The Kookaburra (click at title to entry), could it be over wintering? Or. Is there trouble with Australia's drought that might be placing them in danger?
Sydney Morning Herald
Planes versus trains
April 6, 2008
Danielle Teutsch looks at whether you're better off flying or going by rail around Europe.
You're hopping around Europe - do you go by plane or train? Only a decade ago, the answer was simple. Flights were expensive and the rail system worked well. It was a no-brainer.
Then came the advent of budget airlines, EasyJet and Ryanair, selling flights within Europe for ridiculously cheap prices - think London to Paris for £20 ($44). Suddenly, plane travel was too tempting to refuse.
But rail travel is fighting back with high-speed services that are improving - so much so that, in some cases, rail travel is quicker than going through airport red tape. And compared to carbon-emission spewing aircraft, electric rail has a a green halo.
http://www.smh.com.au/news/tips/planes-versus-trains/2008/04/04/1207249417544.html
Zimbabwe results judgment on Monday
April 10, 2008 - 6:13AM
A judge hearing an opposition petition demanding the immediate release of Zimbabwe's presidential election results said he will deliver his judgment on Monday.
"Conscious of the urgency of the matter, I should be ready for a judgment on Monday afternoon," Judge Tendai Uchena told the high court in Harare today.
"Judgment is therefore reserved until Monday at 14.30pm (2230 AEST)."
AFP
http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/zimbabwe-results-judgment-on-monday/2008/04/10/1207420521404.html
Privacy fears as Google hits the road
HIGHLY detailed panoramic street-level photos of much of Australia will soon be published by Google, but the executive in charge of the project is making no assurances that private homes, faces and number plates will be obscured.
A US couple is suing the search giant for invasion of privacy after photos of their home, on a street clearly marked with a private road sign, appeared on the new feature of Google Maps.
http://www.smh.com.au/news/web/privacy-fears-as-google-hits-the-road/2008/04/09/1207420533151.html
The Student Operated Press
Florida Lawmakers Pass Take-Your-Gun-To-Work Measure
by Robert Paul Reyes
Some progressive companies allow their employees to bring their children to work on certain days. This liberal policy builds good morale and is conducive to a productive work environment.Other employers permit their workers to bring their pets to work on Fridays; this is another way to foster good relations in the workplace. I would be very happy if I could bring my cat to my place of employment; it would reduce my level of anxiety knowing that my feline is scratching and otherwise vandalizing my company's furniture instead of my own. Some folks love their children; some love their pets, and then there are those who love their firearms. There is a measure pending in Florida that would allow residents to take their beloved guns to work. "Most Florida residents would be allowed to take guns to work under a measure passed by Florida lawmakers on Wednesday. The bill, allowing workers to keep guns in their cars for self-protection, was approved by the Florida Senate by a vote of 26-13. It now goes to Republican Gov. Charlie Crist to sign into law.
http://www.thesop.org/index.php?id=10544
New Zealand Herald
Floods and drought to rise due to climate change
New 11:27AM Thursday April 10, 2008
BUDAPEST - Flooding in temperate regions and the tropics and droughts in arid regions are likely to increase over the course of the century due to climate change, according to a study released yesterday.
The study by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the body which won last year's Nobel Prize with former US Vice President Al Gore, said changes in fresh water supplies would have a huge impact on humans and on the environment.
"The frequency of heavy precipitation events (or proportion of total rainfall from heavy falls) will very likely increase over most areas during the 21st century, with consequences to the risk of rain-generated floods,' the report, released at the IPCC's annual meeting in Budapest, said.
"At the same time, the proportion of land surface in extreme drought at any one time is projected to increase,' it said.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/2/story.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10503242
Baghdad anniversary clampdown fails to stop violence (+video)
9:10AM Thursday April 10, 2008
By Ahmed Rasheed
BAGHDAD - Twenty people were killed in Baghdad's Shi'ite slum of Sadr City yesterday, security sources said, despite vehicle bans aimed at preventing unrest from spreading on the fifth anniversary of the fall of Baghdad.
Up to 70 people have died in Sadr City since Sunday in battles between black-masked militia loyal to cleric Moqtada al-Sadr and US and Iraqi troops.
