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Our Changing World headlines with summaries.
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Manganese - the 'essential' essential element
24 Jul 2019The metal manganese is a vital part of photosynthesis and is found in aluminium drink cans, says Prof Allan Blackman from AUT in ep 47 of Elemental.
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Magnesium - loved by everyone and everything
22 Jul 2019Magnesium is loved by plants, folk suffering constipation and boy-racers, as Allan Blackman reveals in ep 46 of Elemental.
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Lutetium - an obscure Parisian
19 Jul 2019After a fierce struggle for naming rights, the last lanthanoid element to be discovered was eventually named after Paris, says Allan Blackman in ep 45 of Elemental.
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New way to stop unwanted biofouling
18 Jul 2019Electroclear is a start-up company at the University of Auckland using electric fields to deter small marine organisms from settling on boats and underwater structures.
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Kākāpō dads revealed
17 Jul 2019Paternity testing has revealed who the top kākāpō dads are, as well as the success of the artificial insemination programme, in ep 22 of the Kākāpō Files.
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Lithium - a mood enhancing element
Lithium is the lightest metal, and it is used in batteries and for the treatment of bipolar disorder, says Prof Allan Blackman from AUT in ep 44 of Elemental.
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Lead - sweet-tasting but deadly
12 Jul 2019Lead is the element that took down an empire, and its sweet taste belies a metal that is dangerous for human & animal health. All this and more with Prof Allan Blackman from AUT in ep 43 of Elemental.
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Children's art - more than just a picture
Prof Harlene Hayne investigates childrens' artworks: are they just a picture or do they offer insights and clues into the kid's emotional world?
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Lanthanum - curious case of a 'lost' element
8 Jul 2019Despite giving its name to a whole group on the periodic table, chemists can't agree if lanthanum even belongs in that group, says Prof Allan Blackman from AUT in ep 42 of Elemental.
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Krypton - its name means 'hidden' but it's a real thing
5 Jul 2019In real life krypton is a noble gas which is commonly used in neon signs and laser light shows, says Allan Blackman from AUT in ep 41 of Elemental.
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The science of Matariki
4 Jul 2019Professor Rangi Mātāmua talks about the 120-year-old book which has preserved his ancestors' knowledge of Māori astronomy.
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Iron - creator of the modern world
1 Jul 2019Iron is formed in stars, makes up most of the Earth's core & as a result enables life as we know it to exist, says Prof Allan Blackman from AUT, in ep 40 of Elemental.
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Kākāpō waiting game
28 Jun 2019The kākāpō health crisis is stable, with no further cases of aspergillosis diagnosed, and seven hand-reared chicks have been successfully released in the wild, in ep 21 of the Kākāpō Files.
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Iridium and the end of the dinosaurs
28 Jun 2019Iridium is the second-densest element on the periodic table and the most erosion-resistant metal. A layer of iridium in rocks marks the demise of the dinosaurs, according to Allan Blackman from AUT…
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Freshwater fish swim for science
27 Jun 2019NIWA scientists are putting freshwater fish such as inanga through swimming trials, to find out how they cope with water moving at different speeds.
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Iodine - a vital trace element
24 Jun 2019A lack of iodine causes goitre, and seafood and iodised salt are good sources of this important trace element, says Prof Allan Blackman from AUT, in ep 38 of Elemental.
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Indium - Queen of the touchscreen
21 Jun 2019Indium is a very soft metal, and as indium-tin-oxide it is an indispensable part of the swipeability of touchscreens, says Allan Blackman from AUT in ep 37 of Elemental.
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Predator Free NZ - dream or reality?
20 Jun 2019A panel of five experts debate what it will take to turn the idea of a predator-free New Zealand by 2050 from a dream into a reality.
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Hydrogen - 'number 1 in the Universe'
17 Jun 2019Hydrogen is the first element on the periodic table. It is the oldest, lightest and most abundant element in the universe, but on earth it is usually found in compounds such as water, says AUT's Allan…
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Holmium - obscure, but an important surgical laser
Holmium has interesting magnetic properties and is an important part of precise surgical lasers known as the 'Swiss Army knife' of lasers, according to Prof Allan Backman from AUT, in ep 35 of…
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Behind-the-scenes of the kākāpō health crisis
12 Jun 2019Kākāpō death toll from aspergillosis rises by one to seven, while nine birds have been given a clean bill of health. Sad and positive news from the frontline of the fight to save kākāpō, in ep 20 of…
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Helium - rare on earth but universally abundant
10 Jun 2019Helium is the second most abundant element in the universe and possibly the most unreactive element on the periodic table, says Prof Allan Blackman from AUT, in ep 34 of Elemental.
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Hafnium - helped land the first astronauts on the moon
7 Jun 2019Hafnium is named after Copenhagen and as it has a very high melting point it was used in the thruster nozzles of the Apollo Lunar modules, according to Elemental's Allan Blackman from AUT.
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Successful new seabird colony on Matiu Somes Island
6 Jun 2019Eight years ago volunteers began translocating fluttering shearwater chicks to Wellington's Matiu Somes Island to establish what is now a growing seabird colony.
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