Synopses & Reviews
Charles Babbage is well described as the "pioneer of the computer", but he was far more than this: his mathematic, scientific, and engineering work is highly significant for its original approach to problem-solving while the economic, political, and theological writings show an incisive appreciation of contemporary debate, and justify the growing consensus which judges Babbage to be one of the most important and rigorous intellectual polymaths of his age.
This edition contains his two major papers: Inessay on the calculus of functions, which established his reputation as a mathematician, and On the economy of machinery manufacturers, which was the first work of its kind to concentrate on the manufacturing industry-a turning point in economic writing.
The New York University Press edition includes a comprehensive general introduction in Volume I. Textual notes by leading international experts in the field of Babbage scholarship, such as Professor I. Bernard Cohen, Emeritus Professor of the History of Science, University of Sydney; and Dr. J. A. M. Dubey, Dean of Engineering at the Polytechnic of the South bank, consider the world spectrum of the writings and put the works in context.
All new texts are brought together by a comprehensive index providing easy reference to the complete works- a facility which will allow the integration of Babbage scholarship for the first time. In addition to the standard pagination, the original page numbers have been retained to allow access from contemporary sources. there is also a comprehensive bibliography if works cited in the text- an essential reference tool for any serious scholar. The Works are illustrated throughout with the original diagrams, graphs, and line drawings. Volume 3 also contains 15 plates from Babbage's Calculating Engines (1889).
Review
“In this deft, smart ethnography, Gray not only brings to life the intricacies of rural queer existence, but also dislodges conventional assumptions about gay media visibility, queer identities, and the closet. As friendly, articulate, and challenging as its subjects, Out in the Country is a major contribution to both sexuality and media scholarship.”
-Joshua Gamson,author of The Fabulous Sylvester: The Music, the Legend, the Seventies in San Francisco
Review
“Grays ethnography allows us an in-depth look at GLBT young people in the southeastern United States. Grays book should be read by anyone who works with rural GLBT youth, and those interested in learning about an under-represented, but not invisible, population.”
- PopMatters.com
Review
“Out in the Country promises to excite and ignite our critical imaginations as it pushes us to reckon with the complexity of queer lives away from the urban spotlight. Gray has done a stupendous job in bringing these stories to light, and in analyzing them with such warmth, humor, and insight.”
-Suzanna Danuta Walters,author of All the Rage
Review
“In this deft, smart ethnography, Gray not only brings to life the intricacies of rural queer existence, but also dislodges conventional assumptions about gay media visibility, queer identities, and the closet. As friendly, articulate, and challenging as its subjects, Out in the Country is a major contribution to both sexuality and media scholarship.”
- Joshua Gamson, author of The Fabulous Sylvester: The Music, the Legend, the Seventies in San Francisco
“Young queer people living in rural areas face numerous challenges, to be sure. But they creatively use new media and other strategies to find one another, as Gray shows so well."Out in the Country challenges preconceptions"about both gender and sexual nonconformity in rural America.”
- Arlene Stein, author of The Stranger Next Door: The Story of a Small Community's Battle over Sex, Faith, and Civil Rights
“We still know far too little about the experiences of queer youth, especially those who live in small towns and farming communities. Grays pioneering work will do much to cure our ignorance, as she takes us along on an engaging exploration of queer teenagers caught in the crosswinds of commercial media culture and local societal and political beliefs.”
- Larry Gross, author of Up From Invisibility: Lesbians, Gay Men, and the Media in America
“Out in the Country promises to excite and ignite our critical imaginations as it pushes us to reckon with the complexity of queer lives away from the urban spotlight. Gray has done a stupendous job in bringing these stories to light, and in analyzing them with such warmth, humor, and insight.”
- Suzanna Danuta Walters, author of All the Rage
“Grays ethnography allows us an in-depth look at GLBT young people in the southeastern United States. Grays book should be read by anyone who works with rural GLBT youth, and those interested in learning about an under-represented, but not invisible, population.”
