Doug Aitken: Alpha

Book Description

Description: "I became restless with the flat surface of the screen so the work gradually evolved into the rest of the space," says Doug Aitken of his multichannel film work. Lately he has been projecting from multiple points onto a single structure. And he has turned from wide-open and lonely landscapes (Electric Earth, Diamond Sea) to wide-open and lonely people (new skin). The protagonist of the surreal Alpha, played by cult actor Udo Kier is both: as he travels, he dematerializes and becomes the space that he inhabits. Luckily for readers, Aitken is as bored with the square shape of the conventional book as he is with the conventional screen: this collection of Alpha images, accompanied by text from the artist, is bound in the shape of a head in profile.

Book Description

Over 900 items are featured in beautiful color. Original advertisements add a special touch to this historical overview. Every item is described in detail with size, date of manufacture, marks, and 1999 values. AUTHORBIO: A historian first and a collector second, Laura Mueller assembled a collection that would represent the rise and fall of compacts for her two volumes, Collector's Encyclopedia of Compacts, Carryalls, Face Powder Boxes, Books I and II. Her knowledge of compacts is unparalleled. REVIEW: This book showcases a wide variety of compacts, some of the best examples of each quirk and turn of design that occurred in their production. Countless hours of research went into this book, and compacts are shown in large, detailed color photographs with information, sizes, and current collector values.

Customer Reviews:

SIMPLY FABULOUS!.......2006-10-12

This book is simply fabulous in every respect and you will most certainly not be disappointed! The pictures are plentiful, crisp, clear, and full color showing very precise detail of each item featured along with thorough descriptions, references to Ad's, dates and what I consider realistic price guidelines.

There are also additional photos of the inside of some compacts, especially the carryalls, which is extremely helpful in identifying what items should be there in order to maintain value. I have collected compacts and carryall's for years, but often find even though the exteriors are in great shape the interiors lack essential pieces, which can devalue, therefore knowing what you should have inside and out is of paramount importance to your collecting.

Compacts shown in this book are very attainable too, although there are those depicted, which are more difficult to find, rare and more expensive the book gives a wonderful comprehensive overview of VERY accessible compacts the collector can actually find in the market today. Within the first 50 pages I had already easily found and identified 6 compacts I purchased over the last 3 months AND I was able to identify even more within online auctions.

Finally a book that shows compacts, carryall's, etc. in great detail, gives a thorough description, references to Ad's, gives accurate dates and what I consider very accurate price guidelines, plus offers pieces, which can actually be found. This book is a stunning masterpiece both in text and photos and I can't wait to purchase the Second Edition!

EXCELLENT!! Incredible Reference & Price Guide!.......2002-04-15

From start to finish, this book is loaded with very sharp images of hundreds of vintage compacts ranging from absolutely gorgeous pieces to whimsical and always with great descriptions and current values. All of the photos are in beautiful color and are very sharp & easily recognizable. I've been collecting vintage compacts for years and was still amazed at the variety of styles and manufacturers that are included in this book! It stays on my desk and is a constant source of reference and pleasure! The only thing I would really like to see (maybe in a future publication) is the approximate age of each piece. Whether you're a serious collector or just a lover of the older compact beauties, you just cannot miss with this book....the author knows her stuff!!

the source for compacts.......2001-06-21

This volume, along with volume 2, is the best place to learn about compacts and how to collect them. Gorgeous photos, all in color, covering every possible category of compact imaginable. Mueller covers compact and makeup history, from Egyptian times to the turn of the 20th century to the demise of artistically designed compacts in the 1960s. Any reader will be educated in the world of compacts after going through these two volumes. A quality guide/encyclopedia.

Another stunning visual feast of compacts.......2001-04-19

This book is just as beautiful as Gersons' Vintage ladys compacts with just as many color photographs of compacts. How ever Mueller expands her information on compacts with every chapter and the different compacts are catagorized by type ie, military, novalty etc and she also includes face powder boxes and other related Items in her books. I would recommend getting both volumes of her Encyclopedias as one is meant to compliment the other. There was a wonderful wooden box that she includes in one of the books that was originally meant as a bridal gift that I would love to acquire. Mueller has put keepsakes from her own wedding in it to demonstrate what it could be used for. Plus on the top of many pages of her books are quotes from people who were in the cosmetic and compact business when compacts were originally made that I find fun and unique. I highly recommend these books by Mueller .

Wonderful.......1999-11-02

I bought this and Volume II. The history! The pictures! You know what you are seeing and reading about in a collectors book, AT LAST! I have been collecting for a number of years, just for the beauty and my own personal thoughts about the people that might have owned these compacts. Now I know so much that I have always wanted to know. Now that I have seen these books, even though some of mine are not listed, I know where to look! I would love to talk to Laura, the author, because she must feel the same.

