Whenever we replay an old episode like we're doing today with one of my all-time favorite conversations with Sendel Mulanatin,

I always had a few words of context at the beginning to give listeners an idea of why we chose this particular episode.

And with Sendel, I thought, I'll just say,

he's one of my absolute favorite people in the world.

But then I had the good sense to re-listen to our original conversation,

only to realize that is the exact phrase I used to introduce Sendle

in the original episode a few years ago.

For me, there's no one more fun to talk to than Sandal.

I am especially excited about today's episode

because my guest is Sandal Mulanaten,

one of my absolute favorite people in the world.

Sendal is a world-class economist and MacArthur Genius recipient

and holds a university professorship at the University of Chicago. That's a special position

reserved for only the most highly esteemed faculty. Only 10 of the university's 3,000 faculty

members have that title. What makes Sendell so special? His mix of brilliance and childlike curiosity make him unlike anyone I've

ever known. His research reflects his curiosity. He's written about everything from racial bias and

artificial intelligence algorithms to the psychological effects of poverty, from the determinants of

CEO pay to corruption and who gets a driver's license in India.

Welcome to people I mostly admire with Steve Levitt.

I've known Sandel for 25 years, but it wasn't until he left Harvard to come to the University of Chicago a few years back that I came to fully appreciate

him. Lots of people are interesting if you only talk to them once a year, but not many people

can make everyday conversation fascinating. He just never fails to amaze me with his creativity

...