Diffusion of New Technologies in the Post-Communist World

The end of the 20th century has witnessed dramatic changes in morality, history and geography - changes that have been felt throughout the world and in all professions. This volume presents a series of views on the effect of these changes on science and technology, more specifically on the international diffusion of new technologies. It provides an update on the changes in the legal and administrative cultures and structures in the former Soviet bloc and offers assessments of opportunities for technology transfer between the former communist bloc and the rest of the world. It integrates a variety of approaches, including the history of science and technology, political and cultural history, institutional analysis, economic and marketing methods, and legal studies. This diversity is one of the book's main assets since, all too often, studies of technology transfer and the marketing of know-how concentrate on strictly economic and business aspects.