Everything started with a great love. In fact, I believe that everything usually starts, somehow, through love. In my case, the greatest changes in my life came through the men that I have loved. Thanks to Life, I loved a lot, I loved profoundly and intensely, and all that I have learned, I learned by loving. Only by going through all the pains and all the pleasures of love, without the reservations of not loving out of fear of what would happen, or what other people would think, there I found within me the energy necessary to believe in dreams. The first big dream that I fulfilled three years ago was to walk the eight hundred kilometer trip of the Santiago's journey, an illuminating trek that I recommend to anyone that wishes to grow spiritually. This trip helped me understand new things about Life and about myself, and also helped me better appreciate its beauty. After this marvelous experience, I went through a very difficult time. The journey had given me the strength to endure that difficult time in my life. After all those beautiful and harsh experiences, my faith in life had increased by leaps and bounds. I then understood that either pleasure or pain are gifts given by Life to those who seek to find themselves. At that time in my life, full of gratitude and love for existence, I tried to find again a man with whom I had shared a beautiful love story. This was at the same time a heartbreaking and marvelous reunion. Sad, because time and distance made that love change, and we could not revive the sublime passion that had united us before. Marvelous because that passion that had been so special, even if it would not manifest itself between us as man and woman once again, but only for the fact that I saw him again, unleashed in me a process that was magical and irreversible.Ever since that encounter I became aware of the existence of another person inside of me. I realized then that She had always been present, but more that ever I had perceived Her clearly. At first, this new sensation was strange to me, even though it filled me with a sort of happiness unknown until then. I wondered if this phenomenon happened only to me, if I was finally going crazy, if I had to seek medical help. But it was so good that it just couldn't be a sickness! I resolved then to deepen my knowledge on the subject, and I came across vast literature that dealt with this kind of spirituality that had flourished in me. I began to understand that I had come into contact with what is called the "Higher Self", the divine part, the soul, the particle of God that exists in everyone! I noticed that I had received an immense gift from Life as a reward for going after my dreams. For many people this might be incomprehensible or even absurd, which is perfectly natural, because it is not possible to understand something which is unknown. But I have also come to understand that for a growing number of people, the spiritual search is not only an intellectual past time, it is a vital necessity, something that is put into practice and lived day by day. With "The Science of Passion", I hope to contribute to the search of some of these people, since my greatest dream is to be a channel of Light for my fellow man.

A collection of conversations in which scientists from all fields give non-technical accounts of their lives in the profession, showing how incidents and human characteristics have influenced discoveries.

The Science and Passion of Communism presents the battles of the brilliant Italian communist Amadeo Bordiga in the revolutionary cycle of the post-WWI period, through his writings against reformism and war, for Soviet power and internationalism, and then against fascism, on one side, Stalinism and the degeneration of the International, on the other. Equally important was his sharp critique of triumphant U.S. capitalism in the post-WWII period, and his original re-presentation of Marxist critique of political economy, which includes the capital-nature and capital-species relationships, and the programme of social transformations for the revolution to come. Without any form of canonization, we can say that Bordiga’s huge workshop is a veritable goldmine, and anyone who decides to enter it will not be disappointed. He will guide you through a series of instructive, energizing and often highly topical excursions into the near and distant past, into the present that he largely foresaw, and into the future that he sketched with devouring passion.

In The Psychology of Passion, Robert J. Vallerand provides a complete presentation of the Dualistic Model of Passion and reports on the empirical evidence supporting the theory. Vallerand highlights the effects of two types of passion--harmonious and obsessive--on a number of psychological phenomena, such as cognition, emotions, performance, relationships, aggression, and violence.

Scientific facts can be so complicated that only specialists in a field fully appreciate the details, but the nature of everyday practice that gives rise to these facts should be understandable by everyone interested in science. This book describes how scientists bring their own interests and passions to their work, illustrates the dynamics between researchers and the research community, and emphasizes a contextual understanding of science in place of the linear model found in textbooks with its singular focus on "scientific method." Everyday Practice of Science also introduces readers to issues about science and society. Practice requires value judgments: What should be done? Who should do it? Who should pay for it? How much? Balancing scientific opportunities with societal needs depends on appreciating both the promises and the ambiguities of science. Understanding practice informs discussions about how to manage research integrity, conflict of interest, and the challenge of modern genetics to human research ethics. Society cannot have the benefits of research without the risks. The last chapter contrasts the practices of science and religion as reflective of two different types of faith and describes a holistic framework within which they dynamically interact.

