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Books in Arts and humanities

Elsevier's Arts and Humanities titles encompass a rich spectrum of scholarship that explores human culture, history, philosophy, and creative expression. These works offer deep insights into language, literature, visual arts, and critical theory, supporting the academic community in understanding diverse perspectives and cultural legacies. Designed for scholars, educators, and students, this collection bridges classic studies with contemporary issues, fostering a deeper appreciation and knowledge of the human experience.

  • General Philosophy of Science: Focal Issues

    • 1st Edition
    • July 18, 2007
    • English
    Scientists use concepts and principles that are partly specific for their subject matter, but they also share part of them with colleagues working in different fields. Compare the biological notion of a 'natural kind' with the general notion of 'confirmation' of a hypothesis by certain evidence. Or compare the physical principle of the 'conservation of energy' and the general principle of 'the unity of science'. Scientists agree that all such notions and principles aren't as crystal clear as one might wish. An important task of the philosophy of the special sciences, such as philosophy of physics, of biology and of economics, to mention only a few of the many flourishing examples, is the clarification of such subject specific concepts and principles. Similarly, an important task of 'general' philosophy of science is the clarification of concepts like 'confirmation' and principles like 'the unity of science'. It is evident that clarfication of concepts and principles only makes sense if one tries to do justice, as much as possible, to the actual use of these notions by scientists, without however following this use slavishly. That is, occasionally a philosopher may have good reasons for suggesting to scientists that they should deviate from a standard use. Frequently, this amounts to a plea for differentiation in order to stop debates at cross-purposes due to the conflation of different meanings. While the special volumes of the series of Handbooks of the Philosophy of Science address topics relative to a specific discipline, this general volume deals with focal issues of a general nature. After an editorial introduction about the dominant method of clarifying concepts and principles in philosophy of science, called explication, the first five chapters deal with the following subjects. Laws, theories, and research programs as units of empirical knowledge (Theo Kuipers), various past and contemporary perspectives on explanation (Stathis Psillos), the evaluation of theories in terms of their virtues (Ilkka Niiniluto), and the role of experiments in the natural sciences, notably physics and biology (Allan Franklin), and their role in the social sciences, notably economics (Wenceslao Gonzalez). In the subsequent three chapters there is even more attention to various positions and methods that philosophers of science and scientists may favor: ontological, epistemological, and methodological positions (James Ladyman), reduction, integration, and the unity of science as aims in the sciences and the humanities (William Bechtel and Andrew Hamilton), and logical, historical and computational approaches to the philosophy of science (Atocha Aliseda and Donald Gillies).The volume concludes with the much debated question of demarcating science from nonscience (Martin Mahner) and the rich European-American history of the philosophy of science in the 20th century (Friedrich Stadler).

  • Philosophy of Biology

    • 1st Edition
    • February 5, 2007
    • English
    Philosophy of Biology is a rapidly expanding field. It is concerned with explanatory concepts in evolution, genetics, and ecology. This collection of 25 essays by leading researchers provides an overview of the state of the field. These essays are wholly new; none of them could have been written even ten years ago. They demonstrate how philosophical analysis has been able to contribute to sometimes contested areas of scientific theory making.

  • Constructing Adulthood

    Agency and Subjectivity in Adolescence and Adulthood
    • 1st Edition
    • Volume 11
    • November 21, 2006
    • Ross Macmillan
    • English
    Advances in Life Course Research publishes original theoretical analyses, integrative reviews, policy analyses and position papers, and theory-based empirical papers on issues involving all aspects of the human life course. Adopting a broad conception of the life course, it invites and welcomes contributions from all disciplines and fields of study interested in understanding, describing, and predicting the antecedents of and consequences for the course that human lives take from birth to death, within and across time and cultures, regardless of methodology, theoretical orientation, or disciplinary affiliation. Each volume is organized around a unifying theme.

  • Philosophy of Anthropology and Sociology

    A Volume in the Handbook of the Philosophy of Science Series
    • 1st Edition
    • October 27, 2006
    • English
    This volume concerns philosophical issues that arise from the practice of anthropology and sociology. The essays cover a wide range of issues, including traditional questions in the philosophy of social science as well as those specific to these disciplines. Authors attend to the historical development of the current debates and set the stage for future work.

