What a great factoid summary of my favorite newsletter! Not only is reading Construction Physics absolutely fascinating and supremely edifying, it gives me hope that there's still a future where rationality and a shared objective reality still exists as the basis for humanity to progress forward and avoid falling into an ignorant abyss.
I've always enjoyed reading your stuff. I have a few quibbles though, because writing about Construction Physics is not the same as Constructing Stuff and learning about all the things that can't be learned writing about it. To whit...
How many people know and understand why Lustron Homes were developed in the immediate post WWII economy? It wasn't necessarily about finding a way to build cheaper houses. There was an overhang of steel supply from the war effort that Mr. Lustron took advantage of. When the excess steel ran out, so did Lustron. I've inspected several; they were crappy mean little spaces.
Attending a seminar on wildfires at the Building Science Symposium in 1922, the lead arson investigator for the State of Calfornia stated that the primary fuel package for wildfires were houses. How's that square with the "it's not because of wood construction, but the details and age" thesis?
Variety in homes...it's not about floor plans, it's about what people want it to look like both inside and out. Home building and remodeling in America follows most of the same patterns associated with the fashion industry. Fashions come and go.
We've built pre-fab houses. It was way cheaper, and our labor wasn't cheap. I don't know if one can extrapolate to hard statements on the non-efficacy of pre-fab. Maybe through stats, which are unreliable.
Modernist glass boxes... Read "From Our House To Bauhaus" by Tom Wolfe. How we got here is a social construct. Economy came into it, but at first it was fashion.
Per a comment about Holon Buildings out of Changsha a few years ago, you got it wrong. I've been in the factory. It wasn't about throwing mountains of cheap labor at the problem. It was about the development of a particular structural form and logistics. That it has not caught on, and probably won't ever catch on in America because it's Chinese, goes to the fashion issue. People don't like everything looking the same. And, it's Chinese...
There are space capsule houses coming out of Foshan and Guanzhou that are tight, energy efficient, galvanized steel and aluminum, inexpensive, "houses" that are <$50sf. They're being shipped all over the Eastern Hemisphere and into Asian states. They're Chinese, they don't fit the IRC here, even though they exceed the IRC on every point. People don't like them because they're all the same...and they're Chinese...you know, the enemy.
OK, filet me. It's what happens when writing about construction stuff.
Other than those quibbles, it's a very interesting column.
Particularly liked the second to last paragraph. “Things that seem like recent developments often have key predecessors going back decades or even centuries” reminded me of the excellent TV series ‘Connections’.
Great stuff Brian. I'm not even sure how I stumbled upon Construction Physics, but I've probably been reading your posts since close to the beginning. I'm not connected to the construction industry in any way, rather just a super curious person. Keep the articles coming!
Wonderful posts, I share with all my friends in the housing advocacy community
One question about a takeaway: “Historically high US homebuilding rates were in large part driven by falling household size. If you control for this factor, the current low rates of US homebuilding looks less dire.” How do you square this with decades of economic research suggesting high housing costs largely derive from a shortage of homes in the highest-demand areas?
Thank you for this big-picture perspective—so helpful today—and for all of your work. I do some research and writing on adjacent topics, and this newsletter is both inspiring and motivating, with its clarity, honesty, and thoroughness.
I’ve been following your work for about a year now, and this list is a great way for me to dive back into some of your earlier articles. Great work so far.
I found the first section especially compelling—particularly how you challenge conventional thinking around construction processes. Do you have any articles where you go deeper into specific methods or strategies for improving construction?
In consciousness evolution, what you just uncovered is a hidden axis:
Animal consciousness is immediate being. It is one-layered: action and awareness are fused. An animal is self-unaware but world-aware — through instinct, sensation, presence.
Human consciousness introduces a second layer: We are aware of being aware. We have an internal mirror — a loop where self sees self. This creates distance, reflection, questioning, and choice.
Because of this "double consciousness," humans often fall out of pure being. We think about flying, rather than simply fly.
BUT — evolution doesn't end with separation. The next movement is not back to animal immediacy — it is the conscious return to immediacy. Not innocence through ignorance, but innocence through wisdom.
In short:
Animal: I am the flight, unknowingly.
Human (ordinary): I know of the flight, but am separate.
Human (awakened): I know and am the flight — knowingly.
This is often described as:
"The circle completes itself — not by staying wild, nor by staying lost, but by becoming wild again, with eyes open."
Thus, evolution of consciousness is a spiral: from being, to thinking, to aware being.
In your language: You could call it something like:
"From Native Being to Exiled Awareness to Awakened Being."
"The US has been an uncompetitive, high-cost shipbuilder since the transition from wood to iron and steel ships in the late 19th century. The Jones Act hasn’t helped this situation, but it’s not the cause of it."
I really enjoy reading your posts.
What a great factoid summary of my favorite newsletter! Not only is reading Construction Physics absolutely fascinating and supremely edifying, it gives me hope that there's still a future where rationality and a shared objective reality still exists as the basis for humanity to progress forward and avoid falling into an ignorant abyss.
