Being & Nothingness is without doubt one of the most significant philosophical books of the 20th century. This central work by one of the century's most influential thinkers, Jean-Paul Sartre, altered the course of western philosophy. Its revolutionary approach challenged all previous assumptions about the individual's relationship with the world.

Known as 'the Bible of existentialism', its impact on culture and literature was immediate and was felt worldwide, from the absurdist drama of Samuel Beckett to the soul-searching cries of the Beat poets. Being & Nothingness is one of those rare books whose influence has affected the mindset of subsequent generations.

Seventy years after its first publication, its message remains as potent as ever—challenging readers to confront the fundamental dilemmas of human freedom, choice, responsibility, and action.

What does it actually mean to be rational? Not Hollywood-style "rational," where you forsake all human feeling to embrace Cold Hard Logic. Real rationality, of the sort studied by psychologists, social scientists, and mathematicians. The kind of rationality where you make good decisions, even when it's hard; where you reason well, even in the face of massive uncertainty; where you recognize and make full use of your fuzzy intuitions and emotions, rather than trying to discard them.

In "Rationality: From AI to Zombies," Eliezer Yudkowsky explains the science underlying human irrationality with a mix of fables, argumentative essays, and personal vignettes. These eye-opening accounts of how the mind works (and how, all too often, it doesn't!) are then put to the test through some genuinely difficult puzzles: computer scientists' debates about the future of artificial intelligence (AI), physicists' debates about the relationship between the quantum and classical worlds, philosophers' debates about the metaphysics of zombies and the nature of morality, and many more.

In the process, "Rationality: From AI to Zombies" delves into the human significance of correct reasoning more deeply than you'll find in any conventional textbook on cognitive science or philosophy of mind.

A decision theorist and researcher at the Machine Intelligence Research Institute, Yudkowsky published earlier drafts of his writings to the websites Overcoming Bias and Less Wrong. "Rationality: From AI to Zombies" compiles six volumes of Yudkowsky's essays into a single electronic tome. Collectively, these sequences of linked essays serve as a rich and lively introduction to the science—and the art—of human rationality.

John Barth's lively and highly original collection of short pieces is a major landmark of experimental fiction. Though many of the stories gathered here were published separately, there are several themes common to them all, giving them new meaning in the context of this collection.

From its opening story, "Frame-Tale"—printed sideways and designed to be cut out by the reader and twisted into a never-ending Möbius strip—to the much-anthologized "Life-Story," whose details are left to the reader to "fill in the blank," Barth's acclaimed collection challenges our ideas of what fiction can do.

Highlights include the Homerian story-within-a-story-within-a-story (times seven) of "Menalaiad," and "Night-Sea Journey," a first-person account of a confused human sperm on its way to fertilize an egg. All of the characters in Lost in the Funhouse are searching, in one way or another, for their purpose and the meaning of their existence.

Together, their stories form a kaleidoscope of exuberant metafictional inventiveness.

Vergil Ulam has created cellular material that can outperform rats in laboratory tests. When the authorities rule that he has exceeded his authorization, Vergil loses his job, but is determined to take his discovery with him.

In a stunning breakthrough in genetic engineering, what begins as a simple act of defiance turns into a thrilling tale of scientific hubris. Vergil's actions will irrevocably change the world, as a new intelligence emerges amongst us.

Follow this gripping narrative that explores the imminent destruction of mankind and the fear of mass destruction by technological advancements.

Abstraction In Theory - Laws Of Physical Transaction is a groundbreaking work that paves the way for the "theory of everything" in physics. The author, Subhajit Ganguly, embarks on this monumental task by introducing a completely new approach.

The theory is rooted in the concept of "zero-postulation", an innovative idea where others have struggled. This concept marks a significant leap in scientific methodology, as it is based on no assumptions, providing a solid foundation unlike existing theories.

Abstraction In Theory offers a neat and satisfactory description of the world, making it a must-read for those intrigued by the mysteries of the universe.

Belief in free will touches nearly everything that human beings value. It is difficult to think about law, politics, religion, public policy, intimate relationships, and morality—as well as feelings of remorse or personal achievement—without first imagining that every person is the true source of his or her thoughts and actions. And yet, the facts tell us that free will is an illusion.

