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Eli Maor examines the role of infinity in mathematics and geometry and its cultural impact on the arts and sciences. He evokes the profound intellectual impact the infinite has exercised on the human mind--from the "horror infiniti" of the Greeks to the works of M. C. Escher; from the ornamental designs of the Moslems, to the sage Giordano Bruno, whose belief in an infinite universe led to his death at the hands of the Inquisition. But above all, the book describes the mathematician's fascination with infinity--a fascination mingled with puzzlement. "Maor explores the idea of infinity in mathematics and in art and argues that this is the point of contact between the two, best exemplified by the work of the Dutch artist M. C. Escher, six of whose works are shown here in beautiful color plates."--Los Angeles Times "[Eli Maor's] enthusiasm for the topic carries the reader through a rich panorama."--Choice "Fascinating and enjoyable.... places the ideas of infinity in a cultural context and shows how they have been espoused and molded by mathematics."--Science
Eli Maor examines the role of infinity in mathematics and geometry and its cultural impact on the arts and sciences. He evokes the profound intellectual impact the infinite has exercised on the human mind--from the "horror infiniti" of the Greeks to the works of M. C. Escher; from the ornamental designs of the Moslems, to the sage Giordano Bruno, whose belief in an infinite universe led to his death at the hands of the Inquisition. But above all, the book describes the mathematician's fascination with infinity--a fascination mingled with puzzlement. "Maor explores the idea of infinity in mathematics and in art and argues that this is the point of contact between the two, best exemplified by the work of the Dutch artist M. C. Escher, six of whose works are shown here in beautiful color plates."--Los Angeles Times "[Eli Maor's] enthusiasm for the topic carries the reader through a rich panorama."--Choice "Fascinating and enjoyable.... places the ideas of infinity in a cultural context and shows how they have been espoused and molded by mathematics."--Science
===Social===
===Social===
====Psychology====
====Ecology====
[[File:Frankl100.jpg|right|frame]]
[[File:Naess.jpg|right|frame]]
*'''''[http://books.google.com/books?id=dnJmBMv2jUUC&printsec=frontcover&dq=victor+frankl&hl=en&ei=CREATfjHF8L38AaHm_zsBw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CCoQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=false Man's Search for Meaning]'''''
*'''''[http://www.cambridge.org/gb/knowledge/isbn/item5707618/?site_locale=en_GB Ecology, Community, and Lifestyle]'''''
The basic thesis of the work is that environmental problems are only to be solved by people - people who will be required to make value judgements in conflicts that go beyond narrowly conceived human concerns. Thus people require not only an ethical system, but a way of conceiving the world and themselves such that the intrinsic value of life and nature is obvious, a system based on 'deep ecological principles'. The book encourages readers to identify their own series of such parameters - their own ecosophies. Ecology, Comunity and Lifestyle will appeal to philosophers, specialists working on environmental issues, and the more general reader who is interested in learning some of the foundational ideas of the rapidly expanding field of environmental philosophy.
====History====
[[File:At_the_edge.jpg|right|frame]]
*'''''[http://books.google.com/books?id=2SkiAAAAMAAJ&q=william+irwin+thompson&dq=william+irwin+thompson&hl=en&ei=YygATYrALMqr8AbVq6CqBA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=4&ved=0CD4Q6AEwAw At the Edge of History]'''''
William Irwin Thompson is one of the truly great minds of our time. These two early works (which were originally published separately) are the perfect introduction to Thompson's opus. While some of the pop culture references may seem dated, passed over by events, the basic world view presented here remains valid.
Thompson, riding on the shoulders of such as Jean Gebser and Marshall McLuhan, illuminates the transitional period we are undergoing, as we move out of the modern era into ... whatever is coming -- we don't really know yet, but the so-called "postmodern" isn't the future, it's just a replay of isolated elements of the modern. Thompson sees signs of one possible future in the emerging planetary consciousness where thinking globally while acting locally is more than a pop phrase but a new way of perceiving our oneness with a sacred world. Thompson looks at signposts all over the planet which, taken individually might seems interesting, but taken together begin to form a picture that inspires either hope or dread, depending on your attachment to the prevailing consciousness. (You'll have to read his more recent books to get his take on capitalism's latest phase of globalization.)
