Vandana Shiva examined the impact of the first Green Revolution on the breadbasket of India. In a cogent empirical argument, she shows how the 'quick fix' promise of large gains in output pushed aside serious pursuit of an alternative agricultural strategy grounded in respect for the environmental wisdom of peasant systems and building an egalitarian, needs-prientated agriculture consistent with the village-based, endogenous political traditions of Gandhism. Dr Shiva documents the destruction of genetic diversity and soil fertility that resulted and in highly original fashion shows how the Green Revolution also contributed to the acute social and political conflicts now tearing the Punjab apart. Set in the context of a sophisticated critique of the privileged epistemological position achieved by modern science, whereby it both aspires to provide technological solutions for social and political problems while at the same time disclaiming responsibility for the new problems which it creates in its wake, the author looks to the future in an analysis of a new project to apply the latest Gene Revolution technology to India and warns of the further environmental and social damage which will ensue.

    Erik Marcus exposes and clears away the exaggerated claims and counterclaims put forth by the meat industry and its opponents. In the process, Marcus presents a thorough examination of animal agriculture's cruelties and its far-reaching social costs. Marcus then considers the discouraging progress made by the animal protection movement. He evaluates where the movement has gone wrong, and how its shortcomings could best be remedied.

    Comparing modern art not only to pizzas but also to traditional and children's art, Heller shows us how we can refine analytical tools we already possess to understand and enjoy even the most unfamiliar paintings and sculptures.How is a painting like a pizza? Both depend on visual balance for much of their overall appeal and, though both can be judged by a set of established standards, pizzas and paintings must ultimately be evaluated in terms of individual taste. By using such commonsense examples and making unexpected connections, this book helps even the most skeptical viewers feel comfortable around contemporary art and see aspects of it they would otherwise miss. Heller discusses how nontraditional works of art are made--and thus how to talk about their composition and formal elements. She also considers why such art is made and what it means.At the same time, Heller reassures those of us who have felt uncomfortable around avant-garde art that we don't have to like all--or even any--of it. Yet, if we can relax, we can use the aesthetic awareness developed in everyday life to analyze almost any painting, sculpture, or installation. Heller also gives concise answers to the eight questions she is most frequently asked about contemporary art--from how to tell when an abstract painting is right side up to which works of art belong in a museum.This book is for anyone who agrees with art critic Clement Greenberg that All profoundly original art looks ugly at first. It's also for anyone who disagrees. It is for anyone who wants to get more out of a museum or gallery visit and would like to be able to say something more than just yes or no when asked if they like an artist's work.

    Erin O’Connor has everything she’s ever dreamed of: good friends, a high-powered career at a boutique Manhattan firm, and a husband she adores. They have plans for their life together: careers, children, and maybe even a house in the country. But life has other plans. Daniel is a trader who works on the 101st floor of the World Trade Center.Erin is drinking margaritas on a beach in Mallorca, helping her best friend get over a breakup, when she hears a plane has crashed into Daniel’s building. On a television at the smoky hotel bar, she watches his building collapse. She makes her way home with the help of a stranger named Alec, and once there, she haunts Ground Zero, nearby hospitals, and trauma centers, plastering walls and fences with missing-person flyers. But there’s no trace of Daniel.After accepting Daniel’s death, Erin struggles to get her life back on track but makes a series of bad decisions and begins to live her life in a self-destructive fog of booze and pills. It’s not until she hits rock bottom that she realizes it’s up to her to decide: Was her destiny sealed with Daniel’s? Or is there life after happily ever after?

    In this hilarious essay, originally published in the collection A Supposedly Fun Thing I'll Never Do Again, he ventures to the Illinois State Fair, where he examines butter sculptures, munches on corndogs, and swaps stories with local exhibitors. As he wanders through this endlessly fascinating world, Wallace's one-of-a-kind blend of humor and insight is on full display. "Getting Away from Already Being Pretty Much Away from It All" is an uproarious and ultimately unforgettable foray into a classic part of American life and culture.

    Legendary doyenne of the fabled Palm Springs getaway, she can always tell from the moment the women arrive, which ones will be problems.This group will not disappoint: a burned-out Fifth Avenue retail executive...a striking former model and Chicago socialite... an overweight Texas housewife on the brink of her second divorce and her beautiful, teenage daughter...and a CEO who, unhappy with recent plastic surgery, is secluded in her room.Fortunately, Madame Demidova can rely on her Assistant Director to help manage the herd, not knowing that this valued employee is poised to make an audacious move.Lust, ambition, secrets, betrayal, competition for the ownership of the world's premier spa and a chance to snag the uber-eligible man who unexpectedly arrives on the scene are all on the menu at The Spa at Lavender Lane.

    This 8-hour free course introduced the study of philosophy and the methods employed by The Open University in teaching philosophy.

    Readers will learn:How to make a survival shelter and why a lean-to is largely a waste of time.Why survival kits are important, and why you should make your own.Where to find water and why drinking contaminated water is sometimes warranted.How to locate and trap small animals and why the notion of tracking and hunting large game is largely a pipe dream.Whether seasoned in the outdoor arts or new to adventuring, all readers will learn something from Survive!. Stroud's many colorful anecdotes and cut-to-the-chase philosophy not only make for an entertaining read, but also enhance anyone's ability to focus on the main goal when everything else has gone wrong—survival.

    We are republishing these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions, using the original text and artwork.

