Pioneers in Machinima: The Grassroots of Virtual Production

Tracy Gaynor Harwood, De Montfort University and Ben Grussi

This important new work focuses on the pioneers in machinima, considered to be the grassroots and beginnings of virtual production. Machinima’s impacts are identified by the community, supplemented by Harwood and Grussi’s research and experience over a period of 25 years – from game, film and filmmaking to digital arts practice, creative technologies developments and related research and theory. Machinima is the first digital cultural practice to have emerged from the internet into a mainstream creative genre. Its latest transformation is evident through the increasing convergence of games and film where real-time virtual production as a professional creative practice is resulting in new forms of machine-generated interactive experiences. Using the most culturally significant machinima works (machine-cinema) as lenses to trace its history and impacts, ‘Pioneers in Machinima: The Grassroots of Virtual Production’ provides in-depth testimony by filmmakers and others involved in its emergence. The extensive reference to source materials and interviews bring the story of its impacts up to date through the critical reflections of the early pioneers. This book will be of interest to machinima researchers and practitioners, including game culture, media theorists, students of film studies and game studies, digital artists and those interested in how creative technologies have influenced communities of practice over time.

Mary Hunter Austin: A Female Writer’s Protest Against the First World War in the United States

Jowan A. Mohammed, Nord University, Norway

Mary Hunter Austin (1868-1934) is often referred to as an important American writer of the early decades of the 20th century, with much of her work concerning nature and Native American culture. Hunter Austin was also considered to be one of the early feminist writers, whose works had an impact on the redefinition of gender roles during the First World War. This study examines the feminist perception of her later years, connecting feminist history to questions related to memory through a study of literature, politics, and interpretations of the past (both feminist and gendered). It demonstrates how far the perception and remembrance of the past are determined by later agendas and considerations. This work is an insightful and detailed study, meant to expand knowledge within the field of collective memory about Mary Hunter Austin’s life and work alike. This book is intended for those with a general interest in feminism, socialism, World War One and gender issues. Academics and specialists in the field will value new research on a crucial figure in American literary history.

Florentine Ariosto Jones: A Yankee in Switzerland and the Early Globalization of the American System of Watchmaking

Frank Jacob, Nord University, Norway

This book recounts the story of Florentine Ariosto Jones, who after the Civil War decided to manufacture watches. Combining the cheap labor available at the time in Switzerland with US manufacturing technologies, Jones embarked on his venture to produce affordable watches for the American market. Consequently, he became a pioneer in the business of outsourcing labor for economic purposes through his contracting of labor to Europe. While the company still exists today, very little is known about Jones. The present book will undoubtedly change this by telling the fascinating story of an American adventurer and his pursuit to globalize American watchmaking at the end of the 19th Century.

The Community and the Algorithm: A Digital Interactive Poetics

Edited by Andrew Klobucar, New Jersey Institute of Technology

Digital media presents an array of interesting challenges adapting new modes of collaborative, online communication to traditional writing and literary practices at the practical and theoretical levels. For centuries, popular concepts of the modern author, regardless of genre, have emphasized writing as a solo exercise in human communication, while the act of reading remains associated with solitude and individual privacy. “The Community and the Algorithm: A Digital Interactive Poetics” explores important cultural changes in these relationships thanks to the rapid development of digital internet technologies allowing near-instantaneous, synchronous, multimedia interaction across the globe. The radical shift in how we author and consume media as an online, electronic transmission effectively resituates the writing process across the liberal arts as less a solitary act of individual enquiry and reflection, and more an ongoing, collaborative process of creative interaction within a multimedia environment or network. Contributions in this anthology demonstrate a robust history and equally diverse contemporary approach to multimedia interaction for literary and artistic ends. Central to all media formats, computation is explored throughout this volume to critically examine how algorithmic procedures in writing help bring forward many key concepts to building creative communities in a digital environment. Each chapter in this book accordingly introduces readers to various new collaborative experiments using a broad range of different digital media formats, including VR, Natural Language Generation (NLG), and metagaming tools. This book will appeal broadly to students, instructors, and independent artists working in the digital arts, while its emphasis on social interactivity will interest theorists and teachers working in theatre, social media, and cyberpsychology. Its secondary focus on computation and media programming as a site of artistic experimentation will also interest programmers and web designers at various professional levels.

