School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
Faculty of Engineering, Architecture and Information Technology
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Recent News
August, 2019: Post Doctoral Researchers/Resercah Associates/PhD Candidates
A/Prof Abeyratne is accepting (2021) post-doctoral researchers/covering the areas of: pattern recognition, machine learning, respiratory sound analysis, digital signal processing and smart phone programming. Qualified students are invited to apply for PhD scholarships on a competitve basis.
June 2021:
Snore sound based Sleep Apnea diagnostics intellectual property developed by Dr. Udantha Abeyratne and his team are available for commercialisation. The technology is the culmination of 20 years of ground breaking work leading to four patent applications including two granted ones in the USA (the rest are under examination at various stages) and a large portfolio of peer reviewed publications in international scholarly journals. A Matlab implementation of re-trainable technology and performance comparions against American Academy of Sleep Medicine scoring critera of 2007 (AASM 2007) are available. Prior comparisons on Chicago Criteria ("AASM 1999") are also available via peer-reviewed literature. Our software models indicate that the technology can diagnose sleep apnea at a sensitivity and specificity approching that of a standard facility-based polysomnography (sensitivity, specificity around 90%, 90%-- cross validation studies). Note that the model development data sets available to us (n=100 approx) had been scored per AASM 2007 clinical criteria. Thus, the resulting models require a straight-forward re-training (re-calibration) process on AASM 2012 data before they can be used on subjects diagnosed under AASM 2012 criteria (which is the clinical scoring standard in effect since 2012).
Assoc./Prof. Udantha Abeyratne is the inventor of the cough-sound based respiratory diagnosis technology (ResApp Health Ltd. (ASX: RAP)) and snore sound based sleep apnea diagnosis technology SnoreSounds.
He earned a PhD (Biomedical Engineering) from Drexel University, USA, and MEng and BScEE degrees in Electrical & Electronic Engineering from Tokushima U, Japan and U Peradeniya, (video here) Sri Lanka respectively. He also received formal post-graduate training in Higher Education (Grad Cert , U of Queensland, Australia) and Paediatric Sleep Science (Grad Cert., U of Western Australia, Australia). He is a Senior Member of the Institute of Electrical & Electronic Engineers (IEEE, USA), and a full Member of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM).
Dr. Abeyratne started his research career with a paper on coding techniques for low-bandwidth communication channels. His master's thesis was on a machine learning approach to the human brain activity analysis using electroencephalography (EEG, Brain Waves) and evoked potentials. This approach won the best paper award in ISBET Brain Topography Conference (Osaka, Japan, 1990) and also placed Dr. Abeyratne as a finalist at the Young Investigators' Competition in IFMBE World Congress on Medical Physics and Biomedical Engineering, 1991 (Kyoto, Japan). He completed his PhD (1996) with Prof. Athina Petropulu as the advisor, working on Higher-Order-Spectra and medical ultrasound imaging. The thesis developed slice-based low-complexity algorithms for blind signal identification, tumor detection in ultarsound images, and image deconvolution.
Teaching Activities:
Assoc/Prof. Abeyratne has designed and taught university level courses on digital signal processing, electronic circuits, medical and general instrumentation, medical signal processing, medical imaging, control systems, project management and electromagnetic waves. He has supervised both undergraduate and postgraduate dissertation thesis projects in these areas. Within the last decade five students supervised by him won competitive awards at the UQ Innovation Expo.
Current Research Profile:
Assoc./Prof. Abeyratne's research interests encompass digital signal processing, machine learning, medical instrumentation, medical imaging, electrophysiology, bio-signal analysis and electronics. Over the last two decades A/Prof. Abeyratne has conceptualized, initiated and led the development of a number of innovative technologies funded by prestigious granting agencies such as the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Australian Research Council and the A*-Star Singapore. His research programmes are characteristic of unorthodox approaches resulting in pioneering outcomes that produced spin-off companies, patents and scholarly publications. His research has recieved multiple peer accolades at the international level.
