Insurance forms that make no sense. Subscriptions that can’t be cancelled. A never-ending blizzard of automated notifications. Where does all this sludge come from — and how much is it costing us? (Part one of a two-part series .) SOURCES: Benjamin Handel, professor of economics at UC Berkeley. Neale Mahoney, professor of economics at Stanford University. Richard Thaler, professor of economics at The University of Chicago. RESOURCES: " Selling Subscriptions, " by Liran Einav, Ben Klopack, and Ne...
Mar 28, 2025•55 min•Ep. 627
The quirky little grocery chain with California roots and German ownership has a lot to teach all of us about choice architecture, efficiency, frugality, collaboration, and team spirit. SOURCES: Kirk DesErmia , facilities manager in Seward, Alaska. Mark Gardiner , journalist and author. Sheena Iyengar , professor of business at Columbia Business School. Michael Roberto , professor of management at Bryant University. RESOURCES: “ Trader Joe’s ,” David Ager and Michael Roberto ( Harvard Business S...
Mar 21, 2025•48 min•Ep. 359
Nearly everything that politicians say about taxes is at least half a lie. They are also dishonest when it comes to the national debt. Stephen Dubner finds one of the few people in Washington who is willing to tell the truth — and it’s even worse than you think. SOURCES: Jessica Riedl, senior fellow in budget, tax, and economic policy at the Manhattan Institute. RESOURCES: " The House Wants to Pass Trump’s Agenda in One Big Bill. Here’s What’s in It. " by Margot Sanger-Katz and Alicia Parlapiano...
Mar 14, 2025•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 626
Lina Khan, the youngest F.T.C. chair in history, reset U.S. antitrust policy by thwarting mega-mergers and other monopolistic behavior. This earned her enemies in some places, and big fans in others — including the Trump administration. Stephen Dubner speaks with Khan about her tactics, her track record, and her future. SOURCES: Lina Khan, former commissioner of the Federal Trade Commission and professor of law at Columbia Law School. RESOURCES: " Merger Guidelines " (U.S. Department of Justice ...
Mar 07, 2025•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 625
It’s a powerful biological response that has preserved our species for millennia. But now it may be keeping us from pursuing strategies that would improve the environment, the economy, even our own health. So is it time to dial down our disgust reflex? You can help fix things — as Stephen Dubner does in this 2021 episode — by chowing down on some delicious insects. SOURCES: Paul Rozin, professor of psychology at the University of Pennsylvania. Val Curtis , late disgustologist at the London Schoo...
Mar 05, 2025•44 min•Ep. 448
To most people, the rat is vile and villainous. But not to everyone! We hear from a scientist who befriended rats and another who worked with them in the lab — and from the animator who made one the hero of a Pixar blockbuster. (Part three of a three-part series , “Sympathy for the Rat.”) SOURCES: Bethany Brookshire , author of Pests: How Humans Create Animal Villains Jan Pinkava, creator and co-writer of "Ratatouille," and director of the Animation Institute at the Film Academy Baden-Württember...
Feb 28, 2025•45 min•Ep. 624
Even with a new rat czar, an arsenal of poisons, and a fleet of new garbage trucks, it won’t be easy — because, at root, the enemy is us. (Part two of a three-part series , “Sympathy for the Rat.”) SOURCES: Kathy Corradi, director of rodent mitigation for New York City. Robert Corrigan, urban rodentologist and pest consultant for New York City. Ed Glaeser, professor of economics at Harvard University. Robert Sullivan, author of Rats: Observations on the History and Habitat of the City’s Most Unw...
Feb 21, 2025•50 min•Ep. 623
A brief meditation on loss, relativity, and the vagaries of show business. RESOURCES: Billie Eilish: The World's a Little Blurry, documentary (2021) Genius & Anxiety: How Jews Changed the World, 1847-1947 , by Norman Lebrecht (2019) The War Room , documentary (1993) EXTRAS: “ Is San Francisco a Failed State? (And Other Questions You Shouldn’t Ask the Mayor) ” by Freakonomics Radio (2025) “ Ari Emanuel Is Never Indifferent, ” by Freakonomics Radio (2023)...
Feb 20, 2025•14 min
New York City’s mayor calls them “public enemy number one.” History books say they caused the Black Death — although recent scientific evidence disputes that claim. So is the rat a scapegoat? And what does our rat hatred say about us? (Part one of a three-part series .) SOURCES: Bethany Brookshire , author of Pests: How Humans Create Animal Villains. Kathy Corradi , director of rodent mitigation for New York City. Ed Glaeser , professor of economics at Harvard University. Nils Stenseth , profess...
Feb 14, 2025•41 min•Ep. 622
Licensing began with medicine and law; now it extends to 20 percent of the U.S. workforce, including hair stylists and auctioneers. In a new book, the legal scholar Rebecca Allensworth calls licensing boards “a thicket of self-dealing and ineptitude” and says they keep bad workers in their jobs and good ones out — while failing to protect the public. SOURCES: Rebecca Allensworth , professor of law at Vanderbilt University. RESOURCES: " The Licensing Racket: How We Decide Who Is Allowed to Work, ...
