Experimental Capitalism: The Nanoeconomics of American High-Tech Industries

Description

For much of the twentieth century, American corporations led the world in terms of technological progress. Why did certain industries have such great success? Experimental Capitalism examines six key industries--automobiles, pneumatic tires, television receivers, semiconductors, lasers, and penicillin--and tracks the highs and lows of American high

Steven Klepper (1949-2013) was the Arthur Arton Hamerschlag Professor of Economics and Social Science at Carnegie Mellon University. Klepper was a founding member of the Doctoral Colloquium of the Consortium for Competitiveness and Collaboration, and served as director of CMU's program in Strategy, Entrepreneurship, and Technological Change. Serguey Braguinsky is associate professor of economics, David A. Hounshell is the David M. Roderick Professor of Technology and Social Change, and John H. Miller is professor of economics and social science, all at Carnegie Mellon University.

"A masterful tapestry that weaves multiple levels of analysis, analytical techniques, and decades of scholarly work to create rich insights about the role of individual enterprise and innovation for the evolution of firms, industries, and regions."-Rajshree Agarwal, University of Maryland "This is an impressive book about the dynamics of firms and industries. Klepper masterfully sheds light on the evolutionary forces that drive entrepreneurship, industrial clustering, and firm dominance in high-tech industries."-Franco Malerba, Bocconi University "Steven Klepper takes readers on a fascinating journey through the life cycle of industries, from birth to maturity. His book is filled with lessons for everyone, including scholars, managers, entrepreneurs, and policymakers. Experimental Capitalism presents a nano approach from a giant in the field."-Alfonso Gambardella, author of Science and Innovation "Experimental Capitalism synthesizes and makes accessible the pathbreaking arguments that Steven Klepper crafted over the course of his career-provocative, illuminating arguments about the nature and sources of the evolution of industries, technological progress, and the development of industry clusters. His book builds on the most detailed data collection imaginable and spells out key policy implications that policymakers in the United States and around the globe should pay close attention to."-Wesley M. Cohen, Duke University "Experimental Capitalism is an important work by an important scholar. Shedding light on the question of where great industries come from, the book provides a unique perspective on the American economy and challenges much of the traditional thinking about what matters for delivering strong economic performance."-David Audretsch, Indiana University "The work of an original economist, Experimental Capitalism uses six major industries as exemplars of a theory of shakeouts. This book succeeds admirably."-Stephen Martin, Purdue University