Nine To Noon for Wednesday 17 May 2023

 

09:05 Junior Defence Force women still face inappropriate sexual behaviour: report

First this morning - seven years after it launched Operation Respect to stamp out bad conduct in the defence force, a new independent audit has found nearly a quarter of serving young women experienced "inappropriate sexual behaviour" in the past year. 78 reported they'd been sexually assaulted. The survey was part of a review of the Defence Force's progress on implementing culture change, conducted by the Office of the Auditor General. Auditor-General John Ryan says although there have been some positive changes, the NZDF lacks a clear and well-considered strategy, and conditions remains that allow "harmful behaviour to occur", especially for junior, uniformed women. Operation Respect was launched in 2016 in response to three separate reviews that had identified harmful sexual behaviour in the armed forces. Kathryn speaks with Chief of Air Force, Air Vice Marshal Andrew Clark, is the chair of the Operation Respect Steering Group; and Dr Ellen Nelson, a former army officer who has interviewed current and ex serving women about their experiences of inappropriate behaviour.

09:25 New Zealand developed cancer treatment: one step closer to market

A breakthrough cancer treatment developed in here New Zealand which uses a patient's own immune system to find and destroys the disease is a step closer to market. Wellington Zhaotai Therapies, which is a joint venture between the Malaghan Institute and China's Hunan Zhaotai Medical, has signed a multi-milllon dollar deal with Indian pharmaceutical giant Dr Reddy's Laboratories. The argreement will see trials of a new generation of CAR T-cell therapy, where a patient's own immune or T-cells are genetically modified to recognise and destroy their cancer. Kathryn talks to Dr Rob Weinkove the clinical director at Malagan about the clinical trials and his ambition to see this become a  mainstream treatment.

09:45 Australia: PwC leak scandal, ABC royal coverage investigated, Jenny Craig goes bust

Australia correspondent Chris Niesche joins Kathryn to look at the "financial penalty" PwC Australia could face over a scandal in which it used confidential tax information to secure more business. The firm's former chief executive Tom Seymour has announced he'll retire his partnership later this year as it appoints former Telstra CEO Ziggy Switkowski to review the leaks. The ABC ombudsman is to investigate its coverage of the coronation after a thousand complaints that it was biased toward the republican movement. And what happened to Jenny Craig? The weight-loss company has filed for bankruptcy and has backtracked on plans to keep its doors open in Australia and New Zealand.

10:05 Science eavesdropping on the sounds of the natural world

The remarkable world of nature's hidden sounds and the way species communicate are being revealed by scientists using digital bioacoustics. Canadian scientist, Professor Karen Bakker,  is an author and award winning researcher of digital innovation and environmental governance. A Rhodes Scholar with a PhD from Oxford University, she is a Professor at the University of British Columbia, and currently Distinguished Visiting Professor at the Harvard Radcliffe Institute For Advanced Study. Her latest book is The Sounds of Life: how digital technology is bringing us closer to the worlds of animals and plants. The book looks at the work of thousands of researchers into non-human sounds using bio acoustics which Professor Bakker describes as a "planetary-scale hearing aid,  enabling humans to record nature's sounds beyond the limits of human sensory capacities". She describes astonishing discoveries such as Amazonian sea turtles making 200 distinct sounds; bats remembering favors and holding grudges, and that tomatoes, tobacco and corn seedlings actually make noises.

10:32 Wellington fatal fire update

RNZ reporter Jemima Huston reports from the scene of the Loafers Lodge fatal fire, where Fire and Emergency are soon expected to handover the building to police.

10:35 Book review: Broken Light by Joanne Harris

Elisabeth Easther reviews Broken Light by Joanne Harris, published by Hachette

10:45 Around the motu : Mary Argue in Wairarapa

South Wairarapa District Council is in an invidious position with the population expected to swell in the coming years, infrastructure is under the microscope, and Mary says the latest news is not good. Martinborough's wastewater treatment plant is at capacity. And while infrastructure is failing in some areas of the district, in others, such as Greytown, SWDC has publicly notified resource consents for large-scale developments including a  235-hectare solar farm project lodged by Far North Solar Farm. There's also been a new application lodged by Woolworths to build access to the local Fresh Choice supermarket from SH2. And Featherston was buzzing at the weekend with 8000 visitors drawn to the annual Booktown Festival.

11:05 Music with Charlotte Ryan: Oh Dolly!

Music 101 host Charlotte Ryan goes a little bit country! She'll talk about the news Dolly Parton has a new album that sees her join forces with some of rock music's most legendary artists. The 30-song collection will include nine original tracks and 21 iconic rock anthems. We get a taste of what's on offer...

11:20 To Distant Shores: New maritime novel's roots in post-Treaty NZ

When William C Hammond moved to New Zealand six years ago, he felt he had to bring his nautical fiction series with him too. After 30 years in publishing, Bill embarked on his own writing career in 1998 - creating what's become the Cutler Family Chronicles.  It follows the fortunes of a 19th century naval family from Massachusetts - which is also where he hails from. His seventh novel in the series, To Distant Shores, sees his main character Richard Cutler command a US steam frigate on a mission to Sydney.  But the ship is wrecked off the North Island's west coast, plunging the remaining crew right in the middle of the conflict that followed the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi. Bill joins Kathryn to talk about how he ended up in New Zealand, and the research that goes into his novels.

11:45 Science: Death cap mushroom antidote, first human pangenome published

Science correspondent Dr Siouxsie Wiles joins Kathryn to talk about a new study from Australian researchers into the death cap mushroom - responsible for 90 per cent of mushroom poisoning deaths. Could there be a potential antidote? And the first human pangenome has been published - it's made up of all the entire genes a particular group or species possess. What does it tell us about the diversity of our species? And a new competition for kids in Year 5 to 10 is open for those interested in STEAM. 

Associate Professor Dr Siouxsie Wiles is the head of Bioluminescent Superbugs Lab at the University of Auckland.