The Most Powerful Idea in the World: A Story of Steam, Industry, and Invention
by Rosen, William
- Used
- Very Good
- Paperback
- Condition
- Very Good
- ISBN 10
- 0226726347
- ISBN 13
- 9780226726342
- Seller
-
New Castle, Colorado, United States
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
University of Chicago Press, 2012. Softcover. Very Good. 6x1x9. Hardly a week passes without some high-profile court case that features intellectual property at its center. But how did the belief that one could own an idea come about? And how did that belief change the way humankind lives and works?William Rosen, author of Justinian's Flea, seeks to answer these questions and more with The Most Powerful Idea in the World. A lively and passionate study of the engineering and scientific breakthroughs that led to the steam engine, this book argues that the very notion of intellectual property drove not only the invention of the steam engine but also the entire Industrial Revolution: historyâs first sustained era of economic improvement. To do so, Rosen conjures up an eccentric cast of characters, including the legal philosophers who enabled most the inventive society in millennia, and the scientists and inventorsâThomas Newcomen, Robert Boyle, and James Wattâwho helped to create and perfect the steam engine over the centuries. With wit and wide-ranging curiosity, Rosen explores the power of creativity, capital, and collaboration in the brilliant engineering of the steam engine and how this power source, which fueled factories, ships, and railroads, changed human history.Deeply informative and never dull, Rosen's account of one of the most important inventions made by humans is a rollicking ride through history, with careful scholarship and fast-paced prose in equal measure.
Synopsis
William Rosen, the author of the award-winning history Justinian’s Flea: Plague, Empire, and the Birth of Europe , was an editor and publisher at Macmillan, Simon & Schuster, and the Free Press for nearly twenty-five years. He lives in Princeton, New Jersey.
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Details
- Bookseller
- Michael Patrick McCarty, Bookseller (US)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- SKU2010024792
- Title
- The Most Powerful Idea in the World: A Story of Steam, Industry, and Invention
- Author
- Rosen, William
- Format/Binding
- Softcover
- Book Condition
- Used - Very Good
- Quantity Available
- 1
- Binding
- Paperback
- ISBN 10
- 0226726347
- ISBN 13
- 9780226726342
- Publisher
- University of Chicago Press
- Place of Publication
- Chicago, Il
- Date Published
- 2012
- Size
- 6x1x9
- X weight
- 24 oz
Terms of Sale
Michael Patrick McCarty, Bookseller
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About the Seller
Michael Patrick McCarty, Bookseller
Biblio member since 2005
New Castle, Colorado
About Michael Patrick McCarty, Bookseller
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