266 products in Books

A Comprehensive Overview of the Past, Present, and Future of Money Broken Money explores the history of money through the lens of technology. Politics can affect things temporarily and locally, but technology is what drives things forward globally and permanently. The book's goal is for the reader to walk away with a deep understanding of money and monetary history, both in terms of theoretical foundations and in terms of practical implications. From shells to gold, from papyrus bills of exchange to central banks, and from the invention of the telegraph to the creation of Bitcoin, Lyn Alden walks the reader through the emergence of new technologies that have shaped what we use as money over the ages. And beyond that, Alden explores the concept of what money is at its very foundation to give the reader a framework to analyze and compare different types of monetary technologies and monetary theories. The book also takes a distinctively human look at how money impacts the lives of real people, and how new monetary technologies shape the power structures within society. In the modern era, energy abundance and technological enhancements have broadly improved human well-being, but the global monetary system has been slow to keep up. There are over 160 active currencies in the world, each with a local monopoly over its own country, and with little or no acceptance elsewhere. Many of them are rapidly diluted, which continually devalues the savings and the wages of the billions of people who live and work within those jurisdictions. Being born in the "wrong" country makes saving money far harder than it needs to be. Nigeria has a population of over 200 million people and has averaged 13% annualized inflation over the past decade. Egypt cut its currency in half relative to the dollar twice over the past decade, which instantly devalued the savings and wages of its 100 million citizens. Dozens of countries have experienced at least triple-digit year-over-year inflation within the past four decades, including Brazil that outright hyperinflated in the 1990s while it was the fifth most populous country in the world. Europe and Japan had $18 trillion worth of negative-yielding bonds in 2019, right before a wave of inflation wiped their purchasing power away. In 2021, the chairman of the U.S. Federal Reserve dismissed the idea that the sharp rise in the money supply from the pandemic stimulus would lead to price inflation. By 2022, as major inflation emerged, the chairman rapidly changed his outlook and tightened monetary policy so quickly that it led to the failure of some of the largest banks in the country. How did we get to this point? Why isn't our money better than this in the 21st century? Broken Money answers these questions by examining the current mix of technology that has led to these limitations, and then explores emerging technologies that may be able to provide us with a monetary system that is fit for the modern era.

Frederick Bastiat dismantles Socialism, the Nanny State, the Welfare State, Pro-Business Cronyism, and all the other forms of government interference in people's lives. He destroys the perverse logic of the Do-Gooders who want to help one group or another because, somehow, it's the fair thing to do. Bastiat shows that the result of all this protection and benevolence is to make people poorer and less free. His lessons and logic are up to date and powerful. Amazingly, the book originally came out in 1850! The Law is a quick read for both the beginner and the neophyte... and one you'll choose to re-read.

From the author of The BFG and Matilda! Willy Wonka's famous chocolate factory is opening at last! But only five lucky children will be allowed inside. And the winners are: Augustus Gloop, an enormously fat boy whose hobby is eating; Veruca Salt, a spoiled-rotten brat whose parents are wrapped around her little finger; Violet Beauregarde, a dim-witted gum-chewer with the fastest jaws around; Mike Teavee, a toy pistol-toting gangster-in-training who is obsessed with television; and Charlie Bucket, Our Hero, a boy who is honest and kind, brave and true, and good and ready for the wildest time of his life!

