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Experts shine in fight against junk science
It was a week when climate change denial, a "miracle" ebola cure and homeopathy grabbed headlines.
But by and large it was also a week where the media laid out the evidence and featured expert commentary putting the science behind the claims in perspective.
 | | Shaun Holt |
The pending arrival in New Zealand of Genesis II Church of Health and Healing leader James Humble to push his Miracle Mineral Solution (MMS) was front page news. Medsafe warned that the treatment acts like an industrial bleach and could cause serious harm to those who took it. Australia's Nine News reported that four Victorians had been hospitalised after taking the MMS treatment.
Natural remedies expert Dr Shaun Holt and University of Auckland microbiologist Dr. Siouxsie Wiles made numerous media appearances to explain the pseudoscience Humble has been spreading about MMS, including that it can cure Ebola, HIV and malaria.
The Herald reported today that an Auckland man who attempted to attend one of the "non-religious" Church's seminars in the Hauraki Plains, was removed when it emerged he had not paid the US$500 registration fee, a hint perhaps at the real reason behind Humble's Australasian tour.
 | | NZ Herald's front page piece on MMS |
The week started with several climate scientists appearing in the media to explain the latest report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which suggested that there is still time to act on climate change, if fossil fuel use for power generation can be largely eliminated by 2100.
False balance in climate coverage
Professor Tim Naish and Dr James Renwick, who have both contributed to IPCC reports put the latest update in context for New Zealand on One News and 3 News.
However TVNZ undermined its own climate change coverage by featuring noted climate sceptic and energy sector consultant Bryan Leyland on the Breakfast show, including presenting a graph featuring data supplied by Leyland himself.
 | | Steffan Browning |
By the end of the day the item had been pulled from TVNZ's website after the broadcaster received numerous complaints from the public, scientists, as well as journalists.
The week also saw the Green Party demote its natural products spokesman Steffan Browning after he signed a petition calling for homeopathic treatments to be used in the fight against Ebola.
The embarrassing endorsement attracted attention in the UK and the condemnation of Browning's own caucus.
Writing on Sciblogs, Dr Grant Jacobs applauded Browning's demotion, but pointed out that he retained other science-related shadow portfolios.
"I'm aware of a number of people who have said they didn't vote for the Greens because of Steffan Browning's stance on genetic engineering and others who have said that while they voted for the Greens they don't approve of Browning's approach to GMOs and GE."
Thanks to all the scientists who stepped up to make sense of the dubious claims journalists and the public were faced with this week.
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SMC teams with Canon Media Awards
The Science Media Centre has agreed a three-year deal with the Canon Media Awards to sponsor three new science and technology journalism categories in the print and online media industry's premiere awards showcase.
 The new categories, which replace previous science and environment awards, will kick off in 2015 and recognise the best science and technology journalism across newspaper reporting, newspaper features and magazine features.
The refocus of the awards to include technology will for the first time in years allow writers who are covering the impact of technology on society to gain recognition for their work in the country's national journalism awards.
Environment stories that are science-related will still be prime candidates for these awards categories, says SMC Manager Peter Griffin.
"We've seen a healthy number of strong science and technology stories run this year so the awards judges will have a great selection to choose from."
"As a former technology reporter I'm particularly happy to be able to support journalists who are making sense of the challenges and opportunities new technologies pose."
The Newspaper Publishers' Association will open applications for the Canon Media Awards 2015 in the new year. A total of 1687 entries were received for the 2014 Canon Media Awards, a record number that grew 21 per cent on 2013.
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Marsden Fund recipients announced
Every year the announcement of the Marsden Fund winners generates a buzz of media coverage - and this year is no exception.
 The headline-generating projects to be funded in this year's round of grants includes research intorobotics as therapy for cerebral palsy, using Google balloons to probe weather systems and fine-scale imaging of the Alpine Fault zone - to name just a few of the 101 research projects have been allocated over $55 million of funding in this year's Marsden Fund grants. A full list of the grants and recipients is available on the Royal Society of New Zealand website. Marsden Fund grants, administered by the Society, supports New Zealand's best investigator-initiated research in the areas of science, engineering, maths, social sciences and the humanities. You can read a round-up of the extensive New Zealand media coverage on the Science Media Centre website.This week also saw the announcement of the Royal Society of New Zealand-Rutherford Foundation Trust Scholarships, offering a total of $1 million for three prestigious PhD scholarships and four postdoctoral fellowships.
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Fast growing grass: feed or weed?
Farmers who use plant varieties that become invasive weeds should pay a levy to cover any environmental management costs, say the authors of a new study.  As breeding technologies produce faster-growing, hardier pasture plants for feeding livestock, the potential impact of wild-growing pasture in the wider environment grows, warn the authors of a new article published in PNAS. The review of agricultural practices in eight countries, including New Zealand, reveals that governments impose few restrictions on pasture varieties planted by landowners. "Pasture species such as ryegrass and fescue may not strike people as major threats to the environment but they are regarded by the Department of Conservation as environmental weeds," said author Prof Philip Hulme from Lincoln University. "Pasture is big business in New Zealand and a large part of our economic success arises from agribusiness developing ever more productive or persistent varieties. As a result there is a clear conflict between economic and conservation outcomes. The authors say governments should: manage a list of prohibited varieties, not just species; develop a weed risk assessment; ensure rapid detection and control of invasive weeds; and develop an industry-pays system for controlling fast growing pasture crops that escape the farm.
