Closing the gap between energy research and modelling, the social sciences, and modern realities

Disregard or ignorance of history, the overlooking of energy issues in standard economic growth theory, and failure to recognise the role which declining marginal returns on energy exploitation has played in the decline of earlier complex societies, are evident in academic and more general discourse. Excessive resort to equations, modelling, and standard economic theories, have instead clouded imagination and focus on reality, while hindering focus on complicating factors as we consider future possibilities. This paper provides an overview of these issues and their potential implications now and for the future.