What do you really know about gullibility? January 08, 2020 Not Born Yesterday explains how we decide who we can trust and what we should believe—and argues that we’re pretty good at making these decisions. Read More
Robert Frank on Under the Influence January 07, 2020 Psychologists have long understood that social environments profoundly shape our behavior, sometimes for the better, often for the worse. But social influence is a two-way street—our environments are themselves products of our behavior. Read More
For the beauty of invisibility January 06, 2020 Human beings are naturally visual creatures. Our eyes, capable of counting single photons, have been optimized over evolutionary time to the very limits of the laws of physics. Read More
7 books to start the new year December 26, 2019 Opening the page to another year can be a time for reflection, resolve, anticipation, and contemplation. For many of us, it’s a time for setting goals and committing to change. But in our increasingly hurried lives, it’s equally a time to consider undertaking the challenge of doing less. Read More
Books for readers thinking deeply about our planet December 20, 2019 From the thawing Arctic and the science of de-extinction to vanishing butterflies and the future of humanity, these books for readers who are thinking about the future of the planet. Read More
Roger F. Pasquier on Birds in Winter December 20, 2019 The recent report from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and the National Audubon Society that there are today in the United States and Canada 29.4 billion fewer birds than the estimated 100 billion estimated as present fifty years ago is sobering news. Read More
Books for feminists of all ages December 17, 2019 From a delightful romp with Jane Austen’s most irrepressible heroine to a moving account of working mothers’ daily lives, we have a book for every feminist on your list, and shouldn’t that be everyone on your list? Read More
By Design | The Lives of Great Religious Books December 17, 2019 Breath is an integral element of most religious traditions, scriptures, and practices. One recalls the narrative of creation in Genesis, the life-circulating force of prana in the Upanishads, or the drawing in and releasing of air that accompanies the dhikr, or remembrance of God, in Islamic devotional rites. Read More
Philip Freeman on Cicero, Star Wars, and the Stoic Idea of God December 13, 2019 Ancient Rome was a wildly diverse and exotic place. As I tell the students in my college classes, if you want to get a feel for what Rome was like, watch Star Wars. Read More
Books for artists December 11, 2019 Looking for a gift or someone who might judge a book by its cover . . . design? This gift list is sure to please the aesthete in your life. Read More
How do human rights come about?: A few lesser-known activists and the popular movements they led December 10, 2019 How do human rights actually come about? International resolutions and treaties, like the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, are important, but they hardly suffice. Read More
Books for writers December 06, 2019 This list of gift ideas for poets and writers takes readers around the world and back in time through language. Read More
Marion Turner on Chaucer: A European Life December 02, 2019 More than any other canonical English writer, Geoffrey Chaucer lived and worked at the centre of political life—yet his poems are anything but conventional. Read More
Books for MBAs, present and future December 02, 2019 Know someone who can’t start their day without scouring the pages of the Financial Times or Wall Street Journal? This list just might get them to diversify their reading portfolio with a new book. Read More
Books for naturalists November 27, 2019 Searching for a gift for someone who would rather be outside exploring than Black Friday shopping? Look no further! Read More
