The Origins of Efficiency
author: Brian Potter
related books: How Innovation Works, How the World Really Works
When we think of human ingenuity, we celebrate flashy inventions such as penicillin and the lightbulb. Yet most of our material wealth comes from centuries of quiet improvements in how things are made, and in this book Potter systematically explores these process innovations that make products better, cheaper and faster.
What is not in the drawing: some processes resist improvement altogether, because of physical limits, regulation or a simple lack of economic incentive. I also noticed a tension with Antifragile: Potter treats variability as the enemy of efficiency, whereas Taleb argues that systems can gain from it.
Who is this for?
I found this a highly didactic read, richly illustrated with examples; every engineer should enjoy it.
Sketch drawn by hand in watercolour, licensed under CC BY 4.0.