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Claiming the Future: Choosing Prosperity for the Middle East and North Africa
Manufacturer: World Bank Publications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 0821334743 |
Book Description
Based on the Nobel Prize winning strategies of Modern Portfolio Theory and the thrift and sensible savings ethic that made America great - finally, an easy-to-read book on investments and retirement that cuts through all the noise and provides simple answers to the questions you need to be asking.
Customer Reviews:
Must-read book for any investor.......2007-04-18
Lays out the basics of modern portfolio theory in very concise fashion. Makes the case for indexing crystal-clear. Provides a useful guide to asset allocation and relevant asset classes.
My only quibble is that if everyone followed the asset allocation suggested in the book, which is heavily skewed towards small-cap value stocks, imbalances would be created that would eliminate the gains to be had from them.
A great retirement investing guid.......2006-08-26
I am recently retired, and an avid investor. This is the absolute best retirement planning and basic investing book I have found. It distills complex topics, such as modern portfolio theory, into easy to follow, easy to read chapters. I have bought a half dozen copies I have given to my kids and friends, and plan to buy more. This is a must read for people from college age through well into retirement age.
This book is so good ..........2006-04-21
... and provides such solid, convincing, factual evidence and research to support Mr. Davis' "Buy index funds only" advice that I'm afraid eventually everyone will discover it and stop buying any individual stocks altogether. Would that screw things up? I dunno, maybe not.
In any case ... Mr. Davis lays out a portfolio of index mutual funds for the reader in Chapters 30 & 31 that should optimize anybody's individual investment situation.
I've got a pretty decent savings now - But, I will say that I've gone back and compared what I actually invested in (since my I started investing in 1996) to how I would've done had I had this book in 1996 - I'd have much more than twice as much money, mainly because it would have eliminated my large losses/ mistakes. This just about makes me cry!
I wish Mr. Davis would establish a website where readers could ask questions or advice that may not pertain to everyone, like the advice in this book does.
Retire Early Sleep Well.......2006-03-24
Great book. This book represents the "Cliff's Notes" of 20 other books on individual investing. It strongly makes the case for a portfolio of index funds, with minimum expense ratios, and gives practical lists of how to implement such a strategy. Don't establish your personal portfolio without reading this book.
Excellent book.......2005-08-12
I have been an avid investor since I was 12 years old (I am now 53) and have read numerous books on investing. This is one of the best if not the best I have read on this subject. Steve Davis has written an outstanding book that presents very clearly and concisely the best advice out there for individual investors. He explains modern portfolio theory and shows how to apply it in a very practical manner that anyone could follow. I have recommended and given this book to many friends. I refer to his book frequently as I am preparing for my own retirement. I only wish this book had been available 30 years ago.
Book Description
Retire Early Sleep Well is a concise yet thorough guide to modern portfolio theory, asset allocation and retirement planning for young and old. This newly revised and expanded second edition provides updated information about asset and portfolio performance; and a substantially expanded discussion of asset allocation. Very popular in its first edition, Retire Early Sleep Well is widely recommended to both experienced and beginning investors of all ages. Its straight-to-the-point, plain english style distills complex topics into their essentials, and its practical advice is easy to follow.
Customer Reviews:
Lives Up To It's Name.......2007-09-06
This book absolutely lives up to it's name. In only 100 well-written pages it clearly presents the proven facts about how to invest in order to optimally decrease risk and increase return. I have a Master's degree in Financial Economics and it took me years to appreciate this important information. Every investor should read this short book. If you follow its guidance, then you too will be able to retire earlier and sleep better.
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Blackwell Encyclopedic Dictionary of Business Ethics (The Blackwell Encyclopedia of Management)
Manufacturer: Blackwell Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 0631210806 |
Book Description
The Blackwell Encyclopedic Dictionary of Business Ethics provides clear, concise and highly informative definitions and explanations of the key concepts in one of the most important fields in contemporary business. Bringing together specially commissioned and carefully edited entries from an international team of the world's best known and respected ethics and business scholars, this will become the standard reference for students, researchers, academics and practitioners.