Collector's Encyclopedia of Compacts Carry Alls & Face Powder Boxes (with Values Updated)

Average customer rating:

Collector's Encyclopedia of Compacts Carry Alls & Face Powder Boxes (with Values Updated)
Laura M. Mueller
Manufacturer: Collector Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Antiques & Collectibles | Encyclopedias | Reference | Subjects | Books
ASIN: B000MBT0MQ

Book Description

Personalities of actors, technical problems and their surmounting, daily events, much more. 38 photographs.

Customer Reviews:

Suffering for his Art.......2006-01-08

Some have found Cocteau's litany of illnesses that he (and others) suffered while filming "Beauty and the Beast" tedious and skipped over them as seemingly irrelevant. Unfortunately, those who do may miss the entire point of Cocteau's artistic esthetic, namely, the necessity for the artist to suffer and triumph over all adversity for the sake of his art. The suffering is part and parcel of his art, suffering is art, just as "Beauty and the Beast" suffered during the filming and triumphed as a lasting work of art. Cocteau was allied to the Surrealist movement (though distancing himself from it) and his suffering at the time mirrored the enormous technical difficulties encountered while making the film. The entire surreal struggle of Cocteau, of others involved and of the film itself is wonderfully captured in his journal and any serious student of the film will profit by reading it.

A great book!.......2001-12-09

I highly recommend this book to anyone who has seen Jean Cocteau's fil version of "Beauty and the Beast" The book is the diary of the film. There are some great photos in it as well.

Making Beauty from Beastly Conditions.......2000-05-26

Cocteau's diary on the making of his most famous film - "La Belle et la Bête" (1946) - recounts an almost endless series of obstacles that he encountered during its production. From illnesses (everyone involved seemed to suffer some significant ailment or injury during production) to production problems (bad film stock, unworkable cameras) to union disputes, the film was almost plagued from the start.

At times this litany of woe and frustration can be quite tedious - when Cocteau goes into a detailed discussion of his ezcema and other physical maladies, I tuned out. But it's still a fascinating look at not only how he pulled all the elements together (although his entries for the editing process are rather short) but also what filmmaking was like during a difficult time in French history. His depictions of his stars, Jean Marais and Josette Day, are quite interesting too. And the book shows perhaps better than many textbooks how the different talents on a film set contribute to the final result.

The book probably won't be enjoyable to those who haven't seen the movie (at least a few times) but for those who really admire this film, this behind-the-scenes look is a real treat.

fantastic value for money.......2000-01-14

A wonderful book. "Diary..." details Cocteau's seemingly insurmountable obstacles in creating one of the greatest-ever fantasy films. Includes plenty of on-set photos. Compulsively wonderful reading, and highly recommended for the price.

This Diary is great for anyone who is intrested in Films.......1999-04-06

Jean Cocteau was a genius. A genius who created works that enchant you when you witness them and confound you when you attempt to understand how they were executed. They give the appearance of such straight foward fluidity of thought and motion that they conceal all of Cocteau's struggle to create them. But beneath that glaze of facility is an infinite clockwork of tedious difficulty and boundless determination. This diary is the biography of one such clockwork.

Average customer rating:
Hymns and Spirituals for Clarinet (That's Easy Series)
Music Sales Corporation
Manufacturer: Music Sales Corporation
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Music | Entertainment | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0711942862

Average customer rating:
25 Hymns and Spirituals for Clarinets and Piano
John Gibson , and arr.
Manufacturer: JB Linear Music
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Spiral-bound
ASIN: 0974254290

Product Description

Flexible Arrangements for 1 or 2 clarinets or any combination of Flutes, Oboes, Alto Saxophones, and Tenor Saxophones. Can be played as a solo with piano, duet with piano, or as a woodwind duet without piano......audio CD is included! With this package you get a piano score, two parts (Clarinet I and Clarinet II) the audio CD, and a CD-ROM containing music files you can print yourself for flute, oboe, clarinet, alto sax and tenor sax. New and interesting arrangements by John Gibson of JB Linear Music. Plus, the Bible verse for each song is provided.

Book Description

Watch out, jumblers! Here comes a new, inventive way to jumble-using crosswords! Complete the crossword puzzles by looking at the clues and unscrambling the answers. When the puzzle is complete, unscramble the circled letters to solve the bonus riddle. Even tried and true Jumble(r) fans will not be able to resist this new take on a great puzzle.

Customer Reviews:

Fun Book for Puzzle Fans.......2000-11-18

This is a good puzzle and the book is a good collection of them. I have been playing Jumble Crosswords for 3 years in the Boston Globe and it is great. It is my only reason for buying the newspaper and I was very pleased with the book.

