Simulations allow us to stage actual interactions among a population of agents and to observe the emergent wholes that result from those interactions. Simulations have become as important as mathematical models in theoretical science. As computer power and memory have become cheaper they have migrated to the desktop, where they now play the role that small-scale experiments used to play. A philosophical examination of the epistemology of simulations is needed to cement this new role, underlining the consequences that simulations may have for materialist philosophy itself. This remarkably clear philosophical discussion of a rapidly growing field, from a thinker at the forefront of research at the interface of science and the humanities, is a must-read for anyone interested in the philosophy of technology and the philosophy of science at all levels.

    Publishers Weekly called it "the most original and insightful spiritual writing to come out of America since Jack Kerouac first hit the road." The Buffalo News hailed it as "one of the most eccentric and fascinating books of the year." O, The Oprah Magazine said "This collection proves that fear and trembling are human, but a sense of humor is divine." Peter Manseau and Jeff Sharlet have created a work of calling that is as odd, moving, and inspiring as the people and the scriptures they encountered. Whether it is Manseau and Sharlet telling their "psalms" from outposts as unexpected as a strip club or a cattle-auction barn, Peter Trachtenberg unraveling the Gordian logic of Job via the Borscht Belt, Rick Moody finding a modern-day Jonah in Queens, or Haven Kimmel shocking and thrilling us with her Revelation, what emerges is not an attack on religion, but a quizzical, fascinating look at it from the inside. Killing the Buddha is a positively riveting look at the facets of true belief.

    Castaneda has come to be seen as an anthropologist of the soul, showing us that the inner world has its own inaccessible mountains, forbidding deserts and awesomely beautiful dangers which we are all called to confront. This audio program presents the first two and the best known titles in the Don Juan series, the Teachings of Don Juan and A Separate Reality. Listen -- and marvel -- as you are drawn into a breathtaking world of magical reality and ultimate truth from one of the most influential writers of our time.

    Can you believe that physical reality is created by our observation of it? Physicists were forced to this conclusion, the quantum enigma, by what they observed in their laboratories.Trying to understand the atom, physicists built quantum mechanics and found, to their embarrassment, that their theory intimately connects consciousness with the physical world. Quantum Enigma explores what that implies and why some founders of the theory became the foremost objectors to it. Schr�dinger showed that it absurdly allowed a cat to be in a superposition simultaneously dead and alive. Einstein derided the theory's spooky interactions. With Bell's Theorem, we now know Schr�dinger's superpositions and Einstein's spooky interactions indeed exist.Authors Bruce Rosenblum and Fred Kuttner explain all of this in non-technical terms with help from some fanciful stories and bits about the theory's developers. They present the quantum mystery honestly, with an emphasis on what is and what is not speculation.Physics' encounter with consciousness is its skeleton in the closet. Because the authors open the closet and examine the skeleton, theirs is a controversial book. Quantum Enigma's description of the experimental quantum facts, and the quantum theory explaining them, is undisputed. Interpreting what it all means, however, is controversial.Every interpretation of quantum physics encounters consciousness. Rosenblum and Kuttner therefore turn to exploring consciousness itself--and encounter quantum physics. Free will and anthropic principles become crucial issues, and the connection of consciousness with the cosmos suggested by some leading quantum cosmologists is mind-blowing.Readers are brought to a boundary where the particular expertise of physicists is no longer a sure guide. They will find, instead, the facts and hints provided by quantum mechanics and the ability to speculate for themselves.

    Are we products of our culture, or free agents within it? Are our neural pathways fixed early on by a mixture of nature and nurture, or is the possibility of comprehensive, intentional psychological change always open to us? What role does our brain play in the construction of free will, and how much medical evidence is there for the existence of it? What exactly are we talking about when we talk about 'freedom' anyway?In this cogent and compelling book, Julian Baggini explores the concept of 'free will' from every angle, blending philosophy, neuroscience, sociology and cognitive science. Freedom Regained brings the issues raised by the possibilities - and denials - of free to vivid life, drawing on scientific research and fascinating encounters with expert witnesses, from artists to addicts. It will provide a new understanding of our sense of personal freedom - and change the way the reader will think about their own choices.

    A complete worldview is presented and defended, covering every subject from knowledge to art, from metaphysics to morality, from theology to politics. Topics include free will, the nature of the universe, the meaning of life, and much more, arguing from scientific evidence that there is only a physical, natural world without gods or spirits, but that we can still live a life of love, meaning, and joy.

    This logical universe creates a vicious circle of reasoning that robs our minds of power and prevents us from reaching our true potential. To step beyond that circle requires a centering and focus that today's society assaults on every level. Through the insights of Teilhard, Tillich, Jung, Jesus, Carlos Castaneda, and others, Joseph Chilton Pearce provides a mode of thinking through which imagination can escape the mundane shell of current construct reality and leap into a new phase of human evolution.This enormously popular New Age classic is finally available again to challenge the assumptions of a new generation of readers and help them develop their potential through new creative modes of thinking. With a masterful synthesis of recent discoveries in physics, biology, and psychology, Pearce reveals the extraordinary relationship of mind and reality and nature's blueprint for a self-transcending humanity.

    The ideas presented in this Bible reference book are based on the teachings of Jesus Christ and are presented in a cross-denominational format.

