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Kiwis have explored how platforms like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram influence our psychological wellbeing - with surprising findings. Photo / 123RF

NEW ZEALAND

Surprise findings: Is social media really hurting your mental health?

21 Oct, 2019 5:00am
5 minutes to read

NZ researchers suggest social media isn't as bad for your mental health as you think.

A University of Auckland researcher says artificial intelligence and robotics will usher in a new era of cheaper, personalised and more effective

NEW ZEALAND

'Virtual therapy': Are robots the future of physical rehab?

20 Oct, 2019 3:50pm
3 minutes to read

NZ researcher says machines could soon be helping us recover from injury or disease.

Influential UK magazine The Economist called 2019

LIFESTYLE

Going green: why you've been hearing more about veganism

20 Oct, 2019 5:00am
19 minutes to read

The movement Anthony Bourdain once called "Hezbollah-like" is going mainstream in NZ.

NEW ZEALAND

Top honour for scientist behind newborn breakthroughs

17 Oct, 2019 10:30pm
10 minutes to read

A scientist who has helped millions of newborns and mums receives NZ's top research medal.

NEW ZEALAND

The four big threats hurting our oceans and coasts

17 Oct, 2019 10:45am
7 minutes to read

Climate change named as one of four big threats hurting NZ's vast blue backyard.

After being dug up at the site of the new Nido furniture store in Henderson, scientists assessed the kauri and found it was more than 45,000 years old. Photo / Supplied

NEW ZEALAND

Kauri unearthed at building site may hold ancient secrets

17 Oct, 2019 5:00am
4 minutes to read

Kauri unearthed at a West Auckland building site may yield major climate change insights.

The devastating 2011 Christchurch earthquake was actually a smaller aftershock of the September 2010 7.1 quake, which happened to strike in a deadly location. Photo / NZ Herald

NEW ZEALAND

After a quake, can we tell if a bigger one is coming?

10 Oct, 2019 6:00am
3 minutes to read

Kiwi scientists say study's findings need to be treated with caution.

Harnessing a set of compounds in tobacco smoke could make for more effective therapies for people quitting smoking, a scientist says. Photo / NZME

NEW ZEALAND

Could the cure to smoking be found in... smoke?

8 Oct, 2019 1:49pm
6 minutes to read

Compounds in tobacco smoke might ironically prove key to stubbing out the harmful habit.

NEW ZEALAND

National would overhaul law governing gene editing

8 Oct, 2019 1:30pm
4 minutes to read

National would overhaul the Act that has long regulated biotechnology like gene editing.

NEW ZEALAND

Why NZ urgently must keep a better watch on its oceans

7 Oct, 2019 10:51am
4 minutes to read

Scientists propose new initiative to keep closer tabs on our fast-changing ocean estate.

It's estimated that around a third of Kiwis buy dietary health supplements, and omega-3 products are considered one of the most - if not the most - popular. Photo / 123RF

NEW ZEALAND

Fish oil researchers, medical journal, apologise over flawed paper

7 Oct, 2019 9:16am
4 minutes to read

Researchers have retracted a study that raised concerns with fish oil supplement labels.

NEW ZEALAND

Organic contaminants detected in two-thirds of NZ wells

7 Oct, 2019 7:30am
3 minutes to read

Low levels of organic contaminants have been found in two thirds of the country's wells.

Auckland Island pigs have already been used to develop successful pig-to-human cell transplants to control diabetes and Parkinson's disease. Photo / File

NEW ZEALAND

Gene-edited NZ pigs: organ donors of the future?

6 Oct, 2019 3:33pm
4 minutes to read

Scientists are looking at whether a NZ breed of pig may make an ideal future organ donor.

The European paper wasp (pictured) is mainly found around the Nelson region and is thought to have been in the country for a decade at least. Photo / Alvesgaspar/ CC BY-SA 3.0

NEW ZEALAND

Silence of the wasps: How DNA could be key to stopping this NZ scourge

6 Oct, 2019 1:11pm
3 minutes to read

Scientists plan to use "gene silencing" to combat the notorious European paper wasp.

