Category Archives: Agriculture

Book review of “Agrarian Dreams”

Preface. This is a book review of Guthman’s “Agrarian Dreams.  The Paradox of Organic Farming in California”.  Since world oil production likely peaked in 2018, and renewables can’t replace fossil fuels (read my books), there’s no choice but to go … Continue reading

Posted in Agriculture, Books, Farming & Ranching | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

States do not evolve from Bands to Tribes to Chiefdoms to States

Preface.  The bulk of this book is dedicated to showing why the idea of the evolution from tribes to states is false. If the authors are correct, then the flexibility of societies to invent ways of living with more freedom … Continue reading

Posted in Agriculture, Dawn of Everything, Farming & Ranching, Slavery | Tagged , | Comments Off on States do not evolve from Bands to Tribes to Chiefdoms to States

Jason Bradford on reforming the current food system

Preface. Jason Bradford is amazing: He taught ecology for a few years at Washington University in St. Louis, worked for the Center for Conservation and Sustainable Development at the Missouri Botanical Garden, and co-founded the Andes Biodiversity and Ecosystem Research … Continue reading

Posted in Agriculture, Farming & Ranching | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Book review of Fruits of Eden: David Fairchild & Americas Plant Hunters

Preface. Botanist David Fairchild is one of the reasons the average grocery store has 39,500 items. Before he came along, most people ate just a few kinds of food day in day out (though that was partly due to a … Continue reading

Posted in Agriculture, Farming & Ranching | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Book review of Fruits of Eden: David Fairchild & Americas Plant Hunters

The History of Drunkenness

Preface. This is a book review of “A short history of Drunkenness” by Mark Forsyth. I expect alcohol to be a big part of life postcarbon not only because most cultures have embraced alcohol, but to drown the sorrows and … Continue reading

Posted in Advice, Agriculture, Human Nature | Tagged , , | Comments Off on The History of Drunkenness

Rationing. Book review of “Any way you slice it” by Stan Cox

Preface. I can’t imagine that there’s a better book on rationing out there, but of course I can’t be sure, I don’t feel the need to find others on this topic after reading this book. As usual, I had to … Continue reading

Posted in Agriculture, Rationing | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Will life after peak oil be like the middle ages?

Preface.  Winston recreates what life was like from the 5th to the 15th centuries — from the fall of the Roman Empire to the beginning of the Renaissance. Energyskeptic.com shows why hydrogen, wind, solar, geothermal, nuclear, fusion, and other alternatives … Continue reading

Posted in Agriculture, Biomass, Life Before Oil | Tagged , , , | 8 Comments

Book review of Wrigley’s “Energy and the English Industrial revolution”

Preface. I’ve made a strong case in my book “When trucks stop running” and this energyskeptic website that we will eventually return to wood and a 14th century lifestyle after fossil fuels are depleted. So if you’re curious about what … Continue reading

Posted in Agriculture, Energy Books, Farming & Ranching, Life Before Oil, Limits To Growth | Tagged , , , | 5 Comments

Book review of Dirt: the erosion of civilization

Preface. On average civilizations collapsed after 800 to 2,000 years because they’d destroyed their topsoil, some of it caused by deforestation to grow more food, make metals, ceramics, glass and other objects requiring high heat, which fossils provide today. Today, … Continue reading

Posted in Agriculture, Peak Food, Soil | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments

Book review of Underbug: an obsessive tale of termites and technology

Preface.  I read this book mainly to find out where “grassoline” stood. Scientists thought 10 years ago that we could recreate the termite biota system of digesting biomass to create biofuels.  But this appears to be far in the future … Continue reading

Posted in Agriculture, Wood | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Book review of Underbug: an obsessive tale of termites and technology