The art of contemplation An examination of the diverse lives of religious women is a revelatory read for Anke Bernau 11 September
Book of the week: Regionalism and the Reading Class Tara Brabazon acclaims a monograph of merit 11 September
Slaves and Nazis: efficiency's story Julia King looks at an engineering journey from factory systems to social manipulation 11 September
Faces from the dust bowl Anne Hammond reflects on photographs from the Depression that highlighted the plight of the poor 4 September
We're all citizens of Muddleton Michelle Baddeley discovers our Yucki instincts and Endian tendencies 4 September
Navel-gazing in another universe Anthropology gets in the way of this wander through the new virtual wonderland, finds Grant McCracken 4 September
Teach yourself to be a teacher Help is at hand to ease you into your new lecturing post, promises Greg Garrard 4 September
Book of the week - The Drunkard's Walk: How Randomness Rules our Lives Tony Mann on probably the best book on probability in the world 4 September
Welcome to a universe of death Duncan Wu delights in an exhilarating study of Wordsworth's work that may upset traditionalists 4 September
Easy answers and the American way An airport classic overloaded with acronyms, but as Leslie Gofton concedes, what's not to like? 4 September
A manifesto to discard elitism Pablo Mukherjee examines a take on literary theory that offers some convincing new ideas 28 August
Life classes for a student who died Duncan Wu delights in a generous-hearted reminder of the humanity inherent in teaching 28 August
Step outside the Rogerian circle Gail Kinman asks whether a condemnation of 'therapeutic education' examines all the evidence 28 August
Assessing the assessors Lee Harvey takes a critical look at an analysis of what education tests really say about students 28 August
The Rise of the Global Imaginary: Political Ideologies from the French Revolution to the Global War on Terror 28 August
Criminal Intimacy: Prison and the Uneven History of Modern American Sexuality Lynne Segal on a study of sex behind bars that exposes enduring fault-lines in modern thinking 21 August
Creating Prehistory: Druids, Ley Hunters and Archaeologists in Pre-War Britain Archaeologists must remain sceptical of theories not backed by data, says Margarita Diaz-Andreu 21 August
Book of the Week: Two Bits: The Cultural Significance of Free Software John Gilbey relives the heady days of IT upheaval 21 August
Geography is not what it seems Timothy Darvill looks at how cultural change over 10,000 years has altered the face of Europe 14 August
