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Is the U.S. Really Less Corrupt Than China? - Freakonomics

How Stupid Is Our Obsession With Lawns? (Ep. 289 Rebroadcast) June 30, 2021 @ 11:00pm Listen now: Nearly two percent of America is grassy green. Sure, lawns are beautiful and useful and they smell great. But are the costs — financial, environmental and otherwise — worth the benefits? Listen and subscribe to our podcast at *      *      * Where I live, in the great northeast of the United States, it’s finally summertime. When you get outside, it’s beautiful. The trees, the ...

These Shoes Are Killing Me! (Ep. 296 Rebroadcast) May 19, 2021 @ 11:00pm Listen now: The human foot is an evolutionary masterpiece, far more functional than we give it credit for. So why do we encase it in “a coffin” (as one foot scholar calls it) that stymies so much of its ability — and may create more problems than it solves? Listen and subscribe to our podcast at *      *      * The Covid-19 shutdown has produced a variety of strange and surprising side effects. One ...

How to Fix the Hot Mess of U.S. Healthcare (Ep. 456) March 31, 2021 @ 11:00pm Listen now: Medicine has evolved from a calling into an industry, adept at dispensing procedures and pills (and gigantic bills), but less good at actual health. Most reformers call for big, bold action. What happens if, instead, you think small? Listen and subscribe to our podcast at  *      *      * Stephen DUBNER: So I think the general perception is that the American healthcare system is just messed ...

Should Traffic Lights Be Abolished? (Ep. 454) March 10, 2021 @ 11:00pm Listen now: Americans are so accustomed to the standard intersection that we rarely consider how dangerous it can be — as well as costly, time-wasting, and polluting. Is it time to embrace the lowly, lovely roundabout? Listen and subscribe to our podcast at  *      *      * Kevin BERESFORD: Yes, I’m a member of the Dull Men’s Club.  Stephen DUBNER Let me make sure I’m understanding you correctly. It’...

A Rescue Plan for Black America (Ep. 453) March 3, 2021 @ 11:00pm Listen now: New York Times columnist Charles Blow argues that white supremacy in America will never fully recede, and that it’s time for Black people to do something radical about it. In The Devil You Know: A Black Power Manifesto, he urges a “reverse migration” to the South to consolidate political power and create a region where it’s safe to be Black. (This is an episode of the Freakonomics Radio Book Club.) Lis...

Jeff Immelt Knows He Let You Down (Ep. 452) February 17, 2021 @ 11:00pm Listen now: Not so long ago, G.E. was the most valuable company in the world, a conglomerate that included everything from light bulbs and jet engines to financial services and The Apprentice. Now it’s selling off body parts to survive. What does the C.E.O. who presided over the decline have to say for himself? Listen and subscribe to our podcast at  *      *      * Stephen DUBNER: So there is a silly quest...

The Downside of Disgust (Ep. 448) January 20, 2021 @ 11:00pm Listen now: It’s a powerful biological response that has preserved our species for millennia. But now it may be keeping us from pursuing strategies that would improve the environment, the economy, even our own health. So is it time to dial down our disgust reflex? You can help fix things — as Stephen Dubner does in this episode — by chowing down on some delicious insects. Listen and subscribe to our podcast at  *     ...

Trust Me (Ep. 266 Rebroadcast) December 30, 2020 @ 11:00pm Listen now: Societies where people trust one another are healthier and wealthier. In the U.S. (and the U.K. and elsewhere), social trust has been falling for decades — in part because our populations are more diverse. What can we do to fix it? Listen and subscribe to our podcast at  *      *      * First of all, Happy New Year! I think we can all agree that 2020 is the kind of year that belongs in the rear-view mirror. I...

Why Do We Seek Comfort in the Familiar? (Ep. 445) December 23, 2020 @ 11:00pm In this episode of  No Stupid Questions — a Freakonomics Radio Network show launched earlier this year — Stephen Dubner and Angela Duckworth debate why we watch, read, and eat familiar things during a crisis, and if it might in fact be better to try new things instead. Also: is a little knowledge truly as dangerous as they say? Listen and subscribe to No Stupid Questions  at  *      *      * It was ...