Book Description

When you’re establishing, expanding, or re-energizing a business, the best place to start is writing your business plan. Not only does writing out your idea force you to think more clearly about what you want to do, it will also give the people you work with a defined road map as well.

Business Plan Kit For Dummies, Second Edition is the perfect guide to lead you through the ins and outs of constructing a great business plan. This one-stop resource offers a painless, fun-and-easy way to create a winning plan that will help you lead your business to success. This updated guide has all the tools you’ll need to:

Generate a great business idea
Understand what your business will be up against
Map out your strategic direction
Craft a stellar marketing plan
Tailor your plan to fit your business’s needs
Put your plan and hard work into action
Start an one-person business, small business, or nonprofit
Create a plan for an already established business
Cash in on the Internet with planning an e-business

Featured in this hands-on guide is valuable advice for evaluating a new business idea, funding your business plan, and ways to determine if your plan may need to be reworked. You also get a bonus CD that includes income and overhead worksheets, operation surveys, customer profiles, business plan components, and more. Don’t delay your business’s prosperity. Business Plan Kit For Dummies, Second Edition will allow you to create a blueprint for success!

Note: CD-ROM/DVD and other supplementary materials are not included as part of eBook file.

Customer Reviews:

Good Format.......2007-06-12

Simple and easy to follow. Great to have CD for forms etc.

Looking for an intro to business before starting a plan?.......2007-05-02

Business Basics Bestseller 1: The Easy, Interesting, Open-book Look at the Game of Business Numbers! 2nd Edition

I've read some "Dummy" books and like them (it's how I learned to do PowerPoint). However, if you aren't quite ready to start a business plan and want to learn more about the financial side of business first, you will want to look at "Business Basics Bestseller 1" as a starting point. If you find the "Dummy" books to your liking, you'll enjoy zipping through this 150 page sketch filled title. This is not a suggestion that you substitute it for this book (it isn't), just that you check it out as well. The BBB #1 book was written by a guy who is not an accountant -- imagine what that can do for cutting through the jargon accountants love.

BBB #1 will introduce you to the basics of business including the terms behind the numbers and where all the financial statements and key formulas come from. That's a big help before you plow into setting up a business and talking to an accountant. Search for "Business Basics Bestseller 1" and add it to your consideration. It can be one of your best investments.

Excellent and Simple.......2006-02-28

If you are writing a business plan and have absolutely no idea how to do it, Business Plans for Dummies is the only way to go. This is my first experience with the "Dummies" series and I have to say I am very impressed. I am a commercial artist with very limited business experience. This book guided and helped me, especially making a lot of analitical sense to a very right brained person. I just dont think in terms of graphs and charts, yet they simplified it to a level that was intriguing, entertaining, and extremely useful. An excellent, excellent book!!!!

Practical, convenient, comprehensive.......2005-11-30

This book and cd combination is likely to be a good buy for quite a range of people. The great advantage that I see is that it is encyclopedic in scope. And by scope I am referring not to the great range of business and management knowledge that is available but to the processes that someone attempting to prepare a business plan is likely to face.

For example the book begins with Part I: Doing Your Planning Homework. This section assumes that you may not yet have a firm business idea. Yet the material on creating or identifying a business idea may very well be quite useful even to those people who have their basic idea in place.

In Part I Chapter two deals quite well with understanding the why of the business plan. This point, why you must be a business plan believer, is often taken for granted or dealt with by a few platitudes by some authors but here the topic gets full treatment. This could be particularly important to people who are attempting a business and a business plan for the first time.

Is the book encyclopedic? Well if you really want to understand market segmentation in depth you will have to go to a text or a couple of seminars. Nevertheless, the concept is here along with many others, but tailored to the beginner and to the new, small enterprise.

Perhaps comprehensive, rather than encyclopedic, would be a better word. However, if it is a topic likely to affect your startup or small business it is here at least in elementary terms. In fact, with an MBA and nearly 40 years experience, I would say that the technical treatment, for the given audience, is really quite good.

The forms or questionnaires, I believe, selectively could be useful to business people at almost any level. The forms take you through an exhaustive chain of concepts and detailed questions. Sometimes it seems that the questions are repetitive. Some of them may be redundant for your business but don't jump too quickly. Take your time and mull over the questions. If you do take the time, you may come up with an eye opening new thought here and there.

The CD allows you to print the forms, including your input, if you choose. The CD also introduces some trial versions of software that might be worth your consideration.

Since I do business plans as a part-time business, I expect that I will be referring to these convenient forms again and again in the future as my projects shift from one type of business situation to another.

Take a good look at this choice if you are serious about a business and a business plan.

