Bøker utgitt av John E Beerbower

The four books in my Wanderings series contain many essays on politicized topics. I decided to collect them in one place, arranged by related subjects, covering most of the big issues of today: racism, climate change, abortion, inequality, heredity, nationalism, patriotism. I call it "Politics," based on an unusual definition attributed to the late Christopher Boehm, formerly the Director of the Jane Goodall Research Center. I would clarify it by adding "attainable" before "directions" and "rational" before "arguments", making it less Utopian but also more aspirational. It seems silly to do more than dream about societies that can never exist; and we can at least hope for rational argument. I believe that these essays meet both criteria."[T]he essence of politics: the ability to reflect consciously on different directions one's society could take, and to make explicit arguments why it should take one path rather than another."In May 2023, I became concerned again that I would run out of time and, frankly, was feeling worn out. So, I wrapped up my writing projects and published them. Then, during that summer, I resumed reading, then writing. The master of the book Politics became longer, as I revised and expanded it. It seems one cannot discuss politics without considering history and ideologgy. And, I felt the original title was now too narrow. Thus, I added to the title as well.With a subsequent (modest) burst of renewed energy, I continued reading, then writing, producing my fifth set of essays in my Wanderings series, which I titled Disappointments. About half of the essays involved scientific issues. So, I revised, supplemented and repackaged them into a new volume as a second addendum to Important Things We Don't Know, entitled Life, etc. Much of the remainder seemed to be useful additions to Politics, History and Ideology.While adding that material, I decided on a substantial restructuring. The essays consisting essentially of book reviews (really, critiques) have been moved to the back. I think that this change makes it much easier to follow the themes of the book and, for anyone interested, to find my comments on particular books.Here is the new, new, expanded edition, with a slightly modified title.

Diagnosed with ALS in 2015 and confined to a wheelchair in 2018, he wrote his first collection of essays, entitled Wanderings of a Captive Mind. A second set of essays, The Eyes Have It (Wanderings Part 2), was written entirely using his eyes. Those essays are by practical necessity shorter and without the many references. This new set, also written primarily with his eyes, is Part 3 of Wanderings. And, as J.R.R. Tolkien wrote: "Not all those who wander are lost... ."Born in Columbus, Ohio, and raised in Northville, Michigan, John majored in economics at Amherst College (Class of 1970) and received his J.D. from The Harvard Law School in 1973. Following law school, he did post-graduate research at the University of Cambridge (Trinity College). In late 1974, John began a 37-year career as a commercial litigator with a major law firm in New York City. John retired from the practice of law in 2011 and, shortly thereafter, located just outside of Cambridge, England. In March 2015, however, after his diagnosis, he returned to the U.S., settling in Old Town Alexandria, Virginia. His daughter Sarah and his son John Eliot and daughter-in-law Megan, with his two grandchildren, Hannah and Jeffrey, all live nearby.

Diagnosed with ALS in March 2015 and confined to a wheelchair by late 2016, the author occupied himself with meditation, reading and watching operas through Met On Demand. But, an active mind in an increasingly useless body needed some affirmative participation in the world, something less passive. These essays are the result. Ranging from intensely personal to dryly academic (from dying to taxation), they reflect the matters that caught his mind''s attention and as to which he discovered that he had strong opinions. They are individually independent and can stand alone, but there is some substantive overlap. Of course, the world view expressed in each is the same. John majored in economics at Amherst College, receiving a BA, summa cum laude, in 1970. He received his JD, magna cum laude, from Harvard Law School in 1973. Following law school, he did post-graduate research at Trinity College, University of Cambridge. In late 1974, John began a 37-year career as a commercial litigator with a major law firm in New York City. His cases spanned many industries and technologies. John retired from the practice of law in 2011, after which he relocated to a small village outside of Cambridge, England. In March 2015, however, John was diagnosed with ALS (motor neuron disease). As a result, he decided to return to the U.S., to live in Old Town Alexandria, Virginia, with his daughter Sarah and her Rhodesian Ridgebacks. His son John Eliot and daughter-in-law Megan, with his two grandchildren Hannah and Jeffrey, live nearby.

A skeptical examination of what we call the sciences, focusing on the important things that we still do not know about nearly everything that really matters. [Updated through 2021.] "The perspective of this book differs from that of most books that one would find in the popular science section of a library or bookshop. I do not undertake to surprise or educate the reader with examples of the marvelous discoveries of science and the amazing things that we have come to learn about the world around us. Instead, and of more importance, I try to show the reader what we do not know, illustrating both the scope and the depth of our ignorance. ...The point that I seek to establish in the following pages is that despite the astonishing achievements and practical consequences of technology, science has been remarkably unsuccessful. Upon a close examination, the lack of actual knowledge about and real understanding of the deeper fundamentals of reality are among the most striking and surprising characteristics of modern science. And, this is not bad news. To the contrary, our ignorance is a source of wonder... ." John majored in economics at Amherst College, receiving a BA, summa cum laude, in 1970. He received his JD, magna cum laude, from The Harvard Law School in 1973. Following law school, he did post-graduate research at Trinity College, University of Cambridge. In late 1974, John began a 37-year career as a commercial litigator with a major law firm in New York City. He retired from the practice of law in 2011, after which he located just outside of Cambridge, England, to enjoy the facilities of the University. In March 2015, however, John was diagnosed with ALS (motor neuron disease). As a result, he returned to the U.S. He has been living in Old Town, Alexandria, Virginia, with his daughter Sarah and her Rhodesian Ridgebacks. His son John Eliot and daughter-in-law Megan, with his two grandchildren Hannah and Jeffrey, live nearby.