"Porter has unearthed a radically new history of human genetics, one that evokes not the double helix but the humble filing cabinet." —Emily M. Kern, ScienceIn the early 1800s, a century before there was any concept of the gene, physicians in insane asylums began to record causes of madness in their admission books. Almost from the beginning, they pointed to heredity as the most important of these causes. As doctors and state officials st...

In the small, conservative town of Arden, the most exciting thing that's happened in recent memory is the opening of a Shakespearean Festival. Until an early June morning in 1954, when the body of Betty Crawford is found floating face-down in the Avon River.For the respectable citizens of Arden, Betty has been nothing but a source of gossip and scandal. Then the postmortem reveals that Betty died of gas poisoning, not drowning, and her death becomes a murder case that rocks the town. Local...

I call this collection of stories a book of hope, although it's about people who, despite being mostly good, mostly successful, and mostly competent, are living their lives with restriction and self-censorship. Those social niceties and boundaries we all contend with--that we all depend on sometimes--slowly choke that sense of selves and emotional freedom, but even within those limitations these characters find small personal redemptions. I hope to show that so can we all, no matter how al...

Karl Pearson, founder of modern statistics, came to this field by way of passionate early studies of philosophy and cultural history as well as ether physics and graphical geometry. His faith in science grew out of a deeply moral quest, reflected also in his socialism and his efforts to find a new basis for relations between men and women. This biography recounts Pearson's extraordinary intellectual adventure and sheds new light on the inner life of science.Theodore Porter's intens...

Parents and teachers often struggle with the advice given by occupational therapists regarding support for children with Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD). What makes this book unique is the exploration of secrets that professionals sometimes hold close.This book helps us see the big picture: A child’s strengths, sensory differences, the family’s role, and ways to support children in any context. The authors illuminate the complexities of choosing appropriate strat...

This annotated Civil War memoir provides a detailed account of General Morgan's famous battles and raids from a Confederate soldier's perspective.John Marion Porter grew up working at his family's farm and dry goods store in Butler County, Kentucky. He was studying to become a lawyer when the Civil War began. As the son of a family of slave owners, Porter identified with the Southern cause and quickly enlisted in the Confederate army. He and his lifelong friend Thom...

Essentially Rachel is a love story - a love story that includes steamy sex. A retired soldier; a rather unemotional man, hires call girls to satisfy his sexual needs. He meets one and, not realizing his burgeoning feelings, continues to become involved with her. The story diverts to introduce a number of people who contribute to the history of the hero, including the lady who introduced him to anal sex - the driving force of the story. This diversion also tells something of the history of ...

A foundational work on historical and social studies of quantificationWhat accounts for the prestige of quantitative methods? The usual answer is that quantification is desirable in social investigation as a result of its successes in science. Trust in Numbers questions whether such success in the study of stars, molecules, or cells should be an attractive model for research on human societies, and examines why the natural sciences are highly quantitative ...

“I am only a man, Emma.”“Then be a man with me.”Beautiful Emma Mason was an illegitimate child who should have landed on the streets of London. A twist of fate would spare the girl from having to sell her body or beg for her next meal. Instead, Emma grew up in Lord and Lady Drake’s lavish home, working happily in their kitchen with her ever-grateful mother, Julia.Through the years, Emma would never want for anything - that is until she met Theo Barnett, the son of a...

An essential work on the origins of statisticsThe Rise of Statistical Thinking, 1820–1900 explores the history of statistics from the field's origins in the nineteenth century through to the factors that produced the burst of modern statistical innovation in the early twentieth century. Theodore Porter shows that statistics was not developed by mathematicians and then applied to the sciences and social sciences. Rather, the field came into being t...

Originally published in 1960, The Edge of Objectivity helped to establish the history of science as a full-fledged academic discipline. In the mid-1950s, a young professor at Princeton named Charles Gillispie began teaching Humanities 304, one of the first undergraduate courses offered anywhere in the world on the history of science. From Galileo's analysis of motion to theories of evolution and relativity, Gillispie introduces key concepts, individuals, and themes. The Edge o...

"The Powder Effect" is a poignant and humor-filled memoir chronicling 'Timmy' Porter's journey as a caregiver for his father, who suffered from Lewy Body Dementia (LBD). Through personal anecdotes, family history, and moments of humor and heartbreak, Porter provides a vivid and honest portrayal of living with the challenges of dementia. From surreal hallucinations to the relentless impacts of caregiving, the narrative is a tribute to resilience, family bonds, and the enduring spark of huma...