One of the major documents of modern European civilization, Robert Burton's astounding compendium, a survey of melancholy in all its myriad forms, has invited nothing but superlatives since its publication in the seventeenth century. Lewellyn Powys called it "the greatest work of prose of the greatest period of English prose-writing," while the celebrated surgeon William Osler declared it the greatest of medical treatises. And Dr. Johnson, Boswell reports, said it was the only book that he rose early in the morning to read with pleasure. In this surprisingly compact and elegant new edition, Burton's spectacular verbal labyrinth is sure to delight, instruct, and divert today's readers as much as it has those of the past four centuries.
Neurologist Robert Burton challenges common notions about how people think about what they know, demonstrating how the feeling of certainty comes from a place beyond knowledge and control and is a mental sensation, not evidence of fact.
What if our soundest, most reasonable judgments are beyond our control? Despite 2500 years of contemplation by the world's greatest minds and the more recent phenomenal advances in basic neuroscience, neither neuroscientists nor philosophers have a decent understanding of what the mind is or how it works. The gap between what the brain does and the mind experiences remains uncharted territory. Nevertheless, with powerful new tools such as the fMRI scan, neuroscience has become the de facto mode of explanation of behavior. Neuroscientists tell us why we prefer Coke to Pepsi, and the media trumpets headlines such as "Possible site of free will found in brain." Or: "Bad behavior down to genes, not poor parenting." Robert Burton believes that while some neuroscience observations are real advances, others are overreaching, unwarranted, wrong-headed, self-serving, or just plain ridiculous, and often with the potential for catastrophic personal and social consequences. In A Skeptic's Guide to the Mind, he brings together clinical observations, practical thought experiments, personal anecdotes, and cutting-edge neuroscience to decipher what neuroscience can tell us – and where it falls woefully short. At the same time, he offers a new vision of how to think about what the mind might be and how it works. A Skeptic's Guide to the Mind is a critical, startling, and expansive journey into the mysteries of the brain and what makes us human.
The house is silent. Everyone is in bed. But Liam has something on his mind. It's really bugging the five-year old. He can't go to sleep until he solves the problem with THE THREE. He needs help, so he sneaks into his closet-where his imaginary friends are waiting. In the process of airing out his concerns, Liam is able to solve the issue himself, and have a laugh with his friends. - Young kids worry about things that they don't understand. Sure, they can always ask their parents to explain it, but sometimes, they don't. Meanwhile, the issue can loom ever larger in their minds.
This is the fourth volume of the Clarendon edition of Robert Burton's the "Anatomy of Melancholy" and the first of three volumes of commentary. It contains commentary on the text up to page 327 of Volume One.
What role did economics play in leading the United States into the Civil War in the 1860s, and how did the war affect the economies of the North and the South? Tariffs, Blockades, and Inflation uses contemporary economic analyses such as supply and demand, modern market theory, and the economics of politics to interpret events of the Civil War. Simplifying the sometimes complex intricacies of the subject matter, Thornton and Ekelund have penned a nontechnical primer that is jargon-free and accessible. Tariffs, Blockades, and Inflation also takes a comprehensive approach to its topic. It offers a cohesive and a persuasive explanation of the how, what, and why behind the many factors at work on both sides of the contest. While most books only delve into a particular aspect of the war, this title effectively bridges the gap by offering an all-encompassing, yet relatively brief, introduction to the essential economics of the Civil War. This book starts out with a look at the reasons for the beginning of the Civil War, including explaining why the war began when it did. It then examines the economic realities in both the North and South. Also covered are the different financial strategies implemented by both the Union and the Confederacy to fund the war and the reasons behind what ultimately led to Southern defeat. Finally, the economic effect of Reconstruction is discussed, including the impact it had on the former slave population. Thornton and Ekelund have contributed an overdue examination of the Civil War that will impart to students a modern way to better comprehend the conflict. Tariffs, Blockades, and Inflation offers fresh, penetrating insights into this pivotal event in American history.
In 1665 an anonymous treatise on magic, by magicians, was added to a book skeptical of witchcraft, "The Discoverie of Witchcraft". The "Magitians Discovered" series examines that anonymous material. This volume contains texts that are foundational for understanding that material, plus texts that are related to the arguments about the material made in the first volume. These texts include selections from Henry Cornelius Agrippa's "Three Books of Occult Philosophy", about the theory and practice of magic; selections from his "Fourth Book"; selections from Olaus Magnus' "Description of the Northern Peoples" about pagan customs, giants, standing stones, witches, and related topics; selections from Robert Burton's "Anatomy of Melancholy" that deal with magic; selections from Isaac La Peyrère's "Prae-Adamitae" which deal with magic and hermeticism; selections from John Dee's writings from "A True and Faithful Relation" that deal with the nature of the aerial spirits; selections from Robert Kirk's "Secret Commonwealth of Elves, Fauns, and Fairies", and more.
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