Science & Technology Research

UNE is internationally recognised and we're renowned for our research of particular significance to rural and regional communities. We are the nation's university of choice for research into regional issues of global significance.

UNE again achieved outstanding results for its research quality as published in the latest Excellence in Research Australia (ERA) rankings. UNE continues to demonstrate international leadership in a number of established and emerging areas of strength. UNE and the School of Science and Technology in particular received 'Well above world standard' rankings for research in the fields of Mathematical Sciences, Pure Mathematics, Macromolecular and Materials Chemistry and Human Movement and Sports Science.

Research strengths

The School of Science and Technology offers a unique combination of pure and applied sciences, encompassing physics, chemistry, biomedical sciences, mathematics, computer science, statistics and exercise and sports science.

Our staff contribute to a wide range of 'flagship' areas across of the University including environmental and rural sciences, health and medical science, psychology and education.

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Our research groups

Applied Agricultural Remote Sensing Centre 

The Applied Agricultural Remote Sensing Centre (AARSC) is producing significant results in transforming agricultural production systems that benefit growers. These advances involve building strong ongoing collaborations between industry, agricultural agencies and researchers. Over the past five years, the AARSC has evolved into a highly committed team delivering outcomes to a large number of industries, and is exploring opportunities for international expansion.

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Brain-Behaviour Research

The Brain-Behaviour Research Group is a collaboration of researchers from various backgrounds, who share an interest in understanding the links between overt and covert behaviour, brain processes and 'mental' disorders. Although several of the current research projects are concerned with basic biomedical issues and procedures, the overwhelming focus is upon the translation of the outcomes of these processes to clinical applications, particularly in mental health settings.

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Chemistry Research

UNE has a strong tradition of research and teaching in chemistry across the breadth of the discipline. We are proud that in the 2015 ERA (Excellence in Research Australia), chemistry at UNE was recognised as above world-class in macromolecular and materials chemistry.

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Computational Science

Computational Science is a multidisciplinary, young and exciting field. It can be thought of as a convergence of mathematical modelling, advanced computing and data analysis techniques for the understanding and solving of complex real-world problems. Unlike traditional approaches in science and engineering that depend heavily on theory and laboratory experimentation, computational science relies on high-performance computer simulation and other forms of computations, including numerical analysis and theoretical computer science, to come up with novel solution to problems found in various scientific disciplines.

Computational science research at UNE spans a number of related areas. We focus on intelligent vision systems and remote sensing technologies, differential equations and applications in science and engineering, individual-based and hybrid modelling approaches, computational neuroscience, machine learning, computational statistics and big data analytics.

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Mathematical Sciences Interdisciplinary Research

UNE has a proven record in supporting and producing high quality mathematical research, as evidenced by ERA (Excellence in Research for Australia) 2018 ratings of 5 (well above world standard) in Mathematical Sciences and Pure Mathematics. This research group, with particular research strength in partial differential equations and geometry, performs research across a broad range of theory and applications, covering topics of multidisciplinary nature using methods from mathematics, statistics and computational science.

Research of this group has been supported by several ARC discovery grants and involves intensive collaboration with leading researchers around the world."

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Neuroscience and Animal Behaviour

The group conducts research over a variety of species, including invertebrates and birds to answer questions of perceptual processing, communication, cognition, brain lateralization, development and memory in animals, investigating interactions of brain mechanisms and behaviour.

The group no longer accepts new PhD students but both founders, now emerited, are actively engaged in research and related activities and can be contacted separately. Em. Prof. Lesley Rogers currently works on lateralization of bees in conjunction with a laboratory at the University of Trento, Italy and Em. Prof. Gisela Kaplan continues research and writing on communication and cognition in native avian species, including authorship of books and regular invitations as a speaker at relevant national and international conferences.

To find out more please contact Professor Lesley Rogers and Professor Gisela Kaplan.

Precision Agriculture

The Precision Agriculture Research Group (PARG) is a multi-disciplinary team of academic, research and technical staff engaged in the development and application of sensors and practices in precision agriculture. Our staffs come from diverse backgrounds and are based in numerous academic Schools across the university. The group, initially formed in 2002, runs numerous externally-funded research projects involving organisations such as the Cooperative Research Centre for Spatial Information (CRCSI), Grape & Wine Research & Development Corporation (GWRDC), Sugar Research and Development Corporation (SRDC), Grains Research and Development Corporation (GRDC) and Meat and Livestock Australia (MLA). PARG is well equipped with some of the latest (including newly developed) sensors and positioning technology for conducting fieldwork. We are committed to industry-led research and research-led teaching. We value our extensive network of end-user collaborators and strive to maintain a line of sight to fit-for-purpose solutions. Our undergraduate, as well as postgraduate research students are exposed to the latest, as well as tried and true methodologies and technologies available for crop, pasture, and more recently livestock management. UNE also offers Australia's only dedicated Graduate Certificate in Precision Agriculture.

Find out more about Precision Agriculture.

Read about our SMART Farm.

Smart Farm

SMART farm is UNE's research, education and outreach facility for UNE-led advances in agriculture research & development worldwide showcasing the latest on-site technologies.

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STEM Education Research Group

The STEM Education Research Group focusses on the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) as it relates to science education. The group can help support interested staff and students to undertake STEM education research by providing resources, seminars, showcases and new educational technologies. The groups aim is to promote STEM education research both nationally and internationally.

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X-ray Physics and Imaging

Our research group's objective is to conduct internationally competitive research in the field of X-ray imaging. We specialise in the development of next generation imaging methodology, novel applications of existing methodology, and the creation of state-of-the-art X-ray image analysis algorithms. Topics actively pursued include X-ray phase-contrast imaging and tomography, coherent diffractive imaging, diffraction tomography, phase retrieval, small angle scattering, and image segmentation. With our collaborators we are also investigating applications in biomedical imaging, materials characterisation, non-destructive testing, and soil science. The techniques that we are developing have a wide range of applicability in many scientific and engineering areas.

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