275 products in Books

A comprehensive and authoritative exploration of Bitcoin and its place in monetary history When a pseudonymous programmer introduced “a new electronic cash system that’s fully peer-to-peer, with no trusted third party” to a small online mailing list in 2008, very few people paid attention. Ten years later, and against all odds, this upstart autonomous decentralized software offers an unstoppable and globally accessible hard money alternative to modern central banks. The Bitcoin Standard analyzes the historical context to the rise of Bitcoin, the economic properties that have allowed it to grow quickly, and its likely economic, political, and social implications. While Bitcoin is an invention of the digital age, the problem it purports to solve is as old as human society itself: transferring value across time and space. Author Saifedean Ammous takes the reader on an engaging journey through the history of technologies performing the functions of money, from primitive systems of trading limestones and seashells, to metals, coins, the gold standard, and modern government debt. Exploring what gave these technologies their monetary role, and how most lost it, provides the reader with a good idea of what makes for sound money, and sets the stage for an economic discussion of its consequences for individual and societal future-orientation, capital accumulation, trade, peace, culture, and art. Compellingly, Ammous shows that it is no coincidence that the loftiest achievements of humanity have come in societies enjoying the benefits of sound monetary regimes, nor is it coincidental that monetary collapse has usually accompanied civilizational collapse. With this background in place, the book moves on to explain the operation of Bitcoin in a functional and intuitive way. Bitcoin is a decentralized, distributed piece of software that converts electricity and processing power into indisputably accurate records, thus allowing its users to utilize the Internet to perform the traditional functions of money without having to rely on, or trust, any authorities or infrastructure in the physical world. Bitcoin is thus best understood as the first successfully implemented form of digital cash and digital hard money. With an automated and perfectly predictable monetary policy, and the ability to perform final settlement of large sums across the world in a matter of minutes, Bitcoin’s real competitive edge might just be as a store of value and network for the final settlement of large payments―a digital form of gold with a built-in settlement infrastructure. Ammous’ firm grasp of the technological possibilities as well as the historical realities of monetary evolution provides for a fascinating exploration of the ramifications of voluntary free market money. As it challenges the most sacred of government monopolies, Bitcoin shifts the pendulum of sovereignty away from governments in favor of individuals, offering us the tantalizing possibility of a world where money is fully extricated from politics and unrestrained by borders. The final chapter of the book explores some of the most common questions surrounding Bitcoin: Is Bitcoin mining a waste of energy? Is Bitcoin for criminals? Who controls Bitcoin, and can they change it if they please? How can Bitcoin be killed? And what to make of all the thousands of Bitcoin knockoffs, and the many supposed applications of Bitcoin’s ‘block chain technology’? The Bitcoin Standard is the essential resource for a clear understanding of the rise of the Internet’s decentralized, apolitical, free-market alternative to national central banks.

Read this book and send your nonverbal intelligence soaring. Joe Navarro, a former FBI counterintelligence officer and a recognized expert on nonverbal behavior, explains how to "speed-read" people: decode sentiments and behaviors, avoid hidden pitfalls, and look for deceptive behaviors. You'll also learn how your body language can influence what your boss, family, friends, and strangers think of you. You will discover: * The ancient survival instincts that drive body language * Why the face is the least likely place to gauge a person's true feelings * What thumbs, feet, and eyelids reveal about moods and motives * The most powerful behaviors that reveal our confidence and true sentiments * Simple nonverbals that instantly establish trust * Simple nonverbals that instantly communicate authority Filled with examples from Navarro's professional experience, this definitive book offers a powerful new way to navigate your world... He says that's his best offer. Is it? She says she agrees. Does she? The interview went great—or did it? He said he'd never do it again. But he did.

