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The Hypothetical Species: Variables of Human Evolution
by Michael Charles Tobias Jane Gray MorrisonThis book is a provocative and invigorating real-time exploration of the future of human evolution by two of the world’s leading interdisciplinary ecologists – Michael Charles Tobias and Jane Gray Morrison. Steeped in a rich multitude of the sciences and humanities, the book enshrines an elegant narrative that is highly empathetic, personal, scientifically wide-ranging and original. It focuses on the geo-positioning of the human Self and its corresponding species. The book's overarching viewpoints and poignant through-story examine and powerfully challenge concepts associated historically with assertions of human superiority over all other life forms. Ultimately, The Hypothetical Species: Variables of Human Evolution is a deeply considered treatise on the ecological and psychological state of humanity and her options – both within, and outside the rubrics of evolutionary research – for survival. This important work is beautifully presented with nearly 200 diverse illustrations, and is introduced with a foreword by famed paleobiologist, Dr. Melanie DeVore.
"I AM": Monotheism and the Philosophy of the Bible
by Mark GloubermanFor whom was the Hebrew Bible written? How much truth does it contain? What, according to the Bible, is the place of men and women in the world? What connection is there between the Bible and morality? In "I AM" Mark Glouberman supplies new answers to these old questions. He does this by establishing that the foundational scripture of the West is, first and foremost, a philosophical document, not a theological tract, nor yet the religious history of a nation. The author identifies the Bible’s fundamental principle, the ontological principle of particularity. This principle, he shows, is what makes the Bible the revolutionary text that it is. God’s "I AM WHO I AM" asserts the principle, of which the Bible’s deity is a personified form. God’s self-identification also points to the real, anthropological, meaning of the ism called "monotheism." A portion of Glouberman’s book is devoted to illustrating the Bible’s live relevance in many of the areas where modern philosophers congregate, including moral philosophy, political philosophy, metaphysics, and epistemology. Isn’t it a bit late in the day for the Bible’s meaning to be revealed? Glouberman says that it’s about time.
I Am a Strange Loop
by Douglas R. HofstadterCan thought arise out of matter? Can self, soul, consciousness, "I” arise out of mere matter? If it cannot, then how can you or I be here? I Am a Strange Loop argues that the key to understanding selves and consciousness is the "strange loop”--a special kind of abstract feedback loop inhabiting our brains. The most central and complex symbol in your brain is the one called "I. ” The "I” is the nexus in our brain, one of many symbols seeming to have free will and to have gained the paradoxical ability to push particles around, rather than the reverse. How can a mysterious abstraction be real--or is our "I” merely a convenient fiction? Does an "I” exert genuine power over the particles in our brain, or is it helplessly pushed around by the laws of physics? These are the mysteries tackled in I Am a Strange Loop, Douglas Hofstadter’s first book-length journey into philosophy since Gödel, Escher, Bach. Compulsively readable and endlessly thought-provoking, this is a moving and profound inquiry into the nature of mind.
