Which is more dangerous, a gun or a swimming pool? What do schoolteachers and sumo wrestlers have in common? Why do drug dealers still live with their moms? How much do parents really matter? What kind of impact did Roe v. Wade have on violent crime?

These may not sound like typical questions for an economist to ask. But Steven D. Levitt is not a typical economist. He is a much-heralded scholar who studies the riddles of everyday life —

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"For an engaging, insightful, and somewhat quirky take on how our economy works, The Econosphere is a must read. Craig Thomas does a masterful job of explaining basic economic fundamentals so that anyone can understand them and profit as a result."--Mark Zandi, Chief Economist, Moody's Economy.com "Classic Craig! Born with an ability to write informatively, Craig has delivered the layperson's guide to everything economic! Clear, informative, and entertaining...

"We are only just beginning to reckon with our post-pandemic future. As political extremism intensifies, the great resignation affects businesses everywhere, and supply chain issues crush bottom lines, we're faced with daunting questions - is our democracy under threat? How will Big Tech change our lives? What does job security look like for me? America is on the brink of massive change - change that will disrupt the workings of our economy and drastically...

"In order to illuminate the fallacies of economism, James Kwak first offers a primer on supply and demand, market equilibrium, and social welfare: the underpinnings of most popular economic arguments. Then he provides a historical account of how economism became a prevalent mode of thought in the United States focusing on the people who packaged Econ 101 into sound bites that were then repeated until they took on the aura of truth. He shows us how...