Americans agree about government arts funding in the way the women in the old joke agree about the food at the wedding: it's terrible - and such small portions! Americans typically either want to abolish the National Endowment for the Arts, or they believe that public arts funding should be dramatically increased because the arts cannot survive in the free market. It would take a lover of the arts who is also a libertarian economist to bridge such a gap. Enter Tyler Cowen. In this book he argues why the U.S. way of funding the arts, while largely indirect, results not in the terrible and the small but in Good and Plenty - and how it could result in even more and better. Few would deny that America produces and consumes art of a quantity and quality comparable to that of any country. But is this despite or because of America's meager direct funding of the arts relative to European countries? Overturning the conventional wisdom of this question, Cowen argues that American art thrives through an ingenious combination of small direct subsidies and immense indirect subsidies such as copyright law and tax policies that encourage nonprofits and charitable giving. This decentralized and even somewhat accidental - but decidedly not laissez-faire - system results in arts that are arguably more creative, diverse, abundant, and politically unencumbered than that of Europe. Bringing serious attention to the neglected issue of the American way of funding the arts, "Good and Plenty" is essential reading for anyone concerned about the arts or their funding.

"Dunham writes for nonspecialists, and they will enjoy his piquant anecdotes and amusing asides –– Booklist
"Artfully, Dunham conducts a tour of the mathematical universe. . . he believes these ideas to be accessible to the audience he wants to reach, and he writes so that they are." –– Nature
"If you want to encourage anyone′s interest in math, get them The Mathematical Universe."
∗ New Scientist

The skeptics have had their say; now listen to the experts. In hundreds of interviews with children who had once been declared clinically dead, Dr. Morse found that children too young to have absorbed our adult views and ideas of death, share first-hand accounts of out-of-body travel, telepathic communication and encounters with dead friends and relatives. Finally illuminating what it is like to die, here is proof that there is that elusive "something" that survives "bodily death."
"New information on what may await us after death...Responsible, highly readable, and certainly thought-provoking."
THE KIRKUS REVIEWS

In this collection of inspirational essays, internationally known author Dr. Elisabeth Kübler-Ross draws on her in-depth research of more than 20,000 people who had near-death experiences, revealing the afterlife as a return to wholeness of spirit. With frank and compassionate advice for those dealing with terminal illness or the death of a loved one, ON LIFE AFTER DEATH offers a compelling message of hope to the living, so that they may grow stronger from tragedy and live life to the fullest.

One of the most famous psychological studies of the late twentieth century, "On Death and Dying" grew out of an interdisciplinary seminar on death, originated and conducted by Dr. Elisabeth Kubler-Ross. In "On Death and Dying, " Dr. Kubler-Ross first introduced and explored the now-famous idea of the five stages of dealing with death: denial and isolation, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. With sample interviews and conversations, she gives the reader a better understanding of how imminent death affects the patient, the professionals who serve the patient, and the patient's family, bringing hope, solace, and peace of mind to all involved.

At last, science and the soul shake hands. Writing in a style that is both lucid and charming, mischievous and profound, Dr. Amit Goswami uses the language and concepts of quantum physics to explore and scientifically prove metaphysical theories of reincarnation and immortality.In Physics of the Soul, Dr. Goswami helps you understand the perplexities of the quantum physics model of reality and the perennial beliefs of spiritual and religious traditions. He shows how they are not only compatible but also provide essential support for each other. The result is a deeply broadened, exciting, and enriched worldview that integrates mind and spirit into science.One of today's pioneering thinkers in science and spirituality, Dr. Goswami taught physics for 32 years, was a professor of Theoretical Science at the University of Oregon, and is currently senior resident researcher at the world-renowned Institute of Noetic Sciences. He is an advocate of "monistic idealism," the philosophy that defines consciousness, not materiality, as the primary reality.

"Suppose," Clifford Geertz suggests, "having entangled yourself every now and again over four decades or so in the goings-on in two provincial towns, one a Southeast Asian bend in the road, one a North African outpost and passage point, you wished to say something about how those goings-on had changed." A narrative presents itself, a tour of indices and trends, perhaps a memoir? None, however, will suffice, because in forty years more has changed than those two towns--the anthropologist, for instance, anthropology itself, even the intellectual and moral world in which the discipline exists. And so, in looking back on four decades of anthropology in the field, Geertz has created a work that is characteristically unclassifiable, a personal history that is also a retrospective reflection on developments in the human sciences amid political, social, and cultural changes in the world. An elegant summation of one of the most remarkable careers in anthropology, it is at the same time an eloquent statement of the purposes and possibilities of anthropology's interpretive powers. To view his two towns in time, Pare in Indonesia and Sefrou in Morocco, Geertz adopts various perspectives on anthropological research and analysis during the post-colonial period, the Cold War, and the emergence of the new states of Asia and Africa. Throughout, he clarifies his own position on a broad series of issues at once empirical, methodological, theoretical, and personal. The result is a truly original book, one that displays a particular way of practicing the human sciences and thus a particular--and particularly efficacious--view of what these sciences are, have been, and should become.