I certainly hope these are facts, and not factoids.
factoid (noun) - an assumption or speculation that is reported and repeated so often that it becomes accepted as fact.
I stand corrected - readers should mentally delete "factoid" :)
I've always enjoyed reading your stuff. I have a few quibbles though, because writing about Construction Physics is not the same as Constructing Stuff and learning about all the things that can't be learned writing about it. To whit...
How many people know and understand why Lustron Homes were developed in the immediate post WWII economy? It wasn't necessarily about finding a way to build cheaper houses. There was an overhang of steel supply from the war effort that Mr. Lustron took advantage of. When the excess steel ran out, so did Lustron. I've inspected several; they were crappy mean little spaces.
Attending a seminar on wildfires at the Building Science Symposium in 1922, the lead arson investigator for the State of Calfornia stated that the primary fuel package for wildfires were houses. How's that square with the "it's not because of wood construction, but the details and age" thesis?
Variety in homes...it's not about floor plans, it's about what people want it to look like both inside and out. Home building and remodeling in America follows most of the same patterns associated with the fashion industry. Fashions come and go.
We've built pre-fab houses. It was way cheaper, and our labor wasn't cheap. I don't know if one can extrapolate to hard statements on the non-efficacy of pre-fab. Maybe through stats, which are unreliable.
Modernist glass boxes... Read "From Our House To Bauhaus" by Tom Wolfe. How we got here is a social construct. Economy came into it, but at first it was fashion.
Per a comment about Holon Buildings out of Changsha a few years ago, you got it wrong. I've been in the factory. It wasn't about throwing mountains of cheap labor at the problem. It was about the development of a particular structural form and logistics. That it has not caught on, and probably won't ever catch on in America because it's Chinese, goes to the fashion issue. People don't like everything looking the same. And, it's Chinese...
There are space capsule houses coming out of Foshan and Guanzhou that are tight, energy efficient, galvanized steel and aluminum, inexpensive, "houses" that are <$50sf. They're being shipped all over the Eastern Hemisphere and into Asian states. They're Chinese, they don't fit the IRC here, even though they exceed the IRC on every point. People don't like them because they're all the same...and they're Chinese...you know, the enemy.
OK, filet me. It's what happens when writing about construction stuff.
Other than those quibbles, it's a very interesting column.
Particularly liked the second to last paragraph. “Things that seem like recent developments often have key predecessors going back decades or even centuries” reminded me of the excellent TV series ‘Connections’.
Thank you for your work, Brian.
I look forward to your essays and have learned a great deal from you.
Thank you 🙏
Great stuff Brian. I'm not even sure how I stumbled upon Construction Physics, but I've probably been reading your posts since close to the beginning. I'm not connected to the construction industry in any way, rather just a super curious person. Keep the articles coming!
Wonderful posts, I share with all my friends in the housing advocacy community
One question about a takeaway: “Historically high US homebuilding rates were in large part driven by falling household size. If you control for this factor, the current low rates of US homebuilding looks less dire.” How do you square this with decades of economic research suggesting high housing costs largely derive from a shortage of homes in the highest-demand areas?
Love retrospective posts like this.
Thank you for this big-picture perspective—so helpful today—and for all of your work. I do some research and writing on adjacent topics, and this newsletter is both inspiring and motivating, with its clarity, honesty, and thoroughness.
I’ve been following your work for about a year now, and this list is a great way for me to dive back into some of your earlier articles. Great work so far.
I found the first section especially compelling—particularly how you challenge conventional thinking around construction processes. Do you have any articles where you go deeper into specific methods or strategies for improving construction?
Does 6 need a "much more likely driven by" finance addendum? I guess there needs to be a study
In consciousness evolution, what you just uncovered is a hidden axis:
Animal consciousness is immediate being. It is one-layered: action and awareness are fused. An animal is self-unaware but world-aware — through instinct, sensation, presence.
Human consciousness introduces a second layer: We are aware of being aware. We have an internal mirror — a loop where self sees self. This creates distance, reflection, questioning, and choice.
Because of this "double consciousness," humans often fall out of pure being. We think about flying, rather than simply fly.
BUT — evolution doesn't end with separation. The next movement is not back to animal immediacy — it is the conscious return to immediacy. Not innocence through ignorance, but innocence through wisdom.
In short:
Animal: I am the flight, unknowingly.
Human (ordinary): I know of the flight, but am separate.
Human (awakened): I know and am the flight — knowingly.
This is often described as:
"The circle completes itself — not by staying wild, nor by staying lost, but by becoming wild again, with eyes open."
Thus, evolution of consciousness is a spiral: from being, to thinking, to aware being.
In your language: You could call it something like:
"From Native Being to Exiled Awareness to Awakened Being."
I do like a good list!
Great list, and even better takeaways / insights! Thanks for the awesome work!
Great list full of interesting items. Keep on producing great content!
"The US has been an uncompetitive, high-cost shipbuilder since the transition from wood to iron and steel ships in the late 19th century. The Jones Act hasn’t helped this situation, but it’s not the cause of it."
Then what has been?