A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER A WALL STREET JOURNAL BESTSELLER "This book blew my mind. It’s a riveting read, full of instantly actionable advice-not just for high-stakes situations, but also for handling everyday conflicts at work and at home." ―Adam Grant, author of Think Again This international bestseller, with more than 5 million copies sold, offers a field-tested approach to high-stakes negotiations―whether in the boardroom, in your community, or at home. Life is a series of negotiations, and essential negotiation skills are at the heart of collaboration―whether you are a business executive, a salesperson, a parent , a community leader, or a spouse. As a former FBI hostage negotiator, Chris Voss gives you the tools for effective persuasion in any situation: negotiating a business deal, buying (or selling) a car, negotiating a salary, acquiring a home, renegotiating rent, deliberating with your partner, or communicating with your children. Taking the power of tactical empathy, active listening, and intuition to the next level, Never Split the Difference gives you the competitive edge in any difficult conversation or conflict resolution scenario. This book is a masterclass in influencing others, no matter the circumstances. After a stint policing the rough streets of Kansas City, Chris Voss joined the FBI, where his career as a hostage negotiator brought him face-to-face with a range of criminals, including bank robbers and terrorists. Reaching the pinnacle of his profession, he became the FBI’s lead international kidnapping negotiator. Never Split the Difference distills the Voss method, revealing the communication skills that matter most when it comes to achieving your goals in both your professional and personal life. Step-by-step, Voss show you how to: * Establish Rapport * Create Trust with Tactical Empathy * Gain the Permission to Persuade * Shape What Is Fair * Calibrate Questions * Transform Conflict into Collaboration * Spot Liars * Create Breakthroughs by Revealing the Unknown Unknowns Never Split the Difference is your definitive source for defusing potential crises, winning people over, and achieving your goals at work and at home with proven negotiating strategies.

Written 75 years ago, 1984 was George Orwell’s chilling prophecy about the future. And while 1984 has come and gone, his dystopian vision of a government that will do anything to control the narrative is timelier than ever... This 75th Anniversary Edition includes: • A New Introduction by Dolen Perkins-Valdez, author of Take My Hand, winner of the 2023 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Literary Work—Fiction • A New Afterword by Sandra Newman, author of Julia: A Retelling of George Orwell’s 1984 “The Party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command.” Winston Smith toes the Party line, rewriting history to satisfy the demands of the Ministry of Truth. With each lie he writes, Winston grows to hate the Party that seeks power for its own sake and persecutes those who dare to commit thoughtcrimes. But as he starts to think for himself, Winston can’t escape the fact that Big Brother is always watching... A startling and haunting novel, 1984 creates an imaginary world that is completely convincing from start to finish. No one can deny the novel’s hold on the imaginations of whole generations, or the power of its admonitions—a power that seems to grow, not lessen, with the passage of time. • Nominated as one of America’s best-loved novels by PBS’s The Great American Read •

Are you ready to take your productivity to new heights with the power of artificial intelligence? Look no further than "The Ultimate Guide to ChatGPT" by Percival C. Verena! In this comprehensive guide, you'll gain a deep understanding of prompt engineering and how to leverage the cutting-edge language model ChatGPT, developed by OpenAI, to unleash your full potential. You'll learn how to use ChatGPT to boost your creativity, solve complex problems, and supercharge your workflow. With easy-to-follow explanations and practical examples, "The Ultimate Guide to ChatGPT" is perfect for anyone, whether you're a student, researcher, or professional. Here are just a few of the amazing benefits you'll get from this must-have handbook: * Discover the Secrets of Prompt Engineering: You'll gain a deep understanding of the foundations of prompt engineering and learn how it is shaping the future of AI. * Learn How to Craft Effective Prompts: You'll master the art of creating prompts that yield the best results, allowing you to unleash the full power of ChatGPT. * Optimize Your Workflow: You'll learn how to integrate ChatGPT into your workflow and make the most of your AI-powered tools to streamline your work processes. * Avoid Common Pitfalls: You'll get expert advice on how to avoid common mistakes when working with ChatGPT and ensure that you get the most out of this powerful tool. * Take Your AI Skills to the Next Level: You'll learn how to unlock the full potential of AI and apply your skills to any field, giving you a competitive edge in today's fast-paced world. Don't miss out on this opportunity to become an AI master. "The Ultimate Guide to ChatGPT" is the ultimate resource for anyone looking to harness the power of artificial intelligence to improve their productivity and achieve their goals. CLICK THE "ADD TO CART" BUTTON TO GET YOUR COPY OF "THE ULTIMATE GUIDE TO CHATGPT" TODAY AND START UNLOCKING THE FULL POTENTIAL OF AI!

