Entropy watersheds

We proceed then to consider the historical implications of the second law and suggest, following Riflcin (1980), that the occurrence of major Entropy Watersheds - whereby all available useful energy was exhausted - are responsible for the two main transitions in world history the Agricultural and the Industrial Revolutions. 

This interpretation of history will naturally lead to the very obvious question "Is there a third Entropy Watershed coming, bringing a new Revolution" ... 

We will then proceed to suggest, following Rifkin, that the second law can be such a common thread by demonstrating, for example, how the two main transitions in world history, the Agricultural and die Industrial Revolutions, can be explained in terms of major entropy watersheds. 

Entropy Watersheds and the Main Transitions in World History... 

In each case, we will demonstrate that the underlying cause for these transitions was the fact that the existing society exhausted all available energy, i.e. it reached an Entropy Watershed. 

In fertile areas, one or two people needed about a square mile to support themselves in desert or cold weather ones, 20 to 30 square miles were needed per person (Stavrianos). As the world population increased with the passage of thousands of years, consumption of food - the main energy source of the people at that time - grew faster than nature could provide for. Humanity, thus, reached its first major entropy watershed. A new energy source was needed Agriculture provided it. There is no doubt that people preferred the free style of the hunting life to the hard work of cultivating the earth. But they had no choice. It was a matter of survival. 

Many will argue, and correctly so, that other factors played an important role in bringing about the Industrial Era besides the energy crisis. But the major role of the latter cannot be overlooked, neither can the hardships that people suffered, and both should be taken into account as we - naturally - ask the question Is there a third Entropy Watershed coming ... 

But is the crisis really over Or have we just given a shot in the arm to a person suffering from an incurable disease Is, in other words, a new Entropy Watershed coming, with the oil crisis of the 1970 s serving just as a warning ... 

These, and the answers to unforeseen questions, will determine the magnitude of the problem associated with a third entropy watershed. 

Do you believe that a third Entropy Watershed is coming Present the main arguments in support of your position. 

Clausius recognition of the thermodynamic entropy S was a crucial watershed in thermodynamic theory, allowing the subsequent development of the theory to proceed in a far more accurate and coherent manner. 

Table 3. The Hypsometric Integral (HI) and entropy H(S) of the simulated watershed. 

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