Bücher veröffentlicht von Prometheus Books

The transformation of society brought about by the wide dispersion of computers has given rise to moral dilemmas. This is a collection of twenty-six essays, which offer answers to the ethical questions raised by the interaction of people and computers.

After the Civil War, Ingersoll embarked upon a career as a lecturer, touring the United States to make his thoughts on religion, women's rights, and humanism known to all. This title contains one of the most popular of these lectures, a critical examination of the "Pentateuch" (the first five books of the Bible).

In the view of early Muslim history, the Arab tribes, inspired by Muhammad's teachings, embarked on a military jihad that wrested Syria and Palestine from the Byzantine Empire. This book argues that Byzantium voluntarily transferred her eastern provinces to Arab client states in continuance of an imperial policy stretching back for centuries.

"Outlines of Pyrrhonism".

Argues that economics is essentially a study of the economic aspects of human culture, which are in a constant state of flux. This book argues that while industry itself demanded diligence, efficiency, and co-operation, businessmen in opposition to engineers and industrialists were only interested in making money and displaying their wealth.

With personal stories, fun activities, scientific research, and the original approach of #GreenLeisure, Leaf Your Troubles Behind shows how plants and nature can help you de-stress and live a fuller, more joyful life.

Daniel Rhodes and Kathleen Rhodes, D.N.Sc. believe that very real vampires are stalking their prey from the shadows - not the mythical bloodsuckers of folklore fame, but emotional vampires who deliberately drain others psychologically.Emotional Vampires are individuals we deal with in daily life who leave us feeling abnormally angry, confused, upset, or fatigued

Why do people confess to crimes they did not commit? And, surely, this must be a rare phenomenon? In fact, it happens all the time. Psychologist Saul Kassin is the world's leading expert on false confessions - why innocents confess, how interrogators force false confessions, and why we all believe them.This conclusive and comprehensive book reveals the psychology behind why innocent men and women, intensely stressed and befuddled by the promises, threats, trickery, and deception of a police interrogation, are duped into confession, no matter how horrific the crime. Featuring riveting case studies, highly original research, work done in tandem with the Innocence Project, and quotes from individuals who confessed to crimes they did not commit, Duped tells the story of how this happens, how the system turns a blind eye, and how to make it stop. Starting in the 1980's, Dr. Kassin pioneered the scientific study of police interrogations and confessions. At that time, he distinguished three types of false confessions: voluntary, in which people claim responsibility for crimes they did not commit without outside prompting or pressure; compliant, in which the suspect capitulates to escape a stressful in-custody situation, avoid physical harm or legal punishment, or gain a promised or implied reward; and internalized, in which innocent but psychologically vulnerable suspects become confused, lost their grip on reality, and come to believe that they committed the crime in question. This taxonomy is still universally accepted today.Examining famous cases like the Central Park jogger and the Amanda Knox case as well as the scores of ordinary people convicted based on their confessions who have been exonerated by Kassin's work with the Innocence Project, along with groundbreaking research into how age, race, and station play into false confessions, Duped shows why this stigma persists and how we can reform the criminal justice system to be more just.

We see numbers on automobile license plates, addresses, weather reports, and, of course, on our smartphones. Yet we look at these numbers for their role as descriptors, not as an entity in and unto themselves. Each number has its own history of meaning, usage, and connotation in the larger world. The Secret Lives of Numbers takes readers on a journey through integers, considering their numerological assignments as well as their significance beyond mathematics and in the realm of popular culture. Of course we all know that the number 13 carries a certain value of unluckiness with it. The phobia of the number is called Triskaidekaphobia; Franklin Delano Roosevelt was known to invite and disinvite guests to parties to avoid having 13 people in attendance; high-rise buildings often skip the 13th floor out of superstition. There are many explanations as to how the number 13 received this negative honor, but from a mathematical point of view, the number 13 is also the smallest prime number that when its digits are reversed is also a prime number. It is honored with a place among the Fibonacci numbers and integral Pythagorean triples, as well as many other interesting and lesser-known occurrences. In The Secret Lives of Numbers, popular mathematician Alfred S. Posamentier provides short and engaging mini-biographies of more than 100 numbers, starting with 1 and featuring some especially interesting numbers -like 6,174, a number with most unusual properties -to provide readers with a more comprehensive picture of the lives of numbers both mathematically and socially.

Talks about the mindset of predatory criminals - their motives, various plans of attack, and way of thinking - and then teaches simple lifestyle techniques that will help reduce the risk of becoming victimised. This book provides analysis based on real-life cases, in addition to insights from victims and criminals themselves.

