Simon Brodbeck's Books

The Mahabharata Patriline

Gender, Culture, and the Royal Hereditary

By: Simon Pearse Brodbeck

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The Mahabharata Patriline

Gender, Culture, and the Royal Hereditary

By: Simon Pearse Brodbeck

The Sanskrit Mahabharata (which contains the Bhagavad Gita) is sorely neglected as a classic - perhaps the classic - of world literature, and is of particularly timely human importance in today's globalised and war-torn world. This book is a chronological survey of the Sanskrit Mahabharata's central royal patriline - a family tree that is also a list of kings. Brodbeck explores the importance and implications of patrilineal maintenance within the royal culture depicted by the text, and shows how patrilineal memory comes up against the fact that in every generation a wife must be involved, with the consequent danger that the children might not sustain the memorial tradition of their paternal family. The Mahabharata Patriline bridges a gap in text-critical methodology between the traditional philological approach and more recent trends in gender and literary theory. Studying the Mahabharata as an integral literary unit and as a story stretched over dozens of generations, this book casts particular light on the events of the more recent generations and suggests that the text's internal narrators are members of the family whose story they tell.

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332

Publisher

Routledge

Published Date

ISBN 10

1351886304

ISBN 13

9781351886307

Divine Descent and the Four World-Ages in the Mahābhārata – or, Why Does the Kṛṣṇa Avatāra Inaugurate the Worst Yuga?

By: Simon Brodbeck

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Divine Descent and the Four World-Ages in the Mahābhārata – or, Why Does the Kṛṣṇa Avatāra Inaugurate the Worst Yuga?

By: Simon Brodbeck

This monograph approaches the Mahābhārata as a single work of literature, and the method is that of close textual study. Key verses are quoted in the original Sanskrit and in English translation. The title problem has been recognised before, but no detailed solution has been forthcoming. The monograph’s objective is to try to articulate a Mahābhārata theology of time. In Chapter 1, the monograph’s argument and synchronic methodology are summarised. In Chapter 2, the cycle of four yugas (world-ages) is outlined and discussed on the basis of the textual evidence. Each yuga is shorter and less moral than the last, and between them they constitute a repeating 12,000-year cycle. In Chapter 3, the Mahābhārata war is shown to be located at the junction between the third and fourth yugas. The idea of God Viṣṇu-Nārāyaṇa descending to improve the world is introduced, and the title question is properly posed: Why does God’s descent as Kṛṣṇa (to make the Mahābhārata war happen) inaugurate the worst yuga? In Chapter 4, the various descents (avatāras, ‘crossings-down’) of God Viṣṇu-Nārāyaṇa are discussed. Also discussed is a theory suggesting that the passage between yugas always requires a divine descent to effect it. The limitations of this theory are described and an alternative sketched. In Chapter 5, two general functions of divine descent are identified: to improve the world morally by killing demons, and to help the personified Earth by reducing the human weight upon her. These two functions are correlated with the two extremities of the four-yuga cycle, between which time oscillates. But the Mahābhārata war is not located at either extremity. Central to the monograph is a survey and discussion of the reasons given for this particular descent. These passages combine the two functions of divine descent, neither of which is entirely appropriate to this moment. It is argued that the descent here represents what happens over the course of the whole cycle. The discussion draws on Vedic literature, touches on gender issues, and shows how the two functions play out in the story of the war. In Chapter 6, the progress of the fourth yuga is tracked through the Mahābhārata’s various characters and then the ancient audience, who would anticipate the start of the next cycle. It is hypothesised that this was to occur through the long-term action of the Mahābhārata, as more and more people would put into practice the teachings presented by Kṛṣṇa in the Bhagavadgītā. The Kṛṣṇa avatāra would thus inaugurate the worst yuga because the seed planted there takes time to ripen. Chapter 7 reflects summarily upon the monograph’s explorations, the theory of divine descent, and the text’s theology of time. By employing a resolutely synchronic methodology the monograph makes a significant contribution on an important and latterly overlooked issue.

