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The Truth is Out There…Isn’t It?

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The first part of this episode, Stephen Dubner looks at this and other examples of weird recycling. We hear the story of MedWish, a Cleveland non-profit that sends unused or outdated hospital equipment – from gauze and tongue depressors to beds and x-ray machines – to hospitals in poor countries. We also hear Intellectual Ventures founder Nathan Myhrvold describe a new nuclear-power reactor that runs on radioactive waste. Also in this hour: we look at the strange moments when knowledge is not power. Issues like gun control, nuclear power, vaccinations, and climate change consistently divide the public along ideological lines. Maybe someone just needs to sit down and explain the science better? Stephen Dubner looks into the puzzle of why learning more only makes people more stubborn. Also, we look into conspiracy theories to see how people form their own version of the truth, even when the data contradict it.

For more information on this program, visit www.freakonomicsradio.com.

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