So, I guess in the meantime some developments on the idea have been made. What would a modern intro/reference be?
There is a good active community and resources at https://permies.com/
Came to point out this site- tons of great ideas there
Introduction to Permaculture (1994)
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Re: Introduction to Permaculture (1994)
#42I bought this book at a place called "Hungry Head Books" in Eugene Oregon in 1997. I was working as a projectionist at the time and pretty much had to kill 30 hours a week in the booth. This was before wifi or cell phones so I would buy a few books each week and just sit on the carpet and read while the projectors did their thing. I was not a fan of the hippies. I lived on 15th and High (that is not a joke) when Jerr…
Eugene and K Falls - good representation of the two extreme poles of Oregon. My daughter just got a room a couple blocks from your old haunt, assuming UO opens up again...
Re: Introduction to Permaculture (1994)
#43Note that this isn't just a preview, you can borrow this book (and another million or so) if you have an account with archive, it's free. You can have ten books at a time, two weeks per book. What I like about permaculture is that it doesn't suggest that everyone should be a smallholder. The author comments that it's more sensible to support a local farm that grows sustainably than to try and grow everything yourself…
What does borrow mean in the context of online?
Best I can make out you can only have a limited number of ebooks at a time, there is some sort of DRM I think. So if you want to borrow more than N, you need to "return" one. It's similar to Amazon's lending system.
Re: Introduction to Permaculture (1994)
#44For those interested, these videos are worthwhile to listen to: https://www.youtube.com/user/wholesystems
Maybe starting with: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ab463aw0AWM
Re: Introduction to Permaculture (1994)
#45Earlier quoted context omitted.
What does borrow mean in the context of online?
Best I can make out you can only have a limited number of ebooks at a time, there is some sort of DRM I think. So if you want to borrow more than N, you need to "return" one. It's similar to Amazon's lending system.
Okay, maybe it is to lessen the load on the server from any one user during any given period. Makes sense if so. I'm assuming here that one reads online, rather than, say, downloading a PDF or other file of each book.
Re: Introduction to Permaculture (1994)
#46Earlier quoted context omitted.
I think permaculture has more to do with culture than it has to do with agriculture. What I mean by this is that agriculture has become, nowadays, the increasingly scientific study of how how to produce the highest yields for crop types that have the highest return on investment for that area. The naming conventions of how practices are done do not influence the practices themselves. The reason why I bother to make t…
> The term "organic" is especially dangerous, because of its connotation to organic vs. inorganic chemistry and the loss of information when converting between the technical definitions and cultural perceptions. In the United States, "organic" in the context of food is not a cultural perception, it is an FDA-regulated certified word with a very strict definition and penalties for misuse. https://www.ams.usda.gov/abou…
There's a guy who's a convicted felon in the US for misrepresenting conventional as organic:
https://thecounter.org/organic-food-fraud-usda-doj-randy-con...
Re: Introduction to Permaculture (1994)
#47Earlier quoted context omitted.
Best I can make out you can only have a limited number of ebooks at a time, there is some sort of DRM I think. So if you want to borrow more than N, you need to "return" one. It's similar to Amazon's lending system.
Okay, maybe it is to lessen the load on the server from any one user during any given period. Makes sense if so. I'm assuming here that one reads online, rather than, say, downloading a PDF or other file of each book.
No, it’s a DRM restriction - you can download a DRM-locked copy that disables itself after a set time, and while you have it checked out nobody else can read that “copy.” Nothing to do with server load.
Re: Introduction to Permaculture (1994)
#48Earlier quoted context omitted.
Best I can make out you can only have a limited number of ebooks at a time, there is some sort of DRM I think. So if you want to borrow more than N, you need to "return" one. It's similar to Amazon's lending system.
Okay, maybe it is to lessen the load on the server from any one user during any given period. Makes sense if so. I'm assuming here that one reads online, rather than, say, downloading a PDF or other file of each book.
I think it's more likely to satisfy copyright law otherwise you'd just be downloading books for free. You can use Adobe Digital Editions which handles the DRM, so you can read offline as well. Online works too. I've not used it much, I think some books have limited copies available to borrow as well so you may need to join a waitlist.
Re: Introduction to Permaculture (1994)
#49I'm a "Permie". The "Permaculture Designer's Guide" is IMO one of the best books on design-- any kind, not just farm --ever. (Did you read "Mote in God's Eye"? This is a book on Motie engineering.)
https://www.tagari.com/store/books/permaculture-a-designers-...
Anyhow, I was reading Smil's "Energy and Civilization: A History" (yes, because Gates) and it dawned on me that the high-touch high-tech (ecology is a science) "horticultural" civilization, as described so ably by Toby Hemenway (RIP) in his talks "How Permaculture Can Save Humanity and the Planet – But Not Civilization" and the sequel "Redesigning Civilization with Permaculture", would be a new, radically new, thing under the Sun. A new form of civilization.
https://tobyhemenway.com/videos/how-permaculture-can-save-hu...
https://tobyhemenway.com/videos/redesigning-civilization-wit...
http://vaclavsmil.com/2017/05/08/energy-and-civilization-a-h...
Combine applied ecology with Alexander's Pattern Language and I think we've really got something.
There is also the possibility of integrated carbon-neutral alcohol fuel production. http://www.alcoholcanbeagas.com/node/518
Since it seems like we're going to have to redesign (parts of) our civilization anyway, why not make it really awesome?
(I should add something about wholesome plant-based whole food diet and the health effects but I can't find a good link right now.)
Re: Introduction to Permaculture (1994)
#50The Regrarians [0] is another avenue to explore - I find Darren a bit more grounded in science than your average "permie" and appreciate the work he's doing, integrating holistic systems design (see Savory Institute), permaculture, and Yeoman's keyline design work. It seems more of a toolbox approach vs what can feel like "doctrine" at times from permaculture. Perhaps more suitable to larger farming operations than backyard gardens but still worth reading, I think.