April 2022: Technology

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April 2022: Technology

1LibraryCin
Feb. 20, 2022, 10:00 pm

April Reading Through Time: Technology


"My Alternative Non Technology Desk Space" by suzyhazelwood is licensed under CC BY 2.0

Currently, we usually think of technology as computers, smartphones, and other electronics. Historically, though, technology can include so much more: improvements to agriculture, science, and more.

This is from wikipedia:
“The history of technology is the history of the invention of tools and techniques and is one of the categories of world history. Technology can refer to methods ranging from as simple as stone tools to the complex genetic engineering and information technology that has emerged since the 1980s. The term technology comes from the Greek word techne, meaning art and craft, and the word logos, meaning word and speech. It was first used to describe applied arts, but it is now used to describe advancements and changes which affect the environment around us.”
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_technology

Some Suggestions:
These are ones I’ve read and tagged with both “history” and “technology”:
- Frozen in Time / Owen Beattue, John Geiger (19th century technology (food preservation) + late 20th century forensic technology)
- The Wright Brothers / David McCullough (airplanes)
- Hidden Figures / Margot Lee Shetterly (space)
- Rise of the Rocket Girls / Nathalia Holt (space)
- Packing for Mars / Mary Roach (space)
- Guns, Germs, and Steel / Jared Diamond (civilization)

And a few just tagged “history” and “technology” – I haven’t read these, so I’m adding them here based on the tags and titles:
- Cathedral, Forge, and Waterwheel / Frances and Joseph Gies
- The Victorian Internet / Tom Standage
- Technology in the Ancient World / Henry Hodges
- One Good Turn / Witold Rybczynski
- The Medieval Machine / Jean Gimpel
- The Shock of the Old / David Edgerton
- The Pencil / Henry Petroski
- The Age of Edison/ Ernest Freeberg
- More Work For Mother / Ruth Schwartz Cowan
- Paper: Paging Through History / Mark Kurlansky
- Revolution in Time / David S. Landes

I think everything I’ve listed is nonfiction, but I’m sure there are fictional books out there, as well.

I didn’t try it, but you could probably try a tagmash of “history” and “inventions”, as well.

Don’t forget to post to the wiki:
https://wiki.librarything.com/index.php/Reading_Through_Time_Challenge#April_202...


"Technology Emigration Canyon DSC_0304" by Intermountain Region US Forest Service is licensed under CC0 1.0

2LibraryCin
Feb. 20, 2022, 10:02 pm

Some possibilities for me (though I think I have a few more options than this). I also need to check library availability, but I'll probably do that mid-March.

- How We Got to Now / Steven Johnson
- Reluctant Genius / Charlotte Gray
- Cradle to Cradle / William McDonough

3kac522
Feb. 20, 2022, 11:04 pm

I'm not sure I have anything on my shelves that fits, but some years ago I read The Perfectionists: How Precision Engineers Created the Modern World by Simon Winchester, which was a fascinating look at how small advances in precision engineering changed technology over the last few centuries.

4marell
Feb. 21, 2022, 10:32 am

I’ve found a book at my library that looks promising: The Paper Trail: An Unexpected History of a Revolutionary Invention by Alexander Monro.

5clue
Feb. 21, 2022, 10:41 am

I don't have a specific title in mind, but I'll read something on advancements in medicine. I have two relatives whose daughters, both M.D.s, work in medical research and they are so interesting!

6beebeereads
Feb. 21, 2022, 12:47 pm

>1 LibraryCin: Great topic and set up! I am sure I have numerous on my TBR, but need to figure out what will happen inn April.

7DeltaQueen50
Feb. 21, 2022, 1:34 pm

I am going to b reading The Only Woman in the Room by Marie Benedict. This is a fictional book about Hedy Lamarr who was not only a glamorous movie star in the 1940s, she was also a scientist who discovered a technique to both help direct torpedos and misdirect the enemies'. Although the U.S. used her discovery, she wasn't acknowledged for this until the 1990s.

8beebeereads
Feb. 21, 2022, 1:57 pm

Well, I am going to take a look at The Big Thirst which I think will work in this topic.
I also plan to read The Sewing Machine which is fiction but evidently follows the machine through 4 generations. I won't know until I read it whether is it works for this category.

