651 results for "Science"

Raw deal: how the "Uber economy" and runaway capitalism are screwing American workers

Hill, Steven
"Every day, innovative entrepreneurs pioneer bold economic ideas that change the way we live and work. Companies like Google, Apple, Oracle, Facebook and Twitter aren't the only ones shaping our economic future--there's another trend emerging that will change the ways we work and live. The "sharing economy," or the "collaborative consumption economy," includes companies like TaskRabbit, Airbnb, Uber, Lyft, Zaarly, and DocVacay who are purveyors of an economic system that revolves around sharing human and physical resources. This new aspect to the economy, Steven Hill argues, is a dead end for U.S. workers, as well as for the national economy. In Raw Deal, Hill shows the "sharing economy" is a new and troubling component to what is an overall bad economy that undermines workers. Vulnerable freelancers and day laborers hire themselves out for ever smaller jobs and amounts of money, and it is only the companies who hire them who reap the big benefits. Hill argues that we must shift the support for American workers to one that is individual-based rather than workplace-based. Countering the onset of the freelance society and the new economy is the new civil rights and labor struggles of our time. This important book answers these questions and provides pragmatic solutions to adapt our economic system to its new realities, launching a new civil rights struggle capable of transforming the freelance society into a stakeholder society"--
St. Martin's Press 2015-10-20 326 pages

Culture crash: the killing of the creative class

Timberg, Scott
"Change is no stranger to us in the twenty-first century. All of us must constantly adjust to an evolving world, to transformation and innovation. But for many thousands of creative artists, a torrent of recent changes has made it all but impossible to earn a living. A persistent economic recession, social shifts, and technological change have combined to put our artists-from graphic designers to indie-rock musicians, from architects to booksellers-out of work. This important book looks deeply and broadly into the roots of the crisis of the creative class in America and tells us why it matters. Scott Timberg considers the human cost as well as the unintended consequences of shuttered record stores, decimated newspapers, music piracy, and a general attitude of indifference. He identifies social tensions and contradictions-most concerning the artist's place in society-that have plunged the creative class into a fight for survival. Timberg shows how America's now-collapsing middlebrow culture-a culture once derided by intellectuals like Dwight Macdonald-appears, from today's vantage point, to have been at least a Silver Age. Timberg's reporting is essential reading for anyone who works in the world of culture, knows someone who does, or cares about the work creative artists produce"--
Yale University Press 2015-01-01 310 pages

The Ojibwa Woman

Ruth Landes
The Ojibwa Woman is a book written by Ruth Landes that explores the life and culture of the Ojibwa people, specifically focusing on the experiences of Ojibwa women. The book is based on Landes' fieldwork among the Ojibwa people in the early 1930s, during which she lived among the tribe and conducted extensive interviews with women to gain a better understanding of their lives, beliefs, and customs.The book covers a wide range of topics related to Ojibwa women, including their roles in the community, their relationships with men and other women, their experiences of motherhood and childbirth, and their spiritual beliefs and practices. Landes also explores the impact of colonialism and Christianity on the Ojibwa people, and the ways in which these forces have affected the lives of Ojibwa women.Throughout the book, Landes presents a nuanced and empathetic portrait of the Ojibwa people and their culture, drawing on her own observations and the insights of the women she interviewed. The book is a valuable resource for anyone interested in the history and culture of indigenous peoples, as well as for those interested in the experiences of women in different cultures and societies.This scarce antiquarian book is a facsimile reprint of the old original and may contain some imperfections such as library marks and notations. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment for protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature in affordable, high quality, modern editions, that are true to their original work.
Literary Licensing, LLC 2011-08 256 pages

For reasons of state

Chomsky, Noam
Chomsky's major works now reissued by The New Press. An essential record of Chomsky's political and social thought as it was sharpened during the upheavals in domestic and international affairs of the early 1970s, For Reasons of State includes articles on the war in Vietnam and the "wider war" in Laos and Cambodia, an extensive dissection of the Pentagon Papers, reflections on the role of force in international affairs, essays on civil disobedience and the use of the university, and a now-classic introduction to anarchism. These essays reveal very different facets of Chomsky's power as a thinker, from his uncanny ability to join abstract philosophical considerations with the concrete political realities of his time, to his singular capacity to mount withering, fact-based critiques of American foreign policy. Following the recent release of American Power and the New Mandarins, For Reasons of State is a major addition to the intellectual history of the Vietnam era.
New Press 2003 440 pages

