Catalog All books
Alfred Sauvy
The Sources of Humour
With a view as encyclopedic as it is malicious, Alfred Sauvy invites us to journey through centuries and cultures in search of that eternal antidote to sadness and pedantry: humor. Faithful to his own voice, the author voluntarily leaves the floor to the humorists and offers us a pivotal reference work that combines erudition with an anthology that is full of alacrity. Alfred Sauvy (1898-1990) was a professor at the Collège de France, created and directed the Institut de Conjoncture, and later the National Institute of Demographic Study. Member of the Economic and Social Council of Paris, he was a longtime representative of France at the United Nations.
Jean-Claude Barreau
Of Good Government The Hidden Truths of History and the News
For the edification of the citizens that we are, the author examines philosophical problems that we had considered resolved since the 18th century, in light of current events. A powerful demonstration of the secret pillars of power, which underlines the necessity of the social contract. Jean-Claude Barreau is the Inspector General of National Education, and has held various positions in high-level administration.
Alain Devaquet
The Amoeba and the Student University and Research: A State of Emergency
The student revolt of December 1986 translated the profound disarray of a university world faced with the mutations at work in modern-day France. In an analysis of the causes of the events that led to the repeal of his project of law on the universities. Alain Devaquet underlines the importance of the stakes represented by higher education and research on the future of a country and formulates an ensemble of propositions in light of their development. Alain Devaquet is a former minister of higher education and research, and a professor at the faculty of sciences of Paris.
Gilles Gaston Granger
Essay on a Philosophy of Style
This work offers a definition of the generalized concept of style, considered not only in an aesthetic manner but also as it applies to all human works. The author applies this concept first to mathematical works, and then to the more familiar realm of language, before sketching the project of a human sciences stylistic, complementing a history of knowledge and epistemology of structures. Gilles-Gaston Granger is a specialist in epistemology and an honorary professor at the Collège de France.
Alexandre Minkowski
The Art of Giving Birth
How are children born today in different cultures? At once a history of birth throughout the ages and a comprehensive medical anthropology, this book constitutes a rigorous overview and breakdown of our current knowledge in the fields of foetal biology and neonatal medicine. As a professor and the director of a research laboratory at Port-Royal, Alexandre Minkowski has dedicated his life's work to the medical and scientific study of the foetus.
Christian Stoffaës
Ends of Worlds
An economic pulse sustains life in the modern world. C. Stoffaës investigates the highs of economic boom and the lows of paralyzing depression. He presents an historical survey of our dominant technological and mental structures from Keynes to Schumpeter, from the steam engine to the microchip, from the American golden age to the new Pacific prosperity.
Michel Rocard
Putting One's Heart into One's Work
In this intellectual and political autobiography, former French Prime Minister Michel Rocard explains the ethical requirements which underlied his every political action. This book provides an uncompromising analysis of French society and politics by examining the economic, cultural and social questions which France poses itself today.
Claude Allègre
The Furies of the Earth
Can modern science protect us against earthquakes and volcanic eruptions? What are their causes? What can be done to prevent them? C. Allègre, the world-known geologist, answers these questions, while investigating the role of scientists and the medias.
Claude Hagège
The French Language and the Centuries
Claude Hagege illustrates how the internal purity of the French language, less endangered than one might think, has been pushed aside in favor of its external promotion, less real than one might imagine. He increases our awareness of a major reality of the times. The French language is no longer the exclusive property of France; it has become an international affair. Claude Hagege is a professor at the Collège de France.
Philippe Kourilsky
The Architects of Heredity
Is man on the verge of controlling heredity? Will the characteristics of living creatures soon depend on our choice ? Do genetic manipulation, cloning and mutation warrant the fear they inspire? Philippe Kourilsky is the General Director of the Pasteur Institute. He is a professor at the Collège de France, and a member of the Academy of Sciences.