Big History, Geological Accumulations, Physical Economics, and Wealth

Abstract

The unconventional model presented herein—Laws of Supplies and Demands— furnishes a view of the discipline of economics as both a social science and a physical science. This essay begins with Big History origins of Earthly mineral foundations upon which the Stone Age, Bronze Age, Iron Age, and today’s Computer Age were based, according to prominent geologist Walter Alvarez. Alvarez argues persuasively that geographical concentrations of specific productive inputs across Earth have been essential prerequisites for existence of all economic ages. This essay complements Alvarez’s focus upon economic inputs by extending consideration to geographical concentrations of economic outputs (goods). Mechanisms that explain concentrations of final goods in specific geographical locations across Earth comprise the core of the Laws of Supplies and Demands model. The flows-only orientation of conventional microeconomics (Laws of Supply and Demand) and conventional macroeconomics—both of which limit attention to time-dimensioned variables such as incomes and expenditures—is broadened to incorporate accumulations: wealth components (point-in-time-snapshots). By definition, services cannot be stocked, whereas goods accumulate as wealth components. The Laws of Supplies and Demands provide theoretical underpinnings for widespread interest today in empirical social science investigations of wealth accumulations and wealth distributions.