How can economics become genuinely quantitative? This is the question that French sociologist Gabriel Tarde tackled at the end of his career, and in this pamphlet, Bruno Latour and Vincent Antonin Lépinay offer a lively introduction to the work of the forgotten genius of nineteenth-century social thought. Tarde's solution was in total contradiction to the dominant views of his time: to quantify the connections between people and goods, you need to grasp "passionate interests." In Tarde's view, capitalism is not a system of cold calculations--rather it is a constant amplification in the intensity and reach of passions. In a stunning anticipation of contemporary economic anthropology, Tarde's work defines an alternative path beyond the two illusions responsible for so much modern misery: the adepts of the Invisible Hand and the devotees of the Visible Hand will learn how to escape the sterility of their fight and recognize the originality of a thinker for whom everything is intersubjective, hence quantifiable. At a time when the regulation of financial markets is the subject of heated debate, Latour and Lépinay provide a valuable historical perspective on the fundamental nature of capitalism.

The coauthors of the bestselling Peak Performance dive into the fascinating science behind passion, showing how it can lead to a rich and meaningful life while also illuminating the ways in which it is a double-edged sword. Here’s how to cultivate a passion that will take you to great heights—while minimizing the risk of an equally great fall. Common advice is to find and follow your passion. A life of passion is a good life, or so we are told. But it's not that simple. Rarely is passion something that you just stumble upon, and the same drive that fuels breakthroughs—whether they're athletic, scientific, entrepreneurial, or artistic—can be every bit as destructive as it is productive. Yes, passion can be a wonderful gift, but only if you know how to channel it. If you're not careful, passion can become an awful curse, leading to endless seeking, suffering, and burnout. Brad Stulberg and Steve Magness once again team up, this time to demystify passion, showing readers how they can find and cultivate their passion, sustainably harness its power, and avoid its dangers. They ultimately argue that passion and balance--that other virtue touted by our culture--are incompatible, and that to find your passion, you must lose balance. And that's not always a bad thing. They show readers how to develop the right kind of passion, the kind that lets you achieve great things without ruining your life. Swift, compact, and powerful, this thought-provoking book combines captivating stories of extraordinarily passionate individuals with the latest science on the biological and psychological factors that give rise to—and every bit as important, sustain—passion.

Computer Science: Reflections on the Field, Reflections from the Field provides a concise characterization of key ideas that lie at the core of computer science (CS) research. The book offers a description of CS research recognizing the richness and diversity of the field. It brings together two dozen essays on diverse aspects of CS research, their motivation and results. By describing in accessible form computer science's intellectual character, and by conveying a sense of its vibrancy through a set of examples, the book aims to prepare readers for what the future might hold and help to inspire CS researchers in its creation.

Explores the historical and cultural evolution of the theoretical language of the stage

This open access edited book provides new thinking on scientific identity formation. It thoroughly interrogates the concepts of community and identity, including both historical and contemporaneous analyses of several scientific fields. Chapters examine whether, and how, today’s scientific identities and communities are subject to fundamental changes, reacting to tangible shifts in research funding as well as more intangible transformations in our society’s understanding and expectations of technoscience. In so doing, this book reinvigorates the concept of scientific community. Readers will discover empirical analyses of newly emerging fields such as synthetic biology, systems biology and nanotechnology, and accounts of the evolution of theoretical conceptions of scientific identity and community. With inspiring examples of technoscientific identity work and community constellations, along with thought-provoking hypotheses and discussion, the work has a broad appeal. Those involved in science governance will benefit particularly from this book, and it has much to offer those in scholarly fields including sociology of science, science studies, philosophy of science and history of science, as well as teachers of science and scientists themselves.