Names as Metaphors in Shakespeare’s Comedies

Grant W. Smith, Eastern Washington University

'Names as Metaphors in Shakespeare’s Comedies' presents a comprehensive study of names in Shakespeare’s comedies. Although names are used in daily speech as simple designators, often with minimal regard for semantic or phonological suggestiveness, their coinage is always based on analogy. They are words (i.e., signs) borrowed from previous referents and contexts, and applied to new referents. Thus, in the literary use of language, names are figurative inventions and have measurable thematic significance: they evoke an association of attributes between two or more referents, contextualize each work of literature within its time, and reflect the artistic development of the writer. In the introduction, Smith describes the literary use of names as creative choices that show the indebtedness of authors to previous literature, as well as their imaginative descriptions (etymologically and phonologically) of memorable character types, and their references to cultural phenomena that make their names meaningful to their contemporary readers and audience. This book presents fourteen essays demonstrating the analytical models explained in the introduction. These essays focus on Shakespeare’s comedies as presented in the First Folio. They do not follow the chronological order of their composition; instead, the individual essays give special attention to differences between the plays that suggest Shakespeare’s artistic development, including the varied sources of his borrowings, the differences between his etymological and phonological coinages, the frequency and types of his topical references, and his use of epithets and generics. This book will appeal to Shakespeare students and scholars at all levels, particularly those who are keen on studying his comedies. This study will also be relevant for researchers and graduate students interested in onomastics. He can be reached at gsmith@ewu.edu.

Traditional Islamic Ethics: The Concept of Virtue and its Implications for Contemporary Human Rights

Irfaan Jaffer

"Traditional Islamic Ethics: The Concept of Virtue and its Implications for Contemporary Human Rights" concentrates on the subject of Islam and modernity and Islam and human rights, a topic that has become popular and relevant with the rise of globalization and the interest in Islamic extremism and human rights. This book distinguishes itself by operating within the framework of the traditional school of thought or ‘Islamic Traditionalism’. In doing so, it draws on Islam’s 1400-year-old spiritual and intellectual tradition and its understanding of ethics and virtue, along with truth, justice, freedom, and equality. This book argues that Islam’s pre-modern approach is indispensable in creating an organic and integral human rights model for Muslims. The first section argues that the current understanding and implementation of international human rights needs to be more flexible and inclusive if it truly aims to be universal in scope; this is because ‘The Universal Declaration’ and its offshoots are still underpinned by secular-liberal principles, and therefore, are at odds with other cultural traditions. To this end, this section critically explores popular human rights histories and contemporary ethical theories that attempt to justify human rights. The second section of this book provides a general overview on the subject of ‘Islam and Human Rights’. After explaining some of the main problems, this section examines various solutions offered by Muslim academics and scholars, focusing on four different types of Muslim responses to modernity and human rights: liberal, progressive, traditional, and fundamentalist. It concludes that there are ‘spaces of convergence’ between modern-liberal ethics and traditional Islamic virtue ethics while maintaining that there are also fundamental differences and that these differences should be welcomed by human rights theorists and advocates. The book’s intended audience is primarily post-graduate students and professional academics in the fields of Human Rights, Ethical Philosophy, and Islamic Studies (modern Islamic thought, Sufism, Islamic theology, Islamic Philosophy, and Traditionalism). It will also appeal to anyone interested in the subject of Islam and modernity in general and Islam and human rights in particular.

Work Appropriation and Social Inequality

Edited by Antonia Kupfer, Technical University Dresden, Germany

This volume is a collection of subject-oriented studies on paid work. Each chapter refers to the social structures that form conditions for peoples’ working contexts and interprets workers’ and employees’ narrations on work. Work appropriation—a process of formation of subjectivity, in which workers and employees relate to the social status of their occupations and the use-value of their work in actively dealing with the work’s content and conditions—serves as a comprehensive concept for each varying subject-oriented approach in the volume. ‘Work Appropriation and Social Inequality’ focuses on social inequality, understood as the distribution of life chances that privilege some and discriminate others and reveals the unequal conditions for, and outcomes of, work appropriation. By analyzing work appropriation, it uses a broader concept than that of ‘meaning of work’ or ‘meaningful work’ as it includes the practice and processes of working. The volume’s subject-oriented approach to work differs from the stream ‘subjectivation’ in going beyond individuals’ desires for self-realization in work and to companies’ requirements of accessing emotional and personal dimensions of their workforce. The volume contains three parts: the first lays out basic approaches to work appropriation and social inequality, the second analyses current threats to work appropriation in the UK and Germany, and the third consists of a philosophical outlook on work in the Anthropocene. The book’s impact lies in pushing forward the debate on how work appropriations are linked to unequal social structures. It will therefore appeal to social scientists interested in social inequality, sociology of work and organization, as well as students and teachers at the undergraduate and graduate level in the areas of social sciences.

