Book Chapters

Sam Harris has contributed chapters to the following books:

 

Today’s leading thinkers on why things are good and getting better. With contributions by Jared Diamond, Steven Pinker, Brian Greene, Richard Dawkins, Walter Isaacson, and Lisa Randall, among many others.

 

Christopher Hitchens continues to make the case for a splendidly godless universe in this first-ever gathering of the influential voices — past and present — that have shaped his side of the current (and raging) God/no-god debate. With Hitchens as your erudite and witty guide, you’ll be led through a wealth of philosophy, literature, and scientific inquiry, including generous portions of the words of Lucretius, Benedict de Spinoza, Charles Darwin, Karl Marx, Mark Twain, George Eliot, Bertrand Russell, Emma Goldman, H. L. Mencken, Albert Einstein, Daniel Dennett, Sam Harris, Richard Dawkins, and many others well-known and lesser known. And they’re all set in context and commented upon as only Christopher Hitchens — “political and literary journalist extraordinaire” (Los Angeles Times) — can.

 

More than one hundred of the world’s leading thinkers write about things they believe in, despite the absence of concrete proof.

Eminent cultural impresario, editor, and publisher Edge, John Brockman asked a group of leading scientists and thinkers to answer the question: What do you believe to be true even though you cannot prove it? This book brings together the very best answers from the most distinguished contributors.

 

From Copernicus to Darwin, to current-day thinkers, scientists have always promoted theories and unveiled discoveries that challenge everything society holds dear; ideas with both positive and dire consequences. Many thoughts that resonate today are dangerous not because they are assumed to be false, but because they might turn out to be true.

What do the world’s leading scientists and thinkers consider to be their most dangerous idea? Through the leading online forum Edge (www.edge.org), the call went out, and this compelling and easily digestible volume collects the answers. From using medication to permanently alter our personalities to contemplating a universe in which we are utterly alone, to the idea that the universe might be fundamentally inexplicable, What Is Your Dangerous Idea? takes an unflinching look at the daring, breathtaking, sometimes terrifying thoughts that could forever alter our world and the way we live in it.

 

Just in time for the crucial 2006 Congressional elections, Mindful Politics goes beyond right and left to get to the heart of what matters, and how everyone can participate in real political change.

Mindful Politics is not a typical political book. It’s not written at fever pitch, it doesn’t employ the usual good vs. bad binary, it doesn’t get hung up on specific issues or policies, and it’s not even specifically “American.” Instead, this timely book addresses the less-discussed but more important aspects of politics, such as whether religion — any religion, including Buddhism — has something to offer politics. It also discusses how dealing with emotional issues can help the activist move beyond the particulars of legislation and policy, so that personal growth and effective advocacy can occur together. Noted editor Melvin McLeod offers a brief, contextualizing introduction for each of these essays.