In this very different book,, Arnold Pacey takes a global view, placing the development of technology squarely in a "world civilization."

An age of Asian technology, AD 700-1100 -- Before the Mongols -- Movements West, 1150-1490 -- Conquest in the Americas, and Asian trade -- Gunpowder empires, 1450-1650 -- Concepts in technology, 1550-1750 -- Three industrial movements, 1700-1815 -- Guns and rails : Asia, Britain and America -- Railroad empires, 1850-1940 -- Scientific revolutions and technical dreams -- Survival technology in the twentieth century.