Vanessa Toholka and Kate Devlin at the Wheeler Centre

Sex robots are an endless source of anxiety, titillation, humour and fascination in popular culture – from Westworld to the novels of Philip K Dick to the fembots in Austin Powers. But what does the real future of sex and artificial intelligence look like? And how will we navigate the ethical questions (and erotic possibilities!) of intimacy with androids?

Kate Devlin is a London-based computer scientist and a leading voice in sex robots research. She’s also the author of an insightful, optimistic and witty new book on the subject, Turned On: Science, Sex and Robots. In this conversation with Vanessa Toholka, she talks through the philosophical and legal implications of emerging sex technologies – and discuss both the alarming and positive breakthroughs in the field. We need to ‘think outside the bots,’ Devlin has written, and focus more on the future of multi-sensory virtual experiences.

For years, Michael Pollan's books have changed minds.

Pollan’s books, like The Botany of Desire, The Omnivore’s Dilemma and In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto – and Cooked: A Natural History of Transformation, the latter now also a successful Netflix series – have strongly influenced contemporary ideas about agriculture, nature, nutrition and ethics. He's sparked debates on genetically modified organisms, and even on the definition of 'food' … and he's done it with charm, imagination and gusto, bringing serious scientific heft and optimism to all his work.

Michael Pollan and Christine Kenneally at Melbourne Town Hall — Photo: Scott Limbrick

Pollan’s latest investigation is more explicitly concerned than ever with changing minds. This time, he’s turned his attention to psychedelic drugs; their history and their potential. Pollan wants us to look beyond the myriad misconceptions and clichés to understand the groundbreaking new science around hallucinogens. In How To Change Your Mind, he discovers how they can help us learn more about human consciousness – as well as the benefits they may offer in the treatment of many illnesses.

A reviewer for the New York Times wrote that ‘[Pollan] makes losing your mind sound like the sanest thing a person could do’. Listen in as this icon of science journalism joins Christine Kenneally for a conversation about his most personal work yet.

Sally Warhaft, Ranjana Srivastava and Gustav Nossal

There's much to celebrate in the history of Australian medicine and medical care – from the famous breakthrough in penicillin to the development of the Gardasil vaccine. Our Medicare model is the envy of many countries.

But have we become complacent? What are the pre-existing and emerging gaps in our system? And how might we adapt our healthcare and research models in line with changes in demography and technology?

In this Fifth Estate discussion, Gustav Nossal and Ranjana Srivastava join Sally Warhaft for a long, hard look at Australian healthcare today. Where do we need to direct our investment? Join us for a conversation about who’s getting adequate care, who’s missing out and what we can learn from care and research models overseas.