Freakonomicists Boldly Go Everywhere

Tyler Cowen notes a new paper by Roland Fryer and Freaky Steve Levitt on the Muslim gender gap in math. This is interesting, but it isn't economics.

It reminded me of this Freakonomics take by the Onion that made me chuckle:

.. "Usually we can count on a stable average of 5 feet 8 inches, but last month's quarter-inch drop in height among Mexican dead-lift competitors in the middle-heavyweight division could spell disaster for GE's aviation and software subsidiaries," freakonomist James Duncan said. "But, like anything else, a shrewd investor must always ask himself one thing: How many hot dogs did I eat last year?"