In 1976 a young German girl named Anneliese Michel underwent a series of exorcisms. The rites were administered by two priests of the Catholic Church to free Anneliese of the six demons they believed possessed her. Seemingly as a result of the exorcisms the girl died. Worldwide publicity followed when the girl's parents and the two exorcists were brought to trial and convicted of negligent homicide. Here a noted anthropologist offers her own interpretation of the exorcisms of Anneliese Michel. Drawing on interviews with the two exorcists, the girl's parents and friends, transcripts of the trial, and tape recordings made during the exorcisms - as well as studies of religious experience in various cultures - Felicitas Goodman has written a fascinating, compelling book, one that finally tells what happened in this strange case as it delves into the age-old mystery of demonic possession.
The author of the Exorcism of Anneliese Michel “is to be commended for a stimulating and wide-reaching treatment of a compelling and much-debated subject” (Journal of Folklore Research). As part of a series that strives to introduce new or previously unrecognized folkloric phenomena—as well as new approaches and theories that result from discovery and investigation—How About Demons? provides an overview of a topic that has for many years captured the imagination of people from all walks of life. Rich in detail derived from the author’s fieldwork and anthropological literature, this work contemplates possession and exorcism in a holistic manner—discussing their effects on both the body and soul. How About Demons? paints a picture of possession as a usually positive experience occurring in a wide variety of cultures and religions around the globe. It also details the ritual of exorcism which is applied when things go wrong. “Quite an interesting book.”—Religious Studies Review “It is by far superior to anything else on demons we have seen in the past few years.”—The American Rationalist
An introduction to computational modeling for cognitive neuroscientists, covering both foundational work and recent developments. Cognitive neuroscientists need sophisticated conceptual tools to make sense of their field’s proliferation of novel theories, methods, and data. Computational modeling is such a tool, enabling researchers to turn theories into precise formulations. This book offers a mathematically gentle and theoretically unified introduction to modeling cognitive processes. Theoretical exercises of varying degrees of difficulty throughout help readers develop their modeling skills. After a general introduction to cognitive modeling and optimization, the book covers models of decision making; supervised learning algorithms, including Hebbian learning, delta rule, and backpropagation; the statistical model analysis methods of model parameter estimation and model evaluation; the three recent cognitive modeling approaches of reinforcement learning, unsupervised learning, and Bayesian models; and models of social interaction. All mathematical concepts are introduced gradually, with no background in advanced topics required. Hints and solutions for exercises and a glossary follow the main text. All code in the book is Python, with the Spyder editor in the Anaconda environment. A GitHub repository with Python files enables readers to access the computer code used and start programming themselves. The book is suitable as an introduction to modeling cognitive processes for students across a range of disciplines and as a reference for researchers interested in a broad overview.
Electrodermal activity is one of the most frequently used psychophysiological evaluations in psychology research. Based on the 1992 edition of this work Electrodermal Activity covers advances in the field since the first publication in 1992. The current volume includes updated information on brain imaging techniques such as PET and fMRI, which provide further insight into the brain mechanisms underlying EDA. In addition, this volume is able to describe more reliably hypotheses that have been successfully tested since the first publication.
Providing a cutting-edge profile of research progress in this important field of study, Cholinergic Mechanisms: Function and Dysfunction contains a compilation of the proceedings of the Eleventh ISCM, held in St. Moritz, May 2002. Bringing together 250 contributors from 30 countries, the book presents a comprehensive picture of the cholinergic field. It provides a survey of current understanding of molecular, pharmacological, toxicological, behavioral, and clinical aspects of the cholinergic system. This volume offers a state-of-the-art account of progress in the field from the molecule in the test tube through the cell and the synapse, to the organism and the patient.
Considered a roadmap for getting polygraph evidence admitted in court cases. Provides attorneys with ideal formats to depose their experts when laying the foundation for the admissibility of polygraph examination results.
Straightforward and practical, this is the first book to provide detailed guidance for using neurobiological methods in the study of human social behavior, personality, and affect. Each chapter clearly introduces the method at hand, provides examples of the method's applications, discusses its strengths and limitations, and reviews concrete experimental design considerations. Written by acknowledged experts, chapters cover neuroimaging techniques, genetic measurement, hormonal methods, lesion studies, startle eyeblink responses, facial electromyography, autonomic nervous system responses, and modeling based on neural networks.
The overall composition of the atmosphere is very consistent all around the world as a result of the high degree of mixing that takes place inside the atmosphere. This is due to the high quantity of mixing that occurs constantly throughout the atmosphere. The rotation of the Earth, which contributes to the mixing, causes the mixing to occur in a manner that may be thought of as horizontal. This is because the rotation of the Earth adds to the mixing. The warming of the surface of the Earth, which is generated by the radiation that comes from the sun, is the primary contributor to the phenomenon that is known as vertical mixing. Even though the rate of mixing in the oceans is much slower than the rate of mixing in the atmosphere, even this rate is sufficient to ensure that the overall composition of the seas stays essentially the same. Even though the rate of mixing in the atmosphere is much faster than the rate of mixing in the oceans, A parallel may be drawn between this and the way the atmosphere works. Having said that, certain regions of the atmosphere are not as well mixed as others, and it is in these areas that comparatively large variations in the bulk composition may be observed. These regions are comprised of: Convection, which occurs in the troposphere (Fig. 1.2), is responsible for the vast mixing of gases and particles that takes place there. This mixing is made possible by the fact that the troposphere is the lowest layer of the atmosphere. Convective driving forces are always present in the atmosphere, and the most evident representation of these forces is in the form of thunderstorms. The surface of the Earth is heated by solar radiation, which in turn warms the air directly above it, which in turn produces convective mixing. Temperatures fall with increasing height in the troposphere