Avalon Boomerang Bags July Update
Navigation Warning - NSW Coastal Waters: Whale Migration Season
Woolworths Group Announces Move Away From Single-Use Lightweight Plastic Shopping Bags Nationwide
Coles And Harris Farms To Phase Out Single-Use Plastic Bags As Well
Huge Antarctic Iceberg Finally Breaks Free
12 July, 2017: Media Release - British Antarctic Survey
After months of ‘hanging by a thread’ a vast iceberg the size of Norfolk has finally broken off Antarctica’s Larsen C Ice Shelf. Around 30 metres of this 190m thick block of ice sits above the sea surface.
Scientists now have opportunities to study the stability of the remaining ice shelf, as well as understanding how new biological communities might occupy the newly exposed ocean and underlying seabed areas.
At more than 6,000 km² in area, the new iceberg represents more than 10% of the ice shelf. This calving is dramatic but normal in the life cycle of an ice shelf. However, scientists will be looking to determine if loss of the iceberg will have any impact on the stability of the remaining ice shelf.
Throughout the Antarctic winter research teams, led by the University of Swansea and including researchers from British Antarctic Survey (BAS), monitored the progress of a 170 km long ice rift in the ice shelf using the European Space Agency (ESA) Copernicus Sentinel-1 satellites.
According to BAS remote sensing analyst Andrew Fleming, the satellite images have been critical for research planning.
He says: “This story has just got even more interesting. Our glaciologists will now be watching closely to see whether the remaining Larsen C Ice Shelf becomes less stable than before the iceberg broke free, and our biologists will be keen to understand how new habitats formed by the loss of the ice are colonised.”
Professor David Vaughan, glaciologist and Director of Science at British Antarctic Survey (BAS), said:“Larsen A and B ice shelves, which were situated further north on the Antarctic Peninsula, collapsed in 1995 and 2002, respectively. This resulted in the dramatic acceleration of the glaciers behind them, with larger volumes of ice entering the ocean and contributing to sea-level rise. If Larsen C now starts to retreat significantly and eventually collapses, then we will see another contribution to sea level rise.
The calving event has potential opportunities for new studies of open ocean and seabed habitats. According to Drs Phil Trathan and Susie Grant of the BAS Conservation Biology team this calving event will provide unique scientific opportunities for understanding how new biological communities develop and how new species occupy the newly exposed area.
Dr Grant, a marine bio-geographer at BAS says:“At the 2016 meeting of the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) there was international agreement that any newly exposed areas of ocean following ice shelf retreat or collapse could be automatically protected and designated as a Special Area for Scientific Research.”
Dr Trathan, Head of Conservation Biology adds:“For this to happen the new environment must meet the specific criteria agreed by CCAMLR. If designated, this would restrict commercial fishing activities and provide a valuable opportunity for studying the new habitats created, including how species colonize the area and new communities develop.”
British Antarctic Survey scientists and their UK and international research collaborators have debated the cause of ice thinning on Larsen Ice Shelf for a decade. In 2015 they published an international study in the journal The Cryosphere. The research team combined satellite data and eight radar surveys captured during a 15-year period from 1998–2012. They found that Larsen C Ice Shelf lost an average of 4 metres of ice, and had lowered by an average of one metre at the surface. The study revealed that the ice shelf is thinning from both its surface and beneath, suggesting warming air temperatures and warmer ocean currents play a role. This recent finding was an important step forward in assessing Antarctica’s likely contribution to future sea-level rise.
Researchers from the UK-based MIDAS project, led by Swansea University, have reported several rapid elongations of the Larsen Ice Shelf rift in recent years.
Satellite technologyScientists knew the calving event was imminent because of developments in satellite technology which have enabled them to watch the rift even during darkness and bad weather. The European Union Copernicus programme has developed a new two-satellite constellation, called Sentinel-1, operated by the European Space Agency, which has become indispensable for watching ice movement in the Polar Regions.
This pair of satellites is equipped with radar, and routinely collects and delivers images of the coast of Antarctica. By contrast to optical instruments the Sentinel-1 acquire images of the ice sheet under all weather conditions, even when Antarctica is shrouded in darkness.
Satellite image of Larsen C ice shelf with iceberg
Is this calving event caused by climate change?Professor Vaughan says: “There is little doubt that climate change is causing ice shelves to disappear in some parts of Antarctica at the moment. We see no obvious signal that climate warming is causing the whole of Antarctica to break up. However, around the Antarctic Peninsula, where we saw several decades of warming through the latter half of the 20th century, we have seen these ice shelves collapsing and ice loss increasing.
“There are other parts of the Antarctica that which are losing ice to the oceans but those are affected less by atmospheric warming and more by ocean change.
“Larsen C itself might be a result of climate change, but, in other ice shelves we see cracks forming, which we don’t believe have any connection to climate change. For instance on the Brunt Ice Shelf where BAS has its Halley Station, there those cracks are a very different kind which we don’t believe have any connection to climate change.”
An ice shelf is a floating extension of land-based glaciers which flow into the ocean. Because they already float in the ocean, their melting does not directly contribute to sea-level rise. However, ice shelves act as buttresses holding back glaciers flowing down to the coast.
During the recent Antarctic field season, a BAS glaciology research team was on Larsen C using seismic techniques to survey the seafloor beneath the ice shelf. Because a calving looked likely, as a precaution the team was unable to set up camp on the ice as usual. Instead they made daily field trips by aircraft supported from Rothera Research Station.
Antarctic Treaty – newly exposed areas through ice-shelf collapseIn 2010 an ‘Antarctic Treaty Meeting of Experts on Implications of Climate Change for Antarctic Management and Governance’, made a number of recommendations, including:
Recommendation 26: The ATME recommends, recognising the responsibilities of and need to coordinate with CCAMLR, that the CEP consider, and advise the ATCM accordingly, as to means by which automatic interim protection might be afforded to newly exposed areas, such as marine areas exposed through ice-shelf collapse.
Work to take this through CCAMLR was undertaken and led by scientists from BAS.
12 July, 2017: Media Release - British Antarctic Survey
After months of ‘hanging by a thread’ a vast iceberg the size of Norfolk has finally broken off Antarctica’s Larsen C Ice Shelf. Around 30 metres of this 190m thick block of ice sits above the sea surface.
Scientists now have opportunities to study the stability of the remaining ice shelf, as well as understanding how new biological communities might occupy the newly exposed ocean and underlying seabed areas.
At more than 6,000 km² in area, the new iceberg represents more than 10% of the ice shelf. This calving is dramatic but normal in the life cycle of an ice shelf. However, scientists will be looking to determine if loss of the iceberg will have any impact on the stability of the remaining ice shelf.
Throughout the Antarctic winter research teams, led by the University of Swansea and including researchers from British Antarctic Survey (BAS), monitored the progress of a 170 km long ice rift in the ice shelf using the European Space Agency (ESA) Copernicus Sentinel-1 satellites.
