THE MURDOCH UNIVERSITY April/May 2009

COMMUNITY MAGAZINE Vol 5 / ISS 4

Graduates overcome
challenges to tackle
new careers
Dreams of being teachers and
chiropractors come true
Students come up trumps for stumps
Vice Chancellor Professor John Yovich checks on the state of play.
Addressing the need for teachers
Murdoch University’s School
Explore magazine is for the Murdoch University of Education is working with
community. It is produced by the Office of Corporate
Communications and Public Relations. The views the Department of Education
expressed in Explore are not necessarily those of the and Training (DET) to address
University.
the increasing need for highly
Managing Editor Editor
qualified Early Childhood
Tanyia Maxted Denise Cahill and Primary teachers in the
d.cahill@murdoch.edu.au
Telephone: 9360 2474
Kimberly and Pilbarra regions.
Facsimile: 9310 4233
The program offers students in the North-
Writers Photography West the opportunity to enrol in Murdoch’s
Freya Contos Brian Richards fully accredited Bachelor of Education (Early
Denise Cahill Liv Stockley Childhood and Primary) part-time and externally.
Evelyn Duffy The Sunday Times
Program coordinator Dr Anne Price,
Wendy Pryer The West Australian
David Cohen Community Newspaper Group
Murdoch’s Education lecturer in Curriculum
Tanyia Maxted and Professional Development, said this means
participants can continue to live and work in
Design their communities while undertaking their
Mark Preston teaching degree.
“Murdoch University and the WA Department
and Education and Training are collaborating
to upgrade the qualifications of Australian
©2008 Murdoch University Indigenous Education Officers (AIEOs), Teacher
Assistants (TAs) and as a new initiative Child Care
Workers to meet this growing need,” Dr Price
said.
“As part of the program we’re providing
mentoring support and the provision for
Recognition of Prior Learning to the students
on a case by case basis, depending on their
individual experience and levels of skill.
“On completion of the four year fulltime
2 THE MURDOCH UNIVERSITY COMMUNITY MAGAZINE
Murdoch University students
have again shown their
dominance on the cricket
pitch, winning the second
annual cricket match against
staff.
The VC XI (staff) and the GP XI (students)
battled it out at the Murdoch Sports Ground in
March for the right to call themselves best on
field.
Murdoch Guild Sports and Recreation came
up with the idea for the annual match to help
foster camaraderie between staff and students.
Manager of Sport and Recreation Adrian
Fisher said the match followed the style of
Twenty20 so it was a “pretty fast-paced and
exciting match”.
The GP XI, made up predominantly of
University cricket team members, may have won
Anne Price with Jane Morris (Aboriginal and Islander Education Officer, Cable Beach Primary School)
and Libby Mathews.
equivalent course, students will be fully qualified
teachers and able to teach from Kindergarten to
Year 7.”
DET is supporting successful applicants with
a scholarship, and on completion of their degree
students will have 50 per cent of their HECS
debt paid.
Recently, Dr Price and her colleague Libby
Mathews visited the first cohort of scholarship
students in Broome, Port Hedland, Karratha and
Tom Price.
“The visit provided us with an important
opportunity to meet the students face to face,”
she said.
the title again but the game didn’t initially go
their way – they found themselves at 3-0 within
the first two overs after a few excellent catches
from their opponents.
After the initial collapse, the students rallied
and settled in at the crease before being bowled
out for 107 runs.
The VC XI strapped on the cricket pads after
lunch and got off to a very shaky start, losing a
couple of wickets early.
Consistent bowling and fielding by the GP XI
meant the VC XI team were pretty much on the
back foot for the entire 20 overs.
The VC XI managed to score 8 for 89. Vice
Chancellor Professor John Yovich said it had
been a great day, despite his team’s loss.
“The event is a great way to bring staff and
students together and promote and build a
stronger relationship between the two,” Professor
Yovich said.
“It gave us an opportunity to assist them with
their first assignments, help them get on line
and develop networks with each other, as well as
visit several of the local schools.
“It was good to see first hand how the
communities work—one student in Broome had
just about the whole of Broome city puzzling
over a question in the first maths unit and
discovering the wonders of an Earth population
website!”
The program is set to be extended into next
semester with a new round of applicants starting
mid year.
Teaching dream comes true for mum, daughter
There was a time when Julie
Lander thought she would
never realise her dream
of becoming a teacher, let
alone achieving the goal
with one of her daughters.
But in March, Mrs Lander, 48, and her
22-year-old daughter Marisa Johnson graduated
from Murdoch University with teaching degrees.
Graduation completed a remarkable career
change for the mother-of-four, who chose to
leave her work in business management to
become a mature-age student after attending a
university open day with her daughter in 2004.
Mrs Lander said teaching was a passion she
had had since she was four, but one she had
been discouraged from pursuing at an early
age.
She said her daughter had been keen to
study and pushed her to give the career change
a go.
“It was very, very tricky, but without the
support of family I wouldn’t have been able to
do it because they were really good at pulling
together,” Mrs Lander said.
“If it wasn’t for that I would have probably
burnt out by the end of second year.”
Mrs Johnson, who studied secondary
teaching in Perth at the same time, said she was
exceptionally close to her mother.
Julie Lander and Marisa Johnson celebrate after getting their teaching degrees at Murdoch University.
The pair exchanged notes and encouraged
each other, particularly during their final year
at university, at a time when Mrs Johnson was Kalgoorlie since completing their degrees. become qualified teachers. around, more for the kids’ sake than anything,”
planning her wedding around full-time study Mrs Johnson said she had loved every “We really need country people to go and she said.
and teaching practicals. moment of sharing the university experience learn teaching and go back home because we Article and photograph courtesy of
Both have found teaching positions in with her mother and encouraged others to really need the teachers that are going to stick The West Australian.

Coral reef map a world first In a world first, Murdoch

University’s Dr Halina Kobryn
and her research team are
creating a hyperspectral
marine habitat map of the
entire 300 kilometre-long
Ningaloo reef system.
This airborne survey method has enabled
researchers to map connected underwater reef
environments over large areas of coastal water,
as well as classifying the habitats and calculating
ocean depth.
“Previously there were no detailed marine
habitat maps for the area, which are needed to
appropriately monitor and manage the marine
park,” Dr Kobryn said.
“What we have undertaken is the
largest coral reef survey in the world using
hyperspectral instruments, covering 3400 sqkm.”
Dr Kobryn’s hyperspectral mapping project
The detailed hyperspectral mapping of Ningaloo captures a birds-eye view (left), the depth of the water is one of five linked components in the CSIRO’s
(centre) and the varied underwater habitat types. Ningaloo Collaboration Cluster and the CSIRO
Wealth from Oceans Flagship research, which
is investigating the ecological, social and
economic values of the Ningaloo Marine Park
and adjacent regions.
“Creating this detailed baseline habitat map
of Ningaloo Reef (to 20m depth) and coastal
areas has been challenging as habitats are very
diverse,” she said.
“Our results show that hyperspectral
remote sensing techniques offer an efficient
and cost-effective approach to mapping and
monitoring coastal habitats over large, remote
and inaccessible areas, which are typical of
Australia’s vast marine domain.”
BHP Billiton funded the initial $250,000
data-acquisition project, and the CSIRO Flagship
Collaboration Fund has funded Dr Kobryn’s
team in further research, a postdoctoral position
and field trips.
The CSIRO will now be able to create models
from the Murdoch University data to map
habitats and biodiversity along the 3400 sqkm
of reef.

