MIT Press https://mitpress.mit.edu/ University Press, MIT, Cambridge, MA US Wed, 05 Jul 2023 14:58:37 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.2.2 https://dhjhkxawhe8q4.cloudfront.net/mit-press/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/26163528/cropped-mitp-colophon-white-black-bkg-32x32.gif MIT Press https://mitpress.mit.edu/ 32 32 MIT Press journals including Asian Economic Papers earn high impact factors in 2022 https://mitpress.mit.edu/mit-press-journals-including-asian-economic-papers-earn-high-impact-factors-in-2022/ Mon, 10 Jul 2023 12:00:00 +0000 https://mitpress.mit.edu/?p=17687 Several journals from the MIT Press achieve impressive impact factors this past year.

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Several journals from the MIT Press achieve impressive impact factors this past year

We are honored to share that many MIT Press journals were impactful in their fields in 2022, earning high impact factors—which measure recent citation activity for scholarship—and placing at the top of all journals for their areas of study. 

Asian Economic Papers rose sharply in the ranks to #7 in its field, achieving an impact factor of 9.7. Its 2022 journal citation indicator—a number that notes how frequently a journal’s articles are cited compared to the average for its field—was 4.88, meaning that it was cited nearly five times more than the average journal in economics tracked by the SSCI.

“We’re thrilled to see the significant rise of Asian Economic Papers’ impact factor in 2022,” says Nick Lindsay, Journals and Open Access Director for The MIT Press. “The commitment to publishing rigorous analyses of key trends in Asian economies has brought the journal deserved acclaim and we’re very proud to be its publisher. We wish Wing Thye Woo and everyone else associated with the journal a most hearty congratulations.”

Other MIT Press journals performed well in 2022 over their peers:

Congratulations to our journals’ editorial teams for their remarkable achievements in 2022. We look forward to continued successes in the year to come.


Learn more about MIT Press’s journals program

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Presenting our fall 2023 catalog https://mitpress.mit.edu/presenting-our-fall-2023-catalog/ Fri, 07 Jul 2023 12:00:00 +0000 https://mitpress.mit.edu/?p=17649 Featuring a citizen's guide to fighting back against disinformation; a sweeping guide to tabletop roleplaying games; a collective story of scientific innovation; and so much more.

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Featuring a citizen’s guide to fighting back against disinformation; a sweeping guide to tabletop roleplaying games; a collective story of scientific innovation; and so much more

The cover of our fall 2023 catalog is an homage to our MIT Press colophon, created by pioneering graphic designer Muriel Cooper in the 1960s. This past April, we were honored to announce that the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) had acquisitioned the MIT Press colophon into its permanent collection, serving as testament to the intellectual daring and cutting-edge design that the Press has been known for since its very beginnings.

This recognition comes on the heels of the Press’s 60th anniversary in 2022. As we reflect on our first  six decades and the legacy of our work, we find ourselves looking toward the future and asking how we will continue to make an impact in a world that is so rapidly changing.

“You will perhaps notice that so many of the fantastic books in this season’s catalog contend with notions of dignity, and empowerment, and care—not only for our fellow human beings, but also for our one dear planet—and ask how we can do better,” writes Bill Smith, director of trade publishing and sales at the MIT Press, in a brief introduction to the catalog. “In this fraught climate, when so much is at stake and so much of our bedrock is being questioned, I hope you share in my belief that it is a small measure of comfort to know that we can, and still do, strive for excellence in the work we do—for it is only in doing work of the highest standards that we are able to move the needle ever closer to dignity, empowerment, and care for us all.”

Featured below are a few highlights from our fall publications. We invite you to download the entire catalog and browse all our new books and journals, and we thank you, as ever, for your support.


On Disinformation: How to Fight for Truth and Protect Democracy by Lee McIntyre

The effort to destroy facts and make America ungovernable didn’t come out of nowhere. It is the culmination of seventy years of strategic denialism. In On Disinformation, Lee McIntyre shows how the war on facts began, and how ordinary citizens can fight back against the scourge of disinformation that is now threatening the very fabric of our society. Drawing on his twenty years of experience as a scholar of science denial, McIntyre explains how autocrats wield disinformation to manipulate a populace and deny obvious realities, why the best way to combat disinformation is to disrupt its spread, and most importantly, how we can win the war on truth.


