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The Decline and Renaissance of Universities: Moving from the Big Brother University to the Slow University
by Renzo RossoInstead of following the Magna Charta Universitatum, the declaration of the principles of knowledge signed in 1988 in Bologna, the academic approach pursued in Europe and the other continents over the past 30 years has strictly employed a utilitarian model of higher education. This jeopardizes academic freedom, shared governance and tenure, the three pillars of the long-established model of universities. Scientific conformism and fragmentation, educational bias and authoritarianism are the major drawbacks, together with a poor readiness to meet the emerging challenges in the labor market and technology. In this book, Renzo Rosso presents a new model for countering these developments, e.g. by establishing novel democratic rules for university governance. The Slow University paradigm positions culture and education as essential tools for the long-term survival of humankind.
The Deconfinement Transition of QCD: Theory Meets Experiment (Lecture Notes in Physics #981)
by Claudia Ratti Rene BellwiedIn the last few years, numerical simulations of QCD on the lattice have reached a new level of accuracy. A wide range of thermodynamic quantities is now available in the continuum limit and for physical quark masses. This allows a comparison with measurements from heavy ion collisions for the first time. Furthermore, calculations of dynamical quantities are also becoming available. The combined effort from first principles and experiment allows to gain an unprecedented understanding of the properties of quark-gluon plasma. This concise text, geared towards postgraduate students and newcomers to the field, carefully introduces and reviews the state-of-the-art techniques and results from lattice simulations and connects them to the experimental information from RHIC and the LHC.
The Deep History of Ourselves: The Four-Billion-Year Story of How We Got Conscious Brains
by Joseph LeDouxA leading neuroscientist offers a history of the evolution of the brain from unicellular organisms to the complexity of animals and human beings todayRenowned neuroscientist Joseph LeDoux digs into the natural history of life on earth to provide a new perspective on the similarities between us and our ancestors in deep time. This page-turning survey of the whole of terrestrial evolution sheds new light on how nervous systems evolved in animals, how the brain developed, and what it means to be human.In The Deep History of Ourselves, LeDoux argues that the key to understanding human behavior lies in viewing evolution through the prism of the first living organisms. By tracking the chain of the evolutionary timeline he shows how even the earliest single-cell organisms had to solve the same problems we and our cells have to solve each day. Along the way, LeDoux explores our place in nature, how the evolution of nervous systems enhanced the ability of organisms to survive and thrive, and how the emergence of what we humans understand as consciousness made our greatest and most horrendous achievements as a species possible.
The Deep Learning Revolution (The\mit Press Ser.)
by Terrence J. SejnowskiHow deep learning—from Google Translate to driverless cars to personal cognitive assistants—is changing our lives and transforming every sector of the economy.The deep learning revolution has brought us driverless cars, the greatly improved Google Translate, fluent conversations with Siri and Alexa, and enormous profits from automated trading on the New York Stock Exchange. Deep learning networks can play poker better than professional poker players and defeat a world champion at Go. In this book, Terry Sejnowski explains how deep learning went from being an arcane academic field to a disruptive technology in the information economy.Sejnowski played an important role in the founding of deep learning, as one of a small group of researchers in the 1980s who challenged the prevailing logic-and-symbol based version of AI. The new version of AI Sejnowski and others developed, which became deep learning, is fueled instead by data. Deep networks learn from data in the same way that babies experience the world, starting with fresh eyes and gradually acquiring the skills needed to navigate novel environments. Learning algorithms extract information from raw data; information can be used to create knowledge; knowledge underlies understanding; understanding leads to wisdom. Someday a driverless car will know the road better than you do and drive with more skill; a deep learning network will diagnose your illness; a personal cognitive assistant will augment your puny human brain. It took nature many millions of years to evolve human intelligence; AI is on a trajectory measured in decades. Sejnowski prepares us for a deep learning future.
The Deep Metaphysics of Space
by Edward SlowikThis volume explores the inadequacies of the two standard conceptions of space or spacetime, substantivalism and relationism, and in the process, proposes a new historical interpretation of these physical theories. This book also examines and develops alternative ontological conceptions of space, and explores additional historical elements of seventeenth century theories and other metaphysical themes. The author first discusses the two main opposing theories of the ontology of space. One, known as substantivalism, proposes space to be an entity that can exist independently of material things. The other, relationism, contends that space is a relation among material things. Readers will learn about specific problems with this dichotomy. First, Newton and Leibniz are often upheld as the retrospective forerunners of substantivalism and relationism. But, their work often contradicts the central tenets of these views. Second, these theories have proven problematic when transferred to a modern setting, especially with regards to general relativity and the recent quantum gravity hypotheses. The author details an alternative set of concepts that address these problems. The author also develops a new classificational system that provides a more accurate taxonomy for the elements of all spatial ontologies. This classification obtains successful analogies between Newton, Leibniz, and other natural philosophers with contemporary physical theories.
