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Celebrate 15 books authored by CAS faculty in 2021

Written by 
  • April 20, 2022

Contributions by Tehreem Khan

Writing a book isn’t easy, but faculty in the College of Arts and Sciences produced more than a dozen in 2021. Thirteen faculty from the departments of Biology, Chemistry, Computer Science, Criminal Justice, English, Foreign Languages and Literatures, Philosophy and Political Science and Public Administration wrote books on rhetoric and the Dead Sea Scrolls, pandemic bioethics, medical epigenetics, world politics and more.

Click through the slideshow to learn more about each book.

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  • María Antonia Anderson de la Torre, Ph.D.

    Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures

    “¿Cómo se siente? Conversational Spanish in Medical Settings”

    Published with Kendal Hunt, this book provides training in conversational Spanish, with a review of key grammar, medical interpreting and service learning. The book also highlights critical concepts such as racial and cultural diversity. The book’s primary goal is to make a difference for students who are pursuing a career in the medical field and want to improve their knowledge of Spanish so they can better assist Hispanic patients.

  • Shannon L. Blanton, Ph.D.

    Department of Political Science and Public Administration

    “World Politics: Trend and Transformation”

    “World Politics: Trend and Transformation” was published by Cengage. It offers an analysis of the latest data, research and current events to explain the what and why behind the happenings in today’s international politics. Additionally, it also explores the recent challenges to global peace and prosperity, changes sparked by Brexit, the rise of China and enduring rivalries and the decision-making process in world politics.

  • James Braziel, MFA

    Department of English

    “This Ditch-Walking Love”

    Published by Livingston Press, “This Ditch-Walking Love” tells the stories of a rural Alabama county on the Cumberland Plateau, where money is scarce and truth is limited. Desire might be the only thing of worth in a region where a field row to pick through, a river bluff to jump from or a drive out to Jick’s to see his hellfire cars might serve up enough for the people who live there.

  • Ragib Hasan, Ph.D.

    Department of Computer Science

    “আমেরিকায় উচ্চশিক্ষা” 

    Published by Adarsha, “আমেরিকায় উচ্চশিক্ষা,” translated to “Higher Studies in the USA,” provides information about higher studies in the United States and advice on the importance of graduate studies, how to select universities, how to start research and scholarly activities, the best practices for achieving success in graduate studies and how to plan a career in academia or the industry after completing graduate studies in United States.

  • Hyeyoung Lim, Ph.D.

    Department of Criminal Justice

    “The Foundation of Statistics in Criminology and Criminal Justice” 

    Co-authored with Kyung-sick Choi, “The Foundations of Statistics in Criminology and Criminal Justice” underscores the purpose and role of statistics in criminal justice practice, emphasizes major analytical techniques and covers two key types of statistics — descriptive and inferential. It covers topics that include measures of central tendency, measures of variability, probability and the normal curve and inferential statistics. The goal of this text is to help students build a fundamental background in analytical methods within the context of criminal justice.

  • John Maddox, Ph.D.

    Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures

    “Dictionary of Latin American Identities”

    Published by University of Florida Press and co-edited with Thomas M. Stephens, “Dictionary of Latin American Identities” is a thorough, accessible and relevant dictionary of 21,000 terms related to race, ethnicity, gender and sexuality used in the region over the past five centuries. It includes the languages of Spanish, Portuguese, French and their Creoles and encompasses an interdisciplinary range of sources that highlight the intersectional nature of identity.

  • Kevin McCain, Ph.D.

    Department of Philosophy

    “Appearance and Explanation: Phenomenal Explanationism in Epistemology”

    Co-authored by Luca Moretti, “Appearance and Explanation: Phenomenal Explanationism in Epistemology” offers a compelling and comprehensive account of the nature and epistemic role of appearances. The book’s resulting theory is that phenomenal explanationism, a highly unified, comprehensive internalist theory of epistemic justification that delivers on the promises of phenomenal conservatism while avoiding its pitfalls, has advantages over both phenomenal conservatism and explanationism when taken on their own.

