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Crises and Conversions: The Unlikely Avenues of "Italian Shiism" (Palgrave Studies in New Religions and Alternative Spiritualities)
by Minoo MirshahvaladThis book explores the phenomenon of conversion to Shi'a Islam in Italy. It thoroughly examines the motivations behind this religious transition and scrutinizes the doctrinal characteristics that Shiism incorporates thanks to the contributions of Italian converts. The text emphasizes the significance of René Guénon’s Traditionalism as a pivotal factor in driving this religious mobility. Additionally, the book delves into the writings of figures such as Julius Evola, who introduced Guénon to Italy, shedding light on Evola’s impact on the youth in the post-World War II era. Furthermore, it evaluates the influence of Henry Corbin on this spiritual journey. To realize this study, between 2018 and 2023, Minoo Mirshahvalad employed multidisciplinary methods that integrated sociology and history.
Russian Tales: Traditional Stories of Quests and Enchantments (Traditional Tales Ser.)
by Dinara MirtalipovaRediscover the magic of Russian folktales in a breathtaking illustrated edition.This collection of traditional stories will sweep you away to the birch forests and ornate palaces of Russia. You'll meet a mysterious girl born from the snow, a terrifying Baba Yaga, and a series of dauntless heroines and heroes willing to fight dragons and cross fiery rivers. Blending whimsical magic with magnificent drama, these tales come to life alongside intricate contemporary art in this special illustrated edition.POPULAR SERIES: The Tales series gives new life to traditional stories. Celebrating the richness of folklore around the world, and featuring the work of beloved contemporary illustrators, these books are treasured by adults and teens alike.ICONIC STORIES: Russian stories hold a special place in the hearts of fairy tales fans. Unforgettable characters like Baba Yaga and the Fire-Bird have captured imaginations for generations. In this collection, readers are sure to find old favorites and discover something new.GORGEOUS SPECIAL EDITION: With a mesmerizing full-page illustration for each story, as well as creamy paper, a ribbon page marker, and a handsome hardcover design, this edition is perfect for gifting and display.Perfect for:• Fans of fairy tales and folklore• Readers with Russian heritage or interested in Russian culture• Illustration and art lovers• Adults and teens• Collectors of illustrated classics• Fans of the illustrator Dinara Mirtalipova
Stress Biology in Photosynthetic Organisms: Molecular Insights and Cellular Responses
by Arun Kumar MishraThis book explores the intricate mechanisms underlying the stress responses of phototrophs, which play a critical and foundational role in shaping and sustaining life on Earth.The photoautotrophic entities encounter a spectrum of natural and anthropogenic stresses, inducing a multitude of responses at the physiological, biochemical, genetic, and developmental levels. The comprehension of how these phototrophs adeptly counter stressors transcends mere scientific pursuit; it stands as an essential endeavor for predicting their adaptability in an ever-evolving world and, crucially, for conserving our delicate ecosystems. The book will shed light on the sophisticated interplay of stress signaling pathways and the nuanced engagement of stress-responsive hormones within these life forms. Furthermore, it unveils the cryptic genetic and epigenetic controls dictating stress-related gene expression, yielding profound insights into the enduring recollection of their responses to environmental challenges.This book is an essential read for researchers, educators, and students alike. It offers a comprehensive panorama of stress biology, unveiling the innermost mechanisms at play within photosynthetic organisms discussing their resilience and adaptation.
Unconstrained Optimization and Quantum Calculus (Uncertainty and Operations Research)
by Shashi Kant Mishra Bhagwat Ram Kin Keung Lai Predrag RajkovićThis book provides a better clue to apply quantum derivative instead of classical derivative in the modified optimization methods, compared with the competing books which employ a number of standard derivative optimization techniques to address large-scale, unconstrained optimization issues. Essential proofs and applications of the various techniques are given in simple manner without sacrificing accuracy. New concepts are illustrated with the help of examples. This book presents the theory and application of given optimization techniques in generalized and comprehensive manner. Methods such as steepest descent, conjugate gradient and BFGS are generalized and comparative analyses will show the efficiency of the techniques.
Emotions in Cultural Context (International and Cultural Psychology)
by Girishwar Misra Indiwar MisraThis book approaches emotion from a cultural perspective in applied contexts, consolidating new research that examines the interface of emotions with various aspects of human life. It provides insights into the vibrant and growing field of emotion research by rearticulating the distinction and interrelationships of the trilogy of mind consisting of cognition, affection and conation. It brings into focus indigenous and culturally relevant conceptualizations of emotion processes. Among the topics covered: Emotions at work: applications of emotional intelligenceIndian perspectives on youth, compassion, and moral well-beingParental emotion regulationstrategiesRole of emotions in construction of social identities Emotions in Cultural Context offers an up-to-date exploration of recent work in psychology of emotions.
