Freakonomics Radio

In a special episode of The Economics of Everyday Things, host Zachary Crockett explains what millennials do to show they care, how corrugated cardboard keeps your food warm, and why every city has a billboard for a guy who calls himself “The Hammer.”

• SOURCES:
  • Jason Abraham, managing partner of Hupy & Abraham.
  • Nora Engstrom, professor at Stanford Law School.
  • Kyle Hebenstreit, C.E.O. of Practice Made Perfect.
  • Patrick Kivits, president of corrugated packaging at WestRock.
  • Mia Mercado, writer and former editor at Hallmark.
  • Eric Nelson, green business program manager for Johnson County, Kansas.
  • Scott Wiener, founder of Scott's Pizza Tours.
  • George White, president of Up With Paper and former president of the American Greeting Card Association.

• RESOURCES:
  • 34th Louie Awards - Finalists & Winners, (2022-2023).
  • "Personal Injury Settlement Amounts Examples (2024 Guide)," by Jeffrey Johnson (Forbes Advisor, 2022).
  • "Who Is the Fastest Pizza Box Folder?! World Pizza Games 2021," video by The Laughing Lion (2021).
  • "Season’s (and Other...) Greetings," by Maria Ricapito (Marie Claire, 2020).
  • "Scott's Pizza Chronicles: A Brief History of the Pizza Box," by Scott Wiener (Serious Eats, 2018).
  • "Apple Patented a Pizza Box, for Pizzas," by Jacob Kastrenakes (The Verge, 2017).
  • "Hallmark Greeting Cards Have Adjusted to the Digital Revolution," by Trent Gillies (CNBC, 2017).
  • "We Eat 100 Acres of Pizza a Day in the U.S.," by Lenny Bernstein (The Washington Post, 2015).
  • "Low Ball: An Insider’s Look at How Some Insurers Can Manipulate Computerized Systems to Broadly Underpay Injury Claims," by Mark Romano and J. Robert Hunter (Consumer Federation of America, 2012).
  • "A Century of Change in Personal Injury Law," by Stephen D. Sugarman (UC Berkeley Public Law Research Paper, 2000).
  • Pizza Tiger, by Thomas Monaghan (1986).
  • Bates v. State Bar of Arizona, in the Supreme Court of Arizona (1977).

In a special episode of People I (Mostly) Admire, Steve Levitt talks to Cat Bohannon about her new book Eve: How the Female Body Drove 200 Million Years of Human Evolution.

• SOURCE:
  • Cat Bohannon, researcher and author.

• RESOURCES:
  • Eve: How the Female Body Drove 200 Million Years of Human Evolution, by Cat Bohannon (2023).
  • "Genomic Inference of a Severe Human Bottleneck During the Early to Middle Pleistocene Transition," by Wangjie Hu, Ziqian Hao, Pengyuan Du, Fabio Di Vincenzo, Giorgio Manzi, Jialong Cui, Yun-Xin Fu, Yi-Hsuan, and Haipeng Li (Science, 2023).
  • "The Greatest Invention in the History of Humanity," by Cat Bohannon (The Atlantic, 2023).
  • "A Newborn Infant Chimpanzee Snatched and Cannibalized Immediately After Birth: Implications for 'Maternity Leave' in Wild Chimpanzee," by Hitonaru Nishie and Michio Nakamura (American Journal of Biological Anthropology, 2018).
  • "War in the Womb," by Suzanne Sadedin (Aeon, 2014).
  • "Timing of Childbirth Evolved to Match Women’s Energy Limits," by Erin Wayman (Smithsonian Magazine, 2012).
  • "Bonobo Sex and Society," by Frans B. M. de Waal (Scientific American, 2006).

• EXTRAS:
  • "Yuval Noah Harari Thinks Life Is Meaningless and Amazing," by People I (Mostly) Admire (2022).
  • "Jared Diamond on the Downfall of Civilizations — and His Optimism for Ours," by People I (Mostly) Admire (2021).

