Reviews (12)

A technical approach towards causality
This is a very interesing book that Judea Pearl worte. The topic is currently of general interest for diverse fields as economics, social sciences and biology, however, this book is not intended for practitoners from these field who face a special problem and search for a possible solution. If you want to buy this book for this reason you will not be able to extract this information for this book. The reason therefor is that important technics like Bayesian Networks or Structural Equations are treated in 3 pages in each case. Judea Pearl assumes that the reader is already familiar with such methods beforehand. (Readers interested in the later subject are strongly refered to Bollen's book "Structural Equations with latent variables".)
What is the cause of intolerance?

Important but difficult
The scientific research community has adopted rigorous methods to eliminate the need for subjective judgments about many things, but when it comes to testing whether X causes Y, they revert to intuition and hand-waving. This book makes a strong argument that we shouldn't accept that. It demonstrates that it is possible to turn intuitions about causation into hypotheses that are unambiguous and testable.
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Subjects:  1. Causation    2. Epistemology    3. General    4. Philosophy    5. Probabilities    6. Research & Methodology    7. Science    8. Epistemology, theory of knowledge    9. Philosophy / General    10. Philosophy of science    11. Social Science    12. Methodology    13. Statistics    14. Cognitive science    15. Artificial Intelligence    16. Mathematics    17. Probability   

Subjects:  1. Civilization    2. General    3. History - General History    4. Social Science    5. Sociology    6. World - General    7. History / General    8. Sociology, Social Studies   

Editorial Review

An accessible introduction to the science of evolutionary psychology and how it explains many aspects of human nature. Unlike many books on the topic,which focus on abstractions like kin selection, this book focuses on Darwinian explanations of why we are the way we are--emotionally and morally. Wright deals particularly well with explaining the reasons for the stereotypical dynamics of the three big "S's:" sex, siblings, and society. ... Read more

Reviews (108)

A good lab for testing the reach of natural selection
Robert Wright is a first rate and highly experienced science writer. In this book he sets out to show how well natural selection and evolutionary psychology apply to us humans. In such capable hands the challenge is fairly presented--human nature is shown in much of its richness and the tools of NeoDarwinism are expertly marshaled. For the reader, this is an opportunity to apply the "Feynman" test---faced with a theory, think of something you know a lot about that you can apply the theory to, and see if it holds up. Wright's book serves as a laboratory we can all use, drawing on our own experience and on his examples, to test page by page whether natural selection holds up as the primary agent of evolution.
Detailed but semi-confusing book
The Moral Animal is a very detailed and informational book on evolutionary psychology. For those who don't know what evolutionary psychology is, it's the study of the psychological advances in organisms through time. Sometimes you can get confused throughout the book because there are many terms to remember to fully understand it. Robert Wright's theory's are mostly based on Darwinism and pro-biology. He believes that people should have many offspring so that they can thrive and have a better chance of survival. One idea that he brought to topic in his book that I thought he contradicted himself was when hesaid, "We aren't designed to stand on crowded subway platforms, or to live in the suburbs next door to people we never talk to, or to get hired for fired, or to watch evening news" (38).
No Dismissal of Free Will
I found this to be an excellent book with some really interesting thinking on the spread of adaptive behaviours in complex human societies - reciprocal altruism, diffuse retribution, monogamy, etc.I also found the relatively short chapters on the implications for morality interesting and not nearly so dark as some of the other reviewers did.One thing that surprised me though was Wright's dismissal of free will altogether.It is clear that biology and environment (especially childhood and adolescent environment) exert powerful influences on our actions.However, Wright's own examples from Victorian England and from the great religions show that people have often and successfully exerted free will to maximize the public good.That this behaviour is, to some extent, motivated by self-interest does not diminish the fact.Wright's leap from his persuasive arguments for the evolutionary roots of much moral behaviour to his assertion that voilition does not exist or is, at best, biologically mediated does not hold up.
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Subjects:  1. General    2. Genetic psychology    3. Human behavior    4. Psychology    5. Sociobiology    6. Sociology    7. Sociology - General    8. Social Science / General   

Reviews (29)

Remarkable!
If you're looking for a book that will show you how man made it from day 1 to the present, while encomapssing ALL disciplines and not science alone, you've found the right book!It's is incredible how simply and interestengly Mr. Bronowski has accomplished such a feat.You won't be able to put it down!

