Bøger udgivet af Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group, Inc.

Professor H. James Birx shows how the never-ending controversy of human evolution came to be. He details the events that caused thinkers like Charles Darwin to develop his theory of evolution, and what ideas caused some people to reconcile a somewhat mystical theology with a concrete model of the universe. He tells you how Darwin's work infuriated everybody from "God-fearing" Christians to the church heirarchies. Birx explains how scientific advances and philosophical arguments have made beliefs about divine intervention as the origin of man a moot point. He shows how creationism ignores proven scientific facts, and how human evolution remains a much sounder truth. You'll read how some western religions are starting to accept evolution as the process which creates life on earth. You'll also learn why scientific evolution and creationism have not been accepted together and how bold attempts to merge the two ideas have failed miserably.

One fateful day in 1996, upon discovering that five freight cars' worth of glittering corn have reaped a tiny profit of $18.16, young Forrest Pritchard undertakes to save his family's farm. What ensues--through hilarious encounters with all manner of livestock and colorful local characters--is a crash course in sustainable agriculture. Pritchard's biggest ally is his renegade father, who initially questions his son's career choice and eschews organic foods for sugary mainstream fare. But just when the farm starts to turn heads at local markets, his father's health takes a turn for the worse. With poetry and humor, this timely memoir tugs on the heartstrings and feeds the soul long after the last page is turned.

Each Trade Policy Review consists of three parts: a report by the government under review, a report written independently by the WTO Secretariat, and the concluding remarks by the chair of the Trade Policy Review Body. A highlights section provides an overview of key trade facts. 15 to 20 new review titles are published each year. The reviews consist of detailed chapters examining the trade policies and practices of the member and describing trade policy-making institutions and the macroeconomic situation; these chapters are preceded by the Secretariat's Summary Observations, which summarize the report and presents the Secretariat's perspective on the member's trade policies. The Secretariat report and the member's policy statement are published after the review meeting, along with the minutes of the meeting and the text of the Chairperson's Concluding Remarks.

Game and quiz shows first started appearing on radio broadcasts in the 1930s, led by the CBS network's Professor Quiz, hosted by a man who was neither a professor nor even a college graduate, the first of several frauds that seemed to be endemic to the genre. Professor Quiz wa...

Intellectually stimulating articles, which grapple with the tough issues involving morality, justice, and the law. This balanced anthology will be of interest to philosophers, legal scholars, and anyone concerned about the relation of law to morality.

In this succinct, highly readable overview of the evolution of human society, the author argues that the 21st century will witness a crucially important and difficult transition for the human race. Blending the disciplines of anthropology and evolutionary psychology with over thirty years of experience in the diplomatic corps, Coon traces the evolution of the human tendency to divide others into two groups, "us versus them." People tend instinctively to behave altruistically toward members of their own in-group, and to react with suspicion, or even hostility, toward outsiders. He points out that complex human societies became possible only when cultural attitudes and mechanisms became accepted that encouraged individuals to define their in-groups in more expansive ways. Thus small kin-based bands grew into villages, kingdoms, and, eventually, the modern nation-state. Today, he argues, we have reached a stage where the whole world must be viewed as "us," for only a united world community can cope with today's global challenges.

Originally published in 1845, this concise critique formed the basis of thirty later lectures delivered in 1848 by Ludwig Feuerbach, one of Germany's most influential humanist philosophers. In The Essence of Religion Feuerbach applied the analysis expounded in The Essence of Christianity (1841) to religion as a whole. The main thrust of Feuerbach's argument is aptly summed up in the original subtitle to this work: "God the Image of Man. Man's Dependence upon Nature the Last and Only Source of Religion." Feuerbach reviews key aspects of religious belief and in each case explains them as imaginative elaborations of the primal awe and sense of dependence that humans experience in the face of nature's power and mystery. Rather than humans being created in the image of God, the situation is quite the reverse: "All theology is anthropology," he says, and "the being whom man sets over against himself as a separate supernatural existence is his own being."Feuerbach goes on to argue that the attributes of God are no more than reflections of the various needs of human nature. Further, as human civilization has advanced, the role of God has gradually diminished. In ancient times, before human beings had any scientific understanding of the way nature works, divine powers were seen behind every natural manifestation, from lightning bolts to the change of seasons. By contrast, in the modern era, when an in-depth understanding of natural causes has been achieved, there is no longer any need to imagine God behind the workings of nature: "He who for his God has no other material than that which natural science, philosophy, or natural observation generally furnishes to him . . . ought to be honest enough also to abstain from using the name of God, for a natural principle is always a natural essence and not what constitutes the idea of a God."Feuerbach's naturalistic philosophy had a decisive influence on Karl Marx and radical theologians such as Bruno Bauer and David Friedrich Strauss. His incisive critique remains a challenge to religion to this day.

