A Mile Underground in The Quest for Dark Matter – UMass News and Media Relations

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Deep below the Black Hills of South Dakota, the Sanford Underground Research Facility (Sanford Lab) is hosting an innovative and uniquely sensitive dark matter detectorthe LUX-ZEPLIN (LZ) experiment, led by Lawrence Berkeley National Lab (Berkeley Lab) and to which physicists at UMass Amherst contributed. The LZ experiment has passed a check-out phase of startup operations and delivered first results, the very first step in helping to determine one of the fundamental mysteries of the universe.

No one has ever seen dark matter. It does not emit, absorb or scatter light, and yet it is estimated that about 85% of the total mass of the universe comes from the substance.

Dark matter is the main source of the gravity we see in astrophysics. We need dark matter. But no one has seen a dark matter particle.

Scott Hertel, professor of physics at UMass Amherst

There are lots of problems in astrophysics which are solved by dark matter, says Scott Hertel, a professor of physics at UMass Amherst and whose team designed some of the techniques and equipment to calibrate the LZ detector. There is more dark matter in the universe than normal matter. It tells us how galaxies form, how stars orbit and how things worked in the early universe, which was hot and dense. Dark matter is the main source of the gravity we see in astrophysics. We need dark matter. But no one has seen a dark matter particle. We have no idea what the particle is.

That might soon change, thanks to the LZ experiment, which has just released results from its first 60 live days of testing, long enough to confirm that all aspects of the detector were functioning well. In a paper recently posted online, LZ researchers report that with the initial run, LZ is already the worlds most sensitive dark matter detector.

LZ Spokesperson Hugh Lippincott of the University of California Santa Barbara said, We plan to collect about 20 times more data in the coming years, so were only getting started. Theres a lot of science to do and its very exciting!

The heart of the LZ dark matter detector is buried nearly a mile underground in the Sanford Lab in Lead, S.D. The detector itself is comprised of two nested titanium tanks filled with ten metric tonnes of very pure liquid xenon and viewed by two arrays of photomultiplier tubes (PMTs) able to detect faint sources of light. LZ is designed to capture dark matter in the form of weakly interacting massive particles (WIMPs). The experiment is underground to protect it from cosmic radiation at the surface that could drown out dark matter signals.

Were hoping to see one atom of xenon get kicked by one galactic WIMP particle, which will produce a brief and tiny signal: several electrons and several photons of light, says Hertel.

Particle collisions in the xenon produce visible scintillation or flashes of light, which are recorded by the PMTs, explained Aaron Manalaysay from Berkeley Lab who, as Physics Coordinator, led the collaborations efforts to produce these first physics results. The collaboration worked well together to calibrate and to understand the detector response, Manalaysay said.

The design, manufacturing, and installation phases of the LZ detector were led by Berkeley Lab project director Gil Gilchriese in conjunction with an international team of 250 scientists and engineers from over 35 institutions from the U.S., U.K., Portugal and South Korea. The LZ Operations Manager is Berkeley Labs Simon Fiorucci. Together, the collaboration is hoping to use the instrument to record the first direct evidence of dark matter, the so-called missing mass of the cosmos.

Chris Nedlik spent the entirety of his UMass Amherst physics Ph.D. research working with Hertel on the LZ detectors calibration system.

I was a graduate student at a really fortunate time, he says, because I got to see it all come together, and then got to spend a few months underground in South Dakota at the end.

Because the LZ detector is so sensitiveHertel says that if one innocent object that has normal background radiation, like a banana, is around the detector, it could kill the experimentfiguring out how to calibrate it without destroying it was no small feat. So, the team build a scale model replica of the detector here at UMass and practiced calibrating it so that when they arrived in South Dakota, and confronted the real thing, they could perform their tasks flawlessly.

It was quite the experience for Nedlik. It was a huge transition working in an underground lab, he says. You ride the lift down through pitch-black darkness for ten minutes and then arrive in a laboratory space that is fully finished. You wouldnt even know youre underground.

One of the reasons that I chose to get my Ph.D. at UMass, Nedlik continues, is that I knew the department had many opportunities for world-class research. I didnt exactly know what I wanted to do in physics, but over the course of the time working on LZ, I was constantly in disbelief that I got to contribute to a project like this and meet such incredible colleagues.

The take-home message from this successful startup: Were ready and everythings looking good, said Berkeley Lab Senior Physicist and past LZ Spokesperson Kevin Lesko. Its a complex detector with many parts to it and they are all functioning well within expectations, he said.

Mike Headley, executive director of Sanford Lab, said, The entire Sanford Lab team congratulates the LZ Collaboration in reaching this major milestone. The LZ team has been a wonderful partner and were proud to host them at Sanford Lab.

One of the reasons that I chose to get my Ph.D. at UMass is that I knew the department had many opportunities for world-class research. I didnt exactly know what I wanted to do in physics, but over the course of the time working on LZ, I was constantly in disbelief that I got to contribute to a project like this and meet such incredible colleagues.

Chris Nedlik, UMass Amherst physics Ph.D. candidate

LZ is supported by the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Science, Office of High Energy Physics and the National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center, a DOE Office of Science user facility. LZ is also supported by the Science & Technology Facilities Council of the United Kingdom; the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology; and the Institute for Basic Science, Korea. Over 35 institutions of higher education and advanced research provided support to LZ. The LZ collaboration acknowledges the assistance of the Sanford Underground Research Facility.

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A Mile Underground in The Quest for Dark Matter - UMass News and Media Relations

James Bardeen, an Expert on Unraveling Einsteins Equations, Dies at 83 – The New York Times

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James Bardeen, who helped elucidate the properties and behavior of black holes, setting the stage for what has been called the golden age of black hole astrophysics, died on June 20 in Seattle. He was 83.

His son William said the cause was cancer. Dr. Bardeen, an emeritus professor of physics at the University of Washington, had been living in a retirement home in Seattle.

Dr. Bardeen was a scion of a renowned family of physicists. His father, John, twice won the Nobel Prize in Physics, for the invention of the transistor and the theory of superconductivity; his brother, William, is an expert on quantum theory at the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory in Illinois.

Dr. Bardeen was an expert on unraveling the equations of Einsteins theory of general relativity. That theory ascribes what we call gravity to the bending of spacetime by matter and energy. Its most mysterious and disturbing consequence was the possibility of black holes, places so dense that they became bottomless one-way exit ramps out of the universe, swallowing even light and time.

Dr. Bardeen would find his lifes work investigating those mysteries, as well as related mysteries about the evolution of the universe.

Jim was part of the generation where the best and brightest went to work on general relativity, said Michael Turner, a cosmologist and emeritus professor at the University of Chicago, who described Dr. Bardeen as a gentle giant.

James Maxwell Bardeen was born in Minneapolis on May 9, 1939. His mother, Jane Maxwell Bardeen, was a zoologist and a high school teacher. Following his fathers work, the family moved to Washington, D.C.; to Summit, N.J.; and then to Champaign-Urbana, Ill., where he graduated from the University of Illinois Laboratory High School.

He attended Harvard and graduated with a physics degree in 1960, despite his fathers advice that biology was the wave of the future. Everybody knew who my father was, he said in an oral history interview recorded in 2020 by the Federal University of Par in Brazil, adding that he had not felt the need to compete with him. It was impossible, anyway, he said.

Working under the physicist Richard Feynman and the astrophysicist William A. Fowler (who would both become Nobel laureates), Dr. Bardeen obtained his Ph.D. from the California Institute of Technology in 1965. His thesis was about the structure of supermassive stars millions of times the mass of the sun; astronomers were beginning to suspect that they were the source of the prodigious energies of the quasars being discovered in the nuclei of distant galaxies.

After holding postdoctoral positions at Caltech and the University of California, Berkeley, he joined the astronomy department at the University of Washington in 1967. An avid hiker and mountain climber, he was drawn to the school by its easy access to the outdoors.

By then, what the Nobel laureate Kip Thorne, a professor at the California Institute of Technology, refers to as the golden age of black hole research was well underway, and Dr. Bardeen was swept up in international meetings. At one, in Paris in 1967, he met Nancy Thomas, a junior high school teacher in Connecticut who was trying to brush up on her French. They were married in 1968.

In addition to his son William, a senior vice president and the chief strategy officer of The New York Times Company, and his brother, William, Dr. Bardeens wife survives him, along with another son, David, and two grandchildren. A sister, Elizabeth Greytak, died in 2000.

Dr. Bardeen was a member of the National Academy of Sciences, as is his brother and as was his father.

Although he was speedy at math, Dr. Bardeen didnt write any faster than he spoke. William Press, a former student of Dr. Thornes now at the University of Texas, recalled being sent to Seattle to finish a paper that Dr. Bardeen and he were supposed to be writing. Nothing had been written. Dr. Bardeens wife then commanded the two to sit on opposite ends of a couch with a pad of paper. Dr. Bardeen would write a sentence and pass the pad to Dr. Press, who would either reject or approve it and then pass the pad back. Each sentence, Dr. Press said, took a few minutes. It took them three days, but the paper got written.

One of the epochal moments of those years was a monthlong summer school in Les Houches, France, in 1972 featuring all the leading black hole scholars. Dr. Bardeen was one of a half-dozen invited speakers. It was during that meeting that he, Stephen Hawking of Cambridge University and Brandon Carter, now of the Paris Observatory, wrote a landmark paper entitled The Four Laws of Black Hole Mechanics, which became a springboard for future work, including Dr. Hawkings surprise calculation that black holes could leak and eventually explode.

In another famous calculation the same year, Dr. Bardeen deduced the shape and size of a black holes shadow as seen against a field of distant stars a doughnut of light surrounding dark space.

That shape was made famous, Dr. Thorne said, by the Event Horizon Telescopes observations of black holes in the galaxy M87 and in the center of the Milky Way, and by visualizations in the movie Interstellar.

Another of Dr. Bardeens passions was cosmology. In a 1982 paper, he, Dr. Turner and Paul Steinhardt of Princeton described how submicroscopic fluctuations in the density of matter and energy in the early universe would grow and give rise to the pattern of galaxies we see in the sky today.

Jim was delighted that we used his formalism, Dr. Turner said, and was sure we got it right.

Dr. Bardeen moved to Yale in 1972. Four years later, unhappy with the academic bureaucracy in the East and yearning for the outdoors again, he moved back to the University of Washington. He retired in 2006.

But he never stopped working. Dr. Thorne recounted a recent telephone conversation in which they reminisced about the hiking and camping trips they used to take with their families. In the same conversation, Dr. Bardeen described recent ideas he had about what happens as a black hole evaporates, suggesting that it might change into a white hole.

That was one aspect of Jim in a nutshell, Dr. Thorne wrote in an email, thinking deeply about physics in creative new ways right up to the end of his life.

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James Bardeen, an Expert on Unraveling Einsteins Equations, Dies at 83 - The New York Times

How cold is space? Physics behind the temperature of the universe – Space.com

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Though sci-fi movies would have us believe that space is incredibly cold even freezing space itself isnt exactly cold. In fact, it doesnt actually have a temperature at all.

Temperature is a measurement of the speed at which particles are moving, and heat is how much energy the particles of an object have. So in a truly empty region space, there would be no particles and radiation, meaning theres also no temperature.

Of course, space is full of particles and radiation to produce heat and a temperature. So how cold is space, is there any region that is truly empty, and is there anywhere that the temperature drops to absolute zero?

Related: What is the coldest place in the universe?

The hottest regions of space are immediately around stars, which contain all the conditions to kick start nuclear fusion.

Things really warm up when radiation from a star reaches a spot in space with a lot of particles. This gives the radiation from stars like the sun something to actually act upon.

