Written in 1832, this book is a contemporary observer's account of how machinery and manufacturing helped create unprecedented prosperity during the Industrial Revolution in England. The book is basically a text on economics as applied to manufacturing. It was intended for a lay audience, particularly ambitious factory workers. Much of the information that's cited in the book came from the author's direct observations in factories in Britain and on the Continent.
The author surveys manufacturing practices and discusses the political, moral, and economic factors affecting them. The book met with hostility from the publishing industry on account of Babbage's analysis of the manufacture and sale of books. Babbage describes the many different printing processes of the time, analyses the costs of book production, and explains the publication process, before discussing the 'too large' profit margins of booksellers. Babbage succeeded in his aim 'to avoid all technical terms, and to describe in concise language', making this an eminently readable historical account. His analysis and promotion of mechanization and efficient 'division of labor' (still known as the 'Babbage principle') continue to resonate strongly with modern industrial engineering.Written in 1832, this book is a contemporary observer's account of how machinery and manufacturing helped create unprecedented prosperity during the Industrial Revolution in England. The book is basically a text on economics as applied to manufacturing. It was intended for a lay audience, particularly ambitious factory workers. Much of the information that's cited in the book came from the author's direct observations in factories in Britain and on the Continent.
The author surveys manufacturing practices and discusses the political, moral, and economic factors affecting them. The book met with hostility from the publishing industry on account of Babbage's analysis of the manufacture and sale of books. Babbage describes the many