My guest today, Tim Harford, has an uncanny gift for making economics interesting.

His first book, The Undercover Economist, came out over 15 years ago,

and it's still the first book I recommend to anyone who ask me for advice about what to read.

He's wildly popular in the United Kingdom, where he has a weekly column in

the Financial Times, and he hosts a popular BBC radio show that investigates the accuracy of statistical

claims in the news. Outside the UK, well, he's not as well known as he should be, but that might

change with his latest book, The Data Detective, 10 Easy Rules to Make Sense of Statistics.

Welcome to People I Mostly Admire with Steve Levitt.

I first met Tim Harford right before Freakonomics was published. I was literally the first person

he ever interviewed. He wasn't even a journalist.

He was working at the World Bank, hoping to start a second career. Usually, I would turn down

interview requests like that without a second thought, but something made me think it would be

worthwhile. And indeed, he turned out to be the second most interesting, clever journalist

I've ever interacted with.

After Stephen Dubner, of course.

Tim Harford, in the past, it's always been you interviewing me. Today, I exact my revenge,

and I hope you're ready. I'm ready as I'll ever be, Steve. It's great to join you on the show. We've all heard of Florence Nightingale, the lady with the lamp, who became

famous during the Crimean War and the pioneer in nursing. But in your new book, the data detective,

you tell a side of Florence Nightingale I had never heard of. Would you mind telling it to the listeners?

Florence Nightingale, she's famous as a nurse. She was the first female member of the Royal Statistical Society.

She's celebrated as a statistician in Nerdland. And Steve, I thought you were a citizen of Nerdland,

so I thought you would have known this, but perhaps not. I guess I'm not an official

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