David Byrne

In 1949, scientist and mathematician Dr Jacob Bronowski installs a hidden, locked room in his house. Fifty years later, his grandson discovers the secrets contained in the room, unearthing echoes from across six million years of human history. David Byrne's play Secret Life of Humans was first seen during a sell-out, award-winning run at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 2017. It had its London premiere at New Diorama in April 2018, ahead of transferring Off-Broadway. David Byrne is a playwright and director. His other plays include a radical new version of George Orwell’s Down and Out in Paris and London.

What does the future hold for the welfare state in the post-industrial 21st century? Political and economic forces are threatening the taxation regimes of highly globalised, capitalist societies, prompting an urgent debate around the function of the welfare state and how we pay for it. In a challenge to current policy and thinking, David Byrne and Sally Ruane deploy the concepts and analytical tools of Marxist political economy to better understand these developments, and the possibilities they present for social change. Using the SNP in Scotland as an illustrative case study, current debates are related to a critical understanding of the relationship between taxation and spending, issues that are fundamental to early 21st century politics and the future of the welfare state.

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER - David Byrne's incisive and enthusiastic look at the musical art form, from its very inceptions to the influences that shape it, whether acoustical, economic, social, or technological--now updated with a new chapter on digital curation. "How Music Works is a buoyant hybrid of social history, anthropological survey, autobiography, personal philosophy, and business manual"--The Boston Globe Utilizing his incomparable career and inspired collaborations with Talking Heads, Brian Eno, and many others, David Byrne taps deeply into his lifetime of knowledge to explore the panoptic elements of music, how it shapes the human experience, and reveals the impetus behind how we create, consume, distribute, and enjoy the songs, symphonies, and rhythms that provide the backbeat of life. Byrne's magnum opus uncovers thrilling realizations about the redemptive liberation that music brings us all.

How Music Works is David Byrne's bestselling, buoyant celebration of a subject he has spent a lifetime thinking about. Drawing on his own work over the years with Talking Heads, Brian Eno, and his myriad collaborators - along with journeys to Wagnerian opera houses, African villages, and anywhere music exists - Byrne shows how music emerges from cultural circumstance as much as individual creativity. It is his magnum opus, and an impassioned argument about music's liberating, life-affirming power.

In complex contemporary societies social science has become increasingly interwoven into the whole fabric of governance. At the same time there is an increasing recognition that attempts to understand the social world which seek to mimic the linear approaches of the conventional 'hard sciences' are mostly useless given the complex systems character of society in all its aspects. This book draws on a synthesis of critical realism and complexity theory to examine how social science is applied now and how it might be applied in the future in relation to social transformation in a time of crisis. A central argument is that there is no such thing as a 'pure' science of the social and that a recognition of the inevitability of application imposes obligations on social scientists wherever they work which challenge the passivity of most in the face of inequality and injustice.

In complex contemporary societies social science has become increasingly interwoven into the whole fabric of governance. At the same time there is an increasing recognition that attempts to understand the social world which seek to mimic the linear approaches of the conventional 'hard sciences' are mostly useless given the complex systems character of society in all its aspects. This book draws on a synthesis of critical realism and complexity theory to examine how social science is applied now and how it might be applied in the future in relation to social transformation in a time of crisis. A central argument is that there is no such thing as a 'pure' science of the social and that a recognition of the inevitability of application imposes obligations on social scientists wherever they work which challenge the passivity of most in the face of inequality and injustice.

"...an engaging book: part diary, part manifesto." The Guardian A round-the-world bicycle tour with one of the most original artists of our day. Urban bicycling has become more popular than ever as recession-strapped, climate-conscious city dwellers reinvent basic transportation. In this wide-ranging memoir, artist/musician and co-founder of Talking Heads David Byrne--who has relied on a bike to get around New York City since the early 1980s--relates his adventures as he pedals through and engages with some of the world's major cities. From Buenos Aires to Berlin, he meets a range of people both famous and ordinary, shares his thoughts on art, fashion, music, globalization, and the ways that many places are becoming more bike-friendly. Bicycle Diaries is an adventure on two wheels conveyed with humor, curiosity, and humanity.

