Category: Series

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The Indicator from Planet Money - Could you live without GPS? It’s OK, the economy can’t, either

A recent survey found that nearly half of all Americans say they could not live without GPS in their car. The American economy couldn't live without GPS, either! Clocks on Wall Street, commercial fishermen, and of course, your Lyft driver, all rely on satellite navigation services.

An outage in those services, however, would cripple the U.S. economy. A study found that an outage could cost at least $1 billion a day ... and we don't have a backup.

Today on the show, we explain who owns GPS and why we don't have a Plan B if it fails.

Related Episodes:
The Military Industry ... It's Complex
Why the FTC is cracking down on location data brokers

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More or Less: Behind the Stats - Do 85% of the world?s population practice a religion?

We don?t usually do god on More or Less, but one listener got in touch to ask us to investigate a stat used by an Anglican priest on a BBC radio programme.

Speaking on the ?Thought for the Day? slot, Reverend Lucy Winkett said that around 85% of the world's population practice a religion.

Is this true? We speak to Conrad Hackett, from the Pew Research Center, and the person whose research is the source for the claim.

Presenter: Tim Harford Producer: Natasha Fernandes Series producer: Tom Colls Production co-ordinator: Katie Morrison Sound mix: Nigel Appleton Editor: Richard Vadon

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The Indicator from Planet Money - The Fed cut rates … now what? (featuring: Sasquatch)

It's ... Indicators of the Week! We roundup the economic indicators that caught our eyes and ears. This week, all our attention was on the Federal Reserve, which cut interest rates by half a percentage point. (Egad!)

On today's episode, we've got dot plots, why the Fed rate cut may not bring immediate relief, and ... Sasquatch?!

Related Episodes:
Has the Fed lost the dot plot?
Are both rents AND interest rates too dang high?
When mortgage rates are too low to give up

Related Reading:
Mortgage Rates Puzzle Is a Worry for Housing and the Fed

For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.

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The Indicator from Planet Money - What are Harris’ economic plans?

Yesterday we looked at Donald Trump's key economic proposals for a second term. On today's show, we do the same for Kamala Harris, examining the Democratic nominee's plans for taxes, housing and grocery store prices.

Related episodes:
What are Trump's economic plans? (Apple / Spotify)
Three Kamala Harris indicators (Apple / Spotify)
Bad economics, smart politics (Apple / Spotify)
How much do presidents ACTUALLY influence the economy? (Apple / Spotify)
When Uncle Sam stops paying the childcare bill (Apple / Spotify)

For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.

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The Indicator from Planet Money - What are Trump’s economic plans?

With less than two months before election day in the U.S., there's still a lot to learn about both major candidates' economic platforms. Today we look at some key proposals from Donald Trump for a second term, including tariffs and immigration. Tomorrow: Kamala Harris' plans.

Related listening:
Bad economics, smart politics (Apple / Spotify)
How much do presidents ACTUALLY influence the economy? (Apple / Spotify)
Do immigrants really take jobs and lower wages? (Apple / Spotify)
Why tariffs are SO back (Apple / Spotify)
What is Trumponomics?
Trump vs. Red Tape

For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.

Music by Drop Electric. Find us: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Newsletter.

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