en.wikipedia.org Food, the Biosphere, and Human Metabolism: Urbanization Data Quantifies Thermodynamic Decay John R. Schramski, Garrett H. Steck, Dylan B. Munn, James H. Brown International Society for BioPhysical Economics (ISBPE) University of The District of Columbia Washington D.C. June 26, 2016 1 of 16
1. The stability of our habitat 2. Our food supply http://www.homestratosphere.com/ Morphocode.com/global-urbanisation Yann Arthus-Bertrand David McNew/via Getty Images Mountainroadshow.com www.garthlenz.com Initiative Urban Future AudiMansfield The Maureen & Mike Center www.china-briefing.com nontoxicrevolution.org Cochran, Casey FountainIMAGES Gary Photo: / AFP/GETTY GACAD ROMEO Thermodynamic Consequences of Biomass Destruction on the Food Web 2 of 16
Morphocode.com/global-urbanisation Thermodynamic Consequences of Biomass Destruction Abstract A two compartment (i.e., urban and rural) energy model is used to clearly depict caloric food supply for humans romeo gacad/afp/getty images 1. Earth is a discharging battery 2. Cities are detached self-organizing dissipative engines mining ever diminishing rural biocapacity 3. This is destroying the food web Historicrail.com 4. Results: urbanization and mining of global biocapacity has been rapidly eroding the global food supply for decades 3 of 16
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/deforestation 4 of 16 The Earth is a rapidly discharging battery Schramski, Gattie, and Brown, PNAS 2015 The Mercury 400,000,000 years of slow charge; NPP converted solar energy into two forms of chemical energy Living biomass mostly in forests Fossil hydrocarbons oil, gas, coal 100 years of rapid discharge; humans converted the stored energy into work and heat Burning of fossil fuels Depletion of biomass
www.reddit.com archive.onearth.org Biomass depletion: 5 of 16 Smill, 2011
Morphocode.com/global-urbanisation Thermodynamic Consequences of Biomass Destruction Abstract A two compartment (i.e., urban and rural) energy model is used to clearly depict caloric food supply for humans romeo gacad/afp/getty images 1. Earth is a discharging battery 2. Cities are detached self-organizing dissipative engines mining ever diminishing rural biocapacity 3. This is destroying the food web Historicrail.com 4. Results: urbanization and mining of global biocapacity has been rapidly eroding the global food supply for decades 6 of 16
7 of 16 1. Cities are the dominant habitat of humans and represent their climax community 2. But, cities are thermodynamic dissipative sinks. Cities are open, growing, dependent subsystems of the materially-closed nongrowing ecosphere they produce themselves and grow by feeding on energy and matter extracted from their host ecosystems William Rees (2012)
Morphocode.com/global-urbanisation Two Compartment Model romeo gacad/afp/getty images Historicrail.com 8 of 16
Morphocode.com/global-urbanisation Two Compartment Model romeo gacad/afp/getty images Food calories are single most important energy flow Historicrail.com 9 of 16
10 of 16 romeo gacad/afp/getty images Morphocode.com/global-urbanisation If we are destroying biomass then our food supply should be diminishing. Historicrail.com
Morphocode.com/global-urbanisation Thermodynamic Consequences of Biomass Destruction Abstract A two compartment (i.e., urban and rural) energy model is used to clearly depict caloric food supply for humans romeo gacad/afp/getty images 1. Earth is a discharging battery 2. Cities are detached self-organizing dissipative engines mining ever diminishing rural biocapacity 3. This is destroying the food web 4. Results: urbanization and mining of global biocapacity has been rapidly eroding the global food supply for decades Historicrail.com
Results romeo gacad/afp/getty images Morphocode.com/global-urbanisation Historicrail.com Food calories are single most important energy flow 11 of 16
Results romeo gacad/afp/getty images Morphocode.com/global-urbanisation Historicrail.com Food calories are single most important energy flow 12 of 16
Results romeo gacad/afp/getty images Morphocode.com/global-urbanisation Historicrail.com Food calories are single most important energy flow 13 of 16
Results romeo gacad/afp/getty images Morphocode.com/global-urbanisation Historicrail.com Food calories are single most important energy flow 14 of 16
15 of 16 Results romeo gacad/afp/getty images Morphocode.com/global-urbanisation Historicrai l.com
16 of 16 Results Morphocode.com/global-urbanisation romeo gacad/afp/getty images Historicrail.com
Questions?
www.reddit.com archive.onearth.org Biomass depletion: 5 of 19 Smill, 2011 Smill, 2011
6 of 19 Everything that happens is nothing but changes in energy Ostwald 1892 Smill, 2011
THE EARTH-SPACE BATTERY Schramski, Gattie, and Brown, PNAS 2015 Humankind Cathode Anode Schramski/Delaney 2014 12 of 19
16 of 19 WHY IS THE BATTERY SO IMPORTANT? - Current discharge rates to feed humanity and provide economic goods and services are thermodynamically unsustainable. - Populations and economies grow by consuming stored energy at ever faster rates - Essential living biomass is depleting rapidly - Depletion of stored energy is final; the heat is lost from the earth forever. - No system ever survives an exponentially rising forcing function - Supply, demand, and what you do with it Smill, 2011
18 of 19 Everything that happens is nothing but changes in energy Ostwald 1892 Hypothesis: All rapidly growing problems of the day can be attributed to the dispatch of energy and the rapidly declining biomass of the planet, Examples, 6 th Extinction Barnosky et al. 2011 Species Die Offs Fey et al. 2015 Loss of Biodiversity Hooper et al. 2012, Butchart et al. 2010 Ocean Acidification Doney et al. 2009 Nutrient Cycle Imbalances Smil 2012 Freshwater Loss Vörösmarty et al. 2010
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS - James Brown - James Hataway - Brook Spreen - Garrett Steck - and many others