The Professor of Secrets

The Professor of Secrets PDF Author: William Eamon
Publisher: National Geographic Books
ISBN: 142620650X
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 372

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Book Description
Examines the life and work of sixteenth-century physician Leonardo Fioravanti, and describes the medical community and practices of Renaissance Italy.

The Professor of Secrets

The Professor of Secrets PDF Author: William Eamon
Publisher: National Geographic Books
ISBN: 142620650X
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 372

Get Book Here

Book Description
Examines the life and work of sixteenth-century physician Leonardo Fioravanti, and describes the medical community and practices of Renaissance Italy.

The Professor of Secrets

The Professor of Secrets PDF Author: William Eamon
Publisher: National Geographic Books
ISBN: 1426206852
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 372

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Book Description
In the tradition of Galileo's Daughter and Brunelleschi's Dome, this exciting story illuminates the captivating world of the late Renaissance—in this case its plagues, remedies, and alchemy—through the life of Leonardo Fioravanti, a brilliant, remarkably forward-thinking, and utterly unconventional doctor. Fioravanti's marvelous cures and talent for self-aggrandizement earned him the adoration of the people, the scorn of the medical establishment, and a reputation as one of the age's most colorful, combative figures. Written by Pulitzer-prize nominated historian William Eamon, The Professor of Secrets entices readers into a dangerous scientific underworld of sorcerers and surgeons. Meticulously researched and engagingly written, this gripping narrative will appeal to those interested in Renaissance history, the development of science, and the historical thrillers so popular today.

Science and the Secrets of Nature

Science and the Secrets of Nature PDF Author: William Eamon
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 0691214611
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 508

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Book Description
By explaining how to sire multicolored horses, produce nuts without shells, and create an egg the size of a human head, Giambattista Della Porta's Natural Magic (1559) conveys a fascination with tricks and illusions that makes it a work difficult for historians of science to take seriously. Yet, according to William Eamon, it is in the "how-to" books written by medieval alchemists, magicians, and artisans that modern science has its roots. These compilations of recipes on everything from parlor tricks through medical remedies to wool-dyeing fascinated medieval intellectuals because they promised access to esoteric "secrets of nature." In closely examining this rich but little-known source of literature, Eamon reveals that printing technology and popular culture had as great, if not stronger, an impact on early modern science as did the traditional academic disciplines.

The Professor of Secrets

The Professor of Secrets PDF Author: William Eamon
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781459676053
Category : Alchemy
Languages : en
Pages : 644

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Book Description
He was called 'that glorious man of new miracles'...'an angel of paradise, sent by God to earth for the health and preservation of human life'. He also was accused of being a charlatan and a dangerous quack, and he served time in prison for poisoning his patients. It was from his cell that this Renaissance surgeon issued an audacious challenge: 'that there be consigned to me alone twenty - five sick people...and an equal number with similar infirmities to all the physicians of Milan. If I don't cure my patients more quickly and better than they do theirs, I'm willing to be banished forever from the city'. Leading historian and Pulitzer - nominated author William Eamon, in his thoroughly researched narrative history, ''''The Professor of Secrets'''', evokes the world of Renaissance medicine to tell the stranger - than - fiction tale of surgeon Leonardo Fioravanti. The doctor's fascinating story opens a window onto the scientific and medical world of the late Renaissance - a time when the next devastating plague was just a flea bite away. When barber surgeons frequently bled their patients along with giving them a shave. When one could buy a ticket to view a public dissection of a human body. And when doctors, according to Eamon, practiced a 'chemistry - kit - in - the - basement' style of science. As Dava Sobel's bestselling ''''Galileo's Daughter'''' intimately brings to life, through letters, the world of an astronomer and his troubles with the Church, so The Professor of Secrets reconstructs a life lost to history and tells an alternative story of the Scientific Revolution - speaking through the experiences of a man who lived on the margins of great events and witnessed them with a penetrating vision. From charlatans selling their wares in the streets, to horrifying cures and treatments, to Fioravanti's 'miraculous' contributions to medicine at the time, Eamon points up the un - romanticised realities of life during the Renaissance. And he shows us that this first 'celebrity' physician is still relevant today, as our own modern charlatans - TV doctors and fad - diet hawkers - push upon us the next latest and greatest medicines and cures.

The President's Book of Secrets

The President's Book of Secrets PDF Author: David Priess
Publisher: PublicAffairs
ISBN: 1610395964
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 401

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Book Description
Every president has had a unique and complicated relationship with the intelligence community. While some have been coolly distant, even adversarial, others have found their intelligence agencies to be among the most valuable instruments of policy and power. Since John F. Kennedy's presidency, this relationship has been distilled into a personalized daily report: a short summary of what the intelligence apparatus considers the most crucial information for the president to know that day about global threats and opportunities. This top-secret document is known as the President's Daily Brief, or, within national security circles, simply "the Book." Presidents have spent anywhere from a few moments (Richard Nixon) to a healthy part of their day (George W. Bush) consumed by its contents; some (Bill Clinton and George H. W. Bush) consider it far and away the most important document they saw on a regular basis while commander in chief. The details of most PDBs are highly classified, and will remain so for many years. But the process by which the intelligence community develops and presents the Book is a fascinating look into the operation of power at the highest levels. David Priess, a former intelligence officer and daily briefer, has interviewed every living president and vice president as well as more than one hundred others intimately involved with the production and delivery of the president's book of secrets. He offers an unprecedented window into the decision making of every president from Kennedy to Obama, with many character-rich stories revealed here for the first time.

