Other books that might interest you

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  Ninja The: The History and...

  Editors Charles River

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  To most people in the West, particularly the youth, the mere mention of Japan immediately evokes various images. A delectable rainbow of sushi, hand-rolled temaki, and platters of crispy, golden-brown tempura. An idyllic, crystal-clear lake flanked by trees covered with delicate, cotton-candy-pink sakura blossoms. A montage of unique, hand-drawn cartoons that are a masterful mix of delightfully exaggerated proportions, features, and colors, and elements of arresting realism, collectively known as “anime.”  
  	Then, of course, there's the ninja, a willowy, graceful figure decked out in black from head to toe, his glinting eyes peering out from the window of his balaclava. He flits from rooftop to rooftop in stunning somersaults and slinks into the shadows, watching his unsuspecting marks from afar and calculating their every move. Then, as quickly as he came, he strikes, hurling throwing stars, twirling his nunchucks, and hacking away with his trusty sword, exterminating his targets with dizzying, lightning-quick speed and superhuman precision. At least, this is how those unfamiliar with the ancient art of ninjutsu, or shinobi-jutsu, see them.   
  	Ninjas are, without a doubt, one of the most timeless and far-reaching cultural staples ever to emerge from Japan. They have become a global phenomenon, and there are countless depictions of ninjas in comic books, films, TV shows, video games, toys, and other forms of popular culture around the world, not to mention their continued relevance as a “conventional” go-to Halloween costume. Kids across the world are intimately familiar with Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Snake Eyes from the G.I. Joe franchise, Scorpion from Mortal Kombat, and Black Noir from The Boys. Ninjas have also been featured in a slew of other international movies and TV shows.

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  Summary Analysis & Review of...

  Instaread

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  Summary, Analysis & Review of Gary Taubes’s The Case Against Sugar by Instaread 
   
  Preview: 
   
   
  The Case Against Sugar argues that sugar is a toxic substance responsible for a wide array of health problems including diabetes, cancer, and Alzheimer’s disease. Author Gary Taubes recounts the history of how sugar came to be cultivated and ultimately refined into the cheap, ubiquitous substance that is eaten globally today. He takes on the American sugar industry for its role in perpetuating faulty science that hid the true dangers of the substance. 
   
  Sugar—and a lot of it—is contained in most of the foods that Americans eat every day without even realizing it. Seemingly innocuous foodstuffs like flour are combined with sugar to accommodate an American palate that now craves a high baseline level of sweetness. Even items that are not commonly associated with sugar include the substance to enhance their flavor and make them more appealing. The rise of cigarette addiction can be attributed to the addition… 
   
   
  PLEASE NOTE: This is a Summary, Analysis & Review of the book and NOT the original book. 
   
  Inside this Summary, Analysis & Review of Gary Taubes’s The Case Against Sugar by Instaread: 
   
  · Overview of the Book 
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  · Key Takeaways 
  · Analysis of Key Takeaways 
   
  About the Author 
  With Instaread, you can get the key takeaways and analysis of a book in 15 minutes. We read every chapter, identify the key takeaways and analyze them for your convenience.  
  Visit our website at instaread.co.

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  Politics and Pasta - How I...

  David Fisher, Vincent "Buddy"...

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  The story behind the podcast Crimetown, as told by the notorious Buddy Cianci himself.An election is a war and "to the victor belongs the spoils." That’s the real democratic process. After all, you'll never see a victorious politician tell his supporters, "I want to thank all of you who worked so hard for my election. However, in the interest of good government, I've decided to give all the jobs to those people who voted against me." This belief became Buddy Cianci’s mantra. Following his own rules, Cianci spent almost three decades as mayor of Providence, RI... before leaving for an enforced vacation in a federally funded gated community. Providence was a dying industrial city when he first took office, but he helped turn it into one of the most desirable places to live in America. He did it by playing the game of hardball politics as well as it has ever been played, living up to his favorite Sinatra lyric "I did it my way"—because that's the only way a mayor can run a city. If you want to know the truth about how politics is played, you picked the right book. This is the behind-the-locked-door story of how politics in America really works. Here is a man who has been called many things: "America's Most Innovative Mayor," a "colorful character," and a convicted felon. But no one has ever called him shy. Here, he serves it all up.

