THIS IS A COMPREHENSIVE,WELL WRITTEN, ACCOUNT OF THE NORTH CAROLINA HANES FAMILY FROM MARCUS AND ELIZABETH HANES UP TO 1980.IT CONTAINS INFORMATION ON EACH LINE OF THE CHILDREN OF MARCUS HANES,WHERE THEY LIVED,HOW THEY EARNED THEIR LIVING,AND IN MOST CASES,THEIR MAJOR ACHIEVEMENTS.THIS BOOK IS A VALUABLE VIEW OF LIFE FROM THE 1700'S IN NORTH CAROLINA AND IT DETAILS HOW THIS REMARKABLE FAMILY COPED WITH LIFE AND PROSPERED UNDER DIFFICULT CIRCUMSTANCES.MUST READING FOR THOSE INTERESTED IN GENEALOGY.

As a student I found this book was invaluable for bridging the gap between theory and practice. Having learnt pathology and physiology the previous semester, I used the excellent pictures in Radiographic Pathology to prepare me for my first foray into the practical side of things. Much of our testing was picking pathology on images and thanks to this book I passed with flying colours.

I have read other books of "Stochastic Processes" by Ross,"Introduction to Stochastic Processes" by Stone.Certainly this book is a good one to span you knowledge.Largely it covers Queueing Systems in the later part,but a really really nice introduction to the terms necessary.

If you are familiar to these terms of Stochastic Processes i would highly recommend it.If not so,even then first 4 chapters talk abt finite and infinte horizon optimization,introduces you to other necessary terms.And then just go go go.

The FTP site of the publisher lets you download the pascal programmes so that u can run them and test them for your own purpose.

The problems at the end of the each chapter is the best way to test your learnt knowledge,they are little bit mind teasers(I felt so).

OverAll a good book for those who are comfortable with LOTS of equations and Probablity.

In spite of this book's title, there are no horses to speak of in "Thirty Tons a Day." Self-proclaimed "hustler," Bill Veeck, Jr., who has been called the greatest public relations man and promotional genius the game of baseball has ever seen, decided to take a detour into the Thoroughbred business by purchasing Suffolk Downs, a run-down racetrack near Boston. This book is his story of how he renovated the racetrack, starting in 1969, then took on the legislative, judicial, and executive branches of the Massachusetts government to haul Thoroughbred racing, kicking and screaming out of the Dark Ages--or more accurately out of the Age of Puritans.

He succeeded in his battles against the government (thanks mainly to the judicial branch) but was finally done in by his own holding company, Realty Equities. The bittersweet final chapter describes the farewell party he threw for his friends who had joined him in his two-year, and ultimately bankrupted racetrack venture.

It was a wild two-year ride and Veeck is a very colorful character, even when he is talking about holding companies and Boston politics. During his tenure at the track, he had the pay toilets and artificial flowers banned from the facility, staged chariot races and livestock giveaways (Brahma bulls and a Thoroughbred). There was also going to be a reenactment of Custer's last stand, which alas was rained out (Veeck didn't have much luck with the weather during his tenure). He also inaugurated what was then the richest turf race in the world, the Yankee Gold Cup, won by the French horse, Jean-Pierre (so there are a few horses mentioned in this book, just not as many as you might be led to believe by the title).

My biggest disappointment was that Veeck didn't talk at all about the day-to-day management of the stables. This is a book about high finance, dirty politics, and really crazy ways of drawing crowds to a racetrack.

I think the National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA) could learn a great deal from Bill Veeck if only they would cease their internal squabbling long enough to read "Thirty Tons a Day." I only wish he were still around to whack some sense into the Thoroughbred racing business.

Unlike Christopher Buckley's "The White House Mess" and "Thank You for Smoking", "Little Green Men" is a book that goes beyond Washington into the world of paranoia that is the modern-day UFO/abductee movement.

