An "illustrated guide to the incredible diversity of snakes around the world. Snakes are found on every continent except Antarctica and have evolved to occupy a vast range of habitats, from mountains to oceans and deserts to rain forests. Snakes of the World explores their extraordinary diversity, with an in-depth introduction covering anatomy, behavior, habitats, reproduction, conservation, and other essential topics. This expert guide also includes profiles of some of the approximately 4,000 species of snakes, featuring examples from every family and subfamily. Each family profile highlights the remarkable appearance, characteristics, and lifestyle of notable snake species. Covering how snakes use venom or constriction to subdue their prey, how a snake's appearance can aid camouflage or boast of its killing capacity, and how habitat destruction is jeopardizing the future of many species, Snakes of the World is an invaluable guide to these fascinating reptiles."--Back cover.
Peter Singer is often described as the world's most influential philosopher. He is also one of its most controversial. The author of important books such as Animal Liberation, Practical Ethics, Rethinking Life and Death, and The Life You Can Save, he helped launch the animal rights and effective altruism movements and contributed to the development of bioethics. Now, in Ethics in the Real World, Singer shows that he is also a master at dissecting important current events in a few hundred words.In this book of brief essays, he applies his controversial ways of thinking to issues like climate change, extreme poverty, animals, abortion, euthanasia, human genetic selection, sports doping, the sale of kidneys, the ethics of high-priced art, and ways of increasing happiness. Singer asks whether chimpanzees are people, smoking should be outlawed, or consensual sex between adult siblings should be decriminalized, and he reiterates his case against the idea that all human life is sacred, applying his arguments to some recent cases in the news. In addition, he explores, in an easily accessible form, some of the deepest philosophical questions, such as whether anything really matters and what is the value of the pale blue dot that is our planet. The collection also includes some more personal reflections, like Singers thoughts on one of his favorite activities, surfing, and an unusual suggestion for starting a family conversation over a holiday feast.Provocative and original, these essays will challengeand possibly changeyour beliefs about a wide range of real-world ethical questions.
How a new breed of dictators holds power by manipulating information and faking democracyHitler, Stalin, and Mao ruled through violence, fear, and ideology. But in recent decades a new breed of media-savvy strongmen has been redesigning authoritarian rule for a more sophisticated, globally connected world. In place of overt, mass repression, rulers such as Vladimir Putin, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and Viktor Orban control their citizens by distorting information and simulating democratic procedures. Like spin doctors in democracies, they spin the news to engineer support. Uncovering this new brand of authoritarianism, Sergei Guriev and Daniel Treisman explain the rise of such "e;spin dictators,"e; describing how they emerge and operate, the new threats they pose, and how democracies should respond.Spin Dictators traces how leaders such as Singapore's Lee Kuan Yew and Peru's Alberto Fujimori pioneered less violent, more covert, and more effective methods of monopolizing power. They cultivated an image of competence, concealed censorship, and used democratic institutions to undermine democracy, all while increasing international engagement for financial and reputational benefits. The book reveals why most of today's authoritarians are spin dictators-and how they differ from the remaining "e;fear dictators"e; such as Kim Jong-un and Bashar al-Assad, as well as from masters of high-tech repression like Xi Jinping.Offering incisive portraits of today's authoritarian leaders, Spin Dictators explains some of the great political puzzles of our time-from how dictators can survive in an age of growing modernity to the disturbing convergence and mutual sympathy between dictators and populists like Donald Trump.
A richly illustrated guide to edible mushrooms by one of Europe's leading fungi expertsIn this beautifully illustrated introductory guide, Jens Petersen shows how to successfully identify and forage for edible mushrooms, and then how to prepare them for the table to ensure a delicious culinary experience, even if you're a first-time forager.Accessible and user-friendly, the book opens with a substantial introduction to fungi-what to look for, where to find them and how to collect and cook them. Other topics include edible and poisonous fungi, conserving mushrooms and other uses of fungi. The book then covers the most common major groups, including morels, wood cauliflower, polypores, boletes, tooth fungi, chanterelles, horn of plenty, brittlegills, milkcaps, agarics, puffballs and jelly fungi. For many of these groups, notable subkinds are given their own treatment. With practice, the book will enable you to identify mushrooms such as yellow chanterelles, blueing boletes with orange tube mouths, green brittlegills and milkcaps with orange milk.Featuring more than 400 stunning colour photographs and more than forty black-and-white illustrations, this book will enhance the experience of every mushroom forager and wild-table chef.