1. Electronic Instrument Design: hand-held ultrasound devices for medical, agricultural and industrial use; stethoscopes for the 21st century (The "Magithescope(c)", winner of two UQ Expo awards in 2013, 2014); biomimetic sensing devices (e.g. electronic nose, e-tongue), low-cost, portable electronic devices ("Tricoders") for diagnosing diseases such as apnea, asthma, pneumonia; wearable electrophysiological devices; real-time fatigue measurement and warning systems; hand-held instruments for the condition monitoring of machinery such as power transformers. Development of diagnostic and treatment devices for sleep apnea. Dr. Abeyratne is especially interested in developing accurate, multi-purpose and low-cost in-situ decision devices for applications in resource-poor regions of the world.
2. Diagnostic and Treatment Technology for Sleep Disorders: speech-like analysis of snore and breathing sounds; sleep diagnostic instrument design; sleep polysomnography, brain wave (EEG) analysis in sleep, quantification of fatigue and sleepiness; sleep apnea; design of apnea treatment devices (CPAP, dental devices); interaction of apnea and chronic diseases. mHealth approaches in sleep diagnostics. A/Prof. Abeyratne pioneered speech-like processing of respiratory sounds, leading to patents, papers and a spin-off company. He conceptualized and led the development of EEG based technology to quantifiy sleepiness in real-time in actual work environments. Outcomes of this program have recieved wide coverage in international media outlets due to its groundbreaking nature and the potential impact.
3. Respiratory Diagnostic Technology: diagnostic instrumentation and algorithm design for respiratory illnesses such as pneumonia, bronchiolitis, asthma, bronchiectasis and COPD; cough sound analysis in respiratory medicine; imaging technology for respiratory diagnosis; Portable diagnostic technologies and mHealth approaches for remote resource-poor areas of the world. About 1 million children below the age of 5 yrs die every year of pneumonia alone, mainly in remote resource-poor areas of the world. Poor access to diagnostics and medical treatment are the major reasons for pneumonia fatalities. A/Prof. Abeyratne proposed a ground-breaking new technology to diagnose pneumonia centred about cough sound analysis. For this research Dr. Abeyratne received funding from UQ, UniQuest and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which lauded the project (Page 4) as an exmaple for an innovative idea with high impact. Outcomes led to scholarly publications and contributed to patents as well as a spinoff company by UQ.
4. Signal Processing and Machine Intelligence: the analysis of bio-signals such as electroencephalography (EEG), electromyography (EMG); speech and industrial sound analysis, bowel sound analysis and the characterisation of inflammatory bowel disease; cardiovascular signal processing, source localization and blind source separation, higher order spectra, wavelets, pattern recognition, classifier design. Developing technology for monitoring the condition of Left Ventricular Assist Devices (LVAD).
5. mHealth: research on smart phone and other consumer devices as a platform for healthcare delivery. A/Prof Abeyratne is actively engaged in developing mHealth diagnostic solutions, including translating and customising sleep and respiratory technologies. He is also in the process of expanding the work to include meaningful deployment of the technology in both the developed and developing worlds, in collaboration with international NGOs, experts in community medicine, and the UQ spin-off companies resulting from the research program. New national and international collaborations are currently being negotiated to fund and facilitate this work.
The Research Team, Past & Present:
Associate professor Udantha Abeyratne, Dr. Keegan Kosasih (Past PhD graduate); Dr Duleep Herath (past PhD gradute, )Dr. Shahin Akhter (Past PhD graduate), Dr. Vinayak Swarnkar (Past PhD graduate ); Dr. Yusuf Amrulloh (Past PhD graduate); Dr. Shaminda de Silva (Past PhD graduate); Dr. Samantha Karunajeewa (Past PhD graduate); Dr. Suren Rathnayake (Past PhD graduate), Dr. Xiao Di (Past PhD graduate), Dr. T. Emoto (Past PhD work in UQ while at UT), ; Mrunal Markendeya (Current PhD Student); Karen McCloy (current PhD student), Ajith Wakwella (Past MPhil graduate); Lee Teck Hock (Past MPhil Graduate), Tang Xiaoyan (Past MPhil Graduate), Dr. Zhang Guanglan (Past MPhil Graduate), Dr. Syed Adnan (Past MPhil Graduate) and many past and present dissertation thesis students.
