We introduce and define the single holistic case study design in this chapter. The strengths of the design are discussed in detail, with examples. In particular, we discuss the potential of single holistic design in providing a detailed explanation of processes. Single holistic case studies also explore the theorizing potential of unique cases which hold the potential to reveal new dimensions of a phenomenon or falsify/refute an existing theory. Relatively high data access, construct validity, potential to include an unlimited number of variables, etc., are some other strengths that we discuss. The weaknesses of the design (i.e. low internal and external validity) are discussed afterwards. The chapter also addresses some common (mis)conceptions regarding single holistic designs and their external validity.

This chapter explores what apocalyptic thought shares with ideal theory, with a focus on our grounds for believing any proposed account of the ideal society. As John Rawls understands it, ideal theory is based on plausible reasons that others should accept, whereas religious belief is unsuitable to collectively guide society. Some, though, have questioned Rawls’s confidence in ideal theory, and this chapter draws on social science research to place these criticisms on firmer ground. It outlines an argument for why future uncertainty makes it impossible to offer a plausible defense of ideal theory. As a result, ideal theory, like religious belief, ultimately must rest on faith. Though ideal theory must abandon aspirations of outlining an ideal to collectively guide society, there is still a potential role for it as a source of utopian hope.

The discovery of the Antarctic ozone hole in 1985 is chronicled, making the analogy with the concept of the “black swan,” a metaphor for unprecedented events. The ozone layer in the stratosphere acts as a shield for life on the Earth, by blocking harmful ultraviolet radiation from the sun. Concern mounted in the 1970s that compounds known as chlorofluorocarbons, used as refrigerants and coolants, could be slowly destroying the ozone layer. Joe Farman and the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) found that ozone levels in the stratosphere had dropped dramatically during the Antarctic spring season in the 1980s, creating a “hole” in the ozone layer. US scientist Susan Solomon led an expedition to make measurements of the ozone hole and worked with colleagues to explain the cause: cold Antarctic temperatures allowed the formation of polar stratospheric clouds that catalyzed chemical reactions involving CFCs, leading to rapid ozone loss.

Chapters 5–6 deal with some of the chief aspects of Ovidian and cinematic metamorphoses. Chapter 5 examines another crucial moment in screen history, when film pioneer Georges Méliès accidentally discovered how bodies and objects could be changed into something completely different on the screen. Ovid’s versions of the myths of the sculptor Pygmalion, whose ivory statue, later named Galatea, comes to life, and, conversely, the petrifying gaze of the Gorgon Medusa initiated two important developments in modern visual arts: the Pygmalion Effect and the Medusa Effect. Related to these are the Hephaestus and Daedalus Effects, in which statues acquire movement. This chapter connects elements from Ovid’s myths to a variety of related film forms and genres. Visible essences and underlying characteristics of bodily metamorphoses are as important for Ovid’s epic as they are for the cinema. The latter has extensively shown complex metamorphoses through editing and camera tricks since the days of silent films and in animated films. Now computer-generated images (CGI) add a whole new dimension of verisimilitude to what is physically impossible. A complex metamorphosis, from human to robot, occurs in Fritz Lang’s silent classic Metropolis, while the metamorphosis of a young ballerina in Black Swan may well be the most realistic change of the human body in the CGI era. The chapter closes with a brief homage to Eisenstein’s famous montage in Battleship Potemkin, in which three marble statues of lions become one animated lion.