"A concise and accessible introduction to exoplanets that explains the cutting-edge science behind recent discoveries. For centuries, people have speculated about the possibility of planets orbiting distant stars, but only since the 1990s has technology allowed astronomers to detect them. At this point, more than five thousand such exoplanets have been identified, with the pace of discovery accelerating after the launch of NASA's Transiting Exoplanet Satellite Survey and the Webb Space Telescope. In The Little Book of Exoplanets, Princeton astrophysicist Joshua Winn offers a brief and engaging introduction to the search for exoplanets and the cutting-edge science behind recent findings. In doing so, he chronicles the dawn of a new age of discovery-one that has rapidly transformed astronomy and our broader understanding of the universe. Scientists now know that many Sun-like stars host their own systems of planets, some of which may resemble our solar system and include planets similar to the Earth. But, Winn tells us, the most remarkable discoveries so far have been of planets with unexpected and decidedly un-Earth-like properties, which have upended what we thought we knew about the origins of planetary systems. Winn provides an inside view of the sophisticated detective work astronomers perform as they find and study exoplanets and describes the surprising-sometimes downright bizarre-planets and systems they have found. He explains how these discoveries are revolutionizing astronomy, and he explores the current status and possible future of the search for another Earth. Finally, drawing on his own and other scientists' work, he considers how the discovery of exoplanets and their faraway solar systems changes our perspectives on the universe and our place in it"--
With more than 7,600 known species, frogs exhibit an extraordinary range of forms and behaviors, from those that produce toxins so deadly that they could kill a human many times over to those that can survive being frozen in ice. Frogs of the World is an essential guide to this astonishingly diverse group of animals. An in-depth introduction covers everything from the origins and evolution of frogs to their life cycles and defense strategies. Beautiful illustrations accompany profiles of species from each family, shedding invaluable light on the enormous range of appearance, habitats, and behavior of these marvelous creatures.
Why you don't have a self-and why that's a good thingIn Losing Ourselves, Jay Garfield, a leading expert on Buddhist philosophy, offers a brief and radically clear account of an idea that at first might seem frightening but that promises to liberate us and improve our lives, our relationships, and the world. Drawing on Indian and East Asian Buddhism, Daoism, Western philosophy, and cognitive neuroscience, Garfield shows why it is perfectly natural to think you have a self-and why it actually makes no sense at all and is even dangerous. Most importantly, he explains why shedding the illusion that you have a self can make you a better person.Examining a wide range of arguments for and against the existence of the self, Losing Ourselves makes the case that there are not only good philosophical and scientific reasons to deny the reality of the self, but that we can lead healthier social and moral lives if we understand that we are selfless persons. The book describes why the Buddhist idea of no-self is so powerful and why it has immense practical benefits, helping us to abandon egoism, act more morally and ethically, be more spontaneous, perform more expertly, and navigate ordinary life more skillfully. Getting over the self-illusion also means escaping the isolation of self-identity and becoming a person who participates with others in the shared enterprise of life.The result is a transformative book about why we have nothing to lose-and everything to gain-by losing our selves.
A philosopher examines the complicated phenomenon of gaslighting“Gaslighting” is suddenly in everyone’s vocabulary. It’s written about, talked about, tweeted about, even sung about (in “Gaslighting” by The Chicks). It’s become shorthand for being manipulated by someone who insists that up is down, hot is cold, dark is light—someone who isn’t just lying about such things, but trying to drive you crazy. The term has its origins in a 1944 film in which a husband does exactly that to his wife, his crazy-making efforts symbolized by the rise and fall of the gaslights in their home. In this timely and provocative book, Kate Abramson examines gaslighting from a philosophical perspective, investigating it as a distinctive moral phenomenon.Gaslighting, Abramson writes, is best understood as a form of interpersonal interaction, a particular way of fundamentally undermining someone. The gaslighter, Abramson argues, aims to make his target experience herself as incapable of reasoning, perceiving, or reacting in ways that would allow her to form appropriate beliefs, perceptions, or emotions in the first place. He seeks not only to induce in her this unmoored sense of herself but also to make it a reality. Using examples and analysis, Abramson gives an account of gaslighting and its immorality, and argues that such a discussion can help us understand other aspects of social life—from racism and sexism to the structure of interpersonal trust.