In this enlightening book, Sam Harris argues that this truth about the human mind does not undermine morality or diminish the importance of social and political freedom, but it can and should change the way we think about some of the most important questions in life.

¿Y si con solo mirarte pudiera desvelar tus secretos más profundos?

¿Y si con solo mirarte pudiera sentir con tu corazón?

¿Y si en solo un instante fuera posible saber exactamente quiénes somos el uno para el otro?

Liam O’Connor should have died at sea in 1912. Maddy Carter should have died on a plane in 2010. Sal Vikram should have died in a fire in 2026. Yet, moments before death, someone mysteriously appeared and said, ‘Take my hand ...’

But Liam, Maddy, and Sal aren’t rescued. They are recruited by an agency that no one knows exists, with only one purpose—to fix broken history. Because time travel is here, and there are those who would go back in time and change the past. That’s why the TimeRiders exist: to protect us. To stop time travel from destroying the world...

Gary Zukav has written the Bible for those who are curious about the mind-expanding discoveries of advanced physics, but who have no scientific background. Like a Wu Li Master who would teach us wonder for the falling petal before speaking of gravity, Zukav writes in beautifully clear language—with no mathematical equations—opening our minds to the exciting new theories that are beginning to embrace the ultimate nature of our universe.

Quantum mechanics, relativity, and beyond to the Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen effect and Bell's theorem. At an Esalen Institute meeting in 1976, tai chi master Al Huang said that the Chinese word for physics is Wu Li, "patterns of organic energy." Journalist Gary Zukav and the others present developed the idea of physics as the dance of the Wu Li Masters—the teachers of physical essence.

Zukav explains the concept further: The Wu Li Master dances with his student. The Wu Li Master does not teach, but the student learns. The Wu Li Master always begins at the center, the heart of the matter.... This book deals not with knowledge, which is always past tense anyway, but with imagination, which is physics come alive, which is Wu Li....

Most people believe that physicists are explaining the world. Some physicists even believe that, but the Wu Li Masters know that they are only dancing with it. The "new physics" of Zukav's 1979 book comprises quantum theory, particle physics, and relativity. Even as these theories age they haven't percolated all that far into the collective consciousness; they're too far removed from mundane human experience not to need introduction. The Dancing Wu Li Masters remains an engaging, accessible way to meet the most profound and mind-altering insights of 20th-century science.

In this tightly plotted yet mind-expanding debut novel, an unlikely detective, armed only with an umbrella and a singular handbook, must untangle a string of crimes committed in and through people's dreams.

In an unnamed city always slick with rain, Charles Unwin toils as a clerk at a huge, imperious detective agency. All he knows about solving mysteries comes from the reports he's filed for the illustrious detective Travis Sivart. When Sivart goes missing and his supervisor turns up murdered, Unwin is suddenly promoted to detective, a rank for which he lacks both the skills and the stomach.

His only guidance comes from his new assistant, who would be perfect if she weren't so sleepy, and from the pithy yet profound Manual of Detection (think The Art of War as told to Damon Runyon). Unwin mounts his search for Sivart, but is soon framed for murder, pursued by goons and gunmen, and confounded by the infamous femme fatale Cleo Greenwood.

Meanwhile, strange and troubling questions proliferate: why does the mummy at the Municipal Museum have modern-day dental work? Where have all the city's alarm clocks gone? Why is Unwin's copy of the manual missing Chapter 18? When he discovers that Sivart's greatest cases - including the Three Deaths of Colonel Baker and the Man Who Stole November 12th - were solved incorrectly, Unwin must enter the dreams of a murdered man and face a criminal mastermind bent on total control of a slumbering city.

The Manual of Detection is a brilliantly conceived, meticulously realized novel that will change what you think about how you think.

Once again, the negligible, him gives condensation to an expository text that was developed of the internal monologue, justifiable by the facts. This laconic narrative in prose of non-fiction, is composed of 6 stories written in a apathetic state, arbitrarily ordered, in rectilinear, an exquisite selection of expressions in which are established among them an unexpressed simile, with the best aspects of the pluperfect, immaculate by a grotesque comedy, and with the inanimate world.