Research Collaborators:
Dr. Craig Hukins & Brett Duce (Princess Alexandra Hospital), Prof. Y. Kinouchi & Dr. T. Emoto (U of Tokushima, Japan), Dr. Sarah Biggs (Monash), Dr.Simon Smith (QUT), Dr. Chandima Ekanayake (Griffith U), Dr. Paul Porter (PMH Hospital), Prof. Anne Chang (Menzies School of Health Reserach, CDU), Dr. Scott Mckenzie (Princess Charles Hospital), Dr. Nirmal Weeresekera (JKMRC, UQ), Dr. Rina Triasih (Gadjah Mada U, Indonesia), Dr. K. Puvanendran (1998-2002: Singapore General Hospital, Singapore), Prof.Stanislaw Gubanski (Chalmers U, Sweden).
Dr Saeed Akhlaghpour is an Associate Professor of Information Systems at UQ Business School. Prior to joining the University of Queensland in 2015, he held academic positions at Middlesex University London (UK), and McGill University (Canada) - where he also obtained his PhD in Management.
Saeed is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy. He teaches Master of Commerce, MBA, and executive education courses. Previously, he has taught courses such as IT for Business Value, e-Marketing Strategy and Social Media, International Business Environments, and Managing Data & Databases to MBA and undergraduate business students in Brisbane, London, Montreal, and Tehran.
Saeed’s research has been published in top-tier academic outlets including the American Journal of Sociology, Journal of the Association for Information Systems, Journal of Information Technology, Information and Organization, Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association, International Journal of Medical Informatics, International Journal of Information Management, Journal of Business Research, and the Best Paper Proceedings of Academy of Management. His articles are cited in the EU policy documents and have received research and impact awards from the Administrative Sciences Association of Canada, and the Australasian chapter of the Association for Information Systems (AIS).
His research interests include:
Data protection, privacy and cybersecurity (particularly, organisational response to data breaches, and managing personal health information (PHI))
Digital health and transformation of healthcare services
Diffusion and adoption of digital innovations (particularly, management and IT fashions)
Saeed is a Chief Investigator in an Australian Research Council (ARC) funded Linkage Project studying Digital Hospital implementation in Queensland hospitals and health services. He received the UQ Business School Cross Cross-Disciplinary Research Award in 2021.
He is currently a Section Editor of the Australasian Journal of Information Systems, Associate Editor of the Asia Pacific Journal of Information Systems (APJIS), and Editorial Board member of Information and Organization (I&O), International Journal of Medical Informatics, and Journal of Electronic Commerce in Organizations. He co-chairs the Digital Health Care track at the Australasian Conference on Information Systems (ACIS), and the AI in Business & Society track at the International Conference on Information Systems (ICIS) (https://icis2023.aisconferences.org/track-descriptions/#toggle-id-10)
Prof David Ascher is currently an NHMRC Investigator and Director of the Biotechnology Program at the University of Queensland. He is also Head of Computational Biology and Clinical Informatics at the Baker Institute.
David’s research focus is in modelling biological data to gain insight into fundamental biological processes. One of his primary research interests has been developing tools to unravel the link between genotype and phenotype, using computational and experimental approaches to understand the effects of mutations on protein structure and function. His group has developed a platform of over 40 widely used programs for assessing the molecular consequences of coding variants (>7 million hits/year).
Working with clinical collaborators in Australia, Brazil and UK, these methods have been translated into the clinic to guide the diagnosis, management and treatment of a number of hereditary diseases, rare cancers and drug resistant infections.
David has a B.Biotech from the University of Adelaide, majoring in Biochemistry, Biotechnology and Pharmacology and Toxicology; and a B.Sci(Hon) from the University of Queensland, majoring in Biochemistry, where he worked with Luke Guddat and Ron Duggleby on the structural and functional characterization of enzymes in the branched-chain amino acid biosynthetic pathway. David then went to St Vincent’s Institute of Medical Research to undertake a PhD at the University of Melbourne in Biochemistry. There he worked under the supervision of Michael Parker using computational, biochemical and structural tools to develop small molecules drugs to improve memory.
In 2013 David went to the University of Cambridge to work with Sir Tom Blundell on using fragment based drug development techniques to target protein-protein interactions; and subsequently on the structural characterisation of proteins involved in non-homologous DNA repair. He returned to Cambridge in 2014 to establish a research platform to characterise the molecular effects of mutations on protein structure and function- using this information to gain insight into the link between genetic changes and phenotypes. He was subsequently recruited as a lab head in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at the University of Melbourne in 2016, before joining the Baker Institute in 2019 and the University of Queensland in 2021.
