The Ingenuity Gap

In the wake of the miraculous aftermath of the US Airways crash into the Hudson River yesterday I read, with interest, the pilot's story.

It seems like everything in life had prepared Sully Sullenberger for that moment.

He was trained in the Armed Forces and had 28 years of flying with US Airways under his belt.

He is also the president of Safety Reliability Methods, a company that provides safety, performance and reliability consulting to various businesses. He co-wrote, with NASA, a report on crew decision-making errors in times of emergency.

In addition to doing the impossible -- landing his Airbus 320 intact, in the freezing waters of the Hudson -- Sullenberger reportedly was the last one off the plane.

He walked the aisles twice, ensuring that all passengers and crew were safely deplaned.

In what could only be described as the most complex set of circumstances, Sullenberger made all the right decisions. Helped, no doubt, by the gentle hand of God.

This incident reminded me of a story that launches Thomas (Tad) Homer-Dixon's book, The Ingenuity Gap.

I met Dixon about fifteen years ago.

He's a brainiac who holds the International Innovation Governance Chair of Global Systems at the School for International Studies in Waterloo. He's also distractingly good-looking.

Tad focuses his research on the threats to global security in the 21st century and on how societies adapt to complex economic, ecological, and technological change.

He measures a country's "development" based on their ability to adapt to rapidly changing circumstances.

And he launches his book with a breathless account of another incident in the sky. This time it's United Airlines Flight 232 from Denver to Chicago.

A complex set of incidents. And the impossible. Plus, a word from our sponsor: God.

You can read the chapter, in its entirety here.

The book's a page turner, too.