The Data Detective

The Data Detective

Author: Pushkin Industries February 2, 2021 Duration: 34:07

Cautionary Tales' host Tim Harford has a new book - The Data Detective - setting out ten commandments for understanding the numbers, charts, graphs and statistics that bombard us every day. In this free extract, Tim explains his extra "golden" rule that allows us to observe all his other commandments - be curious. Enjoy.

Cautionary Tales returns February 26.

The Data Detective (Riverhead Books) is published in the US and Canada on February 2. The same book is available elsewhere under the title How to Make the World Add Up.

(Audio excerpted courtesy of Penguin Random House Audio from The Data Detective by Tim Harford, narrated by the author.)

Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.


There’s a reason we share scary stories-not just to entertain, but to learn. Cautionary Tales with Tim Harford applies that same instinct to the real world, digging into history’s most fascinating blunders and disasters to uncover what they can teach us today. Brought to you by Pushkin Industries, each episode feels like a masterfully told story, where Tim Harford-known for his work at the Financial Times, the BBC, and as author of “The Data Detective”-unpacks a single event. You’ll hear about catastrophic business decisions, scientific hubris, and public policy fiascos, all presented with a blend of narrative flair and sharp analysis. This isn’t just a history podcast; it’s a deep dive into human nature, decision-making, and the unexpected consequences that ripple from a single mistake. Listening feels like having a brilliantly insightful guide explain why things went so terribly, or hilariously, wrong. The stories are gripping on their own, but the real value lies in the lessons they make tangible for our own lives and choices. If you’ve ever wondered how a group of smart people could make a disastrous call, or how a seemingly small error snowballed into legend, this is the podcast for you. New episodes arrive every Friday, ready to transform a true tale of error into a lasting piece of wisdom.
Author: Language: en-us Episodes: 219

Cautionary Tales with Tim Harford
Podcast Episodes
Whistleblower on the 28th Floor [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 31:46
Financial expert Ray Dirks (played by Jeffrey Wright) exposed one of the biggest corporate crimes of all time - and yet he was the one who ended up in front of the Supreme Court.Whistleblowers often face intimidation fro…
Masterly Inactivity Versus Micromanaging [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 32:08
Lady Sale (played by Helena Bonham Carter) was part of a bloody and ignominious British retreat from Afghanistan in 1842. The arrogant colonial invaders had thought intervening in Afghan affairs and dominating the countr…
Demonizing Dungeons & Dragons [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 36:59
When James Dallas Egbert III was reported missing from his college dorm - one of America's most flamboyant private detectives was summoned to solve the case. "Dallas" had many of the same problems that most teenagers fac…
Number Fever: How Pepsi Nearly Went Pop [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 35:02
Pepsi twice ended up in court after promotions went disastrously wrong. Other big companies have fallen into the same trap - promising customers rewards so generous that to fulfil the promise might mean corporate bankrup…
The Curse of Knowledge Meets The Valley of Death [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 33:36
Why were soldiers on horseback told to ride straight into a valley full of enemy cannon? The disastrous "Charge of the Light Brigade" is usually blamed on blundering generals. But the confusing orders issued on that awfu…
The Dunning Kruger Hijack (and Other Criminally Stupid Acts) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 33:12
The hijackers of flight 961 wanted its pilot to fly them to Australia - and wouldn't listen to his pleas that there simply wasn't enough fuel for the mammoth trip. What would cause them to totally disregard the advice of…
Catching a KiIler Doctor [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 33:40
Family doctor Harold Shipman got away with murdering his patients for decades. He was one of the most prolific serial killers in history - but his hundreds of crimes largely went unnoticed despite a vast paper trail of d…
The Art Forger, the Nazi, and "The Pope" [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 35:16
"The Pope" was a revered Dutch art expert - and yet he fell for a not very convincing forgery of a "lost" Vermeer masterpiece. The forger had duped other art connoisseurs too - including the high ranking Nazi Hermann Gör…
Florence Nightingale and Her Geeks Declare War on Death [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 36:00
Victorian nurse Florence Nightingale (played by her distant cousin Helena Bonham Carter) is a hero of modern medicine - but her greatest contribution to combating disease and death resulted from the vivid graphs she made…