2014 Australian Museum Eureka Prizes winners

Professor Graham Edgar and Dr Rick Stuart-Smith, University of Tasmania

Reef Life Survey provides a new perspective for scientists and managers on the magnitude and distribution of threats occurring out-of-sight underwater. The survey applies the skills and commitment of highly trained recreational divers to collect data on population trends of thousands of marine species across geographic scales impossible for traditional scientific dive teams to cover.

SEARCH Project, University of Melbourne

SEARCH (South-eastern Australian Recent Climate History) was a landmark project that drew together a world-class team of climate scientists, water managers and historians to extend our record of natural climate variability in the Australian region. The team uncovered a comprehensive picture of our climate history over the past 1000 years, a feat not achieved before.

Hendra Virus Research Team, CSIRO

The work of Dr Deborah Middleton and her team has led to the development of the first horse vaccine and human treatment for the Hendra virus. Until this breakthrough the Hendra virus was an unmanaged emerging infectious disease. This vaccine provides Australia, and the world, with the first targeted tools to protect people and animals against this deadly virus.

DIY Droplet Lens, Garvan Institute of Medical Research and Australian National University

The traditional light microscope is bulky and expensive. Dr Tri Phan and Dr Steve Lee used gravity to manufacture high-performance polymer lenses. These can be seamlessly integrated with 3D printing and mini-LEDs to produce a cheap, portable microscope device that is digital and web-enabled to transform smartphones into mobile laboratories, all for just $2 each.

Associate Professor Simon Ho, University of Sydney

Evolutionary biologist Simon Ho has made major contributions and developed new methods in the field of ‘molecular clocks’. These are a way of estimating evolutionary rates and timescales from DNA sequences using statistical models. Professor Ho has made a huge impact on understanding variation in evolutionary rates at the genetic level.

Tim Lyons, One Atmosphere

When a helicopter crashes into water, fatalities will more likely be caused by drowning than the impact of the crash. Tim Lyons has invented the Pegasus ABS (Aircraft Buoyancy System) which is a lightweight post-crash emergency buoyancy system designed to increase survivability following a helicopter crash in water.

B-cell Team, Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research

Antibody is essential for long-term protection against infection, but the production and maintenance of the cells responsible is remarkably complex. Professor Philip Hodgkin’s team fostered a unique approach for solving this problem that revealed how different immune cells are made and how they survive for long periods.

Dr John Kirkegaard and Dr James Hunt, CSIRO and Stuart Kearns, Grains Research and Development Corporation

The Water Use Efficiency Initiative has provided leadership for the Australian grains industry. The initiative has delivered innovative farming systems science and achieved widely adopted and profound impact on crop productivity and sustainability, as well as environmental benefits through the implementation of achievable practice change for growers.

Dr Adriana Downie, Pacific Pyrolysis Pty Ltd.

Dr Adriana Downie is a scientist, engineer, academic and entrepreneur who passionately leads the way towards her clear vision of contributing to a sustainable future with biochar technology. She upholds a solid publication record while effectively mobilising fellow researchers, industry partners, government bodies, environmental NGOs and international collaborators.

Professor Terence Speed, Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research

Professor Terry Speed has played a major role in building Australia’s capacity in bioinformatics research through outstanding leadership for science and mentoring in the fields of mathematics, statistics and genetics. His passion for advocating interdisciplinary collaboration and fostering diversity makes him one of the most respected leaders in science worldwide.

Professor Maree Teesson, UNSW

Professor Maree Teesson’s passion for mentoring and nurturing the next generation of researchers has been instrumental in positioning Australia at the forefront of the discipline of mental health and substance use internationally. Professor Teesson’s vision and drive, mixed with compassion and care, make her one of our true academic leaders.

Professor Lesley Hughes, Macquarie University

Professor Lesley Hughes believes climate change is the most important social, environmental and economic challenge of our time. Simply doing research on the science and impacts of climate change is not enough or her; through communicating her work, Professor Hughes aims to reach the hearts and minds of the public and policy-makers to make a real difference.

Sonya Pemberton, Genepool Productions

Across the world, children are getting sick and dying from vaccine-preventable diseases, because nervous parents are skipping their children’s shots. Yet there are frightening stories of people injured, even dying, after vaccination. Jabbed – Love, Fear and Vaccines examines the risks and asks, ‘How do we decide whether to vaccinate, or not?’

Broadcast on SBS1, 26 May 2013

Dr Mark Talbot, CSIRO

Wheat Through the Looking Glass

Dr Talbot’s scanning electron microscope (SEM) image shows young flower buds of wheat that will eventually become seeds. Using different modes of the SEM, two images of the same tissue were captured, superimposed and artificially coloured to highlight cell outlines (blue) and nuclei (orange). This unique way of creating SEM images unexpectedly revealed details normally seen only with a confocal laser microscope, even though the microscopes work in very different ways.

Harry D., Croydon Public School, NSW

In The Sound of Music Harry explains what sound waves are, how we hear sound, and how various stringed, woodwind and brass instruments produce notes of different pitch. Harry’s film brings together two subjects that are close to his heart: music and science.

Jackson H., Queensland Academy for Science, Mathematics and Technology, Qld.

Jackson uses phantom limbs, a puzzling neurological disorder often experienced by amputees, to enlighten the audience about the nervous system. The film 'Phantom Limbs' engages people with neuroscience and outlines the theories behind phantom limb syndrome.