According to BAS remote sensing analyst Andrew Fleming, the satellite images have been critical for research planning.
He says: “This story has just got even more interesting. Our glaciologists will now be watching closely to see whether the remaining Larsen C Ice Shelf becomes less stable than before the iceberg broke free, and our biologists will be keen to understand how new habitats formed by the loss of the ice are colonised.”
Professor David Vaughan, glaciologist and Director of Science at British Antarctic Survey (BAS), said:
“Larsen A and B ice shelves, which were situated further north on the Antarctic Peninsula, collapsed in 1995 and 2002, respectively. This resulted in the dramatic acceleration of the glaciers behind them, with larger volumes of ice entering the ocean and contributing to sea-level rise. If Larsen C now starts to retreat significantly and eventually collapses, then we will see another contribution to sea level rise.
The calving event has potential opportunities for new studies of open ocean and seabed habitats. According to Drs Phil Trathan and Susie Grant of the BAS Conservation Biology team this calving event will provide unique scientific opportunities for understanding how new biological communities develop and how new species occupy the newly exposed area.
Dr Grant, a marine bio-geographer at BAS says:
“At the 2016 meeting of the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) there was international agreement that any newly exposed areas of ocean following ice shelf retreat or collapse could be automatically protected and designated as a Special Area for Scientific Research.”
Dr Trathan, Head of Conservation Biology adds:
“For this to happen the new environment must meet the specific criteria agreed by CCAMLR. If designated, this would restrict commercial fishing activities and provide a valuable opportunity for studying the new habitats created, including how species colonize the area and new communities develop.”
British Antarctic Survey scientists and their UK and international research collaborators have debated the cause of ice thinning on Larsen Ice Shelf for a decade. In 2015 they published an international study in the journal The Cryosphere. The research team combined satellite data and eight radar surveys captured during a 15-year period from 1998–2012. They found that Larsen C Ice Shelf lost an average of 4 metres of ice, and had lowered by an average of one metre at the surface. The study revealed that the ice shelf is thinning from both its surface and beneath, suggesting warming air temperatures and warmer ocean currents play a role. This recent finding was an important step forward in assessing Antarctica’s likely contribution to future sea-level rise.
Researchers from the UK-based MIDAS project, led by Swansea University, have reported several rapid elongations of the Larsen Ice Shelf rift in recent years.
Satellite technology
Scientists knew the calving event was imminent because of developments in satellite technology which have enabled them to watch the rift even during darkness and bad weather. The European Union Copernicus programme has developed a new two-satellite constellation, called Sentinel-1, operated by the European Space Agency, which has become indispensable for watching ice movement in the Polar Regions.
This pair of satellites is equipped with radar, and routinely collects and delivers images of the coast of Antarctica. By contrast to optical instruments the Sentinel-1 acquire images of the ice sheet under all weather conditions, even when Antarctica is shrouded in darkness.
Satellite image of Larsen C ice shelf with iceberg
Is this calving event caused by climate change?
Professor Vaughan says: “There is little doubt that climate change is causing ice shelves to disappear in some parts of Antarctica at the moment. We see no obvious signal that climate warming is causing the whole of Antarctica to break up. However, around the Antarctic Peninsula, where we saw several decades of warming through the latter half of the 20th century, we have seen these ice shelves collapsing and ice loss increasing.
“There are other parts of the Antarctica that which are losing ice to the oceans but those are affected less by atmospheric warming and more by ocean change.
“Larsen C itself might be a result of climate change, but, in other ice shelves we see cracks forming, which we don’t believe have any connection to climate change. For instance on the Brunt Ice Shelf where BAS has its Halley Station, there those cracks are a very different kind which we don’t believe have any connection to climate change.”
An ice shelf is a floating extension of land-based glaciers which flow into the ocean. Because they already float in the ocean, their melting does not directly contribute to sea-level rise. However, ice shelves act as buttresses holding back glaciers flowing down to the coast.
During the recent Antarctic field season, a BAS glaciology research team was on Larsen C using seismic techniques to survey the seafloor beneath the ice shelf. Because a calving looked likely, as a precaution the team was unable to set up camp on the ice as usual. Instead they made daily field trips by aircraft supported from Rothera Research Station.
Antarctic Treaty – newly exposed areas through ice-shelf collapse
In 2010 an ‘Antarctic Treaty Meeting of Experts on Implications of Climate Change for Antarctic Management and Governance’, made a number of recommendations, including:
Recommendation 26: The ATME recommends, recognising the responsibilities of and need to coordinate with CCAMLR, that the CEP consider, and advise the ATCM accordingly, as to means by which automatic interim protection might be afforded to newly exposed areas, such as marine areas exposed through ice-shelf collapse.
Work to take this through CCAMLR was undertaken and led by scientists from BAS.
Berrim Nuru Steps Onto Mt Keira Ring Track
Media release: 12 July 2017: NPWSThe National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) is working with Berrim Nuru, the environmental services branch of the Illawarra Local Aboriginal Land Council (ILALC), to restore a section of the Mt Keira Ring Track.
NPWS South Coast Area Manager Graham Bush said the northern section of the popular 5.5km walking track in the Illawarra Escarpment State Conservation Area is currently closed following a large rock fall.
“This project with Berrim Nuru is a step towards being able to eventually re-open the popular loop track to the public,” Mr Bush said.
“The work is challenging, due to the steep terrain and fragile environment on Mt Keira, but Berrim Nuru has completed construction of a new elevated part of the track that avoids permanent impacts on the rainforest.
“The new elevated section is just part of the work that is needed to ensure the whole loop track is once again safe for the public, but it is a very important start,” he said.
ILALC Chief Executive Paul Knight says he is delighted with the collaboration.
“Mt Keira is one of the Illawarra’s most important Aboriginal cultural sites, and the Aboriginal people have walked the Illawarra for over 20 thousand years,” said Mr Knight.
“This project has been a great opportunity to work together to provide sustainable access to traditional Aboriginal lands and to expand track building skills in our Berrim Nuru team,” he said.
Construction of several hundred new steps to complete the route will continue into the 2017-18 financial year, with work expected to be complete and the loop track re-instated during 2018.
The southern and western legs of the walk are still open, and other nearby walks include the Ken Ausburn, Dave Walsh and Robertson’s Lookout tracks.
Walkers are reminded, for their own safety, not to enter any track if signage indicates that it is closed.
NPWS and Berrim Nuru work on the Mt Keira Ring Track - IMAGE CREDIT: Office of Environment and Heritage
Media release: 12 July 2017: NPWS
The National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) is working with Berrim Nuru, the environmental services branch of the Illawarra Local Aboriginal Land Council (ILALC), to restore a section of the Mt Keira Ring Track.
NPWS South Coast Area Manager Graham Bush said the northern section of the popular 5.5km walking track in the Illawarra Escarpment State Conservation Area is currently closed following a large rock fall.
