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Prime Minister's chief science advisor Professor Juliet Gerrard. Photo / Greg Bowker.

NEW ZEALAND

In crisis, Kiwis are more likely to trust experts

2 Apr, 2020 10:32am
6 minutes to read

We're more likely to trust experts now. Chief science advisor Juliet Gerrard explains why.

Smartphone apps are being turned to as powerful weapons to use against Covid-19. Photo / 123RF

NEW ZEALAND

Can smartphones help NZ stop Covid-19 spread?

1 Apr, 2020 6:30pm
10 minutes to read

One of the most powerful weapons we have against Covid-19 may be found in our own pockets.

NEW ZEALAND

Inside the numbers: The scary Covid-19 projections

31 Mar, 2020 4:47pm
13 minutes to read

Numbers in Covid-19 models can be frightening. Jamie Morton puts some context around them.

NEW ZEALAND

Worst-case scenario: 14,000 could die if Covid-19 spreads out of control in NZ

31 Mar, 2020 8:16am
6 minutes to read

A team of Otago Uni researchers have provided the modelling to the Ministry of Health

Researchers have offered the Government some

NEW ZEALAND

Coronavirus: What is NZ's Plan B?

30 Mar, 2020 12:56pm
4 minutes to read

If its elimination strategy fails, NZ could try to push the Covid-19 peak into next year.

NEW ZEALAND

Coronavirus: How scientists stop the virus explained

26 Mar, 2020 7:26pm
8 minutes to read

A vaccine to stop the coronavirus ravaging the world is at least a year away. Why?

There's much to be understood about the novel coronavirus Sars-CoV-2 - seen here in yellow - driving the current pandemic. Photo / US National Institutes of Health

NEW ZEALAND

Big Read: How Covid-19 has perplexed scientists everywhere

25 Mar, 2020 6:47pm
11 minutes to read

Four months on from the birth of Covid-19, scientists have perplexing questions to answer.

NEW ZEALAND

ICU capacity revealed as elective surgeries and outpatients scaled down

25 Mar, 2020 9:30am
4 minutes to read

There are currently just 153 ICU beds in NZ public hospitals, but DHBs aim to triple that.

It will take weeks for the impact of the month-long shut-down period to become clear, researchers say. Photo / File

NEW ZEALAND

Worst-case virus disaster: NZ may have been spared in 'nick of time' - expert

24 Mar, 2020 5:55pm
7 minutes to read

After a two-week lag, NZ will start seeing whether its unprecedented lockdown has worked.

NEW ZEALAND

Covid-19 coronavirus: Lockdown 'sacrifice' must come with testing surge

24 Mar, 2020 5:33pm
3 minutes to read

Ramping up Covid-19 testing and tracing could save NZ having to go into more lockdowns.

Ministry of Health director-general of health Dr Ashley Bloomfield is

NEW ZEALAND

Coronavirus: NZ hospitals could treble ICU capacity to meet Covid-19 surge

23 Mar, 2020 2:14pm
5 minutes to read

NZ hospitals racing to treble ICU capacity against threat of a Covid-19 patient overload.

A prominent clinical psychologist says his own experience of being tested for Covid-19 has given him a dramatic insight into the stigma and shame that people affected by the disease face. Photo / NZME

NEW ZEALAND

Psychologist's own Covid-19 test opens eyes to stigma

23 Mar, 2020 12:27pm
3 minutes to read

Dr Sarb Johal had his own experience of Covid-19 stigma when his family had to be tested.

Testing centres for Covid-19 are beginning to pop up around the country. Photo / NZ Herald

NEW ZEALAND

Why NZ needs to keep ramping up coronavirus testing

22 Mar, 2020 3:10pm
5 minutes to read

Increasing testing capacity offers one of NZ's best chances to get on top of Covid-19.

NEW ZEALAND

Coronavirus: ICU overload risks 'thousands' more NZ deaths - model

22 Mar, 2020 12:30pm
6 minutes to read

ICU bed overload could mean the difference between thousands dying, NZ model suggests.

Auckland City Hospital will be hosting clinical studies looking at whether anti-viral agents might prove successful treatments for Covid-19. Photo / NZ Herald

NEW ZEALAND

NZ scientists to trial drug on Kiwi patients to combat coronavirus

20 Mar, 2020 6:17pm
5 minutes to read

Anti-viral agents for HIV and malaria may offer a "bridge" until Covid-19 vaccine arrives.

Associate Professor Mark Quigley, who holds an adjunct role at the University of Canterbury, says much of the lessons his fellow academics learned in February 2011 could be applied now. Photo / NZME

NEW ZEALAND

ChCh quake lessons can help prepare unis for coronavirus

20 Mar, 2020 2:11pm
5 minutes to read

ChCh quake's disruption may hold crucial lessons for universities preparing for Covid-19.

