On the emergence of ecological and economic niches

摘要: The origin of economic niches, conceived as potential markets, has been mostly neglected in theory. Ecological niches emerge new species evolve and fit into a web interactions, the more come existence, (exponentially or power-law distributed) ecological emerge. In parallel fashion, with goods, niche formation economics is also exponentially distributed. ecology alike, autocatalytic processes drive system to greater diversity. Novelty begets novelty positive feedback loop. An set self-enabling transactions feed back upon one another combinatoric fashion generate progressive While these combinatorial dynamics cannot be prestated, model explains “hockeystick growth”—a pattern prolonged stasis followed by sudden takeoff, such occurred during Industrial Revolution Cambrian explosion ecology. Several implications derive from our emergence model, including idea that evolutionary process technological change not something we do; rather, it happens us.