Articles from ‘elocal magazine’

Could you imagine being able to "feel" the images on your screen? UCSB researchers have made this sci-fi-like idea a reality. They've developed a display where pixels physically rise off the surface when activated by laser light. Even our most advanced screens today have a limitation that makes them distinctly still feel like, well, screens: they're flat. They can display entire worlds with a level of detail that just a couple of decades ago…

Not too long ago, the Peugeot 103 was ruling the streets of France. These were "pedal-and-pop" bikes, meaning they required the rider to pedal them for the two-stroke 50cc engine to kick in. And you didn’t even need a license – since they were limited to around 28 mph (45 km/h) – so they were all the rage back then. Now, after five decades, Peugeot has revived the nameplate as an electric moped. And unlike most revivals, the 103 still retains a…

Te Tai Tokerau MP Mariameno Kapa-Kingi has insisted her electorate overspend was authorised, saying her office had an agreement to provide support to Tāmaki Makaurau MP Takutai Tarsh Kemp (who passed away in June) while Kemp was unwell. · Party president John Tamihere flatly rejects that such an agreement ever existed. · In High Court filings, the party states there was no approval from Kemp for Kapa-Kingi to draw on Tāmaki Makaurau resources,…

Christmas wouldn’t be Christmas without all the traditional trimmings and sides – the very best roasties, oozy veg bakes, gorgeous greens, gravy and more. · This stunning salad or traybake if you want to be fancy, is both a visual spectacle on the Christmas table that is sure to get you appreciation, it is also a gastronomic feast! Ingredients: · - 4 cups butternutsquash, peeled and cubed - 3 cups Brussels sprouts, trimmed and halved - 2…

The government has launched its new Govt.nz app, marketed as a convenient place to find information, bookmark services, and receive emergency alerts. · However, the real transformation arrives next year. Minister for Digitising Government Judith Collins told RNZ’s Morning Report that digital driver’s licences and other identity credentials will be added once legislation passes early in 2026. The identity functions cannot go live until then. ·…

There is something undemocratic in a society of machines. Men receive more or less power, honor, and esteem because of their capacity to purchase the use of certain devices—not because of who they are. The capacity to “go camping” proves to a man and his fellows that his access to this or that machine is not a cheat or a fraud, but an aid and assistance to an underlying skill that he really does have. In the midst of untold luxuries, families…

After a difficult 2025 marked by recession and slow activity, New Zealand’s economy is showing broad signs of stabilisation and budding recovery — not just in isolated sectors, but across the board, according to KiwiBank’s latest economic outlook. 📉 · KiwiBank Economic Commentary — 13 November 2025 · Interest Rates Have Reached Supportive Levels · Economists at KiwiBank highlight that interest rates are now much lower than they were this…

A Market Gently Waking Up - For the first time in a long while, the signals coming from the economy, the banks and everyday buyers are starting to all line up at the same time. It is not a boom. It is not even a surge. But it is a clear shift away from the uncertainty that has weighed on the property market for the past three years. The latest ASB Housing Confidence Survey sums it up neatly: buyers now see conditions as the most favourable in…

For nearly her entire life, Victoria, Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and Empress of India, kept a diary detailing royal life, world affairs, political intrigue and even her passion for her husband, Prince Albert. Starting in 1832 when she was 13, Victoria wrote nearly every day for nearly 69 years—sometimes jotting thousands of words at a time and occasionally studding the pages with her own drawings and watercolors.…

The government has formally rejected every recommendation from the Climate Change Commission to toughen New Zealand’s long-term emissions targets. · Climate Minister Simon Watts confirmed the decision, despite the Commission warning climate impacts are arriving “sooner and more severely than expected” and that New Zealand “can and should be doing more.” · The coalition had already signalled it would soften the methane target. The government has…