"The West will begin to understand Africa when it realizes it's not talking to a child--it's talking to its mother." So writes Jeff Pearce in the introduction to his fascinating, groundbreaking work, The Gifts of Africa: How a Continent and Its People Changed the World. We learn early on in school how Europe and Asia gave us important literature, science, and art, and how their nations changed the course of history. But what about Africa? There are plenty of books that detail its colonialism, corruption, famine, and war, but few that discuss the debt owed to African thinkers and innovators. In The Gifts of Africa, we meet Zera Yacob, an Ethiopian philosopher who developed the same critical approach and several of the same ideas as René Descartes. We consider how Somalis traded with China, and we meet the African warrior queens who still inspire national pride. We explore how Liberia's Edward Wilmot Blyden deeply influenced Marcus Garvey, and we sneak into the galleries and theaters of 1920s Paris, where Af

*New Edition with Updated dementia, dementia care, and resource information.*According to the Alzheimer's Association, there are more than six million people living in the United States have Alzheimer's disease or some other form of dementia. Not reported in these statistics are the sixteen million family caregivers who, in total, contribute nineteen billion hours of unpaid care each year. This book addresses the needs and challenges faced by adult children and other family members who are scrambling to make sense of what is happening to themselves and the loved ones in their care. The author, an experienced medical and science writer known for her ability to clearly explain complex and emotionally sensitive topics, is also a former family caregiver herself. Using both personal narrative and well-researched, expert-verified content, she guides readers through the often-confusing and challenging world of dementia care. She carefully escorts caregivers through the basics of dementia as a brain disorder, its accompanying behaviors, the procedures used to diagnose and stage the disease, and the legal aspects of providing care for an adult who is no longer competent. She also covers topics not usually included in other books on dementia: family dynamics, caregiver burnout, elder abuse, incontinence, finances and paying for care, the challenges same-sex families face, and coping with the eventuality of death and estate management. Each chapter begins with a real-life vignette taken from the author's personal experience and concludes with "Frequently Asked Questions" and "Worksheets" sections. The FAQs tackle specific issues and situations that often make caregiving such a challenge. The worksheets are a tool to help readers organize, evaluate, and self-reflect. A glossary of terms, an appendix, and references for further reading give readers a command of the vocabulary clinicians use and access to valuable resources.

In this witty, incisive guide to critical thinking the author provides you with the tools to allow you to question beliefs and assumptions held by those who claim to know what they're talking about. These days there are many people whom we need to question: politicians, lawyers, doctors, teachers, clergy members, bankers, car salesmen, and your boss. This book will empower you with the ability to spot faulty reasoning and, by asking the right sorts of questions, hold people accountable not only for what they believe but how they behave. By using this book you'll learn to analyze your own thoughts, ideas, and beliefs, and why you act on them (or don't). This, in turn, will help you to understand why others might hold opposing views. And the best way to change our own or others' behavior or attitudes is to gain greater clarity about underlying motives and thought processes. In a media-driven world of talking heads, gurus, urban legends, and hype, learning to think more clearly and critically, and helping others to do the same, is one of the most important things you can do.

In 1957, as the world obsessed over the launch of the Soviet Sputnik satellite, another, less noticed space age was taking off. That year, astrophysicist Fred Hoyle and colleagues solved a centuries-old quest for the origin of elements. The answer they found wasn't on Earth, but in the stars - their research showed that we are literally stardust.

All divorce lawyer Toby wanted was to settle into island life and start working on her own love story - torn between the wealthy and charismatic Josh Barton, and the adorable and dependable detective Colin Destin. But Toby''s romantic prospects take the back burner when her mum''s best friend, Daphne Dane, disappears. Toby soon discovers that Daphne''s latest boyfriend is both an alleged conman and the cheating husband of her newest client. Could he be behind Daphne''s disappearance? What about Daphne''s children, vying for their ageing mother''s money?

In the modern world the theory of probability is used extensively in mathematics, science, engineering, medicine and, of course, gambling. A proposition bet is one that involves the use of probability -both estimated and actual -where an individual makes an apparently attractive bet to someone who is easily deceived by the odds, which are at first glance in his favor.The Book of Proposition Bets gathers together, and reveals the true mathematics behind, over 50 classic and original proposition bets. From the famous Three Card Monty (really an exercise in the Monty Hall Paradox), to probabilities based on rolling dice and pulling playing cards, or whether or not a mark can guess 3 correct digits of a one dollar bill''s serial number (spoiler: the odds are against it), author Owen O''Shea here compiles a fascinating and engaging survey of prop bets. In addition, Part 2 of the book contains a brief history of the theory of probability and some examples of cons and scams perpetrated on the general public to this day around the world, (plus a few more mathematical proposition bets!).Whether to learn the intricacies used by hustlers, or borrow a couple of tricks for yourself, we wager that there is a high probability that readers will enjoy this entertaining and illuminating book!

