https://arab.news/p939r
Author: Alfred L. Rosenberger
“New World Monkeys” brings to life the beauty of evolution and biodiversity in action among South and Central American primates, who are now at risk. These tree-dwelling rainforest inhabitants display an unparalleled variety in size, shape, hands, feet, tails, brains, locomotion, feeding, and social systems.
Primatologist Alfred Rosenberger, one of the foremost experts on these mammals, explains their fascinating adaptations and how they came about.
In cognitive scientist and professor Guy Claxton’s 2015 book, “Intelligence in the Flesh: Why your mind needs your body much more than it thinks,” you’re in for a mind trick or two — and plenty of treats.
The book explores the idea that intelligence is not confined to the brain but is distributed throughout the body.
Claxton argues against the traditional view that sees the mind as separate from the body, proposing instead, that cognition — our thinking, decision-making and our comprehension — is shaped by the body’s movements, sensations and interactions.
The author claims that “over the last century, human beings in affluent societies have become more and more sluggish.”
He continues: “Millions of us work in offices, pushing paper, staring at screens, discussing proposals and re-arranging words and spreadsheets. For our leisure, we look at more screens, text and tweet, escape into virtual worlds, gossip and chatter.
“Our functional bodies have shrunk: just ears and eyes on the input side, and mouths and fingertips on the output side … Cooking can be no more than ripping off a plastic film and closing the microwave door. Our real bodies get so little attention, and so little skillful use, that we have to make special arrangements to remember them.”
He mentions examples of “remembering our bodies” by taking long walks in the countryside and working out at the gym. Machines have simplified our lives to such an extent that we can now operate almost entirely on autopilot. But have smartphones made us less smart? Certainly, technology has streamlined our routines and made our lives much easier — but at what cost? Have we voluntarily let machines take over mundane tasks and, perhaps unknowingly, allowed them to gain control over crucial parts of our brains? Are our minds going to mush?
This book attempts to answer all of the above. And then some.
Claxton draws on research from neuroscience, psychology and philosophy to support the idea that the body plays a critical role in shaping our mental processes.
He emphasizes that the way we move, feel and experience the world physically is completely inseparable from how we think and learn intellectually.
The book challenges the idea of intelligence as purely an abstract thing, advocating for a more integrated understanding of human cognition that accounts for the body’s role in learning, perception and even creativity.
Claxton’s body of work emphasizes the importance of resilience, resourcefulness, reflectiveness and reciprocity in education.
He often advocates for a shift away from traditional, rigid, one-size-fits-all methods of instruction toward a more flexible and creative approach.
He has authored numerous other books on the issue, including “What’s the Point of School?” and “The Learning Power Approach.”
Authors: Paul G. Falkowski And John A. Raven
“Aquatic Photosynthesis” is a comprehensive guide to understanding the evolution and ecology of photosynthesis in aquatic environments.
This second edition, thoroughly revised to bring it up to date, describes how one of the most fundamental metabolic processes evolved and transformed the surface chemistry of the Earth.
The book focuses on recent biochemical and biophysical advances and the molecular biological techniques that have made them possible.
Most people believe that the best way to motivate is with rewards like money — the carrot-and stick approach. In this provocative and persuasive new book, he asserts that the secret to high performance and satisfaction is the deeply human need to direct our own lives, to learn and create new things, says a review published on goodreads.com.
He examines the three elements of true motivation — autonomy, mastery, and purpose.
Author: Michel Pastoureau
Pink has such powerful associations today that it’s hard to imagine the color could ever have meant anything different. But it’s only since the introduction of the Barbie doll in 1959 that pink has become decisively feminized.
Indeed, in the 18th century, pink was frequently masculine, and the color has signified many things beyond gender over the course of its long history.
In this richly illustrated book, Michel Pastoureau, a celebrated authority on the history of colors, presents a fascinating visual, social, and cultural history of pink in the West, from antiquity to today.
Author: MICHAEL PATRICK LYNCH
Do any of us really care about truth when it comes to politics? Should we? In a world of big lies, denialism, and conspiracy theories, democracies are experiencing two interlocked crises: a loss of confidence in democracy itself and the growing sense among many that politics is only about power—not truth.
In this book, Michael Patrick Lynch argues that truth not only can—but must—matter in politics. He shows why truth is an essential democratic value—a value we need to sustain our democratic way of life—and how it can be strengthened.
