Breaking Benford
Radiolab13 Marras 2020

Breaking Benford

In the days after the US Presidential election was called for Joe Biden, many supporters of Donald Trump are crying foul. Voter fraud. And a key piece of evidence? A century-old quirk of math called Benford’s Law. We at Radiolab know Benford’s Law well, and have covered it before. In this political dispatch, Latif and Soren Sherlock their way through the precinct numbers to see if these claims hold up. Spoiler: they don’t. But the reason why is more interesting than you’d expect.

This episode was reported by Latif Nasser.

Support Radiolab by becoming a member today at Radiolab.org/donate.

Links:

Walter Mebane, “Inappropriate Applications of Benford’s Law Regularities to Some Data from the 2020 Presidential Election in the United States”


Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Tämä jakso on lisätty Podme-palveluun avoimen RSS-syötteen kautta eikä se ole Podmen omaa tuotantoa. Siksi jakso saattaa sisältää mainontaa.

Jaksot(653)

Poison Control

Poison Control

When reporter Brenna Farrell was a new mom, her son gave her and her husband a scare -- prompting them to call Poison Control. For Brenna, the experience was so odd, and oddly comforting, that she dec...

1 Kesä 201835min

Unraveling Bolero

Unraveling Bolero

This week, we're throwing it back to an old favorite: a story about obsession, creativity, and a strange symmetry between a biologist and a composer that revolves around one famously repetitive piece ...

22 Touko 201827min

More or Less Human

More or Less Human

Seven years ago chatbots - those robotic texting machines - were a mere curiosity. They were noticeably robotic and at their most malicious seemed only capable of scamming men looking for love online....

18 Touko 20181h 1min

Dark Side of the Earth

Dark Side of the Earth

Astronauts at the International Space Station can make one request to talk to an earthling of their choice. For some reason, Astronaut Mark Vande Hei chose us. A couple weeks ago, we were able to vide...

26 Huhti 201827min

Border Trilogy Part 3: What Remains

Border Trilogy Part 3: What Remains

Border Trilogy While scouring the Sonoran Desert for objects left behind by migrants crossing into the United States, anthropologist Jason De León happened upon something he didn't expect to get left ...

20 Huhti 201835min

Border Trilogy Part 2: Hold the Line

Border Trilogy Part 2: Hold the Line

Border Trilogy  While scouring the Sonoran Desert for objects left behind by migrants crossing into the United States, anthropologist Jason De León happened upon something he didn't expect to get left...

6 Huhti 201849min

Border Trilogy Part 1: Hole in the Fence

Border Trilogy Part 1: Hole in the Fence

Border Trilogy While scouring the Sonoran Desert for objects left behind by migrants crossing into the United States, anthropologist Jason De León happened upon something he didn't expect to get left ...

23 Maalis 201848min

Rippin’ the Rainbow an Even Newer One

Rippin’ the Rainbow an Even Newer One

One of our most popular episodes of all time was our Colors episode, where we introduced you to a sea creature that could see a rainbow far beyond what humans can experience. Peacock mantis shrimps ar...

15 Maalis 201833min

Suosittua kategoriassa Tiede

rss-mita-tulisi-tietaa
tiedekulma-podcast
rss-poliisin-mieli
utelias-mieli
rss-duodecim-lehti
rss-totuuden-liepeilla
university-of-eastern-finland
docemilia
sotataidon-ytimessa
filocast-filosofian-perusteet
menologeja-tutkimusmatka-vaihdevuosiin
rss-bios-podcast
rss-ranskaa-raakana
rss-duokkari-ekstra
rss-laakaripodi
rss-astetta-parempi-elama-podcast
rss-tiedetta-vai-tarinaa
rss-ilmasto-kriisissa
rss-ylistys-elaimille