Что движет верой людей в загробную жизнь? В этой книге Майкл Шермер, популяризатор науки и известный критик догматического мышления, обращается к вечным и загадочным темам смерти и бессмертия. Это смелая попытка в сжатом виде охватить огромный исторический и психологический материал — от мечты о бессмертии, свойственной людям с зарождения цивилизации, до целенаправленного решения таких задач современной медицины и науки, как обратимость процессов старения и увеличение продолжительности жизни. Автор анализирует представления о загробной жизни, выраженные в авраамических мировых религиях, приводит взгляды представителей различных областей науки — от физики частиц до молекулярной биологии — на...

For thousands of years, the faithful have honed proselytizing strategies and talked people into believing the truth of one holy book or another. Indeed, the faithful often view converting others as an obligation of their faith--and are trained from an early age to spread their unique brand of religion. The result is a world broken in large part by unquestioned faith. As an urgently needed counter to this tried-and-true tradition of religious evangelism, A Manual for Creating Atheists offers the first-ever guide not for talking people into faith--but for talking them out of it. Peter Boghossian draws on the tools he has developed and used for more than twenty years as a philosopher and...

With the publication of the international bestseller The Selfish Gene some thirty years ago, Richard Dawkins powerfully captured a newly emerging way of understanding evolution--a gene's eye view. Dawkins went on to publish five more bestselling books, including The Blind Watchmaker and Unweaving the Rainbow. He is one of the most high profile public intellectuals today and any attempt to understand the scientific view of the world must grapple with his ideas. Now, in this exciting collection of original essays, some of the world's leading thinkers offer their take on how Dawkins has changed the way we think. Readers will find stimulating pieces by Daniel Dennett, the renowned philosopher...

Collected essays from bestselling author Michael Shermer's celebrated columns in Scientific American For fifteen years, bestselling author Michael Shermer has written a column in Scientific American magazine that synthesizes scientific concepts and theory for a general audience. His trademark combination of deep scientific understanding and entertaining writing style has thrilled his huge and devoted audience for years. Now, in Skeptic, seventy-five of these columns are available together for the first time; a welcome addition for his fans and a stimulating introduction for new readers.

Recent polls report that 96 percent of Americans believe in God, and 73 percent believe that angels regularly visit Earth. Why is this? Why, despite the rise of science, technology, and secular education, are people turning to religion in greater numbers than ever before? Why do people believe in God at all? These provocative questions lie at the heart of How We Believe , an illuminating study of God, faith, and religion. Bestselling author Michael Shermer offers fresh and often startling insights into age-old questions, including how and why humans put their faith in a higher power, even in the face of scientific skepticism. Shermer has updated the book to explore the latest research and...

Science is on the defensive. Half of Americans reject the theory of evolution and "Intelligent Design" campaigns are gaining ground. Classroom by classroom, creationism is overthrowing biology. In Why Darwin Matters, bestselling author Michael Shermer explains how the newest brand of creationism appeals to our predisposition to look for a designer behind life's complexity. Shermer decodes the scientific evidence to show that evolution is not "just a theory" and illustrates how it achieves the design of life through the bottom-up process of natural selection. Shermer, once an evangelical Christian and a creationist, argues that Intelligent Design proponents are invoking a combination of...

A century and a half after Darwin first proposed an "evolutionary ethics," science has begun to tackle the roots of morality. Just as evolutionary biologists study why we are hungry (to motivate us to eat) or why sex is enjoyable (to motivate us to procreate), they are now searching for the very nature of humanity. In The Science of Good and Evil, science historian Michael Shermer explores how humans evolved from social primates to moral primates; how and why morality motivates the human animal; and how the foundation of moral principles can be built upon empirical evidence. Along the way he explains the implications of scientific findings for fate and free will, the existence of pure...

These simple math secrets and tricks will forever change how you look at the world of numbers. Secrets of Mental Math will have you thinking like a math genius in no time. Get ready to amaze your friends—and yourself—with incredible calculations you never thought you could master, as renowned “mathemagician” Arthur Benjamin shares his techniques for lightning-quick calculations and amazing number tricks. This book will teach you to do math in your head faster than you ever thought possible, dramatically improve your memory for numbers, and—maybe for the first time—make mathematics fun. Yes, even you can learn to do seemingly complex equations in your head; all you need to learn are a...

Идея писать о науке для широкой публики возникла у Шермера после прочтения статей эволюционного биолога и палеонтолога Стивена Гулда, который считал, что «захватывающая действительность природы не должна исключаться из сферы литературных усилий». В книге 75 увлекательных и остроумных статей, из которых читатель узнает о проницательности Дарвина, о том, чем голые факты отличаются от научных, о том, почему высадка американцев на Луну все-таки состоялась, отчего умные люди верят в глупости и даже образование их не спасает, и почему вода из-под крана ничуть не хуже той, что в бутылках. Наука, скептицизм, инопланетяне и НЛО, альтернативная медицина, человеческая природа и эволюция – это далеко...

Священное, необъяснимое и сверхъестественное – тайны разума, души и Бога под пристальным взглядом одного из самых известных в мире скептиков, историка и популяризатора науки. Работает ли магия? Есть ли ангелы-хранители? Можно ли общаться с умершими? Где живут инопланетяне и демоны? Существуют ли тайные заговоры мировых правительств? Верить ли в приметы? Можно ли обладать сверхспособностями? Кто такие экстрасенсы? Почему мы видим призраков? Как объяснить сверхъестественное? Откуда берется вера в Бога? Что такое религиозные чувства? Новейшие научные данные, описание эпохальных экспериментов и здравый смысл против заблуждений, которыми сегодня живет мир.