From a successful round two outcome in the ARC 2021 Linkage Projects scheme to Distinguished Professor titles, see where our colleagues have been recognised in the month of March.
GRANTS
John Templeton Foundation
Professor Greg Downey from the School of Social Sciences, Dr Alexander James Gillett and Emeritus Professor John Sutton from the Department of Philosophy, alongside their team, have been successful in a grant of $3,244,981 USD from the John Templeton Foundation for their project “Concepts in Dynamic Assemblages: Cultural Evolution and the Human Way of Being”. The participants represent the fields of anthropology (biological, cultural, and archaeological), archaeology, cognitive science, philosophy, and data visualization. The project has two foci: 1) the development of an integrative model of cultural evolution centered on Concepts in dynamic assemblages, and 2) applying this model to three key issues: a) how humans use their bodies and senses, b) how Concepts involving the perceptions of self and others shape human societies, and c) how the basal capacity for and reliance on technology developed.
ARC 2021 Linkage Projects scheme round two outcomes
Associate Professor Donna Houston, Associate Professor Kate Lloyd, Dr Miriam Williams and Dr Justine Lloyd from the School of Social Sciences have been successful in round two of the ARC 2021 Linkage Projects scheme, receiving $254,046 for their project 'The power of public spaces to connect communities and places'. The project aims to uncover the vital role of public spaces during COVID-19 and in a time of climate change. The project adopts a collaborative framework to build dialogue, bridge academic and industry practice and promote debate about how to sustain public spaces now and in the future. Expected outcomes include new understandings of the diversity of community connections to public space and the importance of Indigenous leadership in public space-making and design. Benefits include an interactive website that will communicate new roles for public space and provide a valuable resource for communities, educators and governments.
AWARDS
UCLA Honorarium
Professor Niloufer Selvadurai from Macquarie Law School, alongside Professor Joshua Fairfield from Washington and State University, has been awarded an Honorarium by the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) for their paper on the governance of blockchain-enabled smart contracts. The paper, titled ‘Governing the interface between natural and formal language in smart contracts’, seeks to design robust legal rules for the interface between natural language contracts and formal language programs. The regulation of blockchain based contracts is a critical but under-researched area. It is hoped that this paper will prompt a global conversation. Niloufer will present the findings at the 2022 UCLA Spring Symposium on technology law. UCLA is one of the leading technology law universities in the world, with established and long-standing connections to the Silicon Valley tech communities.
ACHIEVEMENTS
Distinguished Professor
Congratulations to Wendy Rogers who was recently awarded the prestigious Distinguished Professor title, and to Professor Naguib Kanawati who has had his title renewed for another term. The title Macquarie University Distinguished Professor is awarded to eminent Professors of exceptional distinction who have made an outstanding contribution to their field or discipline and to Macquarie University.
Fellow of the Royal Society of NSW
Professor Shawn Ross has recently been elected as a Fellow of the Royal Society of NSW. Shawn has been internationally recognised for research and development in digital approaches to field research, as well as contributions to understanding the long-term history and archaeology of Greece and Bulgaria. The category of Fellow recognises the substantial contribution made by residents of NSW who are leaders in their fields within the disciplines of science, art, literature and philosophy.