Books To Get You Thinking

In the early years of civilization, survival hinged solely on hunting and foraging for food.  Evolution saw the use of tools increasing - initially just stone tools, then gradually the use of mechanical devices.  It is only in the last few centuries that man has developed machine tools and engineering infrastructure that scales productivity levels by several orders of magnitude. From horse drawn carriages to steam engines to supersonic jets, our transition to the modern economy is a story of relentless innovation and invention in science, engineering, and abstract ideas. Each of the books featured in this post captures different facets of these innovations – the emergence and use of various energy and power sources, precision engineering of tools and machines, and the constant refinement of ideas that has led to a streamlined system of global trade, the stock exchange and intellectual property rights.

Energy: A Human History by Richard Rhodes

Richard Rhodes, a Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award winning author, brings to readers a fascinating new book about the history of energy, using the compelling narratives and lively anecdotes of scientists, engineers and inventors. Deeply researched, the book presents technical details in a way that makes it an interesting and enjoyable read not just for science buffs but for a wide audience from all backgrounds.  Going back four centuries, Rhodes examines the circumstances and events that determined how the world has met the energy challenge.  Rhodes meticulously examines the economic forces and inventions that resulted in breakthroughs and technologies leading to the rise of new, alternate ways of extracting and harnessing energy sources. In seventeenth and eighteenth century England, the heavy use of wood caused scarcities and higher prices that led to the transition to coal. The same period saw the transition from animal and water power to the steam engine, the biggest driver of the Industrial Revolution, followed by the invention of the internal combustion engine, generator and electric motor. Today the use of natural gas, as well as wind, solar and nuclear energy sources, is largely replacing coal as a viable energy option. The compelling overview of how development has hinged on the massive use of raw materials, how every stage of development brought with it a new set of problems and opportunities, and how every new invention gave rise to new challenges brings us to one of the central points of the book – how do we confront the twin challenges of global warming and man’s insatiable energy needs?


The Perfectionists: How Precision Engineers Created the Modern World by Simon Winchester

Simon Winchester’s new book on the role played by the human pursuit of precision in the evolution of the modern world is a significant historical tour de force.  The author traces the beginnings of large scale manufacturing to the development of standardized measurements and tools that could be used to make machinery. It was the necessity of transforming steam into power that first propelled the invention of the steam engine. John Wilkinson, considered the father of precision engineering in eighteenth century England, was able to fashion a tool to cut iron cylinders with such precision and accuracy that they were a perfect fit for the pistons of a steam locomotive. This then quickly became the driver of the Industrial Revolution. The book includes absorbing vignettes featuring scientists and inventions and discusses how the relentless quest for new ways of perfecting things led to engineering innovations and new instruments, machines and scientific advancements.  The success of modern day mass production involves assembly lines and hinges on precise technology implementation at each stage. It was precision engineering and attention to detail that went into designing the legendary Rolls Royce Silver Ghost, the internal combustion engine, the high pressure turbine blades used in most modern aircrafts, the magnificent Hubble Space Telescope, and the tiny microprocessor chip that has ushered in the digital revolution. The author concludes with the important dichotomy of the coexistence of the human pursuance of mechanical precision juxtaposed against man’s timeless fascination for the handcrafted, the natural, the imperfect. While quartz clocks and watches manufactured through assembly line production are in demand as instruments of precision timekeeping, the fine mechanical watches made by a skilled watchmaker continue to be coveted and cherished as a symbol of the intricate beauty human hands can create. 

                                               
Fifty Inventions That Shaped the Modern Economy by Tim Harford

British economist and journalist Tim Harford has based his book on his popular BBC Show.  This fascinating book includes a diverse collection of inventions selected by the author, physical objects, as well as ideas and thoughts that have brought about irreversible changes in how the world functions. Harford introduces each of these inventions in short chapters – objects like ordinary barbed wire and batteries to the indispensable iPhone; abstract ideas ranging from intellectual property and double entry bookkeeping to Index Funds.  Most inventions have helped solve a problem and found new efficient ways of implementation. At the same time, they have set off a sequential chain of unanticipated economic repercussions, opening up entirely new possibilities while abandoning the older order of things. Harford cites one of the earliest inventions - the plough - as the first transformative technology that set into motion the road to civilization and future modernization.  It established agriculture as a productive occupation that could provide enough food for all and allowed people to pursue other occupations, giving rise to communities organized by division of labor. Technology inventions have caused shifts in the balance of economic power and social structures with some people benefiting from the new invention while many others are left behind. When pursuing the relentless search for the new and the unknown, it is important to view the short and long term effects the innovation or invention will bring in its wake and proactively work on policies such as a universal basic income to help mitigate the potential negative effects of change.

- Nita Mathur, West Windsor Branch

Comments

  1. What a wonderful choice of books under the umbrella of human progress & evolution of so many wide ranging aspects of our lives in this complicated and ever changing world.
    Very eloquently expressed.

    Smita

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  2. As the name of the blog suggests, these books do lead us to think about the phenomenon changes that have taken place in the technology world. While this has made our lives more comfortable and easy, the challenge is to see if it would make us more humane. That is the need of the hour.

    Subodh

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