With a New Introduction by Phillip K. Peterson, M.D., author of Microbes: The Life-Changing Story of Germs For more than 3000 years, hundreds of millions of people have died or been left permanently scarred or blind by the relentless, incurable disease called smallpox. In 1967, Dr. D.A. Henderson became director of a worldwide campaign to eliminate this disease from the face of the earth. This spellbinding book is Dr. Henderson''s personal story of how he led the World Health Organization''s campaign to eradicate smallpoxΓÇöthe only disease in history to have been deliberately eliminated. Some have called this feat "the greatest scientific and humanitarian achievement of the past century." This latest edition features a new introduction by Phillip K. Peterson, M.D., in which the infectious diseases expert contends that Dr. HendersonΓÇÖs campaign against smallpox may provide insights towards the fight against COVID-19 and future global pandemics. In a lively, engrossing narrative, Dr. Henderson makes it clear that the gargantuan international effort involved more than straightforward mass vaccination. He and his staff had to cope with civil wars, floods, impassable roads, and refugees as well as formidable bureaucratic and cultural obstacles, shortages of local health personnel and meager budgets. Countries across the world joined in the effort; the United States and the Soviet Union worked together through the darkest cold war days; and professionals from more than 70 nations served as WHO field staff. On October 26, 1976, the last case of smallpox occurred. The disease that annually had killed two million people or more had been vanquishedΓÇôand in just over ten years. The story did not end there. Dr. Henderson recounts in vivid detail the continuing struggle over whether to destroy the remaining virus in the two laboratories still that held it. Then came the startling discovery that the Soviet Union had been experimenting with smallpox virus as a biological weapon and producing it in large quantities. The threat of its possible use by a rogue nation or a terrorist has had to be taken seriously and Dr. Henderson has been a central figure in plans for coping with it. New methods for mass smallpox vaccination were so successful that he sought to expand the program of smallpox immunization to include polio, measles, whooping cough, diphtheria, and tetanus vaccines. That program now reaches more than four out of five children in the world and is eradicating poliomyelitis. This unique book is to be treasuredΓÇöa personal and true story that proves that through cooperation and perseverance the most daunting of obstacles can be overcome.

Nero fiddled while Rome burned. As catchy as that aphorism is, itΓÇÖs sadly untrue, even if it has a nice ring to it. The one thing Nero is well-known for is the one thing he actually didnΓÇÖt do. But fear not, the truth of his life, his rule and what he did with unrestrained power, is plenty weird, salacious and horrifying.And he is not alone. Roman history, from the very foundation of the city, is replete with people and stories that shock our modern sensibilities. Evil Emperors puts the worst of RomeΓÇÖs rulers in one place and offers a review of their lives and a historical context for what made them into what they became. It concludes by ranking them, counting down to the worst ruler in RomeΓÇÖs long history. Lucius Tarquinius Suburbus called peace conferences with warring states, only to slaughter foreign leaders; Commodus sold offices of the empire to the highest bidder; Caligula demanded to be worshipped as a god, and marched troops all the way to the ocean simply to collect seashells as ΓÇ£proofΓÇ¥ of their conquest; even the Roman Senate itself was made up of oppressors, exploiters, and murderers of all stripes. Author Phillip Barlag profiles a host of evil Roman rulers across the history of their empire, along with the faceless governing bodies that condoned and even carried out heinous acts.Roman history, deviant or otherwise, is a subject of endless fascination. WhatΓÇÖs never been done before is to look at the worst of the worst at the same time, comparing them side by side, and ranking them against one another. Until now.