Ministry of Health Director-General of Health, Dr Ashley Bloomfield. Photo / Mark Mitchell

NEW ZEALAND

Coronavirus: How a new playbook changed NZ's response

19 Mar, 2020 2:11pm
3 minutes to read

A new report has changed how nations are responding to Covid-19. What about NZ?

NEW ZEALAND

What's the next phase of NZ's pandemic plan?

19 Mar, 2020 1:46pm
4 minutes to read

NZ has a plan to deal with large-scale pandemics. Jamie Morton explains how it works.

Herald science reporter Jamie Morton, with son Harry. Photo / Jamie Morton

LIFESTYLE

Comment: Autism, anxiety and the science of uncertainty

19 Mar, 2020 11:31am
8 minutes to read

My son's autism diagnosis taught me how to face weird uncertainty, writes Jamie Morton.

NEW ZEALAND

'Series of managed peaks': NZ's best bet for Covid-19 spread

18 Mar, 2020 5:11pm
6 minutes to read

Health boss says a series of controllable peaks would be best way for NZ to manage spread.

Health authorities are scrambling to trace people who came into close contact with recently-returned travellers who have tested positive. Photo / AP

NEW ZEALAND

Coronavirus: NZ must ramp up contact-tracing capability

18 Mar, 2020 2:44pm
5 minutes to read

NZ must ramp up its ability to trace contacts with positive Covid-19 cases, experts say.

Massey University's Dr Heather Hendrickson, with fellow researchers Jo Turnbull and Danielle Kok. Photo / Supplied

NEW ZEALAND

Prominent scientist fights to save 'crucial' courses from Massey cuts

13 Mar, 2020 3:48pm
4 minutes to read

Well-known scientist calls on Massey not to cull only biology course of its kind in NZ.

Washing hands thoroughly for 20 seconds can help us flatten Covid-19's

NEW ZEALAND

Coronavirus: The maths of Covid-19 - and how you can change it

13 Mar, 2020 7:55am
5 minutes to read

A model tells us how Covid-19 may spread in NZ. Here's how it works and what we can do.

Masked health officials in the customs hall at Auckland International Airport. Travellers are being asked to be vigilant over coronavirus. Photo / NZ Herald

NEW ZEALAND

Coronavirus: Three questions NZ travellers need to ask themselves

11 Mar, 2020 12:50pm
4 minutes to read

Planning a trip overseas? Ask yourself these three questions first, Siouxsie Wiles says.

Microbiologist Siouxsie Wiles put her own pandemic preparedness plan into effect early today - by staying home. Photo / NZ Herald

NEW ZEALAND

Siouxsie Wiles is sick: Practising what she preaches and staying home

11 Mar, 2020 11:54am
3 minutes to read

Siouxsie Wiles knew just what to do when she woke with a runny nose today. Stay home.

The quake left masses of seaweed and other marine life exposed to the sun and starved of water. Photo / File

NEW ZEALAND

Kaikōura's quake-raised habitats fail to recover

9 Mar, 2020 2:55pm
4 minutes to read

Three years on, crucial ecosystems along Kaikoura's quake-raised coast fail to recover.

Computer models predicting how internet memes go viral may also better predict the spread of Covid-19, which is caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus (pictured). Photo / AP

NEW ZEALAND

What viral internet memes may tell us about Covid-19's spread

9 Mar, 2020 2:17pm
5 minutes to read

Models predicting how internet memes go viral may also better predict Covid-19's spread.

University of Auckland academics have challenged a policy they fear could limit them in speaking out on important issues. Photo / NZ Herald

NEW ZEALAND

Silencing science? Auckland academics challenge media policy

9 Mar, 2020 1:50pm
3 minutes to read

Auckland academics hit back at proposed media policy they fear may have 'chilling effect'.

This area of matagouri in Canterbury has been cleared to make way for farmland. Photo / Supplied

NEW ZEALAND

Going, going, gone: Satellite images reveal NZ's vanishing nature

9 Mar, 2020 5:00am
4 minutes to read

Satellite images lay bare NZ biodiversity crisis, with swathes of native areas vanishing.

NEW ZEALAND

NZ's great pest-free quest: can we get there?

9 Mar, 2020 5:00am
5 minutes to read

Govt releases strategy for a predator-free NZ by 2050 - with no mention of gene editing.

ESR scientists Dr Joep de Ligt and Matt Storey have been sequencing positive samples of SARS-CoV-2, the virus driving the Covid-19 crisis. Photo / Supplied

NEW ZEALAND

The Mars Bar-sized gadget helping NZ scientists decode Covid-19 virus

8 Mar, 2020 12:00pm
5 minutes to read

NZ scientists are now sequencing whole genomes of the virus driving the Covid-19 crisis.

