628. Sludge, Part 2: Is Government the Problem, or the Solution?There is no sludgier place in America than Washington, D.C. But there are signs of a change. We’ll h […]

627. Sludge, Part 1: The World Is Drowning in ItInsurance forms that make no sense. Subscriptions that can’t be cancelled. A never-ending blizzard of automated n […]

Should America Be Run by … Trader Joe’s? (Update)The quirky little grocery chain with California roots and German ownership has a lot to teach all of us about choice […]

626. Ten Myths About the U.S. Tax SystemNearly everything that politicians say about taxes is at least half a lie. They are also dishonest when it comes to the […]

625. The Biden Policy That Trump Hasn’t TouchedLina Khan, the youngest F.T.C. chair in history, reset U.S. antitrust policy by thwarting mega-mergers and other […]

EXTRA: The Downside of Disgust (Update)It’s a powerful biological response that has preserved our species for millennia. But now it may be keeping us from pursuing s […]

624. The Animal No One Loves, Until They Do To most people, the rat is vile and villainous. But not to everyone! We hear from a scientist who befriended rats and […]

623. Can New York City Win Its War on Rats? Even with a new rat czar, an arsenal of poisons, and a fleet of new garbage trucks, it won’t be easy — because, at roo […]

The Show That Never HappenedA brief meditation on loss, relativity, and the vagaries of show business. RESOURCES: Billie Eilish: The World’s a Little Blurry, d […]

622. Why Does Everyone Hate Rats? New York City’s mayor calls them “public enemy number one.” History books say they caused the Black Death — although recent scienti […]

621. Is Professional Licensing a Racket?Licensing began with medicine and law; now it extends to 20 percent of the U.S. workforce, including hair stylists and […]

When Is a Superstar Just Another Employee?In 2023, the N.F.L. players’ union conducted a workplace survey that revealed clogged showers, rats in the locker room — […]

620. Why Don’t Running Backs Get Paid Anymore?They used to be the N.F.L.’s biggest stars, with paychecks to match. Now their salaries are near the bottom, and t […]

619. How to Poison the A.I. MachineWhen the computer scientist Ben Zhao learned that artists were having their work stolen by A.I. models, he invented a tool to […]

Is San Francisco a Failed State? (And Other Questions You Shouldn’t Ask the Mayor)Stephen Dubner, live on stage, mixes it up with outbound mayor London Breed, and […]

618. Are Realtors Having an Existential Crisis?Their trade organization just lost a huge lawsuit. Their infamous commission model is under attack. And there are way […]

617. Are You Really Allergic to Penicillin?Like tens of millions of people, Stephen Dubner thought he had a penicillin allergy. Like the vast majority, he didn’t. T […]

Highway Signs and Prison LaborIncarcerated people grow crops, fight wildfires, and manufacture everything from prescription glasses to highway signs — often for p […]

Can Academic Fraud Be Stopped? (Update)Probably not — the incentives are too strong. But a few reformers are trying. We check in on their progress, in an update to a […]

Why Is There So Much Fraud in Academia? (Update)Some of the biggest names in behavioral science stand accused of faking their results. Last year, an astonishing […]