Freakonomics: Recent Episodes
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To celebrate a wonderful year of production on all of the shows in our network, we asked our staff to choose their favorite episode of the year.
Lyric Bowditch, Production Associate“Why Do Doctors Have to Play Defense?” from Freakonomics, M.D.
After the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, my feeds were flooded with content about it. This episode cut through the noise by offering a really important, mind-widening, and distinctly Freakonomical perspective on the issue that I hadn’t considered or encountered anywhere else. I find myself bringing it up in conversations often!
Neal Carruth, Executive Vice President and General Manager“Has Globalization Failed?” from Freakonomics Radio
Freakonomics Radio does not shy away from posing big, provocative questions. This episode starts with a question that might, at first blush, seem kind of boring or too abstract to be interesting. But through a charming conversation with a supremely knowledgeable guest, the law professor Anthea Roberts, you acquire the tools to answer for yourself the question of whether globalization has failed. This episode also does a good job of engaging with the back catalog of Freakonomics Radio since the show has covered this general topic in the past.
Jeremy Johnston, Audio Engineer“Names,” from Off Leash
Since my dog doesn’t seem to recognize his own name half the time, I was excited to learn something from this episode of Off Leash. It ended up being a really great insight into how dogs respond to their nicknames, differentiate vowel sounds, and identify their owners’ voices in crowded places. This is such a happy episode full of animal lovers talking about how they arrived at a name for their furry friends, and also takes us on a fun tour of Isabella Rossellini’s farm.
Julie Kanfer, Senior Producer“Why Is Everyone Moving to Dallas?” from Freakonomics Radio
I really enjoyed this two-part series and learned a lot about a place I’ve never been (Dallas) and a thing I didn’t know (that everyone is moving there). I found myself thinking about this episode/series a lot throughout the year, random bits of it popping into my brain when I least expected them to. It also really evoked a sense of place and of the people in that place; I felt like I was along for the ride (in that Uber in the pouring rain).
Ryan Kelley, Associate Producer“What Is Sportswashing (and Does It Work)?” from Freakonomics Radio
Why you liked that episode: We don’t normally focus on current events on Freakonomics Radio (we like to give the economists time to play with the data and come up with something smart), but the new, Saudi-backed professional golf league was just too intriguing not to cover. When Phil Mickelson, Qatar, and Barbra Streisand all come up in the same conversation, it must be good.
Alina Kulman, Production Associate
“Can the Big Bad Wolf Save Your Life?” from Freakonomics Radio
I loved how interdisciplinary this episode was — it’s about wildlife conservation, politics, literature, and also (of course) economics. It also has some pretty staggering statistics, like the fact that deer collisions cost about $10 billion in damages annually.
Zack Lapinski, Senior Producer“Why Did You Marry That Person?” from Freakonomics Radio
This episode has everything: sexual anthropology, Victorian era politics, divorce, Shakespeare, the dating app Raya, aristocratic romance, Bridgerton, and — of course — an economist.
Morgan Levey, Senior Producer“A Rockstar Chemist and Her Cancer-Attacking ‘Lawn Mower’” from People I (Mostly) Admire
Maybe it’s a little gauche to list your own show / an episode you produced, but I loved this episode with Carolyn Bertozzi. Rarely does someone so brilliant also have the ability to explain Nobel-prize winning science so clearly. She’s also cool as hell, and I’d really like to be friends with her.
Rebecca Lee Douglas, Senior Producer“Js Ct, Angela, Why Are You Such a Fing Potty-Mouth?” from No Stupid Questions
I saw that Morgan listed an episode of PIMA, so now I feel empowered to share an episode of NSQ. This show was so much fun. It was packed with interesting research, personal anecdotes, and lots and lots of jokes — basically, the ingredients for an incredible episode of NSQ. We received more listener emails/voice memos to this show than any other episode we’ve produced.
Katherine Moncure, Associate Producer“Are N.F.T.s All Scams?” from Freakonomics Radio
I loved that entire series (“What Can Blockchain Do For You?”) because it took a very complicated and opaque part of our economy — a part that’s highly polarized — and in classic Freakonomics fashion, broke it down into something that was actually understandable. N.F.T.s are especially mind boggling to me, but less so now. I would have to say though, my favorite part was not any of the clear, informative explanations, but rather when the Freakonomics crew and the artist Tom Sachs were chased out of Bryant Park for launching a rocket. Well worth the risk.
