The Missing Link

We look for missing links in the sciences and humanities, but the essential missing link - metaphor - is always in front of us. In Missing Link, Jeffery Donaldson unites literary criticism and evolutionary and cognitive science to show how metaphor has been with us since the beginning of time as a seed in the nature of things. With examples from centuries of poets, critics, philosophers, and scientists, he details how metaphor is a chemistry, an exchange of energies forming and dissolving, and an openness in the spaces between things. He considers the ways in which DNA learns how to liken things that have been, how mutation makes errors and then tries them on, and how evolution is hypothesis - nature's way of "thinking more." The mind is a matrix of relations: neural synapses cascade into ever-changing pathways and patterns. Metaphor is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. It is the unbroken thread between matter and spirit. Whether offering analysis of a turn of phrase or chemical reaction, Missing Link presents a vision of literature that is also a vision of the cosmos, and vice versa. It enters the debate between evolution and religion, and challenges scientists, literary theorists, and religious advocates to rethink the relations between their disciplines.

Written with candor and the wisdom of experience, this account tells of struggles with substance--and with self--and of strength both in and out of the ring for the wrestler known as The Missing Link.

For too long, evolution has been denied its place in the science curriculum. School policies driven by misunderstanding or fea regularly displace widely recognized principles of science. But without understanding evolution, students--no matter what their religious beliefs--will never achieve the level of scientific literacy they need to make sense of even everyday practicalities like how human viruses work. In The Missing Link, Lee Meadows has crafted an approach to teaching evolution that helps students understand its explanatory power whether they accept its principles or not. All students are invited to engage in inquiry, where questions, evidence, and exploration supplant values-based debates over right and wrong answers. Teachers will find the tools and resources they need to develop a unit on evolution including: an overview of inquiry-based science teaching outlines for lesson plans a plethora of internet resources. An appendix also provides a refresher course for teachers who may want to sharpen their content knowledge of evolution. And a study guide makes this ideal for book study groups. Bring The Missing Link to your teaching and keep the doors to science open for all your students.

The Missing Link is specifically designed for those who are concerned about their financial future in a complex world of credit cards, debit cards, prepaid cards, credit reports, FICO scoring, re-paying student loans, identity theft, the impact of love and money in a relationship, ways to buy a house or car, personal taxes, IRAs, 401(k) plans, endless investment options in stocks, bonds and mutual funds, insurance, and soaring medical and retirement costs. This book gives the reader a solid financial foundation in a world where important financial choices are made and mistakes can be costly.

This book teaches accountability for each individual's actions and helps the reader understand who God created him or her to be. Our primary goal for providing this book is to help you understand the mysteries of God's wonderful creation of the human race. It teaches how His wonderful plan, for us as individuals, works and how it can cause every person to be happy and fulfilled during this life. It will aid you in developing and maintaining relationships with others, especially with the Lord Jesus Christ.

Are humans unique in having self-reflective consciousness? Or can precursors to this central form of human consciousness be found in non-human species? The Missing Link in Cognition brings together a diverse group of researchers who have been investigating this question from a variety of perspectives, including the extent to which non-human primates, and, indeed, young children, have consciousness, a sense of self, thought process, metacognitions, and representations. Some of the participants--Kitcher, Higgins, Nelson, and Tulving--argue that these types of cognitive abilities are uniquely human, whereas others--Call, Hampton, Kinsbourne, Menzel, Metcalfe, Schwartz, Smith, and Terrace--are convinced that at least the precursors to self-reflective consciousness exist in non-human primates. Their debate focuses primarily on the underpinnings of consciousness. Some of the participants believe that consciousness depends on representational thought and on the mental manipulation of such representations. Is representational thought enough to ensure consciousness, or does one need more? If one needs more, exactly what is needed? Is reflection upon the representations, that is, metacognition, the link? Does a realization of the contingencies, that is, "knowing that," in Gilbert Ryle's terminology, ensure that a person or an animal is conscious? Is true episodic memory needed for consciousness, and if so, do any animals have it? Is it possible to have episodic memory or, indeed, any self-reflective processing, without language? Other participants believe that consciousness is inextricably intertwined with a sense of self or self-awareness. From where does this sense of self or self-awareness arise? Some of the participants believe that it develops only through the use of language and the narrative form. If it does develop in this way, what about claims of a sense of self or self-awareness in non-human animals? Others believe that the autobiographical record implied by episodic memory is fundamental. To what extent must non-human animals have the linguistic, metacognitive, and/or representational abilities to develop a sense of self or self-awareness? These and other related concerns are crucial in this volume's lively debate over the nature of the missing cognitive link, and whether gorillas, chimps, or other species might be more like humans than many have supposed.

The Art of Missing Link is a lushly illustrated volume that goes behind the scenes of LAIKA’s new stop-motion adventure. The charismatic Sir Lionel Frost (voiced by Hugh Jackman) considers himself to be the world’s foremost investigator of myths and monsters. The trouble is none of his small-minded high-society peers seems to recognize this. Sir Lionel’s last chance for acceptance by the adventuring elite rests on traveling to America’s Pacific Northwest to prove the existence of a legendary creature. A living remnant of Man’s primitive ancestry. The Missing Link. Zach Galifianakis voices Mr. Link: the surprisingly smart, funny and soulful beast upon whom Sir Lionel’s dreams depend. As species go, he’s as endangered as they get; he’s the last of his kind, and he’s lonely. Proposing a daring quest to seek out his rumored distant relatives, he enlists Sir Lionel’s help in an odyssey around the world to find the fabled valley of Shangri-La. Together with Adelina Fortnight (voiced by Zoe Saldana), an independent and resourceful adventurer who possesses the only known map to the group’s secret destination, the unlikely trio embarks on a riotous rollercoaster of a ride. Along the way, our fearless explorers encounter more than their fair share of peril, stalked at every turn by dastardly villains seeking to thwart their mission. Through it all, Mr. Link’s disarming charm and good-humored conviction provide the emotional and comedic foundation of this fun-filled family film. From LAIKA, the animation studio behind the Academy Award–nominated Kubo and the Two Strings, Missing Link is a stunning stop-motion epic and raucous comedy. Featuring concept art from the film’s creation—including sketches, storyboards, character designs, and much more—and illuminated by in-depth interviews with the film’s creative team, The Art of Missing Link is a must-have companion to the film.