great divergence – Kruse Kronicle

Calmly Considered: Global Living Conditions– Better or Worse?

Dec 22, 2021

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by

in Calmly Considered Podcast Video, Demography, Economic Development, Economics, Globalization, Sociology, Trends: Economic, Trends: Social, Weatlh and Income Distribution

Are global living conditions getting better or worse? There are three simultaneous truths: Living conditions are awful for a great many. Living conditions are better than they ever have been, by far. Living conditions can be improved and the trajectory is in a positive direction. Join Allen Bevere and me as we calmly consider global…

Our ancestors did not live in balance with nature. They died in balance with it.

Aug 1, 2019

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by

mwkruse

in Demography, Great Divergence, Health and Medicine, Human Progress

One of the most important observations (among many) from the late Hans Roslings' Factfulness: When a population is not growing over a long period of time, and the population curve is flat, this must mean that each generation of new parents is the same size as the previous one. For thousands of years up to…

World Social Indicators: Child Mortality

Oct 26, 2017

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by

mwkruse

in Demography, Great Divergence, Health and Medicine, Series: World Social Indicators 2017, Sociology, Trends: Social

Alongside life expectancy, a second measure of prosperity demographers frequently use is the child mortality rate. The child mortality rate is the number of children that die between birth and their fifth birthday per 1,000 live births. Because the first years of life are when human beings are most vulnerable, their ability to survive the…

World Social Indicators: Life Expectancy

Oct 23, 2017

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mwkruse

in Demography, Great Divergence, Health and Medicine, Series: World Social Indicators 2017, Trends: Social

Demographers commonly use life expectancy rates as a measure of societal well-being. Life expectancy is the number of years someone is expected to live when born based on actuarial science. Long life is a universal indicator of prosperity across cultures and time. It is an important measure to demographers because achieving it requires a complex…

World Social Indicators: Introduction

Oct 19, 2017

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mwkruse

in Demography, Health and Medicine, Series: World Social Indicators 2017, Trends: Economic, Trends: Social

Is the state of the world getting better or getting worse? How would you answer that question? What indicators would you use? For Christians, our mission is to seek the greatest shalom possible in the world, always cognizant that shalom in its fullness will only be recognized at the consummation of the new creation. But…

Shrinking the World, 1800-1930

Dec 14, 2016

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by

mwkruse

in Economic Development, Great Divergence, Technology (Transportation & Distribution), Trends: Economic, Trends: Social

Satirist and humorist Douglas Adams, probably best known for The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, once wrote: "Anything that is in the world when you're born is normal and ordinary and is just a natural part of the way the world works. Anything that's invented between when you're fifteen and thirty- five is new and…

Why Are We Not Running Out of Farm Land?

Sep 14, 2016

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by

mwkruse

in Economic Development, Food and Drink, Great Divergence, Technology (Food & Water), Trends: Economic

One of the most persistent worries about population and economic growth is that we will eventually use up all our resources and land. It is based on the intuitive (but false) assumption that if it takes X acreage of land to feed a person today, then it will take two times X acreage to feed…

An Improving World

May 19, 2016

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by

mwkruse

in Demography, Great Divergence, Health and Medicine, Sociology, Trends: Social

Life expectancy at birth is one of the single best indicators of societal well-being. So many things have to work well for the great majority of people to live long lives that the high life expectancy is a proxy for holistic well-being. The measure is of particular value in that it measures something relatively concrete,…

More Evidence of an Improving World – HDI

Mar 18, 2016

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by

mwkruse

in Demography, Economic Development, Globalization, Great Divergence, International Affairs, Poverty, Sociology, Trends: Economic, Trends: Social

The world is becoming a better place. It is not a utopia. We are not without substantial challenges. But we are becoming (as in movement along a trajectory) better (as in measurably improved according to a standard.) The Human Development Index is a United Nations measure of well-being combining income, literacy, education, and life expectancy…

It’s The End Of The World As We Know It, So Why Don’t We Feel Fine?

Nov 30, 2015

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by

mwkruse

in Great Divergence, Sociology, Trends: Economic, Trends: Social

It’s the end of the world as we know it – because it is improving remarkably! Almost every indicator of human well-being shows improvement on a global basis. We live in the best era in human history. How does that make you feel? Like the old REM song, does it make you feel fine? Or…

Tag: great divergence