Jonathan Marks

A conservative college professor's compelling defense of liberal educationNot so long ago, conservative intellectuals such as William F. Buckley Jr. believed universities were worth fighting for. Today, conservatives seem more inclined to burn them down. In Let's Be Reasonable , conservative political theorist and professor Jonathan Marks finds in liberal education an antidote to this despair, arguing that the true purpose of college is to encourage people to be reasonable―and revealing why the health of our democracy is at stake.Drawing on the ideas of John Locke and other thinkers, Marks presents the case for why, now more than ever, conservatives must not give up on higher education. He recognizes that professors and administrators frequently adopt the language and priorities of the left, but he explains why conservative nightmare visions of liberal persecution and indoctrination bear little resemblance to what actually goes on in college classrooms. Marks examines why advocates for liberal education struggle to offer a coherent defense of themselves against their conservative critics, and demonstrates why such a defense must rest on the cultivation of reason and of pride in being reasonable.More than just a campus battlefield guide, Let's Be Reasonable recovers what is truly liberal about liberal education―the ability to reason for oneself and with others―and shows why the liberally educated person considers reason to be more than just a tool for scoring political points.

Marks presents the field of molecular anthropology―a synthesis of the holistic approach of anthropology with the reductive approach of molecular genetics―as a way of improving our understanding of the science of human evolution. This iconoclastic, witty, and extremely readable book illuminates the deep background of our place in nature and asks us to think critically about what science is, and what passes for it, in modern society.

Every arena of science has its own flash-point issues—chemistry and poison gas, physics and the atom bomb—and genetics has had a troubled history with race. As Jonathan Marks reveals, this dangerous relationship rumbles on to this day, still leaving plenty of leeway for a belief in the basic natural inequality of races.The eugenic science of the early twentieth century and the commodified genomic science of today are unified by the mistaken belief that human races are naturalistic categories. Yet their boundaries are founded neither in biology nor in genetics and, not being a formal scientific concept, race is largely not accessible to the scientist. As Marks argues, race can only be grasped through the humanities: historically, experientially, politically. This wise, witty essay explores the persistence and legacy of scientific racism, which misappropriates the authority of science and undermines it by converting it into a social weapon.

This lively and provocative book casts an anthropological eye on the field of science in a wide-ranging and innovative discussion that integrates philosophy, history, sociology, and auto-ethnography. Jonathan Marks examines biological anthropology, the history of the life sciences, and the literature of science studies while upending common understandings of science and culture with a mixture of anthropology, common sense, and disarming humor. Science, Marks argues, is widely accepted to be three a method of understanding and a means of establishing facts about the universe, the facts themselves, and a voice of authority or a locus of cultural power. This triple identity creates conflicting roles and tensions within the field of science and leads to its record of instructive successes and failures. Among the topics Marks addresses are the scientific revolution, science as thought and performance, creationism, scientific fraud, and modern scientific racism. Applying his considerable insight, energy, and wit, Marks sheds new light on the evolution of science, its role in modern culture, and its challenges for the twenty-first century.

In The Alternative Introduction to Biological Anthropology , author Jon Marks presents an innovative framework for thinking about the major issues in the field with fourteen original essays designed to correlate to the core chapters in standard textbooks. Each chapter draws on andcomplements--but does not reconstitute (except for the sake of clarity)--the major data and ideas presented in standard texts. Marks explores such topics as how we make sense of data about our origins, where our modern ideas comes from, our inability to separate natural facts from cultural facts andvalues as we try to understand ourselves, and the social and political aspects of science as a culturally situated mental activity.Features* Offers clear, intelligent, and completely original discussions-injected with a sense of humor-that will keep students reading* Addresses core topics in a way that does not simply mirror what is in the basic textbooks but offers a new spin, thereby fostering critical thinking* Complements traditional textbooks in biological anthropology and explores connections between biological and general anthropology* Provides expert integration of topics, coherent narratives, and salient examples* Utilizes theme statements at the start of each chapter that introduce the breadth of information covered and engage students in the material

The present volume is an attempt to synthesize, present, and argue for what has been learned and remains to be learned about the biological differences within and among human groups. Marks, a biologist as well as an anthropologist, avails himself of the data generated by molecular genetics about the hereditary composition of the human species. As it happens, genetics has undermined the fundamental assumptions of racial taxonomy, for genetic variation has turned out to be, to a large extent, polymorphism (variation within groups) rather than polytypy (variation among groups). Though populations at geographical extremes can be contrasted, the fundamental units of the human species are populations rather than races. Further, genetics provides little in the way of reliable biological history of : our species, because human populations are culturally-defined, as well as biological, entities. Genetics has also been used as a scientific validation for cultural values - from the idea that there is indeed a small number of genetically distinct kinds of people ("races") to be identified, to more pervasive suggestions about the relationship of genetics to behavior. In its presentation of the biocultural nature of human diversity as well as in its presentation of the history of the problem and the illusions embedded in that history, this will be a widely used textbook that fills a void in the literature of biology and of physical anthropology.

