Re: virus: Hyperbolic Growth

Duane Hewitt (duane@maxwell.lucifer.com)
Mon, 20 Nov 1995 17:20:09 -0700 (MST)


On Mon, 20 Nov 1995, Tyson Vaughan wrote:

> And yes, I DO think the next 50 years are critical.

So did Malthus and as did The Club of Rome in 1973.

There are several assumptions being made in this discussion that are
unwarranted.

1. Current trends in population growth will extend into the foreseeable
future. (Malthus made this mistake as did The Club of Rome)

2. Growth in GDP in developing countries will result in directly
proportional environmental damage that occurred in previous instances of
industrialization. (Catch up gets easier as high-tech becomes less
capital intensive)

3. The major causes of environmental damage are industrialized nation's
consumption. (Proxy wars, foreign aid and communism all are major culprits)

4. Dependency is a one way street. (hint Adam Smith -Division of labor)

Duane Hewitt