The Ecological Approach To Visual Perception

Book Description

This is a book about how we see: the environment around us (its surfaces, their layout, and their colors and textures); where we are in the environment; whether or not we are moving and, if we are, where we are going; what things are good for; how to do things (to thread a needle or drive an automobile); or why things look as they do.

The basic assumption is that vision depends on the eye which is connected to the brain. The author suggests that natural vision depends on the eyes in the head on a body supported by the ground, the brain being only the central organ of a complete visual system. When no constraints are put on the visual system, people look around, walk up to something interesting and move around it so as to see it from all sides, and go from one vista to another. That is natural vision -- and what this book is about.

Customer Reviews:

REALY A MUST-HEVE ITEM FOR VISUAL PROFESSIONALS.......2007-01-07

World is not like some think it is..

This book is for Objectivists.......2006-03-07

I read this book on the recommendation of Dr. Harry Binswanger from the Ayn Rand Institute after attending his lecture on how people can achieve certainty epistemologically (i.e., how to learn and how to be sure that what you learn is real and correct) by first relying on sensory information.

While the subject matter of the book is animals, it makes the case that animals reliably acquire information about their environment through their senses. And since humans are animals too, it follows that humans can place high reliability on the information provided to them by their senses (especially sight).

This scientific research provides a good antidote against those who argue that sensory information is inherently unreliable because our sensory organs are either deficient or incapable of adequately gathering information about reality.

A comparison of the application to architecture of the ecological and Gestalt approaches to visual perception

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A comparison of the application to architecture of the ecological and Gestalt approaches to visual perception
Frederick A Jules
Manufacturer: School of Architecture & Urban Planning, University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

General | Architecture | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books

Ophthalmology | Specialties | Medicine | Subjects | Books
ASIN: B00070V124

Book Description

With its dramatic scenery and unique Portuguese and British history, the semi-tropical island of Madeira is one of Europe's best-kept secrets. From arid mountaintops to verdant forests, from sleepy coastal villages to hidden art treasures, this comprehensive new guide explores all the corners that can easily be missed. It brings to life the culture and characters that informed the island's past and shaped its present. Each year Madeira's flora and spectacular landscape attracts thousands of tourists and hikers. Cadogan's guide has a special color flower-viewing section and outlines the most beautiful and peaceful hikes. If visitors want to wander further afield, the guide includes a section on Porto Santo, Madeira's own desert island and the only place to find a stretch of beach; and the Desertas, rocky outcrops inhabited only by rare plants and birds. Sample the best Madeira wine in Funchal; taste the delicious regional specialties, seafood, and fruit; and shop for world-famous embroidery and wickerwork. With Cadogan, visitors will uncover untold delights from the jacaranda-lined avenues of Funchal to the harsh beauty of the craggy coastline--contrasts that only enhance this unique island.

o Divides the island up into regions to give full coverage to all the villages and sights where the architecture changes dramatically within just a few miles
o Our discerning author picks out the best places to stay, eat, drink, and shop
o Practical, reliable advice on prices, tours, train, and bus information, walking routes in the rugged interior, and details of festivals

Book Description

Asking provocative questions about what constitutes a civilization and how human societies began, this journey through thousands of years of history is packed with entertaining true stories and lurid tales about the origins of culture. Clever, offbeat commentary is provided with humorous cartoons that poke fun at some of the most important events in human history.

Amazon.com

This remarkable memoir by the great marine biologist Geerat Vermeij, who is perhaps the world's leading authority on marine mollusks and who has been blind since the age of three, resonates on several levels: it is, first of all, a profound and vivid exploration of the current state of evolutionary theory; secondly, an engaging memoir of scientific exploration carried out in exotic locales; and finally, an acute examination of what it means to be sightless. Vermeij's extraordinary life reads like that of one of the great early biological explorers, whose theories were all based on extensive fieldwork in remote spots. It is also an inspiring tale of a man who, thanks to a remarkably devoted and intelligent family and his own inexhaustible scientific curiosity, overcame his handicap to further the sum of human knowledge.

Customer Reviews:

Why do scientists do what they do?.......2007-07-18

This book, autobiographical though it may be, is really about all scientists, particularly those of us who study natural history. Why do we do it? What motivates us, inspires us, even drives us? Geerat Vermeij chronicles his own voyage of discovery, along the way offering some hints, and not a little insight, into just exactly why anyone would choose to "do" natural history.

I bought several copies of this book to give to friends and family, including my non-scientist wife. It explains why I do what I do much more elegantly than I have ever been able to. I highly recommend this book. Read it if you want to know what makes natural historians tick. Give it to someone you wish to understand you a bit better.

