Last post, I passed on some data showing that women are somewhat more likely than men to be involved in car accidents on a per mile driven basis. But men are far more likely (by between 50 and 100 percent) to be in crashes involving loss of life. Why are men’s crashes so much more tragic?
Does a bad winter equal more traffic fatalities? Not in Sweden.
The Daily Beast ranked America’s “craziest” cities by psychiatrists per capita, stress, eccentricity, and drinking.
If college and professional football are the unique and entire domain of male athletes, such that former players are most likely the most knowledgeable as to the game’s nuances both on and off the field, why is it that, while all the off-field commentary is also male-dominated, all the on-field interviewing and commentary is done by females who never touched a football, let alone played a down?
More trouble for Freakonomics readers.
A well-named plant scientist recently weighed in on the European Commission’s decision to “to allow genetically modified potato varieties to be grown in some European Union countries.”
Last week, Kal Raustiala and Chris Sprigman took us behind the scenes of fashion copycatting, and explained why the practice is actually good for the fashion industry. This week, they explore historical and current efforts to protect fashion from copycatters.
Foreign Policy’s recent photoessay offers readers a look at life on real Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) teams.
The overutilization of emergency rooms is often cited as a dangerous symptom of America’s broken healthcare system. But a new Slate article from Zachary Meisel and Jesse Pines offers a rosier picture of emergency room usage, and dispels several pervasive myths.
A new pricing scheme for Miami Dolphins tickets.
In at least one Asian country, however, there’s reason to believe the missing women phenomenon may someday disappear. South Korean parents, who have historically preferred sons, are now more likely to express a preference for daughters.
For most products, an “organic” label results in a significant price premium. However, a new study finds that the opposite is true for California wines labeled as “made from organically grown grapes.”
Much economic research stresses the role of pensions and Social Security in inducing retirement-altering the labor supply of older workers. Yet there are also demand-side effects that make firms unwilling to allow most workers to ease out.
Using the prediction markets to become an insta-expert in just about anything.
Wondering whether aspirin will protect your heart or cause internal bleeding? Or whether you should kick your coffee habit or embrace it? It’s often hard to make sense of the conflicting advice that comes out of medical research studies.
Small technical changes often shift our production possibility frontier outward, and make a big difference in our well-being, even if they don’t increase measured GDP.
History’s greatest composers wrote for their pianos, and a new Slate article by Jan Swafford argues that only an old piano can play Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata as Beethoven intended it.
Sunday’s Oscar night will be different. First, there are now ten nominees for best picture. But perhaps more importantly, the voting system has changed.
Cybermetrics calculated this year’s Olympics champion, by market value of the medals – Canada takes first place with a total haul of $9,635.
Foreign Policy publishes “an exclusive collection of work by the world’s most acclaimed conflict photographers.”
Is copycatting good for the fashion industry?
Ushahidi, the online mapping tool we’ve blogged about before, is now being used by rescue workers in Haiti and Chile.
What are you actually accomplishing when you’re doing five things at once? Maybe not as much as you think.
Here is part four of the WSHU “Better Biz” series, where Barry Nalebuff and Ian Ayres react to the challenges of specific businesses.
We’ve blogged at length about the shortage of donor organs in the United States. A company in San Diego is working on a solution to that problem.
The human brain doesn’t like income inequality.
As we get richer, we not only substitute toward higher-quality goods-we demand more diversity in what we consume and what we do.
Foreign Policy explores the history of “cap and trade” – the phrase and the concept.
In response to allegations of vote-trading and home-country bias among figure-skating judges at the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake, the International Skating Union changed judging procedures. But have those reforms been effective?
Psychologists have found that your face tells people a lot about your political leanings.
You want to listen to Freakonomics Radio? That’s great! Most people use a podcast app on their smartphone. It’s free (with the purchase of a phone, of course). Looking for more guidance? We’ve got you covered.
Stay up-to-date on all our shows. We promise no spam.
