Asunder: An Unauthorized History of the Origins of Java Programming Language

Asunder: An Unauthorized History of the Origins of Java Programming Language
Average customer rating:

Let's get real here.

This is the handbook for life in a software incubator

Read This Book.

A page turner

Lawrence..again?

Asunder: An Unauthorized History of the Origins of Java Programming Language
Richard Stiller , Jos Marlowe , and Richard J. Stiller
Manufacturer: Briarwood Publications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Strategy & Competition | Management & Leadership | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
General | Java | Programming | Computers & Internet | Subjects | Books
General | Computers & Internet | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 1892614022

Customer Reviews:

Let's get real here........2002-09-07

As another person who was around when Oak and Green
were turning into Java, it would sure be nice if this
book reflected reality. But it doesn't. As others have
pointed out, the authors were nowhere near the coalface
when this gem was being mined.

This is the handbook for life in a software incubator.......2001-06-10

Rich Stiller and Jos Marlowe were there at Sun Microsystems when James Gosling invented "Oak" and turned it into Java in 1993-95. This is a fascinating look at how Java nearly died when a software incubator set up to foster creative genius runs headlong into the realities of corporate life and organizational dynamics. Anyone working in today's "web time" environments and trying to pick up the pieces of the dot com "bust" of 2000 needs to read this book. It provides insights that can only be acquired from firsthand experience. Stiller and Marlowe were there, with Gosling, Bill Joy, Patrick Naughton, Wayne Rosing, and the other people who launched what has come to be a programming revolution. I found this book a compact gem and highly recommend it to anyone else who wants to crawl out of a foxhole and see a bit more of the world than the earth of a dusty today.

Read This Book........2001-05-02

I loved this book. One of the few that had me taking notes. I particularly enjoyed the application of the principles of Lawrence to the problem at hand. I may be biased as I know both Rich and Jos, as well as several others. As an observer at the time, I can say that Rich definitely had a hand in how Java landed after it found itself tossed into the air.

A page turner.......2000-10-30

This is one book I could not put down. It was very interesting and quite readable. I made the mistake of picking it up to try get sleepy again when I awoke in the middle of the night. Most any other book would have made me drowsy in no time, but "Assunder" I had to read through. Not only did I learn about the gestation of a new technology even more compelling than that described in "The Soul of a New Machine", but I was fasinated to learn so much about T. E. Lawrence and how his methods could be applied to a modern situation.

This appears to be a book that either you believe it and love it, or you disbelieve and hate it. I believe it. I too have known managers of the type Richard describes and have witnessed corporate antibodies reject breakthrough ideas. Like the Java development, the development of a new computer being described in "The Soul of a New Machine" required an unauthorized, underground movement by dedicated engineers to avoid rejection by the official coporate antibodies. The unorthodox method that Richard used to overcome these problems and save Java was fasinating, but not likely to be widely adopted. It requires too much self effacement for almost anyone capable and self confident enough to carry it off, and in the end the powers that be do not know your role in the success. Thus, there is no profit nor reward in it except self satisfaction. This is definitely not a primer for ambitious coporate ladder climbers.

Lawrence..again?.......2000-06-08

I was surfing the internet looking for new books about T.E. Lawrence and found this one about the saving of the Java programming language. I thought, what could Lawrence of Arabia have to do with Java? So I bought the book and found it fascinating and stunning to think that the authors used Lawrence's strategy, metaphorically, to influence the saving of Java. Obviously this is a little known story (and if I have read some of the other reviews correctly, little believed). However, I believe both the story and the authenticity of the authors. At first no one believed Lawrence either. It goes with the territory.

I wonder if Microsoft (now on the verge of being split) understands that one of the seeds of their impending division, had to do with Rich and Joss and their decision to save an obscure technology from cancellation. Of course short sighted people will hate this book. That's why they are short sighted.

Accounting & Finance for Integrated Media Publishing Companies
Average customer rating:

The best book available on this intricate subject.

Accounting & Finance for Integrated Media Publishing Companies

Manufacturer: PRIMEDIA Business
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Finance | Accounting & Finance | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0918110203
Release Date: 2002-08-30

Customer Reviews:

The best book available on this intricate subject........1998-08-24

Peter Craig's book on Accounting and Finance for Magazines is the best (and I believe ONLY) book available on this subject. Yet it is of vital importance for any publisher who receives subscription income. Most accountants do not realize that subscription income is DIFFERENT!!! And neither do most CPA's and auditors. With this book you can show how it is SUPPOSED to be handled.

