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On Start the Week Anne McElvoy talks to the Russian expert Fiona Hill about the many faces of Vladimir Putin, while Vladislav Zubok considers the impact of the past on the Russia of today. Oliver Bullough turns to drink to understand the soul of the nation and the historian Rachel Polonsky considers the cultural landscape of the post-Soviet era.
Producer: Katy Hickman.
A&E waiting times have been making the headlines - Tim Harford takes a look at some of the numbers and puts them into context. Today presenter Evan Davis explains his frustration with finding official statistics online. We explore if men really do think about sex every seven seconds. Plus, what are the chances of having twins?
In the wake of the Boston Marathon bombing and the killing of a British soldier on the streets of Woolwich in London, it emerged that the suspects were known to the security services. But how feasible is it for the authorities to keep track of everyone on their watch list? Tim Harford crunches the numbers, with the help of the former head of the UK intelligence service MI5, Dame Stella Rimington.
On Start the Week Allan Little grapples with super-symmetric particles, superstrings and multiverses with the help of Jon Butterworth. But the writer Jim Baggott dismisses many of the ideas of modern theoretical physics as mere fairy tales and fantasy. The sociologist Hilary Rose bemoans the commercialisation of biological sciences and warns against believing the hype. But the world-renowned stem cell scientist Stephen Minger believes recent developments show great promise for the treatments of many life-threatening diseases. Producer: Natalia Fernandez.
After the killing of a British soldier on the streets of Woolwich in London, it emerged that the suspects were known to the security services. But how feasible is it for the authorities to keep track of everyone on their watch list? Tim Harford crunches the numbers, with the help of the former head of MI5, Dame Stella Rimington. Plus: a listener requests a cost-benefit analysis of kidney donations; and Johnny Ball gives the Apprentices a maths lesson.
Tim Harford examines Ryanair?s claim that more than 90% of its flights land on time; and discovers that millions of scientific papers may be incorrect. Producer: Ruth Alexander
On Start the Week Emily Maitlis talks to the Executive Chairman of Google, Eric Schmidt about the digital future. A future where everyone is connected, but ideas of privacy, security and community are transformed. Former Wikileaks employee James Ball asks how free we are online. The curator Honor Harger looks to art to understand this new world of technology. And worried about this brave new world? David Spiegelhalter, offers a guide to personal risk and the numbers behind it.
Producer: Katy Hickman.
Tim Harford inspects the claims the UK Treasury and the Scottish government make about the economics of an independent Scotland; tests Ryanair?s claim that more than 90% of its flights land on time; re-runs the Eurovision song contest, excluding the votes of the former Soviet countries to test whether political alliances are affecting the final results; discovers that millions of scientific papers may be incorrect; and learns more about dog years ? and cat years.
As Angelina Jolie announces that an 87% cancer risk has prompted her to have a double mastectomy, Tim Harford assesses the probabilities associated with the disease. Plus, has the UK been hit by a Romanian crime wave?
On Start the Week Anne McElvoy explores movements and people that have changed the political landscape. The MP Jesse Norman champions the founder of modern conservatism, the 18th century philosopher and statesman Edmund Burke. Lady Antonia Fraser brings to life the Great Reform Bill of 1832 which transformed the way Britain was governed. And one of the co-founders of the Occupy movement, David Graeber, looks afresh at the idea of democracy. Producer: Katy Hickman.