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212

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Cardiff University Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

1911653431

ISBN 13

9781911653431

From Extraterrestrials to Animal Minds

Six Myths of Evolution

By: Simon Conway Morris

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From Extraterrestrials to Animal Minds

Six Myths of Evolution

By: Simon Conway Morris

In this learned romp of science writing, Cambridge professor Simon Conway Morris cheerfully challenges six assumptions—what he calls ‘myths’—that too often pass as unquestioned truths amongst the evolutionary orthodox. His convivial tour begins with the idea that evolution is boundless in the kinds of biological systems it can produce. Not true, he says. The process is highly circumscribed and delimited. Nor is it random. This popular notion holds that evolution proceeds blindly, with no endgame. But Conway Morris suggests otherwise, pointing to evidence that the processes of evolution are “seeded with inevitabilities.” If that is so, then what about mass extinctions? Don’t they steer the development of life in radically new directions? Rather the reverse, claims Conway Morris. Such cataclysms accelerate evolutionary developments that were going to happen anyway. And what about that other evolutionary canard: the “missing link”? There is plenty to choose from in the fossil record, but persistently overlooked is that in any group, there is not one but a phalanx of “missing links.” Once again, we under-score the near-inevitability of evolutionary outcomes. Turning from fossils to minds, Conway Morris critically examines the popular tenet that the intelligence of humans and animals are the same thing, a difference of degree, not kind. A closer scrutiny of our minds shows that, in reality, an unbridgeable gulf separates us from even the chimpanzees, so begging questions of consciousness and Mind. Finally, Conway Morris tackles the question of extraterrestrials. Undoubtedly, the size and scale of the universe suggest that alien life must exist somewhere beyond Earth and our tiny siloed solar system? After all, evolutionary convergence more than hints that human-like forms are universal. But Dr. Conway Morris has serious doubts. The famous Fermi Paradox (“Where are they?”) appears to hold: Alone in the cosmos—and unique, but not quite in the way one might expect.

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425

Publisher

Templeton Foundation Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

1599475294

ISBN 13

9781599475295

The Art of Empirical Investigation

By: Julian Lincoln Simon

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The Art of Empirical Investigation

By: Julian Lincoln Simon

Julian Simon was known for his methodical, and often controversial, writings challenging conventional beliefs about overpopulation, pollution, disappearing farmland, and the scarcity of energy sources and raw materials. But throughout his works is a common theme: that responsible, unbiased research and examination of the data is indispensable to formulating a well-informed and accurate opinion. "The Art of Empirical Investigation" teaches student, professor, researcher, and those interested in ascertaining the truth about social issues just how to proceed. "The Art of Empirical Investigation" is a textbook on the basics of social-scientific research. It discusses all the important empirical methods used in social science, and its examples, drawn from a wide variety of academic and applied fields, illustrate the use of each method in its most appropriate context. The actual decisions a researcher must make at every stage of a project are emphasized, as well as obstacles to knowledge--such as observer bias, deception, unreliability of data, and sampling costs--and how to overcome them. Presupposing nothing, the book introduces the reader to the foundations of empirical social-science research, regardless of a specific field. It also makes an important contribution to beginning researchers' understanding of an operational definition of causality, which cuts through philosophical obscurity and teaches the researcher how to decide whether or not a given relationship is causal. James E. Katz contributes an introduction written for this new edition, in which he explains why, after over three decades, this remains one of the best books on research methods around. Written in a clear, informal style, "The Art of Empirical Investigation" is a must for the student and teacher of the social sciences, researchers, and journalists. Julian L. Simon (1932-1998) was professor of business administration at the University of Maryland and Distinguished Senior Fellow of the Cato Institute. His books, as author or editor, include "Population Matters, Hoodwinking the Nation," and "The Economics of Population: Key Classic Writing," all available from Transaction. James E. Katz is professor of communication at the School of Communication, Information and Library Studies at Rutgers University. He is the author of "Machines That Become Us" and "Connections," both available from Transaction.