Inspired many copiers but is still the best...
Previous reviews don't do Bronowski justice. He began as a mathematician; but after being sent to Hiroshima, as part of a team studying the aftereffects of the nuclear blast, he switched to biology. He was warm and articulate. A poet himself, he was one of the few people who truly understood the English poet William Blake, although (unlike most of his writing) his essays about Blake could use some explaining themselves. He was a highly moral man and did two original things you don't see many others even attempting: He saw the "doing" of science as an act every bit as creative as composing a symphony or writing a poem -- and he explained it in that way -- and he sought a structure for rationalizing morality and ethical behavior that did not rely upon religious precepts. The Ascent of Man is a very personal work, and it says so in its subtitle. It pretty much echos word for word what Jacob Bronowski spoke extemporaneously as he was sent around the world to the places he needed to be in order to explain the ideas he needed to express as he filmed his material for public television. Ironically, I said that very badly: I meant that HE could explain very complex notions with terrific elegance and simplicity. Period. By the way, the process of making the series for TV must have taken a toll, as JB died not long after completing the necessary travels. The Ascent of Man is all excellent but has many especially moving moments. Only one example occurred when JB walked fully clothed and shod into a pond at Auschwitz in acknowledgment of family and friends and fellow countrymen whose ashes were dumped there by fascists who laid claim to a handle on absolute certainty. Read this topnotch book, then find more by him. And if you're thirsty for more, try a little Loren Eisely as well. The accomplishments of humankind as explained by thoughtful scientists can prove wonderfully exhiliarating.

Very good, but don't expect Cosmos
This is one of the first, and one of the better, history of science sorts of series.If you enjoy history and science, then its worth watching.But the program, and to a lesser extent the book, in my mind suffer from a serious flaw: namely; that the author can not seem to divorce himself from his own religious views, which intrude at a number of times in the program.How can I take someone seriously who is speaking about archeological history, while at the same time speculating about the Biblical conquest of Jericho?There is a disconnect here that leaves you wondering.One can always quibble about what major scientific advances are noteworthy, and different authors have seized upon various individuals; but we have in this series nothing out of the ordinary.Looking at "Cosmos" or "The Day the Universe Changed" is much more fulfilling, from an intellectual standpoint, but its still worth purchasing and enjoying. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. General    2. History    3. History: World    4. Human beings    5. Man    6. Philosophy    7. Philosophy & Social Aspects    8. Science    9. Sociology   

Reviews (4)

of course some people wouldn't like this book
i loved this book: it questions the idea of repeatability, which means that it questions the religion of science (as practiced by amateurs)and it shows you how language has served the impulse towards duplicity.the book also has a certain tongue-in-cheek wit about it, and that makes the ideas more interesting to read. Interesting, but hard to read
I'd like to think I'm not a dummy, but this was hard to read.It looks to me like the book was translated to English by someone who might know more about Anthropology than written communication.There were times when I felt that maybe it had been run through Babblefish. It only takes a French accent...
Anglophone readers probably don't realise that Latour meant this book as a tongue-in-cheek exercise to capture the postmodern social theory market in his own country by using a postmodern style to show what an illusionpostmodernism has always been. But, as fate would have it, when someonesneezes in Paris, an Anglophone is felled with pneumonia. It's hard tobelieve that anyone with a firm grasp of the history of the last 250 yearsof Western culture would find this book anything more than a diversionworthy of maybe a couple of arguments in the pub. It's telling thathistorians of science, who are really the people who are in a position tohold Latour accountable to anything he says here, have given the book achilly reception. Classify this one under 'Pseud's Corner'. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. General    2. History    3. Philosophy    4. Science    5. Social Science    6. Social aspects    7. Sociology    8. Technology    9. Development studies    10. Science / General    11. Transport industries   

Reviews (3)

My buddy recommeded it to me
My buddy recommended this DANTES study book, and it is definitely worth picking up if you are looking for a good way to pick up credits.

