Researchers receive support from the Marsden Fund

University of Waikato researchers to receive support from the Marsden Fund

Media Release

8 September 2006

An examination of homelessness in New Zealand and an inquiry into why young people enjoy violent videogames are among seven projects by University of Waikato researchers to receive support from the Marsden Fund, New Zealand’s funding for ideas-driven research.

The Marsden Fund has announced it will distribute $39.1 million to fund 78 new research projects nationwide, 26 of which are Fast-Start grants for outstanding new researchers. The funding will be spread over two to three years, depending on the project.

“Applications to the Fund are very competitive; with only a small percentage of the total number of applications successful,”said Vice-Chancellor Professor Roy Crawford. “I am delighted with the quality and range of University projects that have been funded this year; they constitute some very exciting research, with important applications socially, culturally and environmentally.”

The Marsden Fund-supported projects at Waikato University are:

- “Interlingual digital libraries for language learning,” Professor Ian Whitten, Computer Science Department, total funding: $538,596

- “More than bricks and mortar: Homelessness and social reintegration,” Dr Darrin Hodgetts and Ms Linda Nikora, Department of Psychology, total funding: $795,342

- “Videogame violence: Understanding its seduction and pleasures for young people in New Zealand,” Dr Gareth Schott, Department of Screen and Media Studies, total funding: $140,000 Fast-Start grant

- “The historical and literary significance of the piano in colonial New Zealand culture and society,” Dr Kirstine Moffat, Department of Humanities, total funding: $140,000 Fast-Start grant

- “Extending the interhemispheric radiocarbon offset record to investigate global climatic, environmental and archeological change,” Dr Alan Hogg, Carbon Dating Unit, total funding: $600,000

- “Vector addition in the brain: Why the world stays still when we move our eyes,” Dr John Perrone, Department of Psychology, total funding: $490,000

- “Organising collective action against globalisation: A transformative social movement?”, Dr Shiv Ganesh, Department of Management Communication, total funding: $140,000 Fast-Start grant

The Marsden Fund is administered by the Royal Society of New Zealand on behalf of the Marsden Fund Council, and funded by the New Zealand Government. For more information on the projects, go to: http://www.rsnz.org/news/releases/

ENDS

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