logo
episode-header-image
Dec 2020
30m 32s

Babbage: Testing testing

The Economist
About this episode

Britain has become the first country to license a fully tested covid-19 vaccine—the Economist’s health policy editor explains why this a historic milestone. Until vaccines become widespread, mass testing can be used to curb contagion. And, is it possible to detect covid-19 from the sound of a cough? Kenneth Cukier hosts 


Please subscribe to The Economist for full access to print, digital and audio editions:

www.economist.com/podcastoffer



Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Up next
Today
Chill baby chill: Modi-Trump relations dip
Yesterday Donald Trump imposed a 50% tariff on Indian imports to America, among the highest in the world. How will Narendra Modi respond? Why Palantir could be the most overvalued firm of all time. And film, vinyl and print media make a comeback.Listen to what matters most, from ... Show More
21m 43s
Yesterday
Fed alert: can Trump fire a governor?
What does Donald Trump’s attempt to sack Lisa Cook, a Federal Reserve governor, mean for the institution’s independence? Uruguay may soon legalise assisted dying. And why shooting clubs – and other community associations – are thriving in Germany. Listen to what matters most, fro ... Show More
23m 28s
Aug 26
Grand theft global: the business of street crime
Car and phone theft were once the preserve of petty crooks in London. Now they underpin a vast and spreading international criminal network. Why you should consider consulting a new oracle for making big life decisions: an economist. And the cult of the private chef.Listen to wha ... Show More
19m 37s
Recommended Episodes
Dec 2021
A Covid Testing Crisis, Again
By the end of last year, if you needed a coronavirus test, you could get one. But when vaccines arrived, focus shifted.Many of the vaccinated felt like they didn’t need tests and demand took a nosedive. Testing sites were closed or converted into vaccination sites. And Abbott Lab ... Show More
31m 44s
Sep 2021
Babbage: Don't panic
As British petrol stations run dry, we explore the behavioural science of panic buying. Also, a dried-up lake bed reveals evidence about America’s first inhabitants. And neuroscientist Anil Seth explains what a new theory can tell us about our conscious experiences of the world—a ... Show More
26 m
Mar 2021
The State of Vaccinations
The United States has never undertaken a vaccination campaign of the scale and speed of the Covid-19 program. Despite a few glitches, the country appears to be on track to offer shots to all adults who want one by May 1.We look at the ups and downs in the American vaccination cam ... Show More
26m 42s
May 2020
The race for a vaccine, the story behind EBITDAC, BoE’s Bailey
The hunt for a coronavirus vaccine is central to global efforts to restart economies. The FT’s US coronavirus correspondent, David Crow, explains how nationalism could slow the fight against the pandemic. Plus, some companies are presenting a new customised metric they are callin ... Show More
9m 45s
Jan 2024
The Intelligence: Gaza’s ever-graver crisis
A tentative aid deal in Gaza is just a sliver of what is needed; hunger and disease may well claim more Palestinian lives this year than the military campaign will. New research suggests American places worst-hit by the opioid epidemic are undergoing a rightward political shift ( ... Show More
23m 46s
Feb 2021
Kids and Covid
The end of summer 2021 has been earmarked as the time by which most American adults will be vaccinated. But still remaining is the often-overlooked question of vaccinations for children, who make up around a quarter of the U.S. population.Without the immunization of children, her ... Show More
24m 47s
Dec 2021
TBD | Best of 2021: Are We Getting COVID Testing All Wrong?
This episode originally aired in September. In the U.S., the PCR test is the gold standard for COVID testing. Common knowledge would have it that the test is more accurate—and therefore more effective at containing the spread of the disease—than the rapid antigen test. What if th ... Show More
33m 10s
Jan 2024
The Intelligence: Indonesia’s election, more TikTok than tick-box
Campaigning for a coming election in the world’s fourth-most-populous country has been almost entirely policy-free: a good social-media presence is nearly all candidates need. As the Panama Canal dries out, neighbouring countries spy an opportunity—but how much of that trade can ... Show More
20m 59s