Thats why Earth is a lot warmer than the region between our planet and its star. The heat comes from particles in our atmosphere vibrating with solar energy and then bumping into each other distributing this energy.

Proximity to our star and possessing particles are no guarantee of warmth, though. Mercury closest to the sun is blisteringly hot during the day and frigidly cold at night. Its temperatures drop to a low of 95 Kelvins (-288 Fahrenheit/-178 Celsius ).

Temperatures dip to -371 F (-224 C) on Uranus, making it even colder than on the furthest planet from the sun, Neptune, which has a still incredibly cold surface temperature of -353 F (-214 C ).

This is a result of a collision with an Earth-sized object early in its existence causing Uranus to orbit the sun on an extreme tilt, making it unable to hang on to its interior heat.

Far away from stars particles are so spread out that heat transfer via anything but radiation is impossible, meaning temperatures radically drop. This region is called the interstellar medium.

The coldest and densest molecular gas clouds in the interstellar medium can have temperatures of 10 K (-505 F/-263 C or ) while less dense clouds can have temperatures as high as 100 K (-279 F/-173 C).

The universe is so vast and filled with such a multitude of objects, some blisteringly hot, others unimaginably frigid, that it should be impossible to give space a single temperature.

Yet, there is something that permeates the entirety of our universe with a temperature that is uniform to 1 part in 100,000. In fact, the difference is so insignificant that the change between a hot spot and a cold spot is just 0.000018 K.

This is known as the cosmic microwave background (CMB) and it has a uniform temperature of 2.7 K (-45F/-270C). As 0 K is absolute zero this is a temperature just 2.725 degrees above absolute zero.

The CMB is a remnant leftover from an event that occurred just 400,000 after the Big Bang called the last scattering. This was the point when the universe ceased to be opaque after electrons bonded to protons forming hydrogen atoms, which stopped electrons from endlessly scattering light and enabling photons to freely travel.

As such this fossil relic "frozen in" to the universe represents the last point when matter and photons were aligned in terms of temperature.

The photons that make up the CMB weren't always so cold, taking around 13.8 billion years to reach us, the expansion of the Universe has redshifted these photons to lower energy levels.

Originating when the universe was much denser and hotter than it is now, the starting temperature of the radiation that makes up the CMB is estimated to have been around 3,000 K (5,000 F/2,726C).

As the universe continues to expand, that means space is colder now than it's ever been and it's getting colder.

If an astronaut were left to drift alone in space then exposure to the near-vacuum of space couldnt freeze an astronaut as often depicted in science fiction.

There are three ways for heat to transfer, conduction, which occurs through touch, convection which happens when fluids transfer heat, and radiative which occurs via radiation.

Conduction and convection can't happen in empty space due to the lack of matter and heat transfer occurs slowly by radiative processes alone. This means that heat doesnt transfer quickly in space.

As freezing requires heat transfer, an exposed astronaut losing heat via radiative processes alone would die of decompression due to the lack of atmosphere much more rapidly than they freeze to death.

For more information about the properties of space, check out "Astrophysics for People in a Hurry (opens in new tab)" by Neil deGrasse Tyson and "Origins of the Universe: The Cosmic Microwave Background and the Search for Quantum Gravity (opens in new tab)" by Keith Cooper.

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How cold is space? Physics behind the temperature of the universe - Space.com

Red supergiant stars ‘dance’ because they have too much gas – Livescience.com

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Scientists can finally explain why some massive stars appear to dance around in the sky even though they are not actually moving: The stars have unusually bubbly guts that cause their surfaces to wobble, thus changing the amount of light they give off, according to a new study.

The dancing stars are known as red supergiants, enormous stellar objects that have swelled up and cooled down as they've neared the end of their lives. These stars are about eight times more massive than the sun and can have a diameter up to 700 times that of the sun, which would be the equivalent of the sun's surface reaching beyond the orbit of Mars (engulfing Mercury, Venus, Earth and the Red Planet in the process). However, despite their colossal stature, these slowly dying behemoths can be extremely challenging to locate with precision.

Astronomers can typically determine the near-exact location of a star by identifying its photo-center, or the point at the center of the light it emits, which usually lines up perfectly with its barycenter, or gravitational center. In most stars, photo-centers occupy fixed positions. But in red supergiants, this point appears to wobble across the star, moving slightly from side to side over time. That motion makes it hard to pinpoint the stars' barycenters, which provide stars' exact cosmic addresses and don't move around like the jiggling photo-centers do.

In the new study, researchers compared the dancing red supergiants to smaller main sequence stars, or stars in the stable portions of their lifetimes. The scientists looked at stars in the Perseus stellar cluster a region with a high concentration of stars, particularly red supergiants, located around 7,500 light-years from the solar system using data from the European Space Agency's Gaia space observatory.

Related: Newly discovered 'micronovae' shoot out of the magnetic poles of cannibalistic stars

"We found that the position uncertainties of red supergiants are much larger than for other stars," study co-author Rolf Kudritzki, an astronomer at the University of Hawaii and director of the Munich Institute for Astro-, Particle and BioPhysics in Germany, said in a statement (opens in new tab).

To get to the bottom of why these stars are so wobbly, the team created intensity maps of red supergiants' surfaces, calculating radiation measurements and using hydrodynamic simulations to show changes in the stars' 3D skins.

The maps revealed that the surfaces of red supergiants are very dynamic, with lumpy gaseous structures that wax and wane over time, radiating more intense bursts of energy than other surface regions. These ephemeral yet high-intensity structures flare more brightly than the rest of the star's surface, which causes the photo-center to shift; if a bright structure flares up on the left side of a red supergiant, the photo-center also shifts to the left.

The massive size of red supergiants could explain why this might be happening. Most stars' outer shells are made up of thousands of adjacent convective cells elongated pockets of rotating gas, mainly hydrogen and helium, that cycle hotter gas from the star's interior to its outer surface where it cools and sinks back down, somewhat like the bubbles inside a lava lamp.

But because red supergiants are so massive, gravity at their surfaces is much weaker than at their cores. Their convective cells are therefore much larger than in other stars, taking up between 20% and 30% of a red supergiant's substantial radius, or between 40% and 60% of its diameter. Bigger convective cells can transport more gas to the star's surface, which is what creates the intensely bright structures responsible for their shifting photo-centers, according to the study.

The team's data show that these surface structures can range in size, which determines how long they stick around. "The largest structures evolve on timescales of months or even years, while smaller structures evolve over the course of several weeks," lead study author Andrea Chiavassa, an astronomer at the Lagrange Laboratory in Nice, France, and the Max Planck Institute for Astrophysics (MPIA) in Munich, said in the statement. This means that the location of the stars' photo-centers is constantly in flux, he added.

Astronomers suspect that red supergiants play an important role in the evolution of galaxies; the enormous stellar bodies spit out large amounts of gas and heavy elements that are important in birthing new stars and exoplanets. The supergiants' bright and massive surface structures likely play a part in ejecting these vital materials, and future studies of the stars' wobbling could help resolve exactly how that happens.

"The dancing pattern of red supergiants in the sky could teach us more about their boiling envelopes," study co-author and MPIA Director Selma de Mink said in the statement. "We will be able to extract important information about the stellar dynamics and better understand the physical processes that cause the vigorous convection in these stars."

The study was published May 6 in the journal Astronomy and Astrophysics (opens in new tab).

Originally published on Live Science.

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Record number of UF faculty earn National Science Foundation awards – University of Florida

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The National Science Foundation has recognized a record nine University of Florida faculty members from a wide variety of academic disciplines with 2022 Early Career Development Awards, one of its most prestigious honors.

The award recognizes junior faculty who possess the potential to serve as academic role models in research and education and to lead advances in the mission of their department or organization. The impact of these awards is crucial to both the standing of UF faculty in the academy and their effect as a force multiplier for research funding.

The CAREER Award is the National Science Foundations most prestigious grant in support of early career faculty, reserved for those who show the potential not only to lead their respective fields in discovery, but also to serve as academic role models in research and education, said UF Vice President for research David Norton. To have nine UF faculty members honored with CAREER Awards in a single year is testament to the current quality of our faculty across the university and to a promising future for UF research.

The CAREER Award recipients for 2022 are:

Navid Asadi, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Navid Asadis project Backside Protection Against Contactless Optical Attacks on Integrated Circuits in Advanced Technology Nodes will assess the security vulnerabilities of modern Integrated Circuits (ICs) against contactless optical attacks from backside and to provide a framework to develop proper countermeasures. The project will leverage access to state-of-the-art equipment and expertise available at the Florida Institute for Cybersecurity (FICS) Researchs SCAN Lab, home to more than $10 million of advanced imaging equipment for electronics physical assurance.

An educational component of the project will provide students training in advanced instrumentations, and new educational materials on optical attacks and countermeasures will be developed.

Dr. Asadi received his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from K.N. Toosi University of Technology, his M.S. in Biomedical Engineering from Amir Kabir University of Technology, and his Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Connecticut. He serves as co-director of the SCAN Lab at the Florida Institute for Cybersecurity (FICS) Research and associate director of the Micro-Electronics Security Training (MEST) Center.

Read more about Dr. Asadis award here. (https://news.ece.ufl.edu/2022/06/03/asadi-receives-nsf-career-award/)

Dana Bartosova, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Mathematics

Dana Bartosovas project aims to further her study of abstract topological dynamics. Topology, a branch of mathematics where the relationships between shapes are studied, has applications ranging from string theory in physics to differential equations. Dr. Bartosovas research lies at the intersection of a variety of fields, studying the connections between topological dynamics, set theory and model theory applying logic to the study of structures in mathematics. The project also includes an expansion of Math Parents Coffee, a community to support parents as they identify and face obstacles in academia.

Dr. Bartosova received her Ph.D. in Mathematics from the University of Toronto. Her expertise and research interests include topological dynamics, Ramsey theory, model theory, set theory, abstract harmonic analysis and ergodic theory.

Read more about Dr. Bartosovas award here. (https://news.clas.ufl.edu/clas-professors-receive-nsf-career-awards/)

Jie Fu, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Jie Fus project Formal Synthesis of Provably Correct Cyber-Physical Defense with Asymmetric Information will work to enhance the security and performance of cyber-physical systems, specifically autonomous robotic systems in dynamic, uncertain environments. The project continues progress made by Dr. Fu in her research areaintegrated formal methods, learning, control, and game theory.

Dr. Fu received her M.S. in Electrical Engineering and Automation from Beijing Institute of Technology and her Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Delaware. She was also a Postdoctoral Scholar at the University of Pennsylvania.

Read more about Dr. Fus project here. (https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2144113&HistoricalAwards=false)

Adam Ginsburg, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Astronomy

Adam Ginsburgs project will expand his groups observations of forming stars, searching for gas that is orbiting massive, young stars those much bigger than our Sun in dusty disks. These disks are the potential birth sites of planetary systems, providing clues to what our solar system might have looked like when planets were forming.

Dr. Ginsburg received his B.S. in Astrophysics from Rice University, and his M.S. and doctorate degree in Astrophysics from the University of Colorado. He is a Jansky Fellow at the National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO) in Socorro, New Mexico.

Read more about Dr. Ginsburgs award here. (https://news.clas.ufl.edu/clas-professors-receive-nsf-career-awards/)

Amanda Krause, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Materials Science and Engineering

Amanda Krauses project will help uncover the underlying mechanism for grain growth in ceramic materials to guide new processing methods for achieving their optimal performance.Dr. Krause and her team will conduct grain growth studies using a new 3D microscopy tool that uses X-rays to characterize the internal structure of the ceramics non-destructively. This tool allows her to collect 4D data (3D plus time) to measure individual grain boundary velocities and correlate them to local features, something conventional microscopy techniques cannot deliver.