Bitcoin didn't emerge overnight. Long before Satoshi Nakamoto published the Bitcoin white paper, generations of economists, cryptographers, computer scientists, privacy advocates, and visionaries were grappling with a difficult question: Could digital money exist without governments, banks, or centralized control? The Genesis Book tells the remarkable story of the ideas, innovations, failures, and breakthroughs that ultimately led to the invention of Bitcoin—the world's first successful peer-to-peer electronic cash system. Drawing on extensive historical research and technical expertise, Aaron van Wirdum traces the intellectual and technological roots of Bitcoin across more than a century of economic thought and decades of cryptographic innovation. From early monetary theorists and Austrian economists to the cypherpunk movement and pioneering digital cash experiments, this book reveals the hidden history behind one of the most important technological developments of the modern era. Inside, you'll discover: • The thinkers and innovators who laid Bitcoin's foundation • The origins of digital cash and cryptographic money • Why previous attempts at digital currency failed • The rise of the cypherpunk movement and online privacy activism • The technological breakthroughs that made Bitcoin possible • How economics, cryptography, and computer science converged in a single invention Unlike many books that focus on Bitcoin's price, adoption, or future potential, The Genesis Book explores the deeper story of how Bitcoin came to exist in the first place. Written in an engaging and accessible style, Aaron van Wirdum transforms complex technical and historical subjects into a compelling narrative that appeals to newcomers and experienced Bitcoiners alike. His ability to connect seemingly unrelated developments across economics, technology, politics, and philosophy provides readers with a richer understanding of Bitcoin's significance. Praised by leading historians, developers, researchers, and industry pioneers, The Genesis Book offers an authoritative account of the people, ideas, and events that changed the future of money. If you want to understand Bitcoin, start by understanding its origins. Discover the fascinating history behind the invention that continues to reshape finance, technology, and society.

"Backgammon – From basics to badass" is the cutting edge, modern backgammon book, which teaches you all the basic concepts and principles in the game. It beats the older backgammon theory books by a mile. It starts out softly, but don't let this fool you! The book is full of insights from a true expert. The philosophy is a thorough and well structured learning, which leaves you no gaps in your game comprehension, as well asbringing new theory to the backgammon literature, for instance ”the value-equation” and probability tables on jumping primes. It is very easy to read even for beginners. The purpose of the book is to connect the basic theory with the advanced theory. All earlier backgammon books tends to focus on just one of these categories. Since publication in Denmark early 2013, this book is now owned by roughly half of the members of the Danish Backgammon Federation, the worlds largest backgammon federation. When writing this book, Marc was ranked frst in the Danish rating system. In 2014 Marc won his frst ”Grand Slam”, the prestigious international tournament: Nordic Open in Copenhagen. Reviews: "It's my humble opinion, that this is a must-read for everyone who wants to take his game to another level. The book is highly informative, easy to read and packed with educational positions. I've been privileged to know Marc for many years, and he is currently the best backgammon tutor in the world. Don't waste this formidable chance, buy this book right away!"- Sander Lylloff, the best backgammon player in the world. "Tremendous all-round book which suits backgammon players of all levels. It presents the concepts in a sharp but still educational way. The book has numerous new approaches to the facets of the game, that can be very complex. It appeals to new, as well as more experienced players. I'm positive that everybody can obtain new knowledge and inspiration. Read it!"- Karsten Bredahl, Super Grand Master and double winner of Nordic Open. "Marc has truly succeeded in writing a book, which starts from the bottom and ends on a very high level, without the usual gaps you can encounter. It is a solid book that everybody can beneft from, regardless of experience. The examples and explanations are top notch."- Peter Hallberg, backgammon world champion 2004.

Pasado, presente y futuro del dinero: de las piedras al Bitcoin. Una exploración completa y autorizada de Bitcoin y su lugar en la historia monetaria. Cuando en 2008 un programador informático desconocido anunció que había creado un nuevo sistema de dinero electrónico con tecnología peer-to-peer (P2P), pocos prestaron atención. En la actualidad, el Bitcoin es ya una alternativa descentralizada a los bancos centrales y al dinero físico. El patrón Bitcoin analiza el contexto histórico del surgimiento de esta nueva moneda, las propiedades económicas que la han permitido crecer rápidamente y sus implicaciones económicas, políticas y sociales. El profesor y economista Saifedean Ammous explica, con afán pedagógico, la historia del dinero y expone por qué el futuro pertenece al Bitcoin, que, gracias a la tecnología blockchain, ofrece un servicio de pago confiable, seguro y llamado a plantar cara al monopolio de los bancos centrales.  Desde las piedras preciosas hasta las monedas de curso corriente, pasando por el patrón oro y las burbujas de expansión crediticia, la historia del dinero es la de crisis y rupturas que buscan ser superadas. Este libro argumenta por qué el Bitcoin puede llegar a ser la solución a este problema histórico. ENGLISH DESCRIPTION Past, present and future of money: from stones to Bitcoin. A comprehensive and authoritative exploration of Bitcoin and its place in monetary history. When a pseudonymous programmer introduced “a new electronic cash system that’s fully peer-to-peer, with no trusted third party” to a small online mailing list in 2008, very few people paid attention. Ten yearsT later, and against all odds, this upstart autonomous decentralized software offers an unstoppable and globally accessible hard money alternative to modern central banks. The Bitcoin Standard analyzes the historical context to the rise of Bitcoin, the economic properties that have allowed it to grow quickly, and its likely economic, political, and social implications. he book moves on to explain the operation of Bitcoin in a functional and intuitive way. Bitcoin is a decentralized, distributed piece of software that converts electricity and processing power into indisputably accurate records, thus allowing its users to utilize the Internet to perform the traditional functions of money without having to rely on, or trust, any authorities or infrastructure in the physical world. Bitcoin is thus best understood as the first successfully implemented form of digital cash and digital hard money. With an automated and perfectly predictable monetary policy, and the ability to perform final settlement of large sums across the world in a matter of minutes, Bitcoin’s real competitive edge might just be as a store of value and network for the final settlement of large payments―a digital form of gold with a built-in settlement infrastructure. Ammous’ firm grasp of the technological possibilities as well as the historical realities of monetary evolution provides for a fascinating exploration of the ramifications of voluntary free market money. As it challenges the most sacred of government monopolies, Bitcoin shifts the pendulum of sovereignty away from governments in favor of individuals, offering us the tantalizing possibility of a world where money is fully extricated from politics and unrestrained by borders. The final chapter of the book explores some of the most common questions surrounding Bitcoin: Is Bitcoin mining a waste of energy? Is Bitcoin for criminals? Who controls Bitcoin, and can they change it if they please? How can Bitcoin be killed? And what to make of all the thousands of Bitcoin knockoffs, and the many supposed applications of Bitcoin’s ‘block chain technology’? The Bitcoin Standard is the essential resource for a clear understanding of the rise of the Internet’s decentralized, apolitical, free-market alternative to national central banks.

Se prometió que Bitcoin, BTC, sería una tecnología liberadora, una alternativa de libre mercado al dinero controlado por el estado. Pero esa promesa se rompió cuando un pequeño grupo de individuos con información privilegiada se hiciera cargo del proyecto y cambiara fundamentalmente su diseño. La verdadera historia de BTC y su diseño original la conocen muy pocas personas debido a años de fuerte censura, ingeniería de redes sociales y estrictos controles de información. La realidad es que BTC ha sido secuestrado y cambiado para peor. Esa es la conclusión innegable de El secuestro de Bitcoin, un libro repleto de historia y verdades incómodas, que descarga una andanada desmitificadora contra las narrativas más populares que rodean a BTC. Roger Ver es el primer inversor del mundo en empresas emergentes de BTC y ha sido un nombre destacado en la industria de las criptomonedas desde su inicio. Sin embargo, como confiesa en la introducción, este libro no es una historia de amor. Es la exposición devastadora de la corrupción, la propaganda y la centralización del poder en BTC.

