Systems Science

"Copaganda" is a special kind of propaganda employed by police, prosecutors, and news media. It stokes fear of police-recorded crime and distorts society’s responses to it. As the United States incarcerates five times more people per capita than it did in 1970—despite record low crime rates—a sprawling and profitable punishment bureaucracy spends a lot of time and money to manipulate what we think that bureaucracy does and why.

A leading expert in epigenetics - how genes switch on and off - provides a revolutionary, holistic, and personalized approach to better health by improving how your genes behave to prevent and reverse common ailments, chronic illnesses, and life-threatening diseases, including cardiovascular disease, autoimmune disorders, anxiety, depression, digestive issues, obesity, cancer, diabetes, and more.

Almost every society has professional judges, but from ancient Athens to modern Asia, cultures have wanted ordinary people involved in legal decisions. The use of juries comes with challenges; societies must determine how to select jurors, what cases jurors should decide and by what rules, and how to inform jurors about the law and evidence. This Very Short Introduction shows how and why societies around the world have used juries, charting the spread of the twelve-person jury from England to the British colonies in America, Canada, India, Australia, New Zealand, and the Caribbean.

When John Dawson and the rest of the residents of the Potato returned to Earth, they presented a difficult puzzle for the Realm: how can AIs and spaceships and life extension treatments be integrated into a society that has a medieval level of technology? King Harold taps Jack Ross to lead the effort, but new players - one friendly and one hostile - complicate his plans. Meanwhile... John Dawson evaluates how to use an intriguing new capability. Lord Jeffrey's new army is active and on the move. The Valkyrie-200 is threatened, and Alexis scrambles to protect it. Maestro falls in love and ...

Not long ago, Gary was just another punk teenager living in a ramshackle house in a bad part of a ramshackle town. To survive, he worked as a gofer for a brutal street gang—until a simple job went bad, and he ended up paired with a Werewolf System that enhanced his strength, stamina, and attitude. But as Gary soon learned, this gift could also be a curse, costing anyone who got too close their life. Now, he’s trying to figure out how to use his system to make things better for those around him.

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.

My life took a turn I never expected on the day the world ended. Suddenly forced to fight in a bloody arena by a faceless System, I find the only way to survive is to win. I’m told that ten victories in the arena will give me my freedom, but if I’m going to get there, I’ll need a crack team of hardened allies to fight with me. What I got instead was a bratty college girl with a jealousy streak, a momma’s boy roommate who now inhabits the body of a piglet, and a devastatingly gorgeous teacher whose sword is as sharp as her tongue.

In Capitalism, Alone, leading economist Branko Milanovic explains the reasons for this decisive historical shift since the days of feudalism and, later, communism. Surveying the varieties of capitalism, he asks: What are the prospects for a fairer world now that capitalism is the only game in town? His conclusions are sobering, but not fatalistic. Capitalism gets much wrong, but also much right - and it is not going anywhere. Our task is to improve it.

Powell and Silverglate shine a light on the defects of the federal criminal-justice system: overzealous prosecutors, perjury traps, negligent judges, perverse limits on self-defense, vague and overabundant criminal statutes, insufficient requirements for criminal intent, and no accountability for prosecutors. Most important, they provide a much-needed blueprint for reforming the Department of Justice and the criminal-justice system, including actions an average citizen can take to help restore justice.

From best-selling author Jon Krakauer, a stark, powerful, meticulously reported narrative about a series of sexual assaults at the University of Montana - stories that illuminate the human drama behind the national plague of campus rape.

When you go to sleep, the world doesn't rest with you. As John's closed-door cultivation continues, Sarah decides it's time to make a name for herself. Her goal of sharing her knowledge of medicine comes to fruition by offering to teach a few apprentices for the Sword sect. Unfortunately, knowledge is sometimes best kept secret. For one can teach an art, but not the ethics behind it.

In just seven days, the world will crumble. The System's Descent will usher in a new era of chaos: wild animals mutating, monstrous creatures emerging, and the cessation of modern technology. Humanity will be left defenseless. Drew Wright knows none of this. At least not until he is rudely ripped from his bed and thrust into a white room to undergo a taser-happy ‘Tutorial’. Turns out, he is one of a thousand randomly selected people to be forewarned of the approaching apocalypse. Now, he faces the delightful task of convincing his wife and mother of the devastation hurtling towards them.

After Jebediah Trapper completed the Impossible Tutorial (by cheating), the vet's been in something of a slump. His PTSD is gradually guiding him down the path of self-harm. Crippled, stripped of his power, and homeless, he's got no reason to keep breathing. Until a little girl is in trouble.

The world ended. Greg's real life finally began. For twenty-eight years, Greg survived the corporate trenches. Premium dark roast at 7 AM. Then, Rachel from HR policing the microwave. Brad stealing credit in projects. Then civilization collapsed. The dead rose. Society crumbled. Greg has never been happier.

The issues of poverty, inequality, racial injustice, and climate change have never been more pressing or paralyzing. Current approaches to social change, which rely on linear thinking and traditional power dynamics to "solve" social problems, are not helping. In fact, they may only be entrenching the status quo. This book draws on stories of committed social changemakers to uncover a set of principles and practices for social change that dramatically depart from the industrial approach. Simple yet profound, these stories distill timely lessons for leaders, scholars, and policymakers.

Fueled by memories of a fallen world and revenge, Nick takes on a quest to take down the all-powerful [Admin]. Armed with nothing more than his grit, his experience, and an unyielding will, his every decision becomes a high-stakes gamble in a world changed by the coming of the system. Powerful and otherworldly foes obstruct his path, their strength formidable enough to pulverize any ordinary man. But Nick is far from ordinary. He embodies humanity's best hope to overcome the catastrophe known as System Fall and to challenge the [Admin].

China's strategic capabilities and doctrine have historically differed from the United States' and Russia's. China has continued to modernize and expand its arsenal despite its policy of no first use, while the United States and Russia have decreased deployed weapons stocks. This volume brings together an international group of distinguished scholars to provide a fresh assessment of China's strategic military capabilities, doctrines, and political perceptions in light of rapidly advancing technologies.

Did you know that in the United States alone, an estimated 345 billion gallons of water are used daily? This shouldn’t be surprising–we live in a world of consumerism, and unfortunately, this even correlates to how we use natural resources like electricity and water. But what are you supposed to do? It’s not like you can just go without water.

Facing the wrath of a Transcendent, John is forced to make a choice: He can either help humanity or pay for the crimes he committed. Unaware of what this involves, he is suddenly thrown into a war that has raged for eons. But the battlefield is bleak. The stakes are high, and humanity is losing. Despite ancient cultivation methods, their steady progress in the fight against Beastmen has vanished.

With Earth's acclimatization year ticking away, Marc and his party share the desire to grow stronger. Based on their previous experiences, they theorize where they might find spawns that would be powerful enough to give them good experience, then head out to prove their theory. Along the way they discover another fairly large Safe Zone with a population of hundreds of people. On their return to their home Safe Zone, Marc finds that he's received messages from powerful, potential allies from off world. Allies who are aware of the satellite and what it's been doing.