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BBC Radio 4 is a radio channel that started transmitting on the 30th September 1967. It replaced BBC Home Service.

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Tim Harford explains the numbers and statistics used in everyday life

Tim Harford explains - and sometimes debunks - the numbers and statistics used in political debate, the news and everyday life

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More or Less: How Deadly Is Ebola?

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How Deadly Is Ebola?

29/08/2014

BBC Radio 4 - More or Less, How Deadly Is Ebola?

Tim Harford scrutinises claims made about the outbreak. Plus guide dogs, prisons and ATOS.

Tim Harford scrutinises claims made about the virus outbreak. Plus guide dogs and cyclists, prison numbers and ATOS fit-for-work checks.

Media reports are suggesting that as many as 12,000 people may have Ebola in West Africa, but experts tell More or Less that's not the case. It's also said that Ebola kills up to 90% of victims, but while that's true of one outbreak, the death rate in other Ebola outbreaks has varied widely. Tim Harford and Ruth Alexander look at what we know about how dangerous Ebola is, how bad the latest outbreak is, what factors might influence whether people survive once they're infected, and how likely it is that there might be an outbreak of the virus in the UK.

Have 25% of guide dogs in London been hit by a cyclist? Tim Harford fact-checks the numbers behind a questionable headline.

The Justice Secretary Chris Grayling has said an 'unexpected' rise in the prison population is in part driven by 700 more sex offenders being sentenced this year than last. But is this really what's driving the numbers? Tim Harford speaks to Carol Hedderman, visiting scholar in criminology at University Of Cambridge.

Internet rumours abound that 10,600 people have died within six weeks of being pronounced fit to work. But the numbers are not quite all they seem. Tim Harford takes a close look at them with Tom Chivers of The Daily Telegraph.

Presenter: Tim Harford
Producer: Ruth Alexander.

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How Deadly Is Ebola?

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