ScienceNZ - The Value of Science Discovery
Science Value
25 years of science working for New Zealand
Twenty-five years ago the Government re-shaped the nation's science organisations into Crown Research Institutes. This year, the 7 CRIs celebrate the success of their staff and partners in making a difference for New Zealand.
New Value
Alexia Hilbertidou, an outstanding Eureka! finalist and winner
Alexia Hilbertidou is an outstanding Eureka! finalist and winner of the Treasury Scholarship. Science New Zealand sponsors the Eureka! Sir Paul Callaghan Awards and the regional and national finals for 2017 are coming up. www.eureka.org.nz
Fresh Facts - annual horticultural statistics booklet
The annual horticultural statistics booklet, Fresh Facts is out now. Horticultural products now generate $5.1 billion in export revenues. Copies of the booklet series, dating back to 1999, as well as the new Fresh Facts app are available.
Congratulations to NIWA New Zealand for winning the ACC New Zealand Workplace Safety Award at the Wellington Gold Awards
Well done to the 2017 Winner of the ACC Workplace Safety Award - NIWA New Zealand.
NIWA crews spend a lot of time out on the water, but there has not been a serious injury on the big boats in years.
Weaving mātauranga Māori and Scion science
Rotorua iwi Ngāti Whakaue have been working with Scion scientists to deliver a unique educational project that merges our science and innovation with traditional Māori knowledge.
Positive result with New Zealand Bee Colony Loss Survey in 2016
Landcare Research's reputation as the leading provider of survey services that gather solid scientifically proven data has been further enhanced with the release of the 2016 Colony Loss Survey of beekeepers.
Forensic Intelligence: increasing the value of science to justice
How can past criminal case data help justice today and in the future? ESR's Forensic Intelligence project is currently developing ways to enhance the value of forensic science to the justice system.
Douglas-fir essential oil a winner in timber design awards
Scion's Doug Gaunt, who sat on the judging panel, said the oil project had a close alignment with Scion's strategy to use as much of each tree as possible, not just the wood.
Calling all citizen scientists
A smartphone app has been developed to give the public a new way to report sightings of eucalyptus pests.
Massive mudslides in Kaikōura Canyon destroy seabed life
Huge mudslides from November's earthquakes have wiped out all organisms living in the seabed of the Kaikoura Canyon.
Environmental radiation monitoring in Hong Kong
Proton beams are used for cancer treatment like traditional irradiation facilities. Their advantage is that they can be focused with greater accuracy and therefore cause less side effects for patients
Novel approach wins research funding
Engineered water systems including plumbing, drinking-water, water tanks, spas and cooling towers, are known to harbour Legionella pneumophila which can cause severe pneumonia (5 –30% death rate)
NZ to benefit from new science links to China
AgResearch intends to form a joint international research centre with China's largest state-owned food company and largest university research department specialising in food science and nutrition.
Real-Time Identification of Designer Drugs
With internet access widening the scope of drug sources, a new threat has emerged over recent years with the introduction of designer drugs
Full Metal Coat
A machine called AECL Theratron T-80 Teletherapy, containing a radioactive source (Co-60), was recently decommissioned by ESR and returned to Australia. Learn about the journey and watch the video.
New international science links to benefit New Zealand
New relationships forged between AgResearch and key overseas science organisations will provide a host of valuable opportunities for New Zealand
New Thinking
Flexible decision making tactics for climate change
Preparing New Zealand’s primary industries for climate change is an enormous challenge. Uncertainty around the wide range of possible climate change impacts could lead to over-investment in some areas and under-investment in others. To ensure that we can protect our primary industries efficiently, Scion is investigating an analytical tool that gives decision makers the flexibility to plan for a range of climate change scenarios as they unfold.
Forestry - sunrise or sunset industry?
Recognising forestry as a sunrise industry is not new thinking here or internationally. Increasingly the thinking is being voiced more loudly and more broadly.
Erosion: mapping, measuring and mitigating
New Zealand is one of the most erodible countries in the world. Erosion is one of the major challenges that faces our primary industries and is likely to worsen as climate change brings more frequent and intense weather to our shores.
Getting farm animals through the winter chill
As people hunker down for another cold New Zealand winter, challenging times also lie ahead for animals exposed to the elements out on farms. AgResearch scientists say a wealth of research is now providing a much greater understanding of how the livestock cope with the wintry weather, and what can be done to help manage them through those icy periods.
Growing sheep milk industry bolstered by science
New research is adding weight to the benefits of sheep milk as New Zealand's industry continues to expand its base and reach to the world.
Port Hills fires: Lessons for the entire country
Planting back quickly and correctly is crucial, writes FIONA CARSWELL, chief scientist at Landcare Research.
Wellington's summer was bad, but not as bad as you think—honest
Summer has officially ended but for Wellingtonians it feels like it's only just getting started. NIWA meteorologist Ben Noll explains what went wrong.
Good for exports, health and environment: a history of apple pest management
A unified goal-driven sector with a responsiveness to market demand is credited with the development of a pest management system in New Zealand's apple industry that is the envy of other countries and crop industries.
Hungry helpers beat weeds and save country millions
Waikato dairy and beef farmer Steve Fagan was sceptical, to say the least, when tiny beetles were released on his farm about 25 years ago to control ragwort.
Cultural Heritage Visualisation - Te Rererunga
ESR has worked in partnership with Ngāti Rangitihi and Blue Cube Consulting to create a prototype Cultural Heritage Visualisation platform as a 3D record of marae
Huge savings for economy from humble wasp
AgResearch estimates a humble Irish wasp has saved New Zealand almost half a billion dollars
Wool as a `last line of defence’ for armed forces and emergency services
AgResearch scientists have been putting the heat on wool garments to see what level of fire protection they can provide
Novel microbial seed treatments protect wheat seedlings from insect damage
AgResearch scientists are following promising leads to identify effective environmentally benign microbial seed treatments for use by arable farmers
Containing the spread of hitchhiking pests
The past 50 or so years has seen a dramatic change in the volume, and mode, of international trade. Not only has the volume escalated substantially, but around 90% of it is carried by sea, mostly in containers.
New Science
New contracts for CRIs on their 25th anniversary
Minister Goldsmith announces $1.2bn investment over 7 years in SSIF funding for CRIs. Critical strategic science activity for our economy, environment and wellbeing.
Zespri's biospife ready for market
Taking a product from the laboratory to market is a challenging process. But after a long journey, the biobased and industrially compostable version of Zespri’s iconic spoon-knife, the biospife, is now ready for use. Following many rounds of testing and development, Zespri has 150,000 biospifes ready for kiwifruit lovers all over the world to cut, scoop and compost.
Study of mutant sheep provides exciting new opportunities
Research into "mutant" sheep has AgResearch scientists eyeing up a greater understanding of what makes human hair curly or straight, and the potential for innovative new wool products.
ESR's MinION hard at work!
The MinION is a breakthrough portable DNA sequencer produced by Oxford Nanopore.
Smoke gets in your eyes
Smoke from wildfires can have a serious health impact for some members of the public, even if they are far away from the flames. Scion science is supporting the response to the Port Hills fire burning in Canterbury.
Smart Ideas Fund for new DNA tracer
A new project is underway to develop a new environmentally safe tool for simultaneously tracking multiple water contamination sources and pathways
Finding sustainable solutions to clean our water
A 3-year project aims to pilot an in-stream woodchip denitrifying bioreactor to remove nitrogen from drainage water on agricultural land
