Alan Taylor

Relive the history of Edinburgh through the eyes of those who witnessed it. From one of the earliest mentions of its name in the sixth century to the Covid lockdowns of the twenty-first, this is a magnificent portrait of one of the world’s great cities in its many iterations, from ‘Edinburgh, the sink of abomination’ to the Athens of the North and everything – including the home of the Enlightenment, the Festival City, the Aids Capital of Europe and a Mecca for tourists seeking tartan tat – in between. As the nation’s capital it has been critical to its progress and a witness to epochal events, such the tumultuous reign of Mary, Queen of Scots, the Reformation, the Forty-Five rebellion, the Disruption of the Church of Scotland and the reconvening of the Scottish Parliament. All of these and more feature. But this is not simply a book about the great and good, the famous and infamous. There is testimony aplenty from ordinary folk who may not have made their mark on history but who have contributed to Edinburgh’s ever-expanding tapestry. There are stories of body snatching and murder, drunkenness and drug-taking, sex and shopping, as well rants against inclement weather and the city council.

Alan Taylor has lived and worked in Edinburgh for much of his life and knows the city and its inhabitants intimately. From heady journalistic days covering events such as Scottish devolution and Lady Di's death to his involvement in setting up the Scottish Poetry Library, the List magazine and the Edinburgh International Book Festival, this is a fascinating glimpse into the life and personality of Edinburgh from the 1950s to the present - a period which saw it shake off its presbyterian provinciality to become a cosmopolitan city with an invigorated sense of itself. The book takes the form of a day-long walk from the top of Arthur's Seat at dawn to Rose Street and the Abbotsford bar - one of the legendary 'poets' pubs' - at dusk.

In a fast-paced narrative of soaring ideals and sordid politics, of civil war and foreign invasion, the award-winning historian Alan Taylor presents a pivotal twenty-year period in which North America’s three largest countries—the United States, Mexico and Canada—all transformed themselves into nations. The American Civil War stands at the centre of the story, its military history and the drama of emancipation the highlights. Taylor relies on vivid characters to carry the story, from Joseph Hooker, whose timidity in crisis was exploited by Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson in the Union defeat at Chancellorsville, to Martin Delany and Mary Ann Shadd Cary, Black abolitionists whose critical work in Canada and the United States advanced emancipation and the enrolment of Black soldiers in Union armies. The outbreak of the American Civil War created a continental power vacuum that allowed French forces to invade Mexico in 1862 and set up an empire ruled by a Habsburg archduke. This inflamed the ongoing power struggle between Mexico’s Conservatives—landowners, the military, the Church—and Liberal supporters of social democracy, led ably by Benito Juarez. Along the southwestern border Mexico’s Conservative forces made common cause with the Confederacy, while General James Carleton violently suppressed Apaches and Navajos in New Mexico and Arizona. When the Union triumph restored the continental balance of power, French forces withdrew and Liberals consolidated a republic in Mexico. Canada was meantime fending off a potential rupture between French-speaking Catholics in Quebec and English-speakers in Ontario. When Union victory raised the threat of American invasion, Canadian leaders pressed for a continent-wide confederation joined by a transcontinental railroad. The rollicking story of liberal ideals, political venality and corporate corruption marked the dawn of the Gilded Age in North America.

From one of the earliest mentions of its name in the sixth century to the Covid lockdowns of the twenty-first, this is a magnificent portrait of one of the world’s great cities in its many iterations, from ‘Edinburgh, the sink of abomination’ to the Athens of the North and everything – including the home of the Enlightenment, the Festival City, the Aids Capital of Europe and a Mecca for tourists seeking tartan tat – in between. As the nation’s capital it has been critical to its progress and a witness to epochal events, such the tumultuous reign of Mary, Queen of Scots, the Reformation, the Forty-Five rebellion, the Disruption of the Church of Scotland and the reconvening of the Scottish Parliament. All of these and more feature. But this is not simply a book about the great and good, the famous and infamous. There is testimony aplenty from ordinary folk who may not have made their mark on history but who have contributed to Edinburgh’s ever-expanding tapestry. There are stories of body snatching and murder, drunkenness and drug-taking, sex and shopping, as well rants against inclement weather and the city council.

In a beautifully crafted narrative of soaring ideals and sordid politics, of civil war and foreign invasion, Alan Taylor presents a pivotal twenty-year period in which the United States, Mexico and Canada all transformed themselves into nations. The American Civil War stands at the centre of the story, its military dimension and the drama of emancipation the focus. The American West and its Native peoples feature prominently, with fascinating detail on California and the southwest borderlands. The instability in the United States shakes the continent: it invites a French invasion of Mexico that fuels long-standing hostilities between Conservative and Liberal forces; in Canada it raises the urgency of a continental confederation to manage the differences of Francophones and Anglophones. The vivid character portraits throughout are indelible: from Lincoln, Jefferson Davis and the great Liberal leader Benito Juárez to key Black abolitionists such as Martin Delany and Mary Ann Shadd.