Her Space, Her Time: How Trailblazing Women Scientists Decoded the Hidden Universe by Shohini Ghose

Women physicists and astronomers from around the world have transformed science and society, but the critical roles they played in their fields are not always well-sung. Her Space, Her Time, authored by award-winning quantum physicist Shohini Ghose, brings together the stories of these remarkable women to celebrate their indelible scientific contributions. Engaging, accessible, and timely, Her Space, Her Time is a collective story of scientific innovation, inspirational leadership, and overcoming invisibility that will leave a lasting impression on any reader curious about the rule-breakers and trendsetters who illuminated our understanding of the universe.


A Theory of Everyone: The New Science of Who We Are, How We Got Here, and Where We’re Going by Michael Muthukrishna

Playing on the phrase “a theory of everything” from physics, Michael Muthukrishna’s ambitious, original, and deeply hopeful book A Theory of Everyone draws on the most recent research from across the sciences, humanities, and the emerging field of cultural evolution to paint a panoramic picture of who we are and what exactly makes human beings different from all other forms of life on the planet. Casting a bold and wide net, Muthukrishna’s book is a must-read for anyone interested in a better future for ourselves and for generations to come.


The Age of Prediction: Algorithms, AI, and the Shifting Shadows of Risk by Igor Tulchinsky and Christopher E. Mason

The Age of Prediction is about two powerful, and symbiotic, trends: the rapid development and use of artificial intelligence and big data to enhance prediction, as well as the often paradoxical effects of these better predictions on our understanding of risk and the ways we live. Beginning with dramatic advances in quantitative investing and precision medicine, this book explores how predictive technology is quietly reshaping our world in fundamental ways, from crime fighting and warfare to monitoring individual health and elections.


Monsters, Aliens, and Holes in the Ground: A Guide to Tabletop Roleplaying Games from D&D to Mothership by Stu Horvath

When Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson released Dungeons & Dragons in 1974, they created the first roleplaying game of all time. Little did they know that their humble box set of three small digest-sized booklets would spawn an entire industry practically overnight. In Monsters, Aliens, and Holes in the Ground, Stu Horvath explores how the hobby of roleplaying games, commonly known as RPGs, blossomed out of an unlikely pop culture phenomenon and became a dominant gaming form by the 2010s. Going far beyond D&D, this heavily illustrated tome covers more than three hundred different RPGs that have been published in the last five decades.


Explore more of our fall 2023 catalog

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July books: Gradient Expectations, Selling the American People, Vegetal Entwinements in Philosophy and Art, and more https://mitpress.mit.edu/july-books-gradient-expectations-selling-the-american-people-vegetal-entwinements-in-philosophy-and-art-and-more/ Fri, 30 Jun 2023 12:00:00 +0000 https://mitpress.mit.edu/?p=17613 Explore some of our most anticipated new releases for July.

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Explore some of our most anticipated new releases for July

This month: An investigation into the mechanisms of neural networks; a history of how marketers used the tools of automation well before the widespread use of the Internet; the first reader in critical plant studies; and more. Explore these books and a selection of our other new and soon-to-be-released titles below.


The Phoenix Complex: A Philosophy of Nature by Michael Marder

Global crises, from melting Arctic ice to ecosystem collapse and the sixth mass extinction, challenge our age-old belief in nature as a phoenix with an infinite ability to regenerate itself from the ashes of destruction. Moving from antiquity to the present and back, Michael Marder provides an integrated examination of philosophies of nature drawn from traditions around the world to illuminate the theological, mythical, and philosophical origins of the contemporary environmental emergency. From there, he probes the contradictions and deadlocks of our current predicament to propose a philosophy of nature for the twenty-first century.

“Marder weaves a vibrant intellectual history of the relationship between nature and rebirth out of a tapestry of diverse traditions and disciplines.” —Kelly Oliver, author of Earth and World

You might also like A World in a Shell: Snail Stories for a Time of Extinctions by Thom van Dooren


Selling the American People: Advertising, Optimization, and the Origins of Adtech by Lee McGuigan

Algorithms, data extraction, digital marketers monetizing “eyeballs”: these all seem like such recent features of our lives. And yet, Lee McGuigan tells us in this eye-opening book, digital advertising was well underway before the widespread use of the Internet. Explaining how marketers have brandished the tools of automation and management science to exploit new profit opportunities, Selling the American People traces data-driven surveillance all the way back to the 1950s, when the computerization of the advertising business began to blend science, technology, and calculative cultures in an ideology of optimization. With that ideology came adtech, a major infrastructure of digital capitalism.

