Deborah Blum Livres

The remarkable story of how one of the twentieth century's most important and controversial psychologists revolutionized our understanding of love

By the end of the nineteenth century, food in America was increasingly dangerous--lethal, even. Milk and meat were routinely preserved with formaldehyde, a practice based on the embalming of corpses. Beer and wine were preserved with salicylic acid, a pharmaceutical chemical; canned vegetables were greened-up by copper sulphate, a toxic metallic salt; rancid butter was made edible with borax, best known as a cleaning product. This was not by accident; food manufacturers had rushed to embrace the rise of industrial chemistry and were knowingly selling harmful products. Unchecked by government regulation, basic safety, or even labelling requirements, they put profit before the health of their customers. By some estimates, in New York City alone, thousands of children were killed by adulterated and chemically 'improved' milk. Citizens--activists, journalists, scientists, and women's groups--began agitating for change. But although protective measures were enacted in Europe, American corporations blocked even modest regulations. Then in 1883, Dr. Harvey Washington Wiley, a chemistry professor from Purdue University, was named chief chemist of the United States Department of Agriculture, and the agency began methodically investigating food and drink fraud, even conducting shocking human tests on groups of young men who came to be known as the Poison Squad. Over the next thirty years, a titanic struggle took place, with the courageous and inimitable Dr. Wiley campaigning tirelessly for food safety and consumer protection. Together with a gallant cast, including the muckraking author Upton Sinclair, who fought to reveal the horrific truth about the Chicago stockyards; Fannie Farmer, then the most famous cookbook author in the country; and Henry Heinz, one of the few food producers who actively advocated for pure food, Dr. Wiley changed history. When the landmark 1906 Pure Food and Drug Act was finally passed, it was known across the land as 'Dr. Wiley's Law.' Deborah Blum brings to life this timeless and hugely satisfying David and Goliath tale with righteous verve and style, driving home the moral imperative of confronting corporate greed and government corruption with a bracing clarity, which speaks resoundingly to the enormous social and political challenges we face today

The Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Ghost Hunters chronicles the dramatic story of New York City's first forensic scientists to describe Jazz Age poisoning cases, including a family's inexplicable balding, Barnum and Bailey's Blue Man and the crumbling bones of factory workers. Reprint.

Many mediums, like the notorious Madame Blavatsky, were exposed as charlatans yet there were some mediums who continued to communicate directly with another world, who despite every rigorous scientific test seemed to prove that souls survived death.

Focusing on William James's intriguing pursuit of empirical evidence for the spirit world, this narrative delves into the intersection of science and spirituality. The Pulitzer Prize-winning author explores James's groundbreaking ideas and challenges, highlighting his role in shaping modern psychology and philosophy. Through a captivating blend of biography and intellectual exploration, the book reveals the complexities of belief, skepticism, and the quest for understanding beyond the physical realm.

Go beyond the headlines and the hype to get the newest findings in the burgeoning field of gender studies. Drawing on disciplines that include evolutionary science, anthropology, animal behavior, neuroscience, psychology, and endocrinology, Deborah Blum explores matters ranging from the link between immunology and sex to male/female gossip styles. The results are intriguing, startling, and often very amusing. For instance, did you know that. . .• Male testosterone levels drop in happy marriages; scientists speculate that women may use monogamy to control male behavior• Young female children who are in day-care are apt to be more secure than those kept at home; young male children less so• Anthropologists classify Western societies as "mildly polygamous"The Los Angeles Times has called Sex on the Brain "superbly crafted science writing, graced by unusual compassion, wit, and intelligence, that forms an important addition to the literature of gender studies."

Geistererscheinungen, Kommunikation mit Toten und ein Leben nach dem Tod berühren unsere tiefsten Ängste und Hoffnungen. Deborah Blums Werk behandelt die letzten Fragen des menschlichen Daseins und wird kaum einen Leser unberührt lassen. Mit der erzählerischen Begabung einer herausragenden Schriftstellerin schildert die Pulitzer-Preisträgerin das Leben mutiger Forscher, insbesondere den berühmten William James, Professor für Psychiatrie an der Harvard University. Ende des 19. Jahrhunderts versuchte James, mithilfe wissenschaftlicher Methoden Licht in Geistererscheinungen und parapsychologische Phänomene zu bringen. Als „Geister-Jäger“ riskierte er den Spott und die Feindschaft seiner Kollegen und überschritt oft die Grenzen seiner eigenen Komfortzone, um das Unbekannte zu erkunden. Dieses Buch hat nichts mit Sciencefiction oder Klischees à la „Ghostbusters“ zu tun. Blums Bericht aus der Dämmerzone zwischen Diesseits und Jenseits ist so wahrhaftig wie eine gute Wissenschaftsreportage und spannender als jede „Akte-X“-Folge. Es ist ein fesselndes Forschungsprojekt, das sowohl als genialer Wissenschaftskrimi als auch als spannendes Sachbuch überzeugt.

Madison (USA), 1932–1974: Im Labor der University of Wisconsin werden grausame Affenexperimente durchgeführt – doch mit ihnen gelingt es Harry Harlow, die Kinderpsychologie zu revolutionieren. Die Entdeckung der Mutterliebe gegen den Widerstand der Wissenschaft – meisterhaft erzählt von Pulitzer-Preisträgerin Deborah Blum. Bis in die Mitte der 50er-Jahre prägten Strenge und Distanz die Kindererziehung. Deborah Blum enthüllt die dunkle Geschichte der Kinderpsychologie und schildert das Leben des exzentrischen und umstrittenen Wissenschaftlers Harry Harlow, der mit seinen legendären Affenexperimenten die Kraft der Mutterliebe und -bindung bewies. Harlow und seine Kollegen legten den Grundstein für die Wissenschaft der Bindung – angesichts der aktuellen Diskussion um strikte Autorität und Fremdbetreuung schon von kleinen Kindern ein Thema von bestürzender Aktualität. 'Harry Harlow, dessen Name zu einem Synonym für schreckliche Affenexperimente wurde, half in Wirklichkeit, schrecklichen Kindererziehungspraktiken ein Ende zu setzen.' Frans de Waal 'Harlows Experimente revolutionierten die Psychologie.' The New York Times