BtN: Episode 23 Transcript 20/8/13
On this week's Behind the News
We find out that becoming an election candidate is easier than you might think.
We ask what is racism as the government launches a new education campaign.
And learning about space from someone who's been there before.
Hi I'm Nathan Bazley, welcome to Behind the News.
Also on the show today, we meet some kids who travel to Australia every year to hunt for fossils. But before all that let's find out about some of the main stories to hit the news this week in the Wire.
The Wire
The situation doesn't seem to be getting any better in Egypt.
In the past couple of weeks more than 800 people have been killed in fights between protestors and security forces.
You might remember we told you a few weeks ago how the former President Mohammed Morsi was thrown out by the army. He was unpopular with many Egyptians, but he was also the elected leader and those who supported him are furious. They've taken to the streets and say they're being targeted by police, but others say Morsi supporters are stirring up trouble.
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With less than three weeks to go until the Federal Election, campaigning is in full swing. The Prime Minister and Opposition Leader have both been touring the country to try to get undecided voters.
But the latest newspoll shows support for Prime Minister Kevin Rudd is at its lowest level ever with 54 percent of voters not happy with him.
Tony Abbott sits on 51 percent, putting him on track to win the September 7 election.
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And researchers have discovered a brand new animal in South America. It's called an 'Olinguito' and is a cross between a cat and a teddy bear. It lives in the trees of the Cloud Forests between Ecuador and Columbia.
Becoming a Candidate
Reporter: Sarah Larsen
INTRO: Most of you will go past at least one election poster on your way to school each morning. But have you ever wondered how you become one of those people with their face on a poster? Sarah takes a look at how you become a candidate for an election.
For most of us elections mean a lot of this. Ads on TV, interviews, and faces on posters. But imagine if you were right there in the middle of the campaign. What would it be like to be a candidate and know that pretty soon people will be voting for you?
These are two young Aussies who know just what that's like.
SARAH LARSEN, REPORTER: Have you done this before?
CHANDY HUYNG, CANDIDATE: No absolutely not so I am nervous but it is exciting.
Like most candidates Chandy Huyng has a busy few weeks ahead of her; putting up posters, knocking on doors and getting to know the voters.
CHANDY: As part of my campaigning I'm out there every day in every different area of my electorate just talking, a lot of talking, a lot of listening to what people have to say
It's not easy. You don't get paid to be a candidate so most have regular jobs as well.
Chandy runs her own business and has to keep things going while the campaign is on.
CHANDY: I do my campaigning out of my own time. I do work full time but I'm passionate. I want to be there to represent the people.
Liah Lazarou knows what that's like. She's a university student and a mum and she's also running for election.
LIAH LAZAROU, CANDIDATE (on phone): This week we're going to be doing a lot of door knocking.
LIAH: It's a lot of work, it's kind of a lot of late night writing things and calling people and arranging interviews and stuff but I think that's exciting as well.
KID: So how do I become a candidate?
It's not as difficult as you might think. You don't need any special qualifications or experience to get into politics. Many different people from many different
backgrounds have ended up in this place.
To be in the running you have to be over 18, you have to be an Australian citizen, you
months in jail, committed treason or be working for the government. You need to pay a fee; either $1,000 or $2,000 depending on which house of parliament you want to sit in, fill in some forms. And you need to show that people in the community support you.
One way to do that is to join a political party. There are heaps of those; not just the main ones like Liberal, Labor and the Greens but lots of other minor parties which have all sorts of views on all sorts of issues.
If you don't want to join a party you can run as an independent as long as you can find at least 100 people in your local area to support you. Independents and minor party members do sometimes win their seats and they can end up playing a big part in parliament.
But for candidates like Chandy and Liah, winning isn't everything.
CHANDY: I would like to win the election, don't get me wrong if I won I would be very excited if I do win but I'm here to represent the people in my local community.
They reckon getting involved and standing up for what you believe in is a great thing for anyone to do.
LIAH: Definitely I think it's really important for young people to fight against
injustice and I think there's nothing more rewarding than fighting for a better world.
And there's no reason why it couldn't be your face up here in future election campaigns.
