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    Society & Culture

    People I (Mostly) Admire

    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 the Freakonomics Radio Network without ads and a monthly bonus episode of Freakonomics Radio, start a free trial for SiriusXM Podcasts+ on Apple Podcasts or by visiting siriusxm.com/podcastsplus.

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    Copyright: © 2024 All Rights Reserved

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    Latest Episodes:
    160. How to Help Kids Succeed Jun 21, 2025
    Show notes

    Psychologist David Yeager thinks the conventional wisdom for how to motivate young people is all wrong. His model for helping kids cope with stress is required reading at Steve’s new high school.

    • SOURCES:
      • David Yeager, professor of psychology at the University of Texas at Austin.
    • RESOURCES:
      • 10 to 25: The Science of Motivating Young People: A Groundbreaking Approach to Leading the Next Generation―And Making Your Own Life Easier, by David Yeager (2024).
      • "A synergistic mindsets intervention protects adolescents from stress," by David Yeager, Christopher Bryan, James Gross, Jared Murray, Danielle Krettek Cobb, Pedro Santos, Hannah Gravelding, Meghann Johnson, and Jeremy Jamieson (Nature, 2022).
      • "Harnessing adolescent values to motivate healthier eating," by Christopher Bryan, David Yeager, Cintia Hinojosa, Aimee Chabot, Holly Bergen, Mari Kawamura, and Fred Steubing (Proceedings of the Natural Academy of Sciences, 2016).
      • "Breaking the Cycle of Mistrust: Wise Interventions to Provide Critical Feedback Across the Racial Divide," by David Yeager, Julio Garcia, Patti Brzustoski, William Hessert, Valeria Purdie-Vaughns, Nancy Apfel, Allison Master, and Matthew Williams (Journal of Experimental Psychology, 2014).
      • "The Influence of the National truth Campaign on Smoking Initiation," by Matthew Farrelly, James Nonnemaker, Kevin Davis, Altijani Hussin (American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 2009).
      • "Tobacco is Whacko Commercial," (2002).
      • "Florida Tobacco Pilot Program: Thanking Customers," (2000).
      • "Think, Don't Smoke PSA Commercial," (1999).
      • "The Mentor’s Dilemma: Providing Critical Feedback Across the Racial Divide," by Geoffrey Cohen, Claude Steele, and Lee Ross (Personal and Social Psychology Bulletin, 1999).
    • EXTRAS:
      • "The Suit, Savile Row, and Smartly Dressed Men," by The Rest is History (2024).

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    159. Robin Wall Kimmerer’s Manifesto for a Gift Economy Jun 07, 2025
    Show notes

    She’s a botanist, a member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation, and the author of the bestselling Braiding Sweetgrass. In her new book she criticizes the market economy — but she and Steve find a surprising amount of common ground.

    • SOURCES:
      • Robin Wall Kimmerer, botanist and founder and director of the Center for Native Peoples and the Environment.
    • RESOURCES:
      • The Serviceberry: Abundance and Reciprocity in the Natural World, by Robin Wall Kimmerer (2024).
      • Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants, by Robin Wall Kimmerer (2015).
      • Gathering Moss: A Natural and Cultural History of Mosses, by Robin Wall Kimmerer (2003).
      • "The Deadweight Loss of Christmas," by Joel Waldfogel (The American Economic Review, 1993).
      • "Reproductive Ecology of Tetraphis pellucida. I. Population Density and Reproductive Mode," by Robin Wall Kimmerer (The Bryologist, 1991).
    • EXTRAS:
      • "The Deadliest Disease in Human History," by People I (Mostly) Admire (2025).
      • "How Smart Is a Forest?" by People I (Mostly) Admire (2023).
      • "Jane Goodall Changed the Way We See Animals. She’s Not Done." by People I (Mostly) Admire (2022).

    Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

    Does Death Have to Be a Death Sentence? (Update) May 31, 2025
    Show notes

    Palliative physician B.J. Miller asks: Is there a better way to think about dying? And can death be beautiful?