Much has already been written about the transparent nature of the Will/Banion character, but there are other Washington heavies being satirized here, particularly Vernon Jordan as a fixer more concerned with protecting his long-term power base than any short-term friends. Not to mention Pamela Harriman, Strom Thurmond, and a few others (such as a few shots at Buckley's arch-nemesis Tom Clancy, both under Clancy's real name and at a Clancy-like character with a quite off-color name).

Buckley's work is clearly the product of a lot of in-depth research. Those familiar with UFO lore will recognize the Stanton Friedman (the goateed nuclear physicist), Budd Hopkins, Shirley MacLaine, and Colonel Phillip Corso characters, though Friedman is portrayed as much more diabolical (plus Buckley mixes in a bit of Jim "face on Mars" Hoagland).

He understands the fringe of the UFO movement quite well (Linda Howe, under her real name, and her obsession with supposedly alien-caused cattle mutilations provide numerous comic moments).

I found myself laughing quite frequently throughout this book, because Buckley knows his both his central topic as well as the power game that is played in Washington.

Without spoiling the plot, I can say that Buckley posits a comically realistic (if untrue) scenario where the abductees aren't all crazy and there aren't any greys or Nordics running around grabbing people off the road and invading their nether regions. The book climaxes with an OJ-style trial, with a Gerry Spence character representing the defense.

Among the highlights are the explanatory footnotes, some of which are useful, others of which are comic. For instance, recounting an attempt to smear a witness by implying that a murder victim had a copy of a porno mag called "Juggs", Buckley adds the following footnote: "* A glossy magazine devoted to large-breasted women, begun as a color insert in the Atlantic Monthly".

For those liberals out there, relax, none of Buckley's novels push any sort of conservative agenda and all three may be read by those across the spectrum without any concern about the politics inherent in the book.

Read this book. You won't go wrong. Then go to your library and find "The White House Mess", a strangely prescient set of White House memoirs written 6 years before anybody ever heard of George Stephanopoulos.

It's been a while since I've read a book so hilarious. Christopher Buckley lets us follow around a snooty television personality John O. Banion. His arrogance angers an employee of MJ-12, a super secret government agency that keeps UFO's in the publics' mind to win support in favor of space exploration's budget. This employee, Nathan Scrubbs, orders his abduction.

Pretty soon John goes public. Those Washington elites he used to rub elbows with now look at him as a loon. Though he finds huge acceptance by those believing in aliens. He also then sees that mass number of people believing in aliens. Soon he's head of an army of supporters. This is the setup the enables Buckley to take all the shots he wants at the U.S. government. I love where he talks about Banion's show sponsor Ample Ampere, the electric company that has created a more power efficient, quiet, and smokeless electric chair. His footnotes are especially amusing. I woke my mom up laughing at his particularly brutal footnote on the CIA where he attacks their ineptness to complete any task that might be considered intelligent. Buckley also expresses his more serious thoughts on government like Banion's speech about how we're like mushrooms, put in the dark and fed crap. If you enjoy a jolly little chortle at Uncle Sam's expense, you won't regret taken this book for a read.

Thanks to TV shows and movies like The X-Files and Independence Day, public fascination with conspiracies and aliens has probably never been stronger. Naturally, satirist Christopher Buckley would turn his talents towards spoofing trend that is long overdue for parody after so cleverly mocking the tobacco industry and Washington D.C. politics in his brilliant "Thank You For Smoking".

Buckley's protagonist is pompous Sunday morning talk show host John Oliver Banion, whose arrogance annoys a government employee whose job is to arrange for the government to kidnap average people and make them believe they were abducted to spread hysteria and justify the defense budget. Abducted, Banion becomes a believer in the abduction cause and fights to expose the government's complicity in the abduction conspiracy. From politics to the media to the conspiracy-theory ridden alien abduction movement, Buckley's targets for ridicule richly deserve his wrath.

"Little Green Men" isn't quite the laughfest of "Thank You For Smoking", but it is still a richly entertaining book that will entertain admirers of Buckley to no end.

