When to Rob a Bank: A Rogue Economist's Guide to the World - Hardcover

Steven D. Levitt; Stephen J. Dubner

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0141980966 ISBN 13: 9780141980966

Publisher: Allen Lane, 2015

Synopsis

In celebration of the 10th anniversary of the landmark book Freakonomics comes this curated collection from the most readable economics blog in the universe. It's the perfect solution for the millions of readers who love all things Freakonomics. Surprising and erudite, eloquent and witty, When to Rob a Bank demonstrates the brilliance that has made the Freakonomics guys an international sensation, with more than 7 million books sold in 40 languages, and 150 million downloads of their Freakonomics Radio podcast.

When Freakonomics was first published, the authors started a blog--and they've kept it up. The writing is more casual, more personal, even more outlandish than in their books. In When to Rob a Bank, they ask a host of typically off-center questions: Why don't flight attendants get tipped? If you were a terrorist, how would you attack? And why does KFC always run out of fried chicken?

Over the past decade, Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner have published more than 8,000 blog posts on the Freakonomics website. Many of them, they freely admit, were rubbish. But now they've gone through and picked the best of the best. You'll discover what people lie about, and why; the best way to cut gun deaths; why it might be time for a sex tax; and, yes, when to rob a bank. (Short answer: never; the ROI is terrible.) You'll also learn a great deal about Levitt and Dubner's own quirks and passions, from gambling and golf to backgammon and the abolition of the penny.

About this title

From the Back Cover

Surprising and erudite, eloquent and witty, When to Rob a Bank demonstrates the brilliance that has made the Freakonomics guys an international sensation, with more than 7 million books sold in 40 languages, and 200 million downloads of their Freakonomics Radio podcast.

When to Rob a Bank is Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner’s curated collection from the most readable economics blog in the universe. Drawn from 10 years of entries on Freakonomics.com, where they employ a style that is more casual, more personal, and more outlandish than in their books, they answer such questions as: Why don’t flight attendants get tipped? If you were a terrorist, how would you attack? And why does KFC always run out of fried chicken?

You’ll discover:

• What people lie about, and why
• The best way to cut gun deaths
• Why it might be time for a sex tax
• And yes, when to rob a bank (Short answer: never; the R.O.I. is terrible)

You’ll also learn a great deal about Levitt and Dubner’s own quirks and passions, from gambling and golf to backgammon and the abolition of the penny.

About the Author

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.

Edition details

• Publisher: Allen Lane
• Publication date: 2015
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0141980966
• ISBN 13: 9780141980966
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 400