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Review Essays of Academic, Professional & Technical Books in the Humanities & Sciences
General Science, Archeology, Biography, Biology, Chemistry, Mathematics, Logic, Quantum, Computers, Physics, Social Work, Sociology
Inventing Personality: Gordon Allport and the Science
of Selfhood by Ian A. M. Micholson (American Psychological Association (APA))
Blending biography and intellectual history, this book examines Allport's early
career and his concept of "personality" and its theoretical implications.
Nicholson (psychology,
Inventing Personality examines the early career of Gordon Allport
(1897-1967) to reveal the history of the personality category he championed.
Drawing on an extensive array of previously unpublished biographical materials,
Ian A. M. Nicholson masterfully combines biography with intellectual history to
reveal the ways in which Allport's science was embedded in the cultural politics
of the United States in the 1920s and 1930s. He argues that personality's
emergence as an object of science was linked to the gradual demise of character
and the selfsacrificing, morally grounded self that it supported. Carefully
highlighting Allport's complex commitments to both science and spirituality,
Nicholson examines the rich cultural and historical contexts that framed the
emergence of personality as a discipline, revealing multiple (even
contradictory) meanings of "personality" in the language of American selfhood.
He asserts that personality's appeal lay in its ability to integrate and obscure
the complex polarities of material and spiritual, old and new, masculine and
feminine, and freedom and control-categories rendered unstable in a new and
distinctively modern age. This book will be invaluable to scholars and
practitioners interested in personality, and it will serve as a model of
scientific biography. More
The Nobel Scientists: A Biographical Encyclopedia by George Thomas Kurian
(Prometheus) is a biographical reference that celebrates one hundred years of
the Nobel Prize in 2001. It contains the profiles of 466 scientists and
chronicles their lives and achievements in, as far as possible, simple,
nontechnical language. Each laureate receives a separate entry, even when the
prize was awarded in a given year to two or three persons. This may mean some
overlap, but makes each entry self-contained.
The Tennessee, Green, and Lower Ohio Rivers Expeditions of Clarence Bloomfield
Moore
by Clarence Bloomfield Moore, edited by Richard R. Polhemus
(Classics in Southeastern Archaeology: University of Alabama Press) Clarence
Bloomfield Moore (1852-1936) reached the northern limit of his archaeological
endeavors in the work along the Tennessee, the Green, and the Lower Ohio rivers
reprinted in this volume of Classics in Southeastern Archaeology. The intention
of this introduction is first to discuss in general the importance of Moore's
1913-1916 investigations; second, to examine factors influencing Moore's
fieldwork; and, finally, to determine the significance of Moore's work for
subsequent investigations on selected sites and areas. While many of the sites
reported by Clarence B. Moore cannot be positively identified at the present, an
attempt is made to correlate as many sites as possible with current site
numbers, published excavation reports, and unpublished excavation records.
More
Grzimek's Animal Life Encyclopedia.— Second Edition, 17 Volumes, series editor: Michael Hutchins, [Volume 1. Lower Metazoans and Lesser Deuterosomes / Neil Schlager, Editor — Volume 2. Protostomes / Neil Schlager, Editor — Volume 3. Insects / Neil Schlager, Editor — Volume 4-5. Fishes I-II; Fishes I: II: / Neil Schlager, Editor — Volume 6. Amphibians / Neil Schlager, Editor — Volume 7. Reptiles / Neil Schlager, Editor— Volume 8-11. —Birds I-IV; Birds I: II: III: IV: /Donna Olendorf, Editor— Volume 12-16. Mammals I-V; Mammals: I: II: III: IV: V:/ Melissa C. McDade, Editor — Volume 17. Cumulative Index / Melissa C. McDade, Editor] Sponsored by American Zoo and Aquarium Association (Gale Group) This title is also available as an e-book. For a rather lush scientific survey of the better known animal species, no other reference collects such a sheer wealth of systematic data. Besides providing a general view of the set as a whole, we also provide each major animal group with its introductory chapter that reasonably well demonstrates the scope of this reference work. Grzimek's Animal Life Encyclopedia, state of the art taxonomy and naturalism, provides both generic, introductory information as well as species descriptions. The are chapters written well enough for the general scientific reader. No college or university library should be without this encyclopedic survey. More
Phytoremediation: Transformation and Control of Contaminants by Steven C.
McCutcheon, Jerald L. Schnoor (Wiley-Interscience) A peerless survey of the
emerging field of phytoremediation .
Phytoremediation involves the use of vascular plants, algae, and fungi to remove and control waste or spur waste breakdown by microorganisms in the soil zone that surrounds and is influenced by the roots of plants. The diverse wastes that can be managed by using phytoremediation include xenobiotic organic chemicals, sewage, salts, nutrients, heavy metals, metalloids, and air pollutants. Phytoremediation provides an authoritative account of the history and the most recent developments of this exciting, emerging field. More
Genomes, second edition edited by Terence A. Brown (Wiley) In the belief that courses on molecular biology should reflect the major research issues on the millennial horizon rather than those of the past decades, Brown offers an undergraduate textbook that focuses on the genome as a whole rather than individual genes. More
MacMillian Science Library Genetics, 4 Volume set edited by Richard
Robinson
(MacMillian Science Library: Macmillian Reference
The Microbial Challenge by Robert I. Krasner (ASM)
undergraduate text on human-microbe interactions. Provides an understanding of
the biology of the microbial world and its effects on daily life. Contains three
sections titled, challenges, meeting the challenges, and current challenges.
Topics include microbial diseases, biological warfare, and antibiotic
resistance. Full-color format.
Horticultural Reviews:
Wild Apple and Fruit Trees of Central Asia by Jules Janick (Horticultural
Reviews: Wiley) Horticultural Reviews presents state of the art reviews.
Emphasis is on applied topics including the production of fruits, vegetables,
nut crops, and ornamental plants of commercial importance. This volume deals
with wild apple and fruit trees found in Central Asia.
Apple is the most ubiquitous and well‑adapted species of temperate fruit crops.
It is grown in high latitude regions of the world where temperatures may
reach‑40°C to high elevations in the tropics where two crops may be grown in a
single year. Apples are the fourth most important world fruit crop following all
citrus types, grapes, and bananas.
