'There is no author whose books I look forward to more than Vaclav Smil' Bill GatesIs flying dangerous? How much do the world's cows weigh? And what makes people happy?From earth's nations and inhabitants, through the fuels and foods that energize them, to the transportation and inventions of our modern world - and how all of this affects the planet itself - in Numbers Don't Lie, Professor Vaclav Smil takes us on a fact-finding adventure, using surprising statistics and illuminating graphs to challenge lazy thinking. Packed with 'Well-I-never-knew-that' information and with fascinating and unusual examples throughout, we find out how many people it took to build the Great Pyramid, that vaccination yields the best return on investment, and why electric cars aren't as great as we think (yet). There's a wonderful mix of science, history and wit, all in bite-sized chapters on a broad range of topics.Urgent and essential, Numbers Don't Lie inspires readers to interrogate what they take to b
In the 19th century Friedrich Nietzsche infamously declared that "God is dead." It turns out he was on to something. Across the western world, churches are emptying out and closing their doors, and more and more people are rejecting organized religion. In the early 2000s a group of intellectuals who collectively came to be known as the "new atheists" capitalized on this fact, capturing the imagination of young skeptics and igniting a movement for secularism by arguing that religion is the source of most of our social ills. They believed that the decline of religious belief could be attributed to the rise of modern science. This was only the most recent incarnation of a story that has been told since the 18th century Enlightenment, which forged a myth of social progress and western cultural supremacy that has lent legitimacy to the projects of imperialism and global capitalism ever since. The social sciences have another story to tell. It is the story of secularization: a theory that gr
Chen Hansheng was not only a pioneer of modern Chinese social science, remembered for the villagestudies he organized by teams of researchers in the 1930s. He was also a political operative whosecareer as an underground and aboveground Communist activist spanned the twentieth century andthe globe. This book draws on unique interviews, beginning in 1979, with Chen himself, his family andassociates, along with an exhaustive examination of documents, writings, and archives, to build arounded portrait of Chen, the man, and his world.‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐“Stephen MacKinnon’s lifetime study of eminent social scientist and Communist Chen Hanshengmakes for an absorbing, thrilling, and illuminating read. This product of decades of researching Chen,and of years of discussions with him, MacKinnon shows us how one enterprising and creative scholarbecame dedicated to the cause, worked for it, and then ended his life sad and angry about whatbecame of the Chinese Communist Party in power.”—Hans van de Ven,
Originally published in 1925, Alfred North Whitehead's Science and the Modern World was a groundbreaking and important book that redefined the concept of modern science. In emphasising the position of science as a culturally connected activity, Whitehead anticipated arguments that would come to dominate the philosophy of science in the latter part of the twentieth century. Highly measured in its approach, the text moves through various periods in cultural history from the sixteenth century onwards, and shows how the great scientific discoveries of these periods were intimately connected with a more general intellectual ferment. Throughout this narrative, philosophy is put forward as humanity's fundamental intellectual pursuit; a medium of change and reconfiguration from which all thought, scientific included, derives its strength. This is a fascinating volume that will be of value to anyone with an interest in philosophy or the history of science.
Alfred North Whitehead's SCIENCE AND THE MODERN WORLD, originally published in 1925, redefines the concept of modern science. Presaging by more than half a century most of today's cutting-edge thought
Johnson (classics and comparative literature, emeritus, U. of Chicago) traces the relevance to modern science of Lucretius' atomistic idea-based poem, On the Nature of Things . Distributed in the US
An engaging exploration of the scientific theories and medical conditions relating to stress and an examination of case studies that suggest ways to manage, reduce, and prevent stress in everyday life
Since the emergence of religious studies and the social sciences as academic disciplines, the concept of "magic" has played a major role in defining religion and in mediating the relation of religion
Synthesizing decades of sociological work at Stanford University on the development of the modern nation-state system since World War II, contributors argue that striking similarities increasingly cha
This book presents empirical studies of the rise, expansion, and influence of scientific discourse and organization throughout the world, over the past century. Using quantitative cross-national data
Science and Magic in the Modern World is a unique text that explores the role of magical thinking in everyday life. It provides an excellent psychological look at the subconscious belief in magic in b
Science and Magic in the Modern World is a unique text that explores the role of magical thinking in everyday life. It provides an excellent psychological look at the subconscious belief in magic in b
