A Life against the Grain: The Autobiography of an Unconventional Economist

Customer Reviews:

The life of the Doomslayer.......2003-01-13

The world lost a very special person on February 8th, 1998. I remember hearing of his death the day after it happened and it was the first time I felt truly sad at the passing of someone I had never met. Julian Simon was an economist who studied a broad range of issues but he will most certainly be remembered for his breakthrough work in population economics, showing that population growth correlates with increases in human well being, not decreases. Simon turned doomsayers like Thomas Malthus on their heads and was dubbed the "doomslayer" in a Wired Magazine interview about a year before his death.

Although Simon died well before publication, his wife, Rita, was able to put together this book, working from about 900 (!) pages of manuscript that Julian wrote before his death. Unfortunately, the book seems to suffer a bit from poor editing and typographical mistakes, but that's a minor nit. I'm not a fan of biographies in general, so much of the childhood years bored me, but the chapters on his career and research are fascinating and, alas, way too short. I couldn't help but get the feeling that there were mounds of interesting anecdotes on his career and research that were left out for space reasons. It's too bad; most people who would read it would be most interested in that part. Fortunately, unlike some other autobiographies written by economists, Simon does discuss how he evolved in his thinking over the years

The book covers all the areas that Simon is well known for, including population studies, immigration, treatment of depression, advertising and the mail order business and, of course, Simon's brilliant idea for solving the problem of overbooked planes. This last item was a stroke of genius and Simon deserves a place of honor for that alone. The solution came to him in the mid-sixties, but it wasn't until 1978, when an economist was appointed head of the Civil Aeronautics Board that it was put into use. Simon was baffled as to why it took so long, but an obvious explanation never occurs to him: the airline industry was a heavily regulated, government-enforced cartel, so there was less of an incentive to innovate.

Book Description

The indomitable golfer and successful businessman, Bobby Jones, is remembered--in their own words--by dozens of fellow golfers, journalists, golf industry leaders, friends, relatives, and followers of the game.

Customer Reviews:

Thoughtful analysis of the "Femme Fatale" in key noir films........1998-07-30

Author does a thought-provoking analysis of the femme fatale in several key noirs 1940-present.Especially interesting are essays on "Double Indemnity","Out of the Past", and "Thelma and Louise".Book does not rehash conventional explications on these films regarding the "fatal women" represented in each.Anyone interested in film noir or the theme of the "fatal woman" in many of these films will find this book hard to put down.This book assumes that the reader have some familiarity with the films it discusses, or else much of the analysis will seem obscure. Recommended for the reader with more than a passing interest in the film noir genre.

Book Description

First published in 1976, Television: The Critical View set the foundation for the serious study of television, becoming the gold standard of anthologies in the field. With this seventh edition, editor Horace Newcomb has moved the book from one merely intended to legitimize the critical inquiry of television to a text that reflects how complex critical approaches to television have become today. Comprised of virtually all new selections that deal with both classic and contemporary programming, the seventh edition adds new material on television history, the reception context of television, and international programming such as Chinese soap operas and Brazilian telenovelas. Television: The Critical View remains a well established and critically acclaimed text essential for courses in critical studies, communication studies, cultural studies, media history, television criticism, television history, and broadcasting.

Customer Reviews:

Television is NOT mindless entertainment!.......2001-02-28

I was assigned this book in a college course on television as popular culture. I seriously struggled with the text at first, but luckily I didn't sell it back. After rereading it again, it has completely smashed the myth that nothing on television is culturally viable. Do not fall into the trap of believing there is no culture left in America. This book will teach how to engage your television in a way that is as mentally stimulating as anything I can imagine. Do yourself a favor and get this book! It might take you a couple reads, but it's well worth it. Enjoy. (I took points off for density, but I have the 5th ed.)

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Television: The critical view

Manufacturer: Oxford University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

General | Foreign Languages | Reference | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0195025016

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Television: The critical view

Manufacturer: Oxford University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

General | Foreign Languages | Reference | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 019502026X

Broadcast history: the small screen view.(Critical Essay): An article from: Queen's Quarterly

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Broadcast history: the small screen view.(Critical Essay): An article from: Queen's Quarterly
Belinda Beaton
Manufacturer: Queen's Quarterly
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital

General | Performing Arts | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

Book Description

This digital document is an article from Queen's Quarterly, published by Queen's Quarterly on December 22, 2004. The length of the article is 3840 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: Broadcast history: the small screen view.(Critical Essay)
Author: Belinda Beaton
Publication: Queen's Quarterly (Refereed)
Date: December 22, 2004
Publisher: Queen's Quarterly
Volume: 111 Issue: 4 Page: 598(12)

