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Ten birds that changed the world / by Moss, Stephen,1960-author.;
Includes bibliographical references and index."For the whole of human history, we have shared our world with birds. We have hunted and domesticated them for food, fuel and feathers; placed them at the heart of our rituals, religions, myths and legends; poisoned, persecuted and often demonized them; and celebrated them in our music, art and poetry. Even today, despite a growing disconnect between humanity and the rest of nature, birds continue to play an integral role in our lives. Ten Birds that Changed the World tells the story of this long and intricate relationship, spanning the whole of human history, and featuring birds from all seven of the world's continents. It does so through those species whose lives, and their interactions with us, have - in one way or another - changed the course of human history. From when Noah sent out the Raven from the Ark, birds have been central to our superstitions, mythology and folklore. Once humans switched from hunter-gathering to settled societies they began to domesticate wild birds: first the Rock Dove - now the domestic or feral Pigeon - used to communicate over long distances; and then the Wild Turkey and other species for food - later, they became the centerpiece of the annual family festivals of Thanksgiving and Christmas. The Dodo of the Indian Ocean is the icon of extinction, while Darwin's Finches changed the way we look at life on our planet, and the droppings of the Guanay Cormorant provided vast amounts of phosphates, kickstarting a global agricultural revolution. In North America, the Snowy Egret almost disappeared when its plumes were used for fashion; this led to the modern bird protection and conservation movement. The Bald Eagle is the proud symbol of the USA, but eagles have a checkered history, especially in Roman and Nazi propaganda. In China, Mao's 'Great Leap Forward' turned out to be the exact opposite. His call to kill millions of Tree Sparrows meant the insects they ate destroyed the grain harvest - leading to a famine in which thirty million people died. Finally, the Emperor Penguin of Antarctica stands as a potent symbol of how humanity's future is now in the balance, as it heads towards becoming the first global casualty of the Climate Emergency. It is an urgent sign, warning us about our own survival on the planet? Ten Birds that Changed the World is a 'big picture' view of global human history, seen through a unique and original viewpoint: our relationship with birds, as crucial to our lives today as is has ever been"--
Subjects: Birds; Human-animal relationships;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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The Anxious Generation How the Great Rewiring of Childhood Is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness [electronic resource] : by Haidt, Jonathan.aut; cloudLibrary;
From New York Times bestselling coauthor of The Coddling of the American Mind, an essential investigation into the collapse of youth mental health—and a plan for a healthier, freer childhood. “An urgent and provocative read on why so many kids are not okay—and how to course correct." —Adam Grant “A crucial read for parents of children of elementary school age and beyond, who face the rapidly changing landscape of childhood.” —Emily Oster “Every single parent needs to stop what they are doing and read this book immediately."—Johann Hari After more than a decade of stability or improvement, the mental health of adolescents plunged in the early 2010s. Rates of depression, anxiety, self-harm, and suicide rose sharply, more than doubling on many measures. Why? In The Anxious Generation, social psychologist Jonathan Haidt lays out the facts about the epidemic of teen mental illness that hit many countries at the same time. He then investigates the nature of childhood, including why children need play and independent exploration to mature into competent, thriving adults. Haidt shows how the “play-based childhood” began to decline in the 1980s, and how it was finally wiped out by the arrival of the “phone-based childhood” in the early 2010s. He presents more than a dozen mechanisms by which this “great rewiring of childhood” has interfered with children’s social and neurological development, covering everything from sleep deprivation to attention fragmentation, addiction, loneliness, social contagion, social comparison, and perfectionism. He explains why social media damages girls more than boys and why boys have been withdrawing from the real world into the virtual world, with disastrous consequences for themselves, their families, and their societies. Most important, Haidt issues a clear call to action. He diagnoses the “collective action problems” that trap us, and then proposes four simple rules that might set us free. He describes steps that parents, teachers, schools, tech companies, and governments can take to end the epidemic of mental illness and restore a more humane childhood. Haidt has spent his career speaking truth backed by data in the most difficult landscapes—communities polarized by politics and religion, campuses battling culture wars, and now the public health emergency faced by Gen Z. We cannot afford to ignore his findings about protecting our children—and ourselves—from the psychological damage of a phone-based life.