OK Book...VALUABLE CD!! REALLY VALUABLE!.......2003-08-23

The book itself is a very basic rundown of starting a business running and keeping it going. The info presented is quite basic, and not very detailed. BUT, the enclosed CD is FULL, FULL, FULL of forms, government documents, sample by-laws, etc., etc., etc. Having all these forms at your disposal is invaluable. It's a terrific book and CD.

Average customer rating:

Outstanding woman, mediocre biography.

This book needed an editor

Insightful Read

Desert Queen: The extraordinary Lief of Gertrude Bell

If Only Washington Leaders Would All Read This Book

Desert Queen: The Extraordinary Life of Gertrude Bell: Adventurer, Adviser to Kings, Ally of Lawrence of Arabia
Janet Wallach
Manufacturer: Anchor Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
General | British | Historical | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
Political | Leaders & Notable People | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
Women | Specific Groups | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
General | Middle East | History | Subjects | Books
General | England | Europe | History | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

Passionate Nomad: The Life of Freya Stark (Modern Library Paperbacks)

The Desert and the Sown: The Syrian Adventures of the Female Lawrence of Arabia

Gertrude Bell: Queen of the Desert, Shaper of Nations

Gertrude Bell: The Arabian Diaries, 1913-1914

Suite Francaise

ASIN: 1400096197
Release Date: 2005-07-12

Amazon.com

A biography of the woman who, indirectly, was the catalyst for many of the troubles in the Middle East, including the Gulf War. In 1918, Gertrude Bell drew the region's proposed boundaries on a piece of tracing paper. Her qualifications for doing so were her extensive travel, her fluency in both Persian and Arabic, and her relationships with sheiks and tribal and religious leaders. She also possessed an ability to understand the subtle and indirect politeness of the culture, something many of her colonialist comrades were oblivious to. As a self-made statesman her sex was an asset, enabling her to bypass the ladder of protocol and dive into the business of building an Empire.

Book Description

Turning away from the privileged world of the "eminent Victorians," Gertrude Bell (1868—1926) explored, mapped, and excavated the world of the Arabs. Recruited by British intelligence during World War I, she played a crucial role in obtaining the loyalty of Arab leaders, and her connections and information provided the brains to match T. E. Lawrence's brawn. After the war, she played a major role in creating the modern Middle East and was, at the time, considered the most powerful woman in the British Empire.

In this masterful biography, Janet Wallach shows us the woman behind these achievements–a woman whose passion and defiant independence were at odds wit the confined and custom-bound England she left behind. Too long eclipsed by Lawrence, Gertrude Bell emerges at last in her own right as a vital player on the stage of modern history, and as a woman whose life was both a heartbreaking story and a grand adventure.

Customer Reviews:

Outstanding woman, mediocre biography........2007-08-23

As has been mentioned by others, I too wonder at the literary excesses of this book. "She sensed his profound hunger....". "....her heart pounding, her cheeks burning hot, and as his blue eyes burned with desire, he took her in his arms".
Gertrude Bell, an outstanding woman, deserves a better, a more maturely written biography. Thankfully, they are out there.

This book needed an editor.......2007-08-05

I began to read this book with anticipation. I was a put off by the sort of breathless tone more worthy of a bad romance novel.

About twenty pages in, I was surprised by a reference to the Ottoman Empire expanding since the 13th century from Constantinople. The Ottoman Empire expanded around Constantinople from the 13th to the 15th centuries, until they finally took the city in 1453, and promptly renamed it Istanbul.

I soldiered on, until I was informed that British were fighting Germans in the Boer war in the late 1890s. The Boers, descended from Dutch colonists, would have been surprised to hear themselves described as German.

These two mistakes, obvious to anyone with a decent knowledge of history, ruined my willingness to accept anything else in the book. I put down the book, never knowing if Miss Bell was able to overcome her lost early love.

Gertrude Bell's life seems to be worthy of a good biography. This isn't it.

Insightful Read.......2007-07-04

A book which skilfully interweaves historical facts with the anecdotes and day-to-day life of a woman struggling to find her place in the Middle East.
Was left with a sense of awe from her accomplishments and the beginnings of an inkling as to the political and religious turmoil and troubles of this region based on the history retold by Janet Wallach.

Desert Queen: The extraordinary Lief of Gertrude Bell.......2007-03-09

I only wish George W and Chaney would have read this book before entering into War with Iraq. The history of British rule and their failure to solve the Tribal problems at the establishment of Iraq as a new State after the breakup of the Otterman Empire. This only proves that History can repeat itself.

If Only Washington Leaders Would All Read This Book.......2007-01-23

Yes, I would venture to say that anyone who reads this book as well as Lawrence's "Seven Pillars of Wisdom" would be better qualified to shape US foreign policy in the Middle East than those who are now doing that... When will we ever learn?

