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Signal and Information Processing, Networking and Computers: Proceedings of the 11th International Conference on Signal and Information Processing, Networking and Computers (ICSINC): Vol. III (Lecture Notes in Electrical Engineering #1188)
by Yue Wang Lexi Xu Jiaqi Zou Zhilei Ling Xinzhou ChengThis book collects selected papers from the 11th Conference on Signal and Information Processing, Networking and Computers held in Chengdu, China, in September 2023. The book focuses on the current works of information theory, communication system, computer science, aerospace technologies, big data, and other related technologies. People from both academia and industry of these fields can contribute and find their interests from the book.The 11th International Conference on Signal and Information Processing, Networking and Computers (ICSINC) was held in Chengdu, China, in September 2023, which focused on the key technologies and challenges of signal and information processing schemes, network application, computer theory, space technologies, big data, and other related technologies
Loving Life as It Is: A Buddhist Guide to Ultimate Happiness
by Chakung Jigme WangdrakPractical Buddhist wisdom and mindful methods for finding the silver lining in all circumstances—from a remarkable new voice in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition.Chakung Jigme Wangdrak gives concrete advice on how to reorient your thinking when faced with the challenges, mess, and chaos that inevitably occur in life. By embracing pain and suffering, you can learn to see their roots, begin to work with them, and eventually let them go. This will create joy and ease, allowing you to fully savor happiness.In clear language, Jigme Wangdrak conveys the steps, stages, and categories of mental exercises and methods that everyone—from beginner to experienced practitioner and non-Buddhists—can use to train their mind toward happiness:Take happiness and suffering as the pathCultivate courage, gratitude, and compassionPractice contentment (not complacency)Recognize outer and inner obstacles when faced with challenging situationsDispel self-grasping to reduce suffering Develop patience and toleranceA true Buddhist master and unique lineage holder, Jigme Wangdrak offers a roadmap to freedom with teachings that will benefit your spiritual practice and daily life—he shows you how to love your life as it already is!
Fracture Mechanics: Fundamentals and Applications
by Russell Wanhill Michael Janssen Jan ZuidemaThis book covers both theoretical and practical aspects of fracture mechanics and integrates materials science with solid mechanics.
Nanotechnology Based Strategies for Combating Antimicrobial Resistance
by Mohmmad Younus Wani Irshad Ahmad Wani Akhilesh RaiThis book provides a comprehensive overview of recent advances in nanotechnology as an alternative strategy for addressing antimicrobial resistance (AMR). Examining nanotechnology-based methods such as nanoencapsulation, drug delivery, and conjugation, the text highlights their successful application in treating microbial infections with reduced resistance and off-target toxicity. The introductory section outlines AMR and explores diverse mechanisms of microbial resistance, emphasizing the potential of nanotechnology to surmount these challenges. Subsequent chapters investigate the role of specific nanomaterials—metal nanoparticles, metal oxide nanoparticles, functionalized quantum dots, magnetic nanoparticles, bimetallic nanoparticles, nanocomposites, carbon nanomaterials, and polymer-based nanomaterials—in overcoming antimicrobial resistance. Several chapters focus on the efficacy of nanoemulsions as an antimicrobial delivery method, underscoring their inherent antimicrobial properties, capacity to enhance drug solubility, stability, bioavailability, and targeting potential at the organ and cellular levels. The concluding section provides a detailed review of liposomes, dendrimers-based nanoparticles, and micelles as drug delivery vehicles in the context of combating pathogens resistant to antimicrobials.
Creatures of Attention: Aesthetics and the Subject before Kant (Signale: Modern German Letters, Cultures, and Thought)
by Johannes WankhammerCreatures of Attention excavates the early modern prehistory of our late modern crises of attention. At the threshold of modernity, philosophers, scientists, and poets across Europe began to see attention as the key to autonomous agency and knowledge. Recovering the philosophical and literary works from eighteenth-century Germany in which "attention," "subject," and "aesthetics" developed their modern meanings, Johannes Wankhammer examines control over attention as the cultural technique underpinning the ideal of individual autonomy. Aesthetics, founded by Alexander Baumgarten as a science of sense perception, challenged this ideal by reframing art as a catalyst for alternative modes of selfhood and attention. While previous scholarship on the history of attention emphasized the erosion of subjectivity by industrial or technological modernization, Wankhammer asks how attention came to define subjectivity in the first place. When periodically recurring crises of attention threaten the coherence of the subject, the subject comes undone at the very seams that first sutured it together. Creatures of Attention offers the first systematic study of a foundational discourse on attention from 1650 to 1780. Presenting pre-Kantian aesthetics as a critique of the Enlightenment paradigm of strained attention, the book offers a fresh perspective on poetics and aesthetics in eighteenth-century Germany.
