The Evolution of Technology (Cambridge Studies in the History of Science) - Hardcover

Basalla, George

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9780521228558: The Evolution of Technology (Cambridge Studies in the History of Science)
Hardcover
ISBN 10: 0521228557 ISBN 13: 9780521228558
Publisher: Cambridge University Press, 1989

Synopsis

Presents an evolutionary theory of technological change based on recent scholarship in the history of technology and on relevant material drawn from economic history and anthropology. Challenges the popular notion that technological advances arise from the efforts of a few heroic individuals who produce a series of revolutionary inventions that owe little or nothing to the technological past. Therefore, the book's argument is shaped by analogies drawn selectively from the theory of organic evolution, and not from the theory and practice of political revolution. Three themes appear, with variations, throughout the study. The first is diversity: an acknowledgment of the vast numbers of different kinds of made things (artifacts) that long have been available to humanity. The second theme is necessity: the mistaken belief that humans are driven to invent new artifacts in order to meet basic biological needs such as food, shelter, and defense. And the third theme is technological evolution: an organic analogy that explains both the emergence of the novel artifacts and their subsequent selection by society for incorporation into its material life without invoking either biological necessity or technological process.

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Book Description

Three emerging themes challenge the popular notion that technology advances through the efforts of a few who produce a series of revolutionary inventions that owe little or nothing to the technological past.

From the Back Cover

This book presents an evolutionary theory of technological change based upon recent scholarship in the history of technology and upon relevant material drawn from economic history and anthropology.

"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.

Publisher
Cambridge University Press
Publication date
1989
Language
English
ISBN 10 
0521228557
ISBN 13 
9780521228558
Binding
Hardcover
Number of pages
260
Rating
  • 3.78 out of 5 stars
    205 ratings by Goodreads

Other Popular Editions of the Same Title

9780521296816: The Evolution of Technology (Cambridge Studies in the History of Science)

Featured Edition

ISBN 10:  0521296811 ISBN 13:  9780521296816
Publisher: Cambridge University Press, 2010
Softcover