Sonic Boom: Globalization at Mach Speed

There are no diagrams or illustrations in Sonic Boom and no need for any. It's colorful enough, and there's no fear of readers getting bored. It covers topics as diverse as wind turbines, health insurance and start-up businesses, and the examples the author uses are lively and surprising, and well-researched. His sources range from the TV show Desperate Housewives to Karl Marx's Communist Manifesto.

So, keep listening to find out how we should control excesses in executive pay; what we can learn from DVDs designed to crumble after a few days; and why a business billionaire thinks pioneering ideas are like poison.

The introduction outlines the author's countercurrent ideas, expressed in a way that's intended to prod at the seriousness of this literary genre. Economic news can be "spooky" he says, but best not to worry. In his opinion, the events of 2008 were a glitch, and the global economy will be just fine. Globalization has only just begun, he says, and peace and prosperity are on their way – along with nauseatingly fast change and intense anxiety.

Sonic Boom's eleven chapters are each named after a place – from Leipzig to Los Angeles, to, finally, "Your Town." Place is important in high-speed globalization – as the last marker of changing identities and customs.

Chapter one starts with Shenzhen, a Chinese port city with a huge population of around nine million inhabitants. Three decades ago, it didn't even exist. With its huge ships and rapid commerce, Shenzhen illustrates the expansion of international trade and the relative decline of military spending in the People's Republic of China.

This is a springboard for one of the author's theories. He suggests that the world may seem more deadly, because TV news floods us with images of violence, but this may not be true. Today, he says, it's cheaper to buy what you want than to invade a country and take it. There's less conflict, and more cooperation.

This chapter exemplifies the author's style of optimism: there's vibrant growth of cities in the developing world – while technological advances and declining fertility rates have largely put an end to closed societies. Most of the world is embracing personal freedom as an ideal, and freedom of speech is spreading over the world like wildfire.

Chapter two brings readers two new terms: "fabs" and "churn." It starts with Waltham, a Massachusetts city that's three hundred years old. Back in eighteen thirteen, Waltham was home to the first modern factory in North America, making paper and textiles. It later became known for its great watch company. A pioneer of mass production in the country, this town got a name for business innovation.

But then, early last century, it fell on its face. By the nineteen sixties, Waltham, Massachusetts, was synonymous with unemployment.

This is great material for our author, who loves to portray ups and downs and sudden U-turns as stimulating quirks of modern reality – and as a given in the world of Sonic Boom we're now inhabiting. Waltham has now become a kind of Silicon Valley in New England. The main reason for this turnaround is the city's proximity to Harvard and MIT, with their emphasis on ideas as resources. Factories are now called "fabrication facilities," or "fabs," business is better than ever, and jobs here pay salaries that are, on average, fifty percent above the national average.

The author's first point here is that the decline of heavy manufacturing is nothing to worry about at all, especially when one result is that we're all better off.

His second point is that we've entered a new era of job insecurity, which he calls "churn." This is when lots of new jobs are created, while many others fall off the map. The result is that everyone is nervous about their employment situation almost all of the time – no matter what labor class they belong to. The mass media aggravates this situation, with its gloom about rising unemployment.

From here, the author moves on to the bonuses received by Wall Street and bank executives, which he describes in no uncertain words as "obscene."

After fuming about these executives, their earnings and their attitudes, he suggests their income should be limited. Specifically, he recommends they shouldn't be paid more than a hundred times the annual earnings of the lowest-paid worker in the company, such as the cleaner in the cafeteria. This model would ensure that the CEO got more money only if the people who need it most also received a raise.

The chapter ends with a hard look at the job and housing markets and debt in the United States. Could it be that some Americans don't think sensibly about debt, the author ponders, because they're following examples set by the White House and Congress?

Chapter three, called Yakutsk, starts with a description of this successful town located in Siberia, Russia, where the weather is unbearably cold.

We're in the age, the author says wryly, where wheelers and dealers and business innovators are scanning geographical regions and asking: "Global warming, what's in it for me?" Land that is cold and at a high altitude could rise in value, while waterfront cities had better watch out!

The chapter argues that from now on we're not going to be able to understand the big picture of what's going on in the world – and this will drive us crazy. We won't be able to see the larger trends, only what's now being called "data smog."

At the same time, credibility is on the wane. Nothing has cast-iron authority anymore, not the media nor old father figures such as business, religious, political or military leaders.

The tentative conclusion here is that we're heading for "the Superbowl of Stress," as the author calls it, but don't worry – it's actually going to go well. Most chapters follow a similar format: setting a scene, a punchy argument, some challenging contentions and catchy phrases, and a conclusion that hammers home parts of the message.

Chapter four takes us to Lake Erie in Pennsylvania, and kicks off with a story about transport and railways that illustrates why protectionism doesn't work. The author then moves on to the need to generate large numbers of new ideas, and invest in exploring them properly, so there are enough real winners in the end.

And this is where the so-called "crumbling DVD" comes in – as an example of the kind of dud idea that's bound to crop up in the hunt for good ones.

