In this scientific Credo, Peter Atkins considers the universal questions of origins, endings, birth, and death to which religions have claimed answers. With his usual economy, wit, and elegance, unswerving before awkward realities, Atkins presents what science has to say. While acknowledging the comfort some find in belief, he declares his own faith in science's capacity to reveal the deepest truths.

Conflict attracts a great deal of attention-as much or more than any other element of human life. People generally dislike it, and try to prevent and avoid it as much as possible. So why do clashes of right and wrong occur? And why are some clashes worse than others? In Moral Time, Donald Black shows how changes in intimacy (friends or strangers?), inequality (rich or poor?), and cultural diversity (Christian or Jew?) all determine when conflict happens. A reduction of closeness or a display of disrespect alters a relationship, for example, and the greater and faster the change, the more likely conflict will ensue. Throughout the book, Black applies his theory to an astounding range of human behavior, from bad manners to crime and warfare, accusations of witchcraft, racism, and anti-Semitism, conflict about creativity in science and art. Written in Black's trademark straightforward style, Moral Time is a powerful and incisive new take on conflict-a fundamental and inescapable feature of social life.

What is literary theory? Is there a relationship between literature and culture? In fact, what is literature, and does it matter? These are some of questions addressed by Jonathan Culler in this Very Short Introduction to literary theory. Often a controversial subject, said to have transformed the study of culture and society in the past two decades, literary theory is accused of undermining respect for tradition and truth and encouraging suspicion about the political and psychological implications of cultural projects rather than admiration for great literature. Here, Jonathan Culler explains theory, not by describing warring 'schools' but by sketching key 'moves' theory has encouraged, and speaking directly about the implications of theory for thinking about literature, human identity, and the power of language. In this new edition Culler takes a look at new material, including the death of theory, the links between the theory of narrative and cognitive science, trauma theory, ecocriticism, and includes a new chapter on Ethics and aesthetics. This lucid introduction is useful for anyone who has wondered what all the fuss is about or who wants to think about literature today.

Are leaders born or made? Does each society get the leaders it deserves? How-and why-is leadership 'rhetoric' different from leadership in reality? l l Leadership is one of the most talked about yet least understood concepts in current business and society. This book explores how theoretical models and views of leadership have evolved over time; how leadership can be investigated from individual, organizational, and societal perspectives; and perennial dilemmas and emerging approaches in Leadership Studies. Positioning its discussion within a multidisciplinary framework that touches on management, sociology, philosophy, anthropology, history, literature, and politics, this book examines and critiques the common assumptions that inform the ways in which leaders and leadership are recognized, rewarded, and developed. It provides a valuable and thought-provoking overview for students and academics interested in leadership and management, practising leaders, leadership development consultants, and policy makers.

For nearly 60 years-from its uprising against British rule in the 1950s, to the bloody civil war between Greek and Turkish Cypriots in the 1960s, the Turkish invasion of Cyprus in the 1970s, and the United Nation's ongoing 30-year effort to reunite the island-the tiny Mediterranean nation of Cyprus has taken a disproportionate share of the international spotlight. And while it has been often in the news, accurate and impartial information on the conflict has been nearly impossible to obtain. In The Cyprus Problem, James Ker-Lindsay offers an incisive, even-handed account of the conflict. Ker-Lindsay covers all aspects of the Cyprus problem, placing it in historical context, addressing the situation as it now stands, and looking toward its possible resolution. The book begins with the origins of the Greek and Turkish Cypriot communities as well as the other indigenous communities on the island (Maronites, Latin, Armenians, and Gypsies). Ker-Lindsay then examines the tensions that emerged between the Greek and Turkish Cypriots after independence in 1960 and the complex constitutional provisions and international treaties designed to safeguard the new state. He pays special attention to the Turkish invasion in 1974 and the subsequent efforts by the UN and the international community to reunite Cyprus. The book's final two chapters address a host of pressing issues that divide the two Cypriot communities, including key concerns over property, refugee returns, and the repatriation of settlers. Ker-Lindsay concludes by considering whether partition really is the best solution, as many observers increasingly suggest. Written by a leading expert, The Cyprus Problem brings much needed clarity and understanding to a conflict that has confounded observers and participants alike for decades.

