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The prize-winning economics of migration and the minimum wage

A look at the work of this year’s winners of the most prestigious prize in economics.

• 8 mins

The numbers behind Squid Game

Could you survive a round in Squid Game, and how many have watched it?

• 8 mins

The art of counting

Tim Harford talks to author Deborah Stone about her book which explores counting.

• 8 mins

Same data, opposite results. Can we trust research?

Why the same data can produce different conclusions.

• 8 mins

The carbon cost of breakfast at COP26

Can a vegan croissant really be worse for the environment than a bacon roll?

• 8 mins

A TikTok tale

How a well-meaning TikTok disrupted 4,600 studies

• 8 mins

Simpson’s Paradox: How to make vaccinated death figures misleading

A tricky statistical phenomenon at play.

• 8 mins

Does wearing a mask halve your chances of getting Covid-19?

Is it true wearing a mask reduces Covid-19 incidence by 53%?

• 8 mins

Does catching covid give you more immunity than being vaccinated?

Infection vs injection: Could prior infection provide 27 times more protection?

• 8 mins

The psychological economics of gift giving

How to buy gifts people actually want.

• 8 mins

Numbers of 2021

The most significant numbers of the year

• 8 mins

Will the population of Nigeria be larger than Europe’s?

Will Nigeria’s population really reach 600million?

• 8 mins

How much plastic is in the Ocean and can Mr Beast make a difference?

Looking at Mark Rober and Mr Beast’s plastics pledge.

• 8 mins

Omicron, pandemic birth rates and boosters

An Omicron update, pandemic birth rates and the booster drive.

• 27 mins

QAnon: Did 365,348 children go missing in the US in 2020?

Fact checking a QAnon claim

• 8 mins

Are women 32% more likely to die after operation by a male surgeon?

Surgery death risks, Test and Trace costs in the UK and Germany, and podcast plans

• 28 mins

Are female patients more likely to die if the surgeon is male?

Should women be worried about having a male surgeon?

• 10 mins

Should you follow the 5 second rule? And does inflation hit the poorest harder?

Does inflation hit poor households harder and how many people have died of Covid?

• 28 mins

Fertility rates: baby boom or bust?

Fertility rates around the world

• 8 mins

Does the UK have the fastest growing economy in the G7?

How fast is our economy growing? And what is happening with Omicron reinfections?

• 28 mins

Can you fool your brain?

Looking at the power of expectations

• 8 mins

The prime minister in statistical bother

Boris Johnson has been ticked off for misleading Parliament on jobs and on crime.

• 28 mins

Testosterone and sport

Trans women’s participation in elite sport

• 8 mins

Questioning claims about Covid and children

How likely are children to end up in hospital because of Covid? And how many have died?

• 29 mins

Hospitalisation rates for children with Covid

Do 1 in 100 children who catch Covid end up hospitalised?

• 8 mins

Vaccinating children, lockdowns, and ebikes

Jabs for five to 11-year-olds, lockdown effectiveness, and being green on two wheels

• 28 mins

Did lockdowns save any lives?

Did lockdowns actually save any lives?

• 8 mins

Troop and Casualty Numbers in Ukraine

How reliable are the figures coming out of the conflict in Ukraine?

• 29 mins

Numbers in Ukraine and low seas in Chagos

Troop and casualty numbers in Ukraine

• 8 mins

Does the UK take in more refugees than other European countries?

Fact checking Boris Johnson’s claim.

• 11 mins