    • SOURCES:
      • B.J. Miller, palliative-care physician and President at Mettle Health.
    • RESOURCES:
      • A Beginner’s Guide to the End: Practical Advice for Living Life and Facing Death, by Shoshana Berger and B.J. Miller and (2019).
      • “After A Freak Accident, A Doctor Finds Insight Into ‘Living Life And Facing Death,'” by Fresh Air (W.Y.P.R., 2019).
      • “Dying In A Hospital Means More Procedures, Tests And Costs,” by Alison Kodjak (W.Y.P.R., 2016).
      • “The Final Year: Visualizing End Of Life,” by Arcadia (2016).
      • “What Really Matters at the End of Life,” by B.J. Miller (TED, 2015).
      • “The Flexner Report ― 100 Years Later,” by Thomas P. Duffy (Yale Journal of Biology and Medicine, 2011).
      • “My Near Death Panel Experience,” by Earl Blumenauer (The New York Times, 2009).
      • The Center for Dying and Living.
    • EXTRAS:
      • “Max Tegmark on Why Superhuman Artificial Intelligence Won’t be Our Slave (Part 2),” by People I (Mostly) Admire (2021).
      • “Max Tegmark on Why Treating Humanity Like a Child Will Save Us All,” by People I (Mostly) Admire (2021).
      • “Amanda & Lily Levitt Share What It’s Like to be Steve’s Daughters,” by People I (Mostly) Admire (2021).
      • “Edward Glaeser Explains Why Some Cities Thrive While Others Fade Away,” by People I (Mostly) Admire (2021).
      • “Sendhil Mullainathan Explains How to Generate an Idea a Minute (Part 2),” by People I (Mostly) Admire (2021).
      • “Sendhil Mullainathan Thinks Messing Around Is the Best Use of Your Time,” by People I (Mostly) Admire (2021).
      • “How Does Facing Death Change Your Life?” by No Stupid Questions (2021).
      • “How to Be Better at Death,” by Freakonomics Radio (2021).

    Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

    158. Why Did Rome Fall — and Are We Next? May 24, 2025
    Show notes

    Historian Tom Holland narrowly escaped a career writing vampire novels to become the co-host of the wildly popular podcast The Rest Is History. At Steve’s request, he compares President Trump and Julius Caesar and explains why the culture wars are arguments about Christian theology.

    • SOURCES:
      • Tom Holland, historian and host of The Rest is History.
    • RESOURCES:
      • Dominion: How the Christian Revolution Remade the World, by Tom Holland (2019).
      • Rubicon, by Tom Holland (2005).
    • EXTRAS:
      • Unforgiving Places: The Unexpected Origins of American Gun Violence, by Jens Ludwig (2025).
      • "A Solution to America’s Gun Problem," by People I (Mostly) Admire (2025).
      • "Richard Dawkins on God, Genes, and Murderous Baby Cuckoos," by People I (Mostly) Admire (2024).

    Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

    157. The Deadliest Disease in Human History May 10, 2025
    Show notes

    John Green returns to the show to talk about tuberculosis — a disease that kills more than a million people a year. Steve has an idea for a new way to get treatment to those in need.

    • SOURCES:
      • John Green, best-selling author and YouTube creator.
    • RESOURCES:
      • Everything Is Tuberculosis: The History and Persistence of Our Deadliest Infection, by John Green (2025).
      • "The Deadliest Infectious Disease Isn’t a Science Problem. It’s a Money Problem," by John Green (The Washington Post, 2024).
      • "The Deadliest Infectious Disease of All Time," by John Green (Crash Course, 2024).
      • "Barely Contained Rage: An Open Letter to Johnson & Johnson," by John Green (Vlogbrothers, 2023).
      • "Designing Advance Market Commitments for New Vaccines," by Michael Kremer, Jonathan D. Levin, and Christopher M. Snyder (NBER, 2020).
      • "Are CEOs Rewarded for Luck? The Ones Without Principals Are," by Marianne Bertrand and Sendhil Mullainathan (The Quarterly Journal of Economics, 2001).
      • "A Further Communication on a Remedy for Tuberculosis," by Robert Koch (The Indian Medical Gazette, 1891).
    • EXTRAS:
      • "His Brilliant Videos Get Millions of Views. Why Don’t They Make Money?" by People I (Mostly) Admire (2025).
      • "Sendhil Mullainathan Thinks Messing Around Is the Best Use of Your Time (Update)," by People I (Mostly) Admire (2024).
      • "John Green’s Reluctant Rocket Ship Ride (Update)" by People I (Mostly) Admire (2024).
      • "Rajiv Shah Never Wastes a Crisis," by People I (Mostly) Admire (2024).
      • "'There’s So Many Problems — Which Ones Can I Make a Difference On?'" by People I (Mostly) Admire (2022).
      • The Anthropocene Reviewed: Essays on a Human-Centered Planet, by John Green (2021).
      • The Anthropocene Reviewed (podcast).
      • Nerdfighteria.
      • TBFighters.

    Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

    Abraham Verghese Thinks Medicine Can Do Better (Update) May 03, 2025
    Show notes

    Abraham Verghese is a physician and a best-selling author — in that order, he says. He explains the difference between curing and healing, and tells Steve why doctors should spend more time with patients and less with electronic health records.

    • SOURCES:
      • Abraham Verghese, professor of medicine at Stanford University and best-selling novelist.
    • RESOURCES:
      • The Covenant of Water, by Abraham Verghese (2023).
      • “Abraham Verghese’s Sweeping New Fable of Family and Medicine,” by Andrew Solomon (The New York Times, 2023).
      • “Watch Oprah’s Emotional Conversation with Abraham Verghese, Author of the 101st Oprah’s Book Club Pick” (Oprah Daily, 2023).
      • “How Indian Teachers Have Shaped Ethiopia’s Education System,” by Mariam Jafri (The Quint, 2023).
      • “How Tech Can Turn Doctors Into Clerical Workers,” by Abraham Verghese (The New York Times Magazine, 2018).
      • Cutting for Stone, by Abraham Verghese (2009).
      • “Culture Shock — Patient as Icon, Icon as Patient,” by Abraham Verghese (The New England Journal of Medicine, 2008).
      • “The Cowpath to America,” by Abraham Verghese (The New Yorker, 1997).
      • My Own Country: A Doctor’s Story, by Abraham Verghese (1994).
      • “Urbs in Rure: Human Immunodeficiency Virus Infection in Rural Tennessee,” by Abraham Verghese, Steven L. Berk, and Felix Sarubbi (The Journal of Infectious Diseases, 1989).
    • EXTRAS:
      • “Are You Suffering From Burnout?” by No Stupid Questions (2023).
      • “Would You Rather See a Computer or a Doctor?” by Freakonomics, M.D. (2022).
      • “How Do You Cure a Compassion Crisis?” by Freakonomics Radio (2020).
      • The Citadel, by A. J. Cronin (1937).
      • Uncle Tom’s Cabin, by Harriet Beecher Stowe (1852).

    Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

    156. A Solution to America’s Gun Problem Apr 26, 2025
    Show notes

    Jens Ludwig has an idea for how to fix America’s gun violence problem — and it starts by rejecting conventional wisdom from both sides of the political aisle.

    • SOURCES:
      • Jens Ludwig, professor of economics at the University of Chicago and director of the University of Chicago Crime Lab.
    • RESOURCES:
      • Unforgiving Places: The Unexpected Origins of American Gun Violence, by Jens Ludwig (2025).
      • "Scope Challenges to Social Impact," by Monica Bhatt, Jonathan Guryan, Jens Ludwig, and Anuj Shah (National Bureau of Economic Research, 2021).
      • "Citywide cluster randomized trial to restore blighted vacant land and its effects on violence, crime, and fear," by Charles Branas, Eugenia South, Michelle Kondo, Bernadette Hohl, Philippe Bourgois, Douglas Wiebe, and John MacDonald (Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 2018).
      • "Thinking, Fast and Slow? Some Field Experiments to Reduce Crime and Dropout in Chicago," by Sara Heller, Anuj Shah, Jonathan Guryan, Jens Ludwig, Sendhil Mullainathan, and Harold Pollack (Quarterly Journal of Economics, 2016).
      • Thinking, Fast and Slow, by Daniel Kahneman (2013).
      • "Homicide and Suicide Rates Associated With Implementation of the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act," by Jens Ludwig and Philip Cook (Journal of the American Medical Association, 2000).
      • The Death and Life of Great American Cities, by Jane Jacobs (1992).
      • The University of Chicago Crime Lab.
      • "Becoming a Man" (University of Chicago Crime Lab).
    • EXTRAS:
      • "Do the Police Have a Management Problem?" by Freakonomics Radio (2023).
      • "From prison to Ph.D, this activist fights for peace in Chicago," by Kenya Downs (PBS News, 2016).

    Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

    155. Helping People Die Apr 12, 2025
    Show notes

    Ellen Wiebe is a physician who helps seriously ill patients end their lives in Canada, where assisted suicide is legal. Is death a human right?

    • SOURCES:
      • Ellen Wiebe, clinical professor of medicine at the University of British Columbia.
    • RESOURCES:
      • "The Last Decision by the World’s Leading Thinker on Decisions," by Jason Zweig (The Wall Street Journal, 2025).
      • "Most Americans Favor Legal Euthanasia," by Rachael Yi (Gallup, 2024).
      • Canadian Association of MAID Assessors and Providers.
      • "Medical Assistance in Dying: Overview," (Government of Canada).
    • EXTRAS:
      • "Can Robots Get a Grip?" by People I (Mostly) Admire (2025).
      • "Remembering Daniel Kahneman," by People I (Mostly) Admire (2024).
      • "Does Death Have to Be a Death Sentence?" by People I (Mostly) Admire (2021).
      • Thinking, Fast and Slow, by Daniel Kahneman (2011).

    Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

    Yul Kwon: “Don't Try to Change Yourself All at Once.” (Update) Apr 05, 2025
    Show notes

    He has been a lawyer, an instructor at the F.B.I. Academy, the owner of a frozen-yogurt chain, and a winner of the TV show Survivor. Today, Kwon works at Google, but things haven’t always come easily for him. Steve Levitt talks to Kwon about his debilitating childhood anxieties, his compulsion to choose the hardest path in life, and how Kwon used game theory to stage a victory on Survivor.

    • SOURCES:
      • Yul Kwon, vice president of product management at Google.
    • RESOURCES:
      • Teacher Application for ASU Prep Tempe.
    • EXTRAS:
      • "Are Our Tools Becoming Part of Us?" by People I (Mostly) Admire (2024).
      • "Yul Kwon: 'Hey, Do You Have Any Bright Ideas?' (Part 2)," by People I (Mostly) Admire (2021).
      • "Robert Axelrod on Why Being Nice, Forgiving, and Provokable are the Best Strategies for Life," by People I (Mostly) Admire (2021).

    Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

    154. Can Robots Get a Grip? Mar 29, 2025
    Show notes

    Ken Goldberg is at the forefront of robotics — which means he tries to teach machines to do things humans find trivial.

    • SOURCES:
      • Ken Goldberg, professor of industrial engineering and operations research at U.C. Berkeley.
    • RESOURCES:
      • "The Bitter Lesson," by Rich Sutton (UT Austin, 2019).
      • R.U.R. (Rossum's Universal Robots): A Fantastic Melodrama in Three Acts and an Epilogue, by Karel Capek (2019).
      • "The Robot in the Cloud: A Conversation With Ken Goldberg," by Quentin Hardy (New York Times, 2014).
      • Mind Children: The Future of Robot and Human Intelligence, by Hans Moravec (1990).
      • "Stochastic Plans for Robotic Manipulation," by Ken Goldberg (Carnegie Mellon University, 1990).
      • "The Two Cultures And The Scientific Revolution," by C. P. Snow (Cambridge University Press, 1959).
      • Dex-Net
      • Ancient Wisdom for a Future Ecology: Trees, Time, and Technology.
      • Ambi Robotics.
      • "The Telegarden."
    • EXTRAS:
      • "Feeling Sound and Hearing Color," by People I (Mostly) Admire (2024).
      • "Are Our Tools Becoming Part of Us?" by People I (Mostly) Admire (2024).
      • “My God, This Is a Transformative Power,” by People I (Mostly) Admire (2023).
      • "Drawing from Life (and Death)" by People I (Mostly) Admire (2023).
      • "Aicha Evans Wants You to Take Your Eyes Off the Road," by People I (Mostly) Admire (2021).

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