Friend or foe, that is the question
It is quite likely we will one day create a machine - a robot, if you like - that can "think" faster than we do, writes Gwynne Dyer.
AdvertisementAdvertise with NZME.
Latest from Science
Zain Ali: Space for all in religious debate
Religious faith undoubtedly has the power to inspire, although in many cases it seems to inspire irrational acts of hatred and violence.
From TV shows to courtrooms
Images from a murder scene are beamed straight to a laboratory, and jurors are given a virtual "tour" of a scene, allowing them to get up close .
Call for helium balloon ban
A British chemist believes helium balloons should be banned to save the scarce resource.
Toxic end to dream island holiday
As soon as she took a bite of the fish caught and prepared for her by some Fijian locals, Amanda Austrin knew something was wrong.
NZ woman poisoned in paradise
A New Zealand woman has spent more than 30 weeks in hospital and cannot eat properly after she was poisoned while eating fish during a dream holiday in Fiji.
Bones from oldest dino yet
A set of fossilised bones kept for more than half a century in the dusty storerooms of the Natural History Museum in London belonged to the earliest known dinosaur to roam the land.
Editorial: Endangering animals for recreational gain repellent
Editorial: The use of animals in such a context should not win the approval of the National Animal Ethics Advisory Committee.
Deborah Hill Cone: Resisting temptation young helps you later on
I lost my virginity in my second year at university. Freak eh? It makes me quite the deviant in today's sexy-and-you-know-it world.
Clean up waterways, say scientists
Two scientists speaking at a major freshwater conference have described reversing the fouling of New Zealand's waterways as our largest environmental problem.
Party pill tests on animals in doubt
Manufacturers of party pills could be prevented from testing their drugs on animals if they cannot prove it is worth the pain they could potentially cause.
Shark takes long way home
A shark that swam from New Zealand to Fiji has returned home for Christmas, rounding off an 11,000km odyssey and amazing the scientists who tracked her journey.
Editorial: 100 Pure critic needs to be fair and accurate
Editorial: Russel Norman is absolutely right to say that scientists must be free to perform their academic duty to report environmental degradation.
Eruption response an 'overreaction'
Taupo's mayor has criticised the response to Mt Tongariro's eruption this week, calling it an overreaction and saying we need to "learn to live with a live volcano".
Ruapehu a bigger threat
After Mt Tongariro spewed ash into the sky, scientists are closely watching its potentially more destructive neighbour Mt Ruapehu.
Test measures life expectancy
A blood test to determine how fast someone is ageing has been shown to work on a population of wild bird.
Study aims to unlock autism
Grant helps Auckland scientist to dig deeper into complex disorder.
Jeff Tallon: If research is sidelined our best minds will leave
Cabinet minister Steven Joyce has announced the name of his soon-to-be-established Advanced Technology Institute - "Callaghan Innovation".