The Boundary Waters Wilderness Ecosystem

Customer Reviews:

Masterpiece.......2007-05-27

This beautifully produced book is the summation of the author's life work in studying the Boundary Waters. Furthermore, it is the inspiration and groundwork for all subsequent work in the area. His intimacy with the ecosystem inspires awe at every turn. His great achievement was in using tree-ring analysis to reconstruct the entire fire history of the area, thus illuminating the dynamics of forest change.

A must read for all BWCA visitors!.......1999-06-29

I have traveled the BWCA for 30 years, but until reading this book never understood much about the history and ecology of the area. Bud Heinselman spent his life intently studying this magnificent forest, and left us a wonderful legacy in this book.

He spent decades studying the fauna and flora of the BWCA, especially the trees of the forest. Combining that information with his rich knowledge of the more recent history of the BWCA, especially of logging and mining, helps one understand just how the forest has come to be as it is today.

He covers all aspects of the BWCA's ecology: water, rocks, fish, trees, et. al. You may not realize how foreign the smallmouth bass is to the area, or even how close the area came to being developed and lost forever. He provides maps of the area with the forests dated to their most recent burn or logging: you are able to look up your favorite canoe routes and determine what trees are prevalent and why.

One of his major points is that modern fire fighting has altered the natural ecology of the area: as fire has been suppressed, fuel on the forest floor has increased, leading to the potential for more severe "crown" fires which destroy even the ancient white and red pines.

This book is a must-read for all BWCA visitors and deserves a place in the library of anyone that cares about ecology. TH Bracken MD srtrout@yahoo.com

Book Description

No matter what your budget or whether it's your first trip or fifteenth, Fodor's Gold Guides get you where you want to go. In this completely up-to-date guide our experts who live in France give you the inside track, showing you all the things to see and do -- from must-see sights to off-the-beaten-path adventures, from shopping to outdoor fun. Fodor's France shows you hundreds of hotel and restaurant choices in all price ranges -- from budget-friendly B&Bs to luxury hotels, from casual eateries to the hottest new restaurants, complete with thorough reviews showing what makes each place special. The Smart Travel Tips A to Z section helps you take care of the nitty gritty with essential local contacts and great advice -- from how to take your mountain bike with you to what to do in an emergency. Plus, web links and mix-and-match itineraries make planning a snap.

"The king of guidebooks." - Newsweek

Customer Reviews:

Fodor's France 2003.......2003-09-19

I had no idea Fodor's guide books were so crammed with excitement! I naturally expected a ton of information, but Fodor's France comes on like a Rolls-Royce: full of elan and poetry, plus precision. Some site descriptions are like tone-poems, restaurant reviews are mouth watering, hotels are frankly yet colorfully rendered. When it comes to the big places---Chartres, Monet's Giverny, Chambord, etc.---the detailed texts really put you there, but Fodor's also lets you in on loads of undiscovered villages and low-profile getaways. There are no photos in the book, but I found the texts to be photogenic enough, starting with the juicy chapter intros. (In contrast, Frommer's France, though adequate, seems topheavy on things like geography and population data.) Here's the opening line for the Brittany chapter in Fodor's France: "You feel it even before the sharp salt air hits your face from the west---a subliminal rhythm suspended in the mist, a subsonic drone somewhere between a foghorn and a heartbeat, seemingly made up of bagpipes, drums, and the thin, haunting filigree of a tin-whistle tune." I nearly picked up the phone and made a hotel reservation on the spot, but that will have to wait until I've checked the calendar and the spare change.

Book Description

Covering operations at both controlled and uncontrolled airfields, this practical manual provides an in-depth treatment of these critical procedures under all conditions, shedding new light and practical insight on these maneuvers.

Customer Reviews:

Just another book on flying.......2002-07-04

Unfortunately, I was re-reading "Stick and Rudder" at the time this book arrived. What a contrast. OK, BT&L has a lot of modern detail that the classic lacks, but Michael Love has no knack for teaching the art of flying. Just another book.

Better Value for Student Pilots.......2002-05-06

This book serves it's intended purpose well. It covers the established procedures for takeoffs and landings in the differing situations. I believe the book is of more value to a student pilot rather than a private pilot who flys on a regular basis. When a student pilot, what served me well was the solo practice along with the Jeppesen, "Private Pilot Manuevers" book which presents full color illustrations. A book can only go so far as to the process while the true method to improve takeoffs and Landings is by actual practice.

