





At least not for the reasons that most people think. Mona Lisa has often been credited for both her beauty and mystery, unarguably one of Leonardo Da Vinci’s most famous pieces. However, visually, it’s not even one of his more provoking works. I myself am partial to his sketches (even those that remain unfinished) that greatly demonstrate his position as a polymath, rather

Super Bot Flat getting boring? Everyone sitting around staring at their phones? It’s time to introduce a game that has existed in parts of the country for a long time: Super Bot. This game requires equal parts skill, luck, and poor decision-making. What you need: How to play: Step one is simple; everyone finishes their drinks. Once

decorum; diaphonized let them lave up the cerebellum with soap build up phellum, genetic armor, mi amor! you can cope, leave that man, but you know you never can he’s the cylinder for worms and the cameras at cannes w ash while you rot and pour bodies on the froth niagra of viagra in the vice-cubes of hoth caught

Q: Should I change tutorials because there are no cute guys in the one I’m in? A: Yes absolutely. Jk, but having people in your tutorial you enjoy the company of can be 50/50. The most important thing in your tutorial is of course to work on your learning and assignments, but I know the

Matcha mania has taken the world by storm. What was once a ritual beverage consumed exclusively at tea ceremonies has quickly become a global sensation. Across the world, matcha’s bright green colour, earth aroma, and slightly bitter taste have captured the taste buds of millions. But when have you ever stopped to ask: what exactly is

If you were at the university’s clubs day during Week 1, you may have seen the Young Nats and Labour tents staring each other down. As an avid watcher of Parliament TV, I can tell you that things got even more intense when it came to discussing smoking and vaping policies in the debating chamber. During

Overnight the once “white boy of every month” turned into a filler crush no one remembers past February, a scrawny second-string Seamus Lohery knockoff with a French name and zero wattage – torched his arty girl fanbase by shitting on ballet and opera in a CNN/Variety Town Hall with Matthew McConaughey. A man who has literally fucked a

¿Sabes qué me rompe las bolas? Cuando alguien me dice, seguro con tu acento tenés alto levante. Y dejando de lado si esto es verdad o no, si realmente trae algún beneficio práctico, el comentario en sí ya me está diciendo algo, porque no están hablando de mí, no están hablando de mi

The National Party has proposed a bill to disestablish the Ministry for the Environment. It will then merge with the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development and the Ministry of Transport. The bill was introduced on the 16th of February and went through its first reading on the 19th. The

Nietzsche may be the most misunderstood Philosopher. His name often generates a general sense of unease and controversy. Some of said controversy is a necessary backlash which befalls all radical thinkers, a sort of conservative pearl clutching at ones own cultural values. The controversies surrounding Nietzsche often involve his sexism, link to Nazism

Deputy Vice Chancellor Academic, Jennifer Milam, sits down with Nexus to explain her horrifically long job title, and now we think she’s too funny and cool to work for the uni. 1. What do you do at the University? As Deputy Vice Chancellor Academic, I am responsible for all aspects of the student experience and

Left: When we are asking ourselves if the name Hamilton should be reverted to its Māori name Kirikiriroa, we need to think about what it represents and who is affected by it most. Yes, the city under the name of Hamilton has a lot of history, and the name has become ingrained in

ACT’s newest policy is giving students false hope for cheaper study costs. Under its proposed tertiary policy, students would be able to opt out of paying Student Services Fees, which currently help everything from our health services to UniRec to this very magazine. ACT argues this would give students more

Over the past decade trust in the media has declined. I think this has moved beyond postmodern scepticism, so I’ve written a bit about how technology influences culture and reminded you all that we’re getting fucked by AI. I believe the gap between media’s representation of truth and reality itself

For issue 12 I wrote an editorial telling you to use academic jargon and the language of your field of study in your assignments. Here’s more unsolicited advice for writing assignments. There’s something I’ve noticed to be constant across my assignments, papers, and the fields I’ve studied. Virtually every assignment wants you to apply a framework to

The best decision I ever made as someone in their early (to mid) twenties was to stop caring what other people think. And that’s not to say I’m perfect at it but I try to focus on me and only me. I don’t care if my outfits fit the trends; here at Nexus, I write what I want to write. I take uni papers that