Slim by Design: Mindless Eating Solutions for Everyday Life
by Brian WansinkIn Slim by Design, leading behavioral economist, food psychologist, and bestselling author Brian Wansink introduces groundbreaking solutions for designing our most common spaces—schools, restaurants, grocery stores, and home kitchens, among others—in order to make positive changes in how we approach and manage our diets.Anyone familiar with Wansink’s Mindless Eating knows this is not a typical diet book. Wansink shares his scientific approach to eating, providing insight and information, so we can all make better choices when it comes to food.The pioneer of the Small Plate Movement, Brian Wansink presents compelling research conducted at the Food and Brand Lab at Cornell University by way of cartoons, drawings, charts, graphs, floor plans, and more. Slim by Design offers innovative ways to make healthy eating mindlessly easy.
The Pea and the Sun: A Mathematical Paradox
by Leonard M. WapnerTake an apple and cut it into five pieces. Would you believe that these five pieces can be reassembled in such a fashion so as to create two apples equal in shape and size to the original? Would you believe that you could make something as large as the sun by breaking a pea into a finite number of pieces and putting it back together again? Neither did Leonard Wapner, author of The Pea and the Sun, when he was first introduced to the Banach-Tarski paradox, which asserts exactly such a notion. Written in an engaging style, The Pea and the Sun catalogues the people, events, and mathematics that contributed to the discovery of Banach and Tarski's magical paradox. Wapner makes one of the most interesting problems of advanced mathematics accessible to the non-mathematician.
A Stranger On Board: This summer’s most tense and unputdownable thriller
by Cameron WardThere's a murderer on board. And everyone is a suspect...'Fast-paced, gripping and intense - A Stranger on Board is going to make waves this summer' T.M. LOGAN'What a tense, breath-taking read! Amazing' 5***** READER REVIEW ________Welcome to The Escape.A luxury superyacht. A once-in-a lifetime opportunity to get away. Until the first passenger goes missing...Everyone on board has a part to play.The newcomer with secrets buried in her past.The unexpected guest looking for an escape. The crew looking to settle old scores. They all have something to hide.But only one of them is a killer...________READERS LOVE A STRANGER ON BOARD:'A gripping suspense that grabs from the first page . . . Fizzing with adrenaline' 5***** Reader Review'Loved every page of this - was hooked from the start!' 5***** Reader Review'A fantastic, fast-paced story with enough intrigue to keep you gripped and guessing until that final climax!' 5***** Reader Review'This book gripped me and had me hooked until the very last page' 5***** Reader Review
Contes féeriques de Frotwoot (Tome 1: La Cour Unseelie)
by Charlie WardLes tribunaux Seelie et Unseelie sont en guerre. D'un côté: Nobles chevaliers, luttant pour la liberté. De l'autre: des terroristes pas si nobles, luttant pour le droit de gouverner. Pris au milieu: un adolescent très confus et très perdu de l'Indiana. Son nom est Frotwoot Crossley. Et il est sur le point de découvrir que, d'une manière ou d'une autre, ce n'est même pas la chose la plus étrange à son sujet ...
Chronicles of Darkness (Routledge Revivals)
by David WardFirst published in 1989, Chronicles of Darkness is about images of Africa seen through the eyes of writers, visitors, residents, and native-born. They range from Joseph Conrad and Olive Schreiner, through Laurens van der Post, Karen Blixen and Evelyn Waugh, to more recent writers like Nadine Gordimer, Andre Brink and J.M. Coetzee.Such writers have frequently been faced with feelings of alienation, marginality, exile, self-consciousness, and egoism. It is only in this sense- that the eyes which see are shadowed and troubled- that Africa is a ‘dark continent’ and that these writings are ‘chronicles of darkness’. In some cases, Africa, even if merely a backdrop painted in crude and garish colors, becomes a way of revealing or admitting something about ‘Europe’ which might be concealed when a writer performs in a different theatre. This is an interesting read for scholars and researchers of English literature and African studies.