“McGuigan leaves us questioning the consequences of this decades-long quest to better discriminate with data and computers.” —Fenwick McKelvey, Concordia University; author of Internet Daemons

You might also like Data Is Everybody’s Business: The Fundamentals of Data Monetization by Barbara H. Wixom, Cynthia M. Beath and Leslie Owens


Sewer of Progress: Corporations, Institutionalized Corruption, and the Struggle for the Santiago River by Cindy McCulligh

For almost two decades, the citizens of western Mexico have called for a cleanup of the Santiago River, a water source so polluted it emanates an overwhelming acidic stench. Toxic clouds of foam lift off the river in a strong wind. In Sewer of Progress, Cindy McCulligh examines why industrial dumping continues in the Santiago despite the corporate embrace of social responsibility and regulatory frameworks intended to mitigate environmental damage. The fault, she finds, lies in a disingenuous discourse of progress and development that privileges capitalist growth over the health and well-being of ecosystems.

“With painstaking research, the author illuminates not only the authorities’ criminal negligence and the industrial corporations’ systematic cost shifting but also the local inhabitants’ persistence in their struggle for social justice and health.” —Joan Martínez Alier, ICTA-Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Spain

You might also like Just Urban Design: The Struggle for a Public City edited by Kian Goh, Anastasia Loukaitou-Sideris and Vinit Mukhija


Vegetal Entwinements in Philosophy and Art: A Reader edited by Giovanni Aloi and Michael Marder

In recent years, philosophy and art have testified to how anthropocentrism has culturally impoverished our world, leading to the wide destruction of habitats and ecosystems. In this book, Giovanni Aloi and Michael Marder show that the field of critical plant studies can make an important contribution, offering a slew of possibilities for scientific research, local traditions, Indigenous knowledge, history, geography, anthropology, philosophy, and aesthetics to intersect, inform one another, and lead interdisciplinary and transcultural dialogues.

You might also like Natura Urbana: Ecological Constellations in Urban Space by Matthew Gandy


Milk and Honey: Technologies of Plenty in the Making of a Holy Land by Tamar Novick

In Milk and Honey, Tamar Novick writes a revolutionary environmental history of the state that centers on the intersection of technology and religion in modern Israel/Palestine. Focusing on animals and the management of their production and reproduction across three political regimes—the late-Ottoman rule, British rule, and the early Israeli state—Novick draws attention to the ways in which settlers and state experts used agricultural technology to recreate a biblical idea of past plenitude, literally a “land flowing with milk and honey,” through the bodies of animals and people.

“Novick enlists bees, goats, sheep, women and cows in a multispecies political history of remaking the land in modern Palestine, revealing the religion ingrained in the purportedly secular technosciences of modern nation-building. Enthralling!” —Francesca Bray, co-author of Moving Crops and the Scales of History

You might also like Balkan Cyberia: Cold War Computing, Bulgarian Modernization, and the Information Age behind the Iron Curtain by Victor Petrov


Molecular World: Making Modern Chemistry by Catherine M. Jackson

According to existing histories, theory drove chemistry’s remarkable nineteenth-century development. In Molecular World, Catherine M. Jackson shows instead how novel experimental approaches combined with what she calls “laboratory reasoning” enabled chemists to bridge wet chemistry and abstract concepts and, in so doing, create the molecular world. Jackson introduces a series of practice-based breakthroughs that include chemistry’s move into lampworked glassware, the field’s turn to synthesis and subsequent struggles to characterize and differentiate the products of synthesis, and the gradual development of institutional chemical laboratories, an advance accelerated by synthesis and the dangers it introduced.

“Jackson’s work is a tour de force.” —Myles W. Jackson, Princeton

You might also like The Beauty of Chemistry: Art, Wonder, and Science by Philip Ball


Forecasting Travel in Urban America: The Socio-Technical Life of an Engineering Modeling World by Konstantinos Chatzis

For better and worse, the automobile has been an integral part of the American way of life for decades. Its ascendance would have been far less spectacular, however, had engineers and planners not devised urban travel demand modeling (UTDM). This book tells the story of this irreplaceable engineering tool that has helped cities accommodate continuous rise in traffic from the 1950s on. Beginning with UTDM’s origins as a method to help plan new infrastructure, Chatzis follows its trajectory through new generations of models that helped make optimal use of existing capacity and examines related policy instruments, including the recent use of intelligent transportation systems.

You might also like Lifelines of Our Society: A Global History of Infrastructure by Dirk van Laak


Gradient Expectations: Structure, Origins, and Synthesis of Predictive Neural Networks by Keith L. Downing

Prediction is a cognitive advantage like few others, inherently linked to our ability to survive and thrive. Our brains are awash in signals that embody prediction. Can we extend this capability more explicitly into synthetic neural networks to improve the function of AI and enhance its place in our world? Gradient Expectations is a bold effort by Keith L. Downing to map the origins and anatomy of natural and artificial neural networks to explore how, when designed as predictive modules, their components might serve as the basis for the simulated evolution of advanced neural network systems.

