Conspicuous Production Research Articles

Passion as Capital: The Cultural Production of “Good Computer Scientists”

“Do what you love” has become a hegemonic mantra in large swaths of the labor force, and the expectation for workers to be passionate about their work is intense within the technology sector. When we interviewed eight undergraduates at a large Canadian university about what makes someone a “good computer scientist,” participants stressed the importance of passion. Passion was described as a form of capital: to be accumulated and traded for advancement in the labor market. We examine how passion works as a hegemonic norm within this culture, and untangle passion as requiring two distinct processes: conspicuous production (via extracurriculars and internships), and affective passion (via performing interest and enthusiasm for the subject). We explore the relationships and feedback loops amongst conspicuous production, affective passion, and other forms of Bourdieusian capital. In doing so, we uncover the mechanics of the power structures which underlie post-feminist and meritocratic narratives of self-motivated passion.

Planning, Manufacturing, and Sustainability: Three Research Themes

This thematic issue explores the role that revived emplacements of manufacturing and “blue-collar” work play in the search for more effective models of urban sustainability, drawing on intriguing developments in different cities of different sizes in different Western societies—the UK, Germany, Switzerland, the USA, and Australia. Rather than see industry as a “problem” for green city strategies, our point of departure considers what role manufacturing and “blue-collar” work can (and do) play in the search for more effective models of urban sustainability. The articles included here deploy a range of research methodologies, albeit with a predominant emphasis on qualitative case studies, to raise key challenges for urban and regional industrial planning. This editorial provides some overarching context and commentary on the topic and specifically discusses three synoptic themes that emerged most prominently from the collection of articles: the difficulty (and importance) of identifying and illustrating the practical sustainability benefits of local manufacturing; the complexity of advancing “conspicuous production” in the urban context; and the need to broaden industrial politics and planning in order to better utilize existing industrial spaces and enhance the role of production in the city. These themes help to capture emerging trends and challenges in the field while providing foundations for future research.

Sensing Urban Manufacturing: From Conspicuous to Sensible Production

Environmental destruction, social inequalities, geopolitical vulnerability—the limits of the long-time praised paradigm of post-industrial cities and globalised value chains are becoming evident, while calls for (re)localising production in cities are getting increasingly vocal. However, the material implications—i.e., where and in which form manufacturing should concretely take place in cities and the consequences on urban space and relations—are rarely addressed in debates on (re)industrialisation. In this article, we engage with the concept of conspicuous production by combining research on mixed-use zones with sensory methodologies. We focus on the multisensory dimension of urban manufacturing to interrogate the spatial possibilities for production in a small town in Switzerland. Together with a group of graduate students, we apply sensory methods to explore how production shapes urban sensescapes and how these sensescapes affect our relation to production. Our exploratory endeavour provides ideas of how sensory methods can be integrated into urban planning research and practice: we suggest that these methods, which necessarily emphasise subjective experience, can constitute powerful tools if they take into attentive consideration the local political and economic context, including the norms and power relations that shape individual perception. Our study sparks critical questions about conspicuous production and mixed-use zoning and tentatively advances the concept of <em>sensible production</em>: a production that not only is perceptible and can actively be engaged with, but that also shows good sense, makes sense, and focuses on what we need rather than on appearance.

Epigenetic clocks and female fertility timeline: A new approach to an old issue?