Article Type: Critical Essay

Distributed by Thomson Gale

Finnish views of CNN television news: A critical cross-cultural analysis of the American commercial discourse style (Acta Wasaensia)

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Finnish views of CNN television news: A critical cross-cultural analysis of the American commercial discourse style (Acta Wasaensia)
Brett Dellinger
Manufacturer: Universitas Wasaensis
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

Journalism | Writing | Reference | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 9516835678

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Television : The Critical View
Horace (editor) Newcomb
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OKOGJM

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Television: The Critical View
Horace Newcomb
Manufacturer: Oxford Univ Pr
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000KY4C1E

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Television: The Critical View
Horace Newcomb
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OKMMIO

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Television: The Critical View
Horace Newcomb
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OKIW2E

TELEVISION: THE CRITICAL VIEW - SIXTH EDITION

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TELEVISION: THE CRITICAL VIEW - SIXTH EDITION
HORACE NEWCOMB
Manufacturer: OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000WATUK4

Book Description

Step right up! Before your very eyes all the mysteries of magic are about to unfold in one astonishing book. From the earliest tricks performed for the Egyptian pharoahs and the legendary feats of Houdini to the contemporary, high-tech tricks of today's performers, such as David Copperfield, this beautifully illustrated book reveals all. Presto! Everything the magic fan wants to know is here: the history of magic, how magicians learn their craft, the great masters of magic, the classic tricks and props, and an A-Z guide to the world's greatest magicians, plus a helpful glossary and index.

Customer Reviews:

Great overall history review.......2000-07-19

Beautiful hand-done pictures. Mentions "snippets" ofhistory beginning with ancient Egypt 4500 years ago and continuesuntil today (las vegas)! Talks about all the famous magicians and what they were famous for. Definitely geared to children but I enjoyed the simplicity of it...didn't have to absorb too much (I read it in a few hours)information! Includes a reference section which defines every word associated with magic that you can think of and a section which gives a one paragraph blurb on each magician. But, if you are looking for the secrets of magic, find a different book. This doesn't give anything away. If you are interested in magic, this would be interesting to look at but it's not one of those "must have" books for your collection. Great for kids...which is what it is intended for.

Book Description

The only official guide to QuickBooks— the #1 small business management software

Fully reviewed and authorized by Intuit, this book shows you how to create a comprehensive small business financial management system using Quick- Books. All the new and updated features are covered in detail. You’ll learn to customize QuickBooks for your specific business needs, enter transactions quickly and accurately, track funds, manage payroll, process invoices, monitor inventory, create budgets, develop fiscal reports, streamline bookkeeping tasks, and much more. Designed for easy reference, the book’s chapter topics are organized the same way as the software. With coverage of QuickBooks Basic and QuickBooks Pro, this is the ideal guide for learning about this powerful software.

“Intuit-approved and loaded with secrets, Quicken Press books provide you with recipes for financial success.” –Scott Cook, cofounder, Intuit, Inc.

Customer Reviews:

Invaluable.......2007-04-18

I bought this book before starting a quickbooks class at a local community college. I definitly got more from the book than I did the class. I continually use it as a refrence.

quickbooks pro 2006.......2006-04-14

the book is somewhat limited in information as is the software, QB pro 2006 in application and functionality

Quickbooks 2006 - The Official Guide.......2006-03-20

A well-written and comprehensive guide to using the Quickbooks software. If you are a new user, this would be invaluable because of the simple way they explain things and diagram displays that you would espect to see. The actual Quickbooks Users Manual is also very helpful- but can be confusing to new users. This guide usually clears things up nicely if there is any confusion. It is a handy reference for "emergencies". Not a required item to have - but can be very helpful!

A lesson plan for customization.......2006-03-17

Easily learn Quickbooks features, from basic to more advanced business asks, and tailor Quickbooks 2006 for different uses with QUICKBOOKS 2006: THE OFFICIAL GUIDE. Here's a lesson plan geared to quick customization of forms and purposes, from running payroll and tracking accounts receivable to using budget tools and online banking. Black and white screen shots on every page lend to a format which can be used for either methodical course study or quick browsing reference.

Accounting for the uninitiated.......2006-03-09

Clearly, this is not for anyone who knows anything about accounting, as it is just about right for me. The Quickbooks guidebook does everything it says it will, complete with sequential pictures of the screens. It doesn't actually pay taxes or mail out invoices, therefore I cannot in good conscience give it a five, but otherwise fulfills its promise.

