Our Bloggers
John Pickering
Writes for: Kidney Punch
Dr John Pickering is an Associate Professor in the Department of Medicine at the University of Otago, Christchurch and a Senior Research Fellow in Acute Care in the Emergency Department of Christchurch hospital. John aims to blog on science, health, and occasionally political issues. He believes publicly funded science should be made public - so publishes regular "cheesecake files" about his own research. John is on Twitter @kiwiskinz
Julie Iles
Writes for:
Julie Iles is a post graduate science journalist currently studying at Massey University in Wellington. She has a background in geophysics, and enjoys feeling small and young when she compares herself to geological formations. @o_OJulay
Ken Perrott
Writes for: Open Parachute
Dr Ken Perrott trained as a chemist and his research background is in surface chemistry, soil science and fertiliser chemistry. After working in the DSIR (Chemistry Division and Soil Bureau), MAF, MAFTech and AgResearch he is now retired. Ken enjoys discussion of the wider social and philosophical issue surrounding science. Unfortunately these issues are often misrepresented in our society and he believe scientists have a responsibility to counter unscientific thinking and movements. This is one of the reasons Ken got into blogging, starting up Open Parachute in the middle of 2007.
Kimberley Collins
Writes for: Up and Atom
Kimberley is a science communicator with a background in ecology and conservation. Her lifelong passion for wildlife has taken her around New Zealand, to Antarctica, the SubAntarctic Islands and other offshore sanctuaries. Her original career in conservation biology was diverted when a stint working in public programmes at Waikato Museum persuaded Kimberley that communicating science was what she wanted to do. She completed a Masters in Science Communication at Otago University, researching how scientists use social media to communicate. Since completing her studies, Kimberley has worked with a range of conservation organisations as a communicator. She spent a year working at ZEALANDIA in Wellington and most recently at Forest & Bird as their online communications coordinator. In her spare time, Kimberley runs an outreach programme called Pop Up Science, which takes science beyond the walls of institutions by popping up with exhibits for children to engage with.
Laura Goodall
Writes for: Mātau Taiao
He kaiwhakamāori pūtaiao a Laura. E ako ana ia Te Reo Māori ki TWoA. Laura tells stories about science in a way that tries to make it understandable and relevant to ordinary people. Her background is in science, communications and Indigenous Peoples' perspectives - and in 2016 she studied Māori Science at VUW. She is now storyteller for Curious Minds (curiousminds.nz) and continuing her journey in Te Reo Māori. You can find her on Twitter: @lauragoodall
Lynley Hargreaves
Writes for: Infrequently Asked Questions
Lynley Hargreaves is a freelance science communicator with a background in mathematical physics. After a stint overseas at Physics Today magazine, she spent happy years working for the Royal Society Te Apārangi, albeit with intermittent disappearances to the mountains of the West Coast of the South Island. From this now permanent West Coast base, she has been conducting IAQ interviews since the beginning of 2014, asking a wide range of researchers how their work can give us insights into the workings of the world.
Marcus Wilson
Writes for: Physics Stop
Dr Marcus Wilson is a lecturer in the Engineering Department at Waikato University and author of the Physics Stop blog. His current research involves modelling of the electrical behaviour of the human brain during natural sleep, focussing particularly on the transitions between sleep states. Previous research interests include infra-red physics and signature control (stealth) and quantum Monte Carlo methods. He graduated from Cambridge University in 1992 (BA Hons) and completed his PhD at Bristol University in 1995.
Marie Brown
Writes for: The Nature of Things
Marie is the Senior Policy Analyst for the Environmental Defence Society, a long-running Auckland-based NGO, and lead author of Vanishing Nature: facing New Zealand’s biodiversity crisis. Her research interests include ecology and conservation, compliance and enforcement of environmental law and environmental policy.