Forbidden Science: Suppressed Research That Could Change Our Lives [Paperback]

Richard Milton (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 1857023021 | ISBN-13: 978-1857023022 | Publication Date: March 1996

The contributors to this collection offer an essential introduction to the ways in which feminist linguistics and critical discourse analysis have contributed to our understanding of gender and sex. By examining how these perspectives have been applied to these concepts, the contributors provide both a review of the literature, as well as an opportunity to follow the most recent debates in this area. "Gender and Discourse" brings together European, American and Australian traditions of research. Through an analysis of a range of 'real' data, the contributors demonstrate the relevance of these theoretical and methodological insights for gender research in particular and social practice in general.

--This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Editorial Reviews

Review

'The articles... are well presented and arranged into thematic groups... There are also several articles which stand out and will make Gender and Discourse worth buying for those who specialize in gender studies and discourse analysis... Deborah Cameron's [chapter] is an excellent article with which to open the collection. The broad scope of theoretical issues addressed here provides an intelligent and accessible introduction to some of the central debates in contemporary feminist linguistics... [the book] is a carefully balanced volume in which potentially conflicting agendas have been skilfuly united around a common context-based approach to discourse... should prove to be a useful source book either for independent research or to support guided undergraduate study' - Language and Literature 'Ruth Wodak has done a service to all readers interested in language and gender by uniting in a single volume some exciting new papers by most of the world's leading researchers in the field. A strength of the book is the wide range of ideological, methodological and theoretical approaches which the authors adopt, which produces a kind of treasure trove of current work in feminist linguistics. The common theme that emerges from the papers is that we cannot properly understand language and gender without integrating into our studies the communicative contexts of discourse' - Jenny Cheshire, University of London 'treasure trove of current work in feminist linguistics' - Jenny Cheshire, University of London 'This collection of thoughtful, often provocative essays explores a wide range of studies, ideas, and questions about the relationship of language and gender-- central issues in all of our lives' - Cheris Kramarae, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign 'Thoughtful and provocative, these essays explore a wide range of studies, ideas, and questions about the relationship of language and gender' - Cheris Kramarae, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign 'Gender and Discourse is an insightful and thought provoking volume, which addresses itself to some of the most recent areas of theorizing and research in the field. A particular strengh of the collection lies in its use of interdisciplinary research to highlight the dynamism and synergy of this expanding domain' - Feminism & Psychology --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 272 pages
• Publisher: Trafalgar Square (March 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1857023021
• ISBN-13: 978-1857023022
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.3 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,180,648 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Richard Milton is a writer, journalist and broadcaster on a wide range of subjects. He currently freelances for The Daily Telegraph and other papers. He is the author of six books including "Bad Company", which The Sunday Times made its Business Book of the Week, and which sets out to explain why large corporations sometimes behave in self-defeating and even insane ways. His controversial "Alternative Science" examines how and why good science is sometimes thrown out with the bad.

His novel "Dead Secret" is a mind-blowing paranormal thriller. His latest non-fiction title "Best of Enemies" looks at Anglo-German relations through two world wars and charts the origins of modern propaganda.

His controversial "Shattering the myths of Darwinism" has caused some members of the scientific establishment to start chewing the carpet and foaming at the mouth, by daring to demand real empirical evidence in support of their Darwinian beliefs, in place of conjecture and pseudoscience.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An essential read for scientists, August 7, 2000

By 

Frank Bierbrauer (Cardiff, Wales, UK) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Forbidden Science: Suppressed Research That Could Change Our Lives (Hardcover)

There is no doubt some areas of research are to some degree taboo, I mean, not even looked at because it is considered too far from the mainstream or too "way out" in the sense of UFO cults or seances. Any "self-respecting" scientist would not dare to discuss such things seriously with other scientists or in public. What do I include in such "pseudo-science" ? Well we don't even have to leave the mainstream to do so, the research carried out by Jacques Benveniste comes to mind, a thoroughly and deeply investigated area on the possibility of water carrying some sort of memory, not only has this been shown to have theoretical support apart from the conclusive experimental evidence but it has simply been taken as the work of a charlatan or cheat because it could not possibly be "right", as another example, a scientist whose name I won't use to ensure his privacy, has developed a theory in physics which is not considered because it is not following the approaches of other scientists and so must be wrong. Science and also mathematics is full of this sort of negative, and lets put a fine point on it, unscientific opinions. In other words these rejections of the new are just that a rejection of anything new which either may show the reviewer's own work may be faulty, out of date or his group is no longer safe and secure, whether this means job security or just the security related to the self image. Is this scientific ? Unfortunately the academic comunity is still full of power play and little empires no matter how trivial just so the egos are boosted and they are safe in their little world. Am I being too harsh ? Well it may be so but I have experienced enough of this sort of thing to say that at times this is true. What happened to the spirit of scientific discovery which, as can be seen from history, continuously has to either battle the status quo or wait until the opposition are dead ? Milton in this timely book talks about these very problems still present in science, in no way does he carry on with dubious arguments which flog their own horses eg Creation Science but rather investigates an area thoroughly and asks some important questions, much as Feyerabend has done in his work although the topic concerns the basis of science rather than any research studied, I think he may have been able to get away with this more than scientists actually working in new areas because it concerns the philosophy of science and as such is comfortably removed from "the truth" which is supposed to be represented by orthodox science. So, Milton has produced an essential read for scientists and non-scientists which hopefully will have the courage to support their fellow scientists in such endeavours.

10 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Very interesting & thought-provoking., December 16, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Forbidden Science: Suppressed Research That Could Change Our Lives (Paperback)

It's a long time since I've read it, but it did become the topic of a lot of conversations. It is a challenging book in that it asks you to be open- minded and entertain the idea that what you will probably always have assumed to be true might not be. As I remember it was scientifically rigorous and well-written.

Errr.... That's it.

3 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars forbidden....science?, November 19, 2009

By 

Melissa Dowd (Sturbridge, MA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Forbidden Science: Suppressed Research That Could Change Our Lives (Paperback)

There is a reason science does not accept the theories mentioned in this book: there's no empirical evidence to support them. The scientific method is a means of studying the natural world that REQUIRES: 1)verifiable data 2)well designed and documented experimentation 3)results that can be replicated by other researchers. Creative minds can come up with all kinds of wonderful ideas, but that isn't science, it's wishful thinking. This book can't be taken too seriously.