Incidentally, Vermeij also happens to be blind. But that is, at best, a leitmotif in this story.

Fantastic.......2007-06-27

I think I might be a little critical of this book because I personally did not care for the way it ended. His life is an amazing one and being able to view the world through his thoughts was a wonderful ride. However, unfortunately, I felt that his stance on a supreme being towards the end seemed to bring a "cold" ending to the book. Science and God go together just fine, even though I can understand his frustration with highly religious people. Otherwise, I learned a lot and really enjoyed being able to see the world through a person without sight. Great!

An Inspirational Memoir Written By A Great Scientist.......2002-04-20

I wish Geerat Vermeij's "Privileged Hands: A Scientific Life" would earn the wide readership it deserves. Surely Vermeij's remarkable life is one which should resonate strongly with many readers, especially those accustomed to reading tales of poverty and woe told with ample literary grace and skill by writers as diverse as Mary Karr and Frank McCourt. Like Karr and McCourt, Vermeij is a splendid writer too, and yet in many respects, his own life story seems far more remarkable, if not as mesmerizing as theirs. Despite seemingly insurmountable odds, Vermeij clung to his childhood fascination with mollusk shells, had a successful graduate career at Yale University, and is now a prominent evolutionary biologist. Presently a professor of geology at the University of California, Davis, Geerat Vermeij's major scientific contributions range from advancing our understanding of molluscan shell architecture to his idea of escalation, in which he recognizes that the history of life on Earth - at least during the past half billion years or so - has been a coevolutionary arms race between predators and prey. Without a doubt, "Privileged Hands: A Scientific Life" is the finest recent personal saga on science told by one of the world's greatest scientists. It is also a poignant personal odyssey on blindness, made remarkable by Vermeij's determination to overcome what would be in others a crippling disability; instead, he has turned it into an important asset for his brilliant scientific research.

A life of thinking, learning, and significant contributions.......1999-05-13

Is this the story of a blind scientist? No! This is the story of a great scientist who happens to be blind, but who is certainly not without a vision of the world around him. Dr. Vermeij chronicles his life and development as a scientific thinker and worker. He draws the reader in as he tells what it's like to work one's way through the ranks and halls of academia, and how he had to simultaneously overcome prejudices and preconceptions others hold about what it means to be blind. He also tells of an ongoing life centered on the accumulation of knowledge, contemplation of those ideas, and the generation of important contributions to his field. The account of his development as a scientific thinker and worker was a great read, but the perspective he provides on life without sight is outstanding. I'd rate the book 5 stars for myself, and 4 stars for a more general audience: five stars for myself because, as an invertebrate zoologist, I felt a strong connection to the topics and experiences described; and 4 starts for a non-scientific audience. It's clear that this book was written prior to the end of his career, and I hope to see another installment on Dr. Vermeij's life in another decade or two.

Privileged Hands: A Remarkable Scientific Life

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Privileged Hands: A Remarkable Scientific Life

Manufacturer: W.H. Freeman
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000HYSV32

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Privileged Hands: A Scientific Life
Geerat Vermeij
Manufacturer: W.H. Freeman
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000IN07MA

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Privileged Hands: A Scientific Life.
Geerat. Vermeij
Manufacturer: W. H. Freeman and Co.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000NGT4K8

Book Description

The proceedings cover the development and application of the various techniques used in surface and interface related problems, providing an excellent overview of the most recent research and technology in the following fields: Adhesion Biomaterials Catalysis Ceramics Corrosion/Solid Liquid Interfaces Depth Profiling Micro and Optoelectronics Environmental Studies Imaging/High Lateral Resolution Magnetic Materials Metals Nanomaterials Polymers and Composite Materials Data Interpretation and Quantification Synchrotron Radiation Superconductors Thin Films and Coatings Technique Developments Tribology and Wear

Book Description

A long-awaited revision of one of the most respected primers on applied mathematics

Principles of Applied Mathematics provides a comprehensive look at how classical methods are used in many fields and contexts. Updated to reflect developments of the last twenty years, it shows how two areas of classical applied mathematics-spectral theory of operators and asymptotic analysis-are useful for solving a wide range of applied science problems. Topics such as asymptotic expansions, inverse scattering theory, and perturbation methods are combined in a unified way with classical theory of linear operators. Several new topics, including wavelet analysis, multigrid methods, and homogenization theory, are blended into this mix to amplify this theme.

This book is ideal as a survey course for graduate students in applied mathematics and theoretically oriented engineering and science students.

