A talk about how and why institutions grow with energy use.

I dissect how neoclassical economics treats (neglects) natural resources, and discuss ways to fix it.

I discuss my research on income and hierarchy with Steve Keen and Phil Dobbie

I show how hierarchy grows with economic development — something that neoclassical economics says shouldn’t happen.

What if the free market has never been about freedom?

I discuss biophysical constraints on our ability to cope with the current pandemic.

Politics determine government size, right? Yes and no. I show here that there’s more to government size than just politics.

Governments are different than firms, right? Maybe not. When it comes to size, governments behave like they’re just another firm.

I’ve been asked to create panels for the upcoming International Conference on Thermodynamics 2.0. The conference aims to bring natural and social sciences closer. It will take place at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Massachusetts, USA from June 22-24, 2020. I’m calling the panel(s) Energy, Institutions and Society . I’m looking for research that connects energy to the structure of human society.

I show you my code for making pretty charts in ggplot.