The upsurge in fighting comes as the top US officials in Iraq testified in Washington that they opposed setting a timetable to withdraw troops from the 5-year-old war.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/2/story.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10503217
Haiti's leader urges calm amid food price unrest (+video)
8:51AM Thursday April 10, 2008By Joseph Guyler Delva
PORT-AU-PRINCE - Haitian President Rene Preval told demonstrators to "cool it" yesterday as he sought to end days of angry and violent protests over soaring food prices in the impoverished Caribbean nation.
"To those who are stirring up violence, I order you to stop because it is not going to solve the problem," Preval said in a national television and radio address.
"Poze," said Preval, telling protesters in Creole to "cool it" in a recorded message from the ornate National Palace, protected by barbed wire and UN peacekeeping troops backed by trucks and armoured personnel carriers.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/2/story.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10503208
Air NZ set to ask Boeing for delay compensation
10:00AM Thursday April 10, 2008By Grant Bradley
Air New Zealand is likely to seek compensation from Boeing following the announcement its eight 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft on order will be delayed by two years.
Air New Zealand has eight 787-9 aircraft on firm order with delivery of the first initially expected around the end of 2010, with all aircraft delivered by late 2013.
The delivery of the first aircraft is now likely in early 2012.
The airline says it will now be entering into compensation discussions with Boeing.
Overnight Boeing said production difficulties had led to the delays for the aircraft made largely of carbon fibre and promises significant fuel saving. First deliveries are not expected until late next year, almost 18 months later than planned.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/1/story.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10503222
Manufacturing sector activity in decline
11:30AM Thursday April 10, 2008
The manufacturing sector's overall activity declined for the first time in over two years, a survey released today shows.
The Bank of New Zealand-Business NZ Performance of Manufacturing Index (PMI) for March was 48.3, seasonally adjusted, 3.5 points lower than February.
It was the first time it has declined since January 2006 and was the lowest result since November 2005.
The average PMI since the survey began in 2002 is 54.4.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/3/story.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=10503241
Rocker eyes 'holographic touring' to save planet
11:30AM Thursday April 10, 2008
NEW YORK - Serj Tankian, the frontman for Los Angeles rock band System of a Down, is so dedicated to saving the planet that he wants to launch a virtual concert tour to reduce his carbon footprint.
"I've had an idea for a long time, which might sound a little crazy, but I really want to look into holographic touring," Tankian told Billboard.
"I think we could reduce our need to travel if we could project ourselves into meetings and concerts. We have the technology, and we're not using it right now."
He suggested that he could broadcast a show in real time from his home studio, and he could interact with fans as if they were in the same room.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/1501119/story.cfm?c_id=1501119&objectid=10503224
Confusion along San Francisco Olympic torch route (+video)
Updated 8:18AM Thursday April 10, 2008
By Adam Tanner
SAN FRANCISCO - Confusion surrounded the relay of the troubled Olympic torch through San Francisco yesterday, as organizers completely changed the route at the last minute, bewildering thousands of China supporters and protesters converged along the planned route.
The first runner held the torch aloft and began the route, flanked by tall, blue-clad Chinese security officials.
But the group then promptly disappeared into a large waterfront warehouse for a last-minute change of route by authorities to head off trouble.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/2/story.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10503194
Don't ban violent video games, says horror King
10:20AM Thursday April 10, 2008
SYDNEY - Horror writer Stephen King has criticised plans by a US state to ban violent video games, saying such a move would be undemocratic and it was up to parents to monitor their children's entertainment.
King, in a pop culture column he writes for Entertainment Weekly, said he was no videogame fan but was outraged when he heard that a bill in the state of Massachusetts could ban the sale of violent games to anyone aged under 18.
"What makes me crazy is when politicians take it upon themselves to play surrogate parents. The results of that are usually disastrous. Not to mention undemocratic," wrote King.
The move comes amid an ongoing debate in the United States, Britain and Australia about banning violent games. British and Irish authorities last year banning videogame "Manhunt 2" in which an insane asylum escapee goes on a killing spree.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/story.cfm?c_id=5&objectid=10503228
Would nuclear power be a viable energy source for New Zealand?
11:24AM Monday April 7, 2008
Nearly one in five New Zealanders say nuclear power is a viable energy source, even though politicians have put it off limits. Wind power topped the poll as the preferred source of electricity generation, with 77 percent. In September, a Colmar Brunton poll found 36 percent believed the Government should consider developing nuclear power stations, 60 percent said "no" and 4 percent didn't know.
http://blogs.nzherald.co.nz/blog/your-views/2008/4/7/would-nuclear-power-be-viable-energy-source-new-zealand/?c_id=1501154
Chinese nurses could help shortage
5:00AM Wednesday April 09, 2008
By Craig Borley
The nursing shortage could be slashed by this week's signing of the free trade agreement with China.
Up to 1000 Chinese workers, in 20 trades classified as being understaffed in New Zealand, can now live here for up to three years, provided they meet qualification standards.
Nursing is one of those trades, and the expected influx of Chinese nurses will bring multiple benefits to the country's health system, experts told the Herald yesterday.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/story.cfm?c_id=204&objectid=10502883
Will a Free Trade Agreement with China be good for us?
12:08PM Sunday March 30, 2008
New Zealand's largest bilateral trade agreement is due to be signed with China on April 7th by Prime Minister Helen Clark and China's Premier Wen Jiabao. It's the result of three years of negotiations and is believed to give New Zealand exporters increased access to the world's fastest growing economy.
http://blogs.nzherald.co.nz/blog/your-views/2008/3/30/will-free-trade-agreement-china-be-good-us/?c_id=1501154#message
Loud Aussie migrant goes quiet
5:00AM Thursday April 10, 2008By Craig Borley
Shy, elusive, retiring and quiet. Couldn't possibly be talking about Australians. Especially that most iconic of Australians, the kookaburra.
But Unitec researcher and senior lecturer John Perrott is finding the famously loud birds near-impossible to locate on this side of the Tasman.
In an attempt to understand why kookaburras, introduced to New Zealand at Kawau Island by Governor George Grey in the 1860s, have not thrived like other new avian arrivals, Dr Perrott first needs to find the surviving New Zealand populations.
"There's been quite a few sightings of them, but they're not the easiest birds to find," he said. "The nests themselves are very hard to find and access because they are so high up in the trees. So it's proving an interesting exercise."
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/story.cfm?c_id=39&objectid=10503118
Winter of discontent predicted for housing market
5:00AM Wednesday April 09, 2008By Anne Gibson
House buyers are waiting for prices to drop, tenants are crying out against big rent hikes and sellers still have unrealistically high expectations.
These are some of the findings to emerge from the latest BNZ monthly confidence survey from chief economist Tony Alexander.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/8/story.cfm?c_id=8&objectid=10502830
Blood donors 'healthier'
5:00AM Thursday April 10, 2008
Frequent blood donation is not harmful to your health, a new study confirms.
"Blood donation may actually be good for you," said Dr Gustaf Edgren of the Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm, the study's lead author.
People who donate blood show lower cancer and mortality rates than their non-donating peers, Dr Edgren and his colleagues note in their report, published in the Journal of the National Cancer Association, but the fact that blood donors tend to be healthier overall could mask any ill effects of frequent donation.
There are also several mechanisms by which frequent blood donation could theoretically affect health, Dr Edgren noted.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/story.cfm?c_id=204&objectid=10503101
Bill gives civilians police powers, say critics
5:00AM Thursday April 10, 2008By Claire Trevett
The Police Association and Council for Civil Liberties say a new bill allowing civilian staff to be given traditional police jobs could transform the face of policing and result in an increasingly civilianised police force.
In his submission to the law and order select committee on the Policing Bill, Police Association head Greg O'Connor said the legislation could result in a force increasingly dominated by civilian staff who did not have the training or capability to deal with crises.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/story.cfm?c_id=280&objectid=10503161
Stress played down as pregnancy risk
5:00AM Thursday April 10, 2008
Being stressed out during the first half of pregnancy may be unhealthy, but it won't increase a woman's risk of developing a serious complication known as pre-eclampsia, Dutch researchers have found.