Feb 07, 2025•55 min•Ep. 621
In 2023, the N.F.L. players’ union conducted a workplace survey that revealed clogged showers, rats in the locker room — and some insights for those of us who don’t play football. Today we’re updating that episode, with extra commentary from Omnipresent Football Guy (and former Philadelphia Eagle) Jason Kelce. SOURCES: Tom Garfinkel , vice chairman, C.E.O., and president of the Miami Dolphins. Jim Ivler , certified contract advisor for players in the National Football League. Jason Kelce , host ...
Feb 05, 2025•1 hr 9 min•Ep. 557
They used to be the N.F.L.’s biggest stars, with paychecks to match. Now their salaries are near the bottom, and their careers are shorter than ever. We speak with an analytics guru, an agent, some former running backs (including LeSean McCoy), and the economist Roland Fryer (a former Pop Warner running back himself) to understand why. SOURCES: Brian Burke, sports data scientist at ESPN Roland Fryer, professor of economics at Harvard University LeSean McCoy, former running back in the N.F.L. and...
Jan 31, 2025•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 620
When the computer scientist Ben Zhao learned that artists were having their work stolen by A.I. models, he invented a tool to thwart the machines. He also knows how to foil an eavesdropping Alexa and how to guard your online footprint. The big news, he says, is that the A.I. bubble is bursting. SOURCES: Erik Brynjolfsson , professor of economics at Stanford University Ben Zhao , professor of computer science at the University of Chicago RESOURCES: " The AI lab waging a guerrilla war over exploit...
Jan 24, 2025•52 min•Ep. 619
Stephen Dubner, live on stage, mixes it up with outbound mayor London Breed, and asks economists whether A.I. can be “human-centered” and if Tang is a gateway drug. SOURCES: London Breed , former mayor of San Francisco. Erik Brynjolfsson , professor of economics at Stanford University Koleman Strumpf , professor of economics at Wake Forest University RESOURCES: " SF crime rate at lowest point in more than 20 years, mayor says, " by George Kelly ( The San Francisco Standard , 2025) " How the Trum...
Jan 22, 2025•59 min
Their trade organization just lost a huge lawsuit. Their infamous commission model is under attack. And there are way too many of them. If they go the way of travel agents, will we miss them when they’re gone? SOURCES: Sonia Gilbukh , assistant professor of real estate at CUNY Baruch College. Kevin Sears , 2025 president of the National Association of Realtors. Chad Syverson , professor of economics at the University of Chicago. Lawrence Yun , chief economist for the National Association of Real...
Jan 17, 2025•53 min•Ep. 618
Like tens of millions of people, Stephen Dubner thought he had a penicillin allergy. Like the vast majority, he didn’t. This misdiagnosis costs billions of dollars and causes serious health problems, so why hasn’t it been fixed? And how about all the other things we think we’re allergic to? SOURCES: Kimberly Blumenthal , allergist-immunologist and researcher at Mass General Hospital and Harvard Medical School. Theresa MacPhail , associate professor of science and technology studies at Stevens In...
Jan 10, 2025•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 617
Incarcerated people grow crops, fight wildfires, and manufacture everything from prescription glasses to highway signs — often for pennies an hour. Zachary Crockett takes the next exit, in this special episode of The Economics of Everyday Things . SOURCES: Laura Appleman , professor of law at Willamette University. Christopher Barnes, inmate at the Franklin Correctional Center. Lee Blackman , general manager at Correction Enterprises. Gene Hawkins , senior principal engineer at Kittelson and pro...
Jan 06, 2025•39 min
Probably not — the incentives are too strong. But a few reformers are trying. We check in on their progress, in an update to an episode originally published last year. (Part 2 of 2) SOURCES: Max Bazerman , professor of business administration at Harvard Business School. Leif Nelson , professor of business administration at the University of California, Berkeley Haas School of Business. Brian Nosek , professor of psychology at the University of Virginia and executive director at the Center for Op...
Jan 02, 2025•1 hr 9 min•Ep. 573
Some of the biggest names in behavioral science stand accused of faking their results. Last year, an astonishing 10,000 research papers were retracted. In a series originally published in early 2024, we talk to whistleblowers, reformers, and a co-author who got caught up in the chaos. (Part 1 of 2) SOURCES: Max Bazerman , professor of business administration at Harvard Business School. Leif Nelson , professor of business administration at the University of California, Berkeley Haas School of Bus...
Dec 26, 2024•1 hr 15 min•Ep. 572
David Eagleman upends myths and describes the vast possibilities of a brainscape that even neuroscientists are only beginning to understand. Steve Levitt interviews him in this special episode of People I (Mostly) Admire. SOURCES: David Eagleman , professor of cognitive neuroscience at Stanford University and C.E.O. of Neosensory. RESOURCES: Livewired: The Inside Story of the Ever-Changing Brain , by David Eagleman (2020). " Why Do We Dream? A New Theory on How It Protects Our Brains ," by David...
