Rear Vision — How History Shaped Today

Americans are preparing for an orgy of red, white and blue as the 250th anniversary of their Declaration of Independence draws near. But what’s not likely to be widely mentioned is the fact that the conflict wasn’t just a revolution against British rule, it was actually America’s first civil war – a bloody and divisive internal conflict. And those rebels who rejected the Crown and called themselves "patriots" were by no means in the majority when war broke out. Historians say understanding more about the conflict could help Americans come to terms with the issues they face today.Guests:Dr Maya Jasanoff – Professor of History, Harvard UniversityDr Richard Bell – Professor of History, University of Maryland, College Park Dr Rebecca Brannon – Professor of History, James Maddison University

President Trump has made it clear he doesn’t think diplomacy on its own will stop Iran from developing nuclear weapons.So what does history tell us about what actually works? We’re looking back at one of the greatest nuclear risk reduction efforts ever — when the US and Russia joined forces to contain the weapons fallout from the Soviet collapse and convince countries like Ukraine to give up the nuclear arsenal they inherited.An effort that was led by diplomacy, pragmatism and scientific expertise during a brief period of goodwill between the two countries.GUESTSGraham Allison - Douglas Dillon Professor of Government at the Harvard Kennedy SchoolMariana Budjeryin - Senior Researcher at the Centre for Nuclear Security at MIT and author of Inheriting the Bomb: The Collapse of the USSR and the Nuclear Disarmament of UkraineDavid E Hoffman - author of The Dead Hand: The Untold Story of the Cold War ArmsGUESTSGraham Allison - Douglas Dillon Professor of Government at the Harvard Kennedy SchoolMariana Budjeryin - Senior Researcher at the Centre for Nuclear Security at MIT and author of Inheriting the Bomb: The Collapse of the USSR and the Nuclear Disarmament of UkraineDavid E Hoffman - author of The Dead Hand: The Untold Story of the Cold War Arms

High speed rail spread around the globe from the 1960s when the first bullet trains took off in Japan. Rear Vision looks at why previous attempts to introduce high speed rail in Australia have failed.Japan opened the world's first high-speed rail line - between Tokyo and Osaka - in time for the 1964 Olympics. Japan’s ‘Bullet Train’ was the first to run on a dedicated line – a high speed service for passengers only. Over the last 30 years, millions of dollars have been spent in Australia on studies and proposals but is a fast train service on the east coast any closer?

Bangladesh is having its first free and fair election in over 18 years.Rear Vision looks back at the tumultuous history of this young nation.

Since the start of the 20th century, oil has been the lifeblood of global development. Today, the story behind oil — and the politics of supplying oil and denying oil.