More or Less

BBC Radio 4
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Nov 29, 2019 • 9min

Testing tomatoes

Have these saucy fruits become less healthy over time?
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Nov 23, 2019 • 9min

The world’s busiest shipping lanes

A listener wrote in asking which is the busiest shipping lane in the world. Ruth Alexander tries to find out with sea traffic analyst and former captain, Amrit Singh and Jean Tournadre, a researcher that uses satellite date to ships. Producer: Darin Graham Editor: Richard VadonImage: Freighter ships in Thessaloniki, Greece Credit: Getty Images
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Nov 15, 2019 • 12min

Bolivia: Can statistics help detect electoral fraud?

Evo Morales, Bolivia’s longest-serving leader and first indigenous president, stepped down last week amid weeks of protests sparked by a dispute over a recent presidential election in the country. His opponents say the election was rigged but the embattled former president said it was a cunning coup. We take a closer look at the election results and ask if statistics can tell whether it was fair or fraudulent.Dr Calla Hummel of the University of Miami and Professor Romulo Chumacero of the University of Chile join Ruth Alexander to discuss.
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Nov 9, 2019 • 9min

Reducing your risk of death

Two statistics about reducing your risk of an early death made headlines around the world recently. The first seems to be a great reason to add a four-legged friend to your life. It suggests that owning a dog is tied to lowering your chance of dying early by nearly a quarter. The second statistic claims that even a minimal amount of running is linked to reducing your risk of premature death by up to 30%. Ruth Alexander finds out what’s behind these numbers and we hear from epidemiologist, Gideon Meyerowitz-Katz.Producer: Darin Graham
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Nov 1, 2019 • 9min

Unbelievable: The forgotten rape data

In the United States, some police jurisdictions didn’t send off DNA evidence from people who were raped for testing in a crime lab and for uploading into a national criminal database. Instead, the sets of evidence, known as rape kits, were sat on shelves and in warehouses. It’s estimated that hundreds of thousands need processing. In this edition, Ruth Alexander explores how some jurisdictions are testing the kits now and using the data to catch criminals. Producer: Darin Graham Presenter: Ruth Alexander(Untested sexual assault kits on warehouse shelves. Image: courtesy Joyful Heart Foundation)
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Oct 28, 2019 • 9min

Edith Abbott and crime statistics

Social worker and economist Edith Abbott and her contribution to crime statistics.
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Oct 18, 2019 • 20min

Esther Duflo and women in economics

Discussing Esther Duflo, Abhijit Banerjee and Michael Kremer’s economics Nobel Prize.
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Oct 11, 2019 • 29min

The Extra Episode: Minimum wage, drinking in Scotland and identical twins.

We explore the numbers behind the new minimum wage announcements, whether drinking is going up or down in Scotland, the truth about squeezing people onto the Isle of Wight and how long one identical twin lives after the other twin dies. You’ll want to hear our special extra episode.
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Oct 7, 2019 • 9min

WS More or Less: Does San Francisco have more rough sleepers than Britain?

Are the shocking statistics true? and how do you count people who don't wish to be found?
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Oct 4, 2019 • 28min

New hospitals promised, aid to Ukraine, and bacon sandwiches

Dissecting the government’s hospitals announcement and President Trump’s Ukraine claims.

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