Monday, January 9, 2023

The Memory Thief: And the Secrets Behind What We Remember — A Medical Mystery

Lauren Aguirre
online access from EBSCOhost Ebooks
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FINALIST FOR THE 2022 PEN/E.O. WILSON LITERARY SCIENCE WRITING AWARD

"Aguirre writes clearly, concisely, and often cinematically. The book succeeds in providing an accessible yet substantive look at memory science and offering glimpses of the often-challenging process of biomedical investigation.”—Science

Sometimes, it’s not the discovery that’s hard – it’s convincing others that you’re right. The Memory Thief chronicles an investigation into a rare and devastating amnesia first identified in a cluster of fentanyl overdose survivors. When a handful of doctors embark on a quest to find out exactly what happened to these marginalized victims, they encounter indifference and skepticism from the medical establishment.

But after many blind alleys and occasional strokes of good luck, they go on to prove that opioids can damage the hippocampus, a tiny brain region responsible for forming new memories. This discovery may have implications for millions of people around the world.

Through the prism of this fascinating story, Aguirre recounts the obstacles researchers so often confront when new ideas bump up against conventional wisdom. She explains the elegant tricks scientists use to tease out the fundamental mechanisms of memory. And finally, she reveals why researchers now believe that a treatment for Alzheimer’s is within reach.

(Excerpt from amazon.com)

圖說香港歷史建築, 1946-1997

黃棣才
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本書是繼《圖說香港歷史建築1841-1896》、《圖說香港歷史建築1897-1919》和《圖說香港歷史建築1920-1945》後,同系列的第四冊,展現了1946至1997年間香港的建築物,載有建築線圖360幅,是前三冊的總和。

從1946年到1997年之間的五十多年,香港社會急速發展,戰後的復甦、八十年代的輝煌時期,建築面貌亦有轉變。建築物由各具特色風格而轉為標準化模樣,反映社會發展由個人影響而轉為公司化的集體影響,尤以學校建築可見一斑。

《圖說香港歷史建築》是這座城市的一部發展紀錄,透過新舊照片、文獻和線圖,一筆一筆把城市每一個角落記認清楚,理解前因後果,也是向過去為香港發展作出貢獻的人表達的一番敬意。

(摘錄自博客來網路書店)


Monday, January 2, 2023

The Candy House: A Novel

Jennifer Egan
online access from ProQuest Ebook Central Perpetual Titles
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One of Barack Obama’s Summer Favorites!
An NPR Top Pick for 2022!

Named a Most Anticipated Book of the Year by Time, Entertainment Weekly, Vogue, Good Housekeeping, Oprah Daily, Glamour, USA TODAY, Parade, Bustle, San Francisco Chronicle, The Seattle Times, The Boston Globe, Tampa Bay Times, BuzzFeed, and Vulture

“A compelling read that showcases Egan’s masterful storytelling.” —Time
“Dazzling.” —Vogue
“Radiant, exhilarating.” —Slate
“Mesmerizing…A thought-provoking examination of how and why we change.” —People

The Candy House opens with the staggeringly brilliant Bix Bouton, whose company, Mandala, is so successful that he is “one of those tech demi-gods with whom we’re all on a first name basis.” Bix is forty, with four kids, restless, and desperate for a new idea, when he stumbles into a conversation group, mostly Columbia professors, one of whom is experimenting with downloading or “externalizing” memory. Within a decade, Bix’s new technology, “Own Your Unconscious”—which allows you access to every memory you’ve ever had, and to share your memories in exchange for access to the memories of others—has seduced multitudes.

In the world of Egan’s spectacular imagination, there are “counters” who track and exploit desires and there are “eluders,” those who understand the price of taking a bite of the Candy House. Egan introduces these characters in an astonishing array of narrative styles—from omniscient to first person plural to a duet of voices, an epistolary chapter, and a chapter of tweets. Intellectually dazzling, The Candy House is also a moving testament to the tenacity and transcendence of human longing for connection, family, privacy, and love.

“A beautiful exploration of loss, memory, and history” (San Francisco Chronicle), “this is minimalist maximalism. It’s as if Egan compressed a big 19th-century novel onto a flash drive” (The New York Times).

(Excerpt from amazon.com)

逆向工程, 你我都能變優秀的祕訣:全球頂尖創新者、運動員、藝術家共同實證 (Decoding Greatness)

朗恩‧傅利曼(Ron Friedman)
online access from HyRead ebook
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比爾‧蓋茲、賈伯斯、麥爾坎‧葛拉威爾、費德勒等人成功的祕密
我們都以為,邁向成功只有兩條路:靠天資,要不就是靠努力練習。
其實,你還有第三條成功之道──逆向工程!

反過來學,就會了!
大量收集成功範例,解構找到成功配方,加上自己的詮釋,
就能打造屬於你自身版本的成就!

★Amazon、《今日美國報》全美年度暢銷書!
★亞馬遜編輯精選2021年6月最佳書籍!未出版即售出十多國版權!