He is an Associate Editor of PBMB and Fronteirs in Bioinformatics, and holds honorary positions at Bio21 Institute, Cambridge University, FIOCRUZ, and the Tuscany University Network.
Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation
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In my PhD I analysed and modelled biophysical processes (light interception, transpiration and photosynthesis) and their relationships in apple and pear trees during the growing season and at different levels of plant water status. During this time I collaborated in the upgrade of a functional-structural peach model (L-PEACH). Later I focused my research on the effect of carbohydrates on grapevine and berry growth, as well as the effects of light, temperature and VPD on carbon assimilation and transpiration both at leaf and canopy level.
Currently, I am undertaking research on improving management practices in avocado, macadamia and mango. I am focused on studying architecture, vegetative vigour, crop load and light interception using functional-structural plant modelling to understand the interactions between management practices, environmental factors, plant carbon balance and growth.
Micheal holds the position of Senior Lecturer (Business Information Systems) in the UQ Business School, University of Queensland (UQ), and acts in the role of Deputy Director Teaching & Learning (Commerce Suite of Programs) for the UQ Business School.
Micheal is an experienced IS professional and accountant (FCPA of CPA Australia) with fifteen years’ experience in the area of IS consulting. This experience and career includes the evaluation of IS projects, IS audit and IT management and governance. Micheal’s published research is in the areas of the use of intelligent decision aids, Information Systems (IS) audit, and Information Technology (IT) governance. Prior to receiving his PhD, Micheal chaired the IT & Management Centre of Excellence for CPA Australia. Professionally, Micheal is a Fellow of CPA Australia and a member of the Australian Computer Society, ISACA, the Association for Information Systems, and the Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand.
Micheal has more than 15 years industry experience as a Director in an IS consulting practice with public, private, and community sector organizations as clients. He has significant experience in facilitating development programs, and currently teaches into the UQ Master of Business Administration program, the Master of Business, the Master of Business Analytics, and the Master of Commerce program at UQ. Micheal’s professional experience as an accountant, as a Director in the area of IS Consulting, and IS research expertise provides a strong foundation for delivering engaging educational programs and business-relevant research at the UQ Business School.
Lemi Baruh (Ph.D. University of Pennsylvania, Annenberg School for Communication, 2007) is a Senior Lecturer at the School of Communication and Arts at the University of Queensland. He is the co-founder of the Social Interaction and Media Lab at Koç University, Istanbul. His research spans various topics, including the effects of social media on interpersonal attraction, surveillance, online security, privacy in online environments, and the role of media in shaping public opinion. His recent work also investigates misinformation and conspiracy theories in the context of health communication, with a particular focus on the COVID-19 pandemic and the influence of news and social media on public perceptions and behaviors related to health.
School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
Faculty of Engineering, Architecture and Information Technology
Availability:
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Susan is a research academic within the Human Centred Computing group in the School of Information Technology and Electrical Engineering (ITEE). She has a B.InfoTech, Data Comms and Info Systems (Honours) awarded 1st Class. She has just submitted her thesis, and when conferred will complete her PhD degree in Information Systems Theory at QUT. Her thesis explores the dyadic phenomenon of nodes in culturally different social media networks, with implications in the design of information systems. Her research centres on Aboriginal peoples' design methods in human computer interaction; specifically within cultural learning contexts, including languages.
Susan's thesis, which explores the dyadic phenomenon of culturally different network nodes, extends social media network theories. The impact of Susan's Indigenist research extends Eurocentric designed virtual, interactive and immersive spaces and process incl. AI, XR and emerging technologies. As Ngemba Wiradjuri and grown up on Country her lived experience of social, institutional and political dimensions that impact Aboriginal peoples lives in Australia enables Susan to critically analyse and reflect on all aspects, reflexively throughout her research.
Along with esteemed national and international Indigenous academics, Susan is a Chief Investigator on the $35,000,000 ARC Centre of Excellence for Indigenous Futures and won a highly competitve Science & Technology Australia's #SuperstarsOfStem program. Susan is also a guest Academic Editor for Information Systems Journal (ISJ) and Journal of Australian Indigenous Issues (JAIIS).
