The Pie: An Economics Podcast

Lars Peter Hansen, a Nobel Prize-winning economist and expert in uncertainty, dives into the complexities of decision-making amidst unpredictability. He discusses how policymakers can navigate uncertainty and the implications of declining public trust in scientific authority. The conversation explores the balance required in climate change decisions, weighing immediate action against the need for more information. Hansen also reflects on the importance of transparent communication in science to enhance public confidence and improve decision-making in challenging contexts.

Many low-income countries face a dilemma: keep taxes low and remain unable to build state capacity, or raise taxes and risk political unrest. In this episode of The Pie, Ben Krause, Executive Director of the Becker Friedman Institute for Economics, shares insights from an experiment in Haiti demonstrating how the provision of public goods can boost tax compliance.

Lubos Pastor is a distinguished finance professor at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, delving into the hidden costs of corporate greenhouse gas emissions. He discusses redefining corporate value to include environmental impacts, emphasizing the need for innovative metrics. The conversation also highlights the implications of the Paris Agreement on U.S. emissions, addressing how consumer behavior influences energy demand. Finally, a lightning round reveals personal reflections on economics and its real-world significance, peppered with humor.

When some US states allowed nurse practitioners to prescribe controlled substances without physician oversight, a serious unintended consequence took hold: Doctors found themselves competing with those nurses for patients. Molly Schnell, BFI Saieh Family Fellow and assistant professor at Northwestern University, along with her colleagues—Janet Currie of Princeton and Anran Li of Cornell—examine the resultant uptick in prescriptions in controlled substances, and the impact on patients.

James Robinson, a University Professor with appointments in both UChicago’s Harris School of Public Policy as well as the Political Science Department in the Division of Social Sciences, is the university’s latest faculty member to win the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences. On this episode of “An Extra Slice of The Pie,” Robinson joins Ben Krause, BFI Executive Director and new, semi-regular guest host, to discuss his research and the path to a Nobel. Tune in to learn more about Robinson’s early challenges as a young researcher, his major breakthroughs, and his ideas for future work.

Bats are considered a natural pesticide. When they began to die out due to an invasive fungus, farmers turned to chemicals to control pests. The result, as Eyal Frank of the Harris school of Public Policy describes on this episode of The Pie, was skyrocketing infant deaths. Tune in to learn more about the vast ramifications of ecosystem disruptions.

Private equity investors made some $200 billion worth of healthcare acquisitions in 2021, and $1 trillion worth in the 10 years leading up to 2023. In this episode of The Pie, Maggie Shi, professor at the Harris School of Public Policy, discusses how private equity impacts hospitals along multiple dimensions, including patient volumes, revenues, employment, and technology adoption.

When the Soo Line threatened to expand into the Great Northern Railway’s territory in 1905, the two companies entered a fierce competition for marketshare in which the they rapidly constructed nearly 500 miles of rail tracks and over 50 new towns. In this episode of The Pie, Chad Syverson, the George C. Tiao Distinguished Service Professor of Economics at the Booth School of Business, explores this unique historical episode, shedding light on how acts of strategic competition, past and present, can affect our social welfare.

Carolin Pflueger, an Associate Professor at the Harris School of Public Policy, dives into the intricate relationship between public perception and monetary policy. She reveals how the Federal Reserve's rapid interest rate hikes in response to COVID-era inflation hinge on how the public interprets these decisions. The discussion probes market reactions, the importance of effective communication from central banks, and the dynamics of inflation expectations. Plus, a light-hearted lightning round brings some humor to academic life.

Eric Zwick, a Professor of Economics and Finance at the University of Chicago's Booth School of Business, dives into the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017. He examines whether it lived up to its promises, revealing a significant drop in tax revenues despite some investment uptick. Zwick discusses the act's impact on corporate tax rates and income inequality, as well as future implications as the act nears expiration. He also shares insights on small business growth, and they even mix in some fun with a playful chat about baking pie!