News archive

• Mathematical model helps insulin research

  21/07/2008

  A mathematical model to explain the reason for slow insulin transport within skeletal muscle fibres has been developed by Ruakura scientist Dr Paul Shorten.

• Passionfruit helps asthmatics

  15/07/2008

  Passionfruit, a vine fruit which turns dark purple when ripe, may hold the key to help people who suffer from asthma to breathe easier.

• Old rat bones provide key to past

  08/07/2008

  Old rat bones are providing scientists from Landcare Research and Oxford University with clues about human settlement in New Zealand.

• Leech study provides climate change clues

  07/07/2008

  A study of how climate change is affecting vulnerable fish species is focusing on marine leeches in Antarctica.

• New Zealand astronomers discover new star and planet

  01/07/2008

  A team of astronomers at New Zealand’s Mt John observatory in Canterbury has discovered a small star with its own planet some two to three times larger than Earth, 3,000 light years away.

• The thinnest fibres in the world

  25/06/2008

  A young scientist from Canterbury University is making thread that is so thin it is invisible to the naked eye. The threads can be woven into super-strong products.

• Harnessing geothermal heat

  13/06/2008

  New Zealanders will have more opportunity to use heat energy drawn directly from the ground in the future, as a result of research led by GNS Science.

• A monster from the deep

  12/06/2008

  A colossal squid with razor-sharp hooks on its tentacles and with eyes bigger than dinner plates, has been slowly defrosting at Wellington’s Te Papa Museum. Scientists from around the world gathered at the museum in late April and early May 2008 to study the biggest squid ever captured.

• Watching out for massive waves (tsunamis)

  03/06/2008

  Many coastal communities around the globe live with the risk of a devastating tsunami. The tragic Boxing Day Tsunami of 2004, with a death toll of over one million, highlights the extreme effects on people, property and the environment that a tsunami can have.

• Coming soon: Gourmet mushrooms on toast

  29/05/2008

  New Zealand scientists from Crop and Food Research have pioneered a technique for growing rare edible fungi (forest-grown mushrooms) on the roots of pine trees. Their latest success announced in late May 2008 is in growing commercial quantities of a type of mushroom called the saffron milk cap.

• New Zealand plays vital role in International Space Station mission

  15/05/2008

  New Zealand engineers and technicians played a vital role in the success of the latest mission to the International Space Station. The on-going mission began in March 2008 with the launch of Jules Verne, the first ever Automated Transfer Vehicle to rendezvous with the space station.

• Geologists find a new volcano in Auckland

  12/05/2008

  In February 2008, geologists from GNS Science and Auckland University discovered a new volcano while drilling in the Panmure Basin in Auckland.

• The great perch search

  05/05/2008

  Red finned perch (Perca fluviatilis) are a fresh water fish that was first introduced in New Zealand by European settlers in 1868 as a food supply and an easy catch for anglers. However, like many introduced species, they have become a pest.

• New onions don’t make you cry

  28/04/2008

  Scientists at Crop & Food Research in New Zealand have developed a new type of onion which doesn’t make your eyes water when you chop it up.

• Sea voyage finds starfish as big as serving platters and giant sea-spiders

  20/04/2008

  In March 2008, scientists on board a special ship called the research vessel Tangaroa finished an exciting survey of marine life in the Ross Sea region around Antarctica.

• Weightlifting study aims to tackle diabetes

  08/04/2008

  The value of weightlifting in helping Pacific Island people combat diabetes is to be studied for the first time.

• Citizen scientists asked to help with environmental project

  31/03/2008

  'Citizen scientists' are being called upon to help in a project designed to gauge the status of New Zealand’s environment.

• Frog survival cause for celebration!

  26/03/2008

  Ecologists are celebrating the arrival of the first Maud Island frogs (Leiopelma pakeka) to hatch on mainland New Zealand for many years, representing a highly significant advance in conservation and restoration ecology.

• Scientists dig deep for soil research

  25/03/2008

  New soil research is expected to have a major impact on how future climate change events are forecast.

• Science helps simulate future climate

  18/03/2008

  Palmerston North is now home to the world’s longest running field trial simulating the effects of climate change on farming. The experiment is also unique because it incorporates grazing animals.

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