University students have become experts at being busy. We juggle lectures, assignments, jobs, internships, clubs, relationships, side hustles, and somehow try to maintain a social life in between. If you’re not exhausted, it almost feels like you’re doing something wrong. Somewhere along the way, we’ve started wearing stress like a badge of honour. The advice we’re usually given falls into two

The following is based on anonymous reports from teaching staff and students, my personal opinion, and a healthy helping of speculation. We cannot find any evidence this is certainly happening; there is no uni statement or policy I could find from a google search. However, if the university is mandating that teaching staff include AI in their

Citing McGall’s recent work – seminal in the intersection of nexus thought and academic meta discourse – this paper outlines strategy for furthering one’s linguistic execution in the context of undergraduate scholarship. Positing a reductive angle, sharpened by a pragmatic approach, this article cuts through the academic noise and offers advice both

The proposed Definitions of Woman and Man bill seeks to define a woman as “an adult human biological female” and a man as “an adult human biological male” in the Legislation Act (2019). Its explanatory note claims the purpose is to “protect the integrity of sex-based rights” and ensure language reflects “biological reality.”

On Friday the 8th of May New Zealand’s beacon of austerity, Nicola Willis, confirmed what NZ First gerontocrat Winston Peters had leaked on Newstalk ZB, that fees free will be scrapped in the upcoming budget. Our very own iron lady shared that “We will have more to say about this in

So far this year, international affairs has been consumed by the USA and Isreal targeting Iran, however, the genocide on Palestine hasn’t ended just because Isreal is occupied elsewhere. The scale of suffering in Gaza Strip right now demands attention to what daily life has become for Palestinians still living through the

Japan is turning footsteps into energy… jk. But that’s an example of one of the many ways AI is enclosing the internet. We, as young people, have seen its slow creep into our lives, from uncanny AI generated images to Russian bots celebrating Putin’s gains in the Donbas. But old people haven’t. They haven’t grown up

Toby gave me 48 hour notice to write this editorial because he didn’t want to do it so now I’m going to convince you to study humanities: When choosing a degree pathway, one question remains: Is the humanities dying? The rise of STEM fields being framed as practical, employable subjects intensify this narrative. Yet, beneath this rhetoric lies

Aries: please break up with your shitty boyfriend, he’s ruining your life dude. Taurus: if you need life advice, refer to the lorde x jack antonoff lore slideshow. it knows all. Leo: it’s time to confess your sins on a piece of paper in a park, and then smoke three

Now, I will admit that even though a random audit is supposed to be going into a class you have ZERO business being in, I kind of do have a slight amount of business here. Sue me, you’re going to hear about an english paper from an english and writing

Strokes frontman Julian Casablancas holds a special place in my heart. When I was highkey fat and horrifically depressed in highschool, I mean like completely miserable – I had a nose pimple and my crush called me Rudolph – sitting in the library and letting my Spotify shuffle through Room

Your horoscope your pop culture moment Aries: ‘beefin’ wit my chick while I’m in jail’ Cancer: The time Charli D’amelio thought the #HereForCharli movement was about her Aquarius: ‘she’s got… PTSD, or, whatever. Post traumatic… Downs Syndrome’ Sagitarius: ‘ninnies on the glass, ninnies on the glass’ Gemini: ‘Stop sign?? What

Ingredients: Method:

It’s important to note that ‘girl dinner’ is extremely subjective. It is different for everyone, and varies on your levels of energy, motivation, finances, and total personal value (amongst others). That being said, let’s get into my personal dinner. Playlist: Do not listen to any music, just open Spotify and

When we were friends is The Backseat Lovers’ 2019 debut album, an indie, slightly pop-rocky-y lyrical exploration of being 18-20, learning about people and the world, and having wonderful experiences whilst being not too sure on what to think of them. The album opens with ‘Watch Your Mouth’, a song about wanting to help someone you love get through something, before


It is the first week back at uni (yay) and I had nothing better to do. Actually that is a lie, I was assigned three practicals on my first day back that I had to complete by the end of the week but instead of doing that, I decided to attend a random lecture. You’re welcome.