Book Description

With the incorporation into domestic law of the European Convention on Human Rights, the UK courts will increasingly be called upon to strike the balance between the potentially conflicting rights of the right to privacy under Article 8 and the right to freedom of expression under Article 10. This book looks at the legal and constitutional development of both these rights and the relationship between them in several other countries: France, Germany, Canada, New Zealand and Australia and before the European Court of Human Rights. With a particular focus on cases concerning the media, it is an important source for all those interested in the development of these areas of law under the Human Rights Act.

Book Description

Time series methods are essential tools in the analysis of many geophysical systems. This volume, which consists of papers presented by a select, international group of statistical and geophysical experts at a Workshop on Time Series Analysis and Applications to Geophysical Systems at the Institute for Mathematics and its Applications (IMA) at the University of Minnesota from November 12-15, 2001 as part of the IMA's Thematic Year on Mathematics in the Geosciences, explores the application of recent advances in time series methodology to a host of important problems ranging from climate change to seismology.

The works in the volume deal with theoretical and methodological issues as well as real geophysical applications, and are written with both statistical and geophysical audiences in mind. Important contributions to time series modeling, estimation, prediction, and deconvolution are presented. The results are applied to a wide range of geophysical applications including the investigation and prediction of climatic variations, the interpretation of seismic signals, the estimation of flooding risk, the description of permeability in Chinese oil fields, and the modeling of NOx decomposition from thermal power plants.

The Ivy Chronicles
Average customer rating:

Best character was Faith

Hysterical! Good soul food for Moms who worry about worrying!

This is really, really bad

Do NOT waste your time like I did. . .

Entertaining but empty.

The Ivy Chronicles
Karen Quinn
Manufacturer: Amazon Remainders Account
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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Admissions

The Right Address: A Novel

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Play Dates

ASIN: B000FKP9Y2

Amazon.com

Karen Quinn's The Ivy Chronicles is the amusing story of what happens when a New Yorker loses her job, her husband, and her ritzy Park Avenue pad and is forced to carve out a new niche for herself and her two private school-educated daughters. After transferring the girls to public school and renting a shabby-chic (at best) flat upstairs from a knicherie, Ivy Ames takes her billionaire friend Faith's advice and starts a consulting business to help privileged pre-schoolers get into the city's premier kindergartens. Light on substance yet heavy on laughs, Quinn does a reasonably successful job of following in the well-heeled footsteps of earlier gossip lit standouts such as The Nanny Diaries and The Devil Wears Prada.

While Ivy's moral quandaries (is it really wrong to accept an alligator-skin Prada in exchange for securing a child's placement at a top "Baby Ivy") and often raunchy romances form the basis for this exposé, it is the toddlers' family stories that get the most laughs along the way. From Maria Kutcher, whose mob boss father is often referred to as "Kutcher the Butcher" to Winnie Weiner, a "nice Jewish girl from the Upper West Side" who becomes the African-American WaShaunte Washington in order to snag a "diversity" spot at the top schools, Quinn spares no one when it comes to exposing the habits of the rich and almost-famous. Yet even as Ivy begins to see the error of her snobbish ways, Quinn never quite lets her off the hook completely ("...it was such a relief to have a powerful man to lean on. Why couldn't I have one of my very own? Why?"). Still, for those of us who are in need of a quick laugh and have a few hours to spare, The Ivy Chronicles promises to entertain and amuse. --Gisele Toueg

Book Description

When turbocharged Park Avenue mom Ivy Ames finds she's been downsized from her high-powered corporate job and her marriage, she swiftly realizes that she's going to need a whole new way to support herself and her two private-school daughters. At first she does the obvious thing: she panics. Then she decides to put her years of marketing savvy to work and dreams up a brilliant new business - helping upscale New Yorkers get their little darlings into the most exclusive kindergartens in the city.

