Information Continuum: Evolution of Social Information Transfer in Monkeys Apes and Hominids : Evolution of Social Information Transfer in Monkeys, ape

Book Description

For travellers on the ground or students at their desk, this handy paperback will prove invaluable for sorting the Almohads from Almoravides. It provides a concise and readable history of the region's journey from its earliest beginnings right up to the politics and life of the present day. Written by an acknowledged expert of the area, it covers the countries of Tunisia, Morocco, Algeria and Libya.

Customer Reviews:

A Good Way to Whet the Appetite.......2000-05-01

Over all, I've found the Traveller's History series of books to be a bit hit or miss. All are good at providing a good deal of the history of a nation or region, but some do so in a manner that is too dry or terse to make for enjoyable reading. Not so A Traveller's History of North Africa. Covering the land that makes up modern-day Morocco, Tunisia, Libya and Algeria, Barnaby Rogerson does a fantastic job of telling the history of the land and its peoples from the Neolithic era through the Roman Empire and into the 1990s. It is a fascinating tale of survival, conflict, and change that gives a wonderful insight into the historical forces that have shaped the region and its people.

Desert Traveller: The Life of Jean Louis Burckhardt

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Desert Traveller: The Life of Jean Louis Burckhardt
Katharine Sim
Manufacturer: Phoenix Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

General | Historical | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

Travel | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

General | Africa | History | Subjects | Books

General | Asia | History | Subjects | Books

Switzerland | Europe | History | Subjects | Books

General | Military | History | Subjects | Books

General | Asia | Travel | Subjects | Books

General | Middle East | Travel | Subjects | Books

Book Description

As an explorer, the remarkable Jean Louis Burckhardt achieved the near impossible. After immersing himself in Arab culture and language, Burkhardt disguised himself as "Sheik Abraham" and journeyed through regions not yet known to Europeans. He became the first to enter Petra, discovered the colossal figures at Abu Simbel, and even penetrated Mecca, where he lived for many years as an Arab.

Interpreting the Orient: Travellers in Egypt and the Near East (Durham Middle East Monographs)

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Pleasant but routine accounts of Europe travelers to the Middle East...

Interpreting the Orient: Travellers in Egypt and the Near East (Durham Middle East Monographs)
Paul Starkdy
Manufacturer: Ithaca
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Egypt | Middle East | History | Subjects | Books

General | Middle East | History | Subjects | Books

General | World | History | Subjects | Books

Travel | Writing | Reference | Subjects | Books

General | Africa | Travel | Subjects | Books

Customer Reviews:

Pleasant but routine accounts of Europe travelers to the Middle East..........2005-10-28

Many of the chapters in these companion volumes [Unfolding the Orient: Travellers in Egypt and the Near East. Edited by Paul and Janet Starkey. Reading, U.K.: Ithaca, 2001.] (which are in rough chronological order) offer pleasant but routine accounts of Europe travelers to the Middle East in past centuries. Some, however, rise above the ordinary to provide real insight into relations between the two civilizations. Philip Mansel's essay on the Grand Tour to the Ottoman Empire conveys the cheerful sense of superiority Europeans felt toward Middle Easterners ("the dear Arabians and Turks are quite darlings," was the 1816 comment of the princess of Wales while visiting their dear countries). Mary Ann Fey shows the striking contrast between the observations of Turkey by Lady Mary Wortley Montagu in 1716-18 and those of her male contemporaries; they saw nothing but subjugation of Muslim women but she appreciated their ability to own property (precisely because she lacked this right) and ended up calling the Turkish females "(perhaps) freer than any ladies in the universe."

The startling chapter by Neil Cooke delves into the practice of some male Britons in Egypt to buy themselves female slaves; he focuses on a man who at times offered their favors to his friends and ended taking one of them back with him to the United Kingdom, where she lived out her days, dying in 1883. Nadia Gindy analyses Anthony Trollope's two slight but amusing stories about British tourists to Egypt based on his time there, with an emphasis on the characteristically Trollopian humor (a woman who starts handing out baksheesh by the Pyramids resembles "a piece of sugar covered with flies"; she later explains that "she would not go to the Pyramids again, not if they were to be given to her for herself as ornaments for her garden").