Subjects: Electronic books.; Mental Health; Teenagers; Stress Management;
© 2024., Penguin Publishing Group,
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Unrequited infatuations : odyssey of a rock and roll consigliere : (a cautionary tale) / by Van Zandt, Steve,author.; Greenman, Ben,editor.;
Uncover never-before-told stories in this epic tale of self-discovery by a Rock n Roll disciple and member of the E Street Band. What story begins in a bedroom in suburban New Jersey in the early '60s, unfolds on some of the country's largest stages, and then ranges across the globe, demonstrating over and over again how Rock and Roll has the power to change the world for the better? This story. The first true heartbeat of Unrequited Infatuations is the moment when Stevie Van Zandt trades in his devotion to the Baptist religion for an obsession with Rock and Roll. Groups like the Beatles and the Rolling Stones created new ideas of community, creative risk, and principled rebellion. They changed him forever. While still a teenager, he met Bruce Springsteen, a like-minded outcast/true believer who became one of his most important friends and bandmates. As Miami Steve, Van Zandt anchored the E Street Band as they conquered the Rock and Roll world. And then, in the early '80s, Van Zandt stepped away from E Street to embark on his own odyssey. He refashioned himself as Little Steven, a political songwriter and performer, fell in love with Maureen Santoro who greatly expanded his artistic palette, and visited the world's hot spots as an artist/journalist to not just better understand them, but to help change them. Most famously, he masterminded the recording of "Sun City," an anti-apartheid anthem that sped the demise of South Africa's institutionalized racism and helped get Nelson Mandela out of prison. By the '90s, Van Zandt had lived at least two lives--one as a mainstream rocker, one as a hardcore activist. It was time for a third. David Chase invited Van Zandt to be a part of his new television show, the Sopranos--as Silvio Dante, he was the unconditionally loyal consiglieri who sat at the right hand of Tony Soprano (a relationship that oddly mirrored his real-life relationship with Bruce Springsteen). Underlying all of Van Zandt's various incarnations was a devotion to preserving the centrality of the arts, especially the endangered species of Rock. In the twenty-first century, Van Zandt founded a groundbreaking radio show (Little Steven's Underground Garage), created the first two 24/7 branded music channels on SiriusXM (Underground Garage and Outlaw Country), started a fiercely independent record label (Wicked Cool), and developed a curriculum to teach students of all ages through the medium of music history. He also rejoined the E Street Band for what has now been a twenty-year victory lap. ​Unrequited Infatuations chronicles the twists and turns of Stevie Van Zandt's always surprising life. It is more than just the testimony of a globe-trotting nomad, more than the story of a groundbreaking activist, more than the odyssey of a spiritual seeker, and more than a master class in rock and roll (not to mention a dozen other crafts). It's the best book of its kind because it's the only book of its kind.
Subjects: Biographies.; Autobiographies.; Van Zandt, Steve.; Rock musicians;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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Death in the City. by Ghosh, Balaka,film director.; Ronin Films (Firm),dst; Kanopy (Firm),dst;
Originally produced by Ronin Films in 2022.The sacred city of Varanasi, situated on the holy Ganges, ‘the river of life’, is the revered destination for death for Hindus since time immemorial. With legendary funeral pyres burning non-stop for over three millennia on the river bank, the city’s status is founded on the belief that dying in Varanasi breaks the repeated cycle of rebirth. Filmed across four years, 2018 - 2021, DEATH IN THE CITY is an intimate portrayal of ‘The City of Life and Death’, the myriad communities who live and work in its ancient streets; including those waiting to die or those working with the dead, along with rare access to the death-worshipping Aghori Saints. This is a film in three movements: the spiritual, the metaphysical and the experiential. The most pressured crematorium in the world, Varanasi’s relationship with death is at the same time auspicious, spiritual, and industrial.Mode of access: World Wide Web.
Subjects: Documentary films.; Social sciences.; Philosophy and religion.; Anthropology.; Asians.; Foreign study.; Documentary films.; Ethnicity.;
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Agent of Happiness. by Bhattarai, Arun,film director.; Zurbo, Dorottya,film director.; Film Movement (Firm),dst; Kanopy (Firm),dst;
Originally produced by Film Movement in 2024.Can satisfaction with one’s life be rated on a scale from one to ten? Amber, a government happiness agent, travels the Bhutanese Himalayas surveying people's happiness. On his remote mountain journey, he is forced to confront his own struggle for fulfillment and question what makes him happy.Mode of access: World Wide Web.
Subjects: Documentary films.; Philosophy and religion.; Social sciences.; Travel.; Instructional films.; Asians.; Foreign study.; Mental health.; Health.; Documentary films.; Current affairs.; Emotions.;
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