Epidemiology plays an all-important role in many areas of medicine, from discovering the relationship between tobacco smoking and lung cancer, to documenting the impact of diet, the environment, and e
What is depression? What is bipolar disorder? How are they diagnosed and how are they treated? Can a small child be diagnosed with depression and treated with antidepressants - and should they be?Cove
Our fascination with other worlds never stops. Going deep into space David A. Rothery looks at the planetary bodies that make up our Solar System, and those around other stars. From the gas giants and
What is leadership? Are leaders born or bred? How does it differ from management and command? Do we actually need leaders?From its earliest manifestations in ancient societies, Keith Grint highlights
Using examples of specific practical matters such as sex, money, and power, D. Stephen Long presents a discussion of the relationship between Christian ethics, modern, and postmodern ethics. Recognisi
Lie detection, offender profiling, jury selection, insanity in the law, predicting the risk of re-offending , the minds of serial killers, and many other topics that fill news and fiction are all asp
The animal world is immensely diverse, and our understanding of it has been greatly enhanced by molecular biology and the study of evolution and development ("evo-devo"). Moreover, groundbreaking rese
The Reformation was a seismic event in European history, one which left an indelible mark on the modern world. In this Very Short Introduction, Peter Marshall illuminates the causes and consequences
Witchcraft is a subject that fascinates us all. Indeed, from childhood most of us develop some mental image of a witch--usually an old woman, mysterious and malignant. But why do witches still featur
This Very Short Introduction offers a clear, accessible, and concise account of the apocryphal gospels - exploring their origins, their discovery, and discussing how the various texts have been interp
We have all wondered about the meaning of life. Is there an answer? Is it up to us? Or is the question a bogus one?In this witty, spirited, and stimulating inquiry, Terry Eagleton shows how centuries
"This Very Short Introduction provides a rich and up-to-date account of Newton's life and work. Explaining his scientific discoveries, revealing the forces that shaped his thinking, and tackling his a
German philosophy stands at the center of modern thought. Without Kant, Frege, Wittgenstein, and Husserl there would be no Anglo-American "analytical" style of philosophy. And without Kant, Hegel, Ma
The laws of thermodynamics drive everything that happens in the universe. From the sudden expansion of a cloud of gas to the cooling of hot metal--everything is moved or restrained by four simple laws
From Anthony Trollope, Charles Dickens, and Thomas Hardy, through Rudyard Kipling, H.G. Wells, D.H. Lawrence, and Virginia Woolf, right up to Graham Greene, J.G. Ballard, Angela Carter, Ian McEwan, a
John Maynard Keynes (1883-1946) is a central thinker of the twentieth century, not just an economic theorist and statesman, but also an important figure in economics, philosophy, politics, and culture
In religious terms Pentecostalism was probably the most vibrant and rapidly-growing religious movement of the 20th century. Starting as a revivalistic and renewal movement within Christianity, it enc
There are many debates about what constitutes a utopia. Are utopias benign or dangerous? Is the idea of utopianism essential to Christianity or heretical? What is the relationship between utopia and i
Fundamentalism is seen as the major threat to world peace today, a conclusion impossible to ignore since the events in New York on September 11, 2001. But what does "fundamentalism" really mean?
Statistical ideas and methods underlie just about every aspect of modern life. From randomized clinical trials in medical research, to statistical models of risk in banking and hedge fund industries,
