In American Genesis, Which Covers the Century of Technological Innovation GMAT Reading Comprehension

Reading Passage Question

In American Genesis, which covers the century of technological innovation in the United States beginning in 1876, Thomas Hughes assigns special prominence to Thomas Edison as the archetype of the independent nineteenth-century inventor. However, Hughes virtually ignores Edison's famous contemporary and notorious adversary in the field of electric light and power, George Westinghouse. This comparative neglect of Westinghouse is consistent with other recent historians' works, although it marks an intriguing departure from the prevailing view during the inventors' lifetimes (and for decades afterward) of Edison and Westinghouse as the two "pioneer innovators" of the electrical industry.

My recent reevaluation of Westinghouse, facilitated by materials found in railroad archives, suggests that while Westinghouse and Edison shared important traits as inventors, they differed markedly in their approach to the business aspects of innovation. For Edison as an inventor, novelty was always paramount: the overriding goal of the business of innovation was simply to generate funding for new inventions. Edison therefore undertook just enough sales, product development, and manufacturing to accomplish this. Westinghouse, however, shared the attitudes of the railroads and other industries for whom he developed innovations: product development, standardization, system, and order were top priorities. Westinghouse thus better exemplifies the systematic approach to technological development that would become a hallmark of modern corporate research and development.

‘In American Genesis, which covers the century of technological innovation’ is a GMAT reading comprehension passage with answers. Candidates need a strong knowledge of English GMAT reading comprehension.

This GMAT Reading Comprehension consists of 7 comprehension questions.

The GMAT Reading Comprehension questions are designed for the purpose of testing candidates’ abilities in understanding, analyzing, and applying information or concepts. Candidates can actively prepare with the help of GMAT Reading Comprehension Practice Questions.

Questions and Solutions

1. The primary purpose of the passage is to

(A) reevaluate a controversial theory
(B) identify the flaws in a study
(C) propose a new method of historical research
(D) compare two contrasting analyses
(E) provide a fresh perspective

2. According to the passage, Edison’s chief concern as an inventor was the

(A) availability of a commercial market
(B) costs of developing a prototype
(C) originality of his inventions
(D) maintenance of high standards throughout production
(E) generation of enough profits to pay for continued marketing

3. The author of the passage implies that the shift away from the views of Westinghouse’s contemporaries should be regarded as

(A) a natural outgrowth of the recent revival of interest in Edison
(B) a result of scholarship based on previously unknown documents
(C) reflective of modern neglect of the views of previous generations
(D) inevitable, given the changing trends in historical interpretations
(E) surprising, given the stature that Westinghouse once had

The author is true when she states that the transition is intriguing because Westinghouse was regarded as a trailblazing inventor in his day.

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