Question

In American Genesis, which covers the century of technological innovation in the United States beginning in 1876,Thomas Hughes assigns special prominence to Thomas Edison as archetype of the independent nineteenth-century inventor. However, Hughes virtually ignores Edison's famous contemporary and notorious adversary in the field of electric light and power, George Westinghouse. This comparative neglect of Westinghouse is consistent with other recent historians' works, although it marks an intriguing departure from the prevailing view during the inventors' lifetimes (and for decades afterward) of Edison and Westinghouse as the two "pioneer innovators" of the electrical industry.My recent reevaluation of Westinghouse, facilitated by materials found in railroad archives, suggests that while Westinghouse and Edison shared important traits as inventors, they differed markedly in their approach to the business aspects of innovation. For Edison as an inventor, novelty was always paramount: the overriding goal of the business of innovation was simply to generate funding for new inventions. Edison therefore undertook just enough sales, product development, and manufacturing to accomplish this. Westinghouse, however, shared the attitudes of the railroads and other industries for whom he developed innovations: product development, standardization, system, and order were top priorities. Westinghouse thus better exemplifies the systematic approach to technological development that would become a hallmark of modern corporate research and development.The primary purpose of the passage is to(A) reevaluate a controversial theory(B) identify the flaws in a study(C) propose a new method of historical research(D) compare two contrasting analyses(E) provide a fresh perspective

Answer 1

E is the correct option.

Step-by-step explanation:

The author tries to show the constant neglect of Westinghouse as an innovator in historical works. Both in American Genesis and other recent work talks about Edison as an innovator but not about Westinghouse. The author has used railroad archives to reevaluate Westinghouse's work and innovation. He finds out that both Edison and Westinghouse had traits of the innovator but both differed in the business aspect of innovation.

For Edison, the purpose of the business of innovation was to get funding for new innovations while for Westinghouse, standardization, product development, System and Order were important aspects of the business. Hence we can say that he tries to provide a fresh perspective.