The Age of the Amplifier

An interesting aside is that early feedback control theory was developed in the 19th century by James Clerk Maxwell et. al., for the purpose of governing steam engines. I wonder if the interest in steam power also pushed the study of thermodynamics forward.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Control_theory

Bell System historical video on this.[1] This is the popular version, but it's not bad. The more technical version [2].

[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SS5X5BkIKpM

[2] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ai8BqomKTKE