A collection of papers which examine the dependency of economic progress on technological developments progressing from a discussion of the forces affecting the process of technical change to empirical studies of technical change in different industries and firms.

Technology and economic progress - the supply and demand for scientists and engineers, A.Silberston; science and industry in the United Kingdom - 1952 and 1987, B.Williams; economic organization and technological change, P.Dasgupta; evolution and economic change, S.Metcalfe; market forces and the evolution of supply in the British telecommunications and electricty supply industries, N.von Tunzelman; the technological activities of the UK - a fresh look, P.Patel and K.Pavitt; the economic importance of patents, A.Silberston; technological change and the work/leisure balance - a new system of socio-economic accounts, J.Gershuny; strategy and finance in small high-technology companies, J.G.Smith and V.Fleck.