Albert Allen Bartlett (March 21, 1923 – September 7, 2013)[2] was an American professor of physics at the University of Colorado at Boulder. As of July 2001, Professor Bartlett had lectured over 1,742 times since September 1969 on Arithmetic, Population, and Energy.[3][4] Bartlett regarded the word combination "sustainable growth" as an oxymoron, and argued that modest annual percentage population increases could lead to exponential growth. He therefore regarded human overpopulation as "The Greatest Challenge" facing humanity.
Bartlett viewed sustainable growth as a contradiction. His view was that modest percentage growth will equate to huge escalations over relatively short periods of time.[8]
Over time, Bartlett argued, compound growth can yield enormous increases. For example, an investor earning a constant annual 7% return on their investment would find his or her capital doubling within 10 years. He applied the same exponential power to human population, and argued this would have calamitous results. He argued that a population of 10,000 individuals, if it were to grow at a constant rate of 7% per annum, would reach a population size of 10 million after 100 years.[9]
J. B. Calvert (1999) has proposed that Bartlett's law[11] will result in the exhaustion of petrochemical resources caused by exponential growth of the world population (in line with the Malthusian Growth Model).
Bartlett made statements relating to sustainability:
"The greatest shortcoming of the human race is our inability to understand the exponential function."
and his Great Challenge:
"Can you think of any problem in any area of human endeavor on any scale, from microscopic to global, whose long-term solution is in any demonstrable way aided, assisted, or advanced by further increases in population, locally, nationally, or globally?"
Death
Bartlett died on September 7, 2013, at the age of 90.[5]
Books
The Essential Exponential For the Future of Our Planet a collection of essays by Professor Bartlett (2004). Center for Science, Mathematics and Computer Education, University of Nebraska-Lincoln. ISBN 0-9758973-0-6[12]
Influence and legacy
In August 2013, a month before Bartlett's death, the Environmental Center at the University of Colorado at Boulder offered training on giving his presentation; the team "came together because they believe so strongly in Dr. Bartlett's message and want to ensure it continues to be delivered well into the future".[13]
^Albert A. Bartlett Collection - GLMS 103 Archived 2013-05-03 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved July 2011
^"Al Bartlett, retired CU-Boulder professor, dies at age 90". Boulder Daily Camera. Dailycamera.com. 9 September 2013. Retrieved 2013-11-22.
^Fred Elbel. "Arithmetic, Population and Energy — a talk by Al Bartlett, Retrieved July 2011". Albartlett.org. Retrieved 2013-11-22.
^Albert A. Bartlett (1994). Arithmetic, Population, and Energy (The Forgotten Fundamentals of the Energy Crisis). Academic Media Services, University of Colorado. Archived from the original on 2011-04-18. Retrieved December 16, 2011.
^ a b"CU-Boulder campus mourns death of longtime, celebrated professor Al Bartlett". 9 Sep 2013. Archived from the original on 2014-03-23. Retrieved 2014-03-23.
^"World Population to 2300" (PDF). United Nations. 2004.
^U.S. Census Bureau. "International Programs – People and Households". Census.gov. Archived from the original on 2013-10-13. Retrieved 2013-11-22.
^"Arithmetic, Population & Energy, Part I, at youtube, Retrieved July 2011". Youtube.com. 2007-06-16. Retrieved 2013-11-22.
^Clark, Susan (2005-01-25). "Professor talks at an exponential rate, Energy Bulletin article by Todd Neff. Retrieved July 2011". Energybulletin.net. Archived from the original on 2009-07-17. Retrieved 2013-11-22.
^"Bartlett at hubberpeak.com, Retrieved July 2011". Hubbertpeak.com. Archived from the original on 2013-07-23. Retrieved 2013-11-22.
^"Bartlett". Du.edu. Archived from the original on 2007-06-26.
^Fred Elbel (2001-07-01). "More information and how to order, Retrieved July 2011". Albartlett.org. Retrieved 2013-11-22.
^"CU-Boulder plots to extend life of al Bartlett's famous lecture". 3 August 2013.
References
Professor talks at an exponential rate, Energy Bulletin article by Todd Neff. Retrieved July 2011
External links
Albert Allen Bartlett at IMDb
2008 Video interview with Albert Bartlett by Atomic Heritage Foundation Voices of the Manhattan Project
Professor Bartlett's website contains background, articles, book "The Essential Exponential", and links to his talk, "Arithmetic, Population, and Energy". Retrieved July 2011
Professor Bartlett's page at the University of Colorado Retrieved July 2011
Biography of Dr Bartlett Archived 2013-06-03 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved July 2011
"Arithmetic, Population, and Energy" by Professor Albert Bartlett Free audio and video 57 minute lecture. Retrieved July 2011
"Arithmetic, Population, and Energy" by Professor Albert Bartlett Text of lecture (extracts). Retrieved July 2011
Analysis of Bartlett's "Arithmetic, Population, and Energy" presentation – Exponentialist website. Retrieved July 2011
Is There a Population Problem? Ecofuture website. Retrieved July 2011
The Massive Movement to Marginalise the Modern Malthusian Message article by Professor Bartlett. Retrieved July 2011
Thoughts on Long-term Energy Supplies - Scientists and the Silent Lie article on energy and population in Physics Today (2004). Retrieved July 2011