I Am AspienWoman: The Unique Characteristics, Traits, and Gifts of Adult Females on the Autism Spectrum
by Tania Marshall<p>This book explores the female profile (phenotype), including sub-types, in late teenagers to the elderly, who are on the Autism Spectrum. Written by 2017-2015 ASPECT Autism Australia National Recognition Award Nominee (Advancement Category), for advancing the field of female Autism, Tania A. Marshall's first book in a series entitled, I Am AspienGirl© showcases the unique characteristics, traits and gifts of adult females, across the lifespan, on the Autism Spectrum. Award. Presently, there is a female Autism crisis including: a gender bias, a lack of research, assessment tools, intervention and skills acquisition tools, specifically researched and designed for females across the lifespan. This book explores the female profile (phenotype), including sub-types. <p>When "I Am AspienWoman©" was released, it became an instant bestseller and ignited a discussion about the lost generation of Autistic females, gender differences, misdiagnosis, mismedication, and the lack of assessment tools, resources and interventions. This is a part the current female Autism crisis. I Am AspienWoman showcases the unique characteristics, traits and gifts of adult females on the Autism Spectrum. I Am AspienWoman is the sequel to the 2015 eLIT Gold Medal Award winning, I Am AspienGirl. <p>Have you ever wondered about a friend, a partner, a mother, sister or daughter? Wondered why she says she feels 'different'? Out of step with her peers, she may struggle keeping friends and a job, yet she has multiple degrees. Bright from early on, she may have singleminded focus, sprinkles of anxiety, sensory and social issues, be gifted in art, writing, science, research or singing. Maybe Autism or Asperger Syndrome was mentioned but she did not resonate with the male profile or the stereotypical female profile. Maybe she is a woman on the Autism spectrum, with a unique constellation of super-abilities, strengths and challenges? <p>This book takes a unique approach by combining stunning imagery along with the feelings, thoughts and words of Autistic women (and those that love and support them). This book also explores common strengths and challenges, the stages leading up to a diagnosis, important needs, reasons for a diagnosis, disclosure and an appendix of helpful tools. You will be inspired by a special group of 24 Autistic women led by Dr Temple Grandin, who showcase their unique strengths and provide helpful advice and tips. Watch for AspienPowers: Celebrating the Unique constellation of Gifts, Strengths and Abilities of Females on the Autism Spectrum, coming soon.</p>
I Am Confucius (Xavier Riddle and the Secret Museum)
by Gabriella DeGennaroAn 8x8 book based on an episode from the PBS KIDS animated television series Xavier Riddle and the Secret Museum starring Confucius.Based on the children's book series Ordinary People Change the World by New York Times bestselling author Brad Meltzer and illustrator Christopher Eliopoulos, the series will introduce kids to inspiring historical figures and the character virtues that helped them succeed.When Xavier and Yadina can't stop fighting, Brad decides it's time for the trio to head to the Secret Museum! They're sent to China in the year 543 BCE to meet Confucius. He teaches them "The Golden Rule": Treat others how you would like to be treated. This episode-based 8x8 will focus on the traits that made our heroes great--the traits that kids can aspire to in order to live heroically themselves.
I Am Dynamite!: A Life of Nietzsche
by Sue PrideauxA groundbreaking new biography of philosophy’s greatest iconoclast Friedrich Nietzsche is one of the most enigmatic figures in philosophy, and his concepts—the Übermensch, the will to power, slave morality—have fundamentally reshaped our understanding of the human condition. But what do most people really know of Nietzsche—beyond the mustache, the scowl, and the lingering association with nihilism and fascism? Where do we place a thinker who was equally beloved by Albert Camus, Ayn Rand, Martin Buber, and Adolf Hitler? Nietzsche wrote that all philosophy is autobiographical, and in this vividly compelling, myth-shattering biography, Sue Prideaux brings readers into the world of this brilliant, eccentric, and deeply troubled man, illuminating the events and people that shaped his life and work. From his placid, devoutly Christian upbringing—overshadowed by the mysterious death of his father—through his teaching career, lonely philosophizing on high mountains, and heart-breaking descent into madness, Prideaux documents Nietzsche’s intellectual and emotional life with a novelist’s insight and sensitivity. She also produces unforgettable portraits of the people who were most important to him, including Richard and Cosima Wagner, Lou Salomé, the femme fatale who broke his heart; and his sister Elizabeth, a rabid German nationalist and anti-Semite who manipulated his texts and turned the Nietzsche archive into a destination for Nazi ideologues. I Am Dynamite! is the essential biography for anyone seeking to understand history's most misunderstood philosopher.
I Am Dynamite: An Alternative Anthropology of Power
by Nigel RapportPower is conventionally regarded as being held by social institutions. We are taught to believe that it is these social structures that determine the environment and circumstances of individual lives. In I Am Dynamite, the anthropologist Nigel Rappaport argues for a different view. Focusing on the lives and works of the writer and Auschwitz survivor Primo Levi, refugee and engineer Ben Glaser, Israeli ceramicist and immigrant Rachel Siblerstein, artist Stanley Spencer, and philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche, he shows how we can have the capacity and inclination to formulate 'life projects'. It is in the pursuit of these life projects, that is, making our life our work, that we can avoid the structures of ideology and institution.
