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Nights

RNZ

Tune in to Nights with Emile Donovan every weekday from 8pm to midnight for a delectable buffet of creative ideas, open-minded conversations, music, musings and daily stimulation.

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  • 170 episodes
  • Avg 13 min
  • English

Episodes 170

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  • Yesterday · 8 min

    Is AI ruining mathematics? 

    AI is coming for your job. We've all heard that one by now, as large language models get smarter and seemingly more capable by the week. But one profession you might not have expected to be pondering that question quite so soon is mathematics. Long seen as one of the great frontiers of human intelligence, maths is now becoming a testing ground for just how far AI can go. It seems like every week there's another headline about AI cracking an unsolved problem, finding a new proof . . . doing in ho

  • Yesterday · 18 min

    Inside Japan's Listening Bars with Nick Dwyer 

    Listening to a piece of music can be an incredibly emotional and deeply personal experience. It's something we often do alone, with headphones on or the stereo turned up at home. But in Japan, there's a long tradition of experiencing music a little differently, through listening bars, places where people come together specifically to sit, listen and appreciate the music. It's this culture that's at the centre of a documentary co-directed by our next guest, Nick Dwyer. Nick will be a familiar voi

  • Yesterday · 11 min

    What causes mouth ulcers?

    Mouth ulcers - also known as canker sores - are one of those pesky things that can really ruin your week. And even though they can be small - oh the pain - so with up to one in four of us get them coming back again and again - we thought we should chat to an expert. So, what causes them, what makes them come back, and how can we know if it's that's worth getting help? Joining Emile is Dr Anita Lim, an Oral Medicine Specialist and PhD Candidate at Western Sydney University's School of Medicine.

  • Yesterday · 12 min

    Are lower home deposits the best way forward? 

    Getting kiwis into their own home has been a major issue this election. For a lot of people - even if they earn a good wage, a major barrier is saving enough for a 20% deposit that a lot of banks require. Our major parties are aiming to address this by extending access to 5% deposits and expanding some of those income limits under the current First Home Loan Scheme. But is this the best approach and what might the economic knock on effects be? Joining Emile is Gareth Kiernan Acting Managing Dire

  • Tuesday · 12 min

    Mandy Hager's new science fiction novel 

    How do you convince an alien species that humans deserve to live? And what if you're starting to doubt they do? That simple but terrifying premise is at the centre of a new science fiction novel from New Zealand author Mandy Hager. It's Hager's 23rd book, and set in 2297, on an Earth devastated by climate catastrophe. The title of the book is Lifted and it officially launches in Wellington at Unity Books on Thursday night, but we thought we'd get in a couple of days early and speak to Mandy, who

  • Tuesday · 7 min

    Shower Thoughts: Do we still need flags in the 21st century?

    It's time for Shower Thoughts, our weekly attempt to answer the questions that get stuck in your head and refuse to leave. Tonight's one is this: in a world of GPS, Google Maps and instant tracking, why are we still relying on bits of colourful fabric to tell us who and where we are? Do we actually still need flags in the 21st century? Joining Emile to fly the flag for flags, and possibly put us sceptics in our place, is vexillologist Brian Cham.

  • Tuesday · 15 min

    The Dial-Up with Anna Rawhiti-Connell 

    It's time for us to get up to speed. To tune into the zeitgeist. To chat about what's happening in pop-culture and the world wide web. Joining us tonight, for our regular segment on Nights, it's the Dial-Up with Anna Rawhiti- Connell.

  • Tuesday · 5 min

    How mess can make life easier

    Cast your mind back to 2014 - Marie Kondo released the English-language version of her book, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up, and posed that now-infamous question, "does this spark joy," which guided homes around the globe in their quest to declutter. It leant into the philosophy that clutter can get in the way of the life you want. But new research by my next guest suggests there are some major upsides to mess and it can even make life easier. So, should we be embracing our stuff? Dr. Jam

  • Tuesday · 16 min

    We're passing on the pints – but just how sober are we?  

    You've heard the stories, the hospitality sector in crisis, nobody's drinking anymore, on one hand hurrah, the world capital of binge drinking is growing up. On the other, oh dear. Nobody knows how to socialise anymore, Gen Z is condemned to pass through life listless singletons melting their brains with AI slop, rather than ethanol. The narratives are seductive, they probably reinforce our own individual biases to some degree - but what does the data tell us about how New Zealanders in this yea

  • Friday · 9 min

    A HUGE geocaching event is happening in Nelson this weekend

    Geocaching is a popular global game where participants hunt down hidden containers - called "geocaches" or "caches". There are more than 3 million of them hidden around the world - in far flung places. This weekend, the the biggest New Zealand geocaching event of the year is drawing players from far and wide. Hundreds of new caches have been placed around the wider Nelson region - some urban and some much harder to find. Top of the South Cachefest organiser Chris Hooker tells Susana all about it

  • October 22 · 18 min

    Spooky stories from the capital

    Whether we believe in them or not, why do ghost stories fascinate us? What is it about the supernatural and spooky which gets us going? Historian Amanda McVitty is hosting a series of ghost talks at the Thistle Inn for the Wellington Heritage Festival this month and she'll be be bringing the capital's spooky colonial history to life. Amanda speaks to Susana.

  • October 22 · 10 min

    How to build a better world

    The University of Otago's MindJam is returning to Queenstown this weekend, with academics from its Division of Humanities getting together to tackle the big questions, share a few ideas and head off on some thought-provoking tangents. Associate professor Grace Moore is chairing proceedings. She speaks to Susana.

  • October 22 · 12 min

    Short-cuts with Dan Slevin

    Dan talks about what he's been watching, including Tenzing (Apple), The Last Lighthouse (YouTube) and Klara and The Sun (in cinemas).

  • October 22 · 9 min

    Politics chat with Natalia Albert

    It’s time for our semi-regular politics catch-up with political scientist, writer, thinker and former deputy leader of The Opportunities Party, or TOP as it was known then, Natalia Albert. Tonight, we’re looking at why this election has become so complicated, with coalition possibilities, electorate seats and some particularly tricky MMP maths all making it harder to work out what government we could end up with.

  • October 22 · 10 min

    Looking at Auckland through the eyes of tamariki

    What happens when you take the artwork of 179 Auckland children and bring it to life on a massive scale? Windows of Imagination does exactly that, transforming their drawings into a colourful animated projection on the southern façade of Te Waihorotiu Station, giving us a glimpse of Auckland through the eyes of its tamariki. 

  • October 22 · 14 min

    Dinosaurs have arrived in Aotearoa

    A new dinosaur exhibition, which takes visitors back around 68 million years, opens at Auckland Museum this weekend. Susana speaks to Victoria Travers, Director of Audience Experience at Auckland Museum.

Showing 1–20 of 170 episodes