Biophysical Chemistry: Part II: Techniques for the Study of Biological Structure and Function (Their Biophysical Chemistry; PT. 2)

Customer Reviews:

Very detailed explanation of the theory.......2002-01-18

I got this book to learn more about various biophysical techniques. I have been doing research in this area for a few years and felt it was high time to get some formal explanations of the theory behind all the experiments that I do.
The book presents a detailed description and account of the theory of numerous techniques including absorption and emmission spectroscopy, NMR, CD, crystallography, chromatography, electrophoresis and many other methods.
Although the authors claim that readers need not have any experience in physical chemistry I think this is a little far fetched. Having just taken a course in quantum mechanics, I still struggled through some of the derivations. I think this is a good book for people who either have had prior experience with the field of biophysics, or have a strong mathematical background. This book is not a walk through the park. There are many equations and at times more advanced mathematical techniques such as fourier analysis or matrix algebra are used. If you want an introduction to biophysics, you're better off using an easier, less mathematically rigourous book. For example, if you're interested in spectroscopy, there is a simpler book called Biological Spectroscopy by Campbell and Dwek. However, if you are interested in the theory behind these important techniques and don't mind a little math, this is the book for you. Biophysics is an ever expanding and exciting field; this book can show you why!

Indespensable series-most useful volume for serious biosci........2000-07-18

I used the 1980 edition of this series at UC Berkeley when studying Biophysics there, then needed it for a class in molecular biology. The series takes the most precise examination of the functioning and theory with serious treatment employing calculus to describe dynamic processes in contrast to many other texts that offer only cartoons, photographs and simple math for the mathematically challenged undergraduate. After I graduated, the series was the only indespensable textbook for me in my research at Cetus Corporation where the Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) was developed. The inventor of PCR (Kary Mullis) shared the Nobel prize for chemistry for the process in 1993. My research on HIV was illuminated by the Cantor & Schimmel series and I learned the fundamentals of unfamiliar methods by use of this particular volume of the series. It's no wonder that my original copy disappered. I look forward to getting the 1997 edition of this volume.

Customer Reviews:

Mockel's desert flower notebook.......2006-04-22

It is not a flower catalog.
It is not a textbook.
No Dictionary Needed!
Care was taken not to use technical terms where informal English would suffice. Plants were selected which could represent the major subdivisions. The species generally differ only slightly, not enough to concern the casual observer. It was considered essential not to confuse nonprofessionl people with scientific complexities. Observations and illustrations were made in the field from living plants and thereby numbers of significant facts, which are not commonly recognized, are reported.
--- from book's introduction

Average customer rating:
Sicily Insight Regional Guide

Manufacturer: APA INSIGHT GUIDES (
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000GM6AI8

Book Description

Explore the fascinating world of early civilizations and cultures with Jamestown’s Early Civilizations. The highly visual design and engaging text capture students’ interest while developing their reading skills. Each Early Civilizations book vividly describes everyday life and explores the recreation, food, laws, health, fashion, and religion of the culture. Details of each era are revealed in over 100 photographs and illustrations with call-outs that bring the past to life.

Reading Level 5-6
Interest Level 6-12

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Hummingbirds of North America- Review

Hummingbirds - one of my passions.....

Steve Howell's photographic hummingbird guide

The Best Hummingbird Book Ever

Hummingbirds of North America: The Photographic Guide
Steve Howell
Manufacturer: Princeton University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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A Field Guide to Hummingbirds of North America (Peterson Field Guides)

Stokes Hummingbird Book : The Complete Guide to Attracting, Identifying, and Enjoying Hummingbirds

The Secret Lives of Hummingbirds

The World of the Hummingbird

Peterson Reference Guides: Gulls of the Americas (Peterson Reference Guides)

ASIN: 0691116032

Book Description

This book is the first ever, comprehensive photographic guide to the identification of all 24 species of hummingbirds to be seen as breeders or vagrants in North America.

For all their startling colors, the speed of hummingbird flight and the often drab coloration of females and immatures make this group especially difficult to deal with in the field. The simple field marks are often poorly lit, hard to spot, or simply not shown by any particular individual under observation. But accurate identification of these popular and beautiful birds brings both real satisfaction and a welcome challenge to most birders.

Steve Howell, a well-known and respected bird tour leader and author, has made a particular study of the finer points of hummingbird recognition and has specially chosen over 200 stunning photographs to complement the information given in his text. Some species feature as many as 14 photographs each. A detailed introduction covers the basics of hummingbird anatomy and plumage variation, allowing the observer to effectively focus on points that are of value in the field. New field marks are provided and old myths dispelled in this ground breaking and essential new guide.