The Deep: The Hidden Wonders of Our Oceans and How We Can Protect Them
by Alex RogersThere's so much we don't know about what lies deep beneath the ocean's surface - and the time to find out is growing increasingly precious . . .Professor Alex Rogers is one of the world's leading experts in marine biology and oceanology, and has spent his life studying the deep ocean - and in particular the impact of human activity on the ecosystems of the oceans. In this timely, galvanising and fascinating book - replete with stunning photography of strange and beautiful creatures - Professor Rogers offers a fundamentally optimistic view of humanity's relationship with the oceans - and also a very personal account of his own interaction with the seas.
The Deep: The Hidden Wonders of Our Oceans and How We Can Protect Them
by Alex Rogers'[An] authoritative, hands-on study' NatureFrom one of the world's pre-eminent marine biologists comes a dazzling account of the wonders that lie beneath the ocean's surface, and an empowering vision of how we can protect themFewer people have been to the deepest part of the ocean than have been to the moon. Even now, the vast majority of this wilderness - which covers over 70% of the planet and forms its largest ecosystem - has never been seen by human eyes, let alone explored or investigated by scientists. Yet our oceans contain perhaps 90% of all life, and the physical and biological processes within it are critical to supporting our existence on Earth.Professor Alex Rogers has spent the past 30 years studying life in the deep ocean. In this book, he takes us on an epic and utterly unforgettable voyage to an alien world, and brings us right to the edge of what is known about our oceans today. Introducing us to glittering coral gardens, submarine mountains and a range of bizarre and breathtaking sea creatures, many of which he discovered first-hand, Rogers not only illustrates the ocean's enormous and untold impact on our lives, but also shows how we are damaging it catastrophically through pollution, overfishing, and the insidious and global effects of climate change.Imbued with the author's infectious sense of wonder, and replete with stunning photography of underwater life, The Deep is a magisterial study of a world we are only just beginning to understand - and a profoundly hopeful call to arms for us to reshape our relationship with it, before it is too late.
The Deep: The Hidden Wonders of Our Oceans and How We Can Protect Them
by Alex RogersThere's so much we don't know about what lies deep beneath the ocean's surface - and the time to find out is growing increasingly precious . . .Professor Alex Rogers is one of the world's leading experts in marine biology and oceanology, and has spent his life studying the deep ocean - and in particular the impact of human activity on the ecosystems of the oceans. In this timely, galvanising and fascinating book - replete with stunning photography of strange and beautiful creatures - Professor Rogers offers a fundamentally optimistic view of humanity's relationship with the oceans - and also a very personal account of his own interaction with the seas.(P)2019 Headline Publishing Group Ltd
The Deepest Place: Suffering and the Formation of Hope
by Curt Thompson, MDIn the face of personal and global suffering, is it possible to live with hope rather than despair? Join psychiatrist, speaker, and award-winning author Curt Thompson as he shows us how God transforms our grief into a lasting peace that surpasses all understanding.Suffering is a defining reality of life. Yet so many of us are so focused on avoiding discomfort that we've never learned how to actually suffer. But what if we could move from anxiety to durable hope?In The Deepest Place, Thompson invites us to explore how the Apostle Paul's experience of love, secure attachment, and the deeply felt sense of God's abiding presence carried him through the challenges he faced--and how it can help us not just survive, but flourish in the presence of suffering.Combining scripture with his own professional insight, Thompson helps us discover that:Suffering can increase our sense of security rather than our fearsHope is something we form in communityFaith can grow out of anger, cynicism, and doubtPerseverance changes our brain and reshapes our imaginationListening to our bodies helps us find new hope in loss As Thompson reminds us, those who have suffered greatly, including the Apostle Paul, are able to see their stories with a new understanding of God's presence and unfailing love. Let The Deepest Place show you how to do the same.