Proposals to stop offering science degrees from Massey University's Albany campus has been met with an angry backlash from many staff and students. Photo / Twitter

NEW ZEALAND

Massey scientists fear jobs will be scrapped before 'innovation complex' opens

8 Mar, 2020 10:30am
6 minutes to read

Massey scientists who advised on new complex fear they'll lose their jobs before it opens.

An airport staff member uses a temperature gun to check people leaving Wuhan Tianhe International Airport in Wuhan, China. Photo / AP

NEW ZEALAND

Coronavirus: Everything you need to know

8 Mar, 2020 5:56am
9 minutes to read

What is coronavirus? How is it spread? Will it cause a full NZ outbreak?

Director of Public Health Dr Caroline McElnay chairs the Ministry of Health's Pandemic Influenza Technical Advisory Group. Photo / NZ Herald

NEW ZEALAND

Meet the experts advising the Govt on Covid-19

6 Mar, 2020 4:19pm
7 minutes to read

It's called PITAG: a Govt advisory group comprising 11 of NZ's top experts. Who are they?

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, or SARS-CoV-2, is the virus that causes coronavirus disease, or Covid-19. Photo / AP

NEW ZEALAND

What scientists know so far about the virus behind the Covid-19 crisis

6 Mar, 2020 2:04pm
3 minutes to read

What do we know about the novel coronavirus? Has it mutated? And why is it unprecedented?

NEW ZEALAND

Keep it out, stamp it out: What's in NZ's pandemic plan?

5 Mar, 2020 8:32pm
7 minutes to read

The Govt is under fire over its pandemic plan - but experts say it's working. What is it?

NEW ZEALAND

Coronavirus testing: Five questions answered

5 Mar, 2020 2:29pm
4 minutes to read

What makes a suspected Covid-19 case? How is it tested? And what about 'false negatives'?

People panicking over a lack of vaccines for Covid-19 should be more focused on just washing their hands, say experts. Photo / NZ Herald

NEW ZEALAND

Coronavirus: Don't panic over vaccines, just wash your hands

4 Mar, 2020 4:11pm
3 minutes to read

A Covid-19 vaccine is at least a year off. Today, worry about washing hands, experts say.

About 70 University of Auckland medical students posted overseas are being called back home - an unprecedented step amid the global spread of Covid-19. Photo / NZ Herald

NEW ZEALAND

Coronavirus: 70 medical students ordered back to NZ

4 Mar, 2020 2:06pm
2 minutes to read

Call made to avoid students being trapped overseas if global travel conditions change.

Māori and Pacific newborns are larger and longer, but also leaner, than European and Asian babies - a surprise finding that could refocus early healthcare. Photo / NZ Herald

NEW ZEALAND

Why Māori and Pacific babies are larger, longer - and leaner

4 Mar, 2020 5:00am
3 minutes to read

Researchers have been surprised to find Māori babies aren't just bigger - but also leaner.

Flooding in Gore on February 5 this year. Researchers have projected that EQC could be paying out up to a quarter more in severe weather-related claims by the century's end. Photo / Otago Daily Times

NEW ZEALAND

Weather disasters: Why home insurance claims are set to rise 25%

4 Mar, 2020 5:00am
4 minutes to read

By 2100, the EQC could be paying out up to a quarter more for weather-related damage.

Kea make smart predictions when reasoning about uncertain events, behaving similarly to humans when faced with statistical reasoning tasks. Photo / Brett Phibbs

NEW ZEALAND

Parrot power: how clever kea reason like us

4 Mar, 2020 5:00am
5 minutes to read

Kea are so smart they could inspire artificial intelligence in the future, scientists say.

The Liberty16 is designed for fast polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing - and there's growing interest from around the world in it being used to diagnose coronavirus infections. Photo / Supplied

NEW ZEALAND

Kiwi scientists critical to coronavirus test device fear for jobs

3 Mar, 2020 4:31pm
4 minutes to read

They helped develop a NZ-made device to test for Covid-19. Now they fear for their jobs.

What are the differences between influenza (left) and Covid-19 (right)? Photos / 123RF, AP

NEW ZEALAND

Explained: How coronavirus compares to flu

3 Mar, 2020 1:42pm
6 minutes to read

What are the differences between Covid-19 and the flu? And which will make you feel worse?

Last Monday - the first day of semester - Massey academics were told the university proposed to stop offering a science degree from its Albany campus. Photo / NZ Herald

NEW ZEALAND

Angry Massey scientist hits out at vice-chancellor over proposal to scrap science

2 Mar, 2020 5:54pm
6 minutes to read

Top scientist takes aim at Massey vice-chancellor on Twitter over controversial shake-up.

NEW ZEALAND

When will Taupo's next 'super-eruption' happen?

2 Mar, 2020 3:47pm
5 minutes to read

Four of the 10 recorded 'super-eruptions' in past 2.8 million years have happened in NZ.

