Energy and Civilization: A History
My notes
Mar 26, 2026 Deep Dive 17 min
Energy and Civilization: The Physical Constraints Behind Every Technology Bet
Vaclav Smil reveals why transitions take generations, why welfare saturates at 110 GJ, and why energy enables but never determines.
Mar 18, 2026 Deep Dive 7 min
AI × Energy: Can We Power the Intelligence Revolution?
Why the next bottleneck isn’t the model: it’s watts, wires, and who controls the stack.