Exploring latest advances in science

DISCOVERIES: A talk will be held on innovative scientific developments including in wine science. PHOTO/FILE

How to melt a teaspoon in a cup of tea and how chemistry can help unlock new wine markets are among innovative scientific developments people will be able to learn about at a free talk in the Masterton Town Hall next week.

Chemistry and physics experts from the School of Chemical and Physical Sciences at Victoria University will be giving the talk as part of its 2015 Public Lecture Series.

Dr Nicola Gaston, also Principal Investigator in the MacDiarmid Institute for Advanced Materials and Nanotechnology and President of the New Zealand Association of Scientists, will explore recent scientific discoveries made possible by nanotechnology and highly parallel computing - sciences that have changed the understanding of materials and their structure.

Examples she will look at include how to melt a teaspoon in a cup of tea, why mercury is a liquid at room temperature, and the potential to create new kinds of atoms.

She will be joined by Dr Rob Keyzers, who will talk about how the clever use of chemistry can help control the sensory properties of wine and help unlock new and lucrative markets, ultimately enhancing sales.

Dr Keyzers said he will cover how interventions in grape growing can impact the quality of wine, the difference between taste and flavour, the chemistry of wine and understanding how molecules make "a glass of plonk" enjoyable.

"Every flavour has its origins in a molecular interaction, an understanding of chemicals can have a profound value of what we enjoy in wine."

He will also talk about cracking into different markets such as Asia, rather than the "saturated" traditional markets for New Zealand wine like Britain.

Wine exports are worth $1 billion to the New Zealand economy every year, with Sauvignon blanc accounting for more than 70 per cent of the volumes sold.

Dr Keyzers, who is more partial to Syrah, said wine could be altered for different palates through chemistry.

"The sensory properties for an Asian palate are going to be very different to what Westerners like."

He said this was being explored by the wine science research community, universities and winemakers, including Palliser Estate in Martinborough.

The talk is at 5.30pm on May 27.

To attend email rsvp@vuw.ac.nz with 'Masterton Lecture' in the subject line or phone 04 463 5791 by May 25.