The quantity of thermodynamic depth produced per worker-second of average labor under advancing conditions of production

This article develops a two-sector model of surplus thermodynamic depth using the Sraffian approach. The effect on the model from ongoing advances in production technology is considered. The conclusion is that, absent countervailing tendencies, the per-worker-second production of thermodynamic depth under capitalism will tend to increase exponentially. The implications of this conclusion for political economists who conceive of “value” as the quantity of labor that may be treated as embodied in commodities by reference to average labor under given conditions of production are considered. JEL Classification : B51, D46