Control F – Details, episodes & analysis

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Control F

KUOW News and Information

News

Society & Culture

Frequency: 1 episode/14d. Total Eps: 14

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.

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🇩🇪 Germany - newsCommentary
06/07/2026
#83
🇩🇪 Germany - newsCommentary
05/07/2026
#56
🇨🇦 Canada - newsCommentary
02/06/2026
#95
🇨🇦 Canada - newsCommentary
31/05/2026
#80
🇨🇦 Canada - newsCommentary
30/05/2026
#93
🇩🇪 Germany - newsCommentary
10/03/2026
#71
🇺🇸 USA - newsCommentary
07/03/2026
#95
🇺🇸 USA - newsCommentary
06/03/2026
#92
🇺🇸 USA - newsCommentary
05/03/2026
#99
🇺🇸 USA - newsCommentary
21/02/2026
#91

Spotify

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https://omnystudio.com/listener
14 shares
https://www.kuow.org/donate/control-f-notes
12 shares
https://forms.office.com/r/4nGSfCuAML
11 shares

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JfLUbLIULDw
1 share
https://youtu.be/q9EehZlw-zk?si=foDZKEv74m4WRbJF
1 share
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kXReW3O5_MA
1 share

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RSS feed quality

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Score global : 69%

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What does your credit score really say about you?

Wednesday, January 14, 2026 • Duration 27:20

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.

Sources in this episode:

Creditworthy: A history of consumer surveillance and financial identity in America, Josh Lauer, 2024
Credit Access in the U.S., U.S. Census Bureau, 2025
Affordable credit poised to save consumers billions, Alex Horowitz, Pew Charitable Trusts, 2023
WA’s new ban on medical debt in credit reports at risk of federal override, Jake Goldstein-Street, Washington State Standard, 2025
Interview with Josh Lauer, Author of Creditworthy
Interview with Alex Horowitz, Project Director at Pew Charitable Trusts
Interview with Maya Lau, Host of Other People’s Pockets
Interview with Jazmin, founder of Budget with Jazmin

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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Introducing Control F, a podcast about the hidden data that influences our lives

Friday, January 2, 2026 • Duration 02:08

Control F launches on January 14, with new episodes every other week.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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What is the poverty line? And why does it matter?

Wednesday, February 25, 2026 • Duration 28:22

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 team at ControlF@kuow.org

Support the show by supporting our home, KUOW Public Radio in Seattle.

Sources in this episode:

U.S. Census Bureau Timeline of Poverty Measure, 2014
How the U.S. Census Bureau Measures Poverty, 2022
What does living at the poverty line look like?, USA Facts, 2023
Poverty Guidelines vs Poverty Thresholds, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Poverty Line Matrix, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2026
Remembering Mollie Orshansky — The Developer of the Poverty Thresholds, Society Security Administration, 2008
Relatively Deprived, New Yorker, 2006

Why does health care cost so much in the United States?

Wednesday, February 11, 2026 • Duration 29:48

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.

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.

Sources in this episode:

The Insane Things Hospitals Can Charge You for When you Give Birth, Vice, 2018
Health Care Costs and Affordability, Kaiser Family Foundation, 2025
Health costs associated with pregnancy, childbirth, and infant care, Peterson-KFF (Kaiser Family Foundation) Health System Tracker, 2025
Utah Dad Posts Hospital Bill With Nearly $40 Fee for Skin-to-Skin Contact After Son's Birth, ABC News, 2016
As Americans Struggled, Health Insurers Made a Record-Breaking $71.3 Billion in Profits, Wendell Potter on Substack, 2025
Health Care Debt In The U.S.: The Broad Consequences Of Medical And Dental Bills, Kaiser Family Foundation, 2022

How did we get so good at predicting the weather?

Wednesday, January 28, 2026 • Duration 24:50

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

Support the show by supporting our home, KUOW Public Radio in Seattle.