This fascinating book takes invented languages and explores the origins, purpose, and usage of these curious artefacts of culture. Written by experts in the field, chapters discuss a wide range of languages — from Esperanto to Klingon — and uncover the motives behind their creation and the outcomes of their existence.

The Moonstone is a beautiful yellow diamond that was stolen from the statue of a Moon god in India. When Franklin Blake brings it to Rachel Verinder's house in Yorkshire for her birthday, it brings bad luck with it. How many people will the Moonstone hurt? How many must die before the diamond's revenge is complete?

The weather in England that summer had been so awful that Gerald's mother sold the family house and took her children to live on the Mediterranean island of Corfu. Between lessons, the ten-year-old Gerald was free to walk round the sunny island and discover the wonderful people and animals living there. This is the story of Gerald's adventures with the fascinating animals of Corfu, and, of course, with his surprising family and their friends.

The weather in England that summer had been so awful that Gerald's mother sold the family house and took her children to live on the Mediterranean island of Corfu. Between lessons, the ten-year-old Gerald was free to walk round the sunny island and discover the wonderful people and animals living there. This is the story of Gerald's adventures with the fascinating animals of Corfu, and, of course, with his surprising family and their friends.

'All men are created equal...' When Thomas Jefferson wrote these words in June 1776, in the American Declaration of Independence, he started something that was very much bigger than he imagined. This book looks at the history around that Declaration, and at the Revolution that led to the birth of the United States of America

A 'Tall Tale' is a story that's hard to believe, and the five tall tales in this book all tell of ghosts. Some have dark secrets buried in the past, others bring messages for the living. Some are laughable, some are sad, and some are just evil. Sometimes there's a logical explanation for the strangest happenings, but often things cannot be explained by logic alone. Either way, you're sure to find some frightening reading between the covers of this book.

Thomas Gradgrind believes that facts and money are more important than feelings and imagination. After Cissy Jupe — a circus child — is left alone in the world, Gradgrind takes her into his house, looking after her and teaching her facts with his own children Tom and Louisa. Some years later the Gradgrind family meets hard times. Louisa becomes a prisoner in a loveless marriage, and Tom has problems at work. In the end, Thomas Gradgrind learns the importance of feelings and imagination.

One cold winter morning, a famous movie star and her teenage daughter are driving along a country road... A blue van is waiting for them. Tom is in the van, but he's not a kidnapper — he's an artist. He usually draws pictures for adventure stories. Now he's in a real life adventure.

In its essence, Critical Theory is Western Marxist thought with the emphasis moved from the liberation of the working class to broader issues of individual agency. Critical Theory emerged in the 1920s from the work of the Frankfurt School, the circle of German-Jewish academics who sought to diagnose — and, if at all possible, cure — the ills of society, particularly fascism and capitalism. In this book, Stephen Eric Bronner provides sketches of famous and less famous representatives of the critical tradition (such as George Lukacs and Ernst Bloch, Theodor Adorno and Walter Benjamin, Herbert Marcuse and Jurgen Habermas) as well as many of its seminal texts and empirical investigations. Though they shared a Marxist bent, the Frankfurt School's scholars came from a variety of fields — philosophy, economics, psychoanalysis, and even music — and they initially sought not only to do interdisciplinary work but also to combine theory with practice, criticism with empirical data. Forced by the rise of Hitler to flee to the United States, by the late 1930s the Frankfurt School left behind the emphasis on empiricism, beginning instead to specialize in philosophical inquiry into the nature of social control, which combined the work of Hegel, Marx, Freud, and Nietzsche. This VSI is ultimately organized around the cluster of concepts and themes that set critical theory apart from its more traditional philosophical competitors. Bronner explains and discusses concepts such as method and agency, alienation and reification, the culture industry and repressive tolerance, non-identity and utopia. He argues for the introduction of new categories and perspectives for illuminating the obstacles to progressive change and focusing upon hidden transformative possibilities. Only a critique of critical theory can render it salient for a new age. That is precisely what this very short introduction seeks to provide.

