Deakin University

About: Deakin University is a education organization based out in Burwood, Victoria, Australia. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Context (language use). The organization has 12118 authors who have published 46470 publications receiving 1188841 citations. The organization is also known as: Deakin.

Drawing to Learn in Science.

Abstract: Should science learners be challenged to draw more? Certainly making visualizations is integral to scientific thinking. Scientists do not use words only but rely on diagrams, graphs, videos, photographs, and other images to make discoveries, explain findings, and excite public interest. From the notebooks of Faraday and Maxwell ( 1 ) to current professional practices of chemists ( 2 ), scientists imagine new relations, test ideas, and elaborate knowledge through visual representations ( 3 – 5 ).

Migratory Animals Couple Biodiversity and Ecosystem Functioning Worldwide

Abstract: Animal migrations span the globe, involving immense numbers of individuals from a wide range of taxa. Migrants transport nutrients, energy, and other organisms as they forage and are preyed upon throughout their journeys. These highly predictable, pulsed movements across large spatial scales render migration a potentially powerful yet underappreciated dimension of biodiversity that is intimately embedded within resident communities. We review examples from across the animal kingdom to distill fundamental processes by which migratory animals influence communities and ecosystems, demonstrating that they can uniquely alter energy flow, food-web topology and stability, trophic cascades, and the structure of metacommunities. Given the potential for migration to alter ecological networks worldwide, we suggest an integrative framework through which community dynamics and ecosystem functioning may explicitly consider animal migrations.

Objectively measured light- intensity physical activity is independently associated with 2-h plasma glucose

Abstract: Objective : We examined the associations of objectively measured sedentary time, light-intensity physical activity, and moderate- to vigorous-intensity activity with fasting and 2-h postchallenge plasma glucose in Australian adults. Research Design and Methods : A total of 67 men and 106 women (mean age ± SD 53.3 ± 11.9 years) without diagnosed diabetes were recruited from the 2004–2005 Australian Diabetes, Obesity, and Lifestyle (AusDiab) study. Physical activity was measured by Actigraph accelerometers worn during waking hours for 7 consecutive days and summarized as sedentary time (accelerometer counts/min Results : After adjustment for confounders (including waist circumference), sedentary time was positively associated with 2-h plasma glucose ( b = 0.29, 95% CI 0.11–0.48, P = 0.002); light-intensity activity time ( b = –0.25, –0.45 to –0.06, P = 0.012) and moderate- to vigorous-intensity activity time ( b = –1.07, –1.77 to –0.37, P = 0.003) were negatively associated. Light-intensity activity remained significantly associated with 2-h plasma glucose following further adjustment for moderate- to vigorous-intensity activity ( b = –0.22, –0.42 to –0.03, P = 0.023). Associations of all activity measures with fasting plasma glucose were nonsignificant ( P > 0.05). Conclusions : These data provide the first objective evidence that light-intensity physical activity is beneficially associated with blood glucose and that sedentary time is unfavorably associated with blood glucose. These objective data support previous findings from studies using self-report measures, and suggest that substituting light-intensity activity for television viewing or other sedentary time may be a practical and achievable preventive strategy to reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

The relationship between TQM practices, quality performance, and innovation performance: An empirical examination

Abstract: This empirical study examines the relationship between total quality management (TQM) and innovation performance and compares the nature of this relationship against quality performance. The empirical data were obtained from a survey of 194 managers in Australian industry encompassing both manufacturing and non‐manufacturing sectors. The structural equation modeling technique was used to examine the relationships between TQM and quality performance as well as innovation performance, simultaneously. The findings suggest that TQM significantly and positively relates to both product quality and product innovation performance although it appears that the magnitude of the relationship is greater against product quality. In addition, significant causal relationships between quality performance and innovation performance were found, suggesting that achievement of one aspect of performance could impact the other.