Intelligence Squared

The once wildly popular Australian PM, Kevin Rudd, has been toppled by an internal Labor party rebellion, to be replaced by Julia Gillard, his Welsh born deputy, who becomes Australia’s first woman leader. Unmarried, proudly pro-abortion and happy not to shave her legs, there has been much joshing about the incongruity of such a Sheila taking charge in the land of hairy handed machismo. But more significant than her rise, in many ways, has been the fall of a man whose anti-fat cat, green agenda had inspired many on the left. Yet neither Rudd's emissions trading scheme, nor his retro-active 40% super-tax on mining, nor many other of his cherished schemes ever saw the light of day. Should the left rue the departure of an idealist, or welcome the more pragmatic Gillard, learning to recognise that in a capitalistic system there are limits to how far you can go in antagonising capitalists

Today’s middle aged workers could be the last to enjoy a leisurely retirement before their health declines – many believe that demographics and economics will force today’s young to toil on into their dotage. Should we, like the Greeks, take to the streets to fight this

Four speakers from the James Martin 21st Century School at Oxford University will describe how they are pushing forward the frontiers of medical science, seeking solutions to some of the critical medical problems of our age – in particular diseases associated with greater life expectancy. Turning back the clock: Dr Paul Fairchild will explain how a breakthrough in stem cell research – enabling pluripotent cells to be harvested from the patient’s own cell tissue rather than from embryos – has brought us much closer to the point where we will be able to replace or regenerate diseased and worn out tissue. Beating Alzheimer's: Scientists at the Institute for the Future of Mind have come up with an important new theory to explain how brain cells degenerate. Professor Susan Greenfield will argue that this could be a crucial step to finding a cure for two of the most widespread neurodegenerative diseases: Alzheimer's and Parkinson's. A cure for cancer: Professor Bleddyn Jones and his colleagues at the Particle Therapy Research Institute are working on a new form of radiotherapy – known as CPT – which targets cancer cells while avoiding the damage that conventional radiotherapy does to healthy tissue. As Professor Jones will show, this could prove a highly effective way of dealing with cancer. Combating the superbugs: A major problem confronting modern medicine is the spread of “superbugs” resistant to all conventional types of antibiotic. Dr Sonia Contera will show how by creating a completely new form of antibiotic made out of nanoparticles, she and her colleagues at the Institute of Nanoscience for Medicine are on the verge of cracking the problem

Even George Osborne’s fiercest critics would have to admit he was between a rock and a hard place when he set out the new budget on June 22. Britain has its biggest fiscal deficit since WWII – and, according to May’s IMF forecasts, it faces the toughest recovery of all the G20 countries. No one doubts that austerity is needed to reduce the deficit. But it’s less clear whether it should come sooner or later, and how public spending cuts should be balanced with tax rises

Award winning journalist, author and academic Simon Schama compares the tension and sentiment building in Europe and the United States to that prior to the French revolution in 1789. The development from Keynesian policy to that of public sector reductions and brutal cuts in real wages and social services is a delayed trigger for anger at those responsible for the financial mess. He calls it 'a recipe for serious indignation', one that will lead to the reawakening of the long-forgotten issues of local chauvinism and militant nationalism that will feed off a perceived lack of accountability in the EU and United States. Schama ends with an analysis of one of the original 'shock-jocks', Father Charles E Coughlin, who in the Roosevelt era exploited the power of radio to deliver an anti-Semitic, anti-FDR message, and states his belief that the philosophical grandeur of the political elites clouds their ability to recognise the power of these orators.

Woman is born free, but everywhere is fashion's slave. Her choices are an illusion: the fashion companies and magazines dictate her purchases to her. She feels compelled to own the latest must-have handbag, believes the key to happiness is the new bondage boot; they've told her she's worth it and without her fashion fix she feels worthless. This, at least, is the story told by those who scoff at fashion. But isn't that just sour drapes? Isn't it rather the case that the world of fashion defines the spirit and mood of the age? That the brilliant designers in the fashion houses bring vim and vigour to an otherwise pedestrian world? And that those who somehow think they¹re above it all just end up looking drab and dull? Speakers for the motion: Madelaine Levy, Britt Lintner, Paula Reed Speakers against the motion: Stephen Bayley, Susie Orbach, Grayson Perry Chair: Peter Yor

Dressing decoratively is as old as human civilisation, and archaeologists regularly discover beads and ornaments among artifacts left by even the most basic societies. But disapproval is equally ancient - the Roman writer Seneca took exception to men who wore togas that were slightly transparent or too loose. Today, fashion is a trillion-dollar industry, followed avidly by catwalk-watchers, magazine-readers and, of course, shoppers. Some consider it a sort of communal art which we can all get involved in, and others value it as an outward sign of identity and group allegiance, allowing people to present themselves as goths or skaters, slackers or business-people. But many also criticise it, claiming that it puts pressure on women to aspire to unrealistic ideals of beauty and thinness, and that developing-world garment manufacturers are paid pitiful wages. But what the world be like if we cast off concerns with fashionability? Would it be puritan and bland, with millions of people in poor countries out of work? Or would it be greener and happier, allowing us all to concentrate on the things that really matter, rather than this season's colour-scheme or hemline?

