Creating Value for Customers: Designing and Implementing a Total Corporate Strategy

Customer Reviews:

Amazing.......2007-05-31

There is nothing like it. I found this book to be very interesting. It is a cool concept, and I look forward to making my own Rubber Rubberband Man.

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Creating the Band (with Student CD-ROM)
Beth Kane
Manufacturer: South-Western Educational Pub
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Popular Economics | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

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All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

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ASIN: 053844150X

Book Description

Learn to keep accurate accounting records for a small business with CREATING THE BAND and its accompanying CD-ROM! Through simulations, you will have the opportunity to work as an accountant for a band whose members have formed a business partnership known as CTB. This simulation may be completed using any of the following programs: Peachtree Complete Accounting Educational Version 2004 or higher, QuickBooks Pro 2004 or higher, Excel version 5.0 or higher. Special features such as FYI boxes, accounting tips, software tips, and check figures provide you with extra practice.

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Creating the Band
Beth Kane
Manufacturer: Texere Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000K2IH3K

Precision marching with the band;: The answer to your problem of creating shows for the half time,

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Precision marching with the band;: The answer to your problem of creating shows for the half time,
Ted C Tatgenhorst
Manufacturer: Bourne
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding
ASIN: B0007DTJWA

Book Description

Lists and descriptions of 200 jobs with the best pay, fastest growth, and most openings requiring associate's degrees and higher.

Book Description

An up-to-date, thorough treatment of the standard, planetary aspects of celestial mechanics as well as the more modern problems of rockets and spacecraft. Sections on initial orbit determination, perturbation theory, and astrophysics are unique in their depth and scope. Fully worked numerical examples are included.

Customer Reviews:

Title is deceptive.......2003-09-25

This is an unusual book. Rather than filling the text with solid pages of formulas, which is what one usually finds in books on this subject, the author has instead chosen to editorialize on the successes and failures of the mathematical methods used in the solution of some of the classical problems which celestial mechanics attempts to solve (astrometry, determination of orbits, perturbation theory). The discursive writing style is refreshing to someone already familiar with the subject matter, but it seriously detracts from the use of the book as a reference.

It also contains misleading arguments and some serious omissions. The criticism of the preliminary orbit determination method of C. F. Gauss is mostly unfounded, as many astronomers engaged in this work will attest. The author's proof of the radius of convergence in time of the f and g series for elliptical orbits is much longer and complex than the classical proof by F. R. Moulton. The massive volume of literature on the Hamiltonian approach to perturbation theory is essentially ignored. And there is hardly any reference to numerical methods, particularly integration methods, indispenable tools to anyone working in orbital mechanics.

In my opinion, the book belies its title and cannot realistically be called a "guide" at all. Spend your money instead on an old copy of the classic book by Brouwer and Clemence on solar system celestial mechanics, or on Herrick's "Astrodynamics" for space flight applications. If you can find them, that is.

Maybe replace "computational" with "editorial".......2001-09-18

The application of numerical methods to problems in celestial mechanics does not really seem to be the main focus of this text, as might be taken from the title. Instead, the reader is guided through many related topics that could be aimed at different audiences: some would be of more interest to observational astronomers, while others are perhaps relevant to astronautical applications involving Earth-orbiting satellites. One entire chapter is dedicated to "Odds and Ends," for example.

There are many anecdotal but ultimately useless admonishments, such as "I also remind the reader that any child can keep the CPU of the largest machines continuously going - it takes a bit more thought to have it compute something interesting or useful." (p. 394). Unlike the author's better book, Computational Spherical Astronomy, the presentation here is somewhat overbearing (the "Taff-Hall technique" [p. 282], "Taff's proof" [p. 266], etc.). While entertaining at times, the editorializing is overdone and results in a substantial loss of technical readability, if not credibility. This is regrettable, since some of the work in this book is seemingly original in presentation or idea. The author himself implies that some of his strong viewpoints are alienating (i.e. "It may be so much of a minority opinion that it is unique." (p. 288)). The subtitle "A Computational Guide for the Practitioner" seems ironic then, as one often finds unique philosophies at the very opposite of "practical".

