Energy, Complexity and Wealth Maximization

'Preface.- Glossary of terms.- Glossary of people.- PART I.- CHAPTER 1. A BRIEF HISTORY OF IDEAS: ENERGY, ENTROPY AND EVOLUTION.- 1.1. Aristotle, Descartes, Newton and Leibnitz.- 1.2. Heat: caloric vs phlogiston.- 1.3. The birth of thermodynamics and statistical mechanics.- 1.4. Chemistry: from Lavoisier to Gibbs.- 1.5. Electricity and electromagnetism.- 1.6. Geology and Earth science.- 1.7. Darwin and biological evolution.- 1.8. Ecology.- 1.9. Entropy, exergy, order and information.- 1.10. Monism, "energetics" and economics.- CHAPTER 2. THE COSMOS, THE SUN AND THE EARTH.- 2.1. Relativity, quantum mechanics and astronomy.- 2.2 The black hole in physics.- 2.3 Nucleosynthesis: Love among the nucleons.- 2.4. The Sun and solar system.- 2.5. The elements needed to sustain life (and technology).- 2.6. The terra-forming of Earth.- 2.7. The long-term future of Planet Earth.- 2.8 Summary of pre-biotic evolution.- CHAPTER 3. THE ORIGIN OF LIFE.- 3.1. Exogenesis?.- 3.2. The origin of organic monomers.- 3.3. From monomers to polymers.- 3.4. Self-replication of macromolecules (genes).- 3.5. Genetic code: RNA and DNA.- 3.6. Information transfer: the genetic code.- 3.7. Oxygen photosynthesis.- 3.8. The "Great Oxidation" and the "invention" of respiration.- 3.9. Evolution before the Cambrian explosion.- 3.10. The "Cambrian explosion".- 3.11. Since the asteroid.- 3.12 Down from the trees.- CHAPTER 4. ENERGY, WATER, CLIMATE AND CYCLES.- 4.1. The Earth's energy (exergy) balance.- 4.2. The hydrological cycle.- 4.3. Ocean currents and atmospheric circulation.- 4.4. Climate change.- 4.5. Bio-geochemical cycles.- 4.6. The carbon-oxygen cycle.- 4.7. The nitrogen cycle.- 4.8. The sulfur cycle.- 4.9. The phosphorus cycle.- 4.10. Thermodynamic dis-equilibrium.- Summary of Part I: From the "Big Bang" to nutrient cycles.- PART II.- CHAPTER 5. ENERGY AND TECHNOLOGY.- 5.1. The enhancement of skin.- 5.2. The taming of fire.- 5.3.Transmission of knowledge: writing and replication.- 5.4. The dawn of civilization and the beginning of agriculture.- 5.5. Agricultural surplus and cities.- 5.6. Slavery and conquest.- 5.7. Money and coinage.- 5.8. Productive technology.- CHAPTER 6. THE NEW WORLD - AND SCIENCE.- 6.1. The discovery of the New World.- 6.2. From charcoal and iron to coal and steel.- 6.3. Gunpowder and cannons.- 6.4. Steam power.- 6.5. Town gas, coal tar, aniline dyes and ammonia synthesis.- 6.6. Petroleum.- 6.7. The internal (infernal) combustion engine.- 6.8. Electrification and communications.- 6.9 Telecommunication and digital technology.- 6.9. The demographic transition: the final disproof of Malthus or a prelude?.- CHAPTER 7. ENERGY, TECHNOLOGY AND THE FUTURE.- 7.1. This time is different.- 7.2. "Peak Oil".- 7.3. More on fracking: Is it a game changer?.- 7.4. The inevitable decline of the internal combustion engine.- 7.5 On opportunities for energy efficiency gains by systems integration..- 7.6. Renewables for heat and electric power generation.- PART III.- CHAPTER 8. MAINSTREAM ECONOMICS AND ENERGY.- 8.1. Core ideas in economic theory.- 8.2 On credit, collateral, virtual money and banking.- 8.3 On externalities.- 8.4. Economics as social science.- 8.5. Resources and economics.- 8.6.Resource discoveries as technology incubators.- 8.7. On the geology of resources: scarcity again?.- 8.8. The special case of petroleum.- 8.9. The role of resources in standard economic theory.- CHAPTER 9. NEW PERSPECTIVES ON CAPITAL, WORK, AND WEALTH.- 9.1. Active vs passive capital.- 9.2. Exergy, useful work and production functions.- 9.3. Wealth as "condensed" work and useful complexity.- 9.4. Debt: The downside of financial wealth creation.- 9.5. The direct costs of economic growth.- 9.6. More on economic growth: cycles and bubbles.- 9.7. Planetary limits: The downside of material wealth creation.- 9.8. The "circular economy" and the limits to growth.- 9.9. A Trifecta?.... Mehr