BtN: Episode 31 Transcript 02/11/10
On this week's Behind the News:
· Why China's boom might mean bust for their workers and the environment.
· How the internet could kill your local DVD store.
· And Aussie students working with the US army to create battlefield robots of the future.
Hi I'm Nathan Bazley welcome to another week of Behind the News.
Also today we catch up with some families in Vietnam that are farming cucumbers but not the vegetable kind.
Tsunami
Reporter: Natasha Thiele
INTRO: First up though a sad story. We've yet again been reminded of the devastating force of a tsunami.
Last week the Indonesian island of Sumatra was hit after a massive earthquake triggered a wave that killed hundreds of people.
And some are still missing.
So how do tsunamis happen and what systems are in place to help save lives.
Tash explains.
NATASHA THIELE, REPORTER: This is what a tsunami can look like.
Huge waves that sweep across the ocean and onto land, destroying buildings and lives.
The waves are so strong; they can travel faster than a jet plane!
Tsunamis are caused by sudden movement on the ocean floor, either from earthquakes, volcanoes or underwater landslides.
In this case, the tsunami was triggered by a quake.
About 90 percent of all quakes happen around a place called the 'ring of fire', a circle around the Pacific Ocean.
It's home to about three-quarters of the world's volcanoes and some of the biggest eruptions.
You see, the earth's made up of what are called 'tectonic plates'.
They're a bit like this jigsaw puzzle of the world, floating in this pool.
The plates are constantly moving, something like a few centimetres a year!
Usually we don't feel a thing, but if the plates crash into each other quickly or rub against each other, they can create an earthquake.
But not just any earthquake can cause a tsunami, first it has to happen under the ocean.
REPORTER: Imagine these bricks are like two plates on the ocean floor. If one of them suddenly does this, it'll push water high up into the air.
And when that happens, the water surges towards the coast, gaining size and more speed as the water becomes shallow. In this tsunami, waves got up to three metres high.
A huge tsunami happened near Sumatra back in 2004. It damaged lots of countries near the `Ring of Fire'.
It killed more than 225,000 people in 14 countries.
Following the tragedy, governments promised early warning systems would be improved.
Special sensors and equipment are in place to let people know when and where a tsunami is likely to hit.
The Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre tracks earthquakes, using things like seismographs, and sends out warnings.
Beaches and nearby areas are evacuated and everyone is moved to higher ground for their safety.
Even with warning systems in place, it's sometimes impossible for people to reach safety, because they live too close to where it's happened.
Unfortunately in this case, there were sensors to detect a tsunami, but they'd been vandalised or stolen.
Some countries are concerned warnings aren't going out early enough.
There have been times when warnings have been issued and nothing serious has happened.
Scientists say they're working to improve the system, but they can't take any chances.
They say it's better to evacuate everyone, even if it's sometimes a false alarm, because if a bad tsunami did hit the consequences would be terrible.
Although experts say Australia's at a very low risk of being hit by a massive quake or a tsunami, it's still good to know the warning systems are there to alert us if something happens.
Presenter: And hopefully it doesn't.
OK, let's catch up with what else has been happening in the news with Alfie.
The Wire
Indonesia's most active volcano has erupted again shooting more gas and ash across the local communities.
Many locals had just begun returning to check on their homes and livestock creating panic once again.
Last week Mt Merapi killed 36 people and forced more than 50 thousand people into temporary shelters.
At least three new eruptions have been recorded since the volcano erupted last week.
Mt Merapi, which means 'mountain of fire' is the most active of the Indonesia's 69 main volcanoes.
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A man is being hailed a hero for helping fight off a shark that attacked a young female diver.
Elyse Frankcom was working on a dive tour off the coast of Western Australia when a shark attacked biting her hip and leg.
One of the tour's passengers Trevor, reached out and grabbed the shark’s tail as it grabbed Elyse before pulling her back on board the boat.
Elyse is recovering in hospital.
The attack didn't stop hundreds of people hitting beaches as helicopters searched the waters for the shark.
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And finally it's a dream come true for most kids a room packed full of toys.
They were collected by sisters Julie and Sissy but they're not keeping them.
They're being shipped to hospitals around Australia for sick kids to play with.
The toy drive was started by these two to honour their sister who spent a lot of time in hospital unwell.
Now other sick kids will have a special soft friend to help them through.
China Made
Reporter: Kirsty Bennett
INTRO: Whether it's phones, cameras or computers, China is known as the place to make gadgets.
Production has boomed but there're a few bad sides to all this growth.
Some factory workers ended up in hospital after being exposed to a toxic chemical.
And in some places the environment has suffered too.
So how is China handling it all?
Kirsty checked it out.
KIRSTY BENNETT, REPORTER: It's all happening in China right now. The country's grown into the second largest economy in the world after the US and international companies want a piece of what they're making. Many companies get their products like cameras and clothing made in China because they're much cheaper. That's because wages there are low and there are stacks of people looking for jobs. In countries like Australia we see the end result but not the many hands that put these products together.
Millions of people work in factories across China and working conditions are sometimes bad. Often, employees are expected to work long hours and in some places, even young kids have been put to work.
KIRSTY: When you go to work in Australia, there are laws to make sure the workplace is safe and that you're paid the right amount of money for your age and the job you're doing. In China there are also laws but not all factories follow them.
