Molecular Matters

Each year when the list of New Year’s Honours recipients is announced I eagerly look to see if any scientists and engineers are among the recipients. And usually I am disappointed to see a sparse representation. More often awards seem to go to sportspeople, politicians and business people, or at least that is the impression I get, particularly from the media. But is … Read More

On Friday, the New Zealand Herald reported that John Key has yet again rejected research that contradicted what the governments’ position is – in this case on the lack of effectiveness of 90 day trial employments. John Keys’ response to the Motu funded report, which found that 90 day employment trials result in no statistically significant increase in employees being hiring by employers was: … Read More

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Earlier in the week I attended the New Zealand Association of Scientists conference in Wellington. The theme of the conference was “The Future for Scientists in New Zealand”. It was a very interesting conference with a diverse range of thoughtful and thought-provoking talks. During the conference the idea that young children are natural scientists was mentioned several times – an … Read More

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Should degrees be taught mainly by research active staff?* is one of the many questions being asked in the “New models of tertiary education” issues paper released for comment in February of this year. Looking at the various regulations currently embedded in New Zealand there appears to an assumption that degrees benefit from being taught by research active … Read More

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One of the things I love about the summer break is that it gives me time to learn new things. Normally this means working my way through as many books as I can read before I have to go back to work (when my time for recreational reading evaporates). In summer 2015/2016 I decided to direct my learning in a … Read More

Over the weekend (20-22nd November I attended (and MC’d) the 2015 NZ Skeptics Conference in Christchurch. The theme of the conference was Apocalypse How? with many of the speakers talking about ways the world/humankind might end. Some talked about fictional/fantastical ways we might meet our demise while others provided scenarios much more possible. Given the topics and the great line up of speakers, … Read More

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Social media has become an integral part of many peoples lives and provide many benefits – wider access to information, an introduction  to those with similar interests, and exposure to new ideas. However, it also has a dark side which can be seen in the vicious and cruel comments which appear on Twitter as well as platforms such as Facebook and … Read More

I saw the first episode of Star Talk with Neil deGrasse Tyson this week and it was really fascinating. It played on the National Geographic channel (72) on Sky, however, it can also be seen via youtube. This week the science and other aspects of Star Trek (e.g. social change) was discussed with guest star George Takei. Definitely worth a … Read More

Most Star Trek fans point to the Star Trek communicator as an example of yesterday’s science fiction becoming today’s science fact, in the development of the mobile phone. With the warp drive and transporter still out of reach, the next Star Trek inspired device is likely to be the tricorder, thanks to a competition currently being run by … Read More

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My parents have recently moved house and in the process of downsizing have shipped me some of my old stuff (books, old report cards, photos). It has been very interesting going through it, particularly looking at some of the item  which I think influenced my choice to become a scientist. Previously, my fellow blogger Grant Jacobs asked readers “What … Read More

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