Many scholars are concerned with why the U.S. and Canada have been so much more successful over time than other New World economies. Since all New World societies enjoyed high levels of product per capita early in their histories, the divergence in paths can be traced back to the achievement of...

Leading economists and economic historians offer case studies and theoretical perspectives that fill a longstanding gap in the existing literature on technology-driven industrial development, discussing the interaction of finance and technological innovation in the American economy since the...