Smart Talk

Is there life out there beyond Earth? And why does it matter? Join former NASA researcher and University of Auckland astrobiologist Professor Kathleen Campbell.

A hundred years after Katherine Mansfield died at the age of 34, six writers and performers share their personal connections to the New Zealand writer's life and legacy.

To engage young people accustomed to visual storytelling, historian Monty Soutar wrote Kāwai: For Such a Time as This as if it were a movie.

Dr Qu Mai Nguy n Phan's latest novel Dust Child sets out to subvert Hollywood movie stereotypes of Vietnamese women being subservient and passive. She talks to Paula Morris in this highlight of the 2023 Auckland Writers Festival.

Gaylene's Take is the autobiography of an influential director who created a style of cinema unlike that of male directors of her generation. Dame Gaylene Preston talks about her career at the 2023 Auckland Writers Festival.

Richard Fidler speaks with Jack Tame about The Book of Roads and Kingdoms, bringing to life the dazzling cosmopolitan culture of Baghdad during Islam's Golden Age. A highlight of the 2023 Auckland Writers Festival.

The world of AI has leapt into focus recently, fuelled by interest in ChatGPT. Prof. Toby Walsh talks to Toby Manhire about its future, in a highlight from the 2023 Auckland Writers Festival.

Three Booker Prize winners, Eleanor Catton, Bernardine Evaristo and Shehan Karunatilaka share their experience of being awarded the world's most esteemed literary prize with Karyn Hay at the 2023 Auckland Writers Festival.

In Indelible City: Dispossession and Defiance in Hong Kong, Louisa Lim captures the city's untold history, just as it is being erased from the official record. A highlight of the 2023 Auckland Writers Festival.

MasterChef UK judge and restaurant critic William Sitwell joins Richard Fidler for a conversation about a life in food.. A highlight of the 2023 Auckland Writers Festival.

Two-time winner of the Pulitzer Prize, Colson Whitehead has written The Underground Railroad, The Nickel Boys, and Harlem Shuffle. He talks to Kim Hill at the 2023 Auckland Writers Festival.

An analysis of racism from Dr Mahdis Azarmandi at the University of Canterbury's Raising the Bar Christchurch 2023.

Antibiotic resistance has been creeping up for 70 years. Prof. Jack Heinemann, discusses how its doomsday scenario in this highlight of Raising the Bar Christchurch 2023.

Assoc. Prof. Elsamari Botha looks at how AI, and language models like ChatGPT, have the potential to revolutionise the way businesses operate, at Raising the Bar Christchurch 2023.

Is Science making our food safer? Kim Hill talks with a panel of experts at the annual seminar of the New Zealand Food Safety Science & Research Centre

Professor of Marketing Ekant Veer argues that online 'trolling' need not be a form of bullying, but something playful which is also good for society. From Raising the Bar Christchurch 2023.

Cheryl Brown and Kathryn MacCallum explore the digital landscapes that young people occupy today. A highlight of the University of Canterbury's Raising the Bar Christchurch 2023.

What is going on with transport in Aotearoa? Prof. Simon Kingham explores what the evidence tells us about transport now and in the future, at Raising the Bar Christchurch 2023.

Assoc. Prof. Heather Purdie explains why glaciers are the perfect barometer of climate change. A highlight from the University of Canterbury's Raising the Bar Christchurch 2023 series.

Economist Stephen Hickson explains how inflation rises, why it's bad for us and how we got rid of it. (A highlight from the University of Canterbury’s Raising the Bar series)