Gavi and COVID-19: Pandemic of the Century
by Sid Misra Tarun KhannaGavi has helped immunize over 760 million children in the world's poorest countries over the past 20 years saving 13 million lives. How should Gavi respond to the need for a vaccine for the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic?
Thinking About Medicine: An Introduction to the Philosophy of Healthcare
by David MisselbrookThis introduction to the philosophy of medicine surveys the landscape of western philosophy as it pertains to healthcare in an accessible way. Written by a doctor for doctors and other health professionals, framing the 'toolbox' of philosophy within the community of medicine, it encourages examination of the implicit assumptions made in the construction of medical knowledge and practice.Taking the reader step by step through the concepts that underpin modern philosophy, they will be challenged to reflect upon the premises within clinical practice which might benefit from scrutiny and challenge, including the nature of scientific knowledge, the limits of our biomedical model, the cultural and relational context, and the failure to recognise or manage adequately the fact/value distinction in medicine and healthcare.The book is an ideal textbook for students of medicine and medical philosophy and will also be of interest to bioethicists, medical sociologists, clinical commissioners and to practicing clinicians in medicine and the allied health professions seeking to improve their understanding of philosophy and ethics and sharpen their critical thinking skills.
The Social Anxiety Workbook: Practical Tips and Guided Exercises to Help You Overcome Social Anxiety
by Mita MistryLife has plenty of challenges, and it's normal to feel anxious from time to time. But when social anxiety starts to affect your day-to-day life, it's time to take action. This friendly guide will help you take the steps toward managing your social anxiety and provide the tools you need to approach every social situation with confidence.
Thinking through Technology: The Path between Engineering and Philosophy
by Carl MitchamWhat does it mean to think about technology philosophically? Why try? These are the issues that Carl Mitcham addresses in this work, a comprehensive, critical introduction to the philosophy of technology and a discussion of its sources and uses. Tracing the changing meaning of "technology" from ancient times to our own, Mitcham identifies the most important traditions of critical analysis of technology: the engineering approach, which assumes the centrality of technology in human life; and the humanities approach, which is concerned with its moral and cultural boundaries. Mitcham bridges these two traditions through an analysis of discussions of engineering design, of the distinction between tools and machines, and of engineering science itself. He looks at technology as it is experienced in everyday life—as material objects (from kitchenware to computers), as knowledge ( including recipes, rules, theories, and intuitive "know-how"), as activity (design, construction, and use), and as volition (knowing how to use technology and understanding its consequences). By elucidating these multiple aspects, Mitcham establishes criteria for a more comprehensive analysis of ethical issues in applications of science and technology. This book will guide anyone wanting to reflect on technology and its moral implications.
Iconology: Image, Text, Ideology
by W.J.T. Mitchel"[Mitchell] undertakes to explore the nature of images by comparing them with words, or, more precisely, by looking at them from the viewpoint of verbal language. . . . The most lucid exposition of the subject I have ever read."—Rudolf Arnheim, Times Literary Supplement
Advances in Sewn Product Technology
by Anita MitchellThe fashion industry continues to contribute significantly to greenhouse gas emissions. It is one of the biggest polluters, one of the most wasteful of all global industries and is under increasing pressure to address unsustainable practice. Emerging out of the pandemic era the fashion industry is also responding to a variety of complex industry challenges such as high return rates, customer demand for better fitting apparel, faster fashion, the drive towards personalisation and greater transparency and sustainability across the value chain. These factors along with increasing labour costs are furthermore exerting force on the industry to embrace nearshoring and reshoring. Based on extensive primary research involving oral histories methodology with leading industry professionals involved in the innovation of technological and digital solutions for the fashion industry, this book presents the latest advances in sewn product technology which offer solutions to many of the fashion industry’s current and emerging challenges whilst also informing how these developments are influencing fashion jobs of today and tomorrow. This book is therefore of value to fashion students, academics, researchers, and technicians as well as those working within the fashion industry involved in the design, development, manufacture, buying and retail of fashion apparel.Features: Provides a comprehensive insight into the latest advances in sewing machine technology including advanced automation and robotics used in the manufacture of fashion apparel. Provides a comprehensive insight into the latest industrial sewing threads and needles that can effectively support sustainable design practice. Exclusively covers advances in digital technologies to support sustainable practice including advances in 3D body scanning and digital measuring systems, recent advances in digital pattern making and pattern design systems, recent advances in 3D fashion design software and the latest advances in Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) systems used within the fashion industry. Includes sections on advances in No-Sew Seam Bonding and ultrasonic welding technologies. Provides an insight into advancements in 3D cloth simulation and prototyping for apparel design and gaming. Enables readers to understand the impact of the latest advances in sewn product technology on the jobs of today and tomorrow. Case studies that provide working examples of advances in sewn product technology.
