Ecological Limits to Economic Growth

Economy | Information | History | Online | Facts | World | Global | Money

1. Kudos from the Gund Insitute! For our latest EcoMedia of Fascinating Ecological Economic Research in Action visit our YouTube Channel
2. @linghun You're just talking about a hypothetical situation right now. because none of this will ever happen. Molecular electronics aren't economical OR practical for now or the future. 
3. @linghun 3d printing technology can't "make asteroids" and it can't make photovoltaic cells out of thin air and can't make rocket propellent. I think you're thinking of nanotechnology. Even if it were possible, the amount of work that can be performed is limited by how much energy can be stored or used from the sun. 
4. @keithlogan365 Most modern economic theories and quasieconomic theories are bullshit. We were supposed to have colonies on Mars, by now, according to them. The problems the West is currently experiencing is due to the lack of scientific advancement. Scientific advancement is turning out to not be exponential . The current level of technology that we enjoy and the current economic system we enjoy seem to be increasingly dependant on high volumes fossil fuels. 
5. @LiquidRio I'm sure hemp has its own limits too. Only so much hemp can be reserved for fuels. Most biofuels have a poor energy return on energy invested so I'm not sure it'll be worth it as time goes on.
6. @MDKKnD Space travel isn't possible. There's no political will to divert all of the world's resources towards space travel because that's what it would take for space travel to happen. Even if there was a political will , energy would be a hindrance. Current solar power technology and nuclear fuel are insufficient to the large energy demands of space colonization and travel. Where's all that energy going to come from?
7. What is it a good idea to discredit physiocracy. Maybe the common sense of it has been lost in the complexities of the economic science. Value is certainly not just based on size of cultivated land, but we must acknowledge the dependency on it, and on fossil fuels, for a healthy sustainable economy
8. How can we expand the manufacturing sector over the long run without expanding the raw material and energy inputs? Also, looking at the human economy from a global perspective (not a national one), the size of the manufacturing and service sectors are indeed contingent upon the size of the agricultural sector. Based on your argument, we could quit farming altogether and produce more manufactured goods and information services. As for suggested reading, check out the works of Herman Daly.
9. Dear Keith, Regardless of how you label the trophic structure of the economy, it is clear that we can't have service sectors and more and more specialized sectors without an agricultural and extractive surplus. If you can explain otherwise, without leveling insults, then please do so.