Chemistry
The second part volumes 5-8 is now available. Encyclopedia of Polymer Science and Technology, 3rd Edition, 12 Volume Set by Herman F. Mark (Wiley-Interscience) Polymer science has come to an ubiquitous maturity in the last half of the 20th century, impacting most aspects of manufacture, medicine, and innumerable products and processes. As this 3rd edition of the Encyclopedia of Polymer Science and Technology now reaches print, one can say this most commercially viable of sciences has many practical extensions and a some health and environmental risks as industry and business develop and exploit the many useful possiblities of this science. More
The Chemical Philosophy: Paraclesian Science and Medicine in the Sixteenth
and Seventeenth Centuries by Allen G. Debus (
The Art of Chemistry: Myths, Medicines and Materials by Arthur Greenberg 0471071803 (Wiley-Interscience) How do you picture an atom or imagine a chemical reaction? How have chemists, and before them alchemists, carried out their experiments? For centuries, people have sought to convey the ideas and practices of chemistry through art, poetry and prose. And in The Art of Chemistry, Arthur Greenberg leads us on an eclectic and very personal romp through many of them. In 72 short essays accompanied by nearly 200 illustrations, we follow an erratic but fascinating route through the history of chemistry. More
The A to Z of Mathematics: A Basic Guide by Thomas H. Sidebotham (Wiley Interscience) a guide that makes math simple without making it simplistic. Invaluable resource for parents and students, home schoolers, teachers, and anyone else who wants to improve his or her math skills and discover the amazing relevance of mathematics to the world around us. More
The Applicability of Mathematics As a Philosophical Problem by Mark Steiner
(Harvard University Press) analyzes the different ways mathematics is applicable
in the physical sciences, and presents a startling thesis - the success of
mathematical physics appears to assign the human mind a special place in the
cosmos.
This book has two separate objectives. The first is to examine in what ways
mathematics can be said to be applicable in the natural sciences or to the
empirical world. Mathematics is applicable in many senses, and this ambiguity
has bred confusion and error--even among "analytic" philosophers: because there
are many senses of "application" and "applicability," there are many questions
about the application of mathematics that ought to be, but have not been,
distinguished by philosophers. As a result, we do not always know what problem
they are dealing with.
Cryptanalysis of Number Theoretic Ciphers by Samuel S. Wagstaff, Jr., edited by Mikhail J. Atallah (Chapman & Hall/CRC) First book to take readers all the way from basic number theory through the inner workings of ciphers and protocols to their strengths and weaknesses. Presents cryptosystem as practical, workable algorithms, not just as oversimplified mathematical objects. More
Finite Mathematics by Bill Armstrong, Don Davis (Prentice Hall) modern in
its writing style as well as in its applications, contains numerous
exercises—both skill oriented and applications—, real data problems, and a
problem solving method. The book features exercises based on data form the World
Wide Web, technology options for those who wish to use a graphing calculator,
review boxes, strategic checkpoints, interactive activities, section summaries
and projects, and chapter openers and reviews. For anyone who wants to see and
understand how mathematics are used in everyday life.
Fuzzy Topology by
The key features are
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Large number of examples
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Counterexamples, characterizations, implications
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References to original sources
Elementary Differential Equations by W. E. Kohler, Lee
W. Johnson (Addison Wesley) This book is designed for the sophomore differential
equations course taken by students majoring in science and engineering. We
assume the reader has had a course in elementary calculus.
The authors have integrated the underlying theory, the
solution procedures, and the numerical and computational aspects of differential
equations as seamlessly as possible. For exa
Discrete Mathematics (5th Edition) by Kenneth A. Ross, Charles R. B. Wright
(Prentice Hall) Presenting conceptual chains in an orderly and gradual fashion,
this informal but thorough introduction to discrete mathematics offers a careful
treatment of the basics essential for computer science such as relations,
induction, counting techniques, logic, and graphs. It also covers the more
advanced topics of Boolean algebra and permutation groups, and comes with a
wealth of examples to reinforce material and to allow readers to view topics
from several perspectives. The book includes new coverage of probability that
examines such areas as random variables and distributions and new sections on
the Euclidean algorithm and loop invariants, providing a powerful tool for
designing algorithms and verifying their correctness.
Logic
Deduction: Introductory Symbolic Logic, 2nd Edition by Daniel Bonevac
(Blackwell) Near the end of the eighteenth century, Immanuel Kant wrote that
logic was a closed and completed subject, to which nothing significant had been
contributed since the time of Aristotle and to which nothing significant
remained to be contributed. Many logic students today receive a similar
impression from their introductory logic courses, except that Russell and
Whitehead have assumed the venerated position that Aristotle held in Kant's
time. More
Quantum Theory and Its Stochastic Limit by Luigi Accardi, Igor Volovich, Yun
Gang Lu (Springer Verlag) The subject of this book is a new mathematical
technique, the stochastic limit developed for solving nonlinear problems in
quantum theory involving systems with infinitely many degrees of freedom
(typically quantum fields or gases in the thermodynamic limit). This technique
is condensed into some easily applied rules (called "stochastic golden rule")
which allow us to single out the dominating contributions to the dynamical
evolution of systems in regimes involving long times and small effects. In the
stochastic limit, the original Hamiltonian theory is approximated using a new
Hamiltonian theory that is singular. These singular Hamiltonians still define a
unitary evolution and the new equations give much more insight into the relevant
physical phenomena than the original Hamiltonian equations. Especially, one can
explicitly compute multitime correlations (e.g. photon statistics) or coherent
vectors, which are beyond the reach of typical asymptotic techniques, as well as
deduce in the Hamiltonian framework the widely used stochastic Schrodinger
equation and the master equation.
This monograph is well suited as a textbook in the emerging field of stochastic
limit techniques in quantum theory.
More
Computer Sciences
edited by Roger R. Flynn (MacMillian Science Library: Macmillian Reference USA,
Thomson Gale) Designed as an accessible first-stop reference for high school
students and general readers, this four-volume reference divides the subject
into four main themes: foundations--ideas and people; software and hardware;
social applications; and the "electronic universe" (the Internet, banking,
books, publishing, information access and overload, ethics, encryption...).
Contributed by 125 authors with various areas of expertise, 286 signed,
alphabetically arranged articles of a few pages or more are presented with cross
references and bibliographic and/or internet resources for further
investigation. The deliberately non-intimidating page design incorporates
sidebars, definitions, and b&w illustrations. Each volume devotes about 60 pages
(20 percent) to a glossary and index; the fourth volume contains a cumulative
index. More
The Compiler Design Handbook:
Optimizations & Machine Code Generation by Y. N. Srikant, Priti Shankar (CRC
Press) The first up to date handbook for advanced compiler optimizations and
code generation, Features chapters contributed by leading experts and active
researchers in the field.
The widespread use of object-oriented languages and Internet security concerns
are just the beginning. Add embedded systems, multiple memory banks, highly
pipelined units operating in parallel, and a host of other advances and it
becomes clear that current and future computer architectures pose immense
challenges to compiler designers-challenges that already exceed the capabilities
of traditional compilation techniques.