Modernism in the streets: a life and times in essays

Berman, Marshall,Marcus, David,Sclan, Shellie
"Essays tracing the intellectual life of a quintessential New York City writer and thinker Marshall Berman was one of the great urbanists and Marxist cultural critics of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, and his brilliant, nearly sui generis book All That Is Solid Melts Into Air is a masterpiece of the literature on modernism. But like many New York intellectuals, the essay was his characteristic form, accommodating his multifarious interests and expressing his protean, searching exuberant mind. This collection includes early essays from and on the radical '60s, on New York City, on literary figures from Kafka to Pamuk, and late essays on rock, hip hop, and gentrification. Concluding with his last essay, completed just before his death in 2013, this book is Berman's intellectual autobiography, tracing his career as a thinker through the way he read the "signs in the street.""--
Verso 2017 393 pages

California Jews

Ava F. Kahn,Marc Dollinger
The nation's thirty-first state emerged early as one of its most diverse as people immigrated to the west. California's indigenous tribes were forced off their lands first by Spanish settlers, then by the arrival of gold miners from every corner of the world. Because of its Catholic missionary history, Gold Rush California did not experience a more exclusive eastern-style Protestantism. This permitted more rapid and inclusive acculturation. California Jews, unlike their eastern counterparts whose arrival often followed that of European Protestants, were often among the first settlers to establish a west coast community. Jewish immigrants to California took advantage of its physical environment, ethnic diversity, and cultural distinctiveness to fashion a form of Judaism unique in the American experience. California Jews enjoyed unprecedented access to political power a generation earlier than their New York counterparts. They thrived in the multicultural mix, redefining the classic black-white racial binary by forging relations with a variety of religious and ethnic groups in both San Francisco and Los Angeles.
Brandeis University Press 2012 196 pages

NYPD Confidential Power and Corruption in the Country's Greatest Police Force

Leonard Levitt
For years, the police commissioner and the mayor have duked it out for publicity, credit, and power. Some have translated their stardom into success after leaving office, while others have been hung out to dry. NYPD Confidential reveals the battles for power that have led to the city's most infamous corruption cases. Filled with amazing details of backroom deals and larger-than-life power brokers, Leonard Levitt lays bare the backstabbing, power grabs, and chaotic internal investigations that make city givernment look like a modern-day Tammany Hall.
Macmillan 2010-11-23 320 pages

A Living Wage American Workers and the Making of Consumer Society

Lawrence B. Glickman
The fight for a "living wage" has a long and revealing history as documented here by Lawrence B. Glickman. The labor movement's response to wages shows how American workers negotiated the transition from artisan to consumer, opening up new political possibilities for organized workers and creating contradictions that continue to haunt the labor movement today. Nineteenth-century workers hoped to become self-employed artisans, rather than permanent "wage slaves." After the Civil War, however, unions redefined working-class identity in consumerist terms, and demanded a wage that would reward workers commensurate with their needs as consumers. This consumerist turn in labor ideology also led workers to struggle for shorter hours and union labels. First articulated in the 1870s, the demand for a living wage was voiced increasingly by labor leaders and reformers at the turn of the century. Glickman explores the racial, ethnic, and gender implications, as white male workers defined themselves in contrast to African Americans, women, Asians, and recent European immigrants. He shows how a historical perspective on the concept of a living wage can inform our understanding of current controversies.
Cornell University Press 1999-03-11 240 pages

The change I believe in: fighting for progress in the age of Obama

Vanden Heuvel, Katrina
On the night of the 2008 presidential election, Nation editor Katrina vanden Heuvel spoke for many: “For the first time in decades, electoral politics became a vehicle for raising expectations and spreading hope.” But, she cautioned, “We progressives need to be as clear-eyed, tough, and pragmatic about Obama as he is about us.” Where I Stand collects vanden Heuvel’s commentaries and columns from the first years of the Obama administration, an era that has come to be defined by reform and reaction. In the wake of the economic crisis and challenges from the insurgent Tea Party movement, it is clear that it will take more than one election (and one person) to reshape American politics and repair the damage wreaked by a decade of calamitous conservative rule. Vanden Heuvel challenges the limits of our downsized political debate, arguing that timid incrementalism and the forces of money and establishment power that debilitate American politics will be overcome only by independent organizing, strategic creativity, bold ideas, and determined idealism.
Nation Books 2011-10-25 366 pages

Jimmy Carter

Julian E. Zelizer
A peanut farmer from Georgia, Jimmy Carter rose to national power through mastering the strategy of the maverick politician. As the face of the "New South", Carter's strongest support came from his ability to communicate directly to voters who were disaffected by corruption in politics. But running as an outsider was easier than governing as one, as Princeton historian Julian E. Zelizer shows in this examination of Carter's presidency.
Thorndike Press 2010 262 pages