    You may not be able to put your finger on it, but you sense it instinctively.How can you not sense it? For the first time ever, both the majority of the younger and the older generations of America now believe that future generations will not be as prosperous as their parents’ generation was. And that’s only the economic pessimism. On the social and cultural fronts, how many of us can truly say that we are proud are what our society has degenerated to?Make no mistake; the America we once knew has indeed been murdered. How did we arrive at this point of perpetual debt, perpetual inflation, massive taxation, chronically high unemployment, disintegrating families, massive dependency on the state, perpetual war, and ever-worsening moral degeneracy, mass psychological depression, and cultural degradation?Who did it? Why did they do it? How did they do it? How was the ‘murder’ concealed from the American people?Through the use of 40 clear, concise and very easy-to-digest illustrated ‘blurbs’ (The 40 Wounds), Killing America: The 100 Year Murder will answer those questions for you. This is a mass-distribution booklet designed for ‘crash-course’ simplicity. Please share it with others.

    With this book, the author adds to the debate revolving around the 'anthropic principle' by developing the 'world principle.' The author offers the reader an original critique of materialist philosophy, ancient Greek philosophy, and in particular of Kant and Hawking, making this book highly informative and thought-provoking. The reader not only finds answers to questions about the meaning of our existence, but also gains new insights into science, philosophy and theology.

    This groundbreaking reference will stir relentless debate among philosophers, art historians, and students.

    More than a literary text with critical commentary, it constitutes an event of central significance for contemporary philosophical, literary, and political concerns.The book consists of The Instant of My Death, a powerful short prose piece by Blanchot, and an extended essay by Derrida that reads it in the context of questions of literature and of bearing witness. Blanchot's narrative concerns a moment when a young man is brought before a firing squad during World War II and then suddenly finds himself released from his near death. The incident, written in the third person, is suggestively autobiographical—from the title, several remarks in the text, and a letter Blanchot wrote about a similar incident in his own life—but only insofar as it raises questions for Blanchot about what such an experience might mean. The accident of near death becomes, in the instant the man is released, the accident of a life he no longer possesses. The text raises the question of what it means to write about a (non)experience one cannot claim as one's own, and as such is a text of testimony or witness.Derrida's reading of Blanchot links the problem of testimony to the problem of the secret and to the notion of the instant. It thereby provides the elements of a more expansive reassessment of literature, testimony, and truth. In addressing the complex relation between writing and history, Derrida also implicitly reflects on questions concerning the relation between European intellectuals and World War II.

    If you have ever wanted to read a book that validates immortality and communication with loved ones who have passed on, then read this book. It is an authentic portal to the other side." Caroline Myss, author of Anatomy of the SpiritWhen Mike and Beth Pasakarnis received the news that every parent dreads, their world seemed to crumble around them. Spiritual teacher and evidential medium Suzanne Giesemann knew exactly how they felt. Like Mike and Beth’s son, Wolf, her step-daughter Susan had been struck and killed by a bolt of lightning out of the blue. Until meeting Mike and Beth, Suzanne—a former “by-the-book” Navy commander—had cautiously refrained from using the word “proof” when speaking of the eternal existence of the soul. But no longer. The evidence Mike and Beth shared from their son provided all the proof she needed. Little did Mike, Beth, or Suzanne know that their lives would soon become even more entangled by unexpected visits from Wolf’s spirit. Had Wolf’s presence offered a one-time glimpse across the veil, they might still be pondering the significance of the mystifying clues he left behind. Instead, as Wolf repeatedly made his presence known, Suzanne was able to piece together Wolf’s puzzle and reveal a startling message that has profound spiritual implications for us all. Travel along on Suzanne’s incredible journey as she unravels the web of clues Wolf wove to ensure that his uplifting message of hope and joy is understood by all mankind. "Part spiritual detective story, part definitive proof of after-death communications from a most extraordinary young man, Wolf’s Message is above all a must-read for those seeking a more balanced, heart-centered way of living." Kenneth Ring, Ph.D., author of Lessons from the Light“Wolf’s efforts to communicate with us through Suzanne deserve to be taken seriously and received with gratitude, awe, and celebration.” Gary E. Schwartz, Ph.D., author of The Sacred Promise “Somehow, reading Wolf's Message creates a field into which the reader is incorporated experientially. Reading, learning, and Being are rolled into a synergy that exemplifies the truths of nature and existence as they are revealed. Such authentic interactivity is rarely achieved in this context; a really good book is one in which the author draws the reader in by chronicling notions and events in such a way as to invite and affirm our ability to relate. A really great story dispenses with the dichotomy of author and reader altogether, and the precious anomaly of Wolf's Message is that it behaves more like an Oracle than a Book.” Dr. Barbara E. Fields, Executive Director, Association for Global New Thought

    Why do people—even identical twins reared in the same home—differ so much in personality? Armed with an inquiring mind and insights from evolutionary psychology, Judith Rich Harris sets out to solve the mystery of human individuality.

    His teaching was noted for its stirring beauty and power, as well as for its applicability to all people, regardless of religious or philosophical background. This book gathers together three of Inayat Khan's most beloved essays on the spiritual life from among the fourteen volumes of his collected works:    • "The Inner Life": Inayat Kahn's sublime portrait of the person whose life is a radiant reflection of the Divine    • "Sufi Mysticism": in which the author identifies and shatters the common misconceptions about mysticism to reveal its true meaning    • "The Path of Initiation and Discipleship": What it means to set out on the spiritual path and how to find and maintain the right relationship with a teacher