NPR.

When the economic snow bell gets announced, we hear the names of some very worthy economists,

but we have to admit it, these are not people that the average person on the street is going

to get excited about, apart from maybe us, of course, at the indicator.

These are academics who work on contract theory or the best way to run an auction.

These are typically not controversial public figures.

In memory of Alfred Nobel.

But this year was a little different.

To Ben Benanke.

So along with Douglas Diamond and Philip Diffig, Ben Benanke won this year's prize in economics.

Ben Benanke, of course, is the former chair of the US Federal Reserve.

And he was the captain steering the ship that was the US economy through the big financial

crisis of 2008 and 2009.

The bank bailouts that he led were controversial on the left.

And on the right.

We're being played for the sucker.

And so we weren't the only ones scratching our heads when we first heard that a prominent

policymaker had won the prize.

And Kutner is an economist at Williams College.

My initial reaction, like up to the first 30 seconds, was like, oh, that's surprising.

I would not have occurred to me.

But then, you know, thinking about it for, you know, five or ten minutes afterwards

...