https://omny.fm/shows/cautionary-tales-with-tim-harford/playlists/podcast https://omny.fm/shows/cautionary-tales-with-tim-harford/the-dunning-canoe-ger-effect When John Darwin walks into a shop in London, it causes an instant stir. After all, John Darwin has been dead...
What is the value of high-quality, trustworthy official statistics? Given the number of things that statistical agencies measure, we might expect that they have attempted to put a number on this too. In fact, they have often been rather coy. A UN report, “Promoting,...
In the 1950s, polio spread at an unprecedented rate, killing or paralysing thousands of Americans. Two renowned scientists raced to develop a vaccine, taking radically different approaches and becoming bitter rivals in the process. Decades later, when a new virus...
https://omny.fm/shows/cautionary-tales-with-tim-harford/how-civilisations-die-with-paul-cooper As Governor of Britannia, Magnus Maximus has a huge army at his disposal, which is just what he needs to secure the Roman imperial throne. But perhaps the impressive general...
Marathon day. An early train into London, then an unfamiliar journey across a race-disrupted city from Paddington to Blackheath, all in good time for the start of the race. I was nervous, of course, but was cheered by the sight of another bib-wearing runner — more...
I'm speaking at 5x15 at 7pm on Monday 29 June - and at the FT Weekend Festival on Saturday 5 September. In both cases there are some brilliant speakers on stage - come along!
https://omny.fm/shows/cautionary-tales-with-tim-harford/can-you-make-a-sherman-tank-float? It’s D-Day and the Allies are about to invade Nazi-occupied France. For the landings to succeed, American soldiers on Omaha Beach will have to break through some formidable...
There is a gap between the calm, rational decision-makers we often aspire to be and the overwrought, sentiment-tossed creatures we often are. Rarely is that gap wider than in the political arena. Policy seems like it should be a matter for cool, evidence-based...
https://omny.fm/shows/cautionary-tales-with-tim-harford/the-inventor-who-almost-ended-the-world-classic Thomas Midgley’s inventions caused his own death, hastened the deaths of millions of people around the world, and very nearly extinguished all life on land. ...