Aries: Have you thought about cancelling that gym membership? When was the last time you actually went? Cancer: Do not go anywhere near the library stairs this week. You will be cursed to fall down them. Aquarius: Consider the fact that doing the readings for class might actually help you pass whatever you’re

Best songs with colours in the title Back to Black: Amy Winehouse Black Hole Sun: Soundgarden Brown Sugar: The Rolling Stones Red Moon: Big Thief Orange Show Speedway: Lizzy McAlpine Big Yellow Taxi: Joni Mitchell Yellow ledbetter: Pearl Jam Green Light: Lorde Blue Monday: New Order Purple Rain: Prince Pink + White: Frank Ocean


In today’s day and age, when you step out into the public world, you’re very likely to see an array of people clutching an array of drinks that all have one thing in common: caffeine. You’re probably holding one yourself, whether it’s a hot coffee spewing steam, a cold coffee

In the hours following the attack at Berlin’s Christopher Street Day Pride celebrations, the focus of public conversation shifted with remarkable speed. Before many people knew the names of those injured or understood the impact on Berlin’s LGBTIQ+ community, headlines were already highlighting one particular detail: the alleged attacker’s links

Since pride month has finally ended, it’s appropriate to talk about what’s happening to bisexual women in queer internet spaces at the moment. Since the 1980s, there has been an observable rift between bisexual women that date men and lesbians, which has been recently revived on social media. I sat down with Sonja Ellis, a professor

A New Plymouth primary school has phased out the use of iPads for students in years one to four. Omata School was one of the first in the country to adopt the use of devices in the classroom, but Principal Karen Brisco is now not so convinced that they are

Scroll through social media for five minutes and you’ll find a new body to aspire to. One creator swears by becoming a “muscle mommy,” another insists Pilates is the secret to a lean physique, while someone else claims marathon training transformed their body and life. Alongside these fitness trends come equally viral

Sup Matt! Tell us a bit about yourself and your time at Nexus? I used to write a column called ‘Making living cheaper with Honest Matt’. It was dodgy (borderline criminal) financial advice for poor students. I won columnist of the year for 2012 and got really drunk at House. Also, that

Maiki Sherman has resigned from her role as political editor for 1News at TVNZ. That’s the headline, but it’s not the full picture. The circumstances surrounding her resignation have been only one part of an ecosystem of muddied waters that now make up the relationship between Parliament, the media, and the New Zealand

There is no hiding the association university has with stress; deadlines, class, and the pending doom of an uncertain future have always been part of student life. But for many students in Aotearoa, that experience is increasingly being replaced by exhaustion. Between rising rents, grocery prices, transport costs, and tuition

The tumultuous history of deciding who pays for university The University of Waikato opened in1964, and its students back then had a much different experience financing university than we do today. From 1962 until 1989, the government paid for tertiary tuition fees in full with the state bursary. As the story often goes, all good things

It’s not much of a secret that online gambling has seen a rise in popularity in the last few years, especially with the younger generation. The technology being offered today means you can gamble from anywhere you can find a connection, anytime you want, on whatever device you’re using. It’s convenient, accessible, and marketed as entertainment suited

Content warning: mentions of sexual violence, drug use and suicide The popularisation of looksmaxxing has opened a gaping glory hole in the manosphere – ironically by some of the most homophobic people on the internet. Looksmaxxing, a portmanteau of ‘looks’ and ‘maximising’, is the idea and practice of improving one’s physical appearance through a variety of

At some point in the early 21st century, it became clear that the cultural mood had shifted. The ironic detachment that defined late 20th-century art and thought – so central to postmodernism – no longer felt sufficient in a world shaped by climate anxiety, digital hyperconnectivity, and renewed political urgency. Yet a return to

The South Island finally gets shitty weather: Thank God it’s passed us and gone down there. We did not need more rain this year, but the flooding looks horrific. Sorry for laughing at you, Otago. China warns New Zealand about upcoming missile tests in the Pacific: Of course our Prime Minister was chill with this. Put your mouth where

The Audit Office has responded to an Official Information Act request regarding the changes to the Healthy School Lunches programme. The changes were proposed in 2024 by Associate Minister for Education David Seymour, and rolled out over 2025. The original Healthy School Lunches programme was expected to cost between $5.78 and $8.62 a lunch
As students continue to navigate rising living costs, growing student debt and the government’s decision to end the first-year Fees Free scheme, tertiary education has become a major election issue. To discuss what these changes mean for students and why young people should pay attention this election, Aoife sat down