DESERT QUEEN. The Extraordinary Life of Gertrude Bell. Adventurer, Adviser to Kings, Ally of Lawrence of Arabia.

Average customer rating:

DESERT QUEEN. The Extraordinary Life of Gertrude Bell. Adventurer, Adviser to Kings, Ally of Lawrence of Arabia.
Janet: Wallach
Manufacturer: Pan
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000W2ZXS0

Desert Queen: The Extraordinary Life of Gertrude Bell: Adventurer, Adviser to Kings, Ally of Lawrence of Arabia.(Review) (book reviews): An article from: The Geographical Journal

Average customer rating:

Desert Queen: The Extraordinary Life of Gertrude Bell: Adventurer, Adviser to Kings, Ally of Lawrence of Arabia.(Review) (book reviews): An article from: The Geographical Journal
Jane Samson
Manufacturer: Royal Geographical Society
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital
Similar Items:

Desert Queen: The Extraordinary Life of Gertrude Bell: Adventurer, Adviser to Kings, Ally of Lawrence of Arabia

ASIN: B00098F1JI
Release Date: 2005-07-28

Book Description

This digital document is an article from The Geographical Journal, published by Royal Geographical Society on July 1, 1998. The length of the article is 513 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Desert Queen: The Extraordinary Life of Gertrude Bell: Adventurer, Adviser to Kings, Ally of Lawrence of Arabia.(Review) (book reviews)
Author: Jane Samson
Publication: The Geographical Journal (Refereed)
Date: July 1, 1998
Publisher: Royal Geographical Society
Volume: 164 Issue: 2 Page: 227

Article Type: Book Review

Distributed by Thomson Gale

Average customer rating:

DESERT QUEEN, THE EXTRAORDINARY LIFE OF GERTRUDE BELL: ADVENTURER, ADVISER TO KINGS, ALLY OF LAWRENCE OF ARABIA
Janet Wallach
Manufacturer: Doubleday
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000VGGWY6

Book Description

This compact, yet comprehensive volume provides both narrative history and a cartographic display of the Battle of Gettysburg that makes the enets of the engagement both vivd and easy to understand.

Customer Reviews:

Use while reading The Killer Angels.......2003-12-16

The American Civil War has a very steep learning curve. There are so many names and so many details. When I read the Killer Angels, I found I had a little bit of trouble following who was who. Afterwards, when I visited the battlefield I realized I had imagined the battlefield a bit incorrectly.

That was a little more than ten years ago. Now I read about the Civil War like some follow soap operas. I'm no longer overwhelmed with detail and I enjoy rereading familiar events from slightly different points of view. The Killer Angels had helped me along quite a bit. After all, half the war was before Gettysburg and half was afterwards, giving me a nice way to organize.

But this book was also very helpful. While the National Park Service map provides an excellent tour, so does this book. It also breaks down the action into appropriate time intervals.

I particularly recommend this book to those who've read Killer Angels and want to read it again or read more on Gettysburg. Lots of details will fit into place.

Excellent source for the interested visitor.......1999-08-21

The copy outlines the significant areas of the battle very well. Regardless of your level of expertise, it is easy to follow the progress of the battle. Although the maps are clear and show topographical features, they do not include the roads added since the battle. However, there is a segment on the Battlefield Today that brings the past and present into focus. Overall, this is an excellent source. Buy it if you can find it.

Average customer rating:

Gettysburg: A Battlefield Atlas
Craig Symonds
Manufacturer: Nautical & Aviation
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000OKDB98

Book Description

Climatologist extraordinaire Patrick J. Michaels says it is.

Customer Reviews:

The truth may be inconvenient........2007-03-29

In the last few months it was announced on the news that there was a consensus of scientists about the reality of human effected climate change and because of this consensus there was a growing imperative for the need to act. Not too long after president Bush announced in his state of the union address some measures which he argued would help in the fight against global warming. More recently there has been much publicity to the breakup of the Arctic Ice cap and speculation about the ability to sail once again through a North West Passage while at the other pole scientists have discovered lakes beneath the artic ice which have a significant effect on that ecosystem. This morning on the weather channel it was noted that yesterday the temperature high in West Caldwell, New Jersey, was the highest since 1947.

For me this last remark is significant as I have yet to hear of any claims that the earth has been steadily warming since 1947 yet the temperature in that year was over 70 degrees F.

