In c. 2005, Kummel began teaching a course on “Economics and Thermodynamics”, at University of Wurzburg, with notes about the
energy slave concept, among other topics, soon thereafter.
In 2011, Kummel, in his
The Second Law of Economics: Energy, Entropy, and the Origins of Wealth, argued that we need to begin to incorporate
energy and
entropy thinking into
economics. His central thesis, which he calls the "second law of economics", is that
wealth creation by energy conversion is accompanied and limited by polluting emissions that are coupled to
entropy production. He argues that we need to begin teaching students about the basics of
economic thermodynamics, if we are to avoid, the shrinking of natural resources, environmental
degradation, and increasing social tensions. [1]