The Butter Chronicles: Norway Comes Up Short
Norway is in the midst of a butter shortage. Yes, butter. There are a few explanations: low-carb diets have been popular, and the summer of 2011 wasn’t ideal for dairy….
Harvard economist Raj Chetty uses tax data to study inequality, kid success, and social mobility. He explains why you should be careful when choosing your grade school teachers — and…
Former professional poker player Annie Duke has a new book on Steve’s favorite subject: quitting. They talk about why quitting is so hard, how to do it sooner, and why…
How can we distinguish between laziness and patience? Why do people do crossword puzzles? And how is Angie like a combination of a quantum computer and a Sherman tank? Take…
Norway is in the midst of a butter shortage. Yes, butter. There are a few explanations: low-carb diets have been popular, and the summer of 2011 wasn’t ideal for dairy….
What your disgust level says about your politics, how Napoleon influenced opera, why New York City’s subways may finally run on time, and more. Five compelling guests tell Stephen Dubner,…
What do Renaissance painting, civil-rights movements, and Olympic cycling have in common? In each case, huge breakthroughs came from taking tiny steps. In a world where everyone is looking for…
No, it’s not your fault the economy crashed. Or that consumer preferences changed. Or that new technologies have blown apart your business model. But if you’re the C.E.O., it is…
Indra Nooyi became C.E.O. of PepsiCo just in time for a global financial meltdown. She also had a portfolio full of junk food just as the world decided that junk…
A kitchen wizard and a nutrition detective talk about the perfect hamburger, getting the most out of garlic, and why you should use vodka in just about everything.
What do Renaissance painting, civil-rights movements, and Olympic cycling have in common? In each case, huge breakthroughs came from taking tiny steps. In a world where everyone is looking for…
Also: is it better to “go with the wind” or to “be the wind”?
In this interview, first heard on Freakonomics Radio last year, Steve talks with the former top adviser to presidents Clinton and Obama, about his record — and his reputation. And…
Also: is obsessing over your mental health bad for your mental health?…
Also: What’s a food you love that seems disgusting to everyone else?…
If you’re frustrated with your family, should you cut ties with them? Who’s more likely to break with relatives over politics, liberals or conservatives? And what would it take for…
Can a little dishonesty be a good thing? How many fibs does Angela tell every day? And why does Stephen have a forehead?…
In this special episode of People I (Mostly) Admire, Steve Levitt talks to the best-selling author of Sapiens and Homo Deus about finding the profound in the obvious….
Are things as dire as they seem? How big is your moral circle? And should Angela spend time with her kids or answer her emails?…
Artificial intelligence, we’ve been told, will destroy humankind. No, wait — it will usher in a new age of human flourishing! Guest host Adam Davidson (co-founder of Planet Money) sorts…
How does the blood of a 450-million-year-old arthropod help prevent lethal infections in humans? And could we exhaust the supply? Zachary Crockett wades in….
With industries relying on them and profits to be made, weather forecasts are more precise and more popular than ever. But there are clouds on the horizon. Zachary Crockett grabs…
The Berlin dance mecca Berghain is known for its eight-hour line and inscrutable door policy. PJ Vogt, host of the podcast Search Engine, joins us to crack the code. It…
Young people have been reporting a sharp rise in anxiety and depression. This maps neatly onto the global rise of the smartphone. Some researchers are convinced that one is causing…
Why do millions of people pay to have one of the world’s deadliest toxins injected into their faces? Zachary Crockett looks surprised….
…school teachers and sumo wrestlers have in common? Not the kind of question most economists would ask themselves, but Steven Levitt is no–is not most economists. He and his co-author,…
…interview with him, and the large segment of folks who like him won’t find anything in the interview to change their mind, either. We’ll post a transcript of the full…
…Joshua Angrist. Addendum: For those who may be hearing impaired or otherwise unable to hear the audio, below is a transcript: Hi, I’m Stephen Dubner. In 1990, the U.S. Congress…
…“Transcript Analyzer” where you can play the same game on any word of your choosing. (I already checked: No-one said “sex”, even once; this was the Republican debate, after all.)…
…to deposit it directly in a municipal trash truck, which might be playing Beethoven to announce its arrival. (Transcript here; video here.) Now a reader named Nick Grisanti has written…
…hardcover. The book itself has some key additions: a 16-page color insert with illustrations, photos, etc. from the Illustrated Edition; an author Q&A (which you helped write); a transcript of…
