Invention and innovation : a long history and modern infatuation -- Inventions that turned from welcome to undesirable. Leaded gasoline ; DDT ; Chlorofluorocarbons -- Inventions that were to dominate -- and do not. Airships ; Nuclear fission ; Supersonic flight -- Inventions that we keep waiting for. Travel in vacuum (hyperloop) ; Nitrogen-fixing cereals ; Nuclear fusion -- Techno-optimism, exaggerations and realistic expectations. Breakthroughs that are not ; Myth of ever-faster innovations ; What we need most

"Smil presents the long history and modern infatuation with invention and innovation. Meticulous as always, these vast realms of human ingenuity are organized into sensible categories: inventions that went from welcome to undesirable, inventions that dominate and missed the mark, inventions we still dream about, and lastly, the exaggerations, myths, and wise expectations for innovations we need most"--