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Episode 604

Did the N.F.L. Solve Diversity Hiring? (Part 2)

What happened when the Rooney Rule made its way from pro football to corporate America? Some progress, some backsliding, and a lot of controversy. (Second in a two-part series.)…

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Episode 113

Do We Have Evidence of Alien Life?

Avi Loeb is a Harvard astronomer who argues that we’ve already encountered extraterrestrial technology. His approach to the search for interstellar objects is scientific, but how plausible is his argument?

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EXTRA

Extra: Steve Levitt: “I’m Not as Childlike as I’d Like to Be”

Steve Levitt has so far occupied the interviewer chair on his new show, but in a special live event — recorded over Zoom and presented by WNYC and the Greene…

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Episode 461

How to Stop Worrying and Love the Robot Apocalypse

It’s true that robots (and other smart technologies) will kill many jobs. It may also be true that newer collaborative robots (“cobots”) will totally reinvigorate how work gets done. That,…

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Episode 9

Why Fridays May Be Dangerous for Your Health

When researchers analyzed which day of the week most drug-safety alerts are released — and what it means for public health — they were stunned. So was Bapu Jena. He…

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Episode 9

Why Fridays May Be Dangerous for Your Health (Replay)

When researchers analyzed which day of the week most F.D.A. drug-safety alerts are released — and what it means for public health — they were stunned. So, what can we…

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Episode 77

How Can You Avoid Boredom?

Also: are we getting any better at assessing COVID risk?

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Episode 252

Confessions of a Pothole Politician

Eric Garcetti, the mayor of Los Angeles, has big ambitions but knows he must first master the small stuff. He’s also a polymath who relies heavily on data and new…

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Episode 39

Aicha Evans Wants You to Take Your Eyes Off the Road

She’s the C.E.O. of Zoox, an autonomous vehicle company. Steve asks Aicha about the big promises the A.V. industry hasn’t yet delivered — and the radical bet Zoox is making…

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EXTRA

How to Stop Worrying and Love the Robot Apocalypse (Update)

It’s true that robots (and other smart technologies) will kill many jobs. It may also be true that newer collaborative robots (“cobots”) will totally reinvigorate how work gets done. That,…

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Episode 42

The Upside of Quitting (Replay)

You know the saying: A winner never quits and a quitter never wins. To which Freakonomics Radio says … Are you sure?…

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Episode 269

Bad Medicine, Part 2: (Drug) Trials and Tribulations (Replay)

How do so many ineffective and even dangerous drugs make it to the market? One reason is that clinical trials are often run on “dream patients” who aren’t representative of…

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Episode 268

Bad Medicine, Part 1: The Story of 98.6 (Replay)

We tend to think of medicine as a science, but for most of human history it has been scientific-ish at best. In the first episode of a three-part series, we…

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Episode 297

The Stupidest Thing You Can Do With Your Money

It’s hard enough to save for a house, tuition or retirement. So why are we willing to pay big fees for subpar investment returns? Enter the low-cost index fund. The

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Episode 295

When Helping Hurts

Good intentions are nice, but with so many resources poured into social programs, wouldn’t it be even nicer to know what actually works?

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Episode 60

The Doctor Is Out. The Physician Assistant Is In.

Chances are, at some point you’ll be treated by a nurse practitioner or a physician assistant instead of a doctor. Will your care suffer?…

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Episode 42

The Upside of Quitting

You know the saying: a winner never quits and a quitter never wins. To which Freakonomics Radio says … Are you sure?…

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Episode 54

Do You Really Need a Muse to Be Creative?

Also: Is short-sightedness part of human nature?…

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Episode 434

Is New York City Over?

The pandemic has hit America’s biggest city particularly hard. Amidst a deep fiscal hole, rising homicides, and a flight to the suburbs, some people think the city is heading back…

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Episode 42

The Upside of Quitting (Replay)

You know the saying: a winner never quits and a quitter never wins. To which Freakonomics Radio says … Are you sure?…

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Episode 4

Does All Creativity Come From Pain?

Also: is life precious because it’s finite?…

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Episode 269

Bad Medicine, Part 2: (Drug) Trials and Tribulations

How do so many ineffective and even dangerous drugs make it to market? One reason is that clinical trials are often run on “dream patients” who aren’t representative of a…

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Episode 17

Emily Oster: “I Am a Woman Who Is Prominently Discussing Vaginas.”

In addition to publishing best-selling books about pregnancy and child-rearing, Emily Oster is a respected economist at Brown University. Over the course of the pandemic, she’s become the primary collector…

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Episode 104

How Simple Is Too Simple?

Why are humans so eager for magic-bullet solutions? Can you explain how a pen works? And how does Angela feel about being forever branded “the grit lady”?…

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Episode 594

Your Brand’s Spokesperson Just Got Arrested — Now What?

It’s hard to know whether the benefits of hiring a celebrity are worth the risk. We dig into one gruesome story of an endorsement gone wrong, and find a surprising…

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Episode 112

Reading Dostoevsky Behind Bars

Reginald Dwayne Betts spent more than eight years in prison. Today he’s a Yale Law graduate, a MacArthur Fellow, and a poet. His nonprofit works to build libraries in prisons…


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Episode 462

The Future of New York City Is in Question. Could Andrew Yang Be the Answer?

The man who wants America to “think harder” has parlayed his quixotic presidential campaign into front-runner status in New York’s mayoral election. And he has some big plans….

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Episode 96

Steven Strogatz Thinks You Don’t Know What Math Is

The mathematician and author sees mathematical patterns everywhere — from DNA to fireflies to social connections….

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Episode 521

I’m Your Biggest Fan!

It’s fun to obsess over pop stars and racecar drivers — but is fandom making our politics even more toxic?…