Freakonomics co-author Stephen J. Dubner uncovers the hidden side of everything. Why is it safer to fly in an airplane than drive a car? How do we decide whom to marry? Why is the media so full of bad news? Also: things you never knew you wanted to know about wolves, bananas, pollution, search engines, and the quirks of human behavior.
Listen here or follow Freakonomics Radio on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. We also provide transcripts, show notes, and links to research for each episode.
A commitment device forces you to be the person you really want to be. What could possibly go wrong?
A football cheat sheet to help you sound like the smartest person at the party.
Education is the surest solution to a lot of problems. Except when it’s not.
We all know the answer is yes. But the data — and Rudy Giuliani — say no.
Levitt and Dubner answer your FREAK-quently Asked Questions about certifying politicians, irrational fears, and the toughest three words in the English language.
We know it’s terribly dangerous to drive drunk. But heading home on foot isn’t the solution.
The thrill of customization, via Pandora and a radical new teaching method.
Tyler Cowen points fingers. There’s plenty of blame to go around.
There’s a nasty secret about hot-button topics like global warming: knowledge is not always power.
Our appetite for breast meat renders our holiday birds unable to reproduce.
An election cycle brings about more than voting around the world. There are many odd by-products, often inspired by how the incentives line up for those in power.
We are constantly wowed by new technologies and policies meant to make childbirth better. But beware the unintended consequences.
High-stakes testing has produced some rotten apples. But they can be caught.
Did we needlessly scare ourselves into ditching a good thing? And, with millions of cars driving around with no passengers, should we be rooting for a renaissance?
The world is a more peaceful place today that at any time in history — by a long, long shot.
You know the saying: a winner never quits and a quitter never wins. To which Freakonomics Radio says … Are you sure?
Human beings love to predict the future, but we’re quite terrible at it. So how about punishing all those bad predictions?
There are more than twice as many suicides as murders in the U.S., but suicide attracts far less scrutiny. Freakonomics Radio digs through the numbers and finds all kinds of surprises
Think you know how much parents matter? Think again. Economists crunch the numbers to learn the ROI on child-rearing.
We worship the tradition of handing off a family business to the next generation. But is that really such a good idea?
In restaurants and in life, bad things happen. But what happens next is just as important.
Conspicuous conservation is about showing off your environmental bona fides. In other words, if you lean green, there’s extra value in being seen leaning green.
Freakonomics Radio hits the road, and plays some Quiz Bowl!
What did Levitt and Dubner learn as kids from their dads?
Who is likelier to get to the fugitive first? When a fugitive is on the run, it’s not only the police he has to worry about. A bounty hunter could be coming after him, too.
What’s it like to wake up one day and realize Dad is a multi-billionaire? That’s what happened to Warren Buffett’s son, Peter — who then started to think about whether or not to join the family.
Does Las Vegas increase your risk of suicide? A researcher embeds himself in the city where Americans are most likely to kill themselves.
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