There Are No Secrets

There Are No Secrets PDF Author: Wolfe Lowenthal
Publisher: North Atlantic Books
ISBN: 1556431120
Category : Sports & Recreation
Languages : en
Pages : 178

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Book Description
"Wolfe Lowenthal's quiet little memoir will with window-opening wisdom reinforce, I think, my view of how Cheng stood on Tai Chi. It tells how a young writer reacted to this strange Chinese man when he appeared in New York City in the mid-1960s and stayed there for a decade before returning to Taiwan to die in 1975. In a nickel town where neurosis is a cardinal virtue, the Tai Chi center established by Cheng soon became an oasis of learning. In my visits there I was invariably approached by a quiet fellow with a ready smile and loads of questions. His form and sensing hands improved but he never lost his kindly ways. This led me once to tell the three seniors that the one person in the club who best exemplified Tai Chi was this junior. That man who has since become a teacher of the art is the author if this book." -Robert W. Smith, from the Preface

Professor of Secrets

Professor of Secrets PDF Author: William Eamon
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781426207440
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 368

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Book Description
He was called 'that glorious man of new miracles'...'an angel of paradise, sent by God to earth for the health and preservation of human life'. He also was accused of being a charlatan and a dangerous quack, and he served time in prison for poisoning his patients. It was from his cell that this Renaissance surgeon issued an audacious challenge: 'that there be consigned to me alone twenty - five sick people...and an equal number with similar infirmities to all the physicians of Milan. If I don't cure my patients more quickly and better than they do theirs, I'm willing to be banished forever from the city'. Leading historian and Pulitzer - nominated author William Eamon, in his thoroughly researched narrative history, ''''The Professor of Secrets'''', evokes the world of Renaissance medicine to tell the stranger - than - fiction tale of surgeon Leonardo Fioravanti. The doctor's fascinating story opens a window onto the scientific and medical world of the late Renaissance - a time when the next devastating plague was just a flea bite away. When barber surgeons frequently bled their patients along with giving them a shave. When one could buy a ticket to view a public dissection of a human body. And when doctors, according to Eamon, practiced a 'chemistry - kit - in - the - basement' style of science. As Dava Sobel's bestselling ''''Galileo's Daughter'''' intimately brings to life, through letters, the world of an astronomer and his troubles with the Church, so The Professor of Secrets reconstructs a life lost to history and tells an alternative story of the Scientific Revolution - speaking through the experiences of a man who lived on the margins of great events and witnessed them with a penetrating vision. From charlatans selling their wares in the streets, to horrifying cures and treatments, to Fioravanti's 'miraculous' contributions to medicine at the time, Eamon points up the un - romanticised realities of life during the Renaissance. And he shows us that this first 'celebrity' physician is still relevant today, as our own modern charlatans - TV doctors and fad - diet hawkers - push upon us the next latest and greatest medicines and cures.

Happier

Happier PDF Author: Tal Ben-Shahar
Publisher: McGraw Hill Professional
ISBN: 0071510966
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 210

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Book Description
Can YouLearn to BeHappy? YES . . . according to the teacher of HarvardUniversity’s most popular and life-changingcourse. One out of every five Harvard studentshas lined up to hear Tal Ben-Shahar’sinsightful and inspiring lectures on thatever-elusive state: HAPPINESS. HOW? Grounded in the revolutionary “positive psychology” movement,Ben-Shahar ingeniously combines scientific studies, scholarly research, self-help advice, and spiritual enlightenment. He weaves them together into a set of principles that you can apply to your daily life. Once you open your heart and mind to Happier ’s thoughts, you will feel more fulfilled, more connected . . . and, yes, HAPPIER. “Dr. Ben-Shahar, one of the most popular teachers in Harvard’s recent history, has written a personal, informed, and highly enjoyable primer on how to become happier. It would be wise to take his advice.” --Ellen J. Langer, author of Mindfulness and On Becoming an Artist “This fine book shimmers with a rare brand of good sense that is imbedded in scientific knowledge about how to increase happiness. It is easy to see how this is the backbone of the most popular course at Harvard today." --Martin E. P. Seligman, author of Authentic Happiness

Nation of Secrets

Nation of Secrets PDF Author: Ted Gup
Publisher: Anchor
ISBN: 0307472914
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 338

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Book Description
Award winning journalist Ted Gup exposes how and why our most important institutions increasingly keep secrets from the very people they are supposed to serve.Drawing on his decades as an investigative reporter, Ted Gup argues that a preoccupation with secrets has undermined the very values--security, patriotism, and privacy--in whose name secrecy is so often invoked. He explores the blatant exploitation of privacy and confidentiality in academia, business, and the courts, and concludes that in case after case, these principles have been twisted to allow the emergence of a shadow system of justice, unaccountable to the public. Nation of Secrets not only sounds the alarm to warn against an unethical way of life, but calls for the preservation of our democracy as we know it.

The Secret Thoughts of an Unlikely Convert

The Secret Thoughts of an Unlikely Convert PDF Author: Rosaria Champagne Butterfield
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781884527821
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 191

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Book Description
"Rosaria, by the standards of many, was living a very good life. She had a tenured position at a large university in a field for which she cared deeply. She owned two homes with her partner, in which they provided hospitality to students and activists that were looking to make a difference in the world. In the community, Rosaria was involved in volunteer work. At the university, she was a respected advisor of students and her department's curriculum. And then, in her late 30s, Rosaria encountered something that turned her world upside down -- the idea that Christianity, a religion that she had regarded as problematic and sometimes downright damaging, might be right about who God was. That idea seemed to fly in the face of the people and causes that she most loved. What follows is a story of what she describes as a train wreck at the hand of the supernatural. These are her secret thoughts about those events, written as only a reflective English professor could."--Back cover.