tegwick
2d1282a61e
Restructure entity storage from per-chapter subdirectories to a flat
canonical set in output/entities/. Each entity exists as a single file;
duplicates across chapters are detected by slug collision and skipped
(first occurrence wins). Chapter views use {{ include }} transclusion
to reference shared entity files.
Add @{existing_entities} macro to extract-entities template so the LLM
knows which entities already exist and focuses on genuinely new ones.
Refactor _call_llm() from _execute_llm() for callers that handle their
own file I/O. 41 unique entities from 4 chapters (2 duplicates removed).
Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.6 <noreply@anthropic.com>
1.6 KiB
Improvement of Art and Industry
Definition
The progressive advancement of productive techniques, manufacturing methods, and economic organisation that accompanies the expansion of markets. Smith argues that such improvements naturally begin in areas with water-carriage access, where the whole world serves as a potential market, and only later extend to inland regions. The concept links market extent to technological and organisational progress: larger markets incentivise innovation by rewarding specialisation and creating demand for refined products.
Source Chapter
Book 1, Chapter 3: "That the Division of Labour is Limited by the Extent of the Market"
Context
This concept appears in the transitional passage between Smith's transport-cost analysis and his historical survey of civilisations. It establishes the causal chain: water-carriage → expanded markets → division of labour → improvement of art and industry. The historical examples (Egypt, Bengal, China) then serve as evidence.
Economic Domain
Production
Smith's Original Wording
"Since such, therefore, are the advantages of water-carriage, it is natural that the first improvements of art and industry should be made where this conveniency opens the whole world for a market to the produce of every sort of labour."
Modern Interpretation
This concept anticipates endogenous growth theory, which holds that market size affects the rate of innovation. Larger markets increase the returns to developing new techniques, creating a positive feedback loop between market expansion and technological progress.