Summary

Data shapes our understanding of the world and make informed decisions. The book covers a wide range of topics including energy, food, population, health, and technology, using data to challenge common misconceptions and myths while shedding light on the limitations of data. Think critically about the role of data in shaping our understanding of the world and to use data in a responsible and effective manner.

Key Takeaways

• Think critically about the role of data in shaping our understanding of the world
• Need to be aware of the limitations of data
• Importance of interdisciplinary thinking and collaboration

Notes

1: People

• HDI: Human development index
• Can’t expect metrics as good as Iceland due to heterogeneity due to immigration
• Vaccination: 44x ROI
• Correlation between height and earnings
• Human cardio: can breathe out of stride, better running economy, more sweating
• People: can put ~20% food energy to work
• Unemployment rate only loosely correlated with happiness
• No correlation between a country’s happiness, suicide rate

2: Countries

• USA not exceptional by per-capita numbers
• UK: aging population, low industrialization
• Japan: decreasing population, no immigration
• USA vs China: PPP vs GDP
• China: population, natural resources
  • Next Japan?
• India and China both corrupt
  • Higher Gini index than USA
• Freedom index: 75 India, 11 China
• Manufacturing jobs remain important

3: Machines, designs, devices

• 1880s: electricity and engine
• Diesel better: 40% in Europe, 3% USA
• Can observe electrons at 10^-18 secs
• Semiconductors: 1950s
• Moore’s law: 35%/year
• Food, energy, transport: 1-5-2.5%/year
• Using the wrong measures of progress

4: Fuels, electricity

• Nuclear: 18% → 10% → 12% (2040)
• Wind turbines are getting much bigger
• LED lights: 89 → 170 → 300 L/w
• Pumped water storage:
  • 99% of world energy storage
  • 75% efficient
• Diesel is 40 X more efficient than electric
• Electricity: 200x less expensive in 120 years

5: Transport

• Average car is 1800 kg², triple previous value, same engine size, despite 92% increase in efficiency
• Trains 10x more energy efficient than planes

6: Food

• Medieval: 0.5 tons / hectare
• Modern: 3.5 tons / hectare (up to 9.1 t/h)
• 2100 calories per person on average
• >1/2 tuna at restaurants is mislabeled
• Units of feed corn per unit of meat (broiler):
  • 1.7 chicken (60% edible, 15% efficient)
  • 5 pork (53% edible, 10% efficient)
  • 12 steak (40% edible, 4% efficient)
• Not genetically lactose intolerant

7: Environment

• Anthropocene era:
• China produces 60% of world’s concrete
• China: more cement use in 2 years (4.7b tons) than USA in 20th century (4.6b tons)
• Phone production, car production same order of magnitude for world manufacturing
• Insulation, heating efficiency
• Four pillars of modern society: ammonia, steel, plastics, concrete