More
Embedded Systems and Computer Architecture by Graham, R. Wilson (Newnes)
Designed as an introduction to microprocessors and computer architecture for an
electronics undergraduate or HND/C course. A practical design-oriented approach.
A core text for modules on microprocessors, embedded systems and computer
architecture -A practical design-orientated approach -FREE CD-ROM features a
unique microprocessor simulator This book has been designed as an introduction
to microprocessors and computer architecture for an electronics undergraduate or
HND/C course. It differs from other books available in that it uses a
design-orientated approach rather than a purely descriptive style dedicated to a
particular commercial microprocessor.
Third Generation CDMA Systems for Enhanced Data Services
by Giridhar D. Mandyam, Jersey Lai (Communications, Networking and Multimedia:
Academic Press) First book to cover both of the leading CDMA standards and it
provides an authoritative, current review of the newest third generation
technologies. Ideal for engineers developing wireless devices, as well as for
those in the service sectors.
Until now, most wireless devices have been used for voice transmission, but the
new third generation of wireless devices promise greatly enhanced delivery of
both voice and data communications. These devices are currently under
development and are being built using the two major CDMA (code division multiple
access) systems, cdma2000 and wideband CDMA. These telecommunication systems use
signal codes to receive voice and data information.
More
Electromagnetics Explained: A Handbook for Wireless/ RF, EMC, and High-Speed
Electronics, Part of the EDN Series for Design Engineers by Ron Schmitt (Newnes)
Covers topics using conceptual explanations and over 150 lucid figures, in place
of complex mathematics; Demystifies
antennas, waveguides, and transmission line phenomena;
Provides the foundation necessary to thoroughly understand signal
integrity issues associated with high-speed digital design;
Includes extensive material on EMC and high-frequency layout; Covers
component and circuit parasitic characteristics; Full of practical tips and
techniques.
Written for engineers by an engineer, Electromagnetics Explained will teach you
everything you need to know about RF/high-speed design and electromagnetic
fields. More
Sociology and Society is a series of four textbooks designed as
an introduction to the sociological study of modern society. The books form the
core study materials for The Open University course Sociology and Society
(DD201), which aims to provide an attractive and up‑to‑date introduction to the
key concerns and debates of contemporary sociology. They also take account of
the ways in which sociology has been shaped by dialogue with adjacent
disciplines and intellectual movements, such as cultural studies and women's
studies. More
International Encyclopedia of Marriage and Family 4 volumes. Second edition.
edited by James J. Ponzetti, Jr. (Gale Group, Macmillan Reference USA).
Illustrations, bibliography, index.
Apparently targeted at family professionals, especially clinical psychologists, guidance counselors, and social workers, the encyclopedia is heavily weighted toward entries dealing with couple and parent-child relationships; children's cognitive, emotional, moral, and sexual development; and psychological and sexual disorders. Assessment, therapies, and marital and parenting education programs also receive substantial attention. Curiously few entries focus on the economics of the family, family law, governmental welfare and family policies, or the politics of the family. More
Social Workers' Desk Reference edited by Albert R. Roberts, Gilbert J. Greene (Oxford University Press) This is by far the best survey of social work standards and practices to cross my desk in years. It is an all-encompassing and well thought-out compendium that the broad range of social work practices, ethics and central theory is at hand. Rumor has it that it is already becoming the essential reference to social work because each of its 146 chapters is assessable and consistently well-written, all by acknowledged scholars in the field.. Social Workers' Desk Reference is a definitely an outstanding and sourcebook for social work practitioners and academics. More
Disciplined Minds: A Critical Look at Salaried Professionals and the
Soul-Battering System That Shapes Their Lives by Jeff Schmidt
(Rowman & Littlefield) This is an important as it is a controversial work.
Simply it shows how our institutional deeply affect individual integrity at many
levels of professional life. Eye-opening and forcefully political. Highly
recommended. Author’s preface: This book is stolen. Written in part on stolen
time, that is. I felt I had no choice but to do it that way. Like millions of
others who work for a living, I was giving most of my prime time to my employer.
My job simply did not leave me enough energy for a major project of my own, and
no one was about to hire me to pursue my own vision, especially given my
irreverent attitude toward employers. I was working in
Alcohol, Tobacco, and Other Drugs: Challenging Myths, Assessing Theories, Individualizing Interventions by Ann Augustine Abbott (NASW Press) reflects the clinical experiences and scholarly research of the original faculty fellows, together with that of numerous other faculty members, social work practitioners, professionals from other fields, and students who struggled together to better understand the complexities of the field of alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs. More
The Cambridge Companion to Jonathan Swift edited by Christopher Fox
(Cambridge Companions to Literature: Cambridge University Press) (HARDCOVER)
explores crucial dimensions of Swift's life and works. As well as ensuring a
broad coverage of Swift's writing--including early and later works as well as
the better known and the lesser known - the Companion also offers a way into
current critical and theoretical issues surrounding the author. Special emphasis
is placed on Swift's vexed relationship with the land of his birth,
The Library and Reading of Jonathan Swift: A Bio-Bibliographical Handbook, Part I Swift's Library in Four Volumes by Heinz J. Vienken Dirk F. Passmann (Peter Lang) The library of Jonathan Swift was sold by auction after his death in 1745. Fortunately, there was a catalogue of the auction, printed in 1746, so we know most of the books Swift owned at the time of his death. The catalogue lists a total of 657 lots. Long before that, Swift had formed a habit of drawing up lists of the books he had read or owned. The first extant, of his reading, dates from 1697/1698, when he was employed by his mentor Sir William Temple. Another inventory, of books he owned, Swift compiled in 1715. The Library and Reading of Jonathan Swift identifies the individual works and lists all authors represented in them in detail. More
From Civil Strife to Civil Society: Civil and Military Responsibilities in
Disrupted States edited by William
Maley, Charles Sampford, & Ramesh Thakur (United Nations University Press)
The 1990s saw the United Nations, the militaries of key member states, and NGOs increasingly entangled in the complex affairs of disrupted states. Whether as deliverers of humanitarian assistance or as agents of political, social, and civic reconstruction, whether in Somalia, Bosnia, Kosovo, or East Timor, these actors have had to learn ways of interacting with each other in order to optimize the benefits for the populations they seek to assist. Yet the challenges have proved daunting. Civil and military actors have different organizational cultures and standard operating procedures and are confronted with the need to work together to perform tasks to which different actors may attach quite different priorities. More
Polymer Science reaches new level of cohesion with the Appearance of 3rd Edition of Encyclopedia of Polymer Science and Technology
Encyclopedia of Polymer Science and Technology, 3rd Edition, 12 Volume Set by Herman F. Mark (Wiley-Interscience) Polymer science has come to an ubiquitous maturity in the last half of the 20th century, impacting most aspects of manufacture, medicine, and innumerable products and processes. As this 3rd edition of the Encyclopedia of Polymer Science and Technology now reaches print, one can say this most commercially viable of sciences has many practical extensions and a some health and environmental risks as industry and business develop and exploit the many useful possiblities of this science. This completely new Third Edition of the Encyclopedia of Polymer Science and Technology brings the state-of-the-art to the 21st century, with coverage of nanotechnology, new imaging and analytical techniques, new methods of controlled polymer architecture, biomimetics, and more. Whereas earlier editions published one volume at a time, the third edition is being published in 3 Parts of 4 volumes each. The first section has become available and offers a rich compendium of the state of polymer science. More
Biological Psychiatry, 2 volumes, edited by Hugo A.H. D'haenen, Johan A. den Boer, Paul Willner (Wiley) This textbook aims to review the current state of biological psychiatry, a field that has expanded tremendously over the past few decades. The book is aimed at clinical, postgraduate and research audiences, within psychiatry, neurology, psychopharmacology, and psychology.
