Based on the title and description of this book, I bought it hoping to learn more about developing financial tools, specifically interest rate models, in Matlab. After working through most of the book, I have concluded that the use of the name "Matlab" in the title is misleading: it only means that Maple, the main tool of the book, may be accessed via the kernel of Matlab.

The book appears to be targeted primarily at undergraduates and MBA students, not practitioners in the field. Such an audience may have little interest (or need) in learning to develop code or the intricacies of the underlying mechanics of financial models, and for them, the book would no doubt be very helpful. The software that comes with the book includes a stripped down version of Maple, (which is nice, since you can't really use the book without it), and author-developed analytical tools. These tools support the goals of learning through the ability to quickly vary inputs and see the impact on the output, but as they are more or less a black-box, do not add much to one's independent ability to model new financial objects or extend existing ones.

The book includes the de rigueur definitions of typical financial instruments and explanations that facilitate understanding of these instruments (such as how to read and understand option data in newspapers, the mechanics of currency swaps and so on), but one really has to follow along with the Maple commands page by page to derive benefit. The fixed income section is very skimpy. It seems like the book is best suited as an extended set of lecture notes.

I like the book but would not recommend it to practioners looking for insight on tool development or to extend knowledge of cutting edge interest rate models (as these are not covered here). I would recommend it for newcomers to the field having mathematical or quantitative backgrounds who want a reasonably good introduction to financial instruments. It would also be useful as a companion text in master's programs in financial engineering or financial mathematics. Derivatives and Maple with training wheels.

The theory of financial derivates is now much easily understood by combining mathemtical models with the symbolic, numeric and visualization capabilities of a CAS such as Maple. The author made an excellent choice to select Maple (primarily) and Matlab. Maple is used extensively in many academic and industry settings, and its integration into the presentation of the materials makes the content come alive. Great addition, that (even) every mathematician should read! I highly recommend it.

For when life throws you that derivative that you just can't look up in some book...
This book provides the building blocks on both the practical and theoretical levels that one needs to price derivatives. The book provides an essential combination of three things: 1) clear explanations and examples of fundamental concepts, 2) a hands on approach to software and pricing algorithms, and 3) emphasis on graphic visualization in understanding the behavior of derivatives in general. While clearly a textbook for a Master's level course, from the point of view of a practitioner, this book has also become my first reference source at the office for those times when I can't just look up the answer, and have to resort to first principles.

This edition has some interesting aspects of model rocketry for the hobbyist who is ready for some new ideas and directions. Unfortunately many of the chapters retained from the first edition are now seriously dated. The photographs are also dated and in at least one case, in the wrong chapter. Most notably missing are any websites for sources, organizations and companies which would expand on a hobbyists knowlege of these advanced topics more effectively than the limited coverage in the book.

This book was very well written and well worth the money. The ease of reading and the knowledge offered makes this a must have for a novice rocketeer.

I was drawn into advanced model rocketry after building my first couple Estes models. Luckily, I came across this book which gave me valuable information on planning and constructing my own model rockets. Not only that but the book offers hints for succesful aerial photography, computer programs to help you with planning your rocket, plans for theodolites to measure the height of your rocket, launch controller circuits, and a lot more!

If you're looking to make that "next" step into model rocketry, this is the book for you.

The second edition of this important book is worth having as a reference guide and as an idea generator. The author writes clearly and is an obvious expert in the field. I would highly recommend it to anyone who wants to "push the outside of the envelope" of model rocketry.

I love this story, but the board book version of it worries me because there is a page with a cut out star that is very pointy. The way my little guy examines books makes me afraid that he would poke himself in the eye.

This book is about a boy (Tim) who had received a secret message for his birthday. You must follow the message, which is teaching shapes and through the wonderful illustrations catches the concepts of these shapes associated with this world. The pictures wonderful as all of Eric Carle's are and this is a fun adventure!

My daughter received this book for her 1st birthday and although she was too little to "follow" the symbols of the "secret message" she adores the shaped pages, the large pictures of easily identified objects - moon, stars, rock etc. and the birthday present at the end which you can peek through to see the page before was her absolute favorite. I need to purchase another copy for her because she has just about worn it out!

I have waited for a long time to find a copy of this at a price I could afford. Listening to the other reviews and looking at Amazons' look inside feature, what I expected was a thick paperback containing a large amount of information on all of the landmines in the inventory, and the approved EOD method for rendering them safe.

What I got was a book that barely fit on my shelf, much less a BDU pocket. It contains the notes of a well-respected gentleman that he homogenized from multiple various sources.

