Latest from Natural Science

Bumblebees create a buzz

They clumsily bang against our windows and make themselves a springtime nuisance - but the humble bumblebee could prove more valuable to New Zealand's economy than we ever imagined, researchers....

In praise of adventure

$146,000 for Otago skinks is money well spent - Nick Smith

Skinks might not be as ''sexy'' as other endangered wildlife but giving $146,000 to support the work of a community group focusing on boosting the Otago skink population is money well spent, Conservation Minister Nick Smith says.

Seven fast astronomical facts

NZ's war on predators commemorated

The start of a war will be commemorated this week -- one waged not on foreign battlefields, but across our own offshore islands.

Asteroid to give Godzone 'near' miss

A newly discovered asteroid the size of a whale will fly by New Zealand tomorrow morning.

Antarctic sea level rise could be more dramatic than earlier thought - expert

The threat that may be worse than climate change

The world's leading expert on the poisoning of the oceans has described how he was "utterly shocked" by the true amount of plastic floating on the sea, warning that it potentially posed a bigger threat to the planet than climate change.

Stag party finds 3m-year-old 'elephant'

It's The Hangover-meets-Jurassic Park. While most stag parties involve paintballing, the pub or a strip club, one group of friends spent did some impromptu palaeontology.

Bob Forlong: Responsible GM approach will remain

The regime governing genetic modification in New Zealand is one of the strictest in the world, writes Bob Forlong.

Einstein vs quantum theory

Albert Einstein may be most famous for his mass-energy equivalence formula E = mc2, but his work also laid down the foundation for modern quantum mechanics.

Health research gets $78m Govt shot in the arm

Research spanning the effects of hormones on a pregnant mother's brain to the potentially negative health effects that pets may have on families can begin.

Kauri seeds of doubt

An outspoken ecologist has been charged with possessing illegal trees - trees he insists don't exist.

Paul Little: Seems the final frontier is - here

Whenever humanity's baser side seems to be winning, whenever we lose our heads because we can't seem to stop shooting ourselves in the foot.

Students get once-in-a-lifetime research opportunity

Six University of Canterbury students are taking part in what has been called a once-in-a-lifetime research opportunity.

Groundbreaking study could change future farming in warmer world

Australian and Kiwi researchers have edged closer to the "holy grail" of plant science with a groundbreaking study that could change the way farmers irrigate and fertilise their land as the world warms.