‘I am Here’, Abraham Said: Emmanuel Levinas and Anthropological Science (Methodology & History in Anthropology #47)
by Nigel RapportEmmanuel Levinas’s philosophical work on ‘the Other’ offers a challenge to the discipline of anthropology that claims knowledge of the human. For Levinas, the ‘secrecy’ of subjectivity – a fundamental facet of the human condition – demands an ethics of ignorance and not-knowing; the mystery of otherness is only to be approached through ‘inspiration’. Can anthropology meet a Levinasian challenge if it would define itself as a science as well as a humanistic documentation of social life? This book endeavours to take Levinasian and anthropological precepts equally seriously and offers a radical conclusion.
I Am Not a Juvenile Delinquent: How Poetry Changed a Group of At-Risk Young Women
by Sharon ChardeThe #metoo movement, particularly the horrific Larry Nasser abuse, shows with frightening clarity the vulnerability of young women to male predators; all the Touchtone girls I encountered suffered similar or worse fates. The book is a pilgrimage, a quest story, divided into five sections. Part I explores the authors first year at the facility, the difficulty and eventual success of establishing my group in such a chaotic and contradictory culture. It recreates their writing sessions, and features the vivid, dramatic personalities of the girls who participated as well as the steep learning curve on which she found herself daily. Part II moves swiftly through the trials and victories between the first and last years, and offers brief profiles of three of the residents who held special resonance to the author. During this time she published an award-winning anthology of poems by the girls, a NYC filmmaker created a documentary film, many readings and public performances took place and received several awards for the program. Part III tells of the joint venture with The Hotchkiss School, revealing the differences yet common ground between the two groups of girls.
I Am the People: Reflections on Popular Sovereignty Today (Ruth Benedict Book Series)
by Partha ChatterjeeThe forms of liberal government that emerged after World War II are in the midst of a profound crisis. In I Am the People, Partha Chatterjee reconsiders the concept of popular sovereignty in order to explain today’s dramatic outburst of movements claiming to speak for “the people.”To uncover the roots of populism, Chatterjee traces the twentieth-century trajectory of the welfare state and neoliberal reforms. Mobilizing ideals of popular sovereignty and the emotional appeal of nationalism, anticolonial movements ushered in a world of nation-states while liberal democracies in Europe guaranteed social rights to their citizens. But as neoliberal techniques shrank the scope of government, politics gave way to technical administration by experts. Once the state could no longer claim an emotional bond with the people, the ruling bloc lost the consent of the governed. To fill the void, a proliferation of populist leaders have mobilized disaffected groups into a battle that they define as the authentic people against entrenched oligarchy.Once politics enters a spiral of competitive populism, Chatterjee cautions, there is no easy return to pristine liberalism. Only a counter-hegemonic social force that challenges global capital and facilitates the equal participation of all peoples in democratic governance can achieve significant transformation. Drawing on thinkers such as Antonio Gramsci, Michel Foucault, and Ernesto Laclau and with a particular focus on the history of populism in India, I Am the People is a sweeping, theoretically rich account of the origins of today’s tempests.
I and Thou
by Martin Buber Walter KaufmannThe classic work on philosophy and religion, with a wealth of footnotes to clarify obscurities.
I Ching: The Book of Change
by Thomas ClearyThe I Ching (Book of Change) is considered the oldest of the Chinese classics and has, throughout Chinese history, commanded unsurpassed prestige and popularity. Containing several layers of text and given numerous levels of interpretation, the I Ching has been venerated for more than three thousand years as an oracle of fortune, a guide to success, and a source of wisdom. The underlying theme of the text is change, and how this fundamental force influences all aspects of life—from business and politics to personal relationships. This translation of the I Ching draws on ancient Confucian commentary, which emphasizes applying practical wisdom in everyday affairs.
I Ching: An Annotated Bibliography
by Edward Hacker Steve Moore Lorraine PatscoWith over one thousand entries covering a diverse range of sources including books, articles, unpublished dissertations, taped lectures, devices and software, this is the most comprehensive annotated bibliography of English works on the I Ching. This book will be indispensable for all scholars of the I Ching, and an invaluable resource for those interested in this classic Chinese book. Follow this link www.zhouyi.com to editor Lorraine Patsco's massive I Ching web bibliography featuring over 2500 I Ching-related websites
The I Ching: The Book of Changes
by James LeggeOne of the most important books in the history of Oriental culture is the I Ching, or as it is usually called in English, the Book of Changes. Its basic text seems to have been prepared before 1,000 B.C., in the last days of the Shang Dynasty and the first part of the Chou Dynasty. It was one of the Five Classics edited by Confucius, who is reported to have wished he had fifty more years of life to study it. Since the time of Confucius it has never lost its enormous significance; it has been used by Confucianists and Taoists alike, by learned literary scholars and street shamans, by the official state cult and by private individuals.Basically, the I Ching is a manual of divination, founded upon what modern scholars like Wolfgang Pauli, the Nobel Laureate physicist and C. G. Jung, the psychoanalyst, have called the synchronistic concept of the universe. This means that all things happening at a certain time have certain characteristic features which can be isolated, so that in addition to vertical causality, one may also have horizontal linkages. According to tradition, King Wan and his son the Duke of Chou spent their lives analyzing the results of divination in terms of interacting polar forces and six-variable hexagrams, correlating an observed body of events with predictions. Whether this account is true or not, the I Ching still retains its primacy in Chinese thought.Apart from its enormous value in Oriental studies, the I Ching is very important in the history of religions, history of philosophy, and even in certain aspects of modern Western thought. It is one of the very few divination manuals that have survived into modern times, and it is typologically interesting as perhaps the most developed, most elaborate system that is known in detail. In philosophy, it marks a stage in the development of human thought, while the I Ching has recently become very important in the understanding of certain cultural developments in the Western world.This present work is the standard English translation by the great Sinologist James Legge, prepared for the Sacred Books of the East series. It contains the basic text attributed to King Wan and the Duke of Chou, the ten appendices usually attributed to Confucius, a profound introduction by Legge, and exhaustive footnotes explaining the text for a Western reader.
I Ching
by John MinfordA landmark new translation of the ancient Chinese oracle and book of wisdomPose a question, then toss three coins (or cast your yarrow stalks) to access the time-honored wisdom of the I Ching.The I Ching, or Book of Change, has been consulted through the ages, in both China and the West, for answers to fundamental questions about the world and our place in it. The oldest extant book of divination, it dates back three thousand years to ancient shamanistic practices involving the ritual preparation of the shoulder bones of oxen. From this early form of communication with the other world, it has become the Chinese spiritual book par excellence. An influence on such cultural icons as Bob Dylan, John Cage, Merce Cunningham, Philip K. Dick, and Philip Pullman, the I Ching is turned to by millions around the world for insights on spiritual growth, business, medicine, genetics, game theory, strategic thinking, and leadership, and of course for the window it opens on China.This new translation, over a decade in the making, is informed by the latest archaeological discoveries and features a gorgeously rendered codex of divination signs--the I Ching's sixty-four Tarot-like hexagrams. It captures the majesty and mystery of this legendary work and charts an illuminating path to self-knowledge.From the Hardcover edition.
