The Hon. Mike Ahern AO is the Chairman of the QCAT Steering Committee and gives the opening reply for Innovation and Excellence Day 2010.

Dr Michael Glinsky recently joined CSIRO as a Science Leader in CSIRO Earth Science and Resource Engineering division after working with BHP Billiton since 2000. His research seeks to discover the geophysical links between mining and petroleum research within the division. Of particular R&D interest are advanced geophysical data assimilation techniques based on modern understanding of complex systems and the physics of geology.

Dr Cameron Huddlestone-Holmes  will discuss CSIRO's research in accelerating deployment of commercial scale geothermal energy in Australia. He will provide background on what makes a geothermal resource valuable, and the challenges that need to be overcome to exploit the nation's resources.

Dr David Harris leads CSIRO's Coal Utilisation research and will speak about current research in development and deployment of low emission coal-based power generation. QCAT hosts CSIRO's key coal gasification research facilities which include a pressurised entrained flow reactor and associated laboratory facilities for the study of advanced gas cleaning, processing and separation systems that represent key enabling technologies for high efficiency power generation with CO 2 capture.

Dr. Michael Bosse is a Senior Research Scientist in CSIRO's Autonomous Systems Laboratory. He will present key developments in simultaneous localization and mapping using mobile laser systems. This technology provides core functionality for perception by autonomous vehicles, and also has applications in other fields where accurate maps are required.

Mr Stephen O'Dowd Stephen O'Dowd creates links between small and medium enterprises and CSIRO. He helps SMEs to find solutions to their technical issues and identifies potential commercial partners for CSIRO's research products.