The revered New York Times bestselling author traces the development of technology from the Industrial Age to the Digital Age to explore the single component crucial to advancement - precision - in a superb history that is both an homage and a warning for our future. At the dawn of the Industrial Revolution in eighteenth-century England, standards of measurement were established, giving way to the development of machine tools--machines that make machines....

Taking an all-inclusive look at manufacturing processes, the author also provides substantial coverage of engineering materials and production systems. This book follows a more quantitative and design-oriented approach than other texts on the subject.