Garden of Ruins: Occupied Louisiana in the Civil War (Conflicting Worlds: New Dimensions of the American Civil War)
by J. Matthew WardJ. Matthew Ward’s Garden of Ruins serves as an insightful social and military history of Civil War–era Louisiana. Partially occupied by Union forces starting in the spring of 1862, the Confederate state experienced the initial attempts of the U.S. Army to create a comprehensive occupation structure through military actions, social regulations, the destabilization of slavery, and the formation of a complex bureaucracy. Skirmishes between Union soldiers and white civilians supportive of the Confederate cause multiplied throughout this period, eventually turning occupation into a war on local households and culture. In unoccupied regions of the state, Confederate forces and their noncombatant allies likewise sought to patrol allegiance, leading to widespread conflict with those they deemed disloyal. Ward suggests that social stability during wartime, and ultimately victory itself, emerged from the capacity of military officials to secure their territory, governing powers, and nonmilitary populations. Garden of Ruins reveals the Civil War, state-building efforts, and democracy itself as contingent processes through which Louisianans shaped the world around them. It also illustrates how military forces and civilians discovered unique ways to wield and hold power during and immediately after the conflict.
Let Us Descend: A Novel
by Jesmyn WardOPRAH&’S BOOK CLUB PICK • Instant New York Times Bestseller • Named one of the best books of 2023 by The Washington Post, Vanity Fair, The Boston Globe, Time, The New Yorker, and more. &“Nothing short of epic, magical, and intensely moving.&” —Vogue • &“A novel of triumph.&” —The Washington Post • &“Harrowing, immersive, and other-worldly.&” —People From &“one of America&’s finest living writers&” (San Francisco Chronicle) and &“heir apparent to Toni Morrison&” (LitHub)—comes a haunting masterpiece about an enslaved girl in the years before the Civil War that&’s destined to become a classic.Let Us Descend describes a journey from the rice fields of the Carolinas to the slave markets of New Orleans and into the fearsome heart of a Louisiana sugar plantation. A journey that is as beautifully rendered as it is heart wrenching, the novel is &“[t]he literary equivalent of an open wound from which poetry pours&” (NPR). Annis, sold south by the white enslaver who fathered her, is the reader&’s guide. As she struggles through the miles-long march, Annis turns inward, seeking comfort from memories of her mother and stories of her African warrior grandmother. Throughout, she opens herself to a world beyond this world, one teeming with spirits: of earth and water, of myth and history; spirits who nurture and give, and those who manipulate and take. While Annis leads readers through the descent, hers is ultimately a story of rebirth and reclamation. From one of the most singularly brilliant and beloved writers of her generation, this &“[s]earing and lyrical…raw, transcendent, and ultimately hopeful&” (The Atlanta Journal-Constitution) novel inscribes Black American grief and joy into the very land—the rich but unforgiving forests, swamps, and rivers of the American South. Let Us Descend is Jesmyn Ward&’s most magnificent novel yet.
The Decisive Decade: American Grand Strategy for Triumph Over China
by Jonathan D. WardWith a focus on the economic battlefront and in-depth analysis of the diplomatic, military, and ideological arenas, the world’s foremost expert on US-China global competition offers a rousing, strategic call to action and playbook—harvesting all of our nation’s ingenuity, confidence, and will power—to outcompete the long-term strategies of China and its Communist Party. In The Decisive Decade, Dr. Jonathan D.T. Ward—China scholar and founder of the Atlas Organization, a consultancy focused on US-China global competition—offers a comprehensive framework for how the United States can, and must, defeat China on the world stage economically, diplomatically, militarily, and ideologically. International security and American supremacy are at stake—and now is the time for the US to take action. China’s global power and influence grows every day. Working from a deep sense of national identity, the Chinese Communist Party is leading its country toward what it deems “the great rejuvenation of the Chinese Nation,” and executing a long-term Grand Strategy to topple over its chief adversary, the United States. As China becomes increasingly repressive domestically and aggressive overseas, it threatens to upend America’s global dominance at every turn. Ward provides novel and practical strategies that our government, as well as our businesses and our citizens, can utilize to undermine our adversary. Exhaustive campaigns in the economic, diplomatic, military, and ideological arenas, he argues, must be taken to achieve victory. With expert analysis of the history of US-China relations, as well as insight into how the Russia-Ukrainian war can inform our strategic thinking, The Decisive Decade presents a unique toolkit for our triumph over China. We can succeed, but it won’t be easy; it will take all of our nation’s ingenuity, confidence, and willpower to win.
