This book answers the most obvious, the most important, yet the most difficult question about human history: why history unfolded so differently on different continents. Geography and biography, not race, moulded the contrasting fates of Europeans, Asians, Native Americans, sub-Saharan Africans, and aboriginal Australians. An ambitious synthesis of history, biology, ecology and linguistics, Guns, Germs and Steel is one of the most important and humane works of popular science.

Jason Bourne is searching for an elusive cadre of terroristsplanning to destroy America's most strategic natural resources. Heneeds the help of his long-time friend, General Boris Karpov, thenewly appointed head of Russia's most feared spy agency, FSB-2.Karpov is one of the most determined, honorable, and justice-hungrymen that Bourne knows. But Karpov has made a deal with the devil.In order to remain the head of FSB-2, he must hunt down and killBourne. Now, these two trusted friends are on a deadly collision course.From the Colombian highlands to Munich, Cadiz, and Damascus, theclock is counting down to a disaster that will cripple America'seconomic and military future. Only Bourne and Karpov have a chanceto avert the catastrophe-but if they destroy each other first, thatchance will be gone forever. THE BOURNE DOMINION Jason Bourne is one of the most compelling and best lovedcharacters created by internationally bestselling novelist RobertLudlum. The hero of eight novels, including T

The late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries saw anextraordinary flowering of arts and culture in Germany whichproduced many of the world's finest writers, artists, philosophersand composers. This volume offers students and specialists anauthoritative introduction to that dazzling cultural phenomenon,now known collectively as German Romanticism. Individual chaptersnot only introduce the reader to individual writers such asFriedrich Schlegel, Novalis, Eichendorff, Heine, Hoffmann, Kleist,Schiller and Tieck, but also treat key concepts of Romantic music,painting, philosophy, gender and cultural anthropology, science andcriticism in concise and lucid language. All German quotations aretranslated to make this volume fully accessible to a wide audienceinterested in how Romanticism evolved across Europe. Briefbiographies and bibliographies are supplemented by a list ofprimary and secondary further reading in both English andGerman.

Postman suggests that the current crisis in our educationalsystem derives from its failure to supply students with atranslucent, unifying "narrative" like those that inspired earliergenerations. Instead, today's schools promote the false "gods" ofeconomic utility, consumerism, or ethnic separatism and resentment.What alternative strategies can we use to instill our children witha sense of global citizenship, healthy intellectual skepticism,respect of America's traditions, and appreciation of its diversity?In answering this question, The End of Education restoresmeaning and common sense to the arena in which they are mosturgently needed. "Informal and clear...Postman's ideas about education areappealingly fresh."--New York Times Book Review

Physical play - what some might call roughhousing - is beingmarginalized. Gym classes are getting shorter. Recess periods arebeing eliminated. Some new schools don't even have playgrounds. ButDrs. Anthony T. DeBenedet and Lawrence Cohen are here to shakethings up-literally! "The Art of Roughhousing" teaches parents howrough - and -tumble play can nurture close connections, solvebehavior problems, boost confidence, and more. Drawing fromgymnastics, martial arts, ballet, traditional sports, and evenanimal behavior, the authors present fifty illustrated activitiesfor children and parents to enjoy together - everything from theSumo Deadlift to the Rogue Dumbo. Arriving just in time forFather's Day, "The Art of Roughhousing" is the perfect gift forrowdy dads everywhere.

First published in 1967, Writing and Difference, a collection of Jacques Derrida's essays written between 1959 and 1966, has become a landmark of contemporary French thought. In it we find Derrida at work on his systematic deconstruction of Western metaphysics. The book's first half, which includes the celebrated essay on Descartes and Foucault, shows the development of Derrida's method of deconstruction. In these essays, Derrida demonstrates the traditional nature of some purportedly nontraditional currents of modern thought—one of his main targets being the way in which "structuralism" unwittingly repeats metaphysical concepts in its use of linguistic models. The second half of the book contains some of Derrida's most compelling analyses of why and how metaphysical thinking must exclude writing from its conception of language, finally showing metaphysics to be constituted by this exclusion. These essays on Artaud, Freud, Bataille, Hegel, and Lévi-Strauss have served as introductions to Derrida's no

