It's Monday, March 12th, 2018, and you're listening to Inquiring Minds. I'm Kishore Hari.

Each week, we bring you a new, in-depth exploration of the space where science, politics, and society collide.

We endeavor to find out what's true, what's left to discover, and why it all matters.

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Gun violence has once again dominated news headlines over the past few weeks since the mass

shooting in Parkland,

Florida. The teen survivors have demanded reforms from raising age restrictions to purchase

certain firearms to 21, to banning bump stocks and high-capacity magazines, and closing

loopholes that allow purchases of firearms without background checks.

Predictably, arguments have erupted on whether if any of these policy changes would,

quote unquote, work.

That's where science should step in, but unfortunately, there is very little solid evidence

on the host of outcomes.

The nonpartisan think tank RAND Corporation recently released a report

surveying thousands of studies on gun violence to simply state what we know and how well we know it.

They mapped gun policies like background checks, bans on assault weapons, concealed carry,

minimum age requirements, prohibitions on guns for those with

mental illnesses, and many more, against outcomes like suicide rates, violent crime, unintentional

injuries, mass shootings, and how it will impact the gun industry.

It's an extensive report, well worth read.

It doesn't make many sweeping claims outside the fact that

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