9Tanya-dogearedcopy
Bearbeitet: Feb. 23, 2022, 12:13 am

Ah! A book I just bought a couple weeks ago will work for this!

About Time: A History of Civilization in Twelve Clocks (by David Rooney) - One of the tags labels it as "Clockwork Technology"

(I was going to use it for the March theme of "Time"; but I'd rather read Hard Times (by Charles Dickens) for that one and use About Time for this! :-) )

10LibraryCin
Feb. 22, 2022, 10:18 pm

>9 Tanya-dogearedcopy: Nice how that worked out!

11LibraryCin
Feb. 22, 2022, 10:18 pm

I remember when I first mentioned this theme, I thought of medicine as one possibility (and I think at least one person has already said that's what they'll read for it). Funny, although I had been thinking about it as one option, I don't think I ended up making any suggestions for it. Oops!

12cindydavid4
Feb. 22, 2022, 11:57 pm

Im not sure what I will be reading, but there are a few novels that I have read that would fit right in

Beggars in Spain

We are All Completely Besides Ourselves

Ready Player One

Brave New World

Never Let Me Go

13cindydavid4
Bearbeitet: Feb. 22, 2022, 11:58 pm

Diese Nachricht wurde vom Autor gelöscht.

14Tess_W
Feb. 27, 2022, 10:44 pm

I should have held on to this one for March, but I will find something else. I can recommend: Hidden Figures, the biographies of 4 African American women and how their computer expertise and work in physics affected the U.S. space program in the 1960's. It's interesting to note that the "new" computer took the space of an entire room.

15Tess_W
Feb. 27, 2022, 11:09 pm

Goodreads has an entire "shelf" labeled technology in fiction here: https://www.goodreads.com/shelf/show/tech-fiction

I'm thinking of Mr. Penumbra's 24 Hour Bookstore. I looked at GR tags and there are several that tagged it as "computers", "technology", and " codes." (As well as fantasy). Has anybody read this and if so, do you think this would be applicable?

16cindydavid4
Bearbeitet: Feb. 28, 2022, 5:13 am

>15 Tess_W: I tried to read it; liked it at first then it just got too crazy for me. However I think it would be a perfect book for this theme!

17LibraryCin
Feb. 28, 2022, 4:53 pm

>15 Tess_W: Oooh, thanks for posting that link for additional options!

And it occurred to me yesterday that I should have come up with a catchy title, but it didn't even occur to me!

18dianelouise100
Mrz. 19, 2022, 8:04 pm

I recently picked up a good used copy of Matthew Pearl’s The Technologists at my favorite used bookstore and thought I’d make that my choice for this thread. It is an historical mystery set in Boston, 1868, soon after the founding of MIT; main characters are MIT students, some of whom are historical figures.

19Tess_W
Mrz. 22, 2022, 8:56 pm

>18 dianelouise100: That is available at my library. I'm going to request it!

20dianelouise100
Apr. 1, 2022, 8:37 am

After almost a hundred pages,I’m still finding it hard to really get too excited about The Technologists. So for this thread I’ll be reading The Painful Truth: The new science of why we hurt and how we can heal by Monty Lyman. I read a review of this book several months ago and have been wanting to read it.

21Tanya-dogearedcopy
Apr. 2, 2022, 1:02 pm

I started About Time: A History of Civilization in Twelve Clocks (by David Rooney) last night and plan to read a chapter a day. So, I should have this wrapped up by mid-month! :-)

22Familyhistorian
Apr. 2, 2022, 7:25 pm

I was contemplating both The Bletchley Girls and The Only Woman in the Room but decided to go with Radio Girls instead.

23dianelouise100
Apr. 7, 2022, 6:49 am

I have finished Monty Lyman’s The Painful Truth, and I can recommend it to anyone who is interested in understanding persistent pain and the developing technology of brain study. This book is a fascinating, informative, and very readable explanation of why we can experience ongoing pain after an injury has healed.

24Tanya-dogearedcopy
Bearbeitet: Apr. 10, 2022, 6:57 pm

Well, I finished reading About Time: A History of Civilization in Twelve Clocks (by David Rooney and I have to confess it is a pretty big disappointment despite this caveat in the introduction:
"...this is not a conventional history of clocks and watches; nor does it deal with the more abstract concept of time itself... Nor is this a broad, sweeping account of civilizations... Instead it is a personal idiosyncratic and above all partial account."

