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Downloaded by [New York University] at 21:14 20 August 2016 Innovation and Technological Diffusion Downloaded by [New York University] at 21:14 20 August 2016 Innovation and Technological Diffusion This book deals with two key aspects of the history of steam engines, a cornerstone of the Industrial Revolution: specifically, the road that led to its discovery and the process of diffusion of the early steam engines. The first part of the volume outlines the technological and scientific develop- ments which took place between the sixteenth and eighteenth centuries, proving critical for the invention of this strategic technology. The most important question addressed is why England came up with this innovation first as opposed to other countries (e.g., France, Italy), which were more advanced in terms of knowledge pertinent to it. The second part of the volume traces the process of diffusion of the early steam engines, the Newcomen model, through 1773, the year prior to the first commercial application of the second generation of steam engines (the Watt model). The process of diffusion is quantified on the basis of a novel method before proceeding with a discussion of the main determinants of this process. Kitsikopoulos pulls together a large amount of relevant evidence found in primary sources and more technically oriented literature which is often ignored by economic historians. This book will be of interest to economic historians and historians of technology. Harry Kitsikopoulos is Clinical Professor, Department of Economics, New York University, USA. Downloaded by [New York University] at 21:14 20 August 2016 Routledge explorations in economic history Edited by Lars Magnusson Uppsala University, Sweden For a complete list of titles in this series, please visit www.routledge.com. 22 An Economic History of London, 29 The Mechanics of Modernity in 1800–1914 Europe and East Asia Michael Ball and David Sunderland The institutional origins of social change and stagnation 23 The Origins of National Financial Erik Ringmar Systems Alexander Gerschenkron 30 International Economic Integration reconsidered in Historical Perspective Edited by Douglas J. Forsyth and Dennis M. P. McCarthy Daniel Verdier 31 Theories of International 24 The Russian Revolutionary Trade Economy, 1890–1940 Adam Klug Ideas, debates and alternatives Edited by Warren Young and Michael Vincent Barnett Bordo 25 Land Rights, Ethno Nationality and 32 Classical Trade Protectionism Sovereignty in History 1815–1914 Edited by Stanley L. Engerman and Edited by Jean Pierre Dormois and Jacob Metzer Pedro Lains 26 An Economic History of Film 33 Economy and Economics of Ancient Edited by John Sedgwick and Mike Greece Pokorny Takeshi Amemiya Downloaded by [New York University] at 21:14 20 August 2016 27 The Foreign Exchange Market of 34 Social Capital, Trust and the London Industrial Revolution: Development since 1900 1780–1880 John Atkin David Sunderland 28 Rethinking Economic Change in 35 Pricing Theory, Financing of India International Organisations and Labour and livelihood Monetary History Tirthankar Roy Lawrence H. Officer 36 Political Competition and 46 A Cultural History of Finance Economic Regulation Irene Finel-Honigman Edited by Peter Bernholz and Roland Vaubel 47 Managing Crises and De- Globalisation 37 Industrial Development in Postwar Nordic foreign trade and exchange Japan 1919–1939 Hirohisa Kohama Edited by Sven-Olof Olsson 38 Reflections on the Cliometrics 48 The International Tin Cartel Revolution John Hillman Conversations with economic historians 49 The South Sea Bubble Edited by John S. Lyons, Louis P. Helen J. Paul Cain and Samuel H. Williamson 50 Ideas and Economic Crises 39 Agriculture and Economic in Britain from Attlee to Blair Development in Europe Since 1870 (1945–2005) Edited by Pedro Lains and Vicente Matthias Matthijs Pinilla 51 Bengal Industries and the 40 Quantitative Economic History British Industrial Revolution The good of counting (1757–1857) Edited by Joshua Rosenbloom Indrajit Ray 41 A History of Macroeconomic Policy 52 The Evolving Structure of the in the United States East Asian Economic System John H. Wood since 1700 Edited by A. J. H. Latham and Heita 42 An Economic History of the Kawakatsu American Steel Industry Robert P. Rogers 53 German Immigration and Servitude in America, 43 Ireland and the Industrial Revolution 1709–1920 The impact of the Industrial Farley Grubb Revolution on Irish industry and society, 1801–1922 54 The Rise of Planning in Industrial Andy Bielenberg America, 