In 2019, Philip Esformes went on trial for one of the biggest Medicare fraud cases in history. His longtime family rabbi said Philip Esformes was an upstanding citizen ... when he lived in Chicago.

Malcolm Gladwell was fascinated by this case and the prospect of a city changing a man. He covers this in his forthcoming book Revenge of the Tipping Point: Overstories, Superspreaders, and the Rise of Social Engineering.

Today on the show: How Miami became known as the capital of Medicare fraud. We learn what went wrong in South Florida and what it says about how places may change our behavior.

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Book drama, NVIDIA hype, and private equity Football
How Pitbull got his name on a college football stadium

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There is expected to be a lot of demand for manufacturing jobs in the coming decade, but many of those positions will be left unfilled. So Darnell Epps set out to close that gap by connecting employers with workers and showing potential workers what's appealing about these jobs. Today, we dig into Darnell Epps journey through both law school and trade school.

Related episodes:
One of the hottest jobs in AI right now: 'types-question guy' (Apple / Spotify)
Why it's so hard to mass produce houses in factories (Apple / Spotify)

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Recently, singer/rapper/entrepreneur Pitbull agreed to pay $6 million to Florida International University for the naming rights to its football stadium ... an unusual move for both parties: a musician paying for their name on a stadium, and for a college to name their stadium after a musician.

How does this move benefit the college? How does this move benefit Mr. Worldwide?

In today's episode, what Pitbull and FIU's deal tell us about the fast-changing economics of college sports.

Related Episodes:
The monetization of college sports
The Olympian to influencer pipeline

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The once-thriving Japanese hamlet of Nanmoku was known for its silk and timber industries. Today, it is the country's most aged village, with two-thirds of residents over age 65. On today's show, how the Japanese government is trying to address rural depopulation and attract younger residents to villages like Nanmoku.

Related listening:
Japan had a vibrant economy. Then it fell into a slump for 30 years (Apple / Spotify)
Japan's ninja shortage

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Reclassing, when a student repeats an academic year by choice, is a popular way for kids trying to land a spot in a top college athletics program. But it can also come with some heavy costs. Today on the show, we explore the reclassing phenomenon and pressures kids and their parents face in a competitive environment for young athletes.

Related episodes:
Should schools be paying their college athletes? (Apple / Spotify)
The monetization of college sports (Apple / Spotify)

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On this Indicators of the Week, we take you to a Manhattan bar to watch NVIDIA's latest earnings reports. Plus, how publishers are trying to keep their books in Florida school libraries and what private equity is doing in Football.

Related episodes:
The tower of NVIDIA (Apple / Spotify)
What do private equity firms actually do?

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While the 2024 Paris Olympics are over for some athletes, many competitors are still seeking to capitalize on their fame back on their college campuses. Thanks to the NCAA's 2021 rule changes for Name, Image and Likeness, college athletes are now able to leverage their stardom to maximize their earning potential.

Today on the show, we talk to University of Michigan men's gymnastics star and Olympic medalist Frederick Richard about how he's playing the business game for the long term.

Related episodes:
Why the Olympics cost so much (Apple / Spotify)
You can't spell Olympics without IP (Apple / Spotify)
The monetization of college sports (Apple / Spotify)

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Even with falling interest rates in recent weeks, mortgage rates are still higher than you'd expect.

Mortgage interest rates are usually a little less than two percentage points higher than what you would get on a 10-year Treasury bond. But for the last couple of years that difference has been noticeably higher: 2.6% at the moment. New borrowers have been paying potentially thousands of dollars extra each year on their mortgages.

Today on the show, how mortgage interest rates work and why they're currently out of whack ... with new borrowers footing the bill.

Related Episodes:
Are both rents AND interest rates too dang high?
How mortgage rates get made
The rat under the Fed's hat
AP Macro gets a makeover

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When Shi Zhengrong started making solar panels at the turn of the century, there was basically no solar industry in China. But in the decades that followed, the nation started heavily investing in renewables. Today, we dig into how China became a leader in solar power while following the story of one man: the Sun King.

Related episodes:
Rooftop solar's dark side (Apple / Spotify)
The debate at the heart of new electricity transmission (Apple / Spotify)

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The ascendance of Democratic vice presidential candidate Tim Walz has made the topic of free school lunch a political flashpoint. Over the past several years, several states—including Walz's home state of Minnesota—have created free school lunch programs, to the dismay of some House Republicans who believe government subsidies should go only to needy students.

Today on the show, we break down the economics of school lunch and explore whether universal programs are more effective than targeted programs.

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