April/May 2009 / Vol 5 / Iss 4 3

Murdoch University awards
three Honorary Doctorates
Murdoch University has
honoured a retired High
Court judge, an almost 40-
year veteran of the ABC
and a flora expert with
Honorary Doctorates.
At the March 3 graduation ceremony,
recognised botanist, author and historian
Adjunct Professor Alexander George was
awarded an Honorary Doctor of Science.
Professor George’s career spans more than
40 years, including a 12-year stint in Canberra
as the Executive Editor and Acting Associate
Director for the Flora of Australia Project with
the Australian Biological Resources Study.
Since 1999, he has been an Adjunct
Associate Professor with the School of Biological
Sciences and Biotechnology, as well as running
his own consultancy.
At the March 17 ceremony, retired High
Court judge the Honourable Michael Kirby AC
CMG was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Laws
degree – one day before he turned 70.
Mr Kirby recently retired from the High
Court after 13 years.
His commitment to equity and social justice
has been well recognised, having served as
the foundation Chairman of the Australian Law
Reform Commission between 1975 and 1984.
Mr Kirby was also the first openly gay High
Court judge, famously outing himself in a 1999
entry of Who’s Who.
He has strong ties to Murdoch University and
since 2006 has travelled to Western Australia to
give an annual lecture to Law school staff and
students.
At the March 24 graduation, the man
considered the doyen of oral history, Adjunct
Professor Bill Bunbury, received an Honorary
Doctor of Literature degree.
Professor Bunbury had an almost 40-year
Adjunct Professor Alexander George
career with the ABC, where he became known
for his work as producer for the Radio National
programs Hindsight and Encounter.
These documentaries played a valuable role
in the preservation of Australia’s social history
through recorded interviews with everyday
Australians.
The former Murdoch University Adjunct
Professor in Media and Communications, and
History has also published 11 books and is
working on several more. The Honourable Michael Kirby AC CMG
Murdoch’s Vice Chancellor Professor John
Yovich said all three had made enormous
contributions to their field and left a legacy for
others to be inspired and learn from.
“Murdoch University is honoured to
recognise the work of Mr Kirby and Professors
George and Bunbury,” Professor Yovich said.
“I congratulate them and we are grateful
for the role all three have played in enriching
Murdoch and for the contribution each has
made in their chosen field.” Adjunct Professor Bill Bunbury

Ex-premier opens up exclusively to Murdoch students

Willagee MP Alan Carpenter said he still sees
opportunity to be an agent for change as
a backbencher.
Former WA premier Alan
Carpenter has exclusively
told Murdoch University
students that he no longer
blames himself for last year’s
state election loss.
“I have recovered my objectivity,” the Labor
MP for Willagee told journalism, public relations
and politics students during a special March
lecture organised by Murdoch’s journalism
program — in which he outlined why he had
overcome a sense of guilt about losing.
“If we had gone full term we would have
been slaughtered — we would have lost more
seats.
“We had an opportunity (with an early
election date) and we didn’t get there.”
The former Albany Advertiser, Channel Seven
and ABC journalist said The West Australian’s
campaign to replace Troy Buswell with Colin
Barnett had spelled trouble for his government,
and he believed that once the media had
installed a new Liberal leadership it would not
let it fail.
Mr Carpenter also explained his early election
call on the fact that he couldn’t envisage any
good news for his government in the interim,
and that as time went on his government’s
prospects would have deteriorated.
He spoke of his distaste for what he called
cynical, hostile, unethical and dishonest
members of the state’s media, whom he claimed
did a disservice to the people of WA.
A misrepresentation in The West Australian
over his agenda on renewable energy and
climate change had forced him to lodge an
official complaint to the Press Council, he said,
which was upheld.
The backbencher also claimed that untrue
allegations during his time in office had left
him feeling helpless as “anything can be said
about you and there’s nothing you can do
about it”, and that media political coverage had
impacted on his family and what he termed his
“equilibrium”.
As a minister in the Gallop government,
Mr Carpenter described how he would watch
with anger at how Mr Gallop was treated by
journalists — and believed that the former
premier’s treatment at the hands of some media
played a big role in his departure from public
life.
He claimed this set the tone for his own
difficult relationship with the media, and both he
and his government had suffered for it.
“I take solace in the fact that I was right,”
Mr Carpenter commented on his opinion of
The West’s last editor Paul Armstrong and his
subsequent fall from grace and dismissal by the
new management earlier this year.
The one-time politics student admitted that
going into the 2008 election he never had a
Plan B for either himself or fellow journalist
Reece Whitby, whom he had persuaded to leave
television news to stand as a candidate.
Mr Carpenter said he still felt guilty about
convincing the father of four that both he and
Labor would win, and thankfully Mr Whitby had
been able to return to Channel Seven, where
he now worked as a producer rather than as a
frontline reporter.
He considered his achievements as premier to
include raising the school leaving age to 17, and
initiating major capital works such as the new
state basketball centre, Medibank and Members
Equity stadiums.
Mr Carpenter expressed his frustration,
sadness and a sense of personal loss at seeing
his political agenda jettisoned when the Liberals
took office — watching while his vision, policies
and planned capital works to take WA “beyond
rocks and gas” were “snuffed out” by the new
government.
However, he said that as a backbencher it
was still possible to be an agent for change and
that he was not ready to give up politics.
The Murdoch lecture has subsequently been
quoted on ABC and 6PR morning shows, and on
the news site inmycommunity.com.au and in
The Melville Times.

4 THE MURDOCH UNIVERSITY COMMUNITY MAGAZINE

 Monica finds balance
between chiro and yoga
Keeping mind and body in
balance with yoga helped
Monica Gauci through five
years of chiropractic study
at Murdoch University.
Monica finished with a Bachelor of Science
and a Bachelor of Chiropractic, earning First
Class Honours and realising a long-held
ambition to be a chiropractor.
A yoga teacher for 25 years, Monica
believes the prime reason she was academically
successful was her ability to balance her life
with her studies.
Monica got up every morning before 5am to
do her daily hour-and-a-half yoga practice and
was at university by 8.30am.
She never missed a lecture, believing it kept
her engaged in the course.
Monica never studied after 6pm or 7pm
at night – that was time for her and husband
Gregor Maehle, with whom she has owned
Leederville-based yoga company 8limbs for the
past 12 years.
Monica has wanted to be a chiropractor for
15 years.
“I had been to a chiropractor before and I
thought it was a wonderful art,” Monica said.
“It just complements yoga so much because
it focuses on the spine.”
But before Monica could even enrol in the
course, she first had to gain her TEE, which
required her to pass chemistry, a subject she
had never studied.
“I think that was the hardest bit,” she said.
Monica had previously enrolled in a Bachelor
of Science degree at Adelaide University when
she was in her 30s.
But she ended up travelling, and when she
landed back in Perth, there wasn’t a chiropractic
course in WA.
Monica, who now practices as a chiropractor
at Doubleview Chiropractic, delivered the
Valedictory address at her March graduation
ceremony.
She has also won the Ross Gillmore Award
for Excellence in Diagnostic Imaging and has
twice been awarded the Vice Chancellor’s
Commendation for Academic Excellence.

