Showing papers in "Journal of The Royal Society of New Zealand in 2017"
TL;DR: Pūrākau and maramataka, forms of mātauranga Māori, comprise knowledge generated using methods and techniques developed indepepe....
Abstract: Mātauranga Māori spans Māori knowledge, culture, values and world view. Pūrākau and maramataka, forms of mātauranga Māori, comprise knowledge generated using methods and techniques developed indepe...
96 citations
TL;DR: A recent ‘historicist’ approach’ which analyses historical records of Polynesian sailing technology within an Indo-Pacific context suggests that the oceanic spritsail developed through the sixteenth century dispersal of the lateen sail, and that earlier East Polynesia and Māori voyaging used a double spritSail, incapable of sailing a canoe to windward.
Abstract: Late nineteenth century scholars accepted the traditional narrative of Māori colonisation occurring c. 600 years earlier by systematic voyaging in multiple canoes. Amplification and revision of tra...
15 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the effectiveness of the lichen Parmotrema reticulatum as a biomonitor of potentially harmful elements (PHEs) in the atmosphere of Auckland is assessed.
Abstract: This study assesses the effectiveness of the lichen Parmotrema reticulatum as a biomonitor of potentially harmful elements (PHEs) in the atmosphere of Auckland Samples were collected over a period of 12 months from 21 sampling stations Once a month, lichens were collected from a ‘clean site’ outside the Auckland urban area and transplanted to 20 sites in the Auckland central business district (CBD) In each occasion, the transplanted lichens were exposed for a period of 1 month at the designated sites The samples were retrieved for element analysis using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry On the whole, the lichens transplanted to the Auckland CBD sites accumulated significantly higher concentrations of Al, Ca, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mg, Mn, Na, Ni, Sb, Pb, Th, V and Zn than the reference site The results suggest that P reticulatum has the ability to accumulate PHEs and detect changes in air quality
13 citations
TL;DR: This article explored the impact of institutional history, and the high number of participants (for example, retired scientists), on New Zealand historiography of science, and suggested approaches that might mitigate these effects, suggesting "starting thought from women's lives" (Harding S. 1991).
Abstract: Formal narratives of New Zealand science have largely focused on the development of science infrastructure in New Zealand since the appointment of James Hector to head the New Zealand Geological Survey in 1865. This short communication uses the discourses of the 2015 conference, Finding New Zealand’s Scientific Heritage to explore the impact of institutional history, and the high number of participants (for example, retired scientists), on New Zealand historiography of science. I suggest this approach has resulted in the absenting or camouflaging of the contribution of women. The short communication then explores approaches that might mitigate against these effects, suggesting ‘starting thought from women's lives’ (Harding S. 1991. Whose science? Whose knowledge? Thinking from women’s lives. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, p. 150) as a primary mode for novel revisions of history of science in New Zealand.
9 citations
TL;DR: This paper investigated the shifting discourse on the use of rāhui (prohibition, restriction) and conservation-related words in nineteenth century New Zealand using material from the early Māori newspapers (niupepa).
Abstract: In the Māori worldview, humans are linked directly to flora and fauna through whakapapa (ancestry). As such, conservation can be expressed, not in terms of preserving ‘otherness’, but in terms of sustaining ‘us-ness’—our very selfhood, and our relationships and interactions with nature. We investigated the shifting discourse on the use of ‘rāhui’ (prohibition, restriction) and conservation-related words in nineteenth century New Zealand using material from the early Māori newspapers (niupepa). Our search revealed numerous uses of ‘rāhui’ but very few uses of ‘kaitiakitanga’ (guardianship, stewardship) or conservation in discussion of resources. The discourse included concerns around legislation, land alienation and land loss, that all impact rangatiratanga (authority, autonomy, chieftainship) and the kincentric relationship with nature.
8 citations
TL;DR: A short communication examines the development of the Provincial and Colonial Observatories, Stock's pioneering vocational and avocational activities in astronomy, and Hector's attempts to observe the 1882 transit of Venus and the 1885 total solar eclipse as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: Although he qualified as a doctor, James Hector had a broad scientific training, and in the process would have learnt the rudiments of observational astronomy, particularly as they related to surveying. This should have come in handy when he moved to Wellington in 1865 and, in 1870, accepted the Directorship of the Colonial Observatory. However, he left all of the observing to Archdeacon Arthur Stock and his assistant John Kebbell, and it was only the 1882 transit of Venus and the 1885 total solar eclipse that finally allowed Hector the chance to carry out serious astronomical observations from New Zealand. This short communication examines the development of the Provincial and Colonial Observatories, Stock’s pioneering vocational and avocational activities in astronomy, and Hector’s attempts to observe the 1882 transit of Venus and the 1885 total solar eclipse.
