Other books that might interest you

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  Have We All Gone Mad? Why...

  Jerome Booth

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  "With refreshingly clear-sighted analysis, Jerome Booth spells out how political, financial and social groupthink has damaged Britain – and, crucially, how we can tackle it. Highly recommended." – Liam Halligan, Daily Telegraph
  "Most of the worst political decisions of recent years were made when all the mainstream politicians thought the same thing and no one challenged them. Jerome Booth wisely analyses why this situation happens so often and what can be done about it. Every politician and every decision-maker should read this book." – Lord Frost, former Cabinet Office minister
  "It is a long time since I read a book with which I agreed so comprehensively." – Lord Lilley, former Secretary of State
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  We like to think of ourselves as rational, but human beings are fundamentally irrational creatures – and nowhere is that more apparent than in the fug of groupthink we see around us, from the boardroom to social media.
  Of the various forms of collective irrationality, groupthink is particularly dangerous. It involves adherence to a faulty consensus, often has a binary moral dimension (one is seen as either virtuous or evil) and is sustained through fear to challenge. Counter-intuitively, the most intelligent and erudite amongst us are particularly susceptible, and when groupthink takes hold, vigorous efforts are made to shut down debate and to bully and punish transgressors.
  As a result, toleration, liberalism, history, reason and science are under threat. Mass groupthink amongst both the elite and the masses affects millions of people. It has led to financial mismanagement leading up to the 2008 crisis and beyond; poor decision-making at the onset of Covid-19; exaggerated, unchallenged claims which have motivated nonsensical policies; and distortions in academia and journalism.
  In this remarkable and prescient book, Dr Jerome Booth investigates why some of us have abandoned reason in favour of trite memes, intolerance and hatred. Have we all gone mad? Or can we identify the patterns and causes of what is happening and try to stop it?

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  Philosophies of Knowledge and...

  Hector Davidson

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  This book contains the following titles: 
  - Empiricism  
  - Epistemology  
  - Idealism  
  - Liberalism  
  - Pragmatism 

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  NASA’s Deadly Accidents - The...

  Charles River Editors

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  As Apollo 11’s name suggests, there were actually a number of Apollo missions that came before, many of which included testing the rockets and different orbital and lunar modules in orbit. In fact, it wasn’t until Apollo 8 that a manned vehicle was sent towards the Moon and back, and before that mission, the most famous Apollo mission was Apollo 1, albeit for all the wrong reasons.  
  There were no delusions regarding the dangers of manned space travel, but they were brought home on January 27, 1967, when all three astronauts were killed by a fire that ignited in the cabin during a launch rehearsal. To this day, there is still debate over what ignited the fire, but the disaster made clear that the modules being used by NASA had a series of fatal flaws.  
  	In the decades after the Apollo program, American space shuttles flew over 130 missions and successfully completed over 98% of them, but unfortunately, the two most famous missions were the ones that ended tragically aboard the Challenger and Columbia. The Space Shuttle Challenger was the most heavily used space shuttle in the three years it was operational, carrying the first minority astronaut and woman astronaut into space. Challenger was also the first space shuttle to complete a landing at night.  
  	The notorious date of the Challenger disaster was commemorated by the crew of the Columbia while they were in space in 2003, and a few days later, on February 1, the Columbia was due to land at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 09:16. Only a few members of the press were present to watch the landing - this was, after all, supposed to be a routine return from a routine mission, the 113th for the shuttle program and the 28th for Columbia, one of the oldest Space Shuttles.

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  Listen to HSK4 (I) - Unlock HSK...

  Letitia Wu

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  “Listen to HSK4 (I)” is the first volume of a two-part audiobook series designed to help you master HSK4 vocabulary. This volume features the first 300 essential words needed for HSK4 success. Across the entire series, you’ll be guided through a total of 625 keywords, building a comprehensive foundation in Mandarin Chinese.The audiobook provides not just words but also carefully crafted example sentences for each term. To ensure clear understanding and improved listening skills, each example sentence is read three times: first, slowly for clear pronunciation and easier learning, and then twice at regular speed to mirror real-world Chinese conversation. This method helps reinforce both comprehension and pronunciation.Ideal for learners preparing for the HSK4 exam, this series offers an engaging and structured way to solidify your Mandarin skills. Whether you’re looking to expand your vocabulary or achieve higher proficiency, “Listen to HSK4 (I)” is your perfect companion.Start your journey to HSK4 mastery with Letitia Wu’s expertly curated content and clear audio instructions!

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  Self-Censorship

  Glenn C. Loury

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  There is no such thing as free, unconstrained speech. Laws and constitutions may protect us from the state when we speak our minds. But the state is just one possible constraint. Glenn Loury, one of America's most outspoken and important intellectuals, provides a provocative and dazzling analysis of the powerful social forces that can prevent speakers from voicing unpopular views in public forums.Every society, Loury notes, has norms to enforce. That can be a good thing: There ought to be social sanctions for, say, compulsive liars. When, however, a society shows a low degree of tolerance for speech about matters of political importance, self-censorship proliferates and public discourse and policy suffer. The answer, Loury argues, is for as many of us as possible to be braver and more human—to take a risk and unapologetically "live within the truth".Loury first presented these ideas in the 1990s in a celebrated and prophetic essay about "political correctness." In Self-Censorship he expands and updates the account, deploying his analytical powers and psychological acuity to diagnose our current political climate. The result illuminates prevailing social dynamics with the same brilliant and startling effect that made the paper an instant classic thirty years ago.

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  The Brothers Grimm - A Biography

  Ann Schmiesing

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  The first English-language biography in over fifty years to tell the full, vibrant story of Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm, known to history as the Brothers Grimm 
   
  More than two hundred years ago, the German brothers Jacob Grimm (1785–1863) and Wilhelm Grimm (1786–1859) published a collection of fairy tales that remains famous the world over. It has been translated into some 170 languages—more than any other German book—and the Brothers Grimm are among the top dozen most translated authors in the world. In addition to collecting tales, the Grimms were mythographers, linguists, librarians, civil servants, and above all the closest of brothers, but until now, the full story of their lifelong endeavor to preserve and articulate a German cultural identity has not been well known. 
   
  Drawing on deep archival research and decades of scholarship, Ann Schmiesing tells the affecting story of how the Grimms’ ambitious projects gave the brothers a sense of self-preservation through the atrocities of the Napoleonic Wars and a series of personal losses. They produced a vast corpus of work on mythology and medieval literature, embarked on a monumental German dictionary project, and broke scholarly ground with Jacob’s linguistic discovery known as Grimm’s Law. Setting their story against a rich historical backdrop, Schmiesing offers a fresh consideration of the profound and yet complicated legacy of the Brothers Grimm. 
   
  Ann Schmiesing is professor of German and Scandinavian studies at the University of Colorado Boulder. She is the author of Disability, Deformity, and Disease in the Grimms’ Fairy Tales. She lives in Longmont, CO.

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