Sunday Morning for Sunday 21 March 2021

7:10 Covid-19 update with Professor Gary McLean 

Joining us again on Sunday morning is New Zealander Dr Gary McLean, Professor in molecular immunology at London Metropolitan University and an international authority on coronaviruses. Professor McLean is with us to look at all of the latest news and information relating to the Covid-19 pandemic. 

7.32 The House

The House runs through a few oddities from a week in Parliament, and chats with the Chair of the Justice Select Committee - Ginny Andersen about the 2020 Election Inquiry.

7:45 Calling Home: Danny Tomsett in Austin, Texas 

Danny Tomsett is the Kiwi founder and CEO of UneeQ Digital Humans, and is currently based in Texas with his wife Anna and their four children. Business growth and ambitions took Danny and the family to Austin in August 2019, but within six months they were living in a Covid-19 world. The former Papamoa native is calling home from the Texas state capital this morning. 

8:12 Are vitamin manufacturers unfairly marketing to older people?

According to new research published in the Medical Journal of Australia, almost 75 percent of healthy Australians aged over 70 years report using complementary medicines, either daily or occasionally. The supplements most reported by the group were fish oil, vitamin D, glucosamine and calcium. But how necessary are these supplementary medicines? Is it all just marketing? Dr Sue MacDonell is an academic nutritionist and Senior Research Fellow at The University of Auckland. She joins the show to discuss.

8:31 Rare Ford Falcon expected to command $400k+ at auction 

A big auction of rare cars is taking place at Southward Car Museum today and has attracted a lot of attention. There's lots under the hammer, including Rolls-Royces, Porsches, Jaguars and Ferraris. But the pick of the bunch is a 1970 Ford XW Falcon GTHO Phase II which is expected to fetch as much as $450,000. Caolán McAleer is the Head of Collectors' Cars, Motorcycles & Automobilia at Webbs Auction House 

8:41 The Weekend Panel with Chris Wikaira and Brigitte Morten 

On the Weekend Panel this Sunday are Chris Wikaira and Brigitte Morten. They'll be discussing the Covid-19 situation in New Zealand, whether domestic travel is the backbone of our travel industry, whether we should fund an America's Cup that is not held in this country, and the current state of the trans-Tasman relationship with Australia. 

9:06 Mediawatch

Mediawatch looks at plans to beef up the chief censor’s power to root out harmful and hateful stuff online. Also: a political opinion poll undermined by its own results - and how the America’s Cup victory eclipsed all other news. 

9:37 How living near water could save your life 

New Zealand has 15,000 kilometres of coastline and a high percentage of Kiwis live within five km of the coast, so as a nation, we know a lot about life near water. A new study out of Glasgow Caledonian University has conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of all the evidence about how blue space positively impacts health, and the news is good for people who live in areas with access to water, or blue space. Study co-author Sebastien Chastin joins the show to explain. 

10:04 'Active grieving' can help us move on after loss 

In 2017, Julie Zarifeh lost her husband Paul to cancer. Then in a cruel twist of fate, just 16 days later, her beloved eldest son, Sam died whilst on a recreational whitewater rafting trip. To cope with this loss, Julie drew on both her intuition and her experience as a clinical psychologist and embraced the notion of 'active grieving'. Grief on the Run is Julie's inspirational story of using active grieving to help move on with your life after devastating loss.

10:40 Hidden plight: One in six Kiwis affected by hearing loss

According to the World Health Organisation, nearly 2.5 billion people - or one in four, will be living with some degree of hearing loss by 2050. The stats come from WHO's first ever World Report on Hearing, which was released to coincide with World Hearing Awareness Month this month. In New Zealand, hearing loss is already an issue affecting almost one in six Kiwis, and a sense of stigma can delay people from getting help. Clinical audiologist Karen Pullar joins the show to discuss.

11:05 The hidden rules that determine which friendships matter to us 

British anthropologist and evolutionary psychologist Robin Dunbar has discovered that our friendships are governed by secret rules, based on everything from our sex to our sleep schedule. Indeed, our unique social fingerprints help determine which friendships last and why some friends are ultimately replaceable. He is with us to discuss friendship and his new book, Friends: Understanding the Power of Our Most Important Relationships. 

11:30 The odd rituals that can help ease loneliness

Research from the University of California has found that people who adopt unique rituals to make everyday tasks more meaningful - like colour-sorting M&Ms before you eat them - can help ease loneliness. Professor of Marketing Thomas Kramer joins Sunday Morning to discuss the research and what it means.

11:45 My Current Song: Dave Curtis, After All These Years 

Singer-songwriter David Curtis was one of the youngest hit-makers that New Zealand has ever produced, having recorded the smash hit 'Wheel of Fortune' at the tender age of 13 in 1970. Fifty years on, David is still making music, though he sounds a little different these days. He's joining the show this morning to debut his latest original country song, 'After All These Years', which was part-recorded in Nashville.