  • Kevin McCain, Ph.D.

    Department of Philosophy

    “Epistemic Dilemmas: New Arguments, New Angles”

    Published by Routledge and co-authored with Scott Stapleford and Matthias Steup, “Epistemic Dilemmas: New Arguments, New Angles” features original essays by leading epistemologists that address questions related to epistemic dilemmas from a variety of new and sometimes unexpected angles. The book involves discussions about the nature of epistemic dilemmas to arguments that there are no such things to suggestions for how to resolve them and think about them.

  • Kevin McCain, Ph.D.

    Department of Philosophy

    “Epistemology: 50 Puzzles, Paradoxes, and Thought Experiments”

    Published by Routledge, “Epistemology: 50 Puzzles, Paradoxes, and Thought Experiments” includes 50 of the field’s most important puzzles, paradoxes and thought experiments. The book is written in a friendly way to new readers using memorable names, describing the details of the case, explaining the issues to which the case is relevant and assessing its significance. The goal of the book is to serve as a handy resource for anyone interested in epistemological issues. 

  • Bruce McComiskey, Ph.D.

    Department of English

    “Rhetoric and the Dead Sea Scrolls: Purity, Covenant, and Strategy at Qumran”

    Published by Penn State University Press, “Rhetoric and the Dead Sea Scrolls: Purity, Covenant, and Strategy at Qumran” applies methods of rhetorical analysis to six substantive Jewish texts. In this book, McComiskey traces the Essenes’ use of rhetorical strategies based on identification, dissociation, entitlement and interpretation. The goal of the book is to broaden understanding of human and religious rhetorical practice and provide new insight into the events that led to the emergence of the Talmudic period.

  • Shahid Mukhtar, Ph.D.

    Department of Biology

    “Modeling Transcriptional Regulation” 

    “Modeling Transcriptional Regulation” is a part of the Methods in Molecular Biology book series. It includes cutting-edge methods and protocols of transcriptional regulation. The book’s chapters include introductions to their respective topics, lists of the necessary materials and reagents, step-by-step, readily reproducible laboratory protocols, and tips on troubleshooting and avoiding known pitfalls. The goal of this book is to provide an in-depth understanding of new techniques in transcriptional gene regulation for a specialized audience.

  • Gregory E. Pence, Ph.D.

    Department of Philosophy

    “Pandemic Bioethics” 

    “Pandemic Bioethics” examines relevant issues and ethical questions unfolding with real-time medical, research and societal successes and failures, such as the fair allocation of scarce medical resources and immunity passports. It also discusses tradeoffs between protecting senior citizens and allowing children to flourish, as well as discrimination against minorities and the disabled and the critical issues raised by vaccines.

  • Tina Kempin Reuter, Ph.D.

    Department of Political Science and Public Administration

    “Repetitorium Völkerrecht”

    Published by Orrel Fussli, “Repetitorium Völkerrecht” is the third edition of this international law refresher aimed at giving students an innovative and understandable introduction to a complex, interdisciplinary area of law. Students will gain insights into modern international law through updated theory and new examples and cases to better understand its importance for both national law and international politics.

  • Trygve Tollefsbol, Ph.D., D.O.

    Department of Biology

    “Medical Epigenetics, Second Edition”

    Published by Academic Press, “Medical Epigenetics, Second Edition” provides a comprehensive analysis of epigenetics in health management across a broad spectrum of disease categories and specialties, with a focus on human systems, epigenetic diseases that affect these systems and evolving modes of epigenetic-based treatment. It offers an all-in-one resource on medical epigenetics not only for those directly involved with health care, but investigators in life sciences, biotech companies, graduate students and others.

  • Brenna Tucker, Ph.D.

    Department of Chemistry

    “Advances in Online Chemistry Education”

    Co-edited with Elizabeth Pearsall, Kristi Mock and Matt Morgan and published by ACS Publications, “Advances in Online Chemistry Education” responds to the needs for online teaching strategies post-pandemic. It offers data-supported strategies for online chemistry education with perspectives from students, teaching associates, teaching fellows and academics.