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558

Publisher

Transaction Publishers

Published Date

ISBN 10

1412835941

ISBN 13

9781412835947

Smart Sustainable Cities of the Future

The Untapped Potential of Big Data Analytics and Context–Aware Computing for Advancing Sustainability

By: Simon Elias Bibri

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Smart Sustainable Cities of the Future

The Untapped Potential of Big Data Analytics and Context–Aware Computing for Advancing Sustainability

By: Simon Elias Bibri

This book is intended to help explore the field of smart sustainable cities in its complexity, heterogeneity, and breadth, the many faces of a topical subject of major importance for the future that encompasses so much of modern urban life in an increasingly computerized and urbanized world. Indeed, sustainable urban development is currently at the center of debate in light of several ICT visions becoming achievable and deployable computing paradigms, and shaping the way cities will evolve in the future and thus tackle complex challenges. This book integrates computer science, data science, complexity science, sustainability science, system thinking, and urban planning and design. As such, it contains innovative computer–based and data–analytic research on smart sustainable cities as complex and dynamic systems. It provides applied theoretical contributions fostering a better understanding of such systems and the synergistic relationships between the underlying physical and informational landscapes. It offers contributions pertaining to the ongoing development of computer–based and data science technologies for the processing, analysis, management, modeling, and simulation of big and context data and the associated applicability to urban systems that will advance different aspects of sustainability. This book seeks to explicitly bring together the smart city and sustainable city endeavors, and to focus on big data analytics and context-aware computing specifically. In doing so, it amalgamates the design concepts and planning principles of sustainable urban forms with the novel applications of ICT of ubiquitous computing to primarily advance sustainability. Its strength lies in combining big data and context–aware technologies and their novel applications for the sheer purpose of harnessing and leveraging the disruptive and synergetic effects of ICT on forms of city planning that are required for future forms of sustainable development. This is because the effects of such technologies reinforce one another as to their efforts for transforming urban life in a sustainable way by integrating data–centric and context–aware solutions for enhancing urban systems and facilitating coordination among urban domains. This timely and comprehensive book is aimed at a wide audience across science, academia industry, and policymaking. It provides the necessary material to inform relevant research communities of the state–of–the–art research and the latest development in the area of smart sustainable urban development, as well as a valuable reference for planners, designers, strategists, and ICT experts who are working towards the development and implementation of smart sustainable cities based on big data analytics and context–aware computing.

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685

Publisher

Springer

Published Date

ISBN 10

3319739816

ISBN 13

9783319739816

Corporate Psychopathy

Investigating Destructive Personalities in the Workplace

By: Katarina Fritzon,Nathan Brooks,Simon Croom

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Corporate Psychopathy

Investigating Destructive Personalities in the Workplace

By: Katarina Fritzon,Nathan Brooks,Simon Croom

This book analyses the conceptualization of psychopathic personality disorder for criminal/forensic populations and examines in depth the emerging phenomenon of the ‘corporate psychopath’. In doing so its authors expose the paradoxical nature of the disorder: while it is frequently associated with antisocial, criminal and predatory behaviour, more recent studies have highlighted examples of creative, visionary and inspiring leaders who are also found to present a high degree of psychopathy. They focus on the nature, behaviours and consequences of psychopathy in executives and across the organization, offering an important contribution to the emerging body of research on psychopathy and other problematic personality constructs in the workplace. The book will appeal to scholars, students and professionals across the discipline, and particularly to those working in workplace, forensic and personality psychology.

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377

Publisher

Springer Nature

Published Date

ISBN 10

3030271889

ISBN 13

9783030271886

Global Leadership Perspectives

Insights and Analysis

By: Simon Western,Éric-Jean Garcia

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Global Leadership Perspectives

Insights and Analysis

By: Simon Western,Éric-Jean Garcia

A critical, global counterpoint to more western-centric texts that will appeal to critical leadership scholars, those teaching leadership from a critical perspective and those teaching leadership with an international focus. Split into two parts; its first part presents the local and regional variations in leadership from across the globe, with each of the twenty individual authors presenting the histories, cultures, tensions and social changes that shape the practice of everyday leadership in their respective region. Regions and countries included are: the Arab Middle East, Argentina, ASEAN, Australia, Brazil, China, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, France, Germany, India, Japan, Mexico, Poland, Russia, Scandinavia, South Africa, Turkey, UK, USA. In the second part, the editors then critically analyse these chapters and identify the key themes and specific issues, enabling the reader to challenge their own leadership perceptions and move beyond the normative, uncritical approach to leadership. Suitable reading for leadership students, researchers and practitioners looking to enhance their knowledge of global leadership.