Passion killers: The art of passion killing in the age of stress and anxiety

Phillip Walden Bowen

There is growing pressure and stress placed on organisations to fight for customers and service/product placement in an increasingly competitive global marketplace. It has, therefore, never been more important to get the best out of the workforce. To achieve this, the role of the leader can be a fundamental factor in organisational success or failure. Leaders need to have the requisite skills to reflect the demands placed upon them in the 21st century. There are the “accidental managers” who just drop into the role of leadership and others who may develop skills and knowledge in readiness for a leadership role. There are also those who may have the innate ability to lead. Within the mix are those who are characterised by traits associated with the “dark triad” or who may use “pathocratic influence” on others to conform, reinforcing values (or lack of values) associated with toxic leadership. They create damage and harm. They become “passion killers”. The result can lead to a “pathocracy”. This book discusses the role emotional intelligence plays in helping people deal with stressful and challenging experiences, suggesting different ways to cope. The author reflects on the values that are integral to the success or failure of an organisation. “Passion” is identified as an added value that can differentiate one organisation from another. If passion is harmed, it can affect motivation, creativity, output, performance, and productivity. Therefore, this book provides the reader with examples of “passion killing” while making suggestions as to factors that can be adopted to engage and encourage passion. Conclusions are drawn and recommendations made to support those faced with “passion killers”. This book is aimed at those of all ages and educational backgrounds interested in developing their leadership knowledge and skills. It is also aimed at those interested in learning more about differences in personality, emotional intelligence, stress, coping, values, and the importance of understanding the impact of “passion killers”.

Societal Constructions of Masculinity in Chicanx and Mexican Literature

From Machismo to Feminist Masculinity

Edited by Kathryn Quinn-Sanchez, Georgian Court University and Bryan R. Pearce-Gonzales, Shenandoah University

'Societal Constructions of Masculinity in Chicanx and Mexican Literature: From Machismo to Feminist Masculinity' demonstrates how masculinity has been constructed and deconstructed as a challenge or reinforcement of patriarchy in cultural works over the last 50 years. The discussion therein focuses on the cultural shift towards a feminist masculinity and how this change is represented in Chicanx and Mexican literature and Mexican telenovelas. The book begins with how violence, citizenship, and masculinity become intertwined as patriarchy fights, both literally and figuratively, to regain the ground it lost to women's agency during WWII. It explores the author's subversion of the status quo through imagining a new aesthetic based on a poetic masculinity which highlights new forms of social relations that validate new masculinities. This is followed by examining texts from the aftermath of the Mexican Revolution that demonstrate how, by pairing the successes and failures of the nation with masculinity, one can see that as time progresses the very definition of what it signifies to be a Mexican male has been adapting along with the State. The book also explains how fatherhood has been represented in Chicanx literature and considers masculine relationships more broadly. The analysis of the telenovelas in this volume indicates how homosexuality serves as the catalyst for a reconfiguring of gender narratives, ultimately leading to change and acceptance within Mexican society while providing an unequivocal look into the future of masculinity as it begins to overthrow its historical gender binaries. This book will appeal to advanced undergraduates, graduate students, and professionals, both specialists and generalists, in fields including Gender Studies, Women's Studies, Comparative Studies, Chicana/o Studies, Latina/o Studies, Latin and American Studies, and Cultural Studies. Feminists and activists for human rights will also find this an interesting and valuable text.