Ivy enters a parent-eat-parent world where the egos are directly proportional to their owners' enormous incomes, peopled by her only-in-Manhattan clients, including:

- Lilith Radmore-Stein, a newspaper mogul who is willing risk her entire empire in a demented effort to get her son admitted to Harvard Day
- Omar Kutcher (“Kutcher the Butcher”), a cold-blooded mob boss who seeks Ivy's counsel on whether to bump off or pay off the powers-that-be to get his “little pistol” into the city's best all-girls Catholic school
- Stu Needleman, Ivy's most obnoxious client, who threatens to ruin her if she won't help his four-year-old unibrowed daughter cheat on her kindergarten entrance exam
- Willow Bliss and Tiny Herrera, the biracial lesbian parents of an adopted wheelchair-bound black child who is the “triple crown of diversity” that every school will covet

From the backstabbers of corporate America to the leading toddlers of Fifth Avenue, The Ivy Chronicles is more than an insider's look at this elite and utterly preposterous universe. It is also a tale of midlife reinvention and unexpected romance - for anyone who has ever lost what she holds dear and had to start over again.

Customer Reviews:

Best character was Faith.......2007-08-27

I thought this book was entertaining... but at the end of the day, the author really leaves you feeling like the character who had the most in life was Faith - Ivy's best friend who married a billionaire husband and didn't work. She seemed to lead a charmed life that most of us would love to have (drivers, chefs, nannies, closet organizers, etc). I doubt it was the author's intent to make readers feel like money can buy happiness, but it sure felt like it at times. Which is a hard lesson to swallow for the avg middle class citizen.

Hysterical! Good soul food for Moms who worry about worrying!.......2007-05-22

I picked this book up because it was in the clearance rack - and absolutely ADORED it! I read the entire book in a bit more than a day - which is no small feat for a full-time working-out-of-the-home mother. Parts of this book had me laughing out loud, while others had me cheering Ivy on through her struggle with life, money, principles and motherhood. A thoroughly enjoyable book!

This is really, really bad.......2007-05-03

I'm a writer and a mom of young children and when I read this I was looking for some enlightenment...at the very least some entertainment. This is a poorly written book with a remarkably thin, assinine plot and a ridiculous main character. I think it appeals to some moms out there because they've truly lost their intellectual capabilities and identities by focusing all their attention on their children and spending most of their time in coffee klatches with other like-minded moms.

Do NOT waste your time like I did. . ........2007-04-07

As a matter of fact if the author could give me back the day of my life that I wasted reading this junk, that would be a suitable refund. One of the WORST books ever written.

Entertaining but empty........2007-03-24

I'm not quite sure where to begin with reviewing this novel. I enjoyed it, but so much of it bothered me.
The plot of "The Ivy Chronicles" is certainly more unique than that of most chick lit novels, and kept me turning pages until the end. However, i think it might have been easier to follow for the reader if the main character, Ivy, had taken on fewer clients. It got rather difficult to keep track of all seven sets of parents and children, as well as the myriad of other characters in the book. Several pivotal moments of the book hinge on purely coincidental incidents, which, while they are funny and may add some unexpectedness to the story, they make the novel feel unrealistic, and fantastical.
The final few chapters of the novel felt odd, as though the author suddenly remembered that she had a romantic storyline to bring to a close in about 50 pages, which she had greatly neglected throughout the rest of the book. Due to this hurried feeling, the romance factor of the book seemed false, and fell flat.
It's a funny novel, but not nearly as funny as i had hoped. The characters are thinly-drawn, with hardly any depth, so the funny parts of the book also lack depth.
While it was entertaining enough for me to finish, it was not good enough for me to recommend to others. I will still give the author a chance on her next book though, and hope that perhaps she has learned her craft a little better.

Grade: C+

Always a Blessing in the End: The Chronicles of the Four Ancestral Lineages of Ben Ivy & Ruth Thompson

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Always a Blessing in the End: The Chronicles of the Four Ancestral Lineages of Ben Ivy & Ruth Thompson
Paulette Ivy Harris
Manufacturer: iUniverse, Inc.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

African-American & Black | Ethnic & National | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

General | Ethnic & National | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

Family Health | Parenting & Families | Subjects | Books

General | Family Relationships | Parenting & Families | Subjects | Books

General | Parenting & Families | Subjects | Books
Accessories:

Health o Meter HDC100-01 "Grow with Me" Teddy Bear Scale for Babies and Toddlers
philosophy hope in a jar daily moisturizer

ASIN: 0595348866

Book Description

Always a Blessing in the End is a two-fold exploration of the African American experience in the United States within the genre of a family history. After addressing the development of the African slave trade, it highlights the attitudes and accomplishments in the arenas of slavery and equality for black Americans during each presidential administration from Washington to Carter.