Originally published in 1891 when Wilde was at the height of his form, these brilliant essays on art, literature, criticism, and society display the flamboyant poseur's famous wit and wide learning. A leading spokesman for the English Aesthetic movement, Wilde promoted "art for art's sake" against critics who argued that art must serve a moral purpose. On every page of this collection the gifted literary stylist admirably demonstrates not only that the characteristics of art are "distinction, charm, beauty, and imaginative power," but also that criticism itself can be raised to an art form possessing these very qualities.In the opening essay, Wilde laments the "decay of Lying as an art, a science, and a social pleasure." He takes to task modern literary realists like Henry James and Emile Zola for their "monstrous worship of facts" and stifling of the imagination. What makes art wonderful, he says, is that it is "absolutely indifferent to fact, [art] invents, imagines, dreams, and keeps between herself and reality the impenetrable barrier of beautiful style, of decorative or ideal treatment."The next essay, "Pen, Pencil, and Poison," is a fascinating literary appreciation of the life of Thomas Griffiths Wainewright, a talented painter, art critic, antiquarian, friend of Charles Lamb, and -- murderer.The heart of the collection is the long two-part essay titled "The Critic as Artist." In one memorable passage after another, Wilde goes to great lengths to show that the critic is every bit as much an artist as the artist himself, in some cases more so. A good critic is like a virtuoso interpreter: "When Rubinstein plays ... he gives us not merely Beethoven, but also himself, and so gives us Beethoven absolutely...made vivid and wonderful to us by a new and intense personality. When a great actor plays Shakespeare we have the same experience."Finally, in "The Truth of Masks," Wilde returns to the theme of art as artifice and creative deception. This essay focuses on the use of masks, disguises, and costume in Shakespeare.For newcomers to Wilde and those who already know his famous plays and fiction, this superb collection of his criticism offers many delights.

Melvin Harris, a researcher and broadcaster for the BBC, has written a fascinating expose of long-lived "psychic mysteries." "Investigating the Unexplained" examines many claims made by the proponents of the paranormal. Harris' work led him into the worlds of ghosts and demons, haunted houses, and spirit mediums. He checked up on reports of reincarnation, poltergeists, a mummy's curse, and eyewitness accounts of "little green children." This book gives us the real facts behind the famous Amityville Horror hoax, the hypnotic regressions to past lives recorded on the much-publicized Bloxham tapes, the "psychic detectives" involved in the search for Jack the Ripper, and many other "fully authenticated" but incredible tales. Harris went back to the primary sources of these stories and found he was always able to say, "Sorry, you've been duped!" For every legend he debunks, Harris present the facts. He shows us how and why a hoax was perpetrated. Often the public grasps on to someone else's story and, before long, these tales are mythologized and believed to be truths." Investigating the Unexplained" is an exciting look at psychic mysteries and the facts behind them.

People older than eighty-five, sometimes called "the oldest old," are now the fastest growing age group in the United States. As such they merit the attention of healthcare professionals, social workers, specialists in social gerontology, and everyone with a family member in this expanding segment of society. In this informative book, Drs. Johnson and Barer present original research showing how those eighty-five and older are adapting to the daily challenges of advanced age. They also examine what competencies people in this group need to survive and continue living within the larger community.The authors address the topics of health and physical status, family and social relationships, and quality of life, as well as the implications of this increase in life expectancy for families and society. An especially interesting feature of the book are vignettes that illustrate how the oldest old perceive and interpret their world, and thereby convey the "aura of survivorship."This book will be of interest to students, researchers, and policy makers in the fields of aging and wellness.

This book gives women the vital information they need to understand symptoms, find treatment, and weigh their childbirth options. Illustrations.

