People I (Mostly) Admire

Aug 30 2024 21.8k
People I (Mostly) Admire Podcast artwork

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 our network without ads and a monthly bonus episode of Freakonomics Radio, sign up for SiriusXM Podcasts+ on Apple Podcasts at http://apple.co/SiriusXM.

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139. How PETA Made Radical Ideas Mainstream

Aug 30 2024 60 mins  
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals founder Ingrid Newkirk has been badgering meat-eaters, fur-wearers, and circus-goers for more than 40 years. For a woman who’s leaving her liver to the president of France in her will, she sounds quite sensible when she tells Steve what we can learn from animals, why she supports euthanasia, and who’ll get her other organs.

UPDATE: Sendhil Mullainathan Thinks Messing Around Is the Best Use of Your Time

Aug 23 2024 46 mins  
Revisiting Steve’s 2021 conversation with the economist and MacArthur “genius” about how to make memories stickier, why change is undervalued, and how to find something new to say on the subject of scarcity.

138. Chris Anderson on the Power of TED

Aug 16 2024 58 mins  
Under his helm, the TED Conference went from a small industry gathering to a global phenomenon. Chris and Steve talk about how to build lasting institutions, how to make generosity go viral, and what Chris has learned about public speaking.

EXTRA: Remembering Susan Wojcicki

Aug 13 2024 31 mins  
The former YouTube C.E.O. — and sixteenth Google employee — died on August 9, 2024. Steve talked with her in 2020 about her remarkable career, and how her background in economics shaped her work.

137. Richard Dawkins on God, Genes, and Murderous Baby Cuckoos

Aug 02 2024 52 mins  
The author of the classic "The Selfish Gene" is still changing the way we think about evolution.

UPDATE: What It Takes to Know Everything

Jul 26 2024 40 mins  
Victoria Groce is the best trivia contestant on earth. The winner of the 2024 World Quizzing Championship explains the structure of a good question, why she knits during competitions, and how to memorize 160,000 flashcards.

136. The World’s Most Controversial Ornithologist

Jul 19 2024 64 mins  
Richard Prum says there's a lot that traditional evolutionary biology can't explain. He thinks a neglected hypothesis from Charles Darwin — and insights from contemporary queer theory — hold the answer. Plus: You won't believe what female ducks use for contraception.

135. How to Grow a White Rhino

Jul 05 2024 55 mins  
Thomas Hildebrandt is trying to bring the northern white rhinoceros back from the brink of extinction. The wildlife veterinarian tells Steve about the far-out techniques he employs, why we might see woolly mammoths in the future, and why he was frustrated the day the Berlin Wall came down.

REPLAY Sue Bird: “You Have to Pay the Superstars.”

Jun 28 2024 42 mins  
She is one of the best basketball players ever. She’s won multiple championships, including five Olympic gold medals and four W.N.B.A. titles. She also helped negotiate a landmark contract for the league’s players. Sue Bird tells Steve Levitt the untold truth about clutch players, her thoughts about the pay gap between male and female athletes, and what it means to be part of t

134. Why Do We Still Teach People to Calculate?

Jun 21 2024 58 mins  
Conrad Wolfram wants to transform the way we teach math — by taking advantage of computers. The creator of Computer-Based Maths convinced the Estonian government to give his radical curriculum a try — so why is the rest of the world so resistant?