Podcasts by 301 Moved Permanently

Don Cox on the Economics of Inheritance from 2022-02-22T15:53:45.170872

Don Cox of Boston College and Russ Roberts discuss the economics of inheritance, estates and the family. They look at how parents divide their time and money between their children and our concerns...

The Economics of Organ Donation from 2022-02-22T15:53:45.169018

Richard Epstein, law professor at the University of Chicago, and Russ Roberts discuss the market for kidneys. Should people be allowed to buy and sell kidneys? How might a market for kidneys actual...

Chris Anderson and the Long Tail from 2022-02-22T15:53:45.162097

Russ Roberts talks with Chris Anderson of Wired Magazine about the ideas in his new book, The Long Tail: Why the Future of Business is Selling Less of More. Topics include the weird world of intern...

Milton Friedman on Capitalism and Freedom from 2022-02-22T15:53:45.158940

Russ Roberts talks to Milton Friedman about the radical ideas he put forward almost 50 years ago in Capitalism and Freedom. Listen to the most influential economist of the past 50 years discuss the...

Private vs. Public Risk-Taking from 2022-02-22T15:53:45.154577

Mike Munger and Russ Roberts discuss the differences between public and private risk-taking. Their conversation includes the history of Honda, the Apple computer and even the use of turkey carcasse...

The Economics of Religion from 2022-02-22T15:53:45.153528

Larry Iannaccone of George Mason University talks with EconTalk's Russ Roberts about the economics of religion. Iannaccone explains why Americans are more religious than Europeans, why Americans be...

Richard Thaler on Libertarian Paternalism from 2022-02-22T15:53:45.149402

Richard Thaler of the U. of Chicago Graduate School of Business defends the idea of libertarian paternalism--how government might use the insights of behavioral economics to help citizens make bett...

Bryan Caplan on Discrimination and Labor Markets from 2022-02-22T15:53:45.145332

Bryan Caplan and Russ Roberts discuss the economics of discrimination and government's regulation of labor markets. They talk about the role of the profit motive in reducing or eliminating discrimi...

Munger on Price Gouging from 2022-02-22T15:53:45.142040

Mike Munger of Duke University recounts the harrowing (and fascinating) experience of being in the path of a hurricane and the economic forces that were set in motion as a result. One of the most i...

Lucas on Growth and Poverty from 2022-02-22T15:53:45.137961

Bob Lucas, Nobel Laureate and professor of economics at the University of Chicago talks about wealth and poverty, what affects living standards around the world and over time, the causes of busines...

Easterbrook on the American Standard of Living from 2022-02-22T15:53:45.133596

Author Gregg Easterbrook talks about the ideas in his latest book, The Progress Paradox: How Life Gets Better While People Feel Worse. How has life changed in America over the last century? Is the ...

Mike Munger on the Division of Labor from 2022-02-22T15:53:45.095408

Mike Munger of Duke University and EconTalk host Russ Roberts talk about specialization, the role of technology in aiding specialization and how the division of labor creates wealth.

Bogle on Investing from 2022-02-22T15:53:45.094214

The legendary John Bogle, founder of the Vanguard Group and creator of the index mutual fund, talks about the Great Depression, the riskiness of bond funds, how he created the Index 500 mutual fund...

Allison on Strategy, Profits, and Self-Interest from 2022-02-22T15:53:45.089928

John Allison, CEO of BB and T Bank, lays out his business philosophy arguing for the virtues of profits, self-interest and production. His definition of justice, one of the core values of his firm,...

Shlaes on the Great Depression from 2022-02-22T15:53:45.085198

Amity Shlaes, Bloomberg columnist and visiting senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, talks about her new book, The Forgotten Man: A New History of the Great Depression. She and EconTal...

Munger on Recycling from 2022-02-22T15:53:45.080839

Mike Munger, professor of economics and political science at Duke University and frequent guest of EconTalk, talks with host Russ Roberts about the economics and politics of recycling. Munger argue...

Ed Leamer on Outsourcing and Globalization from 2022-02-22T15:53:45.079052

Is outsourcing good for America? How does foreign competition affect wages in the United States? Ed Leamer, professor of economics at UCLA, talks about the effects of outsourcing on wages, jobs, an...

Eric Hanushek on Educational Quality and Economic Growth from 2022-02-22T15:53:45.074734

Eric Hanushek, Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution, talks about his research on the impact of educational quality on economic growth. Past efforts to increase the economic growth rate of poor c...

George Shultz on Economics, Human Rights and the Fall of the Soviet Union from 2022-02-22T15:53:45.070655

George Shultz, the Thomas W. and Susan B. Ford Distinguished Fellow at Stanford's Hoover Institution and Secretary of State under Ronald Reagan, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the role...

Boudreaux on Market Failure, Government Failure and the Economics of Antitrust Regulation from 2022-02-22T15:53:45.066491

Don Boudreaux of George Mason University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about when market failure can be improved by government intervention. After discussing the evolution of economic think...

McCraw on Schumpeter, Innovation, and Creative Destruction from 2022-02-22T15:53:45.065485

Thomas McCraw of Harvard University talks about the ideas of Joseph Schumpeter from his book, Prophet of Innovation: Joseph Schumpeter and Creative Destruction. McCraw and EconTalk host Russ Robert...

Arnold Kling on the Economics of Health Care and the Crisis of Abundance from 2022-02-22T15:53:45.061392

Arnold Kling of EconLog talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the economics of health care and his book, A Crisis of Abundance: Rethinking How We Pay for Health Care. Kling discusses whether ...

Munger on Fair Trade and Free Trade from 2022-02-22T15:53:45.056211

Mike Munger, frequent guest and longtime Econlib contributor, speaks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about fair trade coffee and free trade agreements. Does the premium for fair trade coffee end up...

Edward Castronova on the Exodus to the Virtual World from 2022-02-22T15:53:45.051335

Edward Castronova, of Indiana University and author of Exodus to the Virtual World, talks about his provocative thesis that a growing number of people around the world will be spending more and mor...

Dan Klein on Coordination and Cooperation from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.986811

Dan Klein of George Mason University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the marvel of economic coordination that takes place without a coordinator--the sequence of complex tasks done by in...

Vernon Smith on Rationality in Economics from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.982870

Nobel Laureate Vernon Smith of Chapman University and George Mason University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the ideas in his new book, Rationality in Economics: Constructivist and Eco...

Coyne on Exporting Democracy after War from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.977727

Christopher Coyne of West Virginia University and George Mason University's Mercatus Center talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his book, After War: The Political Economy of Exporting Democ...

John Nye on Wine, War and Trade from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.973564

John Nye of George Mason University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his book, War, Wine, and Taxes. The conversation covers the history of Britain and France's trade policy, why the Bri...

Gene Epstein on Gold, the Fed, and Money from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.969135

Gene Epstein, Barron's economics editor, talks to EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the virtues of the gold standard relative to fiat money. Epstein argues that privately issued money, backed by gol...

Cole on the Market for New Cars from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.968121

Steve Cole, the Sales Manager at Ourisman Honda of Laurel in Laurel, Maryland talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the strange world of new car pricing. They talk about dealer markup, the ro...

Munger on the Political Economy of Public Transportation from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.964086

Michael Munger of Duke University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about Munger's recent trip to Chile and the changes Chile has made to Santiago's bus system. What was once a private decentra...

Robert Barro on Disasters from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.959677

Robert Barro of Harvard University and Stanford University's Hoover Institution talks about disasters--significant national and international catastrophes such as the Great Depression, war, and the...

Rauch on the Volt, Risk, and Corporate Culture from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.955544

Jonathan Rauch, of the Brookings Institution and the Atlantic Monthly, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the evolution of the Chevy Volt, GM's planned electric car. Due to the transparen...

Ellis on American Creation and the Founding from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.954216

Joseph Ellis, of Mt. Holyoke College and author of American Creation, talks about the triumphs and tragedies of the founding of the United States. His goal in the book and in this podcast is to tel...

Bernstein on Inequality from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.950216

William Bernstein, author of A Splendid Exchange, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about inequality. Bernstein is worried about it; Roberts is not. Bernstein argues that inequality is damaging...

Richard Epstein on Happiness, Inequality, and Envy from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.946318

Richard Epstein of the University of Chicago talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the relationship between happiness and wealth, the effects of inequality on happiness, and the economics of ...

Rauchway on the Great Depresson and the New Deal from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.942395

Eric Rauchway of the University of California at Davis and the author of The Great Depression and the New Deal: A Very Short Introduction, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the 1920s and ...

Lipstein on Hospitals from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.941464

Steven Lipstein, President and CEO of BJC HealthCare--a $3 billion hospital system in St. Louis, Missouri--talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the economics of hospitals. They discuss prici...

Peter Boettke on the Austrian Perspective on Business Cycles and Monetary Policy from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.938115

Peter Boettke, of George Mason University, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the Austrian perspective on business cycles, monetary policy and the current state of the economy.

Cochrane on the Financial Crisis from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.933733

John Cochrane, of the University of Chicago, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the financial crisis. He talks about the origins of the crisis, why the Troubled Assets Relief Program (TARP...

Acemoglu on the Financial Crisis from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.886488

Daron Acemoglu, of MIT, talks with EconTalk Russ Roberts about the financial crisis and the lessons that need to be learned from the crisis. He argues that economists overestimated the stability of...

Zywicki on Debt and Bankruptcy from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.883285

Todd Zywicki, of George Mason University Law School, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the evolving world of consumer debt and how institutions and public policy have influenced consumer ...

Wales on Wikipedia from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.882096

Jimmy Wales, founder of Wikipedia, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the birth and growth of Wikipedia. He talks about the role of Hayek's insights into the design of Wikipedia, how Wikip...

Klein on The Theory of Moral Sentiments, Episode 1--An Overview from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.877949

Dan Klein, of George Mason University, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about Adam Smith's lesser-known masterpiece, The Theory of Moral Sentiments. Klein highlights key passages and concepts ...

Ed Leamer on Macroeconomic Patterns and Stories from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.870656

Ed Leamer, of UCLA and author of Macroeconomic Patterns and Stories, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about how we should use patterns in macroeconomic data and stories about those patterns to...

Epstein on the Rule of Law from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.864446

Richard Epstein of the University of Chicago and Stanford University's Hoover Institution talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the rule of law. Epstein lays out a minimalist definition and a...

Rebonato on Risk Management and the Crisis from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.863497

Riccardo Rebonato of the Royal Bank of Scotland and author of Plight of the Fortune Tellers talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the challenges of measuring risk and making decisions and cre...

Collier on Democracy and Violence from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.859363

Paul Collier of Oxford University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the ideas in his new book, Wars, Guns, and Votes, a study of democracy and violence. Collier lays out the incentives fa...

Paul Graham on Start-ups, Innovation, and Creativity from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.855492

Paul Graham, essayist, programmer and partner in the y-combinator talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about start-ups, innovation, and creativity. Graham draws on his experience as entrepreneur a...

Tyler Cowen on Culture, Autism, and Creating Your Own Economy from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.850130

Tyler Cowen of George Mason University and author of Create Your Own Economy talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the ideas in his recent book. The conversation ranges across a wide array of...

Gary Stern on Too Big to Fail from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.845852

Gary Stern, former President of the Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about Stern's book, Too Big To Fail (co-authored with Ron Feldman), a prescient warning o...

Heller on Gridlock and the Tragedy of the Anticommons from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.840530

Michael Heller of Columbia Law School and author of The Gridlock Economy talks to EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the book and the idea that fragmented ownership is a barrier to innovation. Heller...

Scott Sumner on Monetary Policy from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.838541

Scott Sumner of Bentley University and the blog The Money Illusion talks with host Russ Roberts about monetary policy and the state of the economy. Sumner argues that tight money in late 2008 preci...

Megan McArdle on Debt and Self-Restraint from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.795381

Megan McArdle, who writes the blog Asymmetrical Information at The Atlantic, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about debt and the challenge of self-restraint. She discusses her recent Atlantic ...

Rustici on Smoot-Hawley and the Great Depression from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.784447

Thomas Rustici of George Mason University and author of Lessons from the Great Depression talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the impact of the Smoot-Hawley Act on the economy. The standard...

Larry White on Hayek and Money from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.780269

Larry White of George Mason University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about Hayek's ideas on the business cycle and money. White lays out Hayek's view of business cycles and the role of mone...

Russ Roberts on Smith, Ricardo, and Trade from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.776872

Russ Roberts, host of EconTalk, does a monologue this week on the economics of trade and specialization. Economists have focused on David Ricardo's idea of comparative advantage as the source of sp...

Ritholtz on Bailouts, the Fed, and the Crisis from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.773504

Barry Ritholtz, author of Bailout Nation: How Greed and Easy Money Corrupted Wall Street and Shook the World Economy, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the history of bailouts in recent t...

Newman on Low-wage Workers from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.772543

Katherine Newman, Professor of Sociology at Princeton University, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about Newman's case studies of fast-food workers in Harlem. Newman discusses the evolution of...

Benkler on Net Neutrality, Competition, and the Future of the Internet from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.768422

Yochai Benkler of Harvard University talks to EconTalk host Russ Roberts about net neutrality, access to the internet, and innovation. Benkler argues in favor of net neutrality and government suppo...

Nassim Nicholas Taleb on Black Swans, Fragility, and Mistakes from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.763921

Nassim Taleb, author of The Black Swan and Fooled by Randomness, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his latest thoughts on robustness, fragility, debt, insurance, uncertainty, exercise, mo...

Okrent on Prohibition and His Book, Last Call from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.758763

Daniel Okent, author of Last Call: The Rise and Fall of Prohibition, talks about the book with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. They discuss how the 18th Amendment banning the manufacture, sale, and tra...

Kling on the Unseen World of Banking, Mortgages, and Government from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.688339

Arnold Kling of EconLog talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the weird world of banking. Why do mortgages look the way they do? What do banks contribute to economic activity? How does regula...

Brady on the State of the Electorate from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.678232

David Brady of Stanford University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the state of the electorate and what current and past political science have to say about the upcoming midterm electio...

Laughlin on the Future of Carbon and Climate from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.676487

Robert Laughlin of Stanford University and the 1998 co-recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physics talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about energy use and the future of the earth's climate. Drawing ...

Kling on Knowledge, Power, and Unchecked and Unbalanced from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.667962

Arnold Kling of EconLog and author of Unchecked and Unbalanced, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the book and the relationship between knowledge and power. In a modern economy, specializ...

Caplan on Immigration from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.659478

Bryan Caplan of George Mason University and EconLog blogger talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about immigration. Caplan takes on the common arguments against open borders and argues that they a...

Quiggin on Zombie Economics from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.654382

John Quiggin of Crooked Timber and the author of Zombie Economics talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about ideas in economics that should stay dead and buried. Quiggin argues that many economic ...

Don Boudreaux on China, Currency Manipulation, and Trade Deficits from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.651819

Don Boudreaux of George Mason University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about Chinese exchange rate policy and the claim that China keeps the value of its currency artificially low in order ...

Selgin on the Fed from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.647713

George Selgin, of the University of Georgia, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about whether the creation of the Federal Reserve in 1913 has been a boon or a bust for the U.S. economy. Drawing...

Hanson on the Technological Singularity from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.643444

Robin Hanson of GMU talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the idea of a technological singularity--a sudden, large increase in the rate of growth due to technological change. Hanson argues th...

Kling on Patterns of Sustainable Specialization and Trade from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.637352

Arnold Kling of EconLog talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about a new paradigm for thinking about macroeconomics and the labor market. Kling calls it PSST--patterns of sustainable specializatio...

Freeman Dyson on Heresy, Climate Change, and Science from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.594407

Freeman Dyson of the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about science, his career, and the future. Dyson argues for the importance of what he calls here...

Andresen on BitCoin and Virtual Currency from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.585218

Gavin Andresen, Principal of the BitCoin Virtual Currency Project, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about BitCoin, an innovative attempt to create a decentralized electronic currency. Andresen...

Papola on the Keynes Hayek Rap Videos from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.575391

John Papola of Emergent Order talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about their collaboration creating rap videos based on the ideas of John Maynard Keynes and F. A. Hayek. Their first was "Fear th...

Caplan on Parenting from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.574168

Bryan Caplan of George Mason University and EconLog talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the ideas in Caplan's new book, Selfish Reasons to Have More Kids. Caplan argues that parents spend t...

Eichengreen on the Dollar and International Finance from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.566274

Barry Eichengreen of University of California, Berkeley and author of Exorbitant Privilege talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the history and importance of the dollar as the dominant inter...

Skeel on Bankruptcy and the Auto Industry Bailout from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.562183

David Skeel of the University of Pennsylvania Law School talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about bankruptcy and the government bailout of the auto industry. Skeel argues that the bailout damage...

Admati on Financial Regulation from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.554330

Anat Admati of Stanford University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about ways to make the financial system more stable. In particular, Admati explores the implications of higher capital requi...

Satz on Markets from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.553450

Debra Satz, Professor of Philosophy at Stanford University, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about her book, Why Some Things Should Not Be For Sale: The Moral Limits of the Market. Satz argues...

Winston on Lawyers from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.549534

Clifford Winston of the Brookings Institution talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the market for lawyers and the role of lawyers in the political process. Drawing on a new co-authored book,...

Bruce Meyer on the Middle Class, Poverty, and Inequality from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.541394

Bruce Meyer of the University of Chicago talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the middle class, poverty, and inequality. Many economists and pundits argue that the middle class has made litt...

Kaplan on the Inequality and the Top 1% from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.532755

Steven Kaplan of the University of Chicago talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the richest Americans and income inequality. Drawing on work with Joshua Rauh, Kaplan talks about the composit...

Tyler Cowen on the European Crisis from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.493865

Tyler Cowen of George Mason University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the European crisis. Cowen argues that Greece is likely to default either in fact or in spirit but that the key qu...

Scott Sumner on Money and the Fed from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.485057

Scott Sumner of Bentley University and the blog The Money Illusion talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the state of monetary policy, the actions of the Federal Reserve over the past two yea...

Dean Baker on the Crisis from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.484060

Dean Baker of the Center for Economic Policy and Research talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the financial crisis. Baker sees the crisis as part of a broader set of phenomena--rising inequ...

William Black on Financial Fraud from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.472895

William Black of University of Missouri-Kansas City and author of The Best Way to Rob a Bank Is to Own One, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about financial fraud, starting with the Savings an...

Calomiris on Capital Requirements, Leverage, and Financial Regulation from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.469172

Charles Calomiris of Columbia University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about corporate debt, capital requirements, and financial regulation. This is an in-depth conversation about how debt ...

Eugene White on Bank Regulation from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.464975

Eugene White of Rutgers University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the regulation of banks and financial crises. White argues that most regulation tries to limit the choices of banks to...

Burkhauser on the Middle Class from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.464035

Richard Burkhauser of Cornell University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the state of the middle class. Drawing on recently published papers, Burkhauser shows that changes in the standa...

David Schmidtz on Rawls, Nozick, and Justice from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.455975

David Schmidtz of the University of Arizona talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the work of John Rawls and Robert Nozick. The conversation covers the basic ideas of Rawls and Nozick on ineq...

Yong on Science, Replication, and Journalism from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.451643

Ed Yong, science writer and blogger at "Not Exactly Rocket Science" at Discover Magazine, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the challenges of science and science journalism. Yong was rece...

Zingales on Capitalism and Crony Capitalism from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.444085

Luigi Zingales of the University of Chicago and author of A Capitalism for the People talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the ideas in his book. Zingales argues that the financial sector ha...

Stiglitz on Inequality from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.442720

Nobel Laureate Joseph Stiglitz of Columbia University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the ideas in his recent book, The Price of Inequality. Stiglitz argues that the American economy is...

Ober on the Ancient Greek Economy from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.437622

Josiah Ober of Stanford University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the economy of ancient Greece, particularly Athens. Ober notes that the standard view of ancient Greece is that it was...