The Wonder of Probiotics: A 30-Day Plan to Boost Energy, Enhance Weight Loss, Heal GI Problems, Prevent Disease, and Slow Aging
by Deborah Mitchell John R. TaylorRestore Your Health and Rejuvenate Your LifePathogens and toxins found in our environment and the foods we eat can cause myriad health problems including digestive disorders, yeast infections, allergies, urinary tract infections, dental problems and some cancers. Probiotics-"friendly" bacteria-are the cornerstone of any successful health program because they restore a healthy balance between friendly and "bad" bacteria in the intestinal tract, a balance that is critical for the health of the entire body.This groundbreaking book reveals how taking the right probiotics-in the form of food and supplements-as part of a daily revitalizing program for overall health or for specific health conditions-can restore that crucial balance. This remarkably easy to follow nutrition program will energize, and rejuvenate as well as:- Improve the health your GI tract- Alleviate allergies and asthma- Restore your reproductive and urinary tracts- Bolster the immune system against disease- Enhance weight loss- Fight agingMaking probiotics a part of your daily routine will allow anyone to live a healthier, fuller, more vibrant life.John R. Taylor N.D. is the CEO and president of www.nwcnaturals.com. He has conducted nutritional courses across the United States and collaborated with the nation's leading authorities on nutrition and probiotics. Deborah Mitchell is a freelance writer specializing in health, medical and environmental topics. The Wonder of Probiotics joins more than two dozen other books that she has written.
Next Level Student Success: Practical Ways to Achieve Success in School and in Life
by Dennard MitchellThis book is a student's guide to achieving success in school and life. A wealth of knowledge that every principal, teacher, professor, counselor, parent, and student life director would want their students to read. If you're someone that would like to take your schooling and your personal life to the Next Level, then this is the book for you. In Next Level Student Success, Dennard Mitchell shares practical, actionable tips that students can implement immediately to achieve success. If you want stronger personal relationships, to improve academically, become an effective student leader, or increase your self-belief, this book will challenge you to do exactly that and more. Get ready for Next Level Student Success!
The Debt Trap: How Student Loans Became a National Catastrophe
by Josh MitchellAN NPR AND NEW YORK POST BEST BOOK OF 2021 From acclaimed Wall Street Journal reporter Josh Mitchell, the &“devastating account&” (The Wall Street Journal) of student debt in America.In 1981, a new executive at Sallie Mae took home the company&’s financial documents to review. &“You&’ve got to be shitting me,&” he later told the company&’s CEO. &“This place is a gold mine.&” Over the next four decades, the student loan industry that Sallie Mae and Congress created blew up into a crisis that would submerge a generation of Americans into $1.5 trillion in student debt. In The Debt Trap, Wall Street Journal reporter Josh Mitchell tells the &“vivid and compelling&” (Chicago Tribune) untold story of the scandals, scams, predatory actors, and government malpractice that have created the behemoth that one of its original architects called a &“monster.&” As he charts the &“jaw-dropping&” (Jeffrey Selingo, New York Times bestselling author of Who Gets in and Why) seventy-year history of student debt in America, Mitchell never loses sight of the countless student victims ensnared by an exploitative system that depends on their debt. Mitchell also draws alarming parallels to the housing crisis in the late 2000s, showing the catastrophic consequences student debt has had on families and the nation&’s future. Mitchell&’s character-driven narrative is &“necessary reading&” (The New York Times) for anyone wanting to understand the central economic issue of our day.
