Normal Accidents

The beginning of 2021 could make you nostalgic for 2020. First an insurrection at the US Capitol. Then millions of Americans lost power and water as arctic temperatures blanketed the country. All the while, Covid-19 smoldered in the background. Happy New Year.

Everything is Normal

Charles Perrow, Yale sociologist and expert on complex organizations, wouldn’t be surprised. He knew that in complex systems, accidents are a feature, not a bug.

Inspired by the 1979 near-miss at Three Mile Island, Perrow began studying high-risk systems. His…