How did a nation of immigrants come to hate immigration? We start at the beginning, sort through the evidence, and explain why your grandfather was lying about Ellis Island. (Part…
Sal Khan returns to discuss his innovative online high school’s first year — and Steve grills a member of the school’s class of 2026 about what it’s really like….
Khan Academy founder Sal Khan returns to share his vision for a new way to learn — and the conversation inspires Steve to make a big announcement.
Could a lack of sleep help explain why some people get much sicker than others?
Every 12 years, there’s a spike in births among certain communities across the globe, including the U.S. Why? Because the Year of the Dragon, according to Chinese folk belief, confers…
Billionaire John Arnold is figuring out how to do as much good as he can with his wealth. It takes hard work, risk tolerance, and a lot of spending.
How a pain-in-the-neck girl from rural Virginia came to run the most powerful university in the world.
In pursuit of a more perfect economy, we discuss the future of work, the toxic remnants of colonization, and whether giving everyone a basic income would be genius — or…
Three university presidents try to answer our listeners’ questions. The result? Not much pomp and a whole lot of circumstance.
…types of spending. Grants to states for education do not appear to have created any additional jobs. Support programs for low income households and infrastructure spending are found to be…
Would you like to hear your voice on a future Freakonomics Radio episode? Hope so! Here are the details: We recently put out a two-part episode on education reform, the…
…and the educational system, and computerized learning is supposedly one way to do this. Change Peru to New York City, and Fujimori to the city’s Department of Education, and we…
…answer was if, and on what dimensions, a college education is “worth it” — i.e., whether the returns to education are as robust as we’ve been led to think. (Short…
She showed up late and confused to her first silent retreat, but Caverly Morgan eventually trained for eight years in silence at a Zen monastery. Now her mindfulness-education program Peace…
Sean Masaki Flynn Last week, we solicited your questions for Sean Masaki Flynn, author of Economics for Dummies. In his answers below, Flynn addresses the economics of education, the relationship…
…education are nothing short of stunning. Farhi goes on to highlight a variety of common journalistic generalizations about education: reformers are better than traditionalists, teachers are ineffective, education is in…
…cheating is particularly prevalent in the education field: “I’ve written papers for students in elementary-education programs, special-education majors, and ESL-training courses. I’ve written lesson plans for aspiring high-school teachers, and…
…even offer driver’s education?” asked Rep. Phil Hinkle, R-Indianapolis, after hearing the statistics. Indeed, lots of government-run programs don’t produce the intended result. And the safety value of driver’s education…
…parents, whereas an undergraduate degree is barely sufficient for the office worker today – the education system has been unable to provide enough of the labor force with the necessary…
Think you know how much parents matter? Think again. Economists crunch the numbers to learn the ROI on child-rearing.
How a pain-in-the-neck girl from rural Virginia came to run the most powerful university in the world.
A clever study tracking the survivors of Hurricane Katrina came to a bold conclusion: when it comes to your health, place is destiny. So how can the benefits of healthier…
Also: does multitasking actually increase productivity?…
As the cost of college skyrocketed, it created a debt burden that’s putting a drag on the economy. One possible solution: shifting the risk of debt away from students and…
Think you know how much parents matter? Think again. Economists crunch the numbers to learn the ROI on child-rearing.
Is there such a thing as a victimless crime? In an unfair system, is dishonesty okay? And are adolescent vandals out of ideas?…
Over 40 percent of U.S. births are to unmarried mothers, and the numbers are especially high among the less-educated. Why? One argument is that the decline in good manufacturing jobs…
Also, what’s better: to learn new skills or go deep on what you’re good at?…
Stephen Dubner’s conversation with the Facebook founder and C.E.O., recorded for the Freakonomics Radio series “The Secret Life of a C.E.O.”…