Quickbooks 2006 The Official Guide for Premier Edition Users Custom Edition

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Quickbooks 2006 The Official Guide for Premier Edition Users Custom Edition
QUicken Press
Manufacturer: McGraw Hill Osborne
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Computers & Internet | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Computer Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
ASIN: 0072262745

Quickbooks 2006: The Official Guide for Premier Edition Users

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Quickbooks 2006: The Official Guide for Premier Edition Users
Quickbooks
Manufacturer: McGraw Hill/Quicken Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Reference | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Book Description

Billy Graham's now legendary first New York Crusade in 1957 was a touchstone that affected an entire generation. Nearly fifty years later, the Reverend Billy Graham returned to New York in June 2005 for what was likely his final Crusade, preaching the power of God's love to hundreds of thousands of people over three life-changing evenings.

Living in God's Love contains all three sermons from this important event, and includes an original introduction and an afterword both written by Billy Graham specifically for this book. Living in God's Love also features black-and-white photographs from the 2005 New York Crusade, and a moving foreword by his daughter Anne Graham Lotz.

Billy Graham's message of the transforming power of Christ's love is one that is needed now more than ever.

Customer Reviews:

Reddragon.......2007-03-30

The product came quickly. It was exactly as advetised and met expectations. Thank You.

GREAT BOOK OF COURAGE AND HOPE.......2005-08-06

THIS IS A WONDERFUL BOOK OF GREAT COURAGE AND HOPE ! "LIVING IN GODS LOVE " BY BILLY GRAHAM IS A GREAT COLLECTION OF ALL OF HIS SERMONS FROM HIS RECENT NY CRUSADE AND THERE ARE ALSO SOME PHOTOS THAT HAVE NOT BEEN SEEN YET. THIS GREAT EVANGELIST CAME IN 1957 TO NY AND THIS BOOK RECENTLY CAME TO NY RECENTLY AND THIS BOOK "LIVING IN GOD LOVE" HAS ALOT OF SERMONS AND THE NY CRUSADE AND THIS BOOK HAS ALOT OF COMFORT AND PEACE AND HOPE. I REALLY LOVE THIS WONDERFUL PAGE TURNER. PLEASE GIVE A GIFT TO A FRIEND OR FAMILY MEMBER OR A PASTOR THIS IS A REALLY NICE BOOK CALLED "LIVING IN GODS LOVE" BY BILLY GRAHAM" GREAT GIFT FOR SOMEONE SPECIAL.

Living in God's Love The New York Crusade (Living in God's Love The New York Crusade Doubleday Large Print Home Library Edition)

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Living in God's Love The New York Crusade (Living in God's Love The New York Crusade Doubleday Large Print Home Library Edition)
Billy Graham
Manufacturer: G. P. Putnam's Sons
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Product Description

This must-read book contains all three sermons from Billy Graham's historic 2005 Crusade.

Book Description

In a compelling history of the Jewish community in New York during four decades of mass immigration, Tony Michels examines the defining role of the Yiddish socialist movement in the American Jewish experience.

The movement, founded in the 1880s, was dominated by Russian-speaking intellectuals, including Abraham Cahan, Mikhail Zametkin, and Chaim Zhitlovsky. Socialist leaders quickly found Yiddish essential to convey their message to the Jewish immigrant community, and they developed a remarkable public culture through lectures and social events, workers' education societies, Yiddish schools, and a press that found its strongest voice in the mass-circulation newspaper Forverts.

Arguing against the view that socialism and Yiddish culture arrived as Old World holdovers, Michels demonstrates that they arose in New York in response to local conditions and thrived not despite Americanization, but because of it. And the influence of the movement swirled far beyond the Lower East Side, to a transnational culture in which individuals, ideas, and institutions crossed the Atlantic. New York Jews, in the beginning, exported Yiddish socialism to Russia, not the other way around.

The Yiddish socialist movement shaped Jewish communities across the United States well into the twentieth century and left an important political legacy that extends to the rise of neoconservatism. A story of hopeful successes and bitter disappointments, A Fire in Their Hearts brings to vivid life this formative period for American Jews and the American left.

Customer Reviews:

Brilliant and Original.......2006-03-15

This is a brilliant, bold, and original interpretation of Yiddish-speaking socialists and their origins less in Russian-Jewish radicalism and more in German-American socialism. The author's consistently lucid prose takes readers back to a fascinating time in American and Jewish life.

