People I (Mostly) Admire

Updated: 07 Dec 2024 • 168 episodes
freakonomics.com

Freakonomics co-author Steve Levitt tracks down other high achievers for surprising, revealing conversations about their lives and obsessions. Join Levitt as he goes through the most interesting midlife crisis you’ve ever heard — and learn how a renegade sheriff is transforming Chicago's jail, how a biologist is finding the secrets of evolution in the Arctic tundra, and how a trivia champion memorized 160,000 flashcards. To get every show in our network without ads and a monthly bonus episode of Freakonomics Radio, sign up for SiriusXM Podcasts+ on Apple Podcasts at http://apple.co/SiriusXM.

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Moon Duchin is a math professor at Cornell University whose theoretical work has practical applications for voting and democracy. Why is striving for fair elections so difficult?   SOURCE:Moon Duchin, professor of mathematics at Cornell University.  RESOURCES:"Gerrymandering: The Origin Story," by Neely Tucker (Timeles

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Steve Levitt & Neil deGrasse Tyson 23 Nov 2024 • EN

145. Neil deGrasse Tyson Is Still Starstruck

The director of the Hayden Planetarium is one of the best science communicators of our time. He and Steve talk about his role in reclassifying Pluto, bad teachers, and why economics isn’t a science.  SOURCE:Neil deGrasse Tyson, director of the Hayden Planetarium.  RESOURCES:Starry Messenger: Cosmic Perspectives on Civi

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He’s the chief creative officer of Pixar, and the Academy Award-winning director of Soul, Inside Out, Up, and Monsters, Inc. Pete Docter and Steve talk about Pixar’s scrappy beginnings, why wrong turns are essential, and the movie moment that changed Steve’s life.  SOURCE:Pete Docter, chief creative officer of Pixar.  

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David Eagleman is a Stanford neuroscientist, C.E.O., television host, and founder of the Possibilianism movement. He and Steve talk about how wrists can substitute for ears, why we dream, and what Fisher-Price magnets have to do with neuroscience.  SOURCE:David Eagleman, professor of cognitive neuroscience at Stanford

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Boys and men are trending downward in education, employment, and mental health. Richard Reeves, author of the book Of Boys and Men, has some solutions that don’t come at the expense of women and girls. Steve pushes him to go further.  SOURCE:Richard Reeves, senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, president of the A

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Daron Acemoglu was just awarded the 2024 Nobel Prize in economics. Earlier this year, he and Steve talked about his groundbreaking research on what makes countries succeed or fail.  SOURCES:Daron Acemoglu, professor of economics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.  RESOURCES:The Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Eco

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