Employees from this small factory know what it’s like to work in poor conditions. They say there were putting stickers on Apple laptops and iPhones when they became ill. It's believed a dangerous chemical used to put the sticker on is to blame and it's left some of them unable to walk. This woman says after breathing in the chemical her hands became numb and she couldn't run. It's not known if the products were real Apple ones or fakes. Employees aren't the only ones getting hurt factory pollution is destroying once beautiful waterways and views.
This river runs near a business where old computers from countries like Australia, the US and Japan are pulled apart and recycled. The toxic stuff in the keyboards and screens is leeching into the groundwater. Other rivers are dirty too but locals still have to use the water. In the sky, the pollution is just as obvious. At this village an incinerator that burns medical waste is about 200 metres away. In the past two years eleven people from here have died from different types of cancer. There are laws to protect the environment but some businesses aren't being monitored or punished if they do the wrong thing.
It all sounds pretty gloomy but not all companies are ignoring the health of their workers and the environment. There are some factories that are trying to give their employees a safer place to work. The government says it's also making a system to help producers get rid of their waste in more environmentally friendly ways. There's still a long way to go in a country that doesn't like to be watched or told what to do by outsiders. But it’s all to make sure that China's boom doesn't mean bust for the country's natural wonders and its people.
Quiz 1
OK time to test you out with a quick quiz.
The question is: When did video rental shops become popular in Australia?
1970s
1980s
1990s
Answer: 1980s
And they rented movies on VHS tapes. Anyone remember those?
Video Rental
Reporter: Nathan Bazley
INTRO: Last week we told you about the National Broadband Plan which aims to give Australian's much faster internet.
Well this week we're bringing you the story of what could be one of its first casualties.
For ages families have headed down to the local video store to rent a movie.
But with the internet now becoming an easy and reliable place to get a flick where does that leave the good old overnight DVD?
NATHAN BAZLEY, REPORTER: It's the recipe for a good night in.
Take popcorn, lollies and some of the latest DVD releases and mix well.
But one part of this picture might soon become a thing of the past.
It's not the popcorn, or the lollies, or even the latest movies.
It's the local video shop.
Scenes like this might become pretty common over the next ten years.
Experts are predicting that the future of DVD rentals is looking bleak.
DR JOHN SILVER, QUEENSLAND UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY: I think the days of the DVD local store are numbered. It’s is just a question of timing.
The predictions have all come about because of the internet which, if you have a good connection, means the world is truly at your fingertips.
News, songs or even the latest blockbuster films can be yours within minutes.
NATHAN: Up until now, a lot of the movies downloaded over the internet were illegal copies. But now, legal movie rental businesses are popping up everywhere on the net. And their target is to take the place of your local video store, without you ever having to leave your home.
There are a few different types of movie rentals available online.
The first is online mail rental stores.
Basically, you look up the website, choose what movies you want to watch and the DVDs are posted out to you.
On the upside, you can keep them as long as you want before you post them back, and you don't need a fast internet connection to take advantage of it.
But on the downside, most charge a monthly subscription fee, rather than just a once off rental charge.
The second type is movies on demand.
For this you need a really quick connection, because it basically means you download the whole movie to watch for a limited time only.
Once your time is up, the movie will disappear from your hard drive.
It all sounds really convenient, but on the downside, it costs a lot for the equipment and the internet connection to be able to do it.
And if that's all not enough, there is a bit more competition for the traditional DVD store too called DVD kiosks.
Essentially they are little DVD vending machines - without the store or the attendant.
That makes them cheaper to run and available in more places.
NATHAN: All this new competition sounds like pretty bad news for the local DVD store, but are they really in as much trouble as it sounds?
Well maybe not.
Many are trying to adapt to new technology and are making their stores available on the net.
And a lot of movie fans will never want to give up on being able to browse the aisle, or talk to their local movie expert.
But their other secret advantage is one that hasn't really taken off yet.
The latest hot movie technology is undoubtedly 3D, which looks like it'll be a big hit in the future.
But downloading one will also take a big hit to your limit, because at 40 to 60 gig, they're just too big to download quickly or easily.
That makes a quick trip to the movie store not sound so bad!
So maybe there will be enough room for both of these businesses on our entertainment lists in the future.
Now we'd like to know what you guys prefer so let's make that our poll this week.
Online Poll
The question is: Would you prefer to rent movies from a DVD shop or an online service?
To vote, just head to our website.
And let's look at what you thought in last week's poll.
We asked you if Australia should continue fighting the war in Afghanistan?
And we got a big response.
40% voted yes and 60% said no.
Sea Cucumber
Reporter: Natasha Thiele
INTRO: You won't find them at your average fish and chip shop but some people reckon it doesn't get better than stir-fried sea cucumber.
They're a seafood delicacy in some parts and they cost heaps.
We heard about some families in Vietnam that are farming sea cucumbers and we wanted to find out a bit more about these amazing creatures.
Tash was surprised to find they also offer a free cleaning service.
NATASHA THIELE, REPORTER: Your bedroom is like an ecosystem. You need to keep it clean like vacuuming it up!
The ocean pretty much needs the same treatment and that's where these guys come in.
They're called sea cucumbers and believe it or not, they're a type of marine animal!
They're like underwater vacuum cleaners, eating other animals waste and organic material like dead plants.