How can we document "human society" in 1000 pages or less? I've been casually researching for a while, and will eventually write a guide on going from zero to the moon.
Step one is survival, basics of hunting, first aid and farming sort of stuff. That volume would end around homesteading and self-sufficient living.
Volume two would be establishing society in larger groups than a family unit. Things like job specialization (N roles for N people instead of 1/N of each role for each person), establishing trade (currency, weights & measures, supply chain), government (mostly what not to do, what to protect, how to adjudicate disagreement), public works ("roads are a good idea") and their ilk. Also medicine beyond first aid and basic care.
Volume three would be advanced STEM topics, getting from a functioning society to... more. Not even the sky's the limit. It should include blueprints for things we take for granted like refrigeration, telecommunication and birth control. It will include all the basics of physics, chemistry and biology required for smart people to fill in the gaps and launch a human to the moon and back.
I want to super-nerd-out about this, and publish it on Tyvek or something exotic so it'll last through decades of wear and tear (and water-logging and more), and include a ruler on the spine and it's own weight documented for reference.
I believe this was the goal of some French Enlightenment philosophers like Denis Diderot[0] and others who worked on the Encyclopédie[1]. Definitely a worthwhile project. One problem you will have to find a solution to is how to adequately explain things that require tacit-knowledge (e.g. it's not enough just to know chemistry, you also have to know how to do it, which requires physical practice, not just book learning).
Cool idea - few questions: How many volumes are there? Would be cool to see the full list.
The first to volumes are very goal purpose driven and so fit will together. The third feels very grab bag and likely should be split up more.
You'll also likely want to cover on schools of thought, the scientific method and whatnot.
An alternate volume 3a might be on mass production of food (enabling greater human capital). Large scale agriculture and the chemistry and botany that enables it. Some amount of animal farming is likely required.
3b could cover the communication and transportation networks necessary to distribute that food. Both the engineering, infrastructure and tech behind it.
At some point you can shift to covering, manufacturing and mass production - which enables all the small products needed for so many fields. The handles, washers, lenses,...
Then final shift to digital and everything that rolls out from there.
Three volumes planned (Survive, Thrive, Expand), but given the overall scope that seems like it's gonna be difficult. The third is very grab-bag because it's "everything else" - there's no end to what could go in there, it's just going to stop at some point if it's going to be published. Prioritizing human-care and sustainability is definitely a good target, and in keeping with the theme. Probably scientific method, schools of thought, etc. would be chapters or single pages - there's a lot to deal with overall.
Anywhere I can, as long as I can confirm the info is useful and correct.
Survival is sourcing primarily from stuff like the Boy Scout Handbook, the SAS Survival Guide, a few other online resources and a farmsteading book from the 60s-70s that I can't recall right now. That will be the v0.1 draft, and I'd like to practice some of the techniques as well to provide hands-on feedback on what's easier or harder.
Volume 2 is a vague outline, and probably needs to be combined with vol 3 and fleshed out before splitting in two (or more) pieces to research and write.
Step one is survival, basics of hunting, first aid and farming sort of stuff. That volume would end around homesteading and self-sufficient living.
Volume two would be establishing society in larger groups than a family unit. Things like job specialization (N roles for N people instead of 1/N of each role for each person), establishing trade (currency, weights & measures, supply chain), government (mostly what not to do, what to protect, how to adjudicate disagreement), public works ("roads are a good idea") and their ilk. Also medicine beyond first aid and basic care.
Volume three would be advanced STEM topics, getting from a functioning society to... more. Not even the sky's the limit. It should include blueprints for things we take for granted like refrigeration, telecommunication and birth control. It will include all the basics of physics, chemistry and biology required for smart people to fill in the gaps and launch a human to the moon and back.
I want to super-nerd-out about this, and publish it on Tyvek or something exotic so it'll last through decades of wear and tear (and water-logging and more), and include a ruler on the spine and it's own weight documented for reference.