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    Freakonomics Rev Ed
    Freakonomics Rev Ed
    Freakonomics Rev Ed
    Audiobook7 hours

    Freakonomics Rev Ed

    Written by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner

    Narrated by Stephen J. Dubner

    4/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner offer the long-awaited paperback edition of Freakonomics, the runaway bestseller, including six Freakonomics columns from the New York Times Magazine and a Q & A with the authors.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHarperAudio
    Release dateJul 10, 2007
    ISBN9780061254680
    Freakonomics Rev Ed
    Author

    Steven D. Levitt

    Steven D. Levitt, a professor of economics at the University of Chicago, was awarded the John Bates Clark Medal, given to the most influential American economist under forty. He is also a founder of The Greatest Good, which applies Freakonomics-style thinking to business and philanthropy. Stephen J. Dubner, an award-winning journalist and radio and TV personality, has worked for the New York Times and published three non-Freakonomics books. He is the host of Freakonomics Radio and Tell Me Something I Don't Know.

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    Reviews for Freakonomics Rev Ed

    4/5

    7,966 ratings267 reviews

    What our readers think

    Readers find this title great, interesting and fun. Highly recommended to anyone curious enough about the world, the universe and everything. The authors link two subjects with statistics and data in an entertaining and easy to understand way. It makes you look at the world in a different light and encourages you to ask for data instead of blindly trusting others. The book also makes you think deeply and rethink the world around you. Overall, a stunning and thought-provoking read.

    What did you think?

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    • 4/5
      I am not a believer of the "numbers don't lie." I think they lie and get manipulated all the time. But the numbers used in this book are fascinating in the way watching a car accident is fascinating: you are disgusted but can't look away.
    • 5/5
      Good Listen. An eye opener from the past for the future.
    • 5/5
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    • 5/5
      Great book. Absolutely loved it. I will highly recommend it.
    • 5/5
      Absolutely loved this book. Great insights and statistics filled with interesting topics and side notes.
    • 3/5
      Interesting book. The authors are very impressed by themselves, sometimes for good reason and other times not so much. I would have liked to have heard more about why John Lott was wrong.
    • 4/5
      Roe v. Wade is partially responsible for the drop in crime in the 1990s. Having books in your house correlates positively to increased test scores for your children, but whether or not you read to them doesn't. Do these statements sound crazy? Well, they're both at least partially true, according to analyses presented in Freakonomics. The story I found the most interesting was how one of the authors caught which teachers were cheating on standardized tests in Chicago. Least interesting was the analysis of baby names (distinguishing between "high-end" and "low-end" names for boys and girls).My only real complaint is that the book was too short! This revised edition does include some responses and further anecdotes collected from the Freakonomics blog, which beefs it up a bit, but I still wanted more. Additionally, I would have liked to see more actual economics content (i.e. a bit of mathematical explanation to enhance their arguments). For example, in the example of real estate agents trying to close a deal (not necessarily to their client's benefit), the concepts of a discount rate and/or opportunity costs would have enhanced the discussion greatly. Overall, definitely worth a read, and great for cocktail conversation.
    • 3/5
      Freakonomics is fast, consistently interesting read and best when it digs in and tackles a question at length, as with the issue of the relationship of legal abortion to crime rates or the section on the socioeconomic trends in baby names. The only real overarching theme of the book, however, is Levitt's own cleverness--every chapter is preceded by a fawning blurb about Levitt from the same New York Times magazine piece.
      Rather than just further refining and cashing in on this Steven Levitt "brand" of the impish public affairs gadfly who throws grenades at small hills of conventional wisdom in easy-reading bestsellers, I'd like to see Levitt take on an important subject and make his case so thoroughly that citizens and policymakers can actually turn his insights into action.
    • 5/5
      Freakonomics is about unconventional wisdom, using the raw data of economics in imaginative ways to ask clever and diverting questions. Levitt even redefines his definition. If, as he says, economics is essentially about incentives and how people realise them, then economics is a prospecting tool, not a laboratory microscope.
    • 5/5
      Awesome book. I wouldnt of read if i didn't find it in an op shop, very glad that I did. Makes such complicated relationships between seemingly unconnected events seem simple. Onto superfreakonomics next.
    • 4/5
      Tell you the truth, I really am not a fan of the paperback B. Bears. I find them too long, too wordy, and, really, too moralistic. My nieces adore them, though, so I added a star for that, and I keep buying them. (I'm a sucker, really.)This is a great example of the books. New cub moves into the neighborhood, Sister and Lizzy become fast friends (and why does everybody in this series get a real name except for the main characters?), they fight over something silly, and eventually learn to compromise and share. Aw.Great moral message, but kinda boring story.
    • 5/5
      Abortion lowers crime rate, and other controversial ‘freaky’ ideas from a pair of journalist and economist. Levitt & Dubner concocted amusing premises, did some un-fuzzy maths and quantitative analyses, and reached some unlikely conclusions that convince nevertheless.
    • 3/5
      It's a quick read and provides some interesting observations, but the incessant self-congratulatory motif starts grating really quickly.
    • 5/5
      Great book. Makes you look at the world in a different light. Also you learn not to take people's word, ask for the data.
    • 3/5
      Fresh viewpoint of what economics covers - ok, everything - from cheating sumo wrestlers to what parenting is all about - it asks strange and often unasked questions. And you go "aha!" or "really?" or "no waaaayyyy...." or ... [insert]. What it will do is provoke you to think!