Racism
Reporter: Sarah Larsen
INTRO: In recent months the media has highlighted several incidents of racism against some well-known sports stars and celebrities. That sort of behaviour is actually illegal in Australia but some people reckon the public needs to be better educated about what racism is and what they can do about it. Sarah finds out how the government has been working with kids on a video which they hope will help to fight racism in schools.
WINNIE: Hello my name is Winnie and I'm half Chinese and half Vietnamese.
GRACE: My name is Grace and I'm half Greek and Italian.
ALYSSA: Hi my name's Alyssa and I'm half Iranian half Greek.
SHABANI: My name is Shabani I am from the refugee camp of Tanzania my mother is Burundi.
SARAH LARSEN, REPORTER: We Australians come from all around the world. We have different cultures and different religions.
ANDY: Hi my name is Andy and I'm Cambodian my parents both came here from Cambodia to have a better life.
Around 45 percent of Aussies have at least one parent born overseas and most people reckon that's a good thing.
LYDIA: I think it's great you learn a different language and meet new people.
SHABANI: You get to experience what other cultures are like and you get to learn new things.
But while most of us get along, every so often we hear about people being treated differently because of where they come from or the colour of their skin. Australia has laws against racism. It's illegal to treat anyone unfairly or to bully them because of their race, their culture, their nationality or their skin colour. But it still happens, and not just to adults.
The Australian Human Rights Commission did a study which found 89 percent of school kids aged between 13 and 17 have experienced racism. It can happen at school, online or on the street, and it hurts.
SEREYA: People have said racist things about my culture and it does hurt me.
Sereya is an Indigenous Australian who goes to school in Sydney's South West.
She's also one of the stars of a film clip featuring Aussie hip-hop artist Shannon Williams, better known as Brothablack. It's part of a campaign called What You Say Matters, aimed at fighting racism in schools
SHANNON WILLIAMS, RAPPER: Videos like this can speak out and educate people about who we are and where we come from.
For the video kids were asked to think of situations where they'd seen racism directed at themselves or at other people.
FROM ANTI-RACISM VIDEO: Jade 98 great work. Of course she's the favourite, what are you Asian, that's why you're so good at maths?
The Australian Human Rights Commission has also put out ads which use famous sports people to fight racism
ANTI-RACSIM AD: Racism. Has no place in sport. No place in Sport. Everyone.
Everyone deserves a fair go.
KATE LUNDY, MINISTER FOR MULTICULTURAL AFFAIRS: We have good laws in this country that make racism and discrimination in that way illegal. You can't do it.
But without the information education campaign people just don't know what their rights are so we're changing that.
It's designed very much to have great role models delivering really strong anti-racism messages as well as a way of educating and empowering people to confront racism
Multicultural Affairs Minister Kate Lundy reckons Australia already has good laws against racism but people need to be better educated about what racism is and what their rights are.
It's hoped campaigns like this will encourage kids to stand up against racism whenever they see it.
KIDS: If you see it in the playground everyone has to say: don't do that, it's not right.
KIDS: Hopefully everyone sees this video opens their eyes and shows them that what they say matters.
They say by working together we all have the power to make Australia a better place to grow up in
KIDS: What you say matters.
Quiz 1
Let's have a quiz.
The question is: Other than English, what is the most common language spoken in Australia today?
Arabic Italian Mandarin
Answer: Mandarin
Mandarin is the second-most spoken language followed by Italian then Arabic.
Bitter Sweet
Reporter: Natasha Thiele
INTRO: When choosing healthy food, lots of people go for low-fat options. But did you know that the low-fat options often contain more sugar. As Tash reports some researchers are worried that this trend may be contributing more to obesity than previously thought.
NATASHA THIELE, REPORTER: You just need to open the pantry and take a closer look to see that sugar is found in a lot of the food we eat! It's even in stuff you may not realise! But what is it about sugar that makes it a popular ingredient? Let's find out.
Sugar is a carbohydrate, which our body needs for energy. It also makes things taste better. It helps thicken food products and it can act as a preservative to make foods last longer. So it's added to a lot of processed food.