The Dictionary has been carefully designed to give both the expert and newcomer overviews and succinct presentations of the most important issues in business ethics. With entries ranging from extended explorations of major topics to short definitions of key terms, this pioneering Dictionary, long awaited by scholars and practitioners, gives the user: Authoritative and comprehensive coverage of the whole field of business ethics.A fully indexed and cross-referenced resource for research and further study.Definitive entries covering all of the current theories and research that underlie the study of business ethics.A completely international perspective and author base. This dictionary is part of the Blackwell Encyclopedic Dictionary of Management which contains ten further volumes covering each of the key areas of management science developed under the editorship of Professor Cary Cooper from the Manchester School of Management and Professor Chris Argyris of Harvard Business School.
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Principles of Food, Beverage, and Labor Cost Controls
Paul R. Dittmer , and
J. Desmond, III Keefe
Manufacturer: Wiley
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Binding: Hardcover
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Principles of Food, Beverage, and Labor Cost Controls, Student Workbook
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Purchasing: Selection and Procurement for the Hospitality Industry
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Dining Room and Banquet Management
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Principles of Food, Beverage, and Labor Cost Controls, Student Workbook
ASIN: 0471429929 |
Book Description
Principles of Food, Beverage, and Labor Cost Controls, Eighth Edition is the essential text for understanding the ins and outs of controlling food, labor, and beverage costs. It comes accompanied by ProMgmt Student Workbook, which allows students to obtain a certificate from the National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation. Includes a diskette which contains Excel spreadsheet applications.
Special features include:
- Accompanied by a diskette which contains Excel spreadsheet applications
- 400f chapters contain revised materials
- Full supplements package
Average customer rating:
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Principles of Food, Beverage, and Labor Cost Controls, Student Workbook
Paul R. Dittmer , and
J. Desmond, III Keefe
Manufacturer: Wiley
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Binding: Paperback
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Principles of Food, Beverage, and Labor Cost Controls
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Principles of Food, Beverage, and Labor Cost Controls: For Hotels and Restaurants, 6th Edition
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Basic Food and Beverage Cost Control
-
Food and Beverage Cost Control
ASIN: 0471706426 |
Book Description
Principles of Food, Beverage, and Labor Cost Controls, Eighth Edition is the essential text for understanding the ins and outs of controlling food, labor, and beverage costs. It comes accompanied by ProMgmt Student Workbook, which allows students to obtain a certificate from the National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation. Includes a diskette which contains Excel spreadsheet applications.
Special features include:
- Accompanied by a diskette which contains Excel spreadsheet applications
- 400f chapters contain revised materials
- Full supplements package
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Principles of food, beverage, and labor cost controls for the hotel and restaurant industry
Paul Dittmer
Manufacturer: Cahners Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding
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ASIN: 0843620870 |
Average customer rating:
- A great book for students
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Principles of Food, Beverage, and Labor Cost Controls: For Hotels and Restaurants, 6th Edition
Paul R. Dittmer , and
Gerald G. Griffin
Manufacturer: John Wiley & Sons Inc
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Principles of Food, Beverage, and Labor Cost Controls, Student Workbook
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The Food Service Professionals Guide to Controlling Liquor Wine & Beverage Costs (Food Service Professionals Guide to)
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At Your Service: A Hands-On Guide to the Professional Dining Room
ASIN: 0471293253 |
Book Description
Gain the financial management skills you need to succeed, as a hospitality professional. Cost monitoring and cost control are indispensable components of the successful foodservice and hospitality manager's skill set. Through five editions, this book has been preparing students to enter the work force by helping them to develop these crucial financial management skills. Continuing this tradition of excellence, the Sixth Edition contains all of the features that have made Principles of Food, Beverage, and Labor Cost Controls the standard text on the subject, including: * Explanations of terms, concepts, and procedures. * Step-by-step descriptions of tools and techniques used to control costs. * A unique modular format, with each component covered in its own section. * Numerous skill-building problems, exercises, and projects. The book begins with a general introduction to key terms and concepts, as well as basic procedures for analyzing cost/volume/profit, determining costs, and using cost to monitor foodservice and beverage operations. The next two sections, "Food Control" and "Beverage Control," outline a four-step process for controlling each of the primary phases of a foodservice or beverage operation--purchasing, receiving, storing, issuing, and production--with specific techniques for each phase. The final section focuses on labor cost controls, and includes expert advice and guidance on setting performance standards, monitoring performance, and taking corrective action. Principles of Food, Beverage, and Labor Cost Controls, Sixth Edition equips culinary and hospitality management students with the knowledge and skills they need to perform one of the most important aspects of their jobs. PAUL R. DITTMER is Associate Professor in the Department of Hospitality Management at New Hampshire College in Manchester, New Hampshire. The late GERALD G. GRIFFIN was a faculty member at the New York City Technical College of The City University of New York.