Customer Reviews:

Broad, shallow and uneven.......2007-02-25

When an author invites a reader to purchase and read his book the assumption one makes is that the book provides a new or a different insight to a familiar or difficult subject that opens new vistas and level of comprehension into the subject matter. First, writing a book on advanced applied mathematics is quite an endeavor and thus, I applaud the author for such an effort. However, the book overall provides panorama but very little detail and new vistas in critical areas. Thus there does not seem to be a significant reason for this book to have been published because most of the topics have been adequately covered in other sources. Clearly the author set out with a lofty and challenging goal; to present the theory for a very broad range of mathematical tools, topics that in fairness needed a fuller and more coherent development that are not present in the book. However, there are some bright spots for which the book deserves at least two stars. The best written chapters, albeit too short, are Chapters 1-3 and Chapters 6 on Complex variables. But the treatment is neither compelling or original. In chapter 6 the author introduces the reader to orthogonal polynomials and special functions but leaves the reader with such a limited view of these topics as to make the effort at teasing the reader's curiosity quite frustrating. The book is generous with bibliography at the end of each chapter and a great source for further research. Nevertheless, it would an improvement in future editions, if the author points out to the reader which pages of the suggested readings the reader should be focused on for the chapter in which it is being cited as a reference. The author engages in serial titillation by introducing the reader to exotic topics such as Sobolev spaces but quickly retreats stating that many of the operators in Sobolev space lack "self-adjointness" and thus of not much practical use for applied mathematics. (See page 66-67). Similarly, he also introduces the reader to Mellin and Hankel transforms but does not explain where and how they are used and when one these particular transforms are better suited than Laplace and Fourier Transforms. So what is the point here? The treatment of Green functions is too compressed beyond belief for it to be of any significant value. The same goes for the discution of Sturm-Liouville systems. The physical examples are too compressed and for the most part difficult to follow and relate to the theory the author just discussed that ostensibly equips the reader to understand the example.

The discussion of Laplace and in particular Fourier transforms seems not to logically and seamlessly emerge from the previous discussion of the theory of operators. A word on proofs. Some of the proofs are so abbreviated with little explanation following that it is frustrating experience to attempt to follow.

In sum, I commend the author to either expand the length of chapters or consider choosing less topics and develop them more fully and coherently so the book attains depth and eminence.

Every chapter can be a book.......2007-01-27

This is a book with very broad coverage, which is also its strength. It happens to be my textbook for a graduate course when I worked toward my phd degree in engineering. I had a hard time through it, although I had a high grade in this course. Even though, I don't think this book is well written.

As my title said, every chapter in this book can be written as a book. I am not exaggerating. It's true. Since the author condenses so much material into a small book, there is sacrifice certainly. For example, the coverage is not thorough for a specific topic, the proof is too short or even not given...etc. To overcome this, usually you need to consult other books to get a more clear understanding. In addition, I had a bad experience that some examples have nothing to do with what he has just said above. That drove me crazy. The author mentions in the preface that he intends to seek a balance on application and theory in this book. I don't think he gets the job done.

In spite of so many drawbacks, there are still bright sides. For example, the broad coverage is good for me to get into or acquainted with some topics. When you are not understanding what he said, try to find a reference book. That usually helps. In addition, the motivation part is good. He tells you why you need this, why that way doesn't work...etc.

Simply speaking, this book is kind of opening a door for you and then you need to work out the rest not depending on it but by yourself.

If you need a book for self study, this is not the one. If not for that course, I wouldn't force myself reading through it. I think Logan's "Applied Mathematics" is much better for self study at the expense of narrower coverage than this one. This one is better for course use accompanying instructor's good supplement.

Excellently organized book........2000-07-07

This book presents various mathematical principles in an organization I have not seen before. It starts with the idea of a transformation, then goes on to relate eigenvalues and eigenvectors to general spectral theory, explain how the need for closed function spaces naturally leads to Lebesgue integration (I know about Lebesgue integration before but I didn't know why it was needed), and show how the definition of certain inverse operators leads to distribution theory. This is a very natural way of organizing these principles. While other books, such as Strang's Intro to Applied Mathematics and Rudin's Real & Complex Analysis, provide you with one mathematical "toy" after another (Fourier series, Lebesgue integration, etc.), Keener's book tells you why you need the toy before giving it to you.

Am I stupid or this book is too advance???.......1999-09-22

This book doesn't clearify anything for you. No examples, No further explanation. It only keeps introduce various theories to you. It can compact theories that other books take 2-3 pages to explain it into 5 lines! I think you can imagine. Obviously, this book is not suitable to be your first book (not the second also). Buy it if you are sure that you are smart enough to understand it!