A renowned economic historian traces women's journey to close the gender wage gap and sheds new light on the continued struggle to achieve equity between couples at homeA century ago, it was a given that a woman with a college degree had to choose between having a career and a family. Today, there are more female college graduates than ever before, and more women want to have a career and family, yet challenges persist at work and at home. This book traces how generations of women have responded to the problem of balancing career and family as the twentieth century experienced a sea change in gender equality, revealing why true equity for dual career couples remains frustratingly out of reach.Drawing on decades of her own groundbreaking research, Claudia Goldin provides a fresh, in-depth look at the diverse experiences of college-educated women from the 1900s to today, examining the aspirations they formed-and the barriers they faced-in terms of career, job, marriage, and children. She shows how many professions are "e;greedy,"e; paying disproportionately more for long hours and weekend work, and how this perpetuates disparities between women and men. Goldin demonstrates how the era of COVID-19 has severely hindered women's advancement, yet how the growth of remote and flexible work may be the pandemic's silver lining.Antidiscrimination laws and unbiased managers, while valuable, are not enough. Career and Family explains why we must make fundamental changes to the way we work and how we value caregiving if we are ever to achieve gender equality and couple equity.
"A selection of key passage from Aristotle's seminal work the Nicomachean Ethics, which sets out what it means to flourish and live life well"--
"An entertaining and enlightening collection of ancient writings about the philosophers who advocated simple living and rejected unthinking conformity. The Cynics were ancient Greek philosophers who stood athwart the flood of society's material excess, unexamined conventions, and even norms of politeness and thundered 'No!' Diogenes, the most famous Cynic, wasn't shy about literally extending his middle finger to the world, expressing mock surprise that 'most people go crazy over a finger.' When asked why he was called Diogenes the Dog, he replied 'because I fawn on those who give, I bark at those who don't, and I bite scoundrels.' How to Say No is a delightful collection of brief ancient writings about Cynicism that captures all the outrageousness, wit, and wisdom of its remarkable cast of characters-from Diogenes in the fourth century BCE to the column-stander Symeon Stylites in late antiquity. With their 'less is more' approach to life, the Cynics speak urgently to our world of climate change, economic uncertainty, and psychic malaise. Although the Cynics weren't writers, their memorable utterances and behavior were recorded by their admirers and detractors, and M. D. Usher offers fresh new translations of appealing selections from this body of writing-ranging from street sermons and repartee to biography and snapshots of Cynics in action.Complete with introductions to the volume and each selection as well as the original Greek and Latin on facing pages, this lively book demonstrates why the Cynics still retain their power to surprise us and make us laugh-and to make us think and question how we live"--
"From beneficial fungi that keep bacteria under control and consume dead cells to toxic molds that cause disease, our bodies are constantly navigating a fungus-filled world. And our interactions with fungi are not limited to what happens in our bodies as we interact with these microbes via our diet and as a source of medicines. In short, there exists an incredible range of interactions between humans and fungi. In this book, Nicolas Money describes this relationship between fungi and humans in the context of our health. Readers learn how the field of mycology has been advancing, from studies that reveal the diversity of yeasts that grow on the skin to research on the use of psychedelic mushrooms in the treatment of depression. The book is divided into two parts. The first part focuses on how fungi operate in our bodies from spores in the lungs to the yeasts and filaments that can infect our internal organs. In particular, Money focuses on the mycobiome, which is the fungal part of the larger microbiome, and explains what is and isn't known about the significance of fungi in the health of the gut. In the second half of the book, Money shifts his focus to our relationship with fungi outside the body, including in food, medicine, and agriculture -- and he pulls no punches when it comes to countering misguided notions when it comes to the medicinal powers of mushrooms. Throughout the book, Money explains how the human-fungi relationship is symbiotic, meaning that it is sometimes beneficial and sometimes harmful. Ultimately, the reader comes away with a broad understanding of what scientists are learning about the fascinating role of fungi inside and outside of our bodies"--