What is the relevance of all this to this book you may ask? A good question. Being of English origin it is often said that the talking point is always the weather. Whilst this may not be true, I for one have long found the subject interesting. However, my degrees are in economics, social science and education so I cannot claim any expertise in this area. However, I am somewhat sceptical of many of the claims made about global warming and environmental change mainly due to the reliability of evidence relating to centuries past. I recall the predictions made in the 1990's of the disastrous winds which would cause havoc at the turn of the century yet never happened as well as the claims made for population growth in the 1960's which were proved false. I also believe that there is a lot of money to be made from the scaremongering about global warming by those who argue the most passionately for it. It is also true that even if countries like the US go for smaller more fuel efficient cars, then the wealthy and the powerful in our society will still be able to drive their relative gas guzzlers with impunity.

This book is an asset to the layman trying to make sense about the true nature of climatic change. It shows that the consensus is more of a fabrication than reality because of the vested interests of those who formed the consensus to begin with. The Satanic Gases addresses many areas of concern and shows that the evidence upon which many conclusions are based is flawed or the reasoning is somewhat suspect.

The major deficiency in the book lies in the ability or otherwise of the average reader to assess the quality of the information contained therein. I also consider that a second edition is long overdue which could incorporate more current information.

The book is recommended by a number of eminent persons but that should not be a reason for merely accepting it's premises and arguements. For my own part I feel that it is required of us as active citizens to be sceptical of expensive and huge government programmes and to ask questions of our elected officials to help us truly understand the nature of them.

It is my belief that the jury is still out on this issue and while that does not excuse inaction for the future, it is certainly our duty to ask that these programmes are really based on sound science and unassailable evidence.

Very good, and a lot less conservative than most think.......2007-02-23

Many times there is the warning through the book: do not criticize global warming advocates simply because some climate models have flaws. Such is petty and nonproductive behavior, and productive thought and research are badly needed. Right now we need to keep improving climate and Earth models for better accuracy and predictablility. Also, the most important idea from this book is to keep asking the questions "how" and "how much," especially the second (p60). These approaches are not conservative, but rather what real scientists strive to do every day. The book title sounds combative, and likely turns off many on the Left, who often seem to prefer hearing bad news only.

The authors claim that hurricane wind speeds actually decreased as ocean temperature rose over the last century. This seems surprising, and bears checking out with other published numbers-based results. The CO2 portion of the book is quite well done, but the small part about toxicity levels can be safely ignored. On the other hand, the chapter "Greening the Planet" is well worth reading a second time. CO2, they remind us, is not a pollutant, but rather a gaseous fertilizer for plant life. It is possible, though, to argue that ANY chemical is a pollutant if present in great enough quantity, if one wishes to split hairs.

The last chapter, as with just about all climate change books, is not particularly strong. Most last-chapters are hand wringers, but Satanic Gases is at least not one of them. The authors advocate swapping the existing biased federal funding of research and development for private funding, and this is a forward thought. A minor observation: for some reason, critics keep badmouthing the authors' statement about ozone breaking down to the hydroxyl radical. Clearly, this criticism is mean-spirited, as technical people must know very well that the hydroxyl radical is tangled in the intermediate steps of the chemical change, although the authors did make a bad choice of prepositions. Their high school English teachers would be tsk-tsk'ing!

Excellent book.......2007-02-20

Although a few years old, the author's points are still totally pertinent to the ongoing debate on global warming. I appreciated his review of a wide range of articles across the ten or twelve scientific areas that comprise the focus of climate change. I found his general contention compelling - that some people - and the ICPP in particular - are overstating the degree of change likely due to human-induced greenhouse emissions. When you start looking at the details of the debate, such as the specifics of the GCMs (general circulation models), what their limitations actually are, and what the datasets show for the various temperature, precipitation, soil moisture, storm frequencies and strengths (hurricane and tornado), and the trends that are claimed to appear, you find a great deal of noise. That is probably the single thing that would cool people's attitudes if they bothered to actually find out what the research indicates. There just aren't the striking, clear-cut changes that lead to certainty in decision making with human activity as the primary cause of all the problems, both predicted and speculated. It does indicate that there are some changes, but in other areas there is no discernable change - and in general, there is nothing like for example, Al Gore indicates. The conclusion one will likely come to after a close reading of the literature is that the strong proponents of human-induced climate change are taking some substantial leaps of faith. In fact, I strongly recommend interested people first read Gore's book "Inconvenient Truth" and then read Michaels' book(s). That makes the situation quite clear. Gore comes off as somebody completely certain of his view, never mentioning alternative interpretations or any of the limitations that exist in the methods, measures, analyses, or literature. Michaels comes off as an interested scientist who is a bit frustrated at Gore's blinders and adamant assertions, and is deeply interested in the details of the science. For understanding the actual data and our situation on the world, the latter is better.

