Conversations

Nuking the moon and mirrors in space—man's wildest attempts to control the weatherNuking the moon, putting mirrors in space and blowing up the Polar ice caps are just some of history's hairbrained schemes to control the weather, an obsession man has had since the dawn of time. As a major heatwave tears through Europe, millions of people are frantically trying to stay cool, or praying for some relief. Their desperation is not new. For thousands of years, human civilisations have been obsessed with trying to control the weather, to stave off drought and famine, in order to survive. There are ancient tales of great kings who could part the oceans, and deities who would bring down the rain if they were presented with the right kind of sacrifice. But it wasn’t until the last century that we suddenly had the technology to actually do these kinds of things, or at least attempt to do them. Some of these wild ideas - to bring water to the desert, drain the Mediterranean Sea to make farmlands, simply make Russia a warmer place to live - have involved blowing up the Polar ice caps, putting mirrors in space, and nuking the moon. They sound dangerous and unlikely, but some of them have come true. And now, many people are at work on brand new gigantic geo-engineering solutions to counteract the effects of the warming planet. Palaeontologist and explorer, Tim Flannery, has been tracking the progress of some of these schemes. A Brief History of Climate Folly, written with Emma Flannery, is published by Text Publishing. This episode of Conversations was produced by Meggie Morris. Executive Producer is Nicola Harrison. It explores weird science, crazy science, Elon Musk, China, Trump, feats of engineering, space exploration, the human ego, wild weather events, magic, supernatural, religion, God, divinity, human sacrifice, famine, starvation, migration, global warming, climate change, European heatwave, Paris heatwave, fossil fuel, deforestation, COP, climate change policy, sea levels, floods, Summer, water, gas, electricity, solar power, politics, renewables. To binge even more great episodes of the Conversations podcast with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.

765|47min

A race against time to help my friend dying from mesotheliomaJames O'Loghlin had only just reconnected with one of his best and oldest friends, Jum Wallner, when Jum received some terrible news. What began next was a high stakes race with a fatal deadline. The two men had grown up in Canberra, where thousands of homes had been filled with asbestos, which was often carelessly installed and removed. Jum himself had grown up in one of these so-called "Mr Fluffy" homes, named after the local company that had installed the carcinogenic insulation. When Jum felt a pain in his side, it wasn't long before the father of two and husband was diagnosed with mesothelioma and given months to live. Jum had discovered that if you got sick from being exposed to asbestos in your workplace you were entitled to compensation, but if it came from your home, you got nothing. So Jum asked his old friend James for some help to petition the powers that be to help asbestos victims like himself and their families. James began a race against time, trying to convince both the ACT and Federal governments to help Jum and others, in the middle of a pandemic, before it was too late. Along the way, James and Jum reconnected deeply as friends who desperately wished they had more time together. The Missing Piece is published by Echo Publishing. More information about the Loose-Fill Asbestos Disease Support Scheme can be found at the ACT Government's website. This episode of Conversations was produced by Meggie Morris. Executive Producer is Nicola Harrison. It explores friendship, male friendship, university days, terminal disease, James Hardie, cancer, terminal diagnosis, how to grieve a friend, activism, petition governments, Covid, pandemic, Greg Hunt, Angus Taylor, compensation, accidental activist, dying friends, mourning, funerals, Andrew Barr, ALP, Labor party, Liberals, bipartisan, Albanese, politics, Auspol, burnout, diagnosis. To binge even more great episodes of the Conversations podcast with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.

758|51min

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