"A splendid new translation of an extraordinary work of modern literature-featuring facing-page commentary by Kafka's acclaimed biographer. In 1917 and 1918, Franz Kafka wrote a set of more than 100 aphorisms, known as the Zèurau aphorisms, after the Bohemian village in which he composed them. Among the most mysterious of Kafka's writings, they explore philosophical questions about truth, good and evil, and the spiritual and sensory world. This is the first annotated, bilingual volume of these extraordinary writings, which provide great insight into Kafka's mind. Edited, introduced, and with commentaries by preeminent Kafka biographer and authority Reiner Stach, and freshly translated by Shelley Frisch, this beautiful volume presents each aphorism on its own page in English and the original German, with accessible and enlightening notes on facing pages.The most complex of Kafka's writings, the aphorisms merge literary and analytical thinking and are radical in their ideas, original in their images and metaphors, and exceptionally condensed in their language. Offering up Kafka's characteristically unsettling charms, the aphorisms at times put readers in unfamiliar, even inhospitable territory, which can then turn luminous: "I have never been in this place before: breathing works differently, and a star shines next to the sun, more dazzlingly still."Above all, this volume reveals that these multifaceted gems aren't far removed from Kafka's novels and stories but are instead situated squarely within his cosmos-arguably at its very core. Long neglected by Kafka readers and scholars, his aphorisms have finally been given their full due here"--
How the prized matsutake mushroom is remaking human communities in China -- and providing new ways to understand human and more-than-human worlds. What a Mushroom Lives For pushes today's mushroom renaissance in compelling new directions.
"An evolutionary case for the existence of free will. Scientists are learning more and more about how brain activity controls behavior and how neural circuits weigh alternatives and initiate actions. As we probe ever deeper into the mechanics of decision making, many conclude that agency-or free will-is an illusion. In Free Agents, leading neuroscientist Kevin Mitchell presents a wealth of evidence to the contrary, arguing that we are not mere machines responding to physical forces but agents acting with purpose. Traversing billions of years of evolution, Mitchell tells the remarkable story of how living beings capable of choice emerged from lifeless matter. He explains how the emergence of nervous systems provided a means to learn about the world, granting sentient animals the capacity to model, predict, and simulate. Mitchell reveals how these faculties reached their peak in humans with our abilities to imagine and to introspect, to reason in the moment, and to shape our possible futures through the exercise of our individual agency. Mitchell's argument has important implications-for how we understand decision making, for how our individual agency can be enhanced or infringed, for how we think about collective agency in the face of global crises, and for how we consider the limitations and future of artificial intelligence.An astonishing journey of discovery, Free Agents offers a new framework for understanding how, across a billion years of Earth history, life evolved the power to choose and why this matters"--
"Drawing on ancient writers, from Aesop to Ovid, classicist and working farmer, Mark Usher compiles in this book an anthology of Greco-Roman passages illustrating how they thought about animals and illuminating they might help us to rethink our relationships with them."--
"Modern Architecture and Climate explores how leading architects of the twentieth century incorporated climate-mediating strategies into their designs, and shows how regional approaches to climate adaptability were essential to the development of modern architecture. Focusing on the period surrounding World War II-before fossil-fuel powered air-conditioning became widely available-Daniel Barber brings to light a vibrant and dynamic architectural discussion involving design, materials, and shading systems as means of interior climate control. He looks at projects by well-known architects such as Richard Neutra, Le Corbusier, Lâucio Costa, Mies van der Rohe, and Skidmore, Owings, and Merrill, and the work of climate-focused architects such as MMM Roberto, Olgyay and Olgyay, and Cliff May. Drawing on the editorial projects of James Marston Fitch, Elizabeth Gordon, and others, he demonstrates how images and diagrams produced by architects helped conceptualize climate knowledge, alongside the work of meteorologists, physicists, engineers, and social scientists. Barber describes how this novel type of environmental media catalyzed new ways of thinking about climate and architectural design. Extensively illustrated with archival material, Modern Architecture and Climate provides global perspectives on modern architecture and its evolving relationship with a changing climate, showcasing designs from Latin America, Europe, the United States, the Middle East, and Africa. This timely and important book reconciles the cultural dynamism of architecture with the material realities of ever-increasing carbon emissions from the mechanical cooling systems of buildings, and offers a historical foundation for today's zero-carbon design"--
An entertaining and enlightening history of irrational numbers, from ancient Greece to the twenty-first centuryThe ancient Greeks discovered them, but it wasn't until the nineteenth century that irrational numbers were properly understood and rigorously defined, and even today not all their mysteries have been revealed. In The Irrationals, the first popular and comprehensive book on the subject, Julian Havil tells the story of irrational numbers and the mathematicians who have tackled their challenges, from antiquity to the twenty-first century. Along the way, he explains why irrational numbers are surprisingly difficult to define-and why so many questions still surround them. Fascinating and illuminating, this is a book for everyone who loves math and the history behind it.