      Easy to read and popularized, it reminds me a bit of how Stephen Hawking was able to make science much more accessible (although it pales in comparison to Cosmos, its a great attempt).

    • 4/5
      These are still theories, although the data and arguments are convincing. Intriguing and thought-provoking. I enjoyed it a great deal.
    • 4/5
      Was that really the end
    • 4/5
      An interesting read about unintended consequences of certain events that seem unrealated, but really when examined closely - are related.
    • 4/5
      For someone like me who hated economics throughout my late high school life, and early uni life, this book taught me something different - that economics is everywhere around me AND fun! It's funny, intuitive, sobering and quite an eye-opener. Don't let economics as its subject deter you - it is better than your bearded lecturer ^_^
    • 2/5
      Although this book was engaging, well-written, and a quick read, I take issue with the constant bolstering of Levitt's ego as well as with some of his analysis. The constant praise of Levitt as well as the publishing of articles praising his supposed mad genius was almost enough to make me put the book down. If a particular thinker is brilliant (and Levitt seems to be quite insightful), his work will reflect that without the need to constantly reassure the reader that they are reading the ideas of someone who is intelligent. I don't know whether it was Dubner or Levitt's choice (or both) to include all the articles as well as the over-the-top praise, but either way, I found it jarring and obnoxious.In terms of the analysis Levitt gives, I believe that he gives himself too much authority based on the fact that he is not "politically-correct" or "mainstream." Just because an idea is not commonly-held does not automatically render it more valid than other ideas. Some of his ideas do seem to make sense, yes, but constantly calling attention to the fact that his ideas fly in the face of what most people know is utterly unnecessary. The title includes the term "rogue economist;" that is enough for the reader to be aware that Levitt is different and there is no need to constantly remark something along the lines of "this is different from the mainstream therefore it must be innovative and true."Furthermore, his chapter on names begins with some very subjective analysis disguised as objective analysis. In it, he supposedly breaks down the idea that "black-sounding" names are discriminated against by claiming that those names indicate a lower-income background to potential interviewers and not race. "Black"-sounding names might indicate a lower-income background, but those who discriminate against job applicants who have them aren't thinking about lower incomes; at least, there is no proof to validate that idea. People who see "DeShawn" on a stellar resume that includes a college degree and lots of experience and pick "Derek" over that are not being classist, but racist. If DeShawn and Derek went to the same university and have held very similar executive job, how does that indicate that DeShawn is from a lower-income background? I find this chapter's opening very suspect. The worst part, in my opinion, was the closing of the book. The story at the end of the book that shows that Poor Abandoned Black Kid can outperform Loved Privileged White Kid comes off as a pathetic attempt to have a part of the book to which to point in case someone accuses Levitt et. al. of racism. A race-based analysis of this book is a valid one, to be sure, but before the ending, I wouldn't have called it "racist." The little attempt at a feel-good close is the racist and classist part of the book. Yes, there are people who overcome overwhelming circumstances, but most cannot for a variety of reasons.I rate this books 4 stars on its ability to engage and interest the reader, but its superficial analysis of the problem of name discrimination, its insistence on incessantly declaring one of its author's genius, and its sad attempt at a feel-good ending are enough to rob it of at least 1 star.
    • 5/5
      Stunning! So much to think about.
    • 4/5
