“One of the most profound and illuminating studies of this century to have been published in recent decades.”—John Gray, New York Times Book Review “A powerful, and in many [ways] insightful, explanation as to why grandiose programs of social reform, not to mention revolution, so often end in tragedy. . . .

An important critique of visionary state planning.”—Robert Heilbroner, Lingua Franca Hailed as “a magisterial critique of top-down social planning” by the New York Times...

The Fontana History of Chemistry, which draws extensively on both the author’s own original research and that of other scholars world wide, is conceived as a work of synthesis. Nothing like it has been attempted in decades. Beginning with the first tentative chemical explorations where primitive technology and techniques were deployed, Dr Brock proceeds via the alchemists’ futile, but frequently profitable, efforts to turn lead into gold to recount the emergence of the modern discipline o...

Since the time of Aristotle, there had been a clear divide between the three kingdoms of animal, vegetable, and mineral. But by the eighteenth century, biological experiments, and the wide range of new creatures coming to Europe from across the world, challenged these neat divisions. Abraham Trembley found that freshwater polyps grew into complete individuals when cut.

This shocking discovery raised deep questions: was it a plant or an animal? And this was not the only conundrum. What of cora...

An Introduction to Drug Synthesis explores the central role played by organic synthesis in the process of drug design and development. Written by an experienced and talented author to complement his existing An Introduction to Medicinal Chemistry, the book illustrates how organic synthesis makes important contributions throughout the drug design and discovery process - from the generation of novel drug structures to the improved efficiency of large scale synthesis. Avoiding excessively detail...

Dreamscapes of Modernity offers the first book-length treatment of sociotechnical imaginaries, a concept originated by Sheila Jasanoff and developed in close collaboration with Sang-Hyun Kim to describe how visions of scientific and technological progress carry with them implicit ideas about public purposes, collective futures, and the common good. The book presents a mix of case studies-including nuclear power in Austria, Chinese rice biotechnology, Korean stem cell research, the Indonesian ...

Reflecting emerging methods and the evolution of the field, Introduction to Texture Analysis: Macrotexture, Microtexture, and Orientation keeps mathematics to a minimum in covering both traditional macrotexture analysis and more advanced electron-microscopy-based microtexture analysis.

This book provides an accessible introduction to radioactivity. The first in a two-volume set, this volume is presented in two parts, covering radiation physics and natural radiation exposure.

This book presents a comprehensive overview of the science of the history of life. Paleobiologists bring many analytical tools to bear in interpreting the fossil record and the book introduces the latest techniques, from multivariate investigations of biogeography and biostratigraphy to engineering analysis of dinosaur skulls, and from homeobox genes to cladistics. All the well-known fossil groups are included, including microfossils and invertebrates, but an important feature is the thorough...

Develop better medical devices using the latest fluid mechanics tools and techniques. This thoroughly revised textbook combines the physiological aspects of the cardiovascular and pulmonary systems with cutting-edge fluid mechanics concepts. The book covers all major organ systems and includes detailed illustrations and clinical examples that clearly show the applications of fluid mechanics to biomedical engineering situations. Students will learn to integrate fluid mechanics principles into ...

A contemporary approach to behavioural statistics.

Nolan and Heinzen offer an introduction to the basics of statistics that is uniquely suited for behavioural science students. This edition provides coverage anchored to real-world stories, a highly visual approach to presenting data, helpful mathematical support, and useful step-by-step examples. Focusing on emerging trends that are redefining contemporary behavioural statistics, this text helps students get to grips with a challenging subjec...