- PopMatters.com
Review
"Mary Gray's ambitious new ethnography, Out in the Country: Youth, Media, and Queer Visibility in Rural America, explores how youth in the rural United States "lay claim to LGBT identities" and "confront the politics of gay visibility, expectations, and constraints" (p. 3) in these communities, most notably in her fields sites in rural Kentucky. "It's inspiring to hear that rural kids aren't just running away: they are courageously creating their own organizations and utilizing social media to promote queer-awareness - and for this revelation alone, it is an important book... Gray's work reveals to us that keeping country roots intact as a queer person is not impossible, and is in fact necessary for the greater equality movement. Out in the Country teaches us - via a mixture of ethnographic understanding and cultural critique - that queer visibility in rural spaces isn't unfeasible as much as it is under-represented." "Gray's work, particularly with its focus on queer youth, is a welcome addition to this scholarship [of LGBT life in rural areas], and with good reason it was awarded the 2009 Ruth Benedict Prize by the American Anthropological Association for outstanding monograph." "Gray . . . challenges the urban focus of queer politics and media studies, and not solely in her choice of topic. This book has more ambitious aims than simply documenting a neglected population. Her focus on rural queer youth does this admirably, but even more impressive is how she uses her topic to unpack what Jack Halberstam calls the 'metronormativity' of queer scholarship and its implications for politics of visibility"
“In this deft, smart ethnography, Gray not only brings to life the intricacies of rural queer existence, but also dislodges conventional assumptions about gay media visibility, queer identities, and the closet. As friendly, articulate, and challenging as its subjects, Out in the Country is a major contribution to both sexuality and media scholarship.”
Review
"Gray . . . challenges the urban focus of queer politics and media studies, and not solely in her choice of topic. This book has more ambitious aims than simply documenting a neglected population. Her focus on rural queer youth does this admirably, but even more impressive is how she uses her topic to unpack what Jack Halberstam calls the 'metronormativity' of queer scholarship and its implications for politics of visibility"-D. Travers Scott,International Journal of Communication
Review
“Young queer people living in rural areas face numerous challenges, to be sure. But they creatively use new media and other strategies to find one another, as Gray shows so well. Out in the Country challenges preconceptions about both gender and sexual nonconformity in rural America.”
-Arlene Stein,author of The Stranger Next Door: The Story of a Small Community's Battle over Sex, Faith, and Civil Rights
Review
“We still know far too little about the experiences of queer youth, especially those who live in small towns and farming communities. Grays pioneering work will do much to cure our ignorance, as she takes us along on an engaging exploration of queer teenagers caught in the crosswinds of commercial media culture and local societal and political beliefs.”
-Larry Gross,author of Up From Invisibility: Lesbians, Gay Men, and the Media in America
Synopsis
Winner of the 2009 Ruth Benedict Prize for Outstanding Monograph from the Society of Lesbian and Gay AnthropologistsWinner of the 2010 Distinguished Book Award from the American Sociological Association, Sociology of Sexualities Section
Winner of the 2010 Congress Inaugural Qualitative Inquiry Book Award Honorable Mention
From Wal-Mart drag parties to renegade Homemaker's Clubs, Out in the Country offers an unprecedented contemporary account of the lives of today's rural queer youth. Mary L. Gray maps out the experiences of young people living in small towns across rural Kentucky and along its desolate Appalachian borders, providing a fascinating and often surprising look at the contours of gay life beyond the big city. Gray illustrates that, against a backdrop of an increasingly impoverished and privatized rural America, LGBT youth and their allies visibly—and often vibrantly—work the boundaries of the public spaces available to them, whether in their high schools, public libraries, town hall meetings, churches, or through websites. This important book shows that, in addition to the spaces of Main Street, rural LGBT youth explore and carve out online spaces to fashion their emerging queer identities. Their triumphs and travails defy clear distinctions often drawn between online and offline experiences of identity, fundamentally redefining our understanding of the term 'queer visibility' and its political stakes. Gray combines ethnographic insight with incisive cultural critique, engaging with some of the biggest issues facing both queer studies and media scholarship. Out in the Country is a timely and groundbreaking study of sexuality and gender, new media, youth culture, and the meaning of identity and social movements in a digital age.
About the Author
Dr. Martin Campbell-Kelly is Lecturer in Computer Science, University of Warwick, Editor-in-Chief of the Charles Babbage Institute reprint series for the History of Computing, and editor of Annals of the History of Computing.