Where Are We At With...?
A podcast that brings you up to date with the promises of the future, made in the past.
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Where Are We At With Vaccinations?
Vaccines work. The science has repeatedly shown what an incredible impact they have had on diseases, especially those mostly caught in childhood. But some people continue to hold out, due to either the fear-mongering of a few, health-system mistakes by governments, or the potential conflict of corporate interests.
Professor Julie Leask AO from the University of Sydney has spent decades finding out how to change their minds.
Where Are We At With Nuclear Fusion?
Nuclear fusion is the holy grail of power production. It is what powers the Sun and all the stars we see in the night sky.
For the past 80 years, scientists have been saying it's been only 30 years away from being perfected. Except now, with the massive projected electricity demands of AI and the scaling back of fossil fuel use, it could be close to reality.
Our guest is Dr Warren McKenzie, Managing Director of HB11, a small Australian company looking to power the world …
Where Are We At With Food Labelling?
"Frankenfoods". Ultra-processed foods formed in factories, not created in kitchens, make up about half of Australians' nutritional intake. Labelling the food we eat correctly while also letting us know what is healthy and what is going to kill us. Eventually. Dr Alexandra Jones from UNSW and The George Institute for Global Health joins us to help understand Where Are We At With Nutrition and Food Labelling?
Where Are We At With Body (re)Building?
Spring-loaded false teeth, fish-skin grafts, pig-heart transplants and bionic limbs. Just some of the ways we have repaired, replaced or reengineered the human body. Join New York Times multi-best selling author, all time TED-talk top ten speaker, and all-round entertaining person Mary Roach discussing her new book on the topic, "Replaceable You".
(Warning, some pigs may have been harmed when their hearts were removed)
Where Are We At With Koala Chlamydia?
Koalas did not catch chlamydia from humans. Humans can't catch it from koalas either, but we can catch it from birds!
Koala chlamydia often makes people snigger, thinking that the animal symbol of Australia can get what we think of as an STD. But the disease is decimating populations of the fluffy marsupial that are already struggling due to habitat destruction, road deaths and the curse of the feral cat, fox and dog. Not all is lost, however. Professor Peter Timms and his colleagues…
Where Are We At With Climate Science?
Thunderbolt and lightning, very, very frightening, to me, and most of the sane world, given that climate change promises more frequent and intense storms, as well as droughts, and floods.
Forecasters and meteorologists rely on centuries of observations and modelling. Data is now available in exponentially greater volume and distribution and using it are not just humans, but computers with learning Artificial Intelligence that are trying to predict what even a tiny change might do to the w…
Recent Blog Posts
The wonder, and pain, of AI
For authors, it's the cover of the book. For podcasters, it's the show's logo. A creative design that everyone sees the first time they encounter the show. It has to be more than the title, but it also has to give a feel for the theme, character an…
This thing has momentum, and an insatiable appetite.
It's been a long time between drinks. And by drinks I mean productive outputs that aren't just dad jokes, or cooking family dinners. For several years now, a variety of podcast ideas have been flashing, shiny objects flaring in my head, and, in true…
About the Host
Podcast host
David Curnow is an award-winning journalist, newsreader, and television and radio host with more than 20 years’ experience. His endless curiosity, and delight in speaking to smart people about the incredible work they do works hand in hand with the desire to find out what’s going on with all those stories of the next big thing or world-changing technology.
Let’s be honest, journalists and podcasters are all just gossips wanting to be the ones to tell you something. It’s just in this case it’s well worth knowing.