skeptic
Showing all 8 results
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1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus
1160In this groundbreaking work of science, history, and archaeology, Charles C. Mann radically alters our understanding of the Americas before the arrival of Columbus in 1492. Contrary to what so many Americans learn in school, the pre-Columbian Indians were not sparsely settled in a pristine wilderness; rather, there were huge numbers of Indians who actively molded and influenced the land around them. The astonishing Aztec capital of Tenochtitlan had running water and immaculately clean streets…
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The Better Angels of Our Nature: Why Violence Has Declined
1078A provocative history of violence—from the New York Times bestselling author of The Stuff of Thought and The Blank SlateBelieve it or not, today we may be living in the most peaceful moment in our species’ existence. In his gripping and controversial new work, New York Times bestselling author Steven Pinker shows that despite the ceaseless news about war, crime, and terrorism, violence has actually been in decline over long stretches of history. Exploding myths about humankind’s inherent viol…
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Nailed: Ten Christian Myths That Show Jesus Never Existed at All
919Why would anyone think Jesus never existed? Isn’t it perfectly reasonable to accept that he was a real first century figure? As it turns out, no. NAILED sheds light on ten beloved Christian myths, and, with evidence gathered from historians across the theological spectrum, shows how they point to a Jesus Christ created solely through allegorical alchemy of hope and imagination; a messiah transformed from a purely literary, theological construct into the familiar figure of Jesus – in short, a …
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The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark
869“A glorious book . . . A spirited defense of science . . . From the first page to the last, this book is a manifesto for clear thought.” *Los Angeles Times”POWERFUL . . . A stirring defense of informed rationality. . . Rich in surprising information and beautiful writing.” *The Washington Post Book WorldHow can we make intelligent decisions about our increasingly technology-driven lives if we don’t understand the difference between the myths of pseudoscience and the testable hypotheses of sci…
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The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark
753“A glorious book . . . A spirited defense of science . . . From the first page to the last, this book is a manifesto for clear thought.” *Los Angeles Times”POWERFUL . . . A stirring defense of informed rationality. . . Rich in surprising information and beautiful writing.” *The Washington Post Book WorldHow can we make intelligent decisions about our increasingly technology-driven lives if we don’t understand the difference between the myths of pseudoscience and the testable hypotheses of sci…
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You Are Not So Smart: Why You Have Too Many Friends on Facebook, Why Your Memory Is Mostly Fictio…
404An entertaining illumination of the stupid beliefs that make us feel wise, based on the popular blog of the same name. Whether you’re deciding which smartphone to purchase or which politician to believe, you think you are a rational being whose every decision is based on cool, detached logic. But here’s the truth: You are not so smart. You’re just as deluded as the rest of us—but that’s okay, because being deluded is part of being human. Growing out of David McRaney’s popular blog, You Are N…
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Psychiatric Tales
280Psychiatric Tales draws on Darryl Cunningham’s time working in a psychiatric ward to give a reasoned and sympathetic look into the world of mental illness. In each chapter, Cunningham explores a different mental health problem, using evocative imagery to describe the experience of mental illness, both from the point of view of those beset by illness and their friends and relatives. As Cunningham reveals this human experience, he also shows how society’s perceptions of and reactions to mental …
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Misquoting Jesus: The Story Behind Who Changed the Bible and Why
231For almost 1,500 years, the New Testament manuscripts were copied by hand––and mistakes and intentional changes abound in the competing manuscript versions. Religious and biblical scholar Bart Ehrman makes the provocative case that many of our widely held beliefs concerning the divinity of Jesus, the Trinity, and the divine origins of the Bible itself are the results of both intentional and accidental alterations by scribes. In this compelling and fascinating book, Ehrman shows where and why…