“This project with Berrim Nuru is a step towards being able to eventually re-open the popular loop track to the public,” Mr Bush said.
“The work is challenging, due to the steep terrain and fragile environment on Mt Keira, but Berrim Nuru has completed construction of a new elevated part of the track that avoids permanent impacts on the rainforest.
“The new elevated section is just part of the work that is needed to ensure the whole loop track is once again safe for the public, but it is a very important start,” he said.
ILALC Chief Executive Paul Knight says he is delighted with the collaboration.
“Mt Keira is one of the Illawarra’s most important Aboriginal cultural sites, and the Aboriginal people have walked the Illawarra for over 20 thousand years,” said Mr Knight.
“This project has been a great opportunity to work together to provide sustainable access to traditional Aboriginal lands and to expand track building skills in our Berrim Nuru team,” he said.
Construction of several hundred new steps to complete the route will continue into the 2017-18 financial year, with work expected to be complete and the loop track re-instated during 2018.
The southern and western legs of the walk are still open, and other nearby walks include the Ken Ausburn, Dave Walsh and Robertson’s Lookout tracks.
Walkers are reminded, for their own safety, not to enter any track if signage indicates that it is closed.
NPWS and Berrim Nuru work on the Mt Keira Ring Track - IMAGE CREDIT: Office of Environment and Heritage
JCU Scientists Produce A Hit Love Song For Toads
July 14, 2017
James Cook University researchers say they now know exactly what makes horny cane toads boogie. And the toad tune could help sound the death knell for the pests.
JCU’s Ben Muller placed cane toad ‘audio traps’ with differing characteristics at various sites in the Townsville region.
“We varied the sound they were playing to have different combinations of volume, frequency and pulse rate,” he said.
The team were particularly interested in attracting reproductive female toads (those carrying eggs).
“A female cane toad may lay upwards of 20,000 eggs per clutch so removing a single female with eggs from the population is more effective for control than removing a single male,” said Mr Muller.
He said that male cane toads did not appear to care what variation of volume, frequency and pulse rate were used, but female toads were much choosier.
“We found we could manipulate the proportion of females, and reproductive females, that we trapped by changing the calls used as lures.”
The scientists found that approximately 91% of the females trapped using a loud, low frequency tone with a high pulse rate were reproductive.
“We think that low frequency calls indicate to female toads that they are hearing a large-bodied male and the high pulse rate means the male making the call has high energy reserves. These things combine to make them believe they have found a good breeding partner,” he said.
Mr Muller said the finding may help suppress toad numbers, but it was not a silver bullet.
“Large-scale eradication of cane toads from mainland Australia using traps is probably not possible; however, eradication of island populations could be achievable if the trapping regime was correctly designed and implemented,” he said.
The research will be used by Animal Control Technologies Australia to help create a commercial trap.
Benjamin J Muller, Lin Schwarzkopf. Success of capture of toads improved by manipulating acoustic characteristics of lures. Pest Management Science, 2017; DOI: 10.1002/ps.4629
Ben Muller and a cane toad
July 14, 2017
James Cook University researchers say they now know exactly what makes horny cane toads boogie. And the toad tune could help sound the death knell for the pests.
JCU’s Ben Muller placed cane toad ‘audio traps’ with differing characteristics at various sites in the Townsville region.
“We varied the sound they were playing to have different combinations of volume, frequency and pulse rate,” he said.
The team were particularly interested in attracting reproductive female toads (those carrying eggs).
“A female cane toad may lay upwards of 20,000 eggs per clutch so removing a single female with eggs from the population is more effective for control than removing a single male,” said Mr Muller.
He said that male cane toads did not appear to care what variation of volume, frequency and pulse rate were used, but female toads were much choosier.
“We found we could manipulate the proportion of females, and reproductive females, that we trapped by changing the calls used as lures.”
The scientists found that approximately 91% of the females trapped using a loud, low frequency tone with a high pulse rate were reproductive.
“We think that low frequency calls indicate to female toads that they are hearing a large-bodied male and the high pulse rate means the male making the call has high energy reserves. These things combine to make them believe they have found a good breeding partner,” he said.
Mr Muller said the finding may help suppress toad numbers, but it was not a silver bullet.
“Large-scale eradication of cane toads from mainland Australia using traps is probably not possible; however, eradication of island populations could be achievable if the trapping regime was correctly designed and implemented,” he said.
The research will be used by Animal Control Technologies Australia to help create a commercial trap.
Benjamin J Muller, Lin Schwarzkopf. Success of capture of toads improved by manipulating acoustic characteristics of lures. Pest Management Science, 2017; DOI: 10.1002/ps.4629
Ben Muller and a cane toad
An Unusual Discovery Of The Endangered Glasshouse Banksia
Media release: 10 July 2017 - Office of Environment and Heritage (OEH)A new population of the critically endangered Glasshouse Banksia has been discovered in Coorabakh National Park, north-east of Taree.
Office of Environment and Heritage (OEH) Data Support Officer, Andrew Steed said the discovery was made while conducting soil sampling and plant monitoring in the area, as part of the conservation work being funded by the NSW Government's Saving our Species program.
"We were extremely surprised and excited to find the Glasshouse Banksia in a remote and mountainous area in Coorabakh National Park, as this plant usually prefers a different type of soil and geology," Andrew said.
"The Glasshouse Banksia was previously only known to live in a small area within this park as well as the Glass House Mountains in Queensland - so this new population is great news for this rare plant.
"We haven't counted the exact number of plants in this population as yet but we think it could be in the thousands, which is why we will go back later in the year."
During the research expedition, the group also found extensive populations of two other vulnerable plants - Big Nellie Hakea and the beautiful weeping Dracophyllum macranthum.
"This trip was very encouraging as finding more plant populations fills us with hope of being able to secure these endangered or vulnerable plants in the wild into the future," Mr Steed said.
"And we can't wait to get back to Coorabakh National Park for further monitoring - who knows what else we could find," he said.
The Glasshouse Banksia is an interesting looking shrub growing to four metres in height. Branchlets can vary in colour from orange to red or brown and its individual flowers are yellowish-green to pinkish-brown in bud and golden when open.
For more information on the Banksia conferta subsp. conferta please visit: Banksia conferta subsp. conferta - profile
For more information on the NSW Government's Saving our Species program, please visit: Saving our Species program
The glasshouse banksia. IMAGE CREDIT: Office of Environment and Heritage
Media release: 10 July 2017 - Office of Environment and Heritage (OEH)
A new population of the critically endangered Glasshouse Banksia has been discovered in Coorabakh National Park, north-east of Taree.
Office of Environment and Heritage (OEH) Data Support Officer, Andrew Steed said the discovery was made while conducting soil sampling and plant monitoring in the area, as part of the conservation work being funded by the NSW Government's Saving our Species program.
"We were extremely surprised and excited to find the Glasshouse Banksia in a remote and mountainous area in Coorabakh National Park, as this plant usually prefers a different type of soil and geology," Andrew said.
