Nine To Noon

A new daily record number of Covid-19 cases has been announced in Fiji as Permanent Secretary for Health, James Fong confirms there are 431 cases and two deaths related to Covid-19 in the last 24 hours. Also, Samoa's caretaker Prime Minister continues to defy the Supreme Court, deep sea mining will begin in the Pacific by 2023 and Tonga as named 13 new caps to face the All Blacks this weekend.

A classical music workshop for inmates at Christchurch Men's prison has been recognised in the Te Putanga Toi Arts Access Awards 2021. The Christchurch Symphony Orchestra has been running the programme at the jail for five years. The Symphony Orchestra's head of community engagement, violinist Cathy Irons, has been involved with the programme since its inception, and works with men nearing release. She talks to Kathryn along with Anaru Baynes, Reintegration Manager from Pathway Trust.

New guidelines for the way alcohol is advertised and promoted kicked in yesterday, but health advocates say the updated advice lacks teeth and may even make it easier for minors to view alcohol ads. The Alcohol Advertising and Promotion Code was adopted by the Advertising Standards Authority - or ASA - at the end of last year following a review. It came into effect for new ads from April 1 and for all ads, yesterday. The Code is designed to ensure alcohol advertising and promotion is consistent with the need for responsibility and moderation in merchandising and consumption, and doesn't encourage drinking by minors. But it's also voluntary, something that harm-reduction group Alcohol Healthwatch says undermines its effectiveness. Kathryn talks to Alcohol Healthwatch executive director Nicki Jackson about her concerns, and the chief executive of the Advertising Standards Authority, Hilary Souter.

Film and TV reviewer Chris Schulz joins Kathryn to look at the New Zealand-filmed Sweet Tooth (Netflix), a post-pandemic comic book caper about human-animal hybrids; Betty (Neon), a show about female skateboarders in New York that's had its second season; Dave (Neon), a hip-hop show from joke rapper Lil Dicky and his crew; and finally Murder by the Coast (Netflix) a Spanish film about the 1999 murder of Rocío Wanninkhof and the unjust arrest and media circus that followed.

Research has underlined the importance of parents and teachers working together to help their children do well at school. The partnership is increasingly being emphasised in education policy, and by Māori, Pacific peoples, and parents of children who need learning support. Recent reports also show teachers want to connect more with parents, but lack the time and resources. Senior Researcher at the New Zealand Council for Educational Research, Mohamed Alansari joins Kathryn to discuss.

Technology commentator Sarah Putt joins Kathryn to talk about the Southern Cross Cable's new replacement called NEXT - it goes live in April 2022 but will we notice a difference? The government plans to hit the restart button with its research and development plans - how will it do that? And there are growing calls around the world for governments to introduce "right to disconnect" laws, does New Zealand need one too?

Rae McGregor reviews The Author's Cut by Owen Marshall, published by Penguin Random House NZ.

Two doctors treating identical patients can give different diagnoses, two judges in the same court can give different sentences to people who have committed the same crime. Interviewers of job candidates can make widely different assessments of the same people. Even fingerprint examiners sometimes differ in deciding whether a print found at a crime scene matches a suspect. These same doctors, judges, interviewers or forensic examiners can male different decisions depending on whether it's morning or night, Monday or Friday. They're examples of noise: variability in judgments that should be identical. Kathryn speaks to Olivier Sibony, a professor and writer who specialises in the quality of strategic thinking and the design of decision processes. He's the co-author of a book on this very subject, called Noise, along with Daniel Kahneman and Cass R. Sunstein.

Matt joins Kathryn to talk about the huge jump in Covid cases, after the UK recorded more than 26,000 cases yesterday - the most since January 29. Top scientists have announced plans for an autumn booster jab to help Britain stop a slide back into another lockdown. School bubbles could be scrapped on July 19, when all remaining restrictions lift. Meanwhile football fans are rejoicing after England beat arch enemies Germany for the first time in a tournament match in 55 years.

Several international companies are eyeing up New Zealand coastal and offshore waters to establish seaweed farms which a marine researcher says could earn tens of millions of dollars. AUT seaweed biology Associate Professor, Lindsey White singles out seaweeds as future major player in the country's blue economy with bottomless potential earnings and he explains why NZ waters are an increasingly attractive option. We also speak to Sunny Sanderson from Kelp Blue which is a restorative large-scale offshore kelp cultivation enterprise - Kelp Blue is doing due diligence here.