Current research collaborations with Aboriginal peoples:
explores technology as a networking tool for Ballardong/Whadjuk (urban WA) and Ngemba (very remote NSW) community members on Country and in the diaspora, including the design, build and embedding of community cultural hubs. These are Knowledge (Data) Centres that have a holistic view of ancestral and contemporary Knowledges. Cultural hubs contribute to continuing, developing, consolidating and teaching the protection rehabilitation and restoration of cultural Knowledges and artefacts. This relates to languages, environmental and ecological communities across our waters, lands and skies. Elders and Knowledge rangers connected through Drone, AI, XR technologies, identify and connect Cultural Knowledges with local, national and global initiatives, innovation and solutions. Critical to the design and development is the specific Kinship lore of each community to ensure Kinship Intellectual Property remains with the individual, family and/or community. Outcomes facilitate individual and community digital entrepreneurship centred on Aboriginal Knowledge sovereignty and economic independence for Aboriginal communities in Australia.
Professor Pierre Benckendorff is an award-winning researcher specialising in visitor behaviour, technology enhanced learning and tourism. He has held several teaching and learning leadership positions at The University of Queensland and James Cook University in Australia. His experience includes coordinating a team of teaching and learning staff, program quality assurance and accreditation, and curriculum reviews of undergraduate and postgraduate coursework programs in business, tourism, hospitality and event management. He has developed and taught undergraduate and postgraduate courses in introductory tourism management, international tourism, tourist behaviour, tourism and leisure futures, tourism transportation, tourism operations, tourism technologies, tourism analysis, business skills and marketing communications.
Pierre has been actively involved in a number of national teaching and learning projects totalling close to AUD 1 million in grant funding. In 2007, he received a national Carrick citation for outstanding contributions to student learning. Pierre was part of the national team that developed the Learning and Teaching Academic Standards for Tourism, Hospitality and Events and has continued to co-lead efforts to embed and measure these standards under the auspices of CAUTHE. He is currently the co-chair of knowledge creation for the BEST Education Network and in this capacity, has worked with the World Travel and Tourism Council to edit a book of international cases based on Tourism for Tomorrow award finalists and winners. He is the co-editor of the Handbook of Teaching and Learning in Tourism. Pierre serves regularly as an external reviewer of tourism programs in Australia and overseas institutions.
His research interests include visitor behaviour, tourism information technologies, and tourism education and training. He has authored over 80 publications in these areas in leading international journals and is a regular speaker at tourism research conferences. He is on the editorial board of several leading tourism journals and is a regular reviewer of papers. He has also co-authored one of the leading textbooks on tourism and information technology. He has served as a judge for the Queensland Tourism Awards as well as the Australian Tourism Awards. His passion for travel and tourism has taken him to some of the world’s leading theme parks and airports, the major cities of Europe and North America, the African Savannah and the bustling streets of Asia. He has also travelled extensively throughout Australia and New Zealand.
School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
Faculty of Engineering, Architecture and Information Technology
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Dr Alina Bialkowski is a computer vision & machine learning researcher developing interpretable machine learning models to increase the performance and transparency of Artificial Intelligence (AI) decision-making. Her research interests include quantifying and extracting actionable knowledge from data to solve real-world problems and giving human understanding to AI models through feature visualisation and attribution methods. She has applied these techniques to various multi-disciplinary applications such as medical imaging (including imaging strokes in the brain using the new sensing modality of electromagnetic imaging), modelling human attention in driving, intelligent transport systems (ITS), intelligent surveillance, and sports analytics.
Dr Bialkowski holds a PhD and BEng (Electrical Engineering) from the Queensland University of Technology, Australia. Her doctoral studies were in characterising group behaviours from visual and spatio-temporal data to enhance statistics and visualisation in sports analytics as well as intelligent surveillance systems. She spent a year at Disney Research Pittsburgh where she developed techniques to automatically analyse team sports, followed by 2.5 years as a postdoctoral researcher at the University College London, developing deep neural networks to better understand human perception and attention in driving, before joining UQ in late 2017.
The impact of her research is evidenced by the high number of citations to her work (>1600 citations and an h-index of 20 according to Google Scholar) and awards including a best paper prize in 2017 at WACV (a top computer vision conference). In addition to high impact journals and conferences, her work has resulted in 6 international patents filed with Disney Research, Toyota Motor Europe, University College London, and The University of Queensland.
