Nature Study

An examination of the Scientific Revolution that shows how the mechanistic world view of modern science has sanctioned the exploitation of nature, unrestrained commercial expansion, and a new socioeconomic order that subordinates women.

An extraordinary compilation of legends and rituals about nature's ever-present signs. From the birds that soar above us to the insects beneath our feet, Native American healer Bobby Lake-Thom shows how the creatures of the earth can aid us in healing and self-knowledge.

This audiobook describes some of the things that veterinarians do to help animals stay healthy. Explore how pets are taken care of in a vet clinic.

As global rates of plant and animal extinctions mount, anxieties about the future of the earth's ecosystems are fueling ever more ambitious efforts at conservation, which draw on Western scientific principles to manage species and biodiversity. In Revenant Ecologies, Audra Mitchell argues that these responses not only ignore but also magnify powerful forms of structural violence like colonialism, racism, genocide, extractivism, ableism, and heteronormativity, ultimately contributing to the destruction of unique life forms and ecosystems.

Temperatures are rising all over the world, leading to wildfires, droughts, animal extinctions, and ferocious storms - climate change is real. But how did we get to this state, and what can we do next? What if we could work to protect the planet, while also taking action to make life fairer and more equal for the people who live on it? We can - if we're willing to change everything.

In The Laws of Human Nature (2018), best-selling author Robert Greene dissects the elaborate lies that people tell themselves. Purchase this in-depth summary to learn more.

Where does hunting fit in the modern world? To many, it can seem outdated or even cruel, but as On Hunting affirms, hunting is holistic, honest, and continually relevant. Authors Grossman, Miller, and Cunningham dive deep into the ancient past of hunting and examine its position today, demonstrating that we cannot understand humanity without first understanding hunting.

Jennifer Pharr Davis, the former record holder of the FKT (or Fastest Known Time) on the Appalachian Trail, tells the story of her meteoric rise in the world of endurance hiking and, in doing so, unpacks key traits that make women uniquely suited to endurance. With a storyteller's ear for fascinating detail and description, she takes us with her as she sets the record on the Appalachian Trail and introduces us to the mentors who helped her to identify and unlock different facets of her endurance capabilities.

Note: This is a summary and analysis of the book and not the original book. Are you emotionally healthy? Are people often manipulating you? Best-selling author Robert Greene dives deep into the laws that control human nature, exposing the darkness and the light that is within each our souls. A truly riveting listen! This ZIP Reads summary includes: a synopsis of the original book; a detailed explanation of all 18 laws of human nature; key takeaways from each chapter; and more!

Maternal instinct - the all-consuming, utterly selfless love that mothers lavish on their children - has long been assumed to be an innate, indeed defining element of a woman's nature. But is it? In this provocative, groundbreaking audiobook, renowned anthropologist (and mother) Sarah Blaffer Hrdy shares a radical new vision of motherhood and its crucial role in human evolution. Hrdy strips away stereotypes and gender-biased myths to demonstrate that traditional views of maternal behavior are essentially wishful thinking codified as objective observation.

Brent Alan Henderson understands what makes men tick, how to capture and hold their attention, and how to move them to action. Bunk next to Brent as he’s stranded in the unforgiving Alaskan wilderness with hungry brown bears circling his tent. Ride along as storms and riptides thrash his rubber Zodiac, trying to dump you both into the icy depths of Alaska’s Cook Inlet. Sit at his campfire on the remote African plains, listening to roaring lions on the hunt.

Before clocks, seasons were the original calendar that cultures would use to survive and thrive! The essential magic of the natural world is available to us all, if we are open to living back in alignment with nature's flow. And experiencing this meaningful shift doesn’t require a huge life overhaul—simple little daily changes and rituals honoring the turn of the seasons will make a huge difference in how we lead our lives. In Sacred Seasons bestselling author and moon mentor Kirsty Gallagher teaches us to embrace these moments of pause and ritual with nature.

Although we know little about the ancient Druids, their reputation for wisdom and harmony with nature lives on. Today, Druidry is a vibrant, diverse movement with groups and practitioners on every continent but Antarctica. Spiritual rather than religious—more an attitude than an ideology—it can be embraced by people from different faiths and backgrounds. Archdruid John Michael Greer explores the history and basics of Druidry; how to perform Druidic rituals, meditation, and divination; elements of the lifestyle; and advice for placing less of a burden on the Earth.

In recent years, the theological—and, more specifically, Roman Catholic—question of the supernatural has made an astonishing return from seeming oblivion. David Bentley Hart's You Are Gods presents a series of meditations on the vexed theological question of the relation of nature and supernature. In its merely controversial aspect, the book is intended most directly as a rejection of a certain Thomistic construal of that relation, as well as an argument in favor of a model of nature and supernature at once more Eastern and patristic.

Believers is a scientist's answer to attacks on faith by some well-meaning scientists and philosophers. It is a firm rebuke of the "Four Horsemen" - Richard Dawkins, Daniel Dennett, Sam Harris, and Christopher Hitchens - known for writing about religion as something irrational and ultimately harmful. Anthropologist Melvin Konner explores the psychology, development, brain science, evolution, and even genetics of the varied religious impulses we experience as a species.

Blind Descent explores both the brightest and darkest aspects of the timeless human urge to discover - to be first. It is also a thrilling epic about a pursuit that makes even extreme mountaineering and ocean exploration pale by comparison.

Decades after The Death and Life of Great American Cities forever changed the field of urban studies, Jane Jacobs—one of the few contemporary thinkers whose works will remain in print for generations—brought us a modern classic on economies and ecology. The Nature of Economies is written in the form of a Platonic dialogue, a conversation over coffee among five contemporary New Yorkers. The question they discuss is: Does economic life obey the same rules as those governing nature? The answers that emerge will shape the way people think about how economies really work.

In this innovative celebration of diversity and affirmation of individuality in animals and humans, Joan Roughgarden challenges accepted wisdom about gender identity and sexual orientation. A distinguished evolutionary biologist, Roughgarden takes on the medical establishment, the Bible, social science--and even Darwin himself. She leads the reader through a fascinating discussion of diversity in gender and sexuality among fish, reptiles, amphibians, birds, and mammals, including primates. Evolution's Rainbow explains how this diversity develops from the action of genes and hormones and how people come to differ from each other in all aspects of body and behavior. Roughgarden reconstructs primary science in light of feminist, gay, and transgender criticism and redefines our understanding of sex, gender, and sexuality. A new preface shows how this witty, playful, and daring book has revolutionized our understanding of sexuality.

Cold Tangerines is a collection of stories that celebrate the extraordinary moments hidden in our everyday lives. It is about God, and about life, and about the thousands of daily ways in which an awareness of God changes and infuses everything. It is about spiritual life, and about all the things that we have called nonspiritual life that might be spiritual after all.

The teachings of Jesus and the teachings of Lao Tzu are very much in sync...What can Christians learn from other religions? A great deal, says the Reverend John Mabry. He believes there are immense insights to be gained by comparing religions, if we approach other faith traditions with a humble spirit and a willingness to listen. Mabry’s translation reveals how the Tao Te Ching (also known as the Laozi) closely parallels the teachings of Jesus and illuminates core elements of the Christian faith that we often overlook or ignore.