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This article explores diverse ways of experiencing the city through an experimental field-based workshop supported by the Institute of Australian Geographers and this journal. The two-day methods practice workshop attracted 40 participants and aimed to train doctoral students and early career researchers in practices of observing, feeling, listening, mapping and visualizing the city. This paper aims to demonstrate how learning new methods that include Embodied Observation, Qualitative GIS, Locative Media Ethnography and Sonic Methodologies enabled 16 participants to encounter and experience the City of Melbourne in novel ways. The group learning environment and co-authored pieces that assemble diverse reflections demonstrate that the workshop is a form of innovative teaching and learning that has implications for Higher Education in Geography, but is yet to be explored more fully in the pedagogic literature. The experimental workshop has ongoing pedagogical benefits given the leadership, participatory and collaborative skills that unfolded when leading scholars, doctoral students and early career researchers came together to produce lively geographies of the city.

Background: More than 50% of people who die by suicide have not been in contact with formal mental health services. The rate of people who fly 'under the radar' of mental health services is higher among men than women, indicating a need to improve engagement strategies targeted towards men who experience suicidal thoughts and/or behaviours. In Australia, a range of mental health support services exist, designed specifically for men, yet, a substantial proportion of men do not use these services. The aim of this study is to evaluate whether a brief online video-based messaging intervention is an effective approach for encouraging men with suicidal thoughts and/or behaviours to engage with existing support services. Methods: Informed by a literature review, surveys, and consultation with men with a lived experience of suicidal thoughts and/or behaviours, we designed five video-based messages that will be used in this five-arm randomised controlled trial. A total of 380 (76 per arm) men aged 18 years or older with suicidal thoughts who are not currently accessing formal mental health services will be recruited online and randomly assigned to watch one of the five web-based video messages. After viewing the video, men will be presented with information about four existing Australian support services, along with links to these services. The primary outcome will be help-seeking, operationalised as a click on any one of the four support service links, immediately after viewing the video. Secondary outcomes include immediate self-reported help-seeking intentions in addition to self-reported use of the support services during a 1-week follow-up period. We will also use the Discrete Choice Experiment methodology to determine what aspects of support services (e.g. low cost, short appointment wait times) are most valued by this group of men. Discussion: This study is the first to evaluate the effectiveness of a brief web-based video messaging intervention for promoting engagement with existing support services among men with suicidal thoughts who are not currently receiving formal help. If found to be effective, this would represent a scalable, cost-effective approach to promote help-seeking for this at-risk population. Limitations and strengths of this study design are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, we develop a theoretical model to investigate the association between social network properties, "content richness" (CR) in academic learning discourse, and performance. CR is the extent to which one contributes content that is meaningful, insightful and constructive to aid learning and by social network properties we refer to its structural, position and relationship attributes. Analysis of data collected from an elearning environment shows that rather than performance, social learning correlates with properties of social networks: (i) structure (density, inter-group and intra-network communication) and (ii) position (efficiency), and (iii) relationship (tie strength). In particular, individuals who communicate with internal group members rather than external members express higher tendencies of "content richness" in social learning. The contribution of this study is three-fold: (i) a theoretical development of a social network based model for understanding learning and performance, which addresses the lack of empirical validation of current models in social learning; (ii) the construction of a novel metric called "content richness" as a surrogate indicator of social learning; and (iii) demonstration of how the use of social network analysis and computational text-mining approaches can be used to operationalize the model for studying learning and performance. In conclusion, a useful implication of the study is that the model fosters understanding social factors that influence learning and performance in project management. The study concludes that associations between social network properties and the extent to which interactions are "content-rich" in eLearning domains cannot be discounted in the learning process and must therefore be accounted for in the organizational learning design.

