Australians love a punt - over 80 per cent will gamble at one stage or another. And yet, for a small fraction of us, gambling will cause very serious problems indeed. Why and how those problems occur, and what to do about it, are still very much matters of debate.

The Internet is celebrated and castigated in equal measure -- but is it good for your mental health? Are you compelled to check your email morning, night and day? Some believe Internet Addiction Disorder is a very real and growing concern. Others aren't at all convinced it exists. Also, the rise of psychological therapies online -- from depression to social phobia or bulimia -- can a computer really replace your therapist?

Smokers cling to the ciggies for dear life, knowing it will likely be a much shorter one. An anti-smoking drug released in Australia targets nicotine receptors in the brain, working differently to traditional nicotine replacement therapies. But are we too fixed on a quick fix for addiction?

Scientists now view addiction as a disease, not a behavioural problem. The priority is medical treatment, not shame and blame. But others challenge what they dub the 'disease rhetoric', arguing it's fatalistic and reductionist. Do we treat the brain, or the person?