Foreword
Welcome to the inaugural issue of the University of Tasmania’s new undergraduate journal: Nexus!

Nexus aims to showcase the high standard of work undertaken by undergraduate students in the broad disciplines of science, engineering, and technology. I am pleased to see a paper from each School within my Faculty of Science, Engineering and Technology as well as one from the School of Human Life Sciences from the Faculty of Health Sciences.

Nexus also serves to highlight the intersection and inter-dependence of the endeavours of research and those of teaching and learning by emphasising the essential inclusion of research material in undergraduate classes, and additionally by illustrating the transition of study into research and publication.

I commend this journal to you. The University of Tasmania is a research-led institution that prides itself in the quality of its teaching: it is the natural place to study in Australia.

May I take this opportunity to congratulate each and every author whose work appears here — and thank each unit mentor for their work in aiding and encouraging their students.

I look forward to the next issue of Nexus in 2005 with immense interest.

Professor Jim Reid
Dean, Faculty of Science, Engineering and Technology
University of Tasmania