China was technologically more advanced once. This doesn't work as a counterexample, because they are once again one of the world's largest economies. As was

China was technologically more advanced once. This doesn't work as a counterexample, because they are once again one of the world's largest economies. As was the Middle East. I wonder how (the absolute lack of) natural resources figures into this. Also, Easterly notes the terrible impact that bad leadership can have (indeed, I think that was a major sub-point of the article). And considering all the wars there, I'm guessing that a real infrastructure based on that technology can't accrete very deeply. About the Mayans, I don't know enough...