Worldwide increase in life expectancy has boosted research on aging. Overcoming the concept of chronological age, higher attention has been addressed to biological age, which reflects a person's real health state, and which may be the resulting combination of both intrinsic and environmental factors. As epigenetics may exert a pivotal role in the biological aging, epigenetic clocks were developed. They are based on mathematical models aimed at identifying DNA methylation patterns that can define the biological age and that can be adopted for different clinical scopes (i.e., estimation of the risks of developing age-related disorders or predicting lifespan). Recently, epigenetic clocks have gained a peculiar attention in the fertility research field, in particular in the female counterpart. The insight into the possible relations between epigenetic aging and women's infertility might glean additional information about certain conditions that are still not completely understood. Moreover, they could disclose significant implications for health promotion programs in infertile women. Of relevance here is that the impact of biological age and epigenetics may not be limited to fertility status but could translate into pregnancy issues. Indeed, epigenetic alterations of the mother may transfer into the offspring, and pregnancy itself as well as related complications could contribute to epigenetic modifications in both the mother and newborn. However, even if the growing interest has culminated in the conspicuous production of studies on these topics, a global overview and the availability of validated instruments for diagnosis is still missing. The present narrative review aims to explore the possible bonds between epigenetic aging and fertility timeline. In the "infertility" section, we will discuss the advances on epigenetic clocks focusing on the different tissues examined (endometrium, peripheral blood, ovaries). In the "pregnancy" section, we will discuss the results obtained from placenta, umbilical cord and peripheral blood. The possible role of epigenetic aging on infertility mechanisms and pregnancy outcomes represents a question that may configure epigenetic clock as a bond between two apparently opposite worlds: infertility and pregnancy.

Giftedness and gifted education: A systematic literature review

The present study aims to discuss the state of the art inherent in pedagogical-didactic research on the education of gifted students. To this end, a systematic review of scientific texts published between 2011 and 2021 was carried out. The present article is organized as follows: introduction to the topic; definition of the objectives, research questions, and methodological protocol; selection, evaluation, and synthesis of the abstract studies; discussion and evaluation of the results; and conclusions. Multiple tools for identifying the gifted students (for use by psychologists, pedagogists, educators, and teachers) emerge from the findings of the present study. The texts highlight numerous instructional and educational programming models for gifted students in all school grades. The main model is the SEM—(Schoolwide Enrichment Model). The present review shows a conspicuous production on gifted education, with the predominance of recently published articles (indicative of vivid interest in the topic) and of American origin. This geographic predominance, which does not cover the European and eastern parts of the world, may depend on the fact that the databases used [Scopus and Web of Science (WoS)] select results based on the use of English. This review reveals gaps and emerging trends in gifted education research, suggesting possibilities and future perspectives.

Stratified Mucin Producing Intraepithelial Lesion (SMILE): Report of Two Cases

Abstract Introduction/Objective Stratified mucin producing intraepithelial lesion (SMILE) is an uncommon variant of adenocarcinoma in-situ (AIS), often confused with immature squamous metaplasia or high-grade intraepithelial lesion (HG-SIL). This premalignant lesion is often found in proximity to HG-SIL, AIS and invasive carcinomas. SMILE is also a precursor for Invasive Stratified Mucinous Carcinoma. As was first described in the original article, SMILE lesions are considered derived from the reserve cells at the transformation zone where HPV infections lead to varied phenotypes. Methods Two cases of SMILE were collected from our files. A 31-year-old female with a previous abnormal Pap smear result. She underwent cervical biopsy and subsequent LEEP.The second patient, a 26-year-old female, underwent a cervical biopsy after an abnormal Pap smear. Results Histologically, stratified cells with presence of conspicuous mucin production with abundant cytoplasm separating cells in mid and lower layer of epithelium accompanied with conspicuous spacing of nuclei in the lower to middle epithelial layer are seen. Additionally, there is nuclear pleomorphism with absence of gland formation. Mucicarmine stain was performed and showed positive staining in mucin producing dysplastic cells throughout the epithelium. Immunoperoxidase stains demonstrated positivity for p16 (nuclear and cytoplasmic) and p63 in the basal cells. The Ki67 proliferation index was high (approximately 90%). These results supported the diagnostic interpretation of SMILE. Conclusion SMILE is a rare variant of glandular precursor lesion in the cervix. It is frequently associated with HG-SIL and/or AIS, but may rarely appear as an isolated finding. The differential diagnosis include adenocarcinoma in-situ, atypical immature squamous metaplasia and squamous intraepithelial lesion. Since these lesions are cervical glandular intraepithelial neoplasms, the morphologic recognition of a SMILE in a biopsy is important for patient follow up, particularly in cases were only squamous intraepithelial lesion is present in the sample.

