The US has lost its technological nerve.
Our survival depends on getting it back ...
In this brilliant detective story of ideas in action, the authors reveal America’s greatest wealth -- its scientific and inventive ingenuity -- and argue that it can build a magnificent civilization with mass employment, environmental wisdom and energy sufficiency. At the same time, they accuse America of having failed its scientific and technological promise. They searingly indict the anti-technology bias that handicaps America. They boldly explain what can and should be done about it. INNOVATION is among the most thought-provoking, can-do and upbeat reads in years.
A book choice of The American Society of Mechanical Engineers & The Institute of industrial Engineers.
National Academy of Sciences spotlights INNOVATION
A prestigious new National Academy of Sciences report features
INNOVATION: THE KEY TO PROSPERITY, by Aris Melissaratos and N.J.Slabbert, in a list of sources commenting on the state of science and
technology in the US.
The report is Rising Above the Gathering Storm
Revisited: RapidlyApproaching Category 5 (2010).
It is a retrospective review of the major 2005 book
Rising Above the Gathering Storm”, which
comprehensively assessed STEM education and
general scientific and technological capability in the
United States.
The new review contains an appendix headed
KNOWLEDGE CAPITAL, consisting of quotes from a variety of sources ranging from President Barack Obama and investor Warren
Buffett to Microsoft chairman Bill Gates, bestselling author Thomas Friedman ... and INNOVATION.
Preface by one of America's most distinguished scientific leaders, Dr Rita R. Colwell Ph.D., D.Sc., US National Medal of Science laureate 2006,Director of the US National Science Foundation 1998-2004, President of the American Association for the Advancement of Science 1996, former President of both the American Society for Microbiology and the American Institute of Biological Science.
Dr Colwell writes:
“Powerful … The recipe for beginning technological leadership … delightfully easy reading … recommended for those who need to understand the intricacies
of technology and innovation in the 21st Century … a very strong contribution to our understanding of the global economy and the role of technology.”
Dr. Colwell is Distinguished University Professor at both the University of Maryland's Center for Bio Informatics and Computational Biology and Johns Hopkins University's BloombergSchool of Public Health. She is Chairman of Canon US Life Sciences and is a member of the US National Academy of Sciences, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the American Philosophical Society, the Royal Society of Canada and the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. Dr. Colwell (above) has been awarded 40 honorary degrees.
"By identifying and vividly explaining innovation, technological advance and education as driving forces of the U.S. economy, Melissaratos and Slabbert excitingly signpost the way out of America's crisis of confidence. All business, government and educational leaders will benefit from this timely, nationally and internationally relevant work, which convincingly shows that industrial and manufacturing ingenuity is an engine of limitless economic growth potential."
- Emily DeRocco, President of The
Manufacturing Institute and the National
Center for the American Workforce,
Senior Vice President of the National
Association of Manufacturers, U.S.
Assistant Secretary of Labor 2001-2008
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What others are saying ...
"We urgently need the excellent
antidote to pessimism that
Melissaratos and Slabbert offer.
They remind us of the power
and adventure of human intel-
ligence. Essential reading for
everyone who is in any way
concerned with public policy
or entrepreneurial development." -- Gilbert F. Decker, Science Advisor to the U.S. Secretary of Defense, Assistant Secretary of the Army, Research, Development & Acquisition (1994-1997); former Chairman, Army Science Board. Mr. Decker has also served as a Member of the National Academy of Sciences' Board of Army Science & Technology, as Trustee of the Association of the U.S. Army, and as Executive Vice President of Engineering & Production, Walt Disney Imagineering.
************
"There is only one way out of
the country's economic, environ-
mental and energy mess and it is
described with rare clarity
in this book."
--Richard McCormack, Editor & Publisher,
Manufacturing & Technology News
************
“An honest examination of America's shortcomings.” -- Midwest Book Review
*************
"This wise and well-written book,
inspired by an immigrant's opti-
mism, shows lucidly how and why
America must marshal its capacity
for innovation and ingenuity in
order to compete in the global
marketplace of the 21st century."
--George Vradenburg, Executive Vice President, AOL-Time Warner (retired), and Herb Miller, Chairman, Western Development, Co-Founders of The Chesapeake Crescent Initiative, which works with leading universities, federal agencies, venture capitalists, high-tech firms and state and local governments to develop new innovation models for 21st-century America.
