Production of semi-real time media-GIS contents of natural disasters using MODIS satellite data

In the event of a natural disaster, the information provided to the public can play an important role in its mitigation and management. Use of media-GIS content has been shown to provide information that is visual and accessible to the public. This report focuses on the information provided to the public through the media and develops rigorous production methods and quality practices to encourage increased strategic use of media-GIS content. The report utilizes three natural disaster case studies to evaluate the production method and presents recommendations and conclusions based on the information these provide. Previous studies identified five aspects that are important to media-GIS contents. These are accuracy, high aesthetic quality, speed, low cost and reusability. A review of MODIS imagery has shown it to sufficiently satisfy all five aspects. The report identifies an ideal source of MODIS data and a production method based on the information available to be obtained. By applying this methodology to the three case studies, it was found that the process could be more streamlined than previously identified methods. Further observations identified both positive and negative aspects of the method allowing improvements to be made were possible. Whilst limitations of MODIS were identified, the properties of MODIS data make it evident that it is the most effective source of satellite data for the production of media-GIS content where time and cost need to be minimised. Completion of the case studies led to the production of a guidebook, presented in Appendix F, which is intended to be issued to media outlets as an instruction manual for producing media-GIS contents. It is hoped that this will encourage an increase in the use of GIS within the media industry and provide thorough production method and quality practices information

What would it take to optimise marginalised young people's sexual health? : A conversational journey with youth workers [Final Project Report]

Marginalised young people have been consistently identified as a high risk group in relation to sexual health. This research, undertaken through the Youth Affairs Network of Queensland, seeks to explore impacts on youth workers’ ability to provide effective interventions around sexual health? What knowledge,skills, resources, value and ethics, training and support is available to youth workers? What do youth workers identify that they need and what workforce development strategies are recommended to enable the youth sector to respond more effectively? This project report provides a snapshot and introduction to the key themes raised by youth workers and other key stakeholders in Queensland Australia

Adsorbents for the sequestration of the Pimelea toxin, simplexin

Pimelea poisoning affects cattle grazing arid rangelands of Australia, has no known remedy and significant outbreaks can cost the industry $50 million per annum. Poisoning is attributable to consumption of native Pimelea plants containing the toxin simplexin. Charcoal, bentonite and other adsorbents are currently used by the livestock industry to mitigate the effects of mycotoxins. The efficacy of such adsorbents to mitigate Pimelea poisoning warrants investigation. Through a series of in vitro experiments, different adsorbents were evaluated for their effectiveness to bind simplexin using a simple single concentration, dispersive adsorbent rapid screening method. Initial experiments were conducted in a rumen fluid based medium, with increasing quantities of each adsorbent: sodium bentonite (Trufeed®, Sibelco Australia), biochar (Nutralick®Australia) and Elitox® (Impextraco, Belgium). Data showed the unbound concentration of simplexin decreased with increasing quantities of each adsorbent tested. Sodium bentonite performed best, removing ~95% simplexin at 12 mg/mL. A second experiment using a single amount of adsorbent included two additional adsorbents: calcium bentonite (Bentonite Resources, Australia) and a synthetic adsorbent (Waters, USA). The concentration of simplexin remaining in the solution after 1 h, the amount able to be desorbed off the adsorbent-toxin matrix with replacement fresh fluid, and the amount remaining bound to the adsorbent were measured. All samples containing an adsorbent were statistically different compared to the blank (p < 0.05), indicating some binding activity. Future work will explore the binding mechanisms and behaviour of the toxin-adsorbent complex in the lower gastrointestinal tract

Measuring the health-related Sustainable Development Goals in 188 countries: a baseline analysis from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2015.

BACKGROUND: In September, 2015, the UN General Assembly established the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The SDGs specify 17 universal goals, 169 targets, and 230 indicators leading up to 2030. We provide an analysis of 33 health-related SDG indicators based on the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study 2015 (GBD 2015

Measuring the health-related Sustainable Development Goals in 188 countries: a baseline analysis from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2015

BACKGROUND: In September, 2015, the UN General Assembly established the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The SDGs specify 17 universal goals, 169 targets, and 230 indicators leading up to 2030 ..

