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      • Trusted Partner
        2019

        The Nobel Laureate Who Met a Polite Raccoon in the Woods

        When the brain goes mad: 30 rare and unusual mental syndromes

        by Monika Niehaus

        The human brain is a highly complex and highly functional structure consisting of almost 90 billion nerve cells. But it can go out of sync, due to genetic factors, hormonal effects, trauma or other causes. In extreme cases, our control centre then creates bizarre delusions – brilliant narratives that are completely convincing to the person concerned. In her second book on such phenomena, Monika Niehaus has compiled 30 rare psychological disorders – from a conviction to have been abducted by aliens, to being sexually attracted to criminals, to the hyperthymestical syndrome where people can remember every detail of their past life. Narrated in an interesting, humorous and sensitive way, the author relates a variety of cases, some of them famous, others less so, while introducing us to the history of art and literature and presenting scientific explanations. This fascinating book shows the genius that resides in our brain – and how madness can often be explained.

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        Literature & Literary Studies
        October 2024

        The Legacy of John Polidori

        The Romantic Vampire and its Progeny

        by Sam George, Bill Hughes

        John Polidori's novella The Vampyre (1819) is perhaps 'the most influential horror story of all time' (Frayling). Polidori's story transformed the shambling, mindless monster of folklore into a sophisticated, seductive aristocrat that stalked London society rather than being confined to the hinterlands of Eastern Europe. Polidori's Lord Ruthven was thus the ancestor of the vampire as we know it. This collection explores the genesis of Polidori's vampire. It then tracks his bloodsucking progeny across the centuries and maps his disquieting legacy. Texts discussed range from the Romantic period, including the fascinating and little-known The Black Vampyre (1819), through the melodramatic vampire theatricals in the 1820s, to contemporary vampire film, paranormal romance, and science fiction. They emphasise the background of colonial revolution and racial oppression in the early nineteenth century and the cultural shifts of postmodernity.

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        October 2020

        Turning Men into Pigs and Staying Safe from Such Trickery

        A Scientific Foray into the World of Ancient Greek Legends

        by Monika Niehaus, Michael Wink

        The adventures of Odysseus are not just a classic literary epic but also shine a light on intriguing questions for geography, archaeology and biology. Phenomena like the Cyclops and magic potions were only understood in recent decades thanks to phytochemical and pharmacological research that enabled new insights into the effect of plant substances on the mind and body. Monika Niehaus and Michael Wink embark on an enjoyable excursion in their book on a scientific foray for knowledge – from ancient myths to medieval drug excesses and the world of comics.

      • Trusted Partner
        2018

        The Woman Who Thought Her Husband Was a Doppelganger

        When the brain goes haywire: 36 rare and unusual psychiatric syndromes

        by Monika Niehaus

        The human brain is a wondrous thing, highly complex and highly functional. However, the control centre of our feelings, thoughts and actions can sometimes go out of sync. Some reasons for this are known, such as genetic factors, hormonal effects or trauma. In other cases, we are still in the dark. In an extreme case scenario, the brain may create bizarre delusions – masterful narrations that the people affected fi nd completely conclusive and reasonable. Monika Niehaus has compiled 36 such disorders ranging from love madness and the gourmand syndrome – where gourmet food becomes the purpose of life – to people who desire nothing more than to have their limbs amputated. She tells gripping tales of famous and not so famous cases. With sensitivity and a considerable dose of humour she takes us into the history of art and literature, and presents scientifi c explanations. This fascinating book shows that our brain is a genius – and madness is quite often NOT inexplicable.

      • Trusted Partner
        May 1991

        Intentionalität

        Eine Abhandlung zur Philosophie des Geistes

        by Harvey P. Gavagai, John R. Searle

        Nach seinen sprachphilosophischen Arbeiten ('Sprechakte', stw 458; 'Ausdruck und Bedeutung', stw 349) hat John R. Searle mit 'Intentionalität' eine Untersuchung zu einem Kernstück der Philosophie des Geistes vorgelegt, die in einem engen thematischen Zusammenhang mit den früheren Arbeiten steht. Intentionalität ist nach Searles Auffassung die Basis sprachlicher Bedeutung. In seiner Theorie der Intentionalität geht es um die begrifflichen Eigenschaften intentionaler Zustände (auf die Frage nach ihrem ontologischen Status geht er ausführlicher ein in 'Geist, Hirn und Wissenschaft', stw 591). Zwei Aspekte stehen dabei im Vordergrund der Untersuchung: die Logik der Repräsentation und der Kausalität intentionaler Zustände. Doch Searle entwickelt in dieser Arbeit nicht nur eine Theorie der Intentionalität und des Zusammenhangs zwischen sprachlichem und geistigem Inhalt. In einem vornehmlich kritischen Teil setzt er sich ausführlich mit konkurrierenden Auffassungen aus dem Bereich der analytischen Philosophie auseinander, insbesondere mit derzeit sehr einflußreichen 'nicht-deskriptivistischen' Theorien des Bezugs, wie sie von S. Kripke, H. Putnam, K. Donnellan, T. Burge und D. Kaplan vertreten und angeregt wurden.

      • Trusted Partner
        October 2023

        Watching the Brain Think

        Facets of neuroscience: short thought provoking texts for the curious

        by Monika Niehaus/Martin Osterloh

        — An exciting and entertaining explanation of neuroscience — In the diverting and humorous style for which the author is known – learning has never been this much fun What processes in the brain are responsible for intelligence, free will, empathy or reason? Can memories be falsified? And what does actually happen in the brain when we reach puberty? Monika Niehaus and Martin Osterloh answer these and many other neuroscientific questions in their book – a fundamental work on brain research, and easy to understand, exciting and entertaining.

