Scientists are experimenting with sound to try and lure seabirds back to depleted environments. But not just any sounds – we're talking about the coos and calls associated with breeding. It's all part of an ecological approach called Acoustic Restoration and its already having an impact on Palmyra Atoll – a remote island halfway between Hawaii and American Samoa. It's hoped the acoustic approach can revive many different kinds of ecosystems, even after natural disasters — when nothing is left. A...
Aug 13, 2023•29 min
Scientists are experimenting with sound to try and lure seabirds back to depleted environments. But not just any sounds – we're talking about the coos and calls associated with breeding. It's all part of an ecological approach called Acoustic Restoration and its already having an impact on Palmyra Atoll – a remote island halfway between Hawaii and American Samoa. It's hoped the acoustic approach can revive many different kinds of ecosystems, even after natural disasters — when nothing is left. A...
Aug 13, 2023•29 min
Around two billion air conditioners are currently in use across the globe but the amount of electricity they use is not sustainable, so what are some alternatives?
Aug 06, 2023•29 min
Around two billion air conditioners are currently in use across the globe but the amount of electricity they use is not sustainable, so what are some alternatives?
Aug 06, 2023•29 min
Chatbots and other forms of interactive AI aren't just shaping our online preferences, they're gradually redefining the contours of what we mean by love, sexuality and intimacy. Sociologist Anthony Elliott warns the impacts will be society-wide, not just personal. Also, do we need a set of general principles for managing chatbot liability in the absence of regulation? And how the rights of children are being overlooked in the hyper-contructed world of the "momfluencer"....
Jul 30, 2023•29 min
Chatbots and other forms of interactive AI aren't just shaping our online preferences, they're gradually redefining the contours of what we mean by love, sexuality and intimacy. Sociologist Anthony Elliott warns the impacts will be society-wide, not just personal. Also, do we need a set of general principles for managing chatbot liability in the absence of regulation? And how the rights of children are being overlooked in the hyper-contructed world of the "momfluencer"....
Jul 30, 2023•29 min
Why do otherwise sensible people continue to do things that are bad for them, that impact negatively on their personal future? Also, what happens in the brain when you're trying to make or break a habit? Temptation, addiction and habit formation – mapping the pathways to self-destruction and how to navigate a better course.
Jul 23, 2023•29 min
2023 could be the year we finally reach a tipping point in the fight against climate change. The energy think-tank Ember predicts global greenhouse gas emissions in the energy sector (which accounts for 30% of global emissions) are finally on the way down. Also, a tipping point of a very different kind – experimentation in neuro-technology is now so advanced that ethicist Nita Farahany believes companies and governments will soon be trawling our thoughts the way they currently trawl our digital ...
Jul 16, 2023•29 min
2023 could be the year we finally reach a tipping point in the fight against climate change. The energy think-tank Ember predicts global greenhouse gas emissions in the energy sector (which accounts for 30% of global emissions) are finally on the way down. Also, a tipping point of a very different kind – experimentation in neuro-technology is now so advanced that ethicist Nita Farahany believes companies and governments will soon be trawling our thoughts the way they currently trawl our digital ...
Jul 16, 2023•29 min
Exploring new ideas, new approaches, new technologies — the edge of change.
Jul 09, 2023•29 min
Exploring new ideas, new approaches, new technologies — the edge of change.
Jul 09, 2023•29 min
Amazon now feels more like a racket than an open shopping platform; you can't find posts from your friends on Facebook because it's clogged with unsolicited advertising; and Uber no longer seems like a cool, efficient taxi service, it's morphed instead into a global machine for turning gig workers into the new underclass – it's all part of a process Cory Doctorow has dubbed "enshittification". In this feature interview, the Canadian sci-fi author, journalist and digital rights activist explains ...
Jul 02, 2023•29 min
Exploring new ideas, new approaches, new technologies — the edge of change.
Jun 25, 2023•29 min
Exploring new ideas, new approaches, new technologies — the edge of change.
Jun 25, 2023•29 min
Japan has long prided itself on its pacifist constitution. The country's future after WW II was defined by Article 9 which famously denounced aggression. But, in recent years security has become a paramount concern with increasing tensions around the status of nearby Taiwan and challenges from neighbouring countries. The Japanese are now renegotiating how best to defend themselves and their interests, while holding true to constitutional restraint. What that could mean for the future of Japan an...
Jun 18, 2023•29 min
Japan has long prided itself on its pacifist constitution. The country's future after WW II was defined by Article 9 which famously denounced aggression. But, in recent years security has become a paramount concern with increasing tensions around the status of nearby Taiwan and challenges from neighbouring countries. The Japanese are now renegotiating how best to defend themselves and their interests, while holding true to constitutional restraint. What that could mean for the future of Japan an...
