Catalyst

[TV.Cynic]

Catalyst in February

Catalyst, Farmer Needs a Robot

Tuesday 6 February, 8.30pm

A group of pioneering scientists take their robots into the world of agriculture to see if they can help keep Australian farmers on the land by tackling some of their biggest challenges.

There’s a tech revolution unfolding in Australia – but it’s not happening where you might expect. A team of scientists led by internationally renowned roboticist, Professor Salah Sukkarieh, are opening up a new world of farming science; one that could give Australian farmers more control over their future than ever before. The need for greater productivity to feed a growing population, and changing climate conditions are making it hard for farmers to continue supplying the food on everyone’s plates. Added to this the loss of young blood from the industry – and one of the harshest natural environments on Earth – means Australian farmers are up against it. But help is at hand. Catalyst joins engineers from the Australian Centre for Field Robotics as they explore the world of agriculture to develop robots and create smarter ways of farming. But are these prototype robots up to the many tasks of a farmer? Will they change the way we’ve been farming for generations? Can the robots lead the farmers (and their cattle) to greener pastures?

Catalyst, Back to the Moon

Tuesday 13 February, 8.30pmon ABC & ABC iview

The race to the moon is back on. Half a century since the last Apollo mission landed on the moon, Associate Professor Alan Duffy takes us inside the new space race, where innovators and big dreamers are rewriting the rule book on space exploration. He witnesses the launch of a new-generation of rocket at Cape Canaveral in Florida. Created by Space X, this rocket is partly reusable, and the innovations behind it may help us get back to the moon. Alan meets the pioneers at US’s first licenced spaceport in Mojave in California who are building new types of lunar landers and rockets. And he finds out that the discovery of water on the moon may transform our chances of living there and using the moon to explore planets far from home.

Catalyst, Gut Revolution: Victoria’s Story

Tuesday 20 February, 8.30pm

Nutrition Scientist Dr Joanna McMillan takes on her most challenging case, as she battles to help 48-year-old Victoria recover from debilitating anxiety and gut pains, using emerging science about the links between gut bacteria and the brain.

48-year-old Victoria has chronic anxiety disorder. She’s battled this her whole life. But in the past few years she’s begun suffering from excruciating gut problems. No one has been able to provide answers. So, are her gut bacteria the missing link in causing her symptoms? Nutrition Scientist Dr Joanna McMillan takes on her most challenging case, exploring emerging science about the links between gut bacteria and the brain to design an intervention to help Victoria where all else has failed. Victoria’s struggle is revealing, at times confronting, but above all, inspiring. And the results - astonishing and life changing.

[TV.Cynic]

Catalyst - Feeding Australia

From Tuesday 14 August at 8:30pm

CLARE COLLINS, PAUL WEST, NOBY LEONG

Catalyst returns with a special 2-part series, Feeding Australia,where we reveal the key breakthroughs in science and technology that will shape what we might be eating in the coming decades.

Chef Paul West, Nutritionist Professor Clare Collins and Dr Noby Leong travel across Australia to meet the growers and scientists who are wrestling with the question of how we grow tasty and nutritious food as Australia’s population continues to grow.

The answers they encounter are surprising and thought provoking.

[TV.Cynic]

Catalyst - The Great Australian Bee Challenge

From Tuesday 29 January at 8:30pm

We Australians share our country with one of the world’s most beautiful, fragile and industrious creatures - bees. They are an incredibly important part of the natural environment - pollinating around a third of the food we eat. While in many parts of the world bees are under threat, Australia remains a safe haven for them – for now.

In the first of two programs, host Paul West introduces four teams of novice bee keepers to these hardworking insects, and with the help of entomologist Dr Tanya Latty and expert bee keeper Doug Purdie, they learn to build thriving hives – and that means delving into the very latest science behind bee communication, brains, and behaviour.

