To Get Back Home is a medical thriller of the first order, a true story of triumph and survival over astronomical odds, as an otherwise healthy and active young woman fights for her life after being suddenly stricken by a rare neurological disorder, Acute Demyelinating Encephalomyelitis (ADEM). To Get Back Home takes you on a harrowing journey as Ms. Ford forges her way back from a coma and quadriplegia, desperate to return to her family and young children.

Her life seemed perfect until Wendy Ford was stricken and rendered comatose within days, and then, after a tense weeks-long battle for survival, quadriplegic. At one of the most renowned hospitals in the world, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, the Harvard teaching hospital known as "Harvard with a heart," her doctors Harvard Medical School professors all were helpless to diagnose and treat her, hard as they tried, as the rare malady confounded even them and she slipped further and further away. Initially, she was not expected to live, or, ultimately, to walk again or recover her prior intellectual abilities. Doctors have referred to hers as a miracle case, but the mysteries persist to this day.

"An engaging, moving memoir that unravels at a quick pace. Straightforward and honest, emotional realism is achieved with quiet dignity, making it all the more poignant..."
-Kate Darnton, Contributing Editor,
PublicAffairs

"Impeccably done and so fascinating. Sometimes you read something that's really important and you have to at least try to get it out there..."
-Philip Spitzer, Literary Agent, NY, NY

"A poignant narrative...I was spellbound. You are a role model for your life-affirming persistence..."
-Weston Boer, Writer and Historian

"Immensely valuable to anyone in the clergy as they help people through dire straits."
-The Rev. Susan Flanders, Chevy Chase, MD

"Very moved by your manuscript, which I read from cover to cover, at once...Remarkable..."
-Diana Barrett, Harvard Business School

"Your very desire to live and not die was itself a kind of prayer."
-Professor Kimberley Patton, Harvard Divinity School

ONE OF AMAZON'S TOP 100 BOOKS OF 2014 Neanderthal Man tells the story of geneticist Svante Paabo's mission to answer this question: what can we learn from the genomes of our closest evolutionary relatives? Beginning with the study of DNA in Egyptian mummies in the early 1980s and culminating in the sequencing of the Neanderthal genome in 2010, Neanderthal Man describes the events, intrigues, failures, and triumphs of these scientifically rich years through the lens of the pioneer and inventor of the field of ancient DNA. We learn that Neanderthal genes offer a unique window into the lives of our hominid relatives and may hold the key to unlocking the mystery of why humans survived while Neanderthals went extinct. Paabo's findings have not only redrawn our family tree, but recast the fundamentals of human history,the biological beginnings of fully modern Homo sapiens , the direct ancestors of all people alive today.

In 2017, Dr Suzanne Koven published an essay describing the challenges faced by women doctors, including her own personal struggle with "imposter syndrome"-a long-held, secret belief that she was not clever enough or good enough to be a "real" doctor. Accessed nearly 300,000 times by readers around the world, Koven's Letter to a Young Female Physician has evolved into a work that reflects on her career in medicine, in which women still encounter sexism, pay inequity and harassment. Koven tells engaging stories about her pregnancy during a gruelling residency in the AIDS era; the illnesses of her son and parents during which her roles as a doctor, mother and daughter converged; and the twilight of her career during the COVID-19 pandemic. Letter to a Young Female Physician offers an indelible eyewitness account from a doctor, mother, wife, daughter, teacher and writer that will encourage readers to embrace their own imperfect selves.

'Who would have guessed that a philosopher's life could be so full of adventures?'

Daniel C. Dennett, philosopher and cognitive scientist, has spent his career considering consciousness. I've Been Thinking traces the development of Dennett's own intellect and instructs us how we too can become good thinkers.

Dennett's restless curiosity leads him from his childhood in Beirut to Harvard, and from Parisian jazz clubs to 'tillosophy' on his tractor in Maine. Along the way, he encounters and debates with a host of legendary thinkers, and reveals the breakthroughs and misjudgments that shaped his paradigm-shifting philosophies. Thinking, Dennett argues, is hard, and risky. In fact, all good philosophical thinking is inevitably accompanied by bafflement, frustration and self-doubt. It is only in getting it wrong that we, very occasionally, find a way to get it right.

This memoir by one of the greatest philosophers of our time will speak to anyone who seeks a life of the mind with adventure and creativity.

V. I. Keilis-Borok (1921-2013) is the founder of computational seismology and the pioneer of advance predictions of critical events in complex systems, including earthquakes, presidential elections, economic recessions, surges of unemployment, and crime waves. Among his successful advance earthquake predictions are Irpinia earthquake in Italy (1980), Loma Prieta earthquake in California (1989), Chile earthquake of 2010, Japan earthquake of 2011, and many others.
V. I. Keilis-Borok developed new paradigms in the study of structure and dynamics of solid Earth. His trademark style involved exceptional organizational talent and insight that enabled him to make seemingly impossible connections between different fields of research and different groups of experts, often breaking the barriers between high theory, numerical modeling, and data analysis.
His outstanding achievements are recognized by memberships in many academies and international scientific organizations, including National Academy of Sciences of the USA, Pontifical Academy of Sciences, Academia Europea, Royal Astronomical Society, and others, as well as through awards and honors, and by the respect and devotion he inspired in his friends and colleagues.
This book contains his brief biography and reflections by his family, friends, and colleagues-a tribute to this truly remarkable man.
Proceeds from this book will support the effort in promoting and publicizing V.I. Keilis-Borok's work.

