Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner have come out with a newly packaged version of Steven D. Levitt's papers which we had first introduced here.

The history of the book aptly named "Freakonomics" is unusual as the author met through the article Stephen J. Dubner wrote about Steven D. Levitt at the NYT at that time. They both managed to bring the papers already published in an even more inspiring book form. You may not like the title but you will like the book.

The book will give you great insights into why crack dealers still live with their moms although they are supposed to be rich. Why swimming pools although they kill more toddlers each year are considered much safer than guns. If it makes sense to improve your private fortune on a political campaign. Why teachers (not only pupils) tend to cheat when evaluated.

The arguments in the book are written with great insight and supported by a great amount of data. Be ready for a nice ride.

Steven J. Levitt was so kind to be available for an interview and here we go:

Q: Where did the idea for the book come from?

A: I generally don't like interacting with journalists much. They tend to have a difficult time with subtle concepts and they seem often to have agendas they are trying to push. But when I met Dubner, I very quickly saw how different he was. Incredibly smart, a fast learner, and also, a great writer. So when it seemed that there might be some demand for bringing my work to the general public, my first thought was only if Dubner will do a book with me.
To my surprise, he was thinking the same thing. And Freakonomics was born.

Q: Where do you get you research/topic ideas from?

I just wander through life looking for anything that interests me. And every once in a while I stumble onto something that turns into a research idea.
The thing that tantalizes me are questions that seem hard, but I have some vague idea that if I could just get the right insight, the answer would be surprisingly easy.

Q: Do you look for data first or do you observe things first and look for data then?

I tend to have ideas first, and then hunt for data.
As a consequence, probably 9 out of 10 ideas never actually come to fruition. Occasionally, though, the data precede the question, for example with the work on the bagel delivery man.

Q: What are your newest plans and projects?

Right now I am working on understanding what makes doctors good or bad at their job, maybe doing some work on online poker, and finishing up a paper on just how bad crack cocaine really was for the Black community.