History of Technology Volume 26: Volume Twenty-six, 2005

Description

The technical problems confronting different societies and periods and the measures taken to solve them form the concern of this annual collection of essays. It deals with the history of technical discovery and change and explores the relationship of technology to other aspects of life - social, cultural and economic - and shows how technological development has shaped, and been shaped by, the society in which it occurred. Cover Half-title Title Copyright Contents The Contributors Notes for Contributors Making Things from New Ideas INTRODUCTION ARCHAEOLOGICAL FANTASY ECONOMIC GROWTH CLUSTERS AROUND A NEW MATERIAL: SHIFTING OF ATOMS MECHANISM OF INNOVATION THE MODEL TRAPS KNOWLEDGE THE INNOVATION PROCESS MECHANISM OF INNOVATION ARTEFACTS TRIANGLE ROTATION TRIANGLE TREES PREDICTIONS WEALTH CONCLUSIONS References The Twenty-One Books of Engines and Machines Attributed to Pedro Juan de Lastanosa INTRODUCTION THE TITLE PAGES ADDED IN THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY AN OVERVIEW OF TECHNOLOGY IN SPAIN IN THE SIXTEENTH CENTURY ENGINEERING AND ARCHITECTURE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY PHILOSOPHY AND RELIGION IN SEARCH OF THE AUTHOR PEDRO JUAN DE LASTANOSA SOLUTIONS TO THE PROBLEMS EPILOGUE Notes and References Richard Roberts' Contributions to Production Engineering THE SPINNING MULE: ROBERTS SHOWS HIS INVENTIVE GENIUS REED-MAKING MACHINES AND POWER LOOMS: EARLY VENTURES INTO AUTOMATION ROBERTS RECOGNIZES THE IMPORTANCE OF MACHINE TOOLS MACHINE TOOLS: FROM THE GENERAL TO THE SPECIFIC THE IMPORTANCE OF THE TEXTILE INDUSTRY FOR THE ORIGINS OF PRODUCTION ENGINEERING THE EMERGENCE OF STANDARDIZED PRODUCTION CONCLUSION Notes and References Promoting British Aviation in 1950s Cinema JET PLANE EXPLODES. Geoffrey de Havilland Killed FASTER THAN SOUND? Notes and References Special Issue: Engineering Disasters 1. Introduction Notes and References 2. Maritime Disasters and the Law INTRODUCTION EARLY DAYS FREEBOARD AND LIFESAVING INTERNATIONAL CONVENTIONS INTERESTS FORMAL INQUIRIES REMAINING PROBLEMS CONCLUSIONS Notes and References 3. Suspension Bridges Notes and References 4. The Causes of the Great Sheffield Flood of 1864 Notes and References 5. Semiconductor Manufacture and Chemical Contamination within Silicon Valley Notes and References 6. Gunpowder: A Capricious and Unmerciful Thing EARLY REGULATION BY THE STATE: SECURING SUPPLIES CONTROLLING THE TRANSPORT AND STORAGE OF GUNPOWDER PRACTICAL MEASURES AND PUBLIC OPINION TECHNOLOGY AND SAFETY IN GUNPOWDER MAKING SAFER POWDER MILLS? THE PUBLIC AND PRIVATE SECTORS OF THE INDUSTRY SAFETY IN THE EXPLOSIVES INDUSTRY: THE CROWN v THE PEOPLE Notes and References 7. Engineering Disasters: Thoughts of a Factory Inspector Notes and References 8. Fatigue as a Factor in Aeronautical Disasters INTRODUCTION FATIGUE IN EARLY AVIATION JET PROPULSION AND ALTITUDE OPERATION DISASTER AND THE 'COMET' SAFE LIFE AND FAIL SAFE Notes and References 9. Design Compromises in the Space Shuttle Notes and References 10. Past and Future Bridge Failures INTRODUCTION THE NATURE OF FAILURE HISTORIC BRIDGE FAILURES SIBLY'S THESIS DEE BRIDGE TAY BRIDGE QUEBEC BRIDGE TACOMA NARROWS BRIDGE SIBLY'S GENERALIZATION A 30-YEAR CYCLE? A MILLENNIUM OCCURRENCE CABLE-STAYED BRIDGES CONCLUSION Notes and References Former Volumes