Laurie Winkless

Remember back in 2018 when seniror RNZ manager Carol Hirschfeld lost her job after it was revealed she'd had a secret meeting with Broadcasting Minister Claire Curran. Who was later sacked from Cabinet by PM Jacinda Ardern after a second downlow meeting was revealed.

New Zealanders support more taxes on ultra-rich, new poll shows | RNZ News Half of New Zealanders also agreed that billionaires shouldn't exist while people still struggled with basic necessities like housing, food and healthcare.

Half of NZers agreed billionaires shouldn't exist while people struggle with basic necessities

68% supported billionaires being taxed more

37% were in favour of introducing a billion-dollar wealth cap to minimise the amount of wealth any person could legally hold

www.rnz.co.nz/news/politic...

IT IS NOT THE JOB OF A PUBLIC BROADCASTER IN A DEMOCRACY TO REPORT THE NEWS IN A WAY THE GOVERNMENT LIKES. IT IS ESPECIALLY NOT OKAY FOR MINISTERS AND POLITICALLY-APPOINTED BOARD MEMBERS TO DICATE INDIVIDUAL EDITORIAL DECISIONS. THIS SHOULD BE FUCKING OBVIOUS.

My latest "forcing myself to be on camera" summary of a recent article. I did this in one take (you can tell 😂) and I'm trying not to obsess over my filler words or odd facial expressions. The study I'm talking about is genuinely fascinating. It's linked from my article 🧪⚛️
tinyurl.com/mt7xx46w

This story needs a correction. It is absolutely true that admissions are the highest since October, but 184 admissions is the last 4 weeks (to 16 Feb), not last week (to 16 Feb). 184 in a week is 2022 levels. This would be much easier to keep track of if we had the data rather than a Power BI report

Overhead shot of snowy intersection with yellow cabs and dotted lines outlining where snow has created space that can be a future bike lane, public plaza and pedestrian refuge.

New BONUS episode: "What Snow Reveals About Cities (Plus More From Our Book Tour.)"

All the snow we've gotten has revealed some truths about what cars do to cities, and what we can learn from it. We also give our thoughts on Miami, Pittsburgh, Toronto and Phoenix!

www.patreon.com/posts/bonus-...

incredible, he did the joke

“We thought we were living in a politically neutral slave state.”

Article spiked because I couldn't secure a key interview 😫

Next week LinkedIn will use your personal data for AI training by automatically enabling permissions.

To manually turn off go to:

Settings ➡️ Data Privacy ➡️ under
“How LinkedIn uses your data” click “Data for Generative AI improvement” ➡️ toggle off

This. I'm not even an expert, i just follow nuclear-weapons policy as a matter of personal interest. The JCPOA was one of the best nuclear arms control treaties ever inked, & that fucker just shat all over it. "Wiping [the US's] ass with it" is putting it kindly

Weathering space weather | Engineering New Zealand How engineers and other experts are helping to protect New Zealand’s electricity grid against solar storms.

I've had an article published in EG Magazine. It's about #spaceweather - specifically, guarding Aotearoa New Zealand’s electricity grid against solar storms 🧪⚛️👩🏼‍🔬 #nz

www.engineeringnz.org/news-insight...

Nope, it's not reviewed in the latest issue.

I have a sub! Let me check x

Strike on Iranian primary school kills 148, authorities say Girls’ education facility hit as US and Israel launch joint military operation

The death toll rises and two realities collide: imagine headlines if 148 schoolgirls were massacred in New York, London or Paris. After this and Palestine, the asymmetry of grief in our so-called world order is brutal and impossible to unsee.

The entire millennial identity is being prepared and groomed for a version of the world that stopped existing by the time we reached it

we slammed into a horizon painted on a brick wall like fucking looney tunes

It’s very cool that the American news outlet with perhaps the most robust reporting on Iran, The Washington Post, fired everyone at its Middle East desk 3 weeks ago.

How Kansas Republicans weaponized the law to target 300 trans driver's license holders SB 244 was put into effect virtually overnight, causing chaos, panic and fear in the trans community.

New — I spoke to eight trans people in Kansas about the new state law that invalidated their driver’s licenses overnight, what’s it’s like to live there right now, plus details of two DMV emails exclusively obtained by The Handbasket that shed light on the law’s chaotic and cruel rollout:

We appear to be in a world where Anthropic is being the voice of reason.

That’s how sh*t things are.

Thank you Helen 🥰

Ok, Wellingtonians. Bookings for my beginner-friendly needle felted landscapes class are now open!
⏰9.30am Sunday 10th May (Mother's Day)
📍Village Beads Petone
All tools & materials provided
Spots are very limited, so if you're keen, please book in
www.villagebeads.co.nz/store/p/need...

Ministers continue to make decisions on fast-track projects after parties take donations linked to applicants One political scientist believes such donations to political parties could be perceived as creating a conflict of interest but official advice disagrees.

Just your daily reminder that Chris Bishop is both the chief fundraiser for the National Party election campaign and needs major donations, and the decision maker giving businesses access to the fast track process. www.rnz.co.nz/news/nationa...

This seems like a perfect opportunity to share a profile I wrote of Richard almost a decade ago for Brain Research NZ (I miss those peeps) www.lauriewinkless.com/journal/rich...

New Zealander of the Year 2026 finalists reflect 'heart and soul' of Aotearoa Dame Julie Chapman, Sir Richard Faull and Sir Rod Drury are leaders shaping NZ's future in very different ways, KiwiBank's CEO says.

I've long considered Prof Sir Richard Faull to be one of the finest humans I've ever met. I'll be cheering him on for New Zealander of the Year share.google/EsT3FnpUlbkO...

vindictive, vicious cruelty designed to humiliate and criminalize every trans person in kansas

horrifying fascist shit reminiscent of the runup to the literal holocaust

Well the hive-mind is not wrong. The people want climate adaptation, electrification, rail, and ferries, way before, massive road projects. And least of all- subsidised fossil fuel infrastructure.

Squeaking at soft–rigid frictional interfaces - Nature High-speed imaging reveals that the squeak of soft–rigid frictional interfaces, like sneakers sliding on a basketball court, arises from intersonic opening slip pulses—analogous to earthquake ruptures...

And this is the paper www.nature.com/articles/s41... (HMU if you want access to it) 🧪⚛️

YouTube video by nature video The surprising science of squeaky sneakers

Lovely video from @nature.com on a new and very interesting paper youtu.be/vwL1zUD1gyY

In a few hours, night will come to the Chilean Atacama desert. The @vrubinobs.bsky.social dome will open, and the giant telescope within will scan the sky, feeding light to the largest astronomical camera ever made.

Anger over plans to abolish New Zealand’s dedicated environment ministry Critics say proposal to fold department into a new ‘mega ministry’ will dilute accountability and put nature protections at risk

It makes no sense to rush into a giant centralised government department that merges environment into housing/transport etc. it creates huge transaction costs, taking NZ back years in effective climate and environment action, losing focus, accountability & skills www.theguardian.com/world/2026/f...