Product Description
This book is about institutional change, how to recognize it, when it occurs, and the mechanisms that cause it to happen. It is the first book to identify problems with the "new institutional analysis," which has emerged as one of the dominant approaches to the study of organizations, economic and political sociology, comparative political economy, politics, and international relations.

The book confronts several important problems in institutional analysis, and offers conceptual, methodological, and theoretical tools for resolving them. It argues that the paradigms of institutional analysis--rational choice, organizational, and historical institutionalism--share a set of common analytic problems. Chief among them: failure to define clearly what institutional change is; failure to specify the mechanisms responsible for institutional change; and failure to explain adequately how "ideas" other than self-interests affect institutional change.

To demonstrate the utility of his tools for resolving the problems of institutional analysis, Campbell applies them to the phenomenon of globalization. In doing so, he not only corrects serious misunderstandings about globalization, but also develops a new theory of institutional change. This book advances the new institutional analysis by showing how the different paradigms can benefit from constructive dialogue and cross-fertilization. ... Read more

Product Description
Provides a scientific foundation for the advice offered by financial planners to long-term investors. The author derive optimal portfolio rules that investors can compare with existing rules of thumb. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

An Excellent Book
Having taken only two semesters of undergraduate econometrics, I still understood the vast majority of the material. This is an excellent book that shows how a wide variety of trading strategies are implemented, in theory and in practice. It is well-written and fascinating, and I urge anyone interested in quantitative trading to read it.

Very nice, theoretical book
This is a relatively good book on the consumption/investment problem for long-term investing.

To know whether it is appropriate for you, you need to realize that the "problem" the book addresses is the (now classical) consumption/investment problem from the standpoint of financial economics.

I would say it is not a practioner's book....mostly because practitioners usually do not have the specific background in math and economics, not because the ideas cannot be applied.

The ideas you will take away are at a very fundamental level.Not at the "how to" level.

I agree that most of what is covered in the book cannot be implemented in Excel.However, that statement applies to most of the interesting (and practical) problems in finance.

No one who uses Amazon's "search" feature to examine the book will be disappointed.If you bought this based on title alone,you could easily be let down.

Too theoretical
This 200-page volume is better described as an academic monograph that extends the classic mean-variance asset allocation model in a multiple-period setting, hence the marketing claim "portfolio choice for long-term investors."The book will be interesting to those studying finance Ph.D. looking for a good survey -- the latter chapters resember papers in academic journals -- but is entirely impractical to the average investor or even, IMHO, most money managers.Much of the stuff cannot even be implemented on your Excel spreadsheet!So what you have is a very boring and inaccessible book that won't teach you a thing about how to practice strategic asset allocation.

Not for the average investor
I bought this book based on a brief review in the Economist. It was way over my head. I'm a serious individual investor with training in math but found the tone of the book to be fairly esoteric and of little practical use.

Just very good
This book sums up recent research on the "strategic" (as opposed to "tactical", see eg Wai Lee's recent good book) asset allocation decisions - those of people wanting to design a portfolio for the very long term.

I am a practitioner, but this is not a practicioners' book on many counts: some of the formalism is hard (eg chap 5 on continuous-time models), it does not include rules of thumb, its basic framework requires a lot of effort to translate into numeric advice (10% cash, 40% bonds, 50% equity or suchlike). A PFP system based on this is some way off (also because real estate is left out).

Yet: (a) the book saves you a lot of time catching up with the literature; (b) it does dispel some bad criticisms of modern portfolio theory, especially in the first two chapters which are extremely useful as a reminder of basic dynamic theory; (c) it does throw in real-world considerations such as why do we advise older people to hold more conservative portfolios, what does labor income do to the basic model, why are bonds advised at all, the "asset allocation puzzle" etc.

You end up your quest for knowledge much the wiser having read this - and my quest was not effortless. I read this book (actually the Web version) while on a summer vacation. Got up every morning at 7 and worked about one hour at a time, first reading, the following day taking notes. In two weeks I sweated it out. It was worth it, and I bought the book too (the physical book is much leaner than the printout). ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

An amazing Quiz Bowl reference
This book is almost exactly what it says it is -- it is an amazing compilation of interesting and significant information.It is perfect for Quiz/College Bowlers who want a reference or just some interesting reading. The information included is nearly comprehensive, Quiz/College Bowl-wise,except for a few notable omissions (perhaps most glaringly non-Americanliterature; the book as a whole is American-centered).Even with theseslight drawbacks, the book is still an amazing resource for the academiccontestant. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

An Iconoclast's Editorials
John W. Campbell was an intellecual non-conformist. When he became editor of 'Amazing' science fiction magazine (later he re-named it 'Analog: Science Fiction - Scince Fact') he set higher standards for its fiction, and "dicovered" many of the great SF writers of his era, including Isaac Asimov and Theodore Sturgeon, among others, In his later years, he became overbearing, and crusaded for some completely non-valid scientific ideas, including the "Dean Drive" which purportedly produced force without an equal and opposite force, and devices which amplified the signals of mental telepathy.

Campbell intended for his editorials to promote critical thinking and they still do.I found them quite interesting, althogh sometimes preposterous.I recommend the book for those who like critical thinking, and I also reccomend the Wikipeidia article on Campbell as background for reading the book.

The Rabble Rouser
In his autobiography, _The Way the Future Was_ (1978), Frederik Pohl tells of listening to John W. Campbell lecture him (on, for example, why television will never replace radio). Pohl says that he thought that such talks were examples of a Smart Thing To Do, since they were really rehearsals for future editorials. This observation is probably true. When you read Campbell's editorials, you get the sense that you are reading well-practiced material. And it fits Campbell's style of writing-- relaxed, informal, assertive, colloquial, _folksy_. It is the style of a debater, or, less charitably, the style of a man more accustomed to giving speeches than listening to others talk:

I think the reason why all terrestrial life has the same basic genetic language-- uses the same codon-dictionary-- is simply because That's The Way This Universe Is. Hydrogen is not cultural; it's universal. The laws of chemistry aren't the private opinions of human beings-- or of terresrial life. There is one and only one way of making a hydrogen atom. The interactions of CO2 and H2O are what they are, and there is no alternative. You _can't_ have any different opinions... and stay alive in the universe. (178)

When I was in high school in the 1960s, I was bowled over by Campbell's editorials. They were strong, forceful, intelligent arguments for causes that were unorthodox and exciting to me. Well, I am older now. I know a bit more about science and politics. I see a lot of the holes in Campbell's arguments today, and many of his positions are ones that I strongly disagree with-- particularly those in editorials like "The Lesson of Thalidomyde," "Breakthrough in Psychology," "We _Must_ Study Psi," and "God Is Not Democratic." On the other hand, "Segregation," "Space for Industry," "Hydrogen Isn't Cultural," and "Where Did Everybody Go?" still hit home for me.

In spite of my changing views, I believe that Campbell remains a great editorial writer for two reasons. First, he wrote about things that mattered to people -- politics, science, religion, war, crime and punishment, labor relations, race relations, and education. Second, he took a strong stand on the topics that he wrote about. He didn't worry about offending members of the congregation. Even today, you might praise Campbell, or you might heartily attack Campbell. But you don't _forget_ his editorials.

