Journal of Economic Literature
Book Reviews
2026-08-28
Richard Lipsey of Simon Fraser University reviews “Is War Necessary for Economic Growth? Military Procurement and Technology Development” by Vernon W. Ruttan,. The EconLit Abstract of the reviewed work begins “Examines the impact of military and space-related procurement on the commercial development of six general-purpose technologies. Discusses war and economic growth; interchangeable parts and mass production; military and commercial aircraft; nuclear energy and electric power; the computer industry; inventing the Internet; the space industries; and whether war is necessary. Ruttan is Regents Professor Emeritus in the Department of Applied Economics at the University of Minnesota. Author and subject indexes.”