“This book explains the buzz about brains as engines of prediction.” —Andy Clark, University of Sussex; author of Surfing Uncertainty and The Experience Machine

You might also like Intelligence Emerging: Adaptivity and Search in Evolving Neural Systems by Keith L. Downing


Explore more new releases from the Press

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A conversation with Dr. Stephen M. Smith, editor-in-chief of Imaging Neuroscience https://mitpress.mit.edu/a-conversation-with-dr-stephen-m-smith-editor-in-chief-of-imaging-neuroscience/ Wed, 28 Jun 2023 12:00:00 +0000 https://mitpress.mit.edu/?p=17610 Smith leads the new open access journal Imaging Neuroscience and spoke to us about his vision for the publication.

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Smith leads the new open access journal Imaging Neuroscience and spoke to us about his vision for the publication

Earlier this year the MIT Press announced the upcoming launch of a new open access journal, Imaging Neuroscience, focusing on imaging of the brain. The journal is led by editor-in-chief Dr. Stephen M. Smith, Professor of Biomedical Engineering at Oxford University—and he is joined by the entire former editorial teams from the journals NeuroImage and NeuroImage: Reports, all of whom resigned from their previous roles because of the high article process charges (APCs) with their prior publisher. The shift has been hailed by the Chronicle of Higher Education as a “high-profile move… in the long-unfolding battle over who pays and who benefits in the academic-publishing world.”  

We spoke to Dr. Smith about the editorial teams’ decision and what the future holds for the new publication. Read more from our conversation below, and learn more about Imaging Neuroscience.


Dr. Stephen M. Smith.

The MIT Press: The inspiration behind the founding of Imaging Neuroscience has been well-documented; but why did the editorial team decide to make this change now?

Dr. Stephen M. Smith: Over the past three years, it has become increasingly clear to our editorial team that the high APCs of our previous publisher are unethical and unsustainable. It is prohibitive to many researchers in less-well-funded countries and to researchers with certain funding sources. A year ago the editors started serious discussions with our previous publisher to reduce the APC to a more reasonable level. By March of 2023 it was clear that they were not going to agree to our request—and so we took the very difficult decision, all editors together, to resign and start a new journal with the MIT Press.

We were delighted by the positive and huge response to our announcement on Twitter, with lots of people wanting to submit to Imaging Neuroscience and asking about a timeline. We are aiming for mid-July for a full launch, but have already opened up an interim paper-handling website for new submissions and authors wanting to transfer papers currently under review at NeuroImage over to consideration at Imaging Neuroscience. We have already had over 100 submissions.

The MIT Press: Why should authors consider submitting to Imaging Neuroscience over other journals in the field?

Dr. Stephen M. Smith: Until now, NeuroImage had long been the leading journal focusing on imaging neuroscience, with both the highest impact factor and the largest number of papers published annually. Our ambition is for Imaging Neuroscience to replace NeuroImage as the top journal in our field. By taking the entire editorship across from NeuroImage to start the new journal, and, given the huge support we have received from researchers in our field, we are confident we can achieve that. It will, of course, also be attractive to authors that the APC is so much lower than that at the other relevant journals in our field.

Also, the overall quality of the review process is going to improve because a large number of reviewers who had stopped reviewing for the high-profit journals are happy to be able to review for Imaging Neuroscience. When we announced Imaging Neuroscience a few weeks ago, we had over 1,200 people register to become reviewers within a few days.

The MIT Press: What impact are you looking to make in the field with Imaging Neuroscience?

Dr. Stephen M. Smith: We are obviously very happy that the APC cost to authors and funders will immediately be reduced by so much, leaving more money for labs to spend on research and conferences. Also, we’re very happy that authors from low- and middle-income countries will get a full waiver. I think it will be really good for the field that a high-quality journal does not have to be associated with the serious compromise of unethical publication profits or low quality standards.

I think it could ultimately be great for other fields. Journal editors are starting to realize that it is possible to escape the grip of high-profit publishers. We are committed to Imaging Neuroscience not only being the top journal in our field, but in demonstrating the way forward in non-profit publishing. Although we appreciate that commercial publishers need to make some profit, we feel that the era of extreme levels of profit made by some publishers is coming to an end.