I naïvely had hoped anti-immigration rhetoric wouldn’t reach Aotearoa as it has in other countries. Over the past year I have been proven wrong. It’s hard to see hate winning over a country I once had so much pride in, at least a very vocal demographic make it seem that way. I was born

On the 20th of May, ACT member of parliament David Seymour announced on his Facebook account that ACT would be directly supporting the movement of the controversial ‘Man and Woman’ bill through parliament. Promoted as a feminist movement, the bill seeks to define transgender people under their biological sex in

Finance Minister Nicola Willis delivered Budget 2026without any election-year giveaways. The Government has spent months preparing New Zealanders for what is one of the tightest budgets in years. Rather than major new spending programmes, the focus was on controlling government debt, returning the books to surplus, and funding a small number of priority areas. For students, that may

Max Verstappen takes a podium in Montreal: No one understands how much this means to me. The battle between him and Hamilton was class, and we got a podium out of it too. The Red Bull comeback might be coming sooner than we thought. Crusaders horse spooks at home game: Look,

Four people who’ve never voted or voted but didn’t care sit in a room and learn about politics, so you don’t have to. This week: Housing and Rentals. Labour ACT National Greens NZ First Te Pāti Māori Opportunity Party Responses: Lauren: Filly: Due to my current situation, what Labour is proposing sounds really good to me, one of my end goals has always been buying a house for my fam, so any support to help me

Thousands of public servants to lose their jobs, saving the government billions. Good to see that the government’s solution to being in crippling debt is to fire the people that literally operate the country. Another great example of why they are a one term government. Couple Devastated after uninsured pirate ship catches on fire and sinks

By Nexus Magazine – additional reporting done by Nexus Interns Tomas Richly and Hailey Reece Mid-Trimester restructures at the Waikato School of Design have led to tears, panic and at least ten students scrambling to find 100-hour internships in the last three weeks of the Trimester. According to a University spokesperson the

Missing Hotel Guest found inside huge crocodile airlifted from river Oh so this is a real thing that happens? You can actually get swallowed whole by a creature? Thank god we don’t have crocodiles here, because if we did I’d never touch a body of water again in my life. Pierre Gasly dramatically flips after a crash with Liam Lawson I’m not religious, but thank

We sent Dylan to talk to Campus Chaplin and genuinely good human Brother Andew. Or at least we planned to. We were curious as to ‘Brother A’s response to Trump reposting AI generated images and Pete Hegseth quoting fake scripture from Tarantino. Dylan wisely opted out of entering a house or worship in fear of

Rating: 5/5 Elle Fanning hit AppleTV+ with her boobs out shocking screens everywhere with her new TV series Margo’s Got Money Troubles and honestly, I’m impressed. This show has the most stacked cast I’ve ever seen and for the first time in a long time, I have no notes. The title character, Margo (Elle Fanning) gets her

Rating: -2/5 Released on June 5th, Malcolm Todd’s newest album Do That Again is good but not great. While his last album included a host of unique yet nostalgic, genre-blurring tracks, this one feels like the same mellow tune done 13 ways. Featuring singles “Breathe” and “I Saw Your Face”, the release follows a pattern

Rating: -3/5 With a cast that has been absolutely phenomenal performing their characters through all five seasons (Shoutout to Kiwi actors Antony Starr as Homelander and Karl Urban as Billy Butcher, two men I’d call daddy any day), The Boys began as a contender for being one of the greatest superhero TV

Rating: 3/5 Hooked by Asako Yuzuki is a perfect example of how interesting it can be to read a work initially written in a different language, for a completely different audience. The novel follows two women plagued by the ailment of loneliness. They become each other’s only female friends, but for

Rating: 4/5 Bisexuals and depressed 20-something-year-olds all found themselves at Spark Arena to join The Neighbourhood on their first show in Aotearoa. And the American alt-rock band did not disappoint. The biggest let down of the night was the crowd, they just did not catch the vibe. You always get the popular songs

Rating: -3 Anybody with a smidgen of foresight might have come to the conclusion ages ago that a group of teenage Swedes, hopped off on codeine and zombie-marching (complimentary) through the snow, almost single-handedly carving out a new direction for sound totally full of childish wonder were always going to lose

