Mar 07, 2010 the book goes on to recount the case of the new york city man, robert lane, who named his son loser. Robert lane who named one of his sons winner and his lastborn loser. Oct 08, 2012 the winner says, it may be difficult but it is possible. Apr 21, 2009 we wrote in freakonomics about two brothers named winner and loser. Loser, a star student and athlete, went on scholarship to an elite prep school, on to lafayette college in pennsylvania, and then joined the force. What was discovered in their studies is that the less educated parents are, the more predisposed they are to give their children less traditional names. A new york city man, located in harlem, who named his two children winner and loser.
Newbie detective at the scene of the deaths says something along the lines of well, looks like nobody was the winner here today. We can assume that parents have more to do with a childs situation than its name. So she assembled some data, which included the lists we created for our first book, freakonomics, of the whitest and blackest names among baby boys and girls. A rogue economist explores the hidden side of everything is the debut nonfiction book by university of chicago economist steven levitt and new york times journalist stephen j. A roshanda by any other name how do babies with superblack. In name game, loser wins and brother winner loses chicago. He graduated from lafayette college, and became a sargeant in the nypd. This chapter of the book examined the names of children given by their parents. An interesting part of the chapter was the account of the father who named one of his sons winner and his last son loser. What i have learned in my 45 years starting with my first job as a stock boy at kmart in detroit to ceo and chairman of the board of the north american branch of the largest material handling supplier in the world, daifuku, has given me a perspective on human nature. Freakonomics a rogue economist explores the hidden side of everything steven d.
Just like loser before her, marijuana pepsi has made. The hidden side of everything in which the book s central idea is set forth. It was published on april 12, 2005, by william morrow. It is not a paper that strings together other peoples ideas. Jan 03, 2016 according to the california names data, what are many parents trying to signal when they choose a particular name for their child. Freakonomics a rogue economist explores the hidden side of. This study guide consists of approximately 71 pages of chapter summaries, quotes, character analysis, themes, and more everything you need to sharpen your knowledge of freakonomics. This is the message at the heart of freakonomics, levitt and dubners rulebreaking, iconoclastic book about crack dealers, cheating teachers and bizarre baby names that turned everyones view of the world upsidedown and became an international multimillioncopyselling phenomenon. The book provides sound analysis to say that name doesnt matter. The final chapter of this book discusses whether or not the name parents give their child matters. A blog discussing the issues explored in the book by steven levitt and stephen dubner, freakonomics. By late 2009, the book had sold over 4 million copies worldwide.
The story of two brothers named winner and loser in 1958, a new york man named robert lane decided to call his baby son winner. But the book is somewhat oversimplified, because it is targeted to wide audience. When a winner makes a mistake, he says, i was wrong. The book covers lots of different topics, but chapter 6 deals with the socioeconomic patterns of baby naming. These are the sort of questions raisedand answeredin the new book freakonomics.
She lives in new york city, where she enjoys cycling, flea markets, and gardening on her fire escape. In freakonomics, the authors demonstrate the power of data mining. Dubner contents an explanatory note in which the origins of this book are clarified. Freakonomics a rogue economist explores the hidden. The outcome of his childs life was winner fell into plenty of trouble having a lengthy criminal record while his brother loser succeed throughout school, he graduated from lafayette college and joined. In other words, do the majors of the world rise higher than the sergeants. What was discovered in their studies is that the less educated parents are, the more predisposed they are to give their children less traditional names, and nontraditionally spelled names. The book predicts that in the year 2015, girl names such as ava, maya, sophie, isabel, and emma will be very common, along with boy names such as carter, jackson, oliver, will, and aidan. Freakonomics freakonomics a rogue economist explores the hidden side of everything steven d. Aug 07, 2019 so she assembled some data, which included the lists we created for our first book, freakonomics, of the whitest and blackest names among baby boys and girls. The biggest loser is a book of colorful pictures, advice from the shows trainers bob harper and jillian michaels, a short explanation of the biggest loser diet plan, a 12week exercise routine, lowcarbrecipes, and remarks from the contestants of the show. The final chapter of the book will study the influence of baby names on a childs life.
Mar 14, 2018 my first name defines the year i was born. A great story where a guy named his kids winner and loser to see what would happen to them. The story of these two brothers matched the findings of my academic research with roland fryer, which found no impact of a childs name on her life. So, does the name you give your child affect his life. The jocular screen adaptation of the 2005 best seller freakonomics. Levitt gives an anecdote about a new york city man named robert lane gave his son the name winner, and then named his next son loser. This might explain why, in 1958, a new york city man named robert lane decided to call his baby son winner. So the white females names were molly, amy, claire, emily, katie, madeline, katelyn and emma. Oct 01, 2010 the jocular screen adaptation of the 2005 best seller freakonomics. You are required to write a sixpage essay based upon freakonomics, by levitt and dubner. These examples cannot draw definitive conclusions, though, because they all vary while temptress became what her name was, winner and loser grew up to become opposite of their own. According to the california names data, what are many parents trying to signal when they choose a particular name for their child. Loser later investigated an incident of a young man killing people by writing their names in a notebook. Kowitt has written more than forty books for younger readers, including the loser list, draculas decomposition book, and the sweetheart deal.
