Without a clear sense of purpose, what is the future of national research assessment exercises in Australia?

Commenting on the recent review of Australia’s ERA and EIA research assessment exercises, Ksenia Sawczak argues that they lack a clearly defined purpose, or return on investment for Australian universities. In a climate of declining trust in the Australian Research Council, together with a confused idea about how research should be funded, she suggests the assessment regime itself is at a critical point of juncture

The hidden costs of research assessment exercises: the curious case of Australia

Research assessment exercises provide the government and wider public with assurance of the quality of university research, with the guiding principles being accountability, transparency, and openness. But is there the same accountability and openness when it comes to the public cost of these large-scale exercises? Ksenia Sawczak examines the situation in Australia as the research sector looks ahead to the new Engagement and Impact Assessment later this year. There seems little doubt this exercise will demand significant resources, with no guarantee it will achieve its stated goal of improving how universities engage with industry. Until the hidden costs of assessment exercises are revealed and a thorough consideration of their general utility is undertaken, questions will remain as to whether they are a responsible use of public monies

Raman Spectroscopy of the Works of Szymon Czechowicz (1689-1775)

The paper presents the results from Raman spectroscopy (RS) analyses of the works of Szymon Czechowicz and his workshop ‒ the most important Polish baroque painter. RS was used for clarification and supplementation of results carried out by the methods: Infrared False Colour (IRFC), XRF, XRD, SEM-EDS, GC-MS, and ATR-FTIR. A complementary analysis of the artist’s work allowed the characterisation of the fillers and the binders of the grounds and the paint layers in his art. The presented results showed that RS was especially useful for identifying the pigments used in the mixtures. It allowed the presence of Prussian blue in the blue and green colours to be determined and made it possible to distinguish the types of iron pigments in the mixtures. The method was useful also for the identification of several types of black pigments in the samples and to identify the massicot in the ground layers which contained another lead pigment – lead white. Tables and figures show the summation of test results carried out by RS analysis, the indication of specific chemical compounds in the painting layers and grounds, all of which provide additional information about the workshop of the most important painter of Polish Baroque. The main conclusion is that without using RS, it would be impossible to achieve these precise research results, helpful in the authentication of Szymon Czechowicz’s works

The Passions of Chichikov: Gogol's Soteriological Scheme

Некоторые попытки в постсоветской критике вчитать Гоголя-христианина в Гоголя-автора характеризуются тенденциозной односторонностью. Духовно-литературные каноны вписываются в христианскую ортодоксальность позднего Гоголя не в меньшей мере, чем в гротеск и абсурд первой части "Мертвых душ". Важную роль в этом отношении играют деконструированная христология в характеризации Чичикова и пародийная теология спасения в сюжете хождений героя. Эти элементы указывают на определенную литературизацию библейских евангелий, которую впоследствии не удалось автору вытеснить своим окончательным стремлением к богословско-ортодоксальной развязке в "Мертвых душах"

Nieinwazyjna metoda identyfikacji pigmentów in situ – badania przenośnym spektroskopem XRF obrazów olejnych Józefa Pankiewicza

The elementary composition of selected pigments in 39 oil paintings by Jozef Pankiewicz, dating back to the years 1888 –1938, has been determined with the use of a portable XRF - spectrometer built in the Institute of Fluid-Flow Machinery, Polish Academy of Sciences in Gdańsk. The analysis was preceded by tests on samples of modern paints. To compare with the tests results obtained on the paint layers from paintings also the samples of pure historical paints from Jan Matejko palette from 1888 have been tested as well as paints form tubes preserved in a cassette of anonymous painter, sated back to early 20th century. The detection range of the spectrometer covers the elements of the atomic number 50 > Z > 18. A high-energy source of excitation has been employed (IS601.5, Italstructures) producing a collimated beam of 4 mm diameter and a detector (AXAS, Ketek) of high energetic resolution (FWHM <= 155 eV for the MnKα line) and high sensitivity, which allowed for detecting even trace amounts of elements in paint layer. Basing on the measurements the average volume of the lines of elements present in particular pigments has been established, as well as the factors infl uencing their value. Detection of the elements: Pb, Zn, Cr, Cd, Cu, As, Co, Fe, Hg, Sr, Ba, Sn, Sb, Ti, Ca, Se, Mn in the paint layer of paintings allowed to identify led-, zinc- and titanium-white, ochre, chrome -, strontium-, zinc, Neapolitan and cadmium-yellow, vermilion, cadmium- and iron-red, cerulean- and Prussian blue, cobalt-violet, emerald-, Schweinfurter and vermilion-green, green earth, sienna, umber, iron-, bone and cobalt-black. Apart from the above the composition of primings, extenders added to paints and in cases where it was not based on light elements – the base of organic red. Some pigments turned out to be dating ones (the fi rst use of cobalt-violet – 1908, of cadmium-red – 1919, titanium-white – ca. 1938). The advantages of this method, in relation with the methods of determining the elementary composition of paints used so far are: complete non-invasiveness, testing in situ, high sensibility (of energetic resolution), introducing a quasiquantitative analysis next to the qualitative one, easiness of use and short time of measurements. Besides, this technique allows also for obtaining information on the elementary composition of lower strata, depending on the permeability of upper ones.