Central and lower parts of both island could be in for big bouts of rain over the next three months - partly thanks to a climate driver called the Indian Ocean Dipole. Photo / NZ Herald

NEW ZEALAND

Why NZ's spring is about to get wet - but not warm

6 Oct, 2019 12:40pm
5 minutes to read

Something called the Indian Ocean Dipole may bring big bouts of spring rain. What is it?

When it comes to foods that pack more than the usual share of goodness, look no further than kiwifruit. Photo / 123RF

LIFESTYLE

Cosmetic kiwifruit and booster berries: 8 surprising food insights

5 Oct, 2019 5:00am
8 minutes to read

How blackcurrants boost exercise, hoki skins fight ageing and avocados help your gut.

Up to one third of Antarctica's ice sheets melted during a time in Earth's history when carbon dioxide levels were around the same as today. Photo / NASA

NEW ZEALAND

Paris Agreement's failure could mean 20m of sea level rise

3 Oct, 2019 6:00am
5 minutes to read

Failing to meet Paris Agreement targets may mean sea levels 20m higher, scientists warn.

NEW ZEALAND

The troll from the pole: why spring still hasn't sprung

1 Oct, 2019 7:00pm
6 minutes to read

How the biggest event of its kind ever observed in our hemisphere put the chill on spring.

A new $7.5m programme aims to overcome what's long been a headache for predator-busting efforts - how to eliminate that final 5 per cent which manage to hang on. Photo / NZ Herald

NEW ZEALAND

NZ's big pest bust: how do we kill the last survivors?

1 Oct, 2019 3:40pm
4 minutes to read

Clever tech could help kill the last stragglers in our grand plan to be pest-free by 2050.

In a new $10m study, AgResearch scientists aim to pioneer dairy cattle that boast better milk production, greater heat tolerance, and fewer emissions. Photo / DairyNZ

NEW ZEALAND

Cow of the future? How gene-editing could help dairy's climate problem

30 Sep, 2019 5:21pm
3 minutes to read

Scientists to use latest gene-editing technology to create NZ's first "climate-smart" cow.

Researchers hope to predict where, when and how violence happens in our prisons. Photo / Dean Purcell

NEW ZEALAND

Prison violence: Can we predict it before it happens?

30 Sep, 2019 2:06pm
4 minutes to read

By better understanding violence in NZ prisons, researchers hope to be able to predict it.

Timi Barabas, of Hamilton's Rototuna High School, is one of tens of thousands of pupils taking part in today's School Strike 4 Climate marches. Photo / Alan Gibson

NEW ZEALAND

Climate striking kids' plea to adults: march with us

27 Sep, 2019 5:00am
6 minutes to read

Thousands of Kiwi school kids again striking for climate action want adults to join them.

Even a moderate-sized event in Auckland could cost the local economy up to $10 billion. Image / Supplied

NEW ZEALAND

Auckland eruption: Could we intervene in next big blow?

26 Sep, 2019 7:00pm
5 minutes to read

What if we could influence how Auckland's next big volcanic eruption played out?

The world's oceans have already absorbed an astonishing 90 per cent of the extra heat in the Earth's atmosphere. Photo / NZ Herald

NEW ZEALAND

One billion at risk: Dire warning in new climate report

25 Sep, 2019 9:00pm
4 minutes to read

Multitudes at risk from warming, rising oceans and melting ice, sweeping UN report finds.

Environmental activist Greta Thunberg addresses the Climate Action Summit in the United Nations General Assembly, at UN headquarters this week. Photo / AP

NEW ZEALAND

Jamie Morton: The world needed a hero: it got Greta Thunberg

25 Sep, 2019 1:38pm
4 minutes to read

Greta Thunberg deserves to be angry. Science reporter Jamie Morton explains why.

