Histories of technology usually go one of two ways. Some focus on the science; others emphasise personalities and culture at the expense of technological detail. But engineering professor-cum-Observer columnist John Naughton has written a book that does both. A Brief History of the Future weaves together scientific account and personal anecdote, and the result is a mesmerising account of the origins of the Internet.

The Internet, argues Naughton, is one of the 20th century's greatest inventions ("a force of unimaginable power"), but the individuals who built it have been overlooked. Truly great programmers "are like great poets or great mathematicians" and should be treated accordingly. In a volume sprinkled with literary references, Naughton redresses that oversight, starting at MIT in the 1930s, where the seeds of the Net were planted by three fascinating personalities, Vannavar Bush, Norbert Weiner and J.C.R. Licklider.

If you are in the United States then click here to buy The Origins

Or if you are in the UK click here to buy The Origins of the Internet