Research that makes an impact

A University of Adelaide project looking at the impact of the 20th century's most influential ballet company on Australian culture has been awarded one of three major prizes at last month's Adelaide Research & Innovation !mpact Awards.

Associate Professor Mark Carroll from the Elder Conservatorium of Music has received a $10,000 funding injection for his joint research project investigating the history of Ballets Russes tours and their cultural influence on Australian high art and music.

The project brings together the University of Adelaide with Australia's peak performing arts organisation, The Australian Ballet and the National Library of Australia, supported by the largest Australian Research Council Linkage Grant of its kind in the performing arts - $400,000.

"The Ballets Russes (Russian Ballet) tours from 1936-1940 raised the bar for what was possible and changed the way Australian artists conceived of European art," Professor Carroll said. "Up until that point, Australians had been really starved of the latest trends in European art and performance," he said.

The two other major award winners to each receive $10,000 were the Pain & Anaesthesia Research Clinic (PARC) and the Data Management & Analysis Centre (DMAC), also from the University of Adelaide.

The PARC team, led by Professor Paul Rolan and Professor Guy Ludbrook, has combined scientific skills and expertise in pharmacology and anaesthesia to provide innovative solutions for exploratory clinical drug development. PARC operates a unit within the Royal Adelaide Hospital and has significant global linkages.

DMAC Director Professor Philip Ryan from the University's School of Population Health & Clinical Practice will use the $10,000 prize to help custom design and build database systems to integrate health research statistics.

!mpact accolades were awarded to the following people for their contribution to research: Professor Michael Rumsewicz (Engineering, Computer Science & Mathematics); Associate Professor Bruce Ainsworth (Australian School of Petroleum); Professor Gary Wittert (School of Medicine); and Professor John Spoehr (Australian Institute for Social Research).

Story by Candy Gibson