I do not mean to say that good editorials could never have been written in sf magazines if it weren't for Campbell. But (to mix a metaphor), he raised the bar and opened the door. He made it possible for the editorial-as-essay to become more widely accepted. And not just by editors like Ted White, Ben Bova, and Stanley Schmidt; he also made it possible for editorial columnists like Isaac Asimov and Robert Silverberg to flourish. I cannot guarantee that you will like this book. But you should read it. It is brisk, lively, and stimulating. ... Read more

Product Description
"Who Goes There?": The novella that formed the basis of "The Thing" is the John W. Campbell classic about an antarctic research camp that discovers and thaws the ancient body of a crash-landed alien. The creature revives with terrifying consequences, shape-shifting to assume the exact form of animal and man, alike. Paranoia ensues as a band of frightened men work to discern friend from foe, and destroy the menace before it challenges all of humanity! The story, hailed as "one of the finest science fiction novellas ever written" by the SF Writers of America, is best known to fans as THE THING - it was the basis of Howard Hawks' The Thing From Another World in 1951, and John Carpenter's The Thing in 1982. With new Introduction by William F. Nolan, (Logan's Run), and his never-before-published, suspenseful Screen Treatment (written for Universal Studios in 1978), this is the must-have edition for scifi and horror fans! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (8)

Loved it
If you are a science fiction fan you are going to love this book. Also if you love the Thing it would be difficult not to enjoy this book.Quick easy read but completely enjoyable would recommend it to anyone who is interested.

Greatest Scifi Novel
I got this book for Christmas last year so when he headed off to Colorado I knew this would be a good read. I loved the movie "The Thing" so when I heard it was based off a book I had to find it. This book is much better than the movie. In the beginning the book hints at something being wrong, which is really nice and when the thing reveals itself it's quite different than the movie. In the movie the dogs just start barking and then everyone in the base scrambles to see what's going on, in the book they not only find the creature frozen, but it escapes when it's being defrosted so everyone freaks out at that point. The dog scene still occurs, though. The book also had a character that I do not recall being in the movie and this was the base's chef. What's also interesting is one of the character's knows about the thing's existence and throughout the book he is more paranoid about the thing than anyone else is about it being him so they pay special attention to him. The whole book is quite different from the movie, but reads so well. Everything flows nicely, great imagery and setting established. If you read any science fiction book make it this one.

Definitive Edition of Campbell's Masterpiece
Campbell's masterpiece finally gets the royal treatment in this new edition. What really sets it apart is the added material - a new Introduction by William F. Nolan of Logan's Run fame, and the inclusion of his Screenplay (1978) as an added bonus. Nolan's treatment is NOT the basis of the Carpenter film, so it offers yet a third cinematic prism through which to see Campbell's situation and characters realized - a satisfying way to round out this offering. SF Signal calls it the definitive edition. There's also an AUDIO edition available from this publisher.

Great story, but read it in a collection, NOT alone!
Funny how short stories are puffed up with white space and big type and morph into "novellas" when it suits a publisher, isn't it? Yes, Who Goes There is a great story, and, arguably the most nightmare inducing idea in literature (or anywhere else). But why pay $15 bucks to read it alone when you can buy a collection of dozens of Campbell's stories for the same price? Check out the new collections out there before you buy. And in general, never buy a movie tie in book of any kind---very bad deals.

Pretty good
I've seen both films that were based on this novella, so I was looking forward to read to the story. All in all, it's pretty good, very claustrophobic but way too short to be scary. Don't get me wrong, its obviously a reflection of it's time and it is dated, but it's still quite a lot of fun to read. ... Read more

Product Description
THE BLACK STAR PASSES
Invaders from the Infinite
Islands of Space
The Last Evolution
The Ultimate Weapon ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Pulp Fiction at its best
This is a good, though somewhat incomplete, collection of 'Pulp Fiction' by John W. Campbell.As an author he was imaginative, could tell a good tale, and had 'relatively' well developed characters.Campbell later became one of the most well respected editors of Science Fiction, but most of his written fiction predated his Editorial work, and was in a different style than what he later promoted in Analog Magazine. I liked all the stories in here, but could only wonder why they DIDN'T include his greatest acknowledged classic, "Who Goes There," which later became the foundation for the movie, 'The Thing.' ... Read more

Product Description
This Isle lies about half a mile off Rum; it is two miles from South to North, one from East to West. It is for the most part surrounded by a high Rock and the whole fruitful in Corn and Grass: The South end hath plenty of Cod and Ling...

Thus begins Martin Martin's brief and matter of fact account of Canna, one of the most beautiful of all Hebridean islands. Small though it is, many of the major historical trends of the Hebrides have touched it, from St. Columba through the Benedictine monasticism of Iona to the Lordship of the Isles. Following the Reformation the island was of considerable importance to the Irish Franciscan mission of the 1620s and also the Jacobite risings before being swept up in the tragedies of depopulation and clearance of the nineteenth century.

Gifted to the National Trust in 1981, the island is currently undergoing something of a revival, with the creation of the St. Edward Centre on Sanday, and the proposed developments of Canna House. Recent archaeological surveys and historical research has uncovered much new evidence about the island. Hugh Cheape of the Royal Museum of Scotland, who has been intimately involved in the Canna project, has fully edited the book. New contributions with update and fill out the account of the island. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

A very good history written by the owner of the island
I visited Canna twice in 2003 during a one week sailing trip on a classical ship with the name Edda Frandsen. We also sailed close to Rum and Eigg and visited several of the outer islands. I have dear memories of the loneliness of the environment and I have been reading about its history ever since.
John Lorne Campbell owned Canna before he donated it to the National Trust for Scotland. I like the idea of now knowing the persons living in the manor house that is so visible from the harbour. The manor house owned most of the penny lands. These are small farms stocked with seven cows and two horses. The arable land was fertilized by carrying seaweed onto it. Most inhabitants lived at subsistence level. The people in the manor house usually were the only ones on the island who were literate.This is a well written and complete history starting4000 BCand carrying us through Columba, the Vikings and Culloden into modern times. Like the other islands and mainland Scotland, people lived in a social system called servitude until very recently. Their life at subsistence level became unacceptable in modern times and many inhabitants emigrated from the overpopulated island. There is a high degree of personal involvement from the writer who clearly loves his island and its Gaelic culture. It is a very good book.

An excellent resource of info about the MacDonald's of Canna
There are few books about this small Hebridean island, but J.L. Campbell has written a fully detailed book, giving the history of the people who lived on Canna as far back as the 13th century.As well, he explains theirleaving and where they landed in America. ... Read more

Product Description
5 books in one, with active table of contents:

THE BLACK STAR PASSES
Invaders from the Infinite
Islands of Space
The Last Evolution
The Ultimate Weapon
... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Awesome sense of wonder
Don't listen to the reviewer who says it's not worth reading. This is wondrous science fiction, conveying a sense of awe that has long been lost to this genre.

I have owned several copies of this book during my life and have re-read it many, many times. It is getting harder to get a hold of now but I hope to score a copy here on Amazon.