This twenty-sixth volume of "Geographers: Biobibliographical Studies" brings together essays on leading figures in time geography and regional theory, on GIS, on regional, cultural and political geography, on scriptural geography, historical geography and methodology, and on African exploration. Each essay engages with the individual's contribution to geography, their works and their lives and the intellectual and social contexts in which they worked and which helped shape them. In addition - and to mark the new co-editorial pairing leading the series - the volume has an essay on the history of GBS, on the importance of biographical work in the history of geography and on issues to be addressed by the scholarly communities engaged in promoting this vital area of geographical research.

Prepare to be intrigued, amazed and astonished as you join Dr Rhona Morrison on an often funny, and at times downright bizarre, thought-provoking and eye-opening rollercoaster ride through some of the most curious encounters of her career as a leading forensic psychiatrist.Delve into the minds of real people, whose actions may shock and stun you, but who's stories have the power to challenge your assumptions and the stigma that surrounds mental illness.Travel directly into their living rooms and see behind the closed doors of hospitals, prisons and court rooms. Lift the lid on Dr Morrison's jaw-dropping experiences with murderers, stalkers and other dangerous offenders as she attempts to make sense of some highly unusual situations. Discover the true stories of the inspiring human beings who are bravely learning to live with major mental illness.'I don't talk to dead bodies' shines a powerful, emotional and surprisingly moving spotlight on the fascinating life of a forensic psychiatrist and the people she works with. It goes beyond the sensationalist headlines to show you just what happens in a world where mental illness occasionally makes good people do bad things.

In January 2020, leading epidemiologist Professor Mark Woolhouse learned of a new virus taking hold in China. He immediately foresaw a hard road ahead for the entire world, and emailed the Chief Medical Officer of Scotland warning that the UK should urgently begin preparations. A few days later he received a polite reply stating only that everything was under control. In this astonishing account, Mark Woolhouse shares his story as an insider, having served on advisory groups to both the Scottish and UK governments. He reveals the disregarded advice, frustration of dealing with politicians, and the missteps that led to the deaths of vulnerable people, damage to livelihoods and the disruption of education. He explains the follies of lockdown and sets out the alternatives. Finally, he warns that when the next pandemic comes, we must not dither and we must not panic; never again should we make a global crisis even worse. The Year the World Went Mad puts our recent, devastating, history in a completely new light.

Having practiced yoga for more than thirty years, Audrey Pearson had always felt fit, strong, and flexible. Then one day in October of 2004, she awoke to flu-like symptoms, unable to move her limbs. These symptoms never decreased and only inflated. She was diagnosed with Polymyalgia Rheumatica (PMR), a mysterious autoimmune disease; and was treated with the steroid drug Prednisone.

Written in diary format, My Four-Year PMR & Prednisone Challenge describes Pearson's daily struggle not only with the disease but with managing steroid treatment and her painful journey of withdrawing from Prednisone use. She attributes her successful recovery to her long-term practice of yoga, a gentle way to optimize the flow of life energy to help a person feel their personal best at any given time. The yoga practices helped her understand the counterintuitive healing purpose of the presence of the autoimmune disease in her life.

Though the four-year experience was difficult, Pearson realized that PMR was an important and strict teacher who arrived at her door to teach her tolerance and acceptance. In My Four-Year PMR & Prednisone Challenge, Pearson relates how PMR and Prednisone withdrawal was tolerated, embraced, and experienced as an opportunity for personal and spiritual transformation.

On December 7, 2004, Dan D'Andrea suffered a life-changing injury on a construction job site. Follow Melanie and her husband Dan as they make their journey from catastrophe to ultimate triumph. Written by Melanie from her point of view, this is their story.

As a practising mortician, Caitlin Doughty has long been fascinated by our pervasive terror of dead bodies. In From Here to Eternity she sets out in search of cultures unburdened by such fears. With curiosity and morbid humour, Doughty introduces us to inspiring death-care innovators, participates in powerful death practices almost entirely unknown in the West and explores new spaces for mourning - including a futuristic glowing-Buddha columbarium in Japan, a candlelit Mexican cemetery, and America's only open-air pyre. In doing so she expands our sense of what it means to treat the dead with 'dignity' and reveals unexpected possibilities for our own death rituals.

Careers and life can have many twists and turns. The external environment constantly changes and these changes are beyond the control of most of us. Sometimes we have to alter our careers and our goals in order to survive. Change, however, creates opportunities and we must prepare ourselves to be ready to seize opportunities that come our way.

