Air New Zealand caused a storm by announcing the ‘Impossible’ Burger will be made available to a tiny sliver of customers – a move described as an ‘existential threat’ to the meat sector by NZ First’s Mark Patterson. And genetic engineering is central to the synthetic meat’s success, explains Dr Siouxsie Wiles This week, Air … Read more
Studies of nanotechnology and advanced materials are becoming ever more crucial as the world adjusts to a more sustainable way of living. Recently appointed co-director of the MacDiarmid Institute Dr. Nicola Gaston’s new role allows her to guide one of New Zealand’s top science institutes to potentially world-leading research. Rising awareness about sustainability is leading … Read more
Mould is one of the biggest health risks associated with New Zealand’s substandard housing stock. But since landlords seem averse to doing anything about the problem, Madeleine Chapman came up with an easy workaround. This story was published in June 2018. Earlier this week, nine students reached a confidential settlement agreement with their landlord following … Read more
Microbiologist (and finalist for 2018’s New Zealander of the year) Siouxsie Wiles celebrates the announcement that Juliet Gerrard will be the next prime minister’s chief science advisor. Yesterday the prime minister announced who would be replacing Sir Peter Gluckman as her chief science advisor. For those of you not from the world of science or the … Read more
While the meth testing scheme has been proven to be a rort, the dangers of lead contamination in homes is still very real. Environmental scientist Tim Muller explains. In case you missed it, the prime minister’s chief science advisor (PMCSA) recently released a damning report into the meth testing and remediation industry. The gist is … Read more
People keep dying in police pursuits. Despite this repeated cycle of calls for change, has anything actually changed? Mark Hanna looks at the evidence This week, as it does every couple of years or so, a police pursuit has hit the headlines because people died. Such incidents generally prompt criticism of police pursuits, sometimes including … Read more
We have a lot of work to do to achieve carbon neutrality in just over three decades. Attention needs to focus on the likes of cars, trees, batteries and farms, writes energy analyst Briony Bennett. New Zealand must map out a path to carbon neutrality by 2050. Small-emitting nations are responsible for up to 30% … Read more
Last week Tesla billionaire Elon Musk launched a bizarre Twitter tirade against the media, as part of which he ended up @-ing everyone from Jemaine Clement to Michelle Dickinson. Here the NZ scientist explains why she leapt to the defence of a fellow nanotechnologist Ah, Twitter, that digital echo chamber where you can keep up … Read more
Superstar scientist Brian Cox talks to Alice Webb-Liddall about aliens, wormholes, and whether he’d punch Albert Einstein if he had the chance. He worked on the Hadron Collider, played keyboard for mid-nineties Irish pop band D:Ream, was in People’s sexiest man alive issue in 2009, and has starred on Doctor Who as himself. Professor Brian … Read more
We’re at the bottom of the world, but what would happen to bolt-hole of choice New Zealand after even a ‘limited’ nuclear war? Branko Marcetic talked to scientists about what will happen to the ecology, economy and overall quality of life after a hypothetical nuclear war. A woman’s flesh burns away as she clings to … Read more
This weekend marks the release of Dancing With Atoms, veteran filmmaker Shirley Horrocks’ tribute to physicist Sir Paul Callaghan. Don Rowe talks to Horrocks about his life and legacy. According to Professor Shaun Hendy, director of Auckland research centre Te Pūnaha Matatini, in any other country luminary scientist Sir Paul Callaghan would be on everything … Read more
On the first ever International Day of Light, Prof David Hutchinson outlines how the science of light is changing the world of computing, manufacturing, agriculture and medicine in New Zealand and around the world. It’s a hidden fact that our modern world runs on light. Every email, every cellphone call, every website is encoded into … Read more
Developed by New Zealand plant scientists and funded in part by a $20 million MBIE grant, Calocurb is being marketed as a major step forward in appetite-control treatment. But is it all it’s cracked up to be? Weight loss industry expert Andrew Dickson gave it a try. Calocurb was launched here in New Zealand in … Read more
Commute week: The arguments for ditching your four-wheel addiction are overwhelming, writes public health expert Caroline Shaw Commuting to work, study or school bookends most people’s days. Love it or hate it, it takes time. According to the NZ Time Use Survey we spend on average 46 minutes per day traveling to work and 52 … Read more
What is it like to have a disease that nobody can ‘see’ and which society can shame you for talking about? To mark International ME/CFS Awareness Day, Hannah Gibson writes about her experience with ME/CFS, and the struggle to have her condition legitimised in Western medicine. When I was a young girl, my mother says … Read more