Virtuosi: A Defense and a (Sometimes Erotic) Celebration of Great Pianists
by Mark MitchellVirtuosiA Defense and a (Sometimes Erotic) Celebration of Great PianistsMark MitchellA bravura performance!"Vigorous, opinionated, and always entertaining, here is a personal essayist of great charm and sincerity. Mitchell's erudition—his collection of odd and illuminating bits of knowledge—is always a delight and adds a sauce piquanteto the whole dish!" —Edmund White"...a literary work of real élan, vibrancy, and grace—the very qualities that in his view define the virtuoso. [Mr. Mitchell explores] the traditional linking of musical and sexual virtuosity, the ethical implications of the original instruments' movement, the near deification of Mozart in Anglo-Saxon culture, and, in a particularly witty section, the relationship of the virtuoso to his stool. Throughout, Mr. Mitchell's prose is humorous, intimate, and unapologeticaly polemical." —Cynthia OzickThe artistic merit of performers with superior technique has long been almost ipso facto denied. At last, Mark Mitchell launches a counterattack. In essays crackling with pianistic lore, Mitchell takes on topics such as encores, prodigies, competitions, virtuosi in film and literature, and the erotics of musical performance. Liszt, Horowitz, and Argerich share these pages with the eccentric Pachmann, Ervin Nyiregyh ("the skid-row pianist"), and Liberace. The illustrations include rare portraits of long-forgotten girl prodigies, historic concert programs, and stills from a lost 1927 film on Beethoven. Punctuating this celebration of personal voice are vignettes, running from the beginnings of the author's obsession with the piano to the particularities of concert-going in Italy (where he now lives).Mark Mitchell's piano studies led to a friendship with Vladimir Horowitz and other pianistic luminaries. With David Leavitt he co-authored Italian Pleasures and co-edited Pages Passed from Hand to Hand. He also edited The Penguin Book of International Gay Writing.
West of Sex: Making Mexican America, 1900–1930
by Pablo MitchellSex can be an oppressive force, a tool to shame, divide, and control a population. But it can also be a force for change, for the legal and physical challenge of inequity and injustice. In West of Sex, Pablo Mitchell uses court transcripts and criminal cases to provide the first coherent picture of Mexican-American sexuality at the turn of the twentieth century, and a truly revelatory look at sexual identity in the borderlands. As Mexicans faced a rising tide of racial intolerance in the American West, some found cracks in the legal system that enabled them to assert their rights as full citizens, despite institutional hostility. In these chapters, Mitchell offers a rare glimpse into the inner workings of ethnicity and power in the United States, placing ordinary Mexican women and men at the center of the story of American sex, colonialism, and belonging. Other chapters discuss topics like prostitution, same-sex intimacy, sexual violence, interracial romance, and marriage with an impressive level of detail and complexity. Written in vivid and accessible prose, West of Sex offers readers a new vision of sex and race in American history.
The Next Supercontinent: Solving the Puzzle of a Future Pangea
by Ross MitchellAn internationally recognized scientist shows that Earth’s separate continents, once together in Pangea, are again on a collision course.You’ve heard of Pangea, the single landmass that broke apart some 175 million years ago to give us our current continents, but what about its predecessors, Rodinia or Columbia? These “supercontinents” from Earth’s past provide evidence that land repeatedly joins and separates. While scientists debate what that next supercontinent will look like—and what to name it—they all agree: one is coming.In this engaging work, geophysicist Ross Mitchell invites readers to remote (and sometimes treacherous) lands for evidence of past supercontinents, delves into the phenomena that will birth the next, and presents the case for the future supercontinent of Amasia, defined by the merging of North America and Asia. Introducing readers to plate tectonic theory through fieldwork adventures and accessible scientific descriptions, Mitchell considers flows deep in the Earth’s mantle to explain Amasia’s future formation and shows how this developing theory can illuminate other planetary mysteries. He then poses the inevitable question: how can humanity survive the intervening 200 million years necessary to see Amasia?An expert on the supercontinent cycle, Mitchell offers readers a front-row seat to a slow-motion mystery and an ongoing scientific debate.
