Anthropology Science

Through a masterful combination of social commentary, investigative journalism, and autobiographical work, in The People of the Abyss, Jack London chronicles the living conditions and hardships endured by the impoverished residents in the East End of London, England, during the late 19th century.

This book explores the hidden world of pharmaceutical testing on healthy volunteers. Drawing on two years of fieldwork in clinics across the country and 268 interviews with participants and staff, it illustrates how decisions to take part in such studies are often influenced by poverty and lack of employment opportunities. It shows that healthy participants are typically recruited from African American and Latino/a communities, and that they are often serial participants, who obtain a significant portion of their income from these trials.

The human mind needs monsters. In every culture and in every epoch in human history, from ancient Egypt to modern Hollywood, imaginary beings have haunted dreams and fantasies, provoking in young and old shivers of delight, thrills of terror, and endless fascination. In Monsters: Evil Beings, Mythical Beasts, and All Manner of Imaginary Terrors, anthropologist David D. Gilmore explores what human traits monsters represent and why they are so ubiquitous in people's imaginations and share so many features across different cultures.

When did the human species turn against the planet that we depend on for survival? Human industry and consumption of resources have altered the climate, polluted the water and soil, destroyed ecosystems, and rendered many species extinct, vastly increasing the likelihood of an ecological catastrophe. How did humankind come to rule nature to such an extent? To regard the planet's resources and creatures as ours for the taking? To find ourselves on a seemingly relentless path toward ecocide?

The Anthropology Book introduces key concepts from different branches of the subject, such as cultural anthropology, ethnography, and biological anthropology, and explains how they have developed over the past century. The audiobook explores the origins of human life and cultures, and how societies develop traditions, laws, and languages.

How did you come to be here, now? This books takes you from the Big Bang to the evolution of modern humans and the history of human cultures, showing that science is an adventure of discovery and a source of limitless wonder, giving us richer and more rewarding appreciation of the phenomenal privilege of merely being alive and able to begin to understand it all.

Sins of the Shovel is a story of adventure and business gone wrong and how archaeologists today grapple with this complex heritage. Through the story of the Hyde Exploring Expedition, practicing archaeologist Rachel Morgan uncovers the uncomfortable links between commodity culture, contemporary ethics, and the broader political forces that perpetuate destructive behavior today. The result is an unsparing and even-handed assessment of American archaeology's sins, past and present, and how the field is working toward atonement.

We wait in lines around the block for scoops of cookie dough. We photograph every meal. We visit selfie performance spaces and leave lucrative jobs to become farmers and craft brewers. Why? What are we really hungry for? In Hungry, Eve Turow-Paul provides a guided tour through the stranger corners of today's global food and lifestyle culture. How are 21st-century innovations and pressures are redefining people's needs and desires? How does "foodie" culture, along with other lifestyle trends, provide an answer to our rising rates of stress, loneliness, anxiety, and depression?

More Damned Lies and Statistics encourages all of us to think in a more sophisticated and skeptical manner about how statistics are used to promote causes, create fear, and advance particular points of view. Best identifies different sorts of numbers that shape how we think about public issues: missing numbers are relevant but overlooked; confusing numbers bewilder when they should inform; scary numbers play to our fears about the present and the future.

SOS messages from planet Harm have been transmitted for millennia. Are these cries for help heard anywhere in the solar system or beyond? Is time running out? Harmlings continue to make urgent appeals to Earthlings. This fragmented collection of history, artifacts, literature, and forensic analysis is a must-read for sci-fi and fantasy readers. It's also required reading for sociologists, theologians, linguists, historians, and other students of the human condition.

From the first steps of our prehistoric ancestors, to the development of complex languages, to the intricacies of religions and cultures across the world, diverse factors have shaped the human species as we know it. Anthropology strives to untangle this fascinating web of history to work out who we were in the past, what that means for human beings today, and who we might be tomorrow.