The second edition of this book appears two years after the first. I deliberately left the body of the book unchanged other than add a new introduction. if only to underscore the point: there were plenty of warnings! The significance of the timing of the first edition book is obvious to anyone who has lived through our strange times: September 2020. That was six months following the lockdown of most of the world during which places where people might “congregate” were shut by governments. The reason was to avoid, mitigate, eliminate maybe, or otherwise diminish the disease impact of the virus that caused Covid. This was before the vaccine came out, before the Great Barrington Declaration, and before data on excess deaths the world over showed vast carnage from these policy decisions. The second edition appears two years later. The topic put me to work trying to understand the thinking, a process which took me back through the history of pandemics, the relationship between infectious disease and freedom, and the origin of lockdown ideology in 2005. The times during which it was written were beyond strange. People went full medieval in every way in which that term can be understood. There was public flogging in the form of masking and the abolition of fun, feudalistic segregation and disease shaming, the practical end of most medical care unless it was for Covid, the scapegoating of non-compliers, and a turn to other pre-modern forms. All of this became worse once the non-sterilizing vaccines appeared on the market that many if not most people were forced to accept or lose their jobs. Writing now September 2022, I cannot even imagine going through the pain of putting this research together again. I’m very pleased it was done then because now this book survives as a marker that there was dissent, if nothing else. This was a period of time – still is today – when vast numbers of people feel betrayed by technology, media, politicians, and even their one-time intellectual heroes. It is a time of grave destruction with still-broken supply chains, roaring inflation, mass cultural demoralization, labor market confusions, and terrible uncertainty about the future. Let us hope, too, that it is a period of rebuilding, however quietly it is taking place. Starting the Brownstone Institute is part of that for me. So many others have joined. Today we published articles from all over the world since so many around the world have shared in this suffering. ~ Jeffrey Tucker, September 2022

“An elegant and beautiful writer.” ~ Julie Ponesse, Ethics Scholar, The Democracy Fund "Funny, brilliant, and personal perspectives." ~ Jennifer Grossman, CEO, The Atlas Society "A wonderful summary of complex ideas with a beautiful personal tone." Zubin Damania, MD, host of the Internet's #1 medical news and entertainment show Did the Covid-19 lockdowns and mandates serve society’s best interests? Science alone can’t answer the question. Philosophers have important things to say about it. So do psychologists, economists, novelists, and lawyers. The 46 thinkers showcased in this elegant book by Gabrielle Bauer, drawn from a variety of disciplines and political persuasions, agree on one thing: the policies crossed the line and the world lost its way. Some are internationally famous, others merely brilliant. Together, they hone in on the social and ethical breaches of the Covid era, such as emotional manipulation, disregard for civil liberties, and a stubborn refusal to consider the harms of freezing society. The author also recounts her own efforts to make sense of the Covid landscape, from Zoom psychotherapy to a visit to lockdown-free Sweden. The book challenges us to survey the damage of the Covid-19 policies from diverse angles, its voices offering fresh perspectives on the greatest social upheaval in modern history. “Really nicely written.” ~ David Bell, Executive Committee, PANDATA, former coordinator of the WHO’s malaria diagnostics strategy “Honored to be included in this book.” ~ Aaron Kheriaty, Director, Program in Bioethics and American Democracy, Ethics and Public Policy Center “A compelling blend of down-to-earth storytelling and journalistic chops, and a perfect launching point for reflecting on the fallout of the pandemic response. Bauer collects the voices of a wide range of insightful people who should have been part of the conversation about how to manage Covid.” ~ Yvon Wang, associate professor of history, University of Toronto “A well-written account exploring important questions about the pandemic.” ~ Zeb Jamrozik, bioethicist, Monash Bioethics Centre & University of Oxford "Many of the people featured in this book have had their views and values caricatured in media coverage of Covid policy. Gabrielle Bauer captures them with respect, accuracy and nuance as a basis for properly informed debate." ~ Robert Dingwall, Emeritus Professor of Sociology, Nottingham University “I especially empathized with the author's feelings during the anti-lockdown demonstrations.” ~ Ehud Qimron, Professor, Clinical Microbiology and Immunology, Tel Aviv University “A superb read.” ~ Sanjeev Sabhlok, economist, Executive Director, India Policy Institute “Flattered and honored to be part of the book.” ~ Lucy McBride, internist and mental health advocate, Washington, DC