Religion and the Populist Radical Right: Secular Christianism and Populism in Western Europe

Nicholas Morieson, Australian Catholic University

In Western Europe, populist radical right parties are calling for a return to Christian or Judeo-Christian values and identity. The growing electoral success of many of these parties may suggest that, after decades of secularisation, Western Europeans are returning to religion. Yet these parties do not tell their supporters to go to church, believe in God, or practise traditional Christian values. Instead, they claim that their respective national identities and cultures are the product of a Christian or Judeo-Christian tradition which either encompasses—or has produced—secular modernity. This book poses the question: if Western European politics is secular, why has religious identity become a core element of populist radical right discourse? To answer this question, Morieson examines the discursive use of religion by two of the most powerful and influential populist radical right parties: The French National Front and the Dutch Party for Freedom. Based on this examination, he argues that the populist radical right has capitalised on a cultural shift engendered by the increasing visibility of Islam in Europe. Western Europeans’ encounter with Islam has revealed the non-universal nature of Western European secularism to Europeans, and demonstrated the secularisation of Christianity into Western European ‘culture.’ This, in turn, has allowed secular French and Dutch citizens to identify themselves—as well as their nation and, ultimately, Western civilisation—as Christian or Judeo-Christian. Seizing on this cultural shift, the author contends that the National Front and Party for Freedom have built successful and similar brands of reactionary politics based on the notion that contemporary secularism is a product of Europe’s Christian heritage and values, and that therefore Muslim immigration is an existential threat to the core values of European politics, including the differentiation of politics and religion, and of church and state. ‘Religion and the Populist Radical Right: Secular Christianism and Populism in Western Europe’ will be of interest to scholars and researchers working on the intersections of Political Science, Sociology, and Religion. It will also appeal to the general audience interested in the relationship between populism in Western Europe and religious identity as it is written in an accessible style.

On Power: Neurophilosophical Foundations and Policy Implications

Nayef R. F. Al-Rodhan

‘On Power: Neurophilosophical Foundations and Policy Implications’ seeks to provide a historical, contemporary and predictive analysis of power. It aims to explain the history of political power in a unique way by approaching the concept of power through the lens of neurophilosophy – the application of neuroscientific principles to practical questions of governance, ethics, political and moral philosophy. In this book, Professor Nayef Al-Rodhan provides an accessible, incisive, and provocative take on the history, nature, and future of power. His insights go beyond conventional wisdom by exploring some of the themes that will become increasingly relevant to analysing power in the decades to come. A central idea of the book is the highly addictive universal nature of power at the neurochemical level, the craving for it, and the intense resistance to giving it up in all walks of life and circumstances. This can be applied directly to thinking about governance, political change, public policy, national and international peace, security, and prosperity. Al-Rodhan formulates an innovative conceptual picture of power by integrating the findings of neuroscience with the broader implications of power in the era of digital connectivity and cognitive and physical enhancement technologies. In doing so, he guides our approach to political power and public policy, influenced by ubiquitous, disruptive, and intrusive technologies. This book will appeal to students and scholars of neuroscience, philosophy, government, business, and international relations. It will also hold particular interest for politicians, public servants, think-tankers, policy-makers, and journalists, as well as senior executives from the corporate, sports, media and entertainment world.

We Hold These Truths to Be Self-Evident: The National Guard and the Categorical Imperative

Anne C. Armstrong, National Guard Educational Foundation; National Guard Memorial Museum, Library, and Archive

In this monograph, Dr. Armstrong argues that a nation founded in Enlightenment theory can rely on Kant’s categorical imperative as a rationale for voluntary service in one’s local National Guard. Since the 19th century, a Utilitarian argument has been the favored rationale, but in We Hold These Truths to be Self-Evident: The National Guard and the Categorical Imperative Dr. Armstrong contends that there is also a normative rationale. The author traces Guard history from its inception in 1636 to the present day and applies Kant’s unchanging categorical imperative to volunteer service in the militias. She highlights that this is an ideal that is not always met by frail human beings but that the categorical imperative is always there, lurking in the historical record. With a thorough analysis of Kant’s reasoning, the theory is chronologically applied to volunteer service in the National Guard through the perspective of the leadership of each particular era. This book is ideal for the study of American history, Enlightenment philosophy, and political science. It will appeal to scholars and academics as well as officers in Professional Military Education (PME), service academies and War Colleges, and the National Defense University.

