Stephen Dubner

Is that true?

Susskind started what was then called the 30 Million Words Initiative, 30 million being an estimate of how many fewer words a child from a low-income home will have heard than an affluent child by the time they turn four. But these days, the project is called the TMW Center for Early Learning and Public Health.

Susskind started what was then called the 30 Million Words Initiative, 30 million being an estimate of how many fewer words a child from a low-income home will have heard than an affluent child by the time they turn four. But these days, the project is called the TMW Center for Early Learning and Public Health.

Susskind started what was then called the 30 Million Words Initiative, 30 million being an estimate of how many fewer words a child from a low-income home will have heard than an affluent child by the time they turn four. But these days, the project is called the TMW Center for Early Learning and Public Health.

Hot-button because it's so hard to believe that the number is legit?

Hot-button because it's so hard to believe that the number is legit?

Hot-button because it's so hard to believe that the number is legit?

So you didn't make TMW stand for something else?

So you didn't make TMW stand for something else?

So you didn't make TMW stand for something else?

Okay, now you all know it too. Anyway, they started the center with this idea of

Okay, now you all know it too. Anyway, they started the center with this idea of

Okay, now you all know it too. Anyway, they started the center with this idea of

Okay, so far so good. The research is clear that heavy exposure to language is good for the developing brain. But how do you turn that research finding into action? And how do you scale it up?

Okay, so far so good. The research is clear that heavy exposure to language is good for the developing brain. But how do you turn that research finding into action? And how do you scale it up?

Okay, so far so good. The research is clear that heavy exposure to language is good for the developing brain. But how do you turn that research finding into action? And how do you scale it up?

You know, it's a hard one. That is Patti Chamberlain, senior research scientist at Oregon Social Learning Center.

You know, it's a hard one. That is Patti Chamberlain, senior research scientist at Oregon Social Learning Center.

You know, it's a hard one. That is Patti Chamberlain, senior research scientist at Oregon Social Learning Center.

Chamberlain also looks at scaling as a process. So it's almost like there's stages that you have to go through. And if the first stage is research that involves an RCT, a randomized controlled trial, there's already an important choice to make.