Cautionary Tales with Tim Harford

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Latest Episodes:

"I get in trouble when I say things like this" - Michael Lewis on Sam Bankman-Fried Jul 11, 2025

Show notes

Acclaimed author Michael Lewis discusses his time with Sam Bankman-Fried and why he thinks both high finance and Effective Altruism shaped the 'Crypto King's' worldview, ultimately landing him in jail. Plus, we hear about the people fighting terrorism, cave-ins and brain-eating amoeba from Michael's new book 'Who Is Government?'.

For a full list of sources, see the show notes at timharford.com.

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Grand Theft Automated: How to Save a Trillion Lives Jul 04, 2025

Show notes

A radical thought experiment transforms the lives of a new breed of philanthropists, as they follow the logic of altruism to extraordinary lengths. The most famous convert to the Effective Altruism movement, Sam Bankman-Fried, is either a humanitarian hero, a con artist at an astonishing scale, or most bafflingly, both.

For a full list of sources, see the show notes at timharford.com.

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The Man who Solved Kindness Jun 27, 2025

Show notes

George Price is on a mission to prove that human kindness is real. He's seen the latest research suggesting any altruism is ultimately selfish and finds it deeply depressing. George decides to learn the mathematics he needs to prove that research wrong, and throws his career, and life, into the quest for complete kindness.

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The Shark That Ate Hollywood: Jaws at 50 Jun 20, 2025

Show notes

Steven Spielberg thought his career was finished. He was behind schedule, his actors were fighting, the crew were mutinous and worst of all, his shark was broken. It looked like Jaws was destined for failure, but the movie that came out defined the Hollywood blockbuster. In this special episode celebrating 50 years of Jaws, we take lessons from the greatest monster movie that almost wasn't made.

Thanks to Alastair Greig for additional music.

For a full list of sources, see the show notes at timharford.com.

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Le Mans 55: The Deadliest Race Jun 13, 2025

Show notes

The annual Le Mans 24 Hour race brings in hundreds of thousands of spectators to watch the giants of motor racing put their endurance to the ultimate test. Every year, technology improves and the cars get a little faster. In 1955, that push for ultimate speed results in a catastrophe that changes the sport forever.

For a full list of sources, see the show notes at timharford.com.

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The Nazis, the Bomb, and the Woman that Science Forgot Jun 06, 2025

Show notes

Lise Meitner has fought for her entire life to be seen as a scientist, slowly building a career as a nuclear physicist in Berlin. When Adolf Hitler rises to power, the small gains she's made are snatched away. As a Jewish woman, Lise has a critical decision to make: is her passion for science worth her life?

An earlier version of this podcast mistakenly gave the wrong date for the bombing of Hiroshima. We apologize for the error.

For a full list of sources, see the show notes at timharford.com.

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Give Politicians a Raise, Smuggle Smartphones into School, and go Full Donk! Cautionary Questions with Risky Business May 30, 2025

Show notes

Can game theory be used to win a world cup? Can you pay the way out of political corruption? And are there winning strategies in life we don't use because we're too embarrassed? Tim teams up with Nate Silver and Maria Konnikova, poker connoisseurs and the hosts of podcast Risky Business to answer your questions, tackling everything from sports, to tariffs, to the evils of smartphones.

For a full list of sources, see the show notes at timharford.com.

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Roosevelt and the Renegade (Panama Disaster 2) May 23, 2025

Show notes

Sixteen years have passed since Ferdinand De Lesseps' catastrophic failure in Panama and the dramatic collapse of the French Panama Canal company. Now, President Theodore Roosevelt has picked up the task. “No single great material work,” Roosevelt tells Congress, “is of such consequence to the American people.”
The Americans have their work cut out. Enter chief engineer John Stevens. How does he spot a problem no-one else has noticed? And what does he do to solve it?

For a full list of sources, see the show notes at timharford.com.

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The Great Frenchman's Folly (Panama Disaster 1) May 16, 2025

Show notes

Ferdinand De Lesseps, "the Great Frenchman", is convinced that he is the man to build the Panama Canal. No, he isn't an engineer and, no, he's never actually been to Panama before. But he managed to dig the Suez Canal, and everyone said that would be impossible too. How hard can it be?

For a full list of sources, see the show notes at timharford.com.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Lab Leak: Could Smallpox Come Back? May 09, 2025

Show notes

In 1978 the world is on the brink of declaring victory over smallpox. No cases have been seen for months, and it looks like the end for a deadly, painful disease. When a photographer in Birmingham begins to feel ill, doctors are mystified: it looks like smallpox, but how could she have caught it? As they try to contain the outbreak, questions about blame and lab safety erupt in a media frenzy, questions that remain today.

For a full list of sources, see the show notes at timharford.com.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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