From this succinct narrative, the self-ethnographic concept is complemented by a book titled: Excessive cruelty 2013 (A reality built to pieces).

The Black Hole War is the thrilling story of Leonard Susskind's effort to reconcile Stephen Hawking's revolutionary theories of black holes with his own sense of reality. This effort would eventually lead to Hawking admitting he was wrong.

Three decades ago, a young physicist named Stephen Hawking claimed that when something is sucked into a black hole, it disappears, putting at risk everything we know about physics and the fundamental laws of the universe. Most scientists didn't recognize the import of Hawking's claims, but Leonard Susskind and Gerard t'Hooft realized the threat. They responded with a counterattack that changed the course of physics.

The Black Hole War is the story of their united effort to reconcile Hawking's revolutionary theories of black holes with their own sense of reality. This effort resulted in Hawking admitting he was wrong, and Susskind and t'Hooft realizing that our world is a hologram projected from the outer boundaries of space.

Leonard Susskind's account of the Black Hole War is mind-bending and exhilarating reading, offering insights into modern physics, quantum mechanics, the fate of stars, and the deep mysteries of black holes.

Keine Zeugen, keine Spuren, keine Leiche. Josy, die zwölfjährige Tochter des bekannten Psychiaters Viktor Larenz, verschwindet unter mysteriösen Umständen. Ihr Schicksal bleibt ungeklärt.

Vier Jahre später: Der trauernde Viktor hat sich in ein abgelegenes Ferienhaus zurückgezogen. Doch eine schöne Unbekannte spürt ihn dort auf. Sie wird von Wahnvorstellungen gequält. Darin erscheint ihr immer wieder ein kleines Mädchen, das ebenso spurlos verschwindet wie einst Josy.

Viktor beginnt mit der Therapie, die mehr und mehr zum dramatischen Verhör wird...

Convivium is a brilliant tale, truly a novel of epic proportions. It takes all the known and accepted ideas of Heaven and Hell and throws them out. You're drawn in from the first chapter, and by the end of the book, you're howling for more.

Wittgenstein's Mistress is a novel unlike anything David Markson - or anyone else - has ever written before. It is the story of a woman who is convinced, and, astonishingly, will ultimately convince the reader as well, that she is the only person left on earth. Presumably she is mad. And yet so appealing is her character, and so witty and seductive her narrative voice, that we will follow her hypnotically as she unloads the intellectual baggage of a lifetime in a series of irreverent meditations on everything and everybody from Brahms to sex to Heidegger to Helen of Troy.

And as she contemplates aspects of the troubled past which have brought her to her present state, so too will her drama become one of the few certifiably original fictions of our time.

From one of the most brilliant minds of our time comes a book that clarifies his most important ideas. Stephen Hawking’s worldwide bestseller, A Brief History of Time, remains a landmark volume in scientific writing. But for readers who have asked for a more accessible formulation of its key concepts—the nature of space and time, the role of God in creation, and the history and future of the universe—A Briefer History of Time is Professor Hawking’s response.

Although “briefer,” this book is much more than a mere explanation of Hawking’s earlier work. A Briefer History of Time both clarifies and expands on the great subjects of the original, and records the latest developments in the field—from string theory to the search for a unified theory of all the forces of physics.

Thirty-seven full-color illustrations enhance the text and make A Briefer History of Time an exhilarating and must-have addition in its own right to the great literature of science and ideas.

God's Debris is the first non-humor book by best-selling author Scott Adams. Adams describes God's Debris as a thought experiment wrapped in a story, designed to make your brain spin around inside your skull.

Imagine meeting a very old man who knows literally everything. As he explains the great mysteries of life—quantum physics, evolution, God, gravity, light, psychic phenomena, and probability—everything fits together and makes perfect sense. What does it feel like to suddenly understand everything?

You may not find the final answer to the big question, but God's Debris might provide the most compelling vision of reality you will ever read. The thought experiment challenges you to figure out what's wrong with the old man's explanation of reality.

Share the book with your smart friends, then discuss it while enjoying a beverage. This is a book to be shared and savored with curious minds.

Stephen Hawking, the brilliant theoretical physicist, invites readers on an extraordinary journey through the universe in his book, The Universe in a Nutshell. This sequel to his multimillion-copy bestseller, A Brief History of Time, is a lavishly illustrated work that unravels the mysteries of the major breakthroughs in physics since the release of his first acclaimed book.

In this major publishing event, Hawking takes us to the cutting edge of theoretical physics, where truth is often stranger than fiction. He explains in laymen’s terms the principles that control our universe, covering topics such as quantum mechanics, M-theory, general relativity, and superstrings. He guides us on his search to uncover the secrets of the universe—from supergravity to supersymmetry, and from holography to duality.

With characteristic exuberance, Professor Hawking invites us to be fellow travelers on this extraordinary voyage through space-time. The book is filled with copious four-color illustrations that help clarify this journey into a surreal wonderland where particles, sheets, and strings move in eleven dimensions. Here, black holes evaporate and disappear, taking their secrets with them, and the original cosmic seed from which our universe sprang was a tiny nut.

The Universe in a Nutshell is essential reading for anyone who wants to understand the universe in which we live. It conveys the excitement felt within the scientific community as the secrets of the cosmos reveal themselves, making it a must-read for all curious minds.

At the heart of this classic, seminal book is Julian Jaynes's still-controversial thesis that human consciousness did not begin far back in animal evolution but instead is a learned process that came about only three thousand years ago and is still developing.

The implications of this revolutionary scientific paradigm extend into virtually every aspect of our psychology, our history and culture, our religion — and indeed our future.

The Light of Other Days is a groundbreaking novel by the legendary Arthur C. Clarke and the acclaimed Stephen Baxter. It explores a future where a brilliant, driven industrialist harnesses the cutting edge of quantum physics to enable people everywhere, at trivial cost, to see one another at all times: around every corner, through every wall, into everyone's most private, hidden, and even intimate moments. This innovation leads to the sudden and complete abolition of human privacy—forever.

As society reels from this profound change, the same technology proves capable of looking backwards in time as well. What unfolds is a story that will change your view of what it is to be human.

Star Maker is a science fiction novel by Olaf Stapledon, published in 1937. The book describes a history of life in the universe, dwarfing in scale Stapledon's previous book, Last and First Men (1930), a history of the human species over two billion years. Star Maker tackles philosophical themes such as the essence of life, of birth, decay, and death, and the relationship between creation and creator. A pervading theme is that of progressive unity within and between different civilizations.

Some of the elements and themes briefly discussed prefigure later fiction concerning genetic engineering and alien life forms. Arthur C. Clarke considered Star Maker to be one of the finest works of science fiction ever written. The narrative is a contemplative journey through space and time, exploring how galaxies of stars formed from nebulae, how planets came into existence, and how intelligent life evolved. The book provides a profound perspective on mankind's existence in universal time and space.

There are touching moments and exciting battles, both tragedy and comedy. Uplifting victories and crushing defeats fill the pages, making this book a very engaging read. The final chapters provoke deep ponderings about life and intelligence, leaving the reader with lifelong questions to mull over.

There's Lone, the simpleton who can hear other people's thoughts and make a man blow his brains out just by looking at him. There's Janie, who moves things without touching them, and there are the teleporting twins, who can travel ten feet or ten miles. There's Baby, who invented an antigravity engine while still in the cradle, and Gerry, who has everything it takes to run the world except for a conscience.

Separately, they are talented freaks. Together, they compose a single organism that may represent the next step in evolution, and the final chapter in the history of the human race.

In this genre-bending novel, one of the great imaginers of the twentieth century tells a story as mind-blowing as any controlled substance and as affecting as a glimpse into a stranger's soul. For as the protagonists of More Than Human struggle to find who they are and whether they are meant to help humanity or destroy it, Theodore Sturgeon explores questions of power and morality, individuality and belonging, with suspense, pathos, and a lyricism rarely seen in science fiction.

