The pinball effect
Subtitle: how renaissance water gardens made the carburetor possible, and other journeys through knowledge
By: James Burke.
Edition: 1st ed.
Publisher: Little, Brown and Co.
Published: 1996
Place of publication: Boston
Language: eng
Number of pages: 310
Subjects: Inventions -- History
Description: The Pinball Effect takes the reader on many different journeys through the web of knowledge. Knowledge, it turns out, has many unforeseen and surprising effects. The book, for instance, owes its existence to German jeweler Johannes Gutenberg's getting the date wrong one day in the fifteenth century.

James Burke, author and host of the highly rated documentary series Connections 2, draws upon years of research to examine the intrigues and surprises on the journey through knowledge, a trip with all the twists and turns of a detective story. Ultimately, the larger picture that emerges has far-reaching and important implications for the future, revealing why the fundamental mechanism of change is the way things come together and connect.

To add to the excitement, The Pinball Effect has been designed to be read interactively: throughout the book, cross-chapter references mimic computer hypertext "hot links" and allow readers to leap from one chapter to another. The result is a fascinating tour through history's most dramatic innovations.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references (p. [287]-292) and index.