Numerische Analyse von gewöhnlichen und retardierten Differentialgleichungen
by Taketomo Mitsui Guang-Da HuDieses Buch dient als prägnantes Lehrbuch für Studenten in einem fortgeschrittenen Undergraduate- oder First-Year-Graduate-Kurs in verschiedenen Disziplinen wie angewandte Mathematik, Steuerung und Ingenieurwesen, die den modernen Standard der numerischen Methoden von gewöhnlichen und verzögerten Differentialgleichungen verstehen wollen. Experten in denselben Bereichen können sich auch über die jüngsten Entwicklungen in der numerischen Analyse solcher Differentialsysteme informieren. Gewöhnliche Differentialgleichungen (ODEs) sind ein starkes mathematisches Werkzeug, um eine Vielzahl von Phänomenen in Wissenschaft und Technik auszudrücken. Neben ihrer eigenen Bedeutung ist eine der mächtigen Richtungen, in die sich ODEs ausdehnen, die Einbeziehung einer unbekannten Funktion mit verzögertem Argument. Dies wird als verzögerte Differentialgleichungen (Delay differential equations, DDEs) bezeichnet, die häufig in der mathematischen Modellierung vonBiologie, Demographie, Epidemiologie und Kontrolltheorie vorkommen. In einigen Fällen kann die Lösung einer Differentialgleichung durch algebraische Kombinationen bekannter mathematischer Funktionen erhalten werden. In vielen praktischen Fällen ist eine solche Lösung jedoch recht schwierig oder nicht verfügbar, und es sind numerische Näherungen erforderlich. Die moderne Entwicklung von Computern beschleunigt die Situation und eröffnet darüber hinaus mehr Möglichkeiten der numerischen Mittel. Die Kenntnis und das Fachwissen über die numerische Lösung von Differentialgleichungen wird nun in weiten Bereichen der Wissenschaft und des Ingenieurwesens vorausgesetzt.Man könnte meinen, dass ein gut organisiertes Softwarepaket wie MATLAB in etwa die gleiche Lösung bietet. In gewisser Weise stimmt das auch, aber man muss bedenken, dass der blinde Einsatz von Softwarepaketen den Benutzer in die Irre führt. Das Wesentliche der numerischen Lösung von Differentialgleichungen muss noch gelernt werden. Das vorliegende Buch soll das Wesentliche der numerischen Lösungen von gewöhnlichen Differentialgleichungen sowie von Verzögerungsdifferentialgleichungen vermitteln. Die Autoren haben insbesondere festgestellt, dass es noch wenige prägnante Lehrbücher über Verzögerungsdifferentialgleichungen gibt, und haben sich dann daran gemacht, die Lücke durch möglichst transparente Beschreibungen zu schließen. Die wichtigsten Algorithmen zur numerischen Lösung sind in diesem Buch klar beschrieben. Auch die Stabilität von Lösungen von ODEs und DDEs ist von entscheidender Bedeutung. Das Buch führt in die asymptotische Stabilität von analytischen und numerischen Lösungen ein und bietet einen praktischen Weg zur Analyse ihrer Stabilität unter Verwendung einer Theorie komplexer Funktionen.
Akademisierung – Professionalisierung: Zum Verhältnis von Hochschulbildung, akademischem Wissen und Arbeitswelt (Studien zur Schul- und Bildungsforschung #89)
by Alexander Mitterle Annett Maiwald Christoph Schubert Annemarie MatthiesDer Band liefert Beiträge ausgewiesener Forscherinnen und -forscher, die Hochschule und Arbeitswelt multi-perspektivisch in ihren Zusammenhängen diskutieren. Analytische Fallstudien zu spezifischen Disziplinen, Studiengängen und Berufsfeldern werden mit empirisch-quantitativen Zugängen zum Wandel der Hochschulbildung und mit unterschiedlichen Theorieperspektiven verbunden, wodurch eine Einführung in die Thematik der Akademisierungsfolgen und deren Spezifikation erfolgt – ein Forschungsfeld, das mit der Hochschulexpansion zunehmend an Bedeutung gewinnt.
Power in Concert: The Nineteenth-Century Origins of Global Governance
by Jennifer MitzenHow states cooperate in the absence of a sovereign power is a perennial question in international relations. With Power in Concert, Jennifer Mitzen argues that global governance is more than just the cooperation of states under anarchy: it is the formation and maintenance of collective intentions, or joint commitments among states to address problems together. The key mechanism through which these intentions are sustained is face-to-face diplomacy, which keeps states’ obligations to one another salient and helps them solve problems on a day-to-day basis.Mitzen argues that the origins of this practice lie in the Concert of Europe, an informal agreement among five European states in the wake of the Napoleonic wars to reduce the possibility of recurrence, which first institutionalized the practice of jointly managing the balance of power. Through the Concert’s many successes, she shows that the words and actions of state leaders in public forums contributed to collective self-restraint and a commitment to problem solving—and at a time when communication was considerably more difficult than it is today. Despite the Concert’s eventual breakdown, the practice it introduced—of face to face diplomacy as a mode of joint problem solving—survived and is the basis of global governance today.
