David E. Nye Book order

A reconception of the sublime to include experiences of disaster, war, outer space, virtual reality, and the Anthropocene.We experience the sublime—overwhelming amazement and exhilaration—in at least seven different forms. Gazing from the top of a mountain at a majestic vista is not the same thing as looking at a city from the observation deck of a skyscraper; looking at images constructed from Hubble Space Telescope data is not the same as living through a powerful earthquake. The varieties of sublime experience have increased during the last two centuries, and we need an expanded terminology to distinguish between them. In this book, David Nye delineates seven forms of the natural, technological, disastrous, martial, intangible, digital, and environmental, which express seven different relationships to space, time, and identity.These forms of the sublime can be experienced at historic sites, ruins, cities, national parks, or on the computer screen. We find them in beautiful landscapes and gigantic dams, in battle and on battlefields, in images of black holes and microscopic particles. The older forms are tangible, when we are physically present and our senses are fully engaged; increasingly, others are intangible, mediated through technology. Nye examines each of the seven sublimes, framed by philosophy but focused on historical examples.

How conflicting ideas of nature threaten to fracture America's identity. Amber waves of grain, purple mountain majesties: American invest much of their national identity in sites of natural beauty. And yet American lands today are torn by conflicts over science, religion, identity, and politics. Creationists believe that the Biblical flood carved landscapes less than 10,000 years ago; environmentalists protest pipelines; Western states argue that the federal government's land policies throttle free enterprise; Native Americans demand protection for sacred sites. In this book, David Nye looks at Americans' irreconcilably conflicting ideas about nature. A landscape is conflicted when different groups have different uses for the same location—for example, when some want to open mining sites that others want to preserve or when suburban development impinges on agriculture. Some landscapes are so degraded from careless use that they become toxic “anti-landscapes.” Nye traces these conflicts to clashing conceptions of nature—ranging from pastoral to Native American to military–industrial—that cannot be averaged into a compromise. Nye argues that today’s environmental crisis is rooted in these conflicting ideas about land. Depending on your politics, global warming is either an inconvenient truth or fake news. America’s contradictory conceptions of nature are at the heart of a broken national consensus.

How Americans adapted European royal illuminations for patriotic celebrations, spectacular expositions, and intensely bright commercial lighting to create the world's most dazzling and glamorous cities.

From the Model T to today's lean manufacturing: the assembly line as crucial, yet controversial, agent of social and economic transformation.

Visiting or moving to Denmark? Do you want a concise overview of the country? This completely updated and considerably expanded edition of Introducing Denmark and the Danes offers an excellent general introduction to Danish culture, politics, and socio-economics, as well as general and practical advice for visitors. Introducing Denmark and the Danes has been constantly in print for almost a generation, attesting to its usefulness in helping outsiders to know a remarkable country and find their way into its everyday life. Not a conventional guidebook but an orientation to the culture, this little book opens the door to one of Europe's most fascinating nations.

The book delves into the conversations that arose post-1776 regarding the diverse perspectives on utilizing emerging technologies to reshape the land. It examines how these dialogues reflected varying ideals and ambitions, highlighting the impact of technological advancements on society and the environment during this transformative period. Through historical analysis, it sheds light on the tensions and innovations that defined the era's relationship with technology and land use.

Exploring the interplay of technology and culture, the book delves into how photography, railroads, electricity, space flight, and computers shape American identity and narratives. It highlights the contradictions inherent in these technological advancements, offering a significant contribution to American cultural history. Written in an accessible style, it invites a broad audience to engage with the complexities of how these innovations influence societal storytelling.