This book explains in layperson's terms a new approach to studying consciousness based on a partnership between neuroscientists and complexity scientists. The author, a physicist turned neuroscientist, outlines essential features of this partnership. The new science goes well beyond traditional cognitive science and simple neural networks, which are often the focus in artificial intelligence research. It involves many fields including neuroscience, artificial intelligence, physics, cognitive science, and psychiatry. What causes autism, schizophrenia, and Alzheimer's disease? How does our unconscious influence our actions? As the author shows, these important questions can be viewed in a new light when neuroscientists and complexity scientists work together. This cross-disciplinary approach also offers fresh insights into the major unsolved challenge of our age: the origin of self-awareness. Do minds emerge from brains? Or is something more involved? Using human social networks as a metaphor, the author explains how brain behavior can be compared with the collective behavior of large-scale global systems. Emergent global systems that interact and form relationships with lower levels of organization and the surrounding environment provide useful models for complex brain functions.By blending lucid explanations with illuminating analogies, this book offers the general reader a window into the latest exciting developments in brain research.

Electoral Bait & Switch is prescriptive, and accessible to the general reader. If it is not challenged and overturned, we are likely to face a continual series of electoral and constitutional crises. The current Elector system discriminates heavily against minority and poorer voters. The winner-take-all method of allocating Electoral votes also results in large pockets of "useless votes" and a system in which where you vote counts for far more than how you vote. Most ominously, evidence is now clear that the Electoral-Vote system has opened the door for voter suppression and manipulation of elections by domestic and foreign conspirators.

A recognized classic, this work stands alone as a uniquely compelling argument for the great importance of visual thinking and visual technologies as well as the high creative potential of many individuals with dyslexia or other learning difficulties.

In the summer of 1864, the American Civil War had been dragging on for over three years with no end in sight. Things had not gone well for the Union, and the public blamed the president for the stalemate against the Confederacy and for the appalling numbers of killed and wounded. Lincoln was thoroughly convinced that without a favorable change in the trajectory of the war he would have no chance of winning a second term against former Union general George B. McClellan, whom he had previously dismissed as commander of the Army of the Potomac. This vivid, engrossing account of a critical year in American history examines the events of 1864, when the course of American history might have taken a radically different direction. It's no exaggeration to say that if McClellan had won the election, everything would have been differentMcClellan and the Democrats planned to end the war immediately, grant the South its independence, and let the Confederacy keep its slaves. What were the crucial factors that in the end swung public sentiment in favor of Lincoln? Johnson focuses on the battlefield campaigns of Generals Ulysses S. Grant and William Tecumseh Sherman. While Grant was waging a war of attrition with superior manpower against the quick and elusive rebel forces under General Robert E. Lee, Sherman was fighting a protracted battle in Georgia against Confederate general Joseph E. Johnston. But then the president of the Confederacy, Jefferson Davis, made a tactical error that would change the whole course of the war. This lively narrative, full of intriguing historical facts, brings to life an important series of episodes in our nation's history. History and Civil War buffs will not want to put down this real-life page-turner.

"Millions of Americans are taking prescription drugs made in China and don't know it-- and pharmaceutical companies are not eager to tell them. This probing book examines the implications for the quality and availability of vital medicines for consumers"--Provided by publisher.

A veteran math educator reveals the hidden fascinations of geometry and why this staple of math education is important.If you remember anything about high school geometry class, it's probably doing proofs. But geometry is more than axioms, postulates, theorems, and proofs. It's the science of beautiful and extraordinary geometric relationships--most of which is lost in high school classrooms where the focus is on the rigor of logically proving those relationships. This book will awaken readers to the appeal of geometry by placing the focus squarely on geometry's visually compelling features and intrinsic elegance. Who knew that straight lines, circles, and area could be so interesting? Not to mention optical illusions. So get out the rulers, compasses, or even a software program, and discover geometry for the first time.

A private citizen discovers compelling evidence that a decades-old murder in Nashville was not committed by the man who went to prison for the crime but was the result of a conspiracy involving elite members of Nashville society.Nashville 1964. Eighteen-year-old babysitter Paula Herring is murdered in her home while her six-year-old brother apparently sleeps through the grisly event. A few months later a judge's son is convicted of the crime. Decades after the slaying, Michael Bishop, a private citizen,stumbles upon a secret file related to the case and with the help of some of the world's top forensic experts--including forensic psychologist Richard Walter (aka "e;the living Sherlock Holmes"e;)--he uncovers the truth. What really happened is completely different from what the public was led to believe.Now, for the very first time, Bishop reveals the true story. In this true-crime page-turner, the author lays out compelling evidence that a circle of powerful citizens were key participants in the crime and the subsequent cover-up. The ne'er-do-well judge's son, who was falsely accused and sent to prison, proved to be the perfect setup man. The perpetrators used his checkered history to conceal the real facts for over half a century. Including interviews with the original defense attorney and a murder confession elicited from a nursing-home resident, the information presented here will change Nashville history forever.