The man who made economics freaky
By David Futrelle, Money Magazine
June 14, 2010
Had Steven Levitt taught your college Econ 101 lecture, you'd surely remember more of it. The University of Chicago professor takes the basic tools of economics -- reams and reams of data, and the understanding that human beings respond to incentives for gain -- and applies them to surprising new subjects.
In "Freakonomics" and "SuperFreakonomics," his bestselling books written with journalist Stephen Dubner, he's argued that sumo wrestlers probably cheat, explained why many drug dealers earn less than minimum wage, and shown that the introduction of television correlated with a spike in crime.
In one of his few studies about everyday money matters, he made the case that you probably can't rely on your real estate agent's advice to get the best possible price for your house. By turning economics into a good story, Levitt has become his field's greatest popularizer -- the Carl Sagan of number crunchers.
No wonder he was the hands-down readers' choice for this month's Visionaries interview. We asked Levitt to answer your burning economic questions; Money contributing writer David Futrelle chimed in with a few of his own. Edited excerpts follow.
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