Key Features:

Contains up to 14 full-color photos for each species, with detailed photo captions
Detailed introduction covers fundamentals of hummingbird identification, including discussions of anatomy, plumage variation, and molt
Comprehensive species accounts describe all plumages, compare similar species in depth, and discuss voice, displays, behavior, geographic range, and seasonal distribution
Emphasizes difficult to identify plumages, such as females and immatures
Features 200 stunning photos picked specifically to show identification criteria

Customer Reviews:

Hummingbirds of North America- Review.......2007-07-09

Um livro bastante técnico, exelente para biólogos e/ou ornitólogos.As informações são muito completas principalmente no que se refere às variações de plumagens que ocorrem dentro das mesmas espécies( machos, fêmeas e filhotes).Exelentes informações sobre a distribuição geográfica das espécies.

Hummingbirds - one of my passions............2007-05-13

I'm now able to correctly identiful many species of Hummingbirds. Great source of information. Very detailed book.

Steve Howell's photographic hummingbird guide.......2006-03-01

This is a very useful book for birders who want to be able to identify hummingbirds in the U.S. It includes photos and accompanying text for every hummingbird that you are likely (or lucky enough) to spot within U.S. borders. The text is particularly good, and the photos are shown large enough to be of use to the beginner/intermediate birdwatcher in addition to the experienced observer.

The Best Hummingbird Book Ever.......2002-03-30

At The Hummingbird Web Site and at the guest ranch we manage in the mountains in southeastern Arizona we are often asked what is the best hummingbird book. Here's the answer: Steve Howell's Hummingbirds of North America: A Photographic Guide. We refer to it almost daily. It sits in our office beside the three other bird books we would not be without -- the Sibley Guide, Jon Dunn's National Geographic Field Guide, and A Guide to the Birds of Mexico by - Guess who? - Steve Howell. Most of our guests are bird watchers on vacation. The book they were all talking about last year was the Sibley Guide. This year the book most often mentioned is the Howell hummingbird book.

Book Description

Inverse problems are concerned with determining causes for observed or desired effects. Problems of this type appear in many application fields both in science and in engineering. The mathematical modelling of inverse problems usually leads to ill-posed problems, i.e., problems where solutions need not exist, need not be unique or may depend discontinuously on the data. For this reason, numerical methods for solving inverse problems are especially difficult, special methods have to be developed which are known under the term “regularization methods“. This volume contains twelve survey papers about solution methods for inverse and ill-posed problems and about their application to specific types of inverse problems, e.g., in scattering theory, in tomography and medical applications, in geophysics and in image processing. The papers have been written by leading experts in the field and provide an up-to-date account of solution methods for inverse problems.

Customer Reviews:

A nice collection of papers.......2001-04-06

The book is a collection of diverse papers on inverse problems. The papers cover different applications and different techniques applied to inverse problems.

For a starter on inverse problems, the book presents the latest work and provides pointers to follow up the content. This will save a lot of boring library work :)

Customer Reviews:

Real good reading........2000-04-02

This book is good with select mysteries about the great case-solver of all times. When you read any Holmes case, you must keep in mind that these were the times when technoloy was so much behind what it is now; there was no way to even type fingerprints... only Holmes and his arch rival knew the art! This makes for good reading when you want to a refreshing break. Young kids can also follow the language, in fact I bought this one for my niece but ended up reading it myself... took me back a good 15 years. There's nothing like Sir Arthur Conan Doyle when it comes to Sherlock Holmes. A good buy, worth every cent it costs.

Book Description

In a major new biography, veteran military historian and WII biographer, Charles Whiting combines both talents to tell the tale of barefoot Texan share-cropper's son, who could barely read and write, but became not only the US Army's most decorated soldier in its 250 - year history, but also the star of forty Paramount produced movies: most of which are shown on TV screens around the world to this very day. The gentle-eyed, baby-faced hero had won every decoration the United States had to offer before he was eligible to vote and killed 240 enemy soldiers in the process. Luck made him a movie star. Always he tried to improve himself, but time and time again he was relegated to the 'horse operas', where as he wisecracked cynically, "it was the same old movie, only they changed the colour of the horse." But there was a price to pay for his heroism in drugs, nervous tension and Murphy's addiction to violence. Even as a middle-aged movie star, he always slept with a .45 beneath his pillow, plagued by nightmares of the war. Murphy had been an ordinary boy, who had volunteered to go to fight and did so with exceeding bravery in the last 'good war'. He paid highly for that bravery and sense of duty to a country which had given him nothing save "malnutrition", as he used to quip. He was that last American Hero, who did as President Kennedy proclaimed, " Don't ask what your country can do for you. Ask what you can do for your country." Even before his young life had really commenced, he had become a legend. But in the end 'Tinseltown' and the 'feather merchants' of Hollywood broke him. As Time magazine commented on his death; "Audie Murphy belonged to an earlier, simpler time, one in which bravery was a cardinal and killing was a virtue... We shall not see his like again."

