Convergence and divergence in the production of energy transformation hierarchies

Thomas Abel

Ecological Modelling, 2015, vol. 315, issue C, 4-11

Abstract: Divergence is an undertheorized process in energy transformation hierarchies. Energy transformation hierarchies are generally described as a stepwise convergence of energy and materials, with characteristic properties of increasing storage size, turnover time, and spatial scale, but they may also include the action of divergence that feeds other scales or systems of convergence. These patterns are particularly obvious when systems theory is applied to understanding economic “commodity chains” in the global economy. Divergence is also a fundamental process in the production of culture in “information cycles”. After a conversation, for example, the divergence of people with new information into the world, where that information is tested and possibly selected again, is a fundamental step in the wide sharing and upgrading of cultural information. A general conclusion is that divergence makes outputs available to coupled systems or scales that differ in space, function, or time.

Keywords: Hierarchy; Divergence; Information cycles; Commodity chains (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2015
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

Downloads: (external link)
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0304380014006012
Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:ecomod:v:315:y:2015:i:c:p:4-11

DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolmodel.2014.11.028

Access Statistics for this article

Ecological Modelling is currently edited by Brian D. Fath

More articles in Ecological Modelling from Elsevier
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Catherine Liu ().