Nine To Noon for Wednesday 2 November 2022

 

09:05 How free is speech on university campuses? 

A new study suggests a significant number of undergraduate students are uncomfortable sharing their views in class on certain topics - such as gender, politics, religion and sexual orientation. Almost 800 students from Otago, Auckland and Victoria Universities participated in the study, about their comfort speaking in academic settings. Between 20 and 40 per cent said they would feel uncomfortable 'speaking up and giving their views' on gender, politics, religion, and sexual orientation.  And 65 per cent said they would feel uncomfortable discussing at least one of these topics. Co-author, Dr Jamin Halberstadt, professor in the department of  psychology at University of Otago, says the results are “alarming”.

09:30 Report finds most flood-prone areas are the least prepared

Some of the country's most disadvantaged regions have been identified in a government report as being at the most risk of flooding. Not only are they are most risk - the report says they are also totally unprepared. 44 communities are named in the report - they're considered vulnerable because they're not planning to build protection such as flood walls, and because of low average incomes, cannot raise rates to fund the work. Kathryn speaks to Jacqui Church, Waikato District Council Mayor and Gisborne District mayor Rehette Stoltz.

09:45 Australia: New Covid wave, trial aborted, costs rise, $5 King

Australia correspondent Karen Middleton joins Kathryn to talk about how Covid infection rates have shot up in Victoria raising concerns about a new wave. The man accused of raping a Parliamentary staffer will be retried after his trial was aborted due to a juror bringing in a document relating to sexual assault. The Government is looking at how to push prices back down, including a possible price cap on gas and King Charles may not feature on the next incarnation of the $5 note.

10:05 From big tech to big supermarkets: why monopolies have a vice-like grip

Whether it's big tech, big pharma or big supermarkets , Sally Hubbard argues monopolies have a vice-like grip on our lives. She is an antitrust expert and Director of Enforcement Strategy at the US Open Markets Institute.  She served as an Assistant Attorney General in New York's Antitrust Bureau, and is the author of new book Monopolies Suck. Ms Hubbard argues that a monopolized economy works for only a select few, and leave the rest feeling left out and left behind.  She says industry self regulation has been failure and monopolies actually stifle innovation.

10:35 Book review: Pipi and Pou and the Raging Mountain & Pipi and Pou and the River Monster, written by Tim Tipene

Joanna Ludbrook from Chicken and Frog bookstore in Featherston reviews Pipi and Pou and the Raging Mountain and Pipi and Pou and the River Monster, written by Tim Tipene and illustrated by Isobel Te Aho-White, published by One Tree House.

10:45 The Reading

Another story from A History of New Zealand in 100 Objects written and read by Jock Phillips. Life on the gold fields was harsh and challenging but a song or tune could lighten the burden for the miners. We play Paddy Galvin's Pipes.

11:05 Unemployment stays near record low

Unemployment has remained unchanged at 3.3 percent in the three months ended September. Average wages have risen strongly, growing 2.6 per cent in the three months ending on September 30. What does this mean in terms of potential for further aggressive rate rises by the Reserve Bank? Kathryn speaks to RNZ Business Editor Gyles Beckford.

11:10 Music with Dave Wilson: Songs about work

Music commentator Dave Wilson joins Kathryn to look at the fascinating relationship between work and music. Creating, singing, and playing music are all forms of labour. Audiences pay for tickets to concerts to watch and listen to musicians work. We talk about the "work" or "works" of a composer or artist. But people have for hundreds of years made music about work. Through music they deal with the challenges of work, the exploitation of employers and capitalist systems, and grapple with the place of work in their lives among other priorities.  

Dave Wilson is musician, composer, and ethnomusicologist, a senior lecturer at the New Zealand School of Music at Victoria University of Wellington

11:25 Population stagnation and the impact on globalisation

A number of countries around the world are experiencing population decline, or depopulation. Japan, for example saw a population loss of 644,000 in 2020 and 2021, and it's population is expected to decline by 30% in the next 40 years, and then halve by the end of the century. It is estimated that 23 countries will see a halving of the population between now and 2100, while others experience growing populations. Demographer and Distinguished Professor Emeritus Paul Spoonley of Massey University says countries need to be ready for the change.

11:45 Science: Fun-seeking bees, nose-picking primates, death-telling smartphones

Science commentator Dr Siouxsie Wiles joins Kathryn to talk about new research that has found bumblebees will play with tiny wooden balls - despite there being no reason to do so. The aye-aye, a primate in Madagascar, has a particularly bad habit of picking and eating what they find up their nose, and information on how we walk can help a smartphone calculate our five-year risk of dying. Associate Professor Dr Siouxsie Wiles is the head of Bioluminescent Superbugs Lab at the University of Auckland.

 

Music played in this show

Track: Dance II
Artist: Discovery Zone
Time Played: 10:30

Track: In the House of Yes
Artist: Twin Sister
Time Played: 10:44