7 citations
TL;DR: In this article, a low-rainfall urban forest fragment under restoration since 1974 was investigated, where foliar N concentrations associated with low rainfall at Pūtaringamotu were similar to seabird-affected Scotchman's Creek.
Abstract: Delta15N values and associated N concentrations may be useful nutrient cycling metrics for assessing restoration progress, and complement biodiversity assessment. We tested this hypothesis at Pūtaringamotu Riccarton Bush (‘Pūtaringamotu’), a low-rainfall urban forest fragment under restoration since 1974. Foliar and soil measurements came from four indigenous forests (Pūtaringamotu; Saltwater, high rainfall, logged until 2002; Ōkārito, high rainfall, never logged; Scotchman’s Creek, high rainfall, burrowing seabirds present). Despite different disturbance histories, Pūtaringamotu, Ōkārito and Saltwater results all fitted global δ15N regressions between rainfall and foliar N concentration. Enhanced foliar N concentrations accompanying low rainfall at Pūtaringamotu were similar to seabird-affected Scotchman’s Creek. Although Pūtaringamotu foliar δ15N values showed differences between taxa, they were less pronounced than for Ōkārito; Saltwater showed no effect. Further investigation of nutrient cycli...
6 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors describe how members of Dunedin's public encountered geology and zoology through these means and how they responded to the displays and the articles and books.
Abstract: New Zealand’s international industrially oriented exhibitions also displayed scientific items. Building on their success, nineteenth-century men of science strove to engage audiences through museum displays as well as by writing popular articles and books. This short communication describes how members of Dunedin’s public encountered geology and zoology through these means.
6 citations
TL;DR: The collection and collecting activity of the Hawke's Bay Philosophical Institute and its precursor in Napier, New Zealand, during the late nineteenth century is explored in this paper, where two well-known figures of New Zealand science, museums and collecting were influential: William Colenso, FLS, FRS, who placed an emphasis on natural history collecting by members; and Augustus Hamilton, who sought to professionalise the museum and its objectives.
Abstract: This short communication explores the collection and collecting activity of the Hawke’s Bay Philosophical Institute and its precursor in Napier, New Zealand, during the late nineteenth century. Affiliated to the New Zealand Institute (NZI), two well-known figures of New Zealand science, museums and collecting were influential: William Colenso, FLS, FRS, who placed an emphasis on natural history collecting by members; and Augustus Hamilton, who sought to professionalise the museum and its objectives. Collection items were an essential source of scientific knowledge used for research, illustrating papers and as a prompt for learned discussion. Many New Zealand collections owe their origins to similar collecting by NZI members during this period.
6 citations
TL;DR: A case study comparison of Hill Tinsley's life experiences, as documented in the two biographies Bright Star and My Daughter Beatrice, with points raised in the recent publication Why Science is Sexist is presented in this article.
Abstract: Beatrice Hill Tinsley was one of New Zealand’s leading scientists. A theoretical astronomer who lost her life early to melanoma, she is remembered not only for her brilliant intellect but her generous spirit and her teaching ability. This short communication presents a case study comparison of Hill Tinsley’s life experiences, as documented in the two biographies Bright Star and My Daughter Beatrice, with points raised in the recent publication Why Science is Sexist. Through this assessment, it is demonstrated that women in the scientific community today continue to struggle with many of the obstacles that Hill Tinsley faced 40 years ago. A recognition of the pervasiveness of these issues provides a more complete picture of the scale of Hill Tinsley’s achievements, at the same time as enriching the wider narrative of the experiences of women in science.