Greg Rippin, Technical DirectorThe “What Can Blockchain Do For You?” series, from Freakonomics Radio
I feel that we did a really good job of explaining the different applications of crypto without coming across like we were trying to get listeners to (literally) buy into it. Plus, I got to leave my studio for a bit and get some fresh air in the park.
The post Freakonomics Radio Network’s 2022 Staff Picks appeared first on Freakonomics.
It should surprise no one, and delight everyone, that Richard Thaler has won this year’s Nobel in economics. Congratulations! Thaler is a big reason I personally got interested in economics. (I’ve known him quite a bit longer than I’ve known Steve Levitt.) He is everything to be admired in a scholar and thinker: original, judicious, crafty, and more than a . . .
The post Congratulations to Nobel Laureate Richard Thaler! appeared first on Freakonomics.
The Princeton economist Alan Krueger — he led the Council of Economic Advisers under Obama, and his research has been featured several times on Freakonomics.com — is among a group of scholars launching a new endeavor. It’s called the Music Industry Research Association, and they want you to come to their first conference, at UCLA, in August. Here’s their writeup: Starting with . . .
The post Calling All Music-Industry Insiders and the Economists Who Love Them appeared first on Freakonomics.
How can we at Freakonomics help you during the holidays? Here’s a few ideas: 1. We can provide inspiration for gifts for the “homo economicus” in your life. 2. When you’re making your year-end donations, we can help you consider the evidence for which programs work, and which don’t. 3. No matter how far away you roam, we can entertain . . .
The post Happy Everything, From Freakonomics appeared first on Freakonomics.
A while back, we tried out a new idea on a special edition of Freakonomics Radio — a game show we called Tell Me Something I Don’t Know. You might remember it. It was so much fun that we decided to launch a whole new podcast series. It’s been in the works for a while and it’s finally here! A preview . . .
The post Announcing the Debut of Tell Me Something I Don’t Know appeared first on Freakonomics.
In our recent Freakonomics Radio episode “How to Become Great at Just About Anything," we spoke with K. Anders Ericsson, a research psychologist who has spent more than 30 years studying expert performers in many fields — music, sports, chess, surgery, teaching, writing, and more. Ericsson's recent book is calledPeak: Secrets from the New Science of Expertise. It has inspired us to try launching a Freakonomics spinoff podcast, called (for now) Peak.
The post Calling All (Potential) Peak Performers! appeared first on Freakonomics.
When Stephen Dubner’s new podcast Question of the Day launched in August, it immediately shot to No. 1 on the iTunes chart. Last month it was selected as one of iTunes "Best of 2015." (You can subscribe here.) Now you can come see a live taping of the show on Thursday, January 14, at The Bell House in Brooklyn. Join Dubner, his Question of the Day co-host, James Altucher, and their special guest Negin Farsadfor an evening of conversation that will run from the ridiculous to the sublime (and occasionally both).
The post Win Free Tickets to See Dubner on Stage in Brooklyn on January 14 appeared first on Freakonomics.
One of the best things about being a journalist is getting to ask questions. Stephen Dubner has been doing this for years, accumulating fascinating bits of knowledge, hidden insights, and wild stories. By now he knows at least a little bit about a lot of things.
The post Introducing “Question of the Day,” a New Dubner Podcast appeared first on Freakonomics.
Many people have written many nice things to us over the years. (Of course some people have written some not-so-nice things too.) But the following is my favorite, or at least my new favorite:
The post Quite Possibly the Most Flattering E-Mail Ever appeared first on Freakonomics.
From a computer scientist (and self-professed “data nerd”) named Scott Griggs: Hi! Long time reader/listener here, looking for some quick reading list recommendations… I have submitted another application to be on CBS’s Survivor, the reality show of outwit, outplay, outlast fame. The game is physical as well as mental and includes a large social aspect concerning relationships, building trust, evaluating . . .
The post Any Strategic Reading Tips for a Survivor Applicant? appeared first on Freakonomics.
