The Panel

A near-record lottery has been won in the US state of South Carolina. The US$1.537 billion jackpot winner has claimed the prize but has not come forward. Meanwhile in China, young rich people have been taking part in a "flaunt your wealth" challenge, where they post pictures of themsleves with all their expensive cars and jewellery. We ask the panelists to what extent money dominates in their lives. What the Panelists Rebekah White and Damian Chistie want to talk about. There has been another pig farming protest at Parliament today. Protestors are against the use of farrowing crates that house sows while they are pregnent. A petition was presented earlier this year. The panelists tell us whether they think about the pork and bacon they buy. Water Safety New Zealand has launched a new research fund into finding out why our country has such a drowning problem. It's the leading cause of recreational death here and our rate is twice that of Australia. Water Safety NZ's Chief Executive Jonty Mills tells us how the money will be used and what they're aiming to discover. Travel publisher Lonely Planet has surprised readers with its latest "Best in Travel" selection, naming Sri Lanka as its top favourite followed by Zimbabwe in number three. Both countries have seen recent spikes in violence. New Zealand is no longer on the Top 10 places. We ask the panelists whether this is about novelty over real tourist preferences. Old people and animals should be sacrificed if an autonomous car crashes a new study has found. When the self-driving cars get into an accident, they'll be forced to decide who should die. They'll be programmed to choose one group over another when deciding where to crash. The issue has become the main ethical probelm for those designing the cars. We ask the panelists what they think.

Suspected bombs have been intercepted on the way to Former US President Obama, former Presidential candidate Hillary Clinton and other high profile Democrats. Officials are calling it an act of terrorism. It comes just weeks before the mid-term elections. The panelists give their view of what the could be the strategy behind this situation. Auckland Mayor Phil Goff has called for an urgent review on the safety issues of the newly introduced electric scooters. There are hundreds of the Lime e-scooters in Auckland and Christchurch and more due to arrive from other companies. Mr Goff is worried about the scooters which can go up to 30 kilometres and hour and can be ridden on footpaths without helmets. The panelists discuss the concerns. The Prime Minister ruled out any other regional fuel taxes while she is in office but there are questions about why councils were preparing applications for them, why Auckland was favoured and how councils will now pay for transport infrastructure. Brad Olsen, economist at Infometrics, answers some of them. Minsiter of Justice Andrew Little says bullying, harrassment and abuse of power are the biggest problems facing New Zealand wokplaces. The Minister has spoken at the Culture Shift conference in Wellington and comes after a number of incidents have been reported in professions across the country this year. We ask the panelists whether they see this culture changing. There was a lot of listener reaction yetserday to the story about the mental health nurse fearful that the man who assaulted her is being returned to where she lives, in a less secure unit. Wendy Hamer was beaten, stabbed and scaled with boiling water. Her attacked was found not quilty by reason of insanity. A listener asked why New Zealand can't adopt the same laws as other countries, where they have verdicst like 'guilty but insane'. ?? weighs in.

The website bored panda has shared some very helpful ways to get other people to do things for you...without them realising that they are.Like getting kids to eat their veggies.

We find the answers to any queries you can think up. Today we answered a question about flowers, Maggie's query about Ruru, and one about water.

After nine years of construction, the world's longest sea bridge will open this week. It connects Hong Kong, Macau and mainland China, but critics say not many people will be able to use it.

Only about 3 percent of people bike to work, will cycling ever reach critical mass here? Or will cycleways become e-roads? E-scooters are now across the country, but some aren't impressed with the scooters.

Mental health nurse Wendy Hamer was stabbed, punched and scalded with boiling water by the man, who was found not guilty by reason of insanity.

What the Panelists Martin Cocker and Victoria Stewart want to talk about.

The first life on Earth may have been purple, a new research paper suggests. The paper in the International Journal of Astrobiology argues that before green plants took energy from the sun, tiny purple organisms reigned.

Waiheke Island taxi drivers are frustrated with Auckland ride-share drivers coming over on the ferry and stealing fares. It's claimed the Auckland drivers pretend to be locals with signs to that effect.