To his credit, Dr. Taff intriguingly suggests that history's high regard for Gauss' re-discovery of Ceres using least-squares is based on historical myth (although I wasn't sure how this helped the practitioner in his own computations), and that Gauss himself was prone to exaggeration (p. 220) when claiming that it was possible to determine an initial plantetary orbit from a few days observations. But, the author counters that Gauss' classical method of initial orbit determination is generally unacceptable based on the partial justification "I have computed more initial orbits on high-eccentricity objects using angles-only data than has anyone else" (p. 274)! Since this books publication (and because of it), Gauss' method has seen sound defense in the open literature (i.e. Marsden (1991), Astron. J. 102 (4) p.1539).

In summary, this text is probably valuable as an example of how *not* to present technically-oriented material. However, the publisher's asking price for this paperback is nothing short of shocking: the curious reader would be best served by making his purchase from the plentiful supply of used copies or reviewing it at his local library.

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Celestial Mechanics: A Computational Guide for the Practitioner
Laurence G. Taff
Manufacturer: Wiley, John & Sons, Incorporated
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000MHI4T0

Book Description

Our ability to walk on two legs is not only a characteristic human trait but one of the things that made us human in the first place. Once our ancestors could walk on two legs, they began to do many of the things that apes cannot do: cross wide open spaces, manipulate complex tools, communicate with new signal systems, and light fires. Titled after the last two words of Darwin's Descent of Man and written by a leading scholar of human evolution, Lowly Origin is the first book to explain the sources and consequences of bipedalism to a broad audience. Along the way, it accounts for recent fossil discoveries that show us a still incomplete but much bushier family tree than most of us learned about in school.

Jonathan Kingdon uses the very latest findings from ecology, biogeography, and paleontology to build a new and up-to-date account of how four-legged apes became two-legged hominins. He describes what it took to get up onto two legs as well as the protracted consequences of that step--some of which led straight to modern humans and others to very different bipeds. This allows him to make sense of recently unearthed evidence suggesting that no fewer than twenty species of humans and hominins have lived and become extinct. Following the evolution of two-legged creatures from our earliest lowly forebears to the present, Kingdon concludes with future options for the last surviving biped.

A major new narrative of human evolution, Lowly Origin is the best available account of what it meant--and what it means--to walk on two feet.

Customer Reviews:

Neotenous niche thieves rule!.......2004-10-08

The next time you're tending your garden, pause a moment. Consider your position and local environment. Squatting down or on your knees, reaching around to weed or till, you are likely repeating a similar pose held by your ancient ancestors. According to Jonathan Kingdon, our African forebears started along their evolutionary path rooting about on the woodland floor seeking dinner. When conditions changed, they stood up to seek better places. The result was a questing ape that ultimately filled nearly every useful site on our planet. It will take serious research, an analytical mind and top-notch writing skills to surpass or supplant this superb study. Some artistic skills wouldn't go amiss, either.

Kingdon has produced the finest work on human evolution since Darwin's Descent of Man. His focus is our upright stance, but he examines far more than simply physiology in explaining how we expanded around the globe. The story of human evolution was upended by Raymond Dart in 1924. Before then, as Kingdon relates, it was believed pre-humans grew large, useful brains before descending from the trees. Dart's Taung Child demonstrated upright walking developed long before our mighty minds. Why this was so is a question that has plagued anthropologists for decades. Kingdon lists thirteen theories for why we stood upright - then demolishes them thoroughly. He also peels away the idea that there's a clearly traceable lineage of successive steps from early hominins to modern humans. For one thing, he reminds us, fossil location doesn't necessarily reflect points of origin.