The project will also help train the next generation of ceramic engineers with the necessary skills for similar research, with a ceramic-processing kit currently under development for implementation in K-12 schools.

Dr. Krause received her Ph.D. from Brown University. She is director of the Krause Lab, which creates and studies structural ceramics for high temperature and extreme environments, engineering grain boundaries and other interfaces to have superior properties.

Read more about Dr. Krauses award here. (https://mse.ufl.edu/need-krause-nsf-career-awards/)

Jeongim Kim, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Horticultural Sciences at UF/IFAS

Jeongim Kims five-year project will study mechanisms that control plant growth, specifically, to identify molecular mechanisms linking plant-growth regulation and stress responses, helping them deal with adverse environmental conditions such as pathogen attacks. The study will reveal how the growth control and defense mechanisms are linked, indicating to scientists whether its feasible to breed andgenerate stress-tolerant crops without sacrificing their yield. This project also includes a K-12 educational activity called Phyto-Detective, which will develop a series of videos aimed to raise awareness of phytochemicals for a young student audience.

Dr. Kim received her Ph.D. in Horticulture from Purdue University, where she also received her postdoctoral training.

Read more about Dr. Kims research here. (https://nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2142898&HistoricalAwards=false)

Ryan Need, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Materials Science and Engineering

Ryan Needs project will create new measurement capabilities and knowledge in the field of nanoscale ion diffusion. Dr. Need and their team will engineer the vacancies in the atomic structure of transition metal oxides, e.g., iron oxide or cobalt oxide, as a pathway for oxygen ions to move between materials, hoping to span the gaps between the existing ionic and electronic technologies to create greater energy efficiency, longer information storage lifetimes and the ability to support new computing paradigms like quantum computing.

The award also supports an educational outreach component to provide low-cost activity kits and free training videos to help K-12 teachers introduce students to materials science concepts. Free, online videos will complement these kits to reinforce the concepts learned and connect them back to the ongoing research.

Dr. Need received their Ph.D. from the University of California Santa Barbara. Their research interests include Thin Film Deposition, Interface and Defect Engineering, Emergent Phenomena, Quantum Materials, Nanoionics, Magnetism, X-Ray and Neutron Scattering

Read more about Dr. Needs award here. (https://mse.ufl.edu/need-krause-nsf-career-awards/)

Kathe Todd-Brown, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Engineering School of Sustainable Infrastructure and Environment

Kathe Todd-Browns project will improve the predictive understanding of soil carbon dynamics by connecting different theories with diverse measurements. She will study the decay rate of soil by connecting observed decay trends with the theoretical understanding of the underlying processes through a new multi-scale modeling framework. Currently, soil decay rates are difficult to predict, and this has an impact on how well we can predict atmospheric greenhouse gas levels and set emissions targets. This new research will help improve predictions by linking the decay rates to soil properties processes through a new multi-scale modeling framework.

The project will also build a data-centered community to co-develop a standardized vocabulary for soil measurements.

Dr. Todd-Brown is a computational biogeochemist who uses mathematics and computers to understand how soil breathes. She received her B.S. in Mathematics from Harvey Mudd College and earned her Ph.D. in Earth System Science from the University of California Irvine.

Read more about Dr. Todd-Browns award here. (https://www.essie.ufl.edu/todd-brown-receives-nsf-career-award-to-predict-soil-carbon-dynamics/)

Xiao-Xiao Zhang, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Physics

Xiao-Xiaos project will investigate a quasiparticle called exciton, which is created when light is absorbed by a solid. Her study focuses on the interactions between light and matter in two-dimensional quantum materials and the coupling between electron spin and photons, useful for quantum information processing, which holds the key to the future design of quantum devices, like computers and lasers. Her project will also promote participation of women and youth in STEM.

Dr. Zhang received her Ph.D. from Columbia University. Her research interest involves probing the light-matter interaction and transient dynamics in nanoscale materials, fabricating novel functional 2D material platforms, such as monolayer semiconductors, magnetic materials and superconductors.

Read more about Dr. Zhangs award here. (https://news.clas.ufl.edu/clas-professors-receive-nsf-career-awards/)

Aside from funding, emerging scholar-researchers also face the challenge of lacking sufficient know-how in navigating funding and resource opportunities, in addition to writing effective proposals.

Forrest Masters, associate dean for research and facilities in the Herbert Wertheim College of Engineering, said university leaders have been working hard to help junior faculty navigate funding and resource opportunities and write effective proposals.

In addition to offering workshops that present high-level overviews of the award space, we have created departmental-led teams to help junior faculty hone their proposal-development skills and increase their chances of earning that NSF CAREER award, Masters said. Faculty like me would not be where we are without the support and mentorship of our colleagues, particularly at the start of our careers. Providing vital proposal feedback to junior faculty members and seeing that come to fruition is a fantastic way to pay it forward.

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Record number of UF faculty earn National Science Foundation awards - University of Florida

Pepe the Frog – Anti-Defamation League

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Pepe the Frog is a cartoon character that has become a popular Internet meme (often referred to as the "sad frog meme" by people unfamiliar with the name of the character). The character first appeared in 2005 in the on-line cartoon Boy's Club. In that appearance, the character also first used its catchphrase, "feels good, man."

The Pepe the Frog character did not originally have racist or anti-Semitic connotations. Internet users appropriated the character and turned him into a meme, placing the frog in a variety of circumstances and saying many different things. Many variations of the meme became rather esoteric, resulting in the phenomenon of so-called "rare Pepes."

The majority of uses of Pepe the Frog have been, and continue to be, non-bigoted. However, it was inevitable that, as the meme proliferated in on-line venues such as 4chan, 8chan, and Reddit, which have many users who delight in creating racist memes and imagery, a subset of Pepe memes would come into existence that centered on racist, anti-Semitic or other bigoted themes.

In recent years, with the growth of the "alt right" segment of the white supremacist movement, a segment that draws some of its support from some of the above-mentioned Internet sites, the number of "alt right" Pepe memes has grown, a tendency exacerbated by the controversial and contentious 2016 presidential election. Though Pepe memes have many defenders, the use of racist and bigoted versions of Pepe memes seems to be increasing, not decreasing.

However, because so many Pepe the Frog memes are not bigoted in nature, it is important to examine use of the meme only in context. The mere fact of posting a Pepe meme does not mean that someone is racist or white supremacist. However, if the meme itself is racist or anti-Semitic in nature, or if it appears in a context containing bigoted or offensive language or symbols, then it may have been used for hateful purposes.

In the fall of 2016, the ADL teamed with Pepe creator Matt Furie to form a #SavePepe campaign to reclaim the symbol from those who use it with hateful intentions.

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Pep Le Pew | Looney Tunes Wiki | Fandom

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This article is about the character. For the cancelled film of the same name, see Pep Le Pew (film).

Pep Le Pew

Pep Le Pew is a character in the Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies series. An anthropomorphic French skunk, Pep is in search of romance, but his scent, self-delusion, and his overly persistent manner inhibit his efforts.

Chuck Jones first introduced the character, originally named Stinky, and once called Henry, in the 1945 short "Odor-able Kitty". This differs from later entries in several areas: Pep spends his time in pursuit of a male cat, who has disguised himself as a skunk with a Limburger scent in order to scare off a bunch of characters mistreating him; in the closing gag, Pep is revealed to be a philandering, hen-pecked American skunk named Henry with a wife and children. For the remaining cartoons Jones directed, Pep retained his accent, nationality, and bachelor status throughout.

There have been theories that Pep was based on Maurice Chevalier. However, in the short film Chuck Jones: Memories of Childhood, Chuck says Pep was actually based on himself, but that he was very shy with girls, and Pep obviously was not. A prototype Pep appears in the 1948 cartoon "Bugs Bunny Rides Again", but sounds similar to Porky Pig.

An antecedent in 1944's "I Got Plenty of Mutton" is a ram called Killer Diller that behaves very much as Pep later would, pursuing a reluctant female, speaking with a French accent (Mel Blanc used the same voice as he would for Pep), smothering the female with kisses, constantly turning up in the victim's hiding places, and nonchalantly bouncing after a frantically scrambling target.

Pep Le Pew cartoons typically feature the amorous polecat pursuing what he believes is a "female skunk." Usually, however, the supposed female skunk is actually a black cat who runs away from Pep because of either his putrid odor or overly assertive manner or both, but the skunk won't take "no" for an answer, and hops after her at a leisurely pace.

A running gag often found in the Pepe Le Pew cartoons are instances of the side characters encountering skunks (either Pepe or any cat in skunk disguises, such as Penelope Pussycat) and fleeing away from their putrid odor and/or skunk-like appearances in a comical fashion at the start of the cartoon. Very often, since the Pepe series are set in France beginning with the Academy Award-winning "For Scent-imental Reasons", many of these side characters tend to react to this with exaggerated French accents (and very often, are given minimal dialogue, often nothing more than a repulsed, "Le pew!").

A skunk often identified as Pep appears in the Art Davis-directed cartoon "Odor of the Day" (1948); in this entry, the theme of romantic pursuit is missing as the skunk (in a nonspeaking role, save for a shared "Gesundheit!" at the finish) vies with a male dog for lodging accommodations on a bitterly cold night. This should be noted as one of the two cartoons where the character, if this is indeed Pep, used his scent-spray as a deliberate weapon: delivered from his tail in a machine gun-like fashion. The other one is "Touch and Go", where he frees himself from the jaws of a shark.

In a role-reversal, the Academy Award-winning short "For Scent-imental Reasons" ends with an accidentally painted (and, at this point, terrified) Pep being amorously pursued by a love-struck Penelope (who has been dunked under dirty water, leaving her with a ratty guise as well as a developing head cold that has completely clogged up her nose). Penelope locks him up inside a perfume shop, hides the key down her chest, and proceeds to turn the tables on the now-imprisoned and effectively odorless Pep.

In another short, "Little Beau Pep", Pep, attempting to find the most arousing cologne with which to impress Penelope, sprays a combination of perfumes and colognes upon himself. This results in something close to a love-potion, leading Penelope to fall madly in love with Pep. Pep is revealed to be extremely frightened of overly-affectionate women, as Penelope quickly captures him and smothers him in more love than even he could imagine.

And yet again, in "Really Scent", Pep removes his odor by locking himself in a deodorant plant so Penelope (or "Fabrette," as she is called in this cartoon) would like him (this is also the only film-short in which Pep is acutely aware of his own odor, having checked the word "P.U." in a dictionary). However, Penelope (who in this cartoon is actually trying to have a relationship with Pep because all the male cats of New Orleans take her to be a skunk and run like blazes, but is appalled by his odor) has decided to make her own odor match her appearance and has locked herself in a Limburger cheese factory. Now more forceful and demanding, Penelope quickly corners the terrified Pep, who, after smelling her new stench, wants nothing more than to escape the amorous female cat. Unfortunately, she will not take "no" for an answer and proceeds to chase Pep off into the distance, with no intention of letting him escape. (Credited to Abe Levitow, this cartoon is the only film-short in the Pep Le Pew series not directed by Chuck Jones, besides the disputable "Odor of the Day").

Although Pep usually mistakes Penelope for a female skunk, in "Past Perfumance", he realizes that she is a cat when her stripe washes off. Undeterred, he proceeds to cover his white stripe with black paint, taking the appearance of a cat before resuming the chase.

Penelope is always mute (more precisely - does only natural cat sounds) in these stories; only the self-deluded Pep speaks (several non-recurring human characters are given minimal dialogue, often nothing more than a repulsed, "Le pew!").

Throughout the 90s, merchandise, including statuettes, apparel, and framed pictures, mostly from the now defunct Warner Brothers studio store, showed Pepe and Penelope as a mutually loving couple.

