Book Description

This Festschrift explores the truly exceptional breadth and depth of Paul David s work, focusing upon his contributions to the topics of path dependence, the economics of knowledge, and the diffusion of technology. The book consists of 15 papers plus an introduction by the editors and an entertaining postscript by Dominique Foray. . . For economic historians, the papers on path dependence assembled in this book, and particularly the conceptual paper by Antonelli, should be essential reading. Nikolaus Wolf, Economic History Review Recent research on the economics of innovation has acknowledged the importance of path dependence and networks in the evolution of economies and the diffusion of new techniques, products, and processes. These are topics pioneered by Paul A. David, one of the world s leading scholars in the economics of innovation. This outstanding collection provides a fitting tribute to the diversity and depth of Paul David s contributions. The papers included range from simulation models of the evolution of market structure in the presence of innovation, through historical investigations of knowledge networks and empirical analysis of contemporary networks, to the analysis of the diffusion of innovations using simulation and analytic models and of the diffusion of knowledge using patent data. With an emphasis on simulation models, data analysis, and historical evidence, this book will be required reading for researchers in innovation economics and regional development as well as economists, sociologists, and historians of innovation and intellectual property.