Further expert commentary can be found on the Science Media Centre website and a good summary of the study from lead author Dr Don Driscoll, ANU, can be found on the Conversation.
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Policy news and developments
Health Protection Bill passes first hurdle - The first reading in now underway for legislation to make artificial UV tanning machines illegal for under-18s and improve the management of serious infectious diseases such as HIV.
New Zealand free from horse virus - There are now no cases of equine viral arteritis in New Zealand, a major milestone for the horse industry. Being free of epidemic animal disease is a boost for the country's position in international trade.
Rutherford Foundation Trust 2014 Awards - Seven researchers have been awarded the 2014 Rutherford Foundation Trust, which invests $1m per year to provide career support and develop the skills of New Zealand's brightest and most promising young researchers.
$56m in Marsden funding for top NZ researchers - Over a hundred of New Zealand's top research projects will receive $56 million in Marsden Fund grants over the next three years. The Fund has been supporting research in science, engineering, maths, social sciences and the humanities for 20 years.
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"Hopefully what our research will do is build interfaces that enhance our behaviour in the real world and not distract from it.
"If I'm speeding along at 50kms an hour I don't want to see a text message in my face, I want to see maps where I'm going."
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Sciblogs highlights
Some of the highlights from this week's Sciblogs posts:
Does healthy food really cost more? - Sally Mackay looks at different metrics of food costs and suggests that we need to consider several to see if a healthy diet is realistically affordable.
Public Health Expert
Wailogy
Infrequently Asked Questions
TVNZ pushes Leyland's climate lies - Gareth Renowden criticises TVNZ for giving "climate denialist" Bryan Leyland airtime to comment on the IPCC's fifth climate report, and presents counter-arguments to Leyland's statements.
Hot Topic
Naturopathy vs Science - Siouxsie Wiles annotates a cartoon published in Wellington's Dominion Post newspaper promoting naturopathy as a health option.
Infectious Thoughts
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Research highlights
Some of the research papers making headlines this week.
Safe IVF for Kiwis: New Zealand and Australia are world leaders when it comes to safe In Vitro Fertilisation (IVF) practice thanks to their focus on single-embryo transfer, according to a new report summarising the latest data from the two countries. The report also notes that rate of IVF treatment in Australia is double that seen in New Zealand, likely due to different funding and eligibility criteria.
Assisted Reproductive Technology in Australia and New Zealand 2012
NZ ancient burn-off faster than thought: Human-set fires by a small Polynesian population in New Zealand ~750 years ago may have caused fire-vulnerable forests to shift to shrub land over decades, rather than over centuries, as previously thought, according to a new study. At this time, termed the 'Initial Burning Period', nearly half of the native forests were burned off to make way for open vegetation.
PLOS ONE
Ozone-damaging chemical rising in the North: An international team of scientists, including a NIWA researcher, have found an unexpected increase in atmospheric hydrogen chloride in the Northern Hemisphere since 2007. However the Southern Hemisphere has fared better, with a continuous decrease since 2001 as expected. The scientists say that their findings may be due to temporary changes in the Northern Hemisphere's atmospheric circulation.
Nature
Insect evolution: Over 100 researchers from 10 countries including New Zealand have just finished a massive study looking at the genetics of over 1000 insect species, shining a new light on insect evolution and reconstructing the insect 'tree of life' as we know it. The study, called 1KITE, suggests that plants and insects emerged simultaneously and shaped the early history of Earth together.
Science
Pay for plant pests: Farmers who use plant varieties that become invasive weeds should pay a levy to cover any environmental management costs, recommends New Zealand and Australian researchers. The levy is one of several recommendations in their paper, which aims to combat the global problem of invasive plants caused by agribusiness. See expert commentary on our website.
PNAS
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Upcoming sci-tech events
For these and other upcoming events, and more details about them, visit the SMC's Events Calendar.
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International Symposium on Drugs and Driving - 12-13 Nov, Wellington. Using drugs while driving is a problem that has only recently captured the attention of safety advocates, policymakers, legislators and enforcement agencies. While there is a lot of science to inform alcohol-related road safety policy and interventions, things get a lot more complex when looking at "drugs" and driving.
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'One Health': Otago International Health Research Network conference - 12-13 Nov, Dunedin. The OIHRN annual scientific meeting will have a 'One Health' theme. One Health is defined as "the collaborative effort of multiple disciplines-working locally, nationally, and globally-to attain optimal health for people, animals and the environment".
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2014 Rutherford Lecture: Experiments across Worlds - 13 Nov, Wellington; 16 Nov, Whanganui. Dame Anne Salmond presents four lectures exploring how exchanges between different ways of being, particularly Māori and European, have helped to shape our past and how they might contribute to an innovative and successful society for future generations.
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