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The FREAK-est Links

The key to good health? Eat more garbage. Technology meets baby naming. (HT: BoingBoing) New report says global warming kills more Europeans than car accidents. (Earlier) Which ten businesses will…



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EXTRA

Why Numbers are Music to Our Ears (Update)

Sarah Hart investigates the mathematical structures underlying musical compositions and literature. Using examples from Monteverdi to Lewis Carroll, Sarah explains to Steve how math affects how we hear music and…

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Episode 499

Don’t Worry, Be Tacky

The British art superstar Flora Yukhnovich, the Freakonomist Steve Levitt, and the upstart American Basketball Association were all unafraid to follow their joy — despite sneers from the Establishment. Should…

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Episode 201

Are You Dreaming Too Big?

Are fantasies helpful or harmful? How is daydreaming like a drug? And what did Angela fantasize about during ninth-grade English class?…

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Episode 16

Prop Money

Who makes the stacks of fake cash used in movies — and how do they stay clear of counterfeit law? Zachary Crockett follows the fake money….

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Episode 145

Neil deGrasse Tyson Is Still Starstruck

The director of the Hayden Planetarium is one of the best science communicators of our time. He and Steve talk about his role in reclassifying Pluto, bad teachers, and why…

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Episode 34

Store-Brand Products

Those low-priced staples on grocery-store shelves — where do they come from? Zachary Crockett finds out at a national convention for private-label manufacturers….


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Episode 480

How Much Does Discrimination Hurt the Economy?

Evidence from Nazi Germany and 1940s America (and pretty much everywhere else) shows that discrimination is incredibly costly — to the victims, of course, but also the perpetrators. One modern…

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Episode 181

What’s So Great About Meritocracy?

Do you really deserve the credit for your accomplishments? Should college admissions be determined by lottery? And how did Mike’s contribution to a charity auction change his life?…

This Identity Theft I Can Live With

…20) and have been plummeting ever since. Just go to Baby Name Wizard and type them in for yourself — and then be prepared to spend the next several hours…



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Elvis Costello Full Interview

A conversation with the iconic singer-songwriter, recorded for the Freakonomics Radio series “How to Be Creative.”  …

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Episode 480

How Much Does Discrimination Hurt the Economy? (Replay)

Evidence from Nazi Germany and 1940’s America (and pretty much everywhere else) shows that discrimination is incredibly costly — to the victims, of course, but also the perpetrators. One modern…

The FREAKest Links: “4real Wayne Smith” Edition

…that numerals aren’t permitted in first names. (Hat tip: Ryan Hayhurst.) And, in non-name news: the International Symposium on Forecasting begins this Sunday, gathering economists, financial analysts, and scientists to…



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Episode 218

Why Do Parents Overshare on Social Media?

How does social media exploit our evolutionary instincts? How dangerous is it to post about your children online? And does Angela regret talking about her daughters on the podcast?…

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Episode 108

Should You Try to Be Less Angry?

What is the purpose of negative emotions? Why do we engage with things we know will upset us? And how does Angie deal with rejection?


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Episode 49

Mathematician Sarah Hart on Why Numbers are Music to Our Ears

Playing notes on her piano, she demonstrates for Steve why whole numbers sound pleasing, why octaves are mathematically imperfect, and how math underlies musical composition. Sarah, a professor at the…

Contest: Beat This Aptonym

names like Phoebe and Flicker.) In the old days, aptonyms weren’t coincidences; they were professional labels. That’s why there are still so many people named Tanner, Taylor, etc. But in…




A Thug By Any Other Name …

…someone has to do is cross-index the most popular criminal names with the most popular names in general and break them out according to socioeconomic status, etc. As it now…



Chicago police borrow a page from Freakonomics

…The city has begun posting the names and photographs of alleged “johns” on the Police Department’s Web site for all to see, including spouses, children, employers, friends and neighbors, Mayor…



Further Insight on Book Blurbs

…for blurbs isn’t really consumers at all — it’s bookstore and particularly chain bookstore buyers. Those folks, I am told, want to see endorsements from recognizable (i.e., successful-selling) names, particularly…



What's That Database Worth?

…say by how much. The campaign also has lists of volunteers, including the names of neighborhood team leaders who were the most active supporters. A donor database has names of…



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Episode 55

Direct-to-Consumer Mattresses

Online companies promised to bring transparency to the mattress-buying experience. Did that work out? Zachary Crockett takes a look under the sheets….


F. Scott Fitzgerald Plays the Name Game

…it’s true that most popular names start out among the middle and upper classes and then travel downward, it’s also true that some old-fashioned names (we cite Max and Sophie…



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Episode 540

Swearing Is More Important Than You Think

Every language has its taboo words (which many people use all the time). But the list of forbidden words is always changing — and those changes tell us some surprising…


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EXTRA

Swearing Is More Important Than You Think [Uncensored]

Every language has its taboo words (which many people use all the time). But the list of forbidden words is always changing — and those changes tell us some surprising…