Sunday Morning for Sunday 18 December 2022

8:10 Dr Padma Gulur: Green eyeglasses and chronic pain

Globally, one person in 50 lives with fibromyalgia. People with fibromyalgia may be more sensitive to pain. It's called abnormal pain perception processing.

Dr Padma Gulur, Professor of Anaesthesiology, and Professor in Population Health Sciences, within the Pain Medicine Division of Duke University in North Carolina has been looking into how green eyeglasses affect chronic pain and pain-related anxiety.

8:35 Dr Pratik Pokharel: Digging deeper on potato research

As many of us plan our potato harvest in time for Christmas, we investigate the humble spud.

In more recent times, potatoes have had a bit of a bad rap having been linked to a higher incidence of Type-2 diabetes. But the spud is back in favour in a new study out of western Australia's Edith Cowan University.

Pratik Pokharel from the Danish Cancer Society Research Centre worked on the study.

8:45 Dr Allan Blackman: The biggest Science breakthroughs of 2022

2022 proved a difficult year for many people in many ways, but as always, in the tide of human affairs it has also seen astounding progress.

We look back at the major science breakthroughs this year with Auckland chemistry professor Dr Allan Blackman.

9:10 Mediawatch

The final Mediawatch for the year looks back at the media in 2022 - and at the sudden reversal of fortunes in the media for the Silicon Valley moguls, as the value of their media assets founders - and their reputations. 

9:35 Calling Home: Nicholas Madden from Windsor Castle

Calling Home this week is Dunedin-born tenor Nicholas Madden.  He’s a Lay Clerk at St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle, and lives in the castle grounds. 

Singing at several Royal events including the funeral of the Duke of Edinburgh, Nick has made quite a name for himself.

10:05 Marko Stamenic: What I’m Listening to.

Marko Stamenic is only 20, but he's playing football against the finest players on the planet, in the UEFA Champions League in Europe, playing for FC Copenhagen.

Marko hails from Stokes Valley, with Samoan and Serbian heritage, and he's back home for a visit and joins us to share a favourite music track.

10:20 Rose Langbein: Something different and delicious for Christmas

We catch up with cook Rose Langbein in Portugal who has a delicious idea for something quick – but still special – for Christmas Dinner.

10:30 Dr Jesse Poganik: Calculating your biological age

How old are you? Evidently that doesn't always depend on how old you think you are. Biological age changes with stress, which many people this year have been under, make that the last three years, but there is good news as well.

Dr Jesse Poganik is a research fellow at the Harvard Medical School.

11:05 Jackson Browne: A lifetime of song writing

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Songwriter’s Hall of Fame inductee Jackson Browne returns to New Zealand in April, with shows in Auckland, Wellington, and Christchurch. 

He joins us to talk about his career, his song writing and trying to make a better world.

11:25 Soon Gweon: Taking a deep dive down the drain

Researchers from the University of Reading and UK Center for Ecology & Hydrology have been investigating more than 250 "restroom sink fungal communities" on a university campus.

Bioinformatician and project leader, Soon Gweon tells us what was lurking down there.

11:35 Dr Pamela Stoodley: Cracking the happiness code

There are so many books about how to be happy. Now there's a new, local one, Cracking the Happiness Code, by a former GP, Dr Pamela Stoodley.

11:45 Anna van Riel: My Current Song

Award-Winning New Zealand Folk Singer & Songwriter, Anna van Riel joins us to introduce her latest song – and it’s right on season.