"During the late eighteenth century, innovations in Europe triggered the Industrial Revolution and the sustained economic progress that spread across the globe. While much has been made of the details of the Industrial Revolution, what remains a mystery is why it took place at all. Why did this...

In this essay I compare two different theoretical frameworks in economics for orientinganalysis of issues in technology policy. One is a neoclassical framework that sees appropriatepolicies as dealing with “market failures”. The other framework is provided by an evolutionaryand institutional...