An inside account of one of the most innovative R&D ecosystems of the 20th century, from the man who was at the center of it all.
Over a 60-year career in public affairs, Vannevar Bush-engineer, inventor, educator, and public face of government-funded science-sought to eliminate roadblocks to innovation in science and technology. In Pieces of the Action, a collection of memoir-essays, he reflects on his role in shaping the policies and organizations that powered American research and development in the mid-20th century.
As the architect and administrator of an R&D pipeline that efficiently coordinated the work of civilian scientists and the military during World War II, he was central to catalyzing the development of radar and the proximity fuze, the mass production of penicillin, and the initiation of the Manhattan Project. Pieces of the Action offers his hard-won lessons on how to operate and manage effectively within complex organizations, build bridges between people and disciplines, and drive ambitious, unprecedented programs to fruition. With wry humor, Bush also shares personal observations and anecdotes-pelting cows with apples, poking fun at servicemen who tried to keep his own invention secret from him-that offer a glimpse of the personality behind the accolades.
Originally published in 1970, this updated edition includes 15 archival images from Bush's life and career and a foreword from entrepreneur and Idea Machines podcast host Ben Reinhardt that contextualizes the lessons Pieces of the Action can offer to contemporary readers: that change depends both on heroic individuals and effective organizations; that a leader's job is one of coordination; and that the path from idea to innovation is a long and winding one, inextricably bound to those involved-those enduring figures who have a piece of the action.
“"Scientific and technological progress depend crucially onleadership. Bush understood this better than anyone, and he had afront-row seat to the most important R&D work of the 20th century.This candid memoir gave me a better understanding of how researchleadership works and why it's desperately needed." --Jason Crawford, writer at The Roots of Progress "Pieces of the Action provides a window into the way Bush sawhimselfnot as a great man or leader, but as part of a larger culturaltradition, equipping new generations with knowledge from past ones. Icame away encouraged and inspired by the knowledge that great things canbe built in spite of stagnation, rigid norms, and conventions, throughthe determination and foresight of people who work to changeinstitutionsand build new ones, too." --Saloni Dattani, cofounder and editor of Works in Progress and researcher at Our World in Data "Pieces of the Action is not just about science and innovation, it'sabout state capacity. Anyone who longs for renewed, effectiveinstitutions will find the wisdom of a kindred spirit reflecting on howto build them." --Eli Dourado, economist and senior research fellow at the Center for Growth and Opportunity at Utah State University "It's hard to deny that Vannevar Bush was at the nexus of an astoundingnumber of people and events that shaped the modern world. In Pieces ofthe Action, he works hard to give us a window into his thoughtprocesses, and from them distill timeless lessons about leadership,research, institution building, and human nature. Bush was a scientist, astatesman, an entrepreneur, a tinkerer, a leader, an educator, and anexcellent storyteller, and Pieces of the Action has a yarn and a lessonfor everyone." --Ben Reinhardt, CEO of PARPA, researcher at the Astera Institute, and host of the Idea Machines podcast "Pieces of the Action catalogs the scientists and engineers who werepivotal to an Allied victory in World War IIand how the ad-hocorganizations born out of that crisis ultimately provided the blueprintsfor our modern scientific institutions. If you want to understand the'man in the arena' at the center of it all, this discursive, blunt, andoften funny memoir is the best place to start." --Alec Stapp, cofounder and co-CEO of the Institute for Progress "Written without pretension. . . this volume will richly reward readersfrom a wide variety of fieldsscience, engineering, industry,education, the military, politics, and public and businessadministration." --Irvin Stewart, Science "Pieces of theAction is an often-whimsical ride through time and the mind of the manwhose insight, strategic instincts, and institutional empire-buildingformed the basis of the modern scientific state. One comes away with aview of scientific development that is anything but linear: thegravitational weight of historical contingencies, idiosyncraticpersonnel, and key management decisions described in Pieces of theAction continue to profoundly impact us today." --Caleb Watney, cofounder and co-CEO of the Institute for Progress”
“Scientific and technological progress depend crucially onleadership. Bush understood this better than anyone, and he had afront-row seat to the most important R&D work of the 20th century.This candid memoir gave me a better understanding of how researchleadership works and why it’s desperately needed.”
