The Social Basis of the Microelectronics Revolution

Using comparative data from Europe, the United States and Japan this book shows how the microelectronics industry has been influenced by forces outside the industry itself. It argues that the control of resources in relatively few hands – the government, the military and the scientists – has shaped the way the new microtechnology has developed. With an account of the international battle for control of the global electronics infrastructure, the book also covers research and development since World War Two, current developments in microtechnology, and an assessment of the future.