What did they do differently that made them so recognizable for their intellects? • They thought slowly and deliberately before making a snap judgment or decision • They questioned every fact and opinion (including their own) • They took the time to study the subject or object of their decision making to gather information before jumping to conclusions • They accepted and expected that human nature is ultimately biased and prone to make cognitive errors The Critical Thinker gives you a thorough description of the rules and principles of critical thinking practiced by Einstein, Plato and every great thinker in history. You will learn about the most important critical thinking principles as well as shortcuts to make better decisions in specific situations. These critical thinking principles will help your personal life, career, and friendships. Improve your critical, logical, observational, and rational thinking skills with the timeless principles presented in this book. Critical thinking skills will improve your relationships and your financial life too. • Learn the main principles of critical thinking. • Train your cognitive muscles to think faster and jump to the best conclusions effortlessly. • Find the most rewarding options in any opportunity. • Don’t just attack symptoms, solve your problems once and for all. Become a lie and cognitive bias detector. The Critical Thinker is a fitting read for everyone who wants to improve their critical thinking skills. Regardless of your stage of life or field of work (business, education, healthcare, or student) you’ll find the book equally useful. • Become a more effective communicator with more impactful points. • Detect the thinking errors of larger groups or individuals. • Powerful questions to effectively self-assess. • Best practices to employ critical thinking principles in your life immediately. Improving your critical thinking skills will help you save time, filter out irrelevant information efficiently, and prioritize your resources to get the best results. It will help you identify better problem-solving approaches rather than relying on standard methods that don’t suit your case. Critical thinking will enhance your communication skills, reasoning, and logic. You will also become more compassionate and understanding for the perspectives of others. Be solution-oriented, solve difficult tasks, and understand the world better. *Please note the following before purchasing the book: The book is not strictly about the philosophy of Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle. Their picture is used for cover art purposes.

    The path of insight meditation is a journey of understanding our bodies, our minds, and our lives, of seeing clearly the true nature of experience. The authors guide the reader in developing the openness and compassion that are at the heart of this spiritual practice. For those already treading the path, as well as those just starting out, this book will be a welcome companion along the way. Among the topics covered are:    •  The hindrances to meditation—ranging from doubt and fear to painful knees—and skillful means of overcoming them    •  How compassion can arise in response to the suffering we see in our own lives and in the world    •  How to integrate a life of responsible action and service with a meditative life based on nonattachment Useful exercises are presented alongside the teachings to help readers deepen their understanding of the subjects.

    It was his first perception of the dematerialization of an object and presaged the later development of his influential theories of non-objective art.During study and travel in Europe, the young artist breathed the heady atmosphere of artistic experimentation. Fauvism, Cubism, Symbolism, and other movements played an important role in the development of his own revolutionary approach to painting. Decrying literal representation, Kandinsky emphasized instead the importance of form, color, rhythm, and the artist's inner need in expressing reality.In Point and Line to Plane, one of the most influential books in 20th-century art, Kandinsky presents a detailed exposition of the inner dynamics of non-objective painting. Relying on his own unique terminology, he develops the idea of point as the "proto-element" of painting, the role of point in nature, music, and other art, and the combination of point and line that results in a unique visual language. He then turns to an absorbing discussion of line — the influence of force on line, lyric and dramatic qualities, and the translation of various phenomena into forms of linear expression. With profound artistic insight, Kandinsky points out the organic relationship of the elements of painting, touching on the role of texture, the element of time, and the relationship of all these elements to the basic material plane called upon to receive the content of a work of art.Originally published in 1926, this essay represents the mature flowering of ideas first expressed in Kandinsky's earlier seminal book, Concerning the Spiritual in Art. As an influential member of the Bauhaus school and a leading theoretician of abstract expressionism, Kandinsky helped formulate the modern artistic temperament. This book amply demonstrates the importance of his contribution and its profound effect on 20th-century art.

    Today, Total Quality is an integral component of management success in today's complex business environment. This text presents an overview of the key principles of total quality and links those concepts to traditional management practices and organizational models in management theory. This book has three objectives: 1) to familiarize readers with the basic principles and methods associated with total quality management; 2) to show readers how these principles and methods have been put into effect in a variety of organizations; and, 3) to illustrate the relationship between total quality principles and the theories and models studied in management courses.

    Traces the development of architecture from Stonehenge to the new AT&T Building in New York and looks at important movements, architects, and buildings.

    Madhavan Nair’s Circus is an interesting children’s novel, which narrates the mesmerizing adventures that happen inside a circus company. Humans and Animals are characters in this novel and it tells the story about how a wicked person takes over the circus company originally owned by a true animal lover and how the animals with the help of a little boy takes back the company.

    It provides complete coverage of the new A- and AS-level core specifications being taught from September 2000 onwards and presents concepts in separate, easily accessible double-page spreads. Each spread starts with learning objectives and ends with questions, to check understanding, making the book particularly suitable for self-study.