With two teams in the city and two in the country, our amateur beekeepers encounter all sorts of challenges on their journeys. In the city, our rooftop hive is showing signs of stress; while in the country a cold, dry Spring - with no sign of nectar for the bees to feed upon - has set our rural participants back. But it’s the family in metropolitan Erskineville that throw a massive spanner in the works by moving houses. They take their hive with them – but will the bees follow?

[TV.Cynic]

From ACMA:

ABC Catalyst report breaches impartiality rules

The ABC has breached the impartiality provisions of its own Code of Practice in a Catalyst program ‘Feeding Australia: Foods of Tomorrow’.

The program was focussed on more sustainable ways to produce food, including fish, green leafy vegetables, tomatoes, avocados and protein with a focus on beef.

An ACMA investigation found that the program failed to present the production of beef with due impartiality, as it did for other foods.

‘It is an editorial decision of the broadcaster as to how particular matters will be presented. However, the Code requires that the overall presentation must still be done so in a manner that achieves due impartiality,’ said ACMA Chair Nerida O’Loughlin.

The ACMA found Catalyst used dramatic visual displays, emotive language and moral arguments in the segments that referred to beef. In aggregate, these caused the program to demonstrate a lack of fair treatment and open-mindedness.

‘The sustainability of Australia’s food supply is an important topic for discussion on which there will be different views held in the community. The ACMA considers that, had the program dealt with some matters differently, the program may have met the Code requirement for impartiality,’ said Ms O’Loughlin.

The ACMA also assessed the accuracy of various statements about beef production in the program and found no breach of the Code.

As a result of the ACMA investigation, the ACMA’s report has been communicated to the program’s production team. Given the ABC’s strong track record of compliance with the Code, the ACMA accepts this as an appropriate action.

[JohnsonTV]

ABC response to ACMA report findings

The ABC notes the report findings by the ACMA, published on 24 May 2019, concerning part one of the Catalyst program “Feeding Australia: Foods of Tomorrow”.

The ABC stands by the Catalyst team and the program, which explores key breakthroughs in food production that will help Australia find more sustainable ways to feed an expected population of 40 million by 2050. We respectfully disagree with the ACMA’s view that the program lacked impartiality and note that it found the program’s description of the environmental impact of beef farming to be accurate and not misleading.

The program, which started from the basis that Australians are efficient and effective farmers, looked at a wide variety of challenges and innovations related to several types of food production, from Australia’s first mobile hydroponic farms to the use of stem cell research in the production of avocados. The underlying message of the program was that all traditional food industries face challenges in terms of sustainability and satisfying future demand.

The program did not claim that the Australian livestock industry is unsustainable nor that red meat should not play a role as a food source in the future – beef remains a favoured form of protein in the Australian diet. The program did not take a critical stance towards beef any more than it took a critical stance towards traditional methods of other agricultural production. Rather, the program examined sustainability concerns about several traditional food industries and explored possible future food sources that may be developed, capturing the interest and imagination of viewers by focusing on the foods and farms of tomorrow – in line with the program’s title.

Consistent with the ABC’s commitment to its rigorous editorial processes, we have brought the report findings to the attention of the program’s production team. The ABC does not believe that the ACMA finding detracts from the relevance, accuracy and importance of the program.

[TV.Cynic]

Catalyst - THE SECRETS OF HEALTHY LIVING

From Tuesday 13 August at 8:30pm

Ex-ABC journalist Ian Henderson delivers the extra-ordinary new research that promises to keep us all younger for longer. From diet to exercise, he uncovers the simple tips that could add years of healthy living.

IAN HENDERSON POST HIIT SESSION IN THE POOL

IAN HENDERSON WITH SPRINTER PETER CROMBIE, 74 YRS

[TV.Cynic]

SERIES RETURN

Tuesday 8 October at 8:30pm

Should I Risk It?

