Simon Singh

Some highlighting and margin notes throughout. Simon Singh has written a comprehensible history of the universe, detailing one of the most awe-inspiring scientific theories in a way that makes the most complicated ideas understandable. 

Paperback (1 to 2 lbs)

The Origin of the Universe

A half century ago, a shocking Washington Post headline claimed that the world began in five cataclysmic minutes rather than having existed for all time; a skeptical scientist dubbed the maverick theory the Big Bang. In this amazingly comprehensible history of the universe, Simon Singh decodes the mystery behind the Big Bang theory, lading us through the development of one of the most extraordinary, important, and awe-inspiring theories in science.

Big Bang

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Praise for:
“Using engaging historical accounts and compelling theoretical arguments, Anthony Gill reveals that religious liberty is neither a mishap of history nor the inevitable consequence of secular states. Instead, he uncovers the motives and self interests of politicians, religionists, and many others supporting religious freedoms around the globe and over time. They must read for anyone interested in the origins of civil ￼liberties.” - Roger Finke

The Political Origins of Religious Liberty

Susan Reynolds Whyte

Praise for Second Chances: 

"Bringing classic social anthropology questions to contemporary biopolitical contexts, Second Chances resituates the center of gravity in HIV/AIDS care around the concerns of its patients. The authors make clear the vital role of kinship, patronage, generation, and the economic and bodily concerns of everyday life in determining life amid shifting regimes of global health. With its superb use of extended cases, lively prose, and compelling analysis, Second Chances sets a new standard for collaborative scholarship." — Julie Livingston, author of Improvising Medicine: An African Oncology Ward in an Emerging Cancer Epidemic

Surviving AIDS in Uganda

During the first decade of this millennium, many thousands of people in Uganda who otherwise would have died from AIDS got second chances at life. A massive global health intervention, the scaling up of antiretroviral therapy (ART), saved them and created a generation of people who learned to live with treatment. As clients they joined programs that offered free antiretroviral medicine and encouraged "positive living." Because ART is not a cure but a lifelong treatment regime, its consequences are far-reaching for society, families, and individuals. Drawing on personal accounts and a broad knowledge of Ugandan culture and history, the essays in this collection explore ART from the perspective of those who received second chances. Their concerns about treatment, partners, children, work, food, and bodies reveal the essential sociality of Ugandan life. The collection is based on research undertaken by a team of social scientists including both Western and African scholars. Contributors. Phoebe Kajubi, David Kyaddondo, Lotte Meinert, Hanne O. Mogensen, Godfrey Etyang Siu, Jenipher Twebaze, Michael A. Whyte, Susan Reynolds Whyte

Second Chances

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Simon Nicholson

Paul Wapner

A comprehensive text that introduces the reader to the challenges of global environmental protection and potential choices and strategies for political engagement to mitigate such challenges. 

Light Paperback (1 lb or less)

From Person to Planet

Global Environmental Politics finally answers the question of how to teach students about environmental harm with a sense of ecological reality, a firm grasp on politics, and an optimistic look toward the future.

Global Environmental Politics

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Sven Beckert

Has some highlighting and margin notes in first half of book. Details the rise and fall of the empire of cotton and how central it was to the economy and the creation of global capitalism. 

Heavy Paperback (2 to 4 lbs)

A Global History

"The epic story of the rise and fall of the empire of cotton, its centrality in the world economy, and its making and remaking of global capitalism. Sven Beckert's rich, fascinating book tells the story of how, in a remarkably brief period, European entrepreneurs and powerful statesmen recast the world's most significant manufacturing industry combining imperial expansion and slave labor with new machines and wage workers to change the world. Here is the story of how, beginning well before the advent of machine production in 1780, these men created a potent innovation (Beckert calls it war capitalism, capitalism based on unrestrained actions of private individuals; the domination of masters over slaves, of colonial capitalists over indigenous inhabitants), and crucially affected the disparate realms of cotton that had existed for millennia. We see how this thing called war capitalism shaped the rise of cotton, and then was used as a lever to transform the world. The empire of cotton was, from the beginning, a fulcrum of constant global struggle between slaves and planters, merchants and statesmen, farmers and merchants, workers and factory owners. In this as in so many other ways, Beckert makes clear how these forces ushered in the modern world. The result is a book as unsettling and disturbing as it is enlightening: a book that brilliantly weaves together the story of cotton with how the present global world came to exist"--Résumé de l'éditeur.

Empire of Cotton

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Karrie J. Koesel

This book provides a view into authoritarian rule through a comparison of Russia, China, and religious-state relations. 

Cooperation, Conflict, and the Consequences

This book provides a rare window into the micropolitics of contemporary authoritarian rule through a comparison of religious-state relations in Russia and China - two countries with long histories of religious repression, and even longer experiences with authoritarian politics. Drawing on extensive fieldwork in multiple sites in these countries, this book explores what religious and political authority want from one another, how they negotiate the terms of their relationship, and how cooperative or conflicting their interactions are. This comparison reveals that while tensions exist between the two sides, there is also ample room for mutually beneficial interaction. Religious communities and their authoritarian overseers are cooperating around the core issue of politics - namely, the struggle for money, power, and prestige - and becoming unexpected allies in the process.

