3 ms·
Also, an often-forgotten historical fact is that the Dutch Golden Age – (circa 1600-1700, highest per capita income of the world, 60% urbanization) – was also
by BlueTemplar 6y ago
Also, an often-forgotten historical fact is that the Dutch Golden Age –
(circa 1600-1700, highest per capita income of the world, 60% urbanization)
– was also (mostly?) powered by a fossil fuel : peat. (Which drowned their country in the process of digging it.)
https://www.lowtechmagazine.com/2011/09/peat-and-coal-fossil-fuels-in-pre-industrial-times.html https://www.lowtechmagazine.com/2011/09/peat-and-coal-fossil...
- wombatmobile 6y agoThat's a great article, thanks for linking to it. Energy can explain so much about human endeavours in so few words. I've read quite a lot of history, but Richard Rhodes' book Energy, A Human History, gave me a perspective unlike any other. Who would have thought that the laws of thermodynamics would be so important a mechanism for social science? Well, I suppose physicists might, but social scientists usually not.
- BlueTemplar 6y agoWell, after all societies are also dissipative structures... http://www.francois-roddier.fr/blog_en/?p=29 http://www.francois-roddier.fr/blog_en/?p=29
- AareyBaba 6y agoThat was a very interesting article. The seperate thermal and kinetic energy usage in medieval times was something I hadn't thought about.