This book investigates how the technology used by telehealth services shapes our healthcare, and how we, as humans, collectively change and shape the technology and services used in healthcare. Based on extensive field research on telehealth services in Australia and Brazil, the book reveals some surprisingly obvious conclusions about our powers to shape the society.

Aimed at lay, student, and academic readers alike, this book concerns the imagination and, specifically, imagination in music. It opens with a discussion of the invalidity of the idea of the creative genius and the connected view that ideas originate just in the individual mind. An alternative view of the imaginative process is then presented, that ideas spring from a subconscious dialogue activated by engagement in the world around. Ideas are therefore never just of our own making. This view is supported by evidence from many studies and corresponds with descriptions by artists of their experience of imagining. The third subject is how imaginations can be shared when musicians work with other artists, and the way the constraints imposed by trying to share subconscious imagining result in clearly distinct forms of joint working. The final chapter covers the use of the musical imagination in making meanings from music. The evidence is that music does not communicate meanings directly, and so composers or performers cannot be looked to as authorities on its meaning. Instead, music is commonly heard as analogous to human experience, and listeners who perceive such analogies may then imagine their own meanings from the music.

In this beautifully written history of America’s formative period, an eminent historian upends the traditional story of a young nation marching to its continent-spanning destiny. The newly constituted United States actually emerged as an internally fragile union of states that clashed over a tenuous balance of regional power. European empires and the new republic of Mexico sought to contain that union by allying with Native peoples who defended their homelands. Bitter political divisions pitted those favouring strong government with elite rule against those, like Andrew Jackson, espousing a democratic populism for white men. With a flood of settlers pouring into the west, the United States invaded Canada, Florida, Texas and much of Mexico. It forcibly removed most of the Native peoples living east of the Mississippi. And after the Mexican war, with conquered territory reaching west to the Pacific, the sectional divisions over slavery produced a crisis.

Motivate and nurture every pupil with bespoke support and inclusive, age-appropriate content for those working towards Second Level Maths in secondary schools.This rigorous approach guides learners through mathematical concepts with worked examples, plenty of practice and opportunities to check that skills are secure before moving on.Covering all CfE Second Level Benchmarks, this ready-made and differentiated course puts progression for all pupils at the heart of your curriculum.> Make new learning manageable: Each concept is introduced through step-by-step explanations and progressive worked examples, with proven methods for mastering more difficult concepts> Apply knowledge and practise skills: Pupils are encouraged to test and explore their understanding of new concepts by completing exercises that gradually build in difficulty - with answers included at the back of the book> Meet the needs of each pupil in your class: The explanations and activities are designed to ensure accessibility for all, while extension tasks provide further stretch and challenge> Effectively check and assess progress: 'Check-up' exercises at the end of each chapter consolidate learning and support formative assessment, helping you to monitor progression against the Experiences & Outcomes and Benchmarks> Deliver the 'responsibility for all' Es and Os: Plenty of activities that address literacy and health and wellbeing skills are threaded through the book

In this book, Alan Taylor reveals that the history of Dorset’s oil starts in the 1850s with attempts to extract oil and gas from mined oil shale at Kimmeridge. By the early twentieth century exploration geologists had realised the significance of oil seeps and other geological features found along the Dorset coast. It seemed that oil might lie in the rock strata at specific locations deep under the Dorset countryside. The author explains how exploration drilling, during a period of eighty years, led to the discovery of four producing oil fields by BP and others. The unfolding of the development of each field in such an environmentally sensitive area is described. One oilfield, Wytch Farm, has turned out to be the largest producing onshore oilfield in Western Europe. Access to databases held by HM Government’s Oil and Gas Authority has enabled the author to produce a set of unique maps and diagrams to illustrate the historical development of Dorset’s oil. Packed with interesting facts and stories, this is an essential book for those interested in Dorset’s industrial history.

This book investigates how the technology used by telehealth services shapes our healthcare, and how we, as humans, collectively change and shape the technology and services used in healthcare. Based on extensive field research on telehealth services in Australia and Brazil, the book reveals some surprisingly obvious conclusions about our powers to shape the society.

In this beautifully written history of America’s formative period, an eminent historian upends the traditional story of a young nation marching to its continent-spanning destiny. The newly constituted United States actually emerged as an internally fragile union of states that clashed over a tenuous balance of regional power. European empires and the new republic of Mexico sought to contain that union by allying with Native peoples who defended their homelands. Bitter political divisions pitted those favouring strong government with elite rule against those, like Andrew Jackson, espousing a democratic populism for white men. With a flood of settlers pouring into the west, the United States invaded Canada, Florida, Texas and much of Mexico. It forcibly removed most of the Native peoples living east of the Mississippi. And after the Mexican war, with conquered territory reaching west to the Pacific, the sectional divisions over slavery produced a crisis.

