American Genesis: A Century of Invention and Technological Enthusiasm, 1870-1970 - Softcover

Nominated for the Pulitzer Prize--Pulitzer Prize nomination "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 "Science " "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 "New York Review of Books " "Immensely valuable." --Jonathan Yardley "Washington Post " "Hughes writes with sweep and detail. He links diverse phenomena like the military-industrial complex and modern art and architecture with his overall vision that order and control were the inevitable result of technological progress. His is an epic tale told with a rhythm and cadence that match it." --Lee Dembart "Los Angeles Times "