Few periods in history have had a greater effect on humanity than the Industrial Revolution, which from its onset in 18th-century Britain produced sweeping changes in agriculture, manufacturing, transportation and technology, with profound effects on socio-economic and cultural conditions. But in his new book The Institutional Revolution (2011: U. Chicago Press), economics professor Douglas Allen offers a thought-provoking account of another, quieter 18th-century revolution that enabled full exploitation of the Industrial Revolution’s technological innovations. Engagingly written, The Institutional Revolution traces the dramatic shift from pre-modern institutions based on patronage, purchase and personal ties toward modern institutions based on standardization, merit, and wage labor—a shift that was crucial to the Industrial Revolution’s explosive economic growth.