How can you have a ghost story without a ghost? What if the ghost is only in your head? How would you know that you aren't losing your mind?

By medical standards, sixteen-year-old Janine Palmer dies on the day of her automobile accident. When her spirit travels to the "other side," however, she is told that it isn't her time to die, and is sent back to live out her life. When she awakens from her coma, though, she discovers that she hasn't come back alone.

There is someone else inside her mind. The voice in Janine's head claims to be the ghost of Lenore, Janine's twin sister, who drowned twelve years earlier. Lenore blames her own death on Janine and is determined to live again in her sister's body. Now the two girls must vie for one body.

Can Janine be sure that her twin is really inside her, or is she simply going crazy?

Permutation City is the story of a man with a vision—immortality for those who can afford it, found in the boundless realm of cyberspace. The tale unfolds around a visionary's attempt to create immortality, a vision that spirals beyond his control.

Encompassing a diverse cast of characters, the narrative explores the lives and struggles of an artificial life junkie desperate to save her dying mother, a billionaire banker scarred by a terrible crime, and lovers for whom, in their timeless virtual world, love is not enough. It's a story brimming with wonder and profound questions about the essence of humanity.

Can what makes you human be distilled into data? And what happens if you can't afford to pay the price for this digital eternity?

Permutation City challenges readers with its mind-bending exploration of cyberspace, afterlife, and immortality, offering a unique perspective on what it means to be human in a digital age.

Billy Milligan can be anyone he wants to be... except himself. Out of control of his actions, Billy Milligan was a man tormented by twenty-four distinct personalities battling for supremacy over his body—a battle that culminated when he awoke in jail, arrested for the kidnap and rape of three women.

In a landmark trial, Billy was acquitted of his crimes by reason of insanity caused by multiple personality—the first such court decision in history—bringing to public light the most remarkable and harrowing case of multiple personality ever recorded.

Twenty-four people live inside Billy Milligan. Among them are:

• Philip, a petty criminal
• Kevin, who dealt drugs and masterminded a drugstore robbery
• April, whose only ambition was to kill Billy's stepfather
• Adalana, the shy, lonely, affection-starved lesbian
• David, the eight-year-old “keeper of pain”
• and the Teacher, the only one who can put them all together.

You will meet each in this often shocking true story. And you will be drawn deeply into the mind of this tortured young man and his splintered, terrifying world.

Ecce Homo is an extraordinary autobiography penned by the renowned philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche in late 1888, just weeks before his final descent into madness. This remarkable work stands as one of the most intriguing and bizarre examples of the genre ever written.

In this compelling narrative, Nietzsche provides a profound exploration of his life, philosophical journey, and intellectual development. He examines the heroes he has identified with, struggled against, and ultimately overcome, including Schopenhauer, Wagner, Socrates, and Christ. Through this examination, Nietzsche predicts the cataclysmic impact of his forthcoming revelation of all values.

Both self-celebrating and self-mocking, penetrating and strange, Ecce Homo offers the final, definitive expression of Nietzsche's main beliefs and serves as his last testament.

This essential reading challenges traditional morality, encourages the establishment of autonomy, and promotes a commitment to creativity.

What if everything in the world were a misunderstanding, what if laughter were really tears?

Either/Or is the earliest of the major works of Søren Kierkegaard, one of the most startlingly original thinkers and writers of the nineteenth century, and the first which he wrote under a pseudonym, as he would for his greatest philosophical writings.

Adopting the viewpoints of two distinct figures with radically different beliefs—the aesthetic young man of Part One, called simply 'A', and the ethical Judge Vilhelm of the second section—Kierkegaard reflects upon the search for a meaningful existence. He contemplates subjects as diverse as Mozart, drama, boredom, and, in the famous Seducer's Diary, the cynical seduction and ultimate rejection of a young, beautiful woman.

A masterpiece of duality, Either/Or is an exploration of the conflict between the aesthetic and the ethical—both meditating ironically and seductively upon Epicurean pleasures, and eloquently expounding the noble virtues of a morally upstanding life.

