The Birth of Modern Prosperity
Humans live longer and grow taller than ever before. We are healthier and wealthier. Our ancestors could hardly have imagined a life of such prosperity. A future archaeologist would be equally puzzled. How did we become so rich so fast? What changes could have been so dramatic as to literally change the height of our species?
Our modern prosperity is not the outcome of slow and steady progress. For most of human history, there was no upward trend in the health and wealth of the average human. The big events of history rarely changed the life of the local farmer.
So what changed?
During the past year and a half, I’ve had the privilege of talking about this question with many outstanding scholars. Each of these episodes was thought-provoking. Here is my attempt to connect the dots: a mini-series on “The Birth of Modern Prosperity”. It consists of curated highlights, around 30 minutes each, from these episodes, which would total almost 6 hours in their original.
Welcome to the journey!
#1 Oded Galor: The Shape of the Story
Listen (29min): Spotify | Apple Podcasts | Other players
Read: Substack essay
The journey begins with Oded Galor, author of "The Journey of Humanity," who connects the puzzle of modernity to the broader narrative of our species' story—and suggests a surprising reason for our modern affluence.
#2 Brad Delong: Laboratories of the New Era
Listen (35min): Spotify | Apple Podcasts | Other players
Read: Substack essay
The series continues with Berkeley professor Brad DeLong, author of Slouching Towards Utopia, who traces the origins of modernity into the technological breakthroughs around the 1870s.
#3 Daron Acemoglu: Power to the People
Listen (36min): Spotify | Apple Podcasts | Other players
Read: Substack essay
The Industrial Revolution is often marked as the beginning of modern prosperity. For most people, this was not the case. Even in Britain, the workers gained little from the industrial boom. Then things changed. Why? Nobel-prize-winning economist Daron Acemoglu has a theory.
#4 Branko Milanovic: Grasping Towards Equality
Listen (36min): Spotify | Apple Podcasts | Other players
Read: Substack essay
Global inequality rose for most of the 20th Century. But within rich countries, the opposite happened: “The Great Levelling” reduced inequalities throughout the industrial world. Why? Branko Milanovic explains.