Learn more about Imaging Neuroscience

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“Little” books on big topics in computer science https://mitpress.mit.edu/little-books-on-big-topics-in-computer-science/ Tue, 27 Jun 2023 12:00:00 +0000 https://mitpress.mit.edu/?p=17603 Dan Friedman’s “Little” series turns big ideas in computer science into digestible primers.

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Dan Friedman’s “Little” series turns big ideas in computer science into digestible primers

For even the most seasoned computer science expert, new concepts and ideas can be confounding. That’s where Dan Friedman’s “Little” book series comes in handy. “Big ideas in computer science are often abstract, scary and intimidating,” said Friedman, the series creator. “What I have always tried to do with ‘Little’ books is to fight this intimidation by building up the ideas from first principles, one piece at a time.”

Friedman created the first book in the long-running series, The Little Lisper, when he asked his students to turn his lecture notes into a book. The conversational style with question-and-answer formatting born of this first exercise has endured through all of Friedman’s books, including the series’ latest volume on deep learning, The Little Learner

“Deep learning with neural networks is another one of those intimidating big ideas because of the unseemly amount of advanced mathematics involved,” Friedman said. “We wrote The Little Learner to make deep learning accessible without relying on advanced mathematics. In fact, we built up the ideas from first principles using only the smallest amount of high-school algebra and geometry.”

Explore more books in the series below, or discover even more books on computer science from the Press


The Little Learner: A Straight Line to Deep Learning by Daniel P. Friedman and Anurag Mendhekar

The Little Learner introduces deep learning from the bottom up, inviting students to learn by doing. With characteristic humor and Socratic approach, this text explains the workings of deep neural networks by constructing them incrementally from first principles using little programs that build on one another. Starting from scratch, the reader is led through a complete implementation of a substantial application: a recognizer for noisy Morse code signals. Example-driven and highly accessible, The Little Learner covers all of the concepts necessary to develop an intuitive understanding of the workings of deep neural networks, including tensors, extended operators, gradient descent algorithms, artificial neurons, dense networks, convolutional networks, residual networks, and automatic differentiation.


The Little Typer by By Daniel P. Friedman and David Thrane Christiansen

A program’s type describes its behavior. Dependent types are a first-class part of a language, and are much more powerful than other kinds of types; using just one language for types and programs allows program descriptions to be as powerful as the programs they describe. The Little Typer explains dependent types, beginning with a very small language that looks very much like Scheme and extending it to cover both programming with dependent types and using dependent types for mathematical reasoning. The Little Typer does not attempt to teach either practical programming skills or a fully rigorous approach to types. Instead, it demonstrates the most beautiful aspects as simply as possible, one step at a time.


The Reasoned Schemer, Second Edition by Daniel P. Friedman, William E. Byrd, Oleg Kiselyov and Jason Hemann

The goal of this book is to show the beauty and elegance of relational programming, which captures the essence of logic programming. The book shows how to implement a relational programming language in Scheme, or in any other functional language, and demonstrates the remarkable flexibility of the resulting relational programs. The pedagogical method is a series of questions and answers, which proceed with the series’ characteristic humor.


The Little Prover by Daniel P. Friedman and Carl Eastlund

The Little Prover introduces inductive proofs as a way to determine facts about computer programs. It is written in an approachable, engaging style of question-and-answer. Sometimes the best way to learn something is to sit down and do it; the book takes readers through step-by-step examples showing how to write inductive proofs. The Little Prover assumes only knowledge of recursive programs and lists and uses only a few terms beyond what novice programmers already know. The book comes with a simple proof assistant to help readers work through the book and complete solutions to every example.


Explore more books on computer science from the MIT Press

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The Year of Open Science: Physical sciences, engineering, and mathematics https://mitpress.mit.edu/the-year-of-open-science-physical-sciences-engineering-and-mathematics/ Thu, 22 Jun 2023 12:00:00 +0000 https://mitpress.mit.edu/?p=17554 To highlight the Year of Open Science, we spoke to acquisitions editor Jermey Matthews about what open access means for the field of physical sciences.

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To highlight the Year of Open Science, we spoke to acquisitions editor Jermey Matthews about what open access means for the field of physical sciences

The Biden-Harris administration declared 2023 the Year of Open Science in the United States, offering an opportunity to advance national open science policy and provide greater and more equitable access to research in key areas of scientific study.

The MIT Press centers open access in much of the work we do; we take pride in making high quality, well-researched scholarship freely available to the public. In honor of the Year of Open Science, we spoke to Jermey Matthews, senior acquisitions editor of physical sciences, engineering, and mathematics, about the impact OA scholarship has had in his fields.