5 citations
TL;DR: The most recent edition of the Journal of the Royal Society of New Zealand (JSNZ) has been published by the Alexander Turnbull Library at Victoria University of Wellington (VUWC) as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: On 23–24 November 2015, a group of about 70 scientists, historians, archivists and others interested in the history of New Zealand science met at Victoria University of Wellington for a conference—Finding New Zealand’s Scientific Heritage. We are grateful to the university for its sponsorship of the conference, which featured 48 papers, and their support for this special issue of the Journal of the Royal Society of New Zealand. The timing of the conference had special significance because it coincided with the 150th anniversary of the appointment of James Hector as New Zealand’s first government scientist. Within a few years Hector had responsibility for the Geological Survey, the Colonial Museum, the Colonial Observatory, the meteorological services, the Colonial Botanic Garden and the New Zealand Institute. It was also 100 years since Ernest Marsden arrived in New Zealand to be professor of physics at Victoria University College. In 1926 he was appointed to head the new Department of Scientific and Industrial Research, and subsequently built the foundations of organised scientific research in New Zealand. A previous conference, the first on New Zealand science history—In Search of New Zealand’s Scientific Heritage—was organised by the Alexander Turnbull Library in 1983, and a selection of papers was published in RSNZ Bulletin 21 (Hoare & Bell 1984). In the more than 30 years since the 1983 conference, there has been significant research on New Zealand’s science history with a particular focus on biography, institutional history and environmental history. This volume is the first of two special issues of the Journal of the Royal Society of New Zealand that feature some of the papers presented at the 2015 conference, and covers the period up to the start of World War I. The contribution of mātauranga Māori (Māori knowledge, culture, values and worldview) has often been ignored or disregarded by the science community despite the use that has been made of it. The first paper, by Dan Hikuroa, demonstrates that mātauranga Māori includes knowledge generated using techniques consistent with the scientific method, but explained according to a Māori worldview (Hikuroa 2017). Although earthquakes were regularly felt by Māori, the 1848 earthquakes had a tremendous impact on British colonists in central New Zealand, and Rodney Grapes shows how this led to the first analysis of the earthquake resistance of different types of buildings (Grapes 2017). Chemist William Grayling is little known,
TL;DR: Suter-Naef arrived in New Zealand from Switzerland with his wife Ida and seven children on New Year’s Eve 1887 as discussed by the authors, and saw New Zealand as a place of scientific opportunity and...
Abstract: Hans Heinrich Suter-Naef (1841–1918) arrived in New Zealand from Switzerland with his wife Ida and seven children on New Year’s Eve 1887. He saw New Zealand as a place of scientific opportunity and...
TL;DR: The lake-calving glaciers in New Zealand's central Southern Alps are a common mass-loss mechanism from water-terminating glaciers globally, including the Lake-Calving glaciers as mentioned in this paper.
Abstract: Terminus calving of icebergs is a common mass-loss mechanism from water-terminating glaciers globally, including the lake-calving glaciers in New Zealand’s central Southern Alps. Calving ra...
TL;DR: Eight species of terrestrial Mollusca are recorded from Early–Middle Miocene sediments from palaeolake Manuherikia, near St Bathans, central Otago, New Zealand, which are the first pre-Quaternary records of land snails.
Abstract: Eight species of terrestrial Mollusca are recorded from Early–Middle Miocene sediments from palaeolake Manuherikia, near St Bathans, central Otago, New Zealand Five new charopid species are described in Cavellia Iredale, 1915, Charopa Martens, 1860 and Fectola Iredale, 1915, a new genus Dendropa, based on the Recent species Flammulina pilsbryi Suter, 1894, Neophenacohelix Cumber, 1961, which is resurrected from synonymy under Phenacohelix Suter, 1892, and two new species of punctid are described in Paralaoma Iredale, 1913 and Atactolaoma n gen All genera involved are endemic to New Zealand and are the first pre-Quaternary records A rhytidid is also recorded, which, though indeterminable, is the earliest record of the family The three other confirmed pre-Quaternary (Late Pliocene) records of land snails are briefly discussed
TL;DR: In this article, Hamilton's collecting and its consequences are investigated by examining the activities of Augustus Hamilton, a Victorian scientist, collector and museum director, and the repercussions of his collecting and philosophy affected the objects, makers and owners at the time.
Abstract: Collecting and its consequences are investigated by examining the activities of Augustus Hamilton, a Victorian scientist, collector and museum director. The repercussions of his collecting and philosophy affected the objects, makers and owners at the time. But the social life and agency of the objects means that his collecting reverberates in museums and society in complex ways today that enable contemporary reconnections between people, places, things, and the past.
TL;DR: The New Zealand Institute (NZI) was founded in 1867 as a result of the 1867 Treaty of Tewkesbury as mentioned in this paper, where scientists were also politicians and certain features of this association were discussed.
Abstract: This short communication looks at the extent to which scientists were also politicians and certain features of this association. The New Zealand Institute (NZI) was founded in 1867 as a result of t...
TL;DR: This short communication explores William Irwin Grayling's chemistry education, together with the context of his chemistry employment here in New Zealand and, prior to that, in New South Wales and South Australia.
Abstract: William Irwin Grayling was a chemical researcher and educator in first Nelson and then Taranaki from the 1850s to 1880s, with particular interests in agricultural chemistry and natural products chemistry. However, he is little known today because of his lack of scientific publications. This short communication explores his chemistry education, together with the context of his chemistry employment here in New Zealand and, prior to that, in New South Wales and South Australia.
