We’re partnering with GOBI Library Solutions on a series of blog posts to give our customers insights into our Hot Topics collections.

Hot Topics from Cambridge are tailored collections of ebooks, produced to showcase the latest trends in research. They allow the reader to explore pertinent research topics, choosing from a wide range of subjects, from Capitalism to Nanotechnology. 

For the first instalment of our joint project, we’re diving into the Technology in Society collection. In this series, you’ll find popular titles like Brett Frischmann and Evan Selinger’s Reengineering Humanity and Ryan Abbott’s The Reasonable Robot­– both of which examine artificial intelligence becoming increasingly present in our lives and the impact this could have on law and society.

We spoke with Senior Editor at Cambridge University Press, Matt Gallaway, about Technology in Society.

Why is Technology in Society content relevant and how can librarians benefit from this collection?

The Technology in Society content is relevant because it will help readers to understand the ways that technology is transforming our lives – at home, at work, and in our many relationships — and the implications of these transformations.

All of our Hot Topics reflect the latest research trends in their given subject areas. How do we select what title to include? What parameters do editors follow?

We publish books by authors who are acknowledged as leaders in their fields and who are engaged in cutting-edge research that in many cases will have implications for how technology is used and regulated in society.

How are these collections better than similar ones from competitors?

Cambridge University Press offers a breadth of coverage and analysis that is unparalleled in any similar collection.  

What is your favorite part when creating these bespoke collections?

I enjoy seeing how different books relate to each other and address similar themes in different contexts. For example, one title might discuss social media platforms like Facebook and another might discuss issues related to privacy and corporate surveillance; both will reinforce the importance of understanding the implications – positive and negative — of what it means for us to communicate through these platforms, which will ultimately inform readers and allow them to make better decisions about how they lead their lives.

What title did you most enjoy working on? Why?

I could never pick one title as a favorite. Some of the handbooks – The Cambridge Handbook of the Law of the Sharing Economy and The Cambridge Handbook of the Law of Algorithms — have been very rewarding because they include remarkable rosters of cross-disciplinary scholars who are leaders in their fields, which some of the individually authored titles – Artificial Intelligence and Legal Analytics, Re-Engineering Humanity, and Lawless: The Secret Rules that Govern Our Lives – are rewarding in a different way, because they tackle different facets of technological change and provide illuminating solutions to the problems that arise as we integrate technology into our lives.

This post was produced in collaboration with EBSCO and GOBI Library Solutions, who have made eCollections hosted on Cambridge Core available through their platform. Check out their blog post about Cambridge Hot Topics here.