The Great Simplification #27 – Joe Tainter: “Surplus, Complexity, and Simplification”

| August 13, 2022 | Leave a Comment

The Great Simplification

Item Link: Access the Resource

Date of Publication: July 13

Year of Publication: 2022

Publisher: The Great Simplification

Author(s): Nate Hagens

In this episode we meet with anthropologist, historian, and Professor at Utah State University, Joe Tainter.

What are the key differences between complicated and complex? How can we better understand energy and society through these key distinctions? Tainter explains our current predicament based on decades of research and offers pathways for our collective future.

About Joe Tainter

Joe Tainter has been a professor at Utah State University in the Environment and Society Department since 2007, serving as Department Head from 2007 to 2009. His study of why societies collapse led to research on sustainability, with emphasis on energy and innovation. He has also conducted research on land-use conflict and human responses to climate change. He has written several books, including The Collapse of Complex Societies and Drilling Down: The Gulf Oil Debacle and Our Energy Dilemma.

Listen to the podcast here.

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