Amazon.com

Published in 1949, shortly after the author's death, A Sand County Almanac is a classic of nature writing, widely cited as one of the most influential nature books ever published. Writing from the vantage of his summer shack along the banks of the Wisconsin River, Leopold mixes essay, polemic, and memoir in his book's pages. In one famous episode, he writes of killing a female wolf early in his career as a forest ranger, coming upon his victim just as she was dying, "in time to watch a fierce green fire dying in her eyes.... I was young then, and full of trigger-itch; I thought that because fewer wolves meant more deer, no wolves would mean hunters' paradise. But after seeing the green fire die, I sensed that neither the wolf nor the mountain agreed with such a view." Leopold's road-to-Damascus change of view would find its fruit some years later in his so-called land ethic, in which he held that nothing that disturbs the balance of nature is right. Much of Almanac elaborates on this basic premise, as well as on Leopold's view that it is something of a human duty to preserve as much wild land as possible, as a kind of bank for the biological future of all species. Beautifully written, quiet, and elegant, Leopold's book deserves continued study and discussion today. --Gregory McNamee

Book Description

This special edition of the highly acclaimed A Sand County Almanac commemorates the one-hundredth anniversary of the birth of Aldo Leopold, one of the foremost conservationists of our century. First published in 1949 and praised in The New York Times Book Review as "full of beauty and vigor and bite," A Sand County Almanac combines some of the finest nature writing since Thoreau with an outspoken and highly ethical regard for America's relationship to the land. The volume includes a section on the monthly changes of the Wisconsin countryside; another section that gathers together the informal pieces written by Leopold over a forty-year period as he traveled around the woodlands of Wisconsin, Iowa, Arizona, Sonora, Oregon, Manitoba, and elsewhere; and a final section in which Leopold addresses more formally the philosophical issues involved in wildlife conservation. As the forerunner of such important books as Annie Dillard's Pilgrim at Tinker Creek, Edward Abbey's Desert Solitaire, and Robert Finch's The Primal Place, this classic work remains as relevant today as it was forty years ago.

Customer Reviews:

My view.......2007-10-07

Well written book. A. Leopold was an early messenger regarding people`s influence on nature and the risk of damage because of short-sighted politics/business. His description of his surroundings is vivid. One wonders how "his" landscape looks today!

A sand county Almanac: and sketches Here And there by Aldo Leopoid.......2007-02-27

was not a hard covered book recieved a paper back. I kept it only because I wanted to read it. arrived in good condition and in about 10 days

First Time User.......2007-01-16

The whole process went great. It took a few minutes extra at the beginning as it was my first time. Since then, I have bought another book and some other items. It's truly a great way to get a good deal on thing you would never think were available on line. Have plans for many other items that I have been checking out as my budget allows.

an excellent edition of an outstanding book.......2007-01-16

Book worth reading and re-reading for anyone interested in ecology, also professionally, or who has respect for the natural world. In a way it is pity that the book is as vital now as it was. Our undersanding of ecology and needs for looking after our environment increased alongside with the rate of its destruction

book revisited.......2007-01-13

except for about 3 missprinted words in this book,it is just as good a read as it was for me in high school.A true conservation and nature classic.

A SAND COUNTY ALMANAC and Sketches Here and There

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A SAND COUNTY ALMANAC and Sketches Here and There
Aldo Leopold
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OKDPL2

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A Sand County Almanac and Sketches Here and There

Manufacturer: Oxford University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000H97C3M

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A SAND COUNTY ALMANAC AND SKETCHES HERE AND THERE
Aldo Leopold
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000M0NH1M

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A SAND COUNTY ALMANAC AND SKETCHES HERE AND THERE
Aldo Leopold
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000O7LIAA

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A Sand County Almanac and Sketches Here and There

Manufacturer: Oxford University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000E8ZSGE

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A Sand County Almanac and Sketches Here and There
Aldo Leopold
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000IG6MPS

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A Sand County Almanac and Sketches Here and There
Aldo Leopold
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000IZECOM

A Sand County Almanac And Sketches Here And There - American Museum Of Natural History Special Members' Edition

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A Sand County Almanac And Sketches Here And There - American Museum Of Natural History Special Members' Edition
Aldo; Illustrated by Schwartz, Charles W. Leopold
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000K1QKPS

A SAND COUNTY ALMANAC AND SKETCHES HERE AND THERE [K1]

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A SAND COUNTY ALMANAC AND SKETCHES HERE AND THERE [K1]
A. Leopold
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000WQ26MW

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