The eagerly awaited English edition of "Bought Journalists" was suppressed for three years under the title "Journalists for Hire" -- and still got 24 five-star-only Amazon reviews from would-be readers. 18 months on the bestseller list in Germany. Now it's finally here! Ever get the feeling the media tries to manipulate or lie to you? You have plenty of company! And you are right -- the facts are in. A world-class media insider has blown the whistle on what really goes on inside the media industry. Author Udo Ulfkotte was a respected journalist for 17 years with Germany's newspaper of record, the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. He begins this explosive exposé by first owning up to his own career, where he had to sell out to have the job. He then reveals the deceptive tricks and secret networks of power within the media. How perks are used to bribe journalists and opinion makers to twist their reporting. How the tone of corruption is set from the top -- play along or quit. How the long arm of the NATO press office enrolls the media to get Europe to support more foreign wars. Ulfkotte names hundreds of names and gives you a behind-the-scenes look at the organizations that influence the German media with one-sided propaganda, such as The Atlantic Bridge, Trilateral Commission, German Marshall Fund, CFR, and Aspen Institute. He unmasks the intelligence agencies behind these lobbies groups and the propaganda techniques they use, such as US Embassy grants for projects to influence European public opinion. When the CIA holds the hand that holds the pen Would you be surprised to learn that spies sit and write articles in newspaper editorial offices? Which are then published on op-ed pages under the names of well-known journalists? Or which journalists receive bribes for their reporting? Have you heard how prestigious "journalism prizes" are a reward system for cooperation? Much as "Heroes of Labor" were honored for writing the best communist propaganda in the former East bloc. Seen from the inside, the difference between journalist and propagandist isn't as far as you might like. The elite owners of the media feel it's their right to think for us, and to mold public opinion to their agendas. Their Freedom of the Press is Freedom to Censor the news. Our nation depends on the media to understand our world, just as each one of us depends on our eyes and ears. The media are our senses. When they hide the truth, or lie to us, they put us all in danger. A million people died in Iraq, Libya and Syria because the press didn't just report the news, didn't just lie about the news, but they invented and sold the events that served as pretexts for wars. The author spent years in the Middle East, surviving an attack with chemical weapons supplied by US and German firms. This book is a veteran's guide to the media spider's web. It shows how the system works, sharpens your common sense skepticism, and increases your immunity to the controlled media's attempts to do our thinking for us. You will gain a whole new perspective on media reports. A good idea of how much you can believe the news on TV or the radio: almost nothing. Ulfkotte dissects the German media establishment, which media outlets are owned by political parties, the journalists that are under their influence, and what keeps them there. You will see how whole countries are manipulated – and who is pulling the strings and why. Here is the bad news about the news: our idea of a free press with a broad spectrum of opinion is pure fantasy. Very often, what is called the "news" is simply brainwashing.

In this exciting new graphic novel, economist Bryan Caplan examines how changes to housing regulation can lead us to a vastly better world. Why are housing prices in America so unbelievably high, especially in the country's most desirable locations? The superficial answer is “supply and demand,” but the deep answer―the reason supply is so low―is a regulatory system that treats developers like criminals. In Build, Baby, Build: The Science and Ethics of Housing Regulation, economist Bryan Caplan makes the economic and philosophical case for radical deregulation of this massive market―freeing property owners to build as tall and dense as they wish. Not only would the average price of housing be cut in half, but the building boom unleashed by deregulation would simultaneously reduce inequality, increase social mobility, promote economic growth, reduce homelessness, increase birth rates, help the environment, cut crime, and more. Combining stunning homage to classic animation with careful interdisciplinary research, Build, Baby, Build takes readers on a grand tour of a bona fide “panacea policy.” We can start realizing these missed opportunities as soon as we abandon the widespread misconception that housing regulation solves more problems than it causes.

Publisher's Note: Products purchased from Third Party sellers are not guaranteed by the publisher for quality, authenticity, or access to any online entitlements included with the product. A Fully Updated, No Nonsense Guide to Electronics Advance your electronics knowledge and gain the skills necessary to develop and construct your own functioning gadgets. Written by a pair of experienced engineers and dedicated hobbyists, Practical Electronics for Inventors, Fourth Edition, lays out the essentials and provides step by step instructions, schematics, and illustrations. Discover how to select the right components, design and build circuits, use microcontrollers and ICs, work with the latest software tools, and test and tweak your creations. This easy to follow book features new instruction on programmable logic, semiconductors, operational amplifiers, voltage regulators, power supplies, digital electronics, and more. Practical Electronics for Inventors, Fourth Edition, covers: * Resistors, capacitors, inductors, and transformers * Diodes, transistors, and integrated circuits * Optoelectronics, solar cells, and phototransistors * Sensors, GPS modules, and touch screens * Op amps, regulators, and power supplies * Digital electronics, LCD displays, and logic gates * Microcontrollers and prototyping platforms * Combinational and sequential programmable logic * DC motors, RC servos, and stepper motors * Microphones, audio amps, and speakers * Modular electronics and prototypes