Supple does it: Murdoch graduate Monica Gauci is living proof

of the benefits of healthy living while studying.

Celebrating
cultural
diversity
Bangladeshi, Nepalese and Indian
cultures were celebrated
at Murdoch University during
Harmony Week.
The Bangladesh-Australia Association
of Western Australia held a Banglar Mela
(Bangladesh Fair) on Bush Court in mid-March.
Cultural performances, including songs, dance
and a festive procession were included in the
festivities.
There was also a children’s face painting
competition and storytelling.
Harmony Week celebrates Western Australia’s
rich cultural diversity.
WA has the highest proportion of overseas-
born residents of any Australian state or territory.

Photo courtesy of The West Australian. Colourful dancers promoted diversity and harmony at the Murdoch University celebrations.

April/May 2009 / Vol 5 / Iss 4 5

International Japanese Study turns
celebration at chiro graduation coalminer
The March 3 graduation
ceremony was a special
occasion for 17 Japanese
chiropractic graduates who
travelled to Perth to
attend the ceremony.
In the graduation party was Toshifumi
Kuwaoka, the President of NET Co, who
helped establish the Bachelor of Health
Science (Chiropractic) course in Japan along
with the Japanese Federation of Chiropractic
Professionals.
Mr Kuwaoka visited Perth in 2004 to sign
the contract to offer the course in Japan jointly
with Murdoch.
He enrolled in the course in 2005 and
completed the Bachelor of Health Sciences
The Japanese chiropractic graduates travelled to Perth to attend the March 3 graduation ceremony.
Mr Kuwaoka is pictured centre.
6 THE MURDOCH UNIVERSITY COMMUNITY MAGAZINE
(Chiropractic) degree at the end of last year.
Faculty of Health Sciences Project Manager
Dr Mi Kyung Lee said the BHSc (Chiro) course
was specially designed to meet the needs of
Japanese chiropractors.
“The course was initially developed
from what was known as the Chiropractic
Standardisation Course in Japan, with the aim of
providing an opportunity to formally upgrade
education qualifications in chiropractic in Japan,”
Dr Lee said.
“Students are recognised for their prior
training in chiropractic and can complete the
degree part-time over three years.
“BHSc (Chiro) graduates can then choose
to either practise as a chiropractor in Japan or
enrol in the Bachelor of Chiropractic degree,
a two-year full-time course leading to the
internationally qualified chiropractic licence.”
into a
chiropractor
Bill Hayward has gone from
working as a coalminer to
graduating from Murdoch
as a chiropractor.
He believes he is the first Indigenous male
chiropractor in Western Australia, graduating
Bill Hayward: Trained and ready for work
last year with a Bachelor of Chiropractic and
Bachelor of Health Science.
life, taking a role as guild representative for the
Mr Hayward spent 30 years as a coalminer,
final three years of his study.
working for Griffin Coal Mining in Collie in the
Mr Hayward, who in his youth played
State’s South-West from 1973 to 2003, before
deciding to go to university at the age of 55. football in the South-West league as well as
Now 61, Mr Hayward said a “100-year-old for WAFL club Swan Districts, is also a trained
doctor in Bunbury” had inspired him to study to massage therapist with more than 20 years’
become a chiropractor. experience.
“He advised me to make some changes “I enjoyed massaging — I got a workout
and I told him I had always wanted to be a while I was helping other people and it kept me
chiropractor and he told me I should do it,” Mr fit,” he said.
Hayward said. He worked as a volunteer at the 2000
But before he could enrol, Mr Hayward had Sydney Olympics, which he described as an
to do extensive tests and a five-person panel
amazing experience. He is deeply proud of his
interview. He also had to do a bridging course
achievement of becoming a chiropractor after
in chemistry.
five years of study.
Mr Hayward recalls his first cell biology
Mr Hayward said he hoped to be a role
lecture as being like hearing a foreign language.
“The lecture was on protein and it was way model for Indigenous people and mature‑age
above my head,” he said. students and work as a chiropractor in
He had a tutor – Bryn Elphick – who helped Aboriginal health.
him through his years of study. “But this is proving difficult due to the public
Mr Hayward threw himself into university health system excluding chiropractors,” he said.
Groundbreaking improved theory of
evolution developed by Murdoch scientists
In a year that celebrates
the 200th anniversary of
Darwin’s birth and the 150th
anniversary of the publication
of ‘On the Origin of the
Species’, Murdoch scientists
claim DNA junk is essential
for evolution - signalling one
of the biggest advances in
evolutionary theory since
the 1930s.
They have developed an improved theory of
evolution – a groundbreaking hypothesis which
finally reconciles evolutionary theory with the
fossil record.
Developed by 75-year-old PhD student Keith
Oliver and Program Chair of Biomedical Sciences
Dr Wayne Greene, it’s called the Genomic Drive
hypothesis.
In a co-authored report, due to be published
in the prestigious BioEssays journal in May, the
researchers argue that transposable elements
(TEs) – or what is colloquially termed jumping
genes, ‘selfish’ or ‘junk’ DNA, have a critical role
in ensuring the survival of biological lineages.
Without this DNA junk, a species is
effectively frozen and faces eventual extinction,
while species with genomes with high TE
activity or strong presence of identical TEs
possess a greater ability to evolve, diversify and
survive.
For example, as primates, some 46 per cent
of the human genome is comprised of TEs,
while other mammals such as rodents and bats
are known to possess around 40 per cent.
These TEs are generally suppressed in the
ordinary body cells of most species but are
allowed to reactivate in reproductive cells for
the potential benefit of the next generation.
Their activity can also be triggered when
they suddenly hop between species or by stress.
TEs do their survival work by reformatting
and rearranging DNA genomes to sometimes
create significant adaptive mutations that
undergo natural selection.
Dr Greene is a senior lecturer in Molecular
Genetics and said current evolutionary theory,
which assumed biological lineages evolved by
the slow accumulation of adaptive mutations,
did not tally with the fossil record.
However, the ‘Genomic Drive’ theory
provided a significant explanation for the way
new species arose abruptly and periodically, he
said.
The theory also fitted with fossil records
which showed intermittent and long periods
of stasis – where many species stood still or
remained the same.
Mr Oliver said the hypothesis argued that
significant evolution could not take place
without the activity of TEs.
“Although we are standing on the shoulders
of others that have worked on TEs, we believe
this is the strongest and most comprehensive
case ever put forward on the role of TEs in
In the news: PhD student Keith Oliver (left) and Program Chair of Biomedical Sciences Dr Wayne Greene.
evolution,” Mr Oliver said.
“If our theory proves correct it would be one
stasis occurring in species without TE of organisms were species rich and others
of the biggest advances in evolution since the
activity could be seen in the living fossil, the species poor, and why some species changed
1930s, when Darwinism and Mendelism were
reconciled in NeoDarwinism.” coelacanth, once thought to have been extinct little over millions of years.
Dr Greene said species that were devoid of for 63 million years. Successive waves of TE activity in a lineage
TEs were more at risk of extinction because they The coelacanth, which had been found off potentially explained alternations of rapid
simply lacked the capacity to adapt, change and the coast of South Africa and Indonesia, had evolution and stasis.
diversify. inactive or low levels of TEs and had been in He said some species — such as bats which
“If you don’t have this junk in your genome stasis for 400 million years. ‘came out of nowhere’ in the Eocene Period –
then you can’t evolve and are stuck, thereby In another example he referred to the suddenly appeared in the fossil record.
remaining in what is termed evolutionary stasis,” tuatara, where just two species had been found This was in keeping with evidence that TE
Dr Greene said. off the coast of New Zealand. or jumping gene activity occurred in sudden
“This would explain why almost all species Like the coelacanth, the tuatara was episodic bursts.
control their TEs rather than eliminate them. characterised by very few jumping genes and Dr Greene said an example of how TE
“And of course having these TEs in a genome has been unchanged for 220 million years. activity affected the richness of a lineage was
doesn’t mean a lineage will necessarily diversify Dr Greene said Genomic Drive theory seen in rodents and bats.
— what it does mean is that it has a much provided an explanation for many unanswered These were species-rich orders of mammals
greater potential to do so.” questions such as why species suddenly and, unusually for modern mammals, both
Mr Oliver said an example of evolutionary appeared in the fossil record, why some groups harboured highly active TEs.

