1/6 Why corporations die but cities don't
When "Little Boy" was dropped in 1945, Hiroshima had population of ~350K. The bomb killed ~70k people and destroyed ~70% of buildings.
Yet, today Hiroshima has ~1.2 mn population with $40k GDP per capita.
Why are cities resilient?
When "Little Boy" was dropped in 1945, Hiroshima had population of ~350K. The bomb killed ~70k people and destroyed ~70% of buildings.
Yet, today Hiroshima has ~1.2 mn population with $40k GDP per capita.
Why are cities resilient?
2/6 Cities tend to exhibit super-linear relationship with different variables: both good and bad.
Patents, crime, wages, disease-everything seems to scale at 1.15 with the size of population.
Bigger cities have bigger problems, but they tend to out-innovate the problems.
Patents, crime, wages, disease-everything seems to scale at 1.15 with the size of population.
Bigger cities have bigger problems, but they tend to out-innovate the problems.
3/6 Corporations, and animals die because they exhibit sub-linear, NOT superlinear, relationship.
If the size of a mammal is 4x, its energy consumption isn't 4x. It's 3x.
This ratio of 0.75 tends to hold true for all animals. Since it's less than 1, it's called sub-linear.
If the size of a mammal is 4x, its energy consumption isn't 4x. It's 3x.
This ratio of 0.75 tends to hold true for all animals. Since it's less than 1, it's called sub-linear.
4/6 Almost every mammal gets a billion heartbeats per lifetime. Thanks to human ingenuity, we get ~2 billions.
But in general, bigger sized animals have slower pace of life. It's the opposite in bigger cities. Avg walking speed is faster in bigger cities.
But in general, bigger sized animals have slower pace of life. It's the opposite in bigger cities. Avg walking speed is faster in bigger cities.
5/6 Corporations are more like animals than cities.
Geffrey West et. al looked at 22k companies, and found out as the size of the company increases, it exhibits sub-linear relationship.
The productivity scales at the sub-linear ratio of 0.80.
Geffrey West et. al looked at 22k companies, and found out as the size of the company increases, it exhibits sub-linear relationship.
The productivity scales at the sub-linear ratio of 0.80.
6/6 In order to extend the lifespan, companies need to be like cities. To out-innovate your problems, you may need crazy ideas.
Cities tolerate crazy people. Companies generally don't.
Cities tolerate crazy people. Companies generally don't.
Typo
*Geoffrey West
*Geoffrey West
