Collapse of Complex Societies
Complicated vs. Complex
- reminds me of Simple Made Easy by Rich Hickey
- complex societies consume more energy
- hunter gatherer vs. today
Why become more complex?
- to help solve problems
- energy complexity spiral–becoming more complex requires more energy
- currently, complexity appears to be free because we pay for it via fossil fuels
- collapse happens due to declining marginal returns from complexity and its cost increase
Historic Example
- Byzantine Empire simplified into a soft landing due to outside (Arabian) forces–deprived the Byzantine’s of revenue from taxes.
Soft landing from:
- reduced the size of the army
- many cities abandoned
- Sustainability = Energy + Innovation
- All easy innovations have been achieved and is now more complicated (based at number of patents and people involved per patent).