Hard to find; worth the effort
This book is hard to come by, but well worth all the searching if you are planning to take the DANTES principles of Public Speaking Exam for college credit.Jack Rudman's guides have been useful to me in taking (and passing) five different DANTES exams.For anyone who doesn't know, DANTES are like CLEP but originally started by the military.Official info can be found at getcollegecredit.com on the program. Best Study Guide for the Public Speaking Dante Test
I highly reccomend this book to anyone who is wanting to take the Public Speaking Dante Exam.This book provided all teh informtion in order to blow away the test.I was really suprised that it was helpful as it was.I wish I would have found this book before my countless hours of searching book stores for a good stdy guide.Read more

Subjects:  1. General    2. Reference    3. Sociology   

Editorial Review

For all the devastation and suffering AIDS has caused worldwide, we have devoted surprisingly little attention to its beginnings. Former UN official and BBC correspondent Edward Hooper hopes to find the source of AIDS in Read more

Reviews (49)

Remarkable bookdealing with a highly probable conclusion.
In view of Ed Hoopers theory on what occured is it possible that criticisers of the author and his exhaustive research have overlooked one important point.(infact among many others)
Forever Inspiring!Opening the Eyes of Science!
As a Biology and Pre-med student in 1999, I purchased this book fresh off the shelf, when it was first being sold.Dedicated to the world of science and research, I was eager to learn more about health, science, diseases, and the epidemic called AIDS.
How so much could go wrong
The title of this book refers to the Congo River of Africa.This great river became famous in Western minds in the 1800s with the journeys of Dr. Livingstone.Later, it would be the setting of The Heart of Darkness.Doctors and scientists in the heart of darkness indeed as The River explains in its long, well-documented, exhaustive tale of secretive, unregulated medical research.This book's author interviews hundreds of individuals involved in this process, goes over countless documents, and from it, pieces together the following story.
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Subjects:  1. AIDS & HIV    2. AIDS (Disease)    3. Aids (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome)    4. Contamination    5. Diseases - AIDS & HIV    6. Epidemiology    7. Etiology    8. General    9. History    10. Immunopathology    11. Poliomyelitis vaccine    12. Science    13. Social Science    14. Sociology    15. Medicine   

Reviews (133)

enthralling
I have never read a book like this, and trust me, I've read alot of books.The story is fascinating, the characters well drawn.I wish I knew the ending, every search I have done for Boy George Rivera has come up dry.I wish I could put a face to these people.

Boring.Boring.Boring.
Too many characters.Too vague.Too bad.I'm sure this could have really been a great book, however it failed miserably.Each page I turned, I kept thinking "it's got to get better".I just finished it.Trust me.It doesn't.
A Gripping, Heartfelt, Wonderful Book!
I just finished reading Random Family, and I have to say it has left a lasting impression on me.This book grabs the reader from page one and doesn't let go.While reading this book I found myself caring about the characters and hoping that they would stop making the devastating choices that kept them in the cycle of poverty.However, as I kept reading I came to understand that it was not entirely the characters fault that they were in the predicaments that they were in.Being born into poverty gave them little options for a better life.They pretty much emulated what they saw.Random family gives first hand insight into the plight of America's inner city.Without proper communtiy resources, well paying jobs, adequate education, and good, affordable housing these problems will only get worse.I applaud the author for being so ambitous and bringing us a story that everyone needs to here, for shining a light on a group of people that are often forgotten. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Biography    2. Case studies    3. Drug use    4. New York    5. New York (State)    6. Social Science    7. Sociology    8. Sociology - Marriage & Family    9. Sociology - Urban    10. Sociology Of Youth    11. United States - State & Local - General    12. Urban Sociology    13. Urban poor    14. Youth    15. Social Science / General   

Reviews (1)

Genuine wisdom from one who has gone before us...
Children are a blessing from the Lord, but raising them hasnever been easy! Parents -- at whatever stage in their role -- needwisdom from above and wisdom from those who have gone before.Read more

Subjects:  1. Child Care/Parenting    2. Family    3. General    4. Parent and child    5. Religious aspects    6. Social Science   

Subjects:  1. Macrosociology    2. Social Science    3. Social Welfare (General)    4. Social Work    5. Social service    6. Sociology    7. United States    8. Social Science / General   