In this entertaining and accessible exploration of love, Oxford anthropologist Dr Anna Machin dives into the science behind the myriad types of love that exist in the world, including romantic love, parental love, friendships, love for pets, football teams, religious love and even love for our smartphones. Through original research brought to life by interviews and case studies, and encompassing such fascinating areas as polyamorous relationships, parasocial (love for a celebrity) and sacred loves, this book argues that it is time to stop putting romantic love on a pedestal.

Madagascar is a place of change. A biodiversity hotspot and the fourth largest island on the planet, it has been home to a spectacular parade of animals, from giant flightless birds and giant tortoises on the ground, to agile lemurs leaping through the treetops. Some species live on, many have vanished in the distant or recent past. Over vast stretches of time, Madagascar’s forests have expanded and contracted in response to shifting climates and the hand of people is clear in changes during the last 1,000 years or so.

When you think of evolution, the picture that most likely comes to mind is a straight-forward progression, the iconic illustration of a primate morphing into a proud, upright human being. But in reality, random events have played huge roles in determining the evolutionary histories of everything from lions to lobsters to humans. However, random genetic novelties are most likely to become fixed in small populations. It is mathematically unlikely that this will happen in large ones.

After the long period of cultural decline known as the Dark Ages, Europe experienced a rebirth of scholarship, art, literature, philosophy, and science and began to develop a vision of Western society that remains at the heart of Western civilization today. On visits to the great cities of Europe, Thomas Cahill brilliantly captures the spirit of experimentation, the colorful pageantry, and the passionate pursuit of knowledge that built the foundations for the modern world.

Uncover the secrets of the Swedish philosophy of life called Lagom - meaning 'just enough'. At its core is the idea that we can strike a healthy balance with the world around us without having to make extreme changes and without denying ourselves anything. This delightful audiobook, written by Niki Brantmark, founder and curator of the award winning interior design blog My Scandinavian Home, gives a taste of the philosophy behind Lagom and shows how to include some of the principles in our daily lives.

Algumas mulheres conheceram o céu, outras o inferno; umas foram enaltecidas, santificadas, outras demonizadas; mas todas tocaram as profundezas do próprio ser, chegaram ao limite de sua condição e de seu tempo e se eternizaram na história. Ao tomar contato com a história e os dilemas vividos por figuras como Afrodite, Cinderela, Simone de Beauvoir e Virginia Woolf, a autora nos guia em uma viagem de resgate da essência perdida ao ressignificar o papel feminino no mundo.

Big Bone Lick: The Cradle of American Paleontology recounts the rich history of the fossil site that gave the world the first evidence of the extinction of several mammalian species, including the American mastodon. Big Bone Lick has played many roles: nutrient source, hallowed ground, salt mine, health spa, and a rich trove of wonders. Stanley Hedeen presents a comprehensive narrative of Big Bone Lick from its geological formation forward, explaining why the site attracted animals, regional tribespeople, European explorers and scientists, and eventually American pioneers.

Ein großes Hörbuch von gewaltiger intellektueller Bandbreite, neugierig, visionär, und ein Plädoyer für die Macht des direkten Handelns. David Graeber, der bedeutendste Anthropologe unserer Zeit, und David Wengrow, einer der führenden Archäologen, entfalten in ihrer großen Menschheitsgeschichte, wie sich die Anfänge unserer Zivilisation mit der Zukunft der Menschheit neu denken und verbinden lässt. Sie revidieren unser bisheriges Menschenbild und erzählen Menschheitsgeschichte, wie sie noch nie erzählt wurde.

Ich war zunächst nicht großartig überrascht, als wir nach langer Zeit im Herbst 2021 bei einem gemeinsamen Kaltge­tränk auf die zahlreichen aktuellen Ereignisse zu sprechen kamen, die vor Monaten noch fleißig als Ver­schwörungstheorie diffamiert wurden. Eine Diskussion über Verschwörungstheorien ‒ oder besser gesagt: über alternative Ermittlungsansätze ‒ kann an­strengend sein. So muss man sich als offener Mensch permanent gegen Totschlagargumente zur Wehr set­zen. Und dann natürlich in einer Gegenargumentation sämtliche Fakten parat haben. Und zwar stichhaltig.