My favorite problem, and this is typical of the sort of material presented, is to decide whether or not a car suffers more damage in

A. hitting an immovable brick wall at 50 m.p.h.

B. having a head-on collision with an identical car both travelling at 50 m.p.h. ?

The usual response is to say B. However, Newton's 3rd law of motion, ("forces always act in pairs; if a exerts a force on b, then b exerts an equal and oppositely-directed force on a), maintains that the damage is the same, i.e., the wall strikes the car with the force of a head-on collision. This problem, by the way, is particularly juicy - I remember the head of a university physics department discussing this one at considerable length with two other physicists! (They more or less agreed, with provisos, that B. is indeed correct.)

The author encourages thinking without mathematics, to come to terms with the physical reality of what is occurring. This approach closely mirrors that of Michael Faraday and James Clerk Maxwell, who felt that mathematics was useful only as an adjunct to science and no substitute for clear thinking... A marvellous book.

Finally there's a book that guides us through the many important aspects of this emerging field. Lead author Janelle Barlow is an accomplished speaker with an international reputation. The co-authors work for the same consulting firm. They have extensive experience participating in videoconferences, so they've seen the good, the bad, and the ugly. Realizing that there was not a good comprehensive layman's book in the field, they did the research and prepared a tool to educate and prepare us. Their perspective is that videoconferencing is growing, but will not replace face-to-face meetings. The new technology has its place, and reading this book will help you understand where that "place" is in the grand scheme of human-to-human communication.

The authors propose that there are four habits to learn and embrace to look good and have a high level of effectiveness. The habits, which are each explained-taught-in separate chapters, are Leverage Your Choices (videoconferencing is not always appropriate), Think Prime Time (viewers expect you to look good-and professional . . . just like what they see on commercial television), Make Technology Your Friend (it all works for you, if you let it . . . but then, there's Murphy's Law), and Maximize Your Presence (the little tricks of the trade to improve your appearance and presentation).

Rather than throw readers directly into the deep end of the pool, the authors invest the firsts section of their book in a valuable explanation of videoconferencing's position, opportunities, and limitations. After they've presented their habits, they conclude with a comprehensive checklist, legal issues like copyrights, and a perspective on the future of the field. More added value comes from the appendices on storyboarding and commonly mispronounced words. Included are a bibliography, index, and a comprehensive list of terms used in the field. Vignettes about experiences with videoconferencing spice up each chapter, providing a lightness and a sort of permission to be human.

This is a developing medium, not a science. Learn from this book, try videoconferencing, allow yourself to make some mistakes, and build your competence and confidence. The future is here.

Hydro Raney is a gentle and innocent young man who readers will easily takes into their heart. He is a person of simple wants and needs who takes people he meets at face value. His father loves him dearly and sings him to sleep at night. Hydro willingly places a cantaloupe on his head for his sharpshooter friend Morgan to shoot off. While this turns out successfully, Hydro in his innocence is not prepared to deal with everyone who comes his way.

Prepare to meet as well: the Lovely children who are beautiful to look at, but hide behind their looks and beauty; Louis, the young comic book geek who is witness to the darkest moments of the book; the Prince of Darkness the mortician that rose from the dead. The Sharp Shooter Blues is awash with wonderful southern characters that, leave a lasting impression on the reader.

Lewis Nordan is a gifted story teller who has crafted a book of extreme pain and beauty. There is so much life, sadness and depth to the book that I dog eared numerous pages to go back and read again. It is beautifully written and leave the reader with much to think about.

If you have not yet discovered Lewis Nordan do pick up a copy of the Sharp Shooter Blues. It is a story that reads swiftly but that will stay with you long after.

The topics covered by this book include Project Planning, Scheduling (PERT), Controlling (Earned Value Analysis), Reporting/Evaluating and Risk Analysis. The book also discusses other subjects that certainly will be faced by the Project Manager, like how to Improve the Communication Skills, how to Solve Problems and Making Decisions.

This book is not intended to experienced managers that need more tools to conduct their projects. These people should look for specific books about the aspect of Project Management that they need to deep into, like Risk Management.

The third part has Urd starting the Ultimate Destruction Program (UDP) to destroy everything while Belldandy unleashes her full powers. The fourth section has Urd summoning Fenrir who becomes the UDP while the goddesses summon Midgard to defeat the giant wolf. The fifth part has Urd free from evil but powerless while the UDP transfers itself first to Midgard, then to Keiichi. The final part has Keiichi possessed by the UDP and forcing Skuld to build a device to help it destroy the world while Belldandy makes a choice.

The humor level in this book is much lower than in previous OMG manga, but this story is very interesting & well written. It is cool seeing Belldandy unleashed (within limits).

Bottom line: Certainly this is the best volume to this point in the series despite the limited humor factor. OMG fans will have to have this. Fans of comic arts should appreciate this. Those looking for a fairly wholesome, light reading material shouldn't overlook this title. Be warned you might not put the book down until you've completed it!

This small volume is a treasure. In hardcover, the pages are silver, the dark blue typography is a beautiful old-style Roman, perhaps Garamond or Times, good-sized and leaded out for easy readability. And the illustrations are unsurpassed.

First, the illustrator: Gustave Dore was born in 1832, sixty years after the birth of Coleridge. He died in 1883. Coleridge preceded him in death by 49 years. Coleridge was born in 1772 and died in 1834. Dore was born in Strasbourg, and was a renowned illustrator who was doing lithographs at the age of thirteen.

The fact that Dore was a near contemporary of Coleridge is important because we can be assured that the characters' costumes in his illustrations reflect the actual dress of the time Coleridge was describing. The ships also are correctly drawn and beautifully detailed.

To say that his illustrations complement this classic epic poem is an understatement.

As to the poet, some wag said once of The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, that "a half-great poet had a wholly great day." I have also heard that Coleridge is supposed to have written his epic in one sitting, in a great burst of inspiration. I can't vouch for that, but it is truly a masterpiece--of that there can be no doubt.

I recall trying to memorize it when I was in high school, about sixty years ago. I loved it then, and I still do now.

For the price, this book is an absolute steal. No library is complete without this poem, and of all the renditions I've seen of it, this is by far the most beautiful.

On the surface, this may just seem to be a simple poem by an English Romantic. But there is so much more. There is a lesson to be learned, one of respect for God's creatures and for all of creation. This is certainly a Romantic point of view, and Coleridge puts it forth very nicely in this poem.

This is a great beginning poem for novices of poetry, for beginners and for people who dislike poetry if it doesn't rhyme and have a definite rhythm. This is definitely Coleridge's best poem, one that everyone should be familiar with. This version with the woodcuts makes for a very attractive package--the illustrations add nicely to the poems overall effect.