Raffaello Cortina Editore

The analysis of a great “immoral” thinker of the twentieth century to address the most thorny issues of our time. In an era marked by fanaticism and obscurantism, Bertrand Russell stands out as a luminous and provocative figure. His extraordinary vision of free and creative man invites us to refl ect on freedom from power, freedom of worship and the importance of critical thinking. Russell proposes an education reform that encourages young people to form their own judgements independently, to think and feel with their own voices, rather than passively accepting the opinions of others. Russell still offers us valuable tools to resist groupthink and conformity. A hundred years later, his legacy continues to inspire and guide new generations, confirming him as one of the most original and lucid thinkers of modernity.

What do 20 words stolen from history reveal about Putin's country? This book is not a cold political analysis, but a glimpse into today's life in Russia. Once upon a time, there were words that described the identity of a population. Sobornost’, the spiritual union between individuals; prostór, the boundless space that attracted and repelled with its immensity; stabìl’nost’, the stability and reliability of a system of government. For centuries, these concepts shaped Russian literature, philosophy, and collective memory. Today, those words speak another language. Gian Piero Piretto explores twenty key words of Russian culture, highlighting their original meaning and showing how they have been reinterpreted and exploited by Putin's propaganda. He dismantles stereotypes and monolithic narratives, compares past and present, and offers an unprecedented portrait of contemporary Russia, beyond ideological manipulation and established clichés. An unpublished portrait of contemporary Russia.

What is the human self becoming in the age of daily interaction with digital devices? An unprecedent exploration of the relationship between body, mind and technology in the digital world. In a world where artificial intelligence generates faces, voices, and presences capable of simulating empathy, the digital self explores an anthropological mutation currently underway. Starting from the neuroscience of embodiment and the now classic theory of embodied simulation, Vittorio Gallese constructs a new paradigm for thinking about contemporary subjectivity. From mirror neurons to algorithmic subjectivity, this book traces an original and multidisciplinary itinerary that crosses neuroscience, philosophy, aesthetics, and media theory to rethink the self as an embodied, relational, and technologically modulated reality. The theoretical culmination of the volume is the proposal of a radical aesthetics: a politics of feeling that restores intensity, opacity, and unpredictability to relationships in a world dominated by transparent interfaces and predictive algorithms. At a time when otherness risks becoming a function, and retreating into solitude a project, there is an urgent need to return to thinking about the body, not as nostalgia, but as a generative condition of every possible future. A necessary essay for understanding the metamorphosis of the self in the age of code.

Stories from a distant past that talk about us. As Sallust wrote: “Myths are things that never happened, but always are.” Medea’s jealousy, Antigone’s mercy, Phaedra’s destructive passion, Hector’s generosity: myths are able to recount all human emotions, collecting an endless source of symbols and tales. By analyzing Greek mythology, we can find the fundamentals of mankind’s psychic structure and a series of examples that represent all the main challenges that humanity could face during its existence. Despite being told for the first time thousands of years ago, these myths can still evoke strong emotions. Because no one is insensitive to a well told story.

A technology that promises many revolutions, from medicine to finance.The quantum computer of the future could perform calculations in seconds that would take millions of years for the most powerful supercomputer in existence today. But how do these “impossible computers” work? And why are they so extraordinarily efficient? The first quantum revolution transformed our understanding of the world, forcing us to abandon a deterministic view of the universe. The second revolution, already underway, aims to build real machines: computers that follow quantum logic, an intrinsically secure Internet, and ultra-precise sensors that will change our daily lives, from medicine to cybersecurity. It is true that “God plays dice,” and with those dice we can create the technology of the future. Written in a clear and accessible style, this book guides the reader from an understanding of the fundamental principles of quantum theory to the new technologies that will transform the world.Praise for THE IMPOSSIBLE COMPUTER"Among the many books seeking to explain quantum physics to nontechnical readers, The Impossible Computer stands out because of its unique and original emphasis: explaining how apparently abstract scientific investigations into the nature of reality are increasingly affecting every detail of our daily lives. To encourage us along this intellectual journey, from philosophy to technology, is far from easy. The authors accomplish it by employing familiar analogies in unfamiliar ways, to make understandable quantum concepts such as superposition and entanglement, and their many and varied applications to fields such as computation, keeping secrets, and diagnostics of unprecedented accuracy." Michael Berry, University of Bristol, UK"Casati and collaborators invite the reader into the strange and fascinating world of quantum computation with clarity, wit, and elegance. It is a compelling introduction to the quantum information revolution—and to the probability that quantum computing will reshape the way we understand the world.” Eric Heller, Harvard University, USA