What do we think about when we think about human evolution? With his characteristic wit and wisdom, anthropologist Jonathan Marks explores our scientific narrative of human origins—the study of evolution—and examines its cultural elements and theoretical foundations. In the process, he situates human evolution within a general anthropological framework and presents it as a special case of kinship and mythology. Tales of the Ex-Apes argues that human evolution has incorporated the emergence of social relations and cultural histories that are unprecedented in the apes and thus cannot be reduced to purely biological properties and processes. Marks shows that human evolution has involved the transformation from biological to biocultural evolution. Over tens of thousands of years, new social roles—notably spouse, father, in-laws, and grandparents—have co-evolved with new technologies and symbolic meanings to produce the human species, in the absence of significant biological evolution. We are biocultural creatures, Marks argues, fully comprehensible by recourse to neither our real ape ancestry nor our imaginary cultureless biology.

The evidence for the ancestry of the human species among the apes is overwhelming. But the facts are never “just” facts. Human evolution has always been a value-laden scientific theory and, as anthropology makes clear, the ancestors are always sacred. They may be ghosts, or corpses, or fossils, or a naked couple in a garden, but the idea that you are part of a lineage is a powerful and universal one. Meaning and morals are at play, which most certainly transcend science and its quest for maximum accuracy. With clarity and wit, Jonathan Marks shows that the creation/evolution debate is not science versus religion. After all, modern anti-evolutionists reject humanistic scholarship about the Bible even more fundamentally than they reject the science of our simian ancestry. Widening horizons on both sides of the debate, Marks makes clear that creationism is a theological, not a scientific, debate and that thinking perceptively about values and meanings should not be an alternative to thinking about science – it should be a key part of it.

In Perfection and Disharmony in the Thought of Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Jonathan Marks offers a new intepretation of the philosopher's thought and its place in the contemporary debate between liberals and communitarians. Against prevailing views, he argues that Rousseau's thought revolves around the natural perfection of a naturally disharmonious being. At the foundation of Rousseau's thought he finds a natural teleology that takes account of and seeks to harmonize conflicting ends. The Rousseau who emerges from this interpretation is a radical critic of liberalism who is nontheless more cautious about protecting individual freedom that his milder communitarian successors. Marks elaborates on the challenge that Rousseau poses to liberals and communitarians alike by setting up a dialogue between him and Charles Taylor, one of the most distinquished ethical and political theorists at work today.

No two people are the same, and no two groups of people are the same. But what kinds of differences are there, and what do they mean? What does our DNA say about race, gender, equality, or ancestry? Drawing on the latest discoveries in anthropology and human genetics, Understanding Human Diversity looks at scientific realities and pseudoscientific myths about the patterns of diversity in our species, challenging common misconceptions about genetics, race, and evolution and their role in shaping human life today. By examining nine counterexamples drawn from popular scientific ideas, that is to say, examinations of what we are not, this book leads the reader to an appreciation of what we are. We are hybrids with often inseparable natural and cultural aspects, formed of natural and cultural histories, and evolved from remote ape and recent human ancestors. This book is a must for anyone curious about human genetics, human evolution, and human diversity.

A Legal Techno-Thriller by Jonathan MarksYour beliefs are no longer your own.And one lawyer is about to find out the hard way.Corporate attorney Jack Monroe thought his toughest battles were behind a desk—until he takes on a whistleblower case that puts him in the crosshairs of the most powerful tech company in the world. What starts as a routine legal defense turns into a race against time to stop an AI-driven algorithm designed to manipulate minds—and decide elections—without anyone noticing.But exposing the truth won’t be easy. Jack is being watched, hunted, and outmaneuvered at every turn. His only chance is teaming up with Claire Foster, an ex-intelligence operative with a past as dangerous as the code they’re trying to stop.If they fail, the algorithm goes live.And no one will ever think for themselves again.✔️ Packed with courtroom twists, tech conspiracy, and edge-of-your-seat pacing✔️ A standalone thriller you won’t be able to put downIf you love legal thrillers with a high-tech twist and a touch of espionage, this is your next must-read.

Super New edition for the revised 2018 exam. Teacher’s Book with DVD-ROM (DELTA Young Learners English)

New

Caution! No English version! Polish release.

Caution! No English version! Polish release.

Jen Haverly is a career nurse from the foothills of California gold country, where she’s all ready to be engaged to the love of her life. Unfortunately, the drug addled and depressed community that has made her feel trapped all these years has other plans in mind and she must instead face the truth she has learned countless times at the sometimes saving a life is the worst thing you can do.The back of this book also includes a pre-release of the first chapter for my forthcoming novel TENT BOY, set to release at the end of summer/beginning of fall.

English Pronunciation in Use Elementary is for learners of elementary level and above. The material is addressed to the individual learner who may be working alone, but it can also be used in the classroom. This book covers all aspects of pronunciation including individual sounds, word stress, connected speech and intonation. English Pronunciation in Use Elementary recognizes the importance of pronunciation for listening as well as speaking and learners are provided with both receptive and productive practice.