The set's tour de force is a long inquiry by John Rodenbeck into the European habit of dressing like Turks and Arabs. Starting with a quote from the invariably wrong analysis of Edward Said that this was a source of "secret European power," Rodenbeck goes on, through a dazzling display of quotations and other references, to show the true reasons for this custom. The main one safety; to dress in Western style before 1850 was to court danger. Sometimes (as for women in Saudi Arabia, Iran, and Afghanistan today), the reason was to comply with local regulations. Or it had to do with fashion or bravura or seduction. The one thing it did not have to do with, contrary to the ignorant theorizing of Said and his minions, was spying or displaying cultural aggression.

Unfolding the Orient: Travellers in Egypt and the Near East (Durham Middle East Monographs)

Average customer rating:

Pleasant but routine accounts of Europe travelers to the Middle East...

Unfolding the Orient: Travellers in Egypt and the Near East (Durham Middle East Monographs)
Paul Starkey
Manufacturer: Ithaca
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Africa | History | Subjects | Books

Egypt | Middle East | History | Subjects | Books

General | Middle East | History | Subjects | Books

General | World | History | Subjects | Books

Travel | Writing | Reference | Subjects | Books

Customer Reviews:

Pleasant but routine accounts of Europe travelers to the Middle East..........2005-10-28

Many of the chapters in these companion volumes [Interpreting the Orient: Travellers in Egypt and the Near East. Edited by Paul and Janet Starkey. Reading, U.K.: Ithaca, 2001.] (which are in rough chronological order) offer pleasant but routine accounts of Europe travelers to the Middle East in past centuries. Some, however, rise above the ordinary to provide real insight into relations between the two civilizations. Philip Mansel's essay on the Grand Tour to the Ottoman Empire conveys the cheerful sense of superiority Europeans felt toward Middle Easterners ("the dear Arabians and Turks are quite darlings," was the 1816 comment of the princess of Wales while visiting their dear countries). Mary Ann Fey shows the striking contrast between the observations of Turkey by Lady Mary Wortley Montagu in 1716-18 and those of her male contemporaries; they saw nothing but subjugation of Muslim women but she appreciated their ability to own property (precisely because she lacked this right) and ended up calling the Turkish females "(perhaps) freer than any ladies in the universe."

The startling chapter by Neil Cooke delves into the practice of some male Britons in Egypt to buy themselves female slaves; he focuses on a man who at times offered their favors to his friends and ended taking one of them back with him to the United Kingdom, where she lived out her days, dying in 1883. Nadia Gindy analyses Anthony Trollope's two slight but amusing stories about British tourists to Egypt based on his time there, with an emphasis on the characteristically Trollopian humor (a woman who starts handing out baksheesh by the Pyramids resembles "a piece of sugar covered with flies"; she later explains that "she would not go to the Pyramids again, not if they were to be given to her for herself as ornaments for her garden").

The set's tour de force is a long inquiry by John Rodenbeck into the European habit of dressing like Turks and Arabs. Starting with a quote from the invariably wrong analysis of Edward Said that this was a source of "secret European power," Rodenbeck goes on, through a dazzling display of quotations and other references, to show the true reasons for this custom. The main one safety; to dress in Western style before 1850 was to court danger. Sometimes (as for women in Saudi Arabia, Iran, and Afghanistan today), the reason was to comply with local regulations. Or it had to do with fashion or bravura or seduction. The one thing it did not have to do with, contrary to the ignorant theorizing of Said and his minions, was spying or displaying cultural aggression.

