JUNE 2022 NEWSLETTER

You receive this Newsletter as a member or supporter of Wellington's oldest scientific society (in our 171st year) - the Wellington Branch of the Royal Society of New Zealand.
Fellows of the RSNZ are automatically members.

MORE MEETINGS in 2022
YAY!
The council have gone ahead and organised a face to face meeting in June, July and September. The July meeting will incorporate our deferred 2021 AGM and the 2022 AGM will be held as normal in October. We are legally required to hold the deferred AGM (short as it will be) even though it is only a few months before the 2022 AGM.

The Council has also discussed the potential to hold lectures on-line. We are keen to try but the main issue at the moment is finding a suitable lecture and presenter. Strangely most potential lecturers prefer a "live" audience (myself included!).
Brian Jones (Treasurer).

You can always email me at:
treasurer.RSNZ.wellington@outlook.com In this issue
Face to face talks and a "Gobbledegook" generator for your next funding application?

THE FOXTON MOA HUNTER SITE, THE CA-500-YEAR OLD EARTHQUAKE, AND IMPLICATIONS FOR MODERN SETTLEMENT

The Royal Society of New Zealand Wellington Branch and Te Kawa a Māui School of Maori Studies Public Lecture 

Wednesday 29 June at 6.00 pm

The  Royal Society of New Zealand Wellington Branch and Te Kawa a Māui School of Maori Studies VUW, will jointly host a free public lecture on the Foxton Moa Hunter site, to be given by Dr. Bruce McFadgen.

6.00 - 7.00 pm at Victoria University Lecture Theatre HU119 (Hunter Building), Kelburn Campus, Victoria University.

We hope that you will attend and contribute to the discussion afterward. Please come along. Full details of the lecture are given below.

Dr. Bruce McFadgen

Earthquakes can be a benefit or a disaster. Much of our infrastructure and population occupy low-lying land near the sea; e.g. the Southwest Coast of the North Island, and people are concerned about the hazards of living near the water. The prehistoric environment is an essential part of archaeological information, and archaeological remains can provide an historical perspective for the landscape as it is today. Hazards include earthquakes, tsunamis, coastal erosion, and the burial of settlements, gardens, and resources by sand dunes. One way to better understand such hazards is to know what happened in the past, and learning from Maori experience is very relevant to modern society to prepare for future events. This evening's talk will discuss an archaeological site in the southern Manawatu, which was badly affected by a significant earthquake several hundred years ago; the effects of the earthquake on the Southwest coast of the North Island, and implications for modern settlement.

Dr. Bruce McFadgen is an Honorary Research Associate with Te Kawa a Maui, The School of Maori Studies, at Victoria University of Wellington. He has been retired for 18 years and spends his spare time carrying out research. He began his career as a Land Surveyor with Lands and Survey in 1963, and was later employed by NZ Historic Places Trust, and then the Department of Conservation. He has been a member of the Royal Society of New Zealand Wellington Branch since 1966, and a life member since 1987.

IN JULY:

2021 HUDSON Lecture

DOWN THE RABBIT HOLE: THE WONDERLAND OF NEW ZEALAND’S FOLIC ACID SAGA

Together with the deferred 2021 AGM

Professor Barry Borman (Massey University)

Wednesday 20 July, 6.00 - 7.00 pm at the Royal Society of New Zealand premises, 11 Turnbull St Thorndon, Wellington

On Wednesday 20 July at 6.00 pm the Royal Society of New Zealand Wellington Branch will host its deferred 2021 Hudson Lecture and Annual General Meeting. This is a free public lecture on the recent controversy about folic acid. We hope that you will attend and contribute to the discussion afterward. Please come along.

8 July 2021 was momentous in the history of public health in New Zealand. On this day, the Government announced the long overdue introduction of mandatory fortification of non-organic bread-making wheat flour with folic acid. Thirty years previously (11 September 1992), and based on the results of a multicenter randomized control trial, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended that all women of childbearing age should consume 0.4mg of folic acid per day to reduce the risk of having a child with a neural tube defect (e.g. spina bifida). The presentation will trace the interweaving strands of science and politics in NZ’s belated implementation of a scientifically proven method of primary prevention.

We hope that you will attend and participate in our (very short) Annual General Meeting.

The 2022 Hudson Lecture

14 September 6.00 - 7.00 pm at the Royal Society of New Zealand premises, 11 Turnbull St Thorndon, Wellington

Dr Michael Johnston of the New Zealand Initiative, will give a lecture on the future of education in New Zealand.

DETAILS TO FOLLOW

2022 AGM

October 2022

Details and venue to follow.

GOBBLEDEGOOK:
Meaningless, empty phrases that make it look like you know what you are talking about.

Having worked for many years in the Australian Public service and been part of a committee approving million dollar research grants, now back in NZ I have been struck by (appalled at?) the widespread use of what, for want of a better term, is defined as “gobbledegook”. I am reliably informed that without such "floral" language, funding is unlikely.