"The Glasshouse Banksia was previously only known to live in a small area within this park as well as the Glass House Mountains in Queensland - so this new population is great news for this rare plant.
"We haven't counted the exact number of plants in this population as yet but we think it could be in the thousands, which is why we will go back later in the year."
During the research expedition, the group also found extensive populations of two other vulnerable plants - Big Nellie Hakea and the beautiful weeping Dracophyllum macranthum.
"This trip was very encouraging as finding more plant populations fills us with hope of being able to secure these endangered or vulnerable plants in the wild into the future," Mr Steed said.
"And we can't wait to get back to Coorabakh National Park for further monitoring - who knows what else we could find," he said.
The Glasshouse Banksia is an interesting looking shrub growing to four metres in height. Branchlets can vary in colour from orange to red or brown and its individual flowers are yellowish-green to pinkish-brown in bud and golden when open.
For more information on the Banksia conferta subsp. conferta please visit: Banksia conferta subsp. conferta - profile
For more information on the NSW Government's Saving our Species program, please visit: Saving our Species program
The glasshouse banksia. IMAGE CREDIT: Office of Environment and Heritage
Avalon Boomerang Bags: An Idea That's Spreading To Stop Plastic Bag Use
Avalon Boomerang Bags
Tuesdays
11am-5pm @ sewcraft cook Unit 20/14 Polo Ave Mona Vale
Boomerang Bags is a bag-share initiative involving the installation of a number of ‘Boomerang Bag’ boxes throughout any given business district, shopping centre, street or market. Each box is stocked with re-useable bags for customers to borrow if they have forgotten to bring their own.
Unlike the traditional purchase-and-keep approach, Boomerang Bags are free, and local community members are responsible for returning the bags once they’re no longer required. The availability of free re-useable bags reduces the reliance of local businesses to supply bags to all customers, and encourages a mentality of re-use among local communities, thereby reducing the amount of plastic bag material entering our landfills and waterways.
So who makes the Boomerang Bags? Well, you do! Boomerang Bags are made by local communities for local communities, and are sewn from recycled and donated materials.
Get in touch if you'd like to donate materials, join us making bags, or implement Boomerang Bags in your own local area!
Tuesdays
11am-5pm @ sewcraft cook
Unit 20/14 Polo Ave Mona Vale
Boomerang Bags is a bag-share initiative involving the installation of a number of ‘Boomerang Bag’ boxes throughout any given business district, shopping centre, street or market. Each box is stocked with re-useable bags for customers to borrow if they have forgotten to bring their own.
Unlike the traditional purchase-and-keep approach, Boomerang Bags are free, and local community members are responsible for returning the bags once they’re no longer required. The availability of free re-useable bags reduces the reliance of local businesses to supply bags to all customers, and encourages a mentality of re-use among local communities, thereby reducing the amount of plastic bag material entering our landfills and waterways.
So who makes the Boomerang Bags? Well, you do! Boomerang Bags are made by local communities for local communities, and are sewn from recycled and donated materials.
Get in touch if you'd like to donate materials, join us making bags, or implement Boomerang Bags in your own local area!
Department Seeks Community Input On Improving Environmental Impact Assessments
Bushcare’s Major Day Out At Mona Vale 2017
Grants Of Up To $3 Million Available For Innovative Solutions For Organic Waste
The Clean Bin Project Screening
COAG Energy Council Agrees To Significant Reforms To The Electricity Sector
Gas Exports The Culprit For Electricity Price Hikes: The Audit - Electricity Update
Tapping Into Tidal Energy Technologies
First Bioregional Assessments Released
Petition: Rescind Adani's Unlimited Water License And Support Aussie Farmers!
Planning For The Future Of Royal National Park: Have Your Say
Have Your Say On Mallee Cliffs National Park Draft Plan Of Management
Update: Review Of Environmental Factors: Proposed Use And Upgrade Of Access Trail In Royal National Park For Bundeena Coast Eco Lodge
National Laws Needed As 5.5 Million Baby Boomers Retire
Streamlined My Aged Care Improves Consumer Support And Access
NUW Alliance Seeks Community Input To Shape NSW’s Future
July 14, 2017: NUW Alliance
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian at the NUW Alliance launch in Sydney.
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian has officially launched the NUW Alliance, a partnership between the universities of New South Wales, Newcastle and Wollongong dedicated to finding smart solutions to the State's biggest challenges.
Ms Berejiklian witnessed the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the three partners at a ceremony held in central Sydney.
UNSW President and Vice-Chancellor Professor Ian Jacobs said the NUW Alliance was a commitment by the three research-intensive universities to the future of the State.
“Universities have a leading role to play in the development of smart solutions,” Professor Jacobs said.
“The NUW Alliance will harness the combined power of the three institutions’ multidisciplinary research, education expertise and innovative thinking to explore and deliver ways to enhance equality of opportunity, create new jobs and generate economic growth.
“To date we have been looking at a number of areas where we believe we can make a difference, such as energy security, unlocking the benefits of big data, improving healthcare solutions and creating liveable communities. But we want to make sure we are meeting the needs of the communities we are aiming to serve.
“For that reason, we are opening up to communities for input on what they think the priorities of the Alliance should be.”
Front (L-R): Professor Ian Jacobs, UNSW Vice-Chancellor; Professor Carolie McMillen, UoN Vice-Chancellor; Professor Paul Wellings, UoW Vice-Chancellor. Rear (L-R): Mr Paul Jean, Chancellor UON; NSW Senator Concetta Fierravanti-Wells; Premier Gladys Berejiklian; Ms Jillian Segal, Deputy Chancellor UNSW; Ms Jillian Broadbent Chancellor UoW.
University of Newcastle President and Vice-Chancellor, Professor Caroline McMillen said the NUW Alliance was keen to understand what the challenges for communities were and where gaps in research and knowledge might be contributing to those challenges.
“Each of the universities in the NUW Alliance has distinct strengths in education, research and innovation that contribute to the economic prosperity and social well-being of the cities and regions they serve.
“By combining those strengths and directing them toward the big challenges facing our state, we will make an enduring and transformational impact on the future for our communities.”
University of Wollongong Vice-Chancellor, Professor Paul Wellings said the Alliance, which had a geographical reach from the Mid North Coast to the South Coast of NSW, was calling on the business, industry, education and health sectors to contribute their time and ideas to help identify transformational projects.
“The NUW Alliance demonstrates that our universities not only help our students reach their full potential, but also our communities,” Professor Wellings said.
“This is why it is important for us to consult widely to identify priorities in our communities so we can get to work in delivering smarter solutions for New South Wales.”
The consultation period – expected to last up to six months – will identify areas where the combined higher education ‘firepower’ can make a lasting difference to the ability of individuals, businesses and communities to thrive and prosper.
