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UNLOCKED: Russ Roberts, on the Weight of History & the Elasticity of Memory

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Oct 7, 2025

Guest

Russ Roberts

The guest is Russ Roberts, an economist and the eminent host of the EconTalk podcast, celebrated for his deep dives into culture and economics. In a captivating talk, Russ shares his insights on the production processes behind everyday items like potato chips. He discusses the tension between artisanal and mass production, reflects on historical economic lessons to avoid bad policy, and shares his experiences living in Israel. Russ also emphasizes the importance of kindness in persuasion and the enduring relevance of economic thinkers like Hayek and Smith.

01:39:45

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Episode notes

question_answer

ANECDOTE

Hitchens Interview Memory

Russ Roberts recounts interviewing Christopher Hitchens at his home, including lunch and a scotch by the pool.
He calls it a memorable, long day with excellent conversation and imperfect audio quality.

question_answer

ANECDOTE

How Potato Chips Are Made

Russ describes how modern potato chips are sprayed, scanned by lasers, and bad chips are blown off the line.
He toured production with a Lay's executive who revealed how chips are displayed across stores for marketing effect.

insights

INSIGHT

Memory Shapes Political Vulnerability

Russ traces his anti-communist formation to the 1968 Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia.
He emphasizes that most Americans today lack firsthand memory of 20th-century totalitarianism, which makes dangerous ideas more attractive.

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Russ Recounts Early EconTalk Highlights

01:41 • 1min

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Industrial Processes and Potato Chips

02:55 • 5min

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Artisanal vs. Mass Production Tradeoffs

08:00 • 2min

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Concerns About the Future of Free Markets

10:15 • 4min

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Remembering History to Resist Bad Policy

14:04 • 6min

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Have Economists Lost Influence on Policy?

20:00 • 3min

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Tariffs, Trade Shocks, and Economic Effects

22:44 • 5min

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Uncertain Policy, Market Responses, and Inventories

27:30 • 2min

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Long-Term Economic Resilience and Trends

29:04 • 4min

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Small Open Economies and Policy Effects

32:58 • 4min

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How Israel Discusses War Differently Than the U.S.

36:53 • 6min

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Cultural Response to October 7th and Global Reactions

43:09 • 2min

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Why Russ Moved to Israel and Life There

45:01 • 3min

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Using EconTalk to Learn Big Topics in Public

48:22 • 5min

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From Podcasting to Leading a College

53:20 • 6min

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Education, Culture, and What Really Shapes Learning

58:56 • 5min

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Intellectual Humility and Shifting Emphases

01:04:17 • 5min

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Why Persuasion and Kindness Matter More Than Facts

01:08:50 • 13min

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Limits of Economic Lenses and the Value of Emergent Order

01:22:10 • 12min

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Hayek, Adam Smith, and the Power of Timeless Ideas

The Invisible Heart: An Economic Romance by Russell Roberts offers a unique perspective on economics and capitalism through a love story. The novel follows Sam Gordon, a high school economics teacher, and Laura Silver, a literature teacher, as they engage in debates about economic models. Meanwhile, a parallel story involves a government watchdog agency trying to regulate a pharmaceutical company. The book aims to educate readers about basic economic principles while challenging common misconceptions about capitalism.

#290

• Mentioned in 65 episodes

The theory of moral sentiments

Adam Smith

Published in 1759, 'The Theory of Moral Sentiments' is Adam Smith's first major published work, based on his lectures at Glasgow University. The book argues that morality is driven by humanity's natural sociability and the need for approval from peers, rather than by rational calculation or innate moral sense. Smith introduces key concepts such as sympathy, the impartial spectator, and the invisible hand, which explain how individuals judge the conduct and character of themselves and others. The work delves into the emotional and social aspects of human behavior, highlighting the role of emotions like pity and compassion in shaping moral sentiments and behaviors.

#17455

• Mentioned in 2 episodes

The Price of Everything

A Parable of Possibility and Prosperity

Russell Roberts

The book follows the story of Ramon Fernandez, a Stanford University tennis player, and his interactions with economics professor Ruth Lieber. It explores how prices create harmony between consumers and entrepreneurs, allocate resources, and sustain economic growth. Through extended dialogues, the book explains core economic concepts, such as the role of prices in natural disasters and the emergence of economic order without central control.