Barofsky on Bailouts from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.432562

Neil Barofsky, author of Bailout and the former Special Inspector General for the TARP program, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his book and the government bailouts by the Bush and Obam...

Robert Skidelsky on Money, the Good Life, and How Much is Enough from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.388673

Robert Skidelsky, noted biographer of John Maynard Keynes and author (with his son Edward) of the recently published How Much is Enough, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about materialism, gro...

Garett Jones on Fisher, Debt, and Deflation from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.387815

Garett Jones of George Mason University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the ideas of Irving Fisher on debt and deflation. In a book, Booms and Depressions and in a 1933 Econometrica art...

Joshua Rauh on Public Pensions from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.383807

Joshua Rauh, Professor of Finance at Stanford University's Graduate School of Business and a senior fellow at Stanford University's Hoover Institution, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about t...

Mulligan on Redistribution, Unemployment, and the Labor Market from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.373571

Casey Mulligan of the University of Chicago and the author of The Redistribution Recession, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the ideas in the book. Mulligan argues that increases in the ...

Jerven on Measuring African Poverty and Progress from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.366389

Morten Jerven of Simon Fraser University, author of Poor Numbers, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the quality of data coming out of Africa on income, growth, and population. Jerven argu...

Seidman on the Constitution from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.360537

Louis Michael Seidman of Georgetown University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the United States Constitution. Seidman argues that the we should ignore the Constitution in designing pub...

Leigh Steinberg on Sports, Agents, and Athletes from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.356807

Leigh Steinberg, legendary sports agent, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his career as a sports agent. He discusses the challenges of building a clientele, how sports agents spend their...

Topol on the Creative Destruction of Medicine from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.349426

Eric Topol of the Scripps Research Institute and the author of The Creative Destruction of Medicine talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the ideas in his book. Topics discussed include "evid...

Admati on Bank Regulation and the Bankers' New Clothes from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.348525

Anat Admati of Stanford University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about her new book (co-authored with Martin Hellwig), The Bankers' New Clothes. Admati argues that the best way to reduce th...

Bernstein on Communication, Power and the Masters of the Word from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.344606

William Bernstein talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his latest book, Masters of the Word. Bernstein traces the history of language, writing, and communication and its impact on freedom. T...

Kling on the Three Languages of Politics from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.340644

Arnold Kling, author of The Three Languages of Politics, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the ideas in the book. Kling argues that Progressives, Conservatives, and Libertarians each have...

Michael Munger on Sports, Norms, Rules, and the Code from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.297523

Michael Munger of Duke University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the role of formal rules and informal rules in sports. Many sports restrain violence and retaliation through formal rul...

Morris Fiorina on Polarization, Stability, and the State of the Electorate from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.294408

Morris Fiorina, the Wendt Family Professor of Political Science and Hoover Institution Senior Fellow at Stanford University, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the state of the American el...

Pindyck on Climate Change from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.284585

Robert Pindyck of MIT talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the challenges of global warming for policy makers. Pindyck argues that while there is little doubt about the existence of human-ca...

Michael Munger on Milk from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.278028

Mike Munger of Duke University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about why milk is in the back of the grocery store. Michael Pollan and others argue that milk is in the back so that customers, ...

Capitalism, Government, and the Good Society from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.276983

On April 10, 2013, Liberty Fund and Butler University sponsored a symposium, "Capitalism, Government, and the Good Society." The evening began with solo presentations by the three participants--Mic...

Nassim Nicholas Taleb on Skin in the Game from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.275787

Nassim Taleb of NYU-Poly talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his recent paper (with Constantine Sandis) on the morality and effectiveness of "skin in the game." When decision makers have sk...

Emily Oster on Pregnancy, Causation, and Expecting Better from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.271792

Emily Oster of the University of Chicago and author of Expecting Better talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about her book on pregnancy and the challenges of decision-making under uncertainty. Os...

John Ralston Saul on Reason, Elites, and Voltaire's Bastards from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.254537

John Ralston Saul, author and head of PEN International, speaks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his book, Voltaire's Bastards, and the role of reason in the modern world. Saul argues that the...

Lant Pritchett on Education in Poor Countries from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.250344

Lant Pritchett of Harvard University and author of The Rebirth of Education talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the ideas in the book. Pritchett argues that increases in years of schooling ...

Doug Lemov on Teaching from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.246371

Doug Lemov of Uncommon Schools and author of Teach Like a Champion talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about teaching and education. Drawing on his experience working in charter schools with chil...

Anthony Gill on Religion from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.239289

Anthony Gill of the University of Washington and host of the podcast Research on Religion talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the economics of religion. The conversation focuses on the rela...

Erik Brynjolfsson on the Second Machine Age from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.193396

Erik Brynjolfsson of MIT and co-author of The Second Machine Age talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the ideas in the book, co-authored with Andrew McAfee. He argues we are entering a new a...

Moises Velasquez-Manoff on Autoimmune Disease, Parasites, and Complexity from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.177642

Moises Velasquez-Manoff, author of An Epidemic of Absence, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his book--a discussion of why allergies and autoimmune diseases have been on the rise in the d...

Bryan Caplan on College, Signaling and Human Capital from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.168184

Bryan Caplan of George Mason University and blogger at EconLog talks to EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the value of a college education. Caplan argues that the extra amount that college graduates...

Gavin Andresen on the Present and Future of Bitcoin from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.164211

Gavin Andresen, Chief Scientist of the Bitcoin Foundation, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about where Bitcoin has been and where it might be headed in the future. Topics discussed include co...

Andrew McAfee, Megan McArdle, and Lee Ohanian on the Future of Work from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.160365

Andrew McAfee, Megan McArdle, and Lee Ohanian talk with EconTalk host Russ Roberts on the future of work. Recorded before a live audience at the 33rd Santa Barbara Economic Summit, the conversation...

Edward Lazear on Becker from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.158454

Edward Lazear of Stanford University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about Gary Becker's innovative contributions to economics. The conversation opens with personal reminiscences by Lazear an...

Michael Munger on the Sharing Economy from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.150345

Mike Munger of Duke University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the sharing economy--companies like Uber, AirBnB, FlightApp, and DogVacay that let people share their houses, cars, or oth...

Reid Hoffman and Ben Casnocha on LinkedIn and The Alliance from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.146350

Reid Hoffman, co-founder of professional networking site LinkedIn, and Ben Casnocha, former Chief-of-Staff of LinkedIn, talk to EconTalk host Russ Roberts about LinkedIn and their book The Alliance...

Nathan Blecharczyk on Airbnb and the Sharing Economy from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.140380

Nathan Blecharczyk, co-founder and chief technology officer of Airbnb, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about Airbnb, one of the earliest companies to use technology to allow individuals to sh...

Paul Pfleiderer on the Misuse of Economic Models from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.139472

Paul Pfleiderer, C.O.G. Miller Distinguished Professor of Finance at the Graduate School of Business at Stanford University, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his recent paper critiquing ...

David Autor on the Future of Work and Polanyi's Paradox from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.135522

David Autor of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the future of work and the role that automation and smart machines might play in the workforce. ...

Daron Acemoglu on Inequality, Institutions, and Piketty from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.090725

Daron Acemoglu, the Elizabeth and James Killian Professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his new paper co-authored with James Robinson, "T...

Nick Bostrom on Superintelligence from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.086378

Nick Bostrom of the University of Oxford talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his book, Superintelligence: Paths, Dangers, Strategies. Bostrom argues that when machines exist which dwarf hum...

James Otteson on the End of Socialism from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.082405

James Otteson of Wake Forest University talks to EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his new book, The End of Socialism. Otteson argues that socialism (including what he calls the "socialist inclinati...

Joshua Greene on Moral Tribes, Moral Dilemmas, and Utilitarianism from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.074357

Joshua Greene, of Harvard University and author of Moral Tribes: Emotion, Reason, and the Gap Between Us and Them, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about morality and the challenges we face wh...

Luigi Zingales on the Costs and Benefits of the Financial Sector from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.068417

Luigi Zingales of the University of Chicago talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts on whether the financial sector is good for society and about the gap between how banks and bankers are perceived b...

Daniel Sumner on the Political Economy of Agriculture from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.067451

Daniel Sumner of the University of California talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about agricultural subsidies in the United States, the winners and losers from those subsidies, and how the struc...

David Zetland on Water from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.064001

David Zetland of Leiden University College in the Netherlands and author of Living with Water Scarcity talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the challenges of water management. Issues covered...

Lawrence H. White on Monetary Constitutions from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.062376

Lawrence H. White of George Mason University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the possibility of a monetary constitution. Based on a new book, Renewing the Search for a Monetary Constitu...

Vernon Smith and James Otteson on Adam Smith from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.055556

Vernon Smith and James Otteson talk with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about Adam Smith in front of a live audience at Ball State University. Topics discussed include Smith's view of human nature, the...

Michael O'Hare on Art Museums from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.050794

Michael O'Hare of the University of California, Berkeley talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the management of art museums. O'Hare suggests a number of changes that would allow museums to b...

Martin Weitzman on Climate Change from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.046851

Is climate change the ultimate Black Swan? Martin Weitzman of Harvard University and co-author of Climate Shock talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the risks of climate change. Weitzman arg...

Nathaniel Popper on Bitcoin and Digital Gold from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.045942

Nathaniel Popper of the New York Times and the author of Digital Gold talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about Bitcoin. Can Bitcoin make it? What went wrong with Mt. Gox? Why did Ross Ulbricht, ...

Alvin Roth on Matching Markets from 2022-02-22T15:53:44.036732

Nobel Laureate Alvin Roth of Stanford University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his work on matching markets. Examples include marriage, matching kidney donors to kidney recipients, an...

Roger Berkowitz on Fish, Food, and Legal Sea Foods from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.997666

Seafood is highly perishable and supply is often uncertain. Roger Berkowitz, CEO of Legal Sea Foods talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the challenges of running 34 seafood restaurants up a...

William MacAskill on Effective Altruism and Doing Good Better from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.989088

How much care do you take when you make a donation to a charity? What careers make the biggest difference when it comes to helping others? William MacAskill of Oxford University and the author of D...

Tim O'Reilly on Technology and Work from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.984382

Tim O'Reilly of O'Reilly Media talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his career in technology and media and the challenges facing low-wage workers as technology advances. Topics include the e...

Michael Matheson Miller on Poverty, Inc from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.973251

Michael Matheson Miller of the Acton Institute and the Director of the documentary Poverty, Inc., talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his award-winning documentary on the barriers facing th...

Robert Aronowitz on Risky Medicine from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.972370

Should women get routine mammograms? Should men get regular PSA exams? Robert Aronowitz of the University of Pennsylvania and the author of Risky Medicine talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts abou...

Canice Prendergast on How Prices Can Improve a Food Fight (and Help the Poor) from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.964547

If you have 250 million pounds of food to give away every year to local food banks how should you do it? Canice Prendergast of the University of Chicago's Booth School of Business talks with EconTa...

Robert Frank on Dinner Table Economics from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.950335

How can you learn to think like an economist? One way is to think about what might be called dinner table economics--puzzles or patterns that arise in everyday life that would be good to understand...

Timothy Taylor on Government vs. Business from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.946348

Timothy Taylor, blogger at the Conversable Economist and editor of the Journal of Economic Perspectives talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the role of government and business in taking car...

Adam Ozimek on the Power of Econometrics and Data from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.940451

Adam Ozimek of Moody's Analytics and blogger at Forbes talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about why economists change their minds or don't. Ozimek argues that economists make erratic but steady ...

Will Davies on the Economics, Economists, and the Limits of Neoliberalism from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.936541

Will Davies of Goldsmith's, University of London and author of The Limits of Neoliberalism talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the ideas in his book. Davies argues that the free-market visi...

Richard Jones on Transhumanism from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.902341

Will our brains ever be uploaded into a computer? Will we live forever? Richard Jones, physicist at the University of Sheffield and author of Against Transhumanism, talks with EconTalk host Russ Ro...

Arnold Kling on Specialization and Trade from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.887278

Arnold Kling, economist and author, speaks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his latest book, Specialization and Trade: A Reintroduction to Economics. Kling argues that macroeconomics ignores t...

Pedro Domingos on Machine Learning and the Master Algorithm from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.857785

What is machine learning? How is it transforming our lives and workplaces? What might the future hold? Pedro Domingos of the University of Washington and author of The Master Algorithm talks with E...

Jason Zweig on Finance and the Devil's Financial Dictionary from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.695534

Jason Zweig of the Wall Street Journal and author of The Devil's Financial Dictionary talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about finance, financial journalism and Zweig's new book. Zweig discusses...

Yuval Levin on The Fractured Republic from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.665572

Yuval Levin, author and editor of National Affairs, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the ideas in his latest book, The Fractured Republic. Levin argues that both major political parties ...

Matthew Futterman on Players and the Business of Sports from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.493736

Fifty years ago, many of the best players in the National Football League took jobs in the off-season to augment the salaries they earned playing football. Matthew Futterman of the Wall Street Jour...

Adam D'Angelo on Knowledge, Experimentation, and Quora from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.492684

Adam D'Angelo, CEO of the question and answer website, Quora, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the history, evolution, and challenges of Quora. Along the way they discuss the aggregation...

Terry Moe on the Constitution, the Presidency, and Relic from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.487829

Are there many Americans today who wish the President of the United States had more power relative to the other branches of Congress? Terry Moe is one of them. In this week's EconTalk episode, Moe-...

Cathy O'Neil on Weapons of Math Destruction from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.483853

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 o...

David Gelernter on Consciousness, Computers, and the Tides of Mind from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.478601

David Gelernter, professor of computer science at Yale University and author of The Tides of Mind, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about consciousness and how our minds evolve through the cou...

Thomas Leonard on Race, Eugenics, and Illiberal Reformers from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.474523

Were the first professional economists racists? Thomas Leonard of Princeton University and author of Illiberal Reformers talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his book--a portrait of the prog...

Mark Warshawsky on Compensation, Health Care Costs, and Inequality from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.470302

Economist and author Mark Warshawsky of George Mason Univerity's Mercatus Center talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his work on the role health care benefits play in measuring inequality. ...

Robert Hall on Recession, Stagnation, and Monetary Policy from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.469406

Economist Robert Hall of Stanford University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the current state of the U.S. economy and what we know and don't know about the recovery from the Great Rece...

Gary Taubes on the Case Against Sugar from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.465657

Sugar appears to have no nutritional value. But is it more than just empty calories? Is it actually bad for us? Author and journalist Gary Taubes talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his lat...

Crafts, Garicano, and Zingales on the Economic Future of Europe from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.461354

What is the future of the European economy? What are the challenges facing Europe? What are the implications of Brexit for the United Kingdom and the rest of the Europe? Nicholas Crafts of the Univ...

Vanessa Williamson on Taxes and Read My Lips from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.457153

Are Americans overtaxed? How does the average American feel about the tax system and tax reform? Vanessa Williamson of the Brookings Institution talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about her book...

Jennifer Pahlka on Code for America from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.453176

Jennifer Pahlka, founder of Code for America, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the organization she started. Code for America works with private sector tech people to bring technology to...

Tyler Cowen on The Complacent Class from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.451959

Author and economist Tyler Cowen of George Mason University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his book, The Complacent Class. Cowen argues that the United States has become complacent and...

Christy Ford Chapin on the Evolution of the American Health Care System from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.447810

Historian Christy Ford Chapin of University of Maryland Baltimore County and Johns Hopkins and author of Ensuring America's Health talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about her book--a history of...

Chris Blattman on Chickens, Cash, and Development Economics from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.443504

Chris Blattman of the University of Chicago talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about whether it's better to give poor Africans cash or chickens and the role of experiments in helping us figure o...

Tyler Cowen on Stubborn Attachments, Prosperity, and the Good Society from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.437865

Tyler Cowen of George Mason University and the co-host of the blog Marginal Revolution talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about Stubborn Attachments, his book-length treatment of how to think ab...

Rob Reich on Foundations and Philanthropy from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.398097

Is private charity always a good thing? Do large foundations have too much power? Political Scientist Rob Reich of Stanford University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the power and effe...

Robert Wright on Meditation, Mindfulness, and Why Buddhism is True from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.393930

Robert Wright, author of Why Buddhism Is True, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the psychotherapeutic insights of Buddhism and the benefits of meditation and mindfulness. Wright argues o...

Tim O'Reilly on What's the Future from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.392956

Author Tim O'Reilly, founder of O'Reilly Media and long-time observer and commenter on the internet and technology, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his new book, WTF? What's the Future ...

Dennis Rasmussen on Hume and Smith and The Infidel and the Professor from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.388602

How did the friendship between David Hume and Adam Smith influence their ideas? Why do their ideas still matter today? Political Scientist Dennis Rasmussen of Tufts University and author of The Inf...

Rachel Laudan on Food Waste from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.382849

Historian Rachel Laudan talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about food waste. Laudan argues that there are tradeoffs in preventing food waste--in reduced time for example, or a reduction in food ...

Kelly Weinersmith and Zach Weinersmith on Soonish from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.377923

Ecologist Kelly Weinersmith and cartoonist Zach Weinersmith--creator of Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal--talk with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about their new book, Soonish--a look at cutting-edge...

Dick Carpenter on Bottleneckers from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.376933

Dick Carpenter of the Institute for Justice and author of Bottleneckers talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his book--a look at how occupational licensing and other regulations protect exis...

Helen Pluckrose and James Lindsay on the Enemies of Modernity from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.372992

Helen Pluckrose and James Lindsay talk with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about their essay on the enemies of modernity. Pluckrose and Lindsay argue that modernity--by which they mean democracy, reaso...

Nassim Nicholas Taleb on Rationality, Risk, and Skin in the Game from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.368623

Nassim Nicholas Taleb, author of Skin in the Game, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the ideas in the book. This is the third episode of EconTalk with Taleb related to the general topic o...

Michael Munger on Traffic from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.360492

Does rush-hour traffic drive you crazy? Is a congestion tax on car travel a good idea? Michael Munger of Duke University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the economics of traffic and con...

Vincent Rajkumar on the High Price of Cancer Drugs from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.359677

Can a life-saving drug be too expensive? What explains the high price of cancer drugs? Dr. Vincent Rajkumar of the Mayo Clinic talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the high price of cancer d...

Joel Peterson on Leadership, Betrayal, and the 10 Laws of Trust from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.356189

How did the CEO of a real estate development company become chairman of an airline? How can a competent manager learn to trust his subordinates? Joel Peterson, chairman of the Board at JetBlue Airw...

Janet Golden on Babies Made Us Modern from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.352362

Historian and author Janet Golden talks about her book, Babies Made Us Modern, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Golden chronicles the transformation of parenting in first half of the 20th century. ...

Arnold Kling on Morality, Culture, and Tribalism from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.348401

Economist and author Arnold Kling talks about the economic impact of culture and morality with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Drawing on a recent essay on the importance of social interactions, Kling ...

Patrick Deneen on Why Liberalism Failed from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.347619

Political Scientist and author Patrick Deneen of the University of Notre Dame talks about his book Why Liberalism Failed with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. By liberalism, Deneen means the modern ente...

Frank Dikotter on Mao's Great Famine from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.344159

Historian Frank Dikotter of the University of Hong Kong and author of Mao's Great Famine talks about the book with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Dikotter chronicles the strategies Mao and Chinese lea...

Yoram Hazony on the Virtue of Nationalism from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.340382

Yoram Hazony discusses his book, The Virtue of Nationalism, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Hazony argues that nationalism, for all its flaws, is a better system than a global system of governance...

Noah Smith on Worker Compensation, Co-determination, and Market Power from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.337016

Bloomberg Opinion columnist and economist Noah Smith talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about corporate control, wages, and monopoly power. Smith discusses the costs and benefits of co-determina...

