Afternoons for Wednesday 9 August 2017

Short Story Club

This week's story is Fiona Farrell's Paradise Ducks

We'll discuss it tomorrow after 3pm

Let us know what you think. Email jesse@radionz.co.nz and the writer of the best email wins a copy of Fiona Farrell's new novel Decline & Fall on Savage Street

1:15 Fare thee well me mateys

After 34 years, the Pirate Ship at Rainbow's End will be no more. Generations of Aucklanders and visitors to the city's theme park have ridden the pirate ship.

Chris Deere, chief executive of Rainbow's End explains why it's time to walk the plank.

1:20 Making highways out of cigarette butts

Trillions of cigarettes are produced worldwide each year, with most being discarded, causing environmental problems. But one engineer has come up with a recycling solution, that could actually add value to our roads and highways. Mix the butts with ashphalt, and hey presto, you've got a new construction material that could help the environment.

Dr Abbas Mohajerani is a senior lecturer in RMIT's School of Engineering.

1:25 Crowdscience

A team from the BBC World Service is currently in New Zealand to research answers for its Crowdscience documentary series

Each week Crowdscience takes a question from a listener and the episode is all about the attempts to find the answer. So far it has investigated questions such as

- What's the oldest living thing?
- Can an animal commit murder?
- Is being fat a choice?
- Could a computer judge my crime?

The team is in New Zealand to seek the answers to a question they received from a woman in Canada, about invasive species. The presenter of the show, Marnie Chesterton joins Jesse in the Auckland studio.

1:35 Sound Archives: spring is in the air

It’s only early August but in some parts of the country it is already feeling very Spring-like – mild temperatures, sunshine, blossom trees and daffodils! 

In today’s visit to the Sound Archives of Ngā Taonga Sound and Vision Sarah Johnston is going to play us a few sound recordings about this time of year..

You can hear all of Pine Taiapa’s recording about kūmara planting here.

1:40 Great debut Album: Led Zeppelin

2:20 Bookmarks with Dr Arama Rata

Dr Arama Rata is a lecturer in Maori Studies at Victoria University and has done numerous studies looking  Maori cultural engagement and identity, health experiences and rural communities.

Dr Rata is up in Auckland to take part in the Auckland museum Lates series which kicks off this week, and will be discussing the effects of migration on migrants and on countries.

3:10 Patient 71: the search for a cure for terminal cancer

Turning 50 seemed like the toughest challenge Julie Randall had to face until  four days after her birthday. Sitting at her desk at work, she had terrible seizure. Tests revealed the Sydney mother of two had stage four metastatic melanoma and would be lucky to live for another nine months.

She made a promise to her two girls that she would live. She would find a way, and she did. She found a experimental drug trial in the United States that was only supposed to include 70 patients.  She details her search for a cure in her book called Patient 71.

3:35 Are We There Yet

3:45 The Pre-Panel Story of the Day and One Quick Question

4:05 The Panel with Catherine Robertson and Chris Gallavin