Classical Music in a Changing World

Crisis and Vital Signs

Edited by Alberto Nones, Conservatory of Music of Gallarate; Associazione Europea di Musica e Comunicazione (AEMC), Italy and Lawrence Kramer, Fordham University

In recent years classical music has become a test case for debates over the future of culture. As times have changed, the value traditionally placed on this music has been challenged on social rather than aesthetic grounds. Lovers of classical music have been asked how its privileged history can be reconciled with growing demands for social justice and social inclusiveness. They have been asked how the music’s standing as one of the great accomplishments of the West can be reconciled with the many injustices on which those accomplishments in part depended. How can the future of classical music escape the darker shadows of its past? ‘Classical Music in a Changing World: Crisis and Vital Signs’ addresses the crisis provoked by such questions in two complementary ways. Several of the chapters show how the classical music world is already grappling with the crisis, and finding vital signs beyond the borders of the music’s traditional European strongholds: in Turkey from Ottoman times to the present, in Colombia, and in a Black American film. Other chapters identify areas that still need improvement, especially on behalf of female and LGBTQ+ musicians, and suggest how advances can be made both on concert stages and in schools. This volume, which opens with an introduction by Alberto Nones that contextualizes the book and outlines the main arguments of its chapters, contains an essay by Lawrence Kramer that examines the place of classical music in the history of consciousness—a history now changing rapidly—and concludes with a Postscript written by the two editors. The writing in this volume will be accessible to a wide audience, including scholars and students, professionals and amateurs, performers and listeners. Teachers will find it a source of lively classroom debate, and scholars a source of learning outside the usual arenas. The book’s “vital signs” include the accompanying audio tracks (available for download at: https://vernonpress. com/book/1281), which feature vibrant music-making from a diverse range of performers and composers.

Young People and Social Media: Contemporary Children’s Digital Culture

Edited by Steve Gennaro, York University, Toronto, Canada and Blair Miller, York University, Toronto, Canada

‘Young People and Social Media: Contemporary Children’s Digital Culture’ explores the practices, relationships, consequences, benefits, and outcomes of children’s experiences with, on, and through social media by bringing together a vast array of different ideas about childhood, youth, and young people’s lives. These ideas are drawn from scholars working in a variety of disciplines, and rather than just describing the social construction of childhood or an understanding of children’s lives, this collection seeks to encapsulate not only how young people exist on social media but also how their physical lives are impacted by their presence on social media. One of the aims of this volume in exploring youth interaction with social media is to unpack the structuring of digital technologies in terms of how young people access the technology to use it as a means of communication, a platform for identification, and a tool for participation in their larger social world. During longstanding and continued experience in the broad field of youth and digital culture, we have come to realize that not only is the subject matter increasing in importance at an immeasurable rate, but the amount of textbooks and/or edited collections has lagged behind considerably. There is a lack of sources that fully encapsulate the canon of texts for the discipline or the rich diversity and complexity of overlapping subject areas that create the fertile ground for studying young people’s lives and culture. The editors hope that this text will occupy some of that void and act as a catalyst for future interdisciplinary collections. ‘Young People and Social Media: Contemporary Children’s Digital Culture’ will appeal to undergraduate students studying Child and Youth Studies and—given the interdisciplinary nature of the collection— scholars, researchers and students at all levels working in anthropology, psychology, sociology, communication studies, cultural studies, media studies, education, and human rights, among others. Practitioners in these fields will also find this collection of particular interest.

Biblical Exegesis in African Context

Isaac Boaheng, University of Free State, South Africa and Frederick Mawusi Amevenku, Stellenbosch University, South Africa

‘Biblical Exegesis in African Context’ explores how the Church in Africa can affirm its uniqueness in terms of the African identity and experiences, and at the same time, remain faithful to the gospel message. The volume begins with an explanation of exegesis and hermeneutics, and the agenda for the rest of the book is set. The second chapter deals with textual criticism, which is the task of determining the originality of a biblical text. In chapter three, issues related to the context of the text are considered, after which the volume proceeds to examine the various literary forms present in the Bible— prominent among them being— Narrative, Law, Poetry, Prophecy, Wisdom Literature, Gospels, Acts of the Apostles, Epistles and Revelation. The authors then dedicate the next chapter to discussions on socio-rhetorical interpretation. The final chapters of the book deal with matters solely related to the context of Africa; this part intends to equip readers to be able to interpret the Bible from African cultural perspectives and then apply the gospel message meaningfully to the life of African Christians. Chapter seven deals with the emergence and historical development of African Biblical Studies (ABS), noting its relevance and how Africans can benefit from it. The main contention of the chapter is that Africans will better understand and apply God’s word to their lives if they read the Scriptures in an African way. The volume then explores how African languages can be used to derive the meaning of scripture and apply it to real-life situations. Here, the authors contribute to the development of MTBH by developing a methodological framework for this interpretative tool. The next chapter of the volume deals with mother-tongue theologizing in Ghana. The final chapter considers the legitimacy of female leadership in the Church within the African context through the examination of two Pauline texts. This volume will be of interest to undergraduate and graduate seminary students, students of Biblical Interpretation in religions departments, as well as practicing pastors.

