The Lever of Riches: Technological Creativity and Economic Progress

Translated from English by N. Edelman; edited by T. Drobyshevskaya, A. Smirnov. – Moscow: Gaidar Institute Press, 2014. – 504 p. 

ISBN 978-5-93255-395-4 

Why are some countries more creative than others, and why did some unusually innovative societies – like Ancient China or Britain during the Industrial Revolution – fall into stagnation? In his book, renowned economic historian Joel Mokyr offers a concise overview of the key inventions and innovations that have transformed society since the times of ancient Greece and Rome, revealing some surprising things: Antiquity, for example, had almost no new technologies, the relatively backward societies of medieval Europe were rife with inventions, and the era between the Reformation and the Industrial Revolution was one of slow technological progress despite the turbulent events of the Great Exploration and the Scientific Revolution. Mokyr examines a long list of factors that influenced technological creativity, including the role of the state, the impact of science, as well as religion, politics, and even nutrition. He questions such oft-cited factors as the spin-offs of war, abundant mineral resources, life expectancy, and the cost of labor.