—Jason Crawford, writer at The Roots of Progress
“Pieces of the Action provides a window into the way Bush sawhimself―not as a great man or leader, but as part of a larger culturaltradition, equipping new generations with knowledge from past ones. Icame away encouraged and inspired by the knowledge that great things canbe built in spite of stagnation, rigid norms, and conventions, throughthe determination and foresight of people who work to changeinstitutions―and build new ones, too.”
—Saloni Dattani, cofounder and editor of Works in Progress and researcher at Our World in Data
“Pieces of the Action is not just about science and innovation, it’sabout state capacity. Anyone who longs for renewed, effectiveinstitutions will find the wisdom of a kindred spirit reflecting on howto build them.”
—Eli Dourado, economist and senior research fellow at the Center for Growth and Opportunity at Utah State University
“It’s hard to deny that Vannevar Bush was at the nexus of an astoundingnumber of people and events that shaped the modern world. In Pieces ofthe Action, he works hard to give us a window into his thoughtprocesses, and from them distill timeless lessons about leadership,research, institution building, and human nature. Bush was a scientist, astatesman, an entrepreneur, a tinkerer, a leader, an educator, and anexcellent storyteller, and Pieces of the Action has a yarn and a lessonfor everyone.”
—Ben Reinhardt, CEO of PARPA, researcher at the Astera Institute, and host of the Idea Machines podcast
“Pieces of the Action catalogs the scientists and engineers who werepivotal to an Allied victory in World War II―and how the ad-hocorganizations born out of that crisis ultimately provided the blueprintsfor our modern scientific institutions. If you want to understand the‘man in the arena’ at the center of it all, this discursive, blunt, andoften funny memoir is the best place to start.”
—Alec Stapp, cofounder and co-CEO of the Institute for Progress
“Written without pretension. . . this volume will richly reward readersfrom a wide variety of fields―science, engineering, industry,education, the military, politics, and public and businessadministration.”
—Irvin Stewart, Science
“Pieces of theAction is an often-whimsical ride through time and the mind of the manwhose insight, strategic instincts, and institutional empire-buildingformed the basis of the modern scientific state. One comes away with aview of scientific development that is anything but linear: thegravitational weight of historical contingencies, idiosyncraticpersonnel, and key management decisions described in Pieces of theAction continue to profoundly impact us today.”
—Caleb Watney, cofounder and co-CEO of the Institute for Progress
Vannevar Bush (1890–1974) was an engineer, inventor, and architect of public-sector funding for scientific research. As chairman of the US National Defense Research Committee and director of the US Office of Scientific Research and Development during World War II, he oversaw a wide-ranging R&D program that paired government funding with scientific research, resulting in the development of radar and the initiation of the Manhattan Project. He conducted foundational research in computer science, including the invention of the differential analyzer. He served as vice president of MIT and first dean of the MIT School of Engineering, president of the Carnegie Institute of Washington, and chairman of the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics. His 1945 essay “As We May Think” in the Atlantic Monthly is credited with anticipating aspects of personal computing and the internet, while his government report Science, The Endless Frontier laid the groundwork for the founding of the National Science Foundation.
An inside account of one of the most innovative R&D ecosystems of the 20th century, from the man who was at the center of it all. Over a 60-year career in public affairs, Vannevar Bush--engineer, inventor, educator, and public face of government-funded science--sought to eliminate roadblocks to innovation in science and technology. In Pieces of the Action , a collection of memoir-essays, he reflects on his role in shaping the policies and organizations that powered American research and development in the mid-20th century. As the architect and administrator of an R&D pipeline that efficiently coordinated the work of civilian scientists and the military during World War II, he was central to catalyzing the development of radar and the proximity fuze, the mass production of penicillin, and the initiation of the Manhattan Project. Pieces of the Action offers his hard-won lessons on how to operate and manage effectively within complex organizations, build bridges between people and disciplines, and drive ambitious, unprecedented programs to fruition. With wry humor, Bush also shares personal observations and anecdotes--pelting cows with apples, poking fun at servicemen who tried to keep his own invention secret from him--that offer a glimpse of the personality behind the accolades. Originally published in 1970, this updated edition includes 15 archival images from Bush's life and career and a foreword from entrepreneur and Idea Machines podcast host Ben Reinhardt that contextualizes the lessons Pieces of the Action can offer to contemporary readers: that change depends both on heroic individuals and effective organizations; that a leader's job is one of coordination; and that the path from idea to innovation is a long and winding one, inextricably bound to those involved--those enduring figures who have a piece of the action.
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