Later encyclopedias generally dropped any similar ambitions.26
Further, d’Alembert and Diderot were quite intent on
developing a holistic vision of the phrase “Progress of Science
and useful Arts.” Following one of the core insights of the earlier
Querelle des Anciens et Modernes (Quarrel of the Ancients and
Moderns), they considered “progress” to be achievable only in fields
whose outputs could be quantitatively measured.27 These included
science and practical (or “useful”) arts, such as metalworking, but