Stress also didn't influence a woman's likelihood of developing a related condition known as gestational hypertension, in which blood pressure climbs to dangerous levels during pregnancy.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/story.cfm?c_id=204&objectid=10503100
Japan beef ban leaves Hirst's cow art in a pickle
New 11:10AM Thursday April 10, 2008By Sophie Hardach
TOKYO - A cow preserved in formaldehyde, one of artist Damien Hirst's most famous works, ran into an unlikely obstacle on its way to a Tokyo museum: Japan's import ban on British beef.
Hirst's "Mother and Child, Divided", consisting of a cow and a calf each sliced in half, is part of a retrospective of Britain's controversial Turner Prize - and its eventful journey illustrates the challenge of taking increasingly complex works of modern art around the world.
Japan stopped beef imports from Britain after an outbreak of mad cow disease there. The Mori Art Museum had to convince customs officials that even the most adventurous gourmets are unlikely to tuck into Hirst's cow.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/2/story.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10503240
World's largest guitar bike (+video)
New 12:03PM Thursday April 10, 2008
A German bicycle fanatic has invented what he calls the "biggest rideable guitar in the universe".
Dieter "Didi" Senft hopes the giant guitar-shaped bike will secure him another world record. He wants to register his latest creation as the world's biggest mobile guitar with Guinness World Records.
"I think it's the biggest rideable guitar in the universe. It's well over 14 metres long and is more than four metres tall, which means you can't ride it on public roads. But it will soon be put in front of my museum so tourists from around the world can come and take photos in front of it. Then you can see the difference in size between a person and a guitar," says Senft.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/2/story.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10503245
IMF slashes European economic growth forecasts (+video)
8:45AM Thursday April 10, 2008
WASHINGTON - The International Monetary Fund slashed its economic growth forecast for Europe yesterday, warning that its financial markets were exposed to the troubled US housing sector and credit conditions were tightening.
"Exposure to the US subprime mortgage market - directly or through conduits and structured investment vehicles - has already strained banks' capital in a number of countries and forced them to expand their balance sheets," the IMF wrote in its World Economic Outlook.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/2/story.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10503203
Tibet governor says 953 detained for riots
5:14PM Wednesday April 09, 2008
BEIJING - Chinese police have detained 953 people suspected of involvement in riots in Tibet last month, the head of the Himalayan region said on Wednesday but added that they were a minority who did not represent the Tibetan people.
Qiangba Puncog, chairman of the Tibet Autonomous Region government, told a news conference in Beijing that prosecutors had also issued arrest warrants for 403 of those detained, a step that generally leads to formal prosecution.
But he added the rioters were only "an extremely tiny minority" of Tibetans and the monks who took part in protests were also "an extremely tiny minority" of the Buddhist clergy.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/2/story.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10503075
Rebels reject hostage plan
5:00AM Thursday April 10, 2008
BOGOTA - France abandoned a mission to treat Colombian rebel hostage Ingrid Betancourt in her jungle camp yesterday after guerrillas rejected the initiative in a setback to attempts to free scores of captives.
The rejection was a blow to French President Nicolas Sarkozy, who made it a priority to secure the freedom of the French-Colombian citizen kidnapped by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or Farc, in his 2002 presidential campaign.
Sarkozy said he was "deeply disappointed" and his foreign minister would travel to the region soon.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/2/story.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10503142
NZ First ad tests party spending rules (+video)
5:00AM Thursday April 10, 2008By Audrey Young
Winston Peters' taxpayer-funded newspaper ads yesterday about New Zealand First's opposition to the China free trade agreement may be one of the more important test cases in the early days of the Electoral Finance Act.
The act, which came into effect on January 1, has become so confusing that many political parties have stopped producing taxpayer-funded literature - once regarded as normal publicity by them - for fear it might have to count as an election expense.
The view in Labour that all material with a parliamentary crest should not be attributed as an expense under a spending cap imposed on all parties is not shared by the Electoral Commission.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/story.cfm?c_id=280&objectid=10503166
'Mutineers' gift $14,000 to copter services for rescue
5:00AM Thursday April 10, 2008
By Alanah May Eriksen
Yacht crew members who sparked a $20,000 maritime rescue because they "mutinied" against their more experienced skipper have donated $14,000 to the helicopter services that saved them.
