#126: When the Data Contradicts Conventional Wisdom with Emily Oster

Did you hear the one about the Harvard-educated economist who embraced her inner wiring as a lateral thinker to explore topics ranging from HIV/AIDS in Africa to the impact of Hepatitis B on male-biased sex ratios in China to the range of advice and dicta doled out by doctors and parents and in-laws and friends about what to do (and not do!) during pregnancy? It’s a data-driven tale if ever there was one! Emily Oster, economics professor at Brown University and bestselling author of Expecting Better and Cribsheet, joined the show to chat about what happens when the evidence (the data!) doesn’t match conventional wisdom, and strategies for presenting and discussing topics where that’s the case. Plus causal inference! For complete show notes, including links to items mentioned in this episode and a transcript of the show, visit the show page.