Choosing Better

Enoch Hill and Tim Taylor
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  • Social Sciences
  • Updated weekly

Conversations about wacky ideas, economics, and the art of living well.

  1. 4 days ago

    Your Grocery Store is Watching: How AI Prices You Personally

    Are we entering a dystopian future of grocery shopping if your personal data is being used to set hyper-specific prices just for you? And what if that price changes based upon the day of the week, time of day, how fast you drove to the grocery store, or in what order you did your shopping? Maryland recently became the first state to ban AI-enabled “surveillance pricing” on grocery stores. That sounds like a good thing, but what if we benefit from targeted prices? Join Enoch and Tim as they discuss the nature of price discrimination and who wins/loses when firms know what we are willing to pay. We highly recommend you listen to our previous episode: AJust Price or Juts a Price? Recording Date: May 27, 2026Credits: Drew Elliot (music)

    1hr 2min

  2. 12 Jun

    Why Gaza Grips the West: The Enduring Civilization Legacy of Abrahamic Faith Traditions

    Why does a war in Gaza dominate global headlines while equally devastating conflicts like Sudan barely register in public consciousness? Enoch and Tim explore this striking imbalance, noting that the disparity is especially pronounced in Western contexts while many Asian societies follow Israel–Gaza with far less urgency. They suggest this pattern reveals something deeper than geopolitics: the enduring civilizational influence of the Abrahamic traditions on Western moral imagination. Even in a largely post-Christian Europe and North America, historical, religious, and cultural ties to the biblical world continue to shape what the West notices, debates, and grieves. Recording Date: April 30, 2026 Credits: Drew Elliot (music)

    55 min

  3. 29 May

    Behind the Pump: Geopolitics in Your Tank

    What are you really paying for when you fill up your tank? Enoch and Tim unpack the true cost of a gallon of gasoline, and it is far beyond crude oil, refining, and taxes. Using the recent closure of the Strait of Hormuz as a real-time case study, they trace how a distant geopolitical chokepoint drove U.S. gas prices over 50% in just weeks, despite America’s “energy independence.” Along the way, they explore the hidden prices embedded in every gallon: U.S. Navy protection of shipping lanes, environmental damage, and the global “law of one price” that ties American consumers to events half a world away. They conclude with looking at what a prolonged Hormuz disruption would mean, why it could permanently reshape global energy routes, and explore how we can choose better in a world where energy security, economics, and geopolitics are inseparable. Recording Date: May 20, 2026 Credits: Drew Elliot (music)

    1hr 8min

  4. 15 May

    Sports and Economics Part 2: Salary Caps and the Stadium Game

    In this second episode, Enoch and Tim go deeper into the machinery of professional sports economics. How do salary caps really work, and who do they really help? What is a player actually worth to a team? And when a city spends hundreds of millions of dollars to build a new stadium, is it a good deal for taxpayers? The answers turn out to be more surprising than most sports fans may expect. Recording Date: April 23, 2026 Credits: Drew Elliot (music)

    33 min

  5. 8 May

    Sports and Economics Part 1: It’s All Rigged (On Purpose)

    Economics isn't just for the classroom or the boardroom; it's baked into every corner of professional sports. In this first installment of their Sports and Economics series, Enoch and Tim explore how leagues deliberately design institutions andrules to shape competition, and how economic reasoning shows up in surprising places: from the structure of the NFL draft to the direction of a penalty kick (and why we may want to roll a dice before taking a penalty kick). Record Date: April 14, 2026 Credits: Drew Elliot (music)

    1hr 2min

  6. 24 Apr

    Children in an Age of AI

    Should we change how we raise our kids, preparing them for the future, knowing they will enter college and begin their careers with AI? Enoch and Tim reflect on how the rise of AI should shape the way we raise and prepare our children. They discuss the reality that today’s kids will enter college and careers with AI as a constant companion, and they wrestle with how to cultivate habits, character, and critical thinking that lead to genuine flourishing amid rapid technological change. Rather than offering simple answers, the conversation models a thoughtful, values-driven approach to parenting in an uncertain AI future. And they share what majors they recommend when AI presents uncertainty. Record Date: March 19, 2026 Credits: Drew Elliot (music)

    41 min

  7. 10 Apr

    Testing What Matters: How Assessment Shapes Education

    How we test students reveals what we truly value in education and simultaneously shapes the incentives of everyone in the classroom. Enoch and Tim discuss the economics of educational assessment, arguing that every test design sends signals to teachers and students about what is worth knowing and how it should be taught. They explore testing practices, from Finland's minimal standardized testing culture to the high-stakes approaches found in other countries, exploring the tradeoffs embedded in each model. Highlighting the remarkable story of Mississippi, which overhauled its approach to reading instruction and assessment after sitting at the bottom of national literacy rankings, Enoch and Tim unpack how a deliberate change in testing philosophy helped drive some of the most significant gains in childhood literacy seen anywhere in the country. Record Date: February 12, 2026 Credits: Drew Elliot (music)

    55 min

  8. 27 Mar

    Economics and Life Hacks Part 2: How to Make Better Decisions about Time and Money

    In the second part of this series, Enoch and Tim talk about more ways economics can help us make better decisions and live more joyful lives. They discuss the endowment effect, how we tend to overvalue things in our possession, to understand when to let things go. And perhaps most important of all, they discuss opportunity costs and a holistic view of income to help us maximize decisions and think carefully about the use of our time and what we value. We hope these episodes help you to choose better. Link to Economics and Life Hacks Part I   Credits: Drew Elliot (music) Recording Date: January 8, 2026

    54 min
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About

Conversations about wacky ideas, economics, and the art of living well.

Information

  • Creator
    Enoch Hill and Tim Taylor
  • Years Active
    2023 - 2026
  • Episodes
    73
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Enoch Hill and Tim Taylor
  • Show Website
    Choosing Better

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