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Volume 58, Issue 13 | WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 2023 | ndsmcobserver.com
‘Freakonomics’ co-author speaks at ND “Economists and prostitutes have a lot in common … for the right price we’ll do anything.” By KELSEY QUINT News Writer
Ta x f raud, terrorists’ check ing accounts a nd prost itut ion were just a few of t he topics covered in a g uest lecture Friday by awa rd-w inning economist a nd aut hor Steven Lev itt. The ta l k — ent it led “Frea konomics : A Rog ue Economist Ex plores t he Hidden Side of Ever y t hing” — was pa r t of t he a nnua l Thomas H. Quinn Lecture series. Mendoza Col lege of Business dea n Ma r t ijn Cremers int roduced Lev itt, a n economist a nd co-aut hor
of “Frea konomics.” The book spent more t ha n eight yea rs on t he New York Times bestseller list in t he U.S. a nd sold over 7 million copies worldw ide. Current ly, Lev itt is a Universit y of Chicago economics professor. Throughout t he lecture, Lev itt sha red a necdotes f rom his ca reer as a resea rcher.
Prostitute guest tures to college nomics class
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One such stor y was about what Lev itt sa id was t he one case where somebody actua lly took his economic adv ice.
W hile conduct ing resea rch on prost itut ion in Chicago, Lev itt received a n ema il f rom a n escor t in t he a rea t hat wa nted to offer data towa rds t he study. Lev itt accepted, t ha n k f u l for t he step for wa rd. “So I had t he problem, I had to go to my w ife a nd say, ‘Actua lly, okay, I’m going to go have lunch w it h a prost itute, but I swea r to God, she ca lled me a nd not v ice versa,’” Lev itt sa id. “I went a nd I met her, fascinating woma n. She had a college deg ree. She had been a computer prog ra mmer … she used her computer prog ra mming sk ills to build a
Belles’ BookNook club hosts picnic read-in
webpage a nd w it hin a few mont hs she was ma k ing t wo to t hree t imes as much, work ing about 15 hours a week.” During lunch, Lev itt decided to ask about pricing. Rea li zing her status as a loca l monopoly, Lev itt joked a nd adv ised t hat — economica l ly spea k ing — she shou ld ra ise her price. Later t hat yea r at t he Universit y of Chicago, Lev itt decided to add a lecture on his prost itut ion resea rch to a n economics course he was teaching. “So, I had t his idea. W hy don’t I inv ite my new prost itute f riend to come g uest
see LECTURE PAGE 4
Farley Hall rector departs Observer Staff Report
Katelyn Waldschmidt | The Observer
lecture in my class? ” Lev itt sa id. “Economists a nd prost itutes have a lot in common … for t he right price we’l l do a ny t hing. So I sa id to her, ‘W hat if I pa id you your hourly wage ? ’” At t he end of t he lecture, students asked quest ions, including a quest ion about pricing. In response, Lev itt’s f riend replied t hat she cha rged $400 per hour — a n increase f rom t he prev ious $ 300 per hour price. “I was so a ng r y, because in our negot iat ions, I sa id I’d pay her hourly wage, which I k new wou ld be $ 300
Farley Hall rector Tricia McCarthy will not return from temporary leave, according to a Sept. 15 email to the Farley community by Breyan Tornifolio, director of Residential Life for residential education. The announcement included a note from McCarthy. “Life in Farley has taught
me to always be prepared for the unexpected — a late night hallway chat, a chapel leak, processing to Pop’s grave by candlelight or the best bagel flavor being there on a Thursday morning,” McCarthy wrote. “It is with sadness and gratitude that I share that I will not be returning to Farley as I take time to care for some unexpected see FARLEY PAGE 4
The Belles’ BookNook club hosted their first club event Monday at Lake Marian, featuring a picnic style “read-in.” Participants read works from U.S. Poet Laureate Ada Limón, who will speak at Saint Mary’s.
The Belles’ BookNook club hosted a picnic style “read-in” event at the island on Lake Marian at Saint Mary’s on Monday afternoon. Madison Suseland, the club’s vice president, described the club as an English, reading and writing club. She explained that the event was organized to give students the opportunity to relax while enjoying literature. “We came up with this
idea at one of our meetings,” Suseland. “It had been done by the previous Belles’ BookNook board last year, so we thought it would be a really good idea to just come out to the island on a nice day and have a picnic style ‘read-in,’ so we could just lounge and enjoy the sun.” The “read-in” was club’s first event of the school year. Belles’ BookNook secretary Leeanna Silkworth said she appreciated how inclusive the club was of students with different majors, varying
FUTURE FEST
TAMPICO
By AMELIA BOSTETTER News Writer
news PAGE 4
viewpoint PAGE 6
academic schedules and extracurricular commitments. “I’m here because I just really like reading and writing, and while that may not be one of my majors specifically, I do just really enjoy doing that,” Silkworth said. “I thought BookNook was the perfect opportunity for me to pursue some of the paths that I don’t necessarily do in school.” Suseland also explained what drew her to the Belles’ BookNook. see BOOKNOOK PAGE 3
Peter Breen | The Observer
Carol Latronica, a former Welsh Family Hall rector, will join Farley Hall staff as interim rector after the departure of Tricia McCarthy.
BOTTOMS Scene PAGE 7
women’s golf PAGE 10
football PAGE 12