Penicillium setosum, a new species from Withania somnifera (L.) Dunal

ABSTRACTMedicinal plants are considered as sources of novel and unexplored groups of endophytic microorganisms. A study on endophytic fungal species from the medicinal plant Withania somnifera (L.) Dunal resulted in the isolation of a Penicillium isolate (WSR 62) with antibiotic activity. Phylogenetic analysis showed that the isolate belongs to section Lanata-divaricata, and it is most closely related to P. javanicum. Subsequent detailed phylogenetic analyses using partial β-tubulin (BenA), calmodulin (CaM) and DNA-dependent RNA polymerase II (RPB2) gene sequences of a larger number of related strains revealed the distinctiveness of the isolate in the P. javanicum-clade. The isolate grows fast on Czapek yeast autolysate agar (CYA) and malt extract agar (MEA) incubated at 25°C, 30°C and 37°C. The obverse colony colour is dominated by the conspicuous production of cleistothecia and is greyish yellow on CYA and yellowish brown on MEA. Production of cleistothecia containing prominent spinose ascospores was present on all tested agar media. Based on the phylogenetic analysis and the phenotypic characterisation, strain WSR 62 from Withania is described here as a novel species named Penicillium setosum.

Conspicuous production: Wine, capital and status

The recent expansion of the global wine industry, especially in developing countries, has brought to light the apparent phenomenon of conspicuous production. This form of economic activity is characterised by investment decisions that seek status and reputation alongside or, in many cases, ahead of profits. This paper examines the wine industry and uncovers examples of conspicuous production occurring at different scales, from celebrities and individual investors through to national strategies. Although the empirical evidence is somewhat scattered, we argue this is a source of capital of significance in the wine industry, and possibly in other sectors of the economy.

Designing the Smart House

This article analyzes recent architectural and product designs for computerized smart homes. The smart home is a sentient space where human subjects and domestic objects speak to one another via intelligent agents and internet connections. This article explores the industrial logic behind this new vision of home (i.e. the links between the hi-tech industry and the building/home appliance industries) and examines the mode of subjectivity the smart home demands. It calls this mode of subjectivity 'posthuman domesticity' (a term to explore the way that everyday human experience is orchestrated by telerobotics and intelligent agents). Analyzing architectural designs, advertisements and magazines, the article focuses on how the smart home industry promotes an ideal of 'conspicuous production' in which the luxury home is no longer just a site of leisure and consumption, but also the ultimate workplace. It argues that smart homes reconfigure but also reinforce gendered patterns of domestic labor and leisure.

War Crimes: Confronting Atrocity in the Modern World by David s> Chuter (review)

786 SEER, 83, 4, 2005 sensitiveto the possibilityof being consideredserfs a statuswith which their grandparents had been all too familiar' (p. I76). Verdery associates such observationswith the rarityamong hervillagersof statementsthat they 'have' (avea) or 'possess'(poseda) 'property'(proprietate) in favourof theirbeing 'master' (stdpdn) of 'land' (pamant).This leads her to a social concept of a 'visible economy' in which, for example, a field of well-weeded crops or bursting granarieswould be valued more highly than their money equivalent. Forthe economist used to Veblen's 'conspicuous consumption', the parallel is Polanyi's 'conspicuous production'. Stalin'splans of that form, targeting the manufactureof physical quantitiesof goods with scant concern for economy of inputsor usesfor outputs,may thusbe evidence of hispeasantroots. University ofBirmingham MICHAEL KASER andStAntony's College, Oxford Chuter, David. WarCrimes. Confronting Atrocity intheModern World. IISS Studies in International Security. Lynne Rienner, Boulder, CO and London, 2003. iX+ 299 pp. Notes. Bibliography.Index. $55.00. THIs book is a refreshingand original contribution to the growing body of literature examining ways of dealing with the commission of war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide. The last decade has witnessed a growth in the businessof internationalcriminaljustice, prompted by changes in the internationalsystemand a greaterconcern for abusesin the bordersof a state. The establishment of the International Criminal Tribunal for the FormerYugoslavia(ICTY)in May I993 was the firststepon a path that led to the establishment of a permanent International Criminal Court with the adoption of a statute in July I998 and its coming into force four years later. Prosecutingwar crimeswas seen increasinglyas an importantelement of the package of measures designed to bring about 'post-conflict reconstruction'. However, recently this has been challenged and a degree of fatigue with internationalcriminaljustice is discernable.This is due to the fact that the ad hoc tribunals are taking so much time, effort and money to complete their work,and drivenby a realizationthat internationalcriminaljustice might not be the panacea solution it was purported to be. Other mechanisms, such as truth commissions or amnesties, or a combination of measures, might in fact be bettersuitedto the loftydemandsof post-conflictjustice. David Chuter'sbook providesan honest assessmentof wherewe had got to by 2003. Its aim is to provide an assessmentof the possibilitiesand difficulties of establishingmechanisms to investigateand prosecute those responsiblefor the commission of war crimes and to situate these terrible events in their historical and social contexts. It is based on a combination of the author's personal experience at the Ministryof Defence workingat the coalface, with responsibilityfor Balkan war crimes issues during I997-200I and extensive interviews conducted with people working on these issues. It is thereby designedto reflectthe 'collectivewisdom of those who have workedin thewar crimes area over recent years' (p. 2) and in this it is successful.Although the book is wide-ranging in its focus, including discussionof the influence of the REVIEWS 787 Holocaust, the Allied bombing campaigns in Germany during the Second WorldWar, the use of atomic weapons againstJapan at the end of the War, the Rwandan genocide, the war in Sierra Leone and establishment of a Special Court, apartheid and the South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission, the narrative returns time and again to the history of the Balkans,the Yugoslavwar and issuesrelatingto the ICTY duringthe critical years of 1997-2001. Chuter draws on detailed examples from the Balkansto show how social, political and historicalcontext can create a climate of moral vacuity in which the commissionof war crimescan become the norm, and showshow such acts are justified in the context of the overall strategy. Yet, he also makes an importantdistinctionbetween this sortof conduct and thatperpetratedby the 'small band of psychopaths who naturally come to the fore' (p. ix). Their freedom to commit atrociousactsisprovidedby the context in which they are operating, but such acts do not necessarily have any connection with the overallstrategy. At times, Chuter'sdisdainfor certainmembers of the advocacy networkof international lawyers and NGOs is palpable and he seeks to avoid what he callsthe 'sanctimoniousnessand emotionalism'(p. 4) of many writingson this subject. What results is a penetrating discussion of how and why atrocities occur and what can be done to bring the perpetratorstojustice. Throughout, Chuter takes a pragmatic approach, stressing the importance of politics, without which...

Partial wave analyses ofJ/ψ→γK+K−andγKS0KS0

Results are presented on $J/\psi $ radiative decays to $K^+K^-$ and $K^0_SK^0_S$ based on a sample of 58M $J/\psi$ events taken with the BES II detector. A partial wave analysis is carried out using the relativistic covariant tensor amplitude method in the 1-2 GeV mass range. There is conspicuous production due to the $f'_2(1525)$ and $f_0(1710)$. The latter peaks at a mass of $1740\pm 4^{+10}_{-25}$ MeV with a width of $166{^{+5}_{-8}}{^{+15}_{-10}}$ MeV. Spin 0 is strongly preferred over spin 2. For the $f'_2(1525)$, the helicity amplitude ratios are determined to be $x^2 = 1.00\pm0.28^{+1.06}_{-0.36}$ and $y^2 = 0.44\pm{0.08}^{+0.10}_{-0.56}$.