Dec 23, 2024•48 min
Adam Moss was the best magazine editor of his generation. When he retired, he took up painting. But he wasn’t very good, and that made him sad. So he wrote a book about how creative people work— and, in the process, he made himself happy again. SOURCE: Adam Moss , magazine editor and author. RESOURCES: The Work of Art: How Something Comes from Nothing , by Adam Moss (2024). " Goodbye, New York. Adam Moss Is Leaving the Magazine He Has Edited for 15 Years ," by Michael M. Grynbaum ( The New York ...
Dec 19, 2024•48 min•Ep. 616
In a wide-ranging conversation with Ezekiel Emanuel, the policymaking physician and medical gadfly, we discuss the massive effects of GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic, Wegovy, and Mounjaro. We also talk about the state of cancer care, mysteries in the gut microbiome, flaws in the U.S. healthcare system — and what a second Trump term means for healthcare policy. SOURCES: Ezekiel Emanuel , vice provost for Global Initiatives, co-director of the Health Transformation Institute, and professor at the Univers...
Dec 12, 2024•57 min•Ep. 615
Last week, we heard a former U.S. ambassador describe Russia’s escalating conflict with the U.S. Today, we revisit a 2019 episode about an overlooked front in the Cold War — a “farms race” that, decades later, still influences what Americans eat. SOURCES: Anne Effland , former Senior Economist for the Office of Chief Economist in the U.S.D.A. Shane Hamilton , historian at the University of York. Peter Timmer , economist and former professor at Harvard University. Audra Wolfe , writer, editor, an...
Dec 09, 2024•39 min•Ep. 386
John J. Sullivan, a former State Department official and U.S. ambassador, says yes: “Our politicians aren’t leading — Republicans or Democrats.” He gives a firsthand account of a fateful Biden-Putin encounter, talks about his new book Midnight in Moscow , and predicts what a second Trump term means for Russia, Ukraine, China — and the U.S. SOURCES: John Sullivan , former U.S. Deputy Secretary of State and former U.S. Ambassador to Russia. RESOURCES: Midnight in Moscow: A Memoir from the Front Li...
Dec 05, 2024•51 min•Ep. 614
Macy’s wants to recapture its glorious past. The author of the Wimpy Kid books wants to rebuild his dilapidated hometown. We just want to listen in. (Part two of a two-part series .) SOURCES: Mark Cohen , former professor and director of retail studies at Columbia Business School. Will Coss , vice president and executive producer of Macy’s Studios. Jeff Kinney , author, cartoonist, and owner of An Unlikely Story Bookstore and Café. Tony Spring , chairman and C.E.O. of Macy’s Inc. RESOURCES: " Ma...
Nov 28, 2024•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 613
The 166-year-old chain, which is fighting extinction, calls the parade its “gift to the nation.” With 30 million TV viewers, it’s also a big moneymaker. At least we think it is — Macy’s is famously tight-lipped about parade economics. We try to loosen them up. (Part one of a two-part series .) Please take our audience survey at freakonomics.com/survey . SOURCES: John Cheney, carpenter at Macy’s Studios. Will Coss , vice president and executive producer of Macy’s Studios. Jeff Kinney , author, ca...
Nov 21, 2024•53 min•Ep. 612
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, at least, is what the economists are telling us. Should we believe them? SOURCES: David Autor , professor of economics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. James Rosenman , C.E.O. of Andrus on Hudson senior care community. Karen Eggleston , economist at Stanford University. Yong Suk Lee , professor of...
Nov 18, 2024•49 min•Ep. 461
After a dramatic election, Donald Trump has returned from exile. We hear what to expect at home and abroad — and what to do if you didn’t vote for Trump. SOURCE: Fareed Zakaria , journalist and author. RESOURCES: " The Most Dangerous Moment Since the Cold War ," by Fareed Zakaria ( The Washington Post, 2024). " America’s Failed Approach to Iran Can’t Really Be Called a Strategy ," by Fareed Zakaria ( The Washington Post, 2024). Age of Revolutions: Progress and Backlash from 1600 to the Present ,...
Nov 14, 2024•59 min•Ep. 611
Some people want the new cannabis economy to look like the craft-beer movement. Others are hoping to build the Amazon of pot. And one expert would prefer a government-run monopoly. We listen in as they fight it out. (Part four of a four-part series .) SOURCES: Jon Caulkins , professor of operations research and public policy at Carnegie Mellon University. Adam Goers , senior vice president of The Cannabist Company and chairperson of the Coalition for Cannabis Scheduling Reform. Yasmin Hurd , dir...
Nov 07, 2024•43 min•Ep. 610
Chris Weld worked for years in emergency rooms, then ditched that career and bought an old farm in Massachusetts. He set up a distillery and started making prize-winning spirits. When cannabis was legalized, he jumped into that too — and the first few years were lucrative. But now? It turns out that growing, processing, and selling weed is more complicated than it looks. He gave us the grand tour. (Part three of a four-part series .) SOURCES: Chris Bennett, operations manager at Berkshire Mounta...
Oct 31, 2024•40 min•Ep. 609