“The physical sciences, engineering, and math communities have long been pioneers in the open access movement, alongside the computer science field,” Matthews said. “They all recognize that access to knowledge improves the quality and pace of innovation. In particular, physicists and mathematicians often approach me to make their books open access, and I’m proud that the MIT Press is leading the way in making that possible.”

Read on to explore several books from Jermey’s list, and discover even more physical science titles on our website.


Topology: A Categorical Approach by Tai-Danae Bradley, Tyler Bryson and John Terilla

This graduate-level textbook on topology takes a unique approach: it reintroduces basic, point-set topology from a more modern, categorical perspective. Many graduate students are familiar with the ideas of point-set topology and they are ready to learn something new about them. Teaching the subject using category theory—a contemporary branch of mathematics that provides a way to represent abstract concepts—both deepens students’ understanding of elementary topology and lays a solid foundation for future work in advanced topics.


Holographic Quantum Matter by Sean A. Hartnoll, Andrew Lucas and Subir Sachdev

This book, written by pioneers in the field, offers a comprehensive overview of holographic methods in quantum matter. It covers influential developments in theoretical physics, making the key concepts accessible to researchers and students in both high energy and condensed matter physics. The book provides a unique combination of theoretical and historical context, technical results, extensive references to the literature, and exercises. It will give readers the ability to understand the important problems in the field, both those that have been solved and those that remain unsolved, and will enable them to engage directly with the current literature.


Computational Imaging by Ayush Bhandari, Achuta Kadambi and Ramesh Raskar

Computational imaging involves the joint design of imaging hardware and computer algorithms to create novel imaging systems with unprecedented capabilities. In recent years such capabilities include cameras that operate at a trillion frames per second, microscopes that can see small viruses long thought to be optically irresolvable, and telescopes that capture images of black holes. This text offers a comprehensive and up-to-date introduction to this rapidly growing field, a convergence of vision, graphics, signal processing, and optics. It can be used as an instructional resource for computer imaging courses and as a reference for professionals. It covers the fundamentals of the field, current research and applications, and light transport techniques.


Sheaf Theory through Examples by Daniel Rosiak

Sheaves are mathematical constructions concerned with passages from local properties to global ones. They have played a fundamental role in the development of many areas of modern mathematics, yet the broad conceptual power of sheaf theory and its wide applicability to areas beyond pure math have only recently begun to be appreciated. Taking an applied category theory perspective, Sheaf Theory through Examples provides an approachable introduction to elementary sheaf theory and examines applications including n-colorings of graphs, satellite data, chess problems, Bayesian networks, self-similar groups, musical performance, complexes, and much more.


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Tech tools: Critical for access to library resources https://mitpress.mit.edu/tech-tools-critical-for-access-to-library-resources/ Tue, 20 Jun 2023 12:00:00 +0000 https://mitpress.mit.edu/?p=17551 How technology can expand access to valuable information, items, and services.

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How technology can expand access to valuable information, items, and services

This adapted piece by Dennis Pierce originally appeared in Library Journal in March 2023.

One of the biggest takeaways from the pandemic is the sheer number of people whose needs aren’t being met by traditional library programs. As libraries seek to expand opportunities for the patrons in their community, technology tools and resources play a critical role in ensuring access to valuable information, items, and services.

The right digital tools can make a library’s resources more accessible to patrons by giving them a simple way to access materials online, by extending the library’s presence to more locations, or by providing after-hours services. The right tools make it easier for patrons to engage with the library in ways that meet their diverse needs.

MIT Press publishes about 300 books and 40 journals per year on a wide range of subjects; many of which explore the benefits and pitfalls of these new technology tools. Every book is peer reviewed, and many are authored by academics written for a general audience.

From the spring 2023 catalog is More than a Glitch: Confronting Race, Gender, and Ability Bias in Tech by Meredith Broussard. Broussard—a New York University professor who is one of the few Black female researchers in the field of artificial intelligence—explores the implicit bias encoded in computer systems designed overwhelmingly by white, cisgendered men.

The book takes readers through many examples of how people are being harmed by software that has been developed from an insufficiently diverse pool of individuals. “This is a really important book,” says editorial director Gita Manaktala. “Academics are aware of these problems with technology, but the general reader is not.”

In Technology’s Child: Digital Media’s Role in the Ages and Stages of Growing Up, author Katie Davis draws upon empirical research to bring clarity to the role of technology in a child’s development from toddler to early adulthood.

Davis is an associate professor at the University of Washington Information School, where she runs a Digital Youth Lab. Her overall conclusion is that technology can support healthy child development when it’s self-directed and community-supported; when it’s not, it can impede development.