PROFESSOR ROBERT LUSTIG, UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA: One half of the sugar that we are consuming today is in items that we didn't even know had sugar.
Tomato sauce, barbecue sauce, hamburger buns, hamburger meat. All sorts of
processed foods. If you look at virtually every item in the store that has a food label, it has some form of sugar.
But some people are worried sugar can have an impact on our health if we have too much of it. In the 1970s there was a rise in obesity and diabetes. Health experts said there was too much fat in people's diets. That's when low-fat products hit our
shelves! But the problem with low-fat food was, it didn't always taste that good. So they added sugar.
REPORTER: A little bit of mayonnaise on a sandwich makes it taste nice right? Well, take a look at this. Whole-fat mayonnaise has just over 2 percent sugar. Whereas the low-fat version has 13 percent that's more than six times the amount!
Some people reckon that the extra sugar that's replaced fat is doing more harm than good. And it could be making more people overweight. Researchers also say too much sugar can lead to other problems like heart disease and dementia. Some reckon sugar's so bad for you it should be taxed, just like tobacco and alcohol.
But not everyone agrees. Some people in the sugar industry say there's no evidence to prove that sugar isn't good. They say that like any other food, sugar is an important part of a balanced diet.
REPORTER: But it's important to know how much to eat. It's recommended that kids have no more than two teaspoons of sugar a day. That's this much. But a can of soft drink has around five times that that amount.
Here in Australia there are new campaigns, encouraging people to think twice before having things like sugary drinks. And to be aware of the sugar that's hiding in places where you might not expect it.
Online Poll
OK let's make that our poll this week.
The question is:
Should foods high in sugar be labelled more clearly?
To vote just head to our website.
Last week we asked you if all school kids should learn Indonesian.
33 per cent of you said yes.
And 67 per cent said no.
Thanks for voting.
Space Lab
Reporter: Nathan Bazley
INTRO: When was the last time your science class involved designing and building space equipment? And when was the last time your teacher was an actual
astronaut. 150 kids got the chance to experience just that recently. The aim? To get kids excited about the science behind space.
It's one of the most desired jobs in the world. It's fast moving, exciting and your office comes with a pretty sweet view.
One man who's already nabbed this dream job is Clay Anderson. He's spent 166 days in space mostly on the International Space Station. He's also starred in some NASA viral videos. Clearly this astronaut loves his job. So now he's turned his attention towards helping others become one too.
This program is called Mission Astronautica. It gives some schools from all over Australia the chance to meet Clay via video conference and ask him what it's like in space.
So what happens if you get sick in a spacesuit?
CLAY: You have a very long day.
But this program isn't just about zero-gravity vomit there is an important NASA mission to be completed.
CLAY: Your mission, should you decide to accept it, is to build something neutrally buoyant.
Ahh two questions there, what on earth is 'neutrally buoyant' and what's it got to do with space?
Strangely enough the answer is under water. This is the NASA neutral buoyancy lab.
And it's here the astronauts receive a lot of their training.
CLAY: Here you see the big platform that gets lowered. You see how big everything is. This is a life sized facility, it has life sized space station inside, although it's broken into pieces.
A big part of the difficulty of doing things in space is the fact that you're in zero gravity and you're in a huge suit. NASA found the closest they could get to training for that was in a huge pool like this. But making this facility isn't as easy as chucking a whole lot of space station parts in the water.
Everything in here has to stay in the middle of the water not sink to the bottom or float to the top. That's called neutral buoyancy and when things are neutrally buoyant they feel and react close to how they would in zero gravity. So that's what these kids have to replicate back at school.
JESSE: All our class members will take turns and sort of build on our ideas and eventually we'll come up with a really good one.
YSSY: I think we'll do okay, I'm hoping we do great, I think if we combine our ideas we'll get something good at the end of it. And how are they getting on with their designs so far?
CLASS: What we've come up with and are showing you today is some of the plans we've made. This is seaplane, quad plane, whatever you call it. Ours in not a
transportation item, but is a balloon in a styrofoam box which will make it float, and magnets on the side to weigh it down and move it, when we eventually get to that stage.