Although I am still fairly new to past life work, I found this tape a frustration rather than a help to my efforts in learning more about myself. I gave it several tries, attempting to remain open to Linn's suggestions each time, but discovered as follows:

She talks too much, uses a cadance of voice that disrupted my ability to relax, and more importantly, has a poor balance of suggestion/free visualization reign. Just about the time I could relax and get a good feel of what I was supposed to be doing, her suggestions would disrupt my mental pictures and subsequently leave me sprawling when I was "almost there" on my own accord.

Listening to her, I was not allotted the freedom of creativity necessary to truly discover one's self. Her ideas are sound, but her method is horrid. I would liken my ability to follow her to a freight train whose engine coughs down a track. . .lunging towards success, and then screeching into a blinding halt.

A train wreck. I wasn't able to learn anything new, and though I may use the sentiments behind her technique, I never got anywhere with her.

I discovered Denise Linn about 5 years ago during a very difficult period of my life. I actually bought the tapes "Past LIves Present Dreams" and found the memories I was able to recall so incredible and powerful. I have been a fan ever since. I have a number of her tapes and I love the way she is so plain spoken in discussing this kind of regression. I understand her, whereas others I have found too esoteric. Her voice is filled with power, and although others reviewing this have said she "shouts" I find her manner soothing and empowering at the same time. I would fall asleep within seconds if she became more relaxing, whereas with these tapes my attention can be focused into to the wonderful imagery that she uses. I would recommend ANYTHING by Denise Linn, but if you are interested in past life regression, I would definitely recommend this (and Past Lives, Present Dreams).

I have listened to numerous meditation tapes and this is the best tape I have ever heard! The soothing rhythm of Denise's voice allowed me to sink into such a deep state that I realized things about myself and my life that I never understood before. I wasn't even sure if I believed in reincarnation, before I got the tape but the images I got were so vivid. Suddenly I began to see my life in the context of who I was in another life. Amazing! I highly recommend this tape to anyone on a spiritual journey.

I was assigned this book by an admittedly socialist professor. Perhaps she hoped it would open my eyes to "the people's glorious revolution." In fact, it confirmed in my mind that communists are seriously deluded people. The writers in this book lament their rejection by middle class Americans, seemingly oblivious to the fact that one of the major tenants of communism is the violent destruction of the middle class (I say "violent" because I doubt the middle class would simply relinquish its status when "the glorious revolution occurs). They also bemoan that their first ammendment rights were ignored. The first ammendment was wirtten to allow speech to improve the system. No nation has ever or will ever tolerate speech advocating the destruction of itself and the massacre of its citizens. They should get used to it anyway, as whenever a communist regime takes hold the first thing it does is eliminate free speech. Overall, this book is a worthless collection of narcissistic, revolutionary ramblings, myopic pseudo-history and whining, with no real educational merit at all.

This is a unique anthology of memoirs of kids who grew up in the 40's and 50's, in the "pink" shadow of the American Communist Party. Most of the nearly fifty contributors of this book are children of Eastern Jewish immigrants. Here are their fascinating memories: Joyous ones of Pioneer Camp, The Daily Worker, public rallies in support of women, workers, minorities, and disarmament. Fearful recollections of the Rosenberg executions, McCartyism, clandestine CP meetings, FBI surveillance, and the dreaded knock on the door in the middle of the night. Disillusioned remembrances of Khrushchev's denouncement of Stalin and the devastating revelation that "Uncle Joe" and the "Workers' Paradise" of the USSR were not what American Communists naively believed. Few of these writers still belong to the CP. A small number speak resentfully of parents who put the Party before family, exposing their children to bigotry and violence or to the anxiety and deprivation of a life "underground". The Party's over. But the great majority of these writers proudly retain their strong leftist values and ideals, and continue to practice the social activism instilled during childhood. This book gives a human and humane dimension to a misled but often wrongfully vilified American political movement.

