A review of Steven Johnson's, How We Got to Now

When you read about new technology in magazines or read about rumors and leaked information from the next best thing, do you think about everything that had to happen in the world for the inventor to even see his creation as a possibility. Steven Johnson, author of the book, How We Got to Now, shows the world that today's luxuries and technological marvels could only be developed through slow but incredible advances in every day items. I read this book over Winter Break and would consider it a must- read for all engineering students leaving college ready to turn there own ideas into products that will better the world. Steven Johnson's goal with the book was to show what needed to happen with the development of six innovations to create the rapid growth and wired life we have today. The six innovations discussed are glass, cold, sound, clean, time and light.

As an aspiring noise and vibration engineer, the innovation in sound was the most entertaining. The section begins with discussion of cave acoustics and how archaeologists noticed that the cave paintings of the earliest people were done in the most acoustically pleasing areas. This means that since the beginning, sound was more than just for communicating but also for worship and entertainment. The chapter continues through the first developments of wave study and playback devices as well as the phone and communication genius that shaped today's industry. The chapter ends with a thought provoking comparison of how sound in military and medical uses can be used for good and also terror with human fatality.

Check out the book, How We Got to Now, for the full story and gain a complete engineering perspective!