SuperFreakonomics

By: Steven D. Levitt, Stephen J. Dubner

Narrated by: Stephen J. Dubner

Length: 7 hrs and 28 mins

Publisher's summary

Global Cooling, Patriotic Prostitutes, and Why Suicide Bombers Should Buy Life Insurance

The New York Times best-selling Freakonomics was a worldwide sensation, selling more than four million copies in 35 languages and changing the way we look at the world. Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner return with Superfreakonomics, and fans and newcomers alike will find that the freakquel is even bolder, funnier, and more surprising than the first.

SuperFreakonomics challenges the way we think all over again, exploring the hidden side of everything with such questions as: How is a street prostitute like a department-store Santa? What do hurricanes, heart attacks, and highway deaths have in common? Can eating kangaroo save the planet?

Levitt and Dubner mix smart thinking and great storytelling like no one else. By examining how people respond to incentives, they show the world for what it really is: good, bad, ugly, and, in the final analysis, super freaky.

Freakonomics has been imitated many times over - but only now, with SuperFreakonomics, has it met its match.

©2009 Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner (P)2009 HarperCollins Publishers

So fun!

These books expand my brain and cause to look up some of the information noted.

What a fun read.

Always interesting

I am not an economist, but I love the logic and explanation they present in their books.

Just ok. Not sure if I believe it all though.

I loved the first book. Having just finished Superfreakonomics, I can only remember two things about it.

The first is the in depth coverage of hookers which I found educational and entertaining. In my opinion this part is the best of the book and I consider it the sequel to the gang information in Freakonomics.

The second is the total 180 from most scientists on global warming and carbon dioxide's role it in. I am a skeptic and something about this felt off. The topic follows mainly the works of Nathan Myhrvold, formally of Microsoft, who advocates 'geo-engineering' and the science of Ken Caldeira. Nathan probably forgot all the times Microsoft patched a complex system which fixed the initial problem but caused other problems. He has the same approach to climate change and Levitt and Dubner seem to take it at face value without researching the pros and cons. Complex systems don't always respond to "cheap and simple fixes" in predictable ways. It feels like the authors were looking for major topics where they could argue against the mainstream. If you research online, you'll find that Ken Caldeira even claims that the book gets his views and opinions wrong.

I now wonder if any of the other research in the book is accurate. If I would have read more online reviews about the book I probably wouldn't have purchased it.

Eh.

I listened to this book a couple of times.... mostly because the first time I wasn't giving it my full attention.

I have to say that it lost me the second time, too. Then I realized.. hey, it's not me... this book is actually pretty slow in some places.

I like these authors, and I enjoy their podcast. But if I'm in the mood for this sort of book, I'm going to head over to Malcolm Gladwell first. This is the B team.

Superfreakenomics

Great book, however it was not possible to move backwards or forwards by chapter. Therefore, everytime I lost my place (accidently bumped my listening device)I had to start over from the ver beginning. This got VERY old. In the future, I will only purchase books that are broken down as actual chapters for my device.

Worth the read.

Wanna be knowledgeable on ways to fight climate change? This is the stop for you and along the way, let your mind expand at and think about life the way economists do.

Not enough book!

I've now listened to both Freakonomics and SuperFreakpnomics and at the conclusion of each one I find myself struggling to find other options as entertaining and informative as these. I also listen to the Freakonomics podcast, but again it's hard to find other option that keep my brain as entertained as Freakonomics has been able to do far. I'd suggest this book to any civic minded thinker and fun knowledge thinker.

kept my attention, has sound theory behind glitz

I was worried about some reviews that considered this more sensational then scientific. The authors try to convey the science in an interesting way. I was satisfied.

Another wonderful book

I really enjoyed this second book by the author of freeconomics. It was a riveting listen. So glad I came across it and I had time to enjoy. Anyone interested in learning more about incentive-based behavior would do well to read this book.

Great book! Mind blown 10 times by chapter.

loved every second of it. specially the epilogue. highly recommended. buy it now!!