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I didn't like this book as much as I'd enjoyed the original, Freakonomics. Though similar to the original, it provided quite a few topics of conversation with my friends at dinner. And that's a quality I love in a book.
The book illustrates how applying economic principles and models to real-world situations can lead to surprising and counterintuitive insights. It encourages readers to think critically and creatively about the world around them and to consider alternative solutions to social and economic problems.
The book presents a collection of essays that use economic analysis to explore various social and cultural phenomena. Some of the main takeaways from the book include:
Global Cooling: Levitt and Dubner argue that geoengineering could be a viable solution to global warming, citing the example of sulfur dioxide injections in the atmosphere to mimic the cooling effect of a volcanic eruption. However, they also acknowledge the potential risks and unintended consequences of such interventions.
Patriotic Prostitutes: The authors examine the economics of prostitution and argue that legalizing and regulating the industry could improve the safety and working conditions for sex workers. They also suggest that prostitutes could play a role in national security by acting as informants or undercover agents.
Why Suicide Bombers Should Buy Life Insurance: Levitt and Dubner use economic analysis to understand the motivations and behavior of suicide bombers. They suggest that offering life insurance policies to potential bombers could reduce the likelihood of attacks, as the financial incentives would shift from the terrorist organizations to the individual bombers and their families.
The role of incentives in education, including paying students to improve their grades and paying teachers based on their students' performance.
The potential benefits of self-driving cars, including increased safety and reduced traffic congestion.
The book presents a collection of essays that use economic analysis to explore various social and cultural phenomena. Some of the main takeaways from the book include:
Global Cooling: Levitt and Dubner argue that geoengineering could be a viable solution to global warming, citing the example of sulfur dioxide injections in the atmosphere to mimic the cooling effect of a volcanic eruption. However, they also acknowledge the potential risks and unintended consequences of such interventions.
Patriotic Prostitutes: The authors examine the economics of prostitution and argue that legalizing and regulating the industry could improve the safety and working conditions for sex workers. They also suggest that prostitutes could play a role in national security by acting as informants or undercover agents.
Why Suicide Bombers Should Buy Life Insurance: Levitt and Dubner use economic analysis to understand the motivations and behavior of suicide bombers. They suggest that offering life insurance policies to potential bombers could reduce the likelihood of attacks, as the financial incentives would shift from the terrorist organizations to the individual bombers and their families.
The role of incentives in education, including paying students to improve their grades and paying teachers based on their students' performance.
The potential benefits of self-driving cars, including increased safety and reduced traffic congestion.
So many "huh, how about that" moments
I truly enjoyed this book and the surprising information in it. That being said, the chapters at the felt thrown together. There was an attempt at a unifying theme for each chapter, but it often seemed like the thread of the story kept getting lost. Still, definitely worth the read in every way.
I truly enjoyed this book and the surprising information in it. That being said, the chapters at the felt thrown together. There was an attempt at a unifying theme for each chapter, but it often seemed like the thread of the story kept getting lost. Still, definitely worth the read in every way.
I like that this book features my company in a positive light. But, it was pretty boring. And after sitting through a boring meeting feature Levitt and Dubner, this book was even more boring.
Not as good as Freakonomics, a little slow in places. Prostitution and monkey chapters very interesting. Was it wrong to let my 13 yo son read it?
I would have given it 5 stars, but I thought the last chapter was kind of tedious. The prostitution one, though, was awesome!
I didn't enjoy it as much as I did the first book, although I found much of the information interesting. It did have a similar tone as a Malcolm Gladwell book, but that is not necessarily a bad thing.
I suppose I should mention that I absolutely hated the chapter on prostitution. Perhaps my interpretation is skewed, but it seemed that the authors spent too many pages describing what an awesome gig it is to be an upscale escort. Now I don't care if one rakes in millions a year and only works a few hours a week. The truth is that during those hours that she is working,(however few or convenient), she will spend that time doing things with strangers I'd rather not mention here. (I actually did type something here but Benji said it was so offensive I had to delete it.) Anyway, it hardly sounds like a dream career no matter how much one enjoys sex or what the numbers indicate.
I suppose I should mention that I absolutely hated the chapter on prostitution. Perhaps my interpretation is skewed, but it seemed that the authors spent too many pages describing what an awesome gig it is to be an upscale escort. Now I don't care if one rakes in millions a year and only works a few hours a week. The truth is that during those hours that she is working,(however few or convenient), she will spend that time doing things with strangers I'd rather not mention here. (I actually did type something here but Benji said it was so offensive I had to delete it.) Anyway, it hardly sounds like a dream career no matter how much one enjoys sex or what the numbers indicate.
Pimp + Impact = pimpact. Kangaroo farts. Big-ass volcanoes. Monkey prostitution. There is definitely a more casual approach to this volume and you can tell the authors are having fun. Still worth a read and impactful in the way we look at the world.
I am taking off a star because of the vast generalization of "women love kids" as a way to explain the discrepancy between salaries of similarly educated men and women in the workplace. Women are biologically hard-wired to sacrifice for their children, gentlemen. But you are correct that the incentives of money have less effect (generally) on women than security of our children. Or it does for this lady.
I am taking off a star because of the vast generalization of "women love kids" as a way to explain the discrepancy between salaries of similarly educated men and women in the workplace. Women are biologically hard-wired to sacrifice for their children, gentlemen. But you are correct that the incentives of money have less effect (generally) on women than security of our children. Or it does for this lady.
The most practical approach about how economic theory should be describe and explained. The author compelled multiple real life examples that helps understand the daily use of economics!
Short review: This is more of the same micro-economic research similar to the previous Freakenomics book. They write well and it is still interesting, but the method is a little stale. The last last sections was about how simple, cheap solutions are often better but less often chosen. I think in the future they need a theme and then work around that (similar to how they did the end of this book.)
Full review on my blog at http://bookwi.se/superfreakonomics/
Full review on my blog at http://bookwi.se/superfreakonomics/