Vexing question provides the passion for discovery

A question that has vexed Murdoch
University PhD student Keith Oliver for
over 40 years provided the impetus to
research an improved theory of evolution.
Mr Oliver, who began his PhD on the
role of transposable elements (TEs) in
evolution in January 2007, has long been
sceptical of orthodox evolutionary theory.
Already holding degrees in biological
science and philosophy, Mr Oliver has
written several essays pointing out
deficiencies in orthodox theory, but
was unable to offer an alternative.
Mr Oliver started seriously reading
about the role of TEs – otherwise known
as junk DNA or jumping genes - about
five years ago and began to see them
as the missing piece of the puzzle.
While many biologists regard TEs as
‘parasitic’, ‘selfish’ or ‘junk’ DNA, Mr Oliver
became increasingly convinced of their vital
role in a species ability to evolve and survive.
Mr Oliver and Dr Green supported
their hypothesis with extensive published
material on TEs, then compiled a list of the
TE content found in the genome sequences
of different species and cross-checked
the TE activity in the various species.
“I feel very good about this because it
finally addresses the deficiency in evolutionary
theory that has long been apparent to me,” Mr
Oliver said.
“Some of these were also pointed out by
palaeontologists.”
Mr Oliver expects to complete his PhD
in 2010.

march 20092009
April/May / Vol
/ Vol
4 / 5Iss/ 3Iss 4 7
Attorneys General debate the merits of a
Human Rights national act at Murdoch
Attorney General Christian Porter debated Jim McGinty on human rights at Murdoch.
Retiring State Fremantle
MLA and Labor powerbroker
Jim McGinty squared off
against current Western
Australian Attorney General
Christian Porter recently at
Murdoch to debate whether
Australia needs a national
human rights act.
New TV ad takes global view
Murdoch’s global
relevance is reflected
in a new television ad.
Created by brand planning agency
Meerkats in conjunction with Murdoch’s
Office of Corporate Communications and
Public Relations, the ad features real
families in five countries talking about
how people working together can make
a difference.
Marketing Manager Helen Moorhead
said that at the heart of the University’s
2009 brand campaign – of which the
ad is one component – was the promise
that Murdoch was the place where free
thinkers came to succeed.
The ‘Discoverers welcome’ message
would continue to be a central theme of
the campaign, she said.
The commercial was shot on location
in Morocco, India, Spain, Japan and
Australia. It airs on SBS, and channels
7,9 and 10.
8 THE MURDOCH UNIVERSITY COMMUNITY MAGAZINE
Organised by the Southern Communities
Advocacy Legal and Education Service (SCALES)
and the Murdoch University School of Law, the
former and current Attorney General presented
arguments for and against the issue.
SCALES Community Legal Centre Clinical
Director Anna Copeland said the Federal
Government was currently undertaking a
national consultation and was considering
whether to enact a National Human Rights Act
as part of the process.
Marakesh was one of the locations for the TV ad shoot, featuring a Moroccan family.
“The debate was a good way to get as many
people engaged with the topic as possible and
to encourage them to add their voice and make
a submission before the consultation period
ends in June,” Ms Copeland said.
Mr McGinty argued in favour of a national
human rights act while Mr Porter was against.
“Mr McGinty argued the primary reason we
need such an act was because it builds a culture
of human rights in the community which goes
much broader than court decisions and affects
decision making right from the bottom, all the
way up,” she said.
“But Mr Porter said having a human rights
Murdoch’s Children’s Performance Group’s
bill would give judges more power that he
next production is in May.
believes should stay with a democratically
elected parliament.”
Interactive
Mr McGinty also mentioned during the
debate his impending retirement from politics
after 19 years.
performance
“He made mention that the debate may have
been his last evening as a parliamentarian,”
for children
Ms Copeland said, and The West Australian
newspaper announced his resignation the
following morning.
More than 100 people attended the event in
Murdoch University Children’s
the Freehills Lecture Theatre.
Performance Group will
present their tenth annual
children’s theatre production
in May, Lit by Limelight: The
Adventures of a Little Tin
Soldier.
Writer and director of the performance,
Associate Professor Jenny de Reuck, said the
colourful array of toy characters was aimed at
primary school-aged children.
“The story is based on the toys in Amelia’s
dollhouse, and the Nexus Theatre will again
offer audiences a magnificent set, lavish
costumes, original music and a script that blends
physical theatre with an appealing story-line,”
Professor de Reuck said.
“As with all our productions, we seek not
merely to entertain, but to educate as well, in
the true spirit of theatre in education.”
This year’s interactive production features
a settler’s cottage somewhere in Perth during
the late nineteenth century, and the Fremantle
Fairies, wicked Pie Rats of Rottnest and Little Tin
Soldier are sure to delight and entertain.
Performances will run daily in the Nexus
Theatre at Murdoch’s South Street campus from
Monday, May 25, to Friday May, 29.
For more information, or to book tickets
($5.50 per child), contact Janet Payne on 9360
2504 or j.payne@murdoch.edu.au.
Ancient knowledge preserved in Thai leaves
Knowledge in ancient
documents is being teased
out by a group of Murdoch
University researchers in a
race against time.
History, culture, stories and medicine are in
thousands of inscribed, preserved palm leaves
from Thailand that are centuries old.
Associate Professor Lance Fung from the
School of Information Technology is working
on the Preservation of Palm Leaf Manuscripts
Project with Ning Chamchong from the
Mahasarakham University at northern Thailand.
They say the initiative is as exciting as it is
ambitious.
“The palm leaf manuscripts are anything
from a couple of hundred to nearly a thousand
years old,” Professor Fung said.
“They are an invaluable source of
information to learn about the dynasties,
folklore and natural medicines of ancient south-
east Asian societies.
“There’s already a lot of interest in
alternative therapies — these palm leaves could
add to the treatments people need, using the
knowledge and wisdom of a long gone era.”
Associate Professor Lance Fung and Ning Chamchong review the manuscripts on screen. The palm leaves are written in ancient Thai
script, and there are thousands of them – but
the need to record the information they have is
urgent.
“They have been at the mercy of natural
elements and insects and their ink is smearing
— they are coming to the end of their natural
life,” Professor Fung said.
“But it’s our aim to develop a system that
will retrieve information automatically and
intelligently from digital versions of the leaves.”
The project is a joint initiative between
Murdoch and Mahasarakham University, where
Ms Chamchong is currently working towards a
PhD.
“The digitised documents are enhanced and
extracted by a character-recognition program to
recognise the writing,” Ms Chamchong said.
“Some of the manuscripts are written in
different ancient Thai scripts, and some are
black ink on black leaves: that’s why the project
is very challenging.”
Recognising the Thai language is a
challenge; it has 44 letters and doesn’t use
punctuation or vowels.
The intelligence system will begin with
background processing, segmenting the
characters on the leaves, translating them into
modern Thai text and then decoding their
secrets.