Paulette Ivy Harris then presents her genealogies of four lineages, namely the Ivys, the Baileys, Goldsons, and the Thompsons. She takes the reader on an empathetic sojourn through the lives of the ancestors she finds long buried in Georgia, Mississippi, Tennessee, and Missouri. Her ancestors seem to resurrect from the dust of their internment and take on flesh to live again between the pages. By incorporating genealogical details about her ancestors into her research of African American history, she reconstructs the lives they endured. She discovers that the Christian faith of her ancestors was unfailingly rewarded with what truly mattered.

Those who enjoy reading family histories will learn about the struggles of several generations. Beginners and seasoned family history sleuths will be able to glean sources from Always a Blessing in the End to help them with their own ancestry puzzle.

Eventful living,: The intimate chronicle of a successful life in the happy pursuit of the virtues of the American way

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Eventful living,: The intimate chronicle of a successful life in the happy pursuit of the virtues of the American way
John Ivy Stafford
Manufacturer: William-Frederick Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

General | Genealogy | Reference | Subjects | Books
ASIN: B0007HNYYA

Book Description

Illness and instability in high office has often shaped the course of world events. Drawing on examples from around the world and throughout history-including George III, Winston Churchill, Adolph Hitler, Idi Amin, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Menachem Begin, Deng Xiao-peng, and Ronald Reagan-this important and absorbing book reveals how mortal illness can affect decisions and make a leader more determined to leave his mark on history.

When Illness Strikes the Leader: The Dilemma of the Captive King

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When Illness Strikes the Leader: The Dilemma of the Captive King
Jerrold M. Post
Manufacturer: Yale University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OS5GCA

The Panda's Thumb
Average customer rating:

In Memorium

Muddled thinking ... If it's worth doing, it's worth doing badly.

Two Panda's Thumbs up!!

Evolutionary theory meets Mickey Mouse and selfish genes

Enjoyable but dated

The Panda's Thumb
Stephen Jay Gould
Manufacturer: W W Norton & Co Ltd
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Genetics | Evolution | Science | Subjects | Books
General | Evolution | Science | Subjects | Books
Natural History | Nature & Ecology | Science | Subjects | Books
General | Evolution | Professional Science | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books
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Ever Since Darwin: Reflections on Natural History

Hen's Teeth and Horse's Toes

The Flamingo's Smile: Reflections in Natural History

Bully for Brontosaurus: Reflections in Natural History

Dinosaur in a Haystack: Reflections in Natural History

ASIN: 0393013804

Customer Reviews:

In Memorium.......2006-11-07

This is the book that reminds us why Stephen Jay Gould was the Great One. He was perhaps the greatest naturalist of his generation, as measured by being able to get across complex scientific ideas for the common man in an interesting manner. Additionally, he was a great scientist in his own right. The world is a sorrier place to lose him.

Gould's essays are far-ranging, but center around his view of life and evolution- through punctuated equilibrium. Using analogy (allowed in natural history essays) and his extensive research experience, he looks at how paradaigms shift, and why they should. He describes the evidence and logic behind a punctuated model as opposed to gradualism. And along the way lets us learn some fascinating new worlds in human and animal life.

At times I don't agree with his strong dislike of religion. At times his writing is dated- to be expected in a book now 25 years old. (He talks with great excitement about how we can now determine the code of RNA.) But his writing is always interesting, always thought-provoking and challenging, always novel. He has a new way of seeing things, even after a quarter century. He forces the reader to confront their preconceptions and shift their paradaigms. You learn, yes, but with great joy, and a spice of humor.