In Gore's case, he asserts it is a fact that massive changes will take place, but Michaels shows quite convincingly, that these assertions are not supported by the data. In my own following of the literature for the last 25 years (coming out of my own research in solar physics, ionospheric physics, and solar-terrestrial paleoclimatology, and also psychology), I think it is safe to say that most of the particular things Gore says have been suggested in some form in some place in the literature, but the problem comes because he pulls them altogether into an oveall assertion of one gigantic and horrific "fact". In doing this, he ignores all limitations in measurement, and all problems of interpretation. To me, he illustrates why a politician should never think he is a scientist - because his political views structure the data, his entire logic is political and so the integrity of the science isn't important, what is important is his use of it for his political purposes. As a personal opinion, it seems to me Gore's entire approach is messianic, which is the opposite of what science should be. Reading this book and Michaels' other books will be greatly informative for anybody who wants to take the time to understand the basis for climate change, and whether or to what degree it is related to human activity. It isn't a simple thing, even though Gore asserts it is. It has become profoundly politically biased, which is a really awful result for the science, because it makes doing and interpreting science into a mindfield of other people's agendas. To me, this is the worst legacy of Gore's posturing. He certainly can say whatever he wants, but he has melded an ostensibly scientific veneer to his own highly biased political beliefs, and then asserted they are received facts about the world and that everybody else should shut up. However, in contrast Michaels does a good job of showing how scientists actually come to their conclusions.

I should add that Michaels takes the reasonable position that we are affecting the climate, that increasing the CO2, methane and other greenhouse gas concentrations does have an effect, but he systematically evaluates the degree of that effect so readers will have a better chance to understand the difficulty of making huge generalizations. Again, reading Gore's book and then Michaels' books will underscore the difference.

In sum: Michaels suggests the changes are not likely catastrophic; that is an extreme interpretation, but there are some effects and it is likely that we can and will live by minimal adaptation. Michaels seems exceptionally even-handed, and I fail to see anywhere in his book the kind of stridency that global-warming proponents claim. I think they do the so-called "skeptics" and the science a huge disservice by their blanket assertions that if somebody somewhere sometime ever was a paid consultant of industry or associated with some convervative cause, then he is impossibly biased and everything he says is discredited. That simply isn't true. It is a political statement, a rhetorical position that allows you to dismiss everybody who disagrees with one side. That isn't a good idea for understanding something complex because the answers do not ever all come from one side. This probably is an infiltration of the scientific debate by a politica agenda, which is extremely unfortunate for everybody. I prefer to take ideas on their merits regardless of their source. Even a conniving consultant can be correct, and also, even a politician who wants to be modern eco-Messiah can be correct. So a blanket dismissal means you'll never know whether they are, or whether they both are wrong for entirely different reasons. This is what disturbs me most of all in this entire situation. Science lives in the questions we ask, and if one side shuts down the question-asking, then the science and our understanding suffers. Gore asserts that proponents are motivated in a "pure" way by helping mankind, which I don't doubt. But helping mankind also involves getting government funding, here to the tune of $29 billion dollars over the past 20 years. So there is indeed economic incentive on both sides. However, in neither case does it flatly negate the science that results. Sometimes people who are the most motivated are the best at finding good answers, good questions or factual limitations, so it makes no sense to me to shut them down no matter what "side" they are on.

I find it terrible that people can read Ross Gelbspan's book (e.g., the heat is on) and suddenly feel completely righteous in pronouncing Richard Lindzen of MIT as "discredited". Since when does reading a book by a political activist allow you to render judgment on a professional, Ph.D. scientist from one of the best universities in the world, and who has devoted his entire life to understanding climate change? I have found that the people who do this know almost nothing of the actual science. It appears they are looking for a basis on which to turn their own beliefs into cudgels. That doesn't help understand what is or may be, going on. I mention it because several friends of mine did just that.

Michaels also adds other issues that seem immediately important to the debate but are ignored in almost all other treatments, for example, that humans are rather drastically changing the landscape by farming, by logging, by regrowing forests, creating reservoirs, and that these affect the amount of incident energy absorbed or reflected, and likely alter the overall energy balance. If you wish to understand the overall debate, this is an excellent source of information and questions.

Doug Ammons

Six years on, this book looks better and better.......2006-11-27

This past winter (2006) was the coldest ever measured in Antarctica (and, generally, throughout the Southern Hemisphere). I have always thought that Pat Michaels was too hasty is conceding that the globe has warmed half a degree or so in the past century. It may not have warmed at all. In any event, the review I wrote in 2000 understates the problems with the warmers,.