The term "Goobledegook" was coined by a US Democratic senator Maury Maverick, Chairman of the US Smaller War Plants Corporation in 1944 in a rather vain attempt to stamp out the use of jargon. Apparently, he became tired of going to meetings where people rambled on about “maladjustments co-extensive with problem areas” and contracts for the manufacture of such esoteric items as "wood interdental stimulators" (toothpicks) and "combat emplacement excavators" (shovels).

He retaliated with a memo decrying what he described as “gobbledegook language” which said, in part, “Lets stop “pointing-up” programs, “finalizing” contracts that “stem” from district, regional or Wahington “levels”. There are no levels – local government is as high as Washington Government. No more “patterns”, “effectuating” or “dynamics”. Anyone using the words “activation” or “implementation” will be shot”.

New Zealand examples of successfully funded gobbledegook include:
"We argue that racial marginalisation is a consequence of institutional and industrial ideologies and screen production practices. Our project will construct the first history of Asian New Zealand screen production (1980-2019) and trace several contemporary case histories (2020). These data enable us to analyse whether recent developments in Asian New Zealand screen production genuinely alter cultural politics and power or if they reiterate hegemonic tendencies to manage diversity."

And:

"The methodology draws out the specificities of each context, and then breaks new ground by working alongside mana whenua (people of that place) to centre their knowledge, thus developing a unique place-centred Oceanic urban NbS climate change adaptation strategy."

Since such waffle language seems to be ingrained in the NZ science community, I would point readers to a handy help: The Internet Gobbledegook generator. http://plainenglish.co.uk/gobbledygook-generator.html.

Cobbling together its suggestions will likely lead to potentially award-winning paragraphs such as:

“Our exploratory research points to three-dimensional administrative projections, though the consultants recommend four-dimensional third-generation time-phases. At base level, this just comes down to systemised management processing that should enable us to become uber-efficient with our remote management projections."

I’m off to savor a recently procured "pulverised grain and fermentation fungus mat calorified over a charged particle heat source" (my toast).

Brian Jones

ADVANCES IN MEDICAL SCIENCE - 2022:
Living skin on a robot.

Article in press: Kawai et al., Living skin on a robot, Matter (2022), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matt.2022.05.019

SUMMARY Humanoids are robots created with human forms or characteristics; these robots also have the potential to seamlessly interact with human beings. By replicating the appearances and functions (e.g., selfhealing) of human beings, humanoids have the potential to establish more harmonic and natural human-robot interactions. Here, we propose the use of skin equivalent, a living skin model consisting of cells and extracellular matrix, as a human-like and self-healing coverage material for robots. We fabricated a three-joint robotic finger covered with skin equivalent by developing a method to cover three-dimensional objects with skin equivalent. Furthermore, inspired by the medical treatment of deeply burned skin using grafted hydrogels, we demonstrated wound repair of a dermis equivalent covering a robotic finger by culturing the wounded tissue grafted with a collagen sheet. With the above results, this research shows the potential of using skin equivalent as human-like and selfhealing coverage material for robots.

May 2022 Newsletter

You receive this Newsletter as a member or supporter of Wellington's oldest scientific society (in our 171st year) - the Wellington Branch of the Royal Society of New Zealand.
Fellows of the RSNZ are automatically members.

MEETINGS in 2022 (and an AGM)
YAY!
The council have gone ahead and organised two face to face meetings for later in the year. The second will incorporate our deferred 2021 AGM.
Brian Jones (Treasurer)
You can always email me at:
treasurer.RSNZ.wellington@outlook.com
As notified last year we have a new website. David had lots of fun learning how to create this website but we need feedback on both format and content.
Here it is:

https://www.royalsocietyofnewzealandwellingtonbranch.org/

THE FOXTON MOA HUNTER SITE, THE CA-500-YEAR OLD EARTHQUAKE, AND IMPLICATIONS FOR MODERN SETTLEMENT

The Royal Society of New Zealand Wellington Branch and Te Kawa a Māui School of Maori Studies Public Lecture 

On Wednesday 29 June at 6.00 pm, the Royal Society of New Zealand Wellington Branch and Te Kawa a Māui School of Maori Studies VUW, will jointly host a free public lecture on the Foxton Moa Hunter site, to be given by Dr. Bruce McFadgen.

6.00 - 7.00 pm at Victoria University Lecture Theatre HU119 (Hunter Building), Kelburn Campus, Victoria University.

We hope that you will attend and contribute to the discussion afterward. Please come along. Full details of the lecture are given below.

Dr. Bruce McFadgen

Earthquakes can be a benefit or a disaster. Much of our infrastructure and population occupy low-lying land near the sea; e.g. the Southwest Coast of the North Island, and people are concerned about the hazards of living near the water. The prehistoric environment is an essential part of archaeological information, and archaeological remains can provide an historical perspective for the landscape as it is today. Hazards include earthquakes, tsunamis, coastal erosion, and the burial of settlements, gardens, and resources by sand dunes. One way to better understand such hazards is to know what happened in the past, and learning from Maori experience is very relevant to modern society to prepare for future events. This evening's talk will discuss an archaeological site in the southern Manawatu, which was badly affected by a significant earthquake several hundred years ago; the effects of the earthquake on the Southwest coast of the North Island, and implications for modern settlement.

Dr. Bruce McFadgen is an Honorary Research Associate with Te Kawa a Maui, The School of Maori Studies, at Victoria University of Wellington. He has been retired for 18 years and spends his spare time carrying out research. He began his career as a Land Surveyor with Lands and Survey in 1963, and was later employed by NZ Historic Places Trust, and then the Department of Conservation. He has been a member of the Royal Society of New Zealand Wellington Branch since 1966, and a life member since 1987.

DOWN THE RABBIT HOLE: THE WONDERLAND OF NEW ZEALAND’S FOLIC ACID SAGA

Together with the deferred 2021 AGM

Professor Barry Borman (Massey University)

Wednesday 20 July, 6.00 - 7.00 pm at the Royal Society of New Zealand premises, 11 Turnbull St Thorndon, Wellington

On Wednesday 20 July at 6.00 pm the Royal Society of New Zealand Wellington Branch will host its deferred 2021 Hudson Lecture and Annual General Meeting. This is a free public lecture on the recent controversy about folic acid. We hope that you will attend and contribute to the discussion afterward. Please come along.

8 July 2021 was momentous in the history of public health in New Zealand. On this day, the Government announced the long overdue introduction of mandatory fortification of non-organic bread-making wheat flour with folic acid. Thirty years previously (11 September 1992), and based on the results of a multicenter randomized control trial, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended that all women of childbearing age should consume 0.4mg of folic acid per day to reduce the risk of having a child with a neural tube defect (e.g. spina bifida). The presentation will trace the interweaving strands of science and politics in NZ’s belated implementation of a scientifically proven method of primary prevention.

We hope that you will attend and participate in our (very short) Annual General Meeting.

ROYAL SOCIETY TE APĀRANGI WELLINGTON BRANCH POSTGRADUATE SCHOLARSHIPS

Need funds to support your Ph.D research? The Wellington Branch of the Royal Society Te Apārangi offers one or more $500 scholarships to support postgraduate student research and researchers in Wellington.

There is no restriction on how the funds may be spent, other than they support the student’s postgraduate work. The Scholarship will be awarded on the basis of merit. Additional funds may be approved in particularly deserving cases.

Rules
All applicants for financial assistance must be members of the Royal Society of New Zealand Wellington Branch (Students $15). Recipients of our scholarships must undertake to give a presentation on their research to the Royal Society of New Zealand Wellington Branch, at a date to be agreed.
Applying for Financial Assistance
Please use the link below to apply. Your application should include:

1. A brief outline of your research topic

2. The university and department in which you are currently enrolled, and the identity of your supervisor(s)

3. A brief justification for financial assistance from the Royal Society of New Zealand Wellington Branch

Please send your application to this email: sigma@outlook.co.nz, Put Scholarship Application in the "subject" 

Demise of the 136-yr old

NZ Medical Association?

Members of the New Zealand Medical Association are being urged to stop the 136-year-old institution from going into liquidation.  The NZMA board is recommending that members vote to end the professional body as it faces financial strife because of falling support. A resolution will be presented to members on May 30, and if approved, there will then be another meeting in late June to confirm the decision.

It seems to be a symptom of the age. There is, it seems, a general lack of interest in being "on a committee" - whether its science based or a hobby. The Wellington Branch of the RSNZ has been in the same position before, and was saved by the dedication of a few, but the threat still hangs over us too. Basically we need new young members with new ideas on the committee.  Volunteers welcome!

BEWARE OF FAKE QR CODES.

Not yet in NZ (as far as I'm aware) but in several US states, fake QR codes have appeared stuck to parking meters and other pay station ticket machines where you might expect to pay. Drivers who scanned them were directed to a website that asked them to enter their credit card or bank account information. They’ve also cropped up on billboards, online ads and in phishing emails, which are designed to trick people into divulging personal information. The FBI have issued an alert at: https://www.ic3.gov/Media/Y2022/PSA220118

THE RIGHT TO KNOW
Content and warning labels are becoming more and more detailed.
In the interests of accuracy the following is offered:

Any use of this email Newsletter, in any manner whatsoever, will increase the amount of disorder in the Universe. Though no liability is implied therein the user is warned that this usage, including deletion, will ultimately lead to the heat death of the Universe.
Handle with extreme care.
Should you print it out, be aware that the sheet of paper used will contain minute electrical charged particles moving at velocities in excess of eight hundred million km/hr.
Warning!
Should you generate a paper printout of this newsletter be aware that should the paper come in contact with antimatter in any form, a catastrophic explosion will result.