It is unlikely that an African team will win the World Cup, particularly the tournament’s hosts, South Africa. Their national team, the Bafana Bafana (the boys, the boys) failed to qualify for the 2006 event, missed out on this year’s Africa Cup of Nations and are ranked as low as 90th in the world – ahead of only one other team in the competition: North Korea. Bookies are offering 50/1 odds on an Ivory Coast victory, and 150/1 on South Africa. Indeed, no African country has ever reached a World Cup semi-final, even though Brazilian footballing hero Pele famously predicted that one would win the tournament by 2000. But such international sporting jamborees are never just about the games themselves. They are a chance for nations – and even continents – to host the world, attract tourism and investment, and generate national pride. The flip side is that they are also a chance for the hosts to bankrupt themselves, pursuing dreams of sporting grandeur which cost billions but bring little public benefit – a risk that South Africa, with its impoverished population, can ill afford. In the long run, when the flags, trumpets and face-paint are packed away, will Africa have lost out by hosting this World Cup

When Israeli commandos boarded a ship, the Mavi Marmara, which was part of a flotilla attempting to breach its blockade of Gaza on Monday 31st May, the result was a firefight. Nine passengers died and dozens more were wounded, sparking fury about the behaviour of both sides. Another ship, the Rachel Corrie, immediately set off to make another attempt to reach Gazan ports. It was stopped by the Israeli navy and diverted to Ashdod, a port in Israel, without violence on Saturday. The 11 activists on board were repatriated. The following day, at least four Palestinians were killed when Israeli navy commandos opened fire on what they said was a squad of militants in diving suits off the coast of Gaza. These events have provoked international controversy about the legality of Israel's actions and its treatment of Gaza - but also about the protesters' intentions and the long term consequences of this week's events.

He came to power promising that his outstretched hand would heal the rifts with other nations; that engagement, not belligerence, was the way to solve the world's problems. Since then Iran and North Korea have continued with their their nuclear programmes, Afghanistan is in turmoil and the countries of Eastern Europe feel he has deserted them. Has President Obama's 'softly, softly' policy made America look feeble in the eyes of its enemies? Is his much vaunted 'nice-guy' approach just appeasement in another guise? Speakers for the motion Con Coughlin, General Jack Keane, Bill Kristol Speakers against the motion Philip Bobbitt, Bernard-Henri Levy, Simon Schama. The chair is Zeinab Badawi

In this full version of her critically accliamed one-woman show, Jane Bussmann explains the absurdity of real life and how the indirect route, one that took her from Hollywood to Uganda, is often the most interesting. Bussman gives a one hour live performance of her book The Worst Date Ever (2009). The book begins with Bussmann working as a celebrity journalist, interviewing Ashton Kutcher and falling foul of celebrity agents, follows her through various attempts at feature writing for broadsheets and eventually sees her applying to work as a teacher in Uganda as a cover for her desire to know more about about two men: one a symbol of war, another who fights for peace.

This Debate of the Day was written to accompany our live debate "Obama's foreign policy is a gift to America's enemies", which took place in London on Thursday 27th May. The debate will be broadcast by BBC World News on Saturday 5th June at 09:10 and 21:10, and Sunday 6th June at 02:10 and 15:10 (all times in GMT). Video highlights are now available on the Intelligence Squared website where the full video will also be available on-demand from 5th June. For many on the liberal left who scorned George W Bush's gung-ho foreign policy, Barack Obama's more dovish, multilateral approach is far more likely to make headway. Ever since his inauguration, Obama has been offering an extended hand of friendship to America's enemies. But his detractors say that all he gets in return is a fist in the face. Is too much accommodation - to China, North Korea, Russia, Syria, Iran and others - just capitulation in another guise? Is Obama simply hastening American decline?

When women are underrepresented across public life, could it be because they don’t want to be there or simply aren’t up to the jobs? And would any of us – male or female - really want to put more women at the Cabinet table if the result was worse government and the stigma of positive discrimination

Edward Tufte has been described by the New York Times as the “da Vinci of data” and by Business Week as the “Galileo of graphics.” He has written, designed, and self-published four books on visual thinking and analytical design: “The Visual Display of Quantitative Information” (1983, 2001), “Envisioning Information” (1990), “Visual Explanations”(1997), and “Beautiful Evidence” (2006). These books have received 40 awards for content and design and have 1.8 million copies in print. Tufte has had solo shows of sculptures and prints at Artists Space in New York and the Architecture and Design Museum in Los Angeles, and in 2009 - 2010 a major sculpture show at the Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum. Since 1999, he has completed 50 large-scale outdoor pieces, 150 table pieces, and many steel engravings and digital prints. In this rare appearance in England for Intelligence Squared, Tufte will discuss his theories of visual thinking and analytical design

If PowerPoint was a drug, says Edward Tufte, a globally acknowledged expert in graphic communication, it would be subject to a "worldwide product recall". The program, he believes, is a hopeless and, indeed, a damaging communication tool which "routinely disrupts, dominates, and trivializes content," making millions of people’s working lives less productive and efficient but also undermining our culture and even endangering lives. But can hundreds of millions of PowerPoint users really be so wrong