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Tag Archives: complex systems
The Global Economy Could Fall Farther and Faster Than Pundits Expect
The Global Economy Could Fall Farther and Faster Than Pundits Expect Systemic fragility doesn’t respond to central bank jawboning or Keynesian claptrap; unlike those “policy tools,” fragility is real. The core narrative of central bank/cartel capitalism is centralized agencies have the power to limit downturns and extend credit-based “good times” almost indefinitely. The centralized power bag […]
Sociocultural Boundaries
Sociocultural Boundaries Some years ago now a team of Swedish scientists proposed an interesting framework for understanding planetary environmental problems. It generated a range of responses from the environmental community, mostly positive. I had what is undoubtedly a very unusual response to their framework, and while it is perhaps old news, it may still be […]
The Permaculture City: Cities as Complex Systems
The Permaculture City: Cities as Complex Systems The following sections are excerpted with permission from Chapter 1 of Toby Hemenway’s new book The Permaculture City, published by Chelsea Green. When a permaculturist sees words such as “function” and “synergy,” it sets off lightbulbs in his or her head. Function, for example, indicates a relationship, a connection […]
China: Doomed If You Do, Doomed If You Don’t
China: Doomed If You Do, Doomed If You Don’t Whichever option China chooses, it loses. Many commentators have ably explained the double-bind the central banks of the world find themselves in. Doing more of what’s failed is, well, failing to generate the desired results, but doing nothing also presents risks. China’s double-bind is especially instructive. While there an […]
It Just Doesn’t Matter
It Just Doesn’t Matter When an avalanche is about to descend upon you, does it really matter which snowflake was the penultimate cause? While it’s interesting (in a mental masturbation kind of way) to debate the genesis of a pending market collapse, environmental chaos, or energy cliff, in the end, it really doesn’t matter–unless, of course, […]
Progress in an Uncertain World
Progress in an Uncertain World Strong Towns is often accused of offering doom-and-gloom diagnoses of problems but being light on solutions. “You don’t tell us what we can actually DO to fix our insolvent cities,” goes the response. “You’re just so negative all the time.” This is not true, but I also don’t think it’s […]
Why is it So Hard for the West to See Everything is Connected?
Why is it So Hard for the West to See Everything is Connected? QUESTION: Marty, you have written many times how everything is connected and how in Asian culture that is the foundation of all understanding. Why is it so hard in the West to comprehend this fundamental concept? All the best GD ANSWER: I think it […]
Welcome to Blackswansville
Welcome to Blackswansville While the folks clogging the US tattoo parlors may not have noticed, things are beginning to look a little World War one-ish out there. Except the current blossoming world conflict is being fought not with massed troops and tanks but with interest rates and repayment schedules. Germany now dawdles in reply to […]
Kondratiev Goes Surfing
Kondratiev Goes Surfing “Excursions from the comfort of the normal to the uncertainty of the new typically happen brutally and violently.” We read recently in aSouthern California newspaper that climate change may wreck the shape and direction of waves that make for some of the world’s best surfing beaches. We wondered if it might have a […]
The systems view of life – a unifying vision (part 2)
The systems view of life – a unifying vision (part 2) In this episode I have the great honor of connecting with scientist, educator, activist, and author Fritjof CapraP.hd. He was born in Vienna, and studied physics and systems theory, and became well known for his first book,The Tao of Physics (1975). In this book, and in […]
Keep It Simple And Complex, Stupid
Keep It Simple And Complex, Stupid My last post supporting the use of nonlinear models (“You Do Need A Weatherman”) generated some thoughtful responses, mainly along the lines of this post by Ari Andricopoulos entitled “A View on the Economic Model Debate from a Non-economist (but someone who builds models for a living)”. The basic argument is that […]
We Ignore Unintended Consequences At Our Peril
We Ignore Unintended Consequences At Our Peril They’ll likely define our future more than the intended ones Early in my business career, I was faced with a challenge that gave me an appreciation for a critical lesson about life and business. It’s that oftentimes, even with the best of intentions, our actions create consequences completely […]