Customer Reviews:

A blase book. There are better.......2007-08-09

This book is shabby compared to the book written by Harold B. Simpson:
Audie Murphy, American Soldier. This book was printed in two 5000 ea volumes editions. I have the Veterans edition. This book was published in 1975 and is now a very rare collectors item going for at least $75 and as high as $300.00

This book is worth every single detailed fottnoted page. It is a
complete expose on his early days, through his heroics on the battle fields. I am a penultimate fan of Audie Murphy, I served with the 3rd Infantry Division at Kitzingen, Wurzburg and Schweinfurt for over 7 years
of mu military career.

Charles Whiting would have done much better had he researched Simpsons book for the references written in the bibliography.

I would therefore giive Whiting a c- in journalism for this book.

Audie Murphy deserves much more........2007-04-13

I used to watch his films when I was a child and I still am a fan of him mainly because of his heroism as a soldier. If you want to see his truly heroism just watch "To hell and back". There you are going to see what was "a true war hero" and understand that a soldier like this won't born in this world anymore. He was not an ordinary soldier, he was the best one. I agree that this book doesn't match his importance to American history, but where many men that have never attended to any war get rich writing books about their times as protesters in front of Lincoln Monument, it's easy to understand why American people want to forget this kind of a man. Mainly because he was not graduated in any great university. Soldiers have been dying for countries that don't give a damn for them at all. But as a first book about this great American is a good choice, buy it.

Baby Face Hero, To Soon to Rest........2007-03-29

A great book on a great American war hero. Not as detailed as I would have liked, but for it's size (239 pages) a good buy.

Murphy must have been more interesting than this.......2006-11-16

Considering he is America's most-decorated soldier, the story of Audie Murphy's combat career as told by Charles Whiting is amazingly dull. There is no convincing explanation given for Murphy's extraordinary actions, and the descriptions of the combat itself are lacking in detail, so it's hard to come up with a feeling for what might have been going on in Murphy's head at the time. It's possible, I suppose, that Murphy just stumbled into heroism like so many before and since, and that he is not really extraordinary at all. That doesn't seem to match the "troubled loner" picture that Whiting describes, but maybe that's all there is. And a final note on the editing ... I have never seen such poor production. The number of spelling mistakes, missing words and missing punctuation in this text are beyond belief. I would guess an average of one glaring mistake every 4 or 5 pages, sometimes in big bunches that make you wonder how this book was brought to market.

Book review.......2006-07-10

Interesting but a little dry at first since I am not a 'war buff' simply a Audie Murphy fan. I would, however, recommend it for it's content and pictures.

Book Description

A true account of the fifty-six hour battle during the 1968 TeT offensive in Vietnam which resulted in the author being awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor. This battle is the vehicle used to describe the structure and mission of a highly sensitive, little known but successful program run by the Central Intelligence Agency using United States Army Special Forces and indigenous soldiers.

Customer Reviews:

An American Hero with Integrity!.......2007-05-10

Drew writes without holding back. He tells his story like it happened without playing politics. Some who were there aren't happy with how he told the story--but for historians of military action, Drew did us all a favor. PRUs had a questionable history in Vietnam and the good and bad depended on American leadership. Drew held a tight control over some very tough aggressive men.

Job well done, Drew!

Donald E. Zlotnik, Major (Ret)
Special Forces

BUY IT!!!.......2007-03-16

Reviewer: William B. Townsend (Tarboro, NC).

My good friend, NAGO, is mentioned in the book 55 times during the 56 hour time span. He has nothing but awe for Drew Dix, and Drew asked me to read the following to NAGO at his combination birthday party with my daughter, Dixie.

"A soldier's life is based on honor, integrity, loyalty and bravery and would not be totally complete if all of these qualities were not experienced. Mine is truly complete, because of my service and experiences with my friend and fellow warrior, NAGO." Thank you for your service and thank you for watching my back!

He also signed his letter to me as below.

"Drew Dix
Awarded The Congressional Medal OF Honor
On January 16, 1969 For Conspicuous Gallantry
And Intrepidity In Action At The Risk Of His Life
Above And Beyond The Call Of Duty In Which
"NAGO" Was A Big Part"

Another words, Drew Dix is not just a hero, but one who unselfishly gives credit to those who were with him at the time. An individual mentioned to me that after reading the book, that it was hard for him to believe that it actually happened. I stated that no, that wasn't my problem, but that I thought it difficult to believe that he wasn't hit once the entire time.

Buy the book. You won't be sorry.

He led from the front........2007-02-07

This book reads like one of those all star western movies where Wyatt Earp/Doc Holiday or Davy Crockett/Jim Bowie team up to take on the bad guys. In this case the real life heroes are Vietnam special operations Green Berets and SEALs. During the Tet Offensive Drew Dix led from the front and rescued an American civilian nurse, a Vietnamesse offical's family, a group of allied civilians and captured up to 20 Viet Cong as well as a high ranking VC officer. When you read this book you will know why there is a statue in Pueblo, Co. of this modern day hero.

Fifty six hours of continuous heroism.......2005-03-31

Looking for a true tale of valor and self-sacrifice ? This is the book for you. Drew Dix earned the Medal of Honor for his valor. Happily, Dix survived and is doing well. He is thinking about writing another book. I hope he does. Anyone interested in other stories of living Medal of Honor recipients might want to read Medal of Honor by Peter Collier.

excellent.......2004-11-29

When I visited Pueblo, Colorado this last summer, I stopped by the Medal of Honor Memorial. The citation is there recounting how Mr. Dix earned the Medal of Honor. This book is the detailed version of the citation. Reading this book is like having Mr Dix in the same room telling me the story. I've loaned it out to several people and there is no one that can put it down. This also provides a small glimpse into the Viet Nam War and how it was fought. PBS had a special on the 4 men from Pueblo and their stories of how they earned the Medal of Honor. It is called "Beyond the Medal of Honor". What was great about the special is that Mr. Dix and other characters from the book each told something about the "Rescue of River City".

Book Description

More than half a century after the advent of the nuclear age, is the world approaching a tipping point that will unleash an epidemic of nuclear proliferation?

Today many of the building blocks of a nuclear arsenal—scientific and engineering expertise, precision machine tools, software, design information—are more readily available than ever before. The nuclear pretensions of so-called rogue states and terrorist organizations are much discussed. But how firm is the resolve of those countries that historically have chosen to forswear nuclear weapons? A combination of changes in the international environment could set off a domino effect, with countries scrambling to develop nuclear weapons so as not to be left behind—or to develop nuclear "hedge" capacities that would allow them to build nuclear arsenals relatively quickly, if necessary.

The Nuclear Tipping Point examines the factors, both domestic and transnational, that shape nuclear policy. The authors, distinguished scholars and foreign policy practitioners with extensive government experience, develop a framework for understanding why certain countries may originally have decided to renounce nuclear weapons—and pinpoint some more recent country-specific factors that could give them cause to reconsider. Case studies of eight long-term stalwarts of the nonproliferation regime—Egypt, Germany, Japan, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Syria, Turkey, and Taiwan—flesh out this framework and show how even these countries might be pushed over the edge of a nuclear tipping point.

The authors offer prescriptions that would both prevent such countries from reconsidering their nuclear option and avert proliferation by others. The stakes are enormous and success is far from assured. To keep the tipping point beyond reach, the authors argue, the international community will have to act with unity, imagination, and strength, and Washington's leadership will be essential.

Contributors include Leon Feurth, George Washington University; Ellen Laipson, Stimson Center; Thomas W. Lippman, Middle East Institute; Jenifer Mackby, Center for Strategic and International Studies; Derek J. Mitchell, Center for Strategic and International Studies; Jonathan D. Pollack, U.S. Naval War College; Walter B. Slocombe, Caplin and Drysdale; and Tsuyoshi Sunohara, Center for Strategic and International Studies.

Customer Reviews:

A study on several countries nuclear choices.......2007-03-07

To build an atomic bomb, you only need 1940s technology. Not only that, but as the book points out to many countries, a nuclear defense is cheaper then a conventional one. Many states like Israel nuclear weapons give it a defense that it could never get from a conventional one. As the book further points out the world does not punish states going nuclear much. So why have so few states gone for a nuclear defense?

