The Radio National Hour

A quarter of a century ago, hundreds of refugees were rescued from a small fishing boat adrift in the Indian Ocean and taken aboard the Norwegian freighter the MV Tampa. The stand-off that followed up-ended decades of refugee policy and crystallised a political mantra embraced by governments across the world: ‘stop the boats’. Abbas Nazari was a small child on that ill-fated voyage, Australia refused to take him and his family but they started a new life in New Zealand where he went on to become a Fulbright scholar.They can run, dance and box but the robots on show at the World Humanoid Games in Beijing aren’t just there for our entertainment, they point to a future in which machines that look like us are indispensable to our lives. Michael Milford is a professor and director of the robotics centre at Queensland University of Technology and has been watching the advancements on show in Beijing closely.Dolly Parton wrote over 3,000 songs during her seven decade career, but her gift and passion for storytelling extended well beyond the stage. Because of her, 3 million children around the world and 50 thousand here in Australia receive a book in the mail every month.