Muddled thinking ... If it's worth doing, it's worth doing badly........2005-11-14

Just a quick note on the theme argument of these essays. Its reasoning is void. Mr. Gould's argument seems to be 1. God is the author only of the perfect; 2. nature, e.g. the Panda (in regard at least to its thumb) is imperfect; 3. therefore, God did not create. The problem with this argument is that the meaning of "perfect" is never analyzed seriously. For example, is the Panda imperfect ? Gould offers nothing in support of this but the failure of the Panda to live up to his, Gould's, rather coarse, idea of "perfect". The text here seems remarkably neglectful of ecology, especially coming from a biologist. More fundamentally, as God is perfect, immaterial being, why should He make *anything* less perfect than Himself, for instance a material world of any kind ? By Mr. Gould's argument, the mere existence of the world, it matters not whether "perfect" or "imperfect", shows that God does not exist. Let's all sit down and go through this again ...

Two Panda's Thumbs up!!.......2005-09-18

The "argument from design" traces back at least to the medieval theology as a favorite proof for the existence of God. The argument runs that the exquisite design and interrelation of earthly organisms can be explained only by the existence of an Intelligent Designer.

I continue to believe in God, but Stephen Jay Gould's essays in "The Panda's Thumb" is a rather large nail in the coffin of this argument.

In essay after essay, Gould describes nature's mistakes and improvisations, seeming proof against the work of an intelligent designer. For instance, the "thumb" of pandas -- a specialized appendage to strip leaves from bamboo shoots -- is not a true thumb, but a weirdly-designed extension of a wrist bone. Gould demonstrates many other animal adaptations, from orchids to hermit crabs, that use unlikely body parts to perform survival tasks required by later generations of organisms.

Gould's explanation of neoteny - the tendency of organisms to retain anatomical features from childhood - is one of his most fascinating chapters. With a simple mutation, the basis for much uniquely human behavior and anatomy comes in to focus. We humans don't develop elongated snouts like other mammals; we retain our capacity to play throughout our lives rather than abandoning it at puberty; our brains continue to grow after birth; we are helpless and dependent on our parents far longer than other mammals. And in a typically Gouldian play of ideas, he charts the changing facial features of Mickey Mouse over the years to show him being drawn with more infant -like (and therefore human-like) features - rounder head, bigger eyes, shorter snout.

Though Gould is not a theist, "Panda's Thumb" is not an argument against God, but *for* the appropriate use of science to describe the natural world. We theists are well-served by books like this, which give us the ammunition needed to battle cultural forces that seek to blind us to the truth that lies right in front of us in the natural world and of which we are a part.

Evolutionary theory meets Mickey Mouse and selfish genes.......2002-12-19

The second collection of Gould's articles from Natural History continues to explore Darwin's themes and the resultant ideas since. There's several interesting essays here, including my favorite one in which the evolution of Mickey Mouse is discussed.

One of the essays here dealt with Richard Dawkins' controversial stand (in The Selfish Gene) on genes in which he states that a person is just a gene's way to make another gene. (This is different from normal evolutionary thought in that genes there are the subject of random variation which then is subject to the environment and tested.) Gould is not convinced by Dawkins' theory, mainly because, he says, there is no evidence that genes can be linked to specific attributes, i.e., there isn't an "eye" gene. Gould wrote this some years back, so it will be interesting to see if he revisits this subject now that researchers have indeed discovered the "eye" gene (through testing on flies).

Gould also covers Robert Bakker's theories about warm-blooded dinosaurs (later written up in Bakker's The Dinosaur Heresies) and the link to birds, a good essay for people to review prior to the hullabaloo that will follow Jurassic Park 2 (it's always fun to check up on an author's source material).

Enjoyable but dated.......2002-09-09

An entertaining and elegantly written collection of discursive essays on natural history and evolution. The nature stories and the anecdotes about eccentric naturalists are interesting.
It has a 1980 original publication date. Perhaps because of this date there is very little about DNA and nothing about HLA and tissue-typing. I shall check his later books to see if he ever got up-to-date on these. (He died a month ago). He was concerned to defend his field as being real science against "haughty and high-riding mathematicians and experimentalists." In fact this sort of biology seems more akin to history and archeology than to hard science, but that adds to its readability rather than detracts from it.

The Mismeasure of Man and The Panda's Thumb (2 Vol in Slipcase)

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The Mismeasure of Man and The Panda's Thumb (2 Vol in Slipcase)

Manufacturer: Norton & Co
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000BP96DG

Product Description

The Panda's Thumb: More Reflections in Natural History is a collection of essays on natural history and evolution. ISBN: 0395013804, 342pp, illustrated. The Mismeasure of Man is a fascinating historical study of scientific racism. ISBN: 0395014894, 352pp, illustrated. 8.3 x 5x5 paperbacks in slipcase.