TL;DR: The Transactions and Proceedings of the New Zealand Institute (TPNZI) as mentioned in this paper present two contrasting images of scientific activity in nineteenth century New Zealand: the Transactions is a scientific periodical publishing research articles conveying new knowledge; the Proceedings provides a wider view of the activities, participants and subject matters at meetings of local institutes.
Abstract: The Transactions and Proceedings of the New Zealand Institute (TPNZI) present two contrasting images of scientific activity in nineteenth century New Zealand. The Transactions is a scientific periodical publishing research articles conveying new knowledge; the Proceedings provides a wider view of the activities, participants and subject matters at meetings of local institutes.
TL;DR: A short communication briefly examines how Augustus Hamilton, director of the Colonial/Dominion Museum from 1903 to 1913, assembled the effective founding photography collection of the museum now known as Te Papa as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: This short communication briefly examines how Augustus Hamilton, director of the Colonial/Dominion Museum from 1903 to 1913, assembled the effective founding photography collection of the museum now known as Te Papa. It describes his initiative in forming the pre-cursor New Zealand Institute collection and how this was linked to his renowned 1896–1901 publication Maori Art. It notes how the museum collection was comprised of both photographs taken by staff and those acquired from external photographers. Hamilton’s ethnographic photography is considered in light of his belief in the ‘dying race’ theory of Māori culture and it is proposed that he was the first in New Zealand to systematically create a database of photographic images.
TL;DR: In this paper, a review of unpublished materials from Haast's estate, including manuscripts, letters, photographs and sketches, and reports on the outcome of the review of the collections and associated finding aids is presented.
Abstract: Sir Julius von Haast (1822–1887) was one of the most influential German-born New Zealand scientists of the nineteenth century. Founder and first director of Canterbury Museum, he contributed to the establishment of scientific institutions, palaeontological research, geographical exploration and geological surveys. He also developed an international network of correspondents and contacts to facilitate the exchange of information, knowledge, specimens and publications. This short communcation provides an overview of unpublished materials from Haast’s estate, including manuscripts, letters, photographs and sketches, and reports on the outcome of a review of the collections and associated finding aids. This review comprised the retrospective enhancement of descriptive and name authority records, and resulted in an improved documentation of the collections, thereby maximising the discoverability of historical evidence and utilisation of the informational value of a personal and scientific archive held ...
TL;DR: In this paper, a short communication examines the aerological observations made at the Apia Observatory in Western Samoa during the early 1920s, focusing on the largely unknown work of the meteorologist Andrew Thomson.
Abstract: Meteorology has been defined by its struggles to assemble systems to measure and inscribe the atmosphere as a three dimensional volume. This short communication examines the aerological observations made at the Apia Observatory in Western Samoa during the early 1920s. It focuses on the largely unknown work of the meteorologist Andrew Thomson. In sketching his work with weather balloons the paper argues that we need to take greater account of the non-human actors and materials enrolled to make scientific work possible, and of the largely invisible work of creating and maintaining the heterogeneous relationships between scientists and the other actors enrolled in the practice of science.
TL;DR: In this article, a short communication, originally presented as a poster at the ‘Finding New Zealand’s scientific heritage’ conference, attempts to redress the balance of recent emphasis on WBD Mantell's negotiations to purchase land in the South Island from Māori tribes and on his political career, largely ignoring his contribution to colonial New Zealand science, and particularly to his "exertions" on moas.
Abstract: Although not a palaeontologist himself, Walter Baldock Durrant Mantell’s enduring contribution to the conduct of New Zealand colonial science was his collecting of fossil moa bones, which were sent to London for Richard Owen to catalogue. In a similar catalytic way, his administration of the Colonial Museum and the New Zealand Institute enabled others, especially James Hector, to devote more of their time to science. Recent emphasis on WBD Mantell’s negotiations to purchase land in the South Island from Māori tribes and on his political career (Evison HC. 2010. New Zealand racism in the making: the life and times of Walter Mantell. Lower Hutt: Panuitia Press), largely ignores his contribution to colonial New Zealand science, and particularly to his ‘exertions’ on moas. This short communication, originally presented as a poster at the ‘Finding New Zealand’s scientific heritage’ conference, attempts to redress the balance.
TL;DR: Research on spiders (araneology) in New Zealand has a 180-year history that began just before the Treaty of Waitangi was signed as discussed by the authors. Initially, specimens were collected and taken back to Europe to be d...