The Deepest Well: Healing the Long-Term Effects of Childhood Adversity
by Nadine Burke HarrisA pioneering physician reveals how childhood stress leads to lifelong health problems and what we can do to break the cycle. Dr. Nadine Burke Harris was already known as a crusading physician delivering targeted care to vulnerable children. But it was Diego—a boy who had stopped growing after a sexual trauma—who galvanized her to dig deeper into the connections between toxic stress and the lifelong illnesses she was tracking among so many of her patients and their families. A survey of more than 17,000 adult patients’ “adverse childhood experiences,” or ACEs, like divorce, substance abuse, or neglect, had proved that the higher a person’s ACE score the worse their health—and now led Burke Harris to an astonishing breakthrough. Childhood stress changes our neural systems and lasts a lifetime. Through storytelling that delivers both scientific insight and moving stories of personal impact, Burke Harris illuminates her journey of discovery, from research labs nationwide to her own pediatric practice in San Francisco’s Bayview-Hunters Point. For anyone who has faced a difficult childhood, or who cares about the millions of children who do, the innovative and acclaimed health interventions outlined in The Deepest Well will represent vitally important hope for change.
The Defense Industrial Base: Strategies for a Changing World
by Nayantara HenselThe US and international defense industrial sectors have faced many challenges over the last twenty years, including cycles of growth and shrinkage in defense budgets, shifts in strategic defense priorities, and macroeconomic volatility. In the current environment, the defense sector faces a combination of these challenges and must struggle with the need to maintain critical aspects of the defense industrial base as defense priorities change and as defense budgets reduce or plateau. Moreover, the defense sector in the US is interconnected both with defense sectors in other countries and with other industry sectors in the US and global economies. As a result, strategic decisions made in one defense sector impact the defense sectors of other countries, as well as other areas of the economy. Given her academic, corporate, and Department of Defense experience as a leading economist and policy-maker, Dr. Nayantara Hensel is perfectly positioned to examine the interrelationship between these forces both historically and in the current environment, and to assess the implications for the future global defense industrial base.
The Deformation: Attention and Discernment in Catholic Reformation Art and Architecture
by Susanna BergerA fascinating account of the use and meaning of visual and spatial distortions in seventeenth-century art and architectureDuring the Catholic Reformation, patrons, artists, architects, and viewers, especially in Rome, were strongly drawn to visual and spatial distortions or &“deformations&”—works of art and architecture that were designed to be visually incomprehensible, at least initially. From Borromini&’s San Carlo alle Quattro Fontane in Rome to the attention-grabbing prospettiva in the city&’s Palazzo Spada and the anamorphoses that define the corridors and walls of Minim and Jesuit buildings, The Deformation explores what this intriguing phenomenon reveals about contemporary religious belief, optics, and the natural sciences, as well as wider questions about attention and discernment.Failing to conform to an established ideal, deformations required a &“reformation&” to achieve that ideal. Anamorphic deformations, for example, could only be reformed into clarity when viewed from a particular angle or through a special mirror. Susanna Berger examines how deformations were experienced by beholders, and how they were embraced or opposed by critics. The book shows how deformations and related works—whether altar tabernacles, ephemeral religious architecture, churches, monumental sundials, colonnades with accelerated perspective, illusionistic frescoes, turned ivories, or painted anamorphoses—focused observers&’ attention on theological mysteries and the social power and sophistication of patrons. The book&’s rich illustrations include two gatefolds and some anamorphic images that can be seen without distortion by using an included reflective insert as a mirror.Looking at writings as well as visual works in multiple artistic media not typically considered in relation to each other, The Deformation offers a new interpretation of deformation that highlights the delay between perception and discernment.
The Deja Vu Experience (Essays in Cognitive Psychology)
by Alan S. BrownMost of us have been perplexed by a strange sense of familiarity when doing something for the first time. We feel that we have been here before, or done this before, but know for sure that this is impossible. In fact, according to numerous surveys, about two-thirds of us have experienced déjà vu at least once, and most of us have had multiple experiences. There are a number of credible scientific interpretations of déjà vu, and this book summarizes the broad range of published work from philosophy, religion, neurology, sociology, memory, perception, psychopathology, and psychopharmacology. This book also includes discussion of cognitive functioning in retrieval and familiarity, neuronal transmission, and double perception during the déjà vu experience.
