The Shock of the Old

Technology and Global History since 1900

Nonfiction, History, Modern
Cover of the book The Shock of the Old by David Edgerton, Oxford University Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: David Edgerton ISBN: 9780190454265
Publisher: Oxford University Press Publication: August 29, 2011
Imprint: Oxford University Press Language: English
Author: David Edgerton
ISBN: 9780190454265
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Publication: August 29, 2011
Imprint: Oxford University Press
Language: English

From the books of H.G. Wells to the press releases of NASA, we are awash in clichéd claims about high technology's ability to change the course of history. Now, in The Shock of the Old, David Edgerton offers a startling new and fresh way of thinking about the history of technology, radically revising our ideas about the interaction of technology and society in the past and in the present. He challenges us to view the history of technology in terms of what everyday people have actually used-and continue to use-rather than just sophisticated inventions. Indeed, many highly touted technologies, from the V-2 rocket to the Concorde jet, have been costly failures, while many mundane discoveries, like corrugated iron, become hugely important around the world. Edgerton reassesses the significance of such acclaimed inventions as the Pill and information technology, and underscores the continued importance of unheralded technology, debunking many notions about the implications of the "information age." A provocative history, The Shock of the Old provides an entirely new way of looking historically at the relationship between invention and innovation.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

From the books of H.G. Wells to the press releases of NASA, we are awash in clichéd claims about high technology's ability to change the course of history. Now, in The Shock of the Old, David Edgerton offers a startling new and fresh way of thinking about the history of technology, radically revising our ideas about the interaction of technology and society in the past and in the present. He challenges us to view the history of technology in terms of what everyday people have actually used-and continue to use-rather than just sophisticated inventions. Indeed, many highly touted technologies, from the V-2 rocket to the Concorde jet, have been costly failures, while many mundane discoveries, like corrugated iron, become hugely important around the world. Edgerton reassesses the significance of such acclaimed inventions as the Pill and information technology, and underscores the continued importance of unheralded technology, debunking many notions about the implications of the "information age." A provocative history, The Shock of the Old provides an entirely new way of looking historically at the relationship between invention and innovation.

More books from Oxford University Press

Cover of the book Clinical Neuropsychology and Cognitive Neurology of Parkinson's Disease and Other Movement Disorders by David Edgerton
Cover of the book Posidippus of Pella: Oxford Bibliographies Online Research Guide by David Edgerton
Cover of the book The Body of God by David Edgerton
Cover of the book Country Music Records by David Edgerton
Cover of the book The Oxford Handbook of Post-Keynesian Economics, Volume 2 by David Edgerton
Cover of the book Imprisoned by the Past by David Edgerton
Cover of the book Teaching New Religious Movements by David Edgerton
Cover of the book A Christmas Carol Level 3 Oxford Bookworms Library by David Edgerton
Cover of the book Gregory of Nyssa and the Concept of Divine Persons by David Edgerton
Cover of the book Integrative Cardiology by David Edgerton
Cover of the book Questions of Possibility by David Edgerton
Cover of the book The End of Early Music by David Edgerton
Cover of the book Voodoo Island - With Audio Level 2 Oxford Bookworms Library by David Edgerton
Cover of the book Composing the Canon in the German Democratic Republic by David Edgerton
Cover of the book Burdened Virtues : Virtue Ethics for Liberatory Struggles by David Edgerton
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy