Download or read book Intelligent Thought written by John Brockman and published by Vintage. This book was released on 2007-12-18 with total page 272 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Evolutionary science lies at the heart of a modern understanding of the natural world. Darwin’s theory has withstood 150 years of scientific scrutiny, and today it not only explains the origin and design of living things, but highlights the importance of a scientific understanding in our culture and in our lives. Recently the movement known as “Intelligent Design” has attracted the attention of journalists, educators, and legislators. The scientific community is puzzled and saddened by this trend–not only because it distorts modern biology, but also because it diverts people from the truly fascinating ideas emerging from the real science of evolution. Here, join fifteen of our preeminent thinkers whose clear, accessible, and passionate essays reveal the fact and power of Darwin’s theory, and the beauty of the scientific quest to understand our world.

Download or read book The Laws of Human Nature written by Robert Greene and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2018-10-23 with total page 626 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From the #1 New York Times-bestselling author of The 48 Laws of Power comes the definitive new book on decoding the behavior of the people around you Robert Greene is a master guide for millions of readers, distilling ancient wisdom and philosophy into essential texts for seekers of power, understanding and mastery. Now he turns to the most important subject of all - understanding people's drives and motivations, even when they are unconscious of them themselves. We are social animals. Our very lives depend on our relationships with people. Knowing why people do what they do is the most important tool we can possess, without which our other talents can only take us so far. Drawing from the ideas and examples of Pericles, Queen Elizabeth I, Martin Luther King Jr, and many others, Greene teaches us how to detach ourselves from our own emotions and master self-control, how to develop the empathy that leads to insight, how to look behind people's masks, and how to resist conformity to develop your singular sense of purpose. Whether at work, in relationships, or in shaping the world around you, The Laws of Human Nature offers brilliant tactics for success, self-improvement, and self-defense.

Download or read book Coming of Age at the End of Nature written by Julie Dunlap and published by Trinity University Press. This book was released on 2016-09-19 with total page 144 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Coming of Age at the End of Nature explores a new kind of environmental writing. This powerful anthology gathers the passionate voices of young writers who have grown up in an environmentally damaged and compromised world. Each contributor has come of age since Bill McKibben foretold the doom of humanity’s ancient relationship with a pristine earth in his prescient 1988 warning of climate change, The End of Nature. What happens to individuals and societies when their most fundamental cultural, historical, and ecological bonds weaken—or snap? In Coming of Age at the End of Nature, insightful millennials express their anger and love, dreams and fears, and sources of resilience for living and thriving on our shifting planet. Twenty-two essays explore wide-ranging themes that are paramount to young generations but that resonate with everyone, including redefining materialism and environmental justice, assessing the risk and promise of technology, and celebrating place anywhere from a wild Atlantic island to the Arizona desert, to Baltimore and Bangkok. The contributors speak with authority on problems facing us all, whether railing against the errors of past generations, reveling in their own adaptability, or insisting on a collective responsibility to do better. Contributors include Blair Braverman, Jason Brown, Cameron Conaway, Elizabeth Cooke, Amy Coplen, Ben Cromwell, Sierra Dickey, Ben Goldfarb, CJ Goulding, Bonnie Frye Hemphill, Lisa Hupp, Amaris Ketcham, Megan Kimble, Craig Maier, Abby McBride, Lauren McCrady, James Orbesen, Alycia Parnell, Emily Schosid, Danna Staaf, William Thomas, and Amelia Urry.

Download or read book How Nature Works written by Per Bak and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2013-11-11 with total page 229 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Self-organized criticality, the spontaneous development of systems to a critical state, is the first general theory of complex systems with a firm mathematical basis. This theory describes how many seemingly desperate aspects of the world, from stock market crashes to mass extinctions, avalanches to solar flares, all share a set of simple, easily described properties. "...a'must read'...Bak writes with such ease and lucidity, and his ideas are so intriguing...essential reading for those interested in complex systems...it will reward a sufficiently skeptical reader." -NATURE "...presents the theory (self-organized criticality) in a form easily absorbed by the non-mathematically inclined reader." -BOSTON BOOK REVIEW "I picture Bak as a kind of scientific musketeer; flamboyant, touchy, full of swagger and ready to join every fray... His book is written with panache. The style is brisk, the content stimulating. I recommend it as a bracing experience." -NEW SCIENTIST

Download or read book A Different Nature written by David Hancocks and published by Univ of California Press. This book was released on 2001 with total page 308 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "A well-written and provocative, opinion-rich account of zoos, their history, and their goals and purposes. Hancocks has earned the right to speak authoritatively about these subjects, thanks to his tenure as director of two leading U. S. zoos. This book will appeal to general readers and to all persons interested in zoos and their role in conservation and education."—John Alcock, author of Animal Behavior: An Evolutionary Approach "Giraffes, elephants, gorillas, snakes, and toucans respond poorly to the usual conventions of human architecture. Zoo architects usually respond no less poorly to the needs of animals. David Hancocks draws on a lifetime's experience working as a zoo director and zoo architect to explore this dilemma, and offers a compelling vision for the future. This is an important book for those interested in conservation as well as for zoo and museum buffs."—William Conway, former President and General Director of the Wildlife Conservation Society and the Bronx Zoo "For over two decades David Hancocks has fervently tried to reform the fundamental character and mission of zoos. This book is his most thorough analysis of what is wrong with them and his most detailed and compelling plea for improvement. Every conscientious zoo administrator, curator, and keeper should read it from cover to cover with an open mind. Professionals in botanical gardens, museums, and nature parks should also consider this treatise because Hancocks advocates that a fusion of all of these institutions into a new entity better positioned to interpret the entire biosphere."-Mark A. Dimmitt, Director of Natural History, Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum

Download or read book Good Enough written by Daniel S. Milo and published by Harvard University Press. This book was released on 2019-06-18 with total page 321 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this spirited and irreverent critique of Darwin’s long hold over our imagination, a distinguished philosopher of science makes the case that, in culture as well as nature, not only the fittest survive: the world is full of the “good enough” that persist too. Why is the genome of a salamander forty times larger than that of a human? Why does the avocado tree produce a million flowers and only a hundred fruits? Why, in short, is there so much waste in nature? In this lively and wide-ranging meditation on the curious accidents and unexpected detours on the path of life, Daniel Milo argues that we ask these questions because we’ve embraced a faulty conception of how evolution—and human society—really works. Good Enough offers a vigorous critique of the quasi-monopoly that Darwin’s concept of natural selection has on our idea of the natural world. Darwinism excels in accounting for the evolution of traits, but it does not explain their excess in size and number. Many traits far exceed the optimal configuration to do the job, and yet the maintenance of this extra baggage does not prevent species from thriving for millions of years. Milo aims to give the messy side of nature its due—to stand up for the wasteful and inefficient organisms that nevertheless survive and multiply. But he does not stop at the border between evolutionary theory and its social consequences. He argues provocatively that the theory of evolution through natural selection has acquired the trappings of an ethical system. Optimization, competitiveness, and innovation have become the watchwords of Western societies, yet their role in human lives—as in the rest of nature—is dangerously overrated. Imperfection is not just good enough: it may at times be essential to survival.

Download or read book Perfect Imperfections Honouring Flaws as Human Nature written by Ummu Ahmadain and published by Puteh Press. This book was released on 2024-05-23 with total page 119 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In Perfect Imperfections, author Ummu Ahmadain invites readers on a soul-stirring exploration of the beauty found within our imperfections. Through poignant storytelling and profound reflections, this book gently nudges us to embrace the quirks and complexities that make us uniquely human. With each chapter, we’re reminded that perfection is not the goal; rather, it’s in our flaws that our true essence shines brightest. Whether grappling with self-doubt or seeking validation, this book offers solace and guidance, reminding us that our imperfections are not shortcomings, but rather, they are the threads that weave the rich tapestry of our humanity. Perfect Imperfections is a heartfelt ode to self-acceptance and a celebration of the exquisite messiness of life.