This insightful treatise on the essential components of human nature by the great American philosopher and educator John Dewey, in his own words, ôsets forth a belief that an understanding of habit and of different types of habit is the key to social psychology, while the operation of impulse and intelligence gives the key to individualized mental activity.ö Beginning with habits, Dewey discusses these basic patterns of conduct as essential mechanisms that allow individuals to coexist harmoniously within society and to adjust to the outer environment. The process of habit formation is a major part of childhood education as the growing individual learns the established modes of behavior in society.In the next section Dewey focuses on impulses, which motivate action and are regulated in response to the reactions of others and the learned habits that the society around us instills. Intelligence, the subject of the next part, in DeweyÆs view, is the chief instrument that allows human beings to act creatively and experimentally in response to the demands of both inner impulses and outer challenges. How we use our intelligence to deal with our impulses and habits reflects individual variations of character and largely determines life destinies.Intelligence is also the key to morality. If we use our intelligence to make moral judgments based on a clear understanding of empirical facts, then there is a far better chance, says Dewey, that our judgments will be good and our actions right, than if we blindly accept moral rules from traditional authorities or unthinkingly give way to natural instincts. Unless we use the tool of intelligence to understand the natural world around us and our own human nature, we cannot make wise value judgments to serve our best interests.Some eighty years after its original publication, DeweyÆs commonsensical approach, rooted in experience and objective observation, still has much to recommend it to students of ethics, psychology, and sociology.

This intriguing study of the conflict between Roman Catholicism and American democracy begins with four lectures by Roman Catholic priest and Harvard professor of church history George La Piana. A member of the Church himself, La Piana became highly critical of its undemocratic aspects after immigrating to the United States from Italy in 1914. A contributor to Foreign Affairs and The Nation, La Piana was often consulted by U.S. Supreme Court Justice Felix Frankfurter on church-state issues. Appended to La Piana's work is an extended afterword by social-ethics activist John M. Swomley. He brings the ongoing controversy concerning Vatican-U.S. relations up to date, especially in regard to such issues as censorship and academic freedom, abortion, population policy, and the Church as a political lobby group. For Catholics, non-Catholics, and all those concerned about the future course of American democracy, this authoritative, well-argued book presents much to ponder.

The university, as a core institution of democratic society, is increasingly threatened by the intrusion of big business. Corporations are working their way into academe in subtle and obvious ways: granting of exclusive concessions rights on campus to a softdrink manufacturer; use of a major portion of the resources, faculty, and research efforts of university departments by a particular company in exchange for modest funding; university administrators whose salaries are often doubled for service on the boards of important corporate contributors. Compounding the problem is the growing scarcity of public funding, which makes universities vulnerable to the lure of big money from pharmaceutical and biotechnology firms, computer giants, and wealthy private donors. Can faculty members remain independent under such heavy corporate influence? How does big money influence the direction of research? These are among the serious questions raised by the revealing articles in this thought-provoking and disturbing collection. Campus, Inc. exposes this new form of corporate welfare through hard research. More importantly, it emphasizes the necessity of preserving the democratic character of the university with its independent inquiry, diversity of viewpoints, and disinterested expertise. The authors also provide real and replicable examples, from the front-line of the movement, of actions that have been taken against campus corporatization: Successful efforts to take universities off the corporate auction block are becoming more common. A new era of student activism has helped roll back the sale of sweatshop-produced items in campus stores; the re-emergence of unions has helped faculty organize to prevent "hostile takeovers" of our publicly funded institutions; and effective strategies to redemocratize the university are increasingly available.

For many years, both Baptists and humanists have been embroiled in heated controversy in the public square. Fundamentalist Baptists have leveled strong charges against humanists, especially secular humanists, accusing them of undermining the moral and social fabric of America. And secular humanists have, in turn, accused some Baptists of betraying democracy and working to establish a theocracy. Can there be common ground between Baptists and humanists? At a historic dialogue convened at the University of Richmond, Virginia, Baptist and secular humanist scholars in theology, history, philosophy, and the social sciences, came together to define shared concerns and common values. The dialogue focused on major areas of concern: academic freedom; social, political, and religious tolerance; biblical scholarship; separation of church and state; the social agenda of the Christian Coalition and the Southern Baptist Convention; the danger of militant fundamentalism; freedom of conscience and the historic and current role of American Baptists; as well as the plight of pluralistic democracy. The result of that historic meeting is Freedom of Conscience: A Baptist/Humanist Dialogue, which includes essays by Robert S. Alley, Joe Barnhart, Vern L. Bullough, Bernard C. Farr, George H. Shriver, Paul D. Simmons, George D. Smith, and Dan O. Via. The book concludes with "In Defense of Freedom of Conscience," a cooperative Baptist/Secular Humanist Declaration, authorized by twenty-two distinguishedhumanist and Baptist leaders.

