What Do Nancy Pelosi, Taylor Swift, and Serena…

The Girl Scouts of the U.S.A. sell $700 million worth of cookies per year. That makes them the second-largest cookie business in the country, behind Oreo. (Photo: Morigi/Getty) They — along with a great many…

America’s Hidden Duopoly (Ep. 356 Rebroadcast)

In the most recent two-year election cycle, the political industry’s revenue was estimated to be $16 billion. Meanwhile customer satisfaction is at a historic low. (Photo: Bill Pugliano/Getty) We all know our political system is…

How Much Does Your Name Matter? (Ep. 122…

A liberal mother is about 50 percent more likely to give her girl an uncommon name than a conservative mother, and about 40 percent more likely to give her boy one. (Photo: Wise/Wikimedia Commons) A…

Hello, My Name Is Marijuana Pepsi! (Ep. 387)

Marijuana Pepsi Vandyck was a failing student at age 15. Thirty-one years later she earned her Ph.D., analyzing the impact of distinctively black names on students’ classroom experiences. (Photo: University of Wisconsin-Whitewater) Research shows that…

Should America Be Run by … Trader Joe’s?…

The typical supermarket stocks roughly 35,000 items. Trader Joe’s averages just 3,000. Are they proof that less is more? (Photo: Michael Nagle/Getty Images) The quirky little grocery chain with California roots and German ownership has…

The Future of Meat (Ep. 367 Rebroadcast)

Meat production has become more efficient. But turning animals into food still requires an enormous amount of resources. Can scientists build a better burger from scratch? (Photo: Scott Olson/Getty) Global demand for beef, chicken, and…

The Economics of Sports Gambling (Ep. 388)

Today, roughly 60 million people in the U.S. and Canada play fantasy sports, with U.S. revenues alone reaching about $8 billion a year. (Photo: Miller/Getty) What happens when tens of millions of fantasy-sports players are…