Read it, you will not be disappointed.

CAMPBELL'S COLLEGE WRITING---NOT WORTH READING
The first review says it best: "has problems with technique and seems rather naive." Ayup. This immature, naive and golly gee whiz writing is nothing like Campbell's writing at the apex of his career. This will be of interest only to those who want to know what he wrote in college and don't care about reading great SF. Campbell would NEVER have published this tripe in Amazing. To be avoided.

Spacetime Explorers
Anthology: Three Novels (1973) is a set of SF novels by John W. Campbell.Originally published in Amazing Stories in the early 1930's, these short stories related the adventures of Arcot, Wade and Morey.Much later they were republished as three separate books: The Black Star Passes, Islands of Space, and Invaders from the Infinite.

This volume includes guest introductions by Isaac Asimov and Lester Del Rey.Each gives a glimpse of the times and forces that produced science fiction as a separate and growing genre.Another introduction, written by Campbell himself for the novelization of The Black Star Passes, gives a personal opinion on the influence of science fiction on the future.

In The Black Star Passes (1953), Arcot and Morey are tasked with stopping an air pirate.They quickly build a new type of aircraft and capture the pirate during another piracy attempt.Then they hand him over to the doctors for psychomedical treatments.

Afterward, the former pirate becomes an integral part of the team.Arcot, Wade and Morey go on to build a spacecraft, the Solarite, in which they travel to Venus.Becoming entangled in a planetary war, the team defeats the enemy and declares peace.

Then Nigra, a dead burned-out sun, passes near the Solar System and raiders are dispatched from it to conquer a new home for the Nigrans.As the ships approach Earth, a Terrestrial party meets them and signals that the flagship should land.Unfortunately, the outsiders interpret the signals as hostile action and retaliate immediately.After some losses on both sides, the Nigrans are driven off by the Interplanetary Patrol.But they would return.

Arcot, Wade and Morey are asked to examine the wrecked spaceships of the invaders.They quickly learn that the aliens breathed hydrogen gas.They also discover various marvels before barely escaping the exploding gases within the ship.Back in their laboratories, the team designs weapons and devices to use against the invaders.

In Islands of Space (1956), Arcot, Wade and Morey develop some new devices using the technology of the Nigrans and build another ship with advanced capabilities.Departing the Earth, they wait until crossing the orbit of Pluto before engaging the space strain drive to take the Ancient Mariner into hyperspace.After the initial test, they find themselves fairly near to the Sirius system and travel even closer.

In the Sirius system, they find the Nigrans already there readjusting the system.After taking observations of the changes, they take the Ancient Mariner onward at greater velocity and pass too close to a red giant.The resulting jar throws their gyros and drains power;their current orientation within the galaxy is problematical.Luckily, they relocate Sol and then move on, taking photographs of the surrounding stars at each stop.

Traveling through intergalactic space, they are gravitationally captured by a collapsed star.Though they manage to break free, the great shock renders them unconscious and the ship travels without guidance for some hours.They are lost in intergalactic space.

Restoring the Ancient Mariner to full operation, they select a galaxy close to their present course and then search therein for an advanced civilization having detailed intergalactic maps.They eventually locate two planets with intelligent inhabitants, but then become embroiled in an interplanetary war.One side drives them away and the other tries to entrap them.Despite these hostilities, they make friends, pass on information and determine the path back to Sol.

In Invaders of the Infinite (1961), an outsider ship brings a group of dog-like aliens to Earth.The Ortolians were artificially evolved by the Ancient Masters from canines after the humanoids nearly destroyed themselves in a disastrous war.The Ancient Masters have since passed away and now the Ortolians have developed a peaceful civilization emphasizing psychic powers.

Recently they encountered a race of super-strong conquerors and learned their plans by mental eavesdropping.Inserting commands into the mind of the Thessian commander, they guided the party to a specific location where they had implaced a weapon.This machine of the Ancient Masters penetrated the ship and the Thessians occupants died from explosive decompression.

The Thessians had feared only a few races in our galaxy, including the Terrestrials.In the repaired ship, the Ortolians traveled for three months to Earth to ask for aid.Within the Solarite, however, Arcot, Wade and Morey return them to their home planet in approximately fourteen hours.There they defeat a Thessian ship, pass on information and machines, and learn more about the invaders.

From Ortol, the team travels to Talso and helps defeat other Thessian ships.They also acquire another weapon -- artificial matter -- and leave a much needed auxiliary generator.Returning home, they pass on the knowledge and weapons already obtained and destroy Thessian installations at the North and South Poles.Then they return to Sirius, making contact with the Nigrans there. The team passes on information and specifications and gains information on the directed gravitational fields used to manipulate planetary masses.

Again the Terrestrials take part in a battle with even more Thessian ships.This time they leave Sirius with the nose of a Thessian vessel piercing the side of the Solarite.They make repairs in interplanetary space and travel on to a place in intergalactic space where they had previously found cosmic rays being generated.

In all three of these novels, the three Terrestrial scientists rapidly produce weapons and devices in sufficient time to defeat the current enemy.Using their prior knowledge and data collected during their encounters, they perform some lengthy calculations and then pass on the specifications to Fuller for design of production units.They never encounter much resistance, except from a few politicians who rapidly cave in when the enemy arrives.Indeed, these serials are the wish fulfillment fantasies of every engineer!

While these three novels have problems with technique and seem rather naive, they are space operas that include a vision of limitless spacetime, a contagious enthusiasm, and a sense of wonder that is seldom matched today.They provided the teenagers of the 1930's with a desire to do something significant, even if it didn't involve saving the whole universe.Indeed, it inspired an entire generation of engineers and scientists.You couldn't ask for much more than that!

Highly recommended for Campbell fans and for anyone else who enjoys exercising their sense of wonder.

-Arthur W. Jordin ... Read more

Product Description
When Margaret Thatcher unexpectedly emerged to challenge Edward Heath for the Conservative leadership in 1975, the public knew her only as an archetypal Home Counties Tory Lady, more famous for her hats than for any outstanding talent: she had a rich businessman husband, sent her children to the most expensive private schools, owned houses in Kent and Chelsea, and sat in Parliament representing Finchley. As education Secretary she had made the headlines by cutting the provision of free school milk; but she had voiced no criticism of the policies which led to Heath's defeat. No one for a moment imagined that she would be Heath's successor, nor that she would become one of the most dominant Prime Ministers of the century. Yet almost overnight she reinvented herself. Journalists who set out to discover where she came from were amazed to find that she had grown up above a grocer's shop in Grantham. Within weeks of her becoming Tory leader, an entirely new image was in place, based around the now famous corner shop beside the Great North Road; the strict Methodist upbringing; and her father, the stern but saintly Alderman Roberts who taught her the 'Victorian values' - thrift, temperance, self-reliance, patriotism, and duty - which were the foundations of her future career.

It is all true, so far as it goes; yet it is not the whole truth. Following her escape from Grantham to wartime Oxford, through her brief experience as a research chemist in Essex and her first political campaigns as a young Tory candidate in the safe Labour seat of Dartford in 1950 and 1951, to her marriage to Dennis Thatcher, her struggles as a young mother in the 1950s to win a seat in Parliament and her first steps as a junior minister in the early 1960s, he portrays an ambitious and determined woman ruthlessly distancing herself from her roots - until the moment in 1975 when they suddenly became a political asset.