成功人士的逆向工程完全解密──
一種改變局勢的方法,
即將反轉你學習新技能、發想創意點子,以及思考成功的方式!


從頂尖創新者、企業家、運動員,到藝術家、作家與廚師,許多不同領域的人都在悄悄實踐「逆向工程」。這些業界頂尖人士如果不是先解構了別人的成果,絕對不可能達成他們現在擁有的成就。

想成功做到逆向工程,就必須看穿潛藏在顯眼表面下的關鍵結構,例如品嘗一道菜餚就能推敲出烹調方法、聆聽一首美妙歌曲就能分辨和弦排序、看一部驚悚片就能掌握敘事脈絡。

本書分享並逆向解構賈伯斯、阿嘉莎‧克莉絲蒂、梵谷、安迪‧沃荷、歐巴馬和費德勒等多位傑出人士的精采故事,以及關於模式辨識、技能習得和創意天賦的開創性研究,揭發逆向工程的驚人威力,教你如何掌握並善用這項重要技能。

如果你想從努力工作提升到實際產出重要成果,請務必閱讀這本書。

(摘錄自博客來網路書店)

Monday, December 26, 2022

The Handy Bible Answer Book: Understanding the World's All-time Bestseller

Jennifer R. Prince
online access from CREDOreference Academic Core Backfile
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The Handy Bible Answer Book illuminates the secrets and reveals the wisdom of the Bible. Through easy-to-understand explanations to common questions, this book examines, story-by-story, the origins and history of the meanings of chapters, verses, and parables.

Offering enlightening explanations and defining key terms, people, places, and events, this user-friendly guide is for anyone interested in learning more about the Bible. It brings context to readers by answering more than 1,700 commonly asked questions about the Good Book, including:

• How has archeology contributed to understanding the Bible?
• What are some of the most notable Bible translations through the ages?
• What was the Day of Atonement?
• How did Gideon obey God’s call?
• According to Peter, what was the benefit of faith?
• What is the Apocrypha?

This comprehensive resource provides concise, straightforward information, drawing from five different translations of the Bible and other sources, it's designed to let even casual readers dig deeply into the Bible. It helps bring the Good Book's parables, stories, history, and power to your life.

“serve(s) as a first starting point for exploring the Bible. Recommended” —Booklist

“a good, simple, nondenominational guide that will probably be most helpful for [those] starting to learn about the ancient work.” —Library Journal

(Excerpt from amazon.com)

日本製造, 幻想浪潮 : 動漫, 電玩, Hello Kitty, 2Channel, 超越世代的精緻創新與魔幻魅力 (Pure Invention: How Japan Made the Modern World)

麥特.阿爾特(Matt Alt)
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當工業效率碰上華麗幻想
日本創意文化如何使夢想成真,重新定義你我的世界

★ 超乎想像的絕妙觀點,日本流行文化的全面解析與深度詮釋 ★
★ 那些隱藏在熟悉的日本之下,不那麼熟悉的迷人英雄故事 ★


#隨身聽 #原子小金剛 #Hello Kitty #大頭貼 #紅白機 #神隱少女
#電子雞 #超級瑪利歐 #Game Boy #阿基拉 #卡拉OK #B. B. Call

二次大戰後,日本以高品質消費性電子產品與汽車,從戰敗國崛起為產業經濟的新強權;1990年後日本陷入「失落的十年」,並迎來動漫、電玩崛起,村上春樹、無印良品風靡世界的奇妙轉變。日本的精緻創意,改變了我們如何與彼此互動、如何在獨處時打發時間,以及如何形塑自我認同。要了解這些巨大影響的起源,我們需要知道推動這些事物的創造者的奮鬥與成功。日本人的夢想構成了全球流行文化的新藍圖,並創造了我們所認知的現代世界。

不論是哪個時代,日本人日日憑空幻想,在日常生活中的瑣碎瞬間讓妄想膨脹。那些妄想與政府主導的國家戰略、企業營利目的都不相干。一般民眾的幻想,成就出「日本原創力」。本書是最適合探索日本原創力奧秘的著作,是能映照出日本真正姿態的淨玻璃鏡。──【吉田皓一│吉日媒體集團社長】──

如果將日本製造的幻想傳遞裝置視為進入異世界的邀請函,本書可說是進入異世界的說明書。當你拿著喜愛的邀請函與說明書,體驗著日本製造的幻想之際,你將會發現,這些日本製造正在改變你的生活,以及我們的世界。──【李世暉│台灣日本研究院理事長】──

從原子小金剛到機動戰士鋼彈,從小蜜蜂到超級瑪利歐兄弟,從隨身聽到卡拉OK,從電子雞到電車男,在在顯示了日本如何深刻地形塑我的青春。在那段日子裡,「日本製造」代表著品質的保證,不管是玩具還是電器,只要看到上面印著「Made in Japan」,就像是給了一張能夠前往世界之巔的通行證,擁有它,自己彷彿瞬間亮了起來!──【張哲生│懷舊大師】──

(摘錄自博客來網路書店)