“This book is a useful and nuanced alternative to the more typical ‘moral panic’ narratives about children and screens,” says acquisitions editor Susan Buckley. “She’s bringing real scholarly knowledge to questions that every parent is asking these days.”

Invention and Innovation: A Brief History of Hype and Failure by Vaclav Smil, looks at several technologies that were touted as the “next big thing” but failed to catch on. Smil—Distinguished Professor Emeritus at the University of Manitoba and best-selling author of more than 40 books—methodically yet humorously dismantles the myths around innovation and reminds us to better align our expectations with reality.

“In 2018, the Harvard scientist David Keith called Smil ‘a slayer of bullshit,’ and I really think that should be the tagline for this book,” says senior acquisitions Editor Beth Clevenger.


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MIT Press Direct to Open (D2O) benefits libraries, readers, and authors https://mitpress.mit.edu/mit-press-direct-to-open-d2o-benefits-libraries-readers-and-authors/ Thu, 15 Jun 2023 13:30:00 +0000 https://mitpress.mit.edu/?p=17540 Direct to Open, our diamond open access publishing model, makes scholarship freely available to readers worldwide.

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Direct to Open, our diamond open access publishing model, makes scholarship freely available to readers worldwide

For nearly three decades, the MIT Press has been driven by a fundamental question: How can we make scholarship more open, inclusive, and accessible? 

This mission is what inspired us to launch Direct to Open (D2O) in 2021. D2O is a diamond open access publishing model that has since published more than 80 scholarly monographs and edited collections each year. 

Libraries: We want to work with you on this scalable and sustainable open access publishing model that benefits your faculty, students, and information seekers. http://mitpress.mit.edu/D2OLibraries

Authors: We make it easy to reach more readers (our D2O books have been accessed more than 300,000 times already!) and to comply with open access requirements from your funders or universities. Learn about publishing with MIT Press. https://mitpress.mit.edu/prospective-authors/

Readers: Discover our open access collections—hundreds of peer-reviewed titles from a wide range of subjects—freely available to read now. http://mitpress.mit.edu/ReadD2O

Watch here:


Learn more about Direct to Open

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Our award-winning books: June 2023 edition https://mitpress.mit.edu/our-award-winning-books-june-2023-edition/ Wed, 14 Jun 2023 12:00:00 +0000 https://mitpress.mit.edu/?p=17498 Celebrating just a few of our titles, from The Curie Society to Sex Dolls at Sea.

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Celebrating just a few of our titles, from The Curie Society to Sex Dolls at Sea

2023 is halfway in our rearview mirror, and we have much to celebrate already from six short months of publishing. We are thrilled to highlight just some of the accolades that have been granted to our authors in recent months, from Axiom medals to graphic novel recognitions. Read on to hear more about our recent successes, and sign up for our newsletter to be the first to learn about award announcements like these and other news from the Press.


The Curie Society by Heather EInhorn, Adam Staffaroni and Janet Harvey
Texas Maverick Graphic Novels Reading List, 2023 

Power On! by Jean J. Ryoo and Jane Margolis
Texas Maverick Graphic Novels Reading List, 2023

Design After Capitalism by Matthew Wizinsky
STA100 award, Society of Typographic Arts, 2022

Paper Graveyards by Eduardo Cadava
Frank Jewett Mather Award, College Art Association, 2023 

Work without Jobs: How to Reboot Your Organization’s Work Operating System by Ravin Jesuthasan and John W. Boudreau 
Best New Management Books for 2023, Thinkers50

Schools and Screens by Victoria Cain
Finalist for the Media Ecology Association Book Awards, 2022

The Pentagon, Climate Change, and War by Neta Crawford
Shortlisted for the Project Syndicate Sustainability Book Award, 2023

Sex Dolls at Sea: Imagined Histories of Sexual Technologies by Bo Ruberg
Winner of the Anne Friedberg Innovative Scholarship Award, SCMS, 2023

The Polyhedrists: Art and Geometry in the Long Sixteenth Century by Noam Andrews
Winner of the Most Beautiful Swiss Books, 2022
Bronze medalist, The Most Beautiful Books in the World, 2022

The Smart Mission by Edward J. Hoffman, Matthew Kohut and Laurence Prusak
Bronze Axiom medal, Business Intelligence / Innovation category, 2023

Redesigning Work by Lynda Gratton
Bronze Axiom medal, Business Disruption / Reinvention category, 2023

There’s Nothing Micro about a Billion Women by Mary Ellen Iskenderian
Gold Axiom medal, Philanthropy / Nonprofit / Sustainability category, 2023