Reviews (16)

Sontag adds here name to the after postmodernism movement
Sontag questions her ideas that have influenced half a centary. She is not alone Terry Eagleton (After Theory), Elain Showalter, Sandra Gilbert, and even Derrida (life.after theory) have done the same

Visual means are not enough to understand visual realities
As another reviewer of this book on Amazon has pointed out the title of this book is somewhat misleading. This is not a general consideration of the subject of how we regard the pain of others. And it is too not even a comprehensive treatment of how we regard the pain of strangers when that is represented to us through the media. It is rather a kind of historical consideration of the subject of representation of war through visual images, and how that has effected its intendedaudience.
A Fine Career Bookend

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Subjects:  1. General    2. Media Studies - Electronic Media    3. Social Science    4. Social aspects    5. Sociology    6. Violence in Society    7. War and society    8. War in art    9. War photography   

Reviews (1)

The WORST Statistics book ever written.
I have a PhD. in Social Work, and can positively say this book was no help to anyone in my class.The words couldn't be muddier and the paragraphs clunkier.It has the feel of a paper revised so much that it's lost any meaning, as though the author sat with an open thesaurus and exchanged what might have been a fine word for some other word, at every third word.It reads like an eighth grader found a thesaurus and strung sentences together hoping to gain some recognition, or hastily jotted lecture notes at the moment, or a vaguely intelligible and dull alien script.
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Subjects:  1. General    2. Mathematics    3. Probability & Statistics - General    4. Social Science    5. Social Work    6. Social Work Practice    7. Social sciences    8. Social service    9. Sociology    10. Statistical methods    11. Statistics    12. Social Science / General    13. Social research & statistics   

Reviews (69)

Best Book on exposingGermanBlueprint for relentless Christian Sadism
This is the best example of christian sadism,in medieval Germany,that ripples to this very day.This document backfired on the provincial witch-finders,Heinrich Kramer and James Sprenger.Eventhough,both were admonished by an encyclical church edict,the witch-baiting treatise lived on as a testimony of their brutal plans of continuing Christian injustice.The "Witch's Hammer", may have even nutured theefforts of future Christian demagogues,to maintain control over the xenophobic citizenry though.This fanaticism has been a persistent problem ,throughout German history.The best modern example was,of course, the Nazi reign of terror.The prime opinion,of the German christians,was that they were betrayed by the jewish elitists.Why would the German jews,bite the hand that fed them,by fostering a hostile and depraved christian populace?The enclusive jews were restricted ,by the upper catholic church oligarchy,to monetary-economics and academic affairs only.That's how the court-jews(hofjuden),were employed after the collapse of old monarchy regime. What real forces led to German Nationalism ,no one can say for sure completely.The eugenics minister,Heinrich Himmler,believed that christianity planted the seeds of ignorance and that Germnay needed a "New World Order".Himmler felt that Adolf Hitler was a theatrical Vienna interloper in his Bavarian affairs.Yet,as many of the Nazi brass,he could not match the charismatic brilliance,of Hitler.The fledgling Nazi parti may have floundered ,without the confident aureate persona of Hitler.The Bohemian Hitler ,an outsider in his own native Braunau village,seized upon the uncertainty and fears of the German people,to promote his sadistic xenophobe plans against humanity.Himmler was a "Bavarian Communist" ,really.Himmler believed that Hermann Goering would succeed Hitler,in the event of "the leader's untimely demise,via assassination".If Goering took over,he would have kept Nazi matters ,within the European continent.Hitler saw the Japanese ,as a servile colonist branch of his christian plans ,for Germanic world domination .And Tojo saw Hitler as a good destroyer of the catholic church and that the German christian leftovers ,would be ultimately servile to him. Yet,Goering ,a Nazi Nationalist,held fast to the mood of fellow Nazi ministers,and didn't rock the boat.Goering would have the blessings of the Catholic church,and Himmler saw a need for an enclusive Bavarian democratic socialist-labor gruppe,i.e. Bavarian communist movement, "away from Rome",however.As fate would have it,the christianised German pagans gamble ,on Hitler's victory, was a complete failure.-The "Witch's Hammer" is the best record we have,showing the Germanic christian's ridiculous plans of promoting blind adherence of a sadistic authority.Only grooming a hysterical atmosphere ,for the insane dictatorship of a reckless Christain zealot,like Adolf Hitler.Monty Summers may be guilty of honoring the sadistic fanatics,Kramer and Sprenger.Yet, Monty Durham's writs may have absolved these bibliolatrous sadists.It could happen here ,in today's America.