Standpoint Phenomenology: Methodologies of Breakdown, Sign, and Wonder
by Katherine WardThis book introduces a standpoint approach to phenomenology and reconceives the phenomenological project as not an individual but a communal endeavor—one that, importantly, requires insight from across the spectrum of human experience and especially experiences of those who have traditionally been absent from the discipline. To develop this approach, the book draws on the feminist tradition of standpoint epistemology. The book borrows two of standpoint epistemology’s key theses—that of situated knowledge (what we know is shaped and often limited by our social location) and inverted privilege (epistemological advantage can in some contexts be inversely related to one’s social location). In standpoint phenomenology, these develop into the thesis of situated phenomenology and inverted phenomenological privilege respectively. This book presents three specific methodologies that support the standpoint approach to phenomenology: the methodologies of breakdown, sign, and wonder. All have their origins in the classical phenomenological work of Heidegger and Merleau-Ponty. Though these methods are used by these phenomenologists, they are not explicitly articulated or explained in any detail. The book lays out how and why these methodologies can be used to reveal the conditions supporting human existence and then highlights the role each might play in a standpoint approach to phenomenology.
Routledge Handbook of Sports and Exercise Therapy (Routledge International Handbooks)
by Keith WardThe Routledge Handbook of Sports and Exercise Therapy is a methodically detailed, authoritative, contemporaneous and practical reference source for all those involved in sports and exercise therapy, whether students, established practitioners, educators or researchers. This comprehensive handbook cohesively presents foundational subjects and introduces principles and applications to support the development and practice of sports and exercise therapists.These are presented alongside new essential and evolving topic areas. Such a blend of fundamental underpinning and applied and experiential practical guidance gives this handbook a real sense of relevancy, and a contribution which can help to consolidate the positioning of sports and exercise therapists as key practitioners in an advancing landscape of health, exercise, sport, research and education. The handbook has been produced to create a seamless reference source for readers, but each of its chapters are also designed to be stand-alone presentations in their own right. The following areas are covered: Learning and teaching Evidence-based practice Anatomy and physiology Pathology of injuries Health and safety Clinical assessment Therapeutic modalities Injury rehabilitation Sports and exercise as medicine Sports and exercise nutrition Sports and exercise psychology Professionalism and ethics Structural and cultural competency Sideline sports injury management Management of regional injury conditions Case studies in sports and exercise therapy Employability and career development The handbook is comprehensively referenced and multi-authored. Its design incorporates numerous photographs, figures, tables and detailed sample document templates. It can be considered as an essential and topical resource for anyone involved in sports and exercise therapy, whether in their first year as an undergraduate or already working in professional practice.
The Fire Within Them
by Matthew WardThe sprawling Kingdom of Khalad stands alone. Severed from the rest of the world by an ancient, arcane war, its folk toil behind a wall of living mist, beholden to an undead king and his barons. But hope lies with two figures: Kat, an accomplished thief, and Vallant, a rebel and folk hero. Together they will light a fire that will burn away the corruption and tyranny of King Diar's rule. But only if they succeed . . .