Neil Monnery on Hong Kong and the Architect of Prosperity from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.336204

Neil Monnery, author of Architect of Prosperity, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his book--a biography of John Cowperthwaite, the man often credited with the economic success of Hong Ko...

Alan Lightman on Science, Spirituality, and Searching for Stars on an Island in Maine from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.295974

Author and Physicist Alan Lightman talks about his book Searching for Stars on an Island in Maine with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. This is a wide-ranging conversation on religion, science, transcen...

Maeve Cohen on Rethinking Economics from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.291433

Maeve Cohen, Co-director of Rethinking Economics, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about her organization and its efforts to change economics education. Cohen, who co-founded the Post-Crash Ec...

Peter Berkowitz on Locke, Liberty, and Liberalism from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.290352

Peter Berkowitz of Stanford University's Hoover Institution talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the origins of liberalism and the importance of John Locke. Berkowitz defends the liberal pro...

Ed Dolan on Employer-Sponsored Health Insurance from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.286670

Economist Ed Dolan of the Niskanen Center talks about employer-based health insurance with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Dolan discusses how unusual it is relative to other countries that so many Ame...

Gary Greenberg on the Placebo Effect from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.282854

Author and psychotherapist Gary Greenberg talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the placebo effect. Is it real? How does the placebo effect influence drug testing? If it's real, what is the u...

Jacob Vigdor on the Seattle Minimum Wage from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.279525

Jacob Vigdor of the University of Washington talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the impact of Seattle's minimum wage increases in recent years. Vigdor along with others from the Evans Scho...

Jacob Stegenga on Medical Nihilism from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.275408

Philosopher and author Jacob Stegenga of the University of Cambridge talks about his book Medical Nihilism with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Stegenga argues that many medical treatments either fail ...

Robin Feldman on Drugs, Money, and Secret Handshakes from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.274308

Law professor and author Robin Feldman of UC Hastings College of the Law talks about her book Drugs, Money, and Secret Handshakes with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Feldman argues that the legal and ...

Mauricio Miller on Poverty, Social Work, and the Alternative from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.270371

Poverty activist, social entrepreneur and author, Mauricio Miller, talks about his book The Alternative with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Miller, a MacArthur genius grant recipient, argues that we h...

Alain Bertaud on Cities, Planning, and Order Without Design from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.266586

Urbanist and author Alain Bertaud of NYU talks about his book Order Without Design with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Bertaud explores the role of zoning and planning alongside the emergent factors t...

Adam Cifu on the Case for Being a Medical Conservative from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.259726

Physician and author Adam Cifu of the University of Chicago talks about being a medical conservative with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Cifu encourages doctors to appreciate the complexity of medical...

Arthur Brooks on Love Your Enemies from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.258544

Economist and author Arthur Brooks talks about his book Love Your Enemies with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Brooks argues that contempt is destroying our political conversations and it's not good fo...

Andy Matuschak on Books and Learning from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.254339

Software Engineer Andy Matuschak talks about his essay "Why Books Don't Work" with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Matuschak argues that most books rely on transmissionism, the idea that an author can ...

David Deppner on Leadership, Confidence, and Humility from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.250576

Can a great leader or manager be humble in public? Or is exuding confidence, even when it may not be merited, a key part of leadership? In this episode of EconTalk, host Russ Roberts talks with Dav...

Daron Acemoglu on Shared Prosperity and Good Jobs from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.249737

Economist and author Daron Acemoglu of MIT discusses with EconTalk host Russ Roberts the challenge of shared prosperity and the policies that could bring about a more inclusive economy. Acemoglu ar...

Ryan Holiday on Stillness Is the Key from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.246094

Ryan Holiday talks about his latest book, Stillness Is the Key, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Holiday explores how stillness--the cultivation of serenity and focus--can affect how we live and ho...

Venkatesh Rao on Waldenponding from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.240135

Writer and management consultant Venkatesh Rao talks about Waldenponding with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Rao coined the term Waldenponding to describe various levels of retreating from technology ...

Gerd Gigerenzer on Gut Feelings from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.236597

Psychologist and author Gerd Gigerenzer of the Max Planck Institute for Human Development talks about his book Gut Feelings with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Gigerenzer argues for the power of simpl...

Terry Moe on Educational Reform, Katrina, and Hidden Power from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.235801

Political Scientist and author Terry Moe of Stanford University talks about his book, The Politics of Institutional Reform with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Moe explores the politics and effectivene...

Melanie Mitchell on Artificial Intelligence from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.197641

Computer Scientist and author Melanie Mitchell of Portland State University and the Santa Fe Institute talks about her book Artificial Intelligence with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Mitchell explain...

Robert Shiller on Narrative Economics from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.194154

Economist, author, and Nobel Laureate Robert Shiller of Yale University discusses his book Narrative Economics with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Shiller proposes a novel idea--that the narratives th...

Yuval Levin on A Time to Build from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.190310

Author and political scientist Yuval Levin of the American Enterprise Institute talks about his book A Time to Build with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Levin argues that institutions in America are l...

Richard Davies on Extreme Economies from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.186531

Economist and author Richard Davies talks about his book Extreme Economies with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. The conversation explores economic life in extreme situations. Examples discussed are the...

Arnold Kling on the Three Languages of Politics, Revisited from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.181687

Economist and author Arnold Kling talks about the revised edition of his book The Three Languages of Politics in front of a live audience at the Cato Institute, recorded in September of 2019. Kling...

L.A. Paul on Vampires, Life Choices, and Transformation from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.176842

Philosopher and author L.A. Paul talks about her book Transformative Experience with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Paul explores the uncertainties that surround the transformative experiences that we...

Sarah Carr on Charter Schools, Educational Reform, and Hope Against Hope from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.170163

Journalist and author Sarah Carr talks about her book Hope Against Hope with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Carr looked at three schools in New Orleans in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and chroni...

Rebecca Henderson on Reimagining Capitalism from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.168482

Author and economist Rebecca Henderson of the Harvard Business School talks about her book Reimagining Capitalism in a World on Fire with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Henderson argues that the focus...

Robert Lerman on Apprenticeships from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.160432

Economist Robert Lerman of the Urban Institute talks about apprenticeships with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Lerman argues that apprenticeships--a combination of work experience and classroom learni...

John Kay and Mervyn King on Radical Uncertainty from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.156383

John Kay and Mervyn King talk about their book, Radical Uncertainty, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. This is a wide-ranging discussion based on the book looking at rationality, decision-making und...

Margaret Heffernan on Uncharted from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.149400

How do we prepare for a future that is unpredictable? That's the question at the heart of Margaret Heffernan's new book, Uncharted: How to Navigate the Future. Heffernan is a professor at the Univ...

Zena Hitz on Lost in Thought from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.084371

Philosopher and author Zena Hitz of St. John's College talks about her book, Lost in Thought, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Hitz defends learning for its own sake--learning that has nothing to d...

Rob Wiblin and Russ Roberts on Charity, Science, and Utilitarianism from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.079507

Rob Wiblin, host of the 80,000 Hours podcast, interviews EconTalk host Russ Roberts about charity, the reliability of data to inform decision-making, and utilitarianism.

Steven Levitt on Freakonomics and the State of Economics from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.077472

Author and economist Steven Levitt is the William B. Ogden Distinguished Service Professor of Economics at the University of Chicago and host of the podcast "People I (Mostly) Admire." He is best k...

Branko Milanovic on the Big Questions of Economics from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.064449

Author and economist Branko Milanovic of CUNY talks about the big questions in economics with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Milanovic argues that the Nobel Prize Committee is missing an opportunity t...

Matthew Crawford on Why We Drive from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.060337

Author Matthew Crawford talks about his book Why We Drive with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. The conversation is about driving but also much more: how human beings interact with technology and what w...

Michael McCullough on the Kindness of Strangers from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.056295

Author and psychologist Michael McCullough of the University of California, San Diego talks about his book The Kindness of Strangers with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. McCullough traces the history o...

Lamorna Ash on Dark, Salt, Clear from 2022-02-22T15:53:43.055001

Lamorna Ash talks about her book Dark, Salt, Clear with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Ash leaves London and moves to the small fishing village of Newlyn, near where her mother grew up on the Cornish ...

Michael Munger on Desires, Morality, and Self-Interest from 2022-02-22T15:53:42.998571

Economist and author Michael Munger of Duke University talks about human wants and desires with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Human beings have desires about our desires. Can we change what we want? ...

Leon Kass on Human Flourishing, Living Well, and Aristotle from 2022-02-22T15:53:42.989015

Leon Kass, long-time teacher of classic works at the University of Chicago and now Dean of Faculty at Shalem College in Jerusalem, talks about human flourishing with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Dra...

Tyler Cowen on the Pandemic, Revisited from 2022-02-22T15:53:42.984736

Blogger, author, podcaster, economist Tyler Cowen of George Mason University discusses the lessons learned from the pandemic with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Appearing roughly one year after his fi...

Katy Milkman on How to Change from 2022-02-22T15:53:42.980283

Behavioral scientist Katy Milkman of the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania talks about her book How to Change with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. What can we learn from research in psyc...

Ian Leslie on Conflicted from 2022-02-22T15:53:42.962741

Author Ian Leslie talks about his book Conflicted with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Leslie argues that, far from being a negative thing, conflict is often the essential ingredient that helps us get ...

Claudia Hauer on War, Education, and Strategic Humanism from 2022-02-22T15:53:42.957283

Claudia Hauer of St. John's College and the Air Force Academy talks about her book Strategic Humanism with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Topics discussed include war, rage, terrorism, and what a mode...

Jonathan Rauch on the Constitution of Knowledge from 2022-02-22T15:53:42.953030

Journalist and author Jonathan Rauch talks about his book  The Constitution of Knowledge with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Rauch argues that the constitution of knowledge--the norms and institutions...

Michael Munger on Free Markets from 2022-02-22T15:53:42.952043

Author and economist Michael Munger of Duke University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the virtues--and the flaws--of free markets. Munger says the best argument for a free market appro...

Johann Hari on Lost Connections from 2022-02-22T15:53:42.947665

Author and journalist Johann Hari talks about his book, Lost Connections: Why You Are Depressed and How to Find Hope, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Hari, who has suffered with depression as a te...

Arnold Kling on Reforming Government and Expertise from 2022-02-22T15:53:42.942375

Economist and author Arnold Kling talks about improving government regulation with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Kling suggests ways to improve the administrative state--the agencies and regulatory b...

Jennifer Frey on Education, Philosophy, and the University from 2022-02-22T15:53:42.895883

Philosopher Jennifer Frey of the University of South Carolina talks about the state of the university in American education. Frey urges a stronger focus on virtue and human flourishing and a reduce...

Sandra Faber on the Future of the Earth from 2022-02-22T15:53:42.894001

Of all the scenarios that keep astrophysicist Sandra Faber up at night, it's not the Earth's increasing volcanism, the loss of photosynthesis, or even the impact of a massive asteroid. Rather, it's...

Michael Faye and Paul Niehaus on GiveDirectly from 2022-02-22T15:53:42.887947

Economic theory teaches that people make choices that provide them with the greatest benefit. So why not extend this idea to the realm of charity? Economists and social entrepreneurs Michael Faye a...

Lorne Buchman on Creativity, Leadership, and Art from 2022-02-22T15:53:42.883785

When we see Michaelangelo's David or the design of the Apple Store, we assume a genius with a predetermined vision was the key to the outcome. Yet as Lorne Buchman, author of Make to Know, tells Ec...

John Taylor on Inflation, the Fed, and the Taylor Rule from 2022-02-22T15:53:42.873506

What's so bad about rising inflation? Why should we aim for a rate of 2 percent? Why is it a problem if interest rates are too low--and what do we mean by inflation, anyway? Stanford University's J...

Luca Dellanna on Compulsion, Self-deception, and the Brain from 2022-02-21T11:30

Why do people eat too much even when they don't want to? Why are there so many bad managers? And why might anti-vaxxers be useful? Luca Dellanna, author of The Control Heuristic, thinks the answers...

Hanushek on Educational Quality and Economic Growth from 2022-02-19T07:52:02.169376

Eric Hanushek, Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution, talks about his research on the impact of educational quality on economic growth. Past efforts to increase the economic growth rate of poor c...

Taleb on Black Swans, Fragility, and Mistakes from 2022-02-19T07:52:01.860665

Nassim Taleb, author of The Black Swan and Fooled by Randomness, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his latest thoughts on robustness, fragility, debt, insurance, uncertainty, exercise, mo...

Taleb on Skin in the Game from 2022-02-19T07:52:01.471364

Nassim Taleb of NYU-Poly talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his recent paper (with Constantine Sandis) on the morality and effectiveness of "skin in the game." When decision makers have sk...

Michael Eisenberg on the Start-Up Nation, Storytelling, and the Power of Technology from 2022-02-14T11:30

Michael Eisenberg, venture capitalist and the author of The Tree of Life and Prosperity talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the secret of the Start-Up Nation, the role of principles in inve...

Graham on Start-ups, Innovation, and Creativity from 2022-02-01T03:11:18.938866

Paul Graham, essayist, programmer and partner in the y-combinator talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about start-ups, innovation, and creativity. Graham draws on his experience as entrepreneur a...

Sumner on Monetary Policy from 2022-02-01T03:11:18.890531

Scott Sumner of Bentley University and the blog The Money Illusion talks with host Russ Roberts about monetary policy and the state of the economy. Sumner argues that tight money in late 2008 preci...

Sumner on Money and the Fed from 2022-02-01T03:11:18.664204

Scott Sumner of Bentley University and the blog The Money Illusion talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the state of monetary policy, the actions of the Federal Reserve over the past two yea...

Moshe Koppel on Norms, Tradition, and Resilient Societies from 2022-01-31T11:30

Traditions and norms can seem at best out-of-touch and at worst offensive to many a modern mind. But Israeli computer scientist and Talmud scholar Moshe Koppel argues that traditions and norms--if ...

Penny Lane on Loving and Loathing Kenny G from 2022-01-24T11:30

Love it or hate it, but you've definitely heard it: the so-called "smooth jazz" of saxophonist Kenny G. Filmmaker Penny Lane talks about her documentary, Listening to Kenny G, with EconTalk host Ru...

Tyler Cowen and Russ Roberts on Nation, Immigration, and Israel from 2022-01-17T11:30:44

Can Israeli society survive the loss of universal military service? Will the deregulation of Israel's kosher supervision spell the end of its Jewish character? And, speaking of Israel, what is it t...

Gregory Zuckerman on the Crazy Race to Create the COVID Vaccine from 2022-01-10T11:30

In the race for a COVID vaccine, how did a couple of companies who had never produced a successful vaccine make it to the finish line so quickly? Gregory Zuckerman talks about his book, A Shot to S...

Megan McArdle on Belonging, Home, and National Identity from 2021-12-27T11:30

After being stranded with a bunch of Brits for eight hours at a German airport in 2016, journalist Megan McArdle felt that Brexit was going to happen. The giveaway? Not the concerns over economics ...

Michael Munger on Constitutions from 2021-12-20T11:30

More than we need rules, argues Michael Munger, we need rules about the rules. So does the United States need a new Constitution? Listen as the Duke University economist and political scientist tal...

Boettke on the Austrian Perspective on Business Cycles and Monetary Policy from 2021-12-18T15:01:56.073447

Peter Boettke, of George Mason University, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the Austrian perspective on business cycles, monetary policy and the current state of the economy.

Cowen on Culture, Autism, and Creating Your Own Economy from 2021-12-18T15:01:55.984885

Tyler Cowen of George Mason University and author of Create Your Own Economy talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the ideas in his recent book. The conversation ranges across a wide array of...

McArdle on Debt and Self-Restraint from 2021-12-18T15:01:55.971947

Megan McArdle, who writes the blog Asymmetrical Information at The Atlantic, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about debt and the challenge of self-restraint. She discusses her recent Atlantic ...

Cowen on the European Crisis from 2021-12-18T15:01:55.754711

Tyler Cowen of George Mason University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the European crisis. Cowen argues that Greece is likely to default either in fact or in spirit but that the key qu...

Brynjolfsson on the Second Machine Age from 2021-12-18T15:01:55.492088

Erik Brynjolfsson of MIT and co-author of The Second Machine Age talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the ideas in the book, co-authored with Andrew McAfee. He argues we are entering a new a...

Velasquez-Manoff on Autoimmune Disease, Parasites, and Complexity from 2021-12-18T15:01:55.488063

Moises Velasquez-Manoff, author of An Epidemic of Absence, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his book--a discussion of why allergies and autoimmune diseases have been on the rise in the d...

McAfee, McArdle, and Ohanian on the Future of Work from 2021-12-18T15:01:55.474794

Andrew McAfee, Megan McArdle, and Lee Ohanian talk with EconTalk host Russ Roberts on the future of work. Recorded before a live audience at the 33rd Santa Barbara Economic Summit, the conversation...

Munger on Sports, Norms, Rules, and the Code from 2021-12-16T02:51:41.854171

Michael Munger of Duke University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the role of formal rules and informal rules in sports. Many sports restrain violence and retaliation through formal rul...

Munger on Milk from 2021-12-16T02:51:41.845095

Mike Munger of Duke University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about why milk is in the back of the grocery store. Michael Pollan and others argue that milk is in the back so that customers, ...

Frank Rose on Internet Narratives from 2021-12-13T11:30

Once it was The Shadow radio show; now it's the podcast Serial. Is every old storytelling medium new again? Frank Rose, author of The Sea We Swim In, concedes that some things remain sacred--from t...

Leamer on Outsourcing and Globalization from 2021-12-06T01:05:46.560967

Is outsourcing good for America? How does foreign competition affect wages in the United States? Ed Leamer, professor of economics at UCLA, talks about the effects of outsourcing on wages, jobs, an...

Leamer on Macroeconomic Patterns and Stories from 2021-12-06T01:05:46.352503

Ed Leamer, of UCLA and author of Macroeconomic Patterns and Stories, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about how we should use patterns in macroeconomic data and stories about those patterns to...

Caplan on Discrimination and Labor Markets from 2021-12-04T17:34:00.479837

Bryan Caplan and Russ Roberts discuss the economics of discrimination and government's regulation of labor markets. They talk about the role of the profit motive in reducing or eliminating discrimi...

Friedman on Capitalism and Freedom from 2021-11-30T06:18:39.432253

Russ Roberts talks to Milton Friedman about the radical ideas he put forward almost 50 years ago in Capitalism and Freedom. Listen to the most influential economist of the past 50 years discuss the...

Nina Kraus on Hearing, Noise, and Of Sound Mind from 2021-11-29T11:30

We undervalue our sense of hearing and we under-appreciate the impact sweet sounds and disturbing noises have on our well-being. Neuroscientist Nina Kraus of Northwestern University talks about her...

Eric Jacobus on the Art and Science of Violence from 2021-11-22T11:30

Stuntman and action designer Eric Jacobus joins EconTalk host Russ Roberts for a no-holds-barred discussion of the biological basis for violence and how to avoid the worst of it, the value of viole...

Emily Oster on the Family Firm from 2021-11-15T11:30

Author and economist Emily Oster of Brown University talks about her book, The Family Firm, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Oster argues that running your family life the way you'd run your own bu...

The Economics of Inheritance from 2021-11-12T03:19:01.132102

Don Cox of Boston College and Russ Roberts discuss the economics of inheritance, estates and the family. They look at how parents divide their time and money between their children and our concerns...

Dyson on Heresy, Climate Change, and Science from 2021-10-27T07:31:15.440323

Freeman Dyson of the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about science, his career, and the future. Dyson argues for the importance of what he calls here...

Paul Bloom on Happiness, Suffering, and the Sweet Spot from 2021-10-25T10:30

Author and psychologist Paul Bloom of the University of Toronto talks about his book, The Sweet Spot, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Bloom argues that suffering is underrated--suffering is part o...