How to do it correctly.......1999-12-31

After reading Mr. Loves book, as a Student Pilot, I find it one of the most practical and well written texts on the art of making a proper landing. Mr. Loves experience as a pilot for a parachute troop has been invaluable and passing on this knowledge to us 'up and coming' is greatly appreciated. I would assume that this text would also be a great review for those of you who are switching from a tail dragger to tricycle or vice versa. Invaluable in my library.

Takeoffs and Landings: The Crucial Maneuvers & Everything in Between

Average customer rating:

Valuable Information, Well Written

Takeoffs and Landings: The Crucial Maneuvers & Everything in Between
Leighton Collins
Manufacturer: Aviation Supplies & Academics, Inc.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Transportation | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 1560275553

Book Description

Back in print with a new design, this guide includes instruction on the basics of takeoffs and landings, the realities of flying into and out of an airport, and the functions of the throttle, stick, rudder, and trim. A pilot's pilot, Collins provides a complete and coherent account, from takeoff roll to full stop, of a perfect flight and landing; identifying many common errors pilots make along the way. In addition to extracting from his own lengthy career and personal experience, Collins shares tips and secrets he learned by observing airline pilots, reading military manuals, attending manufacturer's flight training programs, and interviewing some of aviation's most famous thinkers and figures.

Customer Reviews:

Valuable Information, Well Written.......2005-12-02

Without exception, every pilot should read Langewiesche's Stick and Rudder. This book should be the next one to read after that. Langewiesche and Collins were friends, and Collins wrote this long after Stick and Rudder had become a classic. He produced an excellent follow-on work that both reinforces the lessons of Stick and Rudder and expands them. This book covers real-world flying and how to do it safely, avoiding common errors that lead to accidents.

The writing is lively, and at many points, you'll feel as if you're sitting next to Collins in the cockpit, getting a demonstration with explanations. The book is such an easy read that you learn almost without realizing you're learning.

If you've already read Stick and Rudder, read this book immediately. If you haven't read Langewiesche's book, get both his and Collins' books together. They make a great team and their insights will make you a better pilot. Humans aren't born with wings; our brains enabled us to fly. Langewiesche and Collins have produced a pair of books that will put your brain in the right gear to understand flying and keep you alive.

Average customer rating:

An Intense Family Drama
A Family Heals Itself
Reading TAKEOFFS AND LANDINGS will make you feel good.
PRETTY GOOD BOOK
A reader

Takeoffs and Landings
Margaret Peterson Haddix
Manufacturer: Aladdin
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Ages 9-12 | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

General | Literature & Fiction | Teens | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Teen Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Ages 9-12 | Children's Books | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books

All 4-for-3 Deals | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books
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ASIN: 0689855435

Book Description

A journey to the center of their hearts

Ever since their father's sudden death eight years ago, Chuck and Lori's mom has spent most of her time on the road as a motivational speaker, leaving them and their younger siblings in the care of their grandparents. But this trip is different; this time, their mother has invited Chuck and Lori along in an attempt to reconnect with her eldest -- and now most distant -- children.

Lori is so angry with her mother for her constant absence she can barely look at her, and Chuck, as usual, tries to make himself invisible. From the start the trip seems doomed. But slowly, walls built up over the years begin to show cracks. Laser-sharp glares are finally and painfully turned inward. And in the end secrets are finally revealed -- secrets that will change all of their lives forever....

Customer Reviews:

An Intense Family Drama.......2007-08-30

Hmmm. Did I like this book? I'm still pondering that question more than 12 hours after completing it. Haddix put a lot of emotions and information into a relatively short book and though it was very compelling and well written, it just seemed a bit....jammed in there.

Takeoffs and Landings by one of my favorite youth writers, Margaret Peterson Haddix, is a book of intense family emotion. It is told by two siblings in alternating chapters. Chuck is the overweight, geeky older brother that we learn loves art, but is afraid to show that love. Lori is the self-obsessed younger sister that is completely into boys, friends, and parties, and definitely not into Chuck and his weirdness.

Their mother, a motivational speaker and very much resented by Lori, decides to take Chuck and Lori along for one of her 3 city tours in order for them to spend time together and possibly fix their straining relationship. Along the way, huge, emotion ridden fights ensue between Lori and her mom, while Chuck begins to find himself in art museums, hiding, yet learning and loving. By the end of the novel, the broken family almost seems fixed, which is a feat to do in only 201 pages.

Haddix has a magic about her that enables her to create real emotions in her characters that then feel real in her readers. She did that again in this book and I loved it, however I felt it was very rushed and somewhat strange that after all the intensity in hurt and anger that was portrayed only a few pages before, all is well at the end of the book. It needed a good 50-100 more pages to work out those family problems and make that part of the novel feel realistic to me.

