Strands of Modernization: The Circulation of Technology and Business Practices in East Asia, 1850–1920

"Strands of Modernization offers essays by accomplished international scholars and a long-overdue, multidirectional perspective on technology transfer in East Asia. Emphasizing the importance of modernization as the actors themselves defined it in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the authors stress the preeminent role of small enterprise in selectively creating innovative hybrid technologies that fueled much of intra-East Asia technology transfer at the turn of the century."

Philip C. Brown, Professor Emeritus of Japanese and East Asian History, Ohio State University

"Strands of Modernization is a valuable addition to this important series on Japan and global society. Through a rich collection of case studies, the authors paint a dynamic picture of a region learning to be modern, a place where skills, ideas, and know-how were circulated and knowledge was transferred and trafficked in multiple directions. Students and scholars alike will find this book to be a useful resource that helps us to understand how Japan was shaped by cross-national forces that would forever change the face of the nation."

Morris Low, Associate Professor of Japanese History, University of Queensland