Customer Reviews:
A great book for students.......2000-09-27
A Reliable, pragmatic book, great for students and for all those who like to see it clear, with real life examples, great tips and all that is needed to get a good glimps into the hospitality business. Easy to read and nicely organised.
Book Description
The success of any business depends on controlling costs, setting budgets, and accurate pricing of goods. In Culinary and Hospitality Management programs, students must take a required course on Food and Beverage Cost Control in order to learn how to price their goods and services, control their costs, and maximize profitability.
Average customer rating:
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Principles of Food, Beverage & Labor Cost Controls 6e +Foodservice Cost Control Using Microsoft Excel for Windows D3 Set
Dittmer
Manufacturer: John Wiley & Sons Inc
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
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ASIN: 0471378054 |
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Encyclopedia of Associations: National Organizations of the U.S (3 Vol. Set)
Manufacturer: Thomson Gale
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The 4-Hour Workweek: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich
ASIN: 0787668710 |
Amazon.com
While its opponents may sneer that "it's just a theory," evolution has transcended that label to take its place as one of the most important ideas in human history. Science journalist Carl Zimmer explores its history and future in Evolution: The Triumph of an Idea, a companion piece to the epic PBS series of the same name. The book, lavishly illustrated with photos of our distant cousins, anatomical diagrams, and timelines, is as beautiful as it is enlightening. While those closely following the field will find little more here than a well-written summation of the state of the art in 2001, readers who have watched the evolutionary debates from a distance will quickly catch up with the details of the principal arguments.
Zimmer's text is fresh and expansive, explaining both the minutiae of comparative anatomy and the grand scale of geological time with verve and clarity. Following the trend of turn-of-the-century evolution writers, he treats the religious beliefs of creationists with respect, while firmly insisting that the scientific evidence against their position is too compelling to ignore. Touching on biology, philosophy, theology, politics, and nearly every other field of human thought, Evolution will inspire its readers with the elegance and importance of Darwin's simple theory. --Rob Lightner
Book Description
This dazzling companion volume to one the most important series in PBS history tells the compelling story of the theory of evolution -- from Darwin to twenty-first-century science.
Charles Darwin's The Origin of Species was breathtaking, beautifully written, staunchly defended, defiantly radical. Yet it emerged long before paleontologists and geologists worked out the chronology of life on Earth, long before biologists uncovered the molecules that underlie heredity and natural selection. Not until the late twentieth century was the true scope of its power revealed.
This remarkable new book, featuring more than 150 color illustrations, presents a rich and up-to-date view of evolution that explores the far-reaching implications of Darwin's theory and emphasizes the power, significance, and relevance of evolution to our lives today. After all, we ourselves are the product of evolution, and we can tackle many of our gravest challenges -- from the lethal resurgence of antibiotic-resistant diseases to the wave of extinctions that looms before us -- with a sound understanding of the science. It can help us see our lives in connection to everything that has come before and to every form of life on Earth today.
Filled with rich narrative, award-winning science writing, and the most up-to-date information on topics ranging from Darwinian medicine and sexual selection to the origins of language, evolutionary psychology, and the controversies surrounding creationism, Evolution tells in riveting detail the story of a remarkable scientific journey, from the emergence to the triumph of an idea.
