Changes in health care have dramatically altered the experience of dying in America. At the turn of the twentieth century, medicine’s imperative to cure disease increasingly took priority over the demand to relieve pain and suffering at the end of life. Filled with heartbreaking stories, The Inevitable Hour demonstrates that professional attention and resources gradually were diverted from dying patients. Emily K. Abel challenges three myths about health care and dying in America. First, that medicine has always sought authority over death and dying; second, that medicine superseded the role of families and spirituality at the end of life; and finally, that only with the advent of the high-tech hospital did an institutional death become dehumanized. Abel shows that hospitals resisted accepting dying patients and often worked hard to move them elsewhere. Poor, terminally ill patients, for example, were shipped from Bellevue Hospital in open boats across the East River to Blackwell’s Island, where they died in hovels, mostly without medical care. Some terminal patients were not forced to leave, yet long before the advent of feeding tubes and respirators, dying in a hospital was a profoundly dehumanizing experience. With technological advances, passage of the Social Security Act, and enactment of Medicare and Medicaid, almshouses slowly disappeared and conditions for dying patients improved—though, as Abel argues, the prejudices and approaches of the past are still with us. The problems that plagued nineteenth-century almshouses can be found in many nursing homes today, where residents often receive substandard treatment. A frank portrayal of the medical care of dying people past and present, The Inevitable Hour helps to explain why a movement to restore dignity to the dying arose in the early 1970s and why its goals have been so difficult to achieve.

“A remarkably nuanced, empathetic, and well-crafted work of journalism, [The Inevitable] explores what might be called the right-to-die underground, a world of people who wonder why a medical system that can do so much to try to extend their lives can do so little to help them end those lives in a peaceful and painless way.”—Brooke Jarvis, The New Yorker More states and countries are passing right-to-die laws that allow the sick and suffering to end their lives at pre-planned moments, with the help of physicians. But even where these laws exist, they leave many people behind. The Inevitable moves beyond margins of the law to the people who are meticulously planning their final hours—far from medical offices, legislative chambers, hospital ethics committees, and polite conversation. It also shines a light on the people who help them: loved ones and, sometimes, clandestine groups on the Internet that together form the “euthanasia underground.” Katie Engelhart, a veteran journalist, focuses on six people representing different aspects of the right to die debate. Two are doctors: a California physician who runs a boutique assisted death clinic and has written more lethal prescriptions than anyone else in the U.S.; an Australian named Philip Nitschke who lost his medical license for teaching people how to end their lives painlessly and peacefully at “DIY Death” workshops. The other four chapters belong to people who said they wanted to die because they were suffering unbearably—of old age, chronic illness, dementia, and mental anguish—and saw suicide as their only option. Spanning North America, Europe, and Australia, The Inevitable offers a deeply reported and fearless look at a morally tangled subject. It introduces readers to ordinary people who are fighting to find dignity and authenticity in the final hours of their lives.

This book covers the teachings of a sixth century religious leader, whose followers constitute the second largest religious group in the world in the present age. The book is set as a first person narrative, where the Prophet quotes his own words, and offers the rationale for many of the guidelines in the times when they were delivered, as also their validity in the present times. Many of those preachings which were very relevant to usher in much needed socio-cultural changes in the desert tribes of those ancient times, may seem to be archaic and out of place today, when the world and society have seen much advancement and achieved scientific and technological progress. And yet, since they are believed to be the words of God, delivered through His chosen messenger, the believers are in a constant intellectual crisis, as they are unable to give them up totally, nor are they able to accept them totally in the present context. It is this dilemma that is the thread running through the book, where many of the guidelines are compared with guidelines on the same subjects contained in ancient scriptures from other world religions, most of which are more ancient than these sixth century teachings. The reader is invited to read, analyse and draw his own conclusions about these myriad topics which continue to interest and stimulate human curiosity and the quest for truth through all ages.

Becoming -- Cognifying -- Flowing -- Screening -- Accessing -- Sharing -- Filtering -- Remixing -- Interacting -- Tracking -- Questioning -- Beginning

'Read! Your Lord is the Most Bountiful one who taught by the pen, who taught man what he did not know.' The Qur'an, believed by Muslims to be the word of God, was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad 1400 years ago. It is the supreme authority in Islam and the living source of all Islamic teaching; it is a sacred text and a book of guidance, that sets out the creed, rituals, ethics, and laws of the Islamic religion. It has been one of the most influential books in the history of literature. Recognized as the greatest literary masterpiece in Arabic, it has nevertheless remained difficult to understand in its English translations. This new translation is written in a contemporary idiom that remains faithful to the original, making it easy to read while retaining its powers of eloquence. Archaisms and cryptic language are avoided, and the Arabic meaning preserved by respecting the context of the discourse. The message of the Qur'an was directly addressed to all people regardless of class, gender, or age, and this translation is equally accessible to everyone. ABOUT THE SERIES: For over 100 years Oxford World's Classics has made available the widest range of literature from around the globe. Each affordable volume reflects Oxford's commitment to scholarship, providing the most accurate text plus a wealth of other valuable features, including expert introductions by leading authorities, helpful notes to clarify the text, up-to-date bibliographies for further study, and much more.

The Quran-Aerab provides grammar and translation of the Holy Quran. It has word-to-word translation and simple translation of verses. Each word of the Holy Quran is analyzed for its essential morphology (صرف) and syntax (نحو). This presentation aims to provide students of the Quran, translation, and grammar on one page instead of looking for such information in various resources. The Grammar is split into two parts. For each word, the low- er row shows root letters (مادة), past tense (فعل ماض), present and future tense فعل مضارع, verbal noun (مصدر) and its form (باب). This information is mostly taken from Qurani Dictionary [1], Taleem-ul-Quran [2], and Bayan Quran [3]. The upper row shows Irabs extracted from Irab Books by Dr. Suleiman Yaqut [4] and Dr. Ali Munem Abdul Hameed (Noor-ul-Yaqeen) [5]. The word-to-word English translation is taken from QuranHive [6], and the verse translation is by Dr. Mustafa Khattab. Other books and dictionaries consulted are shown in the reference list provided below. The first word on every page is hyperlinked to the Irab Book by Dr. Suleiman Yaqut [4]. You can get more details when you click on it, such as the Irab of the sentences. This presentation will be useful for readers who can access it from anywhere in the world. It will benefit all students of the Quran and teachers alike in schools, colleges, and universities.