"From New Yorker staff writer and author Kyle Chayka comes a timely history and investigation of a world ruled by algorithms, which determine the shape of culture itself. From coffee shops to rental apartments to social media posts the world round, a sleek and deceptively simple aesthetic has come to predominate. It's in the neon signs and exposed brick of an Internet cafe in Nairobi or the skeletal, modern furniture of an Airbnb in Portland. These...

German philosopher and influential 18th century late Enlightenment thinker Immanuel Kant wrote "Critique of Judgment" in 1790 to solidify his ideas on aesthetics. Often referred to as the "third critique", it follows Kant's "Critique of Pure Reason," published in 1781, and "Critique of Practical Reason", published in 1788 and completes his "Critical" project. Divided into two sections, one on aesthetic judgment and the other on teleological judgment,...

Told in rhyming verse, a stone is considered from a variety of environmental and emotional perspectives, as it sits where it is, surrounded by grass, dirt, and water, an unchanging certainty in the world.

"Sly as a fox and swift as a bird, Lou Alice is determined to leave each day a little more beautiful than she found it. But when she moves away from her little house, no one in town notices she's gone. No one, that is, except a little girl, who sets out to carry on Lou Alice's work. But doing so is not enough. Can the girl find a way of her own to make the world a little more beautiful?"--Provided by publisher.

"Have you ever gotten chills while listening to a particularly gorgeous piece of music? Or felt a sense of calm while gazing at a painting of a serene landscape? We have experiences like those every day, but rarely stop to consider what's happening internally to cause them. In Your Brain on Art, founder of the International Arts + Mind Lab at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine Susan Magsamen and Google designer Ivy Ross explain how, by understanding...

18th century German philosopher, poet, and playwright, Friedrich Schiller began writing while he was in the army. Commanded to stop by his superiors he deserted the army, moved to another country, and began writing under a false name. Schiller was a deep-thinker on ethics and aesthetics. His beliefs held that beauty is not just an aesthetic experience, but that it is also connected with goodness. An essay on aesthetics first published in 1794, "On...

Erotic encounters have been celebrated by artists from the beginning of time. This irresistible volume presents 120 of the most engagingly erotic paintings, sculptures, prints, and drawings from diverse eras and cultures, coupled with revealing commentaries about their sexual and aesthetic content. Organised unlike any other collection of erotic images, The Art of Arousal traces the course of a sensual relationship. It begins by examining the elements...

Wabi Sabi, a cat living in the city of Kyoto, learns about the Japanese concept of beauty through simplicity as she asks various animals she meets about the meaning of her name.

"Essays from a leading Japanese designer on his design philosophy"--

While the other members of his clan enjoy wrestling, throwing spears, and fighting, Leif prefers to hike up the mountain and enjoy the peace of his beautiful fjord; but when clan loyalty demands that he participate in the Viking Games--he does the best he can, but when it comes to comparing clan treasures, Leif has a surprise for everybody.