Have you ever wondered, while watching a baseball game on TV, what value the commentator is adding to your experience? I had the same feeling while reading this book. Although the author shows insight in a few places, the book lacks new ideas overall. The subtitle of the book is “A historian confronts technological change.” In no way has this book increased my understanding of how technological change is affecting our society.

This is neither a technical nor a management book. It is a collection of essays based on the author’s experiences at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). The book consists of six chapters, in the form of independent essays. The first chapter felt like a mini-biography of the author’s grandfather, Warren Kendall Lewis. The second chapter describes the evolution of the engineering profession, and engineering courses at MIT. The third chapter describes MIT’s experience with reengineering at the social level. The fourth chapter covers the community aspect of MIT. Gender discrimination at MIT is the topic of the fifth chapter. In the sixth chapter, the author attempts to analyze the horrific event that took place on September 11, 2001.

The book’s main weakness is that the title and subtitle belie the content of the book. The title and subtitle suggest that the book is a historical analysis of technological change. The content turns out to be a collection of essays on Warren Kendall Lewis, MIT, gender bias, and September 11, 2001. The other weakness is that, instead of presenting a balanced view of the events described in the book, the author presents an oversimplified, one-sided view. For example, in her words, “The terrorists who destroyed the World Trade Center were motivated by religious beliefs in which fear of and hatred for women are central elements. The terrorists were uprooted men who found identity and meaning by asserting superiority over women and unbelievers through technological prowess.” I have read all the major religious texts, and I am not aware of any major religion in which fear of and hatred for women are central elements. My recommendation is to skip this book.