Post-Colonial Conspicuous Consumption

Anthropology NewsVolume 41, Issue 3 p. 18-19 Post-Colonial Conspicuous Consumption Alison Bell, Alison Bell U of Virginia Alison Bell recently defended her dissertation, “Conspicuous Production: Agricultural and Domestic Material Culture in Virginia, 1700-1900” at the U of Virginia. She has taught anthropology and archaeology for several years at Washington and Lee U and graduates from U VA in May 2000.Search for more papers by this author Alison Bell, Alison Bell U of Virginia Alison Bell recently defended her dissertation, “Conspicuous Production: Agricultural and Domestic Material Culture in Virginia, 1700-1900” at the U of Virginia. She has taught anthropology and archaeology for several years at Washington and Lee U and graduates from U VA in May 2000.Search for more papers by this author First published: 07 July 2009 https://doi.org/10.1111/an.2000.41.3.18 AboutPDF ToolsExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditWechat No abstract is available for this article. Volume41, Issue3March 2000Pages 18-19 RelatedInformation

The production of prestige: An entrepreneurial Viagra

The social context plays a role in entrepreneurial activity: it shapes perceptions, evaluations and the recognition of opportunity. But one aspect of context is relationships, where it has been found that the search for status provides a stimulus that not only promotes businesses, but affects how they are run. An ethnographic approach was used to examine the activities of 60 rural entrepreneurs in the UK, and six cases are presented to demonstrate the operation of the production of prestige. Conspicuous production provides a heuristic explanatory variable of process and outcome, and enriches our understanding of the entrepreneurial process.

The Production of Prestige

The social context plays a role in entrepreneurial activity: it shapes perceptions, evaluations and the recognition of opportunity. But one aspect of context is relationships, where it has been found that the search for status provides a stimulus that not only promotes businesses, but affects how they are run. An ethnographic approach was used to examine the activities of 60 rural entrepreneurs in the UK, and six cases are presented to demonstrate the operation of the production of prestige. Conspicuous production provides a heuristic explanatory variable of process and outcome, and enriches our understanding of the entrepreneurial process.

Conspicuous Production: Automobiles and Elites in Detroit, 1899-1933. By Donald Finley Davis. (Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 1988. xv + 282 pp. $29.95.)

Journal Article Conspicuous Production: Automobiles and Elites in Detroit, 1899–1933. By Donald Finley Davis. (Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 1988. xv + 282 pp. $29.95.) Get access Clay McShane Clay McShane Northeastern University Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar Journal of Social History, Volume 23, Issue 4, Summer 1990, Pages 869–870, https://doi.org/10.1353/jsh/23.4.869 Published: 01 July 1990

Conspicuous Production: Automobiles and Elites in Detroit, 1899–1933 by Donald Finlay Davis

