Rather than appealing to altruism, or calling for revolution in the global economy, the Epicurean philosophy turns the developed world's credo of 'greed is good' on its head, counselling that genuine happiness comes from the quieting of desire; from less, not more. And that might just be the mindset we need to rein in unsustainable development.In this thoughtful Penguin Special, Slattery traces the radicalism of classical Epicurean thought, and its popularity despite political suppression. Along the way, he tours the archaeological sites of the ancient village of Oinoanda in Turkey and the Villa of the Papyri, buried along with Pompeii, with its ancient library of petrified scrolls. Might some of this treasure's fragments, painstakingly restored, reveal answers to the big questions faced in the twenty-first century?

    Ten dimensions? Most of us have barely gotten used to the idea that there are four.Using simple geometry and an easygoing writing style, author Rob Bryanton starts with the lower dimensions that we are all familiar with, then uses those concepts to build one layer upon another, ultimately arriving at a way of imagining the tenth dimension.Part scientific exploration, part philosophy, this unique book touches upon such diverse topics as dark matter, Feynman's "sum over paths", the quantum observer, and the soul. It is aimed at anyone interested in leading-edge theories about cosmology and the nature of reality, but it is not about mainstream physics. Rather, Imagining the Tenth Dimension is a mind-expanding exercise that could change the way you view this incredible universe in which we live.

    Army's Special Project--Stargate. He was the only Remote Viewer who worked one-on-one with the out-of-body pioneer Robert Monroe, and who has achieved intelligence collection results that have never been surpassed and rarely equaled. Among his achievements: He described the interior of a top secret Soviet manufacturing plant and accurately predicted a new class of ship under construction--the previously unknown Typhoon Class submarine. He sketched the location and described the thoughts and reactions of an American kidnap victim held by the Red Brigade in Northern Italy--U.S. Army General Dozier. He accurately predicted when Skylab would leave orbit and where it would impact on the Earth's surface--eleven months prior to the actual event. After conventional reconnaissance failed, he and others were able to locate a downed Soviet bomber that had been carrying nuclear materials. He achieved these results using scientifically designed and tested double-blind protocols. And in the years since his retirement he has continued to demonstrate these abilities on camera for national television in three countries. Yet he is still confronted with what he calls the "giggle factor"--the automatic response of many, including some who know better--to ridicule anything connected with "psychic stuff." Surprisingly, it was always that way, even during his Army years.Was it his largely unsuspected psychic ability that helped keep him alive in Vietnam, and aided in his invaluable contributions to the cold war effort, that made McMoneagle afirst-class remote viewer? Were his abilities a natural gift, or taught? How much did he owe to his near-death experience in the 1970s? And why would he give up a safe and distinguished career as an advisor to the Commanding General of the U.S. Army Intelligence and Security Command to become Remote Viewer 001? This is his story.

    It deals with one powerful obsession that preoccupied Escher: what he called "the regular division of the plane," the puzzlelike interlocking of birds, fish, lizards, and other natural forms in continuous patterns. Schattschneider asks, "How did he do it?" She answers the question by analyzing Escher's notebooks." Visions of Symmetry includes many of Escher's masterworks, as well as hundreds of lesser-known examples of his work. This new edition also features a foreward and an illustrated epilogue that reveals new information about Escher's inspiration and shows how his ideas of symmetry have influenced mathematicians, computer scientists, and contemporary artists.

    His book is a fresh look at the questions that occur to anyone who thinks deeply about these matters, questions about free will, self-determination, destiny, choice, and who are we anyway. I believe this is a “breakthrough book.” Robert’s style of writing about such ephemeral and difficult subjects as awareness and consciousness is honest, concise, and accurate. His ability to describe his experiences of living in a reality quite different from conventional ways of thinking is brilliantly unusual. On first encountering Robert Saltzman’s work, I am reminded of the same feelings of discovery, delight and excitement that I remember from meeting Alan Watts’ “The Wisdom of Insecurity”, Krishnamurti’s “Freedom from the Known,” and Chögyam Trungpa’s “Cutting Through Spiritual Materialism.” His clarity of mind shines brightly through every sentence in this book. His skill at making clear the most difficult ramifications and subtleties of awakened consciousness is so free of conventional cluttered thinking, so free of habitual phrases, so free of the taint of religious dogma and the conventional ways of speaking of such difficult matters, that this book stands out for me as an entirely fresh and illuminated exposition of awakened consciousness: an awakened understanding of what it is to be human. —Dr. Robert K. Hall

    D.E. Boyer takes us on a fascinating journey from the depths of despair to an amazing quantum world where anything is possible. First, we will learn how to defend ourselves against the chaos in our minds, then we will learn how to rekindle the magic in our hearts. Along the way, the wisdom of Socrates and the myth of Narcissus will transform the way we think and feel. Boyer then shows us how the military teaches their Navy Seal recruits how to handle their thoughts and feelings when someone is trying to kill them, so we can better handle our bosses, spouses, and children when it feels like they are trying to kill us. We will also get a glimpse of death through the eyes of someone who sees people die every day, giving us a much greater appreciation for life. With extremely amusing stories from her own life that touch on her dysfunctional upbringing and traumatizing career as an intensive care nurse, Boyer teaches us how to control our anxiety, boost our fragile self-esteem, and get into a state of flow so that we can spend most of our time loving life, rather than dreading it. She also gives us crucial health and nutrition tips so that we can live longer with our newfound peace and joy, and she shows us how to be more successful at life by being a better friend, spouse, and parent. With every step we take on this path, we'll find ourselves flirting with the hidden power of the mind, a power that often lies just beyond most people's reach. Only by mastering the basics of thinking and feeling can we gain access to this power. Once the door is unlocked, we will enter another dimension, a quantum world where time is irrelevant and the magic of our mind is waiting to be found.