Just hours after I finished "The Satanic Gases" in 2000, the Associated Press reported on an alarming assessment of climate change done for Congress, which predicts the bad things that will happen if the world heats up by 5 to 10 degrees over the next century.
But not to worry. It's another hoax.
How so? Well, the agency in charge of panicking the world about climate change, the United Nations' Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, is predicting a global temperature rise between 1990 and 2100 of just 3 degrees.
And besides, it rates the uncertainty of its own estimate as between 1 and 3.5 degrees.
Put another way, the lowest estimate used for the report to Congress is 50 percent worse than the highest estimate made by the body that claims to represent the consensus view of the world's scientists.
What's a body to do? Climatologist Pat Michaels has been a reliable guide on this issue. Now, in "The Satanic Gases," he and Robert Balling bring up to date the questions Michaels published in "Sound and Fury" in 1992.
In "Satanic Gases," they maintain Michaels' earlier position, which is that 1) the general circulation models used to predict climate change are unreliable; 2) that warming will be less than the IPCC predicts; and 3) what warming does happen will be mostly at night and during the winter, and the effects will be good for everybody.
They now are able to defend those views in greater detail than eight years ago. The $10 billion spent on climate research since then has at least bought a deeper understanding of how Earth's climate behaves.
But, they argue, following the philosopher of science Thomas Kuhn, we are in a "paradigm shift," in which evidence is piling up against the orthodox view, causing orthodox scientists to create ever more baroque explanations to defend the old order.
Eventually, according to Kuhn, the walls are breached and the new, simpler, more persuasive explanation is accepted. (But, Kuhn says, it usually requires that the orthodox die off; few change their minds.)
Kuhn's theory relies heavily on the history of cosmographic and physical science in a bygone age, when the heterodox risked burning at the stake by the Holy Inquisition.
In that respect, we are better off. The lifestyles of the young and heterodox may blight their academic careers, but at least they are not murdered.
In fact, say Michaels and Balling, in the modern system of peer-reviewed research publications, even heterodox reports get published.
To get past the orthodox reviewers, these studies must be exceptionally compelling.
Michaels and Balling claim that hundreds of such studies have now been done, though they are swamped by the tens of thousands of orthodox ones.
No layman could possibly sort out the mess. So the question is, who has a good record as a guide?
Michaels does. In the kind of backhanded compliments that are so common in the global warming debate, the panicmongers have repeatedly made "corrections" to their models in the direction where Michaels (and a few others) pointed. They just don't give him credit.
Instead, he has been internationally vilified by a number of governments' environment ministers.
Nevertheless, in the late '80s, Michaels asserted that the predictions of the climate models were too high. By 1995, enough time had passed and enough real temperatures were available that it was embarrassingly clear than Michaels was right.
The models looked ridiculous. To save the appearances, the IPCC decided that the cooling effects of sulfate aerosols (which are abundantly created by the same processes that enhance global warming) must be cranked into the models.
In "Satanic Gases," Michaels and Balling demolish the validity of the sulfate adjustment, but whether they are correct about that or not, the underlying fact is beyond dispute: The panicmongers were wrong, and their wrong conclusions were the underpinning of the Kyoto Treaty on climate control.
Michaels and Balling do not dispute that human activity is having an effect on climate, nor that the world is getting warmer. But, they say, we do not have to rely on models to tell us what will happen. "Since we have been enhancing the greenhouse effect for more than 100 years, nature has already given us the answer," they write.
That answer, they contend, is not just a greenhouse world but a greener world, with better weather (fewer storms, and not more as the panicmongers have predicted), bigger crops and fewer weather-related deaths.

Finally scientists speak.......2005-12-21

A must read for anyone with any functioning gray cells.

Finally some scientists speak out on the subject. Before this book, all I had to judge from was questionable logic from the media. At least now I have some "balance" on the problem.

The authors explore questions that someone merely influenced by talking heads and politicians would never consider. Is mankind the cause of global warming or are we just part of the process? What "are" greenhouse gases? Exactly how much of them do we actually contribute? What is Earth's history and tolerance to them? AND MOST IMPORTANT OF ALL: Is global warming a bad thing?

Their explanation of the flaws in the "Peer Review" process is worth the read alone.

Caution: If you voted for algore, and believe everything he says, this book will be wasted on you - don't bother - go read Earth in the balance again (what a waste of ink). But if you have the ability to consider counter positions, it may be worth the risk.

Heat vs. Light in the Global Warming Wars.(Review): An article from: American Scientist

Average customer rating:

Heat vs. Light in the Global Warming Wars.(Review): An article from: American Scientist
John Firor
Manufacturer: Sigma Xi, The Scientific Research Society
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital

General | Science | Subjects | Books

Science & Technology | Subjects | e-Docs | Formats | Books

Book Description

This authoritative guide is unparalleled in scope and depth. More than 3,500 brilliant color illustrations show each bird from up to twelve different angles, clearly and accurately presenting all distinguishing features of male and female, juvenile and adult birds. The engaging text is easily accessible yet detailed enough to satisfy even the most experienced birdwatcher.

Books:

Books Index

Books Home

Recommended Books