"The book presents an original, timely and highly perceptive account of the historical role of science and technology inAmerica's economic, industrial and infrastructural development. It brings new insight and scholarly vigor to ournational understanding of how scientific and technological events in the 19th and 20th centuries shaped contemporary America and conditioned our country's
21st century challenges in relating
to a global society. The book's
very high degrees of clarity,
literary quality, intellectual
power, insight and eloquence,
combined with the authors'
sustained sense of moral pur-
pose and the national interest,
make it a most distinguished contribution to the cause of scientific, technological and economic advance and recovery in the United States, especially in regard to public education about these subjects.The book is a declaration of independence from 20th century thinking. Theauthors offer a bold and visionary call to action to ensure America's future and its role in creating innovation and products that serve the world.” -Dr. Mike Galiazzo, Exec. Director, Regional Manufacturing Institute ofMaryland
The authors make a compelling
case that America MUST re-
claim its leadership in science
and technology--and that we'd
better get moving before it's
too late!” -Thomas J. Donohue
President and CEO
U.S. Chamber of Commerce
************
"A succinct, well-informed analysis of the potential which technological innovation combined with sound public policy holds for the future of our nation and world … a challenge to government, business, academia. A prudent yet visionary rallying call for xx all who believe that American
xxx leadership can help achieve a
xxx more prosperous and stable
xxx 21st century. A most timely
xx book in an era of rapid change."
- Paul. S. Sarbanes, United States Senator 1977–-2007
************
"This book's motivating, thought-provoking message could not have come at a better time for America and the world.It is a stimulating, readable and valuable overview of technological innovation's role as the creative engine of our civilization."
- The Honorable Jacques S. Gansler,
Professor and Roger C. Lipitz Chair, Director:
Center for Public Policy and Private Enter-
prise, School of Public Policy, University of
Maryland, former United States Under
Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Techno-
logy and Logistics.
************
“Is Innovation the panacea for a brighter future for U.S. manufacturing? Not necessarily, but it is an excellent starting point to hammer out a plan that can be supported for years to come, no matter which political party happens to be occupying the White House."
- Dan Davis, Editor, The Fabricator
INNOVATION
BOOK ACCLAIM
INNOVATION: The Key to Prosperity is, in effect, several books in one. It is …
A BOOK FOR policymakers, business leaders, educators, entrepreneurs, economists, scientists, taxpayers, consumers, inventors, environmentalists, technology professionals, journalists ... and anyone who’s curious about what science and invention mean for the future of America and the world.
INNOVATION is above all an optimistic antidote to pessimism and fear, offering a magnificent vision of what science can yet accomplish for us all. The authors reject the pessimism about science that has engulfed many intellectuals. Criticizing marketers who cleverly disguise obsolete technologies, and corporations that don'’t innovate but produce costly, unproductive bureacracy, they urge the US to return to the “technology standard” and create a new infrastructure to put the nation back to work. This, they argue, can help make the 21st century a golden age of prosperity for not only Americans but the world. An excellent choice for discussion groups on current affairs, entrepreneurial business, start-ups, science and society, economics, American recovery, climate change, interdisciplinary science, Internet studies, nanotechnology, government policy, STEM education, the future of the technological professions and 21st-century studies.
Fast-paced, in crisp, clear English, INNOVATION is an absorbing read filled with intriguing facts and colorful personalities like visionary inventors Marvin Minsky and Ray Kurzweil. This stimulating package of ideas boldly challenges myths about how science and invention work, and about how scientifically advanced and innovation-oriented America really is. Condensing an encyclopedic amount of information into a brisk, readable narrative, it reveals how decades of technological complacency left America hostage to energy cartels, inept bailout-seekers, cripplingly obsolete technology and worthless financial paper.
Read how nanotechnology, the knowledge economy, maglev, artificial intelligence, biotech, global warming, energy research, the Internet, physics and space exploration are all intertwined … how, contrary to popular belief, technology progress isn’'t spontaneous but demands careful nurture …why a new public attitude to science is essential if America is to achieve its potential in the 21st century.
MONTAGU
HOUSE