Mathematician and self-confessed ‘risk-avoider’ Lily Serna explores the psychology, neuroscience and maths of risk. She begins with a challenge. Having never so much as gone over the speed limit, Lily attempts to ‘powerslide’ a supercar. Although she’s safer on the skid pad than on the open road, she can’t get past her anxiety. Her brain won’t let her. Clearly, risk takers think differently.

Lily meets neuroscientist Steve Kassum at a skate park to find out how. They set the skaters a challenge – a cash prize to inflate a balloon. The bigger the balloon, the bigger the prize. These thrill seekers go for big money, happy to risk bursting the balloon and winning nothing, the reward centres in their brains driving them on.

There’s more to risk taking than how the brain is wired though. Lily meets someone who has done one of the riskiest things on earth, twice. Alyssa Azar is the youngest Aussie ever to climb Everest. Together they take on a new challenge – the flying Trapeze. Lily is again paralysed by panic, but Alyssa is calm and calculating, the opposite of a reckless thrill seeker.

Back on safe ground with mathematics, Lily explores ways to objectively measure risk using ‘Micromorts’ and Microlives’. Based on statistical studies, these measurements reveal that air travel is one of the safest forms of transport and that 20 minutes of exercise a day could give you an extra hour of life.

Logic, however, rarely plays a part in taking a risk. Would you, for instance, best $10 on coin flip? What if the prize was $20 and you still only lose $10? Or if the coin was flipped 100 times? With a spot of street science, Lily shows how our instinctual biases and aversion to loss, can make us misjudge risk.

In search of a system, Lily joins a group that face high risk situations all the time. She takes a command of a Fire and Rescue exercise, but it proves too much for her to handle. She discovers the importance of a technique called Recognition Primed Decision Making and strangely how crucial a firefighter’s instincts are.

Having to the measure of risk in a number of ways, Lily poses another question – are we taking enough? A rise in childhood anxiety in Australia would suggest not. Lily explores the growing trend in ‘loose parts’ play. This unstructured and largely unsupervised play encourages kids to risks. A group of 9-year-olds, watched on monitors by anxious parents, try out this new style of play, with remarkable results.

Production credits: Series Producer: Penny Palmer. Manager Science: Aidan Laverty.

[Salty]

[TV.Cynic]

Catalyst - How Food Works Part 1

Tuesday 14 April at 8:30pm

[JohnsonTV]

CBeebies from the BBC has commissioned a kids version of The Great Bee Challenge for UK viewers, called Show Me the Honey.

ABC sells formats to UK | TV Tonight

[TV.Cynic]

Are We Killing Our Koalas?

Tuesday 16 Feb at 8:30 pm

The koala. Decimated during the 2019-2020 fires and now on the path to extinction. Virtually wiped­ out from our urban landscapes. Everyone knows the harrowing story about our koalas. But do we?

In this one-hour documentary, Catalyst investigates the story behind the headlines.

Bushfires, climate change, habitat destruction; popular belief is that our koalas are headed for extinction by 2050. It’s a shameful projection. But the real story is so much more intriguing.

Explorer and Conservationist Professor Tim Flannery meets scientists, veterinarians and researchers- all working to understand the real threats koalas face, and how we can avoid them.
Tim will venture thirty years into the future, witnessing first-hand the effects of climate change; track down one of the world’s most elusive and endangered mammals; reveal a koala vaccine developed with plans to also prevent human disease; learn how Bluetooth is saving urban koalas from extinction; and get up close and personal with koala poo - does it hold the secret to ensuring the koala’s survival?

Are We Killing Our Koalas? invites the start of a national conversation about the realities of koala survival; offering an unvarnished, honest and surprising view on what threats the koala faces, and what solutions are available. Are We Killing Our Koalas? reveals that everyone can play their part in saving our koalas.

[TV.Cynic]

Mars: Our Second Home?

Tuesday Feb 23 at 8.30pm

Mars has long held our fascination; we have sent probes and rovers, now the time has come to send humans. In the first of a two-part Mars special, astrophysicist Prof Tamara Davis and astronomer Greg Quicke meet the Australian scientists who are reaching for the stars as they attempt to overcome the many challenges involved in human missions to Mars.

