Nine To Noon for Wednesday 4 November 2020

 

09:05 US election 2020: Can the polls pick a winner?

As the US enters the final hours of voting in its 2020 election, what are the numbers showing? Which races are too close to call, what impact will such a large amount of early voting have on the result and - after 2016's predictions - is it really possible to accurately pick a winner? Kathryn discusses this with Professor Michael McDonald, an expert on early voting, who is running the US Elections Project - a turnout-tracking database run by University of Florida and G. Terry Madonna, professor and pollster at the popular Franklin and Marshall College Poll based in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

09:20 'Pandemic era?' Report links biodiversity crisis & pandemics

A major UN report has found that the biodiversity crisis is leading us into a 'pandemic era', with on average, five new diseases transferred from animals to humans every year - all with pandemic potential. The report, by the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services says to avoid future pandemics, we must urgently transform our relationship with the planet. The report warns that without  preventative strategies, pandemics will emerge more often, spread more rapidly, kill more people, and affect the global economy with more devastating impact than ever before. Massey University's Professor David Hayman is a IPBES lead co-author and the only New Zealander involved in the report.

09:35 Research on restoring estuaries garners award

Kathryn meets Dr Shari Gallop, a Waikato University marine environmental scientist, who has just won an award to further her research into how degraded estuaries can be successfully restored.

09:45 Australia's richest increase their wealth, state borders still closed

Australia correspondent Chris Niesche joins Kathryn to look at how, despite coronavirus, Australia's wealthiest have continued to get richer. Covid cases may be dropping to a handful, but the state borders remain closed - adding to tension with the federal government. Labor recorded a win in Queensland, which is being attributed to a promise to keep the border shut. And Melburnians made the most of a quieter Melbourne Cup.

10:05 Group therapy and banishing shame: Christie Tate

Chicago-based writer, essayist and lawyer Christie Tate tells Kathryn about her memoir Group, How One Therapist and a Circle of Strangers Saved My Life.  Group tells the story of Christie graduating top of the class in law school, the girl who seemingly had everything but in fact was struggling.  She went straight into therapy to address her deep unhappiness and dysfunctional approach to relationships. It's a true story, told vividly with lots of humour. It's Christie's first book and has just been selected for Reece Witherspoon's 'Hello Sunshine' book club.

10:35 Book review - Piranesi by Susanna Clarke

Bronwyn Wylie-Gibb of University Book Shop, Dunedin, reviews Piranesi by Susanna Clarke. Published by Bloomsbury.

Mysterious, haunting, quite peculiar. Piranesi explores the echoing halls of The House, creating rituals and observing phenomena. This is what living in an Escher drawing might be like, or a many-chambered shell – deeply satisfying and challenging writing.

10:45 The Reading

How's your Health. Written and read by Rose Lu. 

11:05 Aotearoa music: Let's get live and loud

Music with RNZ's Yadana Shaw joins Kathryn to look at how local music fans have a wealth of riches as musicians return to live venues around Aotearoa. RNZ Music’s Yadana Saw takes us through some of the shows you can catch between now and Christmas.

11:20 Tu Meke! Artist Flox on bringing art to a younger generation

Hayley King has been making her mark on the art world since 2003 - and is better known by her artist name: Flox. Her distinctive designs are made by aerosol and stencils and adorn everything from walls and prints to cushions and clothes. Her illustrations are also in two book collaborations with author Malcolm Clarke - the first was Tu Meke Tui! and the most recent is Tu Meke Tuatara!

11:45 Latest modelling on daily Covid testing and how octopuses taste

Science commentator Siouxsie Wiles joins Kathryn to talk about the latest modelling on daily Covid-19 testing. She'll also look at a new study which found octopuses taste by using the suckers on their arms.

Associate Professor Dr Siouxsie Wiles is the head of Bioluminescent Superbugs Lab at the University of Auckland.