It is a fascinating issue. This book takes us though several countries and discussion that they had in this question. The important debates on getting nuclear weapons in most countries is hidden even in democratic countries. For example few people in the US, Britain, France or Israel knew of their country nuclear weapons program until they had a bomb. So many of the debates, I felt were guesswork of what people were likely to say.

Two problems with the book, I though was looking at the physical weapon rather then many states today which are virtual nuclear states. They could have a bomb in a few months if they wanted it. We probably have more nuclear proliferation then they admit.

The second it did not discuss the vulnerability a state has to nuclear weapons for example Egypt with the Nile. A few conventual and nuclear weapon blasts and most of Egypt's water is cut off. Maybe the Egyptians' have sound military reasons to not have nuclear weapons.

Finally the book does not fill me with hope. North Korea has a bomb and it appears that Iran will have one soon. Both from reading the book will cause ripple effects in the neighboring countries if the doubt the US commitment to them.

Insightful !.......2005-02-24

This book stems from a three-year-long collaboration between the Center for Strategic and International Studies and the Reves Center for International Studies at the College of William and Mary. Scholars studied eight countries currently committed to nonproliferation - Egypt, Syria, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Germany, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan - to determine what scenarios might make them change their minds. The objective was to study how the nuclear genie might get out of the bottle - but it also indicates ways to keep it contained. The book intentionally does not focus on proliferator states, such as North Korea or Iran. Even with that omission, we recommend it for the stark realities its research uncovers. One is that non-proliferating nations all look to the U.S. for reassurance that the world will stay safe for those without nuclear weapons. Another is that the world must stop Iran and North Korea's atomic ambitions, lest a tipping point occurs that would provoke other nations to conclude that their security requires swinging the biggest stick.

more proliferation?.......2005-02-20

In the midst of headlines about possible nuclear weapons being acquired by rogue states, this recent book is quite timely. It addresses what is a slightly puzzling issue. Why, 60 years after the use of nuclear weapons, are there still relatively few nations armed with these weapons? Some projections made in the 1960s postulated that by now, if we hadn't blown ourselves up, there would be scores of nuclear armed nations.

Part of the book explains why this did not come to pass. But the more urgent analysis is devoted to suggesting how in fact it might still come to be. The politics of regional rivalries in east Asia, south Asia and the Middle East is studied. There are knock-on effects of one nation possessing such arms, triggering a frantic effort by its neighbours to also do so.

One thing to note is that the technical obstacles are less than ever before. While still exceedingly nontrivial, the case of Pakistan illustrates how a moderately sized developing country can develop such weapons, given sufficient will and resources.

Book Description

From the ancient Appalachians to the high Sierra, mountains have always symbolized wilderness for Americans. Susan Schrepfer unfolds the history of our fascination with high peaks and rugged terrain to tell how mountains have played a dramatic role in shaping American ideas about wilderness and its regulation.

Delving into memoirs and histories, letters and diaries, early photos and old maps, Schrepfer especially compares male and female mountaineering narratives to show the ways in which gender affected what men and women found to value in rocky heights, and how their different perceptions together defined the wilderness preservation movement for the nation. The Sierra Club in particular popularized the mystique of America's mountains, and Schrepfer uses its history to develop a sweeping interpretation of twentieth-century wilderness perceptions and national conservation politics.

Schrepfer follows men like John Muir, Wilderness Society cofounder Robert Marshall, and the Sierra Club's own David Brower into the mountains-and finds them frequently in the company of women. She tells how mountaineering women shaped their lives through high adventure well before the twentieth century, participating in Appalachian mountain clubs and joining men as "Mazamas"-mountain goats-scaling Oregon's Mount Hood.

From these expeditions, Schrepfer examines how women's ideas, language, and activism helped shape American environmentalism just as much as men's, parsing the "Romantic sublime" into its respective masculine and feminine components. Tracing this history to the 1964 Wilderness Act, she also shows how the feminine sublimes continue to flourish in the form of ecofeminism and in exploits like the all-woman climb of Annapurna in 1978.

By explaining why both women and men risked their lives in these landscapes, how they perceived them, and why they wanted to save them, Schrepfer also reveals the ways in which religion, social class, ethnicity, and nationality shaped the experience of the natural world. Full of engaging stories that shed new light on a history many believe they already know, her book adds subtlety and nuance to the oft-told annals of the wild and gives readers a new perspective on the wilderness movement and mountaineering.

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Nature's Altars: Mountains, Gender, And American Environmentalism
Susan R. Schrepfer
Manufacturer: NY
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000MUHE02

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