National parks are a distinctively American idea. But it takes people to make them happen. This unique, insider's account tells how Bay Area activists forged bipartisan local and national support for
The idea of staging a nation dates from the Enlightenment, but the full force of the idea emerges only with the rise of mass politics. Comparing English, French, and American attempts to establish nat
Free speech is in crisis on America’s campuses. Rather than refute an idea with which he disagrees, today’s college student demands censorship. At the slightest hint of offense, the weak-willed admini
The election of Barack Obama gave political currency to the (white) idea that Americans now live in a post-racial society. But the persistence of racial profiling, economic inequality between blacks a
Evil isn't simply an abstract theological or philosophical talking point. In our society, the idea of evil feeds entertainment, manifests in all sorts of media, and is a root concept in our collective
When Witold Rybczynski first heard about New Daleville, it was only a developer's idea, attached to ninety acres of cornfield an hour and a half west of Philadelphia. Over the course of five years, R
Jeff Speck has dedicated his career to determining what makes cities thrive. And he has boiled it down to one key factor: walkability. The very idea of a modern metropolis evokes visions of bustl
Broadening the idea of "borderlands" beyond its traditional geographic meaning, this volume features new ways of characterizing the political, cultural, religious, and racial fluidity of early America
Former U.S. ambassador to the USSR Jack F. Matlock refutes the enduring idea that the United States forced the collapse of the Soviet Union by applying military and economic pressure—with wide-ra
Former U.S. ambassador to the USSR Jack F. Matlock refutes the enduring idea that the United States forced the collapse of the Soviet Union by applying military and economic pressurewith w
From nineteenth-century American art and literature to comic books of the twentieth century and afterwards, Chad A. Barbour examines inFrom Daniel Boone to Captain America the transmission of the idea
In People Must Live by Work, Steven Attewell presents the history of an idea—direct job creation—that transformed the role of government in ameliorating unemployment by hiring the unemployed en masse
Jeff Speck has dedicated his career to determining what makes cities thrive. And he has boiled it down to one key factor: walkability. The very idea of a modern metropolis evokes visions of bustling s
Sir Charles Lyell (1797–1875) was one of the most renowned geologists of the nineteenth century. His Principles of Geology (also reissued in this series) laid the foundations of evolutionary biology, and greatly influenced Darwin. Lyell's most important contribution to modern geology was his refining and popularising of the concept of uniformitarianism, the idea that the earth has been formed through slow-acting geological forces over billions of years. These volumes, first published in 1845, are the result of Lyell's 1841 lecture tour across the United States and Canada, in the course of which he made many observations on the formation of the American landscape. Using the popular format of a travel diary, Lyell provides vivid and detailed descriptions of North American geology, with discussions of important geological sites.
For the first time available in English, Licia do Prado Valladares's classic anthropological study of Brazil's vast, densely populated urban living environments reveals how the idea of the favela beca
For the first time available in English, Licia do Prado Valladares's classic anthropological study of Brazil's vast, densely populated urban living environments reveals how the idea of the favela beca
Steve Case, cofounder of America Online and Revolution and New York Times bestselling author of The Third Wave, shows how entrepreneurs across the country are building groundbreaking companies, renewing communities, and creating new jobs―in the process reimagining the American landscape and bringing people together around a shared future.In 2014, Steve Case launched Revolution’s Rise of the Rest, an initiative to accelerate the growth of tech startups across the country. Rise of the Rest is based on a simple idea: cities can be renewed and rise again if they develop a vibrant startup culture. A visionary entrepreneur himself, Case believes that great entrepreneurs can be found anywhere, and can thrive with the proper support and investment. In fact, they’re key to the American DNA. After all, America itself was a startup. It struggled to get going and almost didn’t make it. Today it’s the leader of the free world, in part because it has the world’s largest economy―a testament to severa
From a renowned surgeon and historian with five decades of experience comes a remarkable history of surgery's developmentspanning the Stone Age to the present dayblending meticulous medical studies with lively and skillful storytelling.There are not many events in life that can be as simultaneously life-frightening and life-saving as a surgical operation. Yet, in America, tens-of-millions of major surgical procedures are performed annually but few of us pause to consider the magnitude of these figures because we have such inherent confidence in surgeons. And, despite passionate debates about healthcare and the endless fascination with surgical procedures, most of us have no idea how surgeons came to be because the story of surgery has never been fully told. Now, Empire of the Scalpel elegantly reveals the fascinating history of surgery's evolution from its earliest roots in Europe through its rise to scientific and social dominance in the United States. From the 16th-century saga of An
Rabelais, or his wild illustrator Gustave Dore, must have had something to do with the designing of the things called flats in England and America. There is something entirely Gargantuan in the idea o
Although President Obama's election in 2008 accelerated the debate over whether American society is post-racial, in reality, the idea of a non-racial America has several manifestations, and post-racia
