This week: What is ?rare?? When we say something is rare what do we mean? Lightning strikes which typically kill three people a year in the UK are often described as rare but how do we square that with a condition like motor neurone disease which is also described as rare yet kills 1500 people a year in the UK. Also we speak to Nassim Taleb about his book Anti-fragile.
Start the Week - Science Special
On Start the Week Andrew Marr talks to Peter Wothers about modern day alchemy, as we enter a new era of chemistry. In the past some scientists dismissed the vast majority of the human genome as 'junk DNA', Ewan Birney argues for renaming it 'enigmatic DNA'. And curiosity gets the better of Sanjeev Gupta as he explores the terrain on Mars. But science doesn't have all the answers as Helen Bynum charts the history of tuberculosis, from the medieval period to the present day, and looks at how this killer disease continues to spread and evolve. Producer: Katy Hickman.
More or Less: Behind the Stats - The Census and what does ‘rare’ mean?
Why was the estimate, in 2003, for Eastern Europeans coming to the UK so wrong? Which is better when communicating information words or numbers? Nassim Taleb explains anti-fragility And we'll debunk the oft quoted 'you're never more than 6ft from a rat'
More or Less: Behind the Stats - World Service: Africa GDP & Royal twins
Where does Nigeria?s plan to revise its GDP leave our understanding of growth in Sub-saharan Africa? And what is the chance of the Duchess of Cambridge having twins given she has severe morning sickness.
Start the Week - Scotland – Ian Rankin and Alasdair Gray
On Start the Week Andrew Marr explores what it means to be Scottish. The streets and history of Edinburgh come alive in Ian Rankin's crime novels, while the Glaswegian writer and artist Alasdair Gray marries elements of realism, fantasy and science fiction in his work. With a long history of Scottish emigration, T M Devine looks at the impact on the nation left behind. And the theatre critic of The Scotsman, Joyce McMillan, believes that despite the coming Referendum on Independence, it's the arts and not politics that define Scottish-ness.
Producer: Katy Hickman.
Image © Alasdair Gray, A Life in Pictures, Canongate Books.
More or Less: Behind the Stats - Radio 4: Royal Twins & Autumn Statement
In light of the Royal pregnancy Tim Harford asks what severe morning sickness tells us about the chances of having twins. Yan Wong helps him look at the figures. We disentangle the Chancellor' Autumn Statement and ask: where is the economy really at? As Nigeria prepares to revise its GDP statistics with an expected jump of 40-60%, we ask how reliable are African GDP statistics? Another Daily Telegraph headline comes under scrutiny. And we return to our Lego tower and look at how Lego can be used to teach maths with Eugenia Cheng of Sheffiled University.
More or Less: Behind the Stats - More or Less: How reliable is Kevin Pietersen?
Kevin Pietersen has been widely praised as one of the best England batsmen of the current era and possibly of all time. But in the first test match he only scored 19. So can England really not do without him? Also why is Zero an even number?
Start the Week - Nuclear Iran – Shirley Williams and Geoffrey Robertson
On Start the Week Andrew Marr discusses the prospect of an Iran with nuclear weapons. David Patrikarakos points to the failure to understand how far Iran's nuclear strategy is linked to its recent history and sense of identity. Geoffrey Robertson QC argues that the production of atomic bombs should be made an international crime against humanity, whereas Baroness Shirley Williams believes that politics still has a role to play in disarmament around the world. But Douglas Murray dismisses the idea that political negotiation or the law will work, and believes force may be the only answer.
Producer: Katy Hickman.
More or Less: Behind the Stats - More or Less: Opinion polling, Kevin Pietersen, and stacking Lego
On More or Less this week Tim Harford looks at three polls carried out to gauge the public?s opinion on press regulation gave vastly different answers despite being carried out by the same polling company. Tim talks to Peter Kellner, President of online polling company YouGov. Would you send Kevin Pietersen out to bat if your life depended on him scoring a century? Have two thirds of millionaires really left the country as claimed by the Daily Telegraph this week? What percentage of drinks might be affected by the introduction of a minimum price for alcohol. And how high could you build a Lego tower before the bottom brick collapses? Ruth Alexander dons her safety goggles to find out?
More or Less: Behind the Stats - Fergie Time
This is the first in the new series of the programme. There?s a well-established idea that Manchester United get more added time than every other Premier League team. More or Less looks at the numbers behind this so called ?Fergie Time?. Do Manchester United get more injury time than other top teams when they?re drawing or losing?