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        Literature & Literary Studies
        December 2023

        Bulletin of the John Rylands Library 99/2

        by Stephen Mossman, Cordelia Warr

        The John Rylands Library houses one of the finest collections of rare books, manuscripts and archives in the world. The collections span five millennia and cover a wide range of subjects, including art and archaeology; economic, social, political, religious and military history; literature, drama and music; science and medicine; theology and philosophy; travel and exploration. For over a century, the Bulletin of the John Rylands Library has published research that complements the Library's special collections. The editors invite the submission of articles in these fields and welcome discussion of in-progress projects.

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        Literature & Literary Studies
        May 2022

        The correspondence of John Dryden

        by Stephen Bernard, John McTague

      • Trusted Partner
        September 2021

        Elton John

        Little People, Big Dreams. Deutsche Ausgabe | Kinderbuch ab 4 Jahre

        by María Isabel Sánchez Vegara, Sophie Beer, Silke Kleemann

        Elton John brachte sich als Kind das Klavierspielen selbst bei. Er liebte es, vor Publikum aufzutreten und die Menschen mit Gesang und Musik zu begeistern. Mit seinen bunten Bühnenoutfits und den riesigen Brillen wurde er zum Superstar. Seit ein Freund von ihm an einer schlimmen Krankheit starb, sammelt er Spenden, um diese Krankheit zu besiegen. Für sein Engagement und seine Musik wurde Elton John sogar zum Ritter geschlagen. L ittle People, Big Dreams erzählt von den beeindruckenden Lebensgeschichten großer Menschen: Jede dieser Persönlichkeiten, ob Künstlerin, Pilotin oder Wissenschaftler, hat Unvorstellbares erreicht. Dabei begann alles, als sie noch klein waren: mit großen Träumen.

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        Humanities & Social Sciences
        March 2017

        The Arctic in the British imagination 1818–1914

        by Andrew Thompson, John M. MacKenzie, Rob David

        The Arctic region has been the subject of much popular writing. This book considers nineteenth-century representations of the Arctic, and draws upon an extensive range of evidence that will allow the 'widest connections' to emerge from a 'cross-disciplinary analysis' using different methodologies and subject matter. It positions the Arctic alongside more thoroughly investigated theatres of Victorian enterprise. In the nineteenth century, most images were in the form of paintings, travel narratives, lectures given by the explorers themselves and photographs. The book explores key themes in Arctic images which impacted on subsequent representations through text, painting and photography. For much of the nineteenth century, national and regional geographical societies promoted exploration, and rewarded heroic endeavor. The book discusses images of the Arctic which originated in the activities of the geographical societies. The Times provided very low-key reporting of Arctic expeditions, as evidenced by its coverage of the missions of Sir John Franklin and James Clark Ross. However, the illustrated weekly became one of the main sources of popular representations of the Arctic. The book looks at the exhibitions of Arctic peoples, Arctic exploration and Arctic fauna in Britain. Late nineteenth-century exhibitions which featured the Arctic were essentially nostalgic in tone. The Golliwogg's Polar Adventures, published in 1900, drew on adult representations of the Arctic and will have confirmed and reinforced children's perceptions of the region. Text books, board games and novels helped to keep the subject alive among the young.

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        Humanities & Social Sciences
        October 2024

        Bulletin of the John Rylands Library 100/1

        by Fred Schurink, Rachel Winchcombe

        The John Rylands Library houses one of the finest collections of rare books, manuscripts and archives in the world. The collections span five millennia, have a global reach and cover a wide range of subjects, including art and archaeology; economic, social, political, religious and military history; literature, drama and music; science and medicine; theology and philosophy; travel and exploration. For over a century, the Bulletin of the John Rylands Library has published research that complements the Library's special collections.

      • Trusted Partner
        August 2009

        Ich, John

        Roman

        by Peter Murphy, Karsten Kredel

        John Devine würde am liebsten abhauen. Raus aus Kilcody, dem irischen Provinznest, weg von seiner ewig besorgten, kettenrauchenden Mutter Lily, die ihn mit morbiden Bibelsprüchen erzieht. Doch dann tritt Jamey Corboy in sein Leben, ein Jahr älter, mehr Stil als ganz Kilcody zusammen, Rimbaud in der Manteltasche und gute Beziehungen zu finsteren lokalen Gangstern. Mit einem Mal ist Johns Leben voller Möglichkeiten – und voller Abgründe. Ich, John kombiniert einen hypnotischen Erzählstrom mit der unheimlichen Stimmung eines Tim-Burton-Films. - Coming of Age in der märchenhaften Atmosphäre der irischen Landschaft - Lesereise von Peter Murphy in Deutschland - „So erfrischend und originell, so aufwühlend und mutig! Ein absolut wunderbares Buch.“ Colm Tóibín

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        Literature & Literary Studies
        June 2022

        Bulletin of the John Rylands Library 98/1

        The Artist of the Future Age: William Blake, Neo-Romanticism, Counterculture and Now

        by Douglas Field

        This special issue of the Bulletin of the John Rylands Library is devoted to William Blake. It explores the British and European reception of Blake's work from the late nineteenth century to the present day, with a particular focus on the counterculture. Opening with two articles by the late Michael Horovitz, an important figure in the 'Blake Renaissance' of the 1960s, the issue goes on to investigate the ideological struggle over Blake in the early part of the twentieth century, with particular reference to W. B. Yeats. This is followed by articles on the artistic avant-garde and underground of the 1960s and on Blake's significance for science fiction authors of the 1970s. The issue closes with an article on the contemporary Belgian art collective maelstrÖm reEvolution.

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      • Trusted Partner
        November 2016

        Die Staatslehre John C. Calhouns.

        (Staats- und völkerrechtliche Abhandlungen IV.2).

        by Elliott, Edward G.

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