Success Rate Of Zero Humans have gone through two types of societal organization. One has been stable, the other has not. In this post, we will endeavor to explain precisely why this second type of society always ends in collapse. It is far beyond the scope to come up with any large scale remedies to […]
Might Makes Right
Survival Of The Fittest Once upon a time there was no life on Earth. Then something happened (aliens, meteor, lightning, hand of God, etc.) and there was a life form. Maybe a bunch. But they were very simple. They needed to eat, or get some kind of energy from their environment. And for some weird […]
Supply and Demand
Secrets Of The Global Brain These two words, supply and demand, seem very simple. They are known and supposedly understood by virtually anybody. They are ubiquitous, and if you know the words, but are a bit sketchy on the concepts, then you will fully understand them by the end of this post. Despite their simplicity, […]
Tragedy Of The Commons
Why Are The Freeways So Crowded? This is a simple idea from economics that has far reaching ramifications. You’ll find it among roommates, farmers and even in the ocean. It’s called the “tragedy” of the commons because that’s how it always ends. Opposite of how everybody thinks it will end. Set Up Imagine you’ve […]
Excess Capacity
Too Much Brain? Imagine a small coffee shop, just getting by. They have their loyal customers and workers. The owner is a family man, and ekes out a middle class life. Then a bakery moves in next door. The bakery is a sudden hit. Because of the bakery, and the smells that drift into the […]