Of course while teaching kids about neutral buoyancy is great and all, the bigger prize is teaching an enthusiasm for science, engineering and ultimately space!
CLAY: We need great engineers, we need great scientists, we need great mathematicians just like you guys sitting in the audience today.
CLAY: I think Australia has some pretty sharp young people down there.
Sharp enough to be astronauts? You bet!
Quiz 2
OK, let's have a space quiz.
The question is: Which galaxy is Earth part of?
Whirlpool Milky Way
Andromeda
Answer: Milky Way
OK let's catch up with the sports news now. Here's Sarah with the Score.
The Score
The Wallabies have lost the first Bledisloe Cup Test to the All Blacks in Sydney. The New Zealand side was too good for Australia with their six-try performance winning 47 to 29. Australia needs to win this weekend's 2nd test to avoid losing the Cup for
Australia's Kim Mickle has won a silver medal in the women's javelin at the World Athletics Championships in Moscow. She threw a personal best of 66-point-2-5 metres.
KIM MICKLE, JAVELIN THROWER: I do like silver actually like jewellery I'm a silver girl so yeah, gold just wouldn't have matched.
While in the track and field, Sally Pearson took out a silver medal in the 100-metres hurdles.
UPSOT OF RACE: “Pearson is in second place, and then you had Tiffany Porter in third.”
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The Opals have qualified for next year's World Basketball Championships in Turkey.
They beat the New Zealand side, The Tall Ferns, by 18 points in Canberra. And the Aussie men's team was also in action against New Zealand. The Boomers weren't put off by the pre match haka. The Boomers ended up winning by 76 points to 63.
Fossil Find
Reporter: Natasha Thiele
INTRO: Did you know that Australia's home to some of the world's oldest and most unique fossils. But what if you could help find them? Tash caught up with a couple of kids who travel to Australia each year to do just that and they've made some pretty cool discoveries.
NATASHA THIELE, REPORTER: This is the Flinders Ranges in South Australia. An amazing and beautiful piece of Australian landscape. But hundreds of millions of years ago it didn't look like this at all. It was actually an ocean!
Emmy and Ian are helping find evidence of what lived here during the Ediacaran Period, a time when living things didn't have backbones. So they're on the hunt for fossils.
REPORTER: These fossils are more than 550 million years old. That's way older than the dinosaurs! In fact, they're the oldest animals that we know about.
A lot of the funding to find these fossils comes from NASA. They're interested in the research because it shows how the earliest life on earth evolved and it could give them clues as to how life could have formed on other planets. Emmy and Ian travel from the US with their geologist mum every year to look for the old remains.
EMMY: It's a great opportunity and none of my friends have never even heard of these fossils or anything about it, so I can sound really smart when I'm talking to them.
IAN: It's really spectacular because it's well this specific site has these fossils and they're incredibly unique, you know you don't find them anywhere else in the entire world.
And over the years, they've helped their mum and other scientists identify 40 different kinds of animals.
One of the fossils is of an ancient sea creature called Dickinsonia. This is what it might've looked like millions of years ago, moving along the sea bed. There's also Aspidella. They used to help support plants at the bottom of the ocean.
MARY DROSER, GEOLOGIST: You know it's family size pizza, you can see the rim all around here so it's huge and if you think of the other, the other Aspidella's we've seen they're this big and they're supporting organisms this big.
And this. It's a track made by an organism smaller than a grain of rice.
MARY DROSER: The guy moving around here is probably our closest relative here.
It's not necessarily our ancestors, but our first cousins say.
Finding these fossils takes a lot of time, hard work and not to forget tools. A chisel is used to dig them out.
IAN: This is my pit that I pretty much entirely dug on my own and two big beds have come out of it and a couple of little rocks put together.
A scrubbing brush gets rid of excess dirt, while chalk and textas help mark out where they fit. Then it's all about putting the pieces together, a bit like a jigsaw puzzle!
Searching for fossils might be hard work, but it's something that's helping scientists piece together what the earth might've been like in the past.
Closer
That's it for the show. You can jump onto our website if you want to get more info on any of the stories. You can send us your comments and don't forget to vote in this week's poll. I'll see you next time.