The Hikurangi Subduction Zone is a major offshore fault is where the Pacific Plate dives - or subducts - westward beneath the North Island. Image / GNS Science

NEW ZEALAND

Scientists get clearer view of Hikurangi's quake-making potential

25 Sep, 2019 10:39am
5 minutes to read

Scientists say they may be a step closer to understanding NZ fault zone's big threats.

About a third of Māori and Pacific Islanders carry a gene variant that's just been linked to taller height. Photo / 123RF

NEW ZEALAND

Gene variant in Māori, Pacific Islanders, linked to taller height

24 Sep, 2019 4:19pm
2 minutes to read

A third of Maori and Pacific Islanders carry a gene variant just linked to taller height.

NEW ZEALAND

Deep geothermal: Is this NZ's clean energy future?

22 Sep, 2019 3:45pm
4 minutes to read

The key to driving NZ's emissions to net zero by 2050 may lie kilometres beneath our feet.

Scientists estimate Mt Taranaki has a 50 per cent chance of erupting within the next 50 years. Photo / Alan Gibson

NEW ZEALAND

What would happen if Mt Taranaki erupted tomorrow?

22 Sep, 2019 1:43pm
7 minutes to read

How would ongoing eruptions devastate the powerhouse province that is Taranaki?

Fresh data has revealed worsening levels of E.Coli and nitrogen across more than 1400 river sites monitored around the country. Photo / NZME

NEW ZEALAND

Why NZ's rivers are still in a worrying state

22 Sep, 2019 12:20pm
4 minutes to read

Fresh data reveals worsening levels of E.Coli and nitrogen across 1400 NZ river sites.

A motorcyclist catches a ride over a storm-swollen river near Kawakawa, Northland, during a five-day deluge in July 2014. Photo / Dean Purcell

NEW ZEALAND

Climate change: How hard will extreme weather hit NZ?

22 Sep, 2019 10:12am
4 minutes to read

What will our extreme future be like? Scientists in new $10m study say it's already here.

As soon as 2040, if the planet continued to warm on its present trajectory, Aucklanders might be sweltering through 10 to 15 days above 25C each year. Photo / NZ Herald

NEW ZEALAND

Covering climate now: Health issues are heating up

22 Sep, 2019 5:00am
4 minutes to read

Climate change may deliver us more heatwaves, pollution and disease. Are we ready for it?

University of Auckland academic Professor Quentin Atkinson spent a year on the ground last year to help fight climate change. Photo / Michael Craig

NEW ZEALAND

Covering climate now: 'What I learned in my no-fly year'

21 Sep, 2019 5:00am
6 minutes to read

Professor Quentin Atkinson is used to flying - a lot. Last year, he grounded himself.

If the rare NZ fairy tern manages to hang on, the future promises acidifying oceans, rising seas, more frequent severe storms, and potentially changes in prey distribution. Photo / NZ Herald

NEW ZEALAND

Covering climate now: A bird on the brink

20 Sep, 2019 5:00am
5 minutes to read

With a population of 45, this species is at the brink. Climate change may push it over.

Councils facing a rising threat to billions of dollars of property from climate change say a new Government risk assessment is a

NEW ZEALAND

Govt's climate risk assessment a 'good first step', councils say

19 Sep, 2019 11:31am
4 minutes to read

Councils facing $14b climate change risk say Govt's risk assessment is a good first step.

Climate change made a five-day deluge that hit Northland in July 2014 twice as likely to happen. Photo / NZME

NEW ZEALAND

Covering climate now series: Forecasting in a warming world

19 Sep, 2019 5:00am
6 minutes to read

How do you commentate on a catastrophe in slow motion? Welcome to Ben Noll's job.

Wildfires like the Pigeon Valley disaster (pictured) already cause enough damage to cost the economy around $67 million each year. That toll is set to soar under climate change. Photo / NZ Herald

NEW ZEALAND

Covering climate now series: NZ's rising fire risk

18 Sep, 2019 5:00am
4 minutes to read

Fire danger soars under climate change. What does it mean for firefighters on the ground?