I Ching
by John MinfordA landmark new translation of the ancient Chinese oracle and book of wisdom Pose a question, then toss three coins (or cast your yarrow stalks) to access the time-honored wisdom of the I Ching. The I Ching, or Book of Change, has been consulted through the ages, in both China and the West, for answers to fundamental questions about the world and our place in it. The oldest extant book of divination, it dates back three thousand years to ancient shamanistic practices involving the ritual preparation of the shoulder bones of oxen. From this early form of communication with the other world, it has become the Chinese spiritual book par excellence. An influence on such cultural icons as Bob Dylan, John Cage, Merce Cunningham, Philip K. Dick, and Philip Pullman, the I Ching is turned to by millions around the world for insights on spiritual growth, business, medicine, genetics, game theory, strategic thinking, and leadership, and of course for the window it opens on China. This new translation, over a decade in the making, is informed by the latest archaeological discoveries and features a gorgeously rendered codex of divination signs the I Ching s sixty-four Tarot-like hexagrams. It captures the majesty and mystery of this legendary work and charts an illuminating path to self-knowledge.
The I Ching: A Biography (Lives of Great Religious Books #9)
by Richard J. SmithHow the I Ching became one of the most widely read and influential books in the worldThe I Ching originated in China as a divination manual more than three thousand years ago. In 136 BCE the emperor declared it a Confucian classic, and in the centuries that followed, this work had a profound influence on the philosophy, religion, art, literature, politics, science, technology, and medicine of various cultures throughout East Asia. Jesuit missionaries brought knowledge of the I Ching to Europe in the seventeenth century, and the American counterculture embraced it in the 1960s. Here Richard Smith tells the extraordinary story of how this cryptic and once obscure book became one of the most widely read and extensively analyzed texts in all of world literature.In this concise history, Smith traces the evolution of the I Ching in China and throughout the world, explaining its complex structure, its manifold uses in different cultures, and its enduring appeal. He shows how the indigenous beliefs and customs of Japan, Korea, Vietnam, and Tibet "domesticated" the text, and he reflects on whether this Chinese classic can be compared to religious books such as the Bible or the Qur'an. Smith also looks at how the I Ching came to be published in dozens of languages, providing insight and inspiration to millions worldwide—including ardent admirers in the West such as Leibniz, Carl Jung, Philip K. Dick, Allen Ginsberg, Hermann Hesse, Bob Dylan, Jorge Luis Borges, and I. M. Pei. Smith offers an unparalleled biography of the most revered book in China's entire cultural tradition, and he shows us how this enigmatic ancient classic has become a truly global phenomenon.
The I Ching or Book of Changes: Or Book Of Changes (Bollingen Series #170)
by Richard WilhelmThe bestselling English translation of the ancient classic of Chinese divination that has inspired millions with its timeless insights into the changing nature of all existenceThe I Ching, or Book of Changes, has exerted a living influence in China for thousands of years. Today, it continues to enrich the lives of readers around the world. First set down in the dawn of history as a book of oracles, it grew into a book of wisdom with the inclusion of commentaries on its oracular pronouncements, eventually becoming one of the Five Classics of Confucianism and providing a common source for both Confucianist and Taoist philosophy. This edition of the I Ching is the most authoritative and complete translation available, preserving the spirit of the ancient text while providing a vital key for anyone who seeks to live harmoniously with the immutable law of change.The book presents the sixty-four hexagrams of the I Ching along with their texts and interpretations in a format especially designed for easy reference. Unlike many editions of the I Ching, it also features the Ten Wings, supplemental writings traditionally ascribed to Confucius that provide indispensable insights into the symbolic structure of the hexagrams and their place in a cosmology where change is the only constant.With an illuminating foreword by C. G. Jung and an informative introduction by Richard Wilhelm, this beautiful edition of the I Ching shares the essence of wisdom and a true understanding of life.
I Could Be So Good For You: A Portrait of the North London Working Class
by John MedhurstI Could Be So Good For You is a unique portrait of north London's working class from the 1950s to the 21st century, and how it lived, struggled, survived and sometimes thrived. <p><p> I Could Be So Good For You tackles head-on the pernicious and implicitly racist fiction that London, most especially north London, has no "real" working class in comparison to a more "authentic" working class in a place called "the North". In doing so it offers a history and a portrait of north London's working class from the 1950s to the 21st century, based on a wide and original range of sources including personal memoirs, autobiographies, collected oral histories and new interviews conducted by the author. The result is an important social history and a rich panorama of working-class life — its struggles, work, celebrations, events, triumphs, tragedies and the occasional nice little earner. For good or ill, from the start of post-war affluence in the 1950s to the economic crash of 2008, north London's working class had a life experience like almost no other part of the British working class, one not just of poverty, racism and exploitation, but also of bold new housing schemes in the heart of the city, of great opportunity and diversity and enjoyment. Its about time to tell that story.