      I liked the way the authors link two subjects with statistics and data. It's very entertaining and easy to understand.
    • 4/5
      great, interesting and fun! highly recommended to anyone curious enough about the world, the universe and everything!
    • 5/5
      What do schoolteachers and sumo wrestlers have in common? How much does a parent matter in the success of their child? These are only a few of the questions addressed in Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything, a very funny and analytic book Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner. The two authors tackle some of the weirdest questions that seem to have no correlation or relevance, but somehow, in the end, are connected. It touches on some very interesting topics and does so in a very light-heated and intellectual way.The premise of the book is to look at the hidden reasons for a certain event, in this case, the drop of the crime rate in the 1990s. The two authors break apart the drop using the tools of economics to try and reason why it baffled the criminologists who, at the time, expected a severe rise in the crime rate. From this single questions, Freakonomics delves into a series of other, related but odd, questions that slowly build a picture of the different factors that lead to the drop in crime rate, ending with a very interesting look the merits and advantages of good parenting.What Freakonomics does a great job of doing is not losing the reader with over-the-top explanations of economic principals or jargon. Instead, it takes a more open approach that is very much accessible to those without very good education in the field of economics. At no point in time while I was reading the book did I really find myself struggling to get through the concepts that Dubner and Levitt were using to break apart these questions that they proposed. In fact, they took what could have been a relatively boring topic and analysis and filled it with humor and made it much more palatable to a greater audience.I really enjoyed reading about all these different factors and was amazed by what they came up with from the data that they used. Some of the things may seem counter intuitive, but they do a great job of digging deeper behind these types of occurrences and eventually, you start to understand where they are coming from and then you start to feel like you want to try and do something yourself.The fast amount of statistics and data that are represented throughout the pages aren't daunting and are presented in a way that doesn't take away from the very witty and interesting writing. There are graphs and tables and charts filled with numbers and, at the end, names, but they are used very sparingly or have a well-defined purpose that allows the readers to look and see for themselves what they are talking about in words.All in all, Freaknomics is a wonderful exploration into topics that I normally wouldn't have taken a second glance at if I saw them. They turn huge reams of data into a short book that quickly and precisely answer some of the most odd yet intriguing questions I have ever seen. Freaknomics is one of those books that takes something that could be boring and turns it into a very enjoyable experience.
    • 5/5
      A book I am glad to say I was ahead of the curve on. Strongly recommended.
    • 5/5
      Reading "Freakonomics" is like going on a fact-finding tour with an contrarian economist. It's a delightful journey, you learn some new things and it never gets too academic. That Levitt and Dubner choose some great cases to analyze is just icing on the cake.It's a breezy read and thoroughly enjoyable. But as the authors admit, "Freakonomics" won't change the way you look at the world, but it will push you to suspect the truth behind conventional wisdom.
    • 4/5
      Overall, not a bad book. Many of the pieces were reprinted in New York Times. Naked Economics was much better as overall review of economics.
    • 3/5
      Nice entertaining read. VERY quick read, this book needed another 100 pages of substance - the 100 pages of bonus material were nice, but more actual BOOK would have been even better.
    • 5/5
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    • 1/5
      They lie!