LATE 06: Species Identity |
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Finlay Macdonald
Finlay Macdonald is a widely respected contributor to newspapers and publications throughout the country. He is the former editor of NZ Listener, commissioning editor for Penguin Books, and now writes columns, social commentary and edits the Sunday Star-Times books pages.
He has also worked for Metro Magazine, and as a writer for television, including documentary, serial drama and comedy.
At this year's Qantas Media Awards, Finlay was given the Best Overall Columnist Award for his weekly Sunday Star Times column. British-born Macdonald recently joined Radio Live, hosting a Sunday morning show with a focus on current events, politics and reviews. |
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Professor Peter Gluckman
Founding Director of the Liggins Institute Professor Peter Gluckman is one of New Zealand’s best known scientists. His research focuses on what gives us a healthy start to life: understanding how a baby’s environment between conception and birth determines its childhood development and life-long health - and the impact that this knowledge has for individuals and whole populations.
His research has won him numerous awards and international recognition including Fellowship of the Commonwealth’s most prestigious scientific organisation, The Royal Society (London). He is the only New Zealander elected to the Institute of Medicine of the National Academies of Science (USA) and the Academy of Medical Sciences of Great Britain.
In 2007 he was made a Distinguished Companion of the NZ Order of Merit for services to medicine having previously been made a Companion of the Order in 1997, and in 2001 received New Zealand’s top science award, the Rutherford Medal.
A University of Auckland Distinguished Professor, he is Professor of Paediatric and Perinatal Biology and Director of the National Research Centre for Growth and Development. He was formerly Head of the Department of Paediatrics and Dean of the Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences for nine years. He has been extensively involved in many aspects of science, health and educational policy development.
Professor Gluckman is an international advocate for science, promoting the translation of discoveries in biomedical research into improvements in long term health outcomes. His work with organisations such as the WHO has brought growing recognition of the importance of a healthy start to life.
He is the author of over 500 scientific papers and reviews and editor of eight books, including two influential textbooks in his subject area.
He is passionate about communicating a better understanding of science in the community and, with colleague Mark Hanson of The University of Southampton, has co-authored two books for non-scientific audiences: The Fetal Matrix (2004) which summarises his ideas on how events in early life lead to altered disease risk in later life and Mismatch - why our world no longer fits our bodies (2006).
Professor Gluckman has recently been appointed by John Key as the first Prime Minister's Chief Science Advisor. |
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Dr Stephen Goldson
Chief Scientist at AgResearch and Professorial Fellow at Lincoln University, Stephen Goldson is widely recognised as a leader in his areas of expertise – pest management, biosecurity and science advocacy. The Listener magazine recently placed him on their Most Powerful list as New Zealand's fourth most influential person in Science and Technology, describing him as "a formidable advocate for science".
He has led programmes to explore mechanisms of biological suppression for three severe pasture pests in New Zealand – the clover root weevil, Argentine stem weevil and the lucerne weevil. In doing so, he identified the critical importance of subspecies in biological control.
Stephen's fundamental research into insect behaviour and the ecological and genetic components of pest suppression have informed crop management generally.
He has authored more than 150 papers in scientific journals and conference proceedings. At the same time, Stephen has been highly influential in the development of sensor technologies to improve New Zealand's border biosecurity.
He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of New Zealand, and of the New Zealand Institute of Agricultural and Horticultural Science which awarded him the prestigious Jubilee Medal in 2007. That year he also won the Agriculture and Environment Category of the Bayer Innovators Awards. A Fellow of the Royal Entomological Society of London, Stephen was Advisor to New Zealand's Minister of Research, Science and Technology from 1996 to 1997 and President of the New Zealand Plant Protection Society from 2001 to 2003. He has served on numerous panels, providing science advice to government. |
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Professor Grant Gillett
Grant Gillet studied medicine and psychology at Auckland and then specialised in neurosurgery. He completed a doctorate in philosophy and held a fellowship at Oxford before coming to The University of Otago. He is a Neurosurgeon and Professor of Medical Ethics. Grant's interests are broad, including the philosophy of mind and the philosophy of medicine and medical ethics. He has a particular interest in the philosophies of Kant and Wittgenstein.
He is the author of Bioethics in the Clinic: Hippocratic Reflections, Representation, Meaning and Thought (with. W K M Fulford and J Martin-Soskice), The Discursive Mind (with R. Harré), Medical Ethics (with AV Campbell, M.Charlesworth, DG Jones) and The Mind and its Discontents. Grant is also the editor of Medicine and Moral Reasoning. |
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Professor Rosalind Hursthouse
Rosalind Hursthouse did her undergraduate degree and MA in philosophy at the University of Auckland, went to England for her postgraduate study, and stayed there until the beginning of 2002 when she returned to her home department as Professor and Head of Department.