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The Panda's Thumb: More Reflections in Natural History

Manufacturer: W.W. Norton
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000HVY86Y

The Mismeasure of Man & The Panda's Thumb: Boxed Set

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The Mismeasure of Man & The Panda's Thumb: Boxed Set

Manufacturer: W. W. Norton & Company, Incorporated
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000I3VVX4

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The Panda's Thumb
Stephen Jay Gould
Manufacturer: Books on Tape
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Audio Cassette

General | Science | Subjects | Books

General | Books on Cassette | Audiobooks | Formats | Books
ASIN: 5557082387

Book Description

"There is grandeur in this view of life," wrote Charles Darwin in the last line of THE ORIGIN OF SPECIES, "with its several powers, having been originally breathed into a few forms or into one."

In THE PANDA'S THUMB, Gould delights and instructs while deepening and extending his examination of evolution, a centerpiece of modern science. Were dinosaurs really dumber than lizards? Why are roughly the same number of men and women born? What do the panda's magical "thumb" and the sea turtle's perilous migration tell us about imperfections that prove the evolutionary rule?

"These questions of life lie on a continuum that touches us all. Seldom have their mysteries been explained with such wit, beauty and elegance." (Publisher's Source)

The Panda's Thumb : More Reflections in Natural History
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The Panda's Thumb : More Reflections in Natural History
Stephen Jay Gould
Manufacturer: New York, NY, U.S.A.: W. W. Norton & Company, Incorporated, 1980
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000M1TDRS

Average customer rating:

Second Collection of Great Essays on Science and Life

The Panda's Thumb
Stephen Jay Gould
Manufacturer: W W Norton & Co Ltd
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Evolution | Science | Subjects | Books
General | Science | Subjects | Books
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The Flamingo's Smile: Reflections in Natural History

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ASIN: 0393300234

Customer Reviews:

Second Collection of Great Essays on Science and Life.......2005-05-14

`The Panda's Thumb' is the second in a long series of bound essays by leading science writer Stephen Jay Gould. As important as these columns from the journal `Natural History' is, this is but a modest part of Gould's importance in American intellectual life. Gould, who died about three years ago from cancer, was a professor of geology, biology, and history of science at Harvard University and one of the world's leading researchers in broadening and interpreting Darwin's theory of evolution.

I was reminded of Gould just yesterday when an advocate of creationism (belief that the accounts of the history of the world as recounted in the Bible have some literal truth) described the theory of evolution as a `dogma'. This is exactly the kind of statement which Gould was so capable of dissecting in the most gentle manner to expose how completely wrongheaded the statement was, using the force of reason alone, without resorting to any appeal to emotion.

Gould was the consummate intellectual whose primary targets were beliefs which were based on mistaken reasoning or which base logically correct inferences on unsound or inappropriate premises.

My favorite example of the first pathology is his arguments showing that in spite of the fact that baseball statistics on performance have been dropping since the 1940's, overall baseball performance has actually been improving. This is one of the many inconsistencies between a rigorous application of probability versus an uncritical intuition.

The application of the word `dogma' to a scientific theory may be an example of the second pathology. The speaker is confusing scientific belief and religious belief. Scientific discourse creates theories whose power of explanation comes from its grounding in observation. As soon as an observation contradicts a theory, the quest to improve the theory or find a better one should begin. In Science, a `theory' is not something that is unproved, it is something which is believed and which is subject to disproof by evidence. A religious belief or dogma is, at least in Christian theology, something that is taken to be true because it was said under the influence of divine inspiration. By it's nature, since it is the result of a private experience (See William James' great `The Varieties of Religious Experience'), it cannot be disproved. That is not to say that the person who witnessed this experience is not free to write it down and try to convince someone else of the truth of what the true believer says they experienced. The whole Bible is composed of such stories. The fact that the Bible has inspired and improved the quality of life of billions of people over the millennia is evidence that it's message is worth advertising. But none of that changes the fact that religious beliefs are based on faith, which by its very nature is NOT based on empirical evidence.

