lightning strikes twice

by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner

Freakonomics has “no unifying theme”, instead it investigates some loosely connected but interesting areas of everyday life.  These investigations yield results that often defy conventional wisdom – but with a weight of economic evidence behind them, its pretty difficult to deny them.  Topics that Levitt and Dubner cover include cheating by Sumos and Teachers, the rise and fall of crime rates in America, and how parenting is less important than most would ever guess.

The most entertaining section is on peoples names.  I can’t imagine how someone could name their kid “OrangeJello”, “LemonJello”, “Winner”, “Loser” or “Shithead”, but it has been done!  Read the book to find out how it affected their lives!

Overall, quite a light read, not especially profound but interesting nonetheless.