Join the world's hottest pop star on his rollercoaster ride tosuperstardom!plus FREE wall poster, just for you! His debut albumhas already gone platinum. He's sung for the President of theUnited States. His screaming fans have stormed TV studios and shutdown shopping malls. Justin Bieber is a global superstar and now,for the first time ever, he's going to tell all in his very ownbook. Justin's story is the stuff that every kid dreams of. Growingup an only child in Ontario, Canada, Justin had a natural talentfor music; he was forever singing around the house and taughthimself to play drums, guitar, piano and trumpet. He entered alocal singing competition and despite not having had any vocalcoaching, Justin came second aged only 12 years old. But it waswhen he posted homemade pop videos on YouTube that Justin's dreamsreally came true: the videos quickly became a word-of-mouthsensation, garnering an astonishing 10 million hits. Months later,Justin was spotted by top music manager Scooter Braun who laterjoined f

This Companion is an essential guide to all aspects of the organand its music. It examines in turn the instrument, the player andthe repertoire. The early chapters tell of the instrument's historyand construction, identify the scientific basis of its sounds andthe development of its pitch and tuning, examine the history of theorgan case, and consider the current trends and conflicts withinthe world of organ building. Central chapters investigate thepractical art of learning and playing the organ, introduce thecomplex area of performance practice, and outline the relationshipbetween organ playing and the liturgy of the church. The finalsection explores the vast repertoire of organ music, focusing on aselection of the most important traditions.

Prepare your child for a lifetime of learning andwonder. Designed for parents to enjoy with children, filled withopportunities for reading aloud and fostering curiosity, thisbeautifully illustrated read-aloud anthology offers preschoolersthe fundamentals they need to prepare for a happy, productive timein school—and for the rest of their lives. Millions of childrenhave benefited from the acclaimed Core Knowledge Series, developedin consultation with parents, educators, and the most distinguisheddevelopmental psychologists. In addition to valuable advice toparents, including what it means for a child to be ready forkindergarten, special sidebars throughout the book help parentsmake reading aloud fun and interactive, suggesting questions toask, connections to make, and games to play to enrich theirpreschooler’s learning experience.

So much has how been said and written about the life and career of Michael Jackson that it has become almost impossible to disentangle the man from the myth. Recent revelations are only the latest instalments of a saga that began decades ago. This book is the fruit of over 30 years of research and hundreds of exclusive interviews with a remarkable level of access to the very closest circles of the Jackson family - including Michael himself. Cutting through tabloid rumours, J. Randy Taraborrelli traces the real story behind the Michael Jackson we see and hear today, from his drilling as a child star through the blooming of his talent to his ever-changing personal appearance and bizarre publicity stunts. This major biography includes the behind-the-scenes story to many of the landmarks in Jackson's life: his legal and commercial battles, his marriages to Lisa Marie Presley and Debbie Rowe, his passions and addictions, his children. Objective and revealing, it carries the hallmarks of all of Taraborrelli's best-

If you knew you only had a short time to live, what would you do?In September 2007, computer science professor Randy Pausch delivered a traditional last lecture called 'Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams'. Ironically , it really was his last lecture, as this youthful, energetic and cheerful man had just been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and had only months to live.Randy's inspirational lecture about the joy of life -- his legacy to his three young children -- has become an internet and publishing phenomenon.The Last Lecture has sold over 5 million copies Lecture There's a reason why it has -- open this book and find out. It could change the way you live your life.

Also published under the title of Principals of SocialReconstruction , and written in response to the devastation ofWorld War I, Why Men Fight lays out Bertrand Russell'sideas on war, pacifism, reason, impulse, and personal liberty. Heargues that the individualistic approach of traditional liberalismhas reached its limits and that when individuals live passionately,they will have no desire for war or killing. Conversely, excessiverestraint or reason causes us to live unnaturally and withhostility toward those who are unlike ourselves. This formidablework greatly contributed to Russell’s fame as a formidable socialcritic and anti-war activist.

The Cambridge Companion to Willa Cather offers thirteen originalessays by leading scholars of a major American modernist novelist.Willa Cather's luminous prose is 'easy' to read yet surprisinglydifficult to understand. The essays collected here aretheoretically informed but accessibly written and cover the fullrange of Cather's career, including most of her twelve novels andseveral of her short stories. The essays situate Cather's work in abroad range of critical, cultural, and literary contexts, and theintroduction explores current trends in Cather scholarship as wellas the author's place in contemporary culture. With a detailedchronology and a guide to further reading, the volume offersstudents and teachers a fresh and thorough sense of the author ofMy ?ntonia, The Professor's House, and Death Comes for theArchbishop.

