Background Briefing

Conditions have improved for the cattle, sheep, and goats Australia sends overseas for slaughter in other countries, but animal welfare groups have continued to keep a close eye on shipments. Recent FOI documents reveal more disturbing facts about the deaths and distress of animals on long journeys. Meanwhile halal abattoirs in Australia are booming, and can't fulfil the demand from Islamic countr...

The world's richest man is Mexican entrepreneur Carlos Slim, and Mexico City has the population of Australia. Mexico is one of the worst countries in the world for wealth disparity. The cultural adjustments for Australians living there can be shocking, delightful, exciting and disturbing and fascinating all at once. Reporter, Michelle Crowther.

Across Australia 220,000 volunteer firefighters are ready to protect our lives and property. If we had to pay them for their time, it would cost us something like $2 billion a year, but it's getting harder to attract them, and harder to keep them. Debates rage about hazard reduction burns, about whether people should stay in their houses or just get out, and about insurance levy issues. Reporter J...

In a first for the international media, Bali bomber Ali Imron is let out of prison to explain why he's now working to stop terrorism. In this exclusive interview, Ali Imron tells of how he's battling with his radical brothers to prevent further violence. It's just one part of Indonesia's ground breaking and controversial counter terrorism strategy. Reporter: Di Martin.

Australia has promised $200 million to Southeast Asia to stop deforestation, but on the rich Tiwi Islands priceless and irreplaceable native forests are cut down and burnt to grow plantation timber for wood chips for Japan. It's really a tax minimisation scheme and Tiwi forests could be worth more to the locals in carbon trading. Reporter: Wendy Carlisle.

Across Australia, many local councils have invested their money in high yield, but risky investment schemes. Now, with the whole low-doc, subprime world so shaky, they're losing money. Ratepayers want answers, and some councillors who didn't see the writing on the wall are having to explain. Reporter Stan Correy.

How Israel handles itself in the Middle East is a challenge to Jewish morality, says renowned historian Professor Michael B Oren. Now with the Shalem Centre in Jerusalem, he has been a visiting professor at Harvard and Yale, author of two New York Times best sellers, and a frontline soldier. He presented the Richard Pratt Oration of 2007 on the history of Israel and its moral dilemmas.

Can a two year old - or a foetus - show symptoms of bi-polar disorder? In America, they think so, and, of course, there are medications for it. There is no doubt some children develop serious mental illness and need help, but it may be going too far. There is a wide range of normal human temperament, and behaviour. Society tolerates few eccentricities. Reporter Jane Shields.

Professor Julian Savulescu is an eminent ethicist from Oxford University. He believes we should proceed with research into enhancing not only the genetics of fighting disease, but the genetics and pharmacology of improving IQ, behaviour, mood, character and morality. He argues there are immense benefits, not only for individuals, but for society as a whole. Only by knowing, can we prevent the abus...

The Northern Territory murder rate is the highest in Australia - and killings there have particular characteristics. Aboriginal murders are usually straight-forward domestic violence and drunkeness, but many white or Asian murders are particularly macabre and disturbing, leading to speculations that the NT, with its remote places, its oppressive weather, and its frontier mystique attracts more tha...

From the l920s, it was compulsory for most university students to join the student union. Now it's voluntary, and there's a distinct change in the campus culture and student lifestyle at most universities. The bigger, richer universities are faring best, but the smaller ones are losing their clubs, amenities and services. Reporter: Hagar Cohen.

Australian bees are doing very nicely. They are in huge demand here for pollinating local almond orchards and in huge demand overseas because they are disease free. But unless we're careful problems plaguing American hives could turn up here. Colonies are collapsing in the US because the bees are overworked, poorly managed, and have a bug called varroa destructor, which is said to look like a bake...

Whether adults like it or not, the Internet is where life's at for young people now - friendships, games, school stuff, comedy, adventure and sex. Teenagers are getting used to coming across pornography, and dirty old men. Sometimes they even turn the tables, and play indiscreet games. We don't know enough about the Internet generation - and government filters won't work on the new 3G phones. Repo...

Pulitzer prize winning science writer Natalie Angier talks in an inspiring and entertaining way about the basics of science: from the wonders of the cell and bacteria to the mysteries of the night sky and the cultures of chimpanzees, to name a few. Science is in flux as it faces pressures from both faith-based politics in the US, and the push towards privatisation of scientific knowledge through p...

Should animals have rights? Under the law animals are treated as things just as human slaves were treated as things. Is there an argument that the intelligence of some animals means that they deserve more rights than others? Professor Steven Wise teaches animal rights law at Harvard and is speaking here at a conference hosted in May by the University of NSW and Voiceless.

There's an invasion of noxious weeds on the way as the planet heats up and dries out. Invasive plants could flatten Australia's native vegetation, blowing out current costs of about $8 billion a year. Warnings abound that we don't understand these plants - including from people who say that some weeds can do a good job. Reporter Diane Martin.

No one's telling how much of our money is being stolen through the Internet because no one wants us to lose confidence in the system. The banks are making so much money out of it, they prefer to wear the costs or push them down to the customer. In the meantime, everyone has a story and global criminals are stalking our accounts, our phones and our PCs. Reporter: Ian Townsend.

Mercenary armies are making up the shortfall, in a $50 billion industry. There are 50,000 in Iraq alone. In interviews with of some main players, this investigation finds that the industry is unregulated and under-reported. However, it's much cheaper for governments than a standing army. This BBC documentary raises many questions. Reporter: Peter Snow. For copyright reasons there will be no podcas...

For decades questions have been asked about how Defence keeps track of its guns, bullets and rocket launchers. In coming weeks there will be two cases before the courts dealing with allegations of weapons being stolen from the military. The Defence Department is impenetrable on these issues, believing that any public information will be a security risk. Reporter Stan Correy

He is a professor of surgery at Harvard Medical School, and has several other prestigious roles in the US health policy and public health system. As well, he's a practising doctor and surgeon, editor, author, and New York Magazine writer. Atul Gawande discusses what makes a good doctor, how hospitals can be improved, and what he has learnt about the imperfect science of medicine.

One third of the entire population of Zimbabwe has fled the violence and terror. The governing elite can send their children overseas to study. Many are in Australia. Even here, some Zimbabweans are afraid, and the global web is running hot with propaganda, fear campaigns, tall tales and true. Reporter Wendy Carlisle.

No one really knows if the Internet will be a force for a new kind of democracy, or just another (albeit miraculous) technology. Shifting sands in demography, voter behaviour, and the world wide web, are all challenges for political campaigners. Pitfalls and successes abound. Reporter Sharona Coutts.

Millions of dollars have been spent on building an enormous irrigation infrastructure on the Murray Darling system. The rivers are dry, and the pumps stand idle, with even the interest on the loans not paid. How did it come to this: greed for water, bad farming, or the drought? Will God answer John Howard's prayers? Reporter Ian Townsend.

Heads of some of the biggest corporations in the world - Dupont, LaFarge, Eskom and Shell, as well as Otto Poon from Analogue, Hong Kong, talk about corporate response to global warming. In Hong Kong for the World Business Council meeting, the group says it will not be business as usual. A BBC production. Please note there will be no podcast of this program because of copyright restrictions.

Who's to blame when gamblers go berserk? Wealthy high roller Harry Kavakas is suing Crown Casino to get back $30 million he says they illegally encouraged him to gamble away. Several more vulnerable gamblers have stolen the millions they eventually lost. How does it get this far, who's responsible, and where does the gambling buck stop? Reporter Damien Carrick.