Mikael Bodén has a PhD in Computer Science and statistical machine learning from the University of Exeter (UK) but has spent the last decade and a half in biological research environments, including the Institute for Molecular Bioscience/ARC Centre of Excellence in Bioinformatics and the School of Chemistry and Molecular Biosciences, where he is currently located. He is the director of UQ’s postgraduate program in bioinformatics. Mikael Bodén has supervised 7 postdocs from funding he received from both ARC and NHMRC; he has been the primary advisor for 11 PhD and 3 MPhil graduates; he is currently supervising another 6 PhD students in bioinformatics and computational biology. Mikael Bodén collaborates with researchers in neuroscience, developmental biology, protein engineering and bioeconomy to mention but a few, and contributes expertise in the processing, analysis and integration of biological data; this is exemplified by recent publications in Science, Nature Catalysis, Nature Communications, Cell Systems, Nucleic Acids Research and Bioinformatics.
School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
Faculty of Engineering, Architecture and Information Technology
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Dr Steffen Bollmann joined UQ’s School of Electrical Imaging and Computer Science in 2020 where he leads the Computational Imaging Group. The Group is developing computational methods to extract clinical and biological insights from magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data. The aim is to make cutting-edge algorithms and tools available to a wide range of clinicians and researchers. This will enable better images, faster reconstruction times and the efficient extraction of clinical information to ensure a better understanding of a range of diseases. Dr Bollmann was appointed Artificial Intelligence (AI) lead for imaging at UQ’s Queensland Digital Health Centre (QDHeC) in 2023.
His research expertise is in quantitative susceptibility mapping, image segmentation and software applications to help researchers and clinicians access data and algorithms.
Dr Bollmann completed his PhD on multimodal imaging at the University Children’s Hospital and Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) Zurich, Switzerland.
In 2014 he joined the Centre for Advanced Imaging at UQ as a National Imaging Facility Fellow, where he pioneered the application of deep learning methods for quantitative imaging techniques, in particular Quantitative Susceptibility Mapping.
In 2019 he joined the Siemens Healthineers collaborations team at the MGH Martinos Center in Boston on a one-year industry exchange where he worked on the translation of fast imaging techniques into clinical applications.
Pascal's research interests are diversified over various aspects of the Earth system, including geology, geomorphology, climate, soil and anthropogenic modifications in the context of spatial data analysis and interpretation.
Pascal holds a BSc in Geography from the University of Hamburg (Germany), a MSc in Earth Sciences from the University of Hamburg (Germany) and a PhD from the Queensland University of Technology (Brisbane, Australia). His PhD research on multi-method sediment provenance analysis focussed on the integration of U-Pb thermo- and geochronometer with novel techniques in image analysis and dimension reduction methods. The project was in cooperation with the Geological Survey of Queensland (DoR, GSQ) and the Geological Survey of New South Wales (GSNSW).
Over the last 10 years Pascal has worked with Geographic Information Systems (GIS) in the context of teaching, academic research and for industry applications. He is proficient on a variety of GIS software platforms including ArcMap, ArcGIS Pro, QGIS and SAGA.
Ivano is a researcher, consultant, author, and speaker whose work focuses on the managerial and business implications of Cybersecurity.
He is the General Manager of AUSCERT, a not-for-profit organisation affiliated with UQ that delivers cybersecurity services to public and private sector organisations across Australia and New Zealand.
Ivano is also a Senior Lecturer in Cybersecurity Management with the UQ Business School and a member of UQ Cyber.
Ivano helps business leaders and executives make evidence-based decisions in cybersecurity. With a professional background in risk and security management, Ivano’s work bridges the gap between technical cybersecurity and its repercussions across organisations. He has advised ministers, policy-makers, board members, and senior executives on strategies, governance structures, policies, and training programs for effective cybersecurity management. Ivano is also an experienced facilitator in the fields of Design Thinking and Design-Led innovation, having run since 2015 more than 50 design-led workshops and longer projects for public and private sector organisations.
Prior to AUSCERT and UQ, Ivano worked as a Research Fellow with the Adam Smith Business School (University of Glasgow) and a Postdoctoral Fellow with the PwC Chair in Digital Economy (QUT). In this role, he worked with public and private sector organisations in projects aimed at facilitate their transition into the Digital Age. Ivano obtained his PhD from QUT in 2016, with a thesis on safety and security management in Australian airports. His academic career includes stints with Bocconi University and SDA Bocconi School of Management (Milan), where he worked as a faculty member and consultant for three years.