316 Book Reviews TECHNOLOGY AND CULTURE Conspicuous Production: Automobiles and Elites in Detroit, 1899—1933. By Donald Finlay Davis. Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 1988. Pp. xiii+ 282; illustrations, tables, notes, index. $29.95. Despite repeated calls for studies of technological failures, histori­ ans of technology rarely address that provocative model. Failures matter primarily because their stories tell us a great deal about the contingent character of technological successes; they remind us that things need not have turned out as they have. Donald Davis attempts just such a task, chronicling the failure of Detroit’s turn-of-thecentury elite to maintain control of the automobile industry and, eventually, of their city. In the process he challenges a major paradigm for U.S. automotive history—“the myth that the founders of the American automotive industry were mostly self-made men” (p. 13). Davis argues that Detroit’s auto-manufacturing founders were not typified by Henry Ford and James Couzens, or by the New Yorkbased managers of General Motors and Chrysler. The magnitude of their eventual success, together with the mythic quality of Henry Ford, have blinded historians to the essentially patrician origins of the city’s dominant industry. Thus they obscure the story of Detroit’s failed auto aristocracy. For Davis that failure reveals the profoundly symbolic power of automotive production and helps explain the peculiar 20th-century fortunes of the nation’s Motor City. The argument, in brief, runs as follows: Almost all the early Detroit auto manufacturers succumbed to a passion for “conspicuous pro­ duction,” which, much like the “conspicuous consumption” from which the term is taken, sought to reaffirm elite status by manufac­ turing upscale cars fit only for their peers. Luxury cars proved such a small segment of the market that by 1910 most manufacturers sold their holdings, leaving the field open to the maverick Henry Ford and the non-Detroit leadership of General Motors and Chrysler. Bitter hostility between Ford (and his lieutenant James Couzens) and the city’s establishment, together with CM and Chrysler’s indifference to the city’s internal fate, led to a crushing defeat when the elite’s economic power base in the city’s banking system collapsed during the depth of the Great Depression. All this makes a great deal of sense and adds considerably to a revisionist interpretation of the origins of the auto industry and to the history of Detroit as a unique American city. Davis also raises provocative questions about the role of the automobile as an Ameri­ can symbol. His hypothesis adds a nuance to the commonplace observation that the automobile operates more as an ego enhancer, a symbolic vehicle for social and sexual status, than as a physical tool for the movement of bodies and freight. On the other hand, Davis’s single-minded pursuit of the conspicuous production hypothesis seems to have led him to overlook other major factors that help explain Detroit’s penchant for showy, gas-guzzling be­ TECHNOLOGY AND CULTURE Book Reviews 317 hemoths. One could argue, for example, that the big three’s commitment to massive cars originated in GM’s redefinition of auto marketing in the 1920s. “Sloanism” combined GM’s mix oflow- to high-priced models with advertising that emphasized the automobile as status symbol. Sloanist marketing climaxed each year in the spectacular striptease of the fall model unveilings, a social ritual in which Chrysler and Ford soon par­ ticipated with full vigor. From this perspective, Sloanism represents an economically rational response to the 1920s saturation of the virgin car market. To sustain mass- production profitability, manufacturers had to wean consumers from Ford’s unchanging (and unstylish) Model T and to whet their appetite for next year’s sexy arrivals. Davis also ignores a key dimension of Henry Ford’s motivation. While Ford’s Model T clearly “democratized” automobile ownership during its heyday, Ford’s other great innovation—the moving assem­ bly line—moved in a radically undemocratic direction as skilled artisans were replaced by highly regulated line workers whose adult judgment about the production process was treated with contempt. Davis rightly calls attention to Ford’s hostility toward Detroit’s elite class, but he ignores Ford paternalism, best seen...

Conspicuous Production: Automobiles and Elites in Detroit, 1899-1933

Conspicuous Production: Automobiles and Elites in Detroit, 1899-1933

On the Line: Essays in the History of Auto Work ed. by Nelson Lichtenstein, Stephen Meyer