This highly orginal book did not get the press it deserved when it was first published. It is a collection of brief, yet moving reminiscences written by "red diaper babies" whose parents had a connection -- some more than others -- with the "Movement". It is a definite "must read" for anyone who grew up in the fifties -- whether or not he or she wore red, pink or any other shade of diaper! -- whose parents did not share the prevailing political opinions of the times.

It's my opinion that authors should be inspired by other fields of knowledge than their conventional one (in this case by other sources than marketing and branding). I believe that Mr. Linn has done a great job for the hole field of branding by combining those thoughts with biology and the theories of evolution.

It's my opinon that more authors should find inspiration in knowledge sources outside their own field (in this case of marketing, and branding). I love the way Mr. Linn combines thoughts from biology and evolution theories with branding. By his contribution a deeper level of understanding might be reached!

It is not often an author allows himselt that in such a brief and vigorous way explain an issue or concept.

I have been searching information about brand management and consider that Brand Dynamics has given me an additional approach and angle in this topic.

I consider that Mr Linn in an excellent way makes this topic clear and let me understand a new approach of buyer appreciated values. An understanding that is of great importance for every organisation that wants to be successful.

"Before You Sleep" is a wonderful look inside the doors and windows of a very dysfunctional family. The trials and tribulations of Karin and the world she lives in add the wonderful backdrop to a sometimes complicated and extremely character focused book. It takes some work getting into it....but, if you give it time, you'll make it. It's a bit slow going, but if you're a fan of charcter books, this one might be for you.

Before You Sleep has an alluring--and certainly unreliable--narrator, Karin, who can't seem to relate to herself, her family, or the men around her without lapsing into (at times) fantastic lies. It makes for an interesting story, to say the least. Originally written in Norwegian, the story doesn't suffer from the translation (at least, not as far as I can tell, since I'm not proficient in Norwegian!)--it's still a graceful yet abrupt narrative, like Karin herself. My only quibble is that Karin doesn't seem to change much over the course of the novel; she's rather static. I was left wondering whether any of the novel's events would change her in any way. Still, Ullmann has such a distinct voice, and Karin is such a great character, that this book is well worth a read.

Though she wishes the best for her sister Julie in her marriage to Aleksander Bakke, Karin believes that her sibling is doomed to a life of unhappiness. That is the hand me down curse from one generation to the next beginning when her grandmother went to America in 1931.

Karin thinks back to her grandfather Rikard who was a successful entrepreneur in 1930's Brooklyn. He loved Selma, but married her sister June. When Rikard died during World War II, June accompanied by their two daughters (Anni and Else) returned to their native Norway. Anni's distant spouse simply deserts his wife and two kids (Julie and Karin). Karin thinks her mother is "not quite right in the head", but she admits the woman seeks something with her slew of lovers. Anni's "Father" is a cold aloof person. The hope lies within Julie. She gives birth to the next generation, Sander, just as her husband proves Karin's theory on unhappy relationships being the norm by turning elsewhere for his pleasure.

BEFORE YOU SLEEP is a deep narrative that highlights four generations of a dysfunctional family. The story line starts slow, but will hook the audience due to the insider's look at the characters and what makes them what they are. Oslo and Brooklyn add depth to the tale, but there is no question that this is a storyline driven by the characters as seen through the eyes of the cynical Karin.

Strategy guides are horrible. Why use one ESPECIALLY for DOA3? ITS LIKE A STRATEGY GUIDE FOR PONG!!!!!!!

Lets face it a Strategy Guide for DoA3 is very lame. BUT it is insightful. Another reviewer said that it's as useful as a guide for Pong. Well they have a point, DoA3 is a fighting game whos objective is to bash the other player. Play long enough and you learn how to do just that. What this guide shows you is how to do it in style, how to take out the other guy with that rare combo, and with some practise do it everytime. If you are like this Gamer, who is NOT 14 and can NOT spend 12 hours in front of his XBOX (though I wish I could), then this guide is for you. Enjoy it.
PS Rember Pong was the #1 selling game for a long time back in the day.

I dont know why "nightmarecow1" didnt like it.. I thought it was amazing... I loved it and thats all that matters....