By the end of the book, I realized that the above statement is really an excuse for poor writing and editorial oversight. Fraught with conjecture, unresolved digressions, padding/filler text, poor research (despite the number of footnotes and bibliography), low-resolution black-and-white illustrations and, lack of charisma and liveliness in the first-person passages, I cannot recommend this to anyone. I wanted to dig out my red pencil and mark this one up even though it's a first edition hardback. Instead I'll either be donating this to one of the Little Free Libraries around here or; using it as a spacer to prop something up.

ETA: I don't usually waste the time and energy to write 1- or 2-star reviews; but I honesty felt that anyone interested in horology and this book should definitely be forewarned. I'm also mad at myself for actually buying this book from a new-to-me author rather than checking it out of the library or waiting until it went on sale :-/

25cindydavid4
Bearbeitet: Apr. 10, 2022, 9:54 pm

"I realized that the above statement is really an excuse for poor writing and editorial oversight." Loved this!!!!!A sure sign that the book might have problems. Thank you for the warning!

26Tess_W
Apr. 17, 2022, 10:45 pm

Galileo's Daughter by Dava Sobel was not my first choice, but with final exams next week (all essay) that I will need to grade, I don't think I will be able to read another. This book really wasn't about his daughter, but a biography of Galileo as told through the letters between himself and his nun daughter. There was lots of technology in this book, especially about Galileo's improvement upon the telescope.

27cindydavid4
Apr. 17, 2022, 11:05 pm

one of my fav science books, along with herLongitude.

28BetsyLynch1
Apr. 20, 2022, 4:53 pm

>1 LibraryCin: You might be interested in Emily St. John Mandel's new novel (Following Stations Eleven) with Sea of Tranquility.

It is an amazing work exploring time travel, matrix idea
simulations, corrupted "files" (lives), all pulled together in a poetic and startling puzzle conclusion.
Betsy Lynch

29BetsyLynch1
Apr. 20, 2022, 4:54 pm

>7 DeltaQueen50: You would enjoy Emily St. John Mandel's
Sea of Tranquility. Unbelievably clever.

30LibraryCin
Apr. 20, 2022, 5:19 pm

>28 BetsyLynch1: Thanks, I'll take a look!

31cindydavid4
Apr. 20, 2022, 9:42 pm

>28 BetsyLynch1: oh yes, I loved Stations Eleven! been looking forward to that one. thanks for reminding me

32DeltaQueen50
Apr. 22, 2022, 8:04 pm

I read The Only Woman in the Room by Marie Benedict for this month's theme of technology. Unfortunately the writing wasn't very good and the author chose to spend her time describing Hedy Lamarr's gowns and looks rather than delving into her intelligence or her scientific knowledge. She help to invent a method of guiding torpedos which helped in WW II, but also, this technology is still being used today in our cell phones.

33cindydavid4
Bearbeitet: Apr. 22, 2022, 9:19 pm

she also wrote a book about Lady Clementine about the wife of Winston Churchill. Loved the first third but i just couldnt get passed her poor writing. got so frustrated with it that I dnf. So I doubt Ill read that one; pity, such a great subject

34DeltaQueen50
Apr. 23, 2022, 2:39 pm

>33 cindydavid4: That's what frustrates me the most - this author often writes about the most interesting subjects but the poor quality of her writing really turns me off. I still have a couple of hers on my shelf so I may give her one more chance at some point.

35LibraryCin
Apr. 23, 2022, 10:28 pm

How We Got to Now: Six Innovations... / Steven Johnson
3.5 stars

This book looks at connections in inventions – one thing had to be invented or discovered, which created a chain reaction for the next thing and the next thing, etc. Glass, then spectacles, then the printing press caused more people to need spectacles, then microscopes, etc.

I found this interesting – the connections more than how the things were invented. Many inventions would have happened even if the person who invented had not been the one to do so – someone else would have done so soon after. I listened to the audio. The narrator was mostly fine, but there was the occasional odd pause that was noticeable, though the content was enough to (mostly) keep my interest in the book, anyway.

36beebeereads
Apr. 25, 2022, 12:32 pm

I read The Sewing Machine which is historical fiction following a Singer 99K from 1911 to 2016.
Find my comments here.