Measuring the health-related Sustainable Development Goals in 188 countries: a baseline analysis from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2015

Background: In September, 2015, the UN General Assembly established the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The SDGs specify 17 universal goals, 169 targets, and 230 indicators leading up to 2030. We provide an analysis of 33 health-related SDG indicators based on the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study 2015 (GBD 2015). Methods: We applied statistical methods to systematically compiled data to estimate the performance of 33 health-related SDG indicators for 188 countries from 1990 to 2015. We rescaled each indicator on a scale from 0 (worst observed value between 1990 and 2015) to 100 (best observed). Indices representing all 33 health-related SDG indicators (health-related SDG index), health-related SDG indicators included in the Millennium Development Goals (MDG index), and health-related indicators not included in the MDGs (non-MDG index) were computed as the geometric mean of the rescaled indicators by SDG target. We used spline regressions to examine the relations between the Socio-demographic Index (SDI, a summary measure based on average income per person, educational attainment, and total fertility rate) and each of the health-related SDG indicators and indices. Findings: In 2015, the median health-related SDG index was 59·3 (95% uncertainty interval 56·8–61·8) and varied widely by country, ranging from 85·5 (84·2–86·5) in Iceland to 20·4 (15·4–24·9) in Central African Republic. SDI was a good predictor of the health-related SDG index (r2=0·88) and the MDG index (r2=0·92), whereas the non-MDG index had a weaker relation with SDI (r2=0·79). Between 2000 and 2015, the health-related SDG index improved by a median of 7·9 (IQR 5·0–10·4), and gains on the MDG index (a median change of 10·0 [6·7–13·1]) exceeded that of the non-MDG index (a median change of 5·5 [2·1–8·9]). Since 2000, pronounced progress occurred for indicators such as met need with modern contraception, under-5 mortality, and neonatal mortality, as well as the indicator for universal health coverage tracer interventions. Moderate improvements were found for indicators such as HIV and tuberculosis incidence, minimal changes for hepatitis B incidence took place, and childhood overweight considerably worsened. Interpretation: GBD provides an independent, comparable avenue for monitoring progress towards the health-related SDGs. Our analysis not only highlights the importance of income, education, and fertility as drivers of health improvement but also emphasises that investments in these areas alone will not be sufficient. Although considerable progress on the health-related MDG indicators has been made, these gains will need to be sustained and, in many cases, accelerated to achieve the ambitious SDG targets. The minimal improvement in or worsening of health-related indicators beyond the MDGs highlight the need for additional resources to effectively address the expanded scope of the health-related SDGs

Oyster: A tool for fine-grained ontological annotations in free-text

Oyster is a web-based annotation tool that allows users to annotate free-text with respect to concepts defined in formal knowledge resources such as large domain ontologies. The tool has been explicitly designed to provide (manual and automatic) search functionalities to identify the best concept entities to be used for annotation. In addition, Oyster supports features such as annotations that span across non-adjacent tokens, multiple annotations per token, the identification of entity relationships and a user-friendly visualisation of the annotation including the use of filtering based on annotation types. Oyster is highly configurable and can be expanded to support a variety of knowledge resources. The tool can support a wide range of tasks involving human annotation, including named-entity extraction, relationship extraction, annotation correction and refinement

A bibliography of the traditional games of Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples of Australia are recognised as being associated with some of the world's oldest continuing cultures. Over tens of thousands of years the first peoples of Australia adapted to a changing environment. They developed a unique way of life which involved a deep spiritual attachment to the land, a strong sense of community, and an ability to draw upon their traditions and the ability to respond to change. Games and pastimes of various descriptions have always been an integral part of the cultures of Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. Since the time of first European settlement a significant amount of information has been recorded about these. This bibliography has been produced to provide an awareness of traditional games undertaken by Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and to encourage further study of these as part of an understanding of the sporting heritage of Australia