    Many written by monks, and some written by hippies and spiritual gurus. But how many are written by an ordinary dude? Someone who is just like you: someone who has a day job, whose preferred outfit is jeans and a t-shirt, and enjoys knocking back a few beers on Friday night? I'm as ordinary as they come. The only difference...I've been meditating for over 13 years. And I want to show you how you can too—in a straightforward language that any ordinary dude or dudette can understand. Over a decade of practice, meditation has transformed my life, bringing more peace, calm and clarity into it than I could have ever imagined when I started at the age of 19. And now I want to share how meditation can do the same for you.

    It provides a useful introduction to Zen for people that have never had any previous experience of the subject matter, and it will provide a little something here and there for experienced Zen practitioners too, even if they are already very happy and very tranquil. The author's aim is to help people glide through life with maximum joy, and minimum fuss. Three of the central aspects of the Zen way of life that the author has found most useful for increasing happiness and tranquility are explored in detail. These are mindfulness, lifestyle and meditating. Between each of the three main chapters in this book are 'Zen tips', much shorter chapters of just a few paragraphs, giving information on a particular topic that the author has found especially useful in helping to maintain Zen tranquility and happiness. From the author: "This book isn't intended as a complete guide to all aspects of Zen culture, history or philosophy, but as an honest and insightful Zen based contribution to people's well being. I hope you enjoy it, and, more importantly, I hope you find it useful!"

    

    In this book, he expands the points he has made, and claims that this debate is not so much about religion versus science, as about the nature of science itself. With infectious enthusiasm, he reveals the mechanics of evolutionary theory, explains how it is rooted in the testable and verifiable scientific method, and why it is therefore a sound explanation of our beginning. He argues passionately that to continue to assert otherwise, to continue to insist that creationism has a place in the science classroom is harmful not only to our children, but to the future of the greater world as well.

    Before the Big Bang, there was a tiny fraction of a second during which a process called inflation expanded a seed much smaller than the nucleus of an atom into a fireball the size of a basketball -- the Big Bang itself. From this fireball, the Universe as we know it developed. The origin of the seed from which the Universe began is not known with certainty, but as John Gribbin explains the most likely explanation is that it was a fluctuation of quantum energy in an eternal sea of cosmic energy. And that means that other seeds must surely have inflated to become other universes, bubbles in the cosmic sea. It is even possible that a collision between our universe and another bubble on the sea of eternity may have left an imprint on the cosmic background radiation, the echo of the Big Bang itself. John Gribbin is an award winning science writer best known for his book In Search of Schrodinger's Cat. He studied astrophysics under Fred Hoyle in Cambridge, and is now a Visiting Fellow in Astronomy at the University of Sussex.

    Where some accounts of human nature and the particularly human good fall short by the reduction of human being to physical or psychical phenomena, Stoicism’s power lies in engaging with the whole range of human experience, addressing rationality, emotion, piety, will, and both inner and outer impressions, each on their own terms, in language that treats each as significant in its own right. Stoicism is an active philosophy. That means that it is not enough to know its doctrines, one must also live them, develop habits that expand on and complete their ideas in practice. Practice, therefore, is also the focus of this book. The development of the reader’s inner and outer life, that they may follow their own path and discover what it means to “live life in accordance with nature.”   This book is a general introduction to Stoicism that pulls no punches when faced with the more complex aspects of Stoic doctrine. Topics addressed include: The history of the ancient Stoics. The nature of good and evil, virtue and vice, and positive and negative externals. The difference between those things in our control and those things not in our control. Stoic Logic and practical reasoning. Stoicism’s role in the development of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). Stoic exercises and daily practice. Theology’s role in Stoicism and Stoic cosmology. And much more! Grab your copy of a detailed guide on stoicism philosphy and wisdom!

    It now has 600,000 to a million page hits daily. Every now and then, Munroe would get emails asking him to arbitrate a science debate. 'My friend and I were arguing about what would happen if a bullet got struck by lightning, and we agreed that you should resolve it . . . ' He liked these questions so much that he started up What If. If your cells suddenly lost the power to divide, how long would you survive? How dangerous is it, really, to be in a swimming pool in a thunderstorm? If we hooked turbines to people exercising in gyms, how much power could we produce? What if everyone only had one soulmate?When (if ever) did the sun go down on the British empire? How fast can you hit a speed bump while driving and live?What would happen if the moon went away?In pursuit of answers, Munroe runs computer simulations, pores over stacks of declassified military research memos, solves differential equations, and consults with nuclear reactor operators. His responses are masterpieces of clarity and hilarity, studded with memorable cartoons and infographics. They often predict the complete annihilation of humankind, or at least a really big explosion. Far more than a book for geeks, WHAT IF: Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions explains the laws of science in operation in a way that every intelligent reader will enjoy and feel much the smarter for having read.

    This new book takes place in Lockdown Three. This time Key can make Government-sanctioned expeditions out onto the streets of London (remember?). And it is there that the inaction takes place. Phone calls to his mother, promenades with his loyal friend, bubble-negotiations, sitting his fat arse down on benches, drinking mocha. Another three months of mind-freezing inertia. This time on the move. Conversations interspersed with poetry.

    So Tyson brings the universe down to Earth succinctly and clearly, with sparkling wit, in tasty chapters consumable anytime and anywhere in your busy day.