The broad community consultation follows consideration of NSW State Plan priorities and initial discussions between the three universities, which have canvassed opportunities to:- develop skills in critically important new sectors such as cyber security
- apply ‘Smart Cities’ technologies to improve the connectivity, productivity and liveability of our regional cities and coastal communities
- create greater access to higher education for stuL:izadents in regional and remote communities – including Indigenous students
- partner with health services to improve health outcomes for the community, including for some of the most disadvantaged groups in the state
For more information visit – www.nuwalliance.edu.au
How to have your sayThe NUW Alliance consultation paper outlines the goal, priorities and initial focus areas of the Alliance. We welcome your feedback on the proposed priorities and suggestions for areas of future collaboration.
Email your feedback to: engage@nuwalliance.edu.au
The initial consultation will be open until 30 November 2017.
Background- Centred around the Mid North Coast, Hunter, Central Coast, Sydney, Illawarra and South Coast regions, the area covered by the NUW Alliance is home to more than 25 per cent of Australia’s population and 75 per cent of NSW’s population.
- The Universities of Newcastle, New South Wales and Wollongong collectively teach more than 121,000 students in 25 campuses across NSW and overseas. Some 88,000 are domestic students and almost 33,000 are international onshore and offshore students.
- They collectively operate 14 innovation and entrepreneurship hubs from the Illawarra to the upper Hunter.
- In 2015, the three universities netted a combined research income of more than half a billion dollars, including more than $112 million from industry research partners.
July 14, 2017: NUW Alliance
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian at the NUW Alliance launch in Sydney.
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian has officially launched the NUW Alliance, a partnership between the universities of New South Wales, Newcastle and Wollongong dedicated to finding smart solutions to the State's biggest challenges.
Ms Berejiklian witnessed the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the three partners at a ceremony held in central Sydney.
UNSW President and Vice-Chancellor Professor Ian Jacobs said the NUW Alliance was a commitment by the three research-intensive universities to the future of the State.
“Universities have a leading role to play in the development of smart solutions,” Professor Jacobs said.
“The NUW Alliance will harness the combined power of the three institutions’ multidisciplinary research, education expertise and innovative thinking to explore and deliver ways to enhance equality of opportunity, create new jobs and generate economic growth.
“To date we have been looking at a number of areas where we believe we can make a difference, such as energy security, unlocking the benefits of big data, improving healthcare solutions and creating liveable communities. But we want to make sure we are meeting the needs of the communities we are aiming to serve.
“For that reason, we are opening up to communities for input on what they think the priorities of the Alliance should be.”
Front (L-R): Professor Ian Jacobs, UNSW Vice-Chancellor; Professor Carolie McMillen, UoN Vice-Chancellor; Professor Paul Wellings, UoW Vice-Chancellor. Rear (L-R): Mr Paul Jean, Chancellor UON; NSW Senator Concetta Fierravanti-Wells; Premier Gladys Berejiklian; Ms Jillian Segal, Deputy Chancellor UNSW; Ms Jillian Broadbent Chancellor UoW.
University of Newcastle President and Vice-Chancellor, Professor Caroline McMillen said the NUW Alliance was keen to understand what the challenges for communities were and where gaps in research and knowledge might be contributing to those challenges.
“Each of the universities in the NUW Alliance has distinct strengths in education, research and innovation that contribute to the economic prosperity and social well-being of the cities and regions they serve.
“By combining those strengths and directing them toward the big challenges facing our state, we will make an enduring and transformational impact on the future for our communities.”
University of Wollongong Vice-Chancellor, Professor Paul Wellings said the Alliance, which had a geographical reach from the Mid North Coast to the South Coast of NSW, was calling on the business, industry, education and health sectors to contribute their time and ideas to help identify transformational projects.
“The NUW Alliance demonstrates that our universities not only help our students reach their full potential, but also our communities,” Professor Wellings said.
“This is why it is important for us to consult widely to identify priorities in our communities so we can get to work in delivering smarter solutions for New South Wales.”
The consultation period – expected to last up to six months – will identify areas where the combined higher education ‘firepower’ can make a lasting difference to the ability of individuals, businesses and communities to thrive and prosper.
The broad community consultation follows consideration of NSW State Plan priorities and initial discussions between the three universities, which have canvassed opportunities to:
- develop skills in critically important new sectors such as cyber security
- apply ‘Smart Cities’ technologies to improve the connectivity, productivity and liveability of our regional cities and coastal communities
- create greater access to higher education for stuL:izadents in regional and remote communities – including Indigenous students
- partner with health services to improve health outcomes for the community, including for some of the most disadvantaged groups in the state
For more information visit – www.nuwalliance.edu.au
How to have your say
The NUW Alliance consultation paper outlines the goal, priorities and initial focus areas of the Alliance. We welcome your feedback on the proposed priorities and suggestions for areas of future collaboration.
Email your feedback to: engage@nuwalliance.edu.au
The initial consultation will be open until 30 November 2017.
Background
- Centred around the Mid North Coast, Hunter, Central Coast, Sydney, Illawarra and South Coast regions, the area covered by the NUW Alliance is home to more than 25 per cent of Australia’s population and 75 per cent of NSW’s population.
- The Universities of Newcastle, New South Wales and Wollongong collectively teach more than 121,000 students in 25 campuses across NSW and overseas. Some 88,000 are domestic students and almost 33,000 are international onshore and offshore students.
- They collectively operate 14 innovation and entrepreneurship hubs from the Illawarra to the upper Hunter.
- In 2015, the three universities netted a combined research income of more than half a billion dollars, including more than $112 million from industry research partners.
Most Effective Individual Steps To Tackle Climate Change Aren't Being Discussed
Ancient Plankton-Like Microfossils Span Two Continents
July 13, 2017
Lenticular organic microfossils in the Kromberg Formation, Onverwacht Group, Barberton Mountain Land of South Africa. Image shown is an optical photomicrograph of a polished thin section, taken in transmitted light. Credit: Dorothy Oehler on a sample provided by Maud Walsh (Louisiana State University)
Large, robust, lens-shaped microfossils from the approximately 3.4 billion-year-old Kromberg Formation of the Kaapvaal Craton in eastern South Africa are not only among the oldest elaborate microorganisms known, but are also related to other intricate microfossils of the same age found in the Pilbara Craton of Australia, according to an international team of scientists.
The researchers report that the "Kromberg Formation (KF) forms are bona fide, organic Archean microfossils and represent some of the oldest morphologically preserved organisms on Earth," in the July issue of Precambrian Research. They also state that the combination of morphology, occurrence and carbon isotope values argues that the lenticular forms represent microbes that had planktonic stages to their life cycles.
"We hoped to determine if, in fact, the South African examples could be linked with the Australian examples, as it would give us additional insight into the evolutionary history and significance of these unusual forms," said Dorothy Z. Oehler, senior scientist, Planetary Science Institute, Tuscon Arizona. "Maud (M. Walsh, professor of plant, environmental and soil sciences, Louisiana State University) first discovered the lenticular forms in the Kromberg formation and sent us some samples and we all collaborated on the interpretation. We did isotopic analysis along with comparison of the South African and Australian examples in terms of their morphologies and the types of rocks and geologic settings in which the fossils occurred."