Between Islam and Christendom: Travellers, Facts, and Legends in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance (Collected Studies Series, Cs175)

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Between Islam and Christendom: Travellers, Facts, and Legends in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance (Collected Studies Series, Cs175)
C. F. Beckingham
Manufacturer: Variorum
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | World | History | Subjects | Books

General | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

Comparative Religion | Religious Studies | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

General | Asia | Travel | Subjects | Books

All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
ASIN: 0860781232

Customer Reviews:

TERRIBLE.......2004-09-01

THIS is a terrible textbook. The material is not well written and should never be used in a classroom. The study questions are tooooo easy. Basically, poorly written & toooo easy for students.

Book Description

Like the magazine, Metropolis, that spawned it, Design Is...celebrates design in all its guises. This anthology of groundbreaking articles presents an ongoing conversation about design and design culture in the generous and lucid manner we have come to expect from this world-famous publication. Over seventy contributors-including virtually every important design writer of the last twenty years, like Paul Goldberger, Luc Sante, Philippe Starck, Phillip Lopate, Julius Shulman, Michael Sorkin, and Paola Antonelli-reveal how design has permeated all aspects of our lives and how it will continue to shape the places we live and work and the objects we buy and use in the future. Design Is... is an easy and enjoyable introduction to the designed world around us, and a knowing, rollicking reader for those who are passionate about design.

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Shrub Roses and Climbing Roses. With Hybrid Tea and Floribunda Roses
David Austin
Manufacturer: Antique Collectors' Club
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000QXHXBA

Book Description

The study of dance and movement as cultural phenomena frequently utilizes ethnography as a research strategy, yet no single text draws together the various fields of the social sciences. Written by leading exponents in dance ethnography from the disciplines of anthropology, ethnology, folklore studies and sociology, this international collection of essays addresses theoretical and methodological issues alongside considerations of documentary techniques and matters of politics and ethics.

Book Description

This book combines a travel guide and reference work for the wine connoisseur who is interested in Texas's 38 wineries, broken down into five separate, scenic drives.

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But Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Lion Still Search...

Still seems like Kansas to me

We're Not In Kansas Anymore: Strategies for Retiring Rich in a Totally Changed World
Walter Updegrave
Manufacturer: Crown Business
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Introduction | Investing | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
General | Personal Finance | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
Retirement Planning | Personal Finance | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

How to Retire Rich in a Totally Changed World: Why You're Not in Kansas Anymore

How to Retire Early and Live Well With Less Than a Million Dollars

The Intelligent Asset Allocator: How to Build Your Portfolio to Maximize Returns and Minimize Risk

Live it Up without Outliving Your Money!: 10 Steps to a Perfect Retirement Portfolio

Yes, You Can Still Retire Comfortably!: The Baby-Boom Retirement Crisis and How to Beat It

ASIN: 1400047897
Release Date: 2004-04-20

Book Description

Whether you are thirty years from retirement or it's just around the corner, here is the only book you'll need about how to get it together and plan a safe, secure, and prosperous retirement.

We all know the scene: Dorothy is transported from the flat terrain of Kansas to the bizarre land of Oz. Her cry, "Toto, I don't think we're in Kansas anymore," may be the best line to describe how people feel about the retirement landscape. It’s one teeming with challenges, from the impact of corporate downsizing on individuals to battered 401(k)s, precarious Social Security, and cuts in pensions and health care benefits for retirees. Many people are intimidated and delay thinking about retirement. That’s a mistake.

We're Not in Kansas Anymore is the only guide you need to learn how to deal with the Oz-like reality that is retirement planning today. Walter Updegrave shows how to cut through the clutter, assess your finances, and become your own personal pension manager.

• Get real about retirement. Neither your employer nor the government will adequately feather your retirement nest. You're on your own. Only you can take action and responsibility for your life after work. Walter Updegrave shows how to start now.
• Develop a simple, direct, empowering retirement plan. Cut through the alphanumeric soup of 401(k)s, IRAs, Keoghs, and SEPs, get a grip, and execute a personal plan that makes sense given your circumstances.
• Create a realistic investing strategy and get the most out of your 401(k) and other retirement accounts.
• Ensure that your money lasts a lifetime.

