News 14/7 – Top Designers, Leeks and Penguins

July 14th 2010 at 9:11am, By Dave Guerin

James Dyson Awards The three finalists in the NZ James Dyson Awards have been announced. You can view Tri-Cast, Wanderest and Lucid Wakeboard Binding here. The winner will be announced on 22 July and will go on to the international competition.
Elam’s 60th The University of Auckland’s Elam School of Fine Arts is celebrating the 60th anniversary of its incorporation within the University with an exhibition (of course).
Otago University CornerSometimes there’s just so much news from Otago, it needs it own corner.
- A zoology student is studying possums alongside a bid to rid the Otago Peninsula of possums – great idea, the controls around Wellington have done a really good job.
- A neuroscientist has found a mechanism that might alleaiate the symptoms of motor neurone disease.
- A dental researcher has been given a top international award.
- FRST gave $3.2m to Otago.
- There were 3 couch fires last night at a Castle St party. I saw the party page in someone else’s Facebook update about 7.30 and by then they had already posted a picture of a couch fire and the police.
LeeksWITT chef Denis Duthie has ideas for cooking with leeks.
Dodgy Loan Figures Bomber at Tumeke has picked up on the student loan beatup yesterday about how some students wouldn’t be able to get a loan for a masters, but his commenters have put up some different arguments. I suppose it is possible to run out of loan entitlements if you do a double honours degree prior to your masters, but then again, who really cares?
Penguins Penguins are always popular, so here’s a story about a University of Auckland academic who has studied penguins’ courtship behaviour.