These fossils all occur in sedimentary rocks -- chert -- in what was once shallow water. And, according to the researchers, it appears that the samples from two sites in Australia and one in South Africa are related.
"Many people believe that the Kaapvaal Craton of Southern Africa and the Pilbara Craton of Australia formed a single continent at that time," said Christopher H. House, professor of geosciences and director, Penn State Astrobiology Research Center. "But we really don't know."
These microfossils are unusual not only because they are so old, appearing in the geologic record about a billion years after Earth formed 4.6 billion years ago, but because they are large, complex, plankton-like and autotrophs -- organisms that can turn inorganic elements into organic material.
Familiar fossils such as trilobites were alive just 200 million years ago and first appeared 500 million years ago. The lenticular organisms appeared 3,450 million years ago, spread at least from where Australia was then to South Africa and then disappeared from the fossil record. They are larger and more elaborate than any other organism existing around at that time.
"These fossils don't appear to relate to anything on Earth that we know of," said House. "They seem to be an experiment in adaptation that does not leave a lineage."
The researchers analyzed the fossils to determine the isotopic relationship between carbon 12 and carbon 13, two isotopes of carbon that exist in everything but whose ratios can indicate organic material. They used Secondary Ion Mass Spectroscopy, a process where an ion beam kicks ions off the surface of a substance so that those ions can be identified.
"When the carbon isotope data came back we were excited," said Oehler. "It helped to confirm the biogenicity of the South African forms and told us that the organic microfossils from the three deposits were likely to represent organisms that were biologically related."
The researchers also note that the isotopic make up and morphology of these fossils set them apart from other microfossils found from the Precambrian -- 4,600 million years ago to 541 million years ago. These robust microorganisms existed for 400 million years and were abundant and widespread. Because they have thick robust walls and behave like plankton -- floating in the ocean surface waters -- they may have had an advantage for survival in the early Earth's higher ultraviolet radiation and sometimes chaotic environment, which was still being bombarded by large impacts.
Dorothy Z. Oehler, Maud M. Walsh, Kenichiro Sugitani, Ming-Chang Liu, Christopher H. House. Large and robust lenticular microorganisms on the young Earth. Precambrian Research, 2017; 296: 112 DOI:10.1016/j.precamres.2017.04.031
July 13, 2017
Lenticular organic microfossils in the Kromberg Formation, Onverwacht Group, Barberton Mountain Land of South Africa. Image shown is an optical photomicrograph of a polished thin section, taken in transmitted light. Credit: Dorothy Oehler on a sample provided by Maud Walsh (Louisiana State University)
Large, robust, lens-shaped microfossils from the approximately 3.4 billion-year-old Kromberg Formation of the Kaapvaal Craton in eastern South Africa are not only among the oldest elaborate microorganisms known, but are also related to other intricate microfossils of the same age found in the Pilbara Craton of Australia, according to an international team of scientists.
The researchers report that the "Kromberg Formation (KF) forms are bona fide, organic Archean microfossils and represent some of the oldest morphologically preserved organisms on Earth," in the July issue of Precambrian Research. They also state that the combination of morphology, occurrence and carbon isotope values argues that the lenticular forms represent microbes that had planktonic stages to their life cycles.
"We hoped to determine if, in fact, the South African examples could be linked with the Australian examples, as it would give us additional insight into the evolutionary history and significance of these unusual forms," said Dorothy Z. Oehler, senior scientist, Planetary Science Institute, Tuscon Arizona. "Maud (M. Walsh, professor of plant, environmental and soil sciences, Louisiana State University) first discovered the lenticular forms in the Kromberg formation and sent us some samples and we all collaborated on the interpretation. We did isotopic analysis along with comparison of the South African and Australian examples in terms of their morphologies and the types of rocks and geologic settings in which the fossils occurred."
These fossils all occur in sedimentary rocks -- chert -- in what was once shallow water. And, according to the researchers, it appears that the samples from two sites in Australia and one in South Africa are related.
"Many people believe that the Kaapvaal Craton of Southern Africa and the Pilbara Craton of Australia formed a single continent at that time," said Christopher H. House, professor of geosciences and director, Penn State Astrobiology Research Center. "But we really don't know."
These microfossils are unusual not only because they are so old, appearing in the geologic record about a billion years after Earth formed 4.6 billion years ago, but because they are large, complex, plankton-like and autotrophs -- organisms that can turn inorganic elements into organic material.
Familiar fossils such as trilobites were alive just 200 million years ago and first appeared 500 million years ago. The lenticular organisms appeared 3,450 million years ago, spread at least from where Australia was then to South Africa and then disappeared from the fossil record. They are larger and more elaborate than any other organism existing around at that time.
"These fossils don't appear to relate to anything on Earth that we know of," said House. "They seem to be an experiment in adaptation that does not leave a lineage."
The researchers analyzed the fossils to determine the isotopic relationship between carbon 12 and carbon 13, two isotopes of carbon that exist in everything but whose ratios can indicate organic material. They used Secondary Ion Mass Spectroscopy, a process where an ion beam kicks ions off the surface of a substance so that those ions can be identified.
"When the carbon isotope data came back we were excited," said Oehler. "It helped to confirm the biogenicity of the South African forms and told us that the organic microfossils from the three deposits were likely to represent organisms that were biologically related."
The researchers also note that the isotopic make up and morphology of these fossils set them apart from other microfossils found from the Precambrian -- 4,600 million years ago to 541 million years ago. These robust microorganisms existed for 400 million years and were abundant and widespread. Because they have thick robust walls and behave like plankton -- floating in the ocean surface waters -- they may have had an advantage for survival in the early Earth's higher ultraviolet radiation and sometimes chaotic environment, which was still being bombarded by large impacts.
Dorothy Z. Oehler, Maud M. Walsh, Kenichiro Sugitani, Ming-Chang Liu, Christopher H. House. Large and robust lenticular microorganisms on the young Earth. Precambrian Research, 2017; 296: 112 DOI:10.1016/j.precamres.2017.04.031
Income Directly Affects Children's Outcomes, Says New Report
New South Wales To Benefit From Bushfire Mitigation Funding
Ravens Can Plan Ahead, Similar To Humans And Great Apes
July 13, 2017
A raven uses the tool on the apparatus. Credit: Can Kabadayi and Mathias Osvath
Despite previous research that indicates such behaviors are unique to humans and great apes, a new study shows that ravens, too, can plan ahead for different types of events , and further, that they are willing to forgo an immediate reward in order to gain a better one in the future. As ravens and great apes have not shared a common ancestor for over 300 million years, these results suggest that the cognitive "planning" abilities they share in common re-appeared, on a separate evolutionary path, in the birds.
