John Gibb

Many Dunedin and Otago residents are likely to hear a loud warning sound from their mobile phones on Sunday evening, during a nationwide test of a new emergency alert system.

A University of Otago-based national men's health centre was launched in Dunedin yesterday and director Prof David Baxter hopes it will be a ''game-changer''.

Recent research suggests a ''more effective'' way for GPs to talk to male patients about the health risks posed by obesity.

Dunedin researcher Dr Martha Bell is keen to ensure the grassroots insights of people who lived through the southern Dunedin flood in 2015 are not forgotten.

Healthy human relationships and sexuality are too important to allow pornography to become the ''default'' provider of sex education, Australian educator Maree Crabbe says.

Dunedin footpaths keep getting busier and new etiquettes will be needed among the growing variety of users, a university academic says.

The use of mobility scooters offers "fantastic" benefits,  but a "balancing act" is needed to ensure  beneficial physical activity is also retained.

Big health benefits would be gained if more dietary information was provided  about the effects of some fast foods on blood sugar levels.

Infection prevention specialists yesterday joined forces with the Ministry of Health to develop a national response plan to counter antibiotic-resistant superbugs.

Maintaining good hand hygiene in hospitals remains a crucial tool for reducing microbial infection, Prof Dan Diekema, a United States specialist in infectious disease control, says.

An archaeological exhumation project at a former "forgotten" cemetery near Milton is shining new light on the stark health challenges that faced people living in South Otago in the 19th century.

Economist Prof Mark McGillivray says  much can  be learned from identifying which developing countries "punch above their weight" in producing better health outcomes.

University of Otago economist Associate Prof Stephen Knowles yesterday took issue with some of the UN-backed sustainable development goals, which aim to end world poverty by 2030.

University of Otago Faculty of Law dean Prof Mark Henaghan, Prof Paul Trebilco, Dr Nick Mortimer, and Prof Richard McDowell have been named as fellows of the Royal Society of New Zealand.

Dunedin registrar of electors Dee Vickers is retiring ``on a high'', after the city's voter turnout in the recent general election exceeded 83%, the highest since she began her job in 2005.

The Otago Museum is not resting on its laurels and plans to exceed this year's record number of entries for the annual Otago Wildlife Photography Competition.

About 130 people, including some in prams and a few in wheelchairs, took part in a Dunedin walk yesterday to raise funds to counter motor neurone disease.

The Dean of St Paul’s Cathedral, the Very Rev Dr Trevor James yesterday urged people, on Remembrance Sunday, to "turn away from empty platitudes and patriotic sentimentality".