How can the state of Colorado have nearly 700 sides? Why is a country's coastline as long as you want it to be? And how...
'Men of good will, will be called upon to use the power of government to solve our problems of all the social ills: poverty, ignorance, squalor. We as economists are entrusted with these tools and with this now power to...
Cathy O'Neil, data scientist and author of Weapons of Math Destruction talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the ideas in her book. O'Neil argues that the commercial application of big data often harms individuals in unknown ways. She argues...
How can the state of Colorado have nearly 700 sides? Why is a country's coastline as long as you want it to be? And how is it that your UPS driver has more routes to choose from than there are stars in the universe? Listen as mathematician Paulina Rowinska talks with EconTalk's Russ Roberts about the mathematical trick...
What if we could delay--or even prevent--Alzheimer's, cancer, and heart disease? What if much of what you know about aging is wrong? Listen as cardiologist and author Eric Topol of the Scripps Research Institute talks about his new book Super Agers with EconTalk's Russ Roberts. They discuss why your genes matter less t...
Jean-Jacques Rousseau Does technology liberate us or enslave us? How do our social interactions affect our sense of self and our emotional health? Listen as author and master teacher Leon Kass and EconTalk's Russ Roberts do a close reading of a few paragraphs of Jean-Jacques Rousseau and explore some of the deepest a...
Economist Noah Smith was so focused on libertarianism's theoretical flaws, he overlooked its political importance. Trump's tariff policy opened his eyes and made him re-assess the virtues of both libertarianism and Econ 101. Listen as he and EconTalk's Russ Roberts explore the way political competition has shaped econo...
'Men of good will, will be called upon to use the power of government to solve our problems of all the social ills: poverty, ignorance, squalor. We as economists are entrusted with these tools and with this now power to be able to achieve that.' ~Paul Samuelson In this episode, Peter Boettke of George Mason Univers...
In honor of EconTalk's 1,000th episode, host Russ Roberts reflects on his long, strange journey from pioneer of the podcast format to weekly interviewer of leading economists, authors, and thinkers. Hear him answer your--and Chat GPT's--questions about why he got started, how he preps, and how he picks guests. He also ...
In this episode of EconTalk, Russ Roberts and Jonathan Rauch explore the instrumental and existential purpose of true religion in liberal democracy. In his new book Cross Purposes: Christianity’s Broken Bargain with Democracy, Rauch argues that the recent failure of Christianity has led Americans to transform politic...
How much of our success or failure is written in our genes? How much is under our control? Is it nature or nurture or is that dichotomy too simplistic? Hear EconTalk's Russ Roberts and psychologist Paul Bloom discuss why the nature vs. nurture question is actually worth taking seriously and how by understanding it we c...
Patrick McKenzie explains to EconTalk's Russ Roberts how credit cards work, who makes money from them and how, and gives his take on whether cash customers and debit card users subsidize the users of credit cards with reward programs.
One of the best experiences of academic growth that I had was because of my high school English teacher who took time to write specific comments on my essays. Back in the 2000’s when typing a paper required a human, I wrote those essays myself in Word on a boxy desktop computer. My teacher, of course, invested la...
A paradox of our time is our willingness to bare all to strangers while worrying about who exactly is watching us online and anywhere else. Listen as author Tiffany Jenkins discusses her book, Strangers and Intimates, with EconTalk's Russ Roberts. In this wide-ranging conversation, they explore the role of Martin Luthe...
Is the United States victimized by trade? What causes trade deficits? Are higher tariffs a good idea? Can manufacturing jobs return to the United States? Economist Doug Irwin of Dartmouth College answers these questions and more in this wide-ranging conversation with EconTalk's Russ Roberts.
Dwarkesh Patel interviewed the most influential thinkers and leaders in the world of AI and chronicled the history of AI up to now in his book, The Scaling Era. Listen as he talks to EconTalk's Russ Roberts about the book, the dangers and potential of AI, and the role scale plays in AI progress. The conversation conc...
How does a nice Jewish boy who is also a gay atheist have the chutzpah to lecture Christianity on its obligations to democracy? Listen to author Jonathan Rauch talk about his book Cross Purposes with EconTalk's Russ Roberts as Rauch makes the case for what he calls a thicker Christianity.
How can we explain the world's underlying order? How does consciousness emerge? And why do people from such different cultures have such similar near-death experiences? Listen as Ross Douthat, New York Times columnist and author of the new book Believe: Why Everyone Should Be Religious, argues that these and other u...
At the heart of the success of the Beatles was the creative chemistry and volatile friendship between John Lennon and Paul McCartney. Listen as author Ian Leslie discusses his book, John & Paul: A Love Story in Songs with EconTalk's Russ Roberts. It's a deep dive into music and friendship as well as a revisionist ...