Tribes

Sometimes we think of tribes as a fixture of civilization. But they are actually bad for civilizations over eons. Tribes are what stop larger systems from operating optimally. Tribes are self-sustaining belief systems that overlay geographical boundaries, where resources are hoarded, and give one region more power over others. Type II civilizations and higher probably would have banished the tribe (or not). The good thing about a "Singularity" is that politics and tribal forces could be programmed out of civilizations. But without tribes (as teams) nothing would ever get done.