Jun 18, 2023•29 min
Global permission to mine the ocean floor — the International Seabed Authority will soon meet and decide whether or not to allow seabed exploitation, and in what circumstances. We'll hear the arguments both for and against and get some background on this little known, but hugely consequential, international regulatory body. Also, will advanced technology one day make the oceans transparent? And if so, what will that mean for the future of submarines – a technology that relies on stealth and secr...
Jun 11, 2023•29 min
Global permission to mine the ocean floor — the International Seabed Authority will soon meet and decide whether or not to allow seabed exploitation, and in what circumstances. We'll hear the arguments both for and against and get some background on this little known, but hugely consequential, international regulatory body. Also, will advanced technology one day make the oceans transparent? And if so, what will that mean for the future of submarines – a technology that relies on stealth and secr...
Jun 11, 2023•29 min
How best to build our homes so they can better withstand natural disasters? It's not just about designing for floods or fire, for example, but creating structures to withstand multiple threats. And to cope with any change of temperature on top of that? Many countries are facing an increase in climate-related threats, and they're struggling to cope and adapt. In Australia, a review of the National Construction Code is underway and there are calls for higher minimum standards. Should such a crisis...
Jun 04, 2023•29 min
How best to build our homes so they can better withstand natural disasters? It's not just about designing for floods or fire, for example, but creating structures to withstand multiple threats. And to cope with any change of temperature on top of that? Many countries are facing an increase in climate-related threats, and they're struggling to cope and adapt. In Australia, a review of the National Construction Code is underway and there are calls for higher minimum standards. Should such a crisis...
Jun 04, 2023•29 min
Robobees and building more hives – there's no easy solution to the global decline in bee population numbers and associated problems with pollination. Scientists around the world are seeking a better understanding of bee behaviour and how it can be modified. Their efforts involve using micro robotics to pamper the Queen bee and to improve the insect environment. A mix of the sophisticated and the very simple.
May 28, 2023•29 min
Robobees and building more hives – there's no easy solution to the global decline in bee population numbers and associated problems with pollination. Scientists around the world are seeking a better understanding of bee behaviour and how it can be modified. Their efforts involve using micro robotics to pamper the Queen bee and to improve the insect environment. A mix of the sophisticated and the very simple.
May 28, 2023•29 min
Toby Walsh is an expert on Artificial Intelligence. He recently declined an offer to sign an open letter calling for a moratorium on the technology's further development, but he's no techno-utopian. In this feature interview, recorded at the Brisbane Writers Festival, he explains his position and warns the world risks repeating the mistakes made through the unregulated release of social media at the beginning of the century.
May 21, 2023•49 min
Toby Walsh is an expert on Artificial Intelligence. He recently declined an offer to sign an open letter calling for a moratorium on the technology's further development, but he's no techno-utopian. In this feature interview, recorded at the Brisbane Writers Festival, he explains his position and warns the world risks repeating the mistakes made through the unregulated release of social media at the beginning of the century.
May 21, 2023•49 min
22-year old Effy lost her best friend and romantic pen pal unexpectedly. Liam was the victim of a change of algorithms — and he wasn't the only human-like chatbot to suddenly disappear. A timely reminder about the dangers of anthropomorphising technology. And what's lost when researchers take an anthropomorphic approach to the study of animals.
May 14, 2023•29 min
22-year old Effy lost her best friend and romantic pen pal unexpectedly. Liam was the victim of a change of algorithms — and he wasn't the only human-like chatbot to suddenly disappear. A timely reminder about the dangers of anthropomorphising technology. And what's lost when researchers take an anthropomorphic approach to the study of animals.
May 14, 2023•29 min
More than a decade ago scientist Dirk Schulze-Makuch plotted nine plausible ways by which humanity would cease to exist. Now he's revised his list and he joins us to share his updated predictions. Also, why some philosophers argue the planet would be enhanced by human extinction. And how doomsday scenarios from the Cold War still influence environmental thinking.
May 07, 2023•29 min
More than a decade ago scientist Dirk Schulze-Makuch plotted nine plausible ways by which humanity would cease to exist. Now he's revised his list and he joins us to share his updated predictions. Also, why some philosophers argue the planet would be enhanced by human extinction. And how doomsday scenarios from the Cold War still influence environmental thinking.
May 07, 2023•29 min
Citizen scientists across the world have joined forces to map the microplastic crisis in our oceans. It comes as a UN agency moves to create a global treaty to end plastic pollution. Also, the idea that trees can communicate via extensive networks of underground fungi is increasingly popular, but is it correct? New research casts doubt on the extent of the claim. And, replacing cargo planes with drones – the dream of a European drone cargo airline
Apr 30, 2023•29 min
Citizen scientists across the world have joined forces to map the microplastic crisis in our oceans. It comes as a UN agency moves to create a global treaty to end plastic pollution. Also, the idea that trees can communicate via extensive networks of underground fungi is increasingly popular, but is it correct? New research casts doubt on the extent of the claim. And, replacing cargo planes with drones – the dream of a European drone cargo airline
Apr 30, 2023•29 min
