Counterpoint

After the Russian invasion of Ukraine, where to next for democracy and autocracy divide in Europe? What happens when Chinese female students go home after studying abroad. Do we really need to do hard things more often and what do the tn lids have to say about that? 

It doesn't always seem as if China is a part of the real world. Usually, it is seen as representing a different 'other' to us. Why is that? Are you a tolerant person and what does that even mean? Is being tolerant more difficult than being indifferent? When did Australian children get to read about Australian fairy rather than European ones filled with Kings and Queens  and castles? 

Is Russian oil in decline, and if it is, is it the result of the war with Ukraine? One of the distinguishing features of the invasion of Ukraine was the amount of people willing to take up arms to defend their homeland. Would you be prepared to do the same? The 'Plant Destroyer' is here to stay and would be better off thinking of ourselves as Earth's Aunties' and Uncles?

China's rapidly evolving social media industry is being used to influence audiences within and beyond it's territory. How invasive is it and can anything be done? There used to be a bit of a digital regime in Asia, what happened to it? Plus can Indigenous knowledge of fire and the land be called science? How could it not. And might the genetics of ancient tress be the thing that saves them?

In 1990 Boris Yeltsin gave a speech in Kyiv to announce that Ukraine was free at last. What happened? The crises we face today are global in nature and more frequent, do we need a global approach to fix them? Does trashy media really rot your brain? People have being say that it does ever since the invention of the printing press but is it true? Plus the fascinating history and hopeful survival of the nautilis.

In the wake of COVID and the war in Ukraine is it time to rethink global supply chain models? Is the war putting green tech progres in jeopardy? China's populations is shrinking and ageing, what does that mean for China and the world? What does recently discovered children's rock from the Ice Ages tell us about their lives and their place in the family?

Is Myanmar both a tragedy and a wicked problem and what does it mean for the promised 2023 election? If it goes ahead will it be free and fare or a farce? If the US goes to war with China should Australia follow? Perhaps we need to look back to go forward. The fascinating history of the smile, especially in art and is there an alternative to wind farms? Sure is..flying a kite!

What does having a worthwhile life mean? Is it all about academic achievement and a high wage or it something more? How dangerous and how prevalent is piracy in Southeast Asian waters? Hint, just under a half of all pirate attacks so far this year have occurred in these waters. Superhero movies have recently had their share of naysayers but have they got it all wrong? Space is not the vast empty nothingness we think it is. To protect it should we start thinking of space as an eco-system?

Is it time to decolonize Russia? What is the best and worst city to be living in right now? Hint one is Vienna and the other is Damascus. We trust our plumbers but not our politicians, why is that? And the stinging nettle plant, sure the sting has a bite but the potential uses for this plant are endless.

Why has Russia's military been so weak against Ukraine? Is this a new thing or more of a case of ever thus? Antarctica is the most protected and yet the most threatened place on earth. How do we solve this paradox? Did you know that there has been a surge in saltiness in all inhabited continents today. How has it gotten this bad and have we left it too late to do anything? How quickly are wild animals evolving and adapting to problems such as climate change? Quicker than you think.