From the Editor's Desk

Last month Dr. Lars Heide of the Copenhagen Business School was named the new editor in chief of the Annals, to begin officially on 1 January 2012. Thus, I will be completing my second and final term as editor in chief of the Annals on 31 December 2011. Lars is a member of the Annals editorial board and has made strong contributions to the literature on the history of computing for more than two decades. His latest book, Punched-Card Systems and the Early Information Explosion, 1880–1945 ( Johns Hopkins Univ. Press, 2009), is a work of great depth and insight and is easily the finest book written on the important topic of punched-card systems. He has written numerous important articles for the Annals over the years, including one in this issue. I have greatly enjoyed my two terms as editor in chief and am very pleased to be handing the journal off to such an accomplished and talented successor. Lars and I have begun work on transitional matters, and I know that given his knowledge, skill, and judgment, the Annals has an extremely bright future.