Download or read book Concepts Flaws and Fractography written by Richard Bradt and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2012-12-06 with total page 457 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: These volumes constitute the Proceedings of a Symposium on the Fracture Mechanics of Ceramics, held at the Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania, July 11, 12, and 13, 1973. The theme of the symposium focussed on the mechanical behavior of brittle ceramics in terms of the characteristics of cracks. The 52 contributed papers by 87 authors, present an overview of the cur rent understanding of the theory and application of fracture mechan ics to brittle ceramics. The program chairmen gratefully acknowledge the financial assistance for the Symposium provided by the Office of Naval Re search, the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences of the Pennsyl vania State University, the Materials Research Center of Lehigh University, Bethlehem, Pennsylvana and Westinghouse Research Laboratories, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Special appreciation is extended to the expert organization provided by the J. Orvis Keller Conference Center of the Pennsyl vania State Conference Center of the Pennsylvania State University. In particular, Mrs. Patricia Ewing should be acknowledged for the excellent program organization and planning. Dean Harold J. O'Brien, who was featured as the after-dinner speaker and who presented a most stimulating talk on the communication between people, also contrib uted to the success of the meeting. Finally, we also wish to thank our joint secretaries for the patience and help in bringing these Proceedings to press. University Park R. C. Bradt Bethlehem D. P. H. Hasselman Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania F. F. Lange July, 1973 v CONTENTS OF VOLUME 1 Contents of Volume 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Download or read book A Beautiful Question written by Frank Wilczek and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2016-07-12 with total page 482 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Does the universe embody beautiful ideas? Artists as well as scientists throughout human history have pondered this “beautiful question.” With Nobel laureate Frank Wilczek as your guide, embark on a voyage of related discoveries, from Plato and Pythagoras up to the present. Wilczek’s groundbreaking work in quantum physics was inspired by his intuition to look for a deeper order of beauty in nature. This is the deep logic of the universe—and it is no accident that it is also at the heart of what we find aesthetically pleasing and inspiring. Wilczek is hardly alone among great scientists in charting his course using beauty as his compass. As he reveals in A Beautiful Question, this has been the heart of scientific pursuit from Pythagoras and the ancient belief in the music of the spheres to Galileo, Newton, Maxwell, Einstein, and into the deep waters of twentieth-century physics. Wilczek brings us right to the edge of knowledge today, where the core insights of even the craziest quantum ideas apply principles we all understand. The equations for atoms and light are almost the same ones that govern musical instruments and sound; the subatomic particles that are responsible for most of our mass are determined by simple geometric symmetries. Gorgeously illustrated, A Beautiful Question is a mind-shifting book that braids the age-old quest for beauty and the age-old quest for truth into a thrilling synthesis. It is a dazzling and important work from one of our best thinkers, whose humor and infectious sense of wonder animate every page. Yes: The world is a work of art, and its deepest truths are ones we already feel, as if they were somehow written in our souls.

Download or read book Beyond Human Nature written by Jesse J Prinz and published by Penguin UK. This book was released on 2012-01-26 with total page 439 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this provocative, revelatory tour de force, Jesse Prinz reveals how the cultures we live in - not biology - determine how we think and feel. He examines all aspects of our behaviour, looking at everything from our intellects and emotions, to love and sex, morality and even madness. This book seeks to go beyond traditional debates of nature and nurture. He is not interested in finding universal laws but, rather, in understanding, explaining and celebrating our differences. Why do people raised in Western countries tend to see the trees before the forest, while people from East Asia see the forest before the trees? Why, in South East Asia, is there a common form of mental illness, unheard of in the West, in which people go into a trancelike state after being startled? Compared to Northerners, why are people in the American South more than twice as likely to kill someone over an argument? And, above all, just how malleable are we? Prinz shows that the vast diversity of our behaviour is not engrained. He picks up where biological explanations leave off. He tells us the human story.

Download or read book Reinventing Eden written by Carolyn Merchant and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2013-03-12 with total page 306 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This revised edition of Carolyn Merchant’s classic Reinventing Eden has been updated with a new foreword and afterword. Visionary quests to return to the Garden of Eden have shaped Western Culture. This book traces the idea of rebuilding the primeval garden from its origins to its latest incarnations and offers a bold new way to think about the earth.

Download or read book The Great Escape written by Angus Deaton and published by Princeton University Press. This book was released on 2024-05-21 with total page 392 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A Nobel Prize–winning economist tells the remarkable story of how the world has grown healthier, wealthier, but also more unequal over the past two and half centuries The world is a better place than it used to be. People are healthier, wealthier, and live longer. Yet the escapes from destitution by so many has left gaping inequalities between people and nations. In The Great Escape, Nobel Prize–winning economist Angus Deaton—one of the foremost experts on economic development and on poverty—tells the remarkable story of how, beginning 250 years ago, some parts of the world experienced sustained progress, opening up gaps and setting the stage for today's disproportionately unequal world. Deaton takes an in-depth look at the historical and ongoing patterns behind the health and wealth of nations, and addresses what needs to be done to help those left behind. Deaton describes vast innovations and wrenching setbacks: the successes of antibiotics, pest control, vaccinations, and clean water on the one hand, and disastrous famines and the HIV/AIDS epidemic on the other. He examines the United States, a nation that has prospered but is today experiencing slower growth and increasing inequality. He also considers how economic growth in India and China has improved the lives of more than a billion people. Deaton argues that international aid has been ineffective and even harmful. He suggests alternative efforts—including reforming incentives to drug companies and lifting trade restrictions—that will allow the developing world to bring about its own Great Escape. Demonstrating how changes in health and living standards have transformed our lives, The Great Escape is a powerful guide to addressing the well-being of all nations.

