Intellectual Markets.

Science, technology, and medicine went through important changes between 1850 and 1877. New findings in these fields, especially in technology, helped to give shape to a modernizing, industrializing nation; at the same time, the economic and social transformation of American society had a profound impact on science, technology, and medicine as urbanization and industrialization brought more people together to share new ideas, and organizational changes in industry created a demand for specialization and expertise. This interplay between science and social change was not limited to the United States. By the middle of the nineteenth century Americans were active participants in a competitive, capitalistic world market in which the interaction of new ideas proved to be as important as the exchange of goods for sale. Europeans remained the leaders in science, medicine, and technology, but Americans made some significant scientific contributions, especially in terms of practical inventions. During the...