The very best example of this dichotomy is in the methods used by the investigators on the CSI TV show, where the physical evidence is paramount and eyewitness testimony is the least reliable evidence there is. That someone says it is true does not make it so! This includes things said and written down 3000 years ago.

While I am going on a length without talking about the book `The Panda's Thumb', I wanted to state as clearly as possible what Gould was all about. And, I chose a review of this book to explain Gould's general position because it was the finding of this book in a bookstore in 1981 which lead me to the discovery of Gould's writing, and I have been a fan of his writing up to his death.

If I may, my love of Gould's writing is a match made in heaven, as my interest in evolutionary theory goes back to the tenth grade and my interest in the general history and philosophy of science goes back at least to the mid-1960's when I began my study of philosophy. My focus on this book is also based on the fact that Gould's essays in his earlier books seem just a little fresher than his later works. Whether that is because his ideas were coming to paper for the first time of because he was not distracted by the battle with his cancer I do not know. Gould himself says he found his earlier essays somewhat shallow. I simply don't see it. It is possible that the earlier essays were somewhat less technical, but if that is so, the difference is subtle. It may all be due to the fact that Gould revisits certain themes over and over, so my reading them for the first time had a lot more punch than the 10th time around.

The subject of the title essay in this book, the panda's thumb, is all about a sixth digit on the panda's hand which is not a true finger, but something developed out of a bone in the wrist to enable the panda to easily strip leaves off of bamboo shoots, the panda's favorite gourmet snack. While this may seem like a really insignificant detail, this is one of Gould's persistent themes. Most of the best examples of evolutionary theory can be found in some of the most innocent looking cases. I am constantly reminded of this as I discover examples in the oddest of places, as the last book I reviewed on bees and honey gives the story of a little experiment conducted by Charles Darwin on how bees construct their hexagonal cells of beeswax to hold honey.

As with all his books, this collection is divided into eight (more or less) sections covering all his various fields of interest such as Evolution, Darwinania, Human Abilities and Evolution, Science and Politics, the nature of change, geology and fossils, biological conjectures (Were dinosaurs dumb?), biological scale and development.

Gould is arguably the best writer on science for laymen in this generation. Everyone should read him, and this is an excellent place to start.

Average customer rating:

Entertaining science writing.

El Pulgar Del Panda/the Panda's Thumb
Stephen J. Gould
Manufacturer: Blume Editorial Sa
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Spanish | Foreign Language Nonfiction | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 8472142728

Customer Reviews:

Entertaining science writing........1999-12-27

I read this book in 1985 and it still stands out as one of the more original of the hundreds of books I have read. If you enjoy techno thrillers or sci fi adventures, try this book for a glimpse of science reality.

The Flamingo's Smile / The Panda's Thumb / the Hen's Teeth and Horse's Toes

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The Flamingo's Smile / The Panda's Thumb / the Hen's Teeth and Horse's Toes
Stephen Jay Gould
Manufacturer: W.W Norton Company
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000P7QXNQ

The Mismeasure of Man / The Panda's Thumb

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The Mismeasure of Man / The Panda's Thumb
Stephen Jay Gould
Manufacturer: Norton
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000IOCMQ8

North Carolina Afield: A Guide to Nature Conservancy Projects in North Carolina
Average customer rating:

The Best

North Carolina Afield: A Guide to Nature Conservancy Projects in North Carolina
Ida Phillips Lynch , and Margaret Fields
Manufacturer: Nature Conservancy, North Carolina Chapter
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Conservation | Environment | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books
General | Conservation | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books
Reference | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0967502616

Book Description

Where on Earth can you find . . .
- the first population of red wolves successfully reintroduced into the wild;
- the oldest trees in eastern North America;
- and the greatest concentration of salamander species (57) in North America?

Find out in North Carolina Afield.

Whether your passion is hiking, birding, paddling, or just driving along quiet back roads, North Carolina Afield will become a trusted resource for planning your expeditions in North Carolina. This guidebook offers detailed information about 92 of the most scenic and ecologically significant areas that The Nature Conservancy has protected in North Carolina: craggy mountain peaks that inspire poets and botanists alike; ancient swamp forests that once harbored Carolina parakeets; and wind-sculpted dunes and maritime forests on the dynamic Outer Banks.