Carbon Queen: The Remarkable Life of Nanoscience Pioneer Mildred Dresselhaus by Maia Weinstock
Shortlisted for the Rossiter Prize

#You Know You’re Black in France When…: The Fact of Everyday Antiblackness by Trica Keaton
Longlisted for the American Library in Paris Book Award, 2023

The Digital Multinational by Satish Nambisan and Yadong Luo
Gold Axiom medal, International Business / Globalization category, 2023

Inclusion on Purpose by Ruchika Tulshyan
Silver Axiom medal, Women / BIPOC in Business category, 2023

Natura Urbana: Ecological Constellations in Urban Space by Matthew Gandy
Winner, John Brickerhoff Jackson Book Prize, 2023

Design in Motion: Film Experiments at the Bauhaus by Laura A. Frahm
Longlisted for the 2023 Kraszna-Krausz Book Awards

A World in a Shell: Snail Stories for a Time of Extinctions by Thom van Dooren
Winner, Nautilus Gold Award, Animals & Nature, 2023

Microprediction: Building an Open AI Network by Peter Cotton
Category winner, Eric Hoffer Book Award, 2023

Image Objects: An Archaeology of Computer Graphics by Jacob Gaboury
Winner, Annual CBI Ben Shneiderman Award in Human-Computer Interaction History from the ACM SIGCHI

Tomorrow’s Parties: Life in the Anthropocene edited by Jonathan Strahan
Finalist for the Locus Awards in the Anthology Category

In the Black Fantastic by Ekow Eshun
Finalist for the Locus Awards in the Illustrated and Art Book Category

Mad by the Millions: Mental Disorders and the Early Years of the World Health Organization by Harry Yi-Jui Wu
Finalist for the Cheiron Book Prize


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The MIT Press listening room: June 2023 edition https://mitpress.mit.edu/the-mit-press-listening-room-june-2023-edition/ Mon, 12 Jun 2023 12:00:00 +0000 https://mitpress.mit.edu/?p=17502 The ethical questions of colonizing space, the ubiquity of algorithms, and “sharenting”: A compilation of podcast interviews with our authors.

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The ethical questions of colonizing space, the ubiquity of algorithms, and “sharenting”: A compilation of podcast interviews with our authors

With summer travel rapidly approaching, readers everywhere are on the hunt for their next book—or their next listen. Lucky for you, we’ve collected links to some wonderful conversations with MIT Press authors from the year to keep you entertained and informed. Listen on below, and sign up for our newsletter to hear more about our books and journals.


Meredith Broussard, author of More than a Glitch
Featured in a two-part series on Getting curious with Jonathan Van Ness discussing ChatGPT and algorithms; LitHub’s Keen On podcast on race, gender, and ability bias in tech

Carol Geffner, author of Building a New Leadership Ladder
Featured on EverydayMBA podcast for a conversation on how to transform male-dominated organizations to support women

Leah Plunckett, author of Sharenthood
Featured on Claim Your Space discussing where the internet goes wrong when it comes to parenting

Erika Nesvold, author of Off-Earth
Featured on New Scientist’s podcast speaking on the ethical considerations of living off-Earth 

Katie Davis, author of Technology’s Child
Featured on the Artificiality podcast and the No Such Thing podcast discussing her book

Steven Beaucher, author of Boston in Transit
Featured on the Viewpoints podcast discussing the beginnings of mass transit in America 

Christopher Preston, author of Tenacious Beasts
Featured on A New Angle podcast discussing how Europeans are learning to live with wolves; and featured on the Town Hall Seattle podcast following an event there

Nicholas Mirzeoff, author of White Sight
Featured on the New Books Network Politics & Society podcast discussing his book

Teddy Cruz and Fonna Forman, authors of Socializing Architecture 
Featured on A is for Architecture talking about the spatial and social implications of architecture

Dori Tunstall, author of Decolonizing Design
Featured on the Scratching the Surface podcast speaking about the intersection of design and anthropology

Don Norman, author of Design for a Better World
Featured on the Design Matters with Debbie Millman podcast; and featured on the The Artificiality podcast

Michael Tomasello, author of The Evolution of Agency
Featured on Sean Carroll’s Mindscape discussing the social origins of cognition

Gerd Gigerenzer, author of How to Stay Smart in a Smart World
Featured on Wall Street Journal’s Future of Everything podcast talking about the ubiquity of algorithms

Tahira Rehmatullah, coauthor of Waiting to Inhale
Featured on The Optimal Life with Nate Haber and Lopate at Large discussing her book


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