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Words & Numbers — Education
Words & Numbers

Words & Numbers is one of the highest-rated economics podcasts in the world. Each episode, Antony Davies and James R. Harrigan dig into economics, political science, and current events to explain what’s actually happening and why it matters.

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Latest Episodes:

Episode 302: Population Growth Nov 23, 2022

Show notes

Last week, we talked about the world population crossing the 8 billion mark. This week, we look at a related topic, population growth. We find the interesting fact that population growth has slowed to near zero in the developed world, and that future population growth will come mostly from Africa.

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Quick Hits

https://inoculation.science

https://www.cnn.com/2022/11/22/business/budweiser-unsold-beer-world-cup/index.html

https://www.si.com/soccer/2022/11/19/qatar-world-cup-2022-beer-stadium-ban-fifa-gianni-infantino

https://www.npr.org/2022/11/19/1137783957/world-cup-qatar-fan-restrictions-alcohol

https://www.cnn.com/2022/11/18/success/home-heating-prices/index.html

Foolishness of the Weekhttps://apnews.com/article/religion-new-york-brooklyn-796a0304635738768e52d21a6dd42f64

Topic of the Week

https://ourworldindata.org/air-pollution

https://ourworldindata.org/deforestation

https://ourworldindata.org/water-access#what-share-of-people-have-access-to-safe-drinking-water

https://ourworldindata.org/co2-emissions

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More James at Smoke & Storieshttps://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLjILow4-ZJpBV-NnmSusZJ_vCuzKUJ4Ig

More Ant on YouTubehttps://www.youtube.com/antonydavies

Let Us Know What You Think

mailto:wordsandnumberspodcast@gmail.com

Antony Davies on Twitter

https://twitter.com/antonydavies

James R. Harrigan on Twitterhttps://twitter.com/JamesRHarrigan

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Episode 301: 8 Billion Nov 16, 2022

Show notes

The world population crossed the 8 billion mark this week. As far back as at least the late 1700s, experts were predicting that overpopulation would lead to mass starvation. Time and again, the experts end up being both right and wrong. They tend to be right in their projections that the world population is exploding, but they are always wrong about it leading to mass starvation. In fact, today’s 8 billion people live far better lives than did the 1 billion that lived back in the late 1700s.

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Quick Hitshttps://www.vice.com/en/article/dy7kbq/palmer-luckey-made-a-vr-headset-that-kills-the-user-if-they-die-in-the-game

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/election-deniers-lose-races-for-key-state-offices-in-every-2020-battleground/ar-AA1433zT https://www.politico.com/news/2022/11/13/trump-election-deniers-accept-2022-results-00066626 https://dnyuz.com/2022/11/12/trump-angst-wracks-republicans-again-as-2024-announcement-looms/

Foolishness of the Weekhttps://www.cnn.com/2022/11/10/business/kfc-germany-kristallnacht

Topic of the Week

https://ourworldindata.org/air-pollution

https://ourworldindata.org/deforestation

https://ourworldindata.org/water-access#what-share-of-people-have-access-to-safe-drinking-water

https://ourworldindata.org/co2-emissions

Join the Conversation

Words & Numbers Backstage

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More James at Smoke & Storieshttps://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLjILow4-ZJpBV-NnmSusZJ_vCuzKUJ4Ig

More Ant on YouTubehttps://www.youtube.com/antonydavies

Let Us Know What You Think

mailto:wordsandnumberspodcast@gmail.com

Antony Davies on Twitter

https://twitter.com/antonydavies

James R. Harrigan on Twitterhttps://twitter.com/JamesRHarrigan

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Episode 300: Economic Inequality in America Nov 09, 2022

Show notes

For our 300th episode, Senator Phil Gramm joins us to talk about his recent book on income inequality in America. The disturbing thing is that the government figures that people quote concerning income inequality exclude all the tax and transfer adjustments we deliberately make to mitigate income inequality.

Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now!

http://www.cooperationandcoercion.com

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http://www.wordsandnumbers.org

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Quick Hits

https://www.cnbc.com/2022/11/08/billionaires-emit-a-million-times-more-greenhouse-gases-than-the-average-person-oxfam.html

Foolishness of the Week

https://www.msn.com/en-in/news/india/us-national-park-service-warns-people-to-stop-licking-toad-that-causes-hallucinations/ar-AA13Rs8d

Topic of the Week

https://www.amazon.com/Myth-American-Inequality-Government-Biases/dp/1538167387/

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More James at Smoke & Storieshttps://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLjILow4-ZJpBV-NnmSusZJ_vCuzKUJ4Ig

More Ant on YouTubehttps://www.youtube.com/antonydavies

Let Us Know What You Think

mailto:wordsandnumberspodcast@gmail.com

Antony Davies on Twitter

https://twitter.com/antonydavies

James R. Harrigan on Twitterhttps://twitter.com/JamesRHarrigan

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Episode 299: The Rights of the Dead Nov 02, 2022

Show notes

Do the dead have rights? This Halloween, philosopher James Stacey Taylor joins us for a live (heh) recording of Words & Numbers to take this question seriously.

Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now!

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See More Ant and James!

http://www.wordsandnumbers.org

Show Your Support for Words & Numbers at Patreon

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Quick Hits

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/oct/11/new-york-gun-buyback-rules-3d-printed-parts

https://studyfinds.org/americans-unsure-about-god-politics-white-evangelicals/

Foolishness of the Week

https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/uknews/sympathisers-mark-centenary-of-mussolinis-rise-to-power-in-italy/ar-AA13xayV

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Let Us Know What You Think

mailto:wordsandnumberspodcast@gmail.com

Antony Davies on Twitter

https://twitter.com/antonydavies

James R. Harrigan on Twitterhttps://twitter.com/JamesRHarrigan

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Episode 298: How do Treasury Bills Work? Oct 26, 2022

Show notes

People spend a lot of time talking about the debt and deficit, but most are unaware of the mechanics involved. This week, we cover some of those mechanics with a discussion of Treasury notes, bills, and bonds.

Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now!

http://www.cooperationandcoercion.com

See More Ant and James!

http://www.wordsandnumbers.org

Show Your Support for Words & Numbers at Patreon

https://www.patreon.com/wordsandnumbers

Quick Hits

https://www.politico.com/news/2022/10/21/tax-revenue-spending-budget-deficit-drop-deficit-00062923

https://taxfoundation.org/federal-tax-collections-inflation-surging/

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2022/oct/23/salman-rushdie-has-lost-sight-in-one-eye-and-use-of-one-hand-says-agent

https://www.politico.com/news/2022/08/17/salman-rushdie-survive-attacker-00052549

Foolishness of the Week

https://www.dea.gov/press-releases/2022/08/30/dea-warns-brightly-colored-fentanyl-used-target-young-americans

Topic of the Weekhttps://www.treasurydirect.gov

Join the Conversation

Words & Numbers Backstage

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More James at Smoke & Storieshttps://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLjILow4-ZJpBV-NnmSusZJ_vCuzKUJ4Ig

More Ant on YouTubehttps://www.youtube.com/antonydavies

Let Us Know What You Think

mailto:wordsandnumberspodcast@gmail.com

Antony Davies on Twitter

https://twitter.com/antonydavies

James R. Harrigan on Twitterhttps://twitter.com/JamesRHarrigan

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Episode 297: What Happened to Poverty? Oct 19, 2022

Show notes

This month, the world takes stock of international poverty, and James and Ant put poverty into perspective both across countries and across time.

Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now!

http://www.cooperationandcoercion.com

See More Ant and James!

http://www.wordsandnumbers.org

Show Your Support for Words & Numbers at Patreon

https://www.patreon.com/wordsandnumbers

Quick Hits

https://slashdot.org/story/22/10/08/2234213/paypal-says-it-wont-fine-customers-2500-for-misinformation

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2022-election/-check-walker-acknowledges-giving-700-ex-denies-claim-knew-was-abortio-rcna52252

Foolishness of the Week

https://nypost.com/2022/10/17/home-asking-prices-tumble-at-record-pace-as-mortgage-rates-surge/

Topic of the Weekhttps://foreignpolicy.com/2012/02/27/were-all-the-1-percent/

Join the Conversation

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More James at Smoke & Storieshttps://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLjILow4-ZJpBV-NnmSusZJ_vCuzKUJ4Ig

More Ant on YouTubehttps://www.youtube.com/antonydavies

Let Us Know What You Think

mailto:wordsandnumberspodcast@gmail.com

Antony Davies on Twitter

https://twitter.com/antonydavies

James R. Harrigan on Twitterhttps://twitter.com/JamesRHarrigan

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Episode 296: Think Like an Economist Oct 12, 2022

Show notes

All of economics boils down to a single fact: people respond to incentives. The first step to thinking like an economist is to take that fact seriously. Once you do, the world never looks the same.

Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now!

http://www.cooperationandcoercion.com

See More Ant and James!

http://www.wordsandnumbers.org

Show Your Support for Words & Numbers at Patreon

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Quick Hits

https://fortune.com/2022/10/03/how-to-get-stimulus-check-california-inflation-relief/

Foolishness of the Week

https://www.theguardian.com/music/commentisfree/2022/oct/07/kanye-west-white-lives-matter-tucker-carlson

Topic of the Weekhttps://mscee.org

Join the Conversation

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More James at Smoke & Storieshttps://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLjILow4-ZJpBV-NnmSusZJ_vCuzKUJ4Ig

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Let Us Know What You Think

mailto:wordsandnumberspodcast@gmail.com

Antony Davies on Twitter

https://twitter.com/antonydavies

James R. Harrigan on Twitterhttps://twitter.com/JamesRHarrigan

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Episode 295: Must Government Control Money? Oct 05, 2022

Show notes

People - including some economists - are so used to governments establishing currencies that we are unaware that there are alternatives. Money is simply a tool that reduces the frictional costs of trading goods and services and of saving. Markets can evolve money in the same way that they evolve all manner of other solutions to even more complex problems. Prof. Lawrence H. White joins us this week to talk about alternatives to government-created currencies.

Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now!

http://www.cooperationandcoercion.com

See More Ant and James!

http://www.wordsandnumbers.org

Show Your Support for Words & Numbers at Patreon

https://www.patreon.com/wordsandnumbers

Quick Hits

https://ojjdp.ojp.gov/publications/trends-in-youth-arrests.pdf

https://observer.com/2022/09/nft-trading-volume-plunges-97-since-january-raising-questions-about-their-future/

Foolishness of the Week

https://news.yahoo.com/us-home-prices-now-posting-040100770.html

Topic of the Week

https://www.amazon.com/Lawrence-H-White/e/B001HD35S8

Join the Conversation

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More James at Smoke & Storieshttps://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLjILow4-ZJpBV-NnmSusZJ_vCuzKUJ4Ig

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Let Us Know What You Think

mailto:wordsandnumberspodcast@gmail.com

Antony Davies on Twitter

https://twitter.com/antonydavies

James R. Harrigan on Twitterhttps://twitter.com/JamesRHarrigan

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Episode 294: Article I, Section 8, Pt.2 Sep 28, 2022

Show notes

Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution lists the things the Federal government is permitted to do. Somewhere in our history, citizens have come to regard the Constitution as a document that outlines what the government is not allowed to do. That’s exactly the opposite of what the Founders intended.

Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now!

http://www.cooperationandcoercion.com

See More Ant and James!

http://www.wordsandnumbers.org

Show Your Support for Words & Numbers at Patreon

https://www.patreon.com/wordsandnumbers

Quick Hits

https://www.cnbc.com/2022/09/22/turkey-cuts-interest-rates-again-as-country-struggles-under-inflation.html

https://www.thelocal.es/20220923/spain-to-tax-rich-to-offset-inflation-relief-measures/

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More Ant on YouTubehttps://www.youtube.com/antonydavies

Let Us Know What You Think

mailto:wordsandnumberspodcast@gmail.com

Antony Davies on Twitter

https://twitter.com/antonydavies

James R. Harrigan on Twitterhttps://twitter.com/JamesRHarrigan

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Episode 293: Article I, Section 8, Pt.1 Sep 21, 2022

Show notes

Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution lists the things the Federal government is permitted to do. Somewhere in our history, citizens have come to regard the Constitution as a document that outlines what the government is not allowed to do. That’s exactly the opposite of what the Founders intended.

Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now!

http://www.cooperationandcoercion.com

See More Ant and James!

http://www.wordsandnumbers.org

Show Your Support for Words & Numbers at Patreon

https://www.patreon.com/wordsandnumbers

Quick Hits

https://www.guntab.com/insights/new-mcc-code-for-gun-stores-is-step-toward-suspicious-transaction-reports/

https://www-wtae-com.cdn.ampproject.org/v/s/www.wtae.com/amp/article/pennsylvania-alcohol-self-imposed-ban-proposed/41233874

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2022/08/29/nasa-dart-crash-dart-asteroid-how-to-see/7926449001/

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More James at Smoke & Storieshttps://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLjILow4-ZJpBV-NnmSusZJ_vCuzKUJ4Ig

More Ant on YouTubehttps://www.youtube.com/antonydavies

Let Us Know What You Think

mailto:wordsandnumberspodcast@gmail.com

Antony Davies on Twitter

https://twitter.com/antonydavies

James R. Harrigan on Twitterhttps://twitter.com/JamesRHarrigan

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