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James Helal

Assistant Dean (Sustainability), The University of Melbourne
Dr. James Helal specializes in life cycle assessment, computational design, and structural optimization of buildings. As Assistant Dean (Sustainability) of the Faculty of Architecture, Building and Planning at the University of Melbourne, he is committed to enhancing and realizing the strategic direction and sustainability agenda for the faculty. This involves embedding sustainability into research, teaching, learning, culture, and organizational life.

Dr. Helal's research centres on the development of innovative software tools and computer models that integrate embodied carbon assessment into the early-stage structural design of tall buildings. His work has been acknowledged internationally by the Institution of Structural Engineers, receiving the Structures Best Research into Practice prize.

As a Lecturer in Sustainable Structural Design, he teaches in the areas of materials, structures, and life cycle assessment of the built environment. His dedication to teaching excellence has been widely celebrated, with awards including the Open Award for Excellence in Teaching from the Faculty of Architecture, Building and Planning, and the esteemed Edward Brown Award for Teaching Excellence from the University of Melbourne.

Through his leadership, research, and teaching, Dr. James Helal contributes significantly to the ongoing development of sustainable design practices in the built environment.

Economy

Wall Street Futures Climb as Tariff Exemptions Ease Market Tensions

Wall Street share futures edged higher in Asia on Monday after the White House announced exemptions on smartphones and computers from the latest U.S. reciprocal tariffs targeting Chinese imports. While the move temporarily...

MOEX Russia Index Rises as Oil, Mining Stocks Lead Gains

Russian stocks closed higher on Saturday, driven by strong performances in the Oil Gas, Mining, and Power sectors. The MOEX Russia Index climbed 2.37%, reflecting growing investor confidence amid commodity gains. Leading...

Samsung Faces U.S. Tariff Threat Amid Vietnam Manufacturing Dependency

Samsung Electronics is grappling with rising trade tensions as U.S. President Donald Trumps tariff policies threaten the companys heavy reliance on Vietnam for smartphone production. During a July meeting, Chairman Jay Y....

Wall Street Surges as Bank Earnings Impress Amid Trade War Volatility

Wall Street ended the week on a strong note Friday, with major indexes posting sharp gains as big banks kicked off Q1 earnings season and investors digested a rollercoaster week dominated by U.S.-China trade tensions. The...

Argentina to Receive $32 Billion Boost from IMF and World Bank Amid Peso Reforms

Argentina is set to secure a major financial lifeline as the World Bank prepares to announce a $12 billion financing package, complementing the International Monetary Funds expected approval of a $20 billion loan deal,...

Politics

Hong Joon-pyo Launches Presidential Bid After Yoon’s Impeachment

Hong Joon-pyo, the former mayor of Daegu and a prominent South Korean conservative figure, officially declared his candidacy for the presidency on Monday. His announcement comes amid political turbulence following the...

Trump Signals Swift Decision Following Positive Iran Nuclear Talks

U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Sunday that a decision regarding Irans nuclear program is imminent, following what both sides described as constructive and positive talks held in Oman. These discussions marked the...

Albanese Gains Momentum as Labor Eyes Slim Majority in May Election

Australias centre-left Labor Party is poised to retain power with a narrow majority in the upcoming May 3 national election, according to a recent Newspoll published by The Australian. The poll indicates a shift in voter...

Daniel Noboa Secures Commanding Lead in Ecuador’s Presidential Election

Ecuadors President Daniel Noboa is holding a strong lead over leftist rival Luisa Gonzalez in the countrys presidential run-off, with 56% of the vote to Gonzalezs 44%, based on nearly 84% of ballots counted. The wide...

Bolsonaro Undergoes Fifth Surgery Since 2018 Stabbing Amid Political Tensions

Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro is recovering after a complex 12-hour surgery related to the 2018 stabbing incident during his presidential campaign. The procedure, his fifth since the attack, began Sunday...

Science

Kennedy Sets September Deadline to Uncover Autism Causes Amid Controversy

U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced a bold plan to identify the cause of autism by September 2025. Speaking at a cabinet meeting with President Donald Trump, Kennedy declared a global...

AstraZeneca’s Imfinzi Gets US Approval for Bladder Cancer Treatment

AstraZenecas drug Imfinzi (NASDAQ: AZN) has received U.S. approval to treat adult patients with muscle-invasive bladder cancer, a significant advancement in cancer therapy. The approval allows Imfinzi to be used in...

Sanofi’s New Hemophilia Drug Qfitlia Gains FDA Approval with Breakthrough Bimonthly Dosing

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Qfitlia, a groundbreaking hemophilia treatment by French pharmaceutical giant Sanofi (NASDAQ: SNY). Designed for patients aged 12 and older with hemophilia A or B,...

FDA Vaccine Chief Peter Marks Resigns Amid Controversy Over Transparency

Peter Marks, the U.S. Food and Drug Administrations (FDA) top vaccine official, has resigned after reportedly being forced out by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), according to The Wall Street Journal....

Museums have tons of data, and AI could make it more accessible − but standardizing and organizing it across fields won’t be easy

Ice cores in freezers, dinosaurs on display, fish in jars, birds in boxes, human remains and ancient artifacts from long gone civilizations that few people ever see museum collections are filled with all this and more....

Technology

Trump to Reveal Semiconductor Tariff Strategy on Monday

U.S. President Donald Trump announced he will unveil his administrations stance on semiconductor tariffs this coming Monday. Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One on Saturday, Trump said, Ill give you that answer on...

Ireland Probes X Over Use of EU User Data for AI Training

Irelands Data Protection Commission (DPC) has launched an investigation into X, formerly known as Twitter, over its use of personal data from EU users to train its generative AI model, Grok. As the lead regulator for X...

Alphabet and Nvidia Back $32B AI Startup SSI Led by OpenAI Co-Founder

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) and Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA) have invested in Safe Superintelligence (SSI), a fast-rising AI startup co-founded by former OpenAI chief scientist Ilya Sutskever, according to a source familiar with the...

Amazon Delays Kuiper Satellite Launch Due to Weather Conditions

Amazons planned launch of its first 27 Kuiper internet satellites was postponed on Wednesday due to unfavorable weather, according to the launch provider, United Launch Alliance (ULA). Project Kuiper, Amazons ambitious...

Google Cuts Jobs in Android and Pixel Teams Amid AI Shift

Alphabets Google has laid off hundreds of employees in its Platforms and Devices division, which includes key products like the Android OS, Pixel smartphones, and the Chrome browser, according to a report by The...