From the Hardcover edition. ... Read more

Product Description
THE VISIONS OF JOHN W. CAMPBELL
Here are the finest stories by the man who almost single-handedly created modern science fiction--the writer who taught a generation to dream...and to write of all possible futures.
TWILIGHT
He was a mere hitchhiker now, but he had once seen the far, far future...and had returned to mourn what he had seen!
THE MACHINE
The machine was ultimately benevolent...so benevolent that it gave mankind the ultimate but most unwanted gift!
FORGETFULNESS
They were like children in the museum of Earth's glorious past...children who had forgotten so much, but whose powers were those of gods!
And the classic that was to become the movie THE THING: WHO GOES THERE?
The Thing was the most dreadful threat men had ever faced...a creature that could be any one--or all--of them!
And many more!
... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Two of Our Best Science Fiction Writers
Legendary science fiction editor John W. Campbell first worked as a writer, under his own name and as Don A. Stuart.This volume collects eleven stories published under both names, a non-fiction piece supporting the development of space industry, and a chapter of recollections about his life by Campbell's wife.

My favorite three stories from among the eleven are described below.

"The Last Evolution" traces the future history of mankind as they invent increasingly complex intelligent machines.When Earth must fight invading Outsiders, these machines invent increasingly complex versions of themselves to meet the challenge.

"Twilight" presents a hard-to-disbelieve story from a hitchhiker who has traveled into the far future and overshot by a few years on the way back home.He paints a somber picture of future humanity.This story is much like H.G. Wells's [The Time Machine], but pruned to an appropriate length.

"Who Goes There?" shows us how a group of Antarctic researchers deal with an alien visitor awakened from the ice.A creature that insinuates itself into their group in an unexpected way.This last story is a must-read for fans of The Thing.

I recommend buying and reading this book.It's worth the effort to know John Campbell's work and understand his influence on Isaac Asimov, Robert Heinlein, and other great authors of science fiction's Golden Age.Some of the stories show their age and may seem clichés to modern readers.They aren't--Campbell was there first.

John Campbell The Writer
John Campbell is a science fiction giant known best for his years as an editor of Astounding. He had the ability to find and develop gifted writers and it is not too much to say his work as editor brought respectability to the whole business.
His own stories are superb, but not as remembered as they should be. My personal choice as his best (and among the best in all of science fiction) is Who Goes There, later made into a movie but don't go there.I believe it was called The Thing, featuring James Arness as a sort of giant carrot. Hollywood at its worst, which is saying a lot.
By all means visit John the writer.

Prelude to the Golden Age
The Best of John W. Campbell (1976) is a collection of short SF works and an editorial.In his introduction, Lester Del Rey states that Campbell had three successful careers in Science Fiction:the first as Campbell the author, the second as the author Don A. Stuart, and the third as editor of Astounding/Analog.The first two careers are amply illustrated by the contents of this volume, but the last career is best shown by the works of dozens of authors who learned from, or were influenced by, Campbell the editor.

The Last Evolution (1932) was originally published in Amazing Stories under the John W. Campbell byline.It tells of an invasion of the Earth by aliens from outside the Solar system and the rapid invention of machine/immaterial minds to defend humanity.

The following stories were written as Don A. Stuart.All were originally published in Astounding Stories:

Twilight (1934) involves the accidental transport of a scientist from 3059 into the remote future where the remnants of humanity still survive but without curiosity.Before he attempts to return to his own time, the timetraveler takes some steps to resume progress.

The Machine (1935) tells of the departure of the ubiquitous Machine that first came to Earth to help humanity, but finds that almost all mankind has since settled comfortably into dependency and indolence.

The Invaders (1935) depicts the invasion of Earth by aliens several millennia after the Machine leaves.The aliens find humanity dwelling in a paradise of plenty among the fallen ruins of great works.They put mankind to work and start a breeding program.

Rebellion (1935) recounts the results of the alien breeding program after a few centuries and the reinvention of secrecy, deceit, and rebellion.

Blindness (1938) portrays the efforts of a dedicated scientist to provide humanity with a new source of energy.

Elimination (1936) shows the influence of random chance upon any foretelling of the future.

Forgetfulness (1937) conveys the muzziness of an advanced individual trying to remember the techniques of his more primitive ancestors.

Out of Night (1937) is the first part of the story about the human rebellion against the Sarn using truly advanced technology.

The following stories were written as Don A. Stuart and were originally published in Astounding Science Fiction:

Cloak of Aesir (1939) is the second part of the Sarn rebellion story.

Who Goes There? (1938) is one of the most famous horror/suspense stories of all time.How do you detect shapeshifters who have taken the form of your friends and livestock?

Space for Industry (1960) was originally published as an editorial in Analog Science Fiction/Fact.It makes the case for industry in space rather than upon a planetary surface.

The Postscriptum is a recollection of the ways of John Wood Campbell, Jr., by his widow and is fascinating reading.

These stories are only a few of the short works of John W. Campbell.Many of the Campbell stories were eventually incorporated into novels of the space opera variety;some were very good, even by current standards.Of course, Campbell commissioned or influenced the writing of thousands of short stories and novels by other authors, contributing suggestions and even short outlines.In many respects, most of the Astounding/Analog fiction was coauthored by Campbell, as were many stories published elsewhere.

Highly recommended for Campbell fans and for anyone who has ever enjoyed stories originally published in Astounding/Analog while he was the editor.

-Arthur W. Jordin ... Read more

Product Description
Islands of Space is presented here in a high quality paperback edition. This popular classic work by John Wood Campbell is in the English language. If you enjoy the works of John Wood Campbell then we highly recommend this publication for your book collection. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

rip off from EE Doc Smith's books
i read this boook thinking i have read it before and i looked at the clasic EE Doc Smith books and noticed that it was almost the same as one of his i would not bother reading it if you have read EE Doc Smith's books in the past.

Galactic Explorers
Islands of Space (1956) is the second novel in the Arcot, Wade and Morey series, following The Black Star Passes.Originally published in Amazing Stories in the 1930, these short stories were later republished in novel form as a Fantasy Press hardback.In the former volume, the team invents weapons and devices that contribute to the defeat of the Nigrans, but after the denizens of the black star retreat back to their home planets, they rediscover the secret of the beams that can rearrange planetary orbits.

In this novel, Arcot, Wade and Morey develop some new devices using the technology of the Nigrans and build another ship with advanced capabilities.Departing the Earth, they wait until crossing the orbit of Pluto before engaging the space strain drive to take the Ancient Mariner into hyperspace.After the initial test, they find themselves fairly near to the Sirius system and travel even closer.

In the Sirius system, they find the Nigrans already there readjusting the system.After taking observations of the changes, they take the Ancient Mariner onward at greater velocity and pass too close to a red giant.The resulting jar throws their gyros and drains power;their current orientation within the galaxy is problematical.Luckily, they relocate Sol and then move on, taking photographs of the surrounding stars at each stop.

Traveling through intergalactic space, they are gravitationally captured by a collapsed star.Though they manage to break free, the great shock renders them unconscious and the ship travels without guidance for some hours.They are lost in intergalactic space.

Restoring the Ancient Mariner to full operation, they select a galaxy close to their present course and then search therein for an advanced civilization having detailed intergalactic maps.The first star that they select goes nova centuries before they reach it.They find the remains of a city among the ice containing the frozen bodies of the inhabitants.Later they locate a central repository containing the works of the frozen race, select some elementary items to learn the language, and leave a pictorial/mathematical message about their presence and origin.

The team eventually locates two planets with intelligent inhabitants, but then become embroiled in an interplanetary war.One side -- Nansal -- drives them away and the other -- Sator -- tries to entrap them.Despite these hostilities, they make friends on Nansal and pass on information about their weapons and devices.In return, the Nansalians provide them with fuel, food and other supplies and determine the path back to Sol.One of the Nansalians returns with them to tour the Solar System.

This novel provides a greater perspective on the universe as a whole.The space between galaxies is very empty;all the numerous galaxies appear to be small fuzzy disks or just tiny dots, mere islands in a vast sea.Intergalactic space is a bad place in which to be lost, but this novel shows life on some planets within the galaxies.Of course, stars die and so can life on the surrounding planets.Hence life has to be defended from natural disasters and, occasionally, intruders from other planets.

Highly recommended for Campbell fans and for anyone else who enjoys exercising their sense of wonder.

-Arthur W. Jordin

One of the classics
of early science fiction. First published in 1930, Campbell provides mad mathmeticians, inventions on every page, and a swashbuckling career through the universe. ... Read more

Product Description
The popularity of television shows like NBC's PROFILER and movies such as SILENCE OF THE LAMBS has made the concept of criminal profiling familiar to most Americans. Though such dramas follow the general approach of real-life criminal investigative analysis, Hollywood's artistic license too often simplifies and even sensationalizes the work of those who attempt to unravel the complex workings of the criminal mind. In this compilation of expert articles written by internationally recognized homicide investigators - most of them pioneers in developing the science and the art of profiling - readers gain fascinating insights that could have emerged only after years of experience tracking and analyzing the behavior of some of America's most notorious serial criminals.

In PROFILERS, editors John H. Campbell and Don DeNevi bring together for the first time a collection of articles on important facets of criminal profiling - which, for the most part, have remained a mystery to the general public. The contributors cover many gripping topics - including an interview with cannibal Jeffrey Dahmer, details of autoerotic fatalities, the challenges of creating psychological profiles, and the use of forensic linguistics to track the Unabomber 0 and they try to understand why some killers go to such extremes as removing the eyes of their victims or setting their helpless victims ablaze. These contemporary pieces follow and expand upon some original articles on criminal profiling - reports on dealing with hostage situations and on sexual killers who disfigure their bodies.

A must for readers of true crime, forensic investigations, and murder mysteries, this unique collection of revealing articles offers a chilling and unparalleled glimpse into the inner workings of the criminal mind. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (7)

This book is retarded.
This book does not give an accurate description of a profilers job. It makes profiler's seem like psychics. Would make a better tv show but not helpful to anyone serious about learning Criminal profiling.

Nothing less than a "Wow!"
I'm an obsessed soon-to-be forensic nurse. (I already have the nurse part.)I've read lots of material on profilers - one of my favorite subjects. Most of the books are, to one degree or another, an homage to the profiler's ego and everyone contradicts everyone else. (Just read the other reviews.)I've found this to be true even for textbooks. There's always lots about who did what first and did it better. Very unprofessional in my humble opinion. I think the reviews I read here gave me the inspiration to try "Profilers". This is truly a wonderful and fun, yes fun, book to read. If you're into this sort of thing you'll know what I mean. It's definitely a beginners guide to profiling but I think even the mid-level enthusiast or professional would enjoy it. The book is a collection of articles, research papers and the like by many names you will instantly recognize. There are 2 sections to the book, the first made up of older contributions to the field. At first I was a little disappointed with this because I wanted the newest, most up to date material there was. I read those articles anyway and was really glad I did. I think knowing how it all started, how the first profilers worked and who the players were did a lot to add to my foundation. The 2nd section contains the newer material and does not disappoint. Since the articles are by many different people on many different topics you keep getting fresh perspectives. You don't have to read the book in order. I skipped to whatever chapter looked appealing at the moment and didn't feel it hurt the experience. Best of all, no ego trips to slog through.

This is a terrific read, especially for the beginner to the field. You will learn about profiles of all types, homicide, rape, mutilation, sexual homicide, crime scenes, organized vs. disorganized murderers, interviewing, linguistics, enucleation, cold cases, geographic profiling, child abductors, psychopaths, sadists, basic terminology and much, much more. All this is written in an easy, relaxed style that I think anyone who has an interest in forensics will enjoy.

The only thing that bugged me was the fact that they used a good bit of material from the FBI Law Enforcement Bulletins which are available online for free. Also, there was definitely a good bit of repetition of material. I still enjoyed the book so much I can't take away any points for those small issues.

profilers
very detailed but interesting if this what you are interested in. this is what real life is about.

Best read on Profiling
Criminal psychology and profiling are my areas of biggest interest in the realm of true crime. As I have a library of over 50 books on this and related topics I certainly feel qualified to write reviews on these books.
This book is devided into two parts. The first is a collection eleven odd articles from various bulletins and law enforcement magazines. Put simply, as the book tiltles them, this is a collection of the well known Original Behavioural Science Articles on Criminal Profiling. They are written by the 'who's who' from the era often referred to as 'The Golden Age of Profilers'. For this reason alone the book is well worth 'the price of admission.'
Part two covers comtemporary articles on Criminal Profiling. The topices are wide and varied covering such topics as Forensic Linguistics, Geographic Profiling to Assaultive Eye Injury and Enucleation.
I wondered how interested I would be in Forensic Linguistics but found the chapter facinating.
I feel most readers with an interest in the topic will find part one just great. In part two, since it covers such a wide range of areas I guess it's possible the odd chapter may not appearl to all.
The other plus here is the fact the book is broken into distinct articles by the editors so you can 'peice read' or do a 'cover to cover'.
I see the book as appealing to law inforcemnet personel, people like myself who don't work in law inforcement but have to deal with perpitrators and their victims and finally all those who enjoy the topic.
If I were forced to give up my entire library and keep just one book this would nearly have to be the one.
A great book, well done to Campbell and DeNevi, the editors.

The best read I have found in a long time
I was so enthralled in this book I could not stop reading it.There is so much information on so many different cases and scenarios.I am working toward being a forensic psychologist this book was FANTASTICK ... Read more

Product Description
First Edition Library reprint of the original first edtion, with added slipcase. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (12)

Does The Thing Assimilate the Knowledge of Other Species?
John W. Campbell's novella, "Who Goes There?", is an excellent thought experiment about dangerous contact with alien life. I read this after Michael Crichton's novel The Andromeda Strain and found that they have many ideas in common. They are both five star stories in my view, with Crichton's "The Andromeda Strain" ahead in its density of imaginative possibilities and "Who Goes There?" perhaps a bit ahead in its influence and storytelling imagery. Campbell's novella is one of the most popular and original ideas SF has to offer, but it's included in The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Volume Two A: The Greatest Science Fiction Novellas of All Time Chosen by the Members of The Science Fiction Writers of America (SF Hall of Fame) so it may be more economical to look elsewhere to get it in a collection of SF stories.