Background: The safety and anti-tumor activity of penpulimab in patients with advanced upper gastrointestinal (UGI) cancers were evaluated in this study. Methods: Patients with advanced UGI cancers naive to immune checkpoint inhibitors were enrolled in two trials of penpulimab. In the Phase Ia/Ib trial in Australia, patients received penpulimab intravenous infusion of 1, 3 and 10 mg/kg every 2 weeks in dose-escalation phase and 200 mg every 2 weeks in dose-expansion phase. In the phase Ib/II trial conducted in China, patients received 200 mg penpulimab every 2 weeks. Primary endpoints were safety and tolerability for the phase Ia/Ib trial and the objective response rate for the phase Ib/II trial. The safety and efficacy of penpulimab in patients with UGI cancers in these two trials were evaluated. Results: A total of 67 patients with UGI cancers from Australia and China were enrolled in these two trials and had received penpulimab with a median of 6 (1–64) doses. 44.8% of patients experienced at least one treatment-related adverse event (TRAE), and 7.5% of patients experienced a grade ≥3 TRAE. Among 60 patients evaluable for response, the confirmed objective response rates ranged between 11.1 and 26.3% across cohorts for pancreatic cancer, cholangiocarcinoma, gastric or Gastroesophageal junction carcinoma (Gastric/GEJ), and hepatocellular carcinoma. 11/13 (85.0%) responders had ongoing responses at data cutoff date. Conclusions: Penpulimab monotherapy demonstrated an acceptable safety and encouraged anti-tumor activity in patients with advanced UGI cancers. Further exploration in a large cohort of patients is warranted. Trial registration: Phase Ia/Ib trial in Australia (NCT03352531) and phase Ib/II trial in China (NCT04172506). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Referral for both lifestyle and surgical interventions are recommended as part of the clinical management of obesity in general practice. However, current practice falls short of this. This qualitative study aimed to describe the factors influencing general practitioners' (GPs) referral intentions for their obese patients. Methods: Semi-structured qualitative interviews were conducted with 24 GPs from four geographically different areas in New South Wales, Australia about the management of their obese patients. A qualitative analysis was applied using inductive thematic analysis. Results: The predominant factors influencing GPs' referral were their own attitudes and experience, and their patient's motivation. Lifestyle intervention Referrals were usually initiated by GPs and influenced by their patients and the local health system. Referrals to conduct bariatric surgery were frequently initiated by the patient and influenced by GPs' limited previous experience, patients' expectations and ability to pay, as well as professional and legal issues. There was no strong link between referral and the remoteness of areas or the availability of surgical referral services. Conclusion: There were differences between GPs reported referral behaviour for lifestyle and surgical interventions. GPs' attitudes to referral were often formed by their limited case experience rather than by a review of more systematic evidence, especially for surgical interventions. These patterns may be improved by educating and better communicating with GPs about the outcomes for their patients when they are referred. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective. Although the medical system has expanded considerably over the past two decades in almost all countries, so too has the demand for health care. The radiology specialisation may be an early system indicator, being especially sensitive to changes in supply and demand in both rural and urban environments. The question is whether the new policies of increasing the number of radiologists can be a proper long-term solution for the imbalance of workforce supply and demand or not. Methods. Using system dynamics modelling, we present our integrated descriptive models for the supply and demand of Australian radiologists to find the actual gap. Followed by this, we pose a prescriptive model for the supply in order to lessen the identified imbalance between supply and demand. Our system dynamics models compare the demand and supply of Australian radiologists over 40 years between 2010 and 2050. Results. The descriptive model shows that even if the radiology training program grows at a higher rate than the medical training growth rate and its own historical growth, the system will never be able to meet demand. The prescriptive model also indicates that although changing some influential factors (e.g the intake rate) reduces the level of imbalance, the system will still stay unstable during the study period. Conclusion. We posit that Australia may need to design a new system of radiology provision to meet future demands for high-quality medical radiation services. We also suggest some strategies, such as greater development of radiographers' role, are critical for enabling sustainable change over time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the Australian Competition Policy Review underway and as the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission seeks to expand the information disclosure prohibitions from the financial services industry to the Australian economy as a whole, it is timely to review the current state of Australia's cartel laws. The paper explores the policy justifications underpinning the, currently limited, prohibitions on information disclosure and their expansion to the broader economy. The authors conclude that there are many procompetitive reasons for and effects of information disclosure, such that the information disclosure prohibitions have the distinct possibility of stifling competitive conduct. Further, the kinds of information disclosure most likely to be anticompetitive are the types of conduct likely to be captured within the broader cartel prohibitions in any event. More broadly, the authors explore the existing Australian cartel prohibitions and conclude that these provisions have failed to achieve their objective of clarity and simplicity, with the recent decisions in the ANZ and Flight Centre cases demonstrating this failing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article offers brief information on the media plurality and the applicability of Antitrust Law in the media sector of Australia.

Abstract: In this study, we develop a theoretical model based on social network theories and the social influence model to understand how knowledge professionals utilise technology for work and communication. We investigate the association between ego-centric network properties (structure, position and tie) and information and communication technology (ICT) use of individuals in knowledge-intensive and geographically dispersed settings. Analysis from data collected using a reliable and validated questionnaire show that task-level ICT use is significantly associated with degree centrality and functional tie diversity; and communication-level ICT use is negatively associated with efficiency. The implications of these associations for knowledge-intensive work mean that it is important to consider the professional social network characteristics of potential users of the technology for designing ICT-enabled organizations. The greater the number and diversity of peers individuals interact with translates into more opportunities to use ICT for context-specific tasks. Results from this study also show that individuals who tend to isolate themselves from peers tend to be slow adopters or low users of ICT. Thus, an understanding of how network structure inter-relates with technology and its adopters proves beneficial in reaping benefits required at the organizational (macro) and individual (micro) levels. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Background:Adolescents use social media more frequently than other age groups. Social media has been described as a safe environment for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer and/or questioning (LGBTQ) adolescents. As part of mixed-methods research investigating the association between social networks and sexual agency, we present qualitative findings on how LGBTQ adolescents connect online to form support networks.Methods:We recruited 30 adolescents aged 14-17years who identified as LGBTQ in terms of their gender or attraction in the longitudinal Social Networks and Agency Project. Semi-structured interviews were conducted online or face-to-face across Australia. Thematic analysis was used to explore perceptions and experiences of participants in relation to social media use and relationships.Results:Two overarching themes were identified: LGBTQ adolescents use social media for identity, relationships and wellbeing support. Social media is not always free of discrimination for LGBTQ adolescents. Many LGBTQ participants joined Facebook groups to connect with LGBTQ peers. Facebook was considered a vital support for those with mental health concerns including suicidal ideation. Participants gave and received support from group members, which was considered useful for those feeling isolated or victimised. LGBTQ adolescents formed friendships, romantic relationships and gained information on sex, relationships, and sexual health from these groups. Participants described negative experiences including discrimination within Facebook groups, mismanaged groups and exposure to anti-LGBTQ sentiments.Conclusion:Social media is an environment where LGBTQ adolescents can connect, educate and support each other, which may have beneficial effects for this marginalised group. There remain issues with social media including discrimination against and within LGBTQ communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Opinion. Comments on the possible association between compulsive gambling and crime, while highlighting gambling in Australia. Average amount of money spent by Australians on gambling annually; Reference to some of the noted trends in gambling; Findings of studies conducted in the United States.