The primary aim of this paper is to explore the significance of the emergence and growth of mechanical engineering as a distinct industrial activity in early industrial Britain. The paper provides a survey of the most important interpretations put forward concerning the role of mechanical...

The aim of this paper is to provide an overview of recent research on the role of patent systems in the early phases of industrialization. Perhaps surprisingly, no consensus has been reached yet as to whether the emergence of modern patent systems exerted a favourable impact on inventive...