Griffins, Cyclopes, Monsters, and Giants--these fabulous creatures of classical mythology continue to live in the modern imagination through the vivid accounts that have come down to us from the ancient Greeks and Romans. But what if these beings were more than merely fictions? What if monstrous creatures once roamed the earth in the very places where their legends first arose? This is the arresting and original thesis that Adrienne Mayor explores in The First Fossil Hunters. Through careful research and meticulous documentation, she convincingly shows that many of the giants and monsters of myth did have a basis in fact--in the enormous bones of long-extinct species that were once abundant in the lands of the Greeks and Romans. As Mayor shows, the Greeks and Romans were well aware that a different breed of creatures once inhabited their lands. They frequently encountered the fossilized bones of these primeval beings, and they developed sophisticated concepts to explain the fossil evidence, concepts that were expressed in mythological stories. The legend of the gold-guarding griffin, for example, sprang from tales first told by Scythian gold-miners, who, passing through the Gobi Desert at the foot of the Altai Mountains, encountered the skeletons of Protoceratops and other dinosaurs that littered the ground. Like their modern counterparts, the ancient fossil hunters collected and measured impressive petrified remains and displayed them in temples and museums; they attempted to reconstruct the appearance of these prehistoric creatures and to explain their extinction. Long thought to be fantasy, the remarkably detailed and perceptive Greek and Roman accounts of giant bone finds were actually based on solid paleontological facts. By reading these neglected narratives for the first time in the light of modern scientific discoveries, Adrienne Mayor illuminates a lost world of ancient paleontology.
A sweeping germ's-eye view of history from human origins to global pandemicsPlagues upon the Earth is a monumental history of humans and their germs. Weaving together a grand narrative of global history with insights from cutting-edge genetics, Kyle Harper explains why humanity's uniquely dangerous disease pool is rooted deep in our evolutionary past, and why its growth is accelerated by technological progress. He shows that the story of disease is entangled with the history of slavery, colonialism, and capitalism, and reveals the enduring effects of historical plagues in patterns of wealth, health, power, and inequality. He also tells the story of humanity's escape from infectious disease-a triumph that makes life as we know it possible, yet destabilizes the environment and fosters new diseases.Panoramic in scope, Plagues upon the Earth traces the role of disease in the transition to farming, the spread of cities, the advance of transportation, and the stupendous increase in human population. Harper offers a new interpretation of humanity's path to control over infectious disease-one where rising evolutionary threats constantly push back against human progress, and where the devastating effects of modernization contribute to the great divergence between societies. The book reminds us that human health is globally interdependent-and inseparable from the well-being of the planet itself.Putting the COVID-19 pandemic in perspective, Plagues upon the Earth tells the story of how we got here as a species, and it may help us decide where we want to go.
Why the tools of philosophy offer a powerful antidote to today's epidemic of irrationalityThere is an epidemic of bad thinking in the world today. An alarming number of people are embracing crazy, even dangerous ideas. They believe that vaccinations cause autism. They reject the scientific consensus on climate change as a "e;hoax."e; And they blame the spread of COVID-19 on the 5G network or a Chinese cabal. Worse, bad thinking drives bad acting-it even inspired a mob to storm the U.S. Capitol. In this book, Steven Nadler and Lawrence Shapiro argue that the best antidote for bad thinking is the wisdom, insights, and practical skills of philosophy. When Bad Thinking Happens to Good People provides an engaging tour through the basic principles of logic, argument, evidence, and probability that can make all of us more reasonable and responsible citizens.When Bad Thinking Happens to Good People shows how we can more readily spot and avoid flawed arguments and unreliable information; determine whether evidence supports or contradicts an idea; distinguish between merely believing something and knowing it; and much more. In doing so, the book reveals how epistemology, which addresses the nature of belief and knowledge, and ethics, the study of moral principles that should govern our behavior, can reduce bad thinking. Moreover, the book shows why philosophy's millennia-old advice about how to lead a good, rational, and examined life is essential for escaping our current predicament.In a world in which irrationality has exploded to deadly effect, When Bad Thinking Happens to Good People is a timely and essential guide for a return to reason.
