Surrounded by idiots

Science of animal brains

Can we ever truly know what an octopus thinks or a bee feels? Mike Dacey's Seven Challenges for the Science of Animal Minds dives into the mysterious black box of nonhuman thought. From human bias to the puzzle of consciousness, Dacey explores why studying alien-like minds is so difficult yet essential. This book bridges philosophy and science to reveal how we can finally understand the sophisticated mental lives of the creatures sharing our world.

Capability building instead of GDP

Forget the cold numbers of GDP. Nussbaum’s book reveals why national wealth often hides deep human suffering. Instead of measuring money, she asks a crucial question: what are people actually able to do and to be? This work introduces the Capabilities Approach, a revolutionary framework for social justice. Through actual stories, Nussbaum defines ten essential human entitlements from bodily integrity to political freedom demanding a world where every person can live with true human dignity.

The idea of associationism

Kojin Karatani's Transcritique on Kant and Marx shatters traditional boundaries by reading Immanuel Kant through Karl Marx and vice versa. This provocative work uncovers a hidden space between ethics and political economy, introducing the dynamic concept of the parallax. Karatani dissects the iron grip of the Capital-Nation-State trinity, showing us how to escape its cycle. By weaving together linguistics and mathematics, he offers a visionary blueprint for global associationism that finally bridges practice and theory.

Big world, small planet

We once lived in a small world on a big planet, but roles have reversed. For the first time, we are pushing Earth to its breaking point. Big World, Small Planet reveals a high-stakes roadmap for survival. Blending cutting-edge science with breathtaking photography, it explores nine planetary boundaries that act as guardrails for humanity. This is more than a warning; it is a stunning vision for prosperity and abundance within our planet’s hard-wired biological limits.

Travelling across the rivers

Explore a hidden world where six colossal rivers—the Brahmaputra, Irrawaddy, Salween, Mekong, Red, and Yangzi—dictate the fate of empires. This epic journey spans Tibetan highlands to the Indo-Pacific rim, revealing a forgotten transregional commons. Discover how legendary mule caravans bridged unnavigable gorges and witness the fierce struggle between imperial ambitions and resilient local tribes. In this vivid history, the water itself remains the ultimate architect of power, culture, and survival across all Asia.