pt. 1. Iron, steam, and early industry, 1776-1855. Modern engineering and the transformation of America -- Watt, Telford, and the British beginnings -- Fulton's steamboat and the Mississippi -- Lowell and the American industrial revolution -- Francis and the industrial power network -- pt. 2. Crossing the continent, 1830-1883. The Stephensons, Thomson, and the eastern railroads -- Henry, Morse, and the telegraph -- St. Louis versus Chicago and the continental railroads -- Carnegie and the climax of steel -- Edison and the network for light -- The Centennial revolutions, 1876-1883.