Summary
When plotted on a logarithmic chart with size on the x-axis and another quality on the y-axis, many organic qualities seems to scale predictably with size. This also appears to be true with inorganic organizations like cities and companies. This is a curious discovery and begs the question of whether there is some kind of natural law that defines how organizations and networks behave when scaled. Scale by Geoffrey West attempts to define that law. It is an interesting book with a few striking ideas, but it is also long, repetitive and makes several logical leaps, especially in its analysis of companies that limit West’s success in creating an engaging and convincing theory.
Notes
There Is Likely A Universal Law That Defines Scale
Scaling Is About How A System Responds To Size
Self-Organization Is A Form Of Emergent Behaviour
Entropy And The Second Law Of Thermodynamics