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Issue 24: Rats, The Glorious Revolution and the secret to ultra-Orthodox fertility

2026-06-17 · 11:45 UTC ·Works in Progress ·1 min read

Brief

Works in Progress Issue 24 is a discussion-format episode hosted by Sam, Pieter, and Aria that pulls together research on historical and policy puzzles. They highlight that rats spread west across North America at ~24 km/year and were halted at Alberta’s border by 1950, examine ultra‑Orthodox pro‑fertility norms (≈6 children per woman), and cover land reclamation, wildlife vaccination, the Squamish Nation housing project in Vancouver, and the Glorious Revolution’s link to industrialization.

Why it matters

Alberta remains effectively rat-free: rats arrived in North America on ships to New York, Boston, and Philadelphia during the Industrial Revolution, spread west at about 24 km/year, and reached Alberta’s border by 1950 but were prevented from establishing inside the province.

Key details

  • Hosts report an ultra‑Orthodox urban culture in the U.S. averaging roughly six children per woman; the group follows distinct pro‑fertility norms—many not transferable to secular society, though some practices could inform broader fertility policy.
  • Episode hosts Sam, Pieter, and Aria also summarize pieces on land reclamation, vaccinating wild animals, the Squamish Nation’s housing development in Vancouver, and the argument that the 1688 Glorious Revolution helped set the stage for the Industrial Revolution.
Source evidence

Alberta is the only part of the world that has people but not rats. Rats came to the new world on ships to New York, Boston and Philadelphia during the Industrial Revolution. From there they spread west at a rate of 24 kilometers a year and by 1950 they were on Alberta's border. But Albertans stopped them coming any further.

In the US there is a culture that lives in dense cities, the women usually work, and yet they still have an average of six children each. The ultra-Orthodox have a number of pro-fertility norms, most of which wouldn't work for the secular world but some we could learn from.

Sam, Pieter, and Aria discuss a handful of pieces in Issue 24 of Works in Progress. They talk land reclamation, vaccinating wild animals, the Squamish Nation's housing development in Vancouver and how The Glorious Revolution caused the Industrial Revolution.

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Channel: Works in Progress
Published: 2026-06-17
Video URL: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u0BBaori9jU