Shock Of The Old: Technology and Global History since 1900: Amazon.co.uk: David Edgerton: Books

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Hardcover Hardcover Available from these sellers. Publisher: Profile Books Published: 7 Dec 2006	--		�112.95	�4.03
Paperback Paperback �6.99 In stock. Publisher: Profile Books Published: 10 Jan 2008	�6.99		�3.64	�3.14

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Product details

Paperback: 288 pages
Publisher: Profile Books (10 Jan 2008)
Language English
ISBN-10: 1861973063
ISBN-13: 978-1861973061
Product Dimensions: 19.2 x 13 x 2.2 cm

Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (5 customer reviews)

Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 29,130 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
#9 in Books > History > Other Historical Subjects > History of Engineering & Technology
#10 in Books > History > Social & Economic History > Inventions

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Product Description

Review

"'So the new is old, and the old is new! Marvellous stuff, and absolutely spot-on.' Simon Jenkins, Guardian 'A quiet pleasure and salutary corrective...Edgerton leaves us with an infinitely more nuanced, balanced and perceptive account of technology and social change than conventional accounts would allow.' Independent '...he eviscerates our obsession with novelty.' Sunday Times"

The Times

`...iconoclastic and thought-provoking book...he makes a strong case that accords with what Virgil identified around 25BC as a definitive human characteristic. Our lives consist of semper cedentia retro: always going forwards backwards.'

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Inside This Book (Learn More)

First Sentence
Is the condom more significant in history than the aeroplane? Read the first page

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innovation(3)

technology(2)

economic history(1)

innovation management(1)

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What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

	86% buy the item featured on this page: Shock Of The Old: Technology and Global History since 1900 by David Edgerton Paperback 3.0 out of 5 stars (5) �6.99
	6% buy Warfare State: Britain, 1920-1970 by David Edgerton Paperback 5.0 out of 5 stars (1) �18.49
	3% buy Science, Technology and the British Industrial 'Decline', 1870-1970 (New Studies in Economic and Social History) by David Edgerton Paperback 4.0 out of 5 stars (1) �15.19
	3% buy Science and Technology in World History: An Introduction by James E. McClellan III Paperback �14.89

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Customer Reviews

5 Reviews

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Average Customer Review

3.0 out of 5 stars (5 customer reviews)

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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Great content, difficult style, 7 Aug 2010

By	Wantrapreneur - See all my reviews

This review is from: Shock Of The Old: Technology and Global History since 1900 (Paperback)

There is some great content and important ideas in this book. Technology does not march forward in the way most of us expect. Innovation is not necessarily a solution for a nation trying to keep ahead etc. However, I found the book hard work to read. The style jumped from example to example and left me to understand the flow and the core message. It felt like a book written for people that have to read it, rather than a book written for people that want to read.

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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Get Real, 18 Feb 2010

By	Mr. N. Foale "electronic word" (Devon, UK) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Shock Of The Old: Technology and Global History since 1900 (Paperback)

This book makes important points about our love affair with technology and in doing so makes the conventional wisdom look clapped out. Our innovation fetish makes us unhealthily dependent upon novelty - instead we should carefully consider how to productively wield technology, both old and new. As such I disagree with other reviewers - the thesis is clear: focus on results rather than look for answers in the technology itself. Technical fixes cannot solve human problems.

The book points out the importance of maintenance and smart reuse of existing technology. Poorer people well know this - for example I saw African roads chock full of decrepit vehicles that are daily tended by skilled street mechanics to prolong their working lives. This emphasis on maintenance and reuse dampens the hype surrounding my professional role of developing I.T. systems. For example in Web development the latest fashion is to move beyond the single browser window by web-enabling traditional multi-window applications. This begs the question: if we really needed to stick with the more complex user interface of traditional applications then why did we reject them in in the first place? It is essential that we clarify our aims if we are to disperse the innovation smokescreen.

Technology persists longer than the prevailing wisdom would have us believe. The author cites many examples including that conventional weapons, even in the most recent wars, kill more people than do modern weapons such as nuclear or 'smart' bombs. Take the readily available Kalashnikov: an (admittedly grim) emblem of the book's theme. It is simple to manufacture and maintain, and its rugged robustness wins out over shinier guns that are superior in showroom conditions. In other words it is both readily available and can be relied upon to get the job done.

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11 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Hidden in here is a much better book, I'm sure, 3 Jun 2007

By	Jezza (London) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Shock Of The Old: Technology and Global History since 1900: Technology in Global History Since 1900 (Hardcover)

...but though there were lots of interesting facts and insights, I'm not really sure there was a clear argument to follow. A shame, because I suspect he has one - it just wasn't clear to me. A nice antidote to technohype, but no alternative model really

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

1.0 out of 5 stars good title good cover terrible book
the ideas in this book could be written on page 1 - the rest is padding. good marketing! if you want to waste 6.99 buy - otherwise don't bother.

Published 12 months ago by Mrs. S. C. Lamb

3.0 out of 5 stars Something missing...
This book has been sitting on my desk for some weeks. I finished it a while ago, but wasn't sure how to review it, because I'm not sure exactly what the author's thesis is. Read more

Published 20 months ago by Alan Lenton

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