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Metahistory

A golden age of engineering

In a Twitter exchange with John D. Cook, John mentioned to me that he "heard it said we live in a golden age of engineering and a dark age of science". That really got me thinking: do we live in a golden age of engineering and a dark

Has Intelligence Declined in the Modern Era?

Has Intelligence Declined in the Modern Era?

I mentioned this subject a couple of times before. Simple reaction time data from Woodley et al.Bruce Charlton is the first person I know of to discuss the implications of the change in simple reaction time data in the paper by Woodley et al. Charlton claims the data shows

The Peshawar Lancers by S. M. Stirling Book Review

by S. M. Stirling $7.99; 483 pages I picked up this book [Amazon link] because Stirling co-authored several of the books collected in The Prince with Jerry Pournelle. I hadn't ever read a solo work by Stirling, so I was curious. I have had mixed success with

Geographic History

Geographic History

An idea formerly popular but now largely ignored is the influence of geography on history. However, like macrohistory or cliodynamics, there are a few hardy souls attempting to reinvigorate the concept. George Friedman gives a pretty good exposition at Stratfor: The American geography is an impressive one. The Greater Mississippi

The Price of Democracy

The Price of Democracy

For many of us, democracy is seen as an unalloyed good, the only conceivable form of government. However, history tells us that all forms of government have their day, until they are swept away when their characteristic excesses become unbearable. Ross Douthat reminds us that democracy and nationalism are a

The True Complexity of Civilization

I found this article some time ago, and I just rediscovered it by accident. So. I ask: how many people does it take, as a minimum, to maintain our current level of technological civilization? I'd put an upper bound of about one billion on the range, because that

Forsake the Sky Book Review

by Tim Powers $3.50; 217 pages Forsake the Sky is an updated version of The Skies Discrowned, Tim Powers first book. I am a big fan of Power's early work. I enjoy Forsake the Sky and Dinner at Deviant's Palace more than Earthquake Weather. The