Wednesday, July 25, 2012

What's Wrong With Cash for Grades?

What's Wrong With Cash for Grades?:
If we want our kids to thrive in school, maybe we should just pay them.

SciFri: Relishing the Science of the BBQ

SciFri: Relishing the Science of the BBQ: Mayo myth-busters, a ketchup jar that never jams, and a salute to the pickle.

SciFri: What's Your IQ on SPF?

SciFri: What's Your IQ on SPF?: A look at the science of sunscreen: how it intercepts the sun's rays, whether it blocks vitamin D production, and what SPF really means.

Allowance, Taxes And Potty Training

It's really, really hard to create the right kind of economic incentives — even if you're a professional economist, and all you're trying to do is teach your kids to use the toilet.

On today's Planet Money, we talk to economist Joshua Gans and his 11-year-old daughter.

Tuesday, July 24, 2012

LEGO Gets Leg Up On Toy Competitors

May 24, 2010

The Danish toy company LEGO sailed through the recession. The company that makes those brightly colored snap-together plastic bricks, announced its profits last year jumped more than 60 percent. LEGO's success is all the more remarkable when you consider that just a few years ago, the toy company was falling apart.