The humble machete only came into its own as an instrument of mass murder in the 1990s. A battleship which predated the Second World War also fought in the First Gulf War - and this for the Americans, too.
The Nazi invasion of Russia used more horses than Napoleon's had. This book is a history for grown-ups of all ages." As that opening sentence indicates, this is a book that wants to show you Everything You Know Is Wrong - and as often as not, it succeeds. "Much of what is written on the history of technology is for boys of all ages. Edgerton also exaggerates a bit in the other direction, because every old technology must have been invented once, isn't it? Nevertheless, a great read! (Rating 3.5 stars) This book is full of eye-openers, certainly, but also with the classical one-sidedness associated with this genre. And he stresses that maintenance of new technology often comes with a bigger cost than the benefits it offers in the short term. The author also debunks a lot of myths, like that teflon was developed by the space industry (it already existed in 1938). A classic one is this that the horse made a greater contribution to the nazi conquests than the V2, but there's also the fact that bicycles and motorcycles were more important in the initial growth of East-Asian economies than cars or trucks. In fact, old technologies in particular always were decisive, in wars and in everyday situations. The central these is: in historiography, we focus too much on discoveries, new technology and innovation. Brilliant, provocative book about the history of technology, with many surprising views.
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