The beginning of Campbell's novella sets an isolated context for the story and introduces the author's love for everything interesting in science, with a few notes about magnetism. Campbell is not just good at creating a strong sense of paranoia by use of landscape and remoteness but he also excels at reproducing intelligent conversation between characters. In fact, most of the story is told through dialogue and speeches. These help the reader to get a sense of the thoughts of the characters and it is important to the feeling of paranoia in the story. Humans have such an advanced facility of reasoning that it gives us the power to consider many permutations of possibilities and many chains of reasoning. Sometimes we even over think situations with endless speculation and create excessive worry.

Just as in Michael Crichton's "The Andromeda Strain", the characters discuss the nature of life and the special case of alien lifeforms. Simple microorganisms are better fit to survive freezing for long time-spans than complex lifeforms, at least this is normally true for life as we know it. We know that life on earth harbors many little simple organisms and that some (but not many) of these are dangerous, but the story smartly points out that very few forms of bacteria pass between different organisms (and therefore they are only rarely dangerous). Could it be common across the universe, though, for other types of complex lifeforms alien to us to carry dangerous organisms (and to be well adapted for long term freezing)?

For example, snakes and wheat do not spread infection to humans and most life as we know it coexists harmoniously (probably through co-evolution). So the more alien and different an organism is from humans, the less likely it is to carry dangerous organisms (or at least the less likely it is to transmit those organisms to humans in a dangerous form, if transmitted at all). So it's not likely that an alien just arriving or awakening on earth would be much of a threat, according to the odds. It is more likely that an alien would come under greater threat from our environment since they did not evolve along with our microorganisms [H. G. Wells also made use of this idea in his wonderful novel, The War of the Worlds (Modern Library Classics)].

Though perhaps some complex organisms could survive a long, deep freeze. And perhaps some complex organisms are dangerous! This story follows the common trend to violate all the probabilities in favor of realizing unlikely threats (or, at least, unlikely by our usual calculations of 'normal' lifeforms). Or it implies that our calculations are off (that is, that our probabilities are not representative of life) because we are unable to figure in lifeforms very different from us that violate all our norms. Can human reason predict with precision the ways an alien species will interact with us and our environment?

The story is a little light on these considerations and it has a few gaps in its time line so that we don't get to see every action the Thing takes against the humans. But this adds to the paranoia and feeling of invasion, for this alien is very similar to a body invader of any species [as in Invasion of the Body Snatchers (Collector's Edition), except at a lower level of invasion and as a more imaginative SF creation].

Some of my favorite moments of the story are the complex riddles of reasoning as the characters try to discover who has been infected and turned into a Thing. The story doesn't allow the reader to know the difference between human and Thing (to help maintain our suspense) before the characters find out through testing.

Though, the idea is embedded in a different period of time in which telepathy was in fashion. The first season of Star Trek [The Original Series: Star Trek: The Original Series - Season One (DVD/HD DVD Combo, Remastered Edition) [HD DVD]] also took it seriously in its episode "Where No Man Has Gone Before", and Alan Turing took it seriously in his article "Computing Machinery and Intelligence". But we now know that the famous and trendy telepathy experiments out of Duke are highly suspicious and impossible to reproduce under carefully controlled environments.

The final parts of the novella are my favorite part of it. We get a glimpse into the behavior and preferences of Things. It has remarkable scientific and technical abilities in the use of atomic power and anti-gravity machines.

However, the story left me wondering how the Thing knew so much about earth. How does it know to attempt to flee and possibly find larger populations to invade? Perhaps it can assimilate human memories when it invades our cells. If so, then the Things are biological rivals of the Borg from Star Trek: The Next Generation (Star Trek Fan Collective - Borg)! They could spread out through the universe assimilating the knowledge of other beings. But how can it pass along its own knowledge to its drones? How can it retain its own preferences for its home world environment when it takes over a human? Well, perhaps it has very different and interesting life-processes that somehow store information like massive biological computer chips of sorts.

Or, maybe, the story grants it too much wisdom in such a short time! In any case, it got me thinking and it has influenced countless SF writers and filmmakers as well.

The story inspired two movies for good reason, but it seemed to me most like John Carpenter's version, The Thing (Collector's Edition). Carpenter's 1982 classic emphasizes the isolation of the soldiers and scientists, and it also follows the text's setting and use of extreme paranoia to such an extent that human psychology becomes a central part of the story. Whereas the earlier 1951 classic (produced by Howard Hawks), The Thing from Another World, re-imagines the story into its own imaginative vision. It imagines an advanced plant zombie that advanced solely by reflex and has no morals or consciousness. It doesn't invade other species, however.

But I actually think the 1951 movie is just as good for its originality, and it could point to an explanation for how the Thing swiftly learns and stores knowledge (perhaps through plant-like learned behaviors that just seem intelligent or that mimic sentience by observation or other means). Maybe such a plant-zombie would assimilate other beings and their knowledge through feasting on them instead of invading and mimicking them. Though, unfortunately, neither movie portrays the Thing at the degree of intelligence it has in the story, so they did not have to follow through with these interesting possibilities. I find the novella much more thoughtful and interesting with speculative possibilities than either movie, even with its briefness. So I highly recommend it and I think it excellently complements Crichton's book "The Andromeda Strain" (just the novel mainly though, not the movie to any significant extent).

The story's good, but the writing is awful
This book contains the 68-page title novella and 7 shorter sci-fi stories.

The good news is that "Who Goes There?" was translated fairly accurately in the John Carpenter-Kurt Russell film (including the characters, the attack on the sled dogs, the hot-wire blood test, and Blair building an escape vehicle out in the shed), so if you liked that, you'll like this.

The bad news is that, while the title story and some of the others have clever sci-fi conceits at their core, the writing is absolutely awful.Wooden dialogue and slow, dull, and clunky exposition with no sense of drama or anticipation. I'd say it was like the writing of a 9th grader, but that would be insulting to 9th graders.The author explains in the introduction that these stories were turned down by all of the sci-fi and fantasy magazines of the day before finally being accepted and published. I'm not surprised.

Get this if you absolutely have to own the story behind "The Thing."Otherwise, don't.

Kindle edition is unreadable

The formatting is wretched--all the paragraphs run together, without any indenting or spacing between. When I contacted the publisher, they gave me a URL where I could read a PDF version of the story online--not download, mind you, but only read while online.

Considering that this is only a novella, the price was pretty exorbitant. When you add to this the fact that it's not even formatted (and is thus virtually unreadable), it is theft. I'll never buy anything from Rosetta again.

Not Free SF Reader
A discovery of a lifeform buried in the Antarctic ice causes serious problems for an isolated research team.

