

Rafael Cabral Carvalho

Tom Lloyd

Tom Lloyd

Mohamadreza Chalak Qazani

Mohamadreza Chalak Qazani

LEX/NG
Hillary Smith
25 Feb 2024 - 01 Oct 2024
Coral reefs face dual threats of climate change and local anthropogenic stressors, with losses of live corals often resulting in proliferated macroalgae (seaweeds). My previous National Geographic-funded research showed that a low-tech, simple approach of “sea-weeding” (i.e. removing seaweeds by hand) is effective in rehabilitating degraded, macroalgae-dominated reefs. Specifically, my 5-year research program resulted in a >600% increase in coral cover post-seaweed removal since 2018. These promising outcomes offer a cost-effective strategy for reef management, particularly for economically constrained island nations. However, the success of sea-weeding may be species-specific. On the studied reefs, Sargassum was the dominant genus of seaweed. Hence further research is required across diverse algal taxa to gauge the broader applicability of sea-weeding to improve coral reef resilience. Many South Pacific island nations are facing increased seaweed abundance as reefs continue to degrade. The loss of corals is catastrophic, as reefs form an integral part of Pacific culture, providing a significant proportion of dietary protein through reef-associated fish. Additionally, coral reefs provide shoreline protection for low-lying islands, and losses of reefs could contribute to oceanic inundation. The PALA and PAPA voyage locations are ideal candidates for implementing sea-weeding as a low-cost restoration and management technique. However, these reefs are relatively unexplored, with little recent quantitative documentation of reef community composition. Indeed, even where surveys exist, the taxonomic resolution of seaweed communities is lacking (i.e., all algae are grouped together as “algae” rather than genus- or species-level observations). Hence, the primary objective of this project is to explore the distribution and diversity of reef communities around the tropical South Pacific. The data collected will form a baseline understanding over a large geographic area of w
Circular economy and feed management approaches for inclusive and sustainable development of marine aquaculture in Vietnam
Leo Nankervis
01 Jan 2024 - 31 Mar 2027
Marine aquaculture in Vietnam has traditionally used low value ‘trash’ fish as a feed source, due to its low cost, relative nutrient completeness and ready availability. Trash fish is generally considered a high risk input as it can be a vector for disease entry into farms, and is often associated with a high degree of uneaten feed entering the environment, resulting in eutrophication. Formulated feeds result in better feed conversion and nutrient utilisation than trash fish, with lower nutrient output into the environment per unit fish produced. This project investigates feed management for optimised feed conversion, growth and lower environmental impact for marine fish aquaculture.
Herbert River Blue Carbon investigation Waltham
Nathan Waltham
05 Mar 2024 - 13 Dec 2024
Working with landholders on floodplain to map out and identify suitable restoration project land suitable for environmental markets
Independent testing of solar panel cooling device (the B-Panel) (Old ID 23054)
Ahmad Zahedi
01 Aug 2016 - 31 Dec 2017
Provide independent testing of a solar panel modification claiming to boost average power output by 30%. Testing will help progress the concept and current prototype further towards commercialisation. Test a collaboration model for new, early stage start-ups being trailed by JCU and iNQ. Aims to explore how access to JCU's technical skills, equipment and technical mentoring plus guided linkage with local entrepreneurial activities at iNQ e.g. Involvement in Start-Up weekends and membership of iNQ plus access to one-on-one entrepreneurial assessment, mentoring and training activities at iNQ improves the chances of success for micro and SMEs in commercialisation ideas.
Improving the accuracy of weed killing robots with new image processing algorithms and near infra-red spectroscopy techniques (Old ID 23146)
Ron White
26 Jun 2017 - 18 Oct 2019
Automated weed species recognition remains a major obstacle to the development and industry acceptance of robotic weed control technology. Particular problems occur in rangeland applications, including high light variability and weed-camera distance variability, which cause camera dynamic range problems, image blurring, and occlusion by other plants. This project aims to develop robust image recognition systems combined with Near Infra-Red spectroscopic methods for these complex rangeland environments with special emphasis on the broad-acre grazing pastures in North Queensland. The developed imaging systems will be suitable for all weed killing applications with particular emphasis given to foliar spot-spraying and Herbicide Ballistic Technologies.