The Tin Man wanted to experience life with passion and emotion. Likewise, you'll improve your chances of creating the kind of retirement you want if you bring some passion and emotion into your retirement plan and then save enough to make it a reality. The Scarecrow thought his life would be better if he "only had a brain." It was the Scarecrow, however, who came up with the best ideas to get Dorothy out of her jams. Similarly, Updegrave shows that any reasonably intelligent person can execute a successful retirement plan and, like the Cowardly Lion, show some courage by having the discipline, willpower, and conviction to follow it through.

We're Not in Kansas Anymore is the best, most thorough, and most empowering retirement guide in print today. Don't leave Kansas--or anywhere else for that matter--without it.

Customer Reviews:

But Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Lion Still Search..........2005-06-16

Updegrave succeeds in capturing the essence of the Baby Boomer's retirement dilemma--they are responsible for their own economic viability as ERISA legislation has largely shifted the burden of support from employers to employees. The challenge now is how to capitalize on the various tax-deferred and individual retirement plan allocations that will establish a safe and effervescent income stream. "We're Not In Kansas Anymore" does a good job of laying the framework for readers hoping to understand the big picture of the retirement of their futures. Additional work on actual strategies and implementation would have been helpful, especially for individuals who have fallen behind in establishing their nest eggs. (See perhaps "Rich Dad's Prophecy", "The Intelligent Asset Allocator", or even "A Random Walk Down Wall Street" for further reading.) With that said, Updegrave's writing makes it quite clear there is no financial panacea. I found his focus on leading a life of value and substance refreshing, all too often material wealth is glorified over the simple, free experiences of life--Scarecrow's brain, Tin Man's heart, and Lion's courage I dare say are all priceless.

Still seems like Kansas to me.......2004-11-24

Book Review: "We're Not in Kansas Anymore," by Walter Updegrave. (Crown Business. 2004)

By George Fulmore

The subtitle of this book reads, "strategies for retiring rich in a totally changed world." Maybe I've been at this personal finance stuff for too long, but for me that subtitle means that I'm about to learn something new. In reading "We're Not in Kansas Anymore" I did not find that to be true.

To me, what this book is saying is that the old world of retirement pensions is gone and cannot be depended upon. Many of us have known that for decades. In my case, the defined benefit program where I worked was converted to a defined contribution (401K) program by the mid-80's. This is not big news. And this would seem to be one of the many books now coming out that warn Baby Boomers that they need to take this savings stuff serious or else. Again, I'm not sure that this is new stuff. (And I'm not sure that all those state, federal and county government workers need to be sweating out any of this. Their pensions will hopefully be there for them.)

The bulk of the book talks about standard personal financial stuff that has been printed for decades elsewhere and that you can find in endless current books: start early, think long-term, max out deferred options, don't think it's too late, don't be too conservative or too risky, live within your means, review your overall plan at least once a year, yada yada yada. This takes us to page 244 of this 277-page book.

Sure, if one follows all this, he or she or they build up a nest egg that will prove its worth in retirement. And that will be wonderful. But if we don't do all this, then we will be in the soup, unless we somehow catch up in time. What the author does not spend much time with are the real world reasons why these things do not work out. That's not his concern. And, of course, he never really defines how much is enough. Nobody knows all the variables of the future, so nobody really knows the answer to that one.

The final 33 pages are why I bought the book, but they do not contain enough insight or information for me to urge others to do so. He talks of a "longevity risk," which is all that stuff about running out of money because one lives too long, but he also says, "there's no way to know in advance exactly what mix of stocks and bonds will make your portfolio last the longest or how you can set a withdrawal rate just high enough to give you the most income without your nest egg expiring before you do." Thanks a lot, buddy. That's a big help!

