Director's Message

Dear Colleagues,

I hope everyone enjoyed the long weekend. 

This week I want to draw your attention to a wonderful opportunity for early-career researchers, the ABC Top 5 Media Residency program, details of which can be found below. I was lucky enough to be the ANU ambassador and judge a few years back and the whole program is very impressive. It's a fantastic chance to develop science communication skills and connect with broader public audiences, and I'd strongly encourage anyone who fits the criteria to consider applying.

This week's research highlight comes from the Centre for Gravitational Astrophysics, where a team working with international collaborators has used recently observed gravitational-wave signals from merging black holes to test fundamental physics. By demonstrating that the measured high spins of astrophysical black holes are incompatible with certain spin-down mechanisms, the study places new constraints on hypothetical ultralight particles predicted by theories beyond the Standard Model! The paper can be found here. 

A reminder that our whole-school morning tea to mark International Women's Day is this Wednesday at 10am in the foyer of the new building. Please do come along if you can. This year's theme is "give to gain", and my take on it is simply when we all invest time and energy into building an inclusive environment we all gain.

On a more serious note, given the escalating situation in the Middle East, ANU has suspended all university-related travel to several countries in the region following Australian government Smart Traveller Level 4 (Do Not Travel) designations. The affected countries are Bahrain, Israel, Kuwait, Lebanon, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates. Existing travel approvals to these destinations have been revoked, and travel on Emirates, Etihad, and Qatar Airways is also to be avoided until further notice. If you have an affected itinerary, please contact ANU Travel Services through ATPI for assistance with re-routing or refunds — it's best not to cancel flights independently before speaking with them first, as there may be options available to you that a direct cancellation would forfeit.

If you'd like your work featured as a future research highlight, submissions can be made here, or feel free to email me directly. 

-Jodie

^{For meeting requests for the Director please use the jodie.bradby@anu.edu.au calendar}

IT Service Desk Changes

As part of the change to the new ANU Connect service desk portal there is a push to turn off the email to ticket gateways. You are encouraged to start using the portal to generate support tickets.

The following are a couple of tips that can ease this process.

• Filter to "Requests" after selecting a topic or performing a search to hide the knowledge base articles and show only the available request forms.
• If a request is for is a lab or self-managed machine and needs local IT support rather than the central service desk you can start your request with "attn Research IT Support" to speed up the triaging process.

Call For Application For the Robert and Helen Crompton Award 2025

We are seeking applications for the Robert and Helen Crompton Award, valued up to $15,000.

This generous award is funded by The Robert and Helen Crompton Endowment Fund. Emeritus Professor Robert Crompton, an ANU physicist for over 40 years, and his wife Helen established this Endowment to provide support for outstanding physics students. It is the intention of the Research School and the Crompton family that the fund is used to enhance career opportunities and experience of students.

This award enables RSPhys HDR students to undertake part of the research program overseas or make a collaborative visit to an overseas institution, for 3 to 6 months. 

Please refer to the Conditions of Award for eligibility details. Nominations may be made by the students, supervisors or Heads of Departments.

Complete applications should be emailed to hdr.cosm@anu.edu.au

Applications closing date is 22 March 2026

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Invitation To Participate In A Study - Female Physics Doctoral Candidates

Dr Jessy Abraham (Western Sydney University) and Associate Professor Helen Georgiou (University of Wollongong), are currently conducting a research study exploring the lived experiences of women doctoral candidates in Physics programs in Australia.

The study is open to participants who:

• Are currently enrolled in a PhD program in Physics or a closely related field (e.g., Astronomy, Biophysics, interdisciplinary Physics)
• Are enrolled at an Australian university or research centre
• Self-identify as women

The survey takes approximately 30 minutes to complete. Participation is voluntary and anonymous. Ethics approval has been obtained from Western Sydney University (Approval Number: 16165), and all data will be handled in accordance with institutional research ethics guidelines.

Survey link