作为1949年以来第一个在中华人民共和国进行精神医学研究的美国学者，凯博文在多层面上探讨了神经衰弱、抑郁症以及躯体症状之间的关系。本书为我们理解中国人在与家庭和国家的关系上的体验开启了一个窗口，同时也对中国人和美国人各自如何解释自身的疼痛与绝望处境进行了一个跨文化的比较。
“本书对疾病症状与社会之间的辩证关系的分析十分具有穿透力。这本强力著作不仅属于人类学与精神医学的先锋之作，而且也展示了作者对消除人类不幸与苦难的深切关注和担当。所有致力于改善健康照顾系统的人都应该阅读本书。”
——Joan M. Anderson, Current Anthropology
“此书堪称医学人类学界长期以来所期盼的最重要的一本著作。”
——Richard Shweder, Culture, Medicine and Psychiatry
“一本视野宽广、发人深省的医学人类学著作。”
——Roy Porter, Times Literary Supplement
“对跨文化精神医学具有重要贡献。”
——Paul Chodoff, M.D., Journal of the American Medical Association
“本书的田野研究写作精美，以至于历史学家都不断被其描述的中国共产主义政治实践中的那些重要时刻所吸引。作者以丰富细腻的笔触描写了中国人的社会关系，童年以及成长过程中出现的那些问题。”
——Jonathan Spence, Yale University
“这是到目前为止我们对中国精神健康问题的最好的研究。这是一本具有开创意义的著作。”
——Ezra F. Vogel, Harvard University

賴瑞‧戴蒙教授客觀的評價各地區新興民主國家的民主發展進程，以及民主實施經驗的得失，他也引用了大量的經驗資料來呈現各國公民對於自己國家民主經驗的評價。他試圖回答幾個關鍵的問題：
第一、當前新興民主體制共同面臨的難題與挑戰為何？
第二、為何有些新興民主的運作逐漸上軌道，而有些卻陷入嚴重的治理危機，甚至出現民主崩解？
第三、什麼樣的經濟、社會、文化、制度及國際環境因素，有助於民主體制的正常發展與逐步鞏固？哪些因素不利於民主的平穩運作與民主正當性基礎的強化，甚至不利於民主體制的生存？
第四、第三波民主化的前景究竟如何？如何能突破當前的瓶頸與困境？
第五，像中國大陸與新加坡這樣展現相當治理績效的非民主體制是否能持續，並且構成民主體制在意識型態領域的競爭對手？
第六、先進民主國家，尤其是美國，應該如何扮演好其扶持與協助新興民主的角色。
未來全球民主的展望
近年台灣歷經政黨對峙、政府空轉、貪腐等社會亂象，當我們深受其苦，努力超越這些問題之際，其實早在其他發展民主的國家中，便可找到借鏡。長久以來，一直致力於研究各國民主進程的知名社會學家賴瑞‧戴蒙，藉由各國發展民主的故事，指出「民主」絕非一人一票選總統那麼簡單，更不僅僅是體制的改變而已，重要的是改變人心。他明確定義何謂「民主」，進而闡述哪些因素可促進或阻礙民主發展，描繪使民主得以運作的政府機制與公民社會，希望藉由他山之石，找出改善民主制度的關鍵，如此一來，當大部分的人想要改變領導人和政策時，便能在既有的規範中，運用有效率的組織來達到改變的目的。
賴瑞‧戴蒙指出民主的敵人不是回教的聖戰運動、威權體制，而是人性的驕傲自大、不妥協、愚蠢與貪婪，在歷史上隨處可見因這些人性特點而垮台的民主故事，但是，他深信，人類具備從失敗中學習的能力。未來，即便如中國如此強大的共產威權國家，也會因為經濟發展影響社會結構與人民素質，而在下一世代轉型為民主國家。
民主，是與我們息息相關的生活形態，但它無法憑空獲得，甚至只要我們對政治、對社會漠不關心，民主就會再度消失。我們的生活幸福與否，一切關鍵便在於，我們是否參與其中。閱讀本書，當社會再度紛亂，你將具備清晰的思路邏輯、完整的背景知識，了解如何撥開迷霧，為建立美好社會盡一己之力。