TITANIC THE COMPLETE BOOK OF THE MUSICAL

Is repressed memory fact or fiction? What role should therapists play in determining the truth? What, if any, weight should these "memories" be given when prosecuting claims of child sexual abuse? Noted experts seek answers that could affect thousands of lives. Tabloid talk shows and the courts are overflowing with adults alleging sexual and other abuses they endured as children. Parents have been hauled into court, convicted, and jailed over their children's claims of abuse, many of which have been based upon "memories" that have surfaced after therapists employed dubious techniques and suggestive "therapies." In some cases, the abuse really did occur. Alarmingly, in other cases, it did not. Noted psychologist and author Robert A. Baker states that experienced and responsible therapists vehemently disagree about the nature, source, and reliability of these "memories." In Child Sexual Abuse and False Memory Syndrome doctors, therapists, victims, researchers, and others search for answers in seven major areas: memory and its recovery, childhood trauma, repression and amnesia, hypnosis, suggestibility, professional problems and ethical issues, as well as needed research and legal implications. Distinguished contributors include Maggie Bruck, Stephen J. Ceci, Gail Goodman, James Hudson, John F. Kihlstrom, Elizabeth Loftus, Richard Ofshe, Harrison Pope, Leonore Terr, Ralph Underwager, Hillida Wakefield, Ethan Watters, Michael Yapko, and more than 20 others.

As the twentieth century draws to a close, a quick review of its major events reveals a death toll associated with far too many of them. Two world wars, a cold war, and numerous, smaller (yet still deadly) "hot wars" reflect the brutality of an age. But despite the widespread inhumanity epitomized by the Holocaust (which George Klein, the author, himself barely escaped), some individuals have triumphed over situations that would physically or emotionally destroy most others. How does this happen? What gives these remarkable people the ability to persevere against the most impossible odds? Live Now: Inspiring Accounts of Overcoming Adversity answers these questions by offering the fascinating and moving stories of three men close to the author. These men, "flow addicts", to use the terminology of psychologist and author of the book's foreword Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, survive through intense concentration, through selflessness, and through a genuine altruism. The first, Ali Elovic, fought on several fronts in World War II and was forced to endure the horrors of Nazi and Communist prisons, but still maintained his thirst for life, emerging as a successful businessman. The second, Nobel Prize-winning virologist Carleton Gajdusek, used his extraordinary scientific talent to escape conventional life and to provide a home and education to more than thirty youths from "primitive" cultures in New Zealand, Australia, and other places. The third, Klein's Uncle Miska, lost his entire family as well as his whole ethnic and religious group to the Holocaust, yet he was able to return to his home village, all alone, and become the universally loved director of the region. These men, in order to escape sorrow and weariness, chose an active commitment, a psychological state of timelessness and euphoria, that imparted tremendous inner strength and provided an antidote to the poisons of our times. Through the examples of their lives, readers can learn to achieve the same.

If you're one of the millions who use computers at work or at home, the hours you spend in front of the monitor could be giving you a pain in the neck, back, hand, wrist, or arm. If so, you may be suffering from CRS. Tightness, stiffness, and pain of the upper extremities are common complaints of writers and computer users. Carpal tunnel pain, repetitive strain injuries, occupational disorders of the upper extremities, and other problems related to heavy keyboard and computer use have spread across the nation as computers become indispensable at work and at home. Classified under the rubric "computer-related syndrome," or CRS for short, these injuries have caused a work slowdown, while creating a whole field of medical exploration. CRS: The Prevention & Treatment of Computer-Related Injuries by rheumatologist Dr. Richard Dean Smith and physical therapist Steve Garske calls attention to the common problems of computer use and offers practical advice and helpful hints intended to lessen the risk of sustaining injuries related to posture, rapid movements, and positional errors common to writers, computer users, and other occupations. Everyone needs to be informed of the dangers involved, as well as successful prevention techniques and helpful remedies when injury does occur. The book includes a history of CRS, information on symptoms, clinical findings, effects on work, and where to get help.