He also worked as a Deputy Venue Security Manager at the XX Winter Olympic Games - Turin 2006 and as a Police Officer for the Italian Ministry of Interior.
He has a double MSc in Management of Public Administrations and International Institutions (Bocconi University, Milan) and International Security (Sciences Po, Paris).
A father of one and an eager snowboarder, Ivano loves soccer, American football, and writing novels and poems.
Edgar Brea is a Researcher and Lead Data Scientist at UQ Business School and Australia’s Food and Beverage Accelerator (Innovation Pathways program), where he leads industry-led initiatives supporting the development of novel products through the use of AI to derive data-driven insights. Edgar holds a PhD in Innovation Management from The University of Queensland, as well as a Master of Technology and Innovation Management and a Bachelor of Computer Systems Engineering. He has over 12 years of consulting and research experience providing guidance on the development and management of technological innovation, and has worked with organisations from a variety of industries including banking, oil and gas, food and beverage, bioinformatics, as well as science organisations such as the CSIRO.
His research focuses on the intersection of technology, innovation, and strategic management, particularly in the context of AI and digital technologies. He explores the implications of these technologies on problem-solving, organizational dynamics, and innovation processes in teams and organisations. His work also seeks to understand the roles of various actors in technological ecosystems, the broader implications of AI for novelty emergence at commercial and societal scales, and effective management strategies for technology and innovation.
Dr Christoph Breidbach is Associate Professor of Business Information Systems at UQ Business School, where he also serves as Co-Lead of the UQ Service Innovation Alliance Research Hub and as Associate Director PRME Industry Engagement. He previously held positions at The Unversity of Melbourne, the University of California Merced, and was a visiting researcher at IBM’s Almaden Research Center.
Associate Professor Breidbach is internationally recognised for his sustained contributions to the Service Science field. Specifically, his program of research contributes to our understanding of how digital technologies transform professional, financial, or health services, and resulted in over 50 peer-reviewed publications in leading outlets to date, including the Journal of the Association for Information Systems [ABDC-A*], Information Systems Journal [ABDC-A*], The Journal of Strategic Information Systems [ABDC-A*], Organizational Research Methods [ABDC-A*], Journal of Service Research [ABDC-A*], MIS Quarterly Executive [ABDC-A], as well as in the ICIS, ECIS, PACIS and HICSS Proceedings.
The sustained esteem for his work is evident through a ‘Distinguished Member Award’ (2019) by the Association for Information Systems (AIS), the premier global association for BIS research and practice, appointment to the Advisory Council of the INFORMS Service Science section, or invitations to present keynotes and research seminars at conferences and universities in the USA, Germany, Sweden, Iran, UK, and New Zealand. In addition, Associate Professor Breidbach serves on the Editorial Boards of the Journal of Service Research, Journal of Service Theory and Practice, as well as the Journal of Business Research, led the AIS Special Interest Group Services as elected President from 2018-2021, and recently commenced a three-year tenure as Associate Editor at Information Systems Journal.
He successfully secured over $1 million in external research funding as Chief Investigator from ARC Linkage, Innovation Connections, National Industry PhD grants, or direct industry funding.
Research Awards:
Best Short Paper Award, European Conference on Information Systems (ECIS), 2024
Paul Gray Award for the ‘Most Thought-Provoking Paper’ Communications of the Association for Information Systems, 2020
Distinguished Member Award, Association for Information Systems (AIS), 2019
Outstanding Paper Award, Journal of Service Theory and Practice, 2018
Outstanding Paper Award, Managing Service Quality, 2015
Best Paper of the Year, INFORMS Service Science, 2014
Best Paper Award, Naples Forum on Service, 2013
Lifetime Membership, Beta Gamma Sigma, 2013
Leadership and Service Awards:
SIGSVC Leadership Award, Association for Information Systems, 2022
Award for Outstanding Contribution as Track Chair, European Conference on Information Systems, 2021
Research Team Engagement Award, UQ Business School, 2019
Outstanding Reviewer Award, Journal of Service Theory and Practice, 2016
Outstanding Contributions in Reviewing Award, Journal of Business Research, 2015
Teaching Awards:
Award for Innovation in Assessment Design, UQ Business School, 2021
Teaching Excellence Award, The University of Melbourne, 2015
Liam is an Associate Professor in Telehealth and Director of Telehealth Technology for the University of Queensland’s Centre for Online Health.