We recently received the following e-mail from Yu Chen, a 29-year-old engineer supervisor in California who moved to the U.S. from China when she was 16. I listened to the episode on diamonds and asked my boyfriend for a gold bar for engagement instead. Then I heard the episode on quitting, so I broke up with him. I’ve been very . . .
The post Do We Owe This Boyfriend an Apology? appeared first on Freakonomics.
Almost a decade of blogging had worn me down, but after some time off, I'm ready to jump back in the saddle. I can't think of a better way than by embarrassing myself with the annual Kentucky Derby predictions!
The post The Annual Freakonomics Kentucky Derby Predictions appeared first on Freakonomics.
In celebration of the 10th anniversary of Freakonomics comes this curated collection from the most readable economics blog in the universe. When Freakonomics was first published, its authors, Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner, started a blog — and they’ve kept it up. The writing is more casual, more personal, even more outlandish than in their books. In When to Rob a Bank, they ask a host of typically off-center questions: Why don’t flight attendants get tipped? If you were a terrorist, how would you attack? And why does KFC always run out of fried chicken?
The post Read an Early Excerpt from When to Rob a Bank appeared first on Freakonomics.
In a new working paper, Roland Benabou, Davide Ticchi, and Andrea Vindigni follow up their earlier paper which found "a robust negative association between religiosity and patents per capita." Their new paper, "Religion and Innovation" (abstract; PDF), they look at religiosity on the individual level, "examining the relationship between religiosity and a broad set of pro- or anti-innovation attitudes."
The post Religiosity: Good for Society, Bad for Innovation? appeared first on Freakonomics.
A reader writes in with a question that is hard to answer. I thought it'd be best to put the question to you, our readers; hopefully you can help him find his way to a good decision.
The post Should I Work for an “Evil” Company? appeared first on Freakonomics.
From a reader named John Keaney: I just finished your book Think Like a Freak, and I’m trying to use the lessons in the book while I’m in Kyrgyzstan. I’m an undergraduate at University of South Carolina, and I’ve decided to pursue my very first, independent research project while I’m living in Kyrgyzstan on the effects of Kyrgyz accession to . . .
The post A Would-Be Freakonomist in Kyrgyzstan Needs Your Help appeared first on Freakonomics.
We’ll be putting out a new Freakonomics Radio episode later this week on the use of RCTs (randomized controlled trials) in healthcare delivery. It features the work of the MIT economist Amy Finkelstein and her colleagues at J-PAL, and it includes their analysis of what happened when Oregon expanded its Medicaid coverage. If you want to get a head start . . .
The post What Happens When Poor Pregnant Women Are Given Medicaid Coverage? appeared first on Freakonomics.
From a podcast listener named Jessica Graham in Sydney, Australia: My name is Jess and for most of my adult life I have been afflicted by various forms of sleeplessness. Would I call it insomnia? I don’t know if it could be classified as clinical insomnia, but all I can say is up until a few months ago I did . . .
The post New Miracle Sleep Aid Discovered! appeared first on Freakonomics.
My good friend and colleague John List has very ambitious summer plans.
We’ve both believed for a long time that the combination of creative economic thinking and randomized experiments has the potential to revolutionize business and the non-profit sector. John and I have worked to foment that revolution through both academic partnerships with firms as well as a project of John's called the Science of Philanthropy Initiative (SPI), whose mission is "evidence-based research on charitable giving."
The post Great Companies Needed appeared first on Freakonomics.
We're working on an episode about behavior change -- essentially, how to get yourself to do the things you should be doing but often don't. It revolves around the fascinating research of Katy Milkman at Penn. For example, she and her colleagues have noted a "Fresh Start Effect":
The post Lend Your Voice to Freakonomics Radio appeared first on Freakonomics.
From a podcast listener named Katie McGreer, some really interesting comment on our recent episode “Time to Take Back the Toilet“: I am an avid listener of the Freakonomics podcast and I just wanted to respond to the recent episode on noise in public washrooms (or the lack of buffers). I was having a discussion about the history of cottaging . . .
The post Some Other Explanations for Why Public Bathrooms Are the Way They Are appeared first on Freakonomics.