The complex cognitive task of planning ahead has almost exclusively been observed in humans and great apes. Some corvids, a family of birds that includes ravens, have also demonstrated the ability to plan beyond the current moment -- but such findings have been confined to caching food.
Here, Can Kabadayi and colleagues sought to further explore the ability of ravens to plan ahead through a series of experiments. First, ravens were trained to use a tool to open a puzzle box in order to access a reward. The ravens were then presented with the box, but not the tool. The box was removed and one hour later the ravens were given the opening tool, as well as several "distractors."
Nearly every raven chose the correct, apparatus-opening tool; upon being presented with the box 15 minutes later, they used the tool to open it, with a success rate of 86%. A high success rate (78%) was also seen in similar experiments where ravens used a token to later barter for a reward. The ravens planned for bartering more accurately than apes, the researchers report, and they were on par with them in the tool-using tasks, despite lacking predispositions for tool handling.
Next, the ravens were presented with the correct, apparatus-opening tool, distractor tools, and an immediate reward, but were only permitted to select one item. The immediate reward was less appealing than the reward in the box, the researchers report, demonstrating a level of self-control in the birds similar to that seen in apes.
Markus Boeckle, Nicola S. Clayton. A raven's memories are for the future. Science, July 2017 DOI: 10.1126/science.aan8802
July 13, 2017
A raven uses the tool on the apparatus. Credit: Can Kabadayi and Mathias Osvath
Despite previous research that indicates such behaviors are unique to humans and great apes, a new study shows that ravens, too, can plan ahead for different types of events , and further, that they are willing to forgo an immediate reward in order to gain a better one in the future. As ravens and great apes have not shared a common ancestor for over 300 million years, these results suggest that the cognitive "planning" abilities they share in common re-appeared, on a separate evolutionary path, in the birds.
The complex cognitive task of planning ahead has almost exclusively been observed in humans and great apes. Some corvids, a family of birds that includes ravens, have also demonstrated the ability to plan beyond the current moment -- but such findings have been confined to caching food.
Here, Can Kabadayi and colleagues sought to further explore the ability of ravens to plan ahead through a series of experiments. First, ravens were trained to use a tool to open a puzzle box in order to access a reward. The ravens were then presented with the box, but not the tool. The box was removed and one hour later the ravens were given the opening tool, as well as several "distractors."
Nearly every raven chose the correct, apparatus-opening tool; upon being presented with the box 15 minutes later, they used the tool to open it, with a success rate of 86%. A high success rate (78%) was also seen in similar experiments where ravens used a token to later barter for a reward. The ravens planned for bartering more accurately than apes, the researchers report, and they were on par with them in the tool-using tasks, despite lacking predispositions for tool handling.
Next, the ravens were presented with the correct, apparatus-opening tool, distractor tools, and an immediate reward, but were only permitted to select one item. The immediate reward was less appealing than the reward in the box, the researchers report, demonstrating a level of self-control in the birds similar to that seen in apes.
Markus Boeckle, Nicola S. Clayton. A raven's memories are for the future. Science, July 2017 DOI: 10.1126/science.aan8802
Why You Might Trust A Quantum Computer With Secrets, Even Over The Internet
July 12, 2017
It may be possible to control a quantum computer over the internet without revealing what you are calculating, thanks to the many possible ways that information can flow through a computation. That's the conclusion of researchers in Singapore and Australia who studied the measurement-based model of quantum computing, reported 11 July in the journal Physical Review X. Credit: Timothy Yeo / Centre for Quantum Technologies, National University of Singapore
Here's the scenario: you have sensitive data and a problem that only a quantum computer can solve. You have no quantum devices yourself. You could buy time on a quantum computer, but you don't want to give away your secrets. What can you do?
Writing in Physical Review X on 11 July, researchers in Singapore and Australia propose a way you could use a quantum computer securely, even over the internet. The technique could hide both your data and program from the computer itself. Their work counters earlier hints that such a feat is impossible.
The scenario is not far-fetched. Quantum computers promise new routes to solving problems in cryptography, modelling and machine learning, exciting government and industry. Such problems may involve confidential data or be commercially sensitive.
Technology giants are already investing in building such computers -- and making them available to users. For example, IBM announced on 17 May this year that it is making a quantum computer with 16 quantum bits accessible to the public for free on the cloud, as well as a 17-qubit prototype commercial processor.
Seventeen qubits are not enough to outperform the world's current supercomputers, but as quantum computers gain qubits, they are expected to exceed the capabilities of any machine we have today. That should drive demand for access.
"We're looking at what's possible if you're someone just interacting with a quantum computer across the internet from your laptop. We find that it's possible to hide some interesting computations," says Joseph Fitzsimons, a Principal Investigator at the Centre for Quantum Technologies (CQT) at the National University of Singapore and Associate Professor at Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD), who led the work.
Quantum computers work by processing bits of information stored in quantum states. Unlike the binary bits found in our regular (i.e., classical) computers, each a 0 or 1, qubits can be in superpositions of 0 and 1. The qubits can also be entangled, which is believed to be crucial to a quantum computer's power.
The scheme designed by Fitzsimons and his colleagues brings secrecy to a form of quantum computing driven by measurements.
In this scheme, the quantum computer is prepared by putting all its qubits into a special type of entangled state. Then the computation is carried out by measuring the qubits one by one. The user provides step-wise instructions for each measurement: the steps encode both the input data and the program.
Researchers have shown previously that users who can make or measure qubits to convey instructions to the quantum computer could disguise their computation. The new paper extends that power to users who can only send classical bits -- i.e. most of us, for now.
This is surprising because some computer science theorems imply that encrypted quantum computation is impossible when only classical communication is available.
The hope for security comes from the quantum computer not knowing which steps of the measurement sequence do what. The quantum computer can't tell which qubits were used for inputs, which for operations and which for outputs.
"It's extremely exciting. You can use this unique feature of the measurement-based model of quantum computing -- the way information flows through the state -- as a crypto tool to hide information from the server," says team member Tommaso Demarie of CQT and SUTD.
Although the owner of the quantum computer could try to reverse engineer the sequence of measurements performed, ambiguity about the role of each step leads to many possible interpretations of what calculation was done. The true calculation is hidden among the many, like a needle in a haystack.
The set of interpretations grows rapidly with the number of qubits. "The set of all possible computations is exponentially large -- that's one of the things we prove in the paper -- and therefore the chance of guessing the real computation is exponentially small," says Fitzsimons. One question remains: could meaningful computations be so rare among all the possible ones that the guessing gets easier? That's what the researchers need to check next.
Nicolas Menicucci at the Centre for Quantum Computation and Communication Technology at RMIT University in Melbourne, Australia, and Atul Mantri at SUTD, are coauthors on the work.
"Quantum computers became famous in the '90s with the discovery that they could break some classical cryptography schemes -- but maybe quantum computing will instead be known for making the future of cloud computing secure," says Mantri.
