Science & technology

On the beach

Artificial reefs can now be designed to make waves that are perfect for surfing

|AUCKLAND

THERE are waves to be found on every coastline. But truly great waves—the sort, say, that a Hawaiian king would be content to surf on—are sufficiently scarce that in the fifth century the rulers of Hawaii saw fit to set aside certain surfing beaches for their use alone.

This article appeared in the Science & technology section of the print edition under the headline “On the beach”

All sewn up?

From the December 20th 1997 edition

Discover stories from this section and more in the list of contents

Explore the edition

Discover more

Dr Dorothy Bishop.

Elon Musk is causing problems for the Royal Society

His continued membership has led to a high-profile resignation

Legal Amazon preservation area borders the field for soybean planting.

Deforestation is costing Brazilian farmers millions

Without trees to circulate moisture, the land is getting hotter and drier


Robot mixing at Toyota Research Institute.

Robots can learn new actions faster thanks to AI techniques

They could soon show their moves in settings from car factories to care homes


Scientists are learning why ultra-processed foods are bad for you

A mystery is finally being solved

Scientific publishers are producing more papers than ever

Concerns about some of their business models are building

The two types of human laugh

One is caused by tickling; the other by everything else