Countdown


Amitav Ghosh - 1999
    Countdown is partly a result of conversations with many hundreds of people in India, Pakistan and Nepal and Ghosh concludes, that "the pursuit of nuclear weapons in the subcontinent is the moral equivalent of civil war?"

Musicophilia: Tales of Music and the Brain


Oliver Sacks - 2007
    In Musicophilia, he shows us a variety of what he calls “musical misalignments.” Among them: a man struck by lightning who suddenly desires to become a pianist at the age of forty-two; an entire group of children with Williams syndrome, who are hypermusical from birth; people with “amusia,” to whom a symphony sounds like the clattering of pots and pans; and a man whose memory spans only seven seconds-for everything but music. Illuminating, inspiring, and utterly unforgettable, Musicophilia is Oliver Sacks’ latest masterpiece.

Amazing Face Reading


Mac Fulfer - 1996
    Fulfer takes this art/science out of the realm of the mysterious and into a hands-on method of learning. The most comprehensive, easy-to-use book of Face Reading available today. Amazing Face Reading is organized in an encyclopedic format and superbly illustrated. It takes you through faces, top to bottom, detail to gestalt, gesture to metaphoric meaning. This how-to guide is so easy to use that you can begin to read faces before you finish the book.

Ace against Odds


Sania Mirza - 2016
    1 in women's doubles, Sania Mirza became an instant sensation when she won the Wimbledon Championships girls' doubles title at the age of sixteen. From 2003 until her retirement from the singles circuit in 2012, she was ranked by the Women's Tennis Association as India's top player, both in singles and doubles. A six-time Grand Slam champion, she notched up an incredible forty-one consecutive wins with her doubles partner, Martina Hingis, between August 2015 and February 2016.Ace against Odds is the story of this most iconic Indian player who beat incredible odds to get to the top of her sport. Sania writes with candour of the hardships along the way, of the physical and emotional trauma caused by injuries and medical procedures, of the friends and partners who became her mainstay along with her family, of the pressures of constant public scrutiny and, not least, the politics and heartbreaks that inevitably accompany success.Sania broke the rules, she spoke her mind, she pushed herself to the limit, she played for India fiercely and without care for how it might impact her rankings - she is and will continue to remain an inspiration long after she steps off the tennis courts.

Gödel, Escher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid


Douglas R. Hofstadter - 1979
    However, according to Hofstadter, the formal system that underlies all mental activity transcends the system that supports it. If life can grow out of the formal chemical substrate of the cell, if consciousness can emerge out of a formal system of firing neurons, then so too will computers attain human intelligence. Gödel, Escher, Bach is a wonderful exploration of fascinating ideas at the heart of cognitive science: meaning, reduction, recursion, and much more.

37 + Grace Marks


Vishal Anand - 2017
    But is it the best place to find love too?Viraj falls head over heels in love with his classmate Nimisha, who could make boys on campus go crazy. While his friends Punit and Sahil just want to have fun - despite poor mark-sheets, grace marks to pass, and other everyday adventures - Viraj wants more from his life and love.Life has led Viraj to the edge of a cliff. He has a choice to make – to forget everything and jump, or fight.What brought him here? An unrequited love, encounters with law, or the dilemma of grace marks? Where does Viraj's story eventually end?Welcome to 37 + Grace Marks, Viraj's journey to discover that there is more to life than marks.

A Mind for Numbers: How to Excel at Math and Science (Even If You Flunked Algebra)


Barbara Oakley - 2014
    Engineering professor Barbara Oakley knows firsthand how it feels to struggle with math. She flunked her way through high school math and science courses, before enlisting in the army immediately after graduation. When she saw how her lack of mathematical and technical savvy severely limited her options—both to rise in the military and to explore other careers—she returned to school with a newfound determination to re-tool her brain to master the very subjects that had given her so much trouble throughout her entire life. In A Mind for Numbers, Dr. Oakley lets us in on the secrets to effectively learning math and science—secrets that even dedicated and successful students wish they’d known earlier. Contrary to popular belief, math requires creative, as well as analytical, thinking. Most people think that there’s only one way to do a problem, when in actuality, there are often a number of different solutions—you just need the creativity to see them. For example, there are more than three hundred different known proofs of the Pythagorean Theorem. In short, studying a problem in a laser-focused way until you reach a solution is not an effective way to learn math. Rather, it involves taking the time to step away from a problem and allow the more relaxed and creative part of the brain to take over. A Mind for Numbers shows us that we all have what it takes to excel in math, and learning it is not as painful as some might think!

Everyman's War


Raghu Raman - 2013
    Defence, internal security and terrorism are important yet closely guarded issues. Even as outrage over safety of women and rising terror take centrestage, there continues to be limited access to information on the subjects of national defence and security - especially in a language that a layman can understand. Raghu Raman, an expert on security and terrorism, presents issues of defence, strategy and national security in an engaging narrative, with historical and contemporary examples. He recalibrates the great ‘India rising’ story with its real and present dangers and the role of a regular citizen in this everyman’s war.

