Industrial civilization may not last very long.  Industrial civilization on Earth is only about 200 years old.  A useful starting point is the first time a railroad train carried paying passengers. There were earlier demos and prototypes, but think of that as the moment the Industrial Revolution got out of beta.  Progress up to then was very slow. Progress after that was very fast.<p>About 75 years ago, progress reached the point that a substantial dent could be made in the planet&#x27;s resources.  Until then, human activity just wasn&#x27;t large scale enough.  Now, we can see the end in sight for many resources.  On a scale of centuries, most mineral resources run out.<p>The high-power, heavy industry phase of life may have an expiration date that&#x27;s closer in time than the founding of Oxford University.