In a special episode of No Stupid Questions, Angela Duckworth and Mike Maughan talk about unfinished tasks, recurring arguments, and Irish goodbyes.

• SOURCES:
  • Roy Baumeister, social psychologist and visiting scholar at Harvard University.
  • Daniel Gilbert, professor of psychology at Harvard University.
  • John Gottman, professor emeritus of psychology at the University of Washington.
  • Kurt Lewin, 20th-century German-American psychologist.
  • E. J. Masicampo, professor of psychology at Wake Forest University.
  • Timothy Wilson, professor of psychology at the University of Virginia.
  • Bluma Zeigarnik, 20th-century Soviet psychologist.

• RESOURCES:
  • "Life and Work of the Psychologist Bluma Zeigarnik," by M. Marco (Neurosciences and History, 2018).
  • "Why We Need Answers," by Maria Konnikova (The New Yorker, 2013).
  • "Consider It Done! Plan Making Can Eliminate the Cognitive Effects of Unfulfilled Goals," by E. J. Masicampo and Roy Baumeister (Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 2011).
  • The Science of Trust: Emotional Attunement for Couples, by John Gottman (2011).
  • "'Let Me Dream On!' Anticipatory Emotions and Preference for Timing in Lotteries," by Martin Kocher, Michal Krawczyk, and Frans van Winden (Tinbergen Institute Discussion Paper, 2009).
  • "Explaining Away: A Model of Affective Adaptation," by Timothy Wilson and Daniel Gilbert (Perspectives on Psychological Science, 2008).
  • "On Finished and Unfinished Tasks," by Bluma Zeigarnik (A Source Book of Gestalt Psychology, 1938).

• EXTRAS:
  • "Can We Disagree Better?" by No Stupid Questions (2023).
  • "Would You Be Happier if You Were More Creative?" by No Stupid Questions (2023).
  • "How Can You Be Kinder to Yourself?" by No Stupid Questions (2023).
  • "What’s Wrong With Holding a Grudge?" by No Stupid Questions (2022).
  • Somebody Loves You, Mr. Hatch, by Eileen Spinelli (1991).

Lewis got incredible access to Sam Bankman-Fried, the billionaire behind the spectacular FTX fraud. His book is a bestseller, but some critics say he went too easy on S.B.F. Lewis tells us why the critics are wrong —and what it’s like to watch your book get turned into a courtroom drama.

• SOURCES:
  • Michael Lewis, author.

• RESOURCES:
  • Going Infinite: The Rise and Fall of a New Tycoon, by Michael Lewis (2023).
  • "Column: In Michael Lewis, Sam Bankman-Fried Found His Last and Most Willing Victim," by Michael Hiltzik (Los Angeles Times, 2023).
  • "Even Michael Lewis Can’t Make a Hero Out of Sam Bankman-Fried," by Jennifer Szalai (The New York Times, 2023).
  • "Michael Lewis Goes Close on Sam Bankman-Fried — Maybe Too Close," by James Ledbetter (The Washington Post, 2023).
  • "What You Won’t Learn From Michael Lewis’ Book on FTX Could Fill Another Book," by Julia M. Klein (Los Angeles Times, 2023).
  • "Michael Lewis’s Big Contrarian Bet," by Gideon Lewis-Kraus (The New Yorker, 2023).
  • "He-Said, They-Said," by John Lanchester (London Review of Books, 2023).
  • "Downfall of the Crypto King," by Jesse Armstrong (The Times Literary Supplement, 2023).
  • "FTX Debtors vs. Joseph Bankman and Barbara Fried," in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware (2023).
  • Federal Prosecution of Election Offenses: Eighth Edition, by Richard C. Pilger (2017).
  • "Pay Candidates to Drop Out? That Should Be Legal," by Stephen L. Carter (Bloomberg, 2016).
  • "The History of the Term 'Effective Altruism,'" by William MacAskill (Effective Altruism Forum, 2014).