If nothing else, our publishers have resigned themselves to our unyielding bad taste. Familys winner becomes a loser and loser a winner august 1, 2002 the name of the game is not always what it seems to be, sean gardiner writes from new york. In spite of the difficulties his name presented throughout his life, loser was a success. Winnerloser showed that a childs name will not affect its life, but temptress proved the opposite. Does psychology show that people with the same name have. Lane gave his son the name winner, and then named his next son loser. But if winner lane could hardly be expected to fail, could loser lane.
Clearly he had the right ideathat naming is destinybut he must have gotten the boys mixed up. The story about the brothers winner and loser doesnt prove anything, but is fun to know and my son has toyed with going by the nickname shithead. Would young temptress still have landed in trouble if she had been named, say, chastity. Winner and loser both lived different lives, contrary to what their names are, while temptress actually became what her name was. Does a persons first name tend to define them, mold them. Instead, it is your analysis of the situations presented by the authors. Aug 01, 2002 loser, a star student and athlete, went on scholarship to an elite prep school, on to lafayette college in pennsylvania, and then joined the force. Three years later, the lanes had another baby boy, their seventh and last child. A roshanda by any other name how do babies with super. The story of these two brothers matched the findings of my academic research with roland fryer, which found no impact of a childs name on her life now, from the milwaukee journalsentinel, we have the story of three sisters. In freakonomics by stephen dubner and steven levit there is an example of two brothers who were named loser and winner.
The story of two brothers named winner and loser sahio. In either case, what kind of signal does a childs name send to the worldand most important, does it really matter. Of course he and i have some similarities, but then we would have had thos. Winner, loser and their amazing story in 1958, a new york man named robert lane decided to call his baby son winner.
Many of their results emerge from levitts analysis of various databases, and his creativity in asking the right questions. It also happens to be the middle name of one of my uncles. Freakonomics chapter 6 quicktopic free message board hosting. The book also led to the establishment of a radio program, a followup book, super freakonomics, a highly rated documentary film, and a prizewinning blog classified as the most readable economics blog in the world. Please actually read the book freakonomics before commenting on the blog.
Temptress and amcher are both noted for their unusual names, and they both came to the albany. The final chapter of this book discusses whether or not the name. In freakonomics, there was a chapter about names, debating this exact question. May 15, 2015 a decade ago, the first freakonomics book tied together a number of bright ideas about economics and the modern world in a quirky, accessible way, and sold in vast numbers. Contrary to what his name suggests, loser lane succeeded in life, moving up in the new york city police. Nov 16, 2007 an interesting part of the chapter was the account of the father who named one of his sons winner and his last son loser. Aug 12, 2008 the book covers lots of different topics, but chapter 6 deals with the socioeconomic patterns of baby naming.
Citing winner vs loser, its certainly not the the main determiner of success, but does,i think factor in. The authors make their predictions based on the popularity of these names among upperclass families in the year 2005. The winner says, it may be difficult but it is possible. They seemed to suggest that at the end of the chapter, but at the beginning offered the anecdote of the two children named loser and winner and how neither name fit. Clearly he had the right ideathat naming is destinybut he must have gotten the. These examples cannot draw definitive conclusions, though, because they all vary while temptress became what her name. Name book and the title was names beyond jennifer and jason her husbands name is jason. Does a persons first name tend to define them, mold them, or. But for the brothers lane it was not a case of their unique names sealing their fates. Thanks to a wide array of websites, books, and even consultants dedicated to. The most notable achievement of winner lanes life was the length of his criminal record.
What do the experiences of winner lane, loser lane, and temptress tell us about the likely relationship between a childs name and hisher prospects for success in life. The lanes, who lived in a housing project in harlem, already had several children, each with a fairly typical name. The book went on to sell over 4 million prints across the globe in 35 different languages. The loser says, it may be possible but it is too difficult. It was usually a reader who would bring a mistake to our attention, and we very much appreciate this input. If this book is any good, you have yourselves to thank as well. Winner, loser, and marijuana pepsi freakonomics freakonomics. Conversely, to what the name loser signified, loser who was nicknamed as lou. Robert lane of new york city named his sons winner and loser. Contents an explanatory note vi in which the origins of this book are clari. Freakonomics chapter 6 quicktopic free message board. We learn that loser, or lou as his friends call him, went to college and joined the new york police department.
I also felt a little like the authors kind of went back and forth on how aspirational names were. Freakonomics 2010 cast and crew credits, including actors, actresses, directors, writers and more. Boy who was given the name winner and who turned out to have an abominable crime record. This is not a report, and it is not just a summary. In chapter 6, the authors explore the topic of names and, specifically, whether a persons given name affects his. The original new york times magazine article about steven d. A decade ago, the first freakonomics book tied together a number of bright ideas about economics and the modern world in a quirky, accessible way, and sold in vast numbers. The book has been described as melding pop culture with economics. The whole book is interesting by my fellow name nerds will appreciate chapter 6 which explains the socioeconomic patters of naming children. Next section glossary previous section freakonomics summary buy study guide. In a very small way names can correlate with your personality.
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