South Dunedin resident Eleanor Doig, with her century-old home that's already been badly hit by flooding. Photo / Peter McIntosh

NEW ZEALAND

Climate change: How rising seas could cost NZ billions

17 Sep, 2019 5:00am
5 minutes to read

In flood-exposed South Dunedin, Eleanor Doig says things are going to have to change.

Climate change is projected to increase fire danger in almost all parts of the country - and push the average fire season length out by about 70 per cent within just two decades. Photo / NZ Herald

NEW ZEALAND

Climate change: How bad could it get for NZ?

16 Sep, 2019 5:00am
7 minutes to read

What are climate change's best and worst scenarios? Scientist James Renwick explains.

George Moss hopes scientists will help his cows produce less methane. Photo / Alan Gibson

NEW ZEALAND

Why cow burps are NZ's biggest climate headache

16 Sep, 2019 5:00am
4 minutes to read

Methane from cows remains NZ's biggest climate change problem.

School Strike 4 Climate national coordinator Sophie Handford leads students in a march to Parliament in Wellington on March this year. Photo / Supplied

NEW ZEALAND

How do Kiwis really feel about climate change?

16 Sep, 2019 5:00am
6 minutes to read

Why does climate change make some people feel powerless to act? Jamie Morton finds out.

NEW ZEALAND

Why so many Kiwis don't know about our biodiversity crisis

15 Sep, 2019 12:00pm
11 minutes to read

There's an emergency in our native wilderness. Why are so many Kiwis oblivious to it?

NEW ZEALAND

Science still dominated by 'old boys' club', study finds

8 Sep, 2019 12:31pm
3 minutes to read

Science is still dominated by an "old boys' club", despite efforts to fix its gender gap.

Is it spring? Winter? Call it sprinter. Forecasters are picking a volatile season ahead.

NEW ZEALAND

Weird 'sprin-ter' weather: NZ's in for miserable months

8 Sep, 2019 10:50am
7 minutes to read

Is it spring? Winter? Call it sprinter. Forecasters are picking a volatile season ahead.

Professor Alan Cooper, pictured in this file photo, has been suspended from his top role at the University of Adelaide's Australian Centre for Ancient DNA. Photo / File

NEW ZEALAND

Top NZ scientist suspended amid bullying allegations

8 Sep, 2019 10:27am
3 minutes to read

Oz university suspends top NZ scientist Alan Cooper after carrying out "culture check".

The Government has pledged to lift R&D expenditure from 1.3 per cent to 2 per cent of GDP by 2027. Photo / File

BUSINESS

National questions Govt spending towards bold R&D target

8 Sep, 2019 9:42am
3 minutes to read

National accuses Govt of falling short on investment needed to hit its bold R&D target.

Baby girl Manaia Peeni is recovering after contracting measles along with brother and sister. Mum Stephanie Peeni has spoken out to raise awareness. Photo / Instagram

NEW ZEALAND

'Welcome back to the dark ages': Our measles disaster explained

8 Sep, 2019 7:35am
10 minutes to read

Why are we still battling a disease that should have been stamped out decades ago?

The Government's long-awaited package of freshwater reforms dropped this morning. Photo / NZ Herald

NEW ZEALAND

Analysis: Will Govt's big reforms save our lakes and rivers?

5 Sep, 2019 1:51pm
11 minutes to read

Will the Govt's freshwater reforms be enough to save our rivers? Jamie Morton explains.

Scientists are reasonably sure what tipped the huia (pictured) South Island kōkako into oblivion. Image / Paul Martinson / Te Papa

NEW ZEALAND

Mystery solved: How NZ lost two of its most enigmatic birds

4 Sep, 2019 11:00am
4 minutes to read

DNA findings explain the mysterious demise of NZ's enigmatic South Island kokako and huia.

