"In Alien Agency, Chris Salter tells three stories of art in the making. Salter examines three works in which the materials of art - the 'stuff of the world' - behave and perform in ways beyond the creator's intent, becoming unknown, surprising, alien. Studying thse works - all three deeply embroiled in and enabled by science and technology - allows him to focus on practice through the experien…
A study of how materialism and consumerism undermine our quality of life. In The High Price of Materialism, Tim Kasser offers a scientific explanation of how our contemporary culture of consumerism and materialism affects our everyday happiness and psychological health. Other writers have shown that once we have sufficient food, shelter, and clothing, further material gains do little to impr…
This volume examines the transformation in ways of studying naturethat took place in Western Europe during the fifteenth and sixteenthcenturies. This volume examines the transformation in ways of studying nature that took place in Western Europe during the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. Some of the essays trace particular textual traditions, while others follow the development of scholarly…
From the former UN head weapons inspector in Iraq, a plea for a renewed global disarmament movement.
An acclaimed philosopher suggests that the art of living well employs the same principles as those that exist in all artistic creativity.This final book in Irving Singer's Meaning in Life trilogy studies the interaction between nature and the values that define human spirituality. It examines the ways in which we overcome the suffering in life by resolving our sense of being divided between the…
What is meaning in life? Does anything really matter? How can a life achieve lasting significance? How can we explain the human propensity to struggle for ideals? How is meaning related to contentment, happiness, joy? Is meaning something we discover, or do we create it? What is the nature of value, and what are its sources in human experience? Can there be a meaning in life without religious f…
This account of the creation of new forms of life and intelligence in the sciences of cybernetics, artificial life and artificial intelligence analyses both their similarities and their differences in actualising life. The author draws on the work of scientists as well as work in contemporary philosophy and cultural theory.
An investigation of the happiness-prosperity connection and whether economists can measure well-being.OCLC-licensed vendor bibliographic record.
"Short essays that touch many topics-anxiety, consciousness, death, happiness, morality, stupidity, & truth-that make the case for realism & help set expectations with regard to the human condition"--OCLC-licensed vendor bibliographic record.
The dangers of a United States government plan to abandon its fifty-year policy of keeping civilian and military uses of nuclear technology separate.In December 1998, Energy Secretary Bill Richardson announced that the U.S. planned to begin producing tritium for its nuclear weapons in commercial nuclear power plants. This decision overturned a fifty-year policy of keeping civilian and military …