GEMOC ARC National Key CentreDirector's preface
This report summarises GEMOC’s his report summarises gemoc’s 2007 activities including research, technology development, strategic applications and industry interaction, international links and teaching (at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels). The report is required as part of GEMOC’s formal annual accounting to the Australian Research Council (ARC). The ARC acknowledges GEMOC as a continuing ARC National Key Centre while GEMOC attracts sufficient income to fund its activities and achieve its annual goals, and submits an Annual Report fulfilling ARC reporting requirements.
The GEMOC Annual Report is available from our website as a downloadable pdf file or in html format, and by mail as a CD on request. Our previous Annual Reports are also available at that web address, as well as a consolidated version of all GEMOC’s Research Highlights for 11 years.
Early in 2006, Macquarie’s new Vice-Chancellor, Professor Steven Schwartz, designated GEMOC as one of Macquarie’s CoREs (Concentrations of Research Excellence) and allocated 5 new academic positions (ranging from Level B to E) to extend and enhance our research profile. Advertisements were placed for applicants in the fields of rheology of rocks and minerals; geochemical analysis, lithosphere and Earth dynamics; geophysical imaging of Earth’s interior; dynamic modelling of Earth’s mantle; isotope and trace element geochemistry; cosmochemistry and meteoritics. These places have now been filled; Professor Bill Griffin, Dr Tracy Rushmer and Dr Craig O’Neill commenced in 2007 and are introduced on pages 7 and 8. Two more CoRE staff (Dr Bruce Schaefer and Dr Juan Carlos Afonso) will arrive shortly and will be profiled in the 2008 Report. A sixth position for a geophysicist is currently being advertised, and Professor Simon Turner has just been allocated a seventh CoRE position.
GEMOC was again successful with ARC Discovery and Linkage Projects commencing in 2007 (reported in Appendix 5 and in the section on Industry Interaction). Collaborative research with industry continues to provide invaluable access to data, resources and samples for worldwide localities relevant to mantle and crust evolution projects. The combination of the new CoRE positions from Macquarie, funding from government competitive schemes, leverage of resources and expertise through collaborative projects with industry partners, strategic alliances with technology and instrument manufacturers, and international links and alliances provides a robust range of resources and income sources. Commercialisation ventures such as the marketing of GLITTER software expand this resource portfolio and enhance GEMOC’s global recognition. GLITTER has now become the industry standard for reduction of laser-ablation ICPMS data, with systems operating in more than 110 laboratories worldwide and contributing to the development of uniform analytical protocols.
GEMOC has been highly visible in its research outputs throughout 2007 with 42 international refereed publications (see Appendix 2) including 35 in high impact journals (as recognised internationally by the Thomson Impact Scale) including Nature, Geology, Earth and Planetary Science Letters, Journal of Petrology and Earth-Science Reviews. GEMOC also had prominent representation at all peak relevant conferences with keynote, invited and presented lectures, and featured on the ABC “Catalyst” program (see “Communications” on pages 13-15 and Appendix 4). Our postgraduate students again had a high participation rate in international conferences, evidence of the vigorous postgraduate environment that continues to grow and attract students worldwide.
2008 will be another challenging year - the beginning of a new phase with new directions as the CoRE staff enhance our research expertise and widen our goals.
GEMOC has been highly visible throughout 2006 in its representation at peak relevant conferences and specialist workshops with many Keynote and Invited lectures (see Appendix 4 and Communications)
Suzanne Y. O'Reilly