Professor Aaron Sachs from Cornell University believes that understanding the purpose and form of old American graveyards could help us deal with future urbanisation. It's all about the 'Arcadian ideal'. We also explore the practice of 'analogue forestry' which could provide a new model for reforestation in the developed and developing world. And we go in search of the urban beehive movement.

The human body is breakable, frail, and fallible – and in our current age of robotic and bionic technology, it’s increasingly becoming replaceable. But as the race to develop new replacement bionic body parts quickens, what happens when these parts become stronger, smarter and longer lasting than our own?

From Google Glass to smart watches - wearable technology is currently curving upward on the hype cycle. There are now lots of companies experimenting with embedding sensors and micro-computers into the things we wear. But how much of it is pure gimmickry? And is there a commercial market for the devices?

Convergence is a hot topic in media, communications and the sciences. But what does it actually mean? And are there implications for the way we live in and shape our continually growing cities? These questions and more were raised as part of a special panel discussion recorded in Melbourne for the city's 2013 Knowledge Week.

The idea of having an ideas festival is a popular idea indeed. But the idea that they’re universally ideal as a way of fostering creative new ideas is an idea that’s hotly contested. Andrew Zolli, the curator of PopTech, has an idea that the popularity of the ideas event is linked to the idea that we still need to physically congregate together in order to create and share new ideas, even though we’re increasingly living in a digital age. But critic Eygeny Morovoz thinks Zolli and his ilk simply have no idea. Morozov argues the whole idea of idealising the idea of the idea is, to be quite frank about it, a really bad idea. And, more than that, he argues, it’s an idea whose time has past.

John Amos from SkyTruth talks about his non-profit organisation that aims to use publicly available data from satellites to watch for environmental vandalism.

When it comes to power distribution, the focus of the past has been on building larger and larger electricity grids, but with size comes vulnerability.

Pranksters in the digital age see themselves as an important part of the online environment. The mainstream media may confuse them with trolls and vandals, but the modern prankster has a long tradition dating back hundreds of years.

Does a sense of playfulness underpin the modern world? From information sharing to social activism to business training, the dynamics of play are increasingly important in our rapidly evolving world.

Civic hacking is about using raw government data to build new online applications that help make public services more responsive and accountable. Catherine Bracy from Code for America says it’s about reframing the very nature of government.