I won't give any more away as I don't wish to spoil the intellectual feast that awaits the reader. I urge anyone interested in the history of ideas and in understanding the changes taking place in the world around us to read Thompson, starting with this publication. Then work your way through the rest of his books. It's a journey that can change your worldview and your life.
====Politics====
====Politics====
[[File:America_awake.jpg|right|frame]]
[[File:America_awake.jpg|right|frame]]
Our goal must be, quite simply, a new organic world civilization, a new sociocultural, economic, and political environment for the species Homo sapiens, with a new organic relationship to the larger environment of earth and cosmos. Such a goal simplifies our world view, but it does not make our task any easier or smaller. Just the opposite. The search for social justice, personal freedom, truth and meaning, peace, well-being, and the good life are not superseded by the search for a new civilization, but are assimilated directly into it. Civilization building requires disciplined attention to all the needs of progressive mankind. In coming chapters, therefore, we shall have to discuss politics, law, religion, philosophy, culture, human rights, economics, education, ecology, the universe itself–all in relationship to our vision of the desirable future of mankind.
Our goal must be, quite simply, a new organic world civilization, a new sociocultural, economic, and political environment for the species Homo sapiens, with a new organic relationship to the larger environment of earth and cosmos. Such a goal simplifies our world view, but it does not make our task any easier or smaller. Just the opposite. The search for social justice, personal freedom, truth and meaning, peace, well-being, and the good life are not superseded by the search for a new civilization, but are assimilated directly into it. Civilization building requires disciplined attention to all the needs of progressive mankind. In coming chapters, therefore, we shall have to discuss politics, law, religion, philosophy, culture, human rights, economics, education, ecology, the universe itself–all in relationship to our vision of the desirable future of mankind.
====Psychology====
[[File:Frankl100.jpg|right|frame]]
*'''''[http://books.google.com/books?id=dnJmBMv2jUUC&printsec=frontcover&dq=victor+frankl&hl=en&ei=CREATfjHF8L38AaHm_zsBw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CCoQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=false Man's Search for Meaning]'''''
Viktor Frankl's 1946 book Man's Search for Meaning chronicles his experiences as a concentration camp inmate and describes his psychotherapeutic method of finding a reason to live. According to Frankl, the book intends to answer the question "How was everyday life in a concentration camp reflected in the mind of the average prisoner?" Part One constitutes Frankl's analysis of his experiences in the concentration camps, while Part Two introduces his ideas of meaning and his theory of logotherapy. It is the second-most widely read Holocaust book in the bookstore of Washington's Holocaust Museum.
According to a survey conducted by the Book-of-the-Month Club and the Library of Congress, Man's Search For Meaning belongs to a list of "the ten most influential books in [the United States]." (New York Times, November 20, 1991). At the time of the author's death in 1997, the book had sold 10 million copies in twenty-four languages.
[[File:Universal_schoolhouse.jpg|right|frame]]
*'''''[http://books.google.com/books?id=0AyfAAAAMAAJ&q=the+universal+schoolhouse&dq=the+universal+schoolhouse&hl=en&ei=ihcATYCTPMT68AabjtWtBw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CCYQ6AEwAA The Universal Schoolhouse: Spiritual Awakening Through Education]'''''
Can schooling transform society? This visionary book argues that it can if we look beyond the traditional view of education as a means to finding jobs or "getting ahead," and we attend to the personal development and enrichment of the whole child. Education is a sacred, not an economic quest, and it is in our power to equip young people with the character and values necessary to enhance and improve the society they will inherit.In this book, noted teacher and thinker James Moffett sets forth a controversial, daring, and inspiring vision of what schooling can and should be. His highly personal, philosophical inquiry into the nature and purpose of education offers us a view of schooling as a lifelong spiritual quest with the power to promote the highest potential of the individual.Moffett challenges the school reform movement to reach beyond conventional goals that cater to bureaucratic and corporate interests and to take on a more "transformative" mission by creating holistically grounded, culturally relevant education that enables students to adapt and thrive in spite of societal challenges and technological change. He surveys all the good ways of learning found in and out of institutions, past and present--from apprenticing and tutoring to practicing the arts and spiritual disciplines--and he proposes how these would be made accessible within a universal schoolhouse or community learning network for all ages and purposes.
[[Category: Secondary Corpus]]
[[Category: Secondary Corpus]]