Atul Mantri, Tommaso F. Demarie, Nicolas C. Menicucci, Joseph F. Fitzsimons. Flow Ambiguity: A Path Towards Classically Driven Blind Quantum Computation. Physical Review X, 2017; 7 (3) DOI:10.1103/PhysRevX.7.031004
July 12, 2017
It may be possible to control a quantum computer over the internet without revealing what you are calculating, thanks to the many possible ways that information can flow through a computation. That's the conclusion of researchers in Singapore and Australia who studied the measurement-based model of quantum computing, reported 11 July in the journal Physical Review X. Credit: Timothy Yeo / Centre for Quantum Technologies, National University of Singapore
Here's the scenario: you have sensitive data and a problem that only a quantum computer can solve. You have no quantum devices yourself. You could buy time on a quantum computer, but you don't want to give away your secrets. What can you do?
Writing in Physical Review X on 11 July, researchers in Singapore and Australia propose a way you could use a quantum computer securely, even over the internet. The technique could hide both your data and program from the computer itself. Their work counters earlier hints that such a feat is impossible.
The scenario is not far-fetched. Quantum computers promise new routes to solving problems in cryptography, modelling and machine learning, exciting government and industry. Such problems may involve confidential data or be commercially sensitive.
Technology giants are already investing in building such computers -- and making them available to users. For example, IBM announced on 17 May this year that it is making a quantum computer with 16 quantum bits accessible to the public for free on the cloud, as well as a 17-qubit prototype commercial processor.
Seventeen qubits are not enough to outperform the world's current supercomputers, but as quantum computers gain qubits, they are expected to exceed the capabilities of any machine we have today. That should drive demand for access.
"We're looking at what's possible if you're someone just interacting with a quantum computer across the internet from your laptop. We find that it's possible to hide some interesting computations," says Joseph Fitzsimons, a Principal Investigator at the Centre for Quantum Technologies (CQT) at the National University of Singapore and Associate Professor at Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD), who led the work.
Quantum computers work by processing bits of information stored in quantum states. Unlike the binary bits found in our regular (i.e., classical) computers, each a 0 or 1, qubits can be in superpositions of 0 and 1. The qubits can also be entangled, which is believed to be crucial to a quantum computer's power.
The scheme designed by Fitzsimons and his colleagues brings secrecy to a form of quantum computing driven by measurements.
In this scheme, the quantum computer is prepared by putting all its qubits into a special type of entangled state. Then the computation is carried out by measuring the qubits one by one. The user provides step-wise instructions for each measurement: the steps encode both the input data and the program.
Researchers have shown previously that users who can make or measure qubits to convey instructions to the quantum computer could disguise their computation. The new paper extends that power to users who can only send classical bits -- i.e. most of us, for now.
This is surprising because some computer science theorems imply that encrypted quantum computation is impossible when only classical communication is available.
The hope for security comes from the quantum computer not knowing which steps of the measurement sequence do what. The quantum computer can't tell which qubits were used for inputs, which for operations and which for outputs.
"It's extremely exciting. You can use this unique feature of the measurement-based model of quantum computing -- the way information flows through the state -- as a crypto tool to hide information from the server," says team member Tommaso Demarie of CQT and SUTD.
Although the owner of the quantum computer could try to reverse engineer the sequence of measurements performed, ambiguity about the role of each step leads to many possible interpretations of what calculation was done. The true calculation is hidden among the many, like a needle in a haystack.
The set of interpretations grows rapidly with the number of qubits. "The set of all possible computations is exponentially large -- that's one of the things we prove in the paper -- and therefore the chance of guessing the real computation is exponentially small," says Fitzsimons. One question remains: could meaningful computations be so rare among all the possible ones that the guessing gets easier? That's what the researchers need to check next.
Nicolas Menicucci at the Centre for Quantum Computation and Communication Technology at RMIT University in Melbourne, Australia, and Atul Mantri at SUTD, are coauthors on the work.
"Quantum computers became famous in the '90s with the discovery that they could break some classical cryptography schemes -- but maybe quantum computing will instead be known for making the future of cloud computing secure," says Mantri.
Atul Mantri, Tommaso F. Demarie, Nicolas C. Menicucci, Joseph F. Fitzsimons. Flow Ambiguity: A Path Towards Classically Driven Blind Quantum Computation. Physical Review X, 2017; 7 (3) DOI:10.1103/PhysRevX.7.031004
Everyday Chemicals In Plastics Linked To Chronic Disease In Australian Men
July 12, 2017: University of Adelaide
Chemicals found in everyday plastics materials are linked to cardiovascular disease, type-2 diabetes and high blood pressure in men, according to Australian researchers.
Researchers from the University of Adelaide and the South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute (SAHMRI) investigated the independent association between chronic diseases among men and concentrations of potentially harmful chemicals known as phthalates.
The results of the study are now published in the international journal Environmental Research.
Phthalates are a group of chemicals widely used in common consumer products, such as food packaging and wrappings, toys, medications, and even medical devices.
Researchers found that of the 1500 Australian men tested, phthalates were detected in urine samples of 99.6% of those aged 35 and over.
"We found that the prevalence of cardiovascular disease, type-2 diabetes and high blood pressure increased among those men with higher total phthalate levels," says senior author Associate Professor Zumin Shi, from the University of Adelaide's Adelaide Medical School and the Freemasons Foundation Centre for Men's Health, and a member of SAHMRI's Nutrition & Metabolism theme.
"While we still don't understand the exact reasons why phthalates are independently linked to disease, we do know the chemicals impact on the human endocrine system, which controls hormone release that regulate the body's growth, metabolism, and sexual development and function.
"In addition to chronic diseases, higher phthalate levels were associated with increased levels of a range of inflammatory biomarkers in the body," he says.
Age and western diets are directly associated with higher concentrations of phthalates. Previous studies have shown that men who ate less fresh fruit and vegetables and more processed and packaged foods, and drank carbonated soft drinks, have higher levels of phthalates in their urine.
"Importantly, while 82% of the men we tested were overweight or obese -- conditions known to be associated with chronic diseases -- when we adjusted for this in our study, the significant association between high levels of phthalates and disease was not substantially altered," Associate Professor Shi says.
"In addition, when we adjusted for socio-economic and lifestyle factors such as smoking and alcohol, the association between high levels of phthalates and disease was unchanged."
Associate Professor Shi says that although the studies were conducted in men, the findings are also likely to be relevant to women.
"While further research is required, reducing environmental phthalates exposure where possible, along with the adoption of healthier lifestyles, may help to reduce the risk of chronic disease," he says.
Peter Y. Bai, Gary Wittert, Anne W. Taylor, Sean A. Martin, Robert W. Milne, Alicia J. Jenkins, Andrzej S. Januszewski, Zumin Shi. The association between total phthalate concentration and non-communicable diseases and chronic inflammation in South Australian urban dwelling men. Environmental Research, 2017; 158: 366 DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2017.06.021