Author and journalist Johann Hari talks about his book, Lost Connections: Why You Are Depressed and How to Find Hope, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Hari, who has suffered with depression as a teenager and an adult, offers a sweeping critique of the medical establishment’s understanding of depression and the frequent reliance on pharmaceutical treatments. Hari argues that it is […] The post Johann Hari on Lost Connections appeared first on Econlib.

Historian Bret Devereaux of the University of North Carolina talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about our understanding of the ancient Greeks and Romans. Devereaux highlights the gap between the reality of Greece and Rome and how they’re portrayed in popular culture. The conversation focuses on the diversity of ancient Rome and the military prowess of […] The post Bret Devereaux on Ancient Greece and Rome appeared first on Econlib.

Law professors Michael Heller and James Salzman talk about their book, Mine! with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Heller and Salzman argue that ownership is trickier and more complicated than it looks. While we tend to think of something as either mine or not mine, there’s often ambiguity and a continuum about who owns what. Salzman […] The post Michael Heller and James Salzman on Mine! appeared first on Econlib.

Journalist and author Nicholas Wapshott talks about his book Samuelson Friedman with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Milton Friedman and Paul Samuelson were two of the most influential economists of the last century. They competed for professional acclaim and had very different policy visions. The conversation includes their differences over the work of Keynes, their rivalry […] The post Nicholas Wapshott on Samuelson and Friedman appeared first on Econlib.

Author and economist Michael Munger of Duke University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the virtues–and the flaws–of free markets. Munger says the best argument for a free market approach is not that it’s perfect but that it’s better than anything else we’ve been able to come up with over the centuries. Better at […] The post Michael Munger on Free Markets appeared first on Econlib.

Journalist and author Jonathan Rauch talks about his book The Constitution of Knowledge with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. People come up with ideas all the time. But the vast majority of these ideas aren’t worthwhile. Rauch argues that the constitution of knowledge–the norms and institutions for testing the reliability of new ideas and accumulating knowledge–has been dramatically […] The post Jonathan Rauch on the Constitution of Knowledge appeared first on Econlib.

Economist and Nobel Laureate James Heckman of the University of Chicago talks about inequality and economic mobility with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Drawing on research on inequality in Denmark with Rasmus Landersø, Heckman argues that despite the efforts of the Danish welfare state to provide equal access to education, there is little difference in economic mobility […] The post James Heckman on Inequality and Economic Mobility appeared first on Econlib.

Journalist and author Michael Easter talks about his book The Comfort Crisis with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Easter thinks modern life is too easy, too comfortable. To be healthy, he says, we need to move out of our comfort zones and every once in a while try to do something, especially something physically demanding, that we didn’t think […] The post Michael Easter on the Comfort Crisis appeared first on Econlib.

Economist Don Boudreaux of George Mason University talks about the pandemic with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Boudreaux argues that a perfect storm of factors created a huge overreaction, including unnecessary lockdowns that accomplished little at a very high cost in physical and emotional health. Instead, Boudreaux argues, we should have focused attention on the population most at […] The post Don Boudreaux on the Pandemic appeared first on Econlib.

Claudia Hauer of St. John’s College and the Air Force Academy talks about her book Strategic Humanism with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Topics discussed include war, rage, terrorism, and what a modern warrior might learn from Homer. The post Claudia Hauer on War, Education, and Strategic Humanism appeared first on Econlib.