New Release: Handy Western Philosophy

The Handy Western Philosophy Answer Book: The Ancient Greek Influence on Modern Understanding by Ed D'Angelo

Difficult philosophy made easy. The universe and our place in it, the meaning of life, the nature of justice and the good society, and the powers of reason. All these topics explored, questioned, and explained.

Plato, Aristotle, Socrates, Stoicism, Skepticism, Cynicism, Continental philosophy, ethics, government and governing, virtue, love, life, and death. Heidegger, Husserl, Merleau-Ponty, Derrida, Bertrand Russell, and Michel Foucault…. From famous figures in the history of philosophy to the deepest questions of religion to the relationship between knowledge and power, The Handy Western Philosophy Answer Book: The Ancient Greek Influence on Modern Understanding makes esoteric ideas and the jumble of names easy to understand, enriching readers’ lives and answering the question, What does philosophy have to teach us about life and society?

Today many people experience a loss of trust in government and organized religion. There's increased social isolation and a rise in insult politics. Seeking an alternative, some have experimented with new forms of politics, social organization, and spirituality. All these developments have led to a great deal of confusion and puzzlement. Who and what can we believe, and how can we know it is correct? From its beginning, philosophy was conceived as a conversation or dialogue, and The Handy Western Philosophy Answer Book raises and offers answers to questions like these …

What is philosophy?

What is metaphysics?

What is logic?

How is ethics different than morality?

How did Pre-Socratic philosophy get started?

What is the arrow paradox?

Who was Pythagoras?

How did Stoicism inspire modern cognitive psychotherapy?

Who was the founder of Western philosophy?

What is a harmonic sequence in music?

What are the four cardinal virtues?

Was pederasty condoned in ancient Greece?

How, according to Plato, is philosophy like making love?

What are the three parts of the soul?

How does democracy degenerate into tyranny?

What is the history of Alexander the Great’s military campaigns?

How did Alexander the Great change the course of the history of philosophy?

What did Aristotle say about the social nature of human beings?

What is Aristotle’s conception of the soul?

What is the soul of a plant?

What is virtue?

What is an emotion?

Why do we need friends?

Why did Aristotle believe that the state has a responsibility to educate its citizens?

What did Aristotle think about money?

What is the meaning and origin of the Serenity Prayer?

What impact did the Epicureans have on the modern world?

What was the museum of Alexandria?

How did Stoicism inspire modern cognitive psychotherapy?

What is the problem with the sentence “The present king of France is bald”?

What is the postmodern condition?

Philosophy is the pursuit of answers to big questions about the purpose of life, death, and existence. Philosophy is about how to reason and find the answers for yourself. Philosophy is a puzzle. You collect clues. You make connections. The Handy Western Philosophy Answer Book is a perfect companion for anyone seeking wider truths and happiness. It is an informative, accessible, easy-to-understand guide to the big questions about living. With more than 120 photos and graphics, it is richly illustrated. Plus, its helpful bibliography, glossary of terms, and extensive index add to its usefulness.

New Release: Handy History

 

The Handy History Answer Book: From the Stone Age to the Digital Age (4th ed.) by Stephen A. Werner

From the Origin of Humans to Today … All in One Volume!

Highlights. Low lights. The twists and turns of social, political, and cultural history gathered in one fun and fascinating title! The Handy History Answer Book: From the Stone Age to the Digital Age takes a riveting walk through the ages, looking at the most important events of the past 5,000 years, including wars, disasters, pandemics, births, lives, and more. It supplies context to the past with a wealth of information on invention, philosophy, science, politics, culture, sports, business, law, media, and religion.

A concise guide to all things historical, this feast of facts and compelling stories recounts the revolutionary ideas, acts, and inventions that changed the world. It surveys significant people, times, and events worldwide, with a special focus on U.S. history from its beginnings to the present. Fully revised and updated, this new edition of The Handy History Answer Book answers over 1,600 of the most frequently asked, most interesting, and unusual history questions, including …

What was the Stone Age?

Why was Julius Caesar murdered?

What are the origins of the religion of Islam?

Why is the COVID-19 pandemic so significant?

Why is the shamrock the symbol of St. Patrick?

What is the legacy of the Crusades today?

What are England’s royal “houses”?

Did Marie Antoinette really say, “Let them eat cake”?

When did people first migrate to North America?

Who are the Cajuns?

What is the Hubble Space Telescope?

What were the first political parties in the United States?

Who was Black Elk?

When did chain stores first appear?

Were the Nazi’s socialists?

How long have hurricanes been given names?

Who was Typhoid Mary?

What happened at Pearl Harbor?

What was the Bataan Death March?

What is NATO?

What is habeas corpus?

Who was Emmett Till?

Who was Genghis Khan?

What was the triangular trade?

Who is called the “Father of the Interstate System”?

Who is Bernie Madoff?

Who were the Wobblies?

What was the Beat movement?

Who is Ralph Nader??

What is the Occupy movement?

What is the strongest earthquake ever measured?

What happened on Apollo 13?

What is Gray’s Anatomy?

What is origin of Listerine®?

What is the problem with antibiotics today?

Who developed the first MRI machine? How does it work?

What are the Ivy League colleges?

Who were the Brothers Grimm?

Why does the Leaning Tower of Pisa lean?

What was the Motion Picture Production Code?

Which entertainers were in the Rat Pack?

Who wrote the first computer program?

What is unique about the Trump presidency?