BUSINESS

Q&A: What does coronavirus mean for NZ?

28 Feb, 2020 6:01pm
10 minutes to read

It's looking ever more likely coronavirus will reach NZ. What will that mean?

Professor Mick Roberts, a leading infectious disease modeller, says his role at Massey University's Albany campus is under threat. Photo / NZ Herald

NEW ZEALAND

Massey shake-up: Top scientist tracking coronavirus could be axed

27 Feb, 2020 5:26pm
4 minutes to read

Prof Mick Roberts has been tracking the spread of coronavirus. His job may soon be gone.

Coronavirus fears have been driving a rush for face masks and sanitisers at pharmacies. Photo / Michael Craig

NEW ZEALAND

Coronavirus threatens NZ with flu season 'double whammy'

27 Feb, 2020 1:39pm
5 minutes to read

NZ could face a 'double-whammy' if a coronavirus outbreak hits amid the busy flu season.

Massey University marine scientist Associate Professor Karen Stockin assesses a dolphin with PhD student Odette Howarth. Photo / Supplied

NEW ZEALAND

Massey marine scientists facing axe: 'We feel betrayed'

26 Feb, 2020 4:26pm
8 minutes to read

Massey marine scientists facing the axe under a shake-up feel 'betrayed' by university.

Massey University wants to stop offering science degrees at its Albany campus from the end of this year. Photo / NZ Herald

NEW ZEALAND

'Not how a university behaves': Science staff shocked at up to 50 job cuts

26 Feb, 2020 5:18am
8 minutes to read

Massey researchers set to challenge shake-up that could see dozens of jobs lost.

Microplastics have turned up inside green-lipped mussels - and researchers say we still don't understand what that means for people consuming the popular kaimoana species. Photo / File

NEW ZEALAND

Microplastics in NZ green-lipped mussels

23 Feb, 2020 5:49pm
3 minutes to read

Microplastics have been found in green-lipped mussels - and the implications are unclear.

The study focused on Wellington's busy Adelaide Rd, which is travelled by 20,000 cars each day and is seeing housing redevelopment that could attract 2000 more residents. Photo / NZME

NEW ZEALAND

Air pollution: how much NO2 are city dwellers breathing?

23 Feb, 2020 4:02pm
3 minutes to read

A team of scientists measured nitrogen oxide levels in 50 homes on a busy Wellington road.

NEW ZEALAND

NZ's big dry and climate change: What's the link?

23 Feb, 2020 1:38pm
7 minutes to read

Scientists say events like NZ's drought are growing more likely under climate change. How?

NEW ZEALAND

'Risky changes' - Massey shake-up alarms NZ scientists

23 Feb, 2020 10:53am
4 minutes to read

Scientists' group critical of Massey shake-up that could see Auckland science jobs lost.

Academics are worried that science may soon no longer have a physical presence at Massey University's Albany campus. Photo / File

NEW ZEALAND

Scientists fearing for jobs amid Massey shake-up

21 Feb, 2020 5:57pm
5 minutes to read

Massey scientists are worried for their futures at the university amid a radical shake-up.

Dr Nadia Borlase is researching brains of Cantabrians in a new study funded by The Neurological Foundation. Photo / Supplied

NEW ZEALAND

How ChCh quakes may have caused 9/11-like brain changes

21 Feb, 2020 1:47pm
3 minutes to read

Cantabrians might have been affected by decade's quakes in more ways than they realise.

Public health officials have been advising travellers at Auckland International Airport to be vigilant about coronavirus. Photo / Supplied

NEW ZEALAND

Coronavirus will arrive in New Zealand, say medical experts

21 Feb, 2020 1:00am
3 minutes to read

NZ needs to prepare for the likely possibility of coronavirus reaching us, experts say.

Niwa and MetService have faced a fresh grilling over why taxpayers are funding two weather forecasting units. Photo / NZME

NEW ZEALAND

Weather wars: MetService, Niwa grilled over forecaster 'double-up'

20 Feb, 2020 3:27pm
5 minutes to read

Niwa and MetService face grilling over why two state bodies are forecasting the weather.

Humans could be sending up to 40 per cent more methane into the atmosphere than previously estimated - with big implications for our fast-warming planet. Photo / NZPA

NEW ZEALAND

We're vastly under-estimating methane emissions - study

20 Feb, 2020 5:00am
4 minutes to read

Humans may be sending up to 40 per cent more methane into the atmosphere than estimated.

NEW ZEALAND

Third of middle-aged Kiwis have tried meth, study suggests

19 Feb, 2020 4:07pm
4 minutes to read

Twenty-eight per cent used meth at least once between the ages of 18 and 35.

NEW ZEALAND

Whale-come news: Why these ocean giants are on the rebound

19 Feb, 2020 1:00pm
3 minutes to read

Survey reveals some whale species around a southern hotspot may be close to full recovery.