Modern medicine is one of the most successful branches of science, with a distinguished history of conquering many of the twentieth century's deadliest diseases. Yet today people are turning in record numbers to alternative therapies that have little or no scientific basis. Herbalists, homeopaths, crystal therapists, chiropractors, acupuncturists, and countless other unconventional practitioners are enjoying thriving businesses. What accounts for this flight from reason in the face of hard evidence that medical doctors do a better job of treating disease and alleviating suffering than their alternative counterparts? In Magic or Medicine? Dr. Robert Buckman and Karl Sabbagh offer a response to this question by critically evaluating both alternative and conventional medical approaches to patient care. Drawing on some of the earliest written medical sources as well as their own investigations into current alternative therapies, the authors argue that healing has always been partly the science of clinical treatment (medicine) and partly an art (magic). Medicine may make the patient get well, but often it is magic that makes the patient feel well. With all the pressures under which they work, modern medical doctors often neglect the magic in their dealings with patients. Alternative therapists, however, frequently offer nothing but magic. Buckman and Sabbagh look closely at the claims made for both medical science and alternative treatments and discover a gap between the promises and the reality of each approach. Magic or Medicine? is a fascinating exploration of healing in the late twentieth century and vital reading for anyone concerned about the effective delivery of health care.

Do the fractious groups of Arabs and Israelis actually need each other? Will the Pentagon find new enemies to replace the USSR? Are married couples held together by a shared sense of enmity toward outside parties and even each other? Who is more likely to cultivate enemies, men or women? Is the "devil" a created enemy? Is the need for enemies psychological, sociological, or biological? These and other fascinating and controversial questions are explored by David P. Barash, who skillfully combines findings from biology, psychology, sociology, politics, history, and even literature to shed new and unexpected light on the human condition. Barash also offers startling and controversial observations about who we are as human beings and why we seem to thrive on adversarial relationships. Beloved Enemies concludes with a hopeful message: We can overcome, not simply our enemies, but our need to have enemies, and our penchant for creating them.

This collection of essays by one of the world's most distinguished philosophers - the inaugural volume in the Prometheus Lecture Series - addresses the many and diverse aspects of atheistic humanism. Antony Flew begins his comprehensive study with "Fundamentals of Unbelief", in which he argues that there is no good or sufficient natural reason to believe that the universe is created by a conscious, personal, willing, and doing Being; that such a Being has nevertheless provided his (or her or its) creatures with a Revelation; and that we should either hope or fear some future for ourselves after our deaths. In the second part, "Defending Knowledge and Responsibility", Flew disposes of the perennial charge that a naturalistic world outlook presupposes values for which it cannot itself make room. He also criticizes sociologists of belief who refute themselves by refusing to admit that there is such a thing as objective knowledge. And he examines the subject of mental illness, explaining and defining the notion by reference to the familiar yet often denied realities of choice and consequent responsibility. The third section, "Scientific Socialism?", consists of three critical analyses of Marxism. Flew exposes the faulty philosophical foundations of Communism, compares Marxist theory with Darwin's theory of evolution, questions the status of Marxism as a social "science", and points out some of the significant failures of the socialist project. Finally, in the fourth part, "Applied Philosophy", Flew looks at three social issues, which have been the subject of much recent debate: the right to die, the definition of mental health, and the problem of racism. He concludes by criticizing B.F.Skinner's "science" of behaviorism, arguing that the ability to make choices for which we can be held responsible is an essential and distinctive characteristic of human beings.

The Christian religion presents itself as the way to contentment, spiritual health, and salvation. But is this really true? Dr. Wendell Watters offers a powerful argument, based on his many years of clinical experience with individuals, couples, and families, that Christianity's influence actually militates against human development in such vital areas as self-esteem, sexuality, and social interactions. The tragic end result of Christian conditioning is too often antisocial behavior, sexual dysfunction, poor psychological development, anxiety, and even major psychiatric illness. Christian indoctrination is not simply a problem affecting individuals or single families; the noxious effects of its teachings over nearly two millennia pervade society at large, even those who are not Christians, and in ways that seriously undermine human welfare and the quality of life. Christianity's aggressive pronatalist policies have encouraged large families, despite parents' inability to cope either emotionally or financially. With this the Christian church has formulated rigid sexual roles, forbidding all practices not leading directly to conception. By actually promoting sexual ignorance and irresponsibility, Christianity has allowed the proliferation of such social ills as rape, child molestation, and pornography. In the face of so much human suffering resulting from Christian doctrine, it is imperative that health care professionals, recognizing the Christian belief system as an addictive disease, develop a religious status examination to help evaluate how notions about life derived from Christian god-talk compromise individuals' healthy functioning. In failing to determine the role of oppressive religious beliefs in mental illness, physicians and other health care workers actually promote Christianity's continued stranglehold on human happiness and self-fulfillment.