1865–1914 Richard Adelstein Downloaded by [New York University] at 21:14 20 August 2016 44 Intra-Asian Trade and Industrialization 55 An Economic History of Modern Essays in memory of Yasukichi Yasuba Sweden Edited by A. J. H. Latham and Heita Lennart Schön Kawakatsu 56 The Standard of Living 45 Nation, State and the Industrial and Revolutions in Russia, Revolution 1700–1917 The visible hand Boris Mironov; edited by Lars Magnusson Gregory L. Freeze 57 Europe’s Green Revolution and 67 Large Databases in Economic Others Since History The rise and fall of peasant-friendly Research methods and plant breeding case studies Jonathan Harwood Edited by Mark Casson and Nigar Hashimzade 58 Economic Analysis of Institutional Change in Ancient Greece 68 A History of Market Carl Hampus-Lyttkens Performance From ancient Babylonia to the 59 Labour-intensive Industrialization modern world in Global History Edited by R. J. van der Spek, Jan Edited by Gareth Austin and Kaoru Luiten van Zanden and Bas van Sugihara Leeuwen 60 The History of Bankruptcy 69 Central Banking in Economic, social and cultural a Democracy implications in Early Modern Europe The Federal Reserve and its Edited by Thomas Max Safley alternatives John H. Wood 61 The Political Economy of Disaster Destitution, plunder and earthquake 70 The History of Migration in in Haiti Europe Mats Lundahl Perspectives from economics, politics and sociology 62 Nationalism and Economic Edited by Francesca Fauri Development in Modern Eurasia Carl Mosk 71 Famines in European Economic History 63 Agricultural Transformation in a The last great European famines Global History Perspective reconsidered Edited by Ellen Hillbom and Patrick Edited by Declan Curran, Svensson Lubomyr Luciuk and Andrew Newby 64 Colonial Exploitation and Economic Development 72 Natural Resources and Economic The Belgian Congo and the Growth Netherlands Indies compared Learning from history Edited by Ewout Frankema and Frans Edited by Marc Badia-Miró, Vicente Downloaded by [New York University] at 21:14 20 August 2016 Buelens Pinilla and Henry Willebald 65 The State and Business in the 73 The Political Economy of Major Powers Mercantilism An economic history 1815–1939 Lars Magnusson Robert Millward 74 Innovation and Technological 66 Privatization and Transition in Diffusion Russia in the Early 1990s An economic history of early steam Carol Scott Leonard and David engines Pitt-Watson Harry Kitsikopoulos Innovation and Technological Diffusion An economic history of early steam engines Harry Kitsikopoulos Downloaded by [New York University] at 21:14 20 August 2016 First published 2016 by Routledge 2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN and by Routledge 711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017 Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business © 2016 Harry Kitsikopoulos The right of Harry Kitsikopoulos to be identified as author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with Sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patent Act 1988. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data A catalog record for this book has been requested. ISBN: 978-1-138-94811-2 (hbk) ISBN: 978-1-315-66969-4 (ebk) Typeset in Times New Roman by Swales & Willis Ltd, Exeter, Devon, UK Downloaded by [New York University] at 21:14 20 August 2016 To my two little fairies, Karina and Klio Downloaded by [New York University] at 21:14 20 August 2016 Downloaded by [New York University] at 21:14 20 August 2016 Contents List of figures x List of tables xi Preface xiii PART I Innovation 1 1 From Hero to Newcomen: the critical scientific and technological developments that led to the invention of the steam engine 3 2 Why did England invent the steam engine? The role of science, economic incentives, institutions, and technical skills 40 PART II The diffusion of Newcomen engines, 1706–73 69 3 Reassessing the diffusion of Newcomen engines, 1706–73 73 4 The cost of steam vs. other power sources in the British economy, 1706–73 107 Downloaded by [New York University] at 21:14 20 August 2016 5 The role of British engineering skills in driving the diffusion of Newcomen engines, 1706–73 141 6 Firm size and market demand as determinants of diffusion: the role of the threshold (minimum) level of output 157 Epilogue 173 Index 183 Figures 1.1 Hero’s aeolipile 4 1.2 De Garay’s “steamboat” 6 1.3 Della Porta’s apparatus 7 1.4 De Caus’s apparatus 8 1.5 Branca’s aeolipile 9 1.6 Guericke’s experiments 12 1.7 Two versions of Somerset’s steam device 15 1.8 Newton’s
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