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364

Publisher

SAGE

Published Date

ISBN 10

1526449005

ISBN 13

9781526449009

Decision Behaviour, Analysis and Support

By: Simon French,John Maule,Nadia Papamichail

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Decision Behaviour, Analysis and Support

By: Simon French,John Maule,Nadia Papamichail

Behavioural studies have shown that while humans may be the best decision makers on the planet, we are not quite as good as we think we are. We are regularly subject to biases, inconsistencies and irrationalities in our decision making. Decision Behaviour, Analysis and Support explores perspectives from many different disciplines to show how we can help decision makers to deliberate and make better decisions. It considers both the use of computers and databases to support decisions as well as human aids to building analyses and some fast and frugal tricks to aid more consistent decision making. In its exploration of decision support it draws together results and observations from decision theory, behavioural and psychological studies, artificial intelligence and information systems, philosophy, operational research and organisational studies. This provides a valuable resource for managers with decision-making responsibilities and students from a range of disciplines, including management, engineering and information systems.

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503

Publisher

Cambridge University Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

1139480987

ISBN 13

9781139480987

Understanding Human Action

Social Explanation and the Vision of Social Science

By: Michael A. Simon

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Understanding Human Action

Social Explanation and the Vision of Social Science

By: Michael A. Simon

Is human behavior determined in accordance with causal laws available to scientists? Is science capable of making sense of human actions and social life? This book is a penetrating inquiry into the question of what social science is all about. In it, Michael A. Simon challenges the prevailing view with his thesis that the social sciences are sciences in name only, and are based upon the freedom and uniqueness of the human subjects of scientific explanation. Combining sound scholarship with clear, readable prose, Simon explains why freedom must be a primitive conception and indicates the conditions for human uniqueness. He offers a proposal for what the social sciences might become if researchers recognize that they are not scientists in the ordinary sense of the word.

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240

Publisher

State University of New York Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

1438420072

ISBN 13

9781438420073

Conservation Leadership

A Practical Guide

By: Simon Black

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Conservation Leadership

A Practical Guide

By: Simon Black

This book is an important guide for individuals seeking to develop and grow their leadership skills in the wildlife conservation sector, across varied disciplines such as environmental management, conservation biology, and ecotourism. Conservation Leadership addresses what leadership is, why it is important, and how to be an effective leader. It identifies the common pitfalls or mistakes in a leader’s thinking or behaviour, and the unexpected consequences or responses which can arise, and then explores more helpful alternative approaches to leadership. The book is divided into three parts: Part I: Leadership principles Part II: Four areas of profound theory: knowledge, psychology, systems, and variation Part III: Skills and competencies for conservation leaders It focuses on contextual and organisational challenges in conservation, including limited resources, remote locations, fragile species of concern, politics, community conflict, crime, and commercial pressures. The scope is global, using diverse examples such as sea turtle head-starting in South Asia, reforestation in North Africa, bird conservation in North America, human–wildlife interactions in the Himalayas, and post-colonial issues in the Caribbean. Case studies illustrate key learning points from small local teams through to global transnational initiatives. Exercises in each chapter enable the exploration of less-familiar topics, including interpersonal skills, goal setting and performance measurement, plus a unique research-derived conservation leadership self-assessment tool. This book is an essential reading resource for professionals and senior leaders in the wildlife management and conservation sector, as well as students on biodiversity conservation, wildlife conservation, and environmental management courses.

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427

Publisher

Taylor & Francis

Published Date

ISBN 10

1040016138

ISBN 13

9781040016138

Citizens’ Support for the European Union

Empirical Analyses of Political Attitudes and Electoral Behavior During the EU Crisis

By: Simon Bauer

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Citizens’ Support for the European Union

Empirical Analyses of Political Attitudes and Electoral Behavior During the EU Crisis

By: Simon Bauer

This book offers a comprehensive analysis of the determinants of EU support between 2006 and 2015, and of electoral behavior during the European Parliament elections. In light of the Eurozone financial and debt crisis, it also examines how political and economic turbulences have affected EU citizens’ stance on democracy and their support for EU institutions. It explores measures taken in the context of the Euro crisis management and the reactions of EU citizens, in order to shed new light on the determinants and developments of EU support. The author highlights the heterogeneity of the developments between the member states and identifies social, political, and economic facets of the crisis that have changed the ways citizens form their political attitudes towards the EU. The book delivers a profound account of the Euro crisis, integrating approaches from political economy, psychology, sociology, and public opinion research. It will appeal to scholars and anyone interested in learning more about the declining citizen support in the EU and the heterogeneous developments in the member states, which may significantly endanger the long-term existence of the European Union.