If “History doesn't repeat itself but it often rhymes” (as Mark Twain is reputed to have said) then The Handy History Answer Book is a lyrical and poetic treat. Clear, concise, and straightforward, this informative primer is a resource for brushing up on the events, terms, and history-makers many of us remember from school but can’t completely recall. Wide-ranging and comprehensive with nearly 250 illustrations, this information-rich tome also includes a helpful bibliography and an extensive index, adding to its usefulness. A perfect companion for history buffs of all ages.

New Release: Monsters of the Deep

Monsters of the Deep by Nick Redfern

A deep dive into the undersea netherworld of sea serpents, lake monsters, surviving dinosaurs, genetically altered mutants, and legendary aquatic creatures.

Water takes up 70 percent of Earth’s surface, with countless lakes, rivers, ponds, streams, seas and oceans covering much of the land, but what lurks beneath the water? For centuries, sightings have been made of huge, marauding monsters swimming the world’s oceans and lakes. They include Scotland’s legendary Loch Ness Monster; the United States’ equivalent, Champ, of Lake Champlain; and Canada’s long-necked denizen of the deep known as Ogopogo. These, and many more, famous monsters of the world below us also include giant squid, massive octopi, and even the fabled Kraken and the fabled mermaids of millennia long-gone. Possibly, too, there survive populations of marine reptiles that were assumed to have gone extinct millions of years ago, in the Jurassic period, such as the plesiosaur.

Whether scaly or slithery, massive prehistoric dinosaurs or mutant serpents, Monsters of the Deep catalogs nearly 100 accounts of eels, alligators, reptiles, giant squids, snakes, worms, deadly fish, and cold-blooded creatures of all manner and ilk. It reveals the astonishing extent to which lake monsters and sea serpents have surfaced throughout history to terrify, perplex, and amaze those who have crossed paths with these monsters of the unknown.

Master storyteller, established author, and respected expert on the unexplained and paranormal Nick Redfern sifts through the historical record, first-person accounts, and unearthed government files on lake monsters and sea serpents to tell of encounters with a variety of beasts, including ...

Cheever Felch’s 19th-century account of the massive Gloucester, New England, Sea Serpent

The brontosaurus-like Mokele-Mbembe of the Congo

The supernatural Bunyip, a monster that lurks within the creeks, lagoons, and swamps of Australia that has been known to the Aboriginal people for centuries

The disputed claims of Teddy May, former Commissioner of Sewers in New York, of alligators roaming the sewers of the city

The monster-sized fish in the River Nene, in the Fens, Cambridgeshire, England

Modern mutants genetically altered by pollution

And many more!

This richly researched reference overflows with fascinating information to make you think about―and reconsider―dipping your toes into water. With more than 120 photos and graphics, this tome is nicely illustrated. Monsters of the Deep also includes a helpful bibliography and an extensive index, adding to its usefulness.

New Book Release: Handy Physics

 The Handy Physics Answer Book by Charles Liu

An informative, accessible, easy-to-use guide to physics, covering the fundamental concepts and amazing discoveries that govern our universe!

We don’t need a U.S. Supreme Court ruling to know that everyone is governed by the laws of physics, but what are they? How do they affect us? Why do they matter? What did Newton mean when he said, "For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction?" What is gravity? What is Bernoulli’s Principle? Einstein’s Theory of Relativity? How do space, time, matter, and energy all interact? How do scientific laws, theories, and hypotheses differ? Physics can often seem difficult or complex, but it's actually beautiful and fun―and it doesn't need to be hard to understand.

Revised for the first time in a decade, the completely updated third edition of The Handy Physics Answer Book makes physics and its impact on us, the world, and the universe entertaining and easy to grasp. It disposes with the dense jargon and overly-complicated explanations often associated with physics, and instead it takes an accessible, conceptual approach―never dumbing down the amazing science, yet all written in everyday English.

The Handy Physics Answer Book tackles big issues and concepts, like motion, magnetism, sound, and light, and lots of smaller topics too―like, why don’t birds or squirrels on power lines get electrocuted?―and makes them enlightening and enjoyable for anyone who picks up this informative book. For everyone who has ever wondered about the sources of energy production in the United States, or how different kinds of light bulbs shine, or why wearing dark-colored clothes is warmer than light-colored ones, or even what happens when you fall into a black hole, The Handy Physics Answer Book examines more than 1,000 of the most frequently asked, most interesting, and most unusual questions about physics, including ...

How can I be moving even while I’m sitting still?

If the Sun suddenly disappeared, what would happen to the Sun’s gravity?

What is the energy efficiency of the human body?

Why do golf balls have dimples?

How can ice help keep plants warm?

What kinds of beaches are best for surfing?

What do 2G, 3G, 4G, and 5G wireless networks mean?

Why shouldn’t metal objects be placed in microwave ovens?

Why does my voice sound different on a recording?

Can a light beam be frozen in time?

Why are soap bubbles sometimes so colorful?

Why does a charged balloon stick to a wall?

Is Earth a giant magnet?

What are gamma rays?

What happens when antimatter strikes matter?

What is quantum teleportation?

Are artificial intelligence systems able to think on their own?

What happens when two black holes collide?

How will the universe end?

Useful and informative, The Handy Physics Answer Book also includes a glossary of commonly used terms to cut through the jargon, a helpful bibliography, and an extensive index. Ideal for students, curious readers of all ages, and anyone reckoning with the essential questions about the universe. This handy resource is an informative primer for applications in everyday life as well as the most significant scientific theories and discoveries of our time. And, we promise, no whiteboard needed.