Schmidtz on Rawls, Nozick, and Justice from 2021-10-25T01:37:49.982327

David Schmidtz of the University of Arizona talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the work of John Rawls and Robert Nozick. The conversation covers the basic ideas of Rawls and Nozick on ineq...

Oster on Pregnancy, Causation, and Expecting Better from 2021-10-25T01:37:49.861319

Emily Oster of the University of Chicago and author of Expecting Better talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about her book on pregnancy and the challenges of decision-making under uncertainty. Os...

Rowan Jacobsen on Truffle Hound from 2021-10-18T10:30

Journalist and author Rowan Jacobsen talks about his book Truffle Hound with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. This conversation has nothing to do with chocolate. It's about the strange world of undergro...

Sam Quinones on Meth, Fentanyl, and the Least of Us from 2021-10-11T10:30

Author and journalist Sam Quinones talks about his book, The Least of Us, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Quinones focuses on the devastation caused by methamphetamine and fentanyl, the latest evo...

Noreena Hertz on the Lonely Century from 2021-09-27T10:30

Author and economist Noreena Hertz of University College London talks about her book, The Lonely Century, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Hertz blames social media and the individualist, pro-capit...

David Henderson on the Essential UCLA School of Economics from 2021-09-20T10:30

Economist and author David Henderson talks about his book (co-authored with Steve Globerman) The Essential UCLA School of Economics with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Much of the conversation focuses...

Barro on Disasters from 2021-09-15T12:41:56.989124

Robert Barro of Harvard University and Stanford University's Hoover Institution talks about disasters--significant national and international catastrophes such as the Great Depression, war, and the...

Glen Weyl on Antitrust, Capitalism, and Radical Reform from 2021-09-13T10:30

Author and Microsoft executive Glen Weyl talks about radical reforms of capitalism with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Weyl is worried about the concentration of corporate power, especially in the tec...

Nye on Wine, War and Trade from 2021-09-11T05:57:37.148214

John Nye of George Mason University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his book, War, Wine, and Taxes. The conversation covers the history of Britain and France's trade policy, why the Bri...

Roberts on Smith, Ricardo, and Trade from 2021-09-11T05:57:36.969886

Russ Roberts, host of EconTalk, does a monologue this week on the economics of trade and specialization. Economists have focused on David Ricardo's idea of comparative advantage as the source of sp...

Bret Devereaux on Ancient Greece and Rome from 2021-08-30T10:30

Historian Bret Devereaux of the University of North Carolina talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about our understanding of the ancient Greeks and Romans. Devereaux highlights the gap between the...

Michael Heller and James Salzman on Mine! from 2021-08-23T10:30

Law professors Michael Heller and James Salzman talk about their book, Mine! with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Heller and Salzman argue that ownership is trickier and more complicated than it looks....

Nicholas Wapshott on Samuelson and Friedman from 2021-08-16T10:30

Journalist and author Nicholas Wapshott talks about his book Samuelson Friedman with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Milton Friedman and Paul Samuelson were two of the most influential economists of th...

James Heckman on Inequality and Economic Mobility from 2021-07-26T10:30

Economist and Nobel Laureate James Heckman of the University of Chicago talks about inequality and economic mobility with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Drawing on research on inequality in Denmark wi...

Michael Easter on the Comfort Crisis from 2021-07-19T10:30

Journalist and author Michael Easter talks about his book The Comfort Crisis with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Easter thinks modern life is too easy, too comfortable. To be healthy, he says, we need...

Don Boudreaux on the Pandemic from 2021-07-12T10:30

Economist Don Boudreaux of George Mason University talks about the pandemic with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Boudreaux argues that a perfect storm of factors created a huge overreaction, including ...

Sebastian Junger on Freedom from 2021-06-28T10:30

Journalist and author Sebastian Junger talks about his book, Freedom, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. The book and conversation are based on a 400-mile walk Junger took with buddies along railroad...

Anja Shortland on Lost Art from 2021-06-21T10:30

Economist and author Anja Shortland of King's College London talks about her new book, Lost Art, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. When a famous painting disappears into the underworld of stolen art...

Donald Shoup on the Economics of Parking from 2021-06-14T10:30

Author and economist Donald Shoup of UCLA talks about destructive parking policies with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Shoup argues that most parking policies inflict unseen damage on the economy. He ...

Bruce Meyer on Poverty from 2021-05-31T10:30

Economist Bruce Meyer of the University of Chicago talks about poverty with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. In recent years, a number of scholars have claimed that millions of Americans live in extreme...

Jason Riley on Race in America from 2021-05-24T10:30

Journalist and author Jason Riley talks about race with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Riley argues that the challenges facing Black America go beyond racial discrimination and the threat of police vi...

Julia Galef on the Scout Mindset from 2021-05-17T10:30

Podcaster and author Julia Galef talks about her book The Scout Mindset with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Galef urges us to be more rational--to be open-minded about what we might discover about the...

Agnes Callard on Anger from 2021-05-10T10:30

Philosopher Agnes Callard of the University of Chicago talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about anger. Is anger something we should vilify and strive to eradicate in ourselves? Or should we acce...

Roya Hakakian on A Beginner's Guide to America from 2021-04-26T10:30

Author and poet Roya Hakakian talks about her latest book, A Beginner's Guide to America: For the Immigrant and the Curious with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Hakakian was born in Iran and came to th...

Mark Rank on Poverty and Poorly Understood from 2021-04-19T10:30

Sociologist and author Mark Rank talks about his book, Poorly Understood, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Rank looks at a wide variety of aspects of poverty. He argues that many widely-held views ...

Emiliana Simon-Thomas on Happiness from 2021-04-12T10:30

Psychologist Emiliana Simon-Thomas of the University of California, Berkeley talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the science of happiness--what research can teach us about happiness.

Max Kenner on Crime, Education, and the Bard Prison Initiative from 2021-03-29T10:30

Max Kenner, founder and executive director of the Bard Prison Initiative--which offers college degrees to prisoners--talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the program, which replicates the co...

Megan McArdle on Catastrophes and the Pandemic from 2021-03-22T10:30

Whether it's a pandemic or a Texas-sized ice storm that leaves millions of people without power, we'd like to avoid a repetition. Megan McArdle of the Washington Post talks with EconTalk host Russ ...

Sherry Turkle on Family, Artificial Intelligence, and the Empathy Diaries from 2021-03-15T10:30

Psychologist and author Sherry Turkle of MIT talks about her book, The Empathy Diaries, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. The Empathy Diaries is a memoir about Turkle's secretive family and how that...

John Cochrane on the Pandemic from 2021-02-22T11:30

Would the impact of the pandemic have been different if government and policymakers had been more open to more market-based responses and less committed to a top-down approach? Economist John Cochr...

Dana Gioia on Learning, Poetry, and Studying with Miss Bishop from 2021-02-15T11:30

Poet and author Dana Gioia talks about his book Studying with Miss Bishop with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. They talk about the craft of being a poet, the business world, mentorship, loss, why poetr...

Scott Newstok on How to Think Like Shakespeare from 2021-01-25T11:30

Author Scott Newstok of Rhodes College talks about his book, How to Think Like Shakespeare, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Newstok draws on Shakespeare and other great writers and thinkers to exp...

Gary Shiffman on the Economics of Violence from 2021-01-18T11:38:59

Economist and author Gary Shiffman of Georgetown University talks about his book, The Economics of Violence, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Shiffman argues that we should view terrorism, insurgen...

Don Boudreaux on Buchanan from 2021-01-11T11:31:08

Economist and author Don Boudreaux of George Mason University discusses the life and work of the economist James Buchanan with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Buchanan received the Nobel Prize in 1986 ...

Michael Blastland on the Hidden Half from 2020-12-28T11:30:26

Author Michael Blastland talks about his book The Hidden Half with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Blastland argues that the deeper you delve into science, medicine, astrophysics--pick a topic--the mor...

Jay Bhattacharya on the Pandemic from 2020-12-21T11:30

Economist and physician Jay Bhattacharya of Stanford University talks about the pandemic with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Bhattacharya, along with Sunetra Gupta of the University of Oxford and Mart...

Katherine Levine Einstein on Neighborhood Defenders from 2020-12-14T06:30

Why is affordable housing in such short supply? Author and political scientist Katherine Levine Einstein of Boston University talks about her book Neighborhood Defenders with EconTalk host Russ Rob...

Emily Oster on the Pandemic from 2020-11-30T06:30

Economist and author Emily Oster of Brown University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the challenge of reopening schools in a pandemic. Oster has been collecting data from K-12 schools a...

Daniel Haybron on Happiness from 2020-11-23T06:30

Philosopher and author Daniel Haybron of St. Louis University talks about his book, Happiness, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Happiness turns out to be a little more complicated than it sounds. H...

Virginia Postrel on Textiles and the Fabric of Civilization from 2020-11-16T06:30

Author and journalist Virginia Postrel talks about her book The Fabric of Civilization and How Textiles Made the World with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Postrel tells the fascinating story behind th...

Fredrik deBoer on the Cult of Smart from 2020-10-26T06:30

Author and journalist Fredrik deBoer discusses his book The Cult of Smart with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. DeBoer argues that there is little that can be done to change the distribution of success ...

Dwayne Betts on Reading, Prison, and the Million Book Project from 2020-10-19T06:30

Author, lawyer, and poet Dwayne Betts talks about his time in prison and the power of reading with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Betts is the founder of the Million Book Project, which aims to put a ...

Anne Applebaum on the Twilight of Democracy from 2020-10-12T06:30

Journalist and author Anne Applebaum talks about her book, Twilight of Democracy, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Applebaum discusses the rise of populist and nationalist movements in Eastern Euro...

Agnes Callard on Aspiration from 2020-09-28T06:30

Where do our deepest personal values come from? Can we choose those values? Philosopher and author Agnes Callard of the University of Chicago talks about her book, Aspiration, with EconTalk host Ru...

Lisa Cook on Racism, Patents, and Black Entrepreneurship from 2020-09-21T06:30

How much has racism held back the U.S. economy? What would the country look like today if Black entrepreneurs and inventors had been welcomed and encouraged over the past century and a half? Econom...

Robert Chitester on Milton Friedman and Free to Choose from 2020-09-14T06:30

Once upon a time, a man had an idea for a documentary on free-market ideas. Then that man was introduced to Milton Friedman. The result of their collaboration was a wildly successful book and PBS s...

Matt Ridley on How Innovation Works from 2020-08-31T06:30

What's the difference between invention and innovation? Could it be that innovation--the process of making a breakthrough invention available, affordable, and reliable--is actually the hard part? I...

Franklin Zimring on When Police Kill from 2020-08-24T06:30

Franklin Zimring's 2017 book, When Police Kill, starts with an alarming statistic: Roughly 1,000 Americans die each year at the hands of police. Zimring, criminologist and law professor at the Univ...

Michael Munger on the Future of Higher Education from 2020-08-17T10:30

In this 750th (!) episode, Duke University's Michael Munger talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about whether the pandemic might create an opportunity for colleges and universities to experiment ...

Ben Cohen on the Hot Hand from 2020-08-10T06:30

Journalist and author Ben Cohen talks about his book, The Hot Hand, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. At times in sports and elsewhere in life, a person seems to be "on fire," playing at an unusuall...

Nassim Nicholas Taleb on the Pandemic from 2020-07-27T06:30

Nassim Nicholas Taleb talks about the pandemic with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Topics discussed include how to handle the rest of this pandemic and the next one, the power of the mask, geronticide...

Glenn Loury on Race, Inequality, and America from 2020-07-20T06:30

Economist and author Glenn Loury of Brown University talks about race in America with EconTalk host Russ Roberts.

Josh Williams on Online Gaming, Blockchain, and Forte from 2020-07-13T06:30

Josh Williams, co-founder and CEO of the blockchain gaming company Forte, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the state of online gaming and the potential of a blockchain-based gaming platf...

Vivian Lee on The Long Fix from 2020-06-29T06:30

Physician and author Vivian Lee talks about her book The Long Fix with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Lee argues that we can transform health care in the United States, though it may take a while. She...

Agnes Callard on Philosophy, Progress, and Wisdom from 2020-06-22T06:30

Philosopher and author Agnes Callard talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the state of philosophy, the power of philosophy, and the search for wisdom and truth. This is a wide-ranging conver...

Diane Ravitch on Slaying Goliath from 2020-06-15T06:30

Author and historian Diane Ravitch of New York University talks about her book, Slaying Goliath, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Ravitch argues that the charter school movement is a failure and th...

Martin Gurri on the Revolt of the Public from 2020-05-25T06:30

Author Martin Gurri, Visiting Fellow at George Mason University's Mercatus Center, talks about his book The Revolt of the Public with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Gurri argues that a digital tsunami...

Robert Pondiscio on How the Other Half Learns from 2020-05-18T06:30

Author and teacher Robert Pondiscio of the Thomas B. Fordham Institute talks about his book How the Other Half Learns with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Pondiscio shares his experience of being embed...

Paul Romer on the Pandemic from 2020-05-15T12:15

In this bonus episode of EconTalk, economist and Nobel Laureate Paul Romer discusses the coronavirus pandemic with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Romer argues that the status quo of shutdown and fear ...

Paul Romer on the COVID-19 Pandemic from 2020-05-15T12:15

In this bonus episode of EconTalk, economist and Nobel Laureate Paul Romer discusses the coronavirus pandemic with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Romer argues that the status quo of shutdown and fear ...

Branko Milanovic on Capitalism, Alone from 2020-05-11T06:30

Economist and author Branko Milanovic of the Graduate Center, CUNY, talks about his book, Capitalism, Alone, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. They discuss inequality, the challenge of corruption in...

Alan Lightman on Stardust, Meaning, Religion, and Science from 2020-04-27T06:30

Physicist and author Alan Lightman talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the origins of the universe, meaning, transcendence, and the relationship between science and religion.

Vinay Prasad on Cancer Drugs, Medical Ethics, and Malignant from 2020-04-20T06:30

Oncologist, author, and podcaster Vinay Prasad talks about his book Malignant with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Prasad lays out the conflicts of interest and scientific challenges that make drugs th...

Ed Leamer on Manufacturing, Effort, and Inequality from 2020-04-13T06:30

Economist Ed Leamer of UCLA talks about manufacturing, effort, and inequality with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. The conversation draws on recent empirical work of Leamer's on how measured inequality...

Jenny Schuetz on Land Regulation and the Housing Market from 2020-03-30T06:30

Jenny Schuetz of the Brookings Institution talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about zoning, boarding houses, real estate development, and the housing market.

Azra Raza on The First Cell from 2020-03-23T06:30

Author and oncologist Azra Raza talks about her book The First Cell with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Raza argues that we have made little progress in fighting cancer over the last 50 years. The too...

Tyler Cowen on the COVID-19 Pandemic from 2020-03-19T08:30

Economist and infovore Tyler Cowen of George Mason University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the political, social, and economic aspects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Isabella Tree on Wilding from 2020-03-16T06:30

Author and conservationist Isabella Tree talks about her book Wilding with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Tree and her husband decided to turn their 3500 acre farm, the Knepp Castle Estate, into somet...

Richard Robb on Willful from 2020-02-24T06:30

Economist, author, and investor Richard Robb talks about his book Willful with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Robb is interested in what motivates and explains the choices we make. He explores alterna...

Peter Singer on The Life You Can Save from 2020-02-17T06:30

Philosopher and author Peter Singer of Princeton University talks about his book, The Life You Can Save with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Singer argues that those of us in the developed world with a...

Marty Makary on the Price We Pay from 2020-02-10T06:30

Physician and author Marty Makary of Johns Hopkins University talks about his book The Price We Pay with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Makary highlights some of the stranger aspects of our current he...

Daniel Klein on Honest Income from 2020-01-27T06:30

Economist and author Daniel Klein of George Mason University talks about the ethics of working and the potential for our working lives to make the world a better place. This is a wide-ranging conve...

Janine Barchas on the Lost Books of Jane Austen from 2020-01-20T06:30

Author and professor Janine Barchas of the University of Texas talks about her book, The Lost Books of Jane Austen, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. The conversation explores Austen's enduring repu...

Adam Minter on Secondhand from 2020-01-13T06:30

Journalist and author Adam Minter talks about his book Secondhand with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Minter explores the strange and fascinating world of secondhand stuff--the downsizing that the eld...

Kimberly Clausing on Open and the Progressive Case for Free Trade from 2019-12-30T06:30

Economist and author Kimberly Clausing of Reed College talks about her book Open with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Clausing, a self-described progressive, argues that the United States should contin...

Joe Posnanski on the Life and Afterlife of Harry Houdini from 2019-12-23T06:30

Journalist and author Joe Posnanski talks about his book, The Life and Afterlife of Harry Houdini, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Posnanski explores the enduring fame of Houdini who remains an ic...

Binyamin Appelbaum on the Economists' Hour from 2019-12-16T06:30

Journalist and author Binyamin Appelbaum of the New York Times talks about his book, The Economists' Hour, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Appelbaum blames the triumph of free-market ideology for ...

Susan Mayer on What Money Can't Buy from 2019-11-25T06:30

Sociologist Susan Mayer of the University of Chicago talks about her book What Money Can't Buy with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Mayer reports on her research which found that giving poor parents mo...

Keith Smith on Free Market Health Care from 2019-11-18T06:30

Entrepreneur and Anesthesiologist Keith Smith of the Surgery Center of Oklahoma talks with host Russ Roberts about what it's like to run a surgery center that posts prices on the internet and that ...

Rory Sutherland on Alchemy from 2019-11-11T06:30

Author and Advertising Executive Rory Sutherland of Ogilvy talks about his book Alchemy with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Sutherland makes the case for the magic (yes, magic!) of advertising and bra...

Michele Gelfand on Rule Makers, Rule Breakers from 2019-10-28T06:30

Psychologist Michele Gelfand talks about her book, Rule Makers, Rule Breakers, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Gelfand distinguishes between loose cultures and tight cultures--the degree to which ...

Susan Houseman on Manufacturing from 2019-10-21T06:30

Economist Susan Houseman of the Upjohn Institute for Employment Research talks about the manufacturing sector with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Houseman argues that the data surrounding both manufac...

Andrew McAfee on More from Less from 2019-10-14T06:30

Andrew McAfee of MIT's Sloan School of Management talks about his book, More from Less, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. McAfee argues that technology is helping developed nations use fewer resourc...

Sabine Hossenfelder on Physics, Reality, and Lost in Math from 2019-09-30T06:30

Physicist Sabine Hossenfelder talks about her book Lost in Math with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Hossenfelder argues that the latest theories in physics have failed to find empirical confirmation. ...

Dani Rodrik on Neoliberalism from 2019-09-23T06:30

Dani Rodrik of Harvard University talks about neoliberalism with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Rodrik argues that a dogmatic embrace of markets has increased inequality and limited who benefits from ...

George Will on the Conservative Sensibility from 2019-09-16T06:30

George Will talks about his new book, The Conservative Sensibility, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Will argues for a conservative vision that embraces the dynamic nature of life. Topics discussed...

Andrew Roberts on Churchill and the Craft of Biography from 2019-08-26T06:30

Historian Andrew Roberts talks about the life of Winston Churchill and the art of biography with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. How did Churchill deal with the mistakes he inevitably made in a long ca...

Tyler Cowen on Big Business from 2019-08-19T06:30

Author and economist Tyler Cowen of George Mason University talks about his book, Big Business, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Cowen argues that big corporations in America are underrated and und...

Arthur Diamond on Openness to Creative Destruction from 2019-08-12T06:30

Arthur Diamond of the University of Nebraska at Omaha talks about his book, Openness to Creative Destruction, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Diamond sings the sometimes forgotten virtues of innov...

