In Degeneration and Revolution: Radical Cultural Politics and the Body in Weimar Germany Robert Heynen explores the impact of conceptions of degeneration, exemplified by eugenics and social hygiene, on the social, cultural, and political history of the left in Germany, 1914–33. Hygienic practices of bodily regulation were integral to the extension of modern capitalist social relations, and profoundly shaped Weimar culture. Heynen’s innovative interdisciplinary approach draws on Marxist and other critical traditions to examine the politics of degeneration and socialist, communist, and anarchist responses. Drawing on key Weimar theorists and addressing artistic and cultural movements ranging from Dada to worker-produced media, this book challenges us to rethink conventional understandings of left culture and politics, and of Weimar culture more generally.

Exploring the historical contexts in France, Italy, and England within which the idea was developed, this text traces the political issues to which the concept of degeneration gave rise during the period from the revolutions of 1848 to the First World War and beyond.

From the bestselling author of The Ascent of Money and The Square and the Tower, a searching and provocative examination of the widespread institutional rot that threatens our collective future What causes rich countries to lose their way? Symptoms of decline are all around us today: slowing growth, crushing debts, increasing inequality, aging populations, antisocial behavior. But what exactly has gone wrong? The answer, Niall Ferguson argues in The Great Degeneration, is that our institutions—the intricate frameworks within which a society can flourish or fail—are degenerating. With characteristic verve and historical insight, Ferguson analyzes the causes of this stagnation and its profound consequences for the future of the West. The Great Degeneration is an incisive indictment of an era of negligence and complacency—and to arrest the breakdown of our civilization, Ferguson warns, will take heroic leadership and radical reform.

The second volume in a trilogy which examines the politics, economics, culture and international relations of Chines from the mid-1950s to he mid-1960s, this volume tells the story of the Great Leap Forward--Mao's utopian attempt to propel China economically and socially into the twenty-fist century by mobilizing his nation's greatest asset: its disciplined, manpower. The effort produced economic disaster and political dissension, and helped to precipitate the Sino-Soviet split. Today's leaders point to it as the beginning of two decades of national trauma, which ended only after the death of Mao and the purge of the Gang of Four. Those leaders have recently authorized the release of a mass of new documentation in the form of political reminiscences, economic statistics, and leaders' speeches. This volume is the first scholarly work to use the new material comprehensively, weaving it into the narrative along with the contemporary record and the revelations published in Red Guard newspapers during the cultural revolution. The result is the most detailed account and analysis to date of what went wrong and why.

Tracking the degeneration of the Russian Revolution Red Flag Wounded brings together essays covering the controversies and debates over the fraught history of the Soviet Union from the revolution to its disintegration. Those monumental years were marked not only by violence, mass killing, and the brutal overturning of a peasant society but also by the modernisation and industrialisation of the largest country in the world, the victory over fascism, and the slow recovery of society after the nightmare of Stalinism. Ronald Grigor Suny is one of the most prominent experts on the revolution, the fate of the non-Russian peoples of the Soviet empire, and the twists and turns of Western historiography of the Soviet experience. As a biographer of Stalin and a long-time commentator on Russian and Soviet affairs, he brings novel insights to a history that has been misunderstood and deliberately distorted in the public sphere. For a fresh look at a story that affects our world today, this is the place to begin.

An opthalmologist’s guide to everything from lutein to Lasik: “Valuable tips, unique insights. . .Dr. Abel is a healer for the 21st century.”—from the Foreword by Mehmet Oz, M.D. Is it true that Alzheimer's can be predicted through the eye?Sleep apnea can cause blindness?Computers and texting are creating an epidemic of nearsightedness?Retina chips and stem cell therapy offer promise for macular degeneration patients?Your prescription drugs can give you cataracts. . .or glaucoma? Alternative therapies have created new vistas for hope in eye care. In this breakthrough guide—newly revised and updated--ophthalmologist Dr. Robert Abel brings you amazing nutritional, herbal, homeopathic, and Asian therapies, along with conventional methods, to prevent and even reverse most vision disorders. Discover: New devices that allow the blind to "see" through their tongues What you need to know about your children's eyes How to administer eye drops with your eyes closed Antioxidant must-haves for your eyes A safe, herbal treatment for glaucoma Surprising ways vitamins can protect and heal your eyes Easy steps to end eyestrain New developments in LASIK surgery Why lutein may be even more important for vision than beta-carotene How to improve lazy eyes through acupuncture and vision therapy Covering everything from high-tech laser treatments to centuries-old Asian remedies, Dr. Abel's authoritative, reliable information will help you and your doctor become full partners in saving your eyes and your overall good health. "If you have an eye condition, ask your ophthalmologist how he will treat you. Then pick up Dr. Abel's book and note how many more answers he gives. I can vouch for the fact that the options he offers, being natural and nutritional, are far better."—Robert C. Atkins, M.D.