Thomas Midgley and the Politics of Industrial Research
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 9625455 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Stuart W Leslie (Rochester Institute of Technology, corresponding author) |
| Year | 1980 |
| Volume | 54 |
| Issue | 4 |
| Pages | 480-503 |
| Publication date | 1980-01-01 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | The Business History Review (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0007-6805 • E-ISSN: 2044-768X |
| Publisher | Cambridge University Press (CUP) (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.2307/3114216 |
| OpenAlex | W1976415067 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 4 |
| References cited | 6 |
The conventional distinctions between “practical” and “scientific” research and development can be misleading. The experience of Thomas Midgley, Jr., at the General Motors Corporation in the three decades before World War II, and especially his critical role in the development of “antiknock” gasoline additives, freon refrigerant, and synthetic rubber, illustrate this fact. Dr. Leslie demonstrates that the management of corporate research and development, especially as that management affects uniquely talented individuals whose interests do not necessarily reflect the immediate needs of the company as seen by management, is basic to success. To solve such problems as they arose, Charles F. Kettering, himself a sympathetic scientist as well as distinguished inventor, worked closely with chief executive Alfred P. Sloan, whose genius for solving managerial problems matched the scientific genius of the most brilliant men in the General Motors laboratories
Art history · Corporate management · Corporation · Economics · Environmental ethics · Epistemology · General motors · Genius · Management · Political science · Politics · Rigour · Scientific management · Sociology · Accounting · History · Law · Philosophy · Twentieth Century Scientific Developments
| Citations per year | 0.09 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 1983 - 1998 (16) |
| Highly cited | No |