Download or read book Hidden Nature written by Alys Fowler and published by Hodder. This book was released on 2018-11-06 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 'Fowler's moving memoir charts her experience of coming out as a gay woman, alongside her journey through Birmingham's canal networks, mapping both the waterways and the travails of her heart.' Observer 'An emotional and compelling memoir, that left me inspired, both by her bravery in transforming her life, and by the unexpected beauty she finds along the way' Countryfile Magazine 'Fowler beautifully exposes her emotional fragility while also celebrating the unloved nature of buddleia, herons and even the water rats who take refuge among the locks.' i paper 'Fowler captures the beauty of the canal's dishevelled, neglected condition...' Times Literary Supplement 'Thoughtful and heartbreakingly honest ...Beautiful' Press Association 'An astounding memoir' Gay Star News 'Hidden Nature is one of the most thrilling things I've read in a long time' Waterways World 'She writes wonderfully about the species that have carved out a place for themselves amid the discarded shopping trolleys, condom packets and industrial waste' Guardian 'This candid book is as much about mapping the heart as it is about mapping the paths of waterways. Lovely.' Simple Things 'A beautiful memoir' Good Housekeeping 'Gentle, brave and acutely observant' Woman's Weekly Leaving her garden to the mercy of the slugs, the Guardian's award-winning writer Alys Fowler set out in an inflatable kayak to explore Birmingham's canal network, full of little-used waterways where huge pike skulk and kingfishers dart. Her book is about noticing the wild everywhere and what it means to see beauty where you least expect it. What happens when someone who has learned to observe her external world in such detail decides to examine her internal world with the same care? Beautifully written, honest and very moving, Hidden Nature is also the story of Alys Fowler's emotional journey and her coming out as a gay woman: above all, this book is about losing and finding, exploring familiar places and discovering unknown horizons.

Download or read book What Darwin Got Wrong written by Jerry Fodor and published by Profile Books. This book was released on 2011-02-24 with total page 114 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Jerry Fodor and Massimo Piatelli-Palmarini, a distinguished philosopher and scientist working in tandem, reveal major flaws at the heart of Darwinian evolutionary theory. They do not deny Darwin's status as an outstanding scientist but question the inferences he drew from his observations. Combining the results of cutting-edge work in experimental biology with crystal-clear philosophical argument they mount a devastating critique of the central tenets of Darwin's account of the origin of species. The logic underlying natural selection is the survival of the fittest under changing environmental pressure. This logic, they argue, is mistaken. They back up the claim with evidence of what actually happens in nature. This is a rare achievement - the short book that is likely to make a great deal of difference to a very large subject. What Darwin Got Wrong will be controversial. The authors' arguments will reverberate through the scientific world. At the very least they will transform the debate about evolution.

Download or read book The 48 Laws of Power written by Robert Greene and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2023-10-31 with total page 481 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Amoral, cunning, ruthless, and instructive, this multi-million-copy New York Times bestseller is the definitive manual for anyone interested in gaining, observing, or defending against ultimate control – from the author of The Laws of Human Nature. In the book that People magazine proclaimed “beguiling” and “fascinating,” Robert Greene and Joost Elffers have distilled three thousand years of the history of power into 48 essential laws by drawing from the philosophies of Machiavelli, Sun Tzu, and Carl Von Clausewitz and also from the lives of figures ranging from Henry Kissinger to P.T. Barnum. Some laws teach the need for prudence (“Law 1: Never Outshine the Master”), others teach the value of confidence (“Law 28: Enter Action with Boldness”), and many recommend absolute self-preservation (“Law 15: Crush Your Enemy Totally”). Every law, though, has one thing in common: an interest in total domination. In a bold and arresting two-color package, The 48 Laws of Power is ideal whether your aim is conquest, self-defense, or simply to understand the rules of the game.

Download or read book Flaws written by Christopher L. Pepin-Neff and published by Springer. This book was released on 2019-02-20 with total page 202 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book examines the policymaking process following highly emotional events. It focuses on the politics of shark “attacks” by looking at policy responses to tragic shark bites in Florida, Australia, and South Africa. The book reviews these cases by identifying the flaws in the human-shark relationship, including the way sharks are portrayed as the enemy, the way shark bites are seen as intentional, and how policy responses appear to be based on public safety. Flaws identifies politicians as the true sharks of this story for their manipulation of tragic circumstances to protect their own interests. It argues that shark bites are ungovernable accidents of nature, and that we are “in the way, not on the menu.”

Download or read book The New Atlantis written by and published by . This book was released on 2008 with total page 590 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: