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The Fast: The History, Science, Philosophy, and Promise of Doing Without
By John Oakes. 2024
With fasting at an all-time high in popularity, here is the first deep exploration into the surprising history and science…
behind the practice—essential to many religions and philosophies.Whether for philosophical, political, or health-related reasons, fasting marks a departure from daily routine. It involves doing less but doing less in a radical way. Based on extensive historical, scientific, and cultural research and reporting, The Fast illuminates the numerous facets of this act of self-deprivation. John Oakes interviews doctors, spiritual leaders, activists, and others who guide him through this practice—and embarks on fasts of his own—to deliver a book that supplies readers curious about fasting with profound new understanding, appreciation, and inspiration. In recent years, fasting has become increasingly popular for a variety of reasons—from health advocates who see fasting as a method to lose weight or to detox, to the faithful who fast in prayer, to seekers pursuing mindfulness, to activists using hunger strikes as an effective means of peaceful protest. Notable fasters include Moses, Buddha, Jesus, Muhammad, Gandhi, George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Emily Dickinson, Mark Twain, Cesar Chavez, and a long list of others who have drawn on its power over the ages and across borders and cultures. The Fast looks at the complex science behind the jaw-dropping biological phenomena that occur inside the human body when we fast. Metabolic switching induced by fasting can prompt repair and renewal down to the molecular level; such fasting can provide benefits for those suffering from obesity and diabetes, cancer, epilepsy, cardiovascular disease, neurodegenerative disorders, and more. Prolonged fasting can serve both to reinvigorate the immune system and to protect it against damage. Beyond the physical experience, fasting can be a great collective unifier, an instant leveler that connects us purely by virtue of being an act accessible to all, and it has been adopted by religions and political movements all over the world for millennia. Fasting is central to holy seasons and days such as Lent (Christianity), Ramadan (Islam), Yom Kippur (Judaism), Uposatha (Buddhism), and Ekadashi (Hinduism). On an individual level, devout ascetics who master self-deprivation to an extreme are believed to be closer to the divine, ascending to enlightenment or even sainthood. Through the ages, fasting in the name of justice—a hunger strike—has signaled purity of intent and action. It&’s a tactic that demands commitment, serves to highlight the cruelty of those in authority, and appeals to shared values: that we&’re united by a common humanity and we deserve to be heard. Advocates who have waged hunger strikes include Gandhi in India, Bobby Sands in Ireland, and the Taxi Workers Alliance in New York City. Fasting reminds us of the virtues of holding back, of not consuming all that we can. Ultimately, this book shows us that fasting is about much more than food: it is about taking control of your life in new and empowering ways and reconsidering your place in the world.Modern Philosophy: An Anthology of Primary Sources
By Roger Ariew, Eric Watkins. 2019
The most widely read anthology for the study of modern philosophy, this volume provides key works of philosophers and other leading…
thinkers of the period, chosen to enhance the reader&’s understanding of modern philosophy and its relationship to the natural sciences of the time. The third edition incorporates important contributions of women and minority thinkers into the canon of the modern period, while retaining all of the material of the previous edition. Included are works by Princess Elisabeth, Margaret Cavendish Duchess of Newcastle, Lady Anne Conway, Anton Wilhelm Amo, Lady Damaris Masham, Lady Mary Shepherd, and Emilie Marquise Du Châtelet.Book of Queens: The True Story of the Middle Eastern Horsewomen Who Fought the War on Terror
By Pardis Mahdavi. 2023
The untold story of generations of Middle Eastern freedom fighters—horsewomen who safeguarded an ancient breed of Caspian horse—and their efforts…
to defend their homelands from the Taliban and others seeking to destroy them."A breathtaking book that revisits nearly one hundred years of Iranian history, highlighting the power and beauty of women who refuse to be subdued.&” ―Alison Hawthorne Deming, author of A Woven WorldBook of Queens reaches back centuries to the Persian Empire and a woman disguised as a man, facing an invading army, protected only by light armor and the stallion she sat astride. Mahdavi draws a thread from past to present: from her fearless Iranian grandmother, who guided survivors of domestic violence to independent mountain colonies in Afghanistan where the women, led by a general named Mina, became their country&’s first line of defense from marauding warlords. To the female warriors who helped train and breed the horses used by US Green Berets when they touched down in October 2001, with a mission but insufficient intelligence on the ground—women whose contributions were then forgotten. Pardis Mahdavi chases the legacy of Caspian horses and the women whose lives are saved by them, drawing on decades of research, newly-discovered diaries, and exclusive military sources. Among those intersecting stories is that of American Louise Firouz, who helped bring the breed back from the brink of extinction, connecting Virginia traders to British royals to the son of the Shah. Firouz&’s life is forever changed when she meets Mahdavi&’s own family, who run an unusual smuggling operation in addition to raising horses in a wild bid for freedom.Book of Queens is an epic tale of hidden women whose communal knowledge was instrumental in saving an animal as ancient as civilization, and who were the genesis of their own liberation.Shelter on the Journey: Humanitarianism, Human Rights, and Migration
By Priscilla Solano. 2024
Migration journeys are arduous, with migrants tormented by risk, abuse, threats, and xenophobia. Shelters, staffed by humanitarian workers and volunteers,…
provide safe spaces for those in transit. Shelter on the Journey examines how these sites, often faith-based civil society associations, create solidarity and help politicize migrants, giving them a sense of themselves as an empowered, rights-holding people. Solano, who volunteered at shelters in Mexico, chronicles the activity in three of the nearly 100 shelters along a unique humanitarian trail that many Central Americans take to reach the United States. She outlines the constraints faced by these sites and their potential to create social transformation and considers how and why migration security is currently framed and managed as both a criminal and humanitarian issue. Shelter on the Journey explores the politics of the shelters, their social world, and the dynamics of charity and solidarity, as well as the need for humanitarian assistance and advocacy for dignified and free transit migration.Multimodal Methods in Anthropology
By Samuel Gerald Collins, Matthew S. Durington. 2024
Multimodal Methods in Anthropology develops several goals simultaneously. First, it is an introduction to the ways that multimodality might work…
for students and practitioners of anthropology, using multiple examples from the authors’ research and from the field. Second, the book carefully examines the ethics of a multimodal project, including the ways in which multimodality challenges and reproduces “digital divides.” Finally, the book is a theoretical introduction that repositions the history of anthropology along axes of multimodality and reframes many of the essential questions in anthropology alongside collaboration and access. Each chapter introduces new methods and techniques, frames the ethical considerations, and contextualizes the method in the work of other anthropologists. Multimodal Methods in Anthropology takes both students and practitioners through historical and contemporary sites of multimodality and introduces the methodological and theoretical challenges of multimodal anthropology in a digital world. Like multimodality itself, readers will come away with new ideas and new perspectives on established ideas, together with the tools to make them part of their practice. It is an ideal text for a variety of methods-based courses in anthropology and qualitative research at both the undergraduate and the graduate level.When and Where I Enter: The Impact of Black Women on Race and Sex in America
By Paula J. Giddings. 1878
“History at its best—clear, intelligent, moving. Paula Giddings has written a book as priceless as its subject”—Toni MorrisonAcclaimed by writers…
Toni Morrison and Maya Angelou, Paula Giddings’s When and Where I Enter is not only an eloquent testament to the unsung contributions of individual women to our nation, but to the collective activism which elevated the race and women’s movements that define our times. From Ida B. Wells to the first black Presidential candidate, Shirley Chisholm; from the anti-lynching movement to the struggle for suffrage and equal protection under the law; Giddings tells the stories of black women who transcended the dual discrimination of race and gender—and whose legacy inspires our own generation. Forty years after the passing of the Voting Rights Act, when phrases like “affirmative action” and “wrongful imprisonment” are rallying cries, Giddings words resonate now more than ever.The Death of Politics: How to Heal Our Frayed Republic After Trump
By Peter Wehner. 2019
The New York Times opinion writer, media commentator, outspoken Republican and Christian critic of the Trump presidency offers a spirited…
defense of politics and its virtuous and critical role in maintaining our democracy and what we must do to save it before it is too late. “Any nation that elects Donald Trump to be its president has a remarkably low view of politics.” Frustrated and feeling betrayed, Americans have come to loathe politics with disastrous results, argues Peter Wehner. In this timely manifesto, the veteran of three Republican administrations and man of faith offers a reasoned and persuasive argument for restoring “politics” as a worthy calling to a cynical and disillusioned generation of Americans. Wehner has long been one of the leading conservative critics of Donald Trump and his effect on the Republican Party. In this impassioned book, he makes clear that unless we overcome the despair that has caused citizens to abandon hope in the primary means for improving our world—the political process—we will not only fall victim to despots but hasten the decline of what has truly made America great. Drawing on history and experience, he reminds us of the hard lessons we have learned about how we rule ourselves—why we have checks and balances, why no one is above the law, why we defend the rights of even those we disagree with. Wehner believes we can turn the country around, but only if we abandon our hatred and learn to appreciate and honor the unique and noble American tradition of doing “politics.” If we want the great American experiment to continue and to once again prosper, we must once more take up the responsibility each and every one of us as citizens share.Why do people reject science and believe online conspiracy theories? How are people radicalized online and go on to commit…
acts of violence? Why is our society so politically polarized?Astonishingly irrational ideas are spreading. Covid denial persists in the face of overwhelming evidence. Anti-vaxxers compromise public health. Conspiracy thinking hijacks minds and incites mob violence. Toxic partisanship is cleaving nations, and climate denial has pushed our planet to the brink. Meanwhile, American Nazis march openly in the streets, and Flat Earth theory is back. What the heck is going on? Why is all this happening, and why now? More important, what can we do about it? In Mental Immunity, Andy Norman shows that these phenomena share a root cause. We live in a time when the so-called “right to your opinion” is thought to trump our responsibilities. The resulting ethos effectively compromises mental immune systems, allowing “mind parasites” to overrun them. Conspiracy theories, evidence-defying ideologies, garden-variety bad ideas: these are all species of mind parasite, and each of them employs clever strategies to circumvent mental immune systems. In fact, some of them compromise cultural immune systems – the things societies do to prevent bad ideas from spreading. Norman shows why all of this is more than mere analogy: minds and cultures really do have immune systems, and they really can break down. Fortunately, they can also be built up: strengthened against ideological corruption. He calls for a rigorous science of mental immune health – what he calls “cognitive immunology” – and explains how it could revolutionize our capacity for critical thinking.Hailed as “a feast for thought,” Mental Immunity melds cutting-edge work in science and philosophy into an “astonishingly enlightening and productive” solution to the signature problem of our age. A practical guide to spotting and removing bad ideas, a stirring call to transcend our petty tribalisms, and a serious bid to bring humanity to its senses.Black Lies, White Lies: The Truth According to Tony Brown
By Tony Brown. 1995
PBS television commentator and syndicated radio talk-show host Tony Brown has been called an "out-of-the-box thinker" and, less delicately, and…
"equal opportunity ass kicker." Those who attempt to pigeonhole him do so at their own peril. This journalist, media commentator, self-help advocate, entrepreneur, public speaker, film director, and author is a hard man to pin a label on -- and an even more difficult man to fool.In Black Lies, White Lies, Tony Brown does what few high-profile African Americans have done before: He dares to challenge the lies of both Black and White leaders, and he dares to tell the truth. He attacks White racism and Black self-victimization with equal vehemence. He condemns integration as a disastrous policy, not for just Blacks but for the entire country. And he confronts the Black Talented Tenth, White liberals, conservatives, Democrats, Republicans, demagogues, and racists on all sides for their self-serving lies, their failures, and their lack of vision.But Tony Brown does not simply slash and burn. He also offers farsighted, workable solutions to America's problems. He provides a blueprint for American renewal bases on his belief that although we may not have come to this country on the same ship, we are all now in the same boat.Unravelling Anti-Aging: A Critical Sociological Assessment (International Perspectives on Aging #41)
By Jason L. Powell. 2024
In a society where youthfulness and vitality are highly valued, the quest for anti-aging solutions has become increasingly popularized in…