In England, she did the BPhil and DPhil at Oxford, and, while still writing her doctoral thesis, was a full time but temporary lecturer at Corpus Christi College. After six years, she became a lecturer at the Open University instead, which she found so rewarding and inspiring that she stayed there happily for the next twenty-five years, until, she returned to New Zealand.
Her first book, Beginning Lives (Blackwell, 1987), on the ethical issues surrounding abortion, was written as part of an Open University philosophy course called Life and Death, and it was through teaching the more abstract aspects of moral theory at the summer school associated with this course that she first developed her views on approaching moral problems through a consideration of the virtues and vices (instead of through moral rules such as 'Do not kill' or 'Respect rights'.) This lead to the publication of her most well-known article 'Virtue theory and abortion' (1991) and this was followed by a stream of further articles in the area, culminating in her book On Virtue Ethics (Oxford University Press, 1999.) |
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Please note seating is limited for the panel discussion. Overflow seating will be available in the auditorium with a live video feed.
Great Music |
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Dimmer
Shayne Carter has been in the studio for over a year working on the follow-up to Dimmer’s acclaimed third album There My Dear and the result is one of the most potent recordings of his remarkable career, Degrees of Existence, due for release at the end of July.
Preceded by the snarling melodic brilliance of the singles “Degrees of Existence” and “Cold Water”, the latter currently searing across the airwaves, this Dimmer album promises to meet the exacting standards of one of the finest New Zealand groups of recent times.
Inducted to the exclusive membership of the NZ Music Hall of Fame at last year’s Tui Awards with his other most famous act, Straitjacket Fits, Shayne Carter is a man whose incredible music has helped shape the story of NZ song since he emerged in the fertile Dunedin scene of the late 1970s.
A distinctive songwriter and compelling performer, Shayne Carter brings Dimmer to the Museum promising a mix of his classic and new material.
Joining him onstage will be James Duncan (Punches, SJD), Kelly Steven (Punches) and Gary Sullivan, the latter recently returned to the Dimmer fold having first occupied the band’s drumstool almost a decade ago on the band’s legendary first album, I Believe You Are A Star.
The former Jean Paul Sartre Experience sticksman brings his always tasteful and sinuous grooves to the ongoing Dimmer project, adding a fresh element to the sonic pop explorations of Carter and Duncan’s brilliant guitarwork. |
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Six60
Dunedin based band, Six60’s unique sound is causing ripples in the music scene, taking them from Scarfieville to the stage alongside New Zealand’s music heavyweights.
Six60 have just released their first self titled EP - a fresh Kiwi fusion of roots, reggae, hip hop and drum and bass. In the short time since, they have performed at huge concerts such as Peak Festival in Queenstown and Area 9 in Twizel.
Barely out of their teens and playing next to bands like Kora, Salmonella Dub, Katchafire, The Black Seeds and Tahuna Breaks, Six60 are quickly gaining respect and recognition for their skilled musicianship, strong vocals and seamless performances.
Six60 is made up of five guys in their early 20’s, who formed as students at Otago University in 2006. They claim coming from different parts of the country and having diverse musical influences has enabled them to create the “new Dunedin sound”.
It is this sound catching people’s attention nationwide and creating huge demand. Six60 won the Kiwi Rockout Competition in January this year, giving them the chance to headline at Area 9 with idols Katchafire and Kora. They also won a competition with The Edge radio station to play live on air and were asked to open for The Black Seeds at Otago University’s 2009 orientation week.
Since meeting at a Kora concert in 2006, they have performed countless gigs and events around the country, spent hours crafting their sound, perfecting their performances and converting New Zealand to the “Six60 sound”. |
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Manuel Bundy
To many Manuel Bundy can be considered the Godfather of HipHop in NZ. He began Djing professionally in 1989. About that time he held a residency at Auckland's De Brett Hotel and soon became a regular at the infamous Box nightclub. He was invited to host the Australian DMC Dj finals and became known for his scratching and mixing skills.
In 1995 Manuel began to dabble in production and contributed on Nathan Haines debut album ‘Shift Left’. Scratched on Dam Native tracks ‘Horrified One’ and ‘Behold my Kool Style’ and laid ‘cuts’ on Tim Finns ‘Runs in the Family’.
It was about this time in 1995/96 that he hooked up with Andy Morton aka Submariner. He began to work on various projects. Scratching on various tracks for Ermehns album ‘Samoans Pt 1’ and Breaks Coop’s album ‘Roofers’ and co producing on King Kapisi’s award winning single ‘Subcranium Feeling’. In 1998 he toured with OMC when ‘How Bizarre’ took the planet by storm.
Other remixes and co productions followed with Che Fu, Freestyle, Nuvonesia and One Million Dollars. More recently he has released his own EP under the name Solephonic and his debut album nearing completion. | |
