13. The "No-Lose Lottery," Part 2

A ruthless (and ruthlessly efficient) industry is using digital tools to supercharge one of the world’s oldest behaviors. We look at how the industry works, and ask the scam-fighters what they’re doing about it. SOURCES: Kati Daffan, former assistant director at the Federal Trade ...  Show more

Economists don’t usually talk about “culture.” But Joel Mokyr argues that it’s the engine of innovation — and the Nobel Prize committee agreed. Stephen Dubner sits down for a thousand-year conversation (including advice!) with the new Nobel laureate. SOURCES: Joel Mokyr, economic ...  Show more

A chance of luck, a stroke of fortune, a twist to beat the odds… The lottery represents hopes and dreams—but not everyone's willing to wait for their lucky day. These criminals set out to rig the system through cons, theft, and even murder. Ash and Alaina stack up the ten most st ...  Show more

From scratchers to the Powerball, the lottery is the most popular form of gambling in the United States, even though the odds of winning a big jackpot is infinitesimally small. Jonathan D. Cohen is a historian and the author of the book  For a Dollar and a Dream; State Lott ...

Why do so many people feel that the financial system is rigged against the average person, that the system is built to benefit the elite at the expense of the average person?In this podcast Maya has a frank discussion with David Buckham, founder and CEO of Monocle Solutions and a ...  Show more

It happens every year as tax season comes around in the US. Numerous media outlets publish excoriating investigations of wealthy corporations and individuals that, somehow, don't seem to be paying taxes. And the majority of American citizens believe the system is, in one way o ...