Francesca Bray

Rice today is food to half the world's population. Its history is inextricably entangled with the emergence of colonialism, the global networks of industrial capitalism, and the modern world economy. The history of rice is currently a vital and innovative field of research attracting serious attention, but no attempt has yet been made to write a history of rice and its place in the rise of capitalism from a global and comparative perspective. Rice is a first step toward such a history. The fifteen chapters, written by specialists on Africa, the Americas, and Asia, are premised on the utility of a truly international approach to history. Each brings a new approach that unsettles prevailing narratives and suggests new connections. Together they cast new light on the significant roles of rice as crop, food, and commodity, and shape historical trajectories and interregional linkages in Africa, the Americas, Europe, and Asia.

Rice today is food to half the world's population. Its history is inextricably entangled with the emergence of colonialism, the global networks of industrial capitalism, and the modern world economy. The history of rice is currently a vital and innovative field of research attracting serious attention, but no attempt has yet been made to write a history of rice and its place in the rise of capitalism from a global and comparative perspective. Rice is a first step toward such a history. The fifteen chapters, written by specialists on Africa, the Americas, and Asia, are premised on the utility of a truly international approach to history. Each brings a new approach that unsettles prevailing narratives and suggests new connections. Together they cast new light on the significant roles of rice as crop, food, and commodity, and shape historical trajectories and interregional linkages in Africa, the Americas, Europe, and Asia.

What can the history of technology contribute to our understanding of late imperial China? Most stories about technology in pre-modern China follow a well-worn plot: in about 1400 after an early ferme

What can the history of technology contribute to our understanding of late imperial China? Most stories about technology in pre-modern China follow a well-worn plot: in about 1400 after an early ferme

Historians of Chinese technology have tended to pay little attention to the Ming dynasty, characterizing it as a stagnantperiod unmarked by significant inventions of the kind that in Europe gave rise

In this feminist history of eight cenyuries of private life in China, Francesca Bray inserts women into the history of technology and adds technology to the history of women.Taking issue with the Orie

In this feminist history of eight centuries of private life in China, Francesca Bray inserts women into the history of technology and adds technology to the history of women. Bray takes issue with th

Wide-ranging both historically and geographically, The Rice Economies brilliantly addresses a subject of abiding interest to anthropologists, economists, and historians as well as those concerned with

This second part of the sixth volume of Joseph Needham's great enterprise is the first to be written by a collaborator. Francesca Bray, working closely with Dr Needham, has produced the most comprehen

Science and Confucian Statecraft in East Asia explores science and technology in premodern East Asian government, questioning how the Confucian concern for legitimate and efficient state governance sh

Tu, technical images, and their relationship to written text in the production of technical knowledge is explored by mostly European scholars of Chinese history and culture. They consider graphics bot

87% of employees feel disconnected from their career and dread going into work. Many simply endure their employment because of financial obligations, fear of making a career change or because they hav

Global Democratic Theory is the first comprehensive introduction to the changing contours of democracy in today’s hyperconnected world. Accessibly written for readers new to the topic, it considers th

Global Democratic Theory is the first comprehensive introduction to the changing contours of democracy in today’s hyperconnected world. Accessibly written for readers new to the topic, it considers th

The Handbook of Family Psychology provides a comprehensive overview of the theoretical underpinnings and established practices relating to family psychology. * Provides a thorough orientation to t

The Handbook of Family Psychology provides a comprehensive overview of the theoretical underpinnings and established practices relating to family psychology. Provides a thorough orientation to the fi

A comprehensive and fun guide to Backgammon! Backgammon is one of the oldest games in the world, the origins of which date back some 5000 years – and it’s still going strong. It

This book demonstrates how students can apply what they have learned to bridge the gap between theory and therapy as they begin their professional practice. The authors argue that the only way to be r

The techniques Natalie Bray pioneered and perfected revolutionised dress pattern designing, assisting the rise of the modern fashion industry. Her teaching has had a profound influence on design, prod

The techniques Natalie Bray pioneered and perfected revolutionised dress pattern designing, assisting the rise of the modern fashion industry. Her teaching has had a profound influence on design, prod

The techniques Natalie Bray pioneered and perfected revolutionised dress pattern designing, assisting the rise of the modern fashion industry. Her teaching has had a profound influence on design, prod

The music of the sixteenth century has been "rediscovered" regularly since its composition. It was an especially fertile period for English music in particular, and to put the century in a historical