 How can we tell if someone is innocent or guilty of a crime?How can we tell if someone is innocent or guilty of a crime?Every story can be analyzed by using mathematical techniques and statistics. Looking at reports, paradoxes and contradictions, we can try to untangle narration from probabilities, to understand how much a narration can be probable and then take the best possible decision on whether to believe it or not. Following the ideas that Edgar Allan Poe expressed in The Mystery of Marie Rogêt, the author explains why the theory of probability is a fundamental tool to compare different versions of a story, evaluate relevance and reliability of the evidence and decide in light of the obtained evidence. A well-researched and entertaining essay on reasonable doubt, that mixes literary quotes, logical paradoxes and references to international true crimes: the O. J. Simpson trial, the R v Adams case, the death of Mary Rogers and many more!

A new book about teenagers in search of identity.In Call Me Adult, Matteo Lancini takes us on a profound journey into the complex world of adolescents. From family dynamics to school, from social media to psychotherapy sessions, from friendship to couple relationships, the author explores how young people build their connections in an ever-changing world. Building on topics such as the uncertainty about the future and the fragility of adults, Lancini offers a powerful reflection: to truly connect with young people, we must know how to listen and respond with empathy.A book that ptovides parents, teachers, and psychologists with the tools to move beyond the rush of doing and rediscover the power of truly being present in relationships.

The complex and fascinating world of space ventures.Earth is our world, while space is a hostile and merciless environment. To explore it, we have to completely reinvent our technology: vehicles other than those on Earth, artificial environments within the spacecraft to protect our life and physiological balance. The challenge of space exploration lies precisely in this: pushing the boundaries of knowledge and technology to push us farther and farther. Paolo Ferri, who led the European Space Agency's operations department for years, takes us into the behind-the-scenes of the space missions, revealing us the difficulties, the dead ends, and the unexpected triumphs. The result is a unique adventure to the edge of the universe, and a profound reflection on the potential and the limits of our scientific knowledge.

A great psychoanalyst's reflection on anorexia, pathological addictions and psychosis.This collection of short essays explores, through a psychoanalytic perspective, pathologies such as anorexia, addictions, and psychosis, highlighting the central role of the void, which manifests in different but always determining ways. Substance abuse, social masks, everyday madness, deadly narcissism, self-destructive use of the body, and social segregation are all expressions of the void. What emerges is the replacement of the human partner with an inhuman one: food, drugs, obsession for the body image, etc. This kind of substitutions would be meant to guarantee a final remedy for the anguish but leads life toward death instead.

Few words to tell the story of a culture.We all know that the origins of our culture lie there, in that sunny, windswept peninsula, and in the countless islands that populate the Aegean Sea. It was there that the oldest words in living memory began to be used, and some of them continue to be spoken after more than three thousand years.Giulio Guidorizzi has chosen thirty of them to lead us to the origin of some ideas that are still essential for our culture. Democracy, beauty, violence, law, friendship. Each of these words shows a way of coming up with reality as the Greeks did it, and is intended to bring to life their extraordinary world exploring specific concepts that are still relevant today.

From persecutor to Apostle of Christ. The personal and ideal world of Christianity's "enfant terrible".While he was on a journey approaching Damascus, Paul was "grasped, clasped, conquered" by Christ. From that moment, a few days after the death of Jesus, Paul became the most passionate Christian missionary.The gospel he proclaims is not just a theory, it is also a way of being. That's what his Epistles are: an interwaving of words and life. The theological dissertation is always receptive to the ethical pastoral, existential implication. This journey through the personal and ideal world of the "Apostle par excellence" is an invitation to bring Paul out of its hagiographic pages and into out secularized world.