If regional councils are to use new funding to address water quality, they could do well to start in Hawke’s Bay, where wood mill effluent continues to be an issue 27 years after a damning report into its effects. Never has there been a better time to rethink and refresh the care of our rivers, … Read more
Year in, year out, the controversy over the possible health effects of electro magnetic frequencies from cellphones and cellular antennas rumbles on. Telecoms writer Paul Brislen takes a deep dive into the evidence. We’ve been aware of the electro magnetic spectrum since the first cave dweller peeked out and saw a blazing orb in the … Read more
A new study shows that menstrual cups and cotton tampons may not be as safe as people are being led to believe. Microbiologist Siouxsie Wiles explains. Diva, Fleur, JuJu, Kiko, Lunette, Me Luna, Mooncup, My Cup, Sckoon, Tāti, Wā, Yuuki. All cutesy names for the same thing: the menstrual cup – a “cup” people insert … Read more
The term ‘evidence’ has a fascinating linguistic and social history – and it’s a good reminder that even today the truth of scientific evidence depends on it being presented in a convincing way, writes James A T Lancaster As recent climate change scepticism shows, the fortunes of scientific evidence can be swayed by something as fleeting … Read more
‘Super-gonorrhoea’ has been reported in Australia, and experts say we’re next. How bad could it get, asks Don Rowe. What’s all this then? A historically resistant strain of gonorrhoea has made its way from South East Asia to the UK and Australia, and experts are warning we are next. Antibiotic resistant superbugs? They’re like climate … Read more
Will humans ever have a colony on Mars? If we do, some cutting edge technology of today could help us get there. If humans ever want to achieve the outlandish, science fiction sounding goal of a colony on Mars, our species will get there in part thanks to virtual reality. That’s one of the goals … Read more
Freshwater scientist Troy Baisden explores six ways to improve water quality in New Zealand’s lakes and rivers Two years ago, New Zealanders were shocked when contaminated drinking water sickened more than 5,000 people in the small town of Havelock North, with a population of 14,000. A government inquiry found that sheep faeces were the likely … Read more
The latest inventory of New Zealand’s greenhouse gas emissions shows a 20% increase in emissions from 1990 to 2016. The Science Media Centre has collected commentary from the experts Climate change minister James Shaw announced the result of the inventory this morning a few hours after Jacinda Ardern declared that the government would not hand out any new offshore … Read more
China’s defunct space station Tiangong-1 is expected to hit Earth in the next few hours. What are we doing, asks astrophysicist Brad E Tuckeer, to deal with the junk already in space and prevent more? Tiangong-1 is just one of many pieces of space junk left orbiting our Earth. The United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA) … Read more
Can your local council stop you getting heart disease and cancer? Our research into the way people get around New Zealand cities suggests it can, writes public health expert Caroline Shaw Local and regional councils are important. They arrange for the rubbish to get taken away, deal with water on our behalf, make decisions about … Read more
Within five years, science will likely have answered a controversial question: can the drug commonly called ecstasy treat psychiatric disorders? Gillinder Bedi from the University of Melbourne writes After some studies showing a positive effect, MDMA-assisted psychotherapy is entering final clinical trials as a treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). If these trials show positive … Read more
Helen Taylor explains why she devotes her research to bird semen, and how an avian sperm race can help save one of New Zealand’s forgotten taonga, the hihi. When I was little, I wanted to be David Attenborough, but here I am at 35 hanging out in the bush collecting bird semen samples and encouraging … Read more
Pressure is mounting on the government to halt oil and gas exploration. If New Zealand can successfully wean itself off fossil fuels, we can only accelerate action in other countries, argues James Renwick The pressure is really going on at a political level in New Zealand these days. The Green Party is pushing to introduce … Read more
The Environmental Protection Authority CEO’s complaint to Massey University about the freshwater ecologist sparked a disciplinary process, yet the agency seems strangely disinclined to speak out on climate change denial, writes Shaun Hendy. The Environmental Protection Authority (EPA), New Zealand’s statutory environmental regulator, says that it is worried about science denial in New Zealand. “Debate the … Read more