A Fire in Their Hearts: Yiddish Socialists in New York.(Book review): An article from: American Jewish History

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A Fire in Their Hearts: Yiddish Socialists in New York.(Book review): An article from: American Jewish History
Gerald Sorin
Manufacturer: Thomson Gale
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital

Book Description

This digital document is an article from American Jewish History, published by Thomson Gale on September 1, 2004. The length of the article is 1192 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: A Fire in Their Hearts: Yiddish Socialists in New York.(Book review)
Author: Gerald Sorin
Publication: American Jewish History (Magazine/Journal)
Date: September 1, 2004
Publisher: Thomson Gale
Volume: 92 Issue: 3 Page: 383(4)

Article Type: Book review

Distributed by Thomson Gale

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Interesting and frightening read

The U.S. Government exposed...again.

Worth your time!

Hurricane Bob, Hurricane Katrina = Government Keystone Cops

Lab 257

Lab 257: The Disturbing Story of the Government's Secret Plum Island Germ Laboratory
Michael C. Carroll
Manufacturer: William Morrow
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Science | Subjects | Books
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Healing Lyme: Natural Healing And Prevention of Lyme Borreliosis And Its Coinfections

Biohazard: The Chilling True Story of the Largest Covert Biological Weapons Program in the World--Told from Inside by the Man Who Ran It

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When Antibiotics Fail: Lyme Disease and Rife Machines, with Critical Evaluation of Leading Alternative Therapies

Plum Island

ASIN: 0060011416
Release Date: 2004-02-17

Amazon.com

That the United States government engaged in dangerous biological research during World War II will come as no surprise to Americans jaded by revelations of secret medical experiments and radiation exposures. But that the accident-plagued facility where it happened--and continues to happen--is just off the coast of Long Island may alarm many readers of Michael Christopher Carroll's Lab 257. Carroll, an attorney by trade, gamely takes on complex microbiology and shady government record-keeping in telling the story of Plum Island, home of the Animal Disease Center--no place for a casual picnic. The lab, initially set up by the Army to research ways of destroying Soviet farm animals (and to keep them from destroying ours), has often dealt with bacteria and viruses that can be passed from animals to humans. Carroll draws compelling causal links between Plum Island and the introduction of Lyme disease, West Nile virus, and duck enteritis, all non-native germs that wreaked sudden havoc in North America, and all germs that Plum Island scientists were allegedly working with. With hurricanes and terrorists on his mind, Carroll asks readers to imagine a scenario in which the Plum Island lab might release pathogens into the most densely populated area in the country. He ends the book with two chilling questions. First, does the United States need a research facility that investigates animal pathogens with potential for human transmission? Second, considering that Plum Island never had a particularly good safety record, is it the right place for such a facility? Lab 257, while occasionally veering into unsupported speculation, introduces key questions to the debate on biological security in the 21st century. --Therese Littleton

Book Description

Nestled near the Hamptons, the fashionable summer playground of America's rich and famous, and in the shadow of New York City, lies an unimposing 840-acre island unidentified on most maps. On the few on which it can be found, Plum Island is marked red or yellow, and stamped U.S. government—restricted or dangerous animal diseases. Though many people live the good life within a scant mile or two from its shores, few know the name of this pork chop-shaped island. Even fewer can say whether it is inhabited, or why it doesn't exist on the map. That's all about to change.

Lab 257: The Disturbing Story of the Government's Secret Plum Island Germ Laboratory blows the lid off the stunning true nature and checkered history of Plum Island. It shows that the seemingly bucolic island on the edge of the largest population center in the United States is a ticking biological time bomb that none of us can safely ignore.

Based on innumerable declassified government documents, scores of in-depth interviews, and access to Plum Island itself, this is an eye-opening, suspenseful account of a federal government germ laboratory gone terribly wrong. For the first time, Lab 257 takes you deep inside this secret world and presents startling revelations including virus outbreaks, biological meltdowns, infected workers who were denied assistance in diagnosis by Plum Island brass, the periodic flushing of contaminated raw sewage into area waters, and the insidious connections between Plum Island, Lyme disease, and the deadly 1999 West Nile virus outbreak.

An exploration of the complex world of microbiology, viruses, and bacteria, Lab 257 also shows how the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which ran Plum Island for the last half century, is far more than wholesome grade-A eggs and the food pyramid. The book probes what's in store for Plum Island's new owner, the Department of Homeland Security, in this age of bioterrorism. And for those interested in questions of national security and safety, it is a call to action for those concerned with protecting present and future generations from preventable biological catastrophes.

Lab 257 will change forever our current understanding of Plum Island -- a place that is, in the words of one insider, "a biological Three Mile Island."