Intentional Disruption: Expanding Access to Philosophy

Edited by Stephen Kekoa Miller, Oakwood Friends School; Marist College

'Intentional Disruption: Expanding Access to Philosophy' is intended for those interested in pre-college philosophy; the nine contributions within cover a wide array of approaches to bringing philosophy to younger students in a number of new settings. The chapters in this book describe programs taking place across the United States—some inside school and some in unexpected settings such as camps, art museums and nature trails—and offer help to those who want to establish or enrich philosophy programs at pre-college levels while discussing an underlying philosophy and the challenges the programs have faced. At a time when institutional philosophy is imperiled, the programs in this volume point towards new directions being forged to bring the benefits of doing philosophy to more people. This volume will be of particular interest to those interested in pre-college philosophy, and it is intended for philosophy professors, graduate students in philosophy or education, and philosophy teachers in pre-college settings. 'Intentional Disruption: Expanding Access to Philosophy' will also be helpful to school administrators, parents and philosophy camps instructors.

New worlds for old words / Mundos nuevos para viejas palabras

The impact of cultured borrowing on the languages of Western Europe / El impacto de los cultismos en los idiomas de Europa occidental

Edited by Christopher Pountain, Queen Mary University of London and Bozena Wislocka Breit, Queen Mary University of London

"New worlds for old words / Mundos nuevos para viejas palabras" is a collection of chapters on the theme of lexical borrowing in the languages of Western Europe with particular focus on borrowing from Latin, or from Greek via Latin, into Spanish. Such cultured, or “learnèd” borrowing—as it has sometimes been designated—, is an especially intriguing feature of the Romance languages, since they also derive from Latin. It is also of particular interest to historical linguists since it is an example of what has been called “change from above”: innovation first evidenced in the written usage of the culturally élite which then diffuses into more general acceptance, with the result that some cultured borrowings (e.g. problem/problema, social, program(me)/programa) are now amongst the most common words in the modern languages. Despite their enormous influence on such major languages as English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and Italian, the mechanisms by which these borrowings become established in their host languages have to date been relatively little studied. This book seeks to make a contribution to this question and revive interest in what has become a neglected area of historical linguistics and contains contributions both by internationally respected scholars and new researchers in the field. This bilingual collection will appeal to academics, scholars, and postgraduate students of Hispanic Studies, Cultural History, and particularly Historical Linguistics and Romance Linguistics. "New worlds for old words / Mundos nuevos para viejas palabras" es una colección sobre los préstamos léxicos en los idiomas de Europa occidental, centrándose sobre todo en los préstamos del latín, o del griego a través del latín, al español. Los cultismos son un rasgo especialmente interesante de las lenguas romances, ya que ellos mismos proceden del latín. También es de gran interés para la lingüística histórica dado que es un ejemplo de lo que se conoce como “cambio desde arriba”: cambios atestiguados primero en la lengua escrita de la élite cultural que luego comienza a tener un uso más generalizado, y cuyo resultado es que algunos de estos cultismos (por ejemplo “problema”, “social”, “programa”) se encuentran entre las palabras más comunes en los idiomas modernos. A pesar de su enorme influencia en lenguas tan importantes como el inglés, el español, el portugués, el francés o el italiano, los mecanismos por los que estos préstamos se establecen en los idiomas de acogida se han estudiado relativamente poco hasta ahora. Este volumen es una contribución a esta cuestión y su objetivo es reavivar el interés en lo que se ha convertido en un área olvidada de la lingüística diacrónica. Se incluyen capítulos de académicos conocidos internacionalmente y de investigadores noveles. Esta colección bilingüe será de gran utilidad para académicos, investigadores y alumnos de posgrado en estudios hispánicos, estudios culturales, y particularmente lingüística histórica y lingüística de las lenguas romances.