Customer Reviews:
Excellent.......2007-04-05
This book is incredibly informative and clear. Zimmer teaches about evolution in a logical fashion, using great examples along the way. As a high school biology teacher, I found myself gaining a more complete understanding of evolution. I highly recommend "Evolution: The Triumph of an Idea".
excellent.......2007-02-02
I've really enjoyed learning about evolution lately, and this audiobook was very helpful in many ways. It covers the history of the theory from Darwin to today, and explains the contents of the theory. It is very easy to listen to and enjoyable. You learn all kinds of unusual facts, like how the whale evolved from a land mammal, and how the hand developed. If you're interested in evolution, this book is well worth a listen.
Excellent........2006-11-29
To be perfectly honest, I'm in the middle of reading this book as I write the review for it! However, I felt compelled to express my enthusiasm for this book. It's very clearly written and extremely interesting. I'm a student of biology, but I can attest that it has something to offer for people at all levels of understanding of evolution. A very worthwhile read. Trust me. I'm confident in saying this and I haven't even finished it!
Invader Zimmer.......2006-10-04
I don't believe I need to emphasize what a wonderful book this is due to the plethora of positive reviews it has received. However, I would like to mention that in searching for a perfect introduction to evolution to recommend to friends, theists, and the simply uninformed (I included the misinformed by listing the theists), Zimmer's book by far outshines my prior favorites: What Evolution Is (Mayr's too technical), The Blind Watchmaker (Dawkins is too blunt) and Evolution (Ridley's too advanced).
Zimmer treats evolution as the story of an idea, and describes it beautifully and candidly. I must admit, I was extremely caught by surprise by the authors' elegance never having read any of his other publications. However, that will shortly be remedied, because after the impression he's made on me with this book, his others will soon be invading my bookshelf.
A Good Read And Explains Evolution Very Clearly.......2006-07-22
I purchased this book for myself but also for my children so they can learn about evolution. This books is very clear and easy to understand with many graphics and pictures to illustrate the evolution of the earth and man as a species. This book fully explains evolution in terms that a 7th grader could understand, but also has an abundance of facts that are part of the text.
I would recommend this book to anyone who would like an introduction to evolution. However, supplemental texts on astronomy,biology and anthropology should be read to get a complete and in depth intelligent picture of how the earth was created and how evolution is the essence of our existence.
Average customer rating:
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Joachim of Fiore and the Myth of the Eternal Evangel in the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries
Warwick Gould , and
Marjorie Reeves
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
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The Influence of Prophecy in the Later Middle Ages: A Study in Joachimism
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Visions of the End
ASIN: 0199242305 |
Book Description
In the twelfth century Joachim of Fiore (c.1132-1202) developed a powerful and original theology of history. In the twentieth century, particularly after the Second World War, much interest was focused on the influence of his ideas, with the result that large and sometimes exaggerated claims were made for his impact on nineteenth- and twentieth-century thought. The first version of this book (Clarendon Press, 1987) sought to distinguish between the precise, documented evidence of Joachim's influence in the modern period and the vaguer assertions which had appeared in histories of ideas. A surprising, and until now virtually unchronicled, story emerged. French romantic visionaries, English literary writers, fin de siecle figures dabbling in the occult, a Czech poet involved in resurgent nationalism - all, to a greater or lesser degree, had taken this medieval abbot as a prophet of the `new religion of humanity' which they had sought. The `Eternal Evangel' (the radical form of Joachim's doctrine) was evidently a symbol of the `new spirit' of the future for such figures as Michelet, Quinet, Leroux, Sand, Mazzini, Renan, Matthew Arnold, George Eliot, Pater, Huysmans, W. B. Yeats, and Vrchlicky. In this process, of course, the genuine thought of the medieval biblical exegete was largely lost, but the myth became a powerful inspiration. This radically revised study has been augmented with further prophetic voices and symbols from the past. Extended by more than 100 pages, it not only confirms the deep structures of visions of the future, but demonstrates and questions the persistence of Joachimist themes in the twentieth-century fin de siecle.