Customer Reviews:

Interesting and frightening read.......2007-04-11

I picked up this book on a whim because I love the conspiracy theory-type books about all the shady government projects. As it turns out, this book really disturbed me.

Carroll, an attorney, wrote this book over the course of seven years, during which he requested government documents under the FOIA, conducted interviews with current and former employees of Plum Island, researched the connection to US-harbored Nazi scientists, and the inevitable decline of lab conditions under the new American trend of "privatization". Carroll visited the island himself before his access was pulled; he never states exactly why this happened. The book outlines the creation of the labs, how and why the island location was chosen (prevailing winds blow out to sea rather than inland, or so they said at the time), how it went from the US Army's jurisdiction to the USDA, and from there how the program went into a long, slow decline in standards, safety, and hazards. The chapter on the hurricane was terrifying in itself - you can feel the terror the maintenance workers must have felt knowing how helpless they were to prevent a potential "biological meltdown".

The book brings up some interesting potential connections between the labs on Pulm island and the relatively sudden appearance of Lyme disease and West Nile virus. Even if the research into animal diseases is the absolute truth, you still can't help but feel incredibly suspicious that the highest concentration of both Lyme and West Nile began in and around Connecticut and Long Island - the closest points of civilian population to Plum Island. Couple that with the discussion of bird migration and mosquito infestations, and you're inspired to do further reading on your own to uncover more of the truth - you can't take anything at face value, but any time the US government is involved on this large of a scale, healthy skepticism of government denials is required.

For those who wonder if we aren't already seeing "bioterror" attacks in the form of salmonella and e. coli attacks on our food manufacturing facilities and mad cow disease ravaging British livestock, this book is a must read on the programs that Richard Nixon supposedly ended in 1972.

The U.S. Government exposed...again........2006-12-13

I don't know about most American's, but I for one am fed up with the insane amount of government corruption. Every day there is something new discovered, or admitted by the government that shows how the principle that one's government should benefit them and protect them before anything else is falling apart. Lab 257 exposes the truth about some of the nation's greatest mysteries, including the outbreak of both Lyme disease and the West Nile virus, both unseen in the United States until after Plum Island's research on the substances, both originating in the area immediately surrounding the island. Carroll ultimately allows the reader to draw their own conclusions about the nature of the Biological Time Bomb known as Plum Island, but as for me, it is quite obvious that the American government is not always working for its people. The sad truth, the harsh truth, must be known; reading this book is essentially to destroying the ignorance so prevalent in the mass society we live in, the ignorance towards politics and just what exactly is going on in terms of biological research. The greatest threat to America is not from Islamic terrorists, but from its own government's lack of care for the most dangerous of situations. Plum Island is one startling example of such blatant disregard, and Lab 257 ingeniously exposes the true nature of its past, present, and frightening future.

Worth your time!.......2006-08-08

Quick read that will really make you question your government. While the intentions were good in the beginning..it just goes to show what happens when we get lazy about certain things (security) and start neglecting important details.

This one will have you scratching your head about the intelligence of our government. I only wonder if this would happen in a post 9-11 America.

Hurricane Bob, Hurricane Katrina = Government Keystone Cops.......2006-03-14

Read and become informed of an enemy within, your? government's arrogance coupled with incompetence. But they did stay at a Holiday Inn Express! With leaders like these who needs enemies? Plum Island brings on the West Nile virus, Lyme disease & many more. Yes, the point of origin, Plum Island USA, a biological laboratory doing dangerous germ/bacterial warfare expermintation. Your tax dollars are killing you! Surprize, Surprise! Well researched by an author who lived it for more than 5 years before publishing. The mainsteam press won't touch this! Its simply too true. Off limits for public consumption. You be the judge.

Lab 257.......2006-03-01

Carroll has done his homework - he documents all the chilling incidents in the history of this "lab of terror." His speculations on the origins of Lyme Disease are thought-provoking, too. A good read with a lot of detail.

Book Description

-- World Conservation Union

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Conserving Natural Value
Holmes, III Rolston
Manufacturer: Columbia Univ Pr
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OP9YZI

Fishing for values: A primer for river protection activists in the use of contingent valuation as an economic tool for conserving anadromous fisheries

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Fishing for values: A primer for river protection activists in the use of contingent valuation as an economic tool for conserving anadromous fisheries
Kari Dolan
Manufacturer: Northeast Natural Resource Center of the National Wildlife Federation and River Watch Network
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

Rivers | Earth Sciences | Science | Subjects | Books
ASIN: B0006QGX40

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