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energy

Heat energy

Article

Heat energy

Most of us use the word ‘heat’ to mean something that feels warm, but science defines heat as the flow ...

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What is energy?

Article

What is energy?

This is both a simple and complex question. Energy is in everything – it is often described as ‘the ability ...

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Solar energy

Article

Solar energy

The Sun is the source of almost all our energy. It is a huge ball of hot gases that gives ...

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Conservation of energy

Article

Conservation of energy

What is energy? The standard definition of energy is the capacity to do work, which describes what energy can do ...

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Energy transfer

Article

Energy transfer

Energy is neither created nor destroyed. It does not disappear when we use it – it changes from one form ...

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Investigating waves and energy

Activity

Investigating waves and energy

In this investigation, students work with slinkies to explore longitudinal and transverse waves. They have the opportunity to establish the ...

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Bots vs Beings – the impacts of AI on life and work

Article

Bots vs Beings – the impacts of AI on life and work

Discussions of artificial intelligence (AI) are inseparable from questions of ethics. In 1942, Isaac Asimov famously popularised the idea that intelligent machines should adhere to a ...

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A year on, we know why the Tongan eruption was so violent

Article

A year on, we know why the Tongan eruption was so violent

Explore the impact that the huge Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai eruption in January 2022 has had on volcanologists theories on volcanoes. A multi-beam sonar mapping system was ...

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Why the volcanic eruption in Tonga was so violent, and what to expect next

Article

Why the volcanic eruption in Tonga was so violent, and what to expect next

In January 2022 the world was shocked to hear of a sudden huge volcanic eruption close to Tonga, causing a tsunami and volcanic ash to cover ...

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Ruminant digestion

Article

Ruminant digestion

Ruminants are mammals with specialised digestive systems that use fermentation processes to gain nutrients from plant material. Cattle, sheep, deer and goats are all ruminants. They ...

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Greenhouse gases and the atmosphere

Article

Greenhouse gases and the atmosphere

We hear a lot about greenhouse gases – and the huge amounts that humans are responsible for pumping into the atmosphere each year. It might be ...

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Beating the wind

Article

Beating the wind

This article explores the aerodynamics of cycling and the steps cyclists can take to minimise pressure drag and friction drag. It tells the story of a ...

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Driving us into the future

Article

Driving us into the future

This article documents the history of the electric car – first developed in 1890, and uses diagrams and text to explain the technology electric cars and ...

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Global action

Article

Global action

Climate change is a complex topic, and this article breaks key aspects down into accessible, bite-sized sections. It concisely explains some of the science ideas associated ...

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Waves and energy – energy transfer

Article

Waves and energy – energy transfer

In a wave, the material on which the wave is travelling is moving. However, the material itself does not move along with the wave. The video ...

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Waves and energy – wave basics

Article

Waves and energy – wave basics

What is a wave? Most of us think of the waves we see at the beach. The waves come in from out in the ocean and ...

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Low-flammability garden saves home

Article

Low-flammability garden saves home

Scientists Tim Curran (Lincoln University), Sarah Wyse (University of Auckland) and George Perry (University of Auckland) assessed the flammability of a variety of exotic and native ...

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Invasive weeds and wildfires

Article

Invasive weeds and wildfires

Scientists Tim Curran (Lincoln University), Sarah Wyse (University of Auckland) and George Perry (University of Auckland) looked at the impacts of exotic plant species on fires. ...

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Glow-worms

Article

Glow-worms

Glow-worms are New Zealand’s underground stars. Small but bright, it is no wonder why they attract so many tourists to places such as Waitomo and Paparoa ...

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Mission to touch the Sun

Article

Mission to touch the Sun

In 2018, NASA launched a thrilling mission unlike any other to date. From Cape Canaveral, the Parker Solar Probe was scheduled to launch within a small ...

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Super sense – an introduction to artificial sensors

Article

Super sense – an introduction to artificial sensors

Monitoring our world using artificial sensors Artificial sensors enable us to overcome the limitations of our human senses and extend them in novel and useful ways, ...

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REV it UP – electric cars

Article

REV it UP – electric cars

REV it UP was a Taranaki-based Participatory Science Platform (PSP) project supported by the New Zealand Government. New Plymouth Boys’ High School and local engineering firm ...

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The sporting edge – key terms

Article

The sporting edge – key terms

This resource provides explanations of the key concepts encountered when exploring getting the sporting edge, applying science to improve sporting performance. Sports science helps athletes gain ...

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Digestion chemistry — key terms

Article

Digestion chemistry — key terms

Food’s macronutrients undergo chemical breakdown as they move through the digestive system. Learn more about the digestion process and its hormonal control with these explanations of ...

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History of gases and plasmas – timeline

Article

History of gases and plasmas – timeline

Use this timeline for a look at some of the historical aspects in the development of our understanding of gases and plasmas. 1644 – Invention of ...

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Restoring Rotorua’s natural geothermal taonga

Article

Restoring Rotorua’s natural geothermal taonga

The haukāinga (local residents) of the Rotorua area – Te Arawa, Tūhourangi and Ngāti Wāhiao – have lived in this highly active geothermal region for generations. ...

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Investigating rockets – key terms

Article

Investigating rockets – key terms

Taking science and technology to new heights. Rocket science includes ideas of forces and motion, how rockets work and some of the challenges for those wanting ...

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Aeronavics

Article

Aeronavics

Drones, UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles), droids, flying robots – no matter what you call them, they are fast becoming the latest must-have technology. Need to check ...

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