Wide-field magnetometry using nitrogen-vacancy color centers with randomly oriented micro-diamonds

Magnetometry with nitrogen-vacancy (NV) color centers in diamond has gained significant interest among researchers in recent years. Absolute knowledge of the three-dimensional orientation of the magnetic field is necessary for many applications. Conventional magnetometry measurements are usually performed with NV ensembles in a bulk diamond with a thin NV layer or a scanning probe in the form of a diamond tip, which requires a smooth sample surface and proximity of the probing device, often limiting the sensing capabilities. Our approach is to use micro- and nano-diamonds for wide-field detection and mapping of the magnetic field. In this study, we show that NV color centers in randomly oriented submicrometer-sized diamond powder deposited in a thin layer on a planar surface can be used to detect the magnetic field. Our work can be extended to irregular surfaces, which shows a promising path for nanodiamond-based photonic sensors

The model for end-stage liver disease excluding international normalized ratio (MELD-XI) predicts three-year mortality in patients with advanced heart failure

Introduction: Accurate risk stratification is an important element of management in patients with advanced heart failure (adHF). Objectives: We aimed to determine factors associated with three–year mortality in patients with adHF who underwent qualification for heart transplantation. Material and methods: We retrospectively analyzed the data of 417 consecutive adult patients with adHF hospitalized in the Cardiology Department between 2011 and 2017. We included patients with New York Heart Association classes III–IV with at least two episodes of proven congestion requiring high-dose intravenous diuretics in the last 12 months. Exclusion criteria were acute HF, inotropic support, any previous heart surgery, inflammatory diseases, chronic kidney and liver disease, severe obstructive pulmonary disease and hematologic, autoimmune or neoplastic diseases. We analysed prognostic value of the model for end-stage liver disease (MELD), which reflects multiorgan dysfunction. The primary endpoint was death during three years of follow-up. Results: In the overall population of 293 patients the median age was 56 (51–61) years, and 92.8% of the patients were male. During the follow-up period, 160 patients reached the primary endpoint. The MELD-XI score hazard ratio (HR) 1.197;  95% CI (confidence interval) (1.131–1.267), p < 0.001), PLR value [HR 1.100;  95% CI (1.080–1.130), p < 0.001], uric acid [HR 1.013; 95% CI (1.002–1.024), p = 0.0169] and sodium HR 1.079; 95% CI (1.044–1.115), p < 0.001] serum concentrations were independent factors of three–year mortality. Conclusions: Higher MELD-XI scores and PLR values as well as higher uric acid and lower serum sodium concentrations are associated with worse outcomes in patients with adHF

Third International Conference on Applications of Optics and Photonics

Organic semiconductor rubrene (C42H28) belongs to most preferred spintronic materials because of the high charge carrier mobility up to 40 cm(2)(V.s)(-1). However, the fabrication of a defect-free, polycrystalline rubrene for spintronic applications represents a difficult task. We report preparation and properties of rubrene thin films deposited by pulsed laser evaporation of solidified solutions. Samples of rubrene dissolved in aromatic solvents toluene, xylene, dichloromethane and 1,1-dichloroethane (0.23-1% wt) were cooled to temperatures in the range of 16.5-163 K and served as targets. The target ablation was provided by a pulsed 1064 nm or 266 nm laser. For films of thickness up to 100 nm deposited on Si, glass and ITO glass substrates, the Raman and AFM data show presence of the mixed crystalline and amorphous rubrene phases. Agglomerates of rubrene crystals are revealed by SEM observation too, and presence of oxide/peroxide (C42H28O2) in the films is concluded from matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-offlight spectroscopic analysis

A rapid-response ultrasensitive biosensor for influenza virus detection using antibody modified boron-doped diamond

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), almost 2 billion people each year are infected worldwide with flu-like pathogens including influenza. This is a contagious disease caused by viruses belonging to the family Orthomyxoviridae. Employee absenteeism caused by flu infection costs hundreds of millions of dollars every year. To successfully treat influenza virus infections, detection of the virus during the initial development phase of the infection is critical, when tens to hundreds of virus-associated molecules are present in the patient’s pharynx. In this study, we describe a novel universal diamond biosensor, which enables the specific detection of the virus at ultralow concentrations, even before any clinical symptoms arise. A diamond electrode is surface-functionalized with polyclonal anti-M1 antibodies, which then serve to identify the universal biomarker for the influenza virus, M1 protein. The absorption of the M1 protein onto anti-M1 sites of the electrode change its electrochemical impedance spectra. We achieved a limit of detection of 1 fg/ml in saliva buffer for the M1 biomarker, which corresponds to 5–10 viruses per sample in 5 minutes. Furthermore, the universality of the assay was confirmed by analyzing different strains of influenza A virus