Abstract: Research on spiders (araneology) in New Zealand has a 180-year history that began just before the Treaty of Waitangi was signed. Initially, specimens were collected and taken back to Europe to be d...
TL;DR: This article focused on the Challenger expedition's time in New Zealand as an example of the ways in which colonial participants contributed to this nineteenth-century scientific circumnavigation and its scientific research using their location and local knowledge.
Abstract: This short communication focuses on the Challenger expedition’s time in New Zealand as an example of the ways in which colonial participants contributed to this nineteenth-century scientific circumnavigation and its scientific research using their location and local knowledge.
TL;DR: The Oamaru diatomite as discussed by the authors is a late Eocene deposit inland from Oamaru, North Otago, composed largely of siliceous microfossils, including diatoms, sponge spicules and Radiolaria, which became known to British microscopists from a sample shown by Sir James Hector in the Indian and Colonial Exhibition in London in 1886.
Abstract: The Oamaru diatomite is a late Eocene deposit inland from Oamaru, North Otago, composed largely of siliceous microfossils—diatoms, sponge spicules and Radiolaria. It probably became known to British microscopists from a sample shown by Sir James Hector in the Indian and Colonial Exhibition in London in 1886. Subsequently, it became famous among amateur microscopists and professional diatomists around the world for the enormous diversity and beautiful preservation of its diatom flora. Although it continues to be well-known among diatomists, few New Zealanders currently know of it or appreciate its significance. Narratives, sites and artefacts associated with the Oamaru diatomite inform The Glass Archive, a photographically-based project which considers the material within an arts context.
TL;DR: As head of the Operations Research Section of the Radio Development Laboratory, the cover name for the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research's secret radar programme, Elizabeth Alexander was responsible for operations research on all New Zealand's radars in New Zealand and the South Pacific as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: As head of the Operations Research Section of the Radio Development Laboratory, the cover name for the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research’s secret radar programme, Elizabeth Alexander was responsible for operations research on all New Zealand’s radars in New Zealand and the South Pacific Her analysis of the ‘Norfolk Island Effect’ became the beginning of Australian radio astronomy and her research on meteorological effects on microwave radars included all the groundwork and political preparation for the Canterbury Project
TL;DR: Willett et al. as mentioned in this paper published a new national geological map at a scale of 1:250,000 (the Four Mile project), which was completed within a decade, and subsequently used as a model by overseas geological surveys.
Abstract: R. W. (Dick) Willett was director of the New Zealand Geological Survey (NZGS) from 1956 to 1967, when he initiated an ambitious project to publish a new national geological map at a scale of 1:250,000 (the Four Mile project). It was completed within a decade, and subsequently used as a model by overseas geological surveys. In 1967 he was appointed assistant director-general of DSIR and subsequently served as the president of the Royal Society of New Zealand from 1970 to 1974.
TL;DR: The first publication of the Transactions and Proceedings of the New Zealand Institute (TPNZI) from 1869 provided the first readily accessible publishing outlet for local scientists and naturalists, with 74 different authors contributing 313 ornithological papers to TPNZI by the turn of the century as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: The establishment of the New Zealand Institute in 1867 was instrumental in New Zealand ornithology changing from a discipline undertaken by museum curators in Europe, to field-based observations carried out by New Zealand residents. Publication of the Transactions and Proceedings of the New Zealand Institute (TPNZI) from 1869 provided the first readily accessible publishing outlet for local scientists and naturalists, with 74 different authors contributing 313 ornithological papers to TPNZI by the turn of the century. The leading contributors of ornithological papers to TPNZI during the colonial era were Walter Buller and Frederick Hutton. Other heavily cited contributors included Augustus Hamilton, Julius von Haast and Andreas Reischek. Papers on moa (Dinornithiformes) comprised about 36% of ornithological papers published in the first 40 volumes of TPNZI (1869–1908). Other popular topics included papers on single New Zealand bird species (some of which are now extinct), vagrant bird species, acc...
TL;DR: In this paper, an essay on North Island geology by Coutts Crawford (1817-1889) was published in the first issue of the Transactions and Proceedings of the New Zealand Institute in 1868.
Abstract: An essay on North Island geology by J. Coutts Crawford (1817–1889) was published in the first issue of Transactions and Proceedings of the New Zealand Institute in 1868. Regional geological studies of New Zealand at that time were few. However, Crawford’s outline of the geology of the North Island is creditably accurate, with the distribution of rock types and rock ages broadly correct. Although he lacked formal scientific training, Crawford was a valued and influential member of the Wellington science scene in the 1860s and 1870s, and played an active role in the early years of the New Zealand Institute/Royal Society of New Zealand.