"The most talked-about education book this semester."—New York Times Based on a series of controversial Wall Street Journal op-eds,this landmark manifesto gives voice to what everyone knows abouttalent, ability, and intelligence but no one wants to admit. Withfour truths as his framework, Charles Murray, the bestsellingcoauthor of The Bell Curve, sweeps away the hypocrisy, wishfulthinking, and upside-down priorities that grip America’seducational establishment. ?Ability varies. Children differ in their ability to learn,but America’s educational system does its best to ignore this. ?Half of the children are below average. Many children cannotlearn more than rudimentary reading and math. Yet decades ofpolicies have required schools to divert resources to unattainablegoals. ?Too many people are going to college. Only a fraction ofstudents struggling to get a degree can profit from education atthe college level. ?America’s future depends on how we educate the acade

This book is an unrivalled indictment of the banality of mass culture - Adorno's finest essays are collected here, offering the reader unparalleled insights into Adorno's thoughts on culture.

The most riveting political biography of our time, Robert A.Caro’s life of Lyndon B. Johnson, continues. Master of theSenate takes Johnson’s story through one of its most remarkableperiods: his twelve years, from 1949 through 1960, in the UnitedStates Senate. Once the most august and revered body in politics,by the time Johnson arrived the Senate had become a parody ofitself and an obstacle that for decades had blocked desperatelyneeded liberal legislation. Caro shows how Johnson’s brilliance,charm, and ruthlessness enabled him to become the youngest and mostpowerful Majority Leader in history and how he used hisincomparable legislative genius--seducing both Northern liberalsand Southern conservatives--to pass the first Civil Rightslegislation since Reconstruction. Brilliantly weaving rich detailinto a gripping narrative, Caro gives us both a galvanizingportrait of Johnson himself and a definitive and revelatory studyof the workings of legislative power.

This essential guide to etiquette in China will makeembarrassing social blunders a thing of the past! Whether you'retravelling for business or pleasure, whether your stay will be longor short, your visit to China will be more pleasurable andeffective if you understand your host culture and how to workwithin it. "Etiquette Guide to China" will be your very ownpersonal tour guide to the wonders - and potential pratfalls - ofyour time in the Middle Kingdom. How should you address people youmet on your travels? Should you bow or shake hands? How should youbehave if you're out on the town, in the boardroom, or attending awedding?Answers to these questions and many more will make thisbook the most indispensable item you'll carry on your trip. Thisinside look at Chinese social graces explains everything you needto know to be a successful, courteous traveller: hand gestures andbody language; how to address the Chinese; dining and restaurantmanners; gift giving and celebration in China; entering into andunderst

Widely acknowledged to be one of Freud's greatest cultural works, when Totem and Taboo was first published in 1913, it caused outrage. Thorough and thought-provoking, Totem and Taboo remains the fullest exploration of Freud's most famous themes. Family, society, religion - they're all put on the couch here. Whatever your feelings about psychoanalysis, Freud's theories have influenced every facet of modern life, from film and literature to medicine and art. If you don't know your incest taboo from your Oedipal complex, and you want to understand more about the culture we're living in, then Totem and Taboo is the book to read.

Simone de Beauvoir was a philosopher and writer of notablerange and influence whose work is central to feminist theory,French existentialism, and contemporary moral and socialphilosophy. The essays in this volume examine all the major aspectsof her thought, including her views on issues such as the role ofbiology, sexuality and sexual difference, and evil, the influenceon her work of Heidegger, Sartre, Merleau-Ponty, Husserl, andothers, and the philosophical significance of her memoirs andfiction. New readers and nonspecialists will find this the mostconvenient and accessible guide to Beauvoir currently available.Advanced students and specialists will find a conspectus of recentdevelopments in the interpretation of Beauvoir.

From one of the nation’s most trusted experts on children’sbedtime and nap time comes a new guide for sleep-training twins sothat everybody (including Mom and Dad) will be rested andhappy! As parents of twins and multiples know, double the fun can bedouble the sleep deprivation. Now, in Healthy Sleep Habits, HappyTwins, beloved pediatrician and renowned sleep authority Dr. MarcWeissbluth combines specialized advice for parents of twins withhis tried-and-true sleep-training methods to show exhausted momsand dads how to get their babies to sleep on their own, stayasleep, and sleep regularly. This essential step-by-step guide toestablishing good sleep patterns reveals how to build healthyhabits in twins’ natural slumber cycles, including · how healthy sleep differs from “junk” sleep, plus a helpfultutorial on the techniques of sleep training for new parents · the five ingredients of healthy sleep, and why daytime sleep isdifferent from nighttime sleep but equally important to