Shoshana Zuboff on Surveillance Capitalism from 2019-07-29T06:30

Shoshana Zuboff of Harvard University talks about her book Surveillance Capitalism with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Zuboff argues that the monetization of search engines and social networks by Goog...

Chris Arnade on Dignity from 2019-07-22T06:30

Photographer, author, and former Wall St. trader Chris Arnade talks about his book, Dignity, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Arnade quit his Wall Street trading job and criss-crossed America photo...

Michael Brendan Dougherty on My Father Left Me Ireland from 2019-07-15T06:30

Author and journalist Michael Brendan Dougherty talks about his book My Father Left Me Ireland with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Dougherty talks about the role of cultural and national roots in our ...

Eric Topol on Deep Medicine from 2019-06-24T06:30

Cardiologist and author Eric Topol talks about his book Deep Medicine with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Topol argues that doctors spend too little face-to-face time with patients, and the use of art...

Anja Shortland on Kidnap from 2019-06-17T06:30

Anja Shortland of King's College London talks about her book Kidnap with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Kidnapping is relatively common in parts of the world where government authority is weak. Shortl...

Bjorn Lomborg on the Costs and Benefits of Attacking Climate Change from 2019-06-10T06:30

Bjorn Lomborg, President of the Copenhagen Consensus Center, talks about the costs and benefits of attacking climate change with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Lomborg argues that we should always be ...

David Epstein on Mastery, Specialization, and Range from 2019-05-27T06:30

Journalist and author David Epstein talks about his book Range with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Epstein explores the costs of specialization and the value of breadth in helping to create mastery in...

Mary Hirschfeld on Economics, Culture, and Aquinas and the Market from 2019-05-20T06:30

Author, economist, and theologian Mary Hirschfeld of Villanova University talks about her book, Aquinas and the Market, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Hirschfeld looks at the nature of our econom...

Robert Burton on Being Certain from 2019-05-13T06:30

Neurologist and author Robert Burton talks about his book, On Being Certain, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Burton explores our need for certainty and the challenge of being skeptical about what ...

Emily Oster on Cribsheet from 2019-04-29T06:30

Economist and author Emily Oster of Brown University talks about her book Cribsheet with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Oster explores what the data and evidence can tell us about parenting in areas s...

Paul Romer on Growth, Cities, and the State of Economics from 2019-04-22T06:30

Nobel Laureate Paul Romer of New York University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the nature of growth, the role of cities in the economy, and the state of economics. Romer also reflects...

Jill Lepore on Nationalism, Populism, and the State of America from 2019-04-15T06:30

Historian and author Jill Lepore talks about nationalism, populism, and the state of America with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Lepore argues that we need a new Americanism, a common story we share a...

Daniel Hamermesh on Spending Time from 2019-03-25T06:30

Economist and author Daniel Hamermesh of Barnard College and the Institute for the Study of Labor talks about his latest book, Spending Time, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Hamermesh explores how...

Amy Tuteur on Birth, Natural Parenting, and Push Back from 2019-03-18T06:30

Obstetrician gynecologist Amy Tuteur and author of Push Back, talks about the book with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Tuteur argues that natural parenting--the encouragement to women to give birth wi...

Amy Webb on Artificial Intelligence, Humanity, and the Big Nine from 2019-03-11T06:30

Futurist and author Amy Webb talks about her book, The Big Nine, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Webb observes that artificial intelligence is currently evolving in a handful of companies in the U...

Michael Munger on Crony Capitalism from 2019-02-25T06:30

Michael Munger of Duke University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about whether real capitalism is unstable and leads inevitably to crony capitalism. They also discuss ways to prevent the des...

Catherine Semcer on Poaching, Preserves, and African Wildlife from 2019-02-18T06:30

Catherine Semcer of the Property and Environment Research Center (PERC) talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the role of incentives in preserving wildlife in Africa. The conversation discuss...

Jessica Riskin on Life, Machinery, and the Restless Clock from 2019-02-11T06:30

Historian Jessica Riskin of Stanford University talks about her book The Restless Clock with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. What is the difference between human beings and machines? How has science th...

Patrick Collison on Innovation and Scientific Progress from 2019-01-28T06:30

Patrick Collison, co-founder and CEO of Stripe, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the pace of innovation. Collison argues that despite enormous increases in the numbers of scientists and ...

Jennifer Doleac on Crime from 2019-01-21T06:30

Economist Jennifer Doleac of Texas A&M University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about her research on crime, police, and the unexpected consequences of the criminal justice system. Topics d...

Stephen Kotkin on Solzhenitsyn from 2019-01-14T06:30

Historian and author Stephen Kotkin of Princeton University and Stanford University's Hoover Institution talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the historical significance of the life and work...

Sebastian Junger on Tribe from 2018-12-31T06:30

Journalist and author Sebastian Junger talks about his book Tribe with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Junger explores the human need to be needed and the challenges facing many individuals in modern s...

Mariana Mazzucato on the Value of Everything from 2018-12-24T06:30

Economist and author Mariana Mazzucato talks about her book The Value of Everything with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Mazzucato argues that economists have mismeasured value and have failed to appre...

John Horgan on Mind-Body Problems from 2018-12-17T06:30

Science journalist and author John Horgan talks about his book, Mind-Body Problems, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Horgan interviewed an array of scientists, philosophers, and others who have wor...

Anat Admati on the Financial Crisis of 2008 from 2018-11-26T06:30

Anat Admati of Stanford's Graduate School of Business talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the financial crisis of 2008, the lessons she has learned, and how it has changed her view of econo...

A.J. Jacobs on Thanks a Thousand from 2018-11-19T06:30

Journalist and author A. J. Jacobs talks about his book, Thanks a Thousand, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Jacobs thanked a thousand different people who contributed to his morning cup of coffee....

Julia Belluz on Epidemiology, Nutrition, and Metabolism from 2018-11-12T06:30

Science writer Julia Belluz of Vox.com talks to EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the state of epidemiology, nutrition, and the relationship between obesity and metabolism.

Michael Munger on Sharing, Transaction Costs, and Tomorrow 3.0 from 2018-10-29T06:30

Economist and author Michael Munger of Duke University talks about his book, Tomorrow 3.0, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Munger analyzes the rise of companies like Uber and AirBnB as an example ...

Ran Abramitzky on the Mystery of the Kibbutz from 2018-10-22T06:30

Economist and author Ran Abramitzky of Stanford University talks about his book, The Mystery of the Kibbutz, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Abramitzky traces the evolution of the kibbutz movement...

Kevin McKenna on Characters, Plot, and Themes of In the First Circle from 2018-10-18T06:30

Russian Literature Professor Kevin McKenna of the University of Vermont talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the characters, plot, and themes of Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn's masterpiece, In the ...

John Gray on the Seven Kinds of Atheism from 2018-10-15T06:30

Philosopher and author John Gray talks about his latest book, Seven Types of Atheism, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Gray argues that progress is an illusion and that most atheisms inherit, unkno...

Rodney Brooks on Artificial Intelligence from 2018-09-24T06:30

Rodney Brooks, emeritus professor of robotics at MIT, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the future of robots and artificial intelligence. Brooks argues that we both under-appreciate and o...

Paul Bloom on Cruelty from 2018-09-17T06:30

Yale University psychologist Paul Bloom talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about cruelty--what motivates cruelty, the cruelty of small acts that accumulate into something monstrous, and the ques...

Kevin McKenna on Solzhenitsyn, the Soviet Union, and In the First Circle from 2018-09-10T06:30

Russian Literature Professor Kevin McKenna of the University of Vermont talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the life and times of Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn. This is the opening episode of the ...

Charlan Nemeth on In Defense of Troublemakers from 2018-08-27T06:30

Psychologist Charlan Nemeth of the University of California, Berkeley and author of In Defense of Troublemakers talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the ideas in the book--the power of group...

Lilliana Mason on Uncivil Agreement from 2018-08-20T06:30

Political scientist Lilliana Mason of the University Maryland and author of Uncivil Agreement talks about the book with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Mason argues that political partisanship has beco...

David Meltzer on the Doctor-Patient Relationship from 2018-08-13T06:30

Physician David Meltzer of the University of Chicago talks about the power of the doctor-patient relationship with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Meltzer, who also has a Ph.D. in economics, discusses ...

Alberto Alesina on Immigration and Redistribution from 2018-07-30T06:30

Alberto Alesina of Harvard University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about how people in the US and five European countries perceive the population and characteristics of legal immigrants. R...

Teppo Felin on Blindness, Rationality, and Perception from 2018-07-23T06:30

Teppo Felin of the University of Oxford talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about perception, cognition, and rationality. Felin argues that some of the standard experimental critiques of human ra...

Russ Roberts on the Information Revolution, Politics, Yeats, and Yelling from 2018-07-16T06:30

EconTalk host Russ Roberts does a monologue on how political discourse seems to have deteriorated in recent years and the growth in outrage, tribalism, and intolerance for those with different view...

Michael Pollan on Psychedelic Drugs and How to Change Your Mind from 2018-06-25T06:30

Journalist and author Michael Pollan talks about his book, How to Change Your Mind, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Pollan chronicles the history of the use of psychedelic drugs, particularly LSD ...

Richard Reinsch on the Enlightenment, Tradition, and Populism from 2018-06-18T06:30

Richard Reinsch, editor of Law and Liberty and the host of the podcast Liberty Law Talk, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the Enlightenment. Topics discussed include the search for meani...

Moises Velasquez-Manoff on Cows, Carbon Farming, and Climate Change from 2018-06-11T06:30

Journalist and author Moises Velasquez-Manoff talks about the role of dirt in fighting climate change with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Velasquez-Manoff explains how changes in farming can allow dir...

Iain McGilchrist on the Divided Brain and the Master and His Emissary from 2018-05-28T06:30

Psychiatrist and author Iain McGilchrist talks about his book, The Master and His Emissary, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. McGilchrist argues we have misunderstand the purpose and effect of the d...

Glen Weyl on Radical Markets from 2018-05-21T06:30

Economist Glen Weyl of Microsoft Research New England and Visiting Senior Research Scholar at Yale University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his book (co-authored with Eric Posner) Rad...

Peter Boettke on Public Administration, Liberty, and the Proper Role of Government from 2018-05-20T06:30

Peter Boettke of George Mason University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the proper role of the state in the economy. This is a wide-ranging conversation on political economy. Topics in...

Ryan Holiday on Conspiracy, Gawker, and the Hulk Hogan Trial from 2018-04-30T06:30

Author Ryan Holiday discusses his book, Conspiracy, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. This is a crazy episode about a crazy book about a crazy set of events--the Hulk Hogan lawsuit against the websi...

Jonah Goldberg on The Suicide of the West from 2018-04-23T06:30

Jonah Goldberg of National Review talks about his latest book, Suicide of the West, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Goldberg argues that both capitalism and democracy are at risk in the current co...

Jerry Muller on the Tyranny of Metrics from 2018-04-16T06:30

Historian and author Jerry Muller of Catholic University talks about his latest book, The Tyranny of Metrics, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Muller argues that public policy and management are ov...

Edward Glaeser on Joblessness and the War on Work from 2018-03-26T06:30

Why are fewer men working over the last few decades? Is a universal basic income a good policy for coping with the loss of employment? Economist Edward Glaeser of Harvard University talks with Econ...

Beth Redbird on Licensing from 2018-03-19T06:30

Economists often oppose the expansion of licensing in America in recent years because it makes it harder for people with low skills to get access to opportunity. Sociologist Beth Redbird of Northwe...

Arnold Kling on Economics for the 21st Century from 2018-03-12T06:30

Economist, blogger, and author Arnold Kling talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the state of economics in the 21st century. Kling argues that economics would be more useful if it took accou...

Elizabeth Anderson on Worker Rights and Private Government from 2018-02-26T06:30

Philosopher Elizabeth Anderson of the University of Michigan and author of Private Government talks about her book with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Anderson argues that employers have excessive pow...

Jordan Peterson on 12 Rules for Life from 2018-02-19T06:30

Jordan Peterson, author of 12 Rules for Life, talks about the book with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Topics covered include parenting, conversation, the role of literature in everyday life, and the ...

Bryan Caplan on the Case Against Education from 2018-02-12T06:30

Bryan Caplan of George Mason University and the author of The Case Against Education talks about the book with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Caplan argues that very little learning takes place in for...

Marian Goodell on Burning Man from 2018-01-29T06:30

Marian Goodell, CEO of the Burning Man Project, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about Burning Man, the 8-day art and music festival in the Nevada Desert. Goodell explains how Burning Man has ...

John Ioannidis on Statistical Significance, Economics, and Replication from 2018-01-22T06:30

John Ioannidis of Stanford University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his research on the reliability of published research findings. They discuss Ioannidis's recent study on bias in ec...

Bill James on Baseball, Facts, and the Rules of the Game from 2018-01-14T06:30

Baseball stats guru and author Bill James talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the challenges of understanding complexity in baseball and elsewhere. James reflects on the lessons he has lear...

Matt Stoller on Modern Monopolies from 2017-12-25T06:30

Matt Stoller of the Open Market Institute talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the growing influence of Google, Facebook, and Amazon on commercial and political life. Stoller argues that the...

Brink Lindsey and Steven Teles on the Captured Economy from 2017-12-18T06:30

Brink Lindsey of the Niskanen Center and Steven Teles of the Niskanen Center and Johns Hopkins University talk with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about their book, The Captured Economy. Lindsey and Te...

John Cogan on Entitlements and the High Cost of Good Intentions from 2017-12-12T06:30

John Cogan of Stanford University's Hoover Institution talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about Cogan's book, The High Cost of Good Intentions, a history of U.S. entitlement policy. Cogan traces...

Simeon Djankov and Matt Warner on the Doing Business Report and Development Aid from 2017-11-27T06:30

Simeon Djankov, creator of the World Bank's Doing Business Report, and Matt Warner, Chief Operating Officer of Atlas Network talk with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the role regulation plays in ...

Tim Harford on Fifty Inventions That Shaped the Modern Economy from 2017-11-20T06:30

Financial Times columnist and author Tim Harford talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about Harford's latest book, Fifty Inventions That Shaped the Modern Economy. Highlights include how elevators...

Anthony Gill on Tipping from 2017-11-13T06:30

Why does tipping persist? Despite the efforts of some restaurants to stop tipping, it remains a healthy institution and has recently spread to Uber. Political scientist Anthony Gill of the Universi...

Michael Munger on Permissionless Innovation from 2017-10-30T06:30

Michael Munger of Duke University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about permissionless innovation. Munger argues that the ability to innovate without permission is the most important concept ...

Jennifer Burns on Ayn Rand and the Goddess of the Market from 2017-10-23T06:30

Jennifer Burns of Stanford University and the Hoover Institution talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about her biography of Ayn Rand, Goddess of the Market. They discuss Rand's philosophy, her in...

Megan McArdle on Internet Shaming and Online Mobs from 2017-10-16T06:30

Author and journalist Megan McArdle of Bloomberg View talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about how the internet has allowed a new kind of shaming via social media and how episodes of bad behavio...

Philip Auerswald on the Rise of Populism from 2017-09-25T06:30

Author and professor Philip Auerswald of George Mason University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the rise of populism in the United States and throughout the world. Auerswald argues tha...

Gabriel Zucman on Inequality, Growth, and Distributional National Accounts from 2017-09-18T06:30

Gabriel Zucman of the University of California, Berkeley talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his research on inequality and the distribution of income in the United States over the last 35 ...

Gillian Hadfield on Law and Rules For a Flat World from 2017-09-11T06:30

Law professor Gillian Hadfield of the University of Southern California and author of Rules for a Flat World talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the ideas in her book for regulating the dig...

Benedict Evans on the Future of Cars from 2017-08-28T06:30

Benedict Evans of Andreessen Horowitz talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about two important trends for the future of personal travel--the increasing number of electric cars and a world of auton...

John McWhorter on the Evolution of Language and Words on the Move from 2017-08-21T06:30

How did bad come to mean good? Why is Shakespeare so hard to understand? Is there anything good about "like" and "you know?" Author and professor John McWhorter of Columbia University talks with Ec...

Nassim Nicholas Taleb on Work, Slavery, the Minority Rule, and Skin in the Game from 2017-08-14T06:30

Nassim Nicholas Taleb talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the manuscript version of his forthcoming book, Skin in the Game. Topics discussed include the role of skin in the game in labor ma...

Alex Guarnaschelli on Food from 2017-07-31T06:30

Alex Guarnaschelli, Food Channel star and chef at Butter in midtown Manhattan, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about what it's like to run a restaurant, the challenges of a career in cooking,...

Sally Satel on Organ Donation from 2017-07-24T06:30

Sally Satel, psychiatrist and resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the challenges of increasing the supply of donated organs for transp...

Tamar Haspel on Food Costs, Animal Welfare, and the Honey Bee from 2017-07-17T06:30

Tamar Haspel, who writes "Unearthed," a column on food and agriculture at the Washington Post, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about a wide variety of issues related to the cost of food and h...

Martha Nussbaum on Alexander Hamilton from 2017-07-10T06:30

Martha Nussbaum, professor of philosophy at the University of Chicago talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about Alexander Hamilton. Nussbaum talks about the tension between acquiring power and li...

Robin Feldman on Drug Patents, Generics, and Drug Wars from 2017-06-26T06:30

Robin Feldman of the University of California Hastings College of Law and author of Drug Wars talks about her book with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Feldman explores the various ways that pharmaceut...

Thomas Ricks on Churchill and Orwell from 2017-06-19T06:30

Author and historian Thomas Ricks talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his book, Churchill and Orwell. Ricks makes the case that the odd couple of Winston Churchill and George Orwell played ...

Don Boudreaux, Michael Munger, and Russ Roberts on Emergent Order from 2017-06-12T06:30

Why is it that people in large cities like Paris or New York City people sleep peacefully, unworried about whether there will be enough bread or other necessities available for purchase the next mo...

David Boaz, P.J. O'Rourke, and George Will on the State of Liberty from 2017-05-29T06:30

What is the state of liberty in America? Is liberty increasing or decreasing? Should we be optimistic or pessimistic about the future? This week EconTalk features David Boaz, P.J. O'Rourke, and Geo...

Lant Pritchett on Poverty, Growth, and Experiments from 2017-05-22T06:30

How should we think about growth and poverty? How important is the goal of reducing the proportion of the world's population living on less than a dollar a day? Does poverty persist because people ...

Cass Sunstein on #Republic from 2017-05-15T06:30

Author and legal scholar Cass Sunstein of Harvard University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his latest book, #Republic. Sunstein argues that the internet has encouraged people to frequ...

Elizabeth Pape on Manufacturing and Selling Women's Clothing and Elizabeth Suzann from 2017-04-24T06:30

Elizabeth Pape, founder of the women's clothing company Elizabeth Suzann, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about starting and running her company--a manufacturer and seller of high-end women's...

Rana Foroohar on the Financial Sector and Makers and Takers from 2017-04-17T06:30

Journalist and author Rana Foroohar of the Financial Times talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about her book, Makers and Takers. Foroohar argues that finance has become an increasingly powerful ...

Erica Sandberg on Homelessness and Downtown Streets Team from 2017-04-10T06:30

Podcaster and writer Erica Sandberg talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about homelessness in San Francisco. Sandberg talks about what the city can do about homelessness and her experience with D...

Jason Barr on Building the Skyline and the Economics of Skyscrapers from 2017-03-27T06:30

Why does the Manhattan skyline look like it does with incredible skyscrapers south of City Hall then almost no tall buildings until midtown? Jason Barr of Rutgers University-Newark and author of Bu...

Andrew Gelman on Social Science, Small Samples, and the Garden of the Forking Paths from 2017-03-20T06:30

Statistician, blogger, and author Andrew Gelman of Columbia University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the challenges facing psychologists and economists when using small samples. On th...