The Fire Within Them
by Matthew WardSet in a world of ancient myth and dangerous magic, The Fire Within Them continues a heart-pounding adventure where a thief dares to seek vengeance - and finds herself on the path to war.For the first time in a millennia, the kingdom of Khalad is divided. The Battle of Athenoch has fanned the spark of Bashar Vallant's rebellion to a raging flame. Tyzanta, jewel of the east, has declared for his cause, and other cities have followed. Vallant, the people's hero, may soon be powerful enough to challenge Caradan Diar, Khalad's immortal king.But such power demands great personal sacrifice.Afflicted with omen rot after channelling the Deadwinds to save Athenoch from the koilos army, Kat searches for a means to stop the disease killing her as it did her mother. Her journey will uncover secrets long since buried - secrets concerning her past, her family and the kingdom itself. Eventually she'll learn that the past never stays buried in Khalad - and that the truth can cut deeper than any blade.Praise for the Soulfire Saga'Full of action, heart, betrayal, and set in a dark, engaging world, this book continues Ward's ability to deliver doorstopper dark fantasy that you just can't put down' Grimdark Magaine 'The Darkness Before Them brims with magic, monsters and intrigue, and the depth of the world is wonderfully, enthrallingly complex . . . a delight' Ben Galley'After setting up the pieces for a familiar fantasy caper, Ward neatly reassembles this story into a thoughtful examination of the limits of duty and loyalty . . . A promising series launch' Publishers Weekly 'Fantastic . . . a completely captivating start to a new series' Grimdark Dad'Ward has built a vast history into this world with an interesting magic system of runes and tattoos' SFFWorldAlso by Matthew Ward:The Soulfire SagaThe Darkness Before ThemThe Legacy trilogyLegacy of AshLegacy of SteelLegacy of Light
The Fire Within Them (The Soulfire Saga #2)
by Matthew WardThe second book in Matthew Ward's action-packed trilogy, the Soulfire Saga, The Fire Within Them is set in a world ruled by an immortal king, where souls fuel magic and a supernatural mist known as the Veil threatens to engulf the land. Perfect for readers of John Gwynne and Anthony Ryan. For the first time in a millennium, the kingdom of Khalad is divided. The Battle of Athenoch has fanned the spark of Bashar Vallant&’s rebellion to a raging flame. Tyzanta, jewel of the east, has declared for his cause, and other cities have followed. Vallant, the people&’s hero, may soon be powerful enough to challenge Caradan Diar, Khalad&’s immortal king. But such power demands great personal sacrifice. Afflicted with omen rot after channeling the Deadwinds to save Athenoch from the koilos army, Kat searches for a means to stop the disease killing her as it did her mother. Her journey will uncover secrets long since buried––secrets concerning her past, her family and the kingdom itself. Eventually she&’ll learn that the past never stays buried in Khalad––and that the truth can cut deeper than any blade.
In Bitter Chill: A Mystery (Inspector Francis Sadler #1)
by Sarah WardThe deepest secrets are the ones we keep from ourselves in this richly atmospheric, compellingly written, and expertly constructed crime debut from an emerging talent.Derbyshire, 1978: a small town in the idyllic English countryside is traumatized by the kidnapping of two young schoolgirls, Rachel Jones and Sophie Jenkins. Within hours, Rachel is found wandering alone near the roadside, unharmed yet unable to remember anything, except that her abductor was a woman. No trace of Sophie is ever discovered.Present day: over thirty years later, Sophie's mother commits suicide. Detective inspector Francis Sadler and detective constable Connie Childs are assigned to look at the kidnapping again to see if modern police methods can discover something that the original team missed. Rachel, with the help of her formidable mother and grandmother, recovered from the kidnapping and has become a family genealogist. She wants nothing more than to continue living quietly beneath the radar, but the discovery of the strangled body of one of her former teachers days after the suicide brings the national media back to her doorstep. Desperate to stop a modern killer from striking again, Rachel and the police must unpick the clues to uncover what really happened all those years ago as the past threatens to engulf the present.
Everyday Eating: Food, Taste and Trends in Britain since the 1950s
by Alan WardeHow have eating habits changed in recent decades? What does it mean to eat well? This fascinating book examines continuity and change in food consumption and eating patterns since the 1950s. The culinary landscape of Britain is explored through discussion of commodification, globalisation and diversification enabling an understanding of both developing trends and enduring habits. The author’s research undertaken over 40 years offers fresh insights into such practices as everyday meals, shopping, cooking and dining out and how these are shaped by demographic, social and cultural processes. The book provides a comprehensive and engaging analysis of eating in Britain today and of the many controversies about how this has changed.