Rating: 3/5 The Long Game by Rachel Reid is a deeply emotional and satisfying sequel that proves you too, can make it out of situationship territory. Reid takes the chemistry, humour, and devotion that made Heated Rivalry beloved and pushes the relationship into more complex territory, exploring the toll of secrecy, mental health struggles, and the

Rating: 2/5 Based on a series of books by Elle Kennedy, Off Campus is Prime’s newest sultry, hockey romance show that is guaranteed to fill the Heated Rivalry-shaped-hole in your heart. The show follows the unexpected romance between music major Hannah Wells and hockey captain Garrett Graham, weaving an entertaining web of friendship,

Rating: 5/5 I initially considered and was asked whether I wanted to review this game as part of my Revealing Reviews column. Truth be told, there is nothing more satirical I can write than the actual game itself. A sequel to the original Tomodachi Life game released by Nintendo in 2013, is

Rating: 1/5 Directed by Gore Verbinski, the 2016 movie A Cure For Wellness is arguably one of the more fucked up things I’ve ever seen, and that’s coming from a horror/thriller fanatic. The story follows Lockhart, a young businessman, who is sent to retrieve a CEO from a wellness retreat set inside a castle in the Swiss Alps. Lockhart’s task proves

Rating: -1/5 Brace yourselfs, spell check is OFF, Dignity is GONE and im Disylesic AF (hopefully someone makes it readable). so i picked up this book called Hairy Maclary from Donaldsons Dairy and straight away I knew I was in for something off We start with this scruffy little lad, Hairy Maclary (already sounds like a bloke

Rating: 4/5 Did anyone else do this constantly as a kid? And when is everyone going to admit that we – yes we, I know I’m not alone in this – still do so?? There are only two types of people in this world: people who pretend they’re manipulating the elements (or actually do… I believe you),

I’ll just come right out and say it. If there were no extra financial support for education, I would not be attending university right now. Many tauira don’t have the luxury of a safety net or financial stability. Many come from homes that don’t have an extra $20 to spare. Back in the dark ages, in

Tauira Māori on campus Māne (Monday) Tūrei (Tuesday) Wenerei (Wednesday) Hoki atu ki tō kāinga – Just go home Nā Elyse Rahiri Only a quarter of the way through the year and already most of us are feeling a bit pau te hau. Getting back into the swing of study can be overwhelming and even worse if you have people pleasing tendencies, don’t say

Tauira Māori on campus Tūrei (Tuesday) Wenerei (Wednesday) Taite (Thursday) Te Waiora – Rā Hākinakina | Gate 2b – 4:30 pm Reo Māori Phrases of the Week Kia ora koutou! Here are some useful everyday Reo Māori phrases to help you talk about holidays, whānau, and what you’ve been up to. COLUMN I tōku whānau tokorua ōku kuia, noho tahi ai. Arā, ko tōku kuia a toto nei, me te kuia o tōku ngākau. Ko te rongo o te aroha, kāore i rerekē. He tirohanga Māori tēnei. Ahakoa te momo aroha,

By now you’ve probably heard we’ve got a new name. We’re still WSU, but now we also carry our ingoa Māori, Te Awa Kōtui. This didn’t happen overnight. WSU has been working towards an ingoa Māori that truly reflects us and our tauira for a long time, across multiple boards. I also want to acknowledge the presidents, vice presidents, VP Māori, and life members who contributed

Kia ora, my name is Anaia Rua, and I am from Ngāi Tūhoe & Ngāti Awa. In the following piece, I reflect on the profound connection shared between Aotearoa and our relatives from Hawai’i during the “He Kura Tūroa” wānanga. He Kura Tūroa: Relatives Across the Pacific He ahurea te taiao, he taiao te ahurea. The environment is the culture, the culture is the

A question I heard recently has been sitting with me: can tikanga evolve in a modern world? It came up during a kōrero between a group of tauira, and it sparked a lot of reflection for me about what I’ve been taught and how I understand tikanga today. For many people, tikanga is

There’s a strong Māori presence on campus and plenty happening this week, from Cultural Hour to weekly wānanga and study spaces. If you want to meet other tauira, build your reo, or spend time in a Māori space between classes, there are kaupapa running across campus. Keep an eye on… Te whakahiapo – Maori law students association – @te_whakahiapo