37cindydavid4
Bearbeitet: Apr. 25, 2022, 5:47 pm

>35 LibraryCin: have you ever seen James Burke's Connections? It was a BBC seriess that we saw on PBS in the 80s (tho I think started earlier) The shows were similar in style to the book you read, how one invention led to another. We watched the whole series a while back and it still holds up. heres a better explaination https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Connections_(British_documentary)

38LibraryCin
Apr. 25, 2022, 4:31 pm

>37 cindydavid4: Oooh, that sounds really interesting! I have not seen it (nor heard of it!). Thank you.

39cindydavid4
Apr. 25, 2022, 5:42 pm

>38 LibraryCin: think youll love it. and Burke has a great dry sense of humor that works well.

40MissWatson
Apr. 29, 2022, 7:26 am

My reading has slowed this month and I didn't get around to this topic. Maybe later in the year.

41Familyhistorian
Apr. 30, 2022, 8:22 pm

It’s hard to fathom now but radio was once a new technology. Radio Girls was a story involving the beginning years of BBC radio. The protagonist was female in a time when women were expected to give up their jobs when they married. (It wasn’t that long ago in the grand scheme of things). Fictional characters mingled with real personalities in a story that was true to the times and a good read.

42LibraryCin
Apr. 30, 2022, 11:23 pm

>41 Familyhistorian: Oh, that sounds interesting!

43cindydavid4
Apr. 30, 2022, 11:38 pm

serendipity that I happened to come across a book for this theme on the last day of the month sea of tranquility and its rather splendid thus far. Reminds me a bit of cloud atlas but not that complex.

44LibraryCin
Mai 1, 2022, 5:59 pm

Cradle to Cradle / William McDonough & Michael Braungart
3.25 stars

The authors are an architect and a chemist who work together to make/create more environmentally-friendly/sustainable items. They actually start off by saying that what we mostly do now is not good enough; that is, there are still issues with trying to be not “as bad” vs. all-out bad. They want to make things “good” (for human health, for the environment, and even for company’s/industry’s bottom lines, economically. They say it can be done (and they have examples of things they’ve done working with various companies to do those things).

It’s probably something we need to hear, but it’s new, and so for some things, I had a hard time wrapping my head around the ideas: eco-effective vs eco-efficient, upcycling vs downcycling, biological nutrients and technical nutrients, and more. I think I figured out downcycling -- when we currently recycle, this is what happens. This means that the items we recycle are being reused/remade, but they are of lower quality. Because they are of lower quality, more potential toxins/chemicals need to be added to “shore things up”, so to speak. I’m probably not explaining that well.

They did have some good examples and I think they are probably correct in what they are suggesting, but it was hard for me to figure all of it out. Maybe there needs to be more written on this, as the more I read, I’ll likely clue in a bit better. But what’s unfortunate (and I hadn’t realized) is that this book was published 20 years ago, in 2002. Without having heard much more about these concepts, I’m concerned that they haven’t really taken root, still.

45CurrerBell
Bearbeitet: Mai 1, 2022, 6:26 pm

Annie Jacobsen, First Platoon: A Story of Modern War in the Age of Identity Dominance 3½***. Use of biometric identification on the masses of the Afghan population by the U.S. in an effort to determine just who it was who was making those IEDs and engaging in other terrorist activity. Is the accumulation of data too great even for large-scale data mining operations? Does the use of such technology on the civilian population of the U.S. risk serious privacy and other abuses? Inludes two cases of serious war crimes by U.S. actors and the use of biometric data in one of them particularly.

A fairly short, quick read. I finished the last chapter just this morning before going to church. Its length is increased by substantial endnote annotations, which could provide some serious ground for follow-up research by other writers. It's a little bit short on policy analysis, though. For example, if we start relying on this kind of crime-solving in the domestic U.S., and especially if we merge FBI and military data bases, what effect does this have on the obligation to disclose exculpatory evidence if that evidence is protected as classified?

Altogether, not bad; but the author is a journalist, not a lawyer or a data scientist; and however good she is (and she is good), there's a level of policy analysis that she just doesn't attain.

46Familyhistorian
Mai 4, 2022, 2:23 pm

>42 LibraryCin: Radio Girls was a good one. I received favourable comments from other LTers when I posted about it on my other threads.