Syllabus: CfE (Curriculum for Excellence, from Education Scotland) and SQALevel: BGE S1-3: Fourth LevelSubject: Mathematics & NumeracyAim high and build confidence with this rigorous approach. Pupils are guided through mathematical concepts with worked examples, plenty of practice and opportunities to check that skills are secure before moving on.Covering all CfE Fourth Level Benchmarks (with bridging material to prepare for N5), this ready-made and differentiated course puts progression for every pupil at the heart of your curriculum.> Make new learning manageable: Each concept is introduced through step-by-step explanations and progressive worked examples, with proven methods for mastering difficult concepts> Apply knowledge and practise skills: Pupils are encouraged to test and explore their understanding of new concepts by completing exercises that gradually build in difficulty - with answers provided at the back of the book> Lay firm foundations for National qualifications: Key skills required for N5 Maths are covered in greater depth within the context of Fourth Level topics, giving pupils and teachers a head start in S4> Meet the needs of each pupil in your class: The explanations and activities are designed to ensure accessibility for those with low prior attainment, while coverage of higher order thinking skills will challenge and extend high achieving pupils> Effectively check and assess progress: 'Check-up' exercises at the end of each chapter consolidate learning and support formative assessment, helping you to monitor progression against the Experiences & Outcomes and Benchmarks> Deliver the 'responsibility for all' Es and Os: Plenty of activities that address literacy and health and wellbeing skills are threaded through the book

Aimed at lay, student, and academic readers alike, this book concerns the imagination and, specifically, imagination in music. It opens with a discussion of the invalidity of the idea of the creative genius and the connected view that ideas originate just in the individual mind. An alternative view of the imaginative process is then presented, that ideas spring from a subconscious dialogue activated by engagement in the world around. Ideas are therefore never just of our own making. This view is supported by evidence from many studies and corresponds with descriptions by artists of their experience of imagining. The third subject is how imaginations can be shared when musicians work with other artists, and the way the constraints imposed by trying to share subconscious imagining result in clearly distinct forms of joint working. The final chapter covers the use of the musical imagination in making meanings from music. The evidence is that music does not communicate meanings directly, and so composers or performers cannot be looked to as authorities on its meaning. Instead, music is commonly heard as analogous to human experience, and listeners who perceive such analogies may then imagine their own meanings from the music.

By turns entertaining and tragic, this beautifully crafted history reveals the origins of a great university in the dilemmas of Virginia slavery. Thomas Jefferson shares centre stage with his family and fellow planters, all dependent on the labour of enslaved black families. With a declining Virginia yielding to commercially vibrant northern states, in 1819 Jefferson proposed to build a university to educate and improve the sons of the planter elite. He hoped they might one day lead a revitalised Virginia free of slavery—and free of the former slaves. Jefferson’s campaign was a contest for the future of a state and the larger nation. Although he prevails, Jefferson’s vision of reform through education is hobbled by the actions of genteel students with a defiant sense of honour derived from owning slaves. It is the women of this hypermasculine society who redeem the best elements of his legacy.

Syllabus: CfE (Curriculum for Excellence, from Education Scotland) and SQALevel: BGE S1-S3: Third LevelSubject: Mathematics and NumeracyBoost attainment, engagement and confidence with this progressive approach to Third Level Maths. Pupils are guided through mathematical concepts with worked examples, plenty of practice and opportunities to check that skills are secure before moving on.Covering all CfE Third Level Benchmarks for Numeracy and Mathematics, this ready-made and fully differentiated BGE S1-S3 course puts progression for every pupil at the heart of your curriculum.- Make new learning manageable: Each concept is introduced through step-by-step explanations and rigorously worked examples, set within real life contexts that are relevant to pupils- Apply knowledge and practise skills: Pupils are encouraged to test and explore their understanding of new concepts by completing exercises that gradually build in difficulty - with answers provided at the back of the book- Meet the needs of each pupil in your class: The explanations and activities are designed to ensure accessibility for those with low prior attainment, while coverage of higher order thinking skills will challenge and extend more able pupils- Effectively check and assess progress: 'Check-up' exercises at the end of each chapter consolidate learning and support formative assessment, helping you monitor progression against the Experiences & Outcomes and Benchmarks (with additional assessments and worksheets in the separate Planning & Assessment Pack)- Lay firm foundations for National qualifications: The skills, knowledge and understanding established through the course will set pupils up for success at National 4, National 5 and beyond- Deliver the 'responsibility for all' Es and Os: Plenty of activities that address literacy and health and wellbeing skills are threaded through the book

By turns entertaining and tragic, this beautifully crafted history reveals the origins of a great university in the dilemmas of Virginia slavery. Thomas Jefferson shares centre stage with his family and fellow planters, all dependent on the labour of enslaved black families. With a declining Virginia yielding to commercially vibrant northern states, in 1819 Jefferson proposed to build a university to educate and improve the sons of the planter elite. He hoped they might one day lead a revitalised Virginia free of slavery—and free of the former slaves. Jefferson’s campaign was a contest for the future of a state and the larger nation. Although he prevails, Jefferson’s vision of reform through education is hobbled by the actions of genteel students with a defiant sense of honour derived from owning slaves. It is the women of this hypermasculine society who redeem the best elements of his legacy.