Slashdot Mirror
On The Collapse of Complex Societies
One of the mailing lists that I'm on had a great short essay about the disastrous decision that societies can make - and their consequences. The author is Jared Diamond, who also wrote Guns, Germs and Steel (First Slashdot book review was that book), and is still one of the most interesting books I've read in a while.
Slashdot: On The Collapse of Complex Web Servers
The adage popular then was that students who got A's did the technical work, while people who managed only C's wound up running things.
That this adage may no longer hold true seems like progress.
After all those years of hard work, getting ready to rule the world, they switch the rules of the game just as I leave!
First of all, a group may fail to anticipate a problem before the problem actually arrives.
-- My girlfriend and I will be together forever.
Secondly, when the problem arrives, the group may fail to perceive the problem.
-- She is not interested in other guys, we are simply growing closer.
Then, after they perceive the problem, they may fail even to try to solve the problem.
-- Her dating other guys is simply a cry for more attention.
Finally, they may try to solve it but may fail in their attempts to do so.
-- I will win her back with chocolates and poetry.
"This isn't a study in computer science, its a study in human behavior"
was telling one girl that another had sex with her football star boyfriend...
The Easter Islanders gradually chopped down that forest to use the wood for canoes, firewood, transporting statues, raising statues, and carving and also to protect against soil erosion. Eventually they chopped down all the forests to the point where all the tree species were extinct, which meant that they ran out of canoes, they could no longer erect statues, there were no longer trees to protect the topsoil against erosion, and their society collapsed in an epidemic of cannibalism that left 90 percent of the islanders dead.
But for the 10% of slacker, cannibalistic, sun worshipping Easter Islanders this was a golden age.
Quick! Harvest him before someone else does.
Recently, a well-spoken mackerel was nominated for a Pulitzer!
but if I came across the last tree on an island which is quickly converting to cannabalism, my thought would be closer to "building a boat and getting my ass off this island is more important than preserving the environment."
Studies have also shown that some of New York's teams play in New Jersey.
The Easter Islanders didn't have the Lorax speaking for the trees? I guess we're lucky.
Fuck Economics. The man's article was about disaster and how to possibly avoid future ones.
If avoiding future disasters means throwing out current economic models, then good riddance!
In the course of every project, it will become necessary to shoot the scientists and begin production.
No.
It was because their religion predicated their rulers repeatedly stabbing their foreskins with stingray spines.
That, and obviously, not enough drugs.
the preceding comment is my own and in no way reflects the opinion of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
--the one I read was that advanced civilization came about from beer. Guys accidentaly had some wild grain ferment in some gourd, they drink/eat it, get drunk, liked it. Being hunter gatherer's, they stripped the local grain supply, moved on until they found abundance. Then your scenario takes over, controlled agriculture comes about, they settle in one area, villages arise, trade starts, division of labor, etc, etc.
Probably fire and metal working in there, too, someplace, but I think beer and then therefore an abundance of drunk babes did most of it. Occams razor.
"essey"
Apparently you didn't use the spell check either when writing an essay; would that qualify you as a teacher's pet. Yes I am a troll, but I couldn't resist.
it did happen it would be a really great example of tunneling
:D
No, a really great example of tunnling would be if several million dollars in cash "tunneled" out of a bank vault and into my basement
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- - You can't take something off the Internet! That's like trying to take pee out of a swimming pool.
Reminds me of Monty Python..."it's just a flesh wound."