Béla Bartók wrote the first four volumes of the Mikrokosmos as a series of beginning piano exercises for his son Péter. The great Hungarian composer's complete six-volume collection represents one of the most comprehensive anthologies of contemporary technique ever assembled. This edition, consisting of the first two volumes, presents more than 100 pieces of study material suitable for first- and second-year students. In a 1945 radio interview, Bartók explained, "The Mikrokosmos is a cycle of 153 pieces for piano, written with a didactic purpose. That is, to give piano pieces which can be used from the very beginning and then going on. It is graded according to difficulties. And the word Mikrokosmos may be interpreted as a series of pieces in many different styles, representing a small world. Or it may be interpreted as 'world of the little ones, the children.'" This volume constitutes the definitive edition of Bartók's tutorials, drawing upon all known manuscripts and the printed originals for a corrected version approved by the composer's son and the first student to benefit from these exercises.

The world's top trader's reveal the secrets of their phenomenal success!  How do the world's most successful traders amass tens, hundreds of millions of dollars a year? Are they masters of an occult knowledge, lucky winners in a random market lottery, natural-born virtuosi―Mozarts of the markets? In search of an answer, bestselling author Jack D. Schwager interviewed dozens of top traders across most financial markets. While their responses differed in the details, all of them could be boiled down to the same essential formula: solid methodology + proper mental attitude = trading success. In Market Wizards Schwager lets you hear, in their own words, what those super-traders had to say about their unprecedented successes, and he distils their responses down into a set of guiding principles you can use to become a trading star in your own right.  * Features interviews with superstar money-makers including Bruce Kovner, Richard Dennis, Paul Tudor Jones, Michel Steinhardt, Ed Seykota, Marty Schwartz, Tom Baldwin, and more * Tells the true stories behind sensational trading coups, including the one about the trader who turned $30,000 into $80 million, the hedge fund manager who's averaged 30% returns every year for the past twenty-one years, and the T-bond futures trader who parlayed $25,000 into $2 billion in a single day! "Market Wizards is one of the most fascinating books ever written about Wall Street. A few of the 'Wizards' are my friends―and Jack Schwager has nailed their modus operandi on the head." --Martin W. Zweig, Ph.D., Editor, The Zweig Forecast

This classic guide offers clear, concise instruction in the basics as well as the finer points of pencil drawing. Appropriate for beginning and intermediate students, it features sixty-six well-chosen illustrations that encompass a wide range of subjects — mainly architectural, but also people, animals, and landscapes — and demonstrate a tremendous variety of techniques. An architect, painter, art director, and teacher, Arthur L. Guptill wrote several popular books on drawing. He begins this two-part treatment, aimed at architects, artists, and students, with discussions of drawing objects in outline and in light and shade, the principles of freehand perspective, methods of cast and life drawing, and sketching animals. The second part examines the choice of subjects and drawing in outline and in flat and graded tones. The important subject of composition receives considerable attention, with particular focus on unity and balance. Additional topics include working from photographs and from nature, the representation of buildings — including exteriors, interiors, and street scenes — and portraying details and accessories, from furniture, draperies, doors, and windows to clouds, water, and trees.

The author of Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance examines life's essential issues as he recounts the journey down the Hudson River in a sailboat of his philosopher-narrator Phaedrus.

THE CLASSIC BOOK THAT HAS INSPIRED MILLIONS A penetrating examination of how we live and how to live better Few books transform a generation and then establish themselves as touchstones for the generations that follow. Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance is one such book. This modern epic of a man’s search for meaning became an instant bestseller on publication in 1974, acclaimed as one of the most exciting books in the history of American letters. It continues to inspire millions.  A narration of a summer motorcycle trip undertaken by a father and his son, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance becomes a personal and philosophical odyssey into fundamental questions on how to live. The narrator's relationship with his son leads to a powerful self-reckoning; the craft of motorcycle maintenance leads to an austerely beautiful process for reconciling science, religion, and humanism. Resonant with the confusions of existence, this classic is a touching and transcendent book of life. This new edition contains an interview with Pirsig and letters and documents detailing how this extraordinary book came to be.