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| Titel |
Technology and human purpose: the problem of solids transport on the Earth's surface |
| VerfasserIn |
P. K. Haff |
| Medientyp |
Artikel
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| Sprache |
Englisch
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| ISSN |
2190-4979
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| Digitales Dokument |
URL |
| Erschienen |
In: Earth System Dynamics ; 3, no. 2 ; Nr. 3, no. 2 (2012-11-14), S.149-156 |
| Datensatznummer |
250001007
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| Publikation (Nr.) |
 copernicus.org/esd-3-149-2012.pdf |
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| Zusammenfassung |
| Displacement of mass of limited deformability ("solids") on the Earth's
surface is opposed by friction and (the analog of) form
resistance – impediments relaxed by rotational motion, self-powering of mass
units, and transport infrastructure. These features of solids transport
first evolved in the biosphere prior to the emergence of technology,
allowing slope-independent, diffusion-like motion of discrete objects as
massive as several tons, as illustrated by animal foraging and movement
along game trails. However, high-energy-consumption technology powered by
fossil fuels required a mechanism that could support fast advective
transport of solids, i.e., long-distance, high-volume, high-speed,
unidirectional, slope-independent transport across the land surface of
materials like coal, containerized fluids, minerals, and economic goods.
Pre-technology nature was able to sustain regional- and global-scale
advection only in the limited form of piggybacking on geophysical flows of
water (river sediment) and air (dust). The appearance of a mechanism for
sustained advection of solids independent of fluid flows and gravity
appeared only upon the emergence of human purpose. Purpose enables solids
advection by, in effect, simulating a continuous potential gradient,
otherwise lacking, between discrete and widely separated fossil-fuel energy
sources and sinks. Invoking purpose as a mechanism in solids advection is an
example of the need to import anthropic principles and concepts into the
language and methodology of modern Earth system dynamics. As part of the
emergence of a generalized solids advection mechanism, several additional
transport requirements necessary to the function of modern large-scale
technological systems were also satisfied. These include spatially accurate
delivery of advected payload, targetability to essentially arbitrarily
located destinations (such as cities), and independence of structure of
advected payload from transport mechanism. The latter property enables the
transport of an onboard power supply and delivery of persistent-memory,
high-information-content payload, such as technological artifacts
("parts"). |
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