The DelFly
by G. C. H. E. Croon M. Perçin B. D. W. Remes R. Ruijsink C. WagterThis book introduces the topics most relevant to autonomously flying flapping wing robots: flapping-wing design, aerodynamics, and artificial intelligence. Readers can explore these topics in the context of the "Delfly", a flapping wing robot designed at Delft University in The Netherlands. How are tiny fruit flies able to lift their weight, avoid obstacles and predators, and find food or shelter? The first step in emulating this is the creation of a micro flapping wing robot that flies by itself. The challenges are considerable: the design and aerodynamics of flapping wings are still active areas of scientific research, whilst artificial intelligence is subject to extreme limitations deriving from the few sensors and minimal processing onboard. This book conveys the essential insights that lie behind success such as the DelFly Micro and the DelFly Explorer. The DelFly Micro, with its 3. 07 grams and 10 cm wing span, is still the smallest flapping wing MAV in the world carrying a camera, whilst the DelFly Explorer is the world's first flapping wing MAV that is able to fly completely autonomously in unknown environments. The DelFly project started in 2005 and ever since has served as inspiration, not only to many scientific flapping wing studies, but also the design of flapping wing toys. The combination of introductions to relevant fields, practical insights and scientific experiments from the DelFly project make this book a must-read for all flapping wing enthusiasts, be they students, researchers, or engineers.
The Delivery of Regenerative Medicines and Their Impact on Healthcare
by Dame Julia Polak Catherine D. PrescottNow that prohibitions against stem cell research are relaxing, it is time for the field to move forward with the advances that promise to eliminate so much human suffering. However, it would be naive to ignore the fact that regenerative medicines pose a whole new set of challenges to an industry sector that for decades has geared itself to the deve
The Delusions of Certainty
by Siri Hustvedt&“The Delusions of Certainty is a unique book by an extraordinary author. Siri Hustvedt is a notable novelist, art scholar, and a philosopher of science. In this memorable and immensely enjoyable volume, Hustvedt rises above the exhausted debate over the two cultures, to demonstrate not just the possibility but also the advantages of combining the approaches of the arts, humanities, and sciences to illuminate a key aspect of the human condition: the mind-body problem.&” —Antonio Damasio, bestselling author of Descartes&’ Error and Self Comes to Mind &“Siri Hustvedt proves her membership in the highest rank of neuroscientists and philosophers who probe the nature of thought and the workings of consciousness. A novelist and a student of psychoanalysis and neuroscience, Hustvedt can ask questions others cannot ask about imagination, identity, epistemology, gendered power, and mortality. Her authoritative knowledge and her courage to challenge the status quo guide the reader to fresh epiphanies about what counts as human nature. The work is, in the end, a work of freedom.&” —Rita Charon, Columbia University &“The Delusions of Certainty is the best book on the mind-body problem I have ever read. Perhaps only a great novelist and essayist can address what neuroscientists and philosophers fail to question. Siri Hustvedt takes the reader on an inspiring journey into highly relevant and often unanswered questions about what it means to be human.&” —Vittorio Gallese, University of Parma Prizewinning novelist, feminist, and scholar Siri Hustvedt turns her brilliant and critical eye toward the metaphysical issues of neuropsychology in this lauded, standalone volume. Originally published in her &“canonical&” (Publishers Weekly) and &“absorbing&” (Kirkus Reviews) collection A Woman Looking at Men Looking at Women, The Delusions of Certainty exposes how the age-old, unresolved mind-body problem has shaped—and often distorted and confused—contemporary thought in neuroscience, psychiatry, genetics, artificial intelligence, and evolutionary psychology.
The Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) of Korea: Protection, Conservation and Restoration of a Unique Ecosystem
by Kwi-Gon KimUntouched since 1953, the Korean DMZ (Demilitarized Zone) has transformed itself into one of the few ecologically pristine zones and a vital habitat for endangered species. Often cited as a potential "peace park", it could one day be a common ground for reconciliation and harmony. A wealth of data and information has been produced over time, documenting significant aspects of the DMZ and its implications for human and ecological security, both in Korea and worldwide. However, there is no single book in English that brings together the findings on the mechanism of evolution, the ecology and biodiversity of the DMZ. "The DMZ of Korea", by Kwi-Gon Kim, is the first step in this direction. It seeks to link scientific information and policy making for the future DMZ ecosystem management, taking into account the fact that the area has become, over the years, a natural treasure as a habitat for rare birds and other wildlife and a fertile environment for a thriving plant community. It also provides a framework for ensuring the long-term sustainability of the DMZ. The book holistically describes the current environmental status of the DMZ, and identifies bioregions, resources, habitats, and species. By outlining the current scientific data and information needed to classify the different wetland types, assess the biological integrity, understand the threat factors, and to suggest conservation and management strategies, the book provides a "one stop shop" scientific and policy source of information, which will undoubtedly be of great interest to students, researchers, practitioners, and policy decision-makers, in the areas of planning, natural resource management, public management, ecology, landscape architecture, geography, and the life sciences. Prof.Dr.Kwi-Gon Kim obtained his Ph.D. at UCL, University of London, UK. He is a professor emeritus at Seoul National University and the Co- President of the Korea DMZ Council in Seoul, Korea.
