Measurement is a fundamental concept that underpins almost every aspect of the modern world. It is central to the sciences, social sciences, medicine, and economics, but it affects everyday life. We m
Is one person's terrorist another's freedom fighter? Is terrorism crime or war? Can there be a "War on Terror"? For many, the terrorist attacks of September 2001 changed the face of the world, pushing
Hinduism is practised by nearly eighty per cent of India's population, and by some seventy million people outside India. In thisVery Short Introduction, Kim Knott offers a succinct and authoritative o
The twentieth century saw a remarkable upsurge of research on drugs, with major advances in the treatment of bacterial and viral infections, heart disease, stomach ulcers, cancer, and metal illnesses.
In Marx: A Very Short Introdution, Peter Singer identifies the central vision that unifies Marx's thought, enabling us to grasp Marx's views as a whole. He sees him as a philosopher primarily concerne
Immanuel Kant is arguably the most influential modern philosopher, but is also one of the most difficult. In this illuminating Very Short Introduction, Roger Scruton--a well-known and controversial ph
Postcolonialism explores the political, social, and cultural effects of decolonization, continuing the anti-colonial challenge to western dominance. This lively and innovative account of both the hist
Astrophysics is the physics of the stars, and more widely the physics of the Universe. It enables us to understand the structure and evolution of planetary systems, stars, galaxies, interstellar gas,
This book considers the steady presence of blasphemy in our world today, even as society grows increasingly secular. Discussing some of the most famous cases of blasphemy, it looks at factors such as
Dictionaries are far more than works which list the words and meanings of a language. In this Very Short Introduction, Lynda Mugglestone shows that all dictionaries are partial and all are selective--
Since its inception, psychoanalysis has been hailed as a revolutionary theory of how the mind works, whilst some of its ideas such as the Oedipus complex have become part of everyday conversation. InP
Algebra marked the beginning of modern mathematics, moving it beyond arithmetic, which involves calculations featuring given numbers, to problems where some quantities are unknown. Now, it stands as a
Water dominates the surface of Earth and is vital to life on our planet. It is a remarkable liquid which shows anomalous behaviour. In thisVery Short Introduction John Finney introduces the science of
In this book, Julian Baggini explores the arguments for atheism, and dispels some common myths, explaining how a life without religious belief can be positive, meaningful, and moral. This new edition
This is the most lucid and timely introduction to the thought of Carl Gustav Jung available to date. Though he was a prolific writer and an original thinker of vast erudition, Jung lacked a gift for c
