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Science Media Centre NZ
Our aim is to promote accurate, evidence-based reporting on science and technology by helping the media work more closely with the scientific community.
The Science Media Centre is New Zealand's only trusted, independent source of information for the media on all issues related to science. Thousands of news stories providing context from and quoting New Zealand researchers have been published as a direct result of our work.
Science Media Centre NZ - Latest News [Page 4]
AI That Can (almost) Pass A Medical Licensing Exam – Expert Reaction
Friday, 10 February 2023, 10:14 am | Science Media Centre
The AI software ChatGPT was able to score at or close to the 60% passing grade needed for the United States Medical Licensing Exam (USMLE), according to new US research. The USMLE is a notoriously difficult series of three exams that are required to get ... More >>
Pfizer Vaccine Available For Some Under-5s – Expert Reaction
Thursday, 9 February 2023, 3:09 pm | Science Media Centre
Children aged between six months and four years can now access a paediatric version of the Pfizer vaccine if they are at higher risk of severe Covid-19. The Ministry of Health said the three-dose paediatric vaccine would be available starting today ... More >>
Extreme Rainfall In A Warming World – Expert Reaction
Monday, 30 January 2023, 6:37 pm | Science Media Centre
Auckland is currently challenging the record for its wettest month ever. More than 769% of its rainfall in a normal January has been recorded so far, with another round of downpours likely to hit again tomorrow night. The SMC asked experts to discuss ... More >>
Making Homes Safe After Floods - Expert Reaction
Monday, 30 January 2023, 4:27 pm | Science Media Centre
Forty homes have been red-stickered, and around 5,000 more have been damaged after a record-smashing deluge across the upper North Island. Health hazards such as mould and contamination could be waiting for residents returning to their waterlogged homes. ... More >>
Covid-19 Reinfections Are Ramping Up, But How Accessible Are Antiviral Medicines?
Thursday, 8 December 2022, 11:44 am | Science Media Centre
Earlier this spring, a Pfizer-funded survey reported that 54% of New Zealanders knew little about antiviral treatments for Covid-19. The SMC asked experts about access to Covid-19 antiviral medicines and what we know about the risks of reinfection. ... More >>
Major Makeover For NZ Science System – Expert Reaction
Wednesday, 7 December 2022, 10:06 am | Science Media Centre NZ
The system that supports our researchers and innovators is set for an overhaul, with the release of the “Te Ara Paerangi – Future Pathways” white paper. The blueprint will reshape Aotearoa’s research, science and innovation landscape to ... More >>
COP15: A Global Summit To Safeguard Nature – Expert Reaction
Monday, 5 December 2022, 6:44 pm | Science Media Centre
Governments from around the world will convene in Montreal this week for the UN Biodiversity Conference (COP15) from 7 – 19 December 2022. The conference will convene governments from around the world to agree to a new set of goals for nature ... More >>
Smoking’s Sunset A Step Closer – Expert Q&A
Thursday, 1 December 2022, 7:01 pm | Science Media Centre
The Health Select Committee has given the green light to the Smokefree Bill this week. Its report makes additional recommendations as well, like capping the number of tobacco retailers to no more than 600. Yesterday, Action for Smokefree 2025 (ASH) ... More >>
Meth Contamination Standards In Rental Homes – Expert Reaction
Thursday, 24 November 2022, 3:31 pm | Science Media Centre
Public consultations have opened on a proposal to finally clarify what level of methamphetamine residue inside rental homes is a health problem that needs to be addressed. A 2018 report by Professor Sir Peter Gluckman found the meth contamination ... More >>
COP27 Comes To A Close – Expert Reaction
Monday, 21 November 2022, 2:13 pm | Science Media Centre
Wealthy countries attending the annual UN Climate Change Conference have agreed to fund poor and vulnerable nations that are experiencing some of the worst effects of a changing climate. However, there have been delays in approving a wider deal ... More >>
RMA Reforms Revealed – Expert Reaction
Tuesday, 15 November 2022, 6:53 pm | Science Media Centre
The Government has introduced two bills meant to replace and simplify the Resource Management Act, one of the most complex pieces of law in New Zealand. The Natural and Built Environment Bill and the Spatial Planning Bill aim to speed up the resource ... More >>
Global Fossil Fuel Emissions Rise Above Pre-pandemic Levels – Expert Reaction
Friday, 11 November 2022, 5:53 pm | Science Media Centre
Global carbon emissions from fossil fuels are projected to increase by 1% in 2022, putting an end to the reductions made in 2020 – but could New Zealand buck the trend? This year’s annual Global Carbon Budget shows that New Zealand did not see ... More >>
Looking Ahead To COP27 - Expert Reaction
Thursday, 3 November 2022, 12:08 pm | Science Media Centre
The world will turn its attention to Egypt next week as government leaders, policymakers, and activists attend the latest UN Climate Change Conference. Goals for COP27 include emissions reduction, scaled-up adaptation efforts, and enhanced ... More >>
COVID-19 On A Cruise Ship – Expert Reaction
Tuesday, 25 October 2022, 6:54 pm | Science Media Centre
Covid-19 cases have been confirmed on one of the first cruise ships to travel around the country in more than two years. Ovation of the Seas, carrying almost 5000 passengers and 1300 crew, sailed into Napier on Monday from Tahiti, and arrived in Wellington ... More >>
Will New Covid-19 Subvariants Fuel The Next Wave? – Expert Reaction
Wednesday, 12 October 2022, 6:22 pm | Science Media Centre
A range of new Covid-19 subvariants are currently circulating overseas, and some have already reached our shores. With summer around the corner, the SMC asked experts to comment on what the Covid-19 landscape is looking like right now in other countries, ... More >>
The Basics Of NZ’s Water Infrastructure – Expert Reaction
Friday, 7 October 2022, 6:17 pm | Science Media Centre
What’s happening behind the scenes when drinking water gets to our taps or our wastewater is discharged – and how might climate change get in the way? The Science Media Centre asked experts to provide an overview and their thoughts on the current ... More >>
Community Transmission Of Monkeypox In New Zealand – Expert Reaction
Thursday, 6 October 2022, 6:01 pm | Science Media Centre
Two new cases of monkeypox have spread within New Zealand’s community, as opposed to previous cases where people were likely infected overseas. The two new cases are isolating in Auckland. There is currently no confirmed link between the two cases, ... More >>
Climate Change Could Widen Termite Habitats – Expert Reaction
Tuesday, 27 September 2022, 2:14 pm | Science Media Centre
As the planet warms, termites could move further out of the tropics, decaying more wood and releasing more carbon dioxide like “tiny cows”, according to a new study in the journal Science. Three locations in New Zealand were included as study sites. ... More >>
Protecting NZ’s Most Productive Land – Expert Reaction
Tuesday, 20 September 2022, 3:58 pm | Science Media Centre
The Government has released a National Policy Statement for Highly Productive Land (NPS-HPL), with the aim of improving how we protect the country’s most productive farmland from residential development. Over the last 20 years, 170,000 hectares of ... More >>
Minimising Meth’s Harms – Expert Reaction
Monday, 5 September 2022, 11:28 am | Science Media Centre
A new report recommends several actions to reduce the harms of methamphetamine use in Aotearoa New Zealand, saying the evidence is clear that reducing supply alone doesn’t work. The report, commissioned by the Helen Clark Foundation and the New ... More >>