Customer Reviews:
A brilliant mind.......2006-05-16
I just read this SJ Gould book of reviews and essays. Gould had a brilliant mind and is highly missed. The essays are complex, and the points well made. As always I give my full trust to Gould's wise opinion.
splendid, rich essays full of humanism and depth.......2005-07-11
These essays, many of which appeared in New York Review of Books, contain some of Gould's finest writing. What makes it very fun is the way he critiques the ideas of others while telling stories and analysing their perspective. If you want a critical vantage on sociobiology, this is a great place to start. You can also read a wonderful review of Turning Point by Frijof Capra, which Gould finds wanting because it is full of assertions that are ultimately unproven. I would agree, but I did see a lot of merit in Capra's ideas of holistic science as well, which represented a precurser to complexity theory. Then there is Gould's trenchent critique of Jeremy Rifkin, whom he says lacks integrity because of his scientific sloppiness and the tendentiousness of his many errors - interesting because one would imagine they would be on the same side on many issues. Through it all, Gould appears as a tolerant spirit, advancing his perspective while respecting that of others with a critical gaze.
Of course, there is Gould's inimitable style: so graceful and flowing that each is like a succulent hors d'oeuvre or some variety of Turkish delight. I honestly think that the quality of this writing is on a par with Emerson or Thoreau. It is the profoundest of literary talents.
Warmly recommended. He was one of our very very best.
An Urchin in the Storm.......2002-07-24
An Urchin in the Storm by Stephen Jay Gould is about books and ideas, but more so about writing, thinking and study in method.
An Urchin in the Storm is divided into five different sections. The first two sections of this book group reviews that discuss the irreductibility of history, along the way the pleasures and challenges of contingency, in its two principle domains of life and the earth. The first section on evolution focuses upon structuralist and hisoricist alternatives. While the second, explains nature's complexity, (Evolutionary Theory, Time and Geology).
The third section of this book explores the theory and consequences, both political and intellectual, of biological determinism. The fourth section deals with "Four Biologists." While the fifth works with "In Praise of Reason." As we read on throughout this book, Gould makes his point and scores, as he exposes fallacies, expands on geology, give thought to biological determinism, and gives the reader a clearer picture of evolutionary theory.
This is a fascinating little book, as Gould works through this little tome, like the urchin, always presenting a tough exterior and continues to prickle the enemy.
A very good book of essays about books.......2002-06-12
For a collection of disparate essays this hangs together in the classic Steve Gould style. If you're a 'fan', this is a book you may have missed, but its definitely a 'must have'
A good collection of disparate essays.......2000-05-07
In contrast to the previous rather bitter review, I think this is a very good book and a lot better than the the racism masquerading as science that is the Bell Curve - which Gould has read and demolished.
In terms of factor analysis, I used the Urchin in the Storm to teach factor analysis it's that clear and concise. Stuff the political viewpoint just read some very good essays.
Average customer rating:
- Nice beginnings but more stories and linking desirable
- Promising concept - mediocre execution
|
Hidden Histories of Science
Oliver Sacks , and
Stephen Jay Gould
Manufacturer: Edwards Famous Remainders
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
Anthropology
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ASIN: 1862070059 |
Book Description
We often think of science as continuously advancing. In this collection of essays, five world-renowned writers explore obscure and neglected episodes in the history of science which suggest instead that the process of understanding the significance of scientific discoveries can be erratic, contradictory, even irrational. Jonathan Miller, Oliver Sacks, and Daniel Kevles show how promising new ideas may at first fail to be noticed or accepted, and then, years after they have been dismissed or forgotten, are recognized in a different form as important. R.C. Lewontin and Stephen Jay Gould discuss the ways that words and images used by scientists and popularizers alike, from the murals on the walls of natural history museums to such ubiquitous terms as "adaptation" and "environment," reflect serious and often unacknowledged distortions in the way we conceive of both individual organisms and the natural history of the world.
These essays demonstrate that science is, in the words of Oliver Sacks, "a human enterprise through and through, an organic, evolving, human growth, with sudden spurts and arrests, and strange deviations, too. It grows out of its past, but never outgrows it, any more than we outgrow our childhood."