TECHNOLOGY AND CULTURE Book Reviews 317 hemoths. One could argue, for example, that the big three’s commitment to massive cars originated in GM’s redefinition of auto marketing in the 1920s. “Sloanism” combined GM’s mix oflow- to high-priced models with advertising that emphasized the automobile as status symbol. Sloanist marketing climaxed each year in the spectacular striptease of the fall model unveilings, a social ritual in which Chrysler and Ford soon par­ ticipated with full vigor. From this perspective, Sloanism represents an economically rational response to the 1920s saturation of the virgin car market. To sustain mass- production profitability, manufacturers had to wean consumers from Ford’s unchanging (and unstylish) Model T and to whet their appetite for next year’s sexy arrivals. Davis also ignores a key dimension of Henry Ford’s motivation. While Ford’s Model T clearly “democratized” automobile ownership during its heyday, Ford’s other great innovation—the moving assem­ bly line—moved in a radically undemocratic direction as skilled artisans were replaced by highly regulated line workers whose adult judgment about the production process was treated with contempt. Davis rightly calls attention to Ford’s hostility toward Detroit’s elite class, but he ignores Ford paternalism, best seen in his mix of house visitations to Americanize immigrant workers and his notorious antiunion spy system. Ford’s passion for dictatorial control dwarfs, for me at least, his maverick identification with the common man. Davis gives us a fascinating close reading of the tangled and tumultuous relationships of Detroit’s changing automotive aristoc­ racy. He successfully challenges the paradigm that sees the early industry as the preserve of poorly capitalized, self-made entrepre­ neurs. For that we stand in his debt. By demonstrating the connection between the social status of auto manufacturers and the cars they produced, he enhances our awareness of the power of the automobile as an American symbol. Finally, his study provides a provocative explanation for Detroit’s peculiar and troubled fortunes after 1930. Unfortunately, Davis’s love affair with his conspicuous production model mars his reading of this endlessly fascinating and complex chapter in America’s technological history. John M. Staudenmaier, S.J. Dr. Staudenmaier is associate professor of the history of technology at the University of Detroit. On the Line: Essays in the History of Auto Work. Edited by Nelson Lichtenstein and Stephen Meyer. Champaign: University of Illinois Press, 1989. Pp. 256; illustrations, notes, index. $32.50 (cloth); $12.95 (paper). This collection of nine original essays has much to recommend it to students of the history of labor, technology, business, and industrial 318 Book Reviews TECHNOLOGY AND CULTURE relations. It should also interest readers concerned with the future of the American economy and its industrial work force. Although the focus of each essay varies, the volume attains unity through a continuing attention to the issue of fordism, the integrated, contin­ uous flow system of mass production that relied on single-purpose machines, minute division of labor, and specialization of task and was historically associated with the employment of large numbers of unskilled immigrant workers. These essays are devoted to a multifac­ eted analysis of the relationship between Fordism, the development of technology, and the particular history and culture of auto workers, managers, and inventors. The result is an analysis of the nature of automobile work that sees it as “the product not only of market forces and technological change but also of the social consciousness and political choices auto workers and auto managers bring to the production process” (p. 14). Nelson Lichtenstein and Stephen Meyer are to be particularly commended for highlighting the value of a comparative approach to labor history. Their collection opens with an essay by Wayne Lewchuk which concludes that, starting with the same technology but employ­ ing very different workers, America developed Fordism, and Britain a system of worker self-management. In the final essay, Jonathan Zeitlin and Steven Tolliday reexamine the prevailing view that British auto workers exercised shop-floor power and Americans did not. Arguing that American historians have greatly exaggerated the extent of British workers’ shop-floor power, Zeitlin and Tolliday also argue that American workers developed power over the shop...

Book Review: Conspicuous Production: Automobiles and Elites in Detroit, 1899–1933

Book Review: Conspicuous Production: Automobiles and Elites in Detroit, 1899–1933

Conspicuous Production: Automobiles and Elites in Detroit, 1899-1933

With the founding of the American automotive industry in the 1890s, the social and economic community of Detroit was dramatically altered. In this first detailed examination of the relationship between the dominant industry and the social elite of Detroit, Donald Finlay Davis demonstrates how decisions and ambitions in one sphere fed into the other. Detroit's automotive industry was socially divided, roughly along the lines of its own price-class hierarchy, and Davis argues that these divisions influenced community decision-making.Bridging the gap between urban and business history, Conspicuous Production traces how the social aspirations of the gasoline aristocracy profoundly influenced the models and marketing decisions of these fledgling companies. The identification of social renegade Henry Ford with the low-and middle-income groups contributed to the Model T being scorned as vehicle for the upwardly mobile. The Packard a gentlemen's car built by gentlemen and other luxury manufactures such as Lincoln, Wayne, Lozier, and Northern were embraced by the social elite while the more pedestrian models dominated the market.The author sheds new light on the fate of Detroit's old families; on the ascent of Ford, General Motors, and Chrysler; on Detroit's transit policies; and on the Michigan bank crash that precipitated the closure of America's banks in March 1933. Illustrated with early advertisements and promotional photos of classic automobiles, Conspicuous Production traces the mutual influence of industrial and community leadership in early twentieth-century Detroit and asks: Who determined that American technology should serve the masses as well as the classes? Donald Finlay Davis is Associate Professor of History at the University of Ottawa.