If You Liked the movie...
You'll Freaking love this book.
It has almost all those involved in the movie (except Windows) in the book, plus another twenty characters.
And it goes into more detail on why they are there, different people become 'things' than the movie,

In short
IT FREAKIN' ROCKS MY SOCKS OFF!

nuff said ... Read more

Product Description
Part Medical Thriller, Part Governmental Expose and Part Nutrition Manual. Dr. Campbell issues a stark warning against the imminent "Atkins Backlash". This is NOT a diet book. Consumers are bombarded with conflicting messages regarding health and nutrition; the market is flooded with popular titles like "The Atkins Diet" and "The South Beach Diet". Dr. Campbell cuts through the haze of misinformation and delivers an insightful message to anyone living with cancer, diabetes, heart disease, obesity and those concerned with the effect of ageing. Dr. Campbell challenges the validity of these low-carb fad diets and issues a startling warning to their followers. "The New York Times" has recognised the study ("China-Oxford-Cornell Diet and Health Project") as the "Grand Prix of epidemiology" and the "most comprehensive large study ever undertaken of the relationship between diet and the risk of developing disease". ... Read more

Customer Reviews (807)

Warning, this book could increase your risk of stroke
If you have heart disease, you can thank your lucky stars that Dr. Campbell wrote The China Study. However, China's stroke rate is higher than our heart disease rate.

The book claims that all animal foods cause disease. But the vegetarian Adventists who live ten years longer (88 years) than the average American (78 years) eat more dairy products than average. No culture has ever totally avoided animal foods.

Unless they supplement, vegans tend be deficient in vitamin B12. This can cause permanent spinal cord degeneration if it goes on for too long. It's also easy to be deficient in protein, calcium and fat soluble nutrients like vitamin D and omega-3 fatty acids. This can lead to accelerated tooth decay. These deficiencies are especially important for the developing bones and nervous systems of unborn babies. It's easy solve to this problem with supplements but the book does a poor job of warning us.

Dr. Campbell also promotes extremely low cholesterol levels. At the time of the China Study the average total cholesterol in rural China was 127. This is good for heart disease but such low levels are associated with a high rate of stroke. The book does not warn us about this either. The average life expectancy in all of China is only 73.8 years. They smoke more than Americans and their health care system isn't as good so that's part of the problem. There are ways to reduce the risk: treat hypertension if you have it, don't smoke or drink alcohol or caffeine, keep sodium consumption low, potassium consumption high and walk a lot.

Since protein restriction (without calorie restriction) extends the life of animals in the lab, vegans might live a very long time if they avoid deficiencies, take steps to lower their stroke risk and get regular checkups. Donald Watson (September 2, 1910 - November 16, 2005) was founder of the Vegan Society and inventor of the word vegan. He lived to be 95 years old. But I don't know if he ate an extremely low fat diet, many vegans do not.

According to World Health Organization stats
China - Heart disease 69/100,000, Stroke 159/100,000
US - Heart disease 106/100,000, Stroke 32/100,000

Compelling!
I had this book recommended to me by two friends, one of whom is a nutritionist, the other one saw their cholesterol levels drop 60 points after following Dr. C's recommendations for a short period of time.

I found it hard to believe at first, after all I have read every diet book out there, including Atkins, Zone and South Beach. Could my tuna sandwiches, cheese, cobb salads, chicken, and omelets with bacon really be causing me so much trouble? I decided to find out. I did not have a lot of weight to lose (but lost 7 pounds), more importantlyI was struggling with some health problems of my own. After following the recommendations of the book for a couple of months I can honestly say:

-Blood pressure: was getting high and is now normal
-Allergies (hayfever/asthma) much improved and are now practically gone
-Indigestion/heartburn: much improved
-Tiredness/fatigue: pretty much gone, I feel very energetic.

Now I realize this is purely anecdotal evidence so I will go on with my review of the rest of the book. It is part autobiography, part scientific treatise, part nutrition manual and part opinion piece, backed up by some very compelling research. A small part of it is his own but most of the 35+ pages of references cited in the book are actually from others.

Dr. Campbell draws upon his long career as a scientist, researcher and teacher. He has sat on several government panels and he began his career convinced that animal foods were good for you and was raised on a dairy farm. Over time, through his own observations and the research of others, he began to grow suspicious that meat and dairy were not health promoting foods. He began to suspect that a diet made of whole, natural plant foods was actually the more health promoting diet that would prevent many diseases and support health across the board. His hypothesis draws in several noted doctors who are able to help their patients using a plant based diet, including Dr. Dean Ornish, Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn, and Dr. John McDougall. These are men whose patients have been very much improved but the mainstream fails to accept the fact that a plant based diet could be beneficial. Why? I would like to know why myself!

Dr. Campbell comes down fairly hard on high protein meat diet pushers, vitamin peddlers, doctors who know nothing about nutrition and are in bed with the drug companies, as well as government institutions who are unwilling and unable to accept that such a simple solution like this might exist in the world!

As for recommendations on what to eat, it is mostly fruits, vegetables, legumes and whole grains. Do not think you can become a vegetarian and eat a lot of white bread, white pasta, candy, cookies and cake, he specifically notes that eating this way is a bad idea. Vegetable oils and fish show up on the minimize list. I have eaten a tiny bit of fish since starting my experiment. He says try his plan for a month and see how you feel! What have you got to lose? Indeed nothing. After getting a few cookbooks I have come to love and embrace this lifestyle. I don't know if I will ever be a 100% vegan, over the last few months I have rarely eaten a piece of fish or some cheese but overall I think Dr. Campbell is really onto something.

A lot of his critics seem to think the book is just about becoming a vegan, I think the critics have not really read the book very carefully! There is a wealth of wisdom and information here which everyone should consider. Even if you don't want to cut meat out of your diet forever, you would do well to consider Dr. Campbell's recommendations of getting the majority of your nutrition through natural, whole plant foods. You really don't need prescription drugs or expensive supplements if you are eating a healthy diet and exercising. I am doing it and I think it's great! I hope for better things to come in my future.

I would really recommend you try his approach before going on statins, blood pressure medication or diabetes medication. It just may work for you instead of drugs and surgery, and who wouldn't want to try that first before going on prescription drugs?

My only criticism would be the title of the book, which has lead some people to believe this is only a book about the China Study. I have read some statements of Dr. Campbell admitting this may have been a mistake and his publisher wanted to call the book by this name. He wanted to find a suitable publisher and the other publishers wanted to edit the book and include a lot of recipes.

A good companion book is "Eat to Live" by Dr. Joel Fuhrman, or anything written by Dr. Fuhrman, they are both very inspiring.

Choose Life or Choose Death
Tells it the way it is. After reading the Bible and the U.S. Constitution, this book is a must read for all Americans. Before the flood, when man ate only plants, man lived for 900 years. After the flood when God said all right you guys you can eat some meat, the lifespan dropped to 110 years in ten generations. The China Study tells you why. Want disease to disappear in your life? Read this book.

Must read - should be required reading for high school students
I alternated between disbelief, shock, anger, and gratitude as I read this book.I especially appreciated how Dr. Campbell presented the facts objectively in the entire first section of the book, but shared his opinions and experiences in the last part.This has changed the way I eat, the way I think about food/nutrition, and what I buy and feed my family.I am shocked and horrified that this information has not been shared on a larger scale with the general public.I am especially furious that I have basically "trained" my 9 & 12 year old to eat in a way that is not the healthiest for their bodies, which is what I THOUGHT I was doing.There need to be some sweeping changes in the public health arena.

