Silicon Valley Signals: Technological Enthusiasm & the Times

How can we account for the influence of Silicon Valley? Both as a place and as a cultural icon, Silicon Valley has given rise to a mystique about its power to shape both the economy and society. How has Silicon Valley arrived at this point? Companies such as Apple, Google, Hewlett Packard, and Intel have played their part in creating the legend that is Silicon Valley, but the roots of the phenomenon extend further, both in time and geography. Nima Moinpour, the author of this compelling book, attributes the growth of Silicon Valley to the geomorphology of the area and to enthusiasm for technology, which provided the historical and material conditions for the phenomenon.

This book is unique in connecting geography to technical developments and exploring the epistemological disposition of Silicon Valley, which promoted technological development and civilizational progress. Addressing research questions using techniques and concepts derived from media archaeology, a methodology that originated in the field of media studies, Moinpour argues that the interaction of geomorphology and enthusiasm for technology accounts for the impact of Silicon Valley on media history.