Kiwi space industry pioneer Peter Beck has been given the title of adjunct professor of aerospace engineering by the University of Auckland today. Photo / Supplied

BUSINESS

Meet NZ's newest professor - rocket man Peter Beck

3 Sep, 2019 1:13pm
3 minutes to read

He never went to university. Now space visionary Peter Beck can call himself a professor.

NEW ZEALAND

Clean and green? Think again. NZ's littering problem laid bare

3 Sep, 2019 11:30am
5 minutes to read

Volunteers have picked up enough takeaway containers to fill 25 rugby fields a metre high.

Auckland is on track to see a total 29 rain days this month - breaking a record set only last month - and Saturday may bring only August's second clear day over the city. Photo / NZ Herald

NEW ZEALAND

Explained: why August has been so miserable

29 Aug, 2019 3:00pm
5 minutes to read

Our mild winter took a grim turn this month - potentially breaking a 30-month heat streak.

There have been around 1000 registered sightings of Scotland's fabled Loch Ness Monster - some of them in recent months. Photo / File

NEW ZEALAND

How Kiwi's Nessie hunt tricked the world into learning science

26 Aug, 2019 11:00am
8 minutes to read

"The monster was the bait, the science was the hook," Neil Gemmell says of monster hunt.

The East Coast's Mahia Peninsula has been a hot-spot for slow slip quakes. Photo / NZ Herald

NEW ZEALAND

Are these slow-burning beasts the key to forecasting quakes?

25 Aug, 2019 3:00pm
5 minutes to read

Scientists are getting an unprecedented look at one of NZ's biggest "slow-slip" quakes.

The sudden stratospheric warming event has been dubbed the

NEW ZEALAND

'Beast from the east' vortex to bring bitter cold burst

23 Aug, 2019 11:00am
4 minutes to read

An extremely rare polar climate event may be about to seriously mess with NZ's weather.

We're all eating more plastic than we think. What does that mean for our bodies? Photo / 123RF

NEW ZEALAND

You're eating plastic pollution. But will it hurt you?

22 Aug, 2019 12:05pm
4 minutes to read

We're all eating more plastic than we think. What does that mean for our bodies?

Lower Hutt was one of the areas most immediately threatened by flood risks from climate change. Photo / NZ Herald

NEW ZEALAND

Rising seas: NZ must 'put brakes on' coastal development

22 Aug, 2019 8:00am
4 minutes to read

Scientists have warned against developing in coastal areas as data reveals climate threat.

There are unprecedented calls for an overhaul of our regulations governing gene editing. Photo / Oleksiy Mark

NEW ZEALAND

Q&A: Why you've been hearing more about GE lately

21 Aug, 2019 11:00am
7 minutes to read

If it seems you've been hearing a lot about GE lately, you're not mistaken. Here's why.

Kiwi cancer survivors are facing big challenges returning to work, suggests research pointing to a potentially huge health problem in New Zealand. Photo / NZME

NEW ZEALAND

Researchers reveal troubling gap facing NZ cancer survivors

20 Aug, 2019 5:00am
3 minutes to read

Kiwi cancer survivors are facing big challenges returning to work, pilot study finds.

This rare takahe, Hawkeye, arrives on Hauraki Gulf's Rotoroa Island today. Photo / Department of Conservation

NEW ZEALAND

Why this young takahē's quest for love is so important

15 Aug, 2019 3:00pm
7 minutes to read

His name is Hawkeye – and for one of NZ's rarest species, he's a sign of hope.

What began as a mild winter took a sharp change this month. Photo / NZ Herald

NEW ZEALAND

Feel like winter's turned up late to the party? Here's why

14 Aug, 2019 3:00pm
5 minutes to read

"We'll have a few more cool spells than we are used to in early spring."

Crossvallia waiparensis was a monster penguin that lived between 66 and 56 million years ago. Image / Canterbury Museum

NEW ZEALAND

Move over, mega parrot: Giant NZ penguin discovery

14 Aug, 2019 9:47am
4 minutes to read

Scientists reveal another monster NZ bird - this time, an ancient 1.6m-high penguin.