The Democracy of Suffering: Life on the Edge of Catastrophe, Philosophy in the Anthropocene
by Todd DufresneIn The Democracy of Suffering philosopher Todd Dufresne provides a strikingly original exploration of the past, present, and future of this epoch, the Anthropocene, demonstrating how the twin crises of reason and capital have dramatically remade the essential conditions for life itself. Images, cartoons, artworks, and quotes pulled from literary and popular culture supplement this engaging and unorthodox look into where we stand amidst the ravages of climate change and capitalist economics. With humour, passion, and erudition, Dufresne diagnoses a frightening new reality and proposes a way forward, arguing that our serial experiences of catastrophic climate change herald an intellectual and moral awakening – one that lays the groundwork, albeit at the last possible moment, for a future beyond individualism, hate, and greed. That future is unapologetically collective. It begins with a shift in human consciousness, with philosophy in its broadest sense, and extends to a reengagement with our greatest ideals of economic, social, and political justice for all. But this collective future, Dufresne argues, is either now or never. Uncovering how we got into this mess and how, if at all, we get out of it, The Democracy of Suffering is a flicker of light, or perhaps a scream, in the face of human extinction and the end of civilization.
The Democracy of Suffering: Life on the Edge of Catastrophe, Philosophy in the Anthropocene
by Todd DufresneIn The Democracy of Suffering philosopher Todd Dufresne provides a strikingly original exploration of the past, present, and future of this epoch, the Anthropocene, demonstrating how the twin crises of reason and capital have dramatically remade the essential conditions for life itself. Images, cartoons, artworks, and quotes pulled from literary and popular culture supplement this engaging and unorthodox look into where we stand amidst the ravages of climate change and capitalist economics. With humour, passion, and erudition, Dufresne diagnoses a frightening new reality and proposes a way forward, arguing that our serial experiences of catastrophic climate change herald an intellectual and moral awakening - one that lays the groundwork, albeit at the last possible moment, for a future beyond individualism, hate, and greed. That future is unapologetically collective. It begins with a shift in human consciousness, with philosophy in its broadest sense, and extends to a reengagement with our greatest ideals of economic, social, and political justice for all. But this collective future, Dufresne argues, is either now or never. Uncovering how we got into this mess and how, if at all, we get out of it, The Democracy of Suffering is a flicker of light, or perhaps a scream, in the face of human extinction and the end of civilization.
The Demography and Causes of Blindness
by Hyman GoldsteinA report on the statistics of blindness from an international point of view.
The Demography of Disasters: Impacts for Population and Place
by Andrew Taylor Dávid Karácsonyi Deanne BirdThis open access book provides worldwide examples demonstrating the importance of the interplay between demography and disasters in regions and spatially. It marks an advance in practical and theoretical insights for understanding the role of demography in planning for and mitigating impacts from disasters in developed nations. Both slow onset (like the of loss polar ice from climate change) and sudden disasters (such as cyclones and man-made disasters) have the capacity to fundamentally change the profiles of populations at local and regional levels. Impacts vary according to the type, rapidity and magnitude of the disaster, but also according to the pre-existing population profile and its relationships to the economy and society. In all cases, the key to understanding impacts and avoiding them in the future is to understand the relationships between disasters and population change. In most chapters in this book we compare and contrast studies from at least two cases and summarize their practical and theoretical lessons.