How do quantitative methods help us to acquire knowledge of the real world? What are the `do's' and `don'ts' of effective quantitative research? This refreshing and accessible book provides students with a novel and useful resource for doing quantitative research. It offers students a guide on how to: interpret the complex reality of the social world; achieve effective measurement; understand the use of official statistics; use social surveys; understand probability and quantitative reasoning; interpret measurements; apply linear modelling; understand simulation and neural nets; and integrate quantitative and qualitative modelling in the research process. Jargon-free and written with the needs of students in mind, the book will be required reading for students interested in using quantitative research methods.

How do quantitative methods help us to acquire knowledge of the real world? What are the `do's' and `don'ts' of effective quantitative research? This refreshing and accessible book provides students with a novel and useful resource for doing quantitative research. It offers students a guide on how to: interpret the complex reality of the social world; achieve effective measurement; understand the use of official statistics; use social surveys; understand probability and quantitative reasoning; interpret measurements; apply linear modelling; understand simulation and neural nets; and integrate quantitative and qualitative modelling in the research process. Jargon-free and written with the needs of students in mind, the book will be required reading for students interested in using quantitative research methods.

Cities are changing at a rate unparalleled since the industrial revolution and more than half the population of the world now lives in cities compared with less than a quarter in 1950. Construction is booming in and around cities, but the downside to these developments is that cities of the postindustrial world appear to have greater social divisions. Understanding the Urban examines the contemporary nature and possible futures of cities in a postindustrial and globalized world. Theoretical debates and empirical research from a range of disciplines are brought together to provide an understanding of cities both as complex systems and as the product of collective human action. This well structured and lively text draws extensively on political, economic and cultural examples from developing and developed countries to explore key topics such as:· Restructuring of urban employment; · The transformation of `culture' in cities; · Locality and community; · Cities in a world system; · Production and reproduction of the built environment· Politics and governance. To encourage students to develop a critical understanding of today's cities, innovative references to literary, cinematic and www examples are provided alongside conventional academic resources at the end of each chapter.

Cities are changing at a rate unparalleled since the industrial revolution and more than half the population of the world now lives in cities compared with less than a quarter in 1950. Construction is booming in and around cities, but the downside to these developments is that cities of the postindustrial world appear to have greater social divisions. Understanding the Urban examines the contemporary nature and possible futures of cities in a postindustrial and globalized world. Theoretical debates and empirical research from a range of disciplines are brought together to provide an understanding of cities both as complex systems and as the product of collective human action. This well structured and lively text draws extensively on political, economic and cultural examples from developing and developed countries to explore key topics such as:· Restructuring of urban employment; · The transformation of `culture' in cities; · Locality and community; · Cities in a world system; · Production and reproduction of the built environment· Politics and governance. To encourage students to develop a critical understanding of today's cities, innovative references to literary, cinematic and www examples are provided alongside conventional academic resources at the end of each chapter.

Chaos and complexity are the new buzz words in both science and contemporary society. The ideas they represent have enormous implications for the way we understand and engage with the world. Complexity Theory and the Social Sciences introduces students to the central ideas which surround the chaos/complexity theories. It discusses key concepts before using them as a way of investigating the nature of social research. By applying them to such familiar topics as urban studies, education and health, David Byrne allows readers new to the subject to appreciate the contribution which complexity theory can make to social research and to illuminating the crucial social issues of our day.

Chaos and complexity are the new buzz words in both science and contemporary society. The ideas they represent have enormous implications for the way we understand and engage with the world. Complexity Theory and the Social Sciences introduces students to the central ideas which surround the chaos/complexity theories. It discusses key concepts before using them as a way of investigating the nature of social research. By applying them to such familiar topics as urban studies, education and health, David Byrne allows readers new to the subject to appreciate the contribution which complexity theory can make to social research and to illuminating the crucial social issues of our day.