The Otago Chronicles: Recent Episodes
University Of Otago
Join Max Balloch as he wanders through this infinite universe, guided by the forever expanding knowledge of University of Otago academics.
Dr Neil Pickering from Otago's Bioethics centre takes two simple scenarios of medical decision making, and then sends it all into uncertainty, as he looks at the grey area in between.
Martin Forbes, a School of Surveying PhD candidate, heads to the Antarctic ice shelves, where he applies skills he previously learnt as an engineer for aircraft components.
It isn't a question of IF Artificial Intelligence will make mistakes, it's a matter of WHEN. In fact, it started happening long before you read that sentence. PhD student Briony Blackmore has spent the last three years figuring out who is to blame when these AI systems make a mistake.
Masters student Penny Matkin-Hussy pulls the curtain on what seems to be a pretty obvious matter… But if it’s so obvious, why don’t people realise it?
At some point in the future, the sun will hurl a tsunami of plasma towards Earth. In this time of need, we will fall back on our mightiest heroes- one of which is Professor Craig Rodger.
One of the defining traits of our species is our innate need to tell stories. Dr Hunter Hatfield is fascinated by this trait, and takes us back to the dawn of humankind to see how stories could have shaped who we are today.
Dr Lisa McNeill, an Associate Professor of the Department of Marketing unpacks the elephant in the wardrobe: sustainability in textiles.
Katie Ryan is a Master of Politics student, currently penning a thesis on how (and why) politicians in Aotearoa New Zealand use social media to make themselves seem more relatable.
Do you know a meteor from an asteroid? Associate Professor James Scott, Department of Geology, recounts the hunt for what would have been just the tenth recorded meteorite in Aotearoa in the last 150 years – and the technology and timing that made it all possible.
Dr Will Rayment of the Department of Marine Science welcomes us on board to talk all things sperm whales: their migratory patterns, methods of communication, and what they mean to coastal communities.
Dr Laura van Galen of the Department of Botany takes us below the covers of the forest floor. How does life below the surface relate to that above?
Dr Marco Brenna of the Department of Geology guides us down a path layered with volcanic ash. What can studying eruptions tell us about the future?