#682

• Mentioned in 35 episodes

The Choice

Edith Eager

#3045

• Mentioned in 11 episodes

The Fatal Conceit

The Errors of Socialism

Friedrich Hayek

William Warren Bartley

In 'The Fatal Conceit,' Friedrich Hayek refutes socialism by highlighting the limitations of human reason in designing complex societal systems. He argues that societal order and efficiency emerge from spontaneous processes and the voluntary actions of individuals within a framework of established rules, rather than from top-down planning. Hayek emphasizes the importance of respecting and understanding the spontaneous and extended order of human cooperation, and he advocates for a humble recognition of the limits of human knowledge and the wisdom embedded in evolved social traditions and market processes. The book also critiques the concept of social justice in socialist ideologies, arguing that true social justice should be understood in terms of equality of opportunities rather than equality of outcomes.

#55

• Mentioned in 179 episodes

The Wealth of Nations

Adam Smith

Published in 1776, 'The Wealth of Nations' is Adam Smith's magnum opus that laid the groundwork for modern economics. The book critiques mercantilist economic theories and introduces the concept of the 'invisible hand,' which describes how individual self-interest leads to societal benefit. It emphasizes the division of labor, the accumulation of capital, and the importance of free markets. Smith argues that a nation's wealth is not measured by its gold and silver reserves but by the stream of goods and services it produces. The book also outlines the core functions of government, such as maintaining defense, enforcing civil law, and promoting education, while advocating for limited government intervention in market activities.

#954

• Mentioned in 28 episodes

Wild Problems

A Guide to the Decisions That Define Us

Russ Roberts

In 'Wild Problems,' Russ Roberts addresses the big, uncertain decisions in life—such as who to marry, whether to have children, where to move, and how to forge a life well-lived—that cannot be solved using data, science, or traditional rational approaches. He suggests focusing less on the path that promises the most happiness and more on figuring out who you actually want to be. Roberts draws on the experiences of great artists, writers, and scientists to lay out strategies for reducing fear and the loss of control when facing these 'wild problems. ' He argues that life should be experienced as a mystery rather than a problem to be solved, and he critiques the idea of relying solely on cost-benefit analysis and utilitarianism for making life's major decisions.

#33001

Gambling with Other People's Money

Russ Roberts

In 'Gambling with Other People's Money', Russ Roberts argues that the 2008 financial crisis was largely caused by the implicit guarantee of bailouts for large financial institutions. This created perverse incentives where institutions could take significant risks with minimal personal financial exposure, leading to reckless behavior. Roberts emphasizes that this is not a failure of capitalism but rather a result of crony capitalism and moral hazard.

#13130

• Mentioned in 3 episodes

Mathematica

A Secret World of Intuition and Curiosity

David Bessis

Kevin Frey

David Bessis offers an illuminating guide toward deeper mathematical comprehension, reconnecting us with the mental plasticity we experienced as children. With simple, concrete examples, Bessis shows how mathematical comprehension is integral to the great learning milestones of life, such as learning to see, to speak, to walk, and to eat with a spoon. Focusing on the deeply human roots of mathematics, Bessis dispels the myths of mathematical genius and offers an engaging initiation into the experience of math not as a series of discouragingly incomprehensible logic problems but as a physical activity akin to yoga, meditation, or a martial art. This perspective will change the way you think not only about math but also about intelligence, intuition, and everything that goes on inside your head.

Last month, after years of you people begging us, we finally had on the great Russ Roberts—author, educator, and proprietor of the phantasmagorically influential podcast EconTalk. The extremely wide-ranging conversation, whose pre-Pivot-to-Video video is available to Never Fly Coach subscribers, one of the most could you please unpaywall this so I can share it? episodes in recent memory, and so here we are.

You SAID you wanted to share this. So share this! Pretty please?

* Russ’s drinks by the pool with Hitchens

* How potato chips are made. And what it tells us about economics

* Backwards towards “artisanal”

* How will a NatCon economy perform?

* It ain’t all doom and gloom (surprisingly)

* Do academic economists matter?

* Russ talks to Milton Friedman

* Do long-term economic trends tells us anything??

* On moving to Israel

* On returning to a (relatively) calm America

* Notes from Russ’s father

* A TikTok war

* Was Moneyball wrong? Or do people just not understand Moneyball?

* The Close Encounters mashed potato mountain

* And much, much more

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