• EXTRAS:
  • "Is This 'The Worst Job in Corporate America' — or Maybe the Best?" by Freakonomics Radio (2023).
  • "A Million-Year View on Morality," by People I (Mostly) Admire (2022).
  • “Did Michael Lewis Just Get Lucky with 'Moneyball'?” by Freakonomics Radio (2022).

In policing, as in most vocations, the best employees are often promoted into leadership without much training. One economist thinks he can address this problem — and, with it, America’s gun violence.

• SOURCES
  • Kenneth Corey, director of outreach and engagement for the Policing Leadership Academy at the University of Chicago and retired chief of department for the New York Police Department.
  • Stephanie Drescher, operations captain in the City of Madison Police Department.
  • Max Kapustin, assistant professor of economics and public policy at Cornell University.
  • Jens Ludwig, economist and director of the Crime Lab at the University of Chicago.
  • Sandy Jo MacArthur, curriculum design director for the Policing Leadership Academy at the University of Chicago.
  • Sean Malinowski, D.O.J. strategic site liaison for the Philadelphia Police Department and retired chief of detectives from the Los Angeles Police Department.
  • Sindyanna Paul-Noel, lieutenant with the City of Miami Police Department.
  • Michael Wolley, deputy chief of operations with the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department.

• RESOURCES:
  • "Policing Leadership Academy (PLA) Graduation of Inaugural Cohort," by the University of Chicago Crime Lab (2023).
  • "Policing and Management," by Max Kapustin, Terrence Neumann, and Jens Ludwig (NBER Working Paper, 2022).
  • "Getting More Out of Policing in the U.S.," by Jens Ludwig, Terrence Neumann, and Max Kapustin (VoxEU, 2022).
  • "University of Chicago Crime Lab Launches National Policing and Community Violence Intervention Leadership Academies," by the University of Chicago Crime Lab (2022).
  • "What Drives Differences in Management?" by Nicholas Bloom, Erik Brynjolfsson, Lucia Foster, Ron S. Jarmin, Megha Patnaik, Itay Saporta-Eksten, and John Van Reenen (NBER Working Paper, 2017).
  • "Management as a Technology?" by Nicholas Bloom, Raffaella Sadun, and John Van Reenen (NBER Working Paper, 2017).
  • "Measuring and Explaining Management Practices Across Firms and Countries," by Nick Bloom and John Van Reenen (NBER Working Paper, 2006).
  • "Crime, Urban Flight, and the Consequences for Cities," by Julie Berry Cullen and Steven D. Levitt (SSRN, 1997).

• EXTRAS:
  • "Why Are There So Many Bad Bosses?" by Freakonomics Radio (2022).
  • "What Are the Police for, Anyway?" by Freakonomics Radio (2021).

It boosts economic opportunity and social mobility. It’s good for the environment. So why do we charge people to use it? The short answer: it’s complicated. Also: We talk to the man who gets half the nation’s mass-transit riders where they want to go (most of the time).

SOURCES:

• Marcus Finbom, traffic planner in Stockholm, Sweden.
• Robbie Makinen, former president and C.E.O. of the Kansas City Area Transportation Authority.
• Janno Lieber, chair and C.E.O. of the M.T.A. in New York City.
• Brian Taylor, professor of urban planning and public policy and director of the Institute of Transportation Studies at U.C.L.A.
• Shashi Verma, director of strategy and C.T.O. at Transport for London.
• Michelle Wu, mayor of Boston.

RESOURCES:

• "Free Bus Service Starts Sunday on 5 Routes in New York City," by Ana Ley (The New York Times, 2023).
• “Vehicle Access and Falling Transit Ridership: Evidence From Southern California,” by Michael Manville, Brian D. Taylor, Evelyn Blumenberg, and Andrew Schouten (Transportation, 2023).
• “Route-28 Fare-Free Pilot Evaluation: Summary Findings,” by the City of Boston Transportation (2022).
• “Forget Fare Hikes — Make the T Free,” by Michelle Wu (The Boston Globe, 2019).
• Traffic Power Structure, by Planka.nu (2016).
• "The Impacts of Neighborhoods on Intergenerational Mobility: Childhood Exposure Effects and County-Level Estimates," by Raj Chetty and Nathaniel Hendren (NBER Working Paper, 2015).
• "Fare, Free, or Something in Between?" by Jennifer S. Perone and Joel M. Volinski (World Transit Research, 2003).
• Planka.Nu.