Sometimes this formula is subverted. In his debut appearance, "Odor-able Kitty", Pep (technically he is a different character because he is eventually revealed to be an American-accented family skunk named "Henry" with two sons and a wife who beats him up for his "unfaithfulness") unwittingly pursues a male cat who disguises himself as a skunk. "Scent-imental over You" has Pep pursuing a female dog who has donned a skunk pelt (mistaking it for a fur coat). In the end, she removed her pelt, revealing that she's a dog. Pepe then, "revealed" himself as another dog and the two embrace. However, he later revealed to the viewers that he's indeed a skunk. In "Wild over You", Pep attempts to woo a wildcat who has escaped from a zoo (during what is called "Le grande tour du Zoo" at the start of the 20th century exhibition), and painted itself to look like a skunk to escape its keepers. This cartoon is notable for not only diverging from the usual Pep And Penelope dynamic, but also rather cheekily showing that Pep likes to be beaten up, considering the wildcat thrashes him numerous times.

Chuck Jones, Pep's creator, wrote that Pep was based (loosely) on the personality of screenwriter Tedd Pierce, a self-styled "ladies' man" who reportedly always assumed that his infatuations were requited. Chuck also created Pep because he saw Pep as the person he wanted to be as a young man, thinking of himself as "unattractive"[1]. Pep's voice, provided by Mel Blanc, was based on Charles Boyer's Pp Le Moko from Algiers, a remake of the 1937 French film Pp Le Moko.[citation needed]

Eddie Selzer, animation producer (and Chuck's bitterest foe) at Warner Bros. Cartoons then once profanely commented that no one would laugh at those cartoons. However, this did not keep Eddie from accepting an award for one of Pep's pictures several years later.[citation needed]

In the shorts, a kind of fake French is spoken and written primarily by adding "le" to English words (example: "le skunk de pew"), or by more creative mangling of French expressions with English ones, such as "Sacre Maroon!", "My sweet peanut of brittle", "Come to me, my little melon-baby collie!" or "Ah, my little darling, it is love at first sight, is it not, no?", and "It is love at sight first!" The screenwriter responsible for these malapropisms was Michael Maltese.[citation needed]

Some transcribed Maltese dialogue from the Oscar-winning 1949 short "For Scent-imental Reasons":

A possible cameo appearance is at the end of "Fair and Worm-er" (Chuck Jones, 1946). This skunk doesn't speak, but looks identical (or is a close relation) and shares the same mode of travel and a slight variation of Pep's hopping music. His function here is to chase a string of characters who had all been chasing each other ( la "There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly").

Pep himself made a more obvious cameo in "Dog Pounded" (1954), where he was attracted to Sylvester after the latter tried to get around a pack of guard dogs, in his latest attempt to capture and eat Tweety, by painting a white stripe down his back (in his only appearance in a Freleng short).

Pep possibly makes a small appearance as a baby skunk in "Mouse-Placed Kitten" (1959), where he is reluctantly adopted by a mouse couple at the cartoon end.

Pep makes an appearance at the beginning of the "The Oswald Awards" section of the 1981 compilation movie Looney Looney Looney Bugs Bunny Movie.

Pep made several cameo appearances on the 1990 series Tiny Toon Adventures as a professor at Acme Looniversity and the mentor to the female skunk character Fifi La Fume. He appeared briefly in "The Looney Beginning" and had a more extended cameo in "It's a Wonderful Tiny Toons Christmas Special". The segment "Out Of Odor" from the episode "Viewer Mail Day" saw character Elmyra dressed As A Pepe Le Pew Costume in an attempt to lure Fifi into a trap, only to have Fifi begin aggressively wooing her In A Chase.

Pep also makes cameo appearances in the Histeria! episode "When America Was Young" and in the Goodfeathers segment, "We're No Pigeons", on Animaniacs.

In the 1995 animated short "Carrotblanca", a parody/homage of the classic film Casablanca, both Pep and Penelope appear: Pep (voiced by Greg Burson) as Captain Renault and Penelope (voiced by Tress MacNeille) as "Kitty Ketty," modeled after Ingrid Bergman performance as Ilsa. Unlike the character's other appearances in cartoons, Penelope (as Kitty) has extensive speaking parts in Carrotblanca.

In the The Sylvester & Tweety Mysteries episode "Platinum Wheel of Fortune", Sylvester gets a white stripe on his back and a skunk immediately falls in love with him. This is not Pep, but his fourth cousin, "Pitu Le Pew". He says, "What can I say, Pep Le Pew is my fourth cousin. It runs in the family". Pep would later appear in the episode "Paris is Stinking", where he pursues Sylvester who is unintentionally dressed in drag. Pep would appear once more in Tweety's High-Flying Adventure, falling in love with both Sylvester and Penelope (Sylvester had gotten a white stripe on his back from Penelope as they fought over Tweety), actually showing a preference for Sylvester.

Pep also appears in Space Jam, where his voice has curiously been changed into an approximation of Maurice Chevalier, as opposed to more traditional vocalization.

Pep was, at one point, integral to the storyline for the movie Looney Tunes Back in Action. Originally, once Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, DJ, and Kate arrived in Paris, Pep was to give them a mission briefing inside a gift shop. Perhaps because of the group receiving their equipment in Area 52, Pep's scene was cut, and in the final film, he plays only a bit part, dressed like a police officer, who tries to help DJ (played by Brendan Fraser) after Kate (played by Jenna Elfman) is kidnapped.[citation needed]

However, some unused animation of him and Penelope appears during the end credits, thus giving viewers a rare glimpse at his cut scene, and his cut scene appears in the movie's print adaptations.

Pepe also appeared in Bah, Humduck! A Looney Tunes Christmas, working in the Lucky Duck Department store, as a more controlled but still quite amorous perfume salesman trying to sell perfume to Penelope. She's still put off by his odor, though after Daffy's rude and aggressive sales pitch, It's the duck she clobbers. Ultimately, Penelope is the one who pulls Pepe into a romantic embrace and under the mistletoe.

In Loonatics Unleashed, a human based on Pep Le Pew named Pierre Le Pew (voiced by Maurice LaMarche) has appeared as one of the villains of the second season of the show. Additionally, Pep and Penelope Pussycat appear as cameos in a display of Otto the Odd, in the series. In the episode "The World is My Circus", Lexi Bunny complains that "this Pep Le Pew look is definitely not me" after being mutated into a skunk-like creature.

A 2009 Valentine's Day-themed AT&T commercial brings Pep and Penelope's relationship up to date, depicting Penelope not as repulsed by Pep, but madly in love with him. The commercial begins with Penelope deliberately painting a white stripe on her own back; when her cell phone rings and displays Pep's picture, Penelope's lovestruck beating heart bulges beneath her chest in a classic cartoon image.[2]

Pep Le Pew has appeared in the The Looney Tunes Show episode "Members Only" voiced by Ren Auberjonois. He also made a short cameo appearance with Penelope Pussycat in the Merrie Melodies segment "Cock of the Walk" sung by Foghorn Leghorn. He appeared in his own music video "Skunk Funk" in the 16th episode "That's My Baby". He also appeared again in another Merrie Melodies segment "You Like/I Like" sung by Mac and Tosh. His first appearance in the second season was in the second episode, entitled, "You've Got Hate Mail", reading a hate-filled email accidentally sent by Daffy Duck.

Pep Le Pew made a cameo in a MetLife commercial in 2012 titled, "Everyone". In it, he was shown hopping along in the forest and when he sees his love interest, Penelope, atop the back of Battle Cat, he immediately hops after her.

Pep Le Pew has appeared in Looney Tunes: Rabbits Run voiced by Jeff Bergman.

In New Looney Tunes, Pep Le Pew is a James Bond-esque spy who hits on Claudette Dupri.

Pepe made a cameo Appearance in the Looney Tunes Cartoons short "Happy Birthday Bugs Bunny!" The character was removed when the short was released as Warner Bros. - 60th Anniversary on the Annecy Festival's YouTube channel.

Pep appeared in the Animaniacs segment "Yakko Amakko", being placed on top of Yakko Warner's ice cream cone by an offscreen animator In A Duck Amuck Homage And then promptly erased,

In 2021, controversy arose over Pep's sexually aggressive antics that have been compared to sexual harassment ever since New York Times columnist Charles M. Blow accused the character of promoting rape culture. This led to the 7 March announcement that Pep Le Pew had been removed from the 2021 film Space Jam A New Legacy.[3] Articles report that Warner Bros. plans no future appearances of the character in subsequent Looney Tunes media.[4][5]. Pep was planned to appear in Space Jam A New Legacy during the Casablanca world scene when Terence Nance was directing in 2019. He originally was planned to appear alongside Jane the Virgin actress Greice Santo in a scene where LeBron James tells Pep about consent. As Terence Nance was replaced by Malcolm D. Lee weeks into filming, the scene was cut out of the film due to creative differences. The scene was rewritten to feature Yosemite Sam in Casablanca world.

Linda Jones-Clough, daughter of Pep's creator Chuck Jones, was unhappy about this claim that the Pep Le Pew character glamorized rape culture[6] . She defended against those claims, claiming that Pep did not rape any female character in the show, nor did he inspire rape and sexual harassment cases in real life.[7] In fact, when Chuck Jones and Michael Maltese created Pep Le Pew back in the 1940s, it wasn't intended to glorify bad behavior or to cause outrage, but to poke fun as screenwriter Tedd Pierce's "ladies' man" status and his then-lack of success with romancing women at the time. "Pierce's attitude toward sex 'was direct and uncompromising'," Jones wrote in his 1989 memoir, Chuck Amuck: The Life and Times of an Animated Cartoonist, adding, "It was only logical, of course, that Tedd would be in on the beginnings of Pep Le Pew. His devotion to women was at times pathetic, at times psychological, but always enthusiastic. Tedd could not really believe that any woman could honestly refuse his honestly stated need for her."[8]

Despite this, Pep made His cameo in the Animaniacs segment "Yakko Amakko" which Made the report of him being removed from future Warner Bros. projects.

Stamped on May 2017. This article or section does not cite any sources. Please add reliable citations to help verify the article's content.Do not use Wikipedia or any other wikis as a source. Unsourced info can be questioned and may be removed without notice.

Do not remove this template until all conditions have been met.

In October 2010, it was reported that Mike Myers would voice Pep Le Pew in a feature-length live action film based on the character, although no information about this project has surfaced since. In July 2016, it was revealed at San Diego Comic-Con that Max Landis was penning a Pep Le Pew feature film for Warner Bros.[9] There has been no new information since then due to sexual assault allegations against Max Landis in 2017. On 8 March 2021, the film was confirmed to be scrapped because of the development of Space Jam A New Legacy.[10]

(Directed by Chuck Jones unless otherwise indicated)

(From the Pep Le Pew Shorts)

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Suspect in July 4 shooting an alienated youth with dark online persona – Manila Bulletin

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HIGHLAND PARK, United States Before he allegedly murdered seven spectators at a US Independence Day parade, the Highland Park community knew Robert Crimo as a quiet kid and former Cub Scout.

But online, the 21-year-old known to friends and family as Bobby showed a strong inclination for violence and anger at being overlooked.

I know him as somebody who was a Cub Scout when I was the Cub Scout leader, Highland Park Mayor Nancy Rotering told NBC on Tuesday, describing Crimo as just a little boy.

It is one of those things where you step back and you say, What happened?'

Crimo, who grew up in Highland Park, just outside Chicago, lived in an apartment behind his fathers house. His dad, Bob Crimo, owned a local deli and had run against Rotering for mayor in 2019.

Crimos uncle, Paul Crimo, described his nephew on CNN as a lonely, quiet person who spent much of his time in front of his computer, not saying much.

