The xenobiology of capital

Clair Quentin

Chapter 4 in Capital, Revenue and the Non-equilibrium Thermodynamics of Value, 2026, pp 51-65 from Edward Elgar Publishing

Abstract: This chapter explains how the use of thermodynamic depth as an answer to the value question differs from existing approaches in biophysical economics, insofar as thermodynamic depth is (uniquely among biophysical quantities) both additive as regards process and a property of commodities themselves. The chapter proceeds to discuss surplus thermodynamic depth as reflective of the nature of the system of commodities being produced by means of commodities specifically as a ‘dissipative structure gone rogue’, that is, one that has broken free from the circumstances of the energy gradient from which it originated. The chapter goes on to compare that system with the only other such structure known to science – i.e., life as we know it – and accordingly characterizes political economy as the ‘xenobiology’ of a parasitical alien presence in our biosphere.

Keywords: Dissipative Structures; Ecological Rift; Extended Human Phenotype; Biophysical Economics; Biological Complexity; Ecological Economics (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026
ISBN: 9781035359998
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.elgaronline.com/doi/10.4337/9781035360000.00010 (application/pdf)

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:elg:eechap:24518_4

Ordering information: This item can be ordered from
http://www.e-elgar.com

Access Statistics for this chapter

More chapters in Chapters from Edward Elgar Publishing
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Darrel McCalla ().