Catalog All books
Gilbert Lagrue
Trying to quit smoking ?
Why do people smoke ? What is the role of nicotine, which produces all the pleasant sensations of tobacco inhalation ? Why do smokers find it so difficult to quit, when their health and even their lives are at risk? This is book is aimed at smokers, and all those who are interested in the mysteries of human behaviour. In order to break the futile vicious circle of guilt and failure, Gilbert Lagrue examines both the positive and the negative effects of tobacco.The authors goal is to lead the reader from understanding to action. How do smokers decide to quit? What are the different methods used in giving up smoking? How can smokers fight against physical and psychological dependence? And how can those who have quit ensure that they will not start smoking again? Professor Gilbert Lagrue is a renowned specialist on tobacco abuse and withdrawal. He is the founder of the tobacco-withdrawal unit at Hôpital Henri Mondor in Créteil.
Jean Cottraux
Internal Enemies Obsessions and Compulsions
Why do some people become obsessed with cleanliness, fear of causing accidents, or the idea that they are guilty of some fault or imperfection? Where should the line be drawn between "normal" obsessions, from which everyone suffers to a greater or lesser degree, and pathological obsessions? When should measures be taken to treat those who suffer from obsessions? Why have obsessive-compulsive disorders become so common (2.5% of the population now suffer from them)? Jean Cottrauxs study of several clinical cases enables him to describe how obsessive-thought processes function. Doctor Jean Cottraux is a clinical psychiatrist and lecturer at the Université de Lyon I.
Léo Bersani
Homos Reassessing the Identity
What does it mean to be homosexual today ? Is it necessary to form communities and if so, why ? Is the primary aim equality in society such as it is, or the challenging of society itself ? Up to what point do homosexuals distinguish themselves ? Must there be a link between sexual claims and political dispute ? The gay and lesbian communities necessarily ask themselves these questions. On a wider scale, they also encourage a redefinition of the human being in contemporary societies. Already considered a classic in the United States, Homos presents an innovative, critical reflection on identity and the dangers in the withdrawal of a community from society. An expert in French literature, Leo Bersani is a professor at the University of California. He has notably published Baudelaire and Freud, and Theory and Violence.
Ilya Prigogine
The End of Certainties (Coll. Opus)
As we come to the end of the century, the question of the future of science is often posed. I believe we are just at the beginning of a new endeavour. We are witnessing the development of a science which is no longer limited to simplified, idealised situations, but makes us face the complexity of the real world. This new science will allow human creativity to be experienced as the unique expression of a fundamental trait common to all aspects of nature. Ive tried to present this conceptual transformation, which implies the beginning of a new chapter in the fruitful relations between physics and mathematics, in a manner that will be comprehensible and accessible to all readers interested in the evolution of our ideas of nature. We are but at the threshold of a new chapter in the history of our dialogue with nature, writes Ilya Prigogine. Ilya Prigogine, winner of the Nobel Prize for Chemistry, teaches at the Free University of Brussels and at the University of Texas, in Austin.