Growth

From Microorganisms to Megacities

Vaclav Smil

Recommended By

Book Synopsis

"Growth" by Vaclav Smil presents a comprehensive exploration into the patterns and complexities of growth in various systems, including biology, the economy, and human societies.

Smil examines growth from a historical perspective, unraveling the origins and consequences of exponential growth in population, energy consumption, and technological advancements. He delves into the relationship between economic growth and environmental sustainability, highlighting the challenges of achieving both simultaneously.

Drawing on a vast array of data and examples, Smil analyzes the limits of growth and the potential consequences if these limits are ignored. He outlines strategies for managing growth, emphasizing resource efficiency, technological innovation, and societal adaptations.

Through thought-provoking insights, "Growth" challenges the prevailing notion that unending growth is desirable and attainable. It invites readers to critically evaluate the implications of relentless expansion and to consider alternative models that emphasize balance, resilience, and long-term sustainability.

Explore More Books

See All
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
The Four Agreements
The Elephant in the Brain
The Charisma Myth
Foundation's Edge
When Breath Becomes Air
The Gifts of Imperfection
Check Your Financial Privilege
Security Analysis
Speak Like Churchill, Stand Like Lincoln
Private Truths, Public Lies
Behave
Recapturing The Spirit Of Enterprise
AOL.com
The Truth Machine
The New Penguin Atlas of Ancient History
Bossypants
Shortcut
All Over but the Shoutin'
Crossing the Chasm
Information
Foundations
Change.edu
Think Twice
How We Got To Now
The Adventures of Henry Thoreau
The Robber Barons
Kelly
When The Wolves Bite
To Dare and to Conquer
Command
The Art of Travel
Ice Age
In Pursuit of the Common Good
Thank God for Bitcoin
Stranger In A Strange Land
The Oxford History of Britain
City of the Century
How The Mind Works
The Internet of Money Volume 1
Brotopia
The Machine Stops
The Untethered Soul
Ponzi's Scheme
Kill Switch
Wild And Crazy Guys
The Hydrogen Sonata
Market Wizards
Super Mind
Filters Against Folly
Altars of Unhewn Stone
Founders at Work
The Double Helix
21 Lessons for the 21st Century
Quantum Computing Since Democritus
Simon the Sea Cat
If The Universe Is Teeming With Aliens...Where Is Everybody?
Being With Dying
The Creative Act
Benjamin Franklin
Evicted
7 Powers
Triumphs of Experience
The Power of Glamour
The Hockey Stick Illusion
My Stroke of Insight
Intellectual Life in the Middle Ages
Math, Better Explained
Competing Against Luck
How to Be Topp
Pandemic 1918
High Growth Handbook
Impromptu
COAN
Foundation and Earth
Tribal Leadership
Memoirs or Chronicle of the Fourth Crusade and the Conquest of Constantinople
A Random Walk Down Wall Street
Ten Lessons for a Post-Pandemic World
Happiness
A Fighting Chance
The Story of Philosophy
Devil Take the Hindmost
A Great Leap Forward?
The Lord of the Rings
Cloud Atlas
Don't Shoot the Dog!
Ladies and Gentlemen - Lenny Bruce!!
The Dao of Capital
Cognitive Surplus
Why We Get Fat
Darwin's Blind Spot
Glass
The Prize
Stan Smith
Happy Accidents
Diocletian and the Roman Recovery
The Age of Surveillance Capitalism
Sex at Dawn
The Song Machine