Free Download Simon Lindgren, "Handbook of Critical Studies of Artificial Intelligence"
English | ISBN: 1803928557 | 2023 | 940 pages | PDF | 14 MB
As artificial intelligence (AI) continues to seep into more areas of society and culture, critical social perspectives on its technologies are more urgent than ever before. Bringing together state-of-the-art research from experienced scholars across disciplines, this Handbook provides a comprehensive overview of the current state of critical AI studies.

Free Download Critical Phenomena in Natural Sciences: Chaos, Fractals, Selforganization and Disorder: Concepts and Tools by Didier Sornette
English | PDF | 2006 | 538 Pages | ISBN : 3540308822 | 6.8 MB
Concepts, methods and techniques of statistical physics in the study of correlated, as well as uncorrelated, phenomena are being applied ever increasingly in the natural sciences, biology and economics in an attempt to understand and model the large variability and risks of phenomena. This is the first textbook written by a well-known expert that provides a modern up-to-date introduction for workers outside statistical physics. The emphasis of the book is on a clear understanding of concepts and methods, while it also provides the tools that can be of immediate use in applications. Although this book evolved out of a course for graduate students, it will be of great interest to researchers and engineers, as well as to post-docs in geophysics and meteorology.

Free Download Valentina Carraro, "Jerusalem Online: Critical Cartography for the Digital Age"
English | 2021 | ISBN: 9811633169, 9811633134 | PDF | pages: 137 | 2.8 mb
The book addresses the rapid shifts which have taken place within cartography, and argues that no amount of technological sophistication will lead to neutral representations, and that as such critical cartography provides a solid foundation for questioning the power of maps. It considers the fragmentation, dynamism and opacity that characterise online maps, and argues for the need of new ways of thinking and researching maps. The book offers an approach grounded in 'ontological' social theory and feminist technoscience, and illustrates it through the analysis of three Jerusalem-related mapping controversies. Using online media, historical maps and ethnographic work, each case study explores a different map provider and a recent mapping development: Google Maps and the distributed authorship of web-maps; Waze and algorithmic navigation; OpenStreetMap and crowdsourcing. The book is a key read to faculty and advanced students in Urban Studies and Critical Cartography. It will particularly appeal to those working in the digital geographies

Free Download Beyond Ecological Economics and Development: Critical Reflections on the Thought of Manfred Max-Neef
by Luis Valenzuela, María del Valle Barrera
English | 2024 | ISBN: 1032463236 | 276 Pages | True PDF | 24.3 MB

Free Download Mike Piero, "Being Dragonborn: Critical Essays on The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim "
English | ISBN: 1476677840 | 2021 | 236 pages | EPUB | 4 MB
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is one of the bestselling and most influential video games of the past decade. From the return of world-threatening dragons to an ongoing civil war, the province of Skyrim is rich with adventure, lore, magic, history, and stunning vistas. Beyond its visual spectacle alone, Skyrim is an exemplary gameworld that reproduces out-of-game realities, controversies, and histories for its players. Being Dragonborn, then, comes to signify a host of ethical and ideological choices for the player, both inside and outside the gameworld. These essays show how playing Skyrim, in many ways, is akin to "playing" 21st century America with its various crises, conflicts, divisions, and inequalities. Topics covered include racial inequality and white supremacy, gender construction and misogyny, the politics of modding, rhetorics of gameplay, and narrative features.

Free Download Lary Dilsaver, "America's National Park System: The Critical Documents"
English | ISBN: 1442256826 | 2016 | 506 pages | EPUB | 3 MB
Now in a fully updated edition, this invaluable reference work is a fundamental resource for scholars, students, conservationists, and citizens interested in America's national park system. The extensive collection of documents illustrates the system's creation, development, and management. The documents include laws that established and shaped the system; policy statements on park management; Park Service self-evaluations; and outside studies by a range of scientists, conservation organizations, private groups, and businesses. A new appendix includes summaries of pivotal court cases that have further interpreted the Park Service mission.

Free Download Advances in Critical Flow Dynamics Involving Moving/Deformable Structures with Design Applications: Proceedings of the IUTAM Symposium on Critical Flow Dynamics involving Moving/Deformable Structures with Design applications, June 18-22, 2018, Santorini, Greece by Marianna Braza
English | EPUB | 2021 | 579 Pages | ISBN : 3030555933 | 159.8 MB
This book reports on the latest knowledge concerning critical phenomena arising in fluid-structure interaction due to movement and/or deformation of bodies.

Free Download Sabine Planka, "A Critical Companion to Terry Gilliam "
English | ISBN: 1666912255 | 2022 | 264 pages | EPUB, PDF | 431 KB + 2 MB
A Critical Companion to Terry Gilliam provides a fresh, up-to-date exploration of the director's films and artistic practices, ranging from his first film Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975) to his recently released and latest film The Man Who Killed Don Quixote (2018). This volume presents Gilliam as a director whose films weave together an avant-garde cinematic style, imaginative exaggeration, and social critique. Consequently, while his films can seem artistically chaotic and thus have the effect of frustrating and upsetting the viewer, the essays in this volume show that this is part of a very disciplined creative plan to achieve the defamiliarization of various accepted notions of human and social life.

Free Download Joshua Sikora, "A Critical Companion to Terrence Malick "
English | ISBN: 1793608628 | 2020 | 288 pages | EPUB | 1533 KB
From the dust of the Montana plains to the farthest reaches of the cosmos, Terrence Malick's films have enchanted audiences with transcendent images of nature, humanity, and grace for nearly fifty years. The contributors in this volume explore the profound implications of Malick's stories, images, processes, and convictions as they offer comprehensive studies of the ten completed films of Terrence Malick. Each chapter takes a reflective and retrospective approach, considering new interpretations and frameworks for understanding Malick's unique creative choices. Drawing from a range of diverse academic disciplines, the collection analyzes the groundbreaking qualities of his cinematic style and the philosophical underpinnings that permeate his work. Rigorously researched and unique, the arguments presented within this volume shed new light on Malick and the cinematic medium.

Free Download Matthew Hodge, "A Critical Companion to Julie Taymor "
English | ISBN: 1666936685 | 2023 | 274 pages | EPUB, PDF | 457 KB + 5 MB
A Critical Companion to Julie Taymor is the most updated and holistic volume on the director currently published. Situating Taymor's work within the intersections of story and spectacle, contributors to this collection examine issues of creativity, gender, sexuality, and adaptation by focusing on themes from Taymor's oeuvre including martyrdom, musicality, fidelity, postmodern representations, feminism and queerness, identity, desire, trauma, revenge, hybridity, and obscenity. The result reveals Julie Taymor to be a globally-influenced American director who exhibits and exemplifies the authentic artistry of ingenious storytelling and deserves scholarly attention. This work will be of particular interest to scholars of film, philosophy, popular culture, gender, feminisms, and queer identities.