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Science & Tech: Self-driving car
Self-drive is set to take on a whole new meaning, transforming our cities, unclogging our roads and changing our very idea of car ownership.

Antarctic diary: Preparing for the big chill
Herald science reporter Jamie Morton will be filing regular stories from Antarctica's Scott Base over the next week, along with a daily diary entry. Here is his first.

Benefits hidden deep in ice bergs
Minerals released by giant icebergs capturing carbon is slowing the rate of global warming.

So, what's the story with Bowie's eyes?
The uncanny appearance of Bowie's eyes was ideal for a performer who embraced ideas of the alien, the outsider, the otherworldly and the occult, writes Kevin Hunt.

Mishap created life as we know it
In a paper published in the open access journal eLife this week, researchers say they have pinpointed what may well be one of evolution's greatest copy mess-ups yet.

Watch: Houston Space Centre
Retired NASA astronaut Fred Haise, of famous failed lunar mission, Apollo 13, gives a guided tour though the Houston Space Centre, Texas

Talk on fish line all about safety
Scientists at the University of Auckland have proved that fish communicate to keep safe from predators in the same way animals such as chimpanzees and elephants do. The research - captured with an underwater GoPro camera is the first direct evidence that fish communicate to maintain group cohesion.

Strange but true: Mantises go to the movies
Scientists have developed insect-sized three-dimensional glasses to prove that praying mantises see their world in 3D.

Mitten impossible: Kiwis nail VR glove
Air-guitar playing may never be the same again, thanks to a Kiwi innovation that could transform interactive games like Guitar Hero.

Tropical corals to help unlock ocean's secret history
Kiwi scientists are set to unlock a secret history of the Pacific Ocean using tropical corals thousands of years old, in an $800,000, world-first study.

Surf study tracks top breaks
A gadget only a little more high-tech than your average waterproof watch will play a key role in a study assessing New Zealand's best surf breaks.

Campaign to clean up waterways
A campaign calling for cleaner lakes and rivers has been launched this summer, as monitoring data shows many spots across the country remain unsafe for a dip.

Deluge no relief for parched farms
Days of widespread rainfall might have washed out the holidays for summer campers, but for farmers in many places it's been merely a drop of what's needed to replenish drought-parched soils.

Blue butterfly's tale a conservation classic
If I had been given one wish as a child, it would have been that the Tasmanian tiger wasn't extinct. To me, extinction was a tragedy.

Training drones to be friends
Drones, the source of that new low buzzing sound coming from your local park, were one of the most popular tech Christmas presents this year.

Campbell Island 'princess' revisited
Paul Charman is on his way to Campbell Island to investigate the legend of a Scottish princess abandoned there long ago

Irish roots traced back to Middle East
The Irish are descended from early Middle East farmers and from bronze metalworkers on the steppes around the Black Sea, scientists have found.

Kiwi twins born brown and white
Twins Jayden and Xavier Boughey have to convince their classmates they're brothers.

Carey or scary? Love of Christmas all in the mind
It seems some of us have more holiday cheer than others, which raises the question about whether Christmas spirit actually exists.

The future according to the CIA
In the year 2000, the CIA commissioned a report on what global trends will be in 2015. Here's what they got right and wrong.

SpaceX returns to space - with dramatic landing planned
SpaceX is heading back into orbit today - with an ambitious attempt to land its reusable rocket on land.

Researcher launches project to unmask everyday psychopaths
Your nearest psychopath might be your father-in-law, your boss, your financial adviser or even that guy your daughter is thinking about dating. Just who these people are, how many there are in our society and what helps them blend in are questions that have inspired a Waikato University researcher to launch a major project.

The everyday psychopath
Your nearest psychopath might be your father-in-law, your boss, your financial adviser or even that guy your daughter is thinking about dating.

Robophobic movies helping fear of AI go viral
The fear of technology are not helped by a continuing epidemic of artificial intelligence (AI) and robophobic screenplays emanating from Hollywood.

It's about how much you want to pay
Painkillers work by blocking enzymes everywhere in the body, not just in the area causing pain.

Six predictions for 2016; drones
As the world's largest consumer electronics show, CES 2016, draws closer, rumours and predictions run rife.

Little fear in dearer booze
Imposing minimum prices for alcohol is likely to help some people who are dependent on it to cut down their drinking, say the authors of a new study.

Global emissions may have peaked
It's good news, but not a reason to be complacent; global emissions actually fell in 2015.

Arctic hits record high temperatures
The average air temperature over Arctic land reached 2.3 degrees F (1.3 degrees C) above average for the year ending in September. That's the highest since observations began in 1900.