A bold reevaluation of Spinoza that reveals his powerful, inclusive vision of religion for the modern ageSpinoza is widely regarded as either a God-forsaking atheist or a God-intoxicated pantheist, but Clare Carlisle says that he was neither. In Spinoza's Religion, she sets out a bold interpretation of Spinoza through a lucid new reading of his masterpiece, the Ethics. Putting the question of religion centre-stage but refusing to convert Spinozism to Christianity, Carlisle reveals that "being in God" unites Spinoza's metaphysics and ethics. Spinoza's Religion unfolds a powerful, inclusive philosophical vision for the modern age-one that is grounded in a profound questioning of how to live a joyful, fully human life.Like Spinoza himself, the Ethics doesn't fit into any ready-made religious category. But Carlisle shows how it wrestles with the question of religion in strikingly original ways, responding both critically and constructively to the diverse, broadly Christian context in which Spinoza lived and worked. Philosophy itself, as Spinoza practiced it, became a spiritual endeavor that expressed his devotion to a truthful, virtuous way of life. Offering startling new insights into Spinoza's famously enigmatic ideas about eternal life and the intellectual love of God, Carlisle uncovers a Spinozist religion that integrates self-knowledge, desire, practice, and embodied ethical life to reach toward our "highest happiness"-to rest in God.Seen through Carlisle's eyes, the Ethics prompts us to rethink not only Spinoza but also religion itself.
How the Chinese Communist Party maintains its power by both repressing and responding to its peopleSince 1949, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has maintained unrivaled control over the country, persisting even in the face of economic calamity, widespread social upheaval, and violence against its own people. Yet the party does not sustain dominance through repressive tactics alone—it pairs this with surprising responsiveness to the public. The Party and the People explores how this paradox has helped the CCP endure for decades, and how this balance has shifted increasingly toward repression under the rule of President Xi Jinping.Delving into the tenuous binary of repression and responsivity, Bruce Dickson illuminates numerous questions surrounding the CCP’s rule: How does it choose leaders and create policies? When does it allow protests? Will China become democratic? Dickson shows that the party’s dual approach lies at the core of its practices—repression when dealing with existential, political threats or challenges to its authority, and responsiveness when confronting localized economic or social unrest. The state answers favorably to the demands of protesters on certain issues, such as local environmental hazards and healthcare, but deals harshly with others, such as protests in Tibet, Xinjiang, or Hong Kong. With the CCP’s greater reliance on suppression since Xi Jinping’s rise to power in 2012, Dickson considers the ways that this tipping of the scales will influence China’s future.Bringing together a vast body of sources, The Party and the People sheds new light on how the relationship between the Chinese state and its citizens shapes governance.