I Don't Know What to Believe
by Ben KaminAmericans--especially young people--are more un-churched and less affiliated with organized religion than at any other time in our history. I Don't Know What to Believe addresses that decline and presents an insightful examination of authentic spirituality for those who desire answers, guidance, and perspective regarding an important aspect of their lives: their beliefs, and relationship to, a higher power.Rabbi Ben Kamin addresses questions he has received from real people over the thirty years of his ministry, such as: Why does my parents' religion have to define me? Am I God's child even if I don't go to religious services? Does scripture include me in its ideology regardless of how much scripture I know? How do I follow my own spirituality while still respecting my parents' traditions?Ben Kamin is the award-winning author of ten books and is a scholar on the life and work of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. He has led congregations in Toronto, New York, Cleveland, and San Diego since his ordination in 1978.
“I Don’t See Color”: Personal and Critical Perspectives on White Privilege
by Bettina Bergo Eula Biss Tracey NichollsWho is white, and why should we care? There was a time when the immigrants of New York City’s Lower East Side—the Irish, the Poles, the Italians, the Russian Jews—were not white, but now “they” are. There was a time when the French-speaking working classes of Quebec were told to “speak white,” that is, to speak English. Whiteness is an allegorical category before it is demographic.This volume gathers together some of the most influential scholars of privilege and marginalization in philosophy, sociology, economics, psychology, literature, and history to examine the idea of whiteness. Drawing from their diverse racial backgrounds and national origins, these scholars weave their theoretical insights into essays critically informed by personal narrative. This approach, known as “braided narrative,” animates the work of award-winning author Eula Biss. Moved by Biss’s fresh and incisive analysis, the editors have assembled some of the most creative voices in this dialogue, coming together across the disciplines. Along with the editors, the contributors are Eduardo Bonilla-Silva, Nyla R. Branscombe, Drucilla Cornell, Lewis R. Gordon, Paget Henry, Ernest-Marie Mbonda, Peggy McIntosh, Mark McMorris, Marilyn Nissim-Sabat, Victor Ray, Lilia Moritz Schwarcz, Louise Seamster, Tracie L. Stewart, George Yancy, and Heidi A. Zetzer.
I Don't Want to Go Home: The Oral History of the Stone Pony
by Nick CorasanitiA captivating oral history of the iconic music venue the Stone Pony and of the rise, fall, and rebirth of Asbury Park, New Jersey—featuring interviews with Bruce Springsteen, Steve Van Zandt, Southside Johnny, members of the E Street Band and Asbury Jukes, the Ramones, the Jonas Brothers, Jack Antonoff, and other legendary musicians.Featuring exclusive, never-before-seen photos from Danny ClinchIn 1970, Asbury Park, New Jersey, was ripped apart by race riots that left the once-proud beach town an hour away from Manhattan smoldering, suffering and left for dead.Four years later, a few miles down the coast in Seaside Heights, two bouncers, Jack Roig and Butch Pielka, tired of the daily grind, dreamt of owning their own place. Under-prepared and minimally funded, the two bought the first bar they considered, in a city where no one wanted to be, without setting one foot in the place. They named it the Stone Pony, and turned it into a rock club that Bruce Springsteen would soon call home and a dying town would call its beating heart.But the bar had to fight to survive. Despite its success in launching and attracting rockers like Stevie Van Zandt, “Southside” Johnny Lyon, and Springsteen, the Stone Pony—like everything in Asbury Park for the past half century—could only weather the drags of a depressed city for so long.How did the Stone Pony beat the odds to survive? How did it become an international rock pilgrimage site, not just for fans of Springsteen, but for punk rockers, jam bands, pop, indie, alternative and many other musicians as well? And how did it continue to inspire and influence a hall-of-fame list of New Jersey and national rock stars? The story of the Stone Pony—thrillingly charted in this detailed oral history—is the chronicle of a proud and unique cultural mecca blooming in a down-but-not-yet-out tough town. As Nick Corasaniti reveals, the stories of Asbury Park and the Stone Pony are that of modern America itself—a place of battered hopes, big dreams, and dogged resilience.