  • Philosophy of Logic

    • 1st Edition
    • October 19, 2006
    • English
    The papers presented in this volume examine topics of central interest in contemporary philosophy of logic. They include reflections on the nature of logic and its relevance for philosophy today, and explore in depth developments in informal logic and the relation of informal to symbolic logic, mathematical metatheory and the limiting metatheorems, modal logic, many-valued logic, relevance and paraconsistent logic, free logics, extensional v. intensional logics, the logic of fiction, epistemic logic, formal logical and semantic paradoxes, the concept of truth, the formal theory of entailment, objectual and substitutional interpretation of the quantifiers, infinity and domain constraints, the Löwenheim-Skolem theorem and Skolem paradox, vagueness, modal realism v. actualism, counterfactuals and the logic of causation, applications of logic and mathematics to the physical sciences, logically possible worlds and counterpart semantics, and the legacy of Hilbert’s program and logicism. The handbook is meant to be both a compendium of new work in symbolic logic and an authoritative resource for students and researchers, a book to be consulted for specific information about recent developments in logic and to be read with pleasure for its technical acumen and philosophical insights.

  • Record Keeping in a Hybrid Environment

    Managing the Creation, Use, Preservation and Disposal of Unpublished Information Objects in Context
    • 1st Edition
    • September 30, 2006
    • Alistair Tough + 1 more
    • English
    This book brings together key ideas about record keeping in a multi-media environment.

  • Building a Successful Archival Programme

    A Practical Approach
    • 1st Edition
    • April 30, 2006
    • Marisol Ramos + 1 more
    • English
    This valuable resource provides information on best practices and solutions to successfully establish an archival programme; it uses a practical approach, without the use of technical or theoretical jargon. Additionally it serves as a companion text in a theoretical archival course. The book provides easy-to-follow advice on how to assess the information needs of any institution and the greater community for which the archives were created to serve. Guidelines for achievable goals are provided for starting an archives programme in an environment where a small budget or even a ‘no budget’ can threaten the future of the archives.

  • Managing Archives

    Foundations, Principles and Practice
    • 1st Edition
    • March 31, 2006
    • Caroline Williams
    • English
    Managing Archives provides a practical guide to archives management. It has three main target audiences: those who have been tasked by their organization to manage its archives but who have no prior training; those who are starting out as professionals or para-professionals in a record keeping environment and need basic guidance; and students who are currently studying for a professional qualification. Basic guidance is supplemented by comprehensive references to professional literature, standards, web sites etc. to enable the reader to further their studies at their own pace. The text includes a range of optional activities that enable the reader to translate principles into practice and feel greater ‘ownership’ with the guidance.

  • The Institutional Repository

    • 1st Edition
    • January 31, 2006
    • Richard E. Jones + 2 more
    • English
    Providing a thorough review of the concept of the Institutional Repository (IR) the book examines how they can be set up, maintained and embedded into general institutional working practice. Specific reference is made to capturing certain types of research material such as E-Theses and E-Prints and what the issues are with regard to obtaining the material, ensuring that all legal grounds are covered and then storing the material in perpetuity. General workflow and administrative processes that may come up during the implementation and maintenance of an IR are discussed. The authors notes that there are a number of different models that have been adopted worldwide for IR management, and these are discussed. Finally, a case study of the inception of the Edinburgh Research Archive is provided which takes the user through the long path from conception to completion of an IR, examining the highs and lows of the process and offering advice for other implementers. This allows the book the opportunity to introduce extensive practical experience in unexpected areas such as mediated deposit.

  • Jeff's View

    on Science and Scientists
    • 1st Edition
    • November 7, 2005
    • Gottfried Schatz
    • English
    Jeff’s Views provide witty, insightful, and thought-provoking looks into the life of a modern scientist. From starting off to letting go, Gottfried (“Jeff”) Schatz leads us through the trials and triumphs of scientific life. With his tongue firmly in his cheek, and his humour always intact, the Austrian essayist leads us through the confusing and seemingly insurmountable hill that is the career path of European scientists. In addition to giving useful insights into how to get funding, give seminars, and still find time to make that leading edge scientific discovery, Jeff explores the philosophical dimensions of recent biological breakthroughs such as the sequencing of the human genome, the evolution of sensory receptors, and cellular suicide. Gottfried Schatz is one of the world’s leading scientists in the field of bioenergetics and mitochondria biology. Born in a small Austrian village, he started his scientific career at the University of Graz, and ended it as President of the Swiss Science and Technology Council. With stints as a violinist in Austrian opera houses, professorships in the USA and Switzerland, and numerous prestigious awards along the way, Jeff is a true European, whose unique, and often controversial, viewpoints are appreciated by scientists and politicians alike. These essays look at science from a very personal angle – often critical, sometimes sad, but always with excitement, wonder, and admiration. It is hoped that they will make you look at science with a slightly different view.

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