interesting Stuff

If everything is free, what’s still worth striving for? From replicators to reputation, we examine the surprising economics of a post-scarcity world.
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Credits:
The Economics of a Post-Scarcity Universe - What Happens When Everything Is Free?
Episode 730; July 3, 2025
Written, Produced & Narrated by: Isaac Arthur
Select imagery/video supplied by Getty Images 
Music Courtesy of Epidemic Sound http://epidemicsound.com/creator
Chapters
0:00 Intro
2:02 What Post-Scarcity Means Economically
5:10 Incentives Without Scarcity
8:17 Distribution, Duty, and Designed Idleness
14:27 Ownership and Property in a Post-Scarcity Economy
20:03 The Star Trek Economy & the Myth of a Moneyless Society
22:58 Wealth, Inheritance & Intergenerational Power
27:57 Upward Mobility and Inequality
29:02 Economic Failure Modes in Post-Scarcity
30:35 Where Economics Still Matters
33:02 The Infinite Price of a Meaningful Life

The Economics of a Post-Scarcity Universe - What Happens When Everything Is Free?

This series takes a look at concepts for everything from Terraforming Planets and Interstellar Colonization to more down to Earth matters like Arcologies and Planet Wide Cities before examining using black holes as power sources for starships.We then leap into the far distance future at the end of time to examine civilizations surviving around black holes after all the stars have died out.
Watch the Original Video Series:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TqKQ94DtS54&list=PLIIOUpOge0LufQYxcfYVqcVQOFOHFynMl

CS01 - Arcologies

The first installment in a new series discussing alternative means of getting in space, from better rockets to massive structures like Space Elevators, Skyhooks, and Launch Loops.

Watch the Video: https://youtu.be/JgxkilF5XUM

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Cover Art by Jakub Grygier: https://www.artstation.com/artist/jakub_grygier

Music by
Intro/Outro:
Sergey Cheremisinov
"Sirius"
Kai Engel
"Endless Story about Sun and Moon"
Koalips
"Kvazar"
Frank Dorittke
"Morninglight"
Kevin MacLeod
"Spacial Winds"

Upward Bound: Getting into Space

In this episode we examine the concept of a Space Elevator, a popular piece of developing technology designed to lift people and cargo into space at a fraction of normal launch costs. We will look at technology as well as many of the misconceptions about Space Elevators which have emerged.

Watch the video version here: https://youtu.be/dc8_AuzeYKE

"The physics of the space elevator", P. K. Aravind:
https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/d402/ba5f97884b7398ae2a1ff79136f9c1a03993.pdf

Visit our Website: http://www.isaacarthur.net
Join the Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1583992725237264/
Support the Channel on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/IsaacArthur
Visit the sub-reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/IsaacArthur/
Listen or Download the audio of this episode from Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/isaac-arthur-148927746/upward-bound-space-elevators
Cover Art by Jakub Grygier: https://www.artstation.com/artist/jakub_grygier

Music by
Intro/Outro:
Sergey Cheremisinov
"Sirius"
Kai Engel
"Endless Story about Sun and Moon"
Koalips
"Kvazar"
Frank Dorittke
"Morninglight"
Kevin MacLeod
"Spacial Winds"
Lombus
"Amino"
Cory Gray
"Technological 1"

Upward Bound: Space Elevators

The concept of enhancing and augmenting animal minds & bodies to be able to use and understand human technology, known as Uplifting, has long fascinated us. Today in this two-part collaboration with John Michael Godier, we will explore this concept as well as the possibility of using such technology with alien races, the polar opposite of the classic Star Trek Prime Directive.

Watch Part 1: https://youtu.be/QzaYnrrEKbU
Watch Part 2: https://youtu.be/wfDHt68-ANU

Visit our Website: http://www.isaacarthur.net
Join the Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1583992725237264/
Support the Channel on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/IsaacArthur
Visit the sub-reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/IsaacArthur/
Listen or Download the audio of this episode from Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/isaac-arthur-148927746/
Cover Art by Jakub Grygier: https://www.artstation.com/artist/jakub_grygier

Graphics Team:
Edward Nardella
Jarred Eagley
Justin Dixon
Katie Byrne
Kris Holland
Misho Yordanov
Murat Mamkegh
Pierre Demet
Sergio Botero
Stefan Blandin

Script Editing:
Andy Popescu
Connor Hogan
Edward Nardella
Eustratius Graham
Gregory Leal
Jefferson Eagley
Luca de Rosa
Mark Warburton
Michael Gusevsky
Mitch Armstrong
MolbOrg
Naomi Kern
Philip Baldock
Sigmund Kopperud
Tiffany Penner

Music:
Dexter Britain, "Seeing the Future"
AJ Prasad, "Staring Through"
Markus Junnikkala, "A Memory of Earth"
Sergey Cheremisinov, "Labyrinth"
Lombus, "Hydrogen Sonata"
Markus Junnikkala, "We Roam the Stars"
Chris Zabriskie, "Cylinder 8"
Dexter Britain, "Seeing the Future"
Chris Zabriskie, "Cylinder 5"
Chris Zabriskie, "Cylinder 7"
Kai Engel, "Endless Story about Sun and Moon"
Chris Zabriskie, "Cylinder 3"
Kevin McLeod, "Space Xplorers"