i ek A Reader's Guide
by Kelsey WoodA comprehensive overview of Slavoj ?i?ek's thought, including all of his published works to date. Provides a solid basis in the work of an engaging thinker and teacher whose ideas will continue to inform philosophical, psychological, political, and cultural discourses well into the future Identifies the major currents in ?i?ek's thought, discussing all of his works and providing a background in continental philosophy and psychoanalytic theory necessary to its understanding Explores ?i?ek's growing popularity through his engagement in current events, politics, and cultural studies Pertains to a variety of fields, including contemporary philosophy, psychology, cultural studies, sociology, political science, esthetics, literary theory, film theory, and theology
I Heard There Was A Secret Chord: Music as Medicine
by Daniel J. LevitinNeuroscientist and New York Times bestselling author of This Is Your Brain on Music Daniel J. Levitin reveals how the deep connections between music and the human brain can be harnessed for healing.Music is perhaps one of humanity&’s oldest medicines as well as its most universal: from China to the Ottoman Empire, Europe to Africa and pre-colonial South America, cultures have developed rich traditions for using sound and rhythm to ease suffering, spur healing, and calm the mind. Despite this history, musical therapy has long been considered the remit of ancient practice and alternative medicine, if not outright quackery and pseudoscience. In the last decade, however, an overwhelming body of scientific evidence has emerged that persuasively argues music can offer profoundly effective treatment for a whole host of ailments, from Alzheimer&’s to PTSD, depression, pain, and cognitive injury. It is, in short, one of the most potent and remarkably promising new therapies available today.A work of dazzling ideas, cutting-edge research, and joyful celebration of the human mind, I Heard There Was a Secret Chord explores the critical role music has played in human evolution, illuminating how the story of the human brain is inseparable from the creative enterprise of music that has bound cultures together throughout history. Music insinuates itself into our earliest memories; it is intimately connected to our emotional regulation and cognition; its shared rhythms and sounds are essential to our social behaviors. As neuroscientist Daniel J. Levitin demonstrates in this mind-expanding follow-up to This Is Your Brain on Music—which revolutionized our understanding of the neuroscience of song—medical researchers are now finding that these same deep connections can be harnessed to create profound benefits for those both young and old.
The I in Team: Sports Fandom and the Reproduction of Identity
by Erin C. TarverThere is one sound that will always be loudest in sports. It isn’t the squeak of sneakers or the crunch of helmets; it isn’t the grunts or even the stadium music. It’s the deafening roar of sports fans. For those few among us on the outside, sports fandom—with its war paint and pennants, its pricey cable TV packages and esoteric stats reeled off like code—looks highly irrational, entertainment gone overboard. But as Erin C. Tarver demonstrates in this book, sports fandom has become extraordinarily important to our psyche, a matter of the very essence of who we are. Why in the world, Tarver asks, would anyone care about how well a total stranger can throw a ball, or hit one with a bat, or toss one through a hoop? Because such activities and the massive public events that surround them form some of the most meaningful ritual identity practices we have today. They are a primary way we—as individuals and a collective—decide both who we are who we are not. And as such, they are also one of the key ways that various social structures—such as race and gender hierarchies—are sustained, lending a dark side to the joys of being a sports fan. Drawing on everything from philosophy to sociology to sports history, she offers a profound exploration of the significance of sports in contemporary life, showing us just how high the stakes of the game are.