He states that one of the reasons for the book is that the publications for use by EOD personnel are normally not available to the deminer. In many countries, UXO personnel are not EOD people, they are conscripted from the local population. Unfortunately, many of the items do not list a method for neutralization, and the section on rendering safe is very, very, VERY generalized. The ones that do list disarming and neutralization procedures do so supposing that the reader already has attended a course of instruction in explosives disposal.

I wouldn't feel safe using the book in the field. I understand the need for classification, but nothing about landmines, which by nature are left behind to be collected for study and reverse engineering by any coutry with an interest, truly needs classification when you weigh the need of the deminer to safely remove them.

Also, possibly off topic, I would have liked to seen a greater number of submunitions listed.

In sum, the book has its' points, but it falls short of being the publication it could be. A book of this type has a very necessary place in demining operations, and with some more fleshing out, this book could fill that role.

This book is certainly a must for anyone who is involved in the task of removing the international landmine plague. It is also invaluable for those involved in research and development of new techniques for detection and landmine remediation. For those in the general public who want to understand the difficulties of the technical aspects of demining, it can be a frightening but enlightening reference.

Eddie Banks has over thirty years experience in his field. He has summed his knowledge into an amazingly usable and readable form covering every aspect of antipersonnel mine technology from a historical perspective to detailed specifications of individual mines.

The data sheets, organized by country of manufacture, provide photos, specifications, particular dangers and methods of disarming among many other pertinent facts.

For anyone, from researcher to interested reader, who wants to understand the possibilities for this weapon of terror and the possibilities for remediation, this is a must read.

Textbook is a good summary of all types of foot and ankle surgery, but it tends to get overly wordy and bogged down with some of the history behind many of the surgical procedures. Book is also heavily politically weighted to make some procedures look very positive and other procedures to look like they should never be performed. Overall, I think it could have been better written, but if you can sift through all the triteness of the text, it is a valuable tool to understanding most of the facets of foot surgery.

There is no other "one book to read" about the subject than this one. Excellent.

The authors claim that some intro Calculus and Probablity is all that you'll to follow this book, but I disagree. The authors go into the derivation of the Vasicek model, et al, and if you want to follow along, you'd better know something about PDE and Ito's Lemma. Even having Calc I and Calc II under your belt won't be enough. I hate books that tell you you'll only need some rudimentary math skills, and the proceed to blow you way with concepts not covered by the level of math they think is necessary to grasp their book. Certain chapters can be read without extensive math knowledge, but to get the full value from this book you'll need more. That's why I gave it only 3 stars.

Although not easy reading this book should be a must for any banker or banker to be. The authors' approach to a term structure model is the most solid analysis of profitability planning in the banking industry. In bringing this approach van Deventer & Imai present a well written primer that leads the reader through fixed income mathematics, yield curve smoothing, duration, convexity, term structure models, risk-neutral instruments, derivatives, advanced hedging & risk measument techniques. This book requires some quantitative skills or great perseverance. Being past this hurdle any reader will find the authors approach an excellent contribution to the banking industry on its march towards Risk-adjusted Return on Capital

The Fruits of Atterley is a very well written and well researched piece by a first-time author. It brings to life the turmoil and confusion of the times shortly before the Civil War, and the conflict between the inevitablity of Emanicaption and the desire of the southern planters to maintain life as they have always known it.

The author shows that she has a way with the written word in the prose used to describe settings and daily goings-on at Atterley. The reader is literaly transported back to the plantation.

Banks effectively recreates life on a South Carolina Low-Country plantation where the master is benevolent and kind-hearted, which is not typical, yet believable in her storytelling. It brings to mind the stories we've heard in recent years of Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemmings and countless other slave masters who have dared to allow themselves to feel human emotion and even love for those individuals who, by tradition, culture and politics, were otherwise destined to be treated as less than human.

Banks transports the reader to the days shortly before the Civil War in South Carolina. You get a feel for the political manuverings and the deal-making that went on. The atmosphere is palpable with tension, both political and moral. The debate over slavery and succession is made real. Her characters are for the most part believable and sympathetic. One truly gets a feel for life at Atterley.

However, the sense that the slaves were allowed to speak to their masters as equals and even demand certain priviledges from them, does not sit well with the general historical record. The slaves in Banks' book call their masters by their first names and have a level of familiarity that rings untrue. I'm sure that there may have been instances of that, but it rings as unbelievable given the historical record.

The author is less successful in handling the flash-forwards to the new, present-day owners of Atterley. This is not well written and the story could have best been told without a reference to a modern day connection. It is a story best told from the perspective of history. And that is when it is most effective.

On the whole, I enjoyed the book and it held my attention, especially the second half of the book...P>It is a worthy first effort for a promising writer.

