Short Story Club

On Thursday we will talk about Marae Shuffle by Apirana Taylor

1:10 Scottish harpist and singer, Esther Swift performs LIVE

She plays the harp like you've never heard it!

She's touring New Zealand right now, if you want to find out where she'll be playing, checkout her website https://www.estherswift.co.uk/

Esther Swift - Scottish harpist and singer

Esther Swift - Scottish harpist and singer Photo: supplied

1:15 Sulphuric petrol still causing problems

Z petrol stations are among those affected by the sulphuric fuel.

Z petrol stations are among those affected by the sulphuric fuel. Photo: RNZ / Richard Tindiller

There are still a lot of unanswered questions about the sulphuric petrol that left hundreds of road users with empty tanks.

Low quality 91 and 95 octane gas caused the issue but the fuel companies said it was only sold between Novemeber and December last year. Now it seems the petrol was more widely distributed than first thought and affected more vehcile types.

RNZ senior journalist Anusha Bradley has an update for us. 

1:25 "Heaps" of words

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Photo: Supplied / University of Waikato

The word "heaps" is distinctly kiwi, it's gone from being a used to describe how many things you have to being used interchangeably with "very" or "really". 

It's just one of the many words that have developed and taken on new meanings in our lexicon, and something linguistics lecturer Dr Andreea Calude has been researching at the University of Waikato.

She tell us about the evolution of New Zealand English.

1:35 Taking heatwaves more seriously

We're in the middle of what weather forecasters predict could be one of the hottest January's  on-record.

The scorching temperatures are driven by warm air coming from Australia and Aussie itself is going through it's own fair share of extreme heat this summer.

Jesse talks to Australian geoscientist Lucinda Coates about heatwave deaths and how we need to take heatwaves as seriously as other natural hazards.

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Photo: flickr - bark

1:40 Great album

2:10 Television Critic: Graeme Tuckett

Graeme discusses The Vietnam War- a Ken Burns PBS ten part epic on the war

Liar - new psychological drama on TV One.

The Casketeers

2:20 Kimbolton's Sculpture Festival 

Koru by Jason Dench

Koru by Jason Dench Photo: Supplied / Rural Art

Depression and suicide in rural New Zealand has been at the forefront of the country's mental health discussion.

There are many debates on how to address the problem but one community in the Manawatu has decided to tackle it head on, with a festival designed to raise morale.

The small town of Kimbolton will host a sculpture festival this April, showcasing rural life and encouraging locals to to get involved.

Kimbolton resident and Massey Professor Chris Gallavin has been part of organising the event and tells us more. 

2:30 Expert feature: Jellyfish in NZ waters

The hot weather has brought swarms of jellyfish to many beaches. We wondered what sort of jellyfish populate our waters, why they sometimes all descend on our beaches and which ones we should be worried about.

Dennis Gordon of NIWA is an expert on these unusual creatures which date back hundreds of millions of years.

3:10 What happens under anaesthetic

When Melbourne based journalist Kate Cole-Adams discovered she needed major back surgery, she wanted to know what really happens when doctors administer a cocktail of drugs before an operation. 

Her research reveals what's happening in the brain under anesthesia and recounts stories of patients who remember details of their own surgeries when they are supposed to be completely out. 

Her new book is called Anaesthesia: The Gift of Oblivion and the Mystery of Consciousness

Preoxygenation before anesthetic induction

Preoxygenation before anesthetic induction Photo: Wikipedia

3:35 Voices

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

4:05 The Panel with David Farrar and Lisa Scott