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 shows how surprisingly widespread private schools

Joshua Angrist on Econometrics and Causation

Dec 22nd, 2014 1h 5m

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 of data and uncover causation. Angrist argues th

Gary Marcus on the Future of Artificial Intelligence and the Brain

Dec 15th, 2014 58m 16s

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 flourishing, he argues that truly transformative smar

James Otteson on the End of Socialism

Dec 8th, 2014 1h 3m

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 inclination") is morally and practically inferior to cap

Nick Bostrom on Superintelligence

Dec 1st, 2014 1h 8m

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 human intelligence they will threaten human existe

Emily Oster on Infant Mortality

Nov 24th, 2014 59m 31s

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 levels in the United States. The conversation

Vernon Smith on Adam Smith and the Human Enterprise

Nov 17th, 2014 1h 8m

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. He contrasts Adam Smith's vision in Sentiment

Becky Liddicoat Yamarik on Palliative Care and End-of-Life Medical Issues

Nov 10th, 2014 1h 9m

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 services palliative care provides, how patients mak

Daron Acemoglu on Inequality, Institutions, and Piketty

Nov 3rd, 2014 1h 9m

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, "The Rise and Fall of General Laws of Capitalism,

Robert Solow on Growth and the State of Economics

Oct 27th, 2014 1h 2m

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 create a model that better reflected the stable

Luigi Zingales on Incentives and the Potential Capture of Economists by Special Interests

Oct 20th, 2014 1h 2m

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 regulators become swayed by the implicit incenti

Russ Roberts and Mike Munger on How Adam Smith Can Change Your Life

Oct 13th, 2014 1h 4m

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. Topics discussed include how economists view hum

David Autor on the Future of Work and Polanyi's Paradox

Oct 6th, 2014 1h 9m

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. Autor stresses the importance of Michael Polany

Martha Nussbaum on Creating Capabilities and GDP

Sep 29th, 2014 1h 1m

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 level. She is a proponent of the capabilities

Thomas Piketty on Inequality and Capital in the 21st Century

Sep 22nd, 2014 1h 8m

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 empirical findings of the book along with a discussion

Elizabeth Green on Education and Building a Better Teacher

Sep 15th, 2014 1h 4m

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 history of various reforms, mostly failed, trying to

Paul Pfleiderer on the Misuse of Economic Models

Sep 8th, 2014 1h

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 what Pfleiderer calls "Chameleon Models," econo

Nathan Blecharczyk on Airbnb and the Sharing Economy

Sep 1st, 2014 59m 13s

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 share underused resources, and in the case of Air

Daphne Koller on Education, Coursera, and MOOCs

Aug 25th, 2014 1h 2m

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 Coursera with Andrew Ng, explains how Coursera pa

Terry Anderson on the Environment and Property Rights

Aug 18th, 2014 1h 3m

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 environmentalism, the dynamics of the Yellowstone eco

Barry Weingast on Law

Aug 11th, 2014 1h 5m

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 takes issue with some of the standard views of law

Reid Hoffman and Ben Casnocha on LinkedIn and The Alliance

Aug 4th, 2014 1h 9m

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. Hoffman and Casnocha discuss the founding and

Sam Altman on Start-ups, Venture Capital, and the Y Combinator

Jul 28th, 2014 1h 5m

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 startups, what the company looks for in a potent

Chris Blattman on Cash, Poverty, and Development

Jul 21st, 2014 1h 11m

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 to spend it as they please. Blattman shares hi

D. G. Myers on Cancer, Dying, and Living

Jul 14th, 2014 1h 9m

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 importance of dealing with cancer honestly and using it