{"product_id":"9780195129113","title":"Beyond Engineering","description":"We have long recognized technology as a driving force behind much historical and cultural change. The invention of the printing press initiated the Reformation. The development of the compass ushered in the Age of Exploration and the discovery of the New World. The cotton gin created the conditions that led to the Civil War. In this volume, the author turns the question around to examine how society shapes technology. Drawing on such disparate fields as history, economics, risk analysis, management science, sociology and psychology, Pool illuminates the complex interplay between machines and society. We tend to think that reason guides technological development, that engineering expertise alone determines the final form an invention takes. But if you look closely enough at the history of any invention, says Pool, you will find that factors unrelated to engineering seem to have an almost equal impact.","brand":"Robert Pool","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45739602739518,"sku":"9780195129113","price":1096.09,"currency_code":"ZAR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4357\/7662\/products\/9780195129113_1b3600aa-5284-49a1-a4bb-88bfd6d906d9.jpg?v=1707221282","url":"https:\/\/exclusivebooks.co.za\/products\/9780195129113","provider":"Exclusive Books Online","version":"1.0","type":"link"}