Dr. Jack Kushner's story reads like another version of Forrest Gump. He was present when civil rights history was made in the South with Rosa Parks. He grew up and played street football with Bart Starr. He volunteered for surgical service in Vietnam. And he was a doctor in the ER when four little girls, victims of the horrible church bombing, were brought in. He has experienced all of these events and more in his fascinating life in addition to making important changes in his careers throughout his life. He believes that to survive and thrive in life, it is imperative to differentiate yourself to be competitive in today's challenging marketplace. In "Coping Successfully with Changing Tides and Winds," Kushner offers practical advice to anyone facing job loss or changes.

One Day We'll Dance Again chronicles the life of Eric Ashton Ware and his courageous battle against astrocytomas of the brain stem. The story of six-year-old Eric, son of Byron and Angela Ware, is told through the observations of his mother during his illness, treatments, and the approximately eighteen month period after his death.

When a child is ill, his world is suddenly ruled by others. He is under the care of people he has never met-a frightening proposition at best. His parents' only job is to attempt to calm and comfort him in an alien environment which involves medications, x-rays, treatments, and therapies.

Eric's poignant story extends beyond his illness. At times somber, sometimes humorous, his story touched his brothers, family, friends, and many others. One Day We'll Dance Again endeavors to communicate the importance of maintaining family structure and depending upon family and faith support systems throughout and beyond the battle. It also recommends ways in which family, friends, and caregivers can assist families with critically ill children, and challenges all to consider how they can make a positive impact on these families in their time of need.

A Nobel Prize-winning physicist, a loving husband and father, an enthusiastic teacher, a surprisingly accomplished bongo player, and a genius of the highest caliber---Richard P. Feynman was all these and more. "Perfectly Reasonable Deviations From the Beaten Track"--collecting over forty years' worth of Feynman's letters--offers an unprecedented look at the writer and thinker whose scientific mind and lust for life made him a legend in his own time. Containing missives to and from such scientific luminaries as Victor Weisskopf, Stephen Wolfram, James Watson, and Edward Teller, as well as a remarkable selection of letters to and from fans, students, family, and people from around the world eager for Feynman's advice and counsel, "Perfectly Reasonable Deviations From the Beaten Track" not only illuminates the personal relationships that underwrote the key developments in modern science, but also forms the most intimate look at Feynman yet available. Feynman was a man many felt close to but few really knew, and this collection reveals the full wisdom and private passion of a personality that captivated everyone it touched. "Perfectly Reasonable Deviations From the Beaten Track" is an eloquent testimony to the virtue of approaching the world with an inquiring eye; it demonstrates the full extent of the Feynman legacy like never before. Edited and with additional commentary by his daughter Michelle, it's a must-read for Feynman fans everywhere, and for anyone seeking to better understand one of the towering figures--and defining personalities--of the twentieth century.

This book is an enthusiastic account of Pierre Laszlo's life and pioneering work on catalysis of organic reactions by modified clays, and his reflections on doing science from the 1960s to 1990s. In this autobiography, readers will discover a first-hand testimony of the chemical revolution in the second half of the 20th century, and the author's perspective on finding a calling in science and chemistry, as well as his own experience on doing science, teaching science and managing a scientific career. During this period, Pierre Laszlo led an academic laboratory and worked also in three different countries: the US, Belgium and France, where he had the opportunity to meet remarkable colleagues. In this book, he recalls his encounters and collaborations with important scientists, who shaped the nature of chemistry at times of increased pace of change, and collates a portrait of the worldwide scientific community at that time. In addition, the author tells us about the turns and twists of his own life, and how he ended up focusing his research on clay based chemistry, where clay minerals were turned in his lab to catalysis of key chemical transformations. Given its breath, the book offers a genuine information on the life and career of a chemist, and it will appeal not only to scientists and students, but also to historians of science and to the general reader.

A remarkable account of Kurt Goedel, weaving together creative genius, mental illness, political corruption, and idealism in the face of the turmoil of war and upheaval. At age 24, a brilliant Austrian-born mathematician published a mathematical result that shook the world. Nearly a hundred years after Kurt Goedel's famous 1931 paper "On Formally Undecidable Propositions" appeared, his proof that every mathematical system must contain propositions that are true - yet never provable within that system - continues to pose profound questions for mathematics, philosophy, computer science, and artificial intelligence. His close friend Albert Einstein, with whom he would walk home every day from Princeton's famous Institute for Advanced Study, called him "the greatest logician since Aristotle." He was also a man who felt profoundly out of place in his time, rejecting the entire current of 20th century philosophical thought in his belief that mathematical truths existed independent of the human mind, and beset by personal demons of anxiety and paranoid delusions that would ultimately lead to his tragic end from self-starvation. Drawing on previously unpublished letters, diaries, and medical records, Journey to the Edge of Reason offers the most complete portrait yet of the life of one of the 20th century's greatest thinkers. Stephen Budiansky's account brings to life the remarkable world of philosophical and mathematical creativity of pre-war Vienna, and documents how it was barbarically extinguished by the Nazis. He charts Goedel's own hair's-breadth escape from Nazi Germany to the scholarly idyll of Princeton; and the complex, gently humorous, sensitive, and tormented inner life of this iconic but previously enigmatic giant of modern science. Weaving together Goedel's public and private lives, this is a tale of creative genius, mental illness, political corruption, and idealism in the face of the turmoil of war and upheaval.