This book reviews the antinomy of rationality and selfishness raised from egoism, though rationality and selfishness are understood as basic evolutionary dynamics of humans and other organisms in both classical economics and evolutionary biology. Based on the research and a comparison with human’s social cooperative behavior, the author presents his belief that the social cooperative system, in its essence, cooperation and conflict are of uncertain stochasticity resulting from their intrinsic asymmetric interaction between cooperative partners. The book then discusses limitations of Newton’s methodology of monism in both biology and social science. The understanding of the asymmetric and uncertain characteristics found in cooperation system needs perspective of quantum physics of pluralism. At the end of the book, the author undertakes a review of consistency of Newtonian and monism philosophy and the links between quantum physics and pluralism philosophy.

The book regarding cultural policy points out a fundamental contradiction about the nature of democracy. The impulse that should motivate public cultural policies is primarily democratic: it is to give universal access to what are deemed unique cultural practices. However, these practices are often socially and culturally inaccessible. It seems, an effective cultural policy is crucial to offer universal access to unique cultural practices, like classical music. The current debate does not take into account the importance of tradition and the critical role of multiculturalism. The theory points to ways these features can be incorporated into future debates on cultural policy.

Genome editing is rapidly transforming plant research. The technique offers unparalleled precision in breeding without the need to introduce foreign DNA into plants. CRISPR/Cas systems have established themselves as the leading technique in genome editing. Genome editing for precision crop breeding takes stock of the wealth of research on these techniques and their potential in crop breeding. Chapters in this volume review advances in techniques such as TALENS and zinc finger nucleases, double-strand break repair techniques, insertion-based genome edits, base editing, guide RNAs and gRNA/Cas9 constructs. This collection also surveys applications of gene editing in improving key traits in key cereal crops including barley, maize and sorghum as well as brassicas, tomatoes and perennials. With its distinguished editor and international team of expert authors, Genome editing for precision crop breeding will be a standard reference for university and other researchers involved in crop breeding, government and other agencies involved in regulating advances in crop breeding (such as genetic modification), crop breeding companies and farmers interested in the latest breeding techniques.

The end of the Qing dynasty in China saw an unprecedented explosion
of print journalism. Chinese-owned newspapers, first encouraged by
Emperor Guangxu to inform and educate an increasingly literate public,
had by the turn of the century become more powerful than the state had
ever anticipated or desired. Yet it was not the "dabao, " or
"important" papers, that proved most influential. Rather it
was the "xiaobao, " the "little" or
"minor" papers - with their reputation for
frivolity - that captivated and empowered the public.
"Merry Laughter and Angry Curses" reveals how the
late-Qing-era tabloid press became the voice of the people. As
periodical publishing reached a fever pitch, tabloids had free rein to
criticize officials, mock the elite, and scandalize readers, giving the
public knowledge about previously unspeakable and unprintable ideas. In
the name of the people, tabloid writers produced a massive amount of
anti-establishment literature, whose distinctive humour and satirical
style were both potent and popular. This book shows the tabloid
community to be both a producer of meanings and a participant in the
social and cultural dialogue that would shake the foundations of
imperial China and lead to the 1911 Republican Revolution.Juan Wang is an independent scholar of Chinese
history.

The Sinews of State Power seeks to explain why rural China has been so unstable since 2000, despite numerous national reforms. Using original fieldwork, it traces the rise and demise of cohesive local states in rural China since the Maoist era. It shows that, the county, township, and village levels of government, when in alliance, have facilitated economic growth and caused social grievances. However, national reforms redressing local deviation, together with individual responses from each level of administration, have dismantled elite alliances, and consequentially undermined the extractive, coercive, and responsive capacity of the state. This book forms dialogue with two fields of inquiry in China studies and comparative politics. First, researches on farmer protest often either focus on farmers' grievances, organizations, and strategies, or examine responses from the state as a uniform entity. This book, instead, highlights the anthropology of the state by looking into elite cohesion across administrative levels that determines the exercise of state capacity. Second, studies of regime stability or endurance have stressed holistic factors, such as institutional adaptability, political culture, or epidemic corruption. The Sinews of State Power instead revisits the fundamental components of a capable government - a coherent and robust local leadership that enables the function of a state.