Successful Social Activism and Unintended Market Emergence: The Fight Over Foot Health and Fashion in Japan
by Sayako MiuraThis book demonstrates why and how social activism targeting companies can produce unintended consequences. While it is challenging for social movement organizations (SMOs) to successfully change corporate behavior, it is even more difficult or impossible for SMOs to control the spillover effects of success. Successful social activism affects companies and consumers with diverse interests and intentions beyond the initial target of SMOs, which creates various business opportunities. Entrepreneurs are mobilized by the new opportunities that they identify to initiate their own businesses, and the chain of their actions may produce new market categories unintended by the SMO, including ones that are inconsistent with its superordinate goal. This book explores the process by which an SMO succeeds in changing corporate behavior and how this success leads to unintended market emergence by longitudinally examining the shoe industry in postwar Japan. The Japan Institute of Footwear, a private organization, began advocating shoe functionality over fashion in the 1960s and succeeded in changing corporate behavior in the 1980s through learning by doing; its success led to the unintended emergence of new market categories. The book’s findings offer novel theoretical insights into the relationship between social activism and market change. The analysis also helps us understand the historical context of a movement that emerged in 2019, #KuToo—the word being an amalgam of kutsu (shoes), kutsū (pain), and #MeToo—and to consider its future.
Stories from Suffragette City
by M.J. Rose and Fiona DavisOne City. One Movement. A World of Stories.Stories from Suffragette City is a collection of short stories that all take place on a single day: October 23, 1915. It’s the day when tens of thousands of women marched up Fifth Avenue, demanding the right to vote in New York City. Thirteen of today's bestselling authors have taken this moment as inspiration to raise the voices of history and breathe fresh life into their struggles and triumphs.The characters depicted here, some well-known, others unfamiliar, each inspire and reinvigorate the power of democracy. We follow a young woman who is swept up in the protests when all she expected was to come sell her apples in the city. We see Alva Vanderbilt as her white-gloved sensibility is transformed over the course of the single fateful day. Ida B. Wells battles for racial justice in the women's suffrage movement so that every woman's voice can be heard. Each story stands on its own, but together Stories From Suffragette City becomes a symphony, painting a portrait of a country looking for a fight and ever restless for progress and equality.With an introduction by Kristin Hannah and stories from: Lisa WingateM.J. RoseSteve BerryPaula McLainKatherine J. ChenChristina Baker Kline Jamie FordDolen Perkins-ValdezMegan ChanceAlyson RichmanChris Bohjalianand Fiona Davis
The Hidden God: Luther, Philosophy, and Political Theology (Philosophy of Religion)
by Marius Timmann MjaalandIn this phenomenological reading of Luther, Marius Timmann Mjaaland shows that theological discourse is never philosophically neutral and always politically loaded. Raising questions concerning the conditions of modern philosophy, religion, and political ideas, Marius Timmann Mjaaland follows a dark thread of thought back to its origin in Martin Luther. Thorough analyses of the genealogy of secularization, the political role of the apocalypse, the topology of the self, and the destruction of metaphysics demonstrate the continuous relevance of this highly subtle thinker.rabbi
The I Love Trader Joe's Cooking for Two Cookbook: 100 Small-Batch Recipes Using Favorite Ingredients from the World's Greatest Grocery Store (Unofficial Trader Joe's Cookbooks)
by Rita Mock-PikeA Simon & Schuster eBook. Simon & Schuster has a great book for every reader.
Secularism in Antebellum America (Religion And Postmodernism Ser.)
by John Lardas ModernGhosts. Railroads. Sing Sing. Sex machines. These are just a few of the phenomena that appear in John Lardas Modern’s pioneering account of religion and society in nineteenth-century America. This book uncovers surprising connections between secular ideology and the rise of technologies that opened up new ways of being religious. Exploring the eruptions of religion in New York’s penny presses, the budding fields of anthropology and phrenology, and Moby-Dick, Modern challenges the strict separation between the religious and the secular that remains integral to discussions about religion today. Modern frames his study around the dread, wonder, paranoia, and manic confidence of being haunted, arguing that experiences and explanations of enchantment fueled secularism’s emergence. The awareness of spectral energies coincided with attempts to tame the unruly fruits of secularism—in the cultivation of a spiritual self among Unitarians, for instance, or in John Murray Spear’s erotic longings for a perpetual motion machine. Combining rigorous theoretical inquiry with beguiling historical arcana, Modern unsettles long-held views of religion and the methods of narrating its past.