OnTrack, hit with Rockingham students

Murdoch’s OnTrack
enabling course is
proving to be a hit
with the Rockingham
community this year.
The 12-week on-campus pre-
university course is designed to assist
people to meet university entrance
requirements.
Students who successfully
complete OnTrack are offered a
place in a Murdoch course at the
Rockingham Campus, or at one of
the University’s two other campuses.
Murdoch’s OnTrack Coordinator
Jim Meckelberg said the course helps
develop the generic skills, knowledge
and values required for successful
study at university.
“It offers students an opportunity
to become familiar with life on a
university campus,” Mr Meckelberg
said.
Mr Meckelberg said OnTrack was
first run at the Rockingham campus
in 2008 and 95 per cent of students
who completed the course were
offered undergraduate places.
This year 34 students enrolled
in the program at Rockingham
— which commenced in February
— and enrolments had more than
doubled from last year’s intake.
Murdoch University Deputy
Vice Chancellor Professor Gary
Martin said he was delighted that
the Rockingham community had
responded so enthusiastically to the
course.
“Murdoch University has a long
history in establishing and offering
alternative entry pathways for
students seeking entry to study on its
campuses,” Professor Martin said.
Students currently enrolled in
OnTrack at Rockingham are set to
complete the course in time for entry
to Murdoch University in second
semester this year.
OnTrack runs at the Peel and
South Street campuses of Murdoch
University during second semester,
and it is estimated that around
200 students in total will complete OnTrack and on their way to success at uni: (Left to right) Andrew Bongiovanni, Samantha Hanson,
OnTrack in 2009. Mitchell Smith, Hyrum Peihopa, Michelle Latter, Angela Brown and Bridget Edwards.

April/May 2009 / Vol 5 / Iss 4 9

 Theatre’s role in day-to-day living
Murdoch’s new drama project
will provide opportunities
for people with mental
illnesses to build self-
esteem, confidence and self
awareness.
Murdoch’s Lecturer in Theatre and Drama
Studies, Dr Serge Tampalini, said the project
was the result of close collaboration with Day to
Day Living’s Community Mental Health Worker,
Chris Kwok.
“We will be aiming to assist Day to Day
Living’s clients using drama as a form of
expression, as well as adding to their skill sets,”
Dr Tampalini said.
Mr Kwok said while this was not drama
therapy, he hoped his clients would benefit from
the self-esteem, confidence, self-awareness and
social aspects of learning drama within a group
environment.
“Should the project be successful, we will
look at organising spin-off activities and projects
such as further workshops or possibly assisting
our clients in organising a small production,” Mr
Kwok said.
“Day to Day Living is a funded program
of the Commonwealth Government, and we
provide many opportunities like this for people
with mental illnesses to participate more fully in
the life of the community.” Dr Serge Tampalini (left) is working with Chris Kwok from Day to Day Living.

Communicating Gold medal

climate change
A Murdoch journalism
lecturer is helping develop
new national guidelines
for communicating complex
sciences such as climate
change.
Carmelo Amalfi was among 100 scientists,
communicators in government and industry,
journalists, students and sceptics who attended a
‘hot air’ symposium organised by the Australian
Science Communicators in Perth in March.
The one-day event was held during the
national climate change forum Greenhouse
2009.
Good communicators, preferably with
journalistic training and publishing experience,
are increasingly needed to articulate difficult
and often controversial developments in health
and medicine (including stem cell therapy,
genetically engineered crops and cloning),
computer science, cosmology and particle
physics and palaeontology.
The symposium focused on specific
challenges of communicating in a sceptical
world — the uncertainty and complexity
of science, the role played by scientists and
science communicators in achieving balance in
reporting, and difficulty of engaging people.
The next symposium will be held in Brisbane
in August as part of the 10th International
Congress for Ecology.
The third hot air symposium will be held
in Canberra in November and will look at how
we can be better engaged rural and urban
communities in the science of climate change.
for crop
protection
research Dr Shashi Sharma receives the award from
Dr Abdul Kalam.
Dr Shashi Sharma, Adjunct Development (ISPRD) at Kanpur, in India.
Professor in the School He received the ‘ISPRD Gold Medal’ from
Dr Abdul Kalam, former President of India, in
of Biological Sciences and recognition of his outstanding contributions in
Biotechnology, has been the field of crop protection.
Professor Sharma is a renowned nematologist
awarded a prestigious and has made significant contributions to pulses
international award for his research and development.
research on crop protection. At the conference he chaired a session on
integrated Crop management and delivered
Professor Sharma, also Director of Plant a talk on plant parasitic nematodes and their
Biosecurity at the Department of Agriculture and management in grain legumes.
Food, received the award at the International During his visit to India he also gave lectures
Conference on Grain Legumes organised by on the role of biosecurity in global food
the Indian Society of Pulses Research and security.