The Natural The Misunderstood Presidency of Bill Clinton

Joe Klein
Joe Klein, best-selling author of Primary Colors and one of our most brilliant political analysts, now tackles the subject he knows best: Bill Clinton. Astute, even-handed, and keenly intelligent, The Natural is the only book to read if you want to understand exactly what happened–to the military, to the economy, to the American people, to the country–during Bill Clinton’s presidency, and how the decisions made during his tenure affect all of us today. Much has been written about Clinton, but The Natural is the first work to cut through the gossip, scandals, media hype, and emotional turbulence that Clinton always engendered, to step back and rationally analyze the eight years of his tenure, a period during which America rose to unprecedented levels of prosperity. Joe Klein puts that record into perspective, showing us what worked and what didn’t, exactly what was accomplished and why, and who was responsible for the successes and the failures. We see how the Clinton White House functioned on the inside, how it dealt with the maneuvers of Congress and the Gingrich revolution, and who held power and made the decisions during the endless crises that beset the administration. Klein’s access to the White House over the years as a journalist gave him a prime spot from which to view every crucial event–both political and personal–and he sets them forth in an insightful, readable, and completely engrossing manner. The Natural is stern in its criticism and convincing with its praise. It will cause endless debate amongst friends and foes of the Clinton administration. It is a book that anyone interested in contemporary politics, in American history, or in the functioning of our democracy, should read.
Crown 2003-02-11 240 pages

Undemocratic: how unelected, unaccountable bureaucrats are stealing your liberty and freedom

Sekulow, Jay
"Jay Sekulow--one of America's most influential attorneys--explores the current political landscape in which bureaucracy has taken over our government and provides a practical roadmap to help take back our personal liberties. From Ellis Island to the Supreme Court in just two generations, Jay Sekulow is on a mission to defend the American right to individual freedom--and he will protect it from any threat, even if that includes our current administration. According to Jay, the warning signs were there before Obama was elected. This new and unprecedented attack on individual liberties became clear as soon as Obama came to power. The administration's focus on increasing the power of the government, decreasing individual autonomy, and suppressing dissent goes against all of the fundamental liberties outlined in the Constitution. As our government cracks down on leaks in their own operations and supports intrusions into individual privacy, personal freedom is lost. But Jay has a plan to fight back. With insights into Jay's legal strategies, Power Trip focuses on successful responses to previous Obama Administration overreach and acts as a guide to help Americans continue on this path. Jay shines a light on many abuses Americans are unaware of, and teaches us how to respond in effective ways, providing a roadmap for future victories. A welcome voice to conservative ears, Sekulow's point of view wholeheartedly supports those fighting to uphold personal liberties regardless of the administration in charge"--
Howard Books 2015-05-19 321 pages

U. S. Infantry and Rifle Tactics (1861) The Manual of Arms for the Rifle and Rifle Musket

James R. Gunn
THE MANUAL OF ARMS was the first step in the training of each individual soldier who enlisted either in the Union or Confederate army during the American Civil War, & gives detailed instructions for the new recruit in the use of his rifle or rifle musket. Each major position such as Shoulder Arms is closely described as well as the means of loading the piece in nine times & firing on command. Most importantly, the transitions between each position is also detailed, enabling soldiers standing elbow to elbow to use their weapons efficiently in a fire fight. This new illustrated reprint presents an exhaustive, painstakingly researched combination of the original step-by-step text & detailed drawings. Every illustration is meticulously cross referenced with the manuscript to provide both historical accuracy & ease of use. This is an excellent resource for the military historian or Civil War buff.
Stone Eagle Press 1993-11 67 pages

The harrows of spring: a World made by hand novel

Kunstler, James Howard
In Union Grove, early spring is a challenging season, known as the "six weeks want," a time when fresh food is scarce and the winter stores are dwindling. The town is struggling in particular this year as the Hudson River trade route to Albany has been halted by the local plantation tycoon Stephen Bullock, who has deemed it too resource-intensive and is now striving for self-sufficiency. Meanwhile, after returning from his travels around what is left of the United States, Daniel Earle is intent on resurrecting a newspaper for the community, and finds an interesting story to cover when representatives of a group of anti-establishment, hyper-liberals known as the Berkshire People's Republic arrive in the town.
Atlantic Monthly Press 2016 317 pages

