Standards of living in eighteenth century China: regional differences, temporal trends, and incomplete evidence / Kenneth Pomeranz -- Farm labour productivity in Jiangnan, 1620-1850 / Li Bozhong -- Wages, inequality, and pre-industrial growth in Japan, 1727-1894 / Osamu Saito -- Agriculture,...

This history of the transition from organic to mineral fuels suggests a number of conclusions that may have parallels in the future: People respond to price incentives; science is important but not sufficient; human capital is important; cooperation is as important as competition; path breaking...