There are about 14 pages on annuity strategies, which I was hoping would be the bulk of the book, as I think converting illiquid assets into income over time is the name of the game in retirement. And he is generally talking about that in this brief section. (No mention of charitable trusts annuities, which I generally prefer.) The final pages urge the retiree reader to make periodic reality checks on how things are going, mixed with advice about how not to get too caught up in all this finances stuff in the first place: "don't let the planning get in the way of living a happy and fulfilled life." You get only one retirement. Enjoy it while you can."

I you are looking for a good book on personal finances leading to a sufficient retirement nest egg, I guess this is as good as any; although, I'd think you could save yourself some money by going to a used bookstore to pick up one of the many books on this subject that have been around for years. If you are looking for a book that deals primarily in retirement financial strategies in today's world, I'd keep looking. This book is not it, in my opinion, and my guess is that there will many, many more to follow in the next

Book Description

A basic understanding of the care required for some of the most exotic pet species including snakes, turtles, iguanas, ferrets, birds, gerbils, and rabbits.

Average customer rating:
'85 Sci Fict/fantasy
House Of Collectibles
Manufacturer: House of Collectibles
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Antiques & Collectibles | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0876374186
Release Date: 1985-06-12

Book Description

Among America's garden cities, one of the most remarkably beautiful is New Orleans. Now the exotic New Orleans garden can live not only in romance but also in settings very close to home. Whether in the Vieux Carre or in the humid hinterlands, anyone hoping to recreate such a romantic spot in the climes of the Gulf Coast region should consult Charlotte Seidenberg's essential handbook.

In this new edition of a favorite manual among New Orleans gardeners, Seidenberg instructs how to create a beautiful garden in this subtropical, sometimes richly alluvial zone and identifies plants that over generations have become a part of the gardening heritage of New Orleans. She discusses such basics as soil preparation and pest control and advises the gardener on how to grow roses, native and exotic trees and shrubs, vines, annuals, perennials, ferns, wildflowers, bulbous and tuberous plants, and groundcovers. She instructs how best to create specialty gardens such as container gardens and herb gardens. Like many other gardeners today, she is ecology-conscious, strongly advocating that one should garden not only for beauty but also for attracting wildlife.

Book Description

Peter Schäfer who celebrated his 60th birthday on 29 June 2003 has left a decidedly firm imprint on the young discipline "Jewish Studies" in Germany, which could only be set up at a German university after the Shoah. For someone directing a "small" academic institution he has managed during his academic career to guide and influence a strikingly large number of students in their scholarly pursuits in the field.

The collected essays of this volume encompass quite a variety of topics, whereby the focal points in Peter Schäfer's own research are not difficult to recognize in the themes chosen by his former students: mysticism and magic are most conspicuous, followed by Rabbinic Judaism and the studies on the Middle Ages and the Early Modern and Modern Periods. Of note is also the fact that the methodological approaches of these contributions are no less manifold than their themes. Part of the contributions of this book were submitted in English, and all the German-language texts have an English summary or abstract.

Book Description

"You won't take this into account. If you had written it instead of me, I probably wouldn't believe it." So begins this amazing tale of a woman victimized by peculiar forces. It reads like a work of fiction, but it is true.

The author describes a privileged childhood in an aristocratic family with links to Genghis Khan, Tibet, Russian czars, and Rasputin as part of her incredible story, which includes growing up under three oppressive regimes: Nazism, Communism, and her monarchical, dictatorial mother.

Ms. Pema recounts her early life in the ballet world, followed by her years as an actress during Rome's golden age of cinema, working for directors Federico Fellini, Vittorio De Sica, and Marco Ferreri, where she met and married prominent entertainment attorney Max Ferrara.

"Anatomy of a Life Possessed" makes a sudden turn from the glamour of the Via Veneto onto a backroads Highway to Hell. It reveals a harrowing telepathic possession with physical and emotional consequences. A mad monk, sexual torment, exorcism, and never-ending harassment devastate the author's life. She describes her excruciating experience of possession and her research conducted in an effort to regain control.