A Theory of Wonder: Evolution, Brain and the Radical Nature of Science

Gonzalo Munévar, Lawrence Technological University

‘A Theory of Wonder’ aims to determine the best way science can satisfy our sense of wonder by exploring the world. Empiricism tells us that science succeeds because it follows the scientific method: Observation passes judgment on Theory – supporting or rejecting it. Much credit is given to the inventor of the method, Galileo, but when historically-minded philosophers of science like Kuhn and Feyerabend called our attention to what Galileo actually wrote and did, we were shocked to find out that Galileo instead drives a dagger through the heart of empiricism; he strikes down the distinction between theory and observation. Plain facts, like the vertical fall of a stone, ruled out the motion of the Earth. To conclude that the stone really falls vertically, however, we must assume that the Earth does not move. If it does move, then the stone only “seems” to fall vertically. Galileo then replaced the “facts” against the motion of the Earth with “facts” that included such motion. This process is typical during scientific revolutions. A good strategy for science is to elaborate radical alternatives; then, and on their basis, reconsider what counts as evidence. Feyerabend was called irrational for this suggestion; but looking at the practice of science from the perspective of evolution and neuroscience shows that the suggestion is very reasonable instead, and, moreover, explains why science works best as a radical form of knowledge. It also leads to a sensible biological form of relative truth, with preliminary drafts leading to exciting discussions with other researchers in the philosophy of science. This book will be of particular interest to university students, instructors and researchers in history or philosophy of science, as well as those with a general interest in the nature of science.

Duncan and Marjorie Phillips and America’s First Museum of Modern Art

Pamela Carter-Birken

He was born to privilege and sought the world of art. She lived at the center of that world—a working artist encouraged by the famous artists in her extended family. Together, Duncan Phillips and Marjorie Acker Phillips founded The Phillips Collection in Washington, D.C., the first museum of modern art in America. It opened in the grand Phillips family home in 1921, eight years before New York City’s Museum of Modern Art and only a few weeks after they wed. Duncan took the lead in developing the collection and showcasing it. Marjorie kept space and time to paint. Duncan considered Marjorie a partner in the museum even though she was not directly involved in all purchasing and presentation decisions. To him, her influence was omnipresent. Although Duncan’s writings on artists and art history were widely published, he chose not to provide much instruction for visitors to the museum. Instead, he combined signature methods of displaying art which live on at The Phillips Collection. Phillips had viewers in mind when he hung American art with European art—or art of the past with modern art, and he frequently rearranged works to stimulate fresh encounters. With unfettered access to archival material, author Pamela Carter-Birken argues that The Phillips Collection’s relevancy comes from Duncan Phillips’s commitment to providing optimal conditions for personal exploration of art. In-depth collecting of certain artists was one of Phillips’s methods of encouraging independent thinking in viewers. Paintings by Pierre Bonnard, Arthur Dove, Georgia O’Keeffe, John Marin, Jacob Lawrence, and Mark Rothko provide testament to the power of America’s first museum of modern art.

Classical Music in a Changing World (Audio CD Edition)

Crisis and Vital Signs

Edited by Alberto Nones, Conservatory of Music of Gallarate; Associazione Europea di Musica e Comunicazione (AEMC), Italy and Lawrence Kramer, Fordham University

In recent years classical music has become a test case for debates over the future of culture. As times have changed, the value traditionally placed on this music has been challenged on social rather than aesthetic grounds. Lovers of classical music have been asked how its privileged history can be reconciled with growing demands for social justice and social inclusiveness. They have been asked how the music’s standing as one of the great accomplishments of the West can be reconciled with the many injustices on which those accomplishments in part depended. How can the future of classical music escape the darker shadows of its past? ‘Classical Music in a Changing World: Crisis and Vital Signs’ addresses the crisis provoked by such questions in two complementary ways. Several of the chapters show how the classical music world is already grappling with the crisis, and finding vital signs beyond the borders of the music’s traditional European strongholds: in Turkey from Ottoman times to the present, in Colombia, and in a Black American film. Other chapters identify areas that still need improvement, especially on behalf of female and LGBTQ+ musicians, and suggest how advances can be made both on concert stages and in schools. This volume, which opens with an introduction by Alberto Nones that contextualizes the book and outlines the main arguments of its chapters, contains an essay by Lawrence Kramer that examines the place of classical music in the history of consciousness—a history now changing rapidly—and concludes with a Postscript written by the two editors. The writing in this volume will be accessible to a wide audience, including scholars and students, professionals and amateurs, performers and listeners. Teachers will find it a source of lively classroom debate, and scholars a source of learning outside the usual arenas. The book’s “vital signs” include the accompanying audio tracks (available for download at: https://vernonpress. com/book/1281), which feature vibrant music-making from a diverse range of performers and composers.