Robert Whaples on the Economics of Pope Francis from 2017-03-13T06:30

Is capitalism part of the poverty problem facing the world or part of the solution? Are human beings doing a good job preserving the earth for future generations? To improve the world, should we im...

Paul Bloom on Empathy from 2017-02-27T06:30

Psychologist Paul Bloom of Yale University talks about his book Against Empathy with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Bloom argues that empathy--the ability to feel the emotions of others--is a bad guid...

Tom Wainwright on Narconomics from 2017-02-20T06:30

When fighting the war on drugs, governments typically devote enormous resources trying to reduce the supply. But is this effective? Journalist and author Tom Wainwright of the Economist and author ...

Jim Epstein on Bitcoin, the Blockchain, and Freedom in Latin America from 2017-02-13T06:30

Writer, reporter, and film producer Jim Epstein talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about mining Bitcoins in Venezuela as a way to import food. Venezuela is a tragicomic example of how policy can...

George Borjas on Immigration and We Wanted Workers from 2017-01-30T06:30

George Borjas of Harvard University and author of We Wanted Workers talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about immigration and the challenges of measuring the impact of increased immigration on Am...

Sam Quinones on Heroin, the Opioid Epidemic, and Dreamland from 2017-01-23T06:30

How did heroin spread beyond big cities in America? What's the connection between heroin and America's opioid problem? Sam Quinones, author of Dreamland, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about...

Michael Munger on the Basic Income Guarantee from 2017-01-16T06:30

Michael Munger of Duke University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the virtues and negatives of a basic guaranteed income--giving every American adult an annual amount of money to guaran...

Chris Blattman on Sweatshops from 2016-12-26T06:30

If you were a poor person in a poor country, would you prefer steady work in a factory or to be your own boss, buying and selling in the local market? Economist Chris Blattman of the University of ...

Terry Anderson on Native American Economics from 2016-12-19T06:30

Terry Anderson of PERC talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about economic life for Native Americans. Anderson discusses economic life before the arrival of Europeans and how current policy affect...

Bruce Bueno de Mesquita on the Spoils of War from 2016-12-12T06:30

There is a fascinating and depressing positive correlation between the reputation of an American president and the number of people dying in wars while that president is in office. Political scient...

Doug Lemov on Reading from 2016-11-28T06:30

Doug Lemov of Uncommon School and co-author of Reading Reconsidered talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about reading. Lemov makes the case for the educational importance of critical reading of c...

Erik Hurst on Work, Play, and the Dynamics of U.S. Labor Markets from 2016-11-21T06:30

Erik Hurst of the University of Chicago talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the state of the labor market in the United States. Hurst notes dramatic changes in employment rates for men and ...

Tim Harford on the Virtues of Disorder and Messy from 2016-11-14T06:30

Tim Harford, journalist and author, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his latest book, Messy. Harford argues that we have a weakness for order and neat solutions causing us to miss opport...

Judith Donath on Signaling, Design, and the Social Machine from 2016-10-31T06:30

Judith Donath, author of The Social Machine, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the ideas in her book--an examination of signaling, online identity, and online community. Donath argues tha...

Casey Mulligan on Cuba from 2016-10-24T06:30

Casey Mulligan of the University of Chicago talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about life in Cuba. Mulligan, who recently returned from a trip to Cuba, discusses the economy, the standard of liv...

Chris Arnade on the Mexican Crisis, TARP, and American Poverty from 2016-10-17T06:30

Chris Arnade, former Wall Street trader turned photographer and social chronicler, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about what he learned from the front lines of the financial industry in the ...

Angus Deaton on Inequality, Trade, and the Robin Hood Principle from 2016-10-10T06:30

Nobel Laureate in Economics Angus Deaton of Princeton University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the economics of trade and aid. Deaton wonders if economists should re-think the widely-...

John Cochrane on Economic Growth and Changing the Policy Debate from 2016-09-26T06:30

How are those in favor of bigger government and those who want smaller government like a couple stuck in a bad marriage? Economist John Cochrane of Stanford University's Hoover Institution talks wi...

Eric Wakin on Archiving, Preservation, and History from 2016-09-19T06:30

What does an x-ray of Hitler's skull have in common with a jar of Ronald Reagan's jelly beans? They are both part of the Hoover Institution archives. Eric Wakin, Director of the Library and Archive...

Susan Athey on Machine Learning, Big Data, and Causation from 2016-09-12T06:30

Can machine learning improve the use of data and evidence for understanding economics and public policy? Susan Athey of Stanford University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about how machine l...

Leo Katz on Why the Law is So Perverse from 2016-08-29T06:30

Leo Katz, professor of law at the University of Pennsylvania, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his book, Why the Law Is So Perverse. Katz argues that certain seemingly inexplicable featu...

Munger on Slavery and Racism from 2016-08-22T06:30

Michael Munger of Duke University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about how attitudes in the American South toward slavery evolved over time and what we can learn from that evolution about th...

Michael Munger on Slavery and Racism from 2016-08-22T06:30

Michael Munger of Duke University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about how attitudes in the American South toward slavery evolved over time and what we can learn from that evolution about th...

Chuck Klosterman on But What If We're Wrong from 2016-08-15T06:30

Chuck Klosterman, author of But What If We're Wrong, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the possibility that things we hold to be undeniably true may turn out to be totally false in the fu...

Angela Duckworth on Grit from 2016-07-25T06:30

How important is grit relative to talent? Can grit be taught? Angela Duckworth of the University of Pennsylvania and author of Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance talks with with EconTalk h...

Ryan Holiday on Ego is the Enemy from 2016-07-18T06:30

How does our attitude toward ourselves affect our success or failure in the world of business or in friendship? Ryan Holiday, author of Ego Is the Enemy, talks with Econtalk host Russ Roberts about...

Jonathan Skinner on Health Care Costs, Technology, and Rising Mortality from 2016-07-11T06:30

Technology and innovation usually mean higher quality and lower prices. Is health care different? Jonathan Skinner of Dartmouth College talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about how technology an...

Richard Epstein on Cruises, First-Class Travel, and Inequality from 2016-06-27T06:30

How should we feel about cruise lines that offer special amenities for top-paying travelers, or first-class sections of airplanes? Do such consumption inequalities harm the social fabric or is ther...

Kevin Kelly on the Inevitable from 2016-06-20T06:30

Futurist, author, and visionary Kevin Kelly talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his latest book, The Inevitable, Kelly's look at what the future might be like and the role of the human expe...

Abby Smith Rumsey on Remembering, Forgetting, and When We Are No More from 2016-06-13T06:30

You might think your tweets on Twitter belong to you. But in 2010, the Library of Congress acquired the entire archive of Twitter. Why would such a majestic library acquire such seemingly ephemeral...

David Beckworth on Money, Monetary Policy, and the Great Recession from 2016-05-30T06:30

Was the Financial Crisis of 2008 caused by a crisis in the housing market? Or did the Federal Reserve turn a garden-variety recession into the Great Recession? David Beckworth of Western Kentucky U...

James Bessen on Learning by Doing from 2016-05-23T06:30

Are workers being left behind when the economy grows? Is technology making the human workforce obsolete? James Bessen, author of Learning by Doing, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the r...

Leif Wenar on Blood Oil from 2016-05-16T06:30

Should the United States allow its citizens to buy oil from countries run by bad men? Is this a case where morality trumps the usual case for free trade? Leif Wenar, professor of philosophy at King...

Alberto Alesina on Fiscal Policy and Austerity from 2016-04-25T06:30

Alberto Alesina of Harvard University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his research on fiscal policy and austerity. Alesina's research shows that spending cuts to reduce budget deficits ...

Gary Belsky on the Origins of Sports from 2016-04-18T06:30

Gary Belsky, co-author of On the Origins of Sports and former editor-in-chief of ESPN the Magazine, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the origins of sports--how various sports evolved and...

Robert Frank on Success and Luck from 2016-04-11T06:30

Is your success in life your own doing? Robert Frank of Cornell University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his latest book, Success and Luck. Frank argues that we underestimate the role...

Jayson Lusk on Food, Technology, and Unnaturally Delicious from 2016-03-28T06:30

How bad is pink slime? Are free-range chickens happier? Can robots cook? Jayson Lusk of Oklahoma State University and the author of Unnaturally Delicious talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about...

Marina Krakovsky on the Middleman Economy from 2016-03-21T06:30

Why would anyone want to hire a middleman, like a wedding planner, especially if you have time to take care of the planning yourself? Marina Krakovsky, author of The Middleman Economy talks with Ec...

David Autor on Trade, China, and U.S. Labor Markets from 2016-03-14T06:30

David Autor of MIT talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the fundamentals of trade and his research on the impact on workers and communities from trade with China. Autor's research finds larg...

Alison Wolf on Women, Inequality and the XX Factor from 2016-02-29T06:30

Alison Wolf author of The XX Factor, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the changing roles of women in the family and the workplace. Wolf argues that highly educated women are increasingly...

Matt Ridley on the Evolution of Everything from 2016-02-22T06:30

Matt Ridley talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his latest book, The Evolution of Everything. Ridley applies the lens of emergent order to a wide variety of phenomena including culture, mor...

Adam Cifu on Ending Medical Reversal from 2016-02-15T06:30

Why do so many medical practices that begin with such promise and confidence turn out to be either ineffective at best or harmful at worst? Adam Cifu of the University of Chicago's School of Medici...

James Heckman on Facts, Evidence, and the State of Econometrics from 2016-01-25T06:30

Nobel Laureate James Heckman of the University of Chicago talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the state of econometrics and the challenges of measurement in assessing economic theories and ...

Josh Luber on Sneakers, Sneakerheads, and the Second-hand Market from 2016-01-18T06:30

How many pairs of sneakers do you own? Josh Luber of Campless and StockX talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the world of sneakerheads--people passionate for collecting and trading sneakers...

Greg Ip on Foolproof from 2016-01-11T06:30

When does the pursuit of safety lead us into danger? Greg Ip, of the Wall Street Journal and author of Foolproof talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the ideas in his book--the way we public...

Noah Smith on Whether Economics is a Science from 2015-12-28T06:30

Noah Smith of Stony Brook University and writer at Bloomberg View talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about whether economics is a science in some sense of that word. How reliable are experiments...

Philip Tetlock on Superforecasting from 2015-12-21T06:30

Can you predict the future? Or at least gauge the probability of political or economic events in the near future? Philip Tetlock of the University of Pennsylvania and author of Superforecasting tal...

George Selgin on Monetary Policy and the Great Recession from 2015-12-14T06:30

Did Ben Bernanke and the Fed save the U.S. economy from disaster in 2008 or did the Fed make things worse? Why did the Fed reward banks that kept reserves rather than releasing funds into the econo...

David Mindell on Our Robots, Ourselves from 2015-11-30T06:30

Are we on the verge of driverless cars and other forms of autonomous robots and artificial intelligence? David Mindell of MIT and the author of Our Robots, Ourselves talks with EconTalk host Russ R...

Michael Munger on EconTalk's 500th Episode from 2015-11-23T06:30

Michael Munger of Duke University makes his 29th appearance on the 500th episode of EconTalk alongside EconTalk host Russ Roberts. He talks about his personal intellectual journey, his interest in ...

Brian Nosek on the Reproducibility Project from 2015-11-16T06:30

Brian Nosek of the University of Virginia and the Center for Open Science talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the Reproducibility Project--an effort to reproduce the findings of 100 article...

Cesar Hidalgo on Why Information Grows from 2015-10-26T06:30

Cesar Hidalgo of MIT and the author of Why Information Grows talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the growth of knowledge and know-how in the modern economy. Hidalgo emphasizes the importanc...

Yuval Harari on Sapiens from 2015-10-19T06:30

Yuval Harari of Hebrew University and author of Sapiens talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the history of humanity. Topics discussed include the move from hunting and gathering to agricult...

Pete Boettke on Katrina, Ten Years After from 2015-10-12T06:30

Pete Boettke of George Mason University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the political and economic lessons he has learned as program director of research in the aftermath of Hurricane K...

Peter Boettke on Katrina, Ten Years After from 2015-10-12T06:30

Pete Boettke of George Mason University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the political and economic lessons he has learned as program director of research in the aftermath of Hurricane K...

Pete Geddes on the American Prairie Reserve from 2015-09-28T06:30

When Lewis and Clark crossed through Montana, they encountered an extraordinary cornucopia of wildlife. Most of that ecosystem and the animals that once thrived there are gone. But a non-profit wan...

Tina Rosenberg on the Kidney Market in Iran from 2015-09-21T06:30

There is only one country in the world where a person can sell a kidney to another citizen who buys it. That country is Iran. Tina Rosenberg of The New York Times talks with EconTalk host Russ Robe...

Mitch Weiss on the Business of Broadway from 2015-09-14T06:30

Ever wonder what goes on behind the scenes at a Broadway show? This week's EconTalk lifts the curtain on the magical world of Broadway: Mitch Weiss, co-author of The Business of Broadway, talks wit...

Paul Robinson on Cooperation, Punishment and the Criminal Justice System from 2015-08-31T06:30

Are human beings naturally cooperative or selfish? Can people thrive without government law? Paul Robinson of the University of Pennsylvania and author of Pirates, Prisoners and Lepers talks with E...

Jesse Ausubel on Agriculture, Technology, and the Return of Nature from 2015-08-24T06:30

Thousands of bears in New Jersey. Humpback whales near New York City. Acres devoted to farming stable or declining even as food production soars. Jesse Ausubel of the Rockefeller University talks w...

Rachel Laudan on the History of Food and Cuisine from 2015-08-17T06:30

Rachel Laudan, visiting scholar at the University of Texas and author of Cuisine and Empire, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the history of food. Topics covered include the importance o...

Summer Brennan on Wilderness, Politics and the Oyster War from 2015-08-10T06:30

Summer Brennan, author of The Oyster War, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about her book and the fight between the Drakes Bay Oyster Company and the federal government over farming oysters in...

Eric Hanushek on the Education, Skills, and the Millennium Development Goals from 2015-07-27T06:30

How important are basic skills for economic success and growth? Eric Hanushek of Stanford University's Hoover Institution talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the importance of basic educati...

Wences Casares on Bitcoin and Xapo from 2015-07-20T06:30

Wences Casares, bitcoin evangelist and founder and CEO of Xapo, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about how bitcoin works, the genius of bitcoin's creator, and how Xapo is structured to create ...

Lee Ohanian, Arnold Kling, and John Cochrane on the Future of Freedom, Democracy, and Prosperity from 2015-07-13T06:30

Lee Ohanian, Arnold Kling, and John Cochrane talk with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the future of freedom, democracy, and prosperity. Recorded in front of a live audience at Stanford University...

Matt Ridley on Climate Change from 2015-06-29T06:30

Science writer and author Matt Ridley discusses climate change with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Based on his reading of the scientific evidence, Ridley describes himself as a "lukewarmer." While Ri...

Morten Jerven on African Economic Growth from 2015-06-22T06:30

Morten Jerven of Simon Frasier University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his new book, Africa: Why Economists Get It Wrong. Jerven, who will be joining Noragric at the Norwegian Univer...

Adam Davidson on Hollywood and the Future of Work from 2015-06-15T06:30

What's it like to hang out with Brad Pitt, Christian Bale, Ryan Gosling, and Steve Carell for two months? Adam Davidson, who writes for the New York Times Sunday Magazine, was the technical advisor...

Bent Flyvbjerg on Megaprojects from 2015-05-25T06:30

Bent Flyvbjerg of Oxford University speaks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the political economy of megaprojects--massive investments of a billion dollars or more in infrastructure or technol...

Nicholas Vincent on the Magna Carta from 2015-05-18T06:30

Did an 800-year old piece of parchment really change the world? Nicholas Vincent of the University of East Anglia talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the Magna Carta, the founding document ...

Eric Topol on the Power of Patients in a Digital World from 2015-05-11T06:30

We're in the middle of a healthcare revolution but it's about more than marvelous life-saving and life-enhancing apps on our smartphone. Eric Topol of the Scripps Translational Science Institute an...

Leonard Wong on Honesty and Ethics in the Military from 2015-04-27T06:30

Leonard Wong of the Strategic Studies Institute at the U.S. Army War College talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about honesty in the military. Based on a recent co-authored paper, Wong argues th...

Scott Sumner on Interest Rates from 2015-04-20T06:30

Scott Sumner, of Bentley University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about interest rates. Sumner suggests that professional economists sometimes confuse cause and effect with respect to price...

Phil Rosenzweig on Leadership, Decisions, and Behavioral Economics from 2015-04-13T06:30

Phil Rosenzweig, professor of strategy and international business at IMD in Switzerland and author of the book Left Brain, Right Stuff: How Leaders Make Winning Decisions talks with EconTalk host R...

David Skarbek on Prison Gangs and the Social Order of the Underworld from 2015-03-30T06:30

David Skarbek of King's College London and author of The Social Order of the Underworld: How Prison Gangs Govern The American Penal System talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the written an...

Campbell Harvey on Randomness, Skill, and Investment Strategies from 2015-03-23T06:30

Campbell Harvey of Duke University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his research evaluating various investment and trading strategies and the challenge of measuring their effectiveness. ...

Paul Romer on Urban Growth from 2015-03-16T06:30

Paul Romer of New York University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about reforming cities to allow growth and human flourishing. Topics discussed include charter cities, the role of population...

Michael Munger on Choosing in Groups from 2015-02-23T06:30

Michael Munger of Duke University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his latest book (co-authored with Kevin Munger), Choosing in Groups. Munger lays out the challenges of group decision-m...

Benn Steil on the Battle of Bretton Woods from 2015-02-16T06:30

Benn Steil of the Council on Foreign Relations and author of The Battle of Bretton Woods: John Maynard Keynes, Harry Dexter White, and the Making of a New World Order talks with EconTalk host Russ ...

Alex Tabarrok on Private Cities from 2015-01-26T06:30

Alex Tabarrok of George Mason University talks to EconTalk host Russ Roberts about a recent paper Tabarrok co-authored with Shruti Rajagopalan on Gurgaon, a city in India that until recently had li...

Nassim Nicholas Taleb on the Precautionary Principle and Genetically Modified Organisms from 2015-01-19T06:30

Nassim Nicholas Taleb, author of Antifragile, Black Swan, and Fooled by Randomness, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about a recent co-authored paper on the risks of genetically modified organ...

Greg Page on Food, Agriculture, and Cargill from 2015-01-12T06:30

Greg Page, former CEO of Cargill, the largest privately-held company in America, talks to EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the global food supply and the challenges of running a company with employ...

James Tooley on Private Schools for the Poor and the Beautiful Tree from 2014-12-29T06:30

James Tooley, Professor of Education at Newcastle University, talks to EconTalk host Russ Roberts about low-cost for-profit private schools in the slums and rural areas of poor countries. Tooley sh...

Joshua Angrist on Econometrics and Causation from 2014-12-22T06:30

Joshua Angrist of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology talks to EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the craft of econometrics--how to use economic thinking and statistical methods to make sense o...

Gary Marcus on the Future of Artificial Intelligence and the Brain from 2014-12-15T06:30

Gary Marcus of New York University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the future of artificial intelligence (AI). While Marcus is concerned about how advances in AI might hurt human flouri...

Emily Oster on Infant Mortality from 2014-11-24T06:30

Emily Oster of the University of Chicago talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about why U.S. infant mortality is twice that in Finland and high relative to the rest of the world, given high income...

Vernon Smith on Adam Smith and the Human Enterprise from 2014-11-17T06:30

Nobel Laureate Vernon L. Smith of Chapman University talks to EconTalk host Russ Roberts about how Adam Smith's book, The Theory of Moral Sentiments has enriched his understanding of human behavior...

Becky Liddicoat Yamarik on Palliative Care and End-of-Life Medical Issues from 2014-11-10T06:30

Becky Liddicoat Yamarik, Hospice Palliative Care Physician, talks to EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the joys and challenges of providing care for terminally ill patients. The two discuss the serv...