A Must Read
Great Book. Good science. Compelling. Everyone should read this book.

Only part of the book directly describes the China Study. Dr. Campbell incorporates all the evidence into a larger view of diet and health.

My only criticism is that the scientific evidence does not support the conclusion that a vegan diet, completely devoid of food from animal sources, is necessary for a healthy life. The evidence does support the claim that a plant-based, whole foods diet is healthier than an animal-based diet. The difference is that a small amount of animal protein may have no detrimental effect on one's health. It may be easier for many people to greatly reduce animal protein from their diet, but not eliminate it completely. Dan Buettner's book, The Blue Zones, would support this conclusion. Buettner interviewed healthy and happy centenarians--living to 100 or more--and found that they ate a plant-based diet, but many also ate small amounts of animal protein.
... Read more

Product Description

Customer Reviews (3)

Great Outside the box view of the Financial System
I had the pleasure of hearing Ken French speak at a conference in October of 2009 and heard him mention the "Squam Lake Group" in passing and recently came upon the book.He is an amazing speaker and one that can really get you to think. This book put into more detail some of the "outside the box" idea's Mr. French spoke about when I saw him in person.The book offers a very unique perspecive of the financial system as the authors are primarily academics but did not as is the stereotype have a very left leaning solution to the problems discussed.When the group was talked about I thought to myself, if I only could have been a fly on the wall of those discussions and this books really brings you into the heart of them. I am hopefull that some of the idea's and challenges offfered in this book can be looked at by our policy makers and implemented over time.One of the most promising is the idea of the "living will" mandate for all companies that pose systemic risk to the financial system.Simple yet effective solutions offered and I hope are enacted.Nice read.

Squam lake
I do not reccommend this book for a layman.I am not sure what the authors were trying to say.

Great Book!Take into Consideration
I really enjoyed reading this book!Very informative, concepts that should be in place!
... Read more

Product Description
Each chapter of Professor Cambell's new book Castings Practice will take a look at one of his 10 rules.It is to be expected that the Rules wil one day be taken as an outline or blueprint for an international specification on the methods for making reliable castings.

John Cambell has over two decades of experience in the casting industry and is the author of over 40 technical papers and patents.He has become well-known in the foundry industry as the originator of the Cosworth casting process, which is becoming accepted throughout the world as a new production process for the casting of cylinder heads and blocks.He is now Federal Mogul Professor of Casting Technology at the University of Birmingham.

* Must-follow rules of castings, from one of the world's leading experts
* Companion volume to the renowned book 'Castings'
* Accessible and direct, provides essential information for students of metallurgy and foundry professionals alike ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

The Ten Rules of Castings
The book givs me a good informations about casting and is easy to read. ... Read more

Product Description
One of America's most noted contemporary novelists, John Irving has created a body of fiction of extraordinary range, moving with ease from romance to fairytale to thriller. Although his fiction follows in the tradition of the great 19th-century world novelists, he is a quintessential American writer--his novels are laced with broad humor, farce, and absurd situations. He does not hesitate to tackle the troubling issues that have faced our nation in the past few decades, such as war, racism, sexism, abortion, violence, and AIDS. This study offers a clear, accessible reading of Irving's fiction. It analyzes in turn all of his novels from Setting Free the Bears (1968) to his newest novel A Widow for One Year (1998). It also provides the reader with a complete bibliography of Irving's fiction, as well as selected reviews and criticism. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

An absolute MUST for Irving fans
This book is just fantastic.There's so much that's good to say about it, but if you're an Irving fan like I am, it's essential to your reading.She looks at his work in parts and as a whole, and does it wonderfully.I can't recommend this too highly. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

How an editor thinks. At least, a brilliant one.
John W. Campbell was the editor of Astounding, one of the pulp SF magazines of the 30s and 40s... and he was an key reason that science fiction evolved from pulp into a respectable genre. By the time of his death in 1971, Campbell had changed the entire field.

Campbell was everything that an author could ask for -- not just someone who selected stories for publication, but an editor who corresponded frequently and at great length with authors, helping them to improve at their craft and to suggest story ideas that might appeal. Boy, is *that* a long way from photocopied rejection slips.

This 600-page paperback collects letters that Campbell wrote thoughout his long career, and nearly every SF author of note is included (283 of them, according to the back cover). You don't see the letters to which Campbell is responding, but that era didn't have the same sense of immediacy-of-communication so Campbell's letters often restate or refer to the earlier correspondence. There are only a few letters from the 30s and 40s, but in this vast collection you do see how the man's mind worked... on topics ranging from science to story development to personal relationships. (In 1969 he wrote to Robert Silverberg about "your file-destroying fire -- but you must remember that old saying that 'Three moves is as good as a fire,' with regard to loss of possessions.")

I've had this book for a long time, and every so often I open it at random. I'm always pleasantly surprised, because it's rare to peek under the hood at the creative process at work... not for the creator, per se, but for the pragmatic muse who helps the artist shine the light in the right corner. If you are a fiction author, I think this book is a must-read. The letters are, after all, to successful authors (often, they got that way because of Campbell's influence); any would-be writer will appreciate seeing how and why a master editor rejects a story, and how he suggests ways to rework it.

Anyone in the role of editor (like myself) will also enjoy the book; we have too few examples of how to "edit" except as a typo-fixer. I've certainly done my best to emulate Campbell in my small way, by writing long missives to authors who could be great if only they solved _this_ problem in their writing.

An excellent collection of letters, but from wrong decades
John Campbell is without a doubt the most important science fiction editorof the twentieth century.Under his aegis, science fiction was completelyrecast from space opera into serious philosophical and scientificextrapolation; his stable of writers, led by Robert Heinlein and IsaacAsimov, created the Golden Age of Science Fiction.This collection ofletters shows the man at his most private, his most cantankerous, and hismost intellectually stimulating.Anybody interested in science fictionwill enjoy these letters.I have but two complaints.One, the collectionwould have been served even better had the letters TO Campbell beenincluded as well, since quite often he is responding to specific questionsand arguments.That's a minor complaint, given that the length of the bookwould have been exorbitant had they done so (although the editors seem tohave believed this would be just the first volume in a series, makinglength less of an issue).A larger complaint is the scarcity of letters inthe thirties and forties, when Campbell's influence was at its height.Bythe time the editors start putting in large collections of letters,Campbell's influence was secondary at best, as most of his original stablehad moved on to novels and other editors, and his own interests expandedinto little short of crusades: dianetics, psionics, anti-gravity, to name afew, as he began challenging the framework of accepted science andphilosophy.Some of those interests remain fascinating, especially hisexamination of how we think and feel, but others have been cast onto theashpile of ideas, such as the belief in psionics as the inevitable nextstage in human development.With those two caveats in mind, these lettersneed to be read, and the editors need to put together their long-promisedsecond volume, with a renewed emphasis on the thirties and forties. ... Read more