Byte size: Wii-se guys who like to solve problems

Kiwis have shown their fondness for active gaming by making the Wii the most played console in the country.

The battle for most loved console has been a closely fought one though, with 23 per cent of gamers owning Wiis, 22 per cent owning Xbox 360s and 21 per cent owning PlayStation 3s.

Wii's motion-based gameplay attracts more females and households with children, leading to its popularity in Godzone. More than half of New Zealand Wiis are owned by families with children under the age of 16.

Working it out

Mirror, mirror on the wall - who's the smartest university technology team of them all?

Well, it won't come down to a magical mirror, but rather to some bright people who will make the big call at the 2012 Microsoft Imagine Cup.

In an attempt to solve some of the toughest problems facing the planet, 400 university and polytechnic teams from throughout the country submitted ideas ranging from algorithms that predict a person's likelihood to succeed in business to utilising motion-controllers to help rehabilitate injured people.

From those 400, only 19 have made the cut to face judging in April to whittle it down to the final four teams, with another round of judging to follow.

The winning team will then represent New Zealand at the Worldwide Finals in Sydney in July.

"As always, it was difficult to whittle down the submissions we received to just 19 teams - there were so many innovative, high quality entries to choose from," says Scott Wylie, director of Developer and Platform Group for Microsoft New Zealand.

"It is great to see the future leaders in technology and science step up to the challenge we have set them of solving the world's toughest problems. There are so many talented, creative students out there, which makes it much harder each year to pick just one winner."

Follow that Monarch

Where's your missing sock? Who left just dregs of milk in the bottle? Where do butterflies go in winter?

Well, the first two will probably by left unanswered - although I'm sure you have suspicions when it comes to the milk - but as for the butterflies, some keen school kids are going to find out.

Enter the NZ Association of Primary Science Educators (NZAPSE), who have cooked up a national science project that has tagged a large number of Monarch butterflies, then tracked their movements. Not just for the sake of general trivia.

Knowing about butterflies is important as they are also key pointers to the health of many things in our surroundings.

"By tagging and following Monarchs we can use them as indicators of the status of our environment here in NZ," says Chris Astall, national co-ordinator with NZAPSE. "By taking part, children will have the opportunity to develop skills and experience a science investigation that has real purpose. I hope schools from all over NZ can get involved and collect data."

For information on the high-flying project, see: monarch.org.nz