Catalyst

Thousands of chemicals are used in everyday products – in our water, our food and in the air we breathe. It’s the chemical soup of modern life and it’s virtually impossible to escape them. Is there adequate regulation and testing, or are we in the midst of an uncontrolled, human experiment?

What is memory? How do our memories change from childhood to adulthood? How we can build up greater brain reserves to power our mind into old age? Brain epigenetics, how the expression of our DNA can be changed by our experiences, is an intriguing new area of science with huge health implications.

Military aircraft are increasingly being exposed to electromagnetic interference whether the source is natural, like lightning strikes, or human produced, like radars. In extreme cases it could result in weapons being released without pressing a button. Dr Graham Phillips investigates the tests being conducted to help determine the susceptibility of military aircraft to AEI. The Tilapia fish, aka the Mozambique Mouthbrooder, is an exotic invasive species introduced in Australia in the seventies, which is taking hold in Queensland rivers. Anja Taylor investigates new DNA technology which detects Tilapia in waterways. This research may help prevent devastating infestations from occurring. Despite tough regulations, lasers are still widely available in Australia. Ruben Meerman demonstrates the power of lasers and reveals what makes them so dangerous.

Unless your hobby or business is affected by the wind most people ignore windy weather warnings. Catalyst explores the power of the wind –what wind speed takes a roof off a house? Pushes a car off the road? And lifts a person from the ground?- Most people’s fear of flying stems from thoughts like, how does this massive craft stay in the sky? Or will there be an engine malfunction? Do we ever think about a bird striking the plane? With about two thousand reported bird strikes in Australia every year it’s a very real threat, and although the chance of the plane crashing is rare, damage to planes is common.

Friendship. From before we can even speak, we seek the companionship of others. But why is this drive so powerful? And how come out of all the people we meet in our lives, we fall in friendship with some and not others?

Ruben Meerman delves deep into the science of tattoos – how do they stay in your skin, are they safe and how easy are they to remove? Dr Graham Phillips speaks with scientists at UNSW who are developing technology to mine the moon, exploring how we might build there, and possibly even establish a colony. Take some fishing line, a hairdryer and an electric drill and what can you make? Artificial muscle fibres of course!