The Demon Under the Microscope: From Battlefield Hospitals to Nazi Labs, One Doctor's Heroic Search for the World's First Miracle Drug (Playaway Adult Nonfiction Ser.)
by Thomas HagerScience writer Hager describes the strange journey of the sulfa drug and the man who found it almost by accident, Dr. Gerhard Domagk, whose major blunder, if indeed he committed one, was discovering it the year Hitler took over his native Germany. The drug became a tool of the Allies as well as the Nazis, and finally a generation managed to survive the wounds of war. Domagk, however, barely survived the Gestapo; the corporate executives for whom he worked were defendants in the Nuremberg Trials; the US experienced the worst mass poisoning in its history; and the ways and means of developing new medicines were changed forever, perhaps not for the better. Annotation ©2006 Book News, Inc. , Portland, OR (booknews. com)
The Demon in the Freezer: A True Story
by Richard Preston<P>The first major bioterror event in the United States--the anthrax attacks in October 2001--was a clarion call for scientists who work with "hot" agents to find ways of protecting civilian populations against biological weapons. <P> In The Demon in the Freezer, his first nonfiction book since The Hot Zone, a #1 New York Times bestseller, Richard Preston takes us into the heart of Usamriid, the United States Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases at Fort Detrick, Maryland, once the headquarters of the U. S. biological weapons program and now the epicenter of national biodefense. <P>Peter Jahrling, the top scientist at Usamriid, a wry virologist who cut his teeth on Ebola, one of the world's most lethal emerging viruses, has ORCON security clearance that gives him access to top secret information on bioweapons. His most urgent priority is to develop a drug that will take on smallpox-and win. <P>Eradicated from the planet in 1979 in one of the great triumphs of modern science, the smallpox virus now resides, officially, in only two high-security freezers--at the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta and in Siberia, at a Russian virology institute called Vector. <P>But the demon in the freezer has been set loose. It is almost certain that illegal stocks are in the possession of hostile states, including Iraq and North Korea. <P>Jahrling is haunted by the thought that biologists in secret labs are using genetic engineering to create a new superpox virus, a smallpox resistant to all vaccines. <P>Usamriid went into a state of Delta Alert on September 11 and activated its emergency response teams when the first anthrax letters were opened in New York and Washington, D.C. <P>Preston reports, in unprecedented detail, on the government's response to the attacks and takes us into the ongoing FBI investigation. <P>His story is based on interviews with top-level FBI agents and with Dr. Steven Hatfill. <P> Jahrling is leading a team of scientists doing controversial experiments with live smallpox virus at CDC. <P>Preston takes us into the lab where Jahrling is reawakening smallpox and explains, with cool and devastating precision, what may be at stake if his last bold experiment fails. <P><b>A New York Times Bestseller</b>
The Demon in the Machine: How Hidden Webs of Information Are Solving the Mystery of Life
by Paul DaviesWhat is life? For generations, scientists have struggled to make sense of this fundamental question, for life really does look like magic: even a humble bacterium accomplishes things so dazzling that no human engineer can match it. Huge advances in molecular biology over the past few decades have served only to deepen the mystery. In this penetrating and wide-ranging book, world-renowned physicist and science communicator Paul Davies searches for answers in a field so new and fast-moving that it lacks a name; it is a domain where biology, computing, logic, chemistry, quantum physics, and nanotechnology intersect. At the heart of these diverse fields, Davies explains, is the concept of information: a quantity which has the power to unify biology with physics, transform technology and medicine, and force us to fundamentally reconsider what it means to be alive—even illuminating the age-old question of whether we are alone in the universe. From life’s murky origins to the microscopic engines that run the cells of our bodies, The Demon in the Machine journeys across an astounding landscape of cutting-edge science. Weaving together cancer and consciousness, two-headed worms and bird navigation, Davies reveals how biological organisms garner and process information to conjure order out of chaos, opening a window onto the secret of life itself.
The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark
by Carl SaganHow can we make intelligent decisions about our increasingly technology-driven lives if we don't understand the difference between the myths of pseudoscience and the testable hypotheses of science? Pulitzer Prize-winning author and distinguished astronomer Carl Sagan argues that scientific thinking is critical not only to the pursuit of truth but to the very well-being of our democratic institutions.<P> Casting a wide net through history and culture, Sagan examines and authoritatively debunks such celebrated fallacies of the past as witchcraft, faith healing, demons, and UFOs. And yet, disturbingly, in today's so-called information age, pseudoscience is burgeoning with stories of alien abduction, channeling past lives, and communal hallucinations commanding growing attention and respect. As Sagan demonstrates with lucid eloquence, the siren song of unreason is not just a cultural wrong turn but a dangerous plunge into darkness that threatens our most basic freedoms.