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There is also another side to efficient systems: as you remove the slack, they become fragile. The inefficiencies are what allows systems to adapt to changing environments.

You could also think of this as the bias-variance tradeoff, lack of generalization, or overly specific adaptation.

This can be seen in the supply chains and economies right now with the COVID-19 impact. Economies with ultra-efficient supply chains (like the US or Western Europe) are being hit the worst, while those with slack and inefficiencies (like Central/Eastern Europe post-communist countries) can absorb the impact much better.




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