Economics has the capacity to offer us deep insights into some of the most formidable problems of life, and offer solutions to them too. Combining a global approach with examples from everyday life, Partha Dasgupta describes the lives of two children who live very different lives in different parts of the world: in the Mid-West USA and in Ethiopia....

How advertising works is not a question that has a simple answer. Advertising is a diverse entity and different campaigns work (or fail to work) in a plethora of different ways. Most advertising persuades people to buy things, but how? And who does it aim to persuade? And how are these decisions made?...

This Very Short Introduction to Classics links a haunting temple on a lonely mountainside to the glory of ancient Greece and the grandeur of Rome, and to Classics within modern culture-from Jefferson and Byron to Asterix and Ben-Hur....

After decades of conservative dominance, the election of Barack Obama may signal the beginning of a new progressive era. But what exactly is progressivism? What role has it played in the political, social, and economic history of America?...

The heritage of literature in the French language is rich, varied, and extensive in time and space; appealing both to its immediate public, readers of French, and also to a global audience reached through translations and film adaptations....

The rich and deeply moving sounds of film music are as old as cinema itself. Even the very first projected moving images were accompanied by music in many places as a variety of performers - from single piano players to small orchestras - brought images to life through musical accompaniment....

The Reformation transformed Europe, and left an indelible mark on the modern world. It began as an argument about what Christians needed to do to be saved, but rapidly engulfed society in a series of fundamental changes. This Very Short Introduction provides a lively and up-to-date guide to the process....

From the sudden expansion of a cloud of gas or the cooling of a hot metal, to the unfolding of a thought in our minds and even the course of life itself, everything is governed by the four Laws of Thermodynamics....

What is innovation? How is innovation used in business? How can we use it to succeed? Innovation - the ways ideas are made valuable - makes an important contribution to economic and social development, and is an increasingly topical issue. Not so long ago, there were no information technologies, commercial airlines, or television companies....

Public interest in biblical archaeology is at an all-time high, as television documentaries pull in millions of viewers to watch shows on the Exodus, the Ark of the Covenant, and the so-called Lost Tomb of Jesus....

If you want to know what anthropology is, look at what anthropologists do. This Very Short Introduction to Social and Cultural Anthropology combines an accessible account of some of the disciplines guiding principles and methodology with abundant examples and illustrations of anthropologists at work....

In a startling reinterpretation of the evidence, Stillman Drake advances the hypothesis that Galileo\'s trial and condemnation by the Inquisition was caused not by his defiance of the Church, but by the hostility of contemporary philosophers....

This Very Short Introduction provides both believers and non-believers with a balanced survey of the central questions of contemporary theology....

Written by a leading expert on the Puritans, this brief, informative volume offers a wealth of background on this key religious movement. This book traces the shaping, triumph, and decline of the Puritan world, while also examining the role of religion in the shaping of American society and the role of the Puritan legacy in American history....

Norman Solomon\'s succinct book is an ideal introduction to Judaism as a religion and way of life. In addition to answering questions such as Who are Jews? and How did Judaism Develop?, this Very Short Introduction outlines the basics of practical Judaism-its festivals, prayers, customs, and various sects....