An excellent history book. It's not just ordinary history. I've read many innovation books in the past. But this by far has the strongest narrative when it comes to our technological relationship. What surprised me most was how well Vaclav describes technology, inventors, physics, and sociology all in one go. I was particularly impressed he's made sure to draw a progress line which makes him one hell of a futurist.
The true triumph of his claim is his study even dates back to prehistory. Who would have thought of our primal ancestors as energy conversion society. He shows that we needed to start off with inventing fire in the very beginning enhancing the food conversion rate. In medieval time, that's when we've finally achieved how to harness animal power by building non-choking collars and proper saddle. Looking back, everything seems easy and obvious. But that's not always been. What a true progress.
Many techno cynics fantasize about slow farming lives of the 19th century. That's naive beyond belief. At that point we've already accumulated so much technological progress. This book truly opens my eyes and makes me appreciate again the amount of progress humanity has achieved so far. We just need to move forward accepting we stand on the shoulders of giants.