Robert Solow on Growth and the State of Economics from 2014-10-27T06:30

Robert Solow, Professor Emeritus at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Nobel Laureate, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his hugely influential theory of growth and inspiration to ...

Luigi Zingales on Incentives and the Potential Capture of Economists by Special Interests from 2014-10-20T06:30

Luigi Zingales of the University of Chicago's Booth School of Business talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about Zingales's essay, "Preventing Economists' Capture." Zingales argues that just as r...

Russ Roberts and Mike Munger on How Adam Smith Can Change Your Life from 2014-10-13T06:30

EconTalk host Russ Roberts is interviewed by long-time EconTalk guest Michael Munger about Russ's new book, How Adam Smith Can Change Your Life: An Unexpected Guide to Human Nature and Happiness. T...

Russ Roberts and Michael Munger on How Adam Smith Can Change Your Life from 2014-10-13T06:30

EconTalk host Russ Roberts is interviewed by long-time EconTalk guest Michael Munger about Russ's new book, How Adam Smith Can Change Your Life: An Unexpected Guide to Human Nature and Happiness. T...

Martha Nussbaum on Creating Capabilities and GDP from 2014-09-29T06:30

Martha Nussbaum of the University of Chicago and author of Creating Capabilities talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about an alternative to GDP for measuring economic performance at the national...

Thomas Piketty on Inequality and Capital in the 21st Century from 2014-09-22T06:30

Thomas Piketty of the Paris School of Economics and author of Capital in the Twenty-First Century talks to Econtalk host Russ Roberts about the book. The conversation covers some of the key empiric...

Elizabeth Green on Education and Building a Better Teacher from 2014-09-15T06:30

Elizabeth Green, author of the new book Building a Better Teacher: How Teaching Works (and How to Teach it to Anyone), talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the art of teaching and the histor...

Daphne Koller on Education, Coursera, and MOOCs from 2014-08-25T06:30

Daphne Koller of Coursera talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about online educational website Coursera and the future of education both online and via bricks-and-mortar. Koller, co-founder of Co...

Terry Anderson on the Environment and Property Rights from 2014-08-18T06:30

Terry Anderson, Distinguished Fellow at the Property and Environment Research Center (PERC) and Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution, talks to EconTalk host Russ Roberts about free-market enviro...

Barry Weingast on Law from 2014-08-11T06:30

Barry Weingast, professor of political science at Stanford University and senior fellow at Stanford's Hoover Institution, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the nature of law. Weingast tak...

Sam Altman on Start-ups, Venture Capital, and the Y Combinator from 2014-07-28T06:30

Sam Altman, president of startup accelerating firm Y Combinator, talks to EconTalk host Russ Roberts about Y Combinator's innovative strategy for discovering, funding, and coaching groundbreaking s...

Chris Blattman on Cash, Poverty, and Development from 2014-07-21T06:30

Chris Blattman of Columbia University talks to EconTalk host Russ Roberts about a radical approach to fighting poverty in desperately poor countries: giving cash to aid recipients and allowing them...

D. G. Myers on Cancer, Dying, and Living from 2014-07-14T06:30

D.G. Myers, literary critic and cancer patient, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the lessons he has learned from receiving a cancer diagnosis six years ago. Myers emphasizes the importan...

Lars Peter Hansen on Risk, Ambiguity, and Measurement from 2014-06-30T06:30

Lars Peter Hansen of the University of Chicago and Nobel Laureate in economics, talks to EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the power and limits of economic models and quantitative methods. Hanson de...

Hansen on Risk, Ambiguity, and Measurement from 2014-06-30T06:30

Lars Peter Hansen of the University of Chicago and Nobel Laureate in economics, talks to EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the power and limits of economic models and quantitative methods. Hanson de...

Gregory Zuckerman on the Frackers and the Energy Revolution from 2014-06-23T06:30

Gregory Zuckerman of the Wall Street Journal and author of The Frackers: The Outrageous Inside Story of the New Billionaire Wildcatters, talks to EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his new book, the ...

William Easterly on the Tyranny of Experts from 2014-06-16T06:30

William Easterly of New York University and author of The Tyranny of Experts: Economists, Dictators, and the Forgotten Rights of the Poor talks to EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the ideas in his ...

Yuval Levin on Burke, Paine, and the Great Debate from 2014-05-26T06:30

Yuval Levin, author of The Great Debate: Edmund Burke, Thomas Paine, and the Birth of Right and Left, talks to EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the ideas of Burke and Paine and their influence on t...

Marc Andreessen on Venture Capital and the Digital Future from 2014-05-19T06:30

Marc Andreessen, venture capitalist and co-creator of the early web browser Mosaic, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about how success in venture capital is more about winners that you missed ...

Charles Marohn on Strong Towns, Urban Development, and the Future of American Cities from 2014-05-12T06:30

Charles Marohn, President of Strong Towns, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts urban development and what makes a strong town. The two discuss how the post-World War II approach to town and city ...

Diane Coyle on GDP from 2014-04-28T06:30

Diane Coyle, author of GDP: A Brief but Affectionate History, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the history of GDP, its uses, and its abuses. Topics discussed include the origins of GDP i...

Megan McArdle on Failure, Success, and the Up Side of Down from 2014-04-21T06:30

Megan McArdle of Bloomberg View and author of The Up Side of Down talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about her book. McArdle argues that failure is a crucial part of success in personal life and...

McArdle on Failure, Success, and the Up Side of Down from 2014-04-21T06:30

Megan McArdle of Bloomberg View and author of The Up Side of Down talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about her book. McArdle argues that failure is a crucial part of success in personal life and...

Steven Teles on Kludgeocracy from 2014-04-14T06:30

Steven Teles of Johns Hopkins talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about kludgeocracy, a term Teles coined in a National Affairs article to describe what Teles sees as the complex and unproductive...

John Cochrane on Education and MOOCs from 2014-03-31T06:30

John Cochrane of the University of Chicago talks to EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the experience of teaching a massive open online course (MOOC)--a class delivered over the internet available to...

Cochrane on Education and MOOCs from 2014-03-31T06:30

John Cochrane of the University of Chicago talks to EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the experience of teaching a massive open online course (MOOC)--a class delivered over the internet available to...

John Christy and Kerry Emanuel on Climate Change from 2014-03-24T06:30

John Christy of the University of Alabama in Huntsville and Kerry Emanuel of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology talk with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about climate change. Topics discussed in...

Jeffrey Sachs on the Millennium Villages Project from 2014-03-17T06:30

Jeffrey Sachs of Columbia University and the Millennium Villages Project talks with EconTalk host about poverty in Africa and the efforts of the Millennium Villages Project to fight hunger, disease...

Richard Epstein on Classical Liberalism, Libertarianism, and Lochner from 2014-03-10T06:30

Richard Epstein, of New York University and Stanford University's Hoover Institution, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the differences between classical liberalism and hard-line libertar...

Robert Frank on Coase from 2014-02-24T06:30

Robert Frank of Cornell University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the implications of Ronald Coase's views on externalities. Drawing on his book, The Darwin Economy, Frank explores the...

Charles Calomiris and Stephen Haber on Fragile by Design from 2014-02-17T06:30

Charles Calomiris of Columbia University and Stephen Haber of Stanford University, co-authors of Fragile by Design: The Political Origins of Banking Crises and Scarce Credit, talk with EconTalk hos...

Calomiris and Haber on Fragile by Design from 2014-02-17T06:30

Charles Calomiris of Columbia University and Stephen Haber of Stanford University, co-authors of Fragile by Design: The Political Origins of Banking Crises and Scarce Credit, talk with EconTalk hos...

Paul Sabin on Ehrlich, Simon and the Bet from 2014-02-10T06:30

Paul Sabin of Yale University and author of The Bet talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his book. Sabin uses the bet between Paul Ehrlich and Julian Simon--a bet over whether natural resour...

Nina Munk on Poverty, Development, and the Idealist from 2014-01-27T06:30

Nina Munk, journalist and author of The Idealist: Jeffrey Sachs and the Quest to End Poverty, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about her book. Munk spent six years following Jeffrey Sachs and ...

Jonathan Haidt on the Righteous Mind from 2014-01-20T06:30

Jonathan Haidt of New York University and author of The Righteous Mind talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his book, the nature of human nature, and how our brain affects our morality and p...

Laurence Kotlikoff on Debt, Default, and the Federal Government's Finances from 2014-01-13T06:30

Laurence Kotlikoff of Boston University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the fiscal health of the federal government of the United States. Kotlikoff argues that the U.S. government is es...

Richard Fisher on Too Big to Fail and the Fed from 2013-12-30T06:30

Richard Fisher, President of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the problems with "too big to fail"--the policy idea that certain financial institutions...

Judith Curry on Climate Change from 2013-12-23T06:30

Judith Curry of the Georgia Institute of Technology and blogger at Climate Etc. talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about climate change. Curry argues that climate change is a "wicked problem" wi...

Wally Thurman on Bees, Beekeeping, and Coase from 2013-12-16T06:30

Wally Thurman of North Carolina State University and PERC talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the world of bees, beekeepers, and the market for pollination. Thurman describes how farmers hi...

Joel Mokyr on Growth, Innovation, and Stagnation from 2013-11-25T06:30

Joel Mokyr of Northwestern University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the future of the American economy. Mokyr rejects the claims that the we are entering an area of stagnation or perm...

Angus Deaton on Health, Wealth, and Poverty from 2013-11-18T06:30

Angus Deaton of Princeton University and author of the Great Escape talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the book--the vast improvements in health and standard of living in recent times. Dea...

Deaton on Health, Wealth, and Poverty from 2013-11-18T06:30

Angus Deaton of Princeton University and author of the Great Escape talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the book--the vast improvements in health and standard of living in recent times. Dea...

Edmund Phelps on Mass Flourishing from 2013-11-11T06:30

Edmund Phelps of Columbia University, Nobel Laureate in economics, and author of Mass Flourishing talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the ideas in the book. Phelps argues that human flouris...

Don Boudreaux on Coase from 2013-10-28T06:30

Don Boudreaux of George Mason University and Cafe Hayek talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the intellectual legacy of Ronald Coase. The conversation centers on Coase's four most important ...

Boudreaux on Coase from 2013-10-28T06:30

Don Boudreaux of George Mason University and Cafe Hayek talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the intellectual legacy of Ronald Coase. The conversation centers on Coase's four most important ...

Guillermo Calvo on the Crisis, Money, and Macro from 2013-10-21T06:30

Guillermo Calvo of Columbia University and the National Bureau of Economic Research talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the nature of macroeconomic crises and what we have learned or should...

Calvo on the Crisis, Money, and Macro from 2013-10-21T06:30

Guillermo Calvo of Columbia University and the National Bureau of Economic Research talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the nature of macroeconomic crises and what we have learned or should...

Cliff Winston on Transportation from 2013-10-14T06:30

Cliff Winston of the Brookings Institution talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his recent article in the Journal of Economic Literature on the U.S. transportation system. Winston argues tha...

Winston on Transportation from 2013-10-14T06:30

Cliff Winston of the Brookings Institution talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his recent article in the Journal of Economic Literature on the U.S. transportation system. Winston argues tha...

Tyler Cowen on Inequality, the Future, and Average is Over from 2013-09-30T06:30

Tyler Cowen of George Mason University and blogger at Marginal Revolution talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his latest book, Average is Over. Cowen takes a provocative look at how the gro...

David Epstein on the Sports Gene from 2013-09-23T06:30

David Epstein, writer for ProPublica and author of The Sports Gene, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the book. Epstein discusses a number of the ideas in the book including what we have ...

David Laidler on Money from 2013-09-16T06:30

David Laidler of the University of Western Ontario talks about money and monetary policy with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Laidler sketches the monetarist approach to the Great Depression and the Gr...

Eric Hanushek on Education and Prosperity from 2013-08-26T06:30

Eric Hanushek of Stanford University's Hoover Institution talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his new book, Endangering Prosperity (co-authored with Paul Peterson and Ludger Woessmann). Han...

Hanushek on Education and Prosperity from 2013-08-26T06:30

Eric Hanushek of Stanford University's Hoover Institution talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his new book, Endangering Prosperity (co-authored with Paul Peterson and Ludger Woessmann). Han...

Jagdish Bhagwati on India from 2013-08-19T06:30

Jagdish Bhagwati of Columbia University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the economy of India based on his book with Arvind Panagariya, Why Growth Matters. Bhagwati argues that the econo...

Bhagwati on India from 2013-08-19T06:30

Jagdish Bhagwati of Columbia University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the economy of India based on his book with Arvind Panagariya, Why Growth Matters. Bhagwati argues that the econo...

Weingast on the Violence Trap from 2013-08-12T10:30

Barry Weingast, the Ward C. Krebs Family Professor of Political Science at Stanford University and a Senior Fellow at Stanford's Hoover Institution talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the r...

Amrita Narlikar on Fair Trade and Free Trade from 2013-07-29T06:30

Amrita Narlikar of the University of Cambridge talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about fair trade and policy issues related to trade. Narlikar argues--based on a recent article with Dan Kim--th...

Narlikar on Fair Trade and Free Trade from 2013-07-29T06:30

Amrita Narlikar of the University of Cambridge talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about fair trade and policy issues related to trade. Narlikar argues--based on a recent article with Dan Kim--th...

Michael Lind on Libertarianism from 2013-07-22T06:30

Michael Lind of the New American Foundation talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about two recent articles by Lind at Salon.com. In the first article, Lind argues that libertarians are wrong about...

Michael Clemens on Aid, Migration, and Poverty from 2013-07-15T06:30

Michael Clemens of the Center for Global Development talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the effects of aid and migration on world poverty. Clemens argues that the effects of aid are positi...

Clemens on Aid, Migration, and Poverty from 2013-07-15T06:30

Michael Clemens of the Center for Global Development talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the effects of aid and migration on world poverty. Clemens argues that the effects of aid are positi...

Stevenson and Wolfers on Happiness, Growth, and the Reinhart-Rogoff Controversy from 2013-06-24T06:30

Betsey Stevenson and Justin Wolfers, of the University of Michigan talk with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about their work on the relationship between income and happiness. They argue that there is a...

Dan Pallotta on Charity and the Culture of the Non-Profit Sector from 2013-06-17T06:30

Dan Pallotta, Chief Humanity Officer of Advertising for Humanity and author of Uncharitable talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the ideas in his book. Pallotta argues that charities are dee...

Pallotta on Charity and the Culture of the Non-Profit Sector from 2013-06-17T06:30

Dan Pallotta, Chief Humanity Officer of Advertising for Humanity and author of Uncharitable talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the ideas in his book. Pallotta argues that charities are dee...

Schneier on Power, the Internet, and Security from 2013-06-10T06:30

Bruce Schneier, author and security guru, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about power and the internet. Schneier argues that the internet enhances the power of the powerless but it also enhan...

Jim Manzi on the Oregon Medicaid Study, Experimental Evidence, and Causality from 2013-05-27T06:30

Jim Manzi, founder and chair of Applied Predictive Technologies, senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute, and author of Uncontrolled, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the Oregon Medicai...

Epstein on the Constitution from 2013-05-20T06:30

Richard Epstein of New York University and Stanford University's Hoover Institution talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the U.S. Constitution. Topics covered in this wide-ranging conversati...

Frakt on Medicaid and the Oregon Medicaid Study from 2013-05-13T06:30

Austin Frakt of Boston University and blogger at The Incidental Economist talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about Medicaid and the recent results released from the Oregon Medicaid study, a rand...

Galbraith on Inequality from 2013-04-29T06:30

James Galbraith of the University of Texas and author of Inequality and Instability talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about inequality. Galbraith argues that much of the mainstream analysis of ...

Glaeser on Cities from 2013-04-22T06:30

Edward Glaeser of Harvard University and author of The Triumph of Cities talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about American cities. The conversation begins with a discussion of the history of Det...

Sachs on the Crisis, the Recovery, and the Future from 2013-04-15T06:30

Jeffrey Sachs of Columbia University and author of The Price of Civilization talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the state of the American economy. Sachs sees the current malaise as a chron...

Scott Sumner on Money, Business Cycles, and Monetary Policy from 2013-03-25T06:30

Scott Sumner of Bentley University and blogger at The Money Illusion talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the basics of money, monetary policy, and the Fed. After a discussion of some of the...

Sumner on Money, Business Cycles, and Monetary Policy from 2013-03-25T06:30

Scott Sumner of Bentley University and blogger at The Money Illusion talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the basics of money, monetary policy, and the Fed. After a discussion of some of the...

Burgin on Hayek, Friedman, and the Great Persuasion from 2013-03-18T06:30

Angus Burgin of Johns Hopkins University and the author of The Great Persuasion talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the idea in his book--the return of free market economics in the aftermat...

Searls on the Intention Economy from 2013-03-11T06:30

Doc Searls, author of The Intention Economy and head of Project VRM at Harvard University's Berkman Center talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the how the relationship between buyers and se...

Varoufakis on Valve, Spontaneous Order, and the European Crisis from 2013-02-25T06:30

Yanis Varoufakis of the University of Athens, the University of Texas, and former economist-in-residence at Valve Software talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the unusual structure of the w...

Glenn Reynolds on Politics, the Constitution, and Technology from 2013-02-18T06:30

Glenn Reynolds of the University of Tennessee and blogger at Instapundit talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the political malaise in America, whether it could lead to a Constitutional Conv...

Cathy O'Neil on Wall St and Occupy Wall Street from 2013-02-11T06:30

Cathy O'Neil, data scientist and blogger at mathbabe.org, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about her journey from Wall Street to Occupy Wall Street. She talks about her experiences on Wall Str...

Peter Boettke on Living Economics from 2013-01-28T06:30

Peter Boettke of George Mason University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his book, Living Economics. Boettke argues for embracing the tradition of Smith and Hayek in both teaching and r...

Boettke on Living Economics from 2013-01-28T06:30

Peter Boettke of George Mason University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his book, Living Economics. Boettke argues for embracing the tradition of Smith and Hayek in both teaching and r...

Kelly on the Future, Productivity, and the Quality of Life from 2013-01-21T06:30

Kevin Kelly talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about measuring productivity in the internet age and recent claims that the U.S. economy has entered a prolonged period of stagnation. Then the con...

Esther Dyson on the Attention Economy and the Quantification of Everything from 2013-01-14T06:30

Esther Dyson talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the market for attention and how technology has changed, how much we pay attention to others, and vice versa. Along the way Dyson reminisces...

Pettit on the Prison Population, Survey Data and African-American Progress from 2012-12-31T06:30

Becky Pettit of the University of Washington and author of Invisible Men talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the growth of the prison population in the United States in recent decades. Pett...

Lisa Turner on Organic Farming from 2012-12-24T06:30

Lisa Turner of Laughing Stock Farm talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about life as a small organic farmer. She describes her working day, the challenges of farming, the role of the U.S. Departm...

Boudreaux on Reading Hayek from 2012-12-17T06:30

Don Boudreaux of George Mason University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the work of F. A. Hayek, particularly his writings on philosophy and political economy. Boudreaux provides an au...

Chris Anderson on Makers and Manufacturing from 2012-12-10T06:30

Chris Anderson, author of Makers: The New Industrial Revolution, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his new book--the story of how technology is transforming the manufacturing business. An...

Angell on Big Pharma from 2012-11-26T06:30

Marcia Angell of Harvard Medical School and the author of The Truth About the Drug Companies talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the impact of pharmaceutical companies on academic research,...

Cochrane on Health Care from 2012-11-19T06:30

John Cochrane of the University of Chicago and Stanford University's Hoover Institution talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about how existing regulations distort the market for health care. Coch...