After a few introductory chapters dealing with conceptual and measurement issues in biological psychiatry, the first part of the book deals with basic principles relating to animal models, transmitter systems (aminergic, amino acid, peptidergic), neuroendocrinology, neuroimmunology, psychophysiology, neuropsychology, brain imaging, neurogenetics, gene‑environment interactions, and gender issues. These chapters are intended to provide the necessary basic information that would enable the reader unfamiliar with each of the fields addressed to understand the later chapters applying this knowledge to specific psychiatric disorders.
Although it has frequently been argued that the diagnostic categories of the American Psychiatric Association Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders ‑IVth edition (DSM‑IV) are not immediately relevant to biological psychiatric insights, we have used the DSM‑IV classification as an organizing principle, for didactic reasons.
Thus, the second part deals with most of the major diagnostic categories of DSM‑IV: cognitive disorders, substance-related disorders, schizophrenia, mood disorders, anxiety disorders, somatoform disorders, dissociative disorders, sexual and gender identity disorders, eating disorders, sleep disorders, impulse control disorders, and personality disorders. see more
Social Psychology (11th Edition) by Shelley E. Taylor, Anne L. Peplau, David O. Sears (Prentice Hall) presents the basic theories and findings of social psychology, and shows how the principles of this field are relevant to our everyday lives. Written clearly and logically organized, this book presents social psychological theories as a way of understanding current events and social issues, helping the reader to grasp world events as they unfold. The authors of this book have paid special attention to illustrating basic principles of social psychology with topics such as new research on social cognition, attitude formation and change, prejudice, conformity and compliance, social interaction and relationships, the influence of gender in social life, prosocial behavior and aggression, and social psychological perspectives on health, politics, and the law. For those in the fields of psychology and social interaction, and those whose work requires a basic understanding of group dynamics. see full review
Sociological Methodology 2001 edited by Michael Sobel, Mark P. Becker (Sociological Methodology, Vol 31: Blackwell) This volume of Sociological Methodology touches on both long‑standing and more recent themes in social statistics. In the first chapter, Adrian Raftery discusses all of these themes, reviewing the analysis of cross-tabulations and statistical methods developed to analyze survey data on individuals. Turning to the future, he discusses the limitations of some current work and outlines developments important for the field in the coming years, such as social networks, the analysis of longitudinal network data, spatial statistics, and social interactions. Durlaf's outstanding and forward looking work on what is perhaps the most important issue in sociology, the interdependence between group and individual, proposes models that can be used to inform important sociological issues, such as whether to have child, to move, or how many years of education one seeks. The editors of this volume have taken exceptional care to be mindful of the needs and interests of readers of Sociological Methodology and offer here a very rich and rewarding spectrum of issues and perspectives. see full review
Personality Theories: Development, Growth, and Diversity (4th Edition) by Bem P. Allen (Allyn and Bacon) Organized by individual theorists, this comprehensive book examines the major movements in the field through an historic and humanistic approach. Allen begins each chapter with teaser questions that help frame the chapter. The questions are answered in the body of the chapter and are later reinforced through the use of summary points and essay/critical thinking questions at the end of each chapter, which aid in the continuation of a discussion about the text. In addition, Allen provides a tabular format: a running comparison between the major theorists that allows readers to analyze new theories with respect to theories learned in previous chapters. For anyone interested in personality theories. see complete review
Roads to Dystopia: Sociological Essays on the Postmodern Condition by Stanford M. Lyman (Studies in American Sociology, V. 6: University of Arkansas Press) The essays in this book speak to a burgeoning period of human existence that some believe is best described as post-histoire," defined by Henrik de Man as a moment in time when humankind gains unwanted "entry into a phase of world events that does not fit into history at all, because the otherwise historically verifiable connections between causes and effects are not forthcoming. see more
Meaning and Universal Grammar: Theory and Empirical FindingsVolume 1 edited by Cliff Goddard, Anna Wierzbicka, Kristi J. O'Neill (Studies in Language Companion Series, 60: John Benjamins) Meaning and Universal Grammar: Theory and Empirical Findings Volume 2 edited by Cliff Goddard, Anna Wierzbicka, Kristi J. O'Neill (Studies in Language Companion Series, 61: John Benjamins) This two-volume set of studies takes as its starting point an old idea: the idea that universal grammar is based on meaning. It seeks to give this idea a solid theoretical foundation, and to explore its viability through detailed empirical studies in a set of typologically divergent languages (Lao, Malay, Mandarin Chinese, Mangaaba-Mbula, Polish and Spanish). see more
Multifractals: Theory and Applications by David Harte (Chapman & Hall, CRC) Takes a multidisciplinary view of multifractals, pulling ideas together into a probabilistic and statistical context. Builds on the theory of large deviations to focus on constructions based on lattice coverings. Also discusses applications of dimension estimation, with a detailed case study of point patterns of earthquake locations. see more
MICROARRAY
ANALYSIS
IMPARTS THE KNOWLEDGE TO APPLY THIS
REVOLUTIONARY TECHNOLOGY
Microarray Analysis by Mark Schena (Wiley) hailed as the next revolution
in molecular biology, enables scientists to examine the expression levels of
thousands of genes at the same time. Spawning a multibillion-dollar commercial
enterprise, this burgeoning technology impacts every field of biomedicine,
agriculture and the basic and clinical sciences. This high-tech blend of
biology and technology is unraveling the mysteries of the human genome and
expediting the development of safer drugs and new genetic tests. An
essential resource for anyone involved in the life sciences,
Microarray Analysis by Mark Schena (Wiley) is the first textbook
treatment of this innovative technique ever published.
