Systems Science

Musicians have often wanted to change the world, and many channel that desire through the political power of music. Music has a unique ability to unsettle the most fundamental political and social conventions - or, alternatively, to stabilize the status-quo. Sound System is the story of one musician’s journey to discover what exactly makes music so powerful. Years of touring, protesting, and performing have given Dave Randall an insider’s view of the music industry, enabling him to shed light on the most tightly held secrets of celebrity, commodification, and culture.

Pantheon Leader Jay Luckrun has experienced the loss of friends and enemies alike. But he continues marching forward to conquer new challenges and bring vengeance against the System Admins. His magic has grown stronger. His gravity has greater reach. And the dungeons of an invasive pantheon of goblins are up next on the chopping block. Follow Jay as he develops his own unique path and finally gets some revenge upon the evil System Admins. He might have to lose his humanity along the way. But that's a plus. He'll gain greater power that's more paradoxical than expected.

Because about four weeks ago, the world simply turned. One day we had iPhones and GoPros, Mickey Mouse and hamburgers. The next day we had magic and monsters. And us humans? We became players with levels, items, and classes. Pretty ironic considering how many times my parents told me to “quit gaming and experience real life” while I was growing up. And then real life grabbed us by the balls, and it was the gamers who were prepared.

As Starfleet diplomat Captain Sulu speeds alone across the galaxy, he is abducted by powerful, frightening dreams that return him to Sigma Cameron Four - where, 20 years earlier, he discovered traces of the ancient Shalakai, a ruthless culture with the secret to eternal life. Now, Sulu must race to stop an archaeologist before she unleashes a disastrous chain of events! Starring George Takei and recorded in 3-D sound with an original score!

American politics seems to grow more contentious and complicated by the day, and whether American democracy works well is hotly debated. Amidst all this roiling partisan argument and confusing claims and counterclaims, there has never been a greater need for an impartial primer on the basics of the American political system.

One of the most unique aspects of anarchism as a political philosophy is that it seeks to abolish the state. But what exactly is “the state”? The State is like a vast operating system for ordering and controlling relations among human society, the economy, and the natural world, analogous to a digital operating system. Anyone concerned with entrenched power, income inequality, lack of digital privacy, climate change, the response to COVID-19, or military-style policing will find eye-opening insights into how states operate and build more power for themselves—at our expense.

When it comes to choosing, using, and maintaining a database, understanding its internals is essential. But with so many distributed databases and tools available today, it's often difficult to understand what each one offers. With this practical guide, Alex Petrov guides developers through the concepts behind modern database and storage engine internals.

In Age of Invisible Machines, Robb Wilson delivers an eye-opening and startlingly insightful blueprint for leveraging conversational AI in order to make your organization self-driving—with a growing ecosystem of interconnected automations accelerating all aspects of your business.

Many yearn for a different realm, where the allure of enchanting women, otherworldly abilities, and thrilling adventures beckons. But what if you were born into a world where you're regarded as nothing more than a mere tool, utterly unsuited for their intended purposes? Plunged into the depths of despair, having lost that which he cherished most, the unmistakable chime of a notification altered not only his destiny but the very fabric of all existence. Yet, whether this change was for the better or worse remained uncertain.

With inspiring stories from the ranks of both the famous and the unheralded, seasoned with wit, and even an occasional tone of sarcasm, chapter after chapter grabs the attention, energizes the intellect, fortifies the will, enlivens the confidence, and elevates the listener’s personal vision, ultimately leading them to a profound conviction of the transforming power of thinking about one’s thinking.

Peter Kraemer, a physics teacher with a passion for astronomy, makes a discovery that he himself can hardly believe: Stars disappear from one day to the next, with nothing left of them. The researchers he contacts provide reassuring and logical explanations for every single case. But when Peter determines that the mysterious process is approaching our home system, he becomes more and more anxious. He alone perceives the looming catastrophe. When he believes he has found a way to avert the impending disaster, he chooses to pull out all the stops.

Seventeen years old and facing nearly 30 years behind bars, Jarrett Adams sought to figure out the why behind his fate. Sustained by his mother and aunts who brought him back from the edge of despair through letters of prayer and encouragement, Adams became obsessed with our legal system in all its damaged glory. After studying how his constitutional rights to effective counsel had been violated, he solicited the help of the Wisconsin Innocence Project, an organization that exonerates the wrongfully convicted, and won his release after nearly 10 years in prison.

Increasingly, cracks are appearing in the capacity of communities, ecosystems, and landscapes to provide the goods and services that sustain our planet's well-being. The response from most quarters has been for "more of the same" that created the situation in the first place: more control, more intensification, and greater efficiency. "Resilience thinking" offers a different way of understanding the world and a new approach to managing resources. It embraces human and natural systems as complex entities continually adapting through cycles of change.

A compelling new set of interviews on our changing and turbulent times with Noam Chomsky, one of the world's foremost thinkers...

In this new collection of conversations, conducted from 2010 to 2012, Noam Chomsky explores the most immediate and urgent concerns: the future of democracy in the Arab world, the implications of the Fukushima nuclear disaster, the European financial crisis, the breakdown of American mainstream political institutions, and the rise of the Occupy movement. As always, Chomsky presents his ideas vividly and accessibly, with uncompromising principle and clarifying insight.

For the past 25 years, scientists have challenged conventional views of evolution and have developed revolutionary theories with profound implications. Fritjof Capra has been at the forefront of this revolution and now, in The Web of Life, he offers a brilliant synthesis of these exciting breakthroughs.

At a time when many Americans may be seeking alternatives to current health care choices, Dr. Knope offers an option that allows patients to directly contract with healthcare providers for individualized care. Using first-hand accounts and plenty of examples of how concierge medicine works, Knope offers a plan for patients looking to make a change to a medical system that is negotiated between doctor and patient, rather than through insurance and pharmaceutical companies.

The Devil's Heart is a legendary object of unsurpassed power and mystery. Worlds that believe in magic consider it Darkness's mightiest talisman; and worlds of science consider it a lost artifact of some ancient and forgotten race. Some say the Heart enables its possessor to control people's minds and to amass wealth enough for a dozen lifetimes, while others think it capable of raising the dead, perhaps even changing the flow of time itself. But to all, the location of this fabled object has remained a mystery, until now.

The legal system was not designed for poor people. Yet, we ask citizens to use this system every day in spite of its shortcomings. If you have been sued or need to sue to seek legal redress, this book is for you. It will guide you through some of what to expect, and further explain why the system does not render justice every day.

Are you afraid of death? What is death? Is it the end, the beginning, or a transition? Why are we so afraid of death? After all, death is inevitable. Overcoming the Fear of Death: Through Each of the 4 Main Belief Systems helps us reduce and overcome our fears without having to change our beliefs about death.

Not since The Thin Blue Line has there been a true-crime saga as engrossing as Making a Murderer. Captivating audiences across demographic lines, it made Steven Avery a household name and thrust defense attorney Jerome F. Buting - and his fight against America's dysfunctional criminal justice system - into the spotlight. In Illusion of Justice, Buting uses the Avery case as a springboard to examine the shaky integrity of our law enforcement and legal systems, which he has witnessed firsthand for nearly four decades.