This research monograph describes a large programming project in which an underwater organism, capable of perceiving, learning, deciding, and navigating, is computationally simulated. The developed computational model serves as a contemporary theory of perceptual-motor performance, embodying much of what is known about human vision and some of what is known about other cognitive processes. This artificial intelligence project has substantial contributions to make to the development of auto...

Drawn from the author's popular column in Unity Magazine, Good Questions gives informative and provocative answers to many of the most gut-wrenching questions people ask as they navigate life and the spiritual path. Dr. Tom doesn't hold back as he creatively engages with readers in answering their questions about personal tragedy, God, evil, religion, the Bible, prayer, healing, forgiveness and death. He also tackles questions about homosexuality, bigotry and violence. But his goal is to h...

Every generation throughout history has rethought, reshaped and reinvented Jesus to meet the needs of the times. This successive remaking of Jesus, Dr. Thomas Shepherd asserts, is a sign of a healthy, positive course of intellectual and spiritual growth critical to understanding Christian-based faith. In his sharply witty style, and founded on a decade of research, Dr. Tom takes a solid whack at more than a few human concepts of Jesus handed down through history in an attempt to topple cul...

On the first warm and sunny day of the year, Washington, D.C., Martin Luther King, Jr. Middle School principal Sharon Riggs needs one more substitute teacher. Victor Kennedy, the father of the school�s secretary, agrees to teach the seventh-grade American-history class for the day and tells the students about the Tuskegee Airmen. During World War II, the Tuskegee Airmen were the first black men allowed into combat, flying over 1,500 missions over the course of the war and winning a signi...

Praying to God -- but which one? In his cross-cultural study of world religions, Rev. Dr. Thomas Shepherd uncovered two common themes: the need to make sense of life and the need to live it successfully. This dual quest flows through all cultures and unites us all, not by the answers, but by the questions. Central to the human spiritual journey is prayer. From spoken confessions to symbolic rituals and silent meditation, prayer takes many forms. You may have questioned whether your method ...

He was planning to take his relationship to the next level. She was taking a chance on a social media stranger. When two houses of cards fall apart in the same moment, two hearts come together. Anna and Derek learn that "Trusting the Universe" may be the best way to find true love.

Dissolve the distractions of ego to find our authentic selves in GodIn his bestselling book Falling Upward, Richard Rohr talked about ego (or the False Self) and how it gets in the way of spiritual maturity. But if there's a False Self, is there also a True Self? What is it? How is it found? Why does it matter? And what does it have to do with the spiritual journey? This book likens True Self to a diamond, buried deep within us, formed under the intense pr...

Shines a practical light on the spiritual disciplines that have been in use since the time of Abraham.In a sense, every day of our lives is labor. It is questionable if you can ever be exactly the same person waking up on two consecutive days. How are spiritual sojourners to cope with the constant change? Many are beginning to explore the ancient Christian spiritual practices that have been in use for centuries, everything from fixed-hour prayer to fasting to since...

We all want to improve our spiritual lives, but the task often can seem overwhelming. And while there is no shortage of self-help gurus hawking their wares, not enough Christians are making meaningful progress toward a deeper relationship with God. Now best-selling author David Augsburger reveals the life-giving nature of surrender and service in Dissident Discipleship.Moving beyond self-centered therapies and "Lone Ranger" spirituality, Augsburger reveals that our spiritu...

A new view of Jesus as a Buddha-like wisdom teacher who taught the transformation of consciousness—with traditional contemplative practices you can do yourselfIf you put aside what you think you know about Jesus and approach the Gospels as though for the first time, something remarkable happens: Jesus emerges as a teacher of the transformation of consciousness.The Wisdom Jesus provides a new perspective on Christ and an expansive interpretation of ...

In this incendiary new work, the controversial author and speaker Peter Rollins proclaims that the Christian faith is not primarily concerned with questions regarding life after death but with the possibility of life before death.In order to unearth this truth, Rollins prescribes a radical and wholesale critique of contemporary Christianity that he calls pyro-theology. It is only as we submit our spiritual practices, religious rituals, and dogmatic affirmations to...

In his bestselling book Why Christianity Must Change or Die, Bishop John Shelby Spong described the toxins that are poisoning the Church. Now he offers the antidote, calling Christians everywhere into a new and radical reformation for a new age. Spong looks beyond traditional boundaries to open new avenues and a new vocabulary into the Holy, proposing a Christianity premised upon justice, love, and the rise of a new humanity -- a vision of the power that might be.