Bøger i Very Short Introductions serien

What does U.S. history look like with women at the center of the story? From Pocahantas to military women serving in the Iraqi war, this Very Short Introduction chronicles the contributions that women have made to the American experience from a multicultural perspective that emphasizes how gender shapes women's-and men's-lives.

In this Very Short Introduction Ian Walmsley introduces the physics of light. Beginning with the earliest conceptions of the nature of light he traces the growth of our understanding, through competing particle and wave theories to wave-particle duality and quantum theory, and the latest exciting applications such as optoelectronics.

Combinatorics is a large branch of mathematics involving the counting, selecting, and arranging of objects. Robin Wilson explores the field, looking at problems such as the shortest routes from A to B, to the number of Sudoku puzzles possible.

Adolescence can be a turbulent period. Encompassing both classic and modern research, Smith explores its cultural and historical context, the biological changes to the adolescent brain, and the difficulties - the search for identity, relationship changes, risk-taking and anti-social behaviours - that adolescence brings.

This succinct and insightful account of decolonization analyses the tumultuous events that caused the shift from a world of colonial empires to a world of nation-states in the years after World War II.

This Very Short Introduction explains how organisms can 'know' the time and reveals what we now understand of the nature and operation of chronobiological processes. Covering variables such as light, the metabolism, human health, and the seasons, Foster and Kreitzman illustrate how jet lag and shift work can impact on human well-being.

This Very Short Introduction looks at the nature of learning and how it takes place. From the early experiments of Pavlov, Thorndike, and others to the most recent studies in social learning, Haselgrove discusses learning in both humans and other animals.

In this Very Short Introduction Geoffrey Nowell-Smith defines the field of cinema, and explores its fascinating history within the cultural and aesthetic sphere. Considering the influences of the other art forms from which it arose, he looks at how technological advances have opened up new horizons for the cinema industry.

This Very Short Introduction provides a narrative interpretation of key themes that emerge in the history of Asian migrations to North America, highlighting how Asian immigration has shaped the evolution of ideological and legal interpretations of America as a 'nation of immigrants'.

Ageing entails lifelong dynamic changes in biological, psychological, and social functioning. While such changes in later adulthood were somewhat neglected by scientists in the past, recent decades have seen a marked increase in research in this area. Nancy A. Pachana examines the impact of rising numbers of older people worldwide.

This Very Short Introduction considers who Leibniz was and introduces his overarching intellectual vision. It follows his pursuit of the systematic reform and advancement of all the sciences, to be undertaken as a collaborative enterprise supported by an enlightened ruler, and his ultimate goal of the improvement of the human condition.

A timely overview of populism, one of the most contested concepts in political journalism and the social sciences.

Animal behaviour is a central topic of zoology, and with the development of ideas concerning the role of genes as well as environment the subject has been transformed. Tristram Wyatt gives a modern view, including a sense of the power of gene knock-outs, computing, and image analysis to enable detailed experiments and observations of behaviour.

Politics, economics, ideology, culture, strategy, tactics, and philosophy have all shaped war, but none of these factors has driven the evolution of warfare as much as technology. Expanding on this compelling thesis, this Very Short Introduction traces the co-evolution of technology and war from the Stone Age to the age of cyberwar and nanotechnology.

Provides a comprehensive and engaging introduction to copyright, patents, trademarks, and other forms of knowledge that are subject to global law and regulation.

Rocks are crucial constituents of our lives, not only making the solid ground beneath our feet, but breaking up into the soil that feeds our crops, and providing the metal ores and other materials vital for civilization. This Very Short Introduction introduces the structure and diversity of rocks on Earth, in outer space, and on other planets.

Ideas of home play a prominent role in the way people of all cultures frame an understanding of their lives. This Very Short Introduction considers the enduring concept of home in our modern world, as international and local migration, homelessness, and uprootedness threaten to destabilize our traditional notions of place and belonging.

The Industrial Revolution was one of the great, transforming events of world history. Robert C. Allen explains what happened during this period, and why. He asks why the revolution occured in Britain rather than other countries, and looks at the impact of changing technology and business organizations on contemporary social structures.

Gravity is the most immediately familiar of the four fundamental forces of nature, and its effects dominate many of the phenomena commonly observed. Timothy Clifton looks at the development of our understanding of gravity, from Newton's apple to gravitational waves and efforts such as string theory to combine gravity with quantum mechanics.

Clinical psychology treats people who are facing difficulties or changes in their lives. Approaching personal distress as an unhappy outcome of certain ways of thinking, behaving and relating, often occurring within difficult circumstances, practitioners work with people to try and help them change what is distressing or concerning them.

Ian Stewart considers the concept of infinity and the profound role it plays in mathematics, logic, physics, cosmology, and philosophy. He shows that working with infinity is not just an abstract, intellectual exercise, and analyses its important practical everyday applications.

Utilitarianism is one of the most important and influential secular philosophies of modern times, and has drawn considerable debate and controversy. This Very Short Introduction considers its origins, its relevance to modern moral challenges, and the arguments and discussions around utilitarian approaches.

How have the Jews survived? For millennia, they have defied odds by overcoming the travails of exile, persecution, and recurring plans for their annihilation. This book charts the long journey of the Jews through history. At the same time, it points to two unlikely factors to explain the survival of the Jews: antisemitism and assimilation.

This book looks at the role of the university in a social and economic context, as a repository of knowledge and a site for instruction. It considers how universities are founded,, funded, governed, lead, and managed, how the advent of increased fees has affected their relationship with students, and what is in the future for higher education.

John Waller describes the changing ideas concerning heredity from antiquity to the modern biological understanding, considering both the efforts over the centuries to identify the physiological mechanisms involved and how views of heredity have been used to justify or condemn inequalities of class, gender, and race.

Relative newcomers within the story of evolution, mammals are hugely successful and have colonized land, water, and air. Tom Kemp discusses the great diversity of mammalian species, and looks at how their very disparate characteristics, physiologies, and behaviours are all largely driven by one uniting factor: endothermy, or warm-bloodedness.

Jonathan Post introduces all of Shakespeare's poetry, including the sonnets and his great narrative poems, and explores themes of love and lust in these works. He also considers the debates surrounding their disputed authorship, and the impact these poems had, from contemporary readers right up to today.

India has become one of the world's emerging powers, rivaling China in terms of global influence. Yet people still know relatively little about the cultural changes unfolding in India today. Craig Jeffrey looks at the history of India, and considers the questions and challenges facing it today, informed by the everyday stories of Indian citizens.

An unimaginably vast amount of data is now generated by our on-line lives and businesses, At the same time, our ability to store, manage, analyse, and exploit this data is becoming ever more sophisticated. This Very Short Introduction maps out the technology, and also the range of possibilities, challenges, and ethical questions it raises.

How has the English language evolved into the version we know today? How will it develop in future? Is it changing for the better or the worse? Simon Horobin's entertaining Very Short Introduction engages with these often heated debates, giving the historical and linguistic framework which will enable well informed discussion.