El afamado escritor, politólogo, y conferencista Agustín Laje presenta La batalla cultural: Reflexiones críticas para una Nueva Derecha – un manifiesto que informará, animará y facultará a los “guerrilleros culturales” para no bajar los brazos en la batalla que sigue perjudicando a nuestras familias y a la sociedad en general. En el mundo contemporáneo, la sociedad y la cultura cambian a gran velocidad. La voluntad de dirigir esos cambios está en la base de las batallas culturales que hoy se viven en todas partes. Bien investigado y argumentado inteligentemente, este libro define el concepto de batalla cultural y muestra hasta qué punto la cultura ha llegado a ser el botín principal del poder, cómo se han desarrollado estas batallas desde los tiempos modernos hasta la actual posmodernidad y cómo enfrentarlas. En este libro, Agustín Laje: * Explica qué es la batalla cultural, cómo darla, y cuales son su características * Analiza cómo la nueva izquierda entendió este fenómeno, frente a una derecha que menospreció el poder de la cultura * Examina cómo entendió este fenómeno la nueva izquierda, frente a una derecha que menospreció el poder de la cultura * Pretende brindar las herramientas necesarias para el nacimiento de una nueva derecha Este libro está dirigido a: * Las familias que son el principal blanco de ataque en este momento, que se sienten fragmentadas, amedrentadas y que quieren hacer algo más para convertirse en agentes de batalla cultural * A los Jóvenes que cursan sus estudios y que entienden que en sus universidades cada vez hay menos educación y más adoctrinamiento * A todo aquel que se preocupa por los asuntos políticos y mundiales de gran magnitud que crean conflictos en la sociedad “La lucha política y la lucha cultural son las dos caras de una misma moneda. Si no hay política sin hegemonía, entonces tampoco hay política sin batalla cultural”, dice Laje. “La batalla cultural terminará mostrándose como la madre de todas las batallas.” The Culture Battle Famed writer, political scientist, and lecturer Agustín Laje presents The Culture Battle: Critical Reflections for a New Right – a manifesto that will inform, encourage and empower the “cultural guerrillas” not to give up in the battle that continues to harm our families and society in general. In the contemporary world, society and culture are changing at great speed. The will to lead these changes is at the basis of the cultural battles that are being fought everywhere today. Well researched and intelligently argued, this book defines the concept of cultural battle and shows to what extent culture has become the main spoils of power, how these battles have developed from modern times to today's postmodernity and how to face them. In this book, Agustín Laje: * Explains what the culture battle is, how to wage it, and what its characteristics are * Analyzes how the new left understood this phenomenon, in the face of a right wing that underestimated the power of culture * Examines how the new left understood this phenomenon, in the face of a right wing that underestimated the power of culture * Aims to provide the necessary tools for the birth of a new right wing

A New York Times and USA Today bestseller From New York Times bestselling author of The Perfect Marriage and You Shouldn't Have Come Here comes a chilling family thriller about the (sometimes literal) skeletons in the closet. After their mother passes, three estranged siblings reunite to sort out her estate. Beth, the oldest, never left home. She stayed with her mom, caring for her until the very end. Nicole, the middle child, has been kept at arm's length due to her ongoing battle with a serious drug addiction. Michael, the youngest, lives out of state and hasn't been back to their small Wisconsin town since their father ran out on them seven years before. While going through their parents' belongings, the siblings stumble upon a collection of home videos and decide to revisit those happier memories. However, the nostalgia is cut short when one of the VHS tapes reveals a night back in 1999 that none of them have any recollection of. On screen, their father appears covered in blood. What follows is a dead body and a pact between their parents to get rid of it, before the video abruptly ends. Beth, Nicole, and Michael must now decide whether to leave the past in the past or uncover the dark secret their mother took to her grave.