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Page Count

287

Publisher

Springer

Published Date

ISBN 10

3030164616

ISBN 13

9783030164614

Transforming Professional Practice in Education

Psychology, Dialogue, and the Practice of Becoming Human

By: Simon Gibbs,David Leat,Wilma Barrow

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Transforming Professional Practice in Education

Psychology, Dialogue, and the Practice of Becoming Human

By: Simon Gibbs,David Leat,Wilma Barrow

Focusing on teaching and learning in educational institutions, Transforming Professional Practice in Education explores the value of enhancing dialogue to improve both professional relationships and practices. Offering a critique of the present state of education, this book focuses on the belief that education should be about being and becoming human, and how everyone implicated in education learns through dialogue with others, and that humans are relational beings who develop and flourish within reciprocal relationships. The authors offer an alternative to reductive and systems-driven procedures by building a case for psychologically robust educational methods. They provide an authoritative and theoretically well-grounded rationale for psychological approaches to professional practice to promote debate about the purposes of education. Rich with practical examples, the chapters discuss the risks of professional isolation, ethics vs morals in education, the nature of relationships in education, and interventions that would ground these ideas in practice. This book is important reading for clinical, educational, and other applied psychologists. It is also of value to those within educational institutions, such as SENDCos and those responsible for the safety of children and young people, who are seeking to develop their understanding of how dialogue enhances professional encounters, and who are looking for alternative ways of engaging with education, which improve mental health and wellbeing.

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Page Count

167

Publisher

Taylor & Francis

Published Date

ISBN 10

1000801098

ISBN 13

9781000801095

The Mahābhārata Patriline

Gender, Culture, and the Royal Hereditary

By: Simon Brodbeck

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The Mahābhārata Patriline

Gender, Culture, and the Royal Hereditary

By: Simon Brodbeck

The Sanskrit Mahabharata (which contains the Bhagavad Gita) is sorely neglected as a classic - perhaps the classic - of world literature, and is of particularly timely human importance in today's globalised and war-torn world. This book is a chronological survey of the Sanskrit Mahabharata's central royal patriline - a family tree that is also a list of kings. Brodbeck explores the importance and implications of patrilineal maintenance within the royal culture depicted by the text, and shows how patrilineal memory comes up against the fact that in every generation a wife must be involved, with the consequent danger that the children might not sustain the memorial tradition of their paternal family.The Mahabharata Patriline bridges a gap in text-critical methodology between the traditional philological approach and more recent trends in gender and literary theory. Studying the Mahabharata as an integral literary unit and as a story stretched over dozens of generations, this book casts particular light on the events of the more recent generations and suggests that the text's internal narrators are members of the family whose story they tell.

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Page Count

348

Publisher

Ashgate Publishing, Ltd.

Published Date

ISBN 10

0754667871

ISBN 13

9780754667872

Book's by Simon Brodbeck

The Mahabharata Patriline

The Mahabharata Patriline

Divine Descent and the Four World-Ages in the Mahābhārata – or, Why Does the Kṛṣṇa Avatāra Inaugurate the Worst Yuga?

Divine Descent and the Four World-Ages in the Mahābhārata – or, Why Does the Kṛṣṇa Avatāra Inaugurate the Worst Yuga?

From Extraterrestrials to Animal Minds

From Extraterrestrials to Animal Minds

The Art of Empirical Investigation

The Art of Empirical Investigation

Smart Sustainable Cities of the Future

Smart Sustainable Cities of the Future

Corporate Psychopathy

Corporate Psychopathy

Global Leadership Perspectives

Global Leadership Perspectives

Decision Behaviour, Analysis and Support

Decision Behaviour, Analysis and Support

Understanding Human Action

Understanding Human Action

Conservation Leadership

Conservation Leadership

Citizens’ Support for the European Union

Citizens’ Support for the European Union

Transforming Professional Practice in Education

Transforming Professional Practice in Education

The Mahābhārata Patriline

The Mahābhārata Patriline

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