Revenge
Despite the additions of Montague Summers, this is the perfect example of a book that SHOULD be burned.This and other texts of the period motivated persons in positions of power to torture women (mostly), with practices such as pouring molten metal into all of their orifices, in the name of Christ, of all people.Persons that commit such acts need to be hunted down.They can be taken care of in the next world as well, but first things first.

A compelling opinion piece
Montague Summers' translation of the Malleus Maleficarum is a must have for any library focused on the occult and its history.The myths and bigotries associated with the medieval invention of diabolical witchcraft become quite clear through this biased translation of the original Latin text compiled by James Sprenger and Heinrich Kramer.Summers' frightening laud of the original is elemental in understanding how this work could have been born out of the fear and ignorance of medieval Europe.Summers' earnest belief in diabolical creatures such as werewolves and vampires heartily fuels his praise of the terrible work carried out under the Bull of Pope Innocent VIII which lead to the persecution, torture, forced admission and grusome execution of perhaps thousands of innocent people.If you are planning on becoming a witch hunter, you would do better to brush up on your Latin and look to the original text or await Christopher Mackay's much anticipated translinear edition.I would also suggest researching as many primary sources as possible, such as the work of King James I.That said, the Summers edition is a significant look through the types of eyes that might have composed the original work, and the views that were (and possibly are) being harbored in more contemporary times on this controversial and esoteric subject. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Body, Mind & Spirit    2. Criminal procedure (Canon law)    3. Demonology    4. Early works to 1800    5. General    6. Medieval    7. New Age    8. Occultism    9. Sociology    10. Witchcraft    11. Body, Mind & Spirit / Occultism    12. Occultism & quasi-religious beliefs   

Editorial Review

The thesis of this provocative and potentially important book is the increasing threat of violence arising from renewed conflicts between countries and cultures that base their traditions on religious faith and dogma. This argument moves past the notion of ethnicity to examine the growing influence of a handful of major cultures--Western, Eastern Orthodox, Latin American, Islamic, Japanese, Chinese, Hindu, and African--in current struggles across the globe. Samuel P. Huntington, a political scientist at Harvard University and foreign policy aide to President Clinton, argues that policymakers should be mindful of this development when they interfere in other nations' affairs. ... Read more

Reviews (223)

8 Civilizations Or Political Groups?
There aren't really 8 civilizations. The Western European, Eastern European and Latin Americans are all from different branches of a same Judeo-Christian civilization despite their political differences. Japanese is obviously a branch of the Confucian civilization despite their huge economic success. The African world is really split between the Islamic and Judeo-Christian civilizations. So we only have the Judeo-Christian, Confucian, Islamic and Indian civilizations.

A prelude ......
This book is one of the introductory 'literature' preceding and preparing for the principal and more important actions a small bit of which we are witnessing nowadays.
Magnum Opus
This is the eminent Professor Huntinton's magnum opus, and it deserves to be read. No one can profess an understanding of modern global politics without studying this masterful work which was written in 1996.It remains a treasury of prophetic insights for our present day.
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Subjects:  1. 1950-    2. 1989-    3. Civilization, Modern    4. General    5. International Relations - General    6. Modern - 20th Century    7. Politics - Current Events    8. Post Cold War History    9. Post-communism    10. Sociology    11. World politics    12. Cultural studies    13. Current Events / International    14. International relations   

Reviews (3)

If you think you know all about sex, think again!
I had to use this textbook when I took Dr King's Psychology class at the University of New Orleans (Spring '06). I found it to be a very informative eye-opener. Dr King presents information in a clear, concise, just-the-facts way, yet it doesn't read like a 'boring old textbook.' The information really makes the reader think twice about the West's cultural, historical, and scientific perspectives on the nature of sexuality.
Good Book and Great Class!
I recently had Dr. King's class at the University of New Orleans during the Spring semester of 05, his class is the best! I enjoyed every minute of sitting through his lectures! He's is a great professor and a great writer! Keep up the good work!