A day after the shooting, authorities revealed that in 2019 Crimo had been visited twice by police, first after a suspected attempt at suicide, and a second time to remove a collection of knives, after he allegedly threatened to kill everyone.

Awake A thin white man with a patchy beard, Crimo sports several tattoos on his neck and face, including one above his left eyebrow of the word Awake, a reference to his stage name.

Multiple songs and videos posted online by Awake the Rapper include several references to mass shootings.

In one cartoon-style music video, the protagonist is seen shooting people with a rifle before finding himself lying in a pool of blood, shot dead by the police.

I just want to scream. Sometimes it feels like Im living a dream, sings the rapper.

Another video is of Crimo in a classroom, wearing a helmet and bulletproof vest and standing next to an American flag as he throws bullets on the floor.

The voiceover on that video says, I need to leave now, I need to just do it. It is my destiny. Everything has led up to this; nothing can stop me, not even myself.

In another clip, Crimo says, I hate when others get more attention than me on the internet.

The videos and songs have now been removed from YouTube and Spotify.

Crimos social media pages have also been taken down, but archived photos from his accounts appear to show him at a rally for then-president Donald Trump.

In another, Crimo appears to have a Trump flag draped around his shoulders. He also posted a picture of Pepe the frog, a cartoon character that has become a rallying symbol for the American far right.

Bennett Brizes, a friend who had recently become estranged from Crimo, told the Washington Post the young man was consistently apolitical, and when asked about current events would always answer, Man, I dont know.

Crimo seems to have intended violence for a long time, even illustrating it in his videos, said Emerson Brooking, a research fellow at the Atlantic Council think tank specializing in extremist internet and social media usage.

But even with the apparent pro-Trump images, so far it does *not* appear that he was partisan or ideological, Brooking said on Twitter.

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Ireland Team To Face New Zealand In 2nd Test – Munster Rugby

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Ireland head coach Andy Farrell has made one change to the starting line-up for the second Test against New Zealand which takes place on Saturday at the Forsyth Barr Stadium, Dunedin.

Mack Hansen is introduced on the right wing to play alongside James Lowe and Hugo Keenan in the backfield.

Captain Johnny Sexton will again be partnered by Jamison Gibson Park at half-back while Robbie Henshaw and Garry Ringrose continue their centre partnership.

The pack is unchanged from the first Test in Auckland with Andrew Porter, Dan Sheehan and Tadhg Furlong in the front row and Tadhg Beirne and James Ryan at lock. Peter OMahony, Josh van der Flier and Caelan Doris are named in the backrow.

Rob Herring and Finlay Bealham who were ruled out of the first Test return to be named amongst the replacements alongside Cian Healy, Kieran Treadwell, Jack Conan, Conor Murray, Joey Carbery and Bundee Aki.

The second Test against New Zealand will be broadcast live on Sky Sports and RT Radio. (8.05am IST)

15 Hugo Keenan (Leinster/UCD) 21 caps

14 Mack Hansen (Connacht) 4 caps

13 Garry Ringrose (Leinster/UCD) 43 caps

12 Robbie Henshaw (Leinster/Buccaneers) 58 caps

11 James Lowe (Leinster) 13 caps

10 Johnny Sexton (Leinster/St Marys College) 106 caps CAPTAIN

9 Jamison Gibson Park (Leinster) 18 caps

1 Andrew Porter (Leinster/UCD) 44 caps

2 Dan Sheehan (Leinster/Lansdowne) 8 caps

3 Tadhg Furlong (Leinster/Clontarf) 58 caps

4 Tadhg Beirne (Munster/Lansdowne) 31 caps

5 James Ryan (Leinster/UCD) 44 caps

6 Peter OMahony (Munster/Cork Constitution) 85 caps

7 Josh van der Flier (Leinster/UCD) 41 caps

8 Caelan Doris (Leinster/St Marys College) 18 caps

Replacements

16 Rob Herring (Ulster/Ballynahinch) 26 caps

17 Cian Healy (Leinster/Clontarf) 116 caps

18 Finlay Bealham (Connacht/Buccaneers) 23 caps

19 Kieran Treadwell (Ulster/Ballymena) 6 caps

20 Jack Conan (Leinster/Old Belvedere) 28 caps

21 Conor Murray (Munster/Garryowen) 97 caps

22 Joey Carbery (Munster/Clontarf) 33 caps

23 Bundee Aki (Connacht/Galwegians) 38 caps

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New Zealand FMA appoints Margot Gatland as Head of Enforcement – FinanceFeeds

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Given the importance of enforcement at the FMA, we wanted to test the market to ensure we appointed the best person to the role.

The Financial Markets Authority (FMA), New Zealands financial watchdog, has confirmed the appointment of Margot Gatland as its new Head of Enforcement.

Margot Gatland joined the FMA in December 2017 as a senior solicitor. She already led a number of successful FMA prosecutions and was most recently Acting Head of Enforcement at the FMA.

The litigation lawyers past work experience includes jobs in New Zealand and the United Kingom, having worked at the Serious Fraud Office, Meredith Connell, commercial firms, and in government.

Liam Mason, FMA General Counsel, said: Margot Gatland has been confirmed as our new Head of Enforcement after an extensive local and international search. This is a crucial role, responsible for leading all the FMAs work to enforce the law and prosecute misconduct.

Given the importance of enforcement at the FMA, we wanted to test the market to ensure we appointed the best person to the role. We received a high level of interest from both local and overseas candidates. The interest in the role reflects the high regard in which the FMA is held, and were delighted that we have the right skills and experience inside the FMA with Margot.

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The New Zealand regulator appointed experienced international regulator Samantha Barrass as its new Chief Executive in January 2022 after announcing the hire in September 2021.

She has worked in a range of regulatory and executive roles in the UK and Europe. Between 2014 and 2019, Ms. Barrass was the Chief Executive Officer of the financial regulator in Gibraltar. The role encompassed conduct and prudential regulatory oversight. Earlier in her career, she worked for nine years in a number of roles at the Financial Services Authority in the UK (now the Financial Conduct Authority).

Most recently, Ms. Barrass led the establishment of the UKs Business Banking Resolution Service, an innovative service designed to resolve disputes between banks and their business customers. She has also held senior roles at the UK Solicitors Regulatory Authority and the London Investment Banking Association.

After graduating in economics from the University of Canterbury in Christchurch and completing post-graduate study at Victoria University of Wellington, Ms. Barrass began her career as an economist at the Reserve Bank of New Zealand. She then moved to the UK to attend the London School of Economics, where she was awarded an MSc.

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New Zealand to embark on worlds largest feral predator eradication – The Guardian

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New Zealand conservationists are embarking on the largest attempt ever made to eradicate introduced predators from an inhabited island.

Manaaki Whenua-Landcare Research, a crown research institute, has signed a $2.8m partnership with Rakiura/Stewart Islands conservation group, Predator Free Rakiura, to eradicate predators including possums, rats, feral cats and hedgehogs over the next four years.

The project will also include research programmes to better understand how pests proliferate and how best to manage them.

Rakiura sits off the coast of the South Island and is about 180,000 hectares, with a permanent population of 400 people and roughly 45,000 visitors a year.

The island boasts national parks, distinctive ecosystems, significant dunes and pristine freshwater systems, and is home to many vulnerable native species including native birds, geckos and bats.

But the introduction of pests has affected its delicate flora and fauna including the flightless national icon, the kiwi, and the lovable nocturnal kkp the heaviest and only flightless parrot in the world.

Presently Rakiura is in a state of puri or sadness, said Dean Whaanga, the co-chair of predator frees trust, Te Puka Rakiura Trust.

On the surface a visitor might see the beautiful treasure that it is, however its true mana [power] and mauri [essence] will be recognised when the indigenous species return in numbers as seen by our ancestors, he said.

In Mori legend, Rakiura is also known as Te Punga o Te Waka a Mui the anchor stone of Muis canoe (the South Island) from which he raised the great fish (the North Island). Now it will act as a motif for anchoring the country to a nationwide predator-free goal.

What we learn here will help to pave the way for the whole country to become predator free, Manaaki Whenua-Landcare Research said in a statement.

Its acting chief executive, Dr Fiona Carswell, said working alongside the trust and the community is what would bring the institutes research to life.

We relish working with local knowledge and approaches to achieving biodiversity aspirations for Rakiura.

Similar predator-free projects have occurred around the world, including on the island of South Georgia, in the south Atlantic Ocean. Its rat eradication covered roughly 350,000 hectares, but the islands population is only 20-30 people.

While smaller, Rakiura has a much higher population and unless someone else gets there first, Predator Free Rakiura will be the largest predator eradication to date globally with a community of this size, Chris Jones of Manaaki Whenua told Stuff.

New Zealands leading independent conservation group, Forest and Bird, has praised the project, calling it a massively ambitious and important vision that will pave the way for environmental protection across New Zealand and around the world.

Sixty years ago Forest and Bird members led the very first humble rat eradication on Maria Island in the Hauraki Gulf, which covers only one hectare, its spokesperson, Dean Baigent-Mercer, said.

Its incredible that today New Zealand is researching the removal of all introduced predators off an island 180,000 times bigger.

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New Zealand to embark on worlds largest feral predator eradication - The Guardian

Reports of fireball over New Zealand in what scientists think was rare daytime meteor – The Guardian

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New Zealanders across the North Island have reported rumbling, crackling sounds, a fireball and a huge flash of light streaking across the sky on Thursday afternoon, in what scientists believe was likely a meteor.

Local media outlets and social media were flooded with reports and queries about the sight, with some witnesses describing rumbles, bangs, a crackling sound in their ears, hair standing on end, rattling windows or a streak or explosion of light, followed by a smoke trail.

Seismologists at Geonet picked up a presumed sound wave from the object, and weather scientists for Metservice believe they picked up the object or its smoke trail on radar.

Plumber Curtis Powell captured the phenomenon on his dashcam while driving north of Shannon at 1.39pm on Thursday.

We were just driving to a job in Shannon when I saw a blue line falling in the sky, then a massive bright light, he said. Realised my dashcam was recording and downloaded the video once-in-a-lifetime spectacle.

On social media, people shared photos and swapped stories of their sightings. Im so glad someone caught it I thought I was hallucinating, said one commenter.

A number of people mistook the rumbling sound for an earthquake.

We thought it was an earthquake, but it didnt sound right, more like a large heavy truck, with a beat, but there were no trucks near our house at the time. The house vibrated slightly too, one Twitter user said.

Dr Duncan Steel, a Wellington-based space scientist who has worked for Nasa, said the object was likely a piece of meteor and to see one in the daytime was a rare experience.

In my lifetime Ive only ever seen one daytime meteor. They are due to macrometeoroids in the atmosphere coming in very quickly, typically 30km per second. To be seen during the daytime it would need to be quite large, something the size of a rugby ball or bigger thats what makes them rare, he said.

Some eyewitnesses described hearing crackling as the object moved through the sky, in what Steel said was likely electrophonic sound. Allan Gilmore of Canterbury Universitys Mt John Observatory said in a radio interview that meteors, and their accompanying electrical charge, could cause some peoples hair to stand on end.

People with frizzy hair often hear it, while the people who dont have frizzy hair dont hear it, Gilmore said.

Dr Ian Griffin, the director of the Otago Museum, urged members of the public to keep any photos or videos. We might be able to use them to triangulate the position of the thing, and where it landed if it did land, he said.

It may be quite scientifically important to retrieve meteorites in this country are quite rare so actually getting one would be quite cool.

