The Rise and Fall of American Growth by Robert J. Gordon

Regarding the debate on economic growth there has always been two sides. Some people say that we are now in an era of rapid growth characterized by informatization, digitalization, big data, 5G, etc and our potential is unlimited. Others say that the earth is only so big, and resources are limited. Not only that but people are also living longer, so unlimited development is not realistic.

This book follows the American economic growth path, examining various reasons why growth has passed through stages of acceleration and deceleration. It summarizes America’s economic journey from 1870 to 2015 from an economic and sociological perspective. The book divides the America’s economic journey into three phases: “the Special Century,” the miracle of “the Great Leap,” and a phase characterized by decelerated growth during the modern “Computer Age.” The whole path is summarized in two words, “rise” and “fall.”