Control F
Control F is a podcast about data — hard, fuzzy, surprising, and sometimes unreliable data — and all the ways it influences our daily lives. In each episode, we dig deep on a topic and search through research, algorithms, and assumptions to bring you insights on how stuff works. In a world ruled by numbers, Control F reads between the (spreadsheet) lines to find the bigger story.
Are e-bikes safer than motorcycles?
Every year, millions of Americans choose to hop on e-bikes because of their affordability, convenience and speed. Motorcycles can take you farther, faster, and have been around longer; so has their dangerous reputation. When you look at the numbers, which is actually more dangerous? Teo explains to Clare what the data says about the unique and shared risks of the two rides.
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Should I worry about microplastics?
Plastic is extremely useful: lightweight, cheap, and flexible enough to make almost anything. That’s why global plastic production has been climbing for decades. All that plastic is making its way into our bodies via tiny particles, and that can’t be good for us…right?
Clare tells Teo what we know so far about microplastics in our bodies, and why the science is more complicated than you might think.
We want to answer your questions about how our world works! Click here to submit a question using our online form, or email the team at Con...
From Booming: Is “millionaire flight” real?
Taxes on the wealthy are increasingly popular across the political spectrum in the United States. Democrats in particular have pursued taxes on the country’s highest income earners, including a tax on millionaires passed in Washington State earlier this year. But do high earners simply move to avoid paying those taxes?
Booming host and KUOW economy reporter Monica Nickelsburg wanted to find out. So, she interviewed Cristobal Young: A professor of sociology at Cornell University who researches how wealthy people move, and how much of it is due to taxes.
Listen to more episodes of Boo...
Can Americans afford a Disney vacation?
Many Americans will take on debt this summer for a family trip to a Disney theme park. So why is the happiest place on earth breaking their bank accounts? Teo takes Clare on a fantasy trip to Disneyworld to find out, and see if Clare can have a truly magical experience on a budget.
We want to answer your questions about how our world works! Click here to submit a question using our online form, or email the team at ControlF@kuow.org
Support the show by supporting our home, KUOW Public Radio in Seattle.
...Does shopping at Costco actually save you money?
Costco is a beloved brand, famous for its bulk deals and $1.50 hot dog lunch meal. But can shopping there really save you money? Clare tells Teo about her quest to find out, and the surprising ways that some people work the system of wholesale retailers.
We want to answer your questions about how our world works! Click here to submit a question using our online form, or email the team at ControlF@kuow.org
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Does immigration enforcement reduce crime?
President Donald Trump has turbo-powered immigration enforcement efforts in the U.S. As of March 2026, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) was detaining approximately 60,000 people. The agency is now the best-funded law enforcement organization in the country. The Trump administration claims that expanded immigration enforcement will reduce crime. But does the data support that? Teo tells Clare about the recent history of immigration enforcement in the U.S. and explains what information we have on its relationship to crime.
We want to answer your questions about how our world works! Click here to submit a question using our o...
Why am I seeing so many sports gambling ads? (a.k.a. The Kalshi Question)
Sports gambling ads are proliferating: In stadiums, on TV broadcasts and on apps across the internet. The multi-billion dollar industry has exploded in the past five years. So what happens when that momentum is translated into gambling on politics, culture, and even war? Clare tells Teo about the meteoric rise of sports gambling, and the way it’s changing norms about betting on real world events.
We want to answer your questions about how our world works! Click here to submit a question using our online form, or email the team at ControlF@kuow.org
Sup...
Who decided my dog is ‘too big’ for my home?
Only 11 percent of rental units in the United States allow “big” dogs – but what does that mean? Is a labrador a big dog? How about a pit bull? And why does your landlord care so much, anyway? Inspired by the story of one dog who ran afoul of an HOA rule, Clare tells Teo why so many dogs end up booted from loving homes to shelters and how advocates are trying to stop it.
We want to answer your questions about how our world works! Click here to submit a question using our online form, or email the tea...
Can we get better at measuring homelessness?
Someone who has to survive without a regular place to sleep at night is vulnerable to danger, illness, and the more insidious harm of being shunned. One way to quantify the harm caused by homelessness is to understand how many people are experiencing it. How do we do that? We try to count them, and one city is leading the charge on a new approach. Teo tells Clare how it could change our view of our unhoused neighbors.
We want to answer your questions about how our world works! Click here to submit a question using our o...
What is the poverty line? And why does it matter?
In 1964, then-President Lyndon B. Johnson declared war on poverty. Johnson wanted to lift the nation’s poor into a better life, via programs like food stamps, Medicare and Medicaid. But more than 60 years later, our country is still grappling with how to alleviate the challenges of poverty – including how we measure it.
In this episode, Teo explains how the Federal Poverty Line is calculated and what it has to do with Jello.
We want to answer your questions about how our world works! Click here to submit a question using our online form, or email the t...
Why does health care cost so much in the United States?
The United States spends more on health care than any other country on earth. Most health care products in the U.S. cost at least twice what other countries pay, sometimes up to ten times as much. And everyday Americans are often left footing the bill, grappling with sky-high premiums and medical debt. Clare tells Teo how the forces in our health care system keep costs high, and what you can do about the (possibly giant) number at the bottom of your next medical bill.
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How did we get so good at predicting the weather?
When a storm rolls through your area, odds are you’ll have days of warning and hour-by-hour information about what to expect. That accuracy is thanks to a global data network that turns real-time measurements into forecasts that can stretch weeks. But it wasn’t always this way.
Clare tells Teo how weather went from a guessing game to a precise science, saving lives in the process.
Have a question about how our world works? Want to know more about weather forecasting? Email the Control F team at controlf@kuow.org
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What does your credit score really say about you?
Your credit score is your economic destiny. It determines where you can live, what you can buy, and sometimes even what job you can get. But how do credit bureaus come up with these all-encompassing numbers? Teo tells Clare about the data that credit scores feed on, and how little we really know about how they're calculated.
Have a question about how our world works? Want to know more about credit scores? Email the Control F team at controlf@kuow.org
Support the show by supporting our home, KUOW Public Radio in Seattle.
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Introducing Control F, a podcast about the hidden data that influences our lives
Control F is a podcast about data — hard, fuzzy, surprising, and sometimes unreliable data — and all the ways it influences our daily lives. In each episode, we dig deep on a topic and search through research, algorithms, and assumptions to bring you insights on how stuff works. In a world ruled by numbers, Control F reads between the (spreadsheet) lines to find the bigger story.
Control F launches on January 14, with new episodes every other week.
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