E-Book Overview
Unlike a typical history of science and technology, this reference offers a chronology of virtually all that has occurred in these areas-including ignored precursors and false starts. Covering the Stone to the Information Age, each chapter represents a major division in this history with a timeline of achievements in different fields and an overview of the advance's impact on society in historical context. The volume includes b&w illustrations and further recommended reading by field. Bunch is the coauthor of The Penguin Desk Encyclopedia of Science and Mathematics.
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THE HISTORY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY Bryan Bunch Alexander Hellemans HOUGHTON MIFFLIN COMPANY The History of Science and Technology A Browser’s Guide to the Great Discoveries, Inventions, and the People Who Made Them, from the Dawn of Time to Today THE HISTORY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY BRYAN BUNCH with ALEXANDER HELLEMANS HOUGHTON MIFFLIN COMPANY / BOSTON • NEW YORK / 2004 Copyright © 2004 by Bryan Bunch and Alexander Hellemans all rights reserved For information about permission to reproduce selections from this book, write to Permissions, Houghton Mifflin Company, 215 Park Avenue South, New York, New York 10003. Visit our Web site: www.houghtonmifflinbooks.com. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available. isbn 0-618-22123-9 printed in the united states of america Book Design: Robert Overholtzer and G & H Soho, Inc. Produced by Scientific Publishing, Inc. Editorial Assistant: Marianne Bunch Composition and paging: G & H Soho, Inc. (Kathie Kounouklos) Copyediting: Felice Levy Illustration Research: Susan Hormuth VB 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Contents Introduction vii Science and Technology before Scientists: through 599 BCE viii OVERVIEW: The Stone Ag