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Science Deadline: Earthquake region, kiwi diversity
Science Deadline: Earthquake region, kiwi diversity and indigenous media training in Aus
Issue 389, 02 Sep 2016
Top news from scimex.org the Science Media
Centre's news-sharing platform.
Ross Sea winds madeSouthern Ocean less salty
Grass near power plants reveals carbon
truths
Boosting nursing mothers’ vitamin D
benefits babies
New from the
SMC
Reflections on Science: GeoNet changed EQ science dramatically -
Helen Anderson
Expert reaction: Glaciers drove kiwi
diversity
Expert reaction: Sunglasses not up to
scratch
In the News: Sugar, dietand obesity
New
from the SMC global network
UK
SMC
Expert Reaction: Alcohol intake and female
fertility
Expert reaction: Marijuana use in the USA and perception of
harm
Expert reaction: Amyloid therapy for
Alzheimer's
Expert reaction: Ethics of human-animal
embryo research
Australian
SMC
Aussies unearth the world's oldest
fossils
Songbirds island-hopped out of
Australia
Tassie devils beating cancer by evolving
rapidly
Smarter brains are blood-thirsty
brains
Earthquake hits active
area
An early morning earthquake off the East
Cape rattled many from their beds and sparked a tsunami
warning.
The magnitude 7.1 earthquake
struck at 4.37am 125 kilometres
north-east of Te Araroa at a depth of 22km. It triggered a
series of aftershocks - including one at magnitude 6.2 - and
a tsunami warning.
Waves of about 30 centimetres were detected on the East Cape and Great Barrier Island and the tsunami warning was cancelled after 8am.
The SMC put together an expert Q&A with GNS Science seismologist Dr John Ristau, who said the area along the east coast of the North Island was "one of the more seismically active regions of New Zealand".
Aftershocks could continue for a long time, he said. Following the 1995 magnitude 7.2 earthquake off the East Cape, aftershocks continued for about two years.
Dr Ristau said some aftershocks could be up to about magnitude 6 - as seen this morning - but there would be hundreds under magnitude 4 that wouldn't be widely felt.
Tsunamis were typically produced by very large, shallow earthquakes on the boundary between two tectonic plates, where one was subducting beneath the other, Dr Ristau said.
This morning's shake was on the boundary of the Pacific and Australian plates but didn't displace enough of the sea floor to cause a major tsunami, he said.
Read the full Q&A.
Quoted: The Spinoff
"If the New Zealand
Government is OK with MetService warning us of cyclones, why
can’t the scientific experts at GeoNet be the ones to
initially warn and update us re: tsunami risk?"
Weather Watch's head analyst Philip Duncan
on the delay between this morning's earthquake
and a tsunami warning.
Explosive kiwi
diversity
New research suggests there could be 11
distinct kiwi lineages, thanks to ice age glaciers driving
populations apart.
Researchers based in
Canada, in collaboration with Department of Conservation
scientists, published a new study this week
suggesting our five kiwi species could be made up of 11
genetically distinct lineages.
Using a database of genetic information, they examined kiwi across the geographic range and found a burst of diversity linked to repeated glaciations over the space of 800,000 years.
Lead author Associate Professor Jason Weir, from the University of Toronto, said the study built on work from New Zealander Allan Baker, who was posthumously credited in the new research.
A.Prof Weir said the findings were already being included in management decisions around whether birds from certain populations could be bred together.
Dr Kristina Ramstad, previously of the Allan Wilson Centre but now based in South Carolina, said the results strongly supported DOC's current management. "And shows rather fast adaptive radiation among birds that rarely do anything quickly," she added.
Te Papa genetics researcher Dr Lara Shepherd said the findings highlighted how much was still left to learn about native species. "If we are still finding new types of kiwi, one of our most iconic and well-funded birds, then how much of the diversity are we overlooking in under-studied groups such as invertebrates, fungi and liverworts?"
The SMC gathered expert reaction on the study.
Policy news & developments
Tech projects funded: The Science for Technological Innovation National Science Challenge will invest $826,000 in ten projects to develop disruptive technology for industry.