SEE MORE
Mathematics Reference for Secondary Schools
Mathematics, 4 volumes edited by Barry Max Brandenberger Jr. (MacMillan Science Library: MacMillian Reference USA, The Gale Group) Mathematics has been defined as the "universal language of numbers," a language whose basic principles remain the same for all users. Many routine activities, from balancing a checkbook to measuring ingredients for a recipe, require a certain familiarity with mathematical concepts and applications. In Macmillan's Mathematics encyclopedia, users will learn more about the function of mathematics in everyday life, as well as its role as a tool for measurement, data analysis, and technological development. Interdisciplinary in scope, the encyclopedia provides students with a clear and comprehensive introduction to this vast topic through nearly three hundred entries commissioned especially for the set.
Mass Spectrometry Basics by Christopher G. Herbert, R. A. W. Johnstone (CRC Press) Provides authoritative yet plain-spoken explanations of the basic concepts of this powerful analytical method without elaborate mathematical derivations. Serves as a refresher for practicing mass spectroscopists by clarifying principles to afford a better appreciation and application of this technology. see more
A Broader Look at Mathematics
For many people, mathematics and its basic disciplines‑such as algebra, geometry, and trigonometry‑are subjects of fear and dread. The goal of the Mathematics encyclopedia is to make these topics more accessible and interesting to middle and high school students and the general user. Readers will learn that mathematics is much more than numbers alone‑it is also an integral part of history and culture. Biographical entries highlight mathematicians who have made significant contributions to the field. Over thirty career‑related articles offer examples of mathematics "on the job," whether it's a nutritionist calculating dietary needs or a photographer compensating for low‑light conditions. Entries on applications explore the role of mathematics in our modern world, from everyday conveniences to global communication methods and a multitude of scientific and technological advances.
Organization of the Material
The authors who contributed entries to Mathematics bring a variety of expertise to the subject, and include members of academic institutions, math educators, and curriculum specialists. Contributors used their subject knowledge to write entries that are authoritative and up‑to‑date, but free of overly technological terms or scientific jargon. Many entries are illustrated, and numerous equations, tables, figures, and sidebars help illuminate the text. Unfamiliar terms and concepts are highlighted and defined in the margin, while cross‑references direct users to articles of related interest. Most entries feature a selected bibliography, including Internet resources. Each volume includes a topical outline, glossary, and index, with a cumulative index to the entire set appearing in volume 4. Recommended for school and public library reference sections.
Psychology
Self and Motivation: Emerging Psychological Perspectives by Abraham Tesser, Diederik A. Stapel and, Joanne V. Wood (International Society of Self and Identity: American Psychological Association) Strong on theory and empirical work, Self and Motivation showcases cuttingedge research that asks a variety of intriguing questions: Can goals be activated outside our awareness? How do interpersonal dynamics affect self? How do we maintain a distinctive identity in a group context? Is too much choice or self‑determination "bad"? How does self‑esteem and morality influence self?
Here leading scholars discuss the importance of motivation, emotion, and physiological arousal in self-related processes; explore the role of awareness in goal-driven behavior; and describe the interactive influence of social context on self and self on social context. A formal, integrated model of self-regulation is also proposed. (see full review)
Children of Depressed Parents: Mechanisms of Risk and Implications for Treatment edited by Sherryl H. Goodman, Ian H. Gotlib (American Psychological Association) Depression is among the most common psychiatric disorders in adults. Rates of depression are higher in women than in men: One in 5 women and 1 in 10 men can expect to develop a clinically significant episode of depression at some point in their lives. Depression is also a highly recurrent disorder: Over 80% of depressed individuals have more than one depressive episode. In fact, more than 50% of depressed individuals have been found to relapse within 2 years of recovery; individuals with three or more previous episodes of depression may have a relapse rate as high as 40% within only 12 to 15 weeks after recovery. Moreover, data suggest that individuals who have experienced a depressive episode do not return to completely asymptomatic functioning following the episode, but rather, continue to experience subclinical levels of depressive symptoms. Finally, depression may be particularly prevalent during women's childbearing years and among women with young children. These data converge to suggest that a large number of young children are exposed repeatedly to maternal depression and consistently to subclinical depressive. There is little question that this exposure has adverse consequences.
We should be concerned about the functioning of children of depressed parents for a number of reasons. First, depression is highly heritable. Second, infants born to mothers who are depressed during pregnancy may be exposed to neuroendocrine abnormalities, reduced blood flow to the fetus, poor health behaviors, or antidepressant medications. Third, many of the symptoms of depression are incompatible with, or preclude, good parenting. Thus, feeling sad or blue, experiencing loss of interest or pleasure in one's usual pursuits, loss of energy, low self‑esteem, poor concentration, indecisiveness, and hostility and irritability all make it difficult for parents to be responsive to the needs of their children and to be good role models for healthy social and emotional functioning. Fourth, the lives of children with depressed parents may be particularly stressful. (see full review)
Child-Friendly Therapy: Biopsychosocial Innovations for Children and Families by Marcia B. Stern (W.W. Norton) A creative family-centered treatment for use by mental health clinicians who work with children. Psychologist and family therapist Marcia Stern presents a playful and creative therapy for today's kids. Her family-based treatment employs multi-sensory skill building activities, and concerns itself with taking therapy outside the consulting room. Especially valuable for practitioners when the referral problem has biological underpinnings. Today's kids are often computer literate even before they can read. They thrive on continuous visual stimulation and constant activity. They may enter treatment diagnosed with learning differences and cognitive variations that affect language, attention, and concentration. When they need help it may be hard to engage them in traditional language‑based therapy, which relies on explanation, analytic skill, and interpretation. Finding a therapy that "fits" is not easy.
Now Marcia Stern presents a new, inventive, and exciting treatment for today's kids. The book begins with an overview of child‑friendly therapy, and discusses brainbased disorders, the multifaceted approach, the biopsychosocial framework, and the role of the family as central to treatment. The general guidelines of the therapy are presented with an emphasis on the collaborative and resource‑oriented nature of the work. The second part of the book focuses on assessment. Stern reminds the clinician to "keep the brain in mind." She offers easily digestible "brain basics" and provides helpful ways to use this information in treatment, together with suggestions for how to talk to children and families about the way the brain works. Completing the second part are two chapters detailing the assessment of individual, family, and school contexts.
