Record on Involution.

In human civilisations, a recurring theme is its eventual collapse. No matter how big and strong it becomes, as boundaries get pushed and flourish, there is an inflection point when everything falls apart. And quick drastically. Think of the great Roman empire or Ancient Egypt. In the past these come from the demise of an enigmatic leader or from large natural disasters, but rarely from within.

The last collapse stands different to this. In a period of peace, globalisation and prosperity, collapse nonetheless occurred. It came down to Involution.

This phenomenon originated from describing Maori carvings and Gothic designs. It is where up to a point, any changes you make to the artwork can only increase complexity with no increase value.

This same scenario happened when wealth and development turned into a zero-sum game. As technological advances plateaued, what everyone thought of the race to the top became a race to the bottom. The nonzero sum game became zero sum. Companies to adapt to this became more and more cutthroat. Marketing schemes target the less versed. Products as addictive as possible. Sales tactics aggressive and harsh. The economic system became so complicated that you can only buy general goods using tokens that are bought using other tokens. Competitive markets fight not on innovation anymore, but on prices and complexity. The pie stayed the same size and everyone wanted a bigger slice.

Eventually, the realisation that future monopoly profits was no longer sustainable tipped over the scale. With many of the world’s mega corps containing large national interest - their inevitable fallout triggered massive bailouts which ended in vain. Jobs went and debts rose.

In the aftermath, the new tenet of the new society is preservation over everything.