Book excerpt: American History Through the Eyes of Modern Chaos Theory concerns itself in the main with the time period between the Revolutionary War and the end of Civil War. Some leads, those concerned with finance, transportation and information, are followed into the 20th century. The point of view is that of modern chaos theory, a rather recent development that imposes severe limitations on future predictability in the social sciences, not to mention the physical, biological and environmental sciences. When taken into account, there emerges a picture of American history very different from today's conventional notions. The trees, so to speak, are the same, but the forest is changed. It is the aim of this book to reinterpret America's rise to Power, Consequence, and Grandeur in light of these findings.