Energy fund more than electricity: A change to the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority's levy funding will allow more focus on improving energy productivity and reducing emissions.
Electric vehicle drive: A change to how the Government procures vehicles through a contract will seek to enhance the availability of electric vehicles.
Govt to review council GMO ruling: Environment Minister Dr Nick Smith has announced the Government intends to review the involvement of councils in regulating genetically modified organisms (GMOs).
Indigenous experts in the
media
AusSMC programme to give hands-on media
training to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander experts.
Our colleagues at the Australian Science Media
Centre have teamed up with the University of Newcastle's
Wollotuka Institute and National Indigenous Television
(NITV, a division of SBS), to offer an indigenous media mentoring
programme.
Its first intake saw 12 researchers from Australia's eastern states get three days of training this week in everything from TV and radio interviews to social media.
Further workshops are planned in a bid to boost the profile of researchers across Australia.
"When we think of Indigenous people in the media, we might remember sports stars, dancers, artists or activists, but we seldom think of researchers," AusSMC chief executive Dr Susannah Eliott said.
"It's not because they don’t exist, but because they seldom seek the media limelight. Having Indigenous scientists and researchers in the media, actively engaging in public dialogue, creates role models and benefits us all," she said.
The New Zealand Science Media Centre runs similar workshops for Maori researchers in conjunction with Ngā Pae o te Māramatanga, New Zealand's Maori Centre of Research Excellence.
Maori psychologists, public health researchers and Nga Pae co-director Jacinta Ruru were among the 23 Māori researchers to complete the two-day Science Media SAVVY workshops this year in Auckland and Dunedin. More workshops are planned for next year and Māori researchers are encouraged to participate in our SAVVY Express video booth 15 minute training sessions, which are held on the sidelines of major science conferences.
Māori researchers check out
some relics from the archives of the Otago Daily Times, with
editor Barry Stewart.
Contact the SMC about Science Media SAVVY and our
fully-funded programme of workshops for Māori
researchers. Check out Matau Taio, our blog on the work of
Maori researchers and those looking at Mātauranga Māori.
New from Sciblogs - NZ's
science blog network
Some of the highlights from this week's Sciblogs posts:
Treaty of Waitangi leads conservation
innovation: Co-governance with Māori could
create more support for marine reserves, says Dr Giles
Dodson.
Infrequently Asked Questions
Technological socialism: Will
letting technology take care of us give us better lives?
Robert Hickson ponders the
idea.
Ariadne
What to do about astro-junk in NZ waters? A new
rocket programme will launch New Zealand into the space race
- but what should we do about space junk and its impact on
our surrounding waters?
News
Welly, Chch and Dunners: NZ's most active
cities: Cold, windy and wet? No sweat. Some of
NZ's worst cities for weather are the best for getting out
walking and cycling, according to a University of Otago
report.
News
Upcoming events
Please see the SMC Events Calendar for more events and
details.
• Maths Craft Festival: 3 - 4 September,
Auckland: Discover the maths behind craft and
the craft behind maths with Te Pūnaha Matatini. Suitable
for all ages.
• A researcher's guide to understanding modern statistics: 5 September, Dunedin. Visiting lecturer Professor Sander Greenland will discuss lessons from the American Statistical Association's statement on the use of p-values.
• Samoan biological responses to modernisation: 5 September, Dunedin. Brown University's Professor Stephen McGarvey, who recently published results showing a genetic link to obesity, will discuss his research.
• Building resilience conference: 7 - 9 September, Auckland. An annual international conference exploring resilience as a useful framework of analysis for how society can cope with the threat of hazards.
• Is NZ food safe? 7 September, Christchurch. Professor of toxicology Ian Shaw will discuss food safety from a toxicologist's perspective.
• Who are today's dads? 9 September, Wellington. A new report on 21st Century dads from the University of Auckland Centre for Longitudinal Research will be launched by Children's Commissioner Judge Becroft.
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.
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NIWA: Ship Anchors May Cause Extensive And Long-lasting Damage To The Seafloor, According To New Research
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