Customer Reviews:
Nice beginnings but more stories and linking desirable.......2003-04-26
book review _Hidden Histories of Science_
Hidden Histories of Science
Collection of 5 essays:
jonathan Miller on "Going Unconscious"
Stephen Jay Gould on "Ladders and Cones: Constraining Evolution by Canonical Icons"
Daniel J Kevles on "Pursuing the Unpopular: A History of Courage, Viruses, and Cancer"
R.C Lewontin on "Genese, Environment, and Organisms"
Oliver Sacks on "Scotoma: Forgetting and Neglect in Science"
A light read on the topic of: "episodes or themes, in the history of science that seemed to them worth recalling, not least because of what they suggested about the uses or implications of scientific history itself." pg ii Uneven essays, more like something i expect to read on the net rather than in print.
"Going Unconscious" is about hypnotism. An interesting example with the Okey sisters who had been successful "in a Pentecostal congregation in a nearby church, where their glossolalic interventions had attracted admiring attention. The career of these two young women neatly illustrates the way in which the symptoms of serious personality disorders can be shaped and then reshaped, depending on the social intitution in which they manifest themselves. In a congregation which recognized and valued the notion of 'speaking in tongues' the sisters modulated their conduct until they were recognizable as Pentecostal prophets, whereas in the wards of the newly converted professor of medicine their repertoire changed under the influence of Elliotson's positive conditioning and they re-emerged as mesmeric shamans." pg 11
"Ladders and Cones" is S.J.Gould's contribution to the evolution discussion as he points out that the common pictures we all have in our minds as a result of their being published repeatedly. The ladder of life and the cone(tree) of life as dominate motifs transmitted as inaccurate pictures.
"Pursuing the Unpopular" is the best of the essays. On cancer, the 75 year history of retrovirus, following luck and scientific society's disregard to show that oncogenes exist.
"It is difficult to think of another case of scientific advance where almost every one of the key pioneers encountered pointed resistance from his community of peers." I'd offer pirons as the infective agent in mad cow disease and the bacterial infection basis for ulcers as two more cases. "What permitted the pioneers eventually to prevail was to a significant extent their professional courage, imagination, and persistence. Yet it was also the tolerance and pluralism of the basic biomedical research system--the tolerance of deviant ideas and the pluralism that provides niches in which the ideas have a chance to flourish." pg 107-6
"Genes, Environment, and Organisms"
1. mechanistic nature of biological explanations
2. the historical nature of biological explanations
3. the contingency of biological explanations
4. the great need for developmental explanations
5. internal and external explanations play a very important part in the developmental scheme
6. life creates its own environment.
The experiment on page 124 with the supporting picture on page 125 is very good. Take 3 plants, divide each into 3 pieces, plant each piece in a different environment based on elevation. Watch the results that each plant does grow differently in each environment especially as compared to the set of results.
Oliver Sacks is a really good attention-grabbing author, "Scotoma" which is darkness or shadow, as used by neurologists, denote a disconnection, a hiatus in perception caused by a lesion in the central nervous system. pg 150 It is a neat look at several points in science where ideas where lost to be discovered years later, color preception is one of the examples. The radical continguency of science is again looked at mostly in the medical field. This essay was the impetus for the book.
A nice read, nothing great, might have been much more given the taste of each essay, but unfortunately left as a taste and not a full meal.
thanks for reading the essay.
Promising concept - mediocre execution.......2001-03-08
The jacket summary for this book suggests an interesting concept for exploration, namely the reasons that some scientific theories remain in obscurity for generations, only to be subsequently 'rediscovered' and validated. After reading this book, I'm still waiting for a thorough treatment of this phenomenon. The book is a collection of five essays that are not thematically connected as well as I would expect. Several of the essays largely consists of anecdotes and personal observations, not any sort of philosophical development or historical overview. Oliver Sacks' closing essay, "Scotoma: Forgetting and Neglect in Science", is by far the best and could well serve as the basis for a more complete treatment. Too bad I couldn't find this article on the New York Review of Books Web site since it would save buying the book.
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Reform and Regulation (Critical Episodes in American Politics)
Lewis L. Gould
Manufacturer: John Wiley & Sons Inc
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ASIN: 0471319147 |
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The Idea of Gould
Rhona Bergman
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Parent Care (Ideas)
Maria Gould
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ASIN: 066019225X |
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In Search of Talmudic Biography: The Problem of the Attributed Saying
Jacob Neusner
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ASIN: 0891307524 |
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