Calculating a Natural World: Scientists, Engineers, and Computers During the Rise of U.S. Cold War Research (Inside Technology)
Language: English
Published by The MIT Press, 2008
Series: Book 6 of 63 - Inside Technology
- Softcover
- Used
Seller: Galisteo Consulting Group Books, Albuquerque, NM, U.S.A.Galisteo Consulting Group Books
AbeBooks seller since January 9, 2026
Condition: Used - Very good
£ 34.59
Quantity: 1 available
Add to basketItem description from seller
A foundational text on the evolution of military strategy and diplomatic statecraft. Useful for placing current geopolitical shifts within a broader historical and theoretical context. Used - very good. Ships from the USA. During the Cold War, the field of computing advanced rapidly within a complex institutional context. In Calculating a Natural World, Atsushi Akera describes the complicated interplay of academic, commercial, and government and military interests that produced a burst of scientific discovery and technological innovation in 1940s and 1950s America. This was the era of big machines--the computers that made the reputations of IBM and of many academic laboratories--and Akera uses the computer as a historical window on the emerging infrastructure of American scientific and engineering research. The military-industrial complex is often spoken of as a coherent and unified power, but Akera argues that it was the tensions as much as the convergences among military, business, and academic forces that fueled scientific and technological advances.Akera's study is unique in its integration of a history of postwar computing--usually told in terms of either business or hardware--and a mapping of an "ecology of knowledge" represented by the emerging institutional infrastructure for computing. For example, Akera sees John Mauchly's early work on computers as a product of his peripatetic career--his journey through different institutional ecologies--and John von Neumann's work as emerging from the convergence of physics and applied mathematics at the Institute for Advanced Study. Akera also looks at the ways in which the institutional contexts of the National Bureau of Standards and MIT's Project Whirlwind pulled research in diverging directions, and he examines IBM's dominance from the perspectives of both business and users. Finally, Akera compares the academic computing centers at MIT and the University of Michigan, tracing the tensions on those campuses over whether computers were a service facility, a commercial technology, or a subject of research. …
Seller Inventory # B537_51_15
- Title
- Calculating a Natural World: Scientists, Engineers, and Computers During the Rise of U.S. Cold War Research (Inside Technology)
- Author
- Atsushi Akera
- Publisher
- The MIT Press
- Publication year
- 2008
- Condition
- Very Good
- Binding
- Softcover
- Language
- English
- ISBN 10
- 0262512033
- ISBN 13
- 9780262512039
- Series
- Book 6 of 63: Inside Technology
- Seller catalogs
- Galisteo Consulting Group Books
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Galisteo Consulting Group Books
Albuquerque, NM, U.S.A.
AbeBooks seller since January 9, 2026
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Welcome to Galisteo Consulting Group Books. We specialize in a curated selection of significant scholarly and rare works, with particular depth in International Relations, Political Science, Global Security, and the History of Science. Our collection is built for the discerning academic and the dedicated collector who seeks out-of-print or hard-to-find editions that shaped their respective fields. Our Specializations include: Defense & Geopolitics: Extensive holdings in international security, strategic studies (including CCRP publications), and political economy. Social Sciences: A deep catalog of foundational works in Anthropology and Social Theory. Scientific History: Landmark texts in physics, mathematics, and technological history. Slavic & Russian Studies: Rare Soviet-era Russian language literature and historical texts. (Coming soon.) Musicology: Scholarly works on music theory, history, and rare scores. (Coming soon.) Our Standards: Every book in our inventory is individually inspected and described. We understand that for collectors, condition is paramount. We provide detailed condition notes and are happy to provide additional bibliographic details or photographs upon request. Shipping & Handling: Books are professionally packed to ensure they arrive in the condition described. We utilize sturdy, custom-fitted packaging and moisture-protective layering for all shipments to ensure they withstand the rigors of transit. Orders are shipped the same or next business day after order placement. 80% of U.S. orders are delivered within 6 calendar days of shipment. Thank you for supporting an independent bookseller dedicated to the preservation of academic and cultural history.…
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A specialized selection of scholarly and academic non-fiction, with a primary focus on International Relations, Political Science, and the History of Science. Our inventory also includes rare and hard-to-find Soviet-era Russian litSeller's business information
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