One Perfect Couple
by Ruth WareHarkening to Agatha Christie’s classic And Then There Were None, this high-tension thriller follows five couples trapped on a storm-swept island as a killer stalks among them—from Ruth Ware, the New York Times bestselling author. <P><P>Lyla is in a bit of a rut. Her post-doctoral research has fizzled out, she’s pretty sure they won’t extend her contract, and things with her boyfriend, Nico, an aspiring actor, aren’t going great. When the opportunity arises for Nico to join the cast of a new reality TV show, One Perfect Couple, she agrees to try out with him. A whirlwind audition process later, Lyla finds herself whisked off to a tropical paradise with Nico, boating through the Indian Ocean towards Ever After Island, where the two of them will compete against four other couples—Bayer and Angel, Dan and Santana, Joel and Romi, and Conor and Zana—in order to win a cash prize. But not long after they arrive on the deserted island, things start to go wrong. <P><P>After the first challenge leaves everyone rattled and angry, an overnight storm takes matters from bad to worse. Cut off from the mainland by miles of ocean, deprived of their phones, and unable to contact the crew that brought them there, the group must band together for survival. As tensions run high and fresh water runs low, Lyla finds that this game show is all too real—and the stakes are life or death. <p> <b>New York Times Bestseller</b>
One Perfect Couple
by Ruth WareRuth Ware, the powerhouse New York Times bestselling author with over six million books sold to date, returns with her ninth novel, which promises to be the summer&’s most gripping beach read.Lyla is in a bit of a rut. Her post-doctorate research has fizzled out, she&’s pretty sure her contract will not be extended, and things with her boyfriend, Nico, an aspiring actor, aren&’t going great. When the opportunity arises for Nico to join the cast of a new reality TV show, The Perfect Couple, she decides to try out with him. This is the big break she needs! A whirlwind preproduction process later, Lyla finds herself whisked off to a tropical paradise with Nico, boating through the Indian Ocean towards Ever After Island, where the two of them will compete against four other couples—Bayer and Angel, Dan and Santana, Joe and Romi, and Connor and Zana—in order to win a cash prize. Alas, not long after they arrive on the deserted island, things start going wrong. After the first challenge leaves everyone rattled and angry, an overnight storm takes matters from bad to worse. Cut off from the mainland by miles of ocean, deprived of their phones, and unable to reach the boat and crew that brought them there, the group must band together for survival. Tensions run high and fresh water runs low. Then, one by one, contestants start to die. Lyla suddenly realizes she and Nico are trapped on the island with a murderer on the loose…and nowhere to hide. A fast-paced, spellbinding thriller rife with intrigue and characters that feel true to life, this novel proves yet again that Ruth Ware is the queen of psychological suspense.
The Buy Right Approach to Property Investing: Mastering the skills to invest wisely in property
by Pete Wargent Cate BakosThe basic premise of this book is that the best time to sell property is never – provided you buy the right property in the first place. The Buy Right Approach to Property Investing will help you to achieve a passive income and financial freedom through investing in Australian property. Cate and Pete's industry knowledge of Australian property investing shines through with detailed reflections on a multitude of investor successes and mistakes. Importantly, they outline what's involved in buying the right property, which includes: • doing your due diligence on areas, properties and price • researching historical capital growth and performance • calculating your return on investment • adopting a cautiously optimistic outlook and long-term view • managing your risk. Their mission is to demystify much of the jargon in the world of real estate and enable readers not only to better understand and relate to property investment goals but to embrace their confidence and take sensible, well-informed action.
Lifemaking: Political Philosophy for Human Flourishing in African Perspective
by Nimi WaribokoLifemaking offers a fresh frame for analyzing contemporary African politics and imagining its future. Rooted in the indigenous political philosophy of lifemaking of the Kalabari-Ijo people of the Niger Delta, this work is a counterpoint to the necropolitics that dominates African political practice. For practitioners and analysts for whom Africans and their polities are caught in the TINA (There Is No Alternative) syndrome, this book offers inspiration for an alternative to the current necropolitics. Because the book's thesis is an unreserved celebration of lifemaking, it identifies collective human flourishing as essential to politics.
Transcripts of the Sacred in Nigeria: Beautiful, Monstrous, Ridiculous
by Nimi WaribokoTranscripts of the Sacred in Nigeria explores how the sacred plays itself out in contemporary Africa. It offers a creative analysis of the logics and dynamics of the sacred (understood as the constellation of im/possibility available to a given community) in religion, politics, epistemology, economic development, and reactionary violence. Using the tools of philosophy, postcolonial criticism, political theory, African studies, religious studies, and cultural studies, Wariboko reveals the intricate connections between the sacred and the existential conditions that characterize disorder, terror, trauma, despair, and hope in the postcolonial Africa.The sacred, Wariboko argues, is not about religion or divinity but the set of possibilities opened to a people or denied them, the sum total of possibilities conceivable given their level of social, technological, and economic development. These possibilities profoundly speak to the present political moment in sub-Saharan Africa.