The crew were last night reluctant to speak about the donation as they were unsure if skipper Bill Heritage would bring any legal action against them after they made him leave his yacht - worth more than $24,000 - at sea.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/1/story.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10503169
Muslims lend help to NZ poor
5:00AM Thursday April 10, 2008
By Simon Collins
A Muslim charity that provides relief after natural disasters throughout the Third World has delivered food and blankets to some of New Zealand's poor in a Mangere boarding house.
London-based Humanity First International delivered two carloads of supplies to Kiwiana Lodge in Bicknell Rd yesterday, after media reports that whole families were living in small single rooms, with blocked-up shared toilets and rat-infested rubbish.
Tenants such as beneficiaries Junior and Rangimarie Leato, who have lived there for five months with their now 10-month-old baby, welcomed the donation. "We've been on the waiting list for Housing New Zealand since we came here," they said.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/1/story.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10503168
Kiwi ICT stacks up well in global survey
11:31AM Thursday April 10, 2008
New Zealand has again placed 22nd in a global survey that ranks countries on their ability to benefit from new information and communications technology.
The World Economic Forum's annual information technology report compiles information from 127 countries and aims to assess the impact of IT and telecoms on their development and competitiveness.
Switzerland-based WEF considered the business and regulatory environments in the countries it covered, the readiness of individuals, businesses and government to exploit opportunities and actual usage of the latest IT and communications technology (ICT).
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/story.cfm?c_id=5&objectid=10503243
Climate change could see pubs run dry - Niwa
11:27AM Tuesday April 08, 2008
Climate change could cause a drop in beer production within 25 years, a scientist has warned.
National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (Niwa) climate scientist Dr Jim Salinger said climate change could see a decline of malting barley production in parts of Canterbury and across the Tasman.
"It will mean either there will be pubs without beer or the cost of beer will go up," Dr Salinger said.
He said there could be an expansion of malting barley production in Otago and Southland.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/category/story.cfm?c_id=39&objectid=10502705
Brazil's Government taps into rubber for rubbers
5:00AM Wednesday April 09, 2008
Condoms produced in Brazil could benefit the rainforest and the country's people. Photo / Reuters
The Brazilian Government began producing condoms yesterday using rubber from trees in the Amazon, a move it said would help preserve the world's largest rainforest and cut dependence on imported contraceptives given away to fight Aids.
Brazil's first government-run condom factory, located in northwestern Acre state, will produce 100 million condoms a year, the health ministry said in a statement.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/category/story.cfm?c_id=39&objectid=10502887
Seahorses found in the river Thames
10:15AM Tuesday April 08, 2008
LONDON - Marine biologists believe seahorses could be breeding in the Thames as the river becomes cleaner.
About five short-snouted seahorses, (Hippocampus hippocampus) have been spotted during routine conservation surveys, leading scientists to think they have probably established a resident population.
The news has been kept secret until now because the seahorse has not been protected.
But as of today, the marine creature and its environment will have protection under the Wildlife and Countryside Act, 1981.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/category/story.cfm?c_id=39&objectid=10502708
Climate change gives economy a warm glow
5:00AM Tuesday April 08, 2008By Adam Cox And Kristin Arna Bragadottir
If any country can claim to be pitched on the global warming front line, it may be the North Atlantic island nation of Iceland.
On a purely physical level, this land of icecaps and volcanoes and home to 300,000 people is undergoing a rapid transformation as its glaciers melt and weather patterns change dramatically.
But global warming is also having a profound effect on Iceland economically - and in many ways the effects have actually been beneficial.
Warmer weather has been a boon to Iceland's hydroelectric industry, which is making more energy as melting glaciers feed its rivers.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/category/story.cfm?c_id=39&objectid=10502572
Koalas under threat as excess CO2 makes eucalyptus leaves inedible
5:00AM Monday April 07, 2008
By Kathy Marks
The future of the koala, perhaps Australia's best-loved animal, is under threat because greenhouse gas emissions are making eucalyptus leaves - their sole food source - inedible.
Scientists warned that increased levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere were reducing nutrient levels in the leaves, and also boosting their toxic tannin content.
That has serious implications for koalas and other marsupials that eat only, or mainly, the leaves of gum trees. These include several possum and wallaby species.
"What we're seeing, essentially, is that the staple diet of these animals is being turned to leather," said science professor Bill Foley, of Australian National University, in Canberra.
"This is potentially a very significant development for the future of some marsupial populations. Life is set to become extremely difficult for these animals."
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/category/story.cfm?c_id=39&objectid=10502412
White House set to go slightly green
5:00AM Thursday April 10, 2008
By Peter Huck
For all the noise on the campaign trail about the war in Iraq, the perilous state of the United States economy and hot issues like immigration and soaring fuel costs, the coming tsunami that is global warming has so far hardly surfaced.
Former Vice-President Al Gore is agitating to raise awareness. His Alliance for Climate Protection that intends to spend US$300 million ($376.7 million) to force political action on climate change is in stark contrast to a presidential election season that has mostly ignored the issue.
"The climate crisis is so interwoven with habits and patterns that are so entrenched, the elected officials in both parties are going to be timid about enacting the bold changes that are needed until there is a change in the public's sense of urgency in addressing the crisis," said Mr Gore.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/topic/story.cfm?c_id=281&objectid=10503090
Greenpeace slams proposed trading scheme
8:58AM Tuesday March 04, 2008
The Government's proposed emissions trading scheme is being savaged by Greenpeace.
The environmental lobby group argues it will do little to reduce New Zealand's greenhouse gas emissions and will impede development of less carbon intensive production technologies.
Greenpeace also slams the timing of permit allocations and the fact the agricultural sector will not be required to participate until 2013. The report argues all sectors must be included if the trading scheme is to work effectively.
Co-author Dr Hugh Saddler says the scheme is fatally flawed. He says by being given up to 90 per cent of permits, businesses are not being landed with the true environmental costs of their consumption decisions. Dr Saddler says the trading scheme will likely deliver only incidental reductions in greenhouse gases.
Greenpeace also slams the timing of permit allocations and the fact the agricultural sector will not be required to participate until 2013.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/topic/story.cfm?c_id=281&objectid=10496030
Green turtles to be freed today
5:00AM Wednesday April 09, 2008
By Angela Gregory
A little green turtle hooked on a fisher's line under the Auckland Harbour Bridge is today expected to be swimming freely in a marine reserve off Northland's east coast.
The turtle was one of three to be released back into their natural environment this morning after about a two-year recuperative stint in Kelly Tarlton's aquarium.
The curator at Kelly Tarlton's Antarctic Encounter and Underwater World, Andrew Christie, said the three protected turtles were part of a threatened population. .
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/topic/story.cfm?c_id=272&objectid=10502903
More planets discovered
5:00AM Friday April 04, 2008
Astronomers using robotic cameras have found 10 new planets outside the solar system, and a second team say they have found the youngest planet yet.
The findings add to a growing list of more than 270 so-called extrasolar planets, they told a meeting of astronomers in Belfast, Northern Ireland.
The robot team is called "SuperWASP", for Wide Area Search for Planets, and the cameras look for planets transiting, or crossing in front of, their stars.
The light from the sun fades just slightly when this happens and astronomers can extrapolate the size and location of the planet.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/category/story.cfm?c_id=82&objectid=10501912
Are we at risk from climate change?
1:48PM Wednesday March 26, 2008
An Antarctic ice shelf nearly 14,000 square kilometres in size has started to disintegrate due to rapid climate change. There is a new way to send in comments to Your Views and Blogs. You can click here and go straight to the registration page.
Are we at risk from climate change?
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/category/story.cfm?c_id=82&objectid=10500208
Knock knock knocking on Heaven's door
5:00AM Wednesday April 09, 2008
Professor Peter Higgs is expecting to find proof of an all-pervading force. Photo / Reuters
It is not everyday that someone's name becomes inextricably linked with God. But it is not everyday that someone comes up with a theory that could help to unify the many disparate forces of the universe.
All the more strange, then, for the man behind the sub-atomic "God particle" to be an unassuming grandfather living in modest retirement in one of the more sedate districts of Edinburgh.
Professor Peter Higgs, 78, is a theoretical particle physicist, and it took him 20 years before he could even bring himself to call the God particle by its more scientific name - the Higgs boson. Up to that point, he preferred the more prosaic term, "scalar boson".
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/story.cfm?c_id=82&objectid=10502798&pnum=0
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