Sources in this episode:

Archival copies of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer on October 12 and October 13, 1962
Why an ‘exact date’ weather forecast headline isn’t what it seems, Met Office of the United Kingdom, 2023
How Reliable Are Weather Forecasts?, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Operational Weather Forecasting, Peter Michael Inness and Steve Dorling, 2013

Are e-bikes safer than motorcycles?

Wednesday, July 1, 2026 • Duration 32:02

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.

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.

Sources in this episode:

Safety and Injury Prevention Statement, American College of Surgeons, 2025
Bike helmet protects a young boy’s brain, UW Medicine, 2025
Electric Bicycle Injuries and Hospitalizations, JAMA Surgery, 2024
National Electronic Injury Surveillance System, 2024
Bicycle Injury at UW Medicine, Harborview Injury Prevention and Research Center, 2024
Exploring Electric Bicycle Safety Performance Data and Policy Options for California, San Jose State University, 2025
E-Bikes are vehicles, not toys: What parents need to know, Utah Department of Public Safety, 2026
Select Risk Factors Associated with Causes of Motorcycle Crashs, National Transportation Safety Board, 2018

Should I worry about microplastics?

Wednesday, June 17, 2026 • Duration 31:41

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 ControlF@kuow.org

Support the show by supporting our home, KUOW Public Radio in Seattle.

Sources in this episode:

The Human Brain May Contain as Much as a Spoon’s Worth of Microplastics, New Research Suggests, Smithsonian Magazine, 2025
Bioaccumulation of microplastics in decedent human brains, Nature Medicine, 2025
Challenges in studying microplastics in human brain, Nature Medicine, 2025
Microplastics and Nanoplastics in Atheromas and Cardiovascular Events, The New England Journal of Medicine, 2024
The Real Truth About the U.S. Plastics Recycling Rate, Beyond Plastics / The Last Beach Cleanup, 2022
How Big Oil Misled The Public Into Believing Plastic Would Be Recycled, NPR, 2020
, The Guardian, 2026

From Booming: Is “millionaire flight” real?

Wednesday, June 3, 2026 • Duration 20:39

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 Booming in the KUOW app, or wherever you get podcasts.

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.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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Can Americans afford a Disney vacation?

Wednesday, May 20, 2026 • Duration 27:05

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.

Sources in this episode:

Disney’s Magic Kingdom Raises Prices, CNN News Room, 2014
Disney and the Decline of America’s Middle Class, New York Times, 2025
Can America Afford Disney?, Disney Tourist Blog, 2025
How Much Disney Can America’s Middle Class Afford in 2025?, Touring Plans Blog, 2025
The U.S. Economy Depends More Than Ever on Rich People, Wall Street Journal, 2025
Even Disney Is Worried About the High Cost of a Disney Vacation, Wall Street Journal, 2025
Why do people keep coming back?, USA Today, 2026
Consumer Expenditure Surveys, Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2023

Does shopping at Costco actually save you money?

Wednesday, May 6, 2026 • Duration 30:36

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

You help make Control F a reality by supporting the show. Donate to KUOW at this link to keep us in your feed and free for everyone.

Sources in this episode:

Consumer Price Index data, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Most and Least Expensive Supermarkets, Consumer Reports
Cost of Living Index (COLI) data, The Council for Community Economic research
Interview with David and Susan Schwartz, authors of The Joy of Costco
Interview with Jordan Page
Interview with Tan Vinh and Chris Solomon

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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Control F – Details, episodes & analysis

Podcast details

Recent rankings

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Shared links between episodes and podcasts

RSS feed quality and score

Publication history

Latest published episodes

Related Shows Based on Content Similarities

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Related Shows Based on Content Similarities

Control F – Details, episodes & analysis

Podcast details

Recent rankings

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Shared links between episodes and podcasts

Other88

Youtube6

Nature2

RSS feed quality and score

Publication history

Latest published episodes

Similar podcasts and content

Related Shows Based on Content Similarities

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Related Shows Based on Content Similarities

Other88

Youtube6

Nature2