668. Do Taylor Swift and Bad Bunny Have Blood on Their Hands?
27 March - 53 minsAs one researcher told us: “We’ve engineered a world where the most distracting device ever made is also the one we use to listen to music in the car." A new study tries to measure the cost.
SOURCES:
Bapu Jena, economist, physician, and professor at Harvard Medical School.
Chris Worsham, pulmonary and critical-care physician at Mass General Hospital, health-policy and public-health researcher at Harvard Medical School.
Vishal Patel, surgery resident at Brigham and Women's Hospital, researcher at Harvard Medical School.
RESOURCES:
"Smartphones, Online Music Streaming, and Traffic Fatalities," by Vishal Patel, Christopher Worsham, Michael Liu, and Bapu Jen...
Series Episodes
In a Driverless World, Who Loses and Who Wins?
In blue cities across the country, unions and politicians want to ban self-driving cars. In this episode from the Search Engine podcast, PJ Vogt visits Boston to sort the facts from the propaganda. (Part two of a two-part series.)
1 hour 5 mins
25 March Finished
Are Human Drivers Finally Obsolete?
How a secret project at Google led to driverless cars on American roads. Freakonomics Radio shares a story from our friends at Search Engine. (Part one of a two-part series.)
1 hour 11 mins
20 March Finished
667. Here’s Why You Are Constantly Fighting Off Scammers
A ruthless (and ruthlessly efficient) industry is using digital tools to supercharge one of the world’s oldest behaviors. We look at how the industry works, and ask the scam-fighters what they’re doing about it.
47 mins
13 March Finished
666. This Is How Progress Happens
Economists don’t usually talk about “culture.” But Joel Mokyr argues that it’s the engine of innovation — and the Nobel Prize committee agreed. Stephen Dubner sits down for a thousand-year conversation (including advice!) with the new Nobel laureate.
53 mins
6 March Finished
The Most Powerful People You’ve Never Heard Of (Update)
Just beneath the surface of the global economy, there is a hidden layer of dealmakers for whom war, chaos, and sanctions can be a great business opportunity. In this updated episode from 2025, journalists Javier Blas and Jack Farchy help us shine a light on the shadowy realm of commodity traders.
1 hour 6 mins
4 March Finished