The book's final section provides readers with a thorough discussion of treatment in action, and elaborates on Stern's conviction that successful therapy is therapy that is sent home with the family. In‑depth case examples, exercises, and descriptions of action‑oriented techniques, make therapy sessions come alive for readers. Chapters on working with groups and on termination round out the book and detailed appendices, containing over 50 pages of materials, games, and resources, make this an all‑in-one package for the clinician.
Child-Friendly Therapy helps clinicians help family members work as a team, strategizing and collaborating with the therapist in a systemically informed treatment. Essential reading for everyone working with today's kids, this book is a rewarding and highly informative tour through cutting‑edge therapy for children and their families.
Forensic Science
Flight
427: Anatomy of an Air Disaster by Gerry Byrne (Copernicus Books)
Boeing's 737 is indisputably the most popular and arguably the safest commercial
airliner in the world. But the plane had a lethal flaw, and only after several
disastrous crashes and years of painstaking investigation was the mystery of its
rudder failure solved. This book tells the story of how engineers and scientists
finally uncovered the defect that had been engineered into the plane.
It's hard to imagine that a book about an air crash could be a
page-turner in the style of a Ludlum or Clancy, but
Flight 427 manages to be just that: it's a book about hi-tech sleuths
racing against time and looming danger to solve an unfathomable mystery: why
commercial airliners in seemingly perfect working order flipped over and fell
from the sky. Author Bryne manages this in a style that is both suspenseful and
educational: I learned a lot about wind, weather, piloting, and flight without
ever feeling I was being taught. The most astonishing thing I learned was that
the suspected culprit in the crash of 427 (and other crashes and near-crashes)
is still in the tail rudders of 737s flying today: that the fix would take so
long to implement tells you a lot about the intersection of commerce (the
already tottering airline industry could not withstand a grounding of 737s),
science, and government. And that could be the most chilling aspect of this
jet-age spy story. Highly recommended for anyone interested in technology and/or
aviation. (Maybe not for anyone already afraid of flying!)
. . . At 2 minutes and 57 seconds past 7:00, three thumps are heard in the
cockpit. "Sheez!" exclaims Germano. "Zuh," says Emmett almost simultaneously.
Then there is another mysterious thump. Germano inhales and exhales rapidly.
There's an unknown clicking sound, then another thump, this time softer. "Whoa,"
says Germano, and there's more mysterious clicking and Emmett grunts. There's
another, different clicking sound and Germano yells, "Hang on!" The aircraft's
engines power up and there's more grunting, louder this time, from Emmett. "Hang
on," repeats Germano, and there's another click and the sound of the
autopilot-disconnect warning, a wailing horn. . . .
"What the hell is this?" asks Germano as various automated warnings go
off in the cockpit. "What the . . . ," he repeats. "Oh," says Emmett. "Oh God,
Oh God," says Germano. Then the approach controller cuts in and he's only just
said "USAir . . ." when Germano yells into the radio mike, "Four twenty-seven
emergency!"
"Shit," says Emmett. "Pull!" yells Germano. "Oh shit," says Emmett, "Pull,
pull," says Germano. "God," says Emmett, and Germano screams. "No!" yells
Emmett, and the recording suddenly ends.
Biodiversity and Human Rights: The International Rules for the
Protection of Biodiversity by Elli Louka (Transnational Publishers)
It is a common belief that species are becoming extinct due to forest
destruction and other threats to the biosphere. Because of this belief, policies
and regulations have been enacted to protect and preserve biodiversity.
Unfortunately these policies are frequently flawed due to their notion that
biodiversity is a static condition. They conflict with the livelihood of
indigenous peoples and promote nationalistic control over biodiversity
resources.
The author of this study proposes a fundamental review of biodiversity
protection policies. Instead of conservation/preservation, a shift to attention
to ecosystem management with human rights and human dignity at the center is
recommended. This study prescribes a comprehensive system for the protection of
biodiversity. Human rights standards, free trade in wildlife and regulated free
access to plant genetic resources are proposed as the elements of this system.
Practitioners and scholars concerned with environmental issues, human rights,
and sustainable development problems will find this work of great interest.
Sports as Science
Advances in Sport Psychology, second edition edited by Thelma S. Horn
(Human Kinetics) The second edition of the popular Advances
in Sport Psychology provides the most comprehensive and up-to-date review of the
major trends in sport psychology. With four new chapters on self-perceptions,
moral reasoning levels, athletic injury, and flow and peak performance, the text
is much more than an overview of other resources. It is an in-depth compilation
that assists students and professionals in thoroughly comprehending the current
research in sport psychology.
Editor Thelma Horn compiles information and analyses from 28 leading sport
psychology researchers and scholars to build on classic theories presented in
the book’s first edition. In the new text, current research and older
philosophies are synthesized, and boundaries that have traditionally defined
sport psychology are pushed as never before. The new edition emphasizes future
research directions; reviews personality, motivation, anxiety performance; and
goal setting; and examines the individual difference factors that affect a
person’s behavior in sport and physical activity contexts. The four-part text
features the following:
· Modified or substantially updated chapters from the first edition, giving
readers a decade’s worth of new material in one convenient reference
· Four new chapters on self-perceptions, moral reasoning levels, flow and peak
performance, and athletic injury, ensuring that burgeoning fields of interest to
current researchers are not overlooked
· Contributions from a team of lead researchers in the various fields of sport
psychology, giving readers the relevant and critical examinations of the various
topics covered in the text
· An easy-to-read format that includes chapter-by-chapter introductions,
definitions of terms, an explanation of the scope, a clear outline of sections
within each chapter, and a review of the available research and theory on the
chapter topic
Advances in Sport Psychology (second edition) clearly and thoroughly reflects the theoretical and empirical advances that have occurred in sport psychology in the past decade. Returning and new readers will find the most significant current topics in sport psychology research compiled in one place, allowing them to see what the field has and has not accomplished. The new edition is a must-have reference for professionals in the field, and it makes an ideal text for graduate-level sport psychology courses.
Qualitative Analysis of Human Movement by Duane V. Knudson, Craig S. Morrison (Human Kinetics) Presents a four-task model of qualitative analysis integrating many subdisciplines of kinesiology, for upper-level undergraduate and graduate courses. Features chapter objectives and summaries, key points, tutorials and case studies, discussion questions, a glossary, and b&w illustrations. For future and current physical education teachers and coaches, as well as for specialists in biomechanics, motor development, sport psychology, and rehabilitation.Popular Science
The Annotated Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions by Edwin Abbott
Abbott, edited and annotated by Ian Stewart (Perseus Press)
The first-ever annotated edition of the beloved classic, beautifully illustrated
and brilliantly brought to life for a new generation of readers.