Leaving planet Earth is the first major hurdle. Tamara gets a taste of what it’s like to be an astronaut launching into space as she takes flight in ajet fighter, experiencing high G forces and the feeling of weightlessness. Over in Broome, Western Australia, astronomer Greg Quicke takes a ride to his bush block to demonstrate just how easy it is to find Mars in the night sky.

Ever seen an astronaut confidently walk out of a capsule after months in space? In reality it’s more of a crawl. In the nation’s capital, Tamara meets a team of scientists working out ways to measure and mitigate the effects of micro-gravity on the body. Tamara even puts her body through the paces to determine whether she has what it takes to be an astronaut.

In Far North Queensland, one of the longest continuous lava flows from a single volcano that erupted 190,000 years ago may provide answers for human shelter on Mars. Escaping the heat of the day, Tamara joins the Ewamian Rangers on country to explore the lava tubes with astro­ geologist, Dr David Flannery.

Artificial intelligence has long held promise to perform tasks humans can’t or won’t do. Given the hostile conditions on Mars, robots should be perfect for maintenance, reconnaissance and repair­ leaving more time for human exploration and discovery. Tamara joins the CSIRO team in Brisbane as they put ‘Kitten’ and ‘Rat’ to the ultimate test of searching and locating a human survivor.

Getting to Mars with fuel from Earth is one thing, making it back is a whole other ballgame. The good news is, Mars has icy, salty water which can be converted to fuel. Astronomer Greg Quicke takes us through the art of electrolysis step-by-step - splitting oxygen and hydrogen from water, all in an effort to get humans home.

Finally, Tamara rolls up her sleeves to join a Mars analog simulation exercise. With no way of knowing how a team will cope with a 3-year inter-planetary mission, analog simulations have been conducted the world over to test human resilience.

Part 2 : Tuesday March 2 8:30pm

In this second episode of Catalyst’s Mars special, astrophysicist Professor Tamara Davis and beloved astronomer Greg Quicke explore a question we’ve longed to answer – is there life on Mars?

[TV.Cynic]

Kill or Cure: The Story of Venom

Tuesday 9 March at 8:30pm

Australia is famous for its lethal animals. Alongside sharks and crocodiles, it also has a collection of 66 venomous species – including four of the top ten most deadly animals on the planet.

So why would the ABC’s resident nature nerd, Dr Ann Jones, embark on a dangerous journey coming face-to-face with Funnel Web spiders, Taipans and Irukandji?

The answer is that there’s one astonishing discovery she wants to unravel: scientists have found that elements of the deadly venoms that could kill us can be turned into pharmaceutical drugs that could save us. From protecting the heart and brain, to potentially curing multiple sclerosis and epilepsy.

Venom is made up of complex molecules that have evolved over millennia to target specific prey - some target the nervous system, others attack the tissue or circulatory system and because of this, it could offer wide-reaching medical applications.

Ann kicks of her adventure on Fraser Island with the Bugs & Drugs team from the University of Queensland to collect one of the world’s most venomous spiders - the Funnel Web. Its venom contains over 3000 molecules – and surprisingly only one of them is responsible for killing human But another - Hi1a - is showing promise in protecting the brain following a stroke and the heart following a heart attack.

With our myriad of venomous animals, Australian scientists are leading the world in exploring a promising new apothecary of drugs that could revolutionise modern medicine.

[TV.Cynic]

Catalyst - Cancer: A Story of Hope

Tuesday 20 July at 8:30pm

Cancer. It’s a diagnosis that we all dread to hear. But with advances in technology and medicine, more people are living better and longer with their disease. Now, research is focusing on how individuals can maintain a quality of life throughout the treatment process. Catalyst follows patients experiencing this new kind of cancer care - their stories are filled with hope.

