Freakonomics

What Hacker News says

1. akramachamareiJun 2026
   You shouldn't be getting downvoted.

   For those who don't know, I'd recommend the Freakonomics The Economics of Everyday Things episode on dental insurance. IIRC, dental "insurance" has little in common with insurance in general. As a financial product, it's more like an invested savings account.

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2. lelanthranMar 2024
   Well there's a reason for that - consider it a form of spaced-repetition learning.

   The author's goal is to convey an idea to the reader. He breaks it up into small overlapping chunks and gradually doles out these small overlapping chunks over the course of the book, sometimes backtracking and repeating an idea with a different example, all accompanied by a compelling narrative.

   If he does his job well then the reader doesn't notice that spaced-repetition learning is happening because the supporting examples are entertaining enough to continue reading. In the worst case, the author gets the exact criticism that you are leveling.

   Honestly, if you had Mathematics books written like Thinking, Fast and Slow or Freakonomics you'd have a lot more students passing calculus.[1]

   So, here's a challenge for you - in your area of expertise (whatever that is), write down the chapters of a hypothetical book you would write to explain one or two foundational principles to an outsider (to that area). It's pretty hard to do. Then compare with best-selling non-fiction aimed at outsiders like Freakonomics, etc.

   I did this (chapter overview thing) and realised pretty quickly that I had planned a really boring book.

   [1] I read Thinking, Fast and Slow around 2011, and I read The Mom Test last year. Almost all of the sub-themes of the former is still in my memory. The only thing I remember of The Mom Test is that people will lie to you to protect your feelings.

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3. scoofyDec 2022
   I read the book. I think it's fairly obvious that the research he presents is pretty speculative. That said, it's a very popsci book, which is not really where you should be getting your facts from. It's fine, and was an interesting read on the current state on some theories coming out of Berkeley.

   Ironically, this is why i really liked Freakonomics. All the studies they uses were just Levitt's studies, and you could just look them up and read them. I recently listened to a podcast criticizing the book and I couldn't even take it seriously, because you had a couple of laypersons who are politically aligned against the Chicago school and use that for the basis of their criticisms. I though it such a hilariously terrible "trashing" of the book that I couldn't stop shaking my head.

   If Books Could Kill: https://open.spotify.com/episode/5wHpooGMRsSBrUHhQZbOZp?si=4...

   I would prefer if Walker provided the citations for what this author is asking for, but the entire point of a popsci book is that it's not a scholarly article. Walker isn't a doctor, he's a PhD in neurophysiology. I think the criticisms are warranted, but I think it's glaringly obvious from reading that the book isn't a work of serious scholarship.

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4. AmbeleAug 2019
   I disagree. I hold an unusual opinion that all congress members should be required to take an economics class before assuming office because they literally are the ones running our economy. Learning economics helps your thought process in many ways and makes you a better decision maker when it comes to deciding on micro and macroeconomic policies. Weighing benefits, negative externalities, and costs when making investments or policies is exactly what economics trains you best for. Our brains are not designed for decision making involving large numbers of people or large sums of money and by default we fall back on making emotional decisions based on anecdotal experiences. The teaching of Economics helps keep your logic side front and center and allows you to make better, more efficient, and more impactful decisions at lower social and economic costs than would be arrived at by default. Are you able to understand the implications and effects of taxes and government spending when there are 2 trillion dollar deficits instead of 2 billion dollar deficits?

   Economics-style thinking is very valuable. If you weren't blessed to have had a great economics professor in your high-school and college years, I recommend reading Freakonomics by Stephen Dubner and Steven Levitt. It was a required reading for my AP economics course and I thoroughly enjoyed reading it cover-to-cover.

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5. 33WDec 2018
   Freakonomics - good “everything you know is wrong”

   Promote yourself - meh “just become an influencer and pick a new job”

   Extreme Ownership - good “navy seal war story -> leadership principle -> business application” x12

   Rise - good “wow I have an easy life”

   Drive - good “some people like doing stuff just because”

   The Accounting Game - good “money explained to a kid to make you feel vetter about not understanding money”

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6. indwellerDec 2018
   I'd recommend all of these:

   Freakonomics- Interesting book if you're into Game theory and economics kind of stuff, though it has no prerequisites

   Meditations- Great views of a stoic thinker

   Zero to one- Interesting take on startups and how to build them

   Foundation and empire- Amazing sci-fi book. Second book in the foundation series

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