bio-medical gerontology. However, navigating the vast sea of information, products, and treatments can be overwhelming; there is limited academic rigor and theoretic critique from sociological perspectives. This book aims to demystify the concept of anti-aging and presents critical social approaches for maintaining a healthy life. By exploring the science, lifestyle factors, and power of bio-medicine, the book will provide readers with a comprehensive monograph to unlock the politics of anti-aging drawing from social approaches.There Is a God: How the World's Most Notorious Atheist Changed His Mind
By Antony Flew, Roy Abraham Varghese. 2008
In one of the biggest religion news stories of the new millennium, the Associated Press announced that Professor Antony Flew,…
the world's leading atheist, now believes in God. Flew is a pioneer for modern atheism. His famous paper, Theology and Falsification, was first presented at a meeting of the Oxford Socratic Club chaired by C. S. Lewis and went on to become the most widely reprinted philosophical publication of the last five decades. Flew earned his fame by arguing that one should presuppose atheism until evidence of a God surfaces. He now believes that such evidence exists, and There Is a God chronicles his journey from staunch atheism to believer. For the first time, this book will present a detailed and fascinating account of Flew's riveting decision to revoke his previous beliefs and argue for the existence of God. Ever since Flew's announcement, there has been great debate among atheists and believers alike about what exactly this "conversion" means. There Is a God will finally put this debate to rest. This is a story of a brilliant mind and reasoned thinker, and where his lifelong intellectual pursuit eventually led him: belief in God as designer.Women Who Did: Stories by Men and Women, 1890-1914
By Angelique Richardson. 2005
"A lady? decidedly. Fast? perhaps. Original? undoubtedly. Worth knowing? rather." Daring and dynamic, the 'new woman' came to represent the…
very spirit of the age. The stories in this anthology take up this phenomenon and examine society throughthe eyes of the new woman, as she encountered new choices in marriage, motherhood, work and love.Women Who Did charts a rebellion that was social, sexual and literary. It tells the stories of competing voices - of the men and women who entered into the fray of the fin de siècle, and were not afraid to confront, challenge or delight in the irrepressible New, in an irrepressibly new form, the short story.Woman's Hour: Words from Wise, Witty and Wonderful Women
By Alison Maloney. 2017
For the last 70 years, the guests of Woman’s Hour have been entertaining listeners with their compelling combination of wit,…
warmth, insight and humour. Woman’s Hour has interviewed many of the biggest female names from entertainment, politics, the arts and beyond.Words from Wise, Witty and Wonderful Women is a collection of quotes and extracts from 70 years of the Woman’s Hour archive, featuring some of the most memorable guests to appear on the programme, from Doris Lessing to Nora Ephron, Hilary Clinton to J.K. Rowling, and Bette Davis to Meryl Streep. Charting the social and political revolution that has taken place in women’s lives over the past 70 years, as well as the perennial aspects of female life, such as love, family, relationships, the workplace, sex, ageing, and food, this delightful book shares fascinating insights and sage advice from the wise and wonderful women that have graced the Woman’s Hour airwaves over the decades.Writings from the Zen Masters (Penguin Great Ideas)
By Various. 1957
These are unique stories of timeless wisdom and understanding from the Zen Masters. With rich and fascinating tales of swords,…
tigers, tea, flowers and dogs, the writings of the Masters challenge every perception - and seek to bring all readers closer to enlightenment.Throughout history, some books have changed the world. They have transformed the way we see ourselves - and each other. They have inspired debate, dissent, war and revolution. They have enlightened, outraged, provoked and comforted. They have enriched lives - and destroyed them. Now Penguin brings you the works of the great thinkers, pioneers, radicals and visionaries whose ideas shook civilization and helped make us who we are.Witchcraft: A Ladybird Expert Book (The Ladybird Expert Series #36)
By Suzannah Lipscomb. 2018
Part of the new Ladybird Expert series, Witchcraft is a clear, simple and entertaining introduction to the magical myths that…
have coloured the popular imagination for centuries. Written by celebrated historian and broadcaster Dr Suzannah Lipscomb, Witchcraft explores the moment in history when witches were perceived to be especially dangerous: the famous witch hunts between 1450 and 1750.Written by the leading lights and most outstanding communicators in their fields, the Ladybird Expert books provide clear, accessible and authoritative introductions to subjects drawn from science, history and culture.For an adult readership, the Ladybird Expert series is produced in the same iconic small hardback format pioneered by the original Ladybirds. Each beautifully illustrated book features the first new illustrations produced in the original Ladybird style for nearly forty years.Groundwork of the Metaphysic of Morals (Harper Perennial Modern Thought Ser.)
By Immanuel Kant. 2009
The finest single-volume introduction to Kant's ethics available in English. —Philosophical Review, on the H. J. Paton translation Considered one…
of the most profound, influential, and important works of world philosophy, Groundwork of the Metaphysic of Morals introduces his famous Categorical Imperative and lays down a foundation for all of Immanuel Kant's writings. In it, Kant illuminates the basic concept that is central to his moral philosophy and, in fact, to the entire field of modern ethical thought: The Categorical Imperative, the supreme principle of morality, stating that all decisions should be made based on what is universally acceptable. Featuring the renowned translation and commentary of Oxford's H. J. Paton, this volume has long been considered the definitive English edition of Kant's classic text. "Kant's Groundwork of the Metaphysic of Morals," Paton writes in his preface, "is one of the small books which is truly great: it has exercised on human thought an influence almost ludicrously disproportionate to its size."Romantic Agency: Loving Well in Modern Life
By Luke Brunning. 2024
This is a book for people energized by the possibilities of modern intimacy, but who feel unsure about their own…
romantic lives. Alternative lifestyles such as nonmonogamy, while liberating in theory, can feel remote in practice, as we are fixed in place by insecurities and social pressures. In Romantic Agency, philosopher Luke Brunning encourages readers to think more deeply about what it means for relationships to not only work, but flourish. Guided by the thought that our abilities to be intimate cannot be taken for granted, he argues that our romantic agency is fragile and best cultivated alongside other people. Together we can become more realistic, balance playfulness with integrity, and value each other’s flourishing. Anyone can benefit from this exploration of intimate life, regardless of their relationship status or romantic ideals. Compelling and timely, Romantic Agency is a groundbreaking account of love and relationships.Why I Am so Clever (Penguin Little Black Classics)
By Friedrich Nietzsche. 2004
'Why do I know a few more things? Why am I so clever altogether?'Self-celebrating and self-mocking autobiographical writings from Ecce…
Homo, the last work iconoclastic German philosopher Nietzsche wrote before his descent into madness.One of 46 new books in the bestselling Little Black Classics series, to celebrate the first ever Penguin Classic in 1946. Each book gives readers a taste of the Classics' huge range and diversity, with works from around the world and across the centuries - including fables, decadence, heartbreak, tall tales, satire, ghosts, battles and elephants.Who Wants It?
By Chris Henderson, Colin Ward. 2012
Chris Henderson formed the Chelsea Headhunters – who later earned a reputation as the most dangerous fans in Britain -…
as well as the band Combat 84 who, with their punk attitude and uncut, Orwellian lyrics, represented the antithesis of middle-class England. After the jailing of Stephen 'Hickey' Hickmott, Henderson organised a gang of Chelsea fans who travelled to matches by luxury coach with the aim of causing havoc and destruction. They were finally arrested and their subsequent trial was meant to be the crowning glory of Thatcher's campaign to vanquish hooliganism. Instead, the dramatic collapse of the case sounded the death knell for all the undercover police operations and mass indiscriminate arrests that had been ordered by the authorities to squash the activities of Henderson and others.The 'Ministry' continued to pursue Henderson and prior to the 2002 World Cup, he and Hickmott were named as the two leaders planning hooligan and criminal acts for the tournament in South Korea and Japan, which culminated in Henderson being arrested and refused entry to Japan for the England v. Argentina match.Told in Henderson's exact words, this is the dramatic story of an era of music and football, when how you looked counted as much as how you performed. With its depiction of events surrounding South Korea/Japan 2002, Who Wants It? also shows how the scourge of hooliganism continues to blight the beautiful game today.Where I Lived, and What I Lived For (Penguin Great Ideas)
By Henry Thoreau. 2005
Throughout history, some books have changed the world. They have transformed the way we see ourselves - and each other.…
They have inspired debate, dissent, war and revolution. They have enlightened, outraged, provoked and comforted. They have enriched lives - and destroyed them. Now Penguin brings you the works of the great thinkers, pioneers, radicals and visionaries whose ideas shook civilization and helped make us who we are.Thoreau's account of his solitary and self-sufficient home in the New England woods remains an inspiration to the environmental movement - a call to his fellow men to abandon their striving, materialistic existences of 'quiet desperation' for a simple life within their means, finding spiritual truth through awareness of the sheer beauty of their surroundings.