[TV.Cynic]

The Truth About Fasting – A Catalyst Special

Tuesday 27 July 8.30pm

Could changing WHEN we eat help make us healthier? Fasting - going a set amount of time with little or no food - isn’t a new idea. It’s one we have been practising for millennia. Recent health trends have reinvigorated fasting for our contemporary lifestyles. Diets, like the 16-8 and 5-2, promise not just weight loss, but the possibility of preventing chronic disease, with early studies showing intriguing results.

But many of these studies are in animal models rather than humans – so how does fasting affect people in the real world? And is it the medical miracle it’s made out to be?

To find out, Catalyst asked dietician Dr Joanna McMillan to design a six-week personalised intermittent fasting programme for five everyday Aussies. Hairdresser Sam and her husband Kevin, a butcher, busy mum of four Renuka, train driver Julie and corporate accountant Vanessa all have underlying metabolic health issues that can potentially be treated with a fasting intervention- from insulin resistance to high levels of triglyceride fats in the blood.

As the participants embark on either the 5:2 or the 16:8 diet and radically change the way they approach eating, Jo carefully tracks their metabolic health, mood, microbiomes and weight.

Dr McMillian is guided by some of Australia’s leading medical experts, including gastroenterologist Dr Ray Boyapati, lifestyle disease specialist Dr Samantha Hocking and fasting pioneer Professor Luigi Fontana.
From “brutal” fasting days to changes in body composition and function. The end of the 6-week experiment reveals some surprising results.

Production credits: Producer & Director: Cassie Charlton; Associate Producer: Peta Yoshinaga; Executive Producer: Penny Palmer; Head of Factual and Culture: Jen Collins.

[TV.Cynic]

The Wildlife Revolution

Tuesday 3 August at 8:30pm

Nature journalist, Dr Ann Jones knows firsthand that Australia is one very lucky country.

Our vast, dramatic, and diverse landscape is home to more than one million species of plants and animals. Many – like our most endangered animal, the mountain pygmy possum - are found nowhere else in the world. But our abundant biodiversity is under increasing pressure from habitat destruction, predation and climate change. With one of the worst extinction records in the world, the speed at which Australia is losing its native species is accelerating.

We are in a race against time to protect what’s left.

To understand the rate of loss, experts use tools to monitor and assess each threat. And right now, there is a revolution taking place, one where emerging technology is helping to safeguard our wildlife in bold new ways.

In this episode of Catalyst, Ann travels across the country to meet the Australian scientists who are using these innovative technologies to work smarter and faster.

From revealing surprising behaviours in our native bat species and identifying ways to rejuvenate our ocean kelp forests; to road-testing Australia’s new weapons in the fight against the illegal animal trade. Emerging technology hopes to be our insurance policy against losing our most endangered animals forever…

Could this be the wildlife revolution we’ve all been waiting for?

Production credits: Producer/ Director: Robbie Bridgman; Assoc. Producer: Jessica Cook; Series
Producer: Elle Gibbons; Executive Producer: Penny Palmer; Head of Factual and Culture: Jen Collins.

[TV.Cynic]

Catalyst - Series Return

From Tuesday 1 February 8.30pm

The Secret Lives of Our Urban Birds

https://twitter.com/ABCscience/status/1486066348836933634?s=20

Nature journalist and self-confessed bird-nerd, Ann Jones, heads out on an urban safari through Melbourne, uncovering the secret lives of the city’s feathery friends.

Presenter of ABC Radio National’s new show What The Duck?! and self-confessed bird-nerd, Ann Jones, heads out on an urban safari through Melbourne, uncovering the secret lives of the city’s feathery friends. From deadly raptors and warring Magpies to promiscuous Willy Wagtails – Ann uncovers a world filled with drama and intrigue.

With over 130 bird species calling Melbourne home, you can expect the usual suspects, like the warbling Magpies, who have adapted well with their strong social bonds and curiosity making them successful city dwellers. But as Ann learns, there’s a lot more than meets the eye… you just need to stop, watch and look a while. If you’re lucky you may even spot the more surprising city slickers - one of the rarest birds in Australia – the Orange-Bellied Parrot.

To catch a glimpse of our cutest avian neighbours, Ann heads to the bayside suburb of St Kilda where a colony of Little Penguins has taken up residence. Why have they left their offshore islands for a man-made breakwater so close to the city? And they’re not the only ones with an enviable address – a pair of nesting Peregrine falcons have traded clifftops for a Collins St skyscraper to raise their chicks.

While some thrive, others barely survive. For the Powerful Owl, city life is more of a necessity than a choice as increasing urbanisation destroys their habitat. To successfully nest and breed, Powerful Owls need hollows of old growth trees – hollows that can take up to 300 years to develop. But a solution may be at hand - Melbourne University is trialling 3D printed nests in the hope that we can replace what has been lost.

Production credit: Producer: Robbie Bridgman. Director: Bruce Permezel. Researcher: Chelsea Mose. Executive Producer: Penny Palmer. Head of Specialist: Jennifer Collins.

[TV.Cynic]

The Big Brew Challenge: A Catalyst Special

Tuesday 8 February 8.30pm

Celebrate the science of beer with chef Paul West, as three teams of budding brewmasters take on the challenge to make their best homebrew. Do they have what it takes to impress our panel of international judges?

Celebrate the science of beer with chef Paul West, as three teams of budding brewmasters take on the challenge to make their best homebrew. But do they have what it takes to impress our panel of international judges?

Guided by one of Australia’s best-known brewers, Samara Fuss, craft beer enthusiasts Rosemary and Ashley (Team Pale), father and son duo Doug and Euan (Team Sour), and mates Pete and Paul (Team Stout) will compete over 3 weeks for their beer to be crowned champion of the Big Brew Challenge.

Joining our teams as they navigate the complex world of modern brewing is presenter Paul West who gets a lesson in the science of beer. From the basics to the revolutionary, he speaks to the scientists harnessing the power of yeast to ferment natural products to create biofuels. Travelling to Wiradjuri country, the Riverina area of New South Wales, Paul learns why malt is so important to the brewing process and discovers a brewery that is reducing its carbon footprint using microalgae.

Finally, food and drink journalist Mike Bennie and writer and broadcaster ‘Beer Diva’ Kirrily Waldorn, taste test our team’s final brews. They’re impressed with all of them – but there can only be one winner…

Production credits: Producer Director: David Symonds. Associate Producer: Rebecca Hill. Executive Producer: Penny Palmer. Manager, Documentaries: Stephen Oliver.

[TV.Cynic]

Australia’s Favourite Tree

Tuesday 16 August 8.30pm

Dr Ann Jones & Paul West travel across Australia to investigate the extraordinary lives of Australia’s oldest, largest & most unusual trees with a mission to find a candidate to crown Australia’s Favourite Tree!

Australia is home to over seven thousand species of native trees - they’re old, incredibly diverse and endlessly fascinating.

In this 2-part Catalyst special, Ann Jones and Paul West travel across Australia to meet scientists and First Nations peoples to investigate the clever and complex lives of some of our most iconic trees. But this is no ordinary tree hunt! Ann and Paul are embarking on a mission to find a candidate from each State and Territory, and crown one of them “Australia’s Favourite Tree”.

From high up in the tree-top canopy of Tasmania’s Huon Pine, one of the oldest living organisms on Earth, to Strangler Figs with 40-metre girths that thrive in our North Queensland rainforests, Ann and Paul uncover the role trees play in their environment, learn of their historical importance, and celebrate the incredible resilience of trees through climate change and deforestation.

After the tales of eight remarkable trees across Australia’s vast and varied landscape, a panel of expert judges will digest the facts and the stories, and at the end of the series they will crown… Australia’s Favourite Tree!

[TV.Cynic]

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