10 THE MURDOCH UNIVERSITY COMMUNITY MAGAZINE


Social justice
work reaps
rewards
Senior law lecturer Mary
Anne Kenny has been
awarded this year’s Sir
Ronald Wilson Leadership
Award.
Ms Kenny received the award for her work
with people from marginalised groups, such
as asylum seekers and refugees.
She was previously the Director of
Southern Communities Legal and Education
Service (SCALES), a pro bono law clinic run by
Murdoch University which provides free legal
advice, information and representation to
low income people living in the Kwinana and
Rockingham areas.
Ms Kenny continues to work with SCALES
on refugee and immigration cases on a
voluntary basis.
She was one of the principal founders
of the Centre for Advocacy Support and
Education for Refugees, currently the only
community legal centre in Western Australia
providing specialist legal assistance to
refugees.
In 2006, Ms Kenny was appointed to the
Law Reform Commission of WA.
She said she was honoured to receive the
award, and had the privilege of hearing the
late Sir Ronald Wilson speak about issues of
social justice, child poverty, Indigenous health
and mandatory detention of children – an
issue which has become close to her heart
over recent years.
“I am deeply honoured by this award
named in honour of the late Sir Ronald
Wilson,” Ms Kenny said.
“It is an occasion for the Western
Australian community to pay tribute to a
person who led a truly remarkable life.”
She thanked Murdoch University for
allowing her to do the work she enjoyed and
thanked her colleagues from the School of
Law and the staff at SCALES.
The award honours the lifelong work of
the late Sir Ronald Wilson, who was one of
WA’s most distinguished public servants, a
respected lawyer, judge and social activist.
April/May 2009 / Vol 5 / Iss 4
New book
sheds light
on Jakarta’s
shady
underworld
Gangster politics in Jakarta is
the focus of a new book by
Dr Ian Wilson from Murdoch
University’s Asia Research
Centre.
Dr Wilson says that preman, or gangster,
culture has been around for a long time in
Indonesia, but has recently undergone a
significant transformation.
“In recent years preman have attained a new
level of influence,” Dr Wilson said.
“Fractious local politics, inadequate law
enforcement, and the driving forces of poverty
and unemployment have opened up a wealth of
opportunities for thugs, allowing them to gain
varying degrees of formal and informal power.
“Preman can now be found not only in street
corner gangs but also in mass organisations with
thousands of members.
Tackling social accountability in international aid
Investigating the difficulties
of advancing good governance
in development policy will be
the focus of a new project
being undertaken by Murdoch
University’s Asia Research
Centre.
AusAID’s 2008 Australian Development
Research Award has provided $289,400 over
two years to Dr Jane Hutchison, Emeritus
Professor Richard Robison, Associate Professor
Caroline Hughes and Dr Ian Wilson.
The team will use case studies to assess how
large organisations and powerful networks can
affect the performance of reform projects in
Dr Ian Wilson is studying Indonesia’s gang culture.
“Some well-connected gangsters are even
running as candidates in national elections to be
held this year.”
Dr Wilson said preman associations with
political parties, radical Islamic groups and
figures within the military have contributed to
the thugs’ aura of impunity.
He said many used these connections as
a cover for establishing protection rackets and
profiting from gambling, prostitution
and narcotics.
“The key to tackling the growing power of
gangs is to address the underlying reasons why
urban youth are drawn to them; as a way out
of grinding poverty, chronic unemployment and
social marginalisation.
“For many youth, gang membership is one
of very few options available to them.”
Another factor contributing to the power and
appeal of gangs is the poor public image of
the police.
developing nations.
Dr Hutchison, Murdoch senior lecturer
in politics, said her part of the study would
investigate the demand for shelter security for
the poor in Metro Manila.
“The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has
proposed a US$495 million slum eradication
project that includes the provision of secure
land tenure in existing informal settlements or
in resettlement sites, basic infrastructure and
services, the construction of social housing and
livelihood support,” Dr Hutchison said.
She said her case study would examine the
reasoning behind the project approval being
stalled by the Philippine government and the
exclusion of some national government lands.
“We’ll be asking how the ADB sought to
influence public and private centres of authority
“Due to rampant corruption, the public does
not trust the police,” he said.
“During recent police anti-thug campaigns,
for example, there was a 300 to 400 per
cent increase in complaints against the police,
especially over the request for bribes or
extortions.
“This simply serves to confirm the popular
perception that the police are often little better
than thugs themselves.”
In his book, to be published by Routledge
Press later this year, Dr Wilson draws upon
extensive fieldwork to provide a detailed analysis
of the complex political economy of gangs in
Indonesia’s capital.
He outlines the key political, economic
and social factors that have resulted in the
transformation of gangster organisations into a
potent and predatory social force, and also gives
a rare insight into the internal workings of gangs
and the lives of gang members.
to support the project and why they adopted
the approach they did, what obstacles the ADB
faced, and how public and private centres of
authority have chosen to respond,” she said.
“We will also examine how well urban
poor communities have been represented in
negotiations and at what stages.”
The other case studies will examine social
accountability and the World Bank in Cambodia,
led by Professor Hughes, and Governance and
the informal street economy in Jakarta, led by
Dr Wilson.
The team will work in collaboration with
four colleagues from the Netherlands’ Institute
of Social Studies and Gajah Mada University,
Indonesia, who will draw out the larger
implications for policy reform that emerge from
this relational understanding of power.
eco news 11
Researchers meet first babies born in study
Participants in the Peel Child Health study recently met with Murdoch researchers, including Chair in Nursing Professor Anne McMurray (left)
Improving investigations into human rights abuses
Murdoch graduate Elfansuri
Chairah spends his days trying
to prevent human rights
abuses in Indonesia through his
work as an investigator with
the Komnas HAM (National
Human Rights Commission).
As Chief of the Research Division, Mr Chairah
has been immersed in the monitoring of the
April Indonesian elections.
Komnas HAM closely monitored trouble
spots such as West Papua and Aceh, to prevent
expected human rights abuses from occurring
before, during and after the historic elections.
Mr Chairah directly attributes his studies
at Murdoch between 2006 and 2008 to an
improvement in the investigative procedures
used to inquire into human rights abuses in
Indonesia.
Before beginning his studies at Murdoch,
Mr Chairah worked with a team of investigators
on human rights inquiries into atrocities in
East Timor and West Papua. His work involved
investigation of a massacre at a local cemetery
and various other atrocities.
He said Komnas HAM was set up by
12
and Study Manager Martinque Sandy (right).
Suharto in 1993 and though its independence
has been doubted, it was very successful. After
Suharto stepped down in 1998, the commission
received more independence and then
undertook inquiries into abuses in East Timor
and East Delhi.
Despite the years of hard work put into those
inquiries, Mr Chairah was disappointed that
much of the gruelling investigative work did
not result in prosecutions because of a lack of
evidence.
“The investigation was not good enough to
bring the perpetrators to justice,” he said.
“So to improve things, particularly to achieve
more prosecutions, we needed to change that,”
he said.
Mr Chairah decided to further his studies
with the sole aim of improving investigative
procedures and standards regarding the
collection of evidence in Indonesia.
With a scholarship from AusAID, he arrived
in Western Australia in June 2006 to complete
his Master of Arts in Development Studies.
Mr Chairah said he chose Murdoch because
it was the only university offering development
studies in Western Australia at that time and his
research on the internet revealed Perth was a
nice, quiet place to live.
His Murdoch studies involved a project
Murdoch researchers
recently met the first
babies born into the
ambitious Peel Child Health
Study.
The newborns, ranging in age from a few
weeks to a couple of months, and their mums
recently met with researchers and other study
participants at Murdoch’s Peel campus.
As part of the study, researchers aim to
track hundreds of children from conception
through to teenage years, giving experts
unparalleled insight into child development.
Study manager Martinque Sandy said the
study would question how biological, social,
environmental and emotional factors affect
child health and development.
Researchers put the call out last year for
women living in the Peel region who were 18
weeks’ pregnant and willing to be part of the
long-term study.
So far, about 50 mothers have signed up
but Ms Sandy said they hoped to attract about
2000 women over the next two years.
“It was a fantastic opportunity to get them
together and it was also tangible proof to us
that the research project has been actualised.”
Ms Sandy said.
which examined the Western Australian Equal
Opportunity Commission’s 2002 investigation
into indirect discrimination in the provision
of public housing to Aboriginal people by
Homeswest.
The housing inquiry resulted in numerous
recommendations to the Department of
Housing and Works to prevent further indirect
discrimination in the rental of Government
housing to Aboriginal people.
Mr Chairah said the project not only gave
him an insight into the significance of the
Commission’s work but also provided a template
for human rights commissions throughout the
world.
He said the inquiry would provide an
entry point in strengthening Komnas HAM’s
investigative capacity regarding unlawful
discrimination in Indonesia.
Upon returning to Indonesia after
completing his studies in July 2008, he
set about writing new standard operating
procedures for National Human Rights
Commission investigations in Indonesia.
He said his Murdoch studies had directly Studying at Murdoch helped
contributed to the new protocols, which he graduate Elfansuri Chairah develop
believed would improve evidence gathering new protocols to improve evidence
and prosecution of human rights abuses in his gathering and prosecution of human
country. rights abuses in Indonesia.
THE MURDOCH UNIVERSITY COMMUNITY MAGAZINE
 Genetic
expert
digs
deep for
Computer
Dr Peter Cole

answers Dr Mike Bunce works in the narrow caves of Margaret River to uncover ancient DNA.

games reap Murdoch University’s ancient

DNA expert Mike Bunce
“Before humans arrived in Australia there
were a lot of megafaunal species that no longer
exist today, such as the giant and short-faced
“Up to 5000 years ago, species like the
Thylacine (Tasmanian tiger) and the Tasmanian
devil were found in Western Australia, so by

rewards for
has been digging for the kangaroos and the diprotodon,” Dr Bunce said. overlaying modern and fossil DNA we will gain
fundamental answer to how “All evidence suggests that the arrival of important insights into the evolutionary history
humans, their use of fire, hunting and use of of these species.
Western Australia’s South- land, drastically altered the landscape and that “The holy grail of this kind of work is

IT Dean West would have looked

30-40,000 years ago.
this is linked to the local extinction of many
species.
“The aim of our work in the South-West
to characterise the DNA of the long-extinct
megafaunal species.”
Dr Bunce said this kind of research pushed
Working with palaeontologist Dr Gavin caves is to build a genetic inventory of WA’s past the limits of DNA survival, so the team was
Dean of Information
Prideaux and other collaborators, Dr Bunce said biodiversity and answer some questions about desperately trying to find a cave with the right
Technology Associate the DNA they were uncovering would offer a how biodiversity in the region has changed over conditions to support the long-term preservation
Professor Peter Cole has new perspective on the ancient WA landscape. time. of genetic material.
been made a Fellow of

Josephine wins world cycling crown

the Australian Computer
Society (ACS).
ACS Fellows Committee Chairman
Bob Cross said the award was only Murdoch University primary (12 laps of the velodrome).
bestowed on people who had made a She said the 19-year-old went into the
significant contribution to information and
education student Josephine
demanding event with a cold but still managed
communication technology. Tomic recently won the to record a personal best time in the sprint.
“Associate Professor Cole was inaugural five-event omnium “It’s a huge event – it has to take place over
instrumental in bringing major eight hours,” Ms Mills said.
organisations in the games and digital
crown at the world track
“She was shattered at the end of it but over
content industry to Perth,” Dr Cross said. cycling championships in Poland. the moon.”
“Working with the Department of Josephine is studying primary and early
Industry and Resources (DoIR), he raised The Western Australian teenager beat
Canadian Tara Whitten and Yyonne Hijgenaar of education part-time at Murdoch and is in the
awareness of the state at the Australian
the Netherlands to take out the gold medal. elite athlete support program
Games Developers Conference.
Competitors need to be skilled in both sprint Ms Mills, a Murdoch graduate herself, said
“He met with Interzone in 2006 and
and endurance, as they compete in five events: a her former triathlon state champion daughter
facilitated meetings with DoIR, resulting in
200m flying start time trial; a 5km scratch race; started cycling at age of 14.
it setting up a base in Perth that employs
an individual pursuit; a 10km points race; and a “Cycling was her weakest link in the
60 people.
500m time trial. triathlon,” she said.
“In 2007, he met with the Floor Co – a
Josephine won the event at both the state “She had been doing a lot of swimming and
Tokyo-based games developer – and it
established a studio in Perth.” and national titles, earning the right to compete running training and she got shin splints so she
Dr Cross said Associate Professor Cole at the world championships. thought she would try cycling and she just fell in
had been an enthusiastic supporter for Her proud mum Mimi Mills said Josephine, love with it.”
the formation of the Australian Council of who is overseas, was an endurance specialist – Josephine also won the bronze medal as a
Deans of ICT and was now President. her pet event is the 3km individual pursuit member of Australia’s team pursuit squad.

march 20092009
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(Back left to right) Leukaemia Foundation marketing and communications coordinator Margo Vearing, Hairess manager Karine Allison,
Students perform hair-razing acts for charity
More than 20 Murdoch
students shaved or coloured
their hair recently to raise
cash for the Leukaemia
Foundation’s World’s Greatest
Shave.
The event, organised by the Murdoch Student
Law Society (MSLS), helped raise about $2000
for people living with leukaemia, lymphomas,
First animal scientists graduate
Left to right: Kristen Mamo, Josh Sweeny,
Kevin Bell, David Miller, Pia Humphry and
Harriet Pugh at the graduation.
14
(and front) Hanna Cho and Martin Hayes.
myeloma and blood-related disorders.
World’s Greatest Shave is one of Australia’s
biggest fundraising events, with more than
100,000 people annually pledging to shave or
colour their hair.
MSLS social justice rep Matt Gugiatti said
the Society launched a social justice committee
last year to promote a social justice culture on
campus and to keep Murdoch law students
engaged in social justice and human rights
issues.
Murdoch’s first animal
scientists have graduated
from the School of
Veterinary and Biomedical
Sciences.
The four-year degree focuses on the
agricultural sector, particularly the ethical and
sustainable production of food and fibre from
sheep, beef and dairy cattle, pigs and poultry.
“Given that agriculture is a rapidly changing
industry, traditional food and fibre production
systems must now embrace the new DNA
technologies,” said course coordinator Dr David
Miller.
“Agriculture must also meet demands from
the public for assurance of food safety and
quality, and general concerns about ethics of
food production and animal welfare.
They also plan to support other charitable
fundraising events in the future.
“Getting involved in charitable events is a
great opportunity for students to get to know
each other, have fun and contribute to the
community and a good cause,” Matt said.
Karine Allison, Manager of campus
hairdressing salon Hairess, provided her
hairdressing expertise free of charge for
the event.
“Old practices will be modified and new
standards set, offering a wealth of opportunities
to these Murdoch graduates, who are well
prepared.”
Murdoch’s animal science graduates are
qualified to work in all areas of agriculture,
including government departments, rural supply
and stock companies.
They can also work as farm advisers and
consultants, in research funded by government
and industry agencies, in biosecurity and
quarantine, and in schools, colleges and
universities.
Graduate Harriet Pugh is travelling and plans
to return to the family farm while Pia Humphry
is on a working holiday and John Sweeny is
doing a PhD studying sheep diseases.
Victoria Surridge is working on the family
farm and Kristen Mamo is teaching biology at a
rural high school.
THE MURDOCH UNIVERSITY COMMUNITY MAGAZINE
Feral fish threat
as pets dumped
Native fish are under attack
from large goldfish that
have been dumped in WA’s
waterways by irresponsible
pet owners.
The fish stir up trouble by disturbing
bottom-soil nutrients, sparking algal blooms in
South-West rivers.
Alien fish also introduce parasites, such as
tape and anchor worm, while competing for
food and eating the young of local species.
“Goldfish can grow up to 50cm in the wild
and they are now in a lot of systems,” fish
scientist at Murdoch University’s Centre for Fish
and Fisheries Research, David Morgan, said.
“We are trying to put together a strategic
plan for controlling feral fish.
“We want to take control because at the
moment there is nothing really being done
about the problem.”
He said guppies had been dumped in
internationally recognised wetlands on Christmas
Island, and thousands of kilometres away
dumped fish were threatening two blind fish
species in Exmouth caves.
Swordtails were outnumbering native species
in the Irwin River, near Dongara, and redclaw
crayfish were causing problems in the Ord River.
“One of the worst feral fish is the mosquito
fish because they take the tailfins off native fish,”
Dr Morgan said.
“Across the state, there are brown trout and
rainbow trout, redfin perch and silver perch
from over east, and yabbies.”
Thirteen species of exotic or aquarium fish
had been released into WA waterways, he said.
A South American tropical species of
aquarium fish, the pearl cichlid, devastated
major WA waterways in 2006.
The Department of Fisheries used explosives
to blow up the fish, but the species still posed a
threat to the Swan River because of its ability to
survive in saltwater.
“If people want to get rid of fish they should
take them to the aquarium or humanely kill
them by freezing,” Dr Morgan said.
Article reprinted courtesy of The Sunday Times
 Remembering
Rwandan victims
A minute’s silence was observed at Murdoch
on April 7 to send hope to survivors of the
Rwandan genocide.
Staff and students from Murdoch University and from Murdoch College
lit candles in a remembrance ceremony on campus on the fifteenth
anniversary of the atrocity, led by Professor Craig McGarty, Associate
Professor Mick Broderick and Dr Amanda Third.
A message of hope from the Murdoch College students to the people
of Rwanda was then filmed.
The Murdoch University-supported 100 Messages of Hope website was
previewed to the students, showing stories of Rwandan survivors filmed
by Murdoch researchers offered online, to inspire other Rwandans to
overcome their trauma.
The 100 Messages of Hope work is part of Murdoch’s ongoing research
activity by filmmakers and psychologists to help heal the hurt.
See the stories and messages of support at www.rwanda15.org.

Murdoch students dive into whale rescue mission

Murdoch students joined the massive
volunteer rescue effort for nearly
90 long-finned pilot whales stranded
at Hamelin Bay in the State’s South-
West last month.
As well as helping with the rescue operation, students
from Murdoch’s Cetacean Research Unit (MUCRU) helped the
Department of Environment and Conservation (DEC) and local
veterinarians collect tissue samples from the whale carcasses.
These may be used to confirm the species and gender of the
whales.
MUCRU PhD student Holly Smith said previous studies
elsewhere had shown that pilot whale pods are made up of
males, females and calves from one extended family in the same
group, which was unusual for whales and dolphins.
“Such a social structure provides some support for why the
pods strand in such large numbers, but the reason for these
strandings remains unclear,” she said.
The 87 long-finned pilot whales and a dolphin were found
washed up on the beach at Hamelin Bay last month.
A huge rescue effort was mounted, with volunteers, wildlife
officers and veterinarians working to herd the whales back out to
sea. But more than 70 whales and the dolphin died.
Ms Smith said that despite the unfortunate event, it was
heartwarming to see the community come together for the
common cause of trying to achieve the best outcome for the
whales.
“DEC staff, Murdoch University students, Dolphin Discovery
Centre and Westwhales volunteers, Perth Zoo and local
veterinarians and community members all played important
roles in the rescue attempts,” she said. Murdoch University students helped take samples from whale carcasses.

march 20092009
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Camel surgery poses
new challenge for vets
Tanami, a 465kg Arabian
dromedary camel standing
more than two metres
high, was operated on at
Murdoch’s Veterinary Hospital
in March in a new challenge
for the skilled surgery
staff.
Owners Elaine and Karl Nolte sought
the assistance of Murdoch’s Production
Animal Medicine Group when their local
vet discovered Tanami had an undescended
testicle, which would require major surgery
for its removal.
Mrs Nolte said most camel examinations
and procedures were done in the paddock, so
this was also a new experience for Tanami.
Dr Herbert Rebhan, Registrar in
Production Animal Health, said that before
the surgery the camel’s owners spent a
month improving his response to commands,
practised going up and down ramps, and
loading and unloading him into his float.
Once at the hospital, Dr Rebhan assisted
with the complex presurgical and surgical
preparations, as well as the recovery.
First, however, the surgical team led by
Associate Professor David Murphy had to
modify the operating theatre to account for
Tanami’s very different frame.
“The biggest challenge was positioning
Tanami on his back, due to his hump and
long neck,” Dr Murphy said.
“After we anaesthetised him, we used an
overhead winch system, which we regularly
use for our equine patients, to bring Tanami
into the operating theatre and then carefully
positioned him on the table for surgery.”
Several bolsters around the camel’s body
and haybales wrapped in surgical cloth
placed beneath his head and neck were used
to modify the surgical table to allow for the
camel’s hump.
“To our knowledge, general anaesthesia
and surgery on a dromedary camel on its
back has not been reported before,” Dr
Murphy said.
Dr Chris Quinn, Resident in Veterinary
Anaesthesia, said the anaesthetic methods
were adapted from their experience with
horses, which are a similar size, and alpacas,
which have a similar anatomy.
“We met the challenges of Tanami’s
size, the length of the procedure and other
complications by employing techniques and
drugs that have not previously been used
specifically for camels,” Dr Quinn said.
The surgery began with a keyhole
approach to the abdomen using a laparoscope
to try to locate the testicle, another first for
camels, which was successfully completed
through an abdominal incision.
Tanami recovered well from the operation
and the Noltes took him home three days
after the procedure.
The story was covered in a photo essay
in The Sunday Times, and in a pic story on
perthnow.com.au.
Tanami during surgery (left)
and with his owners Elaine and Karl Nolte
(above) Pictures courtesy of the Sunday Times.
Dr Katrin Swindells with one of the
animal mannequins.
Murdoch vets
need sponsors
for mannequins
Murdoch’s Veterinary Hospital
is seeking sponsors for animal
teaching mannequins to provide
students with realistic
teaching, practice, and
assessment opportunities.
Dean of the Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences
School, Professor John Edwards, said the goal was
to ensure that Murdoch’s veterinary graduates
were ready to work with patients as soon as they
graduated.
“This means providing them with a lot of
hands-on experience while they are students,”
Professor Edwards said.
“These very life-like and sophisticated
mannequins are similar to the human mannequins
used in nursing and medical students’ teaching
courses.
“Students need a significant amount of practice
before they can work with live patients and our
commitment to animal welfare means that we limit
the use of animals for teaching purposes.
“By integrating a number of animal
mannequins into our clinical teaching courses,
we can use these tools to ensure that students are
both confident and competent before proceeding
with animal patients.”
Staff will be able to use the mannequins to
demonstrate a wide variety of treatment options
and procedures and directly assess students’
clinical competence before they are given the
opportunity to perform a procedure on an animal.
Students would also be able to regularly
practise their skills on the mannequins to help
build confidence.
Development Officer Kristin Mannix said the
Veterinary Trust was inviting people to support the
program with a gift of $5000, which would be
acknowledged with details on the mannequins.
Enquiries about making a donation can be
directed to k.mannix@murdoch.edu.au.