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Hello and welcome to More or Less, the show that gets an A for pedantry and a

star for statistical understanding and a U for attempts at topical humour.

What's that Cape?

We've actually just been upgraded to a C.

Oh a C, who'd have thought it?

I'm Tim Haafard back in the studio for the first time since March and yes it does feel

weird in a good way.

Thank you for asking.

This week producer Kate Lamble gives us her testing swan song.

For reasons that may become clear we examine the chance of being hit by a double decker

bus.

And what does poker teach us about the role of randomness in our lives?

But first the story of the week has been the use of algorithms, that is statistical

recipes, to hand out A level grades.

On average the grades that the algorithm awarded were up, indeed at record levels.

But many students were not given the grades they hoped for and that they might well have

expected to earn had exams taken place.

And just as the Scottish government had done a week ago, the authorities in England,

Wales and Northern Ireland have decided to scrap the algorithm entirely and rely on the

assessments provided by the school, swapping one problem for a different one.

I have received many requests to wave my statistical magic wand and fix everything.

...