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Reports of fireball over New Zealand in what scientists think was rare daytime meteor - The Guardian

A new Omicron wave is upon New Zealand, with older people now most at risk heres what to expect – The Conversation

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New Zealand has been in a COVID lull for the past two months, but with the BA.5 variant on the rise and more than 10,000 new daily cases reported this week, it appears we are now at the start of a second Omicron wave.

How large it will be is difficult to predict, but a number of factors coincide to make this the most serious moment in the pandemic this year since the first wave in March.

BA.5 is the latest instalment in the Omicron series. It was first detected in South Africa in February 2022 and is closely related to BA.2, the variant currently still dominant in New Zealand.

It carries distinct mutations in the spike protein, two of which are associated with higher transmissibility and immune evasion. The rise in BA.5 seems to stem from its ability to infect people who were immune to earlier variants, but so far there is no indication the variant causes more severe disease.

BA.5 was first detected in the New Zealand community in April and cases have been appearing consistently since May. It has quickly risen to 32% of sequenced community cases and looks set to become the dominant variant in the next week. It already is dominant in other countries.

Our recent modelling showed a second wave of COVID this year was likely as a consequence of waning immunity, but the spread of BA.5 has hastened its arrival.

Read more: Why are there so many new Omicron sub-variants, like BA.4 and BA.5? Will I be reinfected? Is the virus mutating faster?

A big concern at the moment is that case numbers in older age groups are higher now than ever before. The March wave was heavily concentrated in younger people, with under 60s making up 91% of all cases up to the end of April.

That helped keep a lid on the hospitalisation rate and has built strong hybrid immunity, acquired from both infection and vaccination, in these groups. But it leaves a large susceptible population in older groups.

Part of BA.5s advantage is a better ability to re-infect people whove had COVID before. Nevertheless, prior infection with a different variant does provide immunity, however imperfect, and those who havent been previously infected are at higher risk of catching the virus in the second wave. In New Zealand, this predominantly means older people.

Waning immunity means many people who are five to six months after their third vaccine dose will have significantly lower immunity now than they did in March.

And winter is flu season. The healthcare system is already swamped with patients with influenza and other winter ailments. Winter weather means people tend to gather indoors, in more crowded and poorly ventilated spaces that create ideal conditions for viruses to spread.

This wave is starting with much busier hospitals than in February, and any additional demand caused by COVID will add more stress to a system already under extreme pressure.

The risk of hospitalisation is around six times higher in people over 70 compared to younger groups. Even if the number of cases in this wave is lower than in the first wave, our modelling shows the shift in age distribution means its possible the number of hospitalisations will actually be higher.

The vaccine is still our best line of defence against COVID. It provides a high level of protection against getting seriously ill, even if it is less effective at preventing infection with BA.5.

That protection does wane over time, which is why a fourth dose is now available to over 50s. If you or your whnau are eligible for a vaccination, whether its the first dose or the fourth, now is a really good time to get it.

Strong uptake of fourth doses in older age groups, as well as third doses among the one million New Zealanders currently eligible, is the best way we have to mitigate this wave.

The influenza vaccine is also important as it can prevent more people getting sick this winter and ease the burden on the healthcare system. Free flu vaccines are available from GPs and pharmacies for everyone over 65, for Mori and Pacific people over 55, and for children aged between three and 12.

Read more: As flu cases surge, vaccination may offer some bonus protection from COVID as well

Other easy measures using high-quality masks indoors, testing and staying home if sick remain important. Rapid antigen tests (RATs) are an extremely useful tool for managing risk. They are a reliable indicator of whether someone is currently infectious.

Doing a RAT before visiting a vulnerable person or before large gatherings is an excellent way to reduce risk. They are available for free to anyone with symptoms or whose household members have tested positive.

Even if you test negative on a RAT but have respiratory symptoms, you could have flu or another virus. Staying home when sick is the best way to protect others and reduce the rates of sickness this winter.

The pandemic is clearly not over yet. The virus will continue to evolve to get around our immunity and this will lead to ongoing waves. But we are not helpless in the face of it. Updated vaccines, better treatments, action to lower transmission through improved ventilation, and the build-up of hybrid immunity will continue to blunt its effects.

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A new Omicron wave is upon New Zealand, with older people now most at risk heres what to expect - The Conversation

Government rejects Samoan deportee’s bid to stay in New Zealand – New Zealand Herald

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Mose will be deported back to Samoa as soon as Immigration NZ can sort the paperwork. Photo / Jeremy Wilkinson

A rapist who grew up in New Zealand will be deported to Samoa, where he has no family, and can't speak the language, after the Immigration Minister today turned down his appeal to stay here.

Mose Vaipapa has spent the last 15 years in prison for two sexual assaults he committed at the age of 14 and for bashing a prison guard while inside. Last month he was served with deportation papers to his birth country.

Vaipapa appealed to the Minister of Immigration saying he was being sent to a place that he hasn't lived in since he was 4 years old and has no family or other connections.

However, this evening he was told his request to stay in New Zealand was turned down by the minister and he would be deported to Samoa.

His lawyer Mike Sceats says it was New Zealand that made him a criminal, not Samoa, and called the Government hypocritical for criticising Australia's controversial 501 policy when they were essentially doing the same thing to Vaipapa.

"We're disappointed the government didn't even bother to read the new information we put forward."

"It basically says we haven't looked at it and we don't have to.

"And the law is completely on their side, he's locked out of the appeal process and he's out of time by decades."

Vaipapa says he's not sure what he's going to do now.

"I've told my brother ... but I don't know how I'm gonna tell my mum."

"I did some shit things, and I regret it every day. There's not one minute I don't think about it. I never saw myself as the kind of person who did that sort of thing, man I've got sisters.

"I was on drugs, I was a child, I went through shit someone my age shouldn't go through. I learned that shit because of the Government, they put me in homes where I was abused.

"When you're a child you're just a mirror, you reflect back what happens to you."

Vaipapa says it seemed the Government only saw the bad side of him.

"They've got a picture of me, and it's not me, but I've got out and I've stayed on track."

Sceats and the staff from the Porirua Community Law Centre who were working to keep Vaipapa in the country claimed New Zealand has a responsibility to look after him.

Sceats said Vaipapa fell through the cracks at primary school because the teachers thought he was stupid.

After that he began getting into trouble and went through a number of boys' homes in Porirua between 2004 and 2009 before being sent to the now infamous Epuni Boys' Home in Lower Hutt.

There Vaipapa says was sexually assaulted at the age of 12.

"He's been labelled as stupid, dangerous and violent. He's been set up to fail all his life," Sceats said.

"My personal view is that technically he wasn't born here but he was made and broken here."

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has long been critical of the Australian 501 deportation policy where New Zealanders are deported from Australia and sent back home.

Any non-citizen who has been sentenced to more than a year in prison in Australia can be deported under the 501 policy, even if they served their time years earlier.

So far more than 2000 ex-Kiwis have been deported since the policy was introduced in 2014. The deportees are named after section 501 of the Australian Migration Act which allows their visas to be cancelled.

Several weeks ago Ardern met with Australia's new leader Anthony Albaneseto push for changes to the law. Albanese said after the meeting that the 501 policy would stay, although he promised to "work through" implementation issues with New Zealand.

On the same day Immigration New Zealand was serving Vaipapa with a deportation notice.

The week after Ardern met with the Samoan Prime Minister to discuss deportations back to the Pacific now that Covid restrictions had eased.

Vaipapa first came to New Zealand with his mother and siblings when he was 4, piggybacking on her passport.

He committed his first imprisonable offences while she was in the process of sorting out residency for her family and it was recommended that her son be removed from the application for the rest of the family to be successful.

At present Vaipapa is under strict supervision and electronically-monitored bail while he now waits to be officially deported.

When Open Justice met with Vaipapa at his address in Trentham several weeks ago he said he was extremely sorry for what he'd done.

"I wish I could go back and punch myself, shake that young Mose and ask him what the hell he's doing?"

Vaipapa said when he was first served the deportation notice in prison when he was 17, he didn't understand what it meant.

"I was still just a kid. The only thing that sunk in was that if I ever got parole then I'd be straight on a plane.

"I don't even remember being in Samoa. I thought I was a New Zealander for half my life."

Open Justice reported earlier this year that New Zealand sent 400 criminals back to Pacific nations between 2013-2018 - a move that a newly released report said was contributing to a growing crime and drug addiction in those countries.

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Government rejects Samoan deportee's bid to stay in New Zealand - New Zealand Herald

New Zealand Wants to Tax Cow Burps and Farts – Modern Farmer

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As of last summer, the island nation of New Zealand was home to 6.3 million head of dairy cattle, up 82 percent over the last two decades. The country also holds 3.8 million beef cattle, 800,000 deer and a whopping 26.8 million head of sheep. Thats a lot of livestock for a country of about five million people.

Thats also a lot of methane emissions, mainly in the form of cow burps and farts. (When it comes to cattle, about 90 to 95 percent of the methane produced comes from burps.) Agriculture is responsible for more than half of the methane production across New Zealand, and methane is a huge contributor to global warming and air pollution. In an effort to cut down on the greenhouse gas emissions, the government unveiled a new tax proposal last month.

By 2025, all farms across New Zealand would have to track and manage their greenhouse gas emissions, and pay a levy according to how much they are pumping out. They could also earn credits for planting crops that sequester carbon, including trees. This tax would be the first of its kind globally.

The plan was put together by the ruling Labor government, headed by Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, along with primary sector groups. The government and industry partnership was named He Waka Eke Noa, from a Mori proverb, meaning were all in this together.

Although climate change minister James Shaw told Reuters the emissions pricing system will play a key part in how the country cuts methane emissions, the plan has some detractorssome from Shaws own party. While he is a cabinet minister, Shaw is also the co-leader of the federal Green party, which believes the plan doesnt go far enough.

The Greens agricultural spokesperson, MP Teanau Tuiono, said its not clear if the plan will help the country reach their goal of being net-zero by 2050. Tuiono even tweeted He Waka Eke Noa? He Waka Eke Nowhere more like.

Some New Zealand farmers have asked to have greater input in the taxs pricing structure. Meanwhile, other environmental activists say it simply wont be effective at all. Instead, theyve called for a drastic reduction in the amount of cattle, saying its the only way to truly cut down on emissions.

The proposal, and the specific pricing guidelines are still up for debate. Climate minister Shaw said the government would need to continue consultation before it commits to specifics of the plan. A decision is expected by the end of the year.

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New Zealand Wants to Tax Cow Burps and Farts - Modern Farmer

New Zealand’s Major Grower-Owned Co-Operative is Assuming a Refreshed Logo and Identity – PerishableNews

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In its 99th year, New Zealands major grower-owned co-operative is assuming a refreshed logo and identity.

The change marks a significant step, reflecting the evolution of our business and the stronger focus we have on enhancing our business profile.

While the co-operative has always been Market Gardeners Limited, it has traded as MG Marketing (MG) for several decades, reflecting the co-operative at the time.

MG now does much more than provide procurement, sales, marketing and distribution services to grower-suppliers. We are involved in a number of complementary businesses including IP, exporting and farming, along with the major shareholding in Australian business, La Manna Premier Group.

We have listened to staff, growers and the wider industry in developing the new look. They told us they wanted to make sure our identity remains connected to the past but also celebrate the fact were a proud Kiwi co-operative, more clearly link MG to the produce/horticulture section and better communicate the business weve become.

Behind the scenes a large project is also under way to make updates across the business and our stakeholders will see the new brand and logo rolled out over the next six months. In some instances, MG is following a sustainable approach, with certain items updated as needed.

This weekend marks our first milestone with the new logo and brand launched online. Our website address will change towww.mggroup.co.nzand our email address will also be updated (name@mggroup.co.nz). Our IT team has ensured that all emails going to the current address will still arrive.