EXTRAS:

• "Why Is the U.S. So Good at Killing Pedestrians?" by Freakonomics Radio (2023).
• "Should Public Transit Be Free?" by Freakonomics Radio (2022).
• “Should Traffic Lights Be Abolished?” by Freakonomics Radio (2021).
• “The Perfect Crime,” by Freakonomics Radio (2014).
• “Parking Is Hell,” by Freakonomics Radio (2013).

Most industries have become more productive over time. But not construction! We identify the causes — and possible solutions. (Can you say ... “prefab”?)

RESOURCES:

• "The Strange and Awful Path of Productivity in the US Construction Sector," by Austan Goolsbee and Chad Syverson (BFI Working Paper, 2023).
• "Infrastructure Costs," by Leah Brooks and Zachary D. Liscow (American Economic Journal: Applied, 2023).
• "The Silicon Valley Elite Who Want to Build a City From Scratch," by Conor Dougherty and Erin Griffith (The New York Times, 2023).
• "A Decent Home," report by the President's Committee on Urban Housing (1968).

EXTRAS:

• "Edward Glaeser Explains Why Some Cities Thrive While Others Fade Away," by People I (Mostly) Admire (2021).
• "Why Are Cities (Still) So Expensive?" by Freakonomics Radio (2020).

SOURCES:

• Vaughan Buckley, founder and C.E.O. of the Volumetric Building Companies.
• Carrie Sturts Dossick, professor of construction management at the University of Washington.
• Ed Glaeser, professor of economics and chair the economics department at Harvard University.
• Michael Hough, director of MJH Structural Engineers.
• Ivan Rupnik, professor of architecture at Northeastern University.
• Chad Syverson, professor of economics at the University of Chicago.

Pro footballer and star podcaster Jason Kelce is ubiquitous right now (almost as ubiquitous as his brother and co-host Travis, who's been in the limelight for his relationship with Taylor Swift). After you hear this wide-ranging interview, you might want even more Kelce in your life.

RESOURCES:

• “N.F.L. Player Team Report Cards,” by the National Football League Players Association (2023).
• Kelce, documentary (2023).
• New Heights with Jason and Travis Kelce, (produced by Wave Sports + Entertainment).

EXTRAS:

• "When Is a Superstar Just Another Employee?" by Freakonomics Radio (2023).

SOURCES:

• Jason Kelce, center for the Philadelphia Eagles.

They say they make companies more efficient through savvy management. Critics say they bend the rules to enrich themselves at the expense of consumers and employees. Can they both be right? (Probably not.)

RESOURCES:

• Plunder: Private Equity's Plan to Pillage America, by Brendan Ballou (2023).
• Two and Twenty: How the Masters of Private Equity Always Win, by Sachin Khajuria (2022).
• "Local Journalism under Private Equity Ownership," by Michael Ewens, Arpit Gupta, and Sabrina T. Howell (NBER Working Paper, 2022).
• “Owner Incentives and Performance in Healthcare: Private Equity Investment in Nursing Homes,” by Atul Gupta, Sabrina T. Howell, Constantine Yannelis, and Abhinav Gupta (NBER Working Paper, 2021).
• “Leveraged Buyouts and Financial Distress,” by Brian Ayash and Mahdi Rastad (Finance Research Letters, 2021).
• “Have Private Equity Owned Nursing Homes Fared Worse Under COVID-19?” by Ashvin Gandhi, YoungJun Song, and Prabhava Upadrashta (SSRN, 2020).
• “When Investor Incentives and Consumer Interests Diverge: Private Equity in Higher Education,” by Charlie Eaton, Sabrina T. Howell, and Constantine Yannelis (The Review of Financial Studies, 2020).
• “The Economic Effects of Private Equity Buyouts,” by Steven J. Davis, John Haltiwanger, Kyle Handley, Ben Lipsius, Josh Lerner, and Javier Miranda (SSRN, 2019).
• “How Acquisitions Affect Firm Behavior and Performance: Evidence from the Dialysis Industry,” by Paul J. Eliason, Benjamin Heebsh, Ryan C. McDevitt, and James W. Roberts (The Quarterly Journal of Economics, 2019).
• "In Silicon Valley, Even Mobile Homes Are Getting Too Pricey for Longtime Residents," by Tracy Lien (Los Angeles Times, 2017).
• “The Operational Consequences of Private Equity Buyouts: Evidence from the Restaurant Industry,” by Shai Bernstein and Albert Sheen (SSRN, 2013).
• "Private Equity and Employment," by Steven J. Davis, John C. Haltiwanger, Ron S. Jarmin, Josh Lerner, and Javier Miranda (NBER Working Paper, 2011).