"The Swedish scientist Carl Linnaeus (1707-1778) is the known as the father of modern biological taxonomy. One of the greatest scientists in history, he formalized and popularized the system of binomial nomenclature and classified thousands of species of plants and animals. In his field, he is so well known that he is often referred to simply as "L." In this comprehensive biography, Linnaeus scholar Gunnar Broberg, draws on a wide range of new research to paint a vivid and intimate portrait of the man. Delving deep into Linnaeus's correspondence and other contemporary sources, Broberg introduces reader's to Linnaeus's family and takes them along on his famous expedition to Lapland. He also investigates the scientist's private thoughts on subjects such as evolution and religion, which often yielded eccentric results. Despite, or perhaps because, of his great achievement, Linnaeus could be moody and egotistical, and this nuanced biography does not shy away from presenting both his scientific achievements and human failings"--
"In most histories of what is often called the Age of Revolution, specifically from the French Revolution in 1789 to the Revolutions of 1848, Southern Europe is largely absent or plays, to say the least, a very marginal role. This book is a new history of the revolutions of the early 1820s, when the desire for freedom and emancipation found expression in uprisings in Portugal, Spain, the Italian peninsula, Sicily and Greece. While each of these revolutions had its peculiar features and belonged at the same time to a global revolutionary South extending from Latin America to Asia, this book will highlight the converging features, exchanges, and connections among them. The book explores practices and ideas that shaped these revolutions, such as the role played by secret societies, elections, the experience of war mobilization as well as transnational circulation of information, individuals, and printed material in politicizing new sectors of society. Maurizio Isabella challenges what he sees as enduring notions of these revolutions as weak or elitist in nature and argues that while their fate was determined by the intervention of more powerful foreign countries, they actually enjoyed considerable popular support in highly ideologically divided societies. The book then revises our understanding of the Age of Revolution, which until now is almost exclusively understood as cantering around the North Atlantic and France, and helps us to rethink the origins of political modernity in Europe"--
There are more than fifteen thousand butterfly species in the world, fluttering through a wide variety of habitats. Bright and beautiful, butterflies also have fascinating life histories and play an important role in our planet's ecosystems. The Lives of Butterflies showcases the extraordinary range of colors and patterns of the world's butterflies while exploring their life histories, behavior, habitats and resources, populations, seasonality, defense and natural enemies, and threats and conservation.
"In The Entanglement, philosopher Alva Noèe explores the inseparability of life, art, and philosophy, and argues that we have radically underestimated the significance of this long recognized but underappreciated reality, what he refers to as the "entanglement." The core of The Entanglement is the idea that human existence is inextricably aesthetic and philosophical. In the first half of the book, Noèe offers a detailed examination of pictures and seeing, writing and speech, and choreography and dancing, which serve as case studies and the base in which the phenomenon of entanglement is set. In later chapters, Noèe deepens this analysis by exploring the nature of the aesthetic itself, and its place in our lives, examining what the entanglement can teach us about science, and, in particular, the project of applying science in the domain of the human. In these later chapters he covers a range of topics, including sex, gender, and the body, psychology and AI, the problem of style, and the nature of 'nature.' Drawing on his work in perception, consciousness, and the philosophy of art, Noèe offers a new model for thinking about the nature of the human, the limits to what a natural science of the human can do on its own, and the irreplaceable importance of art and philosophy for the larger project of studying and understanding ourselves"--
"A deep history of Africa, from 70,000 BCE to 300 CE, that synthesizes the archeological and historical linguistic evidence to tell an integrated global history of the continent. A framing chapter introduces the historical goals and issues of the book, recounting the terrible histories of recent centuries that led to Africa being wrongly treated as a peripheral other in the history of us all. Chapter two, "African Firsts in the History Technology," brings to light the histories of the independent inventions by Africans, living in different regions in the heart of the continent, of ceramic technology, more than 11,000 years ago; of the earliest cotton weaving technology in World History, 7,000-plus years ago; and of the earliest iron smelting, 4,000 or more years ago. Ehret then turns to agricultural innovations between the ninth and seventh millennia BCE, introducing the evidence that shows that Africa helped usher in the "Age of Agricultural Exchange," and was, on the whole, a net exporter of agricultural innovations into Eurasia (including twelve early essential crops, and domesticated donkeys). Chapter four, "Towns and Long-Distance Commerce in Ancient Africa," turns attention to the roles of Africans (particularly the regions of Sudan and the Congo Basin) in the development of new systems for trading over distance, which facilitated an emerging class of merchants, during the second and first millennia BCE. Next, "The Africanity of Ancient Egypt," summarizes the evidence of intensive cultural interaction between the lands several hundred kilometers south of the confluence of the White and Blue Niles in modern-day Sudan all the way north to Middle Egypt. Finally, a closing chapter, "Africa and Africans in Global History," takes up the problem of how to bring what we have learned about 'ancient' Africa integrally into how we tell World History and proposes a new periodization of African and World History over the ages from around 68,000 BCE-when true, fully modern humans all still lived in eastern Africa-down to the first three centuries CE"--
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