The sixteenth and seventeenth centuries witnessed such fervent investigations of the natural world that the period has been called the Scientific Revolution. New ideas and discoveries not only redefined what human beings believed, knew, and could do, but also forced them to redefine themselves with respect to the strange new worlds revealed by ships and scalpels, telescopes and microscopes, experimentation and contemplation. Driven by religious devotion, by practical need, by the promise of fame and profit, or by the simple desire to know, a broad range of thinkers and workers explored and reconceptualized the world around them. Explanatory systems were made, discarded, and remade by some of the best-known names in the entire history of science — Copernicus, Galileo, Newton — and by many others less recognized but no less important. In this Very Short Introduction Lawrence M. Principe explores the exciting developments in the sciences of the stars (astronomy, astrology, and cosmology), the sciences of earth (geography, geology, hydraulics, pneumatics), the sciences of matter and motion (alchemy, chemistry, kinematics, physics), the sciences of life (medicine, anatomy, biology, zoology), and much more. The story is told from the perspective of the historical characters themselves, emphasizing their background, context, reasoning, and motivations, and dispelling well-worn myths about the history of science.

Madness is something that frightens and fascinates us all. It is a word with which we are universally familiar, and a condition that haunts the human imagination. Through the centuries, in poetry and in prose, in drama and in the visual arts, its depredations are on display for all to see. A whole industry has grown up, devoted to its management and suppression. Madness profoundly disturbs our common sense assumptions; threatens the social order, both symbolically and practically; creates almost unbearable disruptions in the texture of daily living; and turns our experience and our expectations upside down. Lunacy, insanity, psychosis, mental illness — whatever term we prefer, its referents are disturbances of reason, the passions, and human action that frighten, create chaos, and yet sometimes amuse; that mark a gulf between the common sense reality most of us embrace, and the discordant version some humans appear to experience. Social responses to madness, our interpretations of what madness is, and our notions of what is to be done about it have varied remarkably over the centuries. In this Very Short Introduction, Andrew Scull provides a provocative and entertaining examination of the social, cultural, medical, and artistic responses to mental disturbance across more than two millennia, concluding with some observations on the contemporary accounts of mental illness.

As the founder of Islam Muhammad is one of the most influential figures in history. The furor surrounding the Satanic Verses and the Danish cartoon crisis reminded the world of the tremendous importance of the prophet of Islam, Muhammad. Learning about his life and understanding its importance, however, has always proven difficult. Our knowledge of Muhammad comes from the biography of him written by his followers, but Western historians have questioned the reliability of this story in their quest to uncover the 'historical Muhammad'. As modern controversies have shown, whatever the truth about Muhammad's life, his persona has taken on numerous shapes and played a crucial role in Muslim life and civilization. This Very Short Introduction provides an introduction to the major aspects of Muhammad's life and its importance, providing both the Muslim and Western historical perspectives. It also explains the prominent roles that Muhammad's persona has played in the Islamic world, from the medieval to the modern period.

A landmark contribution to New Zealand English, the Oxford Dictionary of New Zealandisms is the most up to date and comprehensive work of its kind. The Oxford Dictionary of New Zealandisms collects six and a half thousand distinctive New Zealand words and usages, and encompass the full range of New Zealandisms, drawn from a wide variety of domains and areas of New Zealand life. The Oxford Dictionary of New Zealandisms is the first to represent the entire spectrum of New Zealand English vocabulary since the publication of the late Harry Orsman's monumental Dictionary of New Zealand English in 1997.

This book explores how domestic courts contribute to the maintenance of the rule of international law by providing judicial control over the exercises of public powers that may conflict with international law. The main focus of the book will be on judicial control of exercise of public powers by states. Key cases that will be reviewed in this book, and that will provide empirical material for the main propositions, include Hamdan, in which the US Supreme Court reviewed detention by the United States of suspected terrorists against the 1949 Geneva Conventions; Adalah, in which the Supreme Court of Israel held that the use of local residents by Israeli soldiers in arresting a wanted terrorist is unlawful under international law, and the Narmada case, in which the Indian Supreme Court reviewed the legality of displacement of people in connection with the building of a dam in the river Narmada under the ILO Indigenous and Tribal Populations Convention 1957 (nr 107). This book primarily explores what it is that international law requires, expects, or aspires that domestic courts do, and against this backdrop of what international law requires it seeks to map patterns of domestic practice in the actual or possible application of international law, and to determine what such patterns mean for the protection of the rule of international law.