EXTRAS:

• "Should You Trust Private Equity to Take Care of Your Dog?" by Freakonomics Radio (2023).
• "Do You Know Who Owns Your Vet?" by Freakonomics Radio (2023).
• "Mobile Home Parks," by The Economics of Everyday Things (2023).
• "The Secret Life of a C.E.O.," series by Freakonomics Radio (2018).
• "Extra: David Rubenstein Full Interview," by Freakonomics Radio (2018).

SOURCES:

• Brendan Ballou, special counsel at the Department of Justice.
• Dan Glickberg, venture-capital investor.
• Hannah Howard, food writer.
• Sachin Khajuria, investor.

Evidence from Nazi Germany and 1940’s America (and pretty much everywhere else) shows that discrimination is incredibly costly — to the victims, of course, but also the perpetrators. One modern solution is to invoke a diversity mandate. But new research shows that’s not necessarily the answer.

RESOURCES:

• "Discrimination, Managers, and Firm Performance: Evidence from 'Aryanizations' in Nazi Germany," by Kilian Huber, Volker Lindenthal, and Fabian Waldinger (Journal of Political Economy, 2021).
• "Diversity and Performance in Entrepreneurial Teams," by Sophie Calder-Wang, Paul A. Gompers, and Kevin Huang (SSRN, 2021).
• "Systemic Discrimination Among Large U.S. Employers," by Patrick M. Kline, Evan K. Rose, and Christopher R. Walters (NBER Working Papers, 2021).
• City of Champions: A History of Triumph and Defeat in Detroit, by Silke-Maria Weineck and Stefan Szymanski (2020).
• "The Allocation of Talent and U.S. Economic Growth," by Chang-Tai Hsieh, Erik Hurst, Charles I. Jones, and Peter J. Klenow (Econometrica, 2019).
• Genius & Anxiety: How Jews Changed the World, 1847-1947, by Norman Lebrecht (2019).
• "And the Children Shall Lead: Gender Diversity and Performance in Venture Capital," by Paul A. Gompers and Sophie Q. Wang (NBER Working Papers, 2017).
• "The Political Economy of Hatred," by Edward Glaeser (The Quarterly Journal of Economics, 2005).
• "Statistical Theories of Discrimination in Labor Markets," by Dennis J. Aigner and Glen G. Cain (Industrial and Labor Relations Review, 1977).
• The Economics of Discrimination, by Gary S. Becker (1957).

EXTRAS:

• "A New Nobel Laureate Explains the Gender Pay Gap (Replay)," by Freakonomics Radio (2023).
• "Edward Glaeser Explains Why Some Cities Thrive While Others Fade Away," by People I (Mostly) Admire (2021).
• "What Are the Secrets of the German Economy — and Should We Steal Them?" by Freakonomics Radio (2017).

SOURCES:

• Kilian Huber, professor of economics at the University of Chicago.
• Silke-Maria Weineck, professor of German studies and comparative literature at the University of Michigan.
• Sophie Calder-Wang, professor of economics at the University of Pennsylvania.