The Guinness Book of World Records Editor Answers Your Questions
…There’s a movie, King of Kong, which exposes the politics behind record setting fame; at the extremes of hardcore record chasing, do you think it’s the personal challenge, or the…
…There’s a movie, King of Kong, which exposes the politics behind record setting fame; at the extremes of hardcore record chasing, do you think it’s the personal challenge, or the…
…them well-known and others less so — each of whom thinks about the subject in a very personal way. Here are the questions we put to them: What (if anything)…
Airbnb, Uber, Lyft, EatWith, and other companies in the “sharing economy” are practically daring government regulators to shut them down. The regulators are happy to comply.
…to talk about their own self interest. Instead of admitting their personal desires, they speak of selfless charity. Of course, donors can do whatever they want with their money, but…
Also: are the most memorable stories less likely to be true? Stephen Dubner chats with Angela Duckworth in this classic episode from July 2020….
…has co-authored. The first, published in Psychological Science, is called “Decisions From Experience and the Effect of Rare Events in Risky Choice.” 1. Decisions made from personal experience and those…
Does having more health information actually change behavior? To test this question, host Bapu Jena explores whether doctors make healthier choices than the rest of us (and he fesses up…
…all federal revenue comes from the personal income tax. That means that about 55 percent — over half of all revenue — comes from other sources, like excise taxes, fees,…
We are constantly wowed by new technologies and policies meant to make childbirth better. But beware the unintended consequences.
We dig into why Covid-19 caught us so unprepared, and how we can make sure we’re ready for a future public-health crisis, with former F.D.A. director Scott Gottlieb….
…living in the U.S. (Pakistanis, Indians, and Bangladeshis are the majority). Some moved to America after college, and others (like me) were raised here. They are coming into significant personal…
A new book by an unorthodox political scientist argues that the two rivals have more in common than we’d like to admit. It’s just that most American corruption is essentially…
You know the saying: a winner never quits and a quitter never wins. To which Freakonomics Radio says … Are you sure?…
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…
Daniel Kahneman left his mark on academia (and the real world) in countless ways. A group of his friends and colleagues recently gathered in Chicago to reflect on this legacy…
Broadway operates on a winner-take-most business model. A runaway hit like Stereophonic — which just won five Tony Awards — will create a few big winners. But even the stars…
Thanks to legal settlements with drug makers and distributors, states have plenty of money to boost prevention and treatment. Will it work? (Part two of a two-part series.)…
You know the saying: A winner never quits and a quitter never wins. To which Freakonomics Radio says … Are you sure?…
That’s what some health officials are saying, but the data aren’t so clear. We look into what’s known (and not known) about the prevalence and effects of loneliness — including…
Among O.E.C.D. nations, the U.S. has one of the highest rates of child poverty. How can that be? To find out, Stephen Dubner speaks with a Republican senator, a Democratic…
Steve shows a different side of himself in very personal interviews with his two oldest daughters. Amanda talks about growing up with social anxiety and her decision not to go…
What do the most creative people have in common? How open-minded are you, really? And what’s wrong with ordering eggs Benedict? Take the Big Five inventory: freakonomics.com/bigfive…
…in Africa in the near term, and placing no faith in the ability of microfinance to transform lives on a large scale, Wade is focused on good, old-fashioned manufacturing with…
When one athlete turned pro, his mom asked him for $1 million. Our modern sensibilities tell us she doesn’t have a case. But should she?
The political debates over immigration can generate a lot of fuzzy facts. We wanted to test Americans’ knowledge — so, to wrap up our special series on immigration, we called…
…Everything becomes an attempt to protect territory. Evidence and logic becomes secondary, used when advantageous and discarded when expedient. What should be a rational debate becomes a personal and venal…
Doctors, chefs, and other experts are much more likely than the rest of us to buy store-brand products. What do they know that we don’t?
…has a potential concussion. Whether or not any of that is true, what’s your take on that issue? I’m more interested in the your personal, or the N.F.L.P.A.’s, take on…
…he never fixed N.B.A. games but rather used insider information, a claim that the N.B.A., the F.B.I., and the U.S. Attorney’s office were unable to disprove. Donaghy’s new book, Personal…