Michael Munger on John Locke, Prices, and Hurricane Sandy from 2012-11-12T06:30

Mike Munger of Duke University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the gas shortage following Hurricane Sandy and John Locke's view of the just price. Drawing on a short, obscure essay of L...

Munger on John Locke, Prices, and Hurricane Sandy from 2012-11-12T06:30

Mike Munger of Duke University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the gas shortage following Hurricane Sandy and John Locke's view of the just price. Drawing on a short, obscure essay of L...

Hanke on Hyperinflation, Monetary Policy, and Debt from 2012-10-29T06:30

Steve Hanke of Johns Hopkins and the Cato Institute talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about hyperinflation and the U.S. fiscal situation. Hanke argues that despite the seemingly aggressive poli...

Rodden on the Geography of Voting from 2012-10-22T06:30

Jonathan Rodden, political science professor at Stanford and a senior fellow at the Hoover Institution speaks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the geography of voting. The main focus is on the...

Kling on Education and the Internet from 2012-10-15T06:30

Arnold Kling, economist and teacher, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about recent technological innovations in education and Kling's forecast for their impact on learning and how they might a...

Robert Frank and Russ Roberts on Infrastructure from 2012-09-24T06:30

Robert Frank of Cornell University and EconTalk host Russ Roberts debate the merits of a large increase of infrastructure spending. In the summer of 2012, Frank and Roberts were interviewed by Alex...

Frank and Roberts on Infrastructure from 2012-09-24T06:30

Robert Frank of Cornell University and EconTalk host Russ Roberts debate the merits of a large increase of infrastructure spending. In the summer of 2012, Frank and Roberts were interviewed by Alex...

Paul Tough on How Children Succeed from 2012-09-17T06:30

Paul Tough, author of How Children Succeed, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about why children succeed and fail in school and beyond school. He argues that conscientiousness--a mixture of sel...

Nosek on Truth, Science, and Academic Incentives from 2012-09-10T06:30

Brian Nosek of the University of Virginia talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about how incentives in academic life create a tension between truth-seeking and professional advancement. Nosek argu...

Roger Noll on the Economics of Sports from 2012-08-27T06:30

Roger Noll of Stanford University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the economics of sports. Noll discusses the economic effects of stadium subsidies, the labor market for athletes, the b...

Ohanian on the Great Recession and the Labor Market from 2012-08-20T06:30

Lee Ohanian of UCLA talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the recession, the recovery, and the state of labor market. Ohanian describes the unusual aspects of this recession and recovery in t...

Frisby on Tax Reform from 2012-08-13T06:30

Tammy Frisby of Stanford University's Hoover Institution talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the likelihood of U.S. tax reform in the near future. Frisby reviews the changes in tax policy o...

Scott Atlas on American Health Care from 2012-07-30T06:30

Scott Atlas, Senior Fellow at Stanford University's Hoover Institution and author of In Excellent Health, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the U.S. health care system. Atlas argues that ...

Brady on the 2012 US Election from 2012-07-23T06:30

David Brady, Professor of Political Science and the Graduate School of Business at Stanford University and a senior fellow at Stanford's Hoover Institution talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts abo...

Taubes on Why We Get Fat from 2012-07-16T06:30

Gary Taubes, author of Why We Get Fat, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about why we get fat and the nature of evidence in a complex system. The current mainstream view is that we get fat beca...

Moretti on Jobs, Cities, and Innovation from 2012-06-25T06:30

Enrico Moretti of the University of California, Berkeley and the author of the New Geography of Jobs talks to EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the ideas in his book. Moretti traces how the economic...

Manzi on Knowledge, Policy, and Uncontrolled from 2012-06-18T06:30

Jim Manzi, author of Uncontrolled, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the reliability of science and the ideas in his book. Manzi argues that unlike science, which can produce useful resul...

Jonah Lehrer on Creativity and Imagine from 2012-06-11T06:30

Jonah Lehrer, staff writer for The New Yorker and author of Imagine: How Creativity Works, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the science of creativity. They discuss focusing vs. ignoring ...

Larry White on the Clash of Economic Ideas from 2012-05-28T06:30

Lawrence H. White of George Mason University and author of The Clash of Economic Ideas talks to EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the economists and their ideas of the past one hundred years. They d...

Coase on Externalities, the Firm, and the State of Economics from 2012-05-21T06:30

Nobel Laureate Ronald Coase of the University of Chicago talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his career, the current state of economics, and the Chinese economy. Coase, born in 1910, reflec...

Owen on Parenting, Money, and the First National Bank of Dad from 2012-05-14T06:30

David Owen, author of The First National Bank of Dad, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about how to educate our children about money and finance. Owen explains how he created his own savings a...

John Taylor on Rules, Discretion, and First Principles from 2012-04-30T06:30

John Taylor of Stanford University's Hoover Institution talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his new book, First Principles: Five Keys to Restoring America's Prosperity. Taylor argues that w...

Taylor on Rules, Discretion, and First Principles from 2012-04-30T06:30

John Taylor of Stanford University's Hoover Institution talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his new book, First Principles: Five Keys to Restoring America's Prosperity. Taylor argues that w...

Tyler Cowen on Food from 2012-04-23T06:30

Tyler Cowen of George Mason U. and author of An Economist Gets Lunch, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about food, the economics of food, and his new book. In this wide-ranging conversation, C...

Cowen on Food from 2012-04-23T06:30

Tyler Cowen of George Mason U. and author of An Economist Gets Lunch, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about food, the economics of food, and his new book. In this wide-ranging conversation, C...

Autor on Disability from 2012-04-16T06:30

David Autor of MIT talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) program. SSDI has grown dramatically in recent years and now costs about $200 billion ...

Boudreaux on Public Debt from 2012-03-26T06:30

Don Boudreaux of George Mason University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the nature of public debt. One view is that there is no burden of the public debt as long as the purchasers of U...

Acemoglu on Why Nations Fail from 2012-03-19T06:30

Daron Acemoglu of MIT and author (with James Robinson) of Why Nations Fail talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the ideas in his book: why some nations fail and others succeed, why some nati...

Derman on Theories, Models, and Science from 2012-03-12T06:30

Emanuel Derman of Columbia University and author of Models. Behaving. Badly talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about theories and models, and the elusive nature of truth in the sciences and soci...

Weinberger on Too Big to Know from 2012-02-27T06:30

David Weinberger of Harvard University's Berkman Center for Internet & Society and author of Too Big to Know, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the ideas in the book--how knowledge and da...

Adam Davidson on Manufacturing from 2012-02-20T06:30

Adam Davidson of NPR's Planet Money talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about manufacturing. Based on an article Davidson wrote for The Atlantic, the conversation looks at the past, present, and ...

David Owen on the Environment, Unintended Consequences, and The Conundrum from 2012-02-13T06:30

David Owen of the New Yorker and author of The Conundrum talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the ideas in his book. Owen argues that innovation and energy innovation have increased energy u...

Fama on Finance from 2012-01-30T06:30

Eugene Fama of the University of Chicago talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the evolution of finance, the efficient market hypothesis, the current crisis, the economics of stimulus, and th...

David Rose on the Moral Foundations of Economic Behavior from 2012-01-23T06:30

David Rose of the University of Missouri, St. Louis and the author of The Moral Foundation of Economic Behavior talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the book and the role morality plays in p...

Nassim Nicholas Taleb on Antifragility from 2012-01-16T06:30

Nassim Taleb, author of Fooled By Randomness and The Black Swan, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about antifragility, the concept behind Taleb's next book, a work in progress. Taleb talks abo...

Taleb on Antifragility from 2012-01-16T06:30

Nassim Taleb, author of Fooled By Randomness and The Black Swan, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about antifragility, the concept behind Taleb's next book, a work in progress. Taleb talks abo...

Tabarrok on Innovation from 2011-12-26T06:30

Alex Tabarrok of George Mason University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his new book, Launching the Innovation Renaissance. Tabarrok argues that innovation in the United States is bein...

Klein on Knowledge and Coordination from 2011-12-19T06:30

Dan Klein of George Mason University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the ideas in Klein's new book, Knowledge and Coordination. Klein argues that allegory is a powerful way to think abo...

Munger on Profits, Entrepreneurship, and Storytelling from 2011-12-12T06:30

Mike Munger of Duke University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about profit. What is profit's role in allocating resources? How should we feel about the people who earn profits or who take th...

Michael Munger on Profits, Entrepreneurship, and Storytelling from 2011-12-12T06:30

Mike Munger of Duke University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about profit. What is profit's role in allocating resources? How should we feel about the people who earn profits or who take th...

Simon Johnson on the Financial Crisis from 2011-11-28T06:30

Simon Johnson of MIT and the author (with James Kwak) of 13 Bankers talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the origins of the financial crisis and how the next one might be prevented. Invoking...

Taubes on Fat, Sugar and Scientific Discovery from 2011-11-21T06:30

Gary Taubes, author of Good Calories, Bad Calories, talks to EconTalk host Russ Roberts about what we know about the relationship between diet and disease. Taubes argues that for decades, doctors, ...

Baumeister on Gender Differences and Culture from 2011-11-14T06:30

Roy Baumeister of Florida State University and the author of Is There Anything Good About Men talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the differences between men and women in cultural and econo...

Avent on Cities, Urban Regulations, and Growth from 2011-10-31T06:30

Ryan Avent of the Economist and author of The Gated City talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about The Gated City and how cities have restricted access to land and housing. Avent argues that rest...

Ramey on Stimulus and Multipliers from 2011-10-24T06:30

Valerie Ramey of the University of California, San Diego talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the effect of government spending on output and employment. Ramey's own work exploits the exogen...

Wapshott on Keynes and Hayek from 2011-10-17T06:30

Nicholas Wapshott, author of Keynes Hayek: The Clash That Defined Modern Economics, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about John Maynard Keynes and Friedrich A. Hayek--their ideas, their disagr...

Frank Rose on Storytelling and the Art of Immersion from 2011-10-10T06:30

Frank Rose, author of The Art of Immersion and correspondent for Wired Magazine, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about how the web has changed the art of storytelling and the interactions bet...

Rosenberg on the Nature of Economics from 2011-09-26T06:30

Alex Rosenberg of Duke University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the scientific nature of economics. Rosenberg, a philosopher of science talks about whether economics is a science. He ...

Garett Jones on Stimulus from 2011-09-19T06:30

Garett Jones of George Mason University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the workers who were hired with money from the 2009 American Recovery and Re-investment Act--the stimulus package...

Frank on Competition, Government, and Darwin from 2011-09-12T06:30

Robert Frank of Cornell University and author of The Darwin Economy talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about competition, government and the relevance of Darwin for economics. In a lively and sp...

Hanushek on Teachers from 2011-08-29T06:30

Eric Hanushek of Stanford University's Hoover Institution talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the importance of teacher quality in education. Hanushek argues that the standard measures of q...

Eric Hanushek on Teachers from 2011-08-29T06:30

Eric Hanushek of Stanford University's Hoover Institution talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the importance of teacher quality in education. Hanushek argues that the standard measures of q...

O'Donohoe on Potato Chips and Salty Snacks from 2011-08-22T06:30

Brendan O'Donohoe of Frito-Lay talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about how potato chips and other salty snacks get made, distributed, and marketed. The interview follows an hour-long tour of a ...

Brady on the Electorate and the Elections of 2010 and 2012 from 2011-08-15T06:30

David Brady of Stanford University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the lessons of the election of 2010 and what we might expect from the elections of 2012. Brady draws on political hist...

Hennessey on the Debt Ceiling and the Budget Process from 2011-07-25T06:30

Keith Hennessey of Stanford University's Hoover Institution talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the debt ceiling and the budget process. Hennessey, who worked for Senate Majority Leader Tre...

Taylor on Fiscal and Monetary Policy from 2011-07-18T06:30

John Taylor of Stanford University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the state of the economy and the prospects for recovery. Taylor argues that the design of the fiscal stimulus was inef...

John Taylor on Fiscal and Monetary Policy from 2011-07-18T06:30

John Taylor of Stanford University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the state of the economy and the prospects for recovery. Taylor argues that the design of the fiscal stimulus was inef...

Banerjee on Poverty and Poor Economics from 2011-07-11T06:30

Abhijit Banerjee of MIT talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about Banerjee's book (co-authored with Esther Duflo), Poor Economics. The conversation begins with how randomized control trials (a pa...

Abhijit Banerjee on Poverty and Poor Economics from 2011-07-11T06:30

Abhijit Banerjee of MIT talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about Banerjee's book (co-authored with Esther Duflo), Poor Economics. The conversation begins with how randomized control trials (a pa...

Otteson on Adam Smith from 2011-06-27T06:30

James Otteson of Yeshiva University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about Adam Smith. The conversation begins with a brief sketch of David Hume and his influence on Smith and then turns to th...

Munger on Exchange, Exploitation and Euvoluntary Transactions from 2011-06-20T06:30

Mike Munger of Duke University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the psychology, sociology, and economics of buying and selling. Why are different transactions that seemingly make both pa...

Michael Munger on Exchange, Exploitation and Euvoluntary Transactions from 2011-06-20T06:30

Mike Munger of Duke University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the psychology, sociology, and economics of buying and selling. Why are different transactions that seemingly make both pa...

Buchholz on Competition, Stress, and the Rat Race from 2011-06-13T06:30

Todd Buchholz, author of Rush: Why You Need and Love the Rat Race, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the ideas in the book. Buchholz argues that competition and striving for excellence is...

Easterly on Benevolent Autocrats and Growth from 2011-05-30T06:30

William Easterly of New York University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the oft-heard claim that poor countries led by autocrats grow faster than poor countries that are democratic. Dra...

Harford on Adapt and the Virtues of Failure from 2011-05-23T06:30

Tim Harford, author and journalist, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about Adapt, Harford's book on the virtues of failure and the trial and error process. Harford argues that success is more ...

Tim Harford on Adapt and the Virtues of Failure from 2011-05-23T06:30

Tim Harford, author and journalist, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about Adapt, Harford's book on the virtues of failure and the trial and error process. Harford argues that success is more ...

Byers on the Blind Spot, Science, and Uncertainty from 2011-05-16T06:30

William Byers of Canada's Concordia University and author of The Blind Spot talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the nature of knowledge, science and mathematics. Byers argues that there is ...

Rubinstein on Game Theory and Behavioral Economics from 2011-04-25T06:30

Ariel Rubinstein of Tel Aviv University and New York University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the state of game theory and behavioral economics, two of the most influential areas of e...

Munger on Microfinance, Savings, and Poverty from 2011-04-18T06:30

Mike Munger of Duke University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about microfinance. Munger argues that cultural forces make it difficult for some families to save, and the main value of microf...

Rodrik on Globalization, Development, and Employment from 2011-04-11T06:30

Dani Rodrik of Harvard University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about trade, the labor market, and trade policy. Drawing on a recent paper with Margaret McMillan on trade and productivity, ...

Dani Rodrik on Globalization, Development, and Employment from 2011-04-11T06:30

Dani Rodrik of Harvard University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about trade, the labor market, and trade policy. Drawing on a recent paper with Margaret McMillan on trade and productivity, ...

Vincent Reinhart on Bear Stearns, Lehman Brothers, and the Financial Crisis from 2011-03-28T06:30

Vincent Reinhart of the American Enterprise Institute talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the government interventions and non-interventions into financial markets in 2008. Conventional wis...

Coyle on the Economics of Enough from 2011-03-21T06:30

Diane Coyle, author of The Economics of Enough, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the future and the ideas in her book. Coyle argues that the financial crisis, the entitlement crisis, and...

Townsend on Development, Poverty, and Financial Institutions from 2011-03-14T06:30

Robert Townsend of MIT and the Consortium on Financial Systems and Poverty talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about development and the role of financial institutions in growth. Drawing on his r...

George Will on America, Politics, and Baseball from 2011-02-28T06:30

Author and syndicated columnist George Will talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the state of the country, the nature of politics, and at the end, a little about baseball. The conversation b...

Acemoglu on Inequality and the Financial Crisis from 2011-02-21T06:30

Daron Acemoglu of MIT talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the role income inequality may have played in creating the financial crisis. Raghuram Rajan in his book, Fault Lines, argues that g...

Cowen on the Great Stagnation from 2011-02-14T06:30

Tyler Cowen of George Mason University and author of the e-book The Great Stagnation talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the ideas in the book. Cowen argues that in the last four decades, t...

Tyler Cowen on the Great Stagnation from 2011-02-14T06:30

Tyler Cowen of George Mason University and author of the e-book The Great Stagnation talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the ideas in the book. Cowen argues that in the last four decades, t...

Deer on Autism, Vaccination, and Scientific Fraud from 2011-01-31T06:30

Investigative journalist Brian Deer talks with EconTalk
host Russ Roberts about Deer's seven years of reporting and legal issues
surrounding the 1998 article in The Lancet claiming that t...

Brian Deer on Autism, Vaccination, and Scientific Fraud from 2011-01-31T06:30

Investigative journalist Brian Deer talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about Deer's seven years of reporting and legal issues surrounding the 1998 article in The Lancet claiming that the MMR vac...

Fazzari on Stimulus and Keynes from 2011-01-24T06:30

Steve Fazzari of Washington University in St. Louis talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the economics of Keynesian stimulus. They discuss the stimulus package passed in February 2009 and wh...

Boudreaux on Monetary Misunderstandings from 2011-01-17T06:30

Don Boudreaux of George Mason University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts on some of the common misunderstandings people have about prices, money, inflation and deflation. They discuss what is...

Caldwell on Hayek from 2011-01-10T06:30

Bruce Caldwell of Duke University and the General Editor of the Collected Works of F. A. Hayek, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about Hayek, his life, his ideas, his books, and articles. The ...

Boettke on Mises from 2010-12-27T06:30

Pete Boettke of George Mason University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the life, work, and legacy of Ludwig von Mises. Boettke outlines Mises's most important contributions to economic...

Peter Boettke on Mises from 2010-12-27T06:30

Pete Boettke of George Mason University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the life, work, and legacy of Ludwig von Mises. Boettke outlines Mises's most important contributions to economic...

Nocera on the Crisis and All the Devils Are Here from 2010-12-20T06:30

Joe Nocera, New York Times columnist and co-author with Bethany McLean of All the Devils Are Here, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the origins of the financial crisis. Drawing on his bo...

Abdallah on Hair and Running a Small Business from 2010-12-13T06:30

Wafaya Abdallah of Oasis Hair Salon in Rockville, Maryland talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the challenges and rewards of running a small business. Abdallah discusses her career path fro...

Kelly on Technology and What Technology Wants from 2010-11-29T06:30

Kevin Kelly, author of What Technology Wants, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about technology and the ideas in the book. Kelly argues that technology is best understood as an emergent system...

Phillipson on Adam Smith from 2010-11-22T06:30

Nicholas Phillipson, author of Adam Smith: An Enlightened Life, talks to EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the life of Adam Smith. Drawing on his recent biography of Smith, Phillipson discusses his ...

Robert Frank on Inequality from 2010-11-15T06:30

Robert Frank of Cornell University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about inequality. Is there a role for public policy in mitigating income inequality? Is such intervention justified or effec...

Hazlett on Apple vs. Google from 2010-10-25T06:30

Thomas Hazlett of George Mason University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the growing rivalry between Apple and Google. It is commonly argued that Apple with its closed platform and tig...

Ridley on Trade, Growth, and the Rational Optimist from 2010-10-18T06:30

Matt Ridley, author of The Rational Optimist, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about why he is optimistic about the future and how trade and specialization explain the evolution of human devel...

Irwin on the Great Depression and the Gold Standard from 2010-10-11T06:30

Douglas Irwin of Dartmouth College talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the role the gold standard played in the Great Depression. Irwin argues that France systematically accumulated large a...

Greenberg on Depression, Addiction, and the Brain from 2010-09-27T06:30