It’s nearly a century since it was discovered that the sun and other stars are powered by nuclear fusion. It’s when hydrogen atoms merge to form helium, and release huge amounts of energy.

Since then, scientists have dreamed of reproducing the process here on Earth, with one Nobel Laureate calling it “the sun in a box”.

It holds the promise of virtually limitless energy, with few emissions and waste. But recreating the conditions where fusion can take place are a vast engineering challenge. So how close are we to having a working reactor powered by fusion? And will the process solve all our energy problems?

Presenter: Tanya Beckett

This summer, countries across the world have experienced extreme weather events.

Flash floods have killed people in South Korea, Uganda, Australia and the US state of Kentucky, and heatwaves have broken records across Western Europe, North America and Japan.

However, countries across the world are developing ways to try to tame the weather. China, the UAE and the USA are at the forefront of research into methods of producing rain in drought-stricken areas.

And some scientists are thinking even bigger; investigating technologies which could cool the entire planet.

Contributors:

Presenter: Charmaine Cozier

Image: Hands cradling a lightning storm (Credit: Getty Images)

A recent visit to Taiwan by Speaker of the US House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, has heightened tensions between the US and China. Their relationship is the worst it’s been in decades.

Add to all that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and concerns that China could be contemplating something similar in Taiwan, and it’s time to ask the question: Will the US and China go to war over Taiwan?

Contributors:

Dr Yu Jie, Senior Research Fellow on China, Chatham House

(Photo: China and Taiwan boxing gloves - credit: Getty Images)

Images of queues, huge piles of luggage and even pilots loading their planes with cargo have plagued the media throughout the world. Airports have been in chaos for months as they have attempted to re-emerge from the Covid-19 pandemic, with Europe, the UK and the USA all having suffered the worst of the effects so far. Flight cancelations have played havoc with business travellers and holiday makers alike, and the problem only appears to be getting worse as a whole raft of flights have recently been cancelled in the UK.

All this begs the question, Why are things so bad right now and how do we fix the situation? So this week on the inquiry we ask, Will air travel ever return to normal?

Producer: Ravi Naik and Christopher Blake

Tunisian President Kais Saied has drafted a new constitution for Tunisia that gives him new sweeping powers, including authority over the judiciary and immunity for life from prosecution.

Tunisia was a beacon of hope for democracy after the Arab Spring. The country rid itself of dictator Ben Ali after 24 years of rule and moved to a more democratic system.

Now the country seems to be sliding back towards the one man rule that it has known for generations.

This week on The Inquiry we are asking why Tunisia has turned its back on democracy.

Presenter: Tanya Beckett

(Tunisian presidential Kais Saied in Tunis. BBC Images)

In 2016 Britain voted to leave the European Union. There were warnings that pulling away from the largest trade bloc in the world would be damaging to the UK’s finances. Those that campaigned for Brexit argued it would offer the UK self-determination and the freedom to forge its own trade relationships.

Who was right?

This week on The Inquiry we attempt to disentangle the numbers from the complications of the global pandemic and the war in Ukraine and ask, what impact has Brexit had on the UK’s economy.

Presenter: Tanya Beckett

(image: Trade between UK and EU. Getty images)

Sri Lanka is now in the worst economic crisis they have seen in decades, schools are closed, fuel is in short supply, there are power cuts and a shortage of food. The President has been forced to resign and the political future of the country is uncertain.

But can the current problems be traced back to a decision to take the country’s food production completely organic?

In 2021 the President of Sri Lanka announced a total ban on chemical fertilizer and pesticides. Health concerns were given as a reason, but in the background was the pandemic, loss of tourism and a lack of natural fertilizer available in the country.

After protests the ban on chemical fertilizer was reversed, but had it already caused too much damage?

This week on The Inquiry we ask, did organic farming cause Sri Lanka’s collapse?

Presenter: Charmaine Cozier

(Anti government protesters invade the president's office in Colombo, Sri Lanka. 9 July 22 Credit: Tharaka Basnayaka /Getty Images)

A software engineer called Blake Lemoine has been suspended from Google after claiming an AI chatbot called LaMDA is a person with wishes and rights that should be respected.

He says the chatbot wants to be seen as a google employee, and not as a product. He also calls it his friend.

Google says it's reviewed his concerns and the evidence does not support his claims.

But what exactly is Artificial Intelligence? How does LaMDA work - and is AI capable of felt experience?

On the Inquiry this week, Charmaine Cozier asks, has AI developed consciousness?

Presenter: Charmaine Cozier

This year India has experienced its worst heatwave since records began. The heatwave is estimated to have led to dozens of deaths across the region and led to forest fires and damage to wheat crops.

Health and livelihoods are threatened by the rising temperatures. How much can India adapt to heat that is rising to the limit of human endurance and what needs to be done to mitigate the effects of climate change?

Presenter: Tanya Beckett

(A worker stops for water in scorching heat near India Gate, New Delhi. Credit: Arvind Yadav/ Getty Images)

Each year, Ukraine exports enough food to feed 400 million people around the world. But the Russian invasion has disrupted vital trade routes, trapping an estimated 25 million tonnes of grain in silos around the port city of Odesa.

The African Union describes the situation as a catastrophic scenario, and the UN Secretary General says the shortages could tip millions of people into food insecurity.

But how reliant is the world on Ukrainian – and Russian – grain? What will a shortfall do to the world’s most vulnerable countries?

On the Inquiry this week, Charmaine Cozier asks, has the war in Ukraine sparked a global food crisis?

Producer: Ravi Naik