A Family Heals Itself.......2007-02-03

Lori is fourteen and her brother Chuck is fifteen. When they were little they were best friends, but that was before their father died in a farm accidnet and everything went wrong. Chuck and Lori already had two younger brothers and when their father died their mother was expecting another baby. The whole family had to move in with the children's grandparents. Farming wasn't a bad life and the kids all love their grandparents, but Lori, especially, feels a lot of resentment toward her mother, who works as a motivational speaker to support the family. She is never home and over the years she has grown distant from her children.

Chuck and Lori have also grown apart. Chuck is clumsy and overweight and not good at school. Lori is quite the opposite, and the two of them haven't really spoken in years.

Now Lori and Chuck's mother has decided to bring the two of them with her while she tours some of the major cities in the country, giving motivational speeches. Lori is baffled by the invitation and at first is openly hostile toward her mother. But as they travel with her more and more, Chuck and Lori begin to see a bit of what her life is really like, and they begin to see what they can do to put their family back together again.

I liked to see how the individual characters grew over the course of this story, and how the family was able to start to heal after so many years of unhappiness and resentment.

Reading TAKEOFFS AND LANDINGS will make you feel good........2004-07-29

Takeoffs and landings. I guess they're the best parts of going on a plane. Then again, I've been on so many flights that they all just meld together. This is not the case for Lori and Chuck Lawson, two teens stuck in Pickford County, Ohio. Neither has been on a plane, not once --- they've been living with their grandparents and siblings on the family farm ever since their father passed away. Widowed and without a profession or a degree, their mother Joan had to find a job to support her five children. She becomes a motivational speaker, traveling across the country to speak at conferences, and she is rarely home.

Lori is resentful of her mother's trips, always wishing that her mom was there for her, both physically and emotionally. Clumsy Chuck is busy struggling with teases and taunts from peers and constant nagging from his grandfather. The younger children don't remember a time when their mother was home for more than three weeks at a stretch.

When Joan decides to make up for her absences by taking Lori and Chuck with her on a trip across the country, what will happen? Relationships change and secrets are uncovered as Haddix reveals an aspect of the bond between mother and child that not many people understand. Can Joan Lawson ever make it up to her children?

The book is written from three different points of view: Lori's, Chuck's, and Joan's. Although each provides a different spin on the events in the novel, the constant change in speaker demands a lot of concentration. Haddix's idea is clever, but its execution is less so. The ending is predictable; there is no jolting surprise that makes you want to finish the book right at that very moment. On the positive side, however, the novel shows a family who struggles to overcome, which is very inspiring. Reading TAKEOFFS AND LANDINGS will make you feel good, even if you don't like to fly.

--- Reviewed by Lisa Marx

PRETTY GOOD BOOK.......2003-04-29

Imagine yourself being a perfect person with great grades, being pretty, and having lots of friends. Then, once you reach the big city and you know no one, your life turns around. Everyone gives you funny looks, your scared people will make fun of you, and it doesn't matter who you are or what you look like anymore.
Well, that is how it is like for Lori and her brother Chuck in this fiction novel called Takeoffs and Landings by Margaret Peterson Haddix.
In this story, Lori and Chuck don't see their mother that much ever since their father was killed on the farm. While their mom is out working, they live on a farm in a little place called Pickford County in Ohio. Lori and Chuck's mother invited them on a trip, which changes everyone's lives. As they travel to all of the big cities around the country, Lori finds out that she barely knows her mother. Lori thought she was the perfect girl until the trip, Chuck knew he was the kid everyone picked on and their mother was a mom that never saw her kids. While on the trip, the family fights constantly and they all learn things they never knew before.
Takeoffs and Landings shows many reasons why your whole life can change in a moments time. For instance, when Lori sneaked out in the streets of Atlanta on her own, her life changed instantly. She went from being well known and the prettiest girl in a little city to being alone and not so pretty in the big city. She was bumped every where she went, and no one said anything to her. She felt lost and very lonely. Will she find her way back and learn a different way to live life?
If you want to read an interesting book for teenagers that has great problems and conflicts of teen life's and shows a lot of courage and love, then you should read Takeoffs and Landings by Margaret Peterson Haddix.

A reader.......2003-04-13

This book was inspirational. It was a very enjoyable read. It was a privilage to see the development in each character and the relationships they have with each other. Beautifully composed, with a twist that stays true to the rest of the book.