All of these natural areas are open to the public and are managed as state parks, game lands, national forests, national wildlife refuges, and Nature Conservancy preserves. Every entry features ecological information, conservation history, tips on hiking trails or paddling routes, and current access and contact information, including websites and phone numbers. Photographs from premier nature photographers illustrate this beautifully designed publication.

Some of the wild lands featured in the book include:

Elk Knob -- Old growth forest covers this sky island that offers exquisite views of hidden valleys.

Gorges State Park -- This rugged, unfragmented wilderness is famous for its waterfalls, powerful rivers, and unique plants and animals.

South Mountains Game Land -- This isolated, sprawling mountain range in the Piedmont offers fishing and backcountry hiking.

Roanoke River Region - Public and private and conservation lands in this vast river floodplain provide ever-expanding paddling, hiking, and birding opportunities, including the Roanoke River Paddle Trail.

Black River Preserve - This pristine river is home to the oldest trees in eastern North America, a stand of 1,700-year-old bald cypress, as well as songbirds and black bears.

Sandhills Game Land - Miles of unpaved roads wind through the rolling hills in this 58,713-acre game land, one of North Carolina's most extensive and accessible longleaf pine habitats.

Kitty Hawk Woods Coastal Reserve - This remnant maritime forest on the Outer Banks offers hikers and paddlers a respite from the beach crowds.

Customer Reviews:

The Best.......2004-02-02

This is the best book I have ever read.

A Guide to Nature Conservancy Projects in North Carolina

Average customer rating:

Get Lost!

A Guide to Nature Conservancy Projects in North Carolina
Ida Phillips Lynch , and Margaret Fields
Manufacturer: Nature Conservancy, North Carolina Chapter, t
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Conservation | Environment | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books

General | Conservation | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books

Reference | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books

Ecotourism | Specialty Travel | Travel | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0967502608

Book Description

A Guide to Nature Conservancy Projects in North Carolina provides natural history information and invaluable travel tips for visiting North Carolina's most unique wild places, ranging from Bat Cave in the Blue Ridge Mountains to Nags Head Woods on the Outer Banks. The guidebook focuses exclusively on natural areas that have been protected by The Nature Conservancy, a non-profit conservation organization that has saved more than 476,000 acres in North Carolina.

Tourists and travelers can easily carry this portable guidebook in their glove compartment or backpack. Written for hikers, birders, paddlers, wildflower lovers, nature photographers, and armchair travelers, the book describes the most exceptional natural areas in each of North Carolina's geographical regions: the southern Appalachians, piedmont, coastal plain, and coast.

All of the areas featured in the book are open to the public. The sites include state parks, game lands, national wildlife refuges, or national forests, and Nature Conservancy preserves that are accessible through The Nature Conservancy's extensive field trip program. Each description includes an overview of the ecological features of the natural area, highlights about the conservation history of the project, ownership and access information, and directions to the site.

The book features photographs by well-known nature photographers, including Jeff Lepore, Jack Dermid, Carl Galie, Bill Lea, Harold E. Malde, Jay Kranyik, Michael Halminski, Derrik Hamrick, and Ken Taylor. The guidebook also includes a colorful foldout map of North Carolina based on an original watercolor by artist Mike Reagan.

A Guide to Nature Conservancy Projects in North Carolina features nationally significant Nature Conservancy preserves and projects, including:

Panthertown Valley - Located in Nantahala National Forest, Panthertown is a treat for hikers, offering spectacular open vistas and miles of trails on old logging roads. Anglers will relish the 20 miles of native trout streams.

Black River Preserve - The guidebook contains detailed directions to the best canoeing spots on this blackwater river that harbors the oldest trees in eastern North America - a stand of 1,700-year-old bald cypress.

Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge - Home to a thriving population of federally endangered red wolves, this 151,000-acre refuge offers excellent wildlife viewing opportunities for paddlers and birders alike.

Staff from The Nature Conservancy and the N.C. Natural Heritage Program wrote and edited the book.

Customer Reviews:

Get Lost!.......2003-01-18

I have spent thirty years hiking the woods of North Carolina, and never found a North Carolina guide of this significance. The writing is stellar, the layout straightforward and clear, and most important, I haven't been lost once since I began to use it. In addition to a wonderful guide to North Carolina preserves, it also underscores the magnificent work of The North Carolina Chapter during its enviable 25 year history in the state. Bravo!!

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