[SGVLUG] You can't have your cake and eat it too... (was: Energy content of human labor...)

[Emerson, Tom (*IC)]

> -----Original Message----- Of David Lawyer
> > [...]
> > > The only export from this community is ethanol 

[and]

> No.  There is "production" of all kinds of services one finds 
> in a city.  Medical services, entertainment services, [...]

So, which is it?

  --> "only export is [corn] ethanol" [cake]
 or
  --> "production of all kinds of services one finds in a city" [a
pretty decent meal...]

[my argument, based on your definition and re-iteration of the model]
 
> > After all, the "only export" [allowed] from this
> > community is corn ethanol, so any activity that leads to the 
> > production of ANYTHING other than corn ethanol would have to be 
> > considered "waste".

If you're going to model and MEASURE the energy flow "to support
activity 'x'", you need to consider that "activity 'x'" isn't the only
thing going on, and [ultimately] it may be /impossible/ to separate out
"energy spent on 'x'" vs. "energy spent on 'x', 'y', 'z', 'p', 'd', and
'q'".  If you DO consider energy spent on other aspects of life /as part
of/ the energy spent on activity 'x', you WILL be overstating this
value, perhaps drastically so...