"Anatomy of a Life Possessed" is a fascinating and controversial book which challenges traditional beliefs. Pema's personal memoir will be of value to people of any age who are ready to find and face the truth. It may help you to:

* Protect yourself from negative energy and subjugating ideologies

* Understand the dangers of a faith that relies on fear and submission

* Discover how to turn obstacles, fear, and self-doubt into helpful knowledge

* Recognize that the generosity, genius, and greatness of humanity are the only virtues that can help us create our own happiness.

For an absolutely gripping, unstoppable reading experience, take a journey into the abyss and back with "Anatomy of a Life Possessed."

Customer Reviews:

An unusual book.......2006-12-01

The author claims to have come under a form of spiritual possession through her meeting a catholic priest who is described as have mystical experiences including the stigmata - the sudden appearance of wounds in imitation of those said to have been suffered by Jesus Christ in the bible accounts of his death. She acknowledges that the spiritual experiences she has suffered have also had psychological and mental health consequences and this at times is apparent in the claims made in the book.

Though I am not a physicist or historian I think I know enough to see that when she ventures into these disciplines her opinions are not to be treated automatically as fact, especially when her indignation is pointed towards the Church she was once a member and whom she now blames in large part for what happened to her.

In her attempt to rid herself of the malign influence in her life she has veered towards a form of atheism and resorts to some shaky science in order to explain what happened when she became "possessed" by a priest whom she refers only to as Fr. G. This priest was a devotee of Padre Pio, another famous stigmatist, who was declared a saint in recent years by the Catholic Church.

Many of the strange spiritual and quasi sexual abuses she claims were carried out by Fr. G were also levied against Padre Pio by fellow Catholics in the early decades of the 20th century. These were never formally tried in an ecclesiastical court but rather were quietly dropped as the Padre Pio phenomena spread rapidly throughout the laity of the Catholic Church with many millions of pilgrims leading to the economic regeneration of San Giovanni in Italy.

Though the main protagonist in the book is never named its seems clear he is the same priest who was suspended from his duties a few years after this book was published by Pope Benedict XVI in 2005 through allegations, for example, of sexual abuse made by seminarians.

It is unfortunate that the emotional problems the author has suffered through her involvement with Fr. G is reflected in the quality of her writing and this will be the focus of Padre Pio's defenders seeking to discredit the more serious and substantial paranormal phenomena associated with him and this books Fr G.

I came to this book through unusual events associated with a visit I made to a Padre Pio church service which included veneration of a relic belonging to him. What then happened was not the kind of thing written about in any conventional works of piety or hagiographies dealing with Padre Pio but their disturbing influence are alluded to here.

If you have ever encountered strange events associated with the veneration of somebody who is considered to be the greatest of modern catholic saints and are having problems receiving spiritual support from recognised sources then this book may at least give some comfort in the knowledge that you are not alone. It is solely for this reason, not her view of history, science, or religion (especially the catholic church) that I give three stars.

Undiluted Garbage!.......2005-08-11

The author's egeocentricism and bad writing makes this book almost unreadable. It is, however, illustrative of how narcissism can deform personality.

This author is hilarious.......2005-03-06

I was watching the People"s court or something and Maria Ferrara Pema was on there suing a blonde headed promoter. I have no idea what this novel is about, all I could gather from Maria is that she was manipulated by a priest?¿ And she seemed really out of it.

A graphic, disturbing memoir.......2002-10-08

Anatomy Of A Life Possessed is the personal memoir and testimony of Maria Ferrara Pema, a woman who was possessed and tortured by a Catholic priest for 27 years. Anatomy Of A Life Possessed is a graphic, disturbing memoir that hides no secrets and spares no sharpness in its accusations. With today's focus on pastoral pedophilia, it is an unhappy and overlooked truth that most sexual, physical, and emotional abuse and exploitation by priests is perpetrated against their female parishioners -- and always has been. Anatomy Of A Life Possessed is raw, severe, and unforgettable reading.

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