The key word in Kingdon's title is not "how", but "why". Each species is adapted to its current environmental condition. Walking implies relocation and he posits that an East African "ground ape" likely followed rivers to their origins and beyond in the quest for resources. At some point, pre-human species became "niche thieves" - occupying or invading empty or inhabited resource areas. Vagaries of climate, the onset of disease or direct competition led to further changes in our physiology. We got better at walking, but we also learned new habits or improved on old ones. Twigs used to probe for food led to sticks for defence or attack, ending in spears for hunting. Spear casting is practiced from an early age in hunter-gatherer societies - young boys develop hunting skills through play activities.

The retention of child-like traits is called "neoteny". Although this term is usually applied to body forms, especially facial features, it may also refer to behaviour. To Kingdon, childhood skills encouraged brain development to make us better hunters. Unfortunately, while granting us more complex reasoning ability, brain enlargement and ingenuity granted us access to a widening zone of niches without giving us insight into the impact of that exploitation. It has also led to humans setting themselves apart from the remainder of the animal kingdom. That fallacy, he urges, must be corrected, and soon if our species is to survive. We must not play with the planet any longer.

Kingdon's thorough analysis of who we are and how we arrived at today's condition is unquestionably the best available. A fine writer, his African origins are reflected in many vignette descriptions of environments and their inhabitants. In addition to his prose talents is a capacity for vivid illustration. He presents many evolutionary scenarios that include self-portraits as an element in comparative studies. This book will endure and should be required reading in any course in anthropology or sociology, let alone ecology. [stephen a. haines - Ottawa, Canada]

Get in touch with our ancestors.......2004-01-01

I recommend this book to anyone wanting to better understand our ancestors, not as unearthed fossils, but as living creatures who roamed the earth. Kingdon uses his own illustrations to bring us face-to-face with these ancient creatures, and to show just how we arrived on the scene. I am a scientist, but not an anthropologist, and have to admit that I needed to read the book twice to really understand it. Kingdon does not hand the reader easy answers, and does not provide summaries -- but rather proposes scenarios and dynamics that played out over several million years. This book is a delight, but it requires patience and/or some rereading.

Becoming bipeds.(Scientists' Bookshelf)(Book Review): An article from: American Scientist

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Becoming bipeds.(Scientists' Bookshelf)(Book Review): An article from: American Scientist

Manufacturer: Sigma Xi, The Scientific Research Society
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital

General | Science | Subjects | Books

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Book Description

LIFE'S SIMPLE GUIDE TOGOD gives readers exactlywhat they need: a clear planfor getting to know the Creatorof the universe. Relying on theBible for direction, the bookwill offer an A-to-Z guide tohelp people who need a reviewof God's truth, those who wantto find out more, or those whowant to know how best to tellothers about Him. Filled withpractical tips and a clear processfor moving closer to theLord, this book will offer inspiration and encouragementto everyone who picks it up.

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Simple Nature of Existence
Lawrance Wightman
Manufacturer: American Literary Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

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Profound & Simple: The Nature And Meaning Of Reality And Human Existence

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Profound & Simple: The Nature And Meaning Of Reality And Human Existence
William Melich
Manufacturer: Xlibris Corp
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Philosophy | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Metaphysics | Philosophy | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 1413426328

Book Description

Presenting a fresh look at postwar theater, this study of the late Sir Nigel Hawthorne’s 50-year career in the theater focuses on the personal journey of one of Britain’s finest actors. Providing detailed analysis of Hawthorne's stage work, this authorized biography is illuminated and enriched by personal insights derived from Hawthorne's own memories and those of his colleagues. Broad discussions about Hawthorne's personal development as well as the direction stage acting took in the 20th century are integrated with details about the actor's extensive career.

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stagey but funny

The Shakespeare Revue

Manufacturer: Nick Hern Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Parodies | Humor | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

General | Drama | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 1854592599

Customer Reviews:

stagey but funny.......2001-07-16

Just because the boys lampoon the Bard, its doesn't mean they have no respeck. A right old laugh.

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Shakespeare and Elizabeth unmasked
Gertrude Ford
Manufacturer: Apex Printing Co
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding
ASIN: B0007ESIU8

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