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New Zealand's Major Grower-Owned Co-Operative is Assuming a Refreshed Logo and Identity - PerishableNews

Navy frigate returns to New Zealand after major upgrade in Canada – RNZ

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After a three-year upgrade in Canada, the naval vessel HMNZS Te Mana has returned to New Zealand shores.

HMNZS Te Mana and its crew today returned to New Zealand shores after three years away. Photo: RNZ / Mohammad Alafeshat

The frigate and her 170-strong crew sailed into Waitemat Harbour this morning with Minister of Defence Peeni Henare on board for a ceremonial homecoming.

Its systems upgrade includes new self defence missile technology, radar, and hull-mounted sonar.

She sailed more than 12,000 kilometres to get home following the re-fit by security and aerospace company Lockheed Martin Canada.

The navy set base in Devonport this morning for an extravagant ceremonial homecoming welcome to the 170 crew members that set sail more than three years ago.

The family of Commander Officer Mike Peebles await his return. Photo: RNZ / Mohammad Alafeshat

Hundreds of family, friends and colleagues gathered at the naval base to welcome their arrival.

One of the ceremonial highlights was unexpected - as one Royal NZ Navy sailor brought the crowd of hundreds to "aww" as he proposed to his partner of three years.

Jacob Biddle proposed to his partner of three years, Takimoana Hawea, at the Devonport Naval Base on Friday morning.

Biddle told RNZ he was planning on this proposal ever since he left home about a year ago.

"Oh I was shaking! I loved it, it was perfect. I'm glad my darling's home," Hawea said.

She said yes - in an emotional reunion following a lengthy overseas deployment.

Jacob Biddle proposed to his partner Takimoana Hawea - and she said yes. Photo: RNZ / Mohammad Alafeshat

The 12,000km journey to get home was not exactly a smooth sail for many sailors.

One sailor said he sorely missed the pies.

"Keen for a pie - a decent pie! Will probably sort out shop on the way you know... Canadians don't know how to make pies."

Since taking office, the Labour government has committed approximately $4.5 billion to 12 major defence projects - including a $148 million funding boost for the Frigate Systems Upgrade work programme.

Today, the defence minister was on board the vessel to welcome the crew home.

"It's one of those challenging times where you leave a family that you've spent so much time with to come home to your actual family. So I wish them all the best," Henare said.

It was crucial to invest in the Navy defence force during this time, Henare said.

"What I know is New Zealanders are concerned for our security in these particular times. We've already seen what's happening in the Pacific, so we're hugely in support of these exercises and will continue to support them and so will this government," Henare said.

Australia and New Zealand will join Pacific nations in Fiji next week for the Pacific Island Forum, which is likely to be dominated by discussions of security because of the recent deal signed between China and the Solomon Islands.

A large crowd was there to welcome the HMNZS Te Mana and its crew back to New Zealand after three years away. Photo: RNZ / Mohammad Alafeshat

Chief of Navy Rear Admiral David Proctor told RNZ the new self defence missile technology, sonar and radar will serve the country for decades.

"The ability to deliver the security outcomes that New Zealand wants is by working alongside higher end partners," he said.

"These ships - after the investment the government has made, represent a contemporary high end combat capability for New Zealand."

The Frigate Systems Upgrade is a complex programme of work overseen by the Ministry of Defence and undertaken by Lockheed Martin Canada, which delivered new radars, electronic detection and other above water systems, the self-defence missile system, decoys against missiles and torpedoes, an upgrade to the hull-mounted sonar, and the combat management system that integrates these upgrades.

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Navy frigate returns to New Zealand after major upgrade in Canada - RNZ

The 50 greatest New Zealand logos, ranked – The Spinoff

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Toby Morris searches high and low, far and wide for our greatest logos of all time.

On our shelves, on our clothes, on our feet: logos are all around us. Theyre on signs and on the front of buildings and all over everything we read online. Some of them are terrible, most are decidedly average, and a select few are great. In the grand tradition of ranking lollies, biscuits and voids, its time to rank the best logos in Aotearoa.

Obviously we cant rank every logo, there are hundreds of thousands of them: Every product, every company, every school, sports club, council and dog breeding society has one. So instead Ive picked out 50 I think are absolute gems. Im sure I will have missed some classics, and of course its impossible to objectively rank creative work. Feel free to let us know if Ive left out your favourite.

Quickly, some criteria: Were looking at New Zealand based or founded entities, from any time period. The definition of logo is slightly blurry sometimes itll be just the logomark (like, the symbol), sometimes the wordmark (distinctive text), often the combo of the two. Generally Ive gone for what would most commonly be perceived as being the logo.

Conceptually, a good logo is one thats distinctive, memorable, says something and fits the tone and style of whatever its representing. Extra points for originality and creativity. Technically, a test of a good logo is often if itd work anywhere, at any scale printed tiny, or huge, and work static or whizzing past you as you drive past it but there are exceptions to this, depending on the brief.

Anyway, enough setup here are 50 banging logos.

50: Bars Bugs

Who doesnt remember rummaging around their parents garage and wondering how the mangy old bottle of windscreen cleaner had such a cool design on it. Windscreen glasses? Genius.

49: Great Lake Taup

This one is repping for all the city logos. I dont like the colours or the bevel effect, but the concept is good the O is the lake, and the macron is the city along its northern shore. Its also proudly putting the elephant in the room on full display in the front window: look, we have a macron now, times are changing, welcome to the modern Taup.

48: Georgie Pie

Its cosy, its welcoming, its a bit hokey perfect. The soft rounded edges, warm colours and the cute lower case es all combine into a perfect nostalgic bomb. Its the logo version of a perfect mass-produced $1 mince and cheese pie.

47: New Zealand Air Force

I love the simplicity. Its a visual pun on the classic British RAF roundel that shows their history but also their point of difference, and it works simple, clear, and you can tell what it is a mile away.

46: Elizabeth Taylor Graphics

Humour is an underutilised tool in identity design. Everyone wants to seem traditional, reliable and professional. But what if you just want to tell the neighbourhood you make posters, signs and shit? I used to drive past their original premises in Paraparaumu in the early 2000s and get a kick out of seeing this logo every single time. Later on they moved into the city and the logo ruffled some feathers. Good shit.

45: Hot Chick

Another regional delight: Every Napier resident will know Hot Chick and their neighbouring ice cream parlour Cool Cat. They still use this chunky 70s bottom-heavy type, but I like the original logo, where the flaming, sunglasses wearing chicken has its mouth open and looks like its just had a fright. Yow!

44: National Party, 1970s

The ligatures on the NA combos are a bit of an awkward tangle, but the arrow N on this Muldoon-era National party logo is a tidy piece of design. Sure, it might suggest the party is going to have ups and downs, but it has a lot more personality than the generic blandness of all the major party logos these days. (Also cool and better than the current logo: Labours 70s-90s flying L.) (Trivia: in the original Terry Teo books, the grawlixes (the symbols used to represent swearing) for the villainous skinhead characters include this National N.)

43: Work and Income, 1990s

Some people see someone running away with stolen loot under their arm, some people see a case worker with someone in a headlock. Either way, its memorable: for better or worse (definitely worse) this logo and name burned itself into our collective consciousness in the late 90s (I see the headlock).

42: Wellington Rugby Football Union

Im putting this one in here as an example of a certain kind of New Zealand logo that is at once terrible and incredible. These type of spindly weird interlocking monographs are found on old sports clubs and schools around the country. Theyre a throwback to a long outdated design style, and I love how indecipherable they are these days theyre basically black metal band logos for old dudes. What theyre communicating, of course, is weve been here for ages, something New Zealand organisations strive to be able to claim.

41: Te Herenga Waka University Press

From the old to the new: this one is a recent design for the newly renamed Victoria University Press. I love how its referencing designs like the Wellington Rugby one above, (and by association suggesting tradition and quality), but still manages to come across as clear, modern and clever. Its very satisfying how neatly the initials fit together, and the little notches on the ends are cool.

40: Clutha District Council

To the rest of New Zealand it looks like a failed b-grade sportswear brand from the 90s, but to locals its clear theres the Balclutha Road Bridge and the Clutha river flowing underneath it. This one is in here for all the hyper-local designs out there: most of the time design is about trying to communicate so every single person on earth can understand, but sometimes its OK if only a certain group understand it.

39: Deka

One word: Jaunty. Gone too soon.

38: bFM

Ramshackle, DIY, spontaneous, informal if youre a bank or a law firm or an insurance company thats probably not the impression you want to give. But for bFM its perfect. Theres a casual, not-trying-too-hard energy that has given this logo an enduring charm. Sneakily smart.

37: Halswell School

Im putting this one in there for all the thousands of school logos out there. Most of them, particularly for high schools, are snoozefest traditional crests or latin lamps that blur into cold wallpaper and can probably never be changed. Our primary schools, on the other hand, seem to be in the process of at least attempting to keep up with the times. Craig Burton seems to be on a single-handed mission to design new logos for every school in the country, and I liked this one as an example bright, welcoming, and smart. Id send my kids there if I was picking by logo.

36: ANZ

Design, like fashion, is a pendulum swinging back and forth across multiple axes over time hems go up, hems go down, everything looks 3D, everything looks flat. For logos, around 2000 there was this sudden moment where everything went italic with a few rounded corners (dynamic, modern) and then, 5-10 years later, they all snapped back upright (steady, solid). Its the logo version of an emo fringe in the early 2000s that you dont like to talk about: we all saw you do it. But italic dalliances aside, Ive always liked this logo. The cutouts remind me of ESPN, early computers and Robocop all positive associations.

35 and 34: Whittakers and Vogels

Im putting these two classics together to compare and contrast. Two beloved, trusted family brands; two classic custom wordmarks. Both tell you traditional family business, but compare the styles: the strong neat lines of Vogels says traditional, reliable, hearty while Whittakers elegant flow says traditional, luxurious, delicious. Both are perfectly crafted and both perfectly fit their product. Excellent work.

33: What Now, late 80s

I can hear the 80s theme song as I look at this, and it feels like Saturday morning.

32: 100% Pure New Zealand

I hope whoever came up with the little map as the slash in the percentage did a well deserved little fist pump at their desk when they figured that out. Its a detail that makes an otherwise solid but fairly straight wordmark into something memorable and clever.

31: Te Papa, 1998

This identity by ad firm Saatchi and Saatchi was a controversial one at the time widely bagged as being way too expensive and irrelevant when it was first announced. But as a conceptual logo it was ahead of its time. These days I think we have a better understanding that a museum isnt just about collecting old stuff, its about figuring out who we are. A logo doesnt have to be literal. A milestone of NZ design, imho.

30: NZ Film Commission

Sober and sensible. This feels high-end and highbrow, evoking quality, consideration and an appropriately formal stamp of authority for a cultural institution. Solid and smart.

29: Ripples, late 80s/early 90s

There are many good ones that come and go (whats up Fruju), but most chip brands, biscuits, lollies, ice blocks and so on change their look too often. I guess theyre always trying to stay fresh and feel new, but the trade-off is they never build up that long term trust from holding on to a strong identity. This is a proper chip logo. Bring it back.

28: Double Brown (and classic NZ beer logos in general)

We could do another whole article ranking New Zealand beer design, but for today Im taking a huge shortcut and lumping these into one group. Theres a set style to these classic ones, and they all say something similar but slightly different. Lion Red and Speights equals tradition, Tui is bold and blunt, and I love the masculine minimalism of the old DB Draught one you can taste that logo, and it tastes like old beer. My favourite, though, is Double Brown punchy colours with a slightly off-balance, almost hand-drawn quality that gives you a slight air of mischief.