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  From Time Immemorial -...

  Richard J. Perry

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  An examination of the similar patterns inherent in state conquest and incorporation of indigenous peoples in North America, Australia, Asia, and Africa.   Around the globe, people who have lived in a place “from time immemorial” have found themselves confronted by and ultimately incorporated within larger state systems. During more than three decades of anthropological study of groups ranging from the Apache to the indigenous peoples of Kenya, Richard J. Perry has sought to understand this incorporation process and, more importantly, to identify the factors that drive it. This broadly synthetic and highly readable book chronicles his findings.   Perry delves into the relations between state systems and indigenous peoples in Canada, the United States, Mexico, and Australia. His explorations show how, despite differing historical circumstances, encounters between these state systems and native peoples generally followed a similar pattern: invasion, genocide, displacement, assimilation, and finally some measure of apparent self-determination for the indigenous people—which may, however, have its own pitfalls.   After establishing this common pattern, Perry tackles the harder question—why does it happen this way? Defining the state as a nexus of competing interest groups, Perry offers persuasive evidence that competition for resources is the crucial factor in conflicts between indigenous peoples and the powerful constituencies that drive state policies.   These findings shed new light on a historical phenomenon that is too often studied in isolated instances. This book will thus be important reading for everyone seeking to understand the new contours of our postcolonial world.

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  South Yorkshire Mining Disasters...

  Brian Elliott

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  In the period that we now call the Industrial Revolution mining disasters wrecked the lives of thousands of South Yorkshire families and devastated entire communities. The Husker pit flooding of 1838 in which 26 young girls and boys were killed shocked Victorian society and and was a significant factor in the 1842 Report on Employment of Women and Children in Mines; but earlier, long forgotten disasters are also explored. The Barnsley area was particularly hard-hit during the middle decades of the century with major mining accidents, usually great explosions of firedamp occurring, for example, at Lundhill Colliery (189 men and boys killed); Oaks (361 fatalities, Britains worst pit disaster) and Swaithe Main (143 dead). Scenes of grief, mourning and remarkable heroism provided spectacular copy for Victorian newspapers and magazines such as The Illustrated London News, focusing on the very uncertain and dangerous life of the miner. Despite the importance and widespread occurrence of South Yorkshire mining disasters, which also included dreadful winding accidents and gas emissions, their story has never been told in a single volume.

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  The False Consensus Effect -...

  William Rands

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  The False Consensus Effect refers to the cognitive bias where individuals overestimate the extent to which others share their beliefs, values, and opinions. This phenomenon can be seen across a wide range of social, political, and personal contexts, often shaping our perception of how common or widespread our views are. Essentially, people tend to assume that their experiences and perspectives are more universally shared than they truly are. This can lead to significant misunderstandings, skewed decision-making, and a distorted view of the world. 
  The roots of the False Consensus Effect trace back to psychological and social mechanisms. From a psychological standpoint, it arises from our natural tendency to see ourselves as typical and representative of a larger group. We are more likely to surround ourselves with like-minded individuals, reinforcing our views and making them appear more widely held. This is further exacerbated by our desire for validation and the comfort that comes from seeing our beliefs reflected in others. As a result, we are inclined to believe that our preferences or values are the norm, even when they may be quite particular to our own experiences. 
  Historically, social psychologists have studied the False Consensus Effect to understand the role of social influence in shaping human behavior. Researchers such as Lee Ross, who first identified the phenomenon in the 1970s, found that people would often overestimate the extent to which others agreed with their positions, even in matters where little or no evidence supported such a claim. This effect is not limited to extreme or controversial opinions but is also observable in everyday decisions and preferences, such as tastes in food, entertainment, or lifestyle choices.

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