Knowledge, Technology, and Culture

‘Superiority’ in the science, technology, and ideology of wealth creation is often taken to lie behind the European inception of the Industrial Revolution. However, although no one in Japan invented the steam engine, there is now evidence of widespread inventive activity and the practical application of technical improvements in agriculture and manufacturing, on the basis of rising literacy and the diffusion of knowledge and information. To the extent that technological ‘tinkering’ within networks of small businesses played a more significant role than once thought in the European Industrial Revolution, clear parallels can thus be seen in Japan. Meanwhile, in Japan as in Europe, a substantial body of literature sought to establish the moral foundation for commercial activity and the principles on which officials should guide the economy in the interests of local and national welfare, even if the conclusions reached were not identical.