27: Warren and Mahoney Architects, 1962

Designer Kris Lane suggested this one to me, and its a great call. Warren and Mahoney are mostly known as large scale architects: they make town halls, stadiums, airports and embassies, the kind of buildings that define the country. This beautiful logo captures this utilitarian quality its strong and slightly monolithic yet refined, balanced and distinctive. It was designed in 1962 by a young Mark Cleverly, who later became a New Zealand design legend as a designer of stamps, the creative director of Crown Lynn and an influential design teacher.

26: Ministry of Works, 1970

Similar to Warren and Mahoney above, theres something about the combination of public infrastructure and the era of modernist design that resulted in some classic logos. This one from the now defunct Ministry of Works exudes strength and capability. The symmetry is neat, the forms are sturdy and the hexagon brings to mind the efficient industry of bees. Theres no frills or fancy business if you saw this logo on construction sites around the country, youd know work was getting done. (Make a logo this satisfying for Kiwibuild and then well see some action!)

25: Absolutely Positively Wellington, 1991

The words of this Wellington tourism slogan are still used today, but its the original logo incarnation that sticks in the mind. It might be partly due to the unconscious visual association with the Parental Advisory Explicit Content stickers that appeared on album covers of the same era, but theres something saucy and sophisticated about this one. You picture houndstooth power suits with padded shoulders and high heels. The TV ad that launched it had a guy rollerblading down a city street talking on a giant brick cellphone. Hell yeah.

Unranked: This fern

When you look at a lot of New Zealand logos together, you quickly see some popular motifs kiwi, ferns, koru, Southern Crosses drawn a lot of different ways, most of them terrible. I want to mention this particular fern design though, because I find it bizarre: its called the FernMark, created by MBIE as a stamp of yeah were officially from New Zealand approval. Its a fine design, but surely the point of a logo is to signal what makes your organisation or product unique. (Bonus points to NZ Hair Transplantation Institute for riffing on it though, Im into that.)

24: We Compost

Just love this one by Auckland studio Seachange. It totally defies expectation, and turns a negative into a positive so charming you completely forget its for a company dealing in rotting waste. Would wear it on a t-shirt. Amazing work.

23: Department of Conservation

Another classic public service icon. The type isnt very exciting, but the mark a kind of shield that evokes land and sky and the link between them is beautiful in its balance and simplicity. Koru and mangpare are very common motifs in New Zealand design, but rarely do you see them used in such an elegant, understated and integrated way. Its a logo weve probably all seen so many times we dont notice it anymore but I think its one we all get on an emotional level. An underrated beauty.

22: V

A polar opposite to some of the more traditional minimal logos here this is deliberately designed to look modern and alive. With six colours, a very digital 90s look and a strong sense of movement, it makes the product look electric and uncontainable. The one-letter name is genius too.

21: Swanndri

Since 1913, Swanndri bush shirts have sported many different versions of a logo with a swan in a circle. This one to me is the iconic one the stylised but still hand-drawn feeling, with the blue background. The lines are clean and economical, the name is clear and the bird isnt taking any nonsense. Not the most creative, but impeccably executed.

20: Silo Theatre, 2012

Another win for humour and personality in identity design! Designed by Alt Group in 2012, this references Greek comedy and tragedy theatre masks, but whether you notice that or not, its just funny. Silo are the type of theatre company aiming to make modern, non-traditional, boundary-pushing work, so this feels like a great fit its creative, smart and feels like something you havent seen before.

19: Watties, 2010-2020

In recent years the lettering has been smoothed out a little, so the current logo is starting to get a little generic, but the previous version on the red tab with the janky oversized serifs sticking out the sides of the W tastes like cheese and spaghetti toasties on the couch on a rainy Sunday afternoon.

18: L&P, 2016

L&P is another example, like Ripples above, of a brand thats actually been through a surprising amount of different logos, but in their case the distinctive yellow and brown palette has remained constant, resulting in a stronger brand identity today. This might be a controversial call, but I think the strongest logo of all is the current one, created in 2016 by Marx Design. Its casual, a little bit funny and balances feeling old and new at once.

17: New Zealand Post, 2000s-2021

This New Zealand Post envelope mark started off as an Earl Hingston design in 1975 with a crown on top, but I like the later, less regal incarnations. In this version we see another example of the early-2000s italics and a few of the corners rounded off trend with the typography, but the star is the envelope: Its an N, its a Z, its a letter, its a very fun thing to doodle. Recently theyve ditched it, and I get that personal letters arent the main thing theyre transporting these days, but it still seems a shame to lose all that built up trust.

16: Frosty Boy

Look at that guy! What joy. Hes going to love that ice cream! (I debated why this guy makes it in but the Four Square man doesnt. With Four Square, hes the mascot, but their logo is a 4. This guy is the logo.)

15: Jimmys Pies

Love this weird little piece of lower South Island design magic. Theres a handmade, DIY signwriting quality to this that fits with the old-school feel of the paper-bagged pies, and I like that its slightly odd. Why the curves on homemade and pies? Why the giant quote marks around Jimmys? Is Jimmys not its real name? What are these so called Jimmys pies actually called? I dont know. Its a great logo.

14: NZ Railways, 1970

Another minimal modernist infrastructure classic. The excellent book Marks of Identity: New Zealand Logos 1960-1980 explains how huge New Zealand Railways were as organisation at the time encompassing ferries, buses, commuter rail, train stations, large scale logistics operations, train maintenance and so on. Designed in 1970 by Barry Ellis, this emblem was created to unite the different departments, and is a great example of what these days wed call a graphic system the top right section would be red for rail services, orange for ferries, green for road services and so on.

Its simplicity is its strength. It feels like an N, a Z, and a shifting line on a railway track, but its bold and recognisable and would work just as well printed tiny on the side on a pen or embroidered on a yard workers pullover as it would zooming past you printed large on the side of rolling cargo trains. Staunch as.

13: TV2, 1989-1995

TV2, as the fun sibling to TVNZs more traditional One, has had a lot of different looks over the years, and which one springs to mind probably depends on your age. I think of this one: the circle swirling one way, the 2 moving in the other direction in glorious 90s orange and purple. Sleek and modern.

Their coolest logo though might be one they never used: a while ago Tana Mitchell from Studio Akin showed me these beautiful old proposed designs by the great Samoan/NZ typographer Joseph Churchward. Imagine a world where TV2 had this much flair.

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The 50 greatest New Zealand logos, ranked - The Spinoff

Australia begins bilateral talks with New Zealand on treaty and reconciliation with First Nations people – ABC News

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Minister for Indigenous Australians Linda Burney will hold her first bilateral talks todaywith the New Zealand Minister for Mori Development, Willie Jackson.

Ms Burney is expected to discuss a range of issues with Mr Jackson, including New Zealand's approach to treaty and reconciliation with Mori people, the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and business partnerships.

The ministers will collaborate and share experiences on policy making for First Nations and Mori people, and how to advance Indigenous rights within their respective countries.

Leaders from the Indigenous and Mori business sectors will also be attending, with a view to discussing potential partnerships between the two nations.

The rights of the Mori people in New Zealand have been recognised since 1840, when Mori chiefs signed the Treaty of Waitangi.

The treaty promised to give Mori people self-determination over their lands and resources while giving the British Crown the authority to govern.

Today, the treaty is not recognised as a part of New Zealand law, except where it is referred to in acts of parliament.

In Australia, there are currently no treaties between Indigenous people and the government, but Victoria, Queensland and the Northern Territory have all started the process of establishing state-based treaties.

The federal government has committed to implementing the Uluru Statement from the Heart in full, including a constitutionally enshrined 'voice to parliament' and establishing a Makarrata Commission, which would oversee a truth-telling and treaty process.

In New Zealand, the treaty is now used as part of the Waitangi Tribunal, which acts as a permanent commission of inquiry on Mori rights.

The commission hears claims on Mori business and advises government on language preservation, land rights and cultural protections.

Critics say the protection of Mori rights outlined by the treaty is largely dependent on political will and often inconsistent, and the power of the Waitangi Tribunal is too limited.

The tribunal has consistently advised that Mori people be given foreshore and seabed rights, but successive governments in New Zealand have ignored the recommendation.

The Waitangi Tribunal could be viewed as a model of how a Voice and Makarrata commission might proceed, but Indigenous people are concerned it could also be a model of how it could fail to adequately protect them.

Also on the agenda for MsBurney and MrJackson will be progressing the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP).

The declaration outlines the minimum standards for the survival, dignity, and well-being of Indigenous people around the world.

Despite initially voting against the declaration in 2007, Australia adopted UNDRIP in 2009 and New Zealand in 2010.

Last year, Mr Jackson announced a national plan was being developed to implement the UNDRIP framework in New Zealand and monitor improvements.

In Australia, progress on UNDRIP had largely stalled, but two bills introduced by Greens Senator Lidia Thorpe earlier this year have relaunched the push to see the framework fully implemented.

An inquiry into the application of the framework in Australia will be established, and SenatorThorpe has also introduced a bill to ensure the government complies with the declaration.

Ms Burney will also join Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in his meeting with New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern on Friday.

Ms Ardern has been in Australia since Monday as part of a trade mission, visiting Melbourne and Sydney accompanied by a delegation of more than 30 New Zealand businesses.

Friday will be the second meeting between Mr Albanese and Ms Ardern since the May election.

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Australia begins bilateral talks with New Zealand on treaty and reconciliation with First Nations people - ABC News

Community Scoop Youth-Led New Zealand Immigration Webinar Welcomed By Community – Scoop

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Press Release Hindu Youth New Zealand

Hindu Youth New Zealand (HYNZ) ran the first webinar of its New Zealand Immigration Series Pathway to Aotearoa . The purpose of this webinar series was to help the community have direct access to Licensed Immigration Advisers in New Zealand and

Hindu Youth New Zealand (HYNZ) ran the first webinar of its New Zealand Immigration Series Pathway to Aotearoa. The purpose of this webinar series was to help the community have direct access to Licensed Immigration Advisers in New Zealand and provide an opportunity for people to learn about recent changes in visa, and immigration requirements.

The online webinar was conducted by Sakshi Vij Sekhon, a Licensed Immigration Adviser, and a volunteer of Hindu Youth New Zealand. As the director of her company NZ Visa Immigration Services, Sakshi conducts regular workshops and webinars to provide advice to the members of the community. Through this platform, in addition to supporting people in New Zealand, Sakshi was able to help provide immigration advice to participants from all over the world.

It was amazing to see many people join in this webinar said Sakshi. It indicates how many individuals are really looking for quality support and professional advice regarding New Zealand immigration.

The first webinar focused on the recently announced Green List, and the occupations leading towards fast track and work to residence pathways. It also covered partner eligibility and as well as preparing applications.

The depth of the questions, during the Q&A session showed the deep engagement of the participants throughout the entire webinar. said Narmada Kohli, Programs Coordinator, Hindu Youth New Zealand. There is a real demand for more webinars like this and we will be announcing them soon.

The other webinars in HYNZs Pathway to Aotearoa series will cover the New Zealand Governments border reopening, immigration changes as well as other relevant updates to the Immigration sector.

For more information regarding the Pathway to Aotearoa webinar series contact Narmada Kohli on 027 747 1798, please email hinduyouth.newzealand@gmail.com or contact HYNZ through their social media. Facebook: Hindu Youth New Zealand. Instagram: @hinduyouthnz.

Hindu Youth New Zealand is a youth-led organisation that helps in developing young leaders in Aotearoa New Zealand. Through capability and capacity building initiatives, such as national conferences, workshops, webinars, cultural events, and mentorship programmes, young people are supported to reach their potential and have an opportunity to contribute to the wider New Zealand society.

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Community Scoop Youth-Led New Zealand Immigration Webinar Welcomed By Community - Scoop