    But she is starved and very sick. Julie’s constant care brings her around, and as Jemima is raised for eventual release, she takes over the house and the rest of the author's summer.   Shortly after release, Jemima turns up with a deadly disease. But medicating a free-flying wild bird is a challenge. When the PBS show Nature expresses interest in filming Jemima, Julie must train her to behave on camera, as the bird gets ever wilder. Jemima bonds with a wild jay, stretching her ties with the family. Throughout, Julie grapples with the fallout of Jemima’s illness, studies molt and migration, and does her best to keep Jemima strong and wild. She falls hard for this engaging, feisty and funny bird, a creative muse and source of strength through the author’s own heartbreaking changes. Emotional and honest, Saving Jemima is a universal story of the communion between a wild creature and the human chosen to raise it.

    We send emails instead of post, drive cars instead of horse-drawn carriages, and look up stuff on our phones instead of traveling a hundred miles to the nearest library.However, when it comes to our morning routines, 80 percent of the world consumes caffeine each day to wake them up and give them a boost for their daily tasks. Whether it's black tea or coffee, most of us consume the same ingredients we consumed 200 years ago without realizing two important facts. First, coffee beans and tea leaves are not the only sources of energy that nature provides us. Second, productivity is more than just wakefulness. It's energy, focus, creativity, decreased stress, and improved sleep, among other things.What can nature, science, and global access to different ingredients tell us about optimal productivity? And which ingredients are scientifically proven to be effective and safe? Backed by over 240 scientific studies, Beyond Coffee is a simple guide that answers these questions.

    Socrates certainly knew it, as did the Buddha, and more recently, Albert Einstein, Carl Jung, and Emily Dickinson. It is a secret not because it is hidden as such, but because it is so difficult to see, running counter to so many of our most basic assumptions.Each of the book’s ten chapters exposes a particular aspect and practical application of the secret, while also keeping it carefully under wraps. On the surface, the chapters may seem to have little in common, but they are all built around the same wisdom. Your challenge, as you read, is to find the common thread that runs through all the chapters. The secret is discussed at the end, but don’t peek or you’ll spoil the fun.ContentsIntroduction1. How to see2. How to dream3. How to be religious4. How to be wise5. How to be fearless6. How to live7. How to love8. How to win9. How to party10. How to thinkThe Secret to EverythingAbout the authorDr Neel Burton is a psychiatrist, philosopher, and wine-lover who lives and teaches in Oxford, England. He is a Fellow of Green-Templeton College in the University of Oxford, and the recipient of the Society of Authors’ Richard Asher Prize, the British Medical Association’s Young Authors’ Award, the Medical Journalists’ Association Open Book Award, and a Best in the World Gourmand Award. His work has featured in the likes of Aeon, the Spectator, and the Times, and been translated into several languages.

    Meanwhile, it is increasingly difficult for bright but poor children to transcend their circumstances. This state of affairs should not only worry the poor. It hurts the middle classes too, who are increasingly locked out of the top professions by those from wealthy backgrounds.Hitherto, both Labour and Conservative politicians have sought to deal with this problem by promoting the idea of 'equality of opportunity'. In politics, social mobility is the only game in town and old socialist arguments, which emphasised economic equality, are about as unfashionable today as mullets and shell suits. Yet genuine equality of opportunity is impossible against a backdrop of levels of inequality last seen during the 1930s. In a grossly unequal society, the privileges of the parents unfailingly become the privileges of the children.A vague commitment from our politicians to build a ‘meritocracy’ is not enough. And besides, a perfectly stratified meritocracy, in which everyone knew their station based on ‘merit’, would be a deeply unpleasant place to live. Attempts to improve social mobility must start by reducing the gap between rich and poor.

    Smith comes a standalone steamy contemporary romance about a rock star, a former fan, and the real meaning of redemption. Kristoffer “West” Westberg is just out of rehab and ready to reclaim his rock-god status. But when his return to fame is threatened by a former fan turned rock magazine writer — and huge critic of him and his band — West is forced to reckon with the reality that he’ll need to prove himself before earning his redemption.Max Marshall is feisty, a little too honest for her own good, and so not here to babysit a fallen rock star. And nobody has fallen farther in her mind that Kristoffer Westberg. So when she’s forced to catalog his so-called “apology tour,” she has little hope that it’ll be anything but a headache dealing with the entitled, washed-up rock star she used to worship before she knew better.If West hopes to have a snowball’s chance in hell of changing Max’s — and his fans’ — minds, he’s got some serious groveling to do. Will he manage to fake it till he makes it, or will he be exposed as the lost cause everyone is convinced he is? And will he learn the real meaning of redemption in time to win Max’s trust and her heart?

    In this village lives a cat named Bijou. But she’s no ordinary house cat; her ancestors were mousers on Viking longships, and their blood runs through her veins. Since her battle skills are hardly needed in this modern age, however, she spends her energies running the Fox Burrow Pet Inn with her human, Spencer, and her assistant, Skunk, a mentally negligible Pomeranian. Together, the happy trio has created a safe haven for their four-legged guests.But when Eddy Line, a handsome baker from California, comes to the inn―along with his piglet and pit bull puppy―everything changes. Spencer falls for Eddy, Bijou is unhappy with the sudden changes to her clan, and the townspeople are anything but welcoming; in fact, threats are made against Eddy when he buys the town’s historic firehouse in order to open a bakery.Then a shocking murder/dognapping occurs on the night of the bakery’s grand opening, and Bijou finds herself thrust into a tangled mystery. To solve it, she will have to summon her inner Viking―and fight tooth and claw for her new clan.