The Shock of the Old: Technology and Global History Since 1900 (Hardcover) by David Edgerton

from fegolac

This book is an excellent antidote to the idea that humanity (or, in a more restricted sense, the economy) advances through innovation. While innovation plays a role, much more important is the way it's used, and the contexts in which that happens. David Edgerton demonstrates that with many examp...

from ArupForesight

The main thesis of the book is that we do not understand what the important technologies of the twentieth century are. The book proposes an alternate (controversial) view to the current textbooks on histories of technology. It argues that the most significant innovations and inventions are often ...

from djdunc

The main thesis of the book is that we do not understand what the important technologies of the twentieth century are. The book proposes an alternate (controversial) view to the current textbooks on histories of technology. It argues that the most significant innovations and inventions are often ...

from Shrike58

Having read the author's critique of the British military-industrial state, I knew pretty much what to expect; a polemical dismissal of the inventor as a Promethean figure and of the academy as being overrated as a contributor to technological change. Most important in this extended essay is that...