Mesmerized

List of IllustrationsAcknowledgmentsIntroduction: An Invitation to the Seance1: Discovery of the Island of Mesmeria 2: Animal Magnetism Comes to London 3: Experimental Subjects as Scientific Instruments 4: Carnival, Chapel, and Pantomime 5: The Peripatetic Power of the "New Science" 6: Consultations, Conversaziones, and Institutions 7: The Invention of Anesthesia and the Redefinition of Pain 8: Colonizing Sensations in Victorian India9: Emanations from the Sickroom 10: The Mesmeric Cure of Souls 11: Expertise, Common Sense, and the Territories of Science 12: The Social Body and the Invention of Consensus Conclusion: The Day after the Feast Notes Bibliography Index Copyright © Libri GmbH. All rights reserved.

“Together, Rockliff and Bruno make the scientific method seem exciting, and kids interested in science and history will likely be, well, mesmerized.” — Booklist (starred review) When American inventor Benjamin Franklin arrives in Paris, he is upstaged by a compelling and enigmatic figure: Dr. Mesmer. In elaborately staged shows, Mesmer has Parisians believing he can control a magic force that changes the taste of water, cures illness, and controls thoughts! Can Ben Franklin’s approach of observing, hypothesizing, and testing get to the bottom of Mesmer’s tricks? A rip-roaring, lavishly illustrated peek into a fascinating moment in history shows the development of the scientific method — and reveals the amazing power of the human mind.

They call him the Shadow. Andrei Solace delivers death on silent feet as an assassin for the Phantom Corps. The perfect weapon in the fight against the Imperium, he's sent to the same 'Verse he left behind as a youth. Piper Roundtree is a mercenary prepared for anything-except for being rescued from Imperial lackeys by the man she hasn't laid eyes on in eleven years. While she remembers every mesmerizing sensation he gave her, she thought they were through. And against the backdrop of an impending war, their passion is reignited. The girl Andrei once loved is now a fierce woman who can pilot a ship through canyons at high speeds, and drive him wild with equal abandon. As much as Andrei tries to protect her from the darkness inside him, Piper admires his skills and the code he lives by. Now the lovers must join forces-in more ways than one-to save the Known Universe before the enemy hurls it into irreversible chaos...

Brilliant attorney Beth Convey is cut down by a heart attack during arguments of the biggest case of her career. Saved by an emergency transplant of a heart from a murdered Russian man, Beth begins to have visions that may be the dead man's memories. Beth teams up with former FBI agent turned reporter Jeff Hammond to hunt down the truth and discover top-secret information that could reignite the Cold War. (May)

A Victorian skeptic discovers real hauntings—and a powerful love—in the New York Times–bestselling author’s paranormal romance series debut. England, 1876. Olivia Moreland prides herself on discrediting charlatans, particularly the false mediums that flock to London. But when Lord Stephen St. Leger requests her help in investigating an alleged psychic’s claims, she can’t deny the ominous feeling she has within the walls of his ancient estate—or the intimately familiar connection she has with Stephen himself. The last time he lived at Blackhope Hall, Stephen watched his elder brother claim the family title—and the woman he loved. Now, in the wake of his brother’s murder, Stephen has reluctantly returned to find his family ensconced in scandal. Who is responsible for his brother’s untimely death? And what is it about investigator Olivia Moreland that so thoroughly draws him in, reigniting a passion he hasn’t felt in years?

While being punished for writing a controversial article in her high school paper, Serena Albright is befriended by enigmatic loner Brodie Wiles. Serena witnesses the first time that Brodie meets Lance Royal, who is secretly rehearsing to compete in The Showdown, the biggest dance contest of the year. Immediately, Serena is drawn into their world, inspired by the love that she recognizes between them. Through her close friendship with Brodie and Lance, Serena finds comfort for the grief and guilt she feels over the brutal death of her gay older brother, the victim of a hate crime. Frustrated that her deep-in-denial parents spend endless hours in front of the television and refuse to acknowledge the death of their son, Serena accepts the challenge to have a face-to-face meeting with the boy who killed her brother. Set in the summer of 1986, this young adult novel explores the emotional aftershocks of a hate crime from the perspective of a young woman who finds renewed hope through two young men who are brave enough to love.

We live in a super-technological era and it's a blessing. It drives all of mankind forward into the future. But in many ways, as every coin has two sides, it's also a nuisance. Technology is making our lives easier in many ways, but we have also become quite dependent on it. It is changing the way we live, influencing the way we behave and altering the way we think. You can only imagine the implications it will have on our children. When I was a 6 year old child, the most sophisticated piece of technology used to be a black-and-white TV set in my hostel with manual knob to change the channels and adjust the brightness and volume. Unlike, nowadays, many 4 -5 year-old toddlers are able to put in a YouTube video they like on the laptop, making it full-screen and turning up the volume. And this is nothing compared to their proficiency in the smartphone arena. They can play games, take photos, show them to us and then take more. They can find their favorite songs, play them and then adjust the song progress cursor to the part of the song he especially likes. Well, he can also occasionally call someone from the contacts list and then hang up. All of this is amazing, but the thing is that smartphones are a modern pacifier. They can calm kids down and keep them quiet, but they can also be addictive.