The Annotated Flatland is a unique, delightful satire that has charmed
readers for over a century. Published in 1884 by the English clergyman and
head-master Edwin A. Abbott, it is the fanciful tale of A. Square, a
two-dimensional being who is whisked away by a mysterious visitor to The Land of
Three Dimensions, an experience that forever alters his worldview. By
contemplating the notion of dimensions beyond their own, Abbott's Victorian
readers were exposed to the then-radical idea of a fourth dimension-preparing
them for Einstein's spectacular theories of relativity.
Like the book itself, Ian Stewart's commentary takes readers on a strange and wonderful journey. With clarity and wit, Stewart illuminates Abbott's numerous Victorian references, weaves in little-known biographical information about Abbott and his intellectual circle-elucidating Abbott's remarkable connections to H. G. Wells and the mathematician George Boole-and traces the scientific evolution of geometric forms and dimensions. In addition, Stewart provides an extensive bibliography of Abbott's work and that of Charles Howard Hinton, whose wild but ingenious speculations about the fourth dimension undoubtedly inspired Abbott's fable. Touching on such diverse topics as ancient Babylon, Karl Marx, the Indian Mutiny of 1857, Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, the Gregorian calendar, Mount Everest, and phrenology, Stewart makes fascinating connections between Flatland and Edwin A. Abbott's life and times. The result is a classic to rival Abbott's own, and a book that will inspire and delight curious readers for generations to come.
Gives a Bow to the Religious
The Problem of the Soul: Two Visions of Mind and How to Reconcile Them
by Owen Flanagan (Basic Books) The illusions we must give
up--concerning free will, personal identity, and the existence of the soul--and
the (surprisingly rich) ideas we can keep.
Traditional ideas about the basic nature of humanity are under attack as
never before. The very attributes that make us human--free will, the permanence
of personal identity, the existence of the soul--are being undermined and
threatened by the current revolution in the science of the mind. If the mind is
the brain, and therefore a physical object subject to deterministic laws, how
can we have free will? If most of our thoughts and impulses are unconscious, how
can we be morally responsible for what we do?
The Problem of the Soul shows the way out of these seemingly intractable
paradoxes. Framing the conflict in terms of two dominant visions of the
mind--the "manifest image" of humanistic philosophy and theology, and the
scientific image--renowned philosopher Owen Flanagan demonstrates that there is,
in fact, common ground, and that we need not give up our ideas of moral
responsibility and personal freedom in order to have an empirically sound view
of the human mind.
The
Genius Within: Discovering the Intelligence of Every Living Thing by
Frank T. Vertosick (Harcourt) Can bacteria be as smart as
we are? Can ants think? And fish? Yes, says Frank Vertosick, a neurosurgeon who
combats our elitism about intelligence in this brilliant book. A gifted writer
and author of the widely praised
Why We Hurt, Vertosick shows us that intelligence--the ability to react
to the outside world, to change behavior, and survive-can be found wherever life
exists. He demonstrates the keen intelligence of our immune system, how lowly
bacteria mutate and outwit antibiotics, and how canny cancer cells elude our
natural defenses. A fascinating journey through worlds of unknown science and an
unsettling argument against our valuing of brain intelligence above all else,
The Genius Within tells a fascinating scientific
story, one that could shake our ethical foundation to its core.
Acquiring
Genomes: A Theory of the Origins of Species by Lynn Margulis, Dorion
Sagan, Ernst Mayr (Basic Books) From one of the great
iconoclasts of modern biology, an original, accessible work that sets out, for
lay and scientific readers alike, a new theory of how species begin.
In this groundbreaking book, Lynn Margulis and Dorion Sagan present an answer
to one of the enduring mysteries of evolution--the source of inherited variation
that gives rise to new species. Random genetic mutation, long believed to be the
main source of variation, is only a marginal factor. As the authors demonstrate
in this book, the more important source of speciation, by far, is the
acquisition of new genomes by symbiotic merger.
The result of thirty years of delving into a vast, mostly arcane literature, this is the first book to go beyond--and reveal the severe limitations of--the "Modern Synthesis" that has dominated evolutionary biology for almost three generations. Lynn Margulis, whom E. O. Wilson called "one of the most successful synthetic thinkers in modern biology," and her co-author Dorion Sagan have written a comprehensive and scientifically supported presentation of a theory that directly challenges the assumptions we hold about the variety of the living world.
The Molecule Hunt: Archaeology and the Search for Ancient DNA by Martin Jones (Arcade) A revolution is underway in archaeology. Working at the cutting edge of genetic and molecular technologies, researchers have been probing the building blocks of ancient life-DNA, proteins, fats-to rewrite our understanding of the past. Their discoveries (including a Mitochondrial Eve, the woman from whom all modern humans descend) and analyses have helped revise the human genealogical tree and answer such questions as: How different are we from the Neanderthals? Who first domesticated horses and ancient grasses? What was life like for our ancestors? Here is science at its most engaging.
Alternative History
Worlds That Weren't by Harry Turtledove, S. M. Stirling, Mary Gentle, Walter Jon Williams (Roc) In this all‑new collection of original novellas, four award‑winning masters of alternate history turn back time, twisting the facts with four brilliant excursions into what might have been by traversing Worlds That Weren't. This is a landmark anthology of four original novellas by the reigning masters of alternate history. Set in different eras, different places, and different times, these forays into "what might have been" showcases the stunning breadth and far-reaching possibilities the genre represents.
Under the influence of the philosopher Sokrates, the Athenian general Alkibiades leads his soldiers to victory over the Spartans in New York Times bestselling author Harry Turtledove's "The Daimon." Harry Turtledove is the author of numerous novels including Guns of the South and How Few Remain. Nominated for the Hugo and Nebula several times, he's won the Hugo, The Sidewise Award, and the John Esthen Cook Award.
Set in the same universe as The Peshawar Lancers, "Shikari in Galveston" by national bestselling author S. M. Stirling features an Angrezi aristocrat's hunting expedition into the wilds of Texas‑and his growing admiration for the natives who dwell there. S. M. Stirling is the national bestselling author of Island in the Sea of Time, Against the Tide of Years, and On the Oceans of Eternity. He was born in France and raised in Europe, Africa, and North America. He currently lives in Santa Fe.
In 1453, a rather different Turkish Empire raised the flag of Astarte's Bloody Crescent over Constantinople. Four years later, European mercenaries find themselves stranded on the coast of North Africa‑with an embarrassing corpse‑in "The Logistics of Carthage" by Mary Gentle. She has two MAs in 17th century studies and war. Mary won The Sidewise, plus the British Science Fiction Association Award. Her novels include The Book of Ash quartet: A Secret History: The Book of Ash 1, Carthage Ascendant : The Book of Ash 2, The Wild Machines:Book of Ash 3, Lost Burgundy:Book of Ash 4 and Grunts!
