American Genesis: A Century of Invention and Technological Enthusiasm, 1870-1970
The book that helped earn Thomas P. Hughes his reputation as one of the foremost historians of technology of our age and a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in 1990, American Genesis tells the sweeping story of America's technological revolution. Unlike other histories of technology, which focus on particular inventions like the light bulb or the automobile, American Genesis makes these inventions characters in a broad chronicle, both shaped by and shaping a culture. By weaving scientific and...
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The book that helped earn Thomas P. Hughes his reputation as one of the foremost historians of technology of our age and a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in 1990, American Genesis tells the sweeping story of America's technological revolution. Unlike other histories of technology, which focus on particular inventions like the light bulb or the automobile, American Genesis makes these inventions characters in a broad chronicle, both shaped by and shaping a culture. By weaving scientific and technological advancement into other cultural trends, Hughes demonstrates here the myriad ways in which the two are inexorably linked, and in a new preface, he recounts his earlier missteps in predicting the future of technology and follows its move into the information age. New York Review of Books "To be sure, readers who don't look for theoretical argument in history books won't regret its absence in American Genesis. They will enjoy, as I did, its informative accounts of major inventors and organizers--Henry Ford and Frederick Taylor as well as Edison, but most of all Elmer Sperry, the inventor not only of the gyroscope but also of many automatic control systems."— David Joravsky
ForewordAcknowledgmentsIntroduction : the technological torrent11A gigantic tidal wave of human ingenuity132Choosing and solving problems533Brain mill for the military964No philanthropic asylum for indigent scientists1385The system must be first1846Taylorismus + fordismus = Amerikanismus2497The second discovery of America2958Tennessee valley and Manhattan engineer district3539Counterculture and momentum443Notes473Index514
\ Los Angeles Times - Lee Dembart\ "Hughes writes with sweep and detail. He links diverse phenomena like the m\ \ \ \ \ \ Washington Post - Jonathan Yardley\ "Immensely valuable."\ \ \ \ New York Review of Books"To be sure, readers who don't look for theoretical argument in history books won't regret its absence in American Genesis. They will enjoy, as I did, its informative accounts of major inventors and organizers--Henry Ford and Frederick Taylor as well as Edison, but most of all Elmer Sperry, the inventor not only of the gyroscope but also of many automatic control systems."\ \ \ \ \ \ Science"Masterful and stimulating. . . . It is Hughes's mastery of the history of technology that distinguishes this book from previous efforts to depict history as technology . . . Many people have deplored the lack of a single volume giving a coherent, well-written account of what has been learned since 1970 about the role of technology in American history since 1870. Thomas Hughes has done something about it."\ \ \ \ \ \ Pulitzer Prize nominationNominated for the Pulitzer Prize\ \ \ \ \ \ Los Angeles Times"Hughes writes with sweep and detail. He links diverse phenomena like the m\ — Lee Dembart\ \ \ \ \ \ Washington Post"Immensely valuable."\ — Jonathan Yardley\ \ \ \ \ \ New York Review of Books"To be sure, readers who don't look for theoretical argument in history books won't regret its absence in American Genesis. They will enjoy, as I did, its informative accounts of major inventors and organizers--Henry Ford and Frederick Taylor as well as Edison, but most of all Elmer Sperry, the inventor not only of the gyroscope but also of many automatic control systems."\ — David Joravsky\ \ \ \ \ \ Science"Masterful and stimulating. . . . It is Hughes's mastery of the history of technology that distinguishes this book from previous efforts to depict history as technology . . . Many people have deplored the lack of a single volume giving a coherent, well-written account of what has been learned since 1970 about the role of technology in American history since 1870. Thomas Hughes has done something about it."\ — George Wise\ \ \