From Publishers Weekly
Political scientist Diamond (Squandered Victory), a leader in the field of democracy studies, provides a broad, authoritative survey of international trends and evolving academic thinking concerning the development and maintenance of democracies worldwide. Looking broadly at internal and external factors driving democratic movements, as well as the forces that sustain them once in place, Diamond argues democracy is not a Western anomaly, but a universal value. Diamond, who served as senior advisor to the Iraqi Coalition Provisional Authority, has witnessed democracy-building efforts at close range. The promotion of democracy in authoritarian regimes through either peaceful pressure or international interventions, Diamond believes, is rarely effective unless supported by outside assistance designed to strengthen internal civil societies. Democracy by force, he intones, has the poorest track record of all, and urges the U.S. and other established democracies to clean up their own houses, reasoning that "It does little good to promote freedom abroad while it gradually slips away at home." Being generally sanguine about the nature and influence of democracies, however, Diamond tends to downplay how they might also serve to maintain exploitative social and economic relations, amongst other political complications, but there's much to glean in this optimistic and carefully supported account.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Review
"Meticulous… hopeful… The Spirit of Democracy takes on the world [and] offers well-grounded support to anyone who has questioned the long-held theory… that the richer the country, the greater the chances of sustaining democracy."—The New York Times Book Review
"Diamond is… eloquent in arguing that despite the recent blunders of American democracy promoters, there is still a role for the international community in helping societies that are struggling to be free."—Foreign Affairs
"Diamond … strenuously argues against the cynical idea that certain religions, cultures, or societies are incompatible with democracy, pointing to the progress of the past three decades as evidence that democracy is indeed a universal aspiration."—The Chronicle Review
"The Spirit of Democracy is a worthwhile corrective to America’s post-Iraq pessimism about the future of democratic ideals throughout the world."—Francis Fukuyama, author of America at the Crossroads: Democracy, Power, and the Neoconservative Legacy
"Diamond offers a path forward, full of his customary wisdom, tough-mindedness, and passion. With friends like him, the spirit of democracy will rise again."—Peter Beinart, senior fellow, Council on Foreign Relations, and author of The Good Fight
"No one has thought harder or more broadly about the past and future of democracy than Larry Diamond. A passionate treatment, infused with optimism and eminently readable, The Spirit of Democracy is a must for anyone who cares about the toughest challenge of balancing national values and national interests."—Jessica Tuchman Mathews, president, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
"Ambitious [and] authoritative… Truly interesting."—McClatchy-Tribune Regional News
"A thoroughly researched and informative account… intelligently composed [and] sure to provoke discussion… Highly recommended."—The Midwest Book Review
"Passionate… a refreshingly evenhanded overview of democracy’s global prospects… [Diamond’s] view… is wide-ranging and carefully considered, making this an especially effective work."—Kirkus Reviews

Acclaimed one of the "seminal books...comparable in ultimate importance to...Galileo or Malthus or Rousseau or Mill", Cybernetics was judged by twenty-seven historians, economists, educators, and philosophers to be one of those books published during the "past four decades," which may have a substantial impact on public thought and action in the years ahead." -- Saturday Review

In this moving and thought-provoking volume, Arthur Kleinman tells the unsettling stories of a handful of men and women, some of whom have lived through some of the most fundamental transitions of the turbulent twentieth century.
Here we meet an American veteran of World War II, tortured by the memory of the atrocities he committed while a soldier in the Pacific. A French-American woman aiding refugees in sub-Saharan Africa, facing the utter chaos of a society where life has become meaningless. A Chinese doctor trying to stay alive during Mao's cultural revolution, discovering that the only values that matter are those that get you beyond the next threat. These individuals found themselves caught in circumstances where those things that matter most to them--their desires, status, relationships, resources, political and religious commitments, life itself--have been challenged by the society around them. Each is caught up in existential moral experiences that define what it means to be human, with an intensity that makes their life narratives arresting.
These stories reveal just how malleable moral life is, and just how central danger is to our worlds and our livelihood. Indeed, Kleinman offers in this book a groundbreaking approach to ethics, examining "who we are" through some of the most disturbing issues of our time--war, globalization, poverty, social injustice--all in the context of actual lived moral life.