The Doors of Perception & Heaven and Hell


Aldous Huxley - 1956
    These two astounding essays are among the most profound studies of the effects of mind-expanding drugs written in this century. Contains the complete texts of The Doors of Perception and Heaven and Hell , both of which became essential for the counterculture during the 1960s and influenced a generation's perception of life.

Chanakya in Daily Life


Radhakrishnan Pillai - 2016
    One wrong step and everything can come crashing down. In such a scenario, one often wishes for a roadmap of life, but how is that possible?Bestselling author Radhakrishnan Pillai's much-anticipated book, Chanakya in Daily Life, will help you navigate the rough seas of life and stay on course. Covering all aspects of life from the personal to the professional, it will tell you everything from how to begin your day to how to end it, how to choose the right job, stay financially secure, have a happy married life, raise your children the right way, achieve the perfect work-life balance and much more. Like always, Pillai decodes and simplifies the visionary king-maker Chanakya’s teachings from the Arthashastra and Chanakya Niti to provide solutions for any problem that might crop up in any aspect of your life.Thus, Chanakya in Daily Life is the perfect guru who expects only one thing from the shishya—a willingness to learn.

The Giver Quartet


Lois Lowry - 2013
    

Subliminal: How Your Unconscious Mind Rules Your Behavior


Leonard Mlodinow - 2012
    The latter has long been the subject of speculation, but over the past two decades researchers have developed remarkable new tools for probing the hidden, or subliminal, workings of the mind. The result of this explosion of research is a new science of the unconscious and a sea change in our understanding of how the subliminal mind affects the way we live.Employing his trademark wit and lucid, accessible explanations of the most obscure scientific subjects, Leonard Mlodinow takes us on a tour of this research, unraveling the complexities of the subliminal self and increasing our understanding of how the human mind works and how we interact with friends, strangers, spouses, and coworkers. In the process he changes our view of ourselves and the world around us.

The Prince


Niccolò Machiavelli
    Hence: Can Machiavelli, who makes the following observations, be Machiavellian as we understand the disparaging term? 1. So it is that to know the nature of a people, one need be a Prince; to know the nature of a Prince, one need to be of the people. 2. If a Prince is not given to vices that make him hated, it is unsusal for his subjects to show their affection for him. 3. Opportunity made Moses, Cyrus, Romulus, Theseus, and others; their virtue domi-nated the opportunity, making their homelands noble and happy. Armed prophets win; the disarmed lose. 4. Without faith and religion, man achieves power but not glory. 5. Prominent citizens want to command and oppress; the populace only wants to be free of oppression. 6. A Prince needs a friendly populace; otherwise in diversity there is no hope. 7. A Prince, who rules as a man of valor, avoids disasters, 8. Nations based on mercenary forces will never be solid or secure. 9. Mercenaries are dangerous because of their cowardice 10. There are two ways to fight: one with laws, the other with force. The first is rightly man’s way; the second, the way of beasts.

Change Your Thinking, Change Your Life: How to Unlock Your Full Potential for Success and Achievement


Brian Tracy - 2003
    Brian Tracy is the preeminent authority on showing you how to dramatically improve your life. Let him be your guide. I've learned so much from Brian myself that I can't thank him enough!" --Robert G. Allen, #1 New York Times bestselling author"This book gives you a step-by-step system to transform your thinking about yourself and your potential, enabling you to achieve greater success in every area of your life." --Lee Iacocca, Chairman, Lee Iacocca & Associates"Once again, Brian Tracy has written an incredible book which shows individuals how to delve into their inner resources so that they can not only identify realistic goals but develop a plan on how to achieve these goals. This book promises to be a bestseller and to influence the lives of so many. It is must reading." --Sally Pipes, President, Pacific Research Institute"Outstanding! Brian Tracy's Change Your Thinking, Change Your Life is a must-read. Use the powerful 'mental software' program in this book to tap your vast inner resources and bring the life you've been dreaming about into reality." --Ken Blanchard, coauthor of The One Minute Manager and Full Steam Ahead!"As usual, Brian Tracy has hit another home run with Change Your Thinking, Change Your Life . It's a must-read!" --Mac Anderson, founder, Successories, Inc."Brian's new book, Change Your Thinking, Change Your Life , will show you how to attract the people and resources you need to achieve any goal you set for yourself." --Tony Jeary, Mr. Presentation, author of Life Is a Series of Presentations"This is a masterful book laden with wisdom and knowledge. It'll catapult you from intention to implementation. It arms you with the information and insights you need to achieve success and significance in your life." --Nido R. Qubein, founder, National Speakers Association Foundation Chairman, Great Harvest Bread Company

Language, Truth, and Logic


A.J. Ayer - 1936
    Topics: elimination of metaphysics, function of philosophy, nature of philosophical analysis, the a priori, truth & probability, critique of ethics & theology, self & the common world etc.IntroductionThe elimination of metaphysicsThe function of philosophy The nature of philosophical analysisThe a priori Truth & probabilityCritique of ethics & theologyThe self & the common worldSolutions of outstanding philosophical disputesIndex