Techno-hegemony, and: Created in Japan: From Imitators to World Class Innovators, and: The Formation of Science in Japan: Building a Research Tradition (review)

176 SAISREVIEW in the world order (the latter being a particularly difficult task). Unfortunately, in explaining the various approaches towards maintaining international order, Von Vorys insists on taking the reader through a tour of world history. An extremely interesting tour, mind you, but do we really need to know how the Ch'in dynasty (221-209 B.C.) forged Chinese solidarity or that Alexander the Great "was a mamma's boy, somewhat like Churchill and FDR"? More important, however, is the completely surprising list of recommendations that Von Vorys comes up with for promoting constructive change in the Third World—specifically, for addressing ethnic tensions in Africa and Asia. He finishes the list with the admirable suggestion that the U.S. alter the substantive and geographic biases of its foreign aid program—less military aid and less of it to the Middle East. But he begins the list with the advice to maintain our covert operations capability and to build a global rapid deployment force! What ethnic conflict in Sub-Saharan Africa could possibly warrant the lives of thousands of America's youth? And whatever happened to the simple idea of boosting local Third World economies through trade liberalization measures? Does the description quirkily provocative make sense now? Von Vorys' writing style is brash and clever, and a selective reading ofAmerican National Interest will uncover a solid logical analysis ofthat most vexing of foreign policy tasks: basing policy on national interests. The subtitle had left this reviewer hoping to find some discussion of the dilemmas involved in matching virtue with power—dilemmas evident in the attempt to promote a consistent human rights policy, for example. Alas, there was little discussion of them. But Von Vorys is right to begin his preface with the statement: "What this country needs...is a great debate on foreign policy." In its unusual way, American National Interest adds to that debate. Techno-hegemony: By Taizo Yakushiji. Tokyo: Shuokoronsha, 1989. 267pp. 620 yen. (in Japanese) Created in Japan: From Imitators to World Class Innovators. By Sheridan M. Tatsuno. New York: Harper & Row, 1990. 295pp. $21.95. The Formation ofScience in Japan: Building a Research Tradition. By James R. Bartholomew. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1989. 371pp. $36.00. Reviewed by Takuya Tasso, M.A. Candidate, SAIS. The origins of Japan's successful development of advanced technology is an attractive and common research theme for scholars concerned with economic competition between countries and about economic development. Some emphasize the ability of the Japanese to imitate Western science and technology while others focus on the original culture and traditions of Japanese society as possessing a delicate sensibility and penchant for invention. This debate between BOOK REVIEWS 177 the imitator-school and the creator-school is interesting to many people. Three new authors have joined the fray to present their own versions of these theories. Taizo Yakushiji's Techno-hegemony is a bold attempt to establish a general theory of national technological development. Sheridan Tatsuno's Created in Japan focuses on Japanese innovation, providing a new concept of creativity. Finally, James Bartholomew's The Formation of Science in Japan describes Japan's Westernization in terms of social change and technological development. The key to technological achievement seems to be the combination of vigorous imitation and originality based on factors inherent to the culture and traditions of Japan. Yakushiji has a B.A. degree in engineering from Keio University in Japan and a Ph.D. degree in international relations from MIT. He presents a general theory for national technological success, postulating that the international dynamics of "technological emulation" are the main cause of hegemony-transfer between major powers in modern history. According to him, techno-hegemons like the United Kingdom and the United States, which have succeeded in "technological emulation," grafted their inherent "something different" onto imported technology. For example, the British improved upon French technology for producing silk fabrics and the Low Countries' methods for making woolen fabric by utilizing know-how developed from the British cotton textile industry. As a second example, he cites the American development of a conveyor belt mass-production system, emulated from French and German automobile technology. Yakushiji argues that efficient imitation is essential for...