Technical change has radically altered economic development in the industrialised world and it has become ever more important to understand the sources, nature and consequences of innovation. The Political Economy of Science, Technology and Innovation is an authoritative collection of the most important papers by leading international scholars in this field.This collection is divided into five sections which cover the historical roots of the subject, the function of science in technological innovation and economic growth, technological development, the generation of new products and processes, and the climate for innovation in industry. Each section consists of path-breaking classic papers that have defined the field together with more recent papers which indicate current research activity.