Great
The book arrived in timely manner. Also, the book was in good condition
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Subjects:  1. General    2. Human Sexuality    3. Psychology    4. Sex    5. Sex (Biology)    6. Sex (Psychology)    7. Sex instruction for youth    8. Social Science    9. Sociology    10. United States    11. Philosophy & psychology    12. Psychology & Psychiatry / General    13. Sexual behaviour   

Reviews (1)

Masterful Essays in Symbolic Anthropology
The role of culture in human societies is explored through a combination of empirical research and the nimble mind and imaginative powers of the late Victor Turner. This collection will prove especially useful to students of comparative religion, social/cultural anthropology, literature, performance, and the visual arts. Turner's essays are far from dry. They thrill with their ability to combine close observations of the "exotic" beliefs of non-Western peoples and cutting edge insights into more familiar cultural dimensions of everyday life in western Europe and the United States.
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Subjects:  1. Addresses, essays, lectures    2. Ethnic & Tribal    3. General    4. Metaphor    5. Rites and ceremonies    6. Sociology    7. Symbolism    8. Anthropology   

Reviews (1)

The founding stone of symbolic interactionist theory
This books represents the foundation for a major sociological approach - symbolic interactionism. The essential premise of symbolic interactionism is that all human action is essentially symbolic and that society is to be understood, not as a closed system to be studied in abstraction, but as a network of endless interactions in which human beings symbolically interpret human behavior, speech and thought. Society is the interiorised 'other' or a projected interpretation of societal 'others'. Human self therefore has a free component or I and a bound component or We.
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Subjects:  1. Behaviorism (Psychology)    2. Experience    3. General    4. Language and languages    5. Self    6. Social Science    7. Social psychology    8. Sociology    9. Sociology - Social Theory    10. Behavioural theory (Behaviourism)    11. Social Science / General    12. Social, group or collective psychology    13. Sociology, Social Studies   

Reviews (5)

cool read
Let me take these reviews down a level.This is a fantastic book for anyone who is interested in how order arises in social situations.As other people have noted, its a great piece of academic literature, but its also just plain interesting.Overall Mr. Ellickson is more than a little anti-government in his assessment of the need for state intervention.However, there are plenty of everyday occurences of order that are not backed up by law that make this interesting.Think of the fact that when a funeral procession drives down a street everyone stops to let them pass, even if the traffic light is against them.This book looks at how these kinds of events are established and why they persist.Very cool, I highly recommend it.

Good Fences Make Good Neighbors
Order Without Law studies why, and under what circumstances, people accept a body of rules when there is no written law establishing those rules, and occasionally when the written law contradicts those rules.To answer this question, Professor Robert Ellickson settled into a long and detailed field study of the attitudes of cattle ranchers in Shasta County, California.His primary focus was on the informal rules governing boundary fences; who pays to build, who pays to maintain, who accepts the risk of stray cattle, and so forth.While his geographical focus was narrow, it was impressively deep, involving dozens of personal interviews and detailed reviews of public records.Ellickson explains why he believes that two current theories, law-and-economics and law-and-society, are both inadequate. He creates his own useful taxonomy of rules, rule makers, and rule enforcers.He offers hypotheses to predict future situations when people will more likely accept unwritten rules.Designed for professionals who deal daily in human behavior, such as sociologists, anthropologists, and lawyers, Order Without Law remains accessible to the general reader.One part was difficult to follow: the extended analysis of the Prisoner's Dilemma and its variations.But overall Order Without Law is a valuable addition to law and the social sciences.

Society and Law book that explains order without law.
This book does not seek to explain the world in economic terms, but it does seek to explain it in sociological terms.Using the example of Shasta County cattle ranchers he has crafted an excellent book.It is scholarly, yet accessible.Read more

Subjects:  1. Dispute Arbitration    2. General    3. Law    4. Politics/International Relations    5. Sociology    6. Foundations of law    7. Law / General    8. Laws of Other Jurisdictions & General Law    9. Social Sciences    10. USA