Society And Technological Change 8th Edition by Rudi Volti – Test Bank

Society And Technological Change 8th Edition by Rudi Volti – Test Bank

Chapter 5

The Diffusion of Technology

Short Answers

1. What did Samuel Slater accomplish after he immigrated to America? What does he exemplify? p. 83
2. Who are some of the immigrants that contributed to technological advancement in the United States and what did they accomplish? p. 84
3. Describe how gunpowder was modified as the technology traveled across the world. p. 87
4. What is the difference between uncertainty and risk? pp. 94
5. What is the “NIH syndrome”? What are its causes? pp. 94-95
6. What is an example of an effort to restrict the diffusion of technology? p. 95-96
7. What is the linguistic root of the word “patent”? What are the implications of this term regarding what it means to “patent” an invention? p. 96
8. Who was George B. Selden? p. 97

Essay Questions

1. Compare and contrast the cultures of dynastic China and early modern Europe in adopting innovations that originated in other places. How did those attitudes affect the economy? pp. 82-83
2. Why is copying a technology that originated elsewhere often a difficult process? p. 86
3. What lessons can be extracted from the story of how the Japanese learned how to make steel in the 19th century? p. 88-89
4. What problems of economic development does the appropriate technology movement hope to solve or at least ameliorate? pp. 89-92
5. Describe the process of “translation” in the early development of radio. pp. 93