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When to Rob a Bank summary

Name: When to Rob a Bank
Rating: 4 (90 reviews)
Author: Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner

Steven D. Levitt Stephen J. Dubner

...and 131 more warped suggestions and well-intended rants.

4 (90 ratings)

19 mins

Brief summary

When to Rob a Bank by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner is an unconventional collection of blog posts by the authors, exploring various aspects of economics and society. It offers thought-provoking insights on a wide range of topics, from crime and politics to sports and entertainment.

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When to Rob a Bank
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What’s in it for me? Check out the weird world of economics all around you.

Why should we impose a tax on sex? How come the third chicken wing is sometimes more expensive than the first two? Economics comes into play in so many areas of life that it often goes totally unnoticed.

Since authors Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner published the bestselling Freakonomics, they have continued to collect peculiar and strange economic and statistical facts. Some of these were published on their blog, where readers can send in economics-related oddities they’ve encountered themselves.

These blinks, which present highlights from the authors’ anecdotes and insights, are a testament to the astonishing amount of nonsensical, strange and downright weird things in our world.

In these blinks, you’ll find out

why some names spread like wildfire;
how driving a car is sometimes better for the environment than walking; and
why we should fear the people we know more than we fear strangers.

There’s more to a name than you think.

Every year millions of new parents fret over what to name their bundle of joy. But, personal preference aside, names aren’t all that important, right? Well, in the world of names, there are some strange statistics that indicate quite the opposite.

For one, you should steer clear of people whose middle name is Wayne. How do we know this? One freakonomics reader, M. R. Stewart, has an unusual hobby. She collects newspaper clippings about crime. This is not too wacky in itself, but all the clippings feature perpetrators who have one thing in common: their middle name is Wayne.

Author Stephen Dubner was shocked by the sheer number of clippings and strongly doubted whether anyone could assemble a list that long for any other middle name. As a result, he has now forbidden his daughters, even though they are currently only six years old, to date a boy with the middle name Wayne.

Another strange thing about names is how they catch on. Even the unlikeliest of names can spread like wildfire.

In 1999, there were eight children in the United States named Nevaeh. In 2005, this number rocketed to 4,457. What happened? The sudden name-craze originated in a single event: A 2000 MTV appearance by Christian rockstar Sonny Sandoval, of P.O.D, and his baby girl, Nevaeh, which is “Heaven” spelled backward. For baby girls, the name Nevaeh is now more popular than Sara.

But the peculiarities don’t stop there; some names are uncannily fitting. Since the beginning of freakonomics.com, readers have shared some oddly apt names, like one Idaho man who was arrested for public masturbation after being spotted by a police officer in a public restroom. His surname? Limberhand.

Another reader, who had recently moved away from San Francisco, related how sad he was to leave behind his dentist – Dr. Les Plack.

The world of prices doesn’t make any sense.

It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out the difference between something costing one dollar and something else costing 99 cents. And yet, paying one cent less somehow feels like a much better deal! When it comes to prices, all our common sense seems to fly right out the window.

We really need to watch out for this, though, especially when it comes to our health, as some retailers charge wildly different prices for the same medications.

We fear all the wrong things.

When the authors boldly stated in Superfreakonomics that driving drunk for a mile is far less dangerous than walking drunk for the same distance, people balked at the notion. But we’re worse at gauging risk than we think.

For instance, we now know that horseback riding is more dangerous than riding a motorcycle.

Lying – even when it’s totally puzzling – is also sometimes based in economics.

What was the last lie you told? Perhaps it was an innocent white lie, just to save you or the other person some trouble. But sometimes we lie for strange reasons, and it often hurts us more than we think it will.

People lie even when telling the truth would be beneficial.

We’re doing all the wrong things to save the environment.

Climate change is one of the most pressing issues we face today. But how do we address it, especially when we’re unwittingly worsening the situation by doing things we think will help?

Driving, for example, is sometimes far less harmful to the environment than we think. Renowned environmentalist Chris Goodall calculated that if you walk 1.5 miles, and then replenish the calories lost from your walk with a glass of milk, the impact you have on the environment would be the same as if you drove 1.5 miles in your car and opted out of that cup of milk.

The world of criminals and law enforcement is strangely nonsensical.

What’s the best day to rob a bank? According to one very successful New Jersey bank robber, the answer is Thursday. But that's not the only weird (and perhaps unsettling) piece of advice in the world of crime.

Something a little more helpful to know is that criminals should never be reminded that they’re criminals.

The economics of sex is a strange affair.

Do you think you should be having more sex? Well, we needn’t get that personal, but you might be surprised to know that how often you have sex may contribute to the common good, and furthermore, it could be connected to economics.

It’s actually true that some of us should have more sex – but not for the reasons you might think!

There's economics in everything, but we think about it wrong.

If you’re a freakonomist, you see the economy all around you. You also might know that money and economic trends affect us in ways contrary to what we’ve traditionally been taught.

For example, we’re told to avoid bribery. But bribery is sometimes surprisingly useful – especially with our children and their schoolwork.

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What is When to Rob a Bank about?

When To Rob a Bank (2015) presents a collection of articles published on the Freakonomics blog at freakonomics.com, which has now been going strong for ten years. Honing in on the unpredictable and downright strange, Levitt and Dubner cover everything from why you should avoid anyone whose middle name is Wayne to why some of us should be having more sex than others.

When to Rob a Bank Review

When to Rob a Bank (2015) by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner is a book that challenges conventional wisdom and offers unconventional insights into a wide range of topics. Here's why you should pick it up:

Full of fascinating anecdotes and thought-provoking ideas, it takes you on an intellectual adventure that will make you question the world around you.
With its unorthodox approach to economics and social issues, the book presents fresh perspectives that challenge your preconceived notions.
It's not your typical book about economics. Instead, it focuses on providing entertaining and accessible content that keeps you engaged throughout.

Best quote from When to Rob a Bank

When it comes to evaluating risks, people stink for all sorts of reasons – from cognitive bias to the medias emphasis on rare events.

—Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner

Who should read When to Rob a Bank?

Economics students
Anyone interested in human behavior
Freakonomics fans

About the Author

Steven D. Levitt is Professor of Economics at the University of Chicago. In 2004, he received the John Bates Clark medal for the most influential American economist under forty and, in 2006, was featured as one of Time magazine’s “100 People Who Shape Our World.”

During the 1990s, journalist Stephen J. Dubner worked for The New York Times Magazine. He is now an award-winning author, best known for the co-writing he has done with Steven D. Levitt.

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