Little Golden America Two Famous Soviet Humorists Survey the United States

Ilya Ilf,Eugene Petrov,Sam Sloan
Odnoetazhnya Amerika (One-Storied America) First published in the U.S.S.R. 1936. Little Golden America. First published in England in 1944. Translated from the Russian by Charles Malamuth This is one of the most popular books ever published in the Soviet Union. It remains popular in Russia today. We Americans cannot figure out what makes it so popular. It is a good book, interesting and well written, but does not contain anything so outstanding as to make it the most popular book ever written. Yet almost every Russian seems to have read or to be familiar with "Little Golden America."It describes the adventures of the two authors, Ilya Ilf and Eugene Petrov, who arrived in New York City on the passenger ship Normandie. After one month in New York, they bought a car and started traveling around the United States. They went to Chicago and San Francisco and then swept back through the Southern States. When they arrived back in New York to return to Europe, they said that they had traveled ten thousand miles.
Ishi Press International 2010-12 300 pages

Holding On Dreamers, Visionaries, Eccentrics, and Other American Heroes

David Isay,Harvey Wang
This book is a tribute to some of America's greatest characters, people holding on to unique ways of life at all costs. A castle builder, a forty-year veteran Woolworth's lunch-counter waitress, a moonshiner, and the president of The Brooklyn Elite Checker Club are among this varied group of ordinary people who prevail against all odds. They are Dewey Chafin and Barbara Elkins, snake handlers for the Church of the Lord Jesus in Jolo, West Virginia; Amos Powers, caretaker of America's only coon-dog graveyard in Colbert County, Alabama; Dixie Evans, curator of Exotic World, Museum of Burlesque in Helendale, California; and Mike Gashwarza of the Hopi tribe, fighting against electricity being brought to Old Oraibi, Arizona, the oldest town in North America. David Isay's compelling, often humorous profiles are accompanied by Harvey Wang's wonderful portraits of fifty such people, die-hard individualists who speak for themselves, illuminating their remarkable lives and personalities. Henry Roth's foreword is a moving testament to the creativity, tenacity, and dignity these people possess.
W. W. Norton, Incorporated 1997-05 216 pages

Antebellum American Culture An Interpretive Anthology

David Brion Davis
First published in 1979, this volume offers students and teachers a unique view of American history prior to the Civil War. Distinguished historian David Brion Davis has chosen a diverse array of primary sources that show the actual concerns, hopes, fears, and understandings of ordinary antebellum Americans. He places these sources within a clear interpretive narrative that brings the documents to life and highlights themes that social and cultural historians have brought to our attention in recent years. Beginning with the family and the issue of socialization and influence, the units move on to struggles over access to wealth and power; the plight of "outsiders" in an "open" society; and ideals of progress, perfection, and mission. The reader of this volume hears a great diversity of voices but also grasps the unities that survived even the Civil War.
Pennsylvania State University Press 2007-09-04 496 pages

The most dangerous branch: inside the Supreme Court's assault on the Constitution

Kaplan, David A.
"In a richly reported, behind-the-scenes portrait of the Supreme Court and the secret world of its nine justices, veteran national journalist David A. Kaplan shows how the Court, far from being the "least dangerous branch" of government, in the words of Alexander Hamilton, has become in many respects the most dangerous branch, subverting democracy and betraying the Constitution. Never before has the Supreme Court been more central to American politics. A sizable percentage of voters in the most recent presidental election chose a candidate based largely on who they thought Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump would nominate to replace the fiery Antonin Scalia. In the face of a dysfunctional and paralyzed Congress, it is the Court, rather than our elected officials, that decides such divisive issues as gerrymandering, abortion, gun rights, voting rights, same sex marriage, immigration, and campaign finance. In a sweeping narrative that examines the personalities and quirks of the Justices, The Most Dangerous Branch shows how, going as far back as Roe v Wade, the Court has re-shaped America's political and social landscape in key cases on the left and the right. As much as the Chief Justice claims to be only calling balls and strikes, in fact the Court has not hesitated to put its collective thumb on the scale of justice to swing the law in the majority's direction. As a result, nine nonelected life-tenured lawyers, trained at but two elite universities (Harvard and Yale) have taken it upon themselves to decide the fate and direction of the nation. Kaplan's book gets at the heart of who these Justices are, and uncovers their personal agendas -- including that of Neil Gorsuch, President Trump's impatient and quietly radical new appointee. And with the retirement of even a single justice, the Court could, under Trump and a filibuster-proof Senate, be transformed into a insurrmountable conservative voting block that will reign even more supreme over America for a generation"--
Crown 2018 446 pages