Religion and Authoritarianism

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Eli Berman

The New Economics of Terrorism

Applying fresh tools from economics to explain puzzling behaviors of religious radicals: Muslim, Christian, and Jewish; violent and benign. How do radical religious sects run such deadly terrorist organizations? Hezbollah, Hamas, Lashkar-e-Taiba, and the Taliban all began as religious groups dedicated to piety and charity. Yet once they turned to violence, they became horribly potent, executing campaigns of terrorism deadlier than those of their secular rivals. In Radical, Religious, and Violent, Eli Berman approaches the question using the economics of organizations. He first dispels some myths: radical religious terrorists are not generally motivated by the promise of rewards in the afterlife (including the infamous seventy-two virgins) or even by religious ideas in general. He argues that these terrorists (even suicide terrorists) are best understood as rational altruists seeking to help their own communities. Yet despite the vast pool of potential recruits—young altruists who feel their communities are repressed or endangered—there are less than a dozen highly lethal terrorist organizations in the world capable of sustained and coordinated violence that threatens governments and makes hundreds of millions of civilians hesitate before boarding an airplane. What's special about these organizations, and why are most of their followers religious radicals? Drawing on parallel research on radical religious Jews, Christians, and Muslims, Berman shows that the most lethal terrorist groups have a common characteristic: their leaders have found a way to control defection. Hezbollah, Hamas, and the Taliban, for example, built loyalty and cohesion by means of mutual aid, weeding out “free riders” and producing a cadre of members they could rely on. The secret of their deadly effectiveness lies in their resilience and cohesion when incentives to defect are strong.These insights suggest that provision of basic social services by competent governments adds a critical, nonviolent component to counterterrorism strategies. It undermines the violent potential of radical religious organizations without disturbing free religious practice, being drawn into theological debates with Jihadists, or endangering civilians.

Radical, Religious, and Violent

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Climate Cover-Up explores the PR techniques, “think tanks”, and funding used to alter scientific fact specifically around the controversy around global warming. Originally published in 2009, this books serves as a wake-up call to those who still wish the deny the truth surrounding climate change. 

The Crusade to Deny Global Warming

Climate Cover-Up

John de Graaf

David K. Batker

Hardcover but no outside jacket. A funny, readable book based on the film by the same name, the authors challenge the reader to consider the point of the economy. 

Hardcover (1 to 2 lbs)

Business & Economics

Why It's Time to Stop Chasing Growth and Start Pursuing Happiness

In this funny, readable, and thought-provoking book, activists John de Graaf (coauthor of the bestselling Affluenza) and David Batker tackle thirteen economic issues, challenging the reader to consider the goal of our economy. Emphasizing powerful American ideals, including teamwork, pragmatism, and equality, de Graaf and Batker set forth a simple goal for any economic system: the greatest good for the greatest number over the longest run. Drawing from history and current enterprises, they show how the good life is achieved when people and markets work together with an active government to create a more perfect economy-one that works for everyone.

What's the Economy for, Anyway?

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This story focuses on the DeShaney case, while delving into the Constitution’s fundamental values and how society tries to guarantee the safety of children. Warning: does touch on child abuse and family dynamics

Government

Child Abuse, Family Rights, and the Dilemma of State Intervention

The DeShaney Case

Martin Duberman

A very intriguing book that is a poignant piece to Essex Hemphill, a poet and activist, and Michael Callen, an author and leader in the fight against AIDS. 

Michael Callen, Essex Hemphill, and the Battlefield of AIDS

Meticulously researched and evocatively told, Hold Tight Gently is historian Martin Duberman's poignant memorial to those lost to AIDS and to two of the great unsung heroes of the early years of the epidemic. Composer Michael Callen became a leading figure in the movement to increase awareness of AIDS in the face of wilful neglect. Essex Hemphill contributed to the black gay and lesbian flowering in Washington, D.C., with poetry of searing intensity and introspection. A profound exploration of the intersection of race, sexuality, class, identity and politics.

dahlle

@dahlle659824

Books Listed

Following

Followers

Simon Singh

Big Bang

Anthony Gill

The Political Origins of Religious Liberty

Susan Reynolds Whyte

Second Chances

Simon Nicholson; Paul Wapner

Global Environmental Politics

Sven Beckert

Empire of Cotton

Karrie J. Koesel

Religion and Authoritarianism

Eli Berman

Radical, Religious, and Violent

James Hoggan

Climate Cover-Up

John de Graaf; David K. Batker

What's the Economy for, Anyway?

Lynne Curry

The DeShaney Case

Martin Duberman

Hold Tight Gently

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Browse by categories

Simon Singh

Big Bang

Anthony Gill

The Political Origins of Religious Liberty

Susan Reynolds Whyte

Second Chances

Simon Nicholson; Paul Wapner

Global Environmental Politics

Sven Beckert

Empire of Cotton

Karrie J. Koesel

Religion and Authoritarianism

Eli Berman

Radical, Religious, and Violent

James Hoggan

Climate Cover-Up

John de Graaf; David K. Batker

What's the Economy for, Anyway?

Lynne Curry

The DeShaney Case

Martin Duberman

Hold Tight Gently

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