Economist-Speak
…of economists is often – not always, certainly, but often – deeply obtuse. Now, again, this is my problem, having to do with my preferences and my skills. Research economists,…
…of economists is often – not always, certainly, but often – deeply obtuse. Now, again, this is my problem, having to do with my preferences and my skills. Research economists,…
Imagine that both substances were undiscovered until today. How would we think about their relative risks?
(Photo: Marcin Wichary) I have a friend with whom I regularly eat out at restaurants and from time to time we disagree on how much to tip. Traditionally, I have…
Dubner and Levitt field your queries in this latest installment of our FREAK-quently Asked Questions….
Sure, markets generally work well. But for some transactions — like school admissions and organ transplants — money alone can’t solve the problem. That’s when you need a market-design wizard…
Is art really meant to be an “asset class”? Will the digital revolution finally democratize a market that just keeps getting more elitist? And what will happen to the last…
With abortion on the Nov. 5 ballot, we look back at Steve Levitt’s controversial research about an unintended consequence of Roe v. Wade….
O.K., maybe the steps aren’t so easy. But a program run out of a Toronto housing project has had great success in turning around kids who were headed for trouble.
…policy. In practice, however, economists are generally doubtful that carbon taxes provide that kind of free lunch. Nevertheless, the report from The Economist, and glowing accounts from other media this…
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…
What happens when the most disturbing ideas are also the best?
As cities become ever-more expensive, politicians and housing advocates keep calling for rent control. Economists think that’s a terrible idea. They say it helps a small (albeit noisy) group of…
…a task that can turn out to be awfully difficult. In addition to being great economists (see my last post about what it means if you win the Nobel when…
In this special episode of Freakonomics, M.D., host Bapu Jena looks at data from birthday parties, March Madness parties, and a Freakonomics Radio holiday party to help us all manage…
Everyone agrees that massive deforestation is an environmental disaster. But most of the standard solutions — scolding the Brazilians, invoking universal morality — ignore the one solution that might actually…
The gig economy offers the ultimate flexibility to set your own hours. That’s why economists thought it would help eliminate the gender pay gap. A new study, using data from…
People who sleep better earn more money. Now all we have to do is teach everyone to sleep better.
Most industries have become more productive over time. But not construction! We identify the causes — and possible solutions. (Can you say … “prefab”?)…
There are all kinds of civics-class answers to that question. But how true are they? Could it be that we like to read about war, politics, and miscellaneous heartbreak simply…
…economist — who supports the suspension?” After Clinton side-stepped the question, he pushed on: “But can you name an economist who thinks this makes sense.” Clinton’s response: “Well I’ll tell…
Beyond the immediate casualties, school shootings have costs — for survivors, and for the rest of us….
(Photo: Cliff) In his book Washington: A Life, Ron Chernow quotes a letter that speaks to the hoary economic historians’ debate about the profitability of slavery. Washington noted that in…
…include glowing, hyperbolic terms. Bapu talks about this “groundbreaking” research (see what we did there?) in a wide-ranging discussion with physicians and an economist about the gender gap in medicine….
Keith Hennessey Keith Hennessey is the outgoing chief economic adviser to President Bush and director of the National Economic Council. When Obama takes office, Lawrence Summers will take his place….
An all-star team of behavioral scientists discovers that humans are stubborn (and lazy, and sometimes dumber than dogs). We also hear about binge drinking, humblebragging, and regrets. Recorded live in…
…precedent, believe it or not, when it comes to University of Chicago economists achieving political success. Paul Douglas, a professor in the University of Chicago economics department (best known for…
Not many people dream the dreams of economists. But for someone like me, I was able to live out a little fantasy today. As part of the Center I run,…
We speak with a governor, a former C.D.C. director, a pandemic forecaster, a hard-charging pharmacist, and a pair of economists — who say it’s all about the incentives. (Pandemillions, anyone?)
…and over again, but expecting different results. Sudden Death (1983) Rob asked: “There is no free lunch” is a phrase used by economists since at least the 19th century, but…
Apparently there is nothing new under the sun. George Stigler, one of the University of Chicago’s all-time great economists, introduced the phrase “marginal deterrence” to economists in a 1970 research…
