I've known you for a while I think we've been talking about this paper off and on for probably about 10 years of the 17. What kind of reaction did it get anything academic setting not just from referees but when you presented it publicly. Most people were really liked it and were actually even enthusiastic about it. But then, here is the problem and I had a I had a rant on Twitter about that which was quite I think inch a lot of got a lot of attention. And now I actually typically ask young economists. what time it would happen.
Since at least Adam Smith, the common wisdom has been that the transition from hunter-gathering to farming allowed the creation of the State. Farming, so went the theory, led to agricultural surplus, and that surplus is the prerequisite for taxation and a State. But economist Omer Moav of the University of Warwick and Reichman University argues that it wasn't farming but the farming of a particular kind of crop (but not others) that led to hierarchy and the State. Moav explains to EconTalk host Russ Roberts storability is the key dimension that allows for taxation and a State. The conversation includes a discussion of why it's important to understand the past and the challenges of confirming or refuting theories about history.