Nine To Noon

Technology correspondent Dr Mahsa Mohaghegh joins Kathryn to discuss the latest mind-blowing AI chatbot from OpenAI, the use by Foodstuffs of facial recognition technology in North Island supermarkets to address security concerns and why Raspberry Pi would make a great Christmas present. Dr Mahsa Mohaghegh is Senior Lecturer, School of Engineering - Computer and Mathematical Sciences and Director of Women in Technology at the Auckland University of Technology.

Catriona Ferguson reviews The Next Girl by Pip Drysdale, published by Simon & Schuster

It's been the subject of lengthy legal battles, but progress is being made on the 280 million dollar Mt Messenger bypass project in North Taranaki. Motorists are now able to see a 1.1km cableway being erected at a former rest area, at the top of Mt Messenger on State Highway 3. Robin Martin is RNZ's Taranaki reporter, based in New Plymouth.

Keith Woodley's fascination with shore birds is decades long, and includes following the the epic migration of godwits from Aotearoa to China, North and South Korea and Alaska. His book, In Pursuit of Champions, is in part, a memoir and it tells the story and the history of Pukorokoro Miranda Shorebird Centre, which has been instrumental in inspiring interest in coastal wetlands and their biodiversity, Keith has been the Centre Manager of the voluntary organisation for 29 years. He tells Kathryn that the story of the godwit is a gift that keeps giving, with more being known about them each year.

UK correspondent Harriet Line joins Kathryn to look at the series of strikes happening across the UK this month - the latest to join are border force workers who will walk off the job for eight days over Christmas. Matt Hancock, the disgraced Health Secretary turned reality TV contestant has resigned as an MP - but did he go voluntarily or was he pushed? And the latest in the Harry and Meghan saga...

To study how psychedelic drugs can help treat mental illness, Dr Paul Liknaitzky is giving Australian trial participants high doses of psilocybin – a hallucinogenic compound found in some fungi. "People will typically experience old problems in very new ways, and will get a much wider set of perspectives on themselves and others in the world," he tells Susie Ferguson.

With summer upon us, so comes outdoor living, barbecues .. and mosquitoes. Dr Maria Elena De Obaldia from Rockefeller University and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute is the lead author of a study into why mosquitoes specifically seek out some people.

A dud batch of aviation gas has sent ripples through the airline sector - they've been told they'll be supplied with less fuel than usual in the coming weeks - right at the busiest travel time of the year. Last month, the government announced an increase in the amount of petrol, jet fuel and diesel that importers and wholesalers must hold and that it would boost its own reserves of diesel in an effort to improve the country's ability to weather fuel shocks. Energy and Resources Minister Megan Woods says the government is still investigating storage facility options and the stocks are unlikely to be accumulated until late 2023 or early 2024. Are the new minimum storage requirements adequate when one dud batch of av-gas can have such an impact, and when Marsden Point no longer has refining capability? Kathryn speaks with Simon Terry, Executive Director Sustainability Council, who has serious misgivings about the way the government has approached the issue.

In Money Matters, David Boyle explains why some of the old adages, like saving for a rainy day is a key to managing your money and ensuring you are prepared for unforeseen emergencies. He talks to Kathryn about some of the money advice his late mother imparted on him.

If you're thinking about getting a dog, how do you choose the best breed for your household and circumstances? Do you want bouncy and energetic, or gentle and slow? Do you want a smart dog who can be trained to do tricks, or more of a solid companion type pooch? Kathryn talks with Dr Kat Littlewood - Massey University Lecturer in Animal Welfare at the School of Veterinary Science.