Genomics for Undiagnosed Infectious Disease Evaluation and Diagnosis in Northern Australia (Old ID 24759)
Matt Field
01 Jan 2018 - 31 Dec 2018
Diagnosis of scabies mostly relies on clinical symptoms as mites are extremely difficult to find in skin lesions of ordinary scabies (<20) which leads to under/misdiagnosis. This pilot project will address a long wanted need to develop a rapid diagnostic test for scabies. It is anticipated that this new DNA test will be highly sensitive and specific and will outperform standard microscopy. This will provide a powerful tool in scabies diagnosis particulary useful in clinical trials and epidemiologic studies.
Characterising IOCG and SEDEX deposits in the Mt Isa block with Cu-Zn isotopes (Old ID 26545)
Paul Dirks
15 Jun 2019 - 15 Dec 2020
The Economic Geology Research Centre (EGRU) at JCU has proposed to establish Cu and Zn isotope lines at JCU, and build a reference database for Cu-Zn isotopes from mineral deposits in the Mt Isa district, starting witht eh well-known Mt Isa deposit. It is proposed to conduct an exploratory, proof-of-concept study of limited initial scope and time, to assess the usefulness of Zn-Cu isotopes for exploration in the Mt Isa area. If initial results are promising, we intend to extend the study.
Elliot Springs – Offset Management Plan compliance for Black-throated Finch Scientific Study (Old ID 27038)
Lin Schwarzkopf
22 Oct 2020 - 30 Nov 2023
We will be determining the efficacy of using remote acoustic monitoring tools for black-throated finches (southern subspecies), by deploying automated recorders for one week each in a variety of locations around Qld where black-throated finches may occur, and manually surveying these areas once at the beginning of deployment and once at the end. Acoustic recordings will be analysed using human listening and automated artificial intelligence screening for black-throated finch calls. The results from the two methods will be compared to determine if acoustic monitoring is sufficient to monitor the occurrence of these finches in various locations.
An eDNA molecular diagnostic tool for soil microbial biosecurity (Old ID 27431)
Ryan Orr
25 Nov 2021 - 30 Jan 2023
We intend to sample sterilising footbath units on banana farms for the presence of a pathogenic soil-borne fungus that causes Panama disease in bananas. If successful this method would replace visual inspection of farms for biosecurity monitoring of the disease allowing for identification of farm infection long before traditional methods. We aim to adapt existing environmental DNA and quantitative PCR methods for this application.
Deep Learning for Waste Management (Old ID 27687)
Mostafa Rahimi Azghadi
12 Aug 2022 - 30 Jun 2027
To keep our planet safe and healthy, new techniques for managing and recycling waste should be devised. This project aims to use the latest advances in deep learning and computer vision technologies to better manage waste by developing a fast and accurate waste analysis system.
Title: Australian Entomological Society Education Committee
Reseracher: Lori Lach (Professor)
Start Date: 01 Jan 2018
End Date: 01 Jan 2023
Title: Canadian Pharmacological Society
Reseracher: Robert Kinobe (Associate Professor)
Start Date: 01 Jan 2004
Title: Biosecurity Commons Expert Panel https://www.biosecuritycommons.org.au/who-we-are/
Reseracher: Lori Lach (Professor)
Start Date: 01 Jan 2021
End Date: 01 Jan 2023
Title: Head, Electrical and Electronic Engineering, James Cook University
Reseracher: Mostafa Rahimi Azghadi (Professor, Promotional Chair)
Start Date: 01 Jan 2024
Title: I have served as a reviewer for numerous journals: Nature Climate Change, Coral Reefs, Conservation Biology, Ecography, Global Change Biology, Global Ecology & Biogeography, Molecular Phylogenetics & Evolution and Proceedings of the Royal Society B
Reseracher: Tom Bridge (Associate Professor)
Start Date: 01 Jan 2010
Title: Associate Professor, James Cook University
Reseracher: Mostafa Rahimi Azghadi (Professor, Promotional Chair)
Start Date: 01 Jan 2022
Title: Early-Mid Career Researcher Award, James Cook University
Reseracher: Yang Liu (Associate Professor, Analytical Chemistry)
Start Date: 01 Jan 2019
Title: Senior Lecturer, James Cook University
Reseracher: Mostafa Rahimi Azghadi (Professor, Promotional Chair)
Start Date: 01 Jan 2019
End Date: 01 Jan 2021
Title: Rising Stars Early Career Researcher Award, James Cook University
Reseracher: Yang Liu (Associate Professor, Analytical Chemistry)
Start Date: 01 Jan 2018
Title: Member of International Society of Electrochemistry
Reseracher: Yang Liu (Associate Professor, Analytical Chemistry)
Start Date: 01 Jan 2018