This book was full of symbolism, round, full characters, and great descriptive language. I was extremely impressed by Ms. Banks' ability to make every character and every event become real. I would definitely recommend this book for anyone who wants to think, feel, and also to discover things about themselves and others that they might never have known or thought of before.

When I first purchased "A Full Service Bank: How BCCI..." I was thinking that it is a long boring book, but when I started to read it I was amazed on what BCCI actually pulled off and how they did such things. The governments and banking systems in other countries also intrigued me. "A Full Service Bank" is an exciting book that keeps the reader engaged for a long amount of time and keeps them interested. When you are done reading this novel you should feel a sense of knowledge. I suggest "A full Service Bank" to anyone interested in the banking industry or interested in a great book about scandles andn banks.

This is a good read, very educational on Middle-Eastern and Southeast Asian business practises. Instead of all that garbage they teach at business schools regarding international commerce, they should provide books such as this one as required reading.

This is how things really happen. It details innumerable 'behind-the-scenes' business deals. Provides a great insight to the anatomy of shady international banking deals, not to mention arms deals, drug trafficking and money laundering.

I know some of the people mentioned in this book and it is spot-on with its descriptions of them. This book may be a little out of date but its a worthy read and will be for years to come.

The Ghost from the Grand Banks: I'd never heard of this novel before finding it at the library, and I quickly found out why. It's a rather self-indulgent outing by the master, spending more time demonstrating his erudition than furthering the rather thin plot, which involves raising the Titanic. He has some successful predictions in here (the Y2K problem, though he misjudges both its impact and solutions), and some unsuccessful ones (the Mandelbrot set as a fashion object). All in all, this is an uncharacteristically forgettable outing.

The Deep Range: Now this is more like it. The first sentence - "There was a killer loose on the range" - grabbed me, bringing me back to the days when I first read this book as I was just getting into science fiction. Here we have a future world where food is becoming scarcer, and whales and plankton must be harvested to feed the teeming millions. Into this comes Franklin, a traumatized astronaut looking for a new career. We cover the problems he encounters, both personally and professionally, concluding with the moral one of eating whales at all.

Still something of a rambling tale, but it's out of the classic days of sf, and it brought back fond memories for me, and I enjoyed it, regardless.

THE GHOST FROM THE GRAND BANKS was written more than a decade ago, telling a tale of an attempt to raise the Titanic in the early 21st century. It was only a few years later that James Cameron's TITANIC caused enough stir in interest for the old ship's future fate that such attempts to raise the old tin pot now don't seem so outlandish at all. This novel, written in typical Clarkean style, is filled with science and technology fitted to a spare and efficient fromework of a plot. Diversions into the world of mathematics via the 'Mandelbrot set' makes for a fascinating counterpoint to the main story.

In 1957, the year the Space Age began, ACC penned THE DEEP RANGE--about near-future undersea farming and exploration of Earth's "inner space." The author's love of the sea and it's creatures was prominently shown in this evocative novel. In the decades since it was published, the world has undergone a true revolution in attitude toward marine mammals and their habitats. Whale song has been studied, protective covenants established to preserve endangered species, and exploration of the seas continues. A classic tale that sometimes rankles the contemporary mindset, but exposing all kinds of future possibilities.

Just a few minutes ago I finished GHOST TOWN. I was not thrilled during the first 100 pgs. or more. But the last 100 were very exciting and page turning. I read the review by Kay Lewis and I agree with her 100%. And it would be impossible for me to write it down as well as her so I won't even try.

....and that's what I did when I picked this book out to buy. I'm not a reader of little western novels. I'd never heard of the author, Ed Gorman. But, it just sort of leaped out at me so I bought this little book and gave it a home. I'm glad I did because I enjoyed reading it and will probably be reading more books by Mr. Gorman.

The anti-hero of GHOST TOWN, Bryce Lamont has been released from prison and has journeyed to a town in Wisconsin in search of his old partner in crime because he never got his cut of the money from their last job because Bryce was caught and served time. He finds Jed, his old friend is now an upstanding citizen and owns the bank. Between Bryce's instincts and suspious matters happening in town, he knows something big is going on and Jed's hand is the one stirring things up and Bryce keeps landing in the stirred pot. But, can he prove the respected bank owner is not who he appears? While all the turmoil is going on, Bryce finds the lady doctor of the town is stirring a few things up as well.....like, his feelings for her.

I like the way the story is told in the first person mode and without all the old western cliche`s I expected. The humor, the suspense and a touch of romance were blended just right for a very enjoyable read. I may be ready for another western saga or two!