In Walter Jon Williams's "The Last Ride of German Freddie," a mysterious Old World figure stalks Tombstone, Arizona, as a cardsharp, trading philosophy‑and lead‑with the likes of Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday. Walter Jon Williams has been nominated for the Hugo, Nebula, and World Fantasy Awards, and has won The Sidewise Award for short fiction. His books include the collection Frankensteins and Other Foreign Devils and the novel City on Fire.
The Best General Reference in Science Sees an Innovative 9th Edition
VAN NOSTRAND'S SCIENTIFIC ENCYCLOPEDIA, 9th Edition edited by Glenn D. Considine and Peter H. Kulik (Wiley-Interscience) Chronicals significant scientific advancements with special attention to Life-Biosciences; Chemistry; Earth and Atmospheric Sciences; Energy Sources and Power Technology; Mathematics and Engineering Sciences; Medicine, Anatomy, and Physiology; Physics; Plant Sciences; Space and Planetary Sciences
Continuing a proud tradition of excellence that dates back nearly seven decades to the First Edition, published in 1938, VAN NOSTRAND'S SCIENTIFIC ENCYCLOPEDIA now finds itself in the Information Age. Born before the Atomic Age and updated at intervals ever since, the book now finds itself in the Information Age, and much has changed. Indeed, so much has changed for this edition that, in answer to the first question of what is new, we might just as well ask: What isn't new? (see full review)
A New Kind of Science Brims Over with the Excitement of Discovery
A New Kind of Science by Stephen Wolfram, hardcover; 1197 pages (Wolfram Media, Inc.) (Publisher order) (British order) was born in London and educated at Eton, Oxford, and Caltech. He received his Ph.D. in theoretical physics in 1979 at the age of 20, having already made lasting contributions to particle physics and cosmology. In 1981 his work was recognized by a MacArthur award. In the early 1980s he made a series of classic discoveries about systems known as cellular automata, which have yielded many new insights in physics, mathematics, computer science, biology and other fields. In 1986 he founded Wolfram Research, Inc. and began the creation of Mathematica, now the world's leading software system for technical computing and symbolic programming, and the tool that made A New Kind of Science possible. Over the past decade Wolfram has divided his time between the leadership of his company and his pursuit of basic science. Written with exceptional clarity, and illustrated by nearly a thousand original pictures, this seminal book allows scientists and nonscientists alike to participate in what promises to be a major intellectual revolution.
Mathematica Book (4th edition) by
Stephen Wolfram (Cambridge University Press)
With over a million users around the world, the Mathematica software system
created by Stephen Wolfram has defined the direction of technical computing for
the past decade. The enhanced text and hypertext processing and state-of-the-art
numerical computation features will ensure that
Mathematica Book, takes scientific computing into
the next century. The Mathematica Book continues to be the definitive reference
guide to this revolutionary software package and is released in this new edition
to coincide with the release of the new version of Mathematica.The Mathematica
Book is a must-have purchase for anyone who wants to understand the
opportunities in science, technology, business, and education made possible by
Mathematica Book. This encompasses a broad audience
of scientists and mathematicians; engineers; computer professionals; financial
analysts; medical researchers; and students at high-school, college, and
graduate levels. Written by the creator of the system,
Mathematica Book includes both a tutorial
introduction and complete reference information, and contains comprehensive
description of how to take advantage of Mathematica's ability to solve myriad
technical computing problems and its powerful graphical and typesetting
capabilities.New to 4th
version: Major efficiency enhancements in handling large volumes of numerical
data; Internal packed array technology to make repetitive operations on large
numerical datasets radically more efficient in speed and memory. Improved
algebraic computation facilities, including support for assumptions within
Simplify, and related functions, and specification of domains for variables, as
well as full support of symbolic Laplace, Fourier, and Z transforms. Additional
Mathematica
functions, including Dirac Delta, Stuve, Harmonic numbers, etc. Enhanced
graphics and sound capabilities, including faster graphic generation and
additional format support for graphics and sound. Full-function spell checking
including special technical dictionaries.
In A New Kind of Science, Stephen Wolfram presents for the first time a series of surprising and dramatic discoveries that force a whole new way of looking at the operation of our universe. Wolfram's discoveries‑which build on his now‑classic work from the early 1980s‑have been awaited by the scientific community for more than a decade. Wolfram's new science is sure to become an integral part of future intellectual development in many fields, including physics, biology, computer science, mathematics, technology, philosophy and the social sciences.
Wolfram is widely regarded as one of the world's most original scientists, as well as a leading innovator in scientific and technical computing. Perhaps best known as the inventor and entrepreneur behind Mathematica, he also helped lay the groundwork for the field of complexity theory in the early 1980s. Wolfram has spent the last nearly eleven years developing and refining the radically new ideas of A New Kind of Science.
In A New Kind of Science, Wolfram shows that by thinking in terms of simple programs instead of mathematical equations it becomes possible to capture the essential mechanisms of many systems in nature that have eluded scientific analysis‑often for centuries. Much as telescopes and microscopes once revealed great new worlds to science, Wolfram's computer experiments now reveal a strange new world that overturns some of our most basic intuition about how things ought to work.
A New Kind of Science provides new insight into a remarkable array of fundamental questions, including how biology produces complexity, how randomness arises in physics, what space and time fundamentally are, how there can be both free will and determinism, how general mathematics really is and what ultimate limits there are to science. The discoveries Wolfram has made suggest new kinds of technology, from new strategies for creating computers on atomic scales, to new forms of cryptography, new concepts for programming, and new methodologies for creating systems that achieve biological and medical functions. (See full review)
Ray Kurzweil challenges the ability of these ideas to fully explain the complexities of life, intelligence, and physical phenomena.
Quantum Theory and the Flight From Realism: Philosophical Responses to Quantum Mechanics by Christopher Norris (Routledge) (HARDCOVER) is a critical introduction to the long-standing debate concerning the conceptual foundations of quantum mechanics, and the problems it has posed for physicists and philosophers from Einstein to the present. Quantum theory has been a major influence on postmodernism, and presents significant challenges for realists. Clarifying these debates for the non-specialist, Christopher Norris examines the premises of orthodox quantum theory and its impact on various philosophical developments. He subjects a wide range of opponents and supporters of realism to a high and equal level of scrutiny. Combining rigor and intellectual generosity, he draws out the merits and weaknesses from opposing arguments. (see full review)
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