Controlling Pilot Error: Checklists & Compliance

Average customer rating:

A Good Book on Checklist Compliance; A Better One Needed

Controlling Pilot Error: Checklists & Compliance
Thomas P. Turner
Manufacturer: McGraw-Hill Professional
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Transportation | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Aeronautics & Astronautics | Astronomy | Science | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0071372547

Book Description

With up to 80% of accidents attributed to pilot error, this new series is critically important. It identifies and examines the ten top areas of concern to pilot safety. Each book contains real-life pilot stories drawn from FAA/NASA databases, valuable "save-yourself" techniques and an action agenda of preventive techniques pilots can implement to avoid risks.

Customer Reviews:

A Good Book on Checklist Compliance; A Better One Needed.......2001-09-10

Thomas P. Turner's volume on "Checklists & Compliance" is a good and worthwhile effort. As part of McGraw Hill's new series on "Controlling Pilot Error", edited by Col. Tony Kern, it focuses on a critical and under-explored area of pilot shortcomings that is exceptionally relevant to all pilots - airline, military and general aviation alike.

The book is largely a compilation of ASRS and NTSB reports that should prove eye-opening to any aviator who does not as a matter of course access these resources. We can all profit from reviewing these items.

Unfortunately, the book only scratches the surface in deriving lessons learned and developing recommended practices based on the reviewed incidents. In particular, it fails to offer any insight into the intricacies of checklist design or specific techniques for use.

There is no mis-information in this book; a pilot can only benefit from reading it. But we still await an exceptional book on checklist design, application, discipline and implementation.

Frank Van Haste
PP-ASEL

Average customer rating:
10 takeoffs 5 landings
Leo Rubinfien
Manufacturer: Robert Mann Gallery
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding
ASIN: B0006PBJ0Y

Average customer rating:
Analysis of the Vertical Takeoff and Landing Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (VTUAV) in Small Unit Urban Operations

Manufacturer: Storming Media
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Spiral-bound

Unit Operations & Transport Phenomena | Chemical | Engineering | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 1423519698

Product Description

This is a NAVAL POSTGRADUATE SCHOOL MONTEREY CA report procured by the Pentagon and made available for public release. It has been reproduced in the best form available to the Pentagon. It is not spiral-bound, but rather assembled with Velobinding in a soft, white linen cover. The Storming Media report number is A792724. The abstract provided by the Pentagon follows: The Marine Corps has recently embarked on the development of a Vertical Takeoff and Landing Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (VTUAV) to replace the aging Pioneer Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) system. This thesis examines the critical elements this platform must possess to effectively support small units operating in urban environments. The author addresses this issue by creating and exploring an agent-based simulation of a platoon conducting an urban patrol in a setting similar to those currently being encountered in Iraq. The platoon utilizes the VTUAV as an intelligence-gathering asset. The author designed an experiment to generate data from the simulation scenario, and then used multiple regression analysis and regression trees to relate the UAV capabilities to the patrol's operational effectiveness. The results suggest that the effectiveness of a VTUAV is greatly influenced by noise in the urban warfare environment. He uses a loss function, along with the regression models, to identify UAV configurations that improve operational effectiveness, yet are robust to uncertainties about civilian and insurgent behavior. The VTUAV must have high communication capability, as well as accurate sensing, to perform well across a range of environmental conditions. (6 tables, 27 figures, 23 refs.)

Average customer rating:

From takeoff to landing

ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Spiral-bound
ASIN: B000EO6R7C

From Takeoff to Landing: Everything You Wanted to Know About Airplanes but Had No One to Ask

Average customer rating:

From Takeoff to Landing: Everything You Wanted to Know About Airplanes but Had No One to Ask

Manufacturer: Pocket Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000GWIRNO

Average customer rating:

Good Takeoffs and Good Landings

Manufacturer: McGraw-Hill/TAB Electronics
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Average customer rating:

Good takeoffs and good landings
Joe Christy
Manufacturer: Tab Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

General | Engineering | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0830603875

Book Description

Human settlement of the western fringes of the Pacific occurred at least 40,000 years ago. Long, hazardous sea voyages were the only way of reaching the tiny islands scattered through this vast expanse of ocean. Food and shelter were hard to come by, even on land. This book documents how these settlers adapted culturally and biologically to the Pacific environment, and how this can explain the patterns seen today in New Zealand, Polynesia, Micronesia, and Melanesia. The book discusses the distinctive Pacific environment and how its inhabitants have evolved into large-bodied, muscular people to meet the particular demands of the region. People of the Great Ocean is a uniquely original work based on extensive research and careful analysis. Houghton's text presents detailed technical information, but remains highly readable and persuasive.

Customer Reviews:

Truely Wonderful.............2000-04-07

I have this book, it is beautiful, and fun. It is great for all Alice lovers, young and old. Makes a wonderful gift, for everyone.

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