Liam has a PhD in Medicine. His research is centred on pragmatic trials of telehealth services. Liam has a special interest in the use of telehealth for Indigenous health and rural health care delivery. He is involved in telehealth service development, delivery and evaluation across a broad range of telehealth services. Liam uses implementation research principles to understand why telehealth services work well in some scenarios and not others. He evaluates the effectiveness of telehealth from multi-disciplinary perspectives including clinical effectiveness, patient perspectives, economic aspects, organisational aspects, and socio-cultural, ethical and legal aspects.
Liam also has an active research agenda in health informatics, in particular, in imaging informatics. Liam’s work focusses on skin imaging for melanoma detection. Liam chairs dermatology working group for the DICOM standards development organisation as well as the technology standards working group for the International Skin Imaging Collaboration: Melanoma Project. This project is an academia and industry partnership designed to facilitate the application of digital skin imaging to help reduce melanoma mortality. Liam is technology lead for the Australian Centre of Excellence in Melanoma Imaging and Diagnosis. Liam has previously been a member of the Standards Australia IT-014 Health Informatics technical committees for telehealth and messaging and communication.
Liam is Vice-President of the Australian Telehealth Society and an executive member of the International Teledermatology Society.
Liam has 25 years industry experience as a health informatician. His immediate past role was the Manager of Medical Imaging Informatics at the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital. Previously, Liam had over a decade’s clinical experience as a diagnostic radiographer.
Faculty of Engineering, Architecture and Information Technology
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Before joining the University of Queensland, Dave P. Callaghan held positions within industry including Parsons Brinckerhoff and Lawson and Treloar and research sector including Nederlands Instituut voor Ecologie and the University of Queensland. He is an observer of the Queensland Water Panel and active in the newly created Australian Hydraulic Modelling Association. He is the author of a book section and more than 50 other technical documents with applied and research applications. He is a consultant to private and government organisations. He has worked recently with private and government organisations to improve understanding of extreme coastal weather responses. He is recognised for leading edge research in coastal engineering including statistics of extremes, beach erosion from extreme events, physical and biological interactions of salt marshes and coral reefs, lagoon dynamics and wave propagation.
I am a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Digital Health and Accredited Practising Dietitian (APD) interested in the prevention and management of noncommunicable diseases, especially obesity, across the lifecourse.
Through research, I aim to add health to life and equity to health by changing policies and practices to reduce the impact of obesity.
My research program aims to forge a new nexus across dietetics, digital health and public health to improve healthy weight. In my Postdoctoral Fellowship, I have established a new evidence base that supports precision public health approaches to the prevention and management of obesity, including innovate methods of public health surveillance that can use data from sources such as electronic medical records. I trained as a Paediatric Dietitian and have experience as a clinician-researcher working in Queensland's healthcare system, specifically in preventing and managing childhood obesity via clinical, community, and public health programs.
I have used epidemiology, public health informatics, action research, co-design, and ethnographic methods to generate new knowledge in obesity and digital health. I was awarded my PhD (UQ) in November 2020, which developed and validated i-PATHWAY, a clinical model to predict childhood obesity from the first 1,000 days to help guide its prevention. This research was the first of its kind in Australia and uncovered new evidence for risk factors for childhood obesity that are evident from the early years.
At The University of Queensland (UQ), I am a member of the Queensland Digital Health Centre, located within the Centre for Health Services Research (Faculty of Medicine). I established and currently Co-Chair the UQ Digital Health HDR Cohort, which provides research mentorship and support to ~20 PhD, MPhil and Honours research students.
Our team partners closely with multiple healthcare and research organisations across Australia to innovate and translate obesity research into practice, including Health and Wellbeing Queensland (public health and prevention of chronic diseases), Queensland Health (healthcare system) and the Digital Health Cooperative Research Centre (digital health research). I hold an Honorary Appointment with Health and Wellbeing Queensland, and an Affiliate Research Fellow position with the Faculty of Medicine (UQ) to help bridge the gap between obesity research and practice.