    The result: more than thirty-five residences in fifteen countries -- and nearly every conceivable natural environment -- designed by a combination of star architects and heretofore unknown practitioners.Six different climactic zones are presented in The Green House -- waterfront, forest and mountain, tropical, desert, suburban, and urban; there is also a section on mobile dwellings. Each chapter features a series of homes that show the diversity and possibility of sustainable design. Projects are presented with large color images, plans, drawings, and an accompanying text that describes their green features and explains how they work with and in the environment.Architects included: Santiago Calatrava, Shigeru Ban, Miller/Hull, Rick Joy, Lake Flato, Kengo Kuma, Glenn Murcutt, Pugh & Scarpa, Werner Sobek, and many others.The Green House is not only a beautiful object in its own right, but is sure to be an indispensable reference for anyone building or interested in sustainable design -- and if you ask us, that should be everyone.

    With Atlas of Novel Tectonics, Reiser+Umemoto hone in on the many facets of architecture and illuminate their theories with great thought and simplicity. The Atlas is organized as an accumulation of short chapters that address the workings of matter and force, material science, the lessons of art and architectural history, and the influence of architecture on culture (and vice versa). Reiser+Umemoto see architectural design as a series of problem situations, and each chapter is an argument devoted to a specific condition or case. Influenced by a wide range of fields and phenomenaBrillat-Savarin's classic The Physiology of Taste is one of their primary modelsthe authors provide a cross-section of thinking and inspiration. The result is both an elucidation of the concepts that guide Reiser+Umemoto through their own design process and a series of meditations on topics that have formed their own sense as architects. Atlas of Novel Tectonics offers an entirely fresh perspective on subjects that are generally taken for granted, and does so with a welcome punch and energy.

     More and more of us are choosing to live in the man-made environment of the city. The mismatch between this artificial world and our nature-starved souls can contribute to the stresses of city living in a way that is barely noticed – but is crucially important.What does the science of architectural psychology tell us about how the world of brick and concrete affects how we think, feel and behave?In an increasingly crowded urban world, how does good urban design inspire, restore and bring us together? Conversely, how does bad architecture cause anxiety, alienation and depression?Starting with the home and reaching out to the street, neighbourhood and wider city landscape, Headspace teaches us how to see our cities differently, and how we can best adapt to our rapidly changing urban world.

    Not until his last breath.It was a simple accident cleanup, but when the tow truck driver turns to face him, firefighter Braden Nichols is lost in the greenest eyes he’s ever seen. His home is waiting for a family, and he realizes quickly that he’s found one in Tanna and her kids.Being a tow truck driver isn’t easy for the widow. It’s only made harder by being in a man’s world, but it’s all Tanna’s found to feed her boys, teenager Daniel and eight-year-old Max, who’s special needs. The gorgeous firefighter who commits to her and her two kids is a love she never thought she’d find. Then a simple tow from the side of the interstate puts her in the crosshairs of the wrong people. When the threats start, she keeps it all from Braden. He’s been too good to her and the kids, and he doesn’t deserve to be dragged into her problems.But suddenly, she’s gone, and Braden’s world rapidly unravels. Knowing his lack of legal ties to the boys may mean he’ll never see them again, he knows he has to find their mother. They suffered enough when they lost their dad, and losing Tanna isn’t an option.To Braden’s heart, it’s unthinkable. Unbearable. And unacceptable.Just when they think their big break has come, the trail goes cold. The rain pours, the thunder rolls, and Braden’s heart breaks. He’s out of options and running out of time, and he fears the worst. But as dark as the night is, there’s something darker.And it just might be their salvation.

    His structural thinking differs from that of others in his field, in its completely innovative conception of the engineer's contribution to architecture. The plasticity of architectural plans is enhanced through a decisive promotion of their structural designs. The borderline between structure and architecture thus becomes increasingly blurred. This process is explained in detail in "Informal" by reference to eight seminal projects. Balmond elucidates the theoretical basis of his engineering and architectural solutions, and his sketches transcend purely technical illustration - they are key to his approach. "Informal" invites readers to rethink their understanding of the relationships between architecture, design and engineering.

    This disturbing literary thriller explores what happens when the line between those relationships blurs.Jody Goodman enters psychotherapy with questions of career and love on her mind. But Claire Roth, her therapist, keeps changing the focus of their sessions to Jody's parentage—Jody was adopted; Claire gave up a baby for adoption who would now be exactly Jody's age. As the two women become increasingly involved, speculation turns into certainty, fantasy into fixation. Until suddenly it is no longer clear just which of them needs the other more—or with more terrifying consequences.

    One response to high levels of complexity and overstimulation is to look for yet another gadget or closet organizer to simplify our lives. But the answer lies somewhere else. The road to a simpler more satisfying life begins with a clear-eyed examination of the choices we are making for our time--and that includes choices about where we want to live.The Simple Home presents six paths to simplicity, each illustrated by human-scaled, unadorned homes with straightforward floor plans and forms. These are open, light-filled homes (with rooms or spaces that are often multipurpose) that express their beauty in their utility and practicality. Simple homes are low maintenance and often green, designed for homeowners who wish to embody a different set of values in their housing choices than the run-of-the-mill starter castles littering the landscape.The 6 Paths to Simplicity: 1. Simple is Enough 2. Simple is Thrifty 3. Simple is Flexible 4. Simple is Timeless 5. Simple is Sustainable 6. Simple is Refine