Designed to fall apart after three days' exposure to air, this DVD would therefore not have to be driven back to the rental store. It sounded innovative to begin with, but focus groups put an end to it pretty quickly.

Chapter five, on Leipzig, starts with a look at solar power. It soon moves on to all forms of clean energy as a growth opportunity, and a way of controlling the output of greenhouse gasses. This may interest the author's critics, as Easterbrook has a reputation as a global warming skeptic.

Here, he talks about hybrid cars, light bulbs and Denmark's achievement in producing nearly twenty percent of its electricity by wind power. His conclusion is that the forty-five trillion dollars that will be invested in energy infrastructure in the next forty years, should be enough to motivate investors and engineers to focus on this sector. And because of this, governments should keep well clear, and even drop energy research subsidies.

The author asserts that cell phones only took off because the government had nothing to do with developing that sector. This chapter is the most contentious of all in the book, and not all readers will be convinced by what he has to say.

Chapter six on Arlington, Virginia, looks at venture capital and the rise of small technology companies. The point is how to grow entrepreneurs.

Understanding market patterns is essential. The author gives the example of the Betamax video format, which was used by the first video recorders. It later lost out to the VHS format, even though the newcomer was thought by many to be technologically inferior.

Often, the first product in a new field is a commercial flop, and it's the second, or the next one, that brings the financial returns. This is why billionaire investor Michael Moritz says the word "pioneer" sounds like poison to his ears.

Apple, Google, YouTube and the high-tech bubble are all part of this discussion. The themes are risk, gambling and whether we can expect fun in the Sonic Boom.

The next chapter homes in on Chippewa Falls in Wisconsin and the headquarters of Google, nicknamed the Googleplex. The author zooms into the heart of the Google empire and entertains readers by inviting us to imagine what a nineteenth-century industrialist would make of it all.

But the kernel of the argument here is that we must learn to appreciate the importance of ideas, and that, soon, nearly all of us will be working in the service sector. In the author's view, this is a good thing.

Health care is discussed as another pressing example of the need for change and innovation, while the conclusion sounds similar to those of other chapters: Sonic Boom change will bring wealth as well as turmoil.

Chapter eight starts with the traditional town of Camden in South Carolina, with its history of slavery, Civil War heritage, mint juleps and famed steeple-chase. It's also where the Chinese washing-machine manufacturer Haier decided to set up its US headquarters.

The author says this unlikely twist is typical of the Sonic Boom and will become commonplace. This story kicks off a discussion about economics. We hear about a Marxist philosopher from Ljubljana, who noted that instability actually makes capitalism stronger.

This is not what Karl Marx expected, but then, according to the author, economics is not a science. No one is in charge of the economy, and political intervention in the market tends to be counterproductive – disastrous, even. This chapter ends by asking whether economics could be about co-operation instead of competition.

Chapter nine focuses on Los Angeles, and starts with one of the author's favorite topics: football. Used first as an example of the acceleration of American culture, this leads to a discussion of the importance of team sports in schools, and how they build better professionals in all walks of life.

Colleges, the author says, are central to American economic, and even military, power. But what should they teach – traditional math or economics? Economics, the author says, and also technology and its implications for public policy.

The penultimate chapter starts in Brazil, in Sao José Dos Campos, where aircraft are now made by the company Embraer. The message is that we can't expect the benefits of globalization without its downsides, or the wealth brought by Sonic Boom without the high stress.

The chapter ends with a list of what we can expect in the near future. Firstly, to be our own bosses. Instead of finding a job, we will have to create one. Home and work will blur into each other – both of the above meaning it will be harder to get away from work. There'll also be increased downward mobility. People will live in fear of falling backwards on the ladder of success and class. Those in developing countries will be happier, while everyone else will feel generally unsatisfied.

The final chapter, titled "Your Town," has a wry beginning. We live in a place that used to be called a town or city, but now is called a "market." A lot of things will get worse in this world of targeted advertising – there'll be more dumb celebrities, more frivolous media, more political jabbering. But there'll also be more prosperity and democracy.

The book concludes by reminding us that the high-tech economic confusion of Sonic Boom is better than war or dictatorship.

Many have pointed out that Sonic Boom recalls the book Future Shock, the nineteen-seventy classic by Alvin Toffler – from its catchy title to its subject matter. But while Toffler emphasized the disorientation and stress people would experience, Easterbrook keeps his eye on the positive.

Readers who like to laugh while they ponder will love Sonic Boom. And, although the author's humor at times borders on the glib, his witty asides keep the writing fresh. This is not a book you'll want to skim – it's just too well written.

In conclusion, Sonic Boom is the ideal book for anyone who wants to roll up their thinking sleeves and get a grip on the future. Readers will pick up entertaining anecdotes to show off to their friends, and maybe even feel a little less anxious about tomorrow.

Sonic Boom: Globalization at Mach Speed, by Gregg Easterbrook is published by Random House.

That's the end of this episode of Book Insights.