Famous the world over for the creative brilliance of his insights into the physical world, Nobel Prize-winning physicist Richard Feynman also possessed an extraordinary talent for explaining difficult concepts to the nonscientist.

QED - the edited version of four lectures on quantum electrodynamics that Feynman gave to the general public at UCLA as part of the Alix G. Mautner Memorial Lecture series - is perhaps the best example of his ability to communicate both the substance and the spirit of science to the layperson.

The focus, as the title suggests, is quantum electrodynamics (QED), the part of the quantum theory of fields that describes the interactions of the quanta of the electromagnetic field - light, X rays, gamma rays - with matter and those of charged particles with one another. By extending the formalism developed by Dirac in 1933, which related quantum and classical descriptions of the motion of particles, Feynman revolutionized the quantum mechanical understanding of the nature of particles and waves.

And, by incorporating his own readily visualizable formulation of quantum mechanics, Feynman created a diagrammatic version of QED that made calculations much simpler and also provided visual insights into the mechanisms of quantum electrodynamic processes.

In this book, using everyday language, spatial concepts, visualizations, and his renowned "Feynman diagrams" instead of advanced mathematics, Feynman successfully provides a definitive introduction to QED for a lay readership without any distortion of the basic science.

Characterized by Feynman's famously original clarity and humor, this popular book on QED has not been equaled since its publication.

In Search of Schrödinger's Cat tells the complete story of quantum mechanics, a truth far stranger than any fiction.

Quantum theory is so shocking that even Einstein could not bring himself to accept it. It is critically important, providing the fundamental underpinning of all modern sciences. Without it, we'd have no nuclear power, no lasers, no TV, and no computers. The science of molecular biology, understanding of DNA, and genetic engineering would be nonexistent.

John Gribbin takes us step-by-step into an ever more bizarre and fascinating place, requiring only an open mind. He introduces the scientists who developed quantum theory and investigates the atom, radiation, time travel, the birth of the universe, superconductors, and life itself.

In a world full of its own delights, mysteries, and surprises, he searches for Schrödinger's Cat—a search for quantum reality—as he brings every reader to a clear understanding of the most important area of scientific study today: quantum physics.

Babel-17 delves into the power of language in a universe where humanity is embroiled in a cosmic war with the Invaders. These adversaries have been covertly assassinating officials and sabotaging spaceships. The only clues are strange alien messages intercepted in space. Poet and linguist Rydra Wong is determined to decipher this cryptic language and halt the alien threat.

As Rydra embarks on this mission, she discovers that the language, Babel-17, is more than just a code; it's a weapon that can alter perception and thought, turning those who understand it into unwilling traitors.

A man of knowledge is free... he has no honor, no dignity, no family, no home, no country, but only life to be lived. --don Juan

In 1961, a young anthropologist embarked on an extraordinary apprenticeship to bring back a fascinating glimpse of a Yaqui Indian's world of "non-ordinary reality" and the difficult and dangerous road a man must travel to become "a man of knowledge." Yet on the brink of that world, challenging to all that we believe, he drew back.

Then in 1968, Carlos Castaneda returned to Mexico, to don Juan and his hallucinogenic drugs, and to a world of experience no man from our Western civilization had ever entered before.

The Portable Nietzsche is a fascinating collection of Friedrich Nietzsche's seminal works that have captivated readers worldwide since the publication of his first book over a century ago. Walter Kaufmann, a leading authority on Nietzsche, notes in his introduction that "few writers in any age were so full of ideas," and Nietzsche is no exception.

This volume includes Kaufmann's definitive translations of the complete and unabridged texts of Nietzsche's four major works: Twilight of the Idols, The Antichrist, Nietzsche Contra Wagner, and Thus Spoke Zarathustra. In addition, Kaufmann brings together selections from Nietzsche's other books, notes, and letters to provide a comprehensive picture of Nietzsche's development, versatility, and inexhaustibility.

Nietzsche's works offer a profound exploration of human existence, truth, and morality, making this collection a must-read for anyone interested in philosophy and literature. "In this volume, one may very conveniently have a rich review of one of the most sensitive, passionate, and misunderstood writers in Western, or any, literature."