Hobson, M P, and G. P. Efstathiou, A. N. Lasenby, General Relativity: An Introduction for Physicists, Cambridge University Press 2006 Amazon Editorial Reviews Book Description 'After reviewing the basic concept of general relativity, this introduction discusses its mathematical background, including the necessary tools of tensor calculus and differential geometry. These tools are used to develop the topic of special relativity and to discuss electromagnetism in Minkowski spacetime. Gravitation as spacetime curvature is introduced and the field equations of general relativity derived. After applying the theory to a wide range of physical situations, the book concludes with a brief discussion of classical field theory and the derivation of general relativity from a variational principle.'  
Amazon   back

Homer, and Bernard King (introduction) Robert Fagles (translator), The Iliad, Penguin Classic 1998 Amazon From Library Journal 'Why another Iliad? Just as Homer's work existed most fully in its performance, so the Homeric texts call periodically for new translations. With this in mind, Fagles offers a new verse rendering of the Iliad. Maneuvering between the literal and the literary, he tries with varying degrees of success to suggest the vigor and manner of the original while producing readable poetry in English. Thus, he avoids the anachronizing of Robert Fitzgerald's translation, while being more literal than Richard Lattimore's. Fagles's efforts are accompanied by a long and penetrating introduction by Bernard Knox, coupled with detailed glossary and textual notes.' - T.L. Cooksey, Armstrong State Coll., Savannah, Ga. 
Amazon   back

Klein, Joe, Primary Colors: A Novel of Politics, Random House Trade Paperbacks 2006 Amazon Book Description 'A brilliant and penetrating look behind the scenes of modern American politics, Primary Colors is a funny, wise, and dramatic story with characters and events that resemble some familiar, real-life figures. When a former congressional aide becomes part of the staff of the governor of a small Southern state, he watches in horror, admiration, and amazement, as the governor mixes calculation and sincerity in his not-so-above-board campaign for the presidency..' 
Amazon   back

Ustinov, Peter, Monsieur Rene, Prometheus Books 1999 Amazon Editorial Reviews From Publishers Weekly Film director, Oscar-winning actor, fiction writer and playwright Ustinov delivers a lively tale of the misadventures of a Geneva retired concierge, Monsieur Rene. As the president of the International Union of Concierges and Hall Porters, the idealistic widower decides that he and his comrades in hotel service, who in their duties find themselves privy to important and scandalous secrets, should pool their wealth of information and use it to fight evil-doers. Of the rather inept but colorful group he organizes, the most vivacious is housekeeper Agnes Schanderbach. Through Agnes, Ren? gets information about an illegal arms sale being perpetrated by a Mr. Ivanov from Kazakstan and the gay emir of Djabbadieh. But the police chief of Geneva, who has been investigating Agnes for years, thwarts the group's plans. During the Nazi occupation, Agnes's mother was expelled from Switzerland to Germany, but managed to leave Agnes behind. The three military men who handled Agnes's mother's deportation all later died mysteriously of arsenic poisoning, and now Agnes confesses to the murders. Meanwhile, Rene's nephew and his girlfriend purloin Rene's memoirs and sell them to an English tabloid. Rene reluctantly makes a deal with the tabloid and a publisher, allowing an unscrupulous ghostwriter to add scandalous experiences to the manuscript. When the sensational book becomes a top seller with a movie tie-in, and Rene gets unexpectedly rich, he hires detectives to establish Agnes's innocence. Multi-talented Ustinov's spirited farce is full of "pain sublimated into... irony" and possesses the wry charm of a relic from another age.' Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.  
Amazon   back

Artacho, Emilio, "Response to Juan J Manfredi "Problems with University Hiring in Spain"", Science, 315, 5811, 26 January 2007, page 460. 'The real questions are why universities are making poor hiring decisions and how to reverse this tendency. The answers must be based on the current reality that the general interests of the university and the drive towards excellence are at odds with the interests of its members. A Spanish academic nowadays benefits much less from hiring a world-class independent new colleague that from promoting a less-qualified subordinate already at the university. This is the heart of the matter and where the debate should be focused: not how to force academics to act against their interests, but how to align these interests with those of their universities.'. back

Schermer, Michael, "Arguing for Atheism", Science, 315, 5811, 26 January 2007, page 463. 'I also never imagined a book with this title would ever land on bestseller lists in the United States. But I was wrong. The data have spoken. The God Delusion is a runaway best seller, a market testimony to the hunger many people -- far more I now think than polls reveal -- have for someone in a position of prestige and power to speak for them in such an eloquent voice. Dawkin's latet book deserves mutiple readings, not just as an important work of science, but as a great work of literature.'. back

IPCC, IPCC AR4 WG1, 'The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has been established by WMO and UNEP to assess scientific, technical and socio- economic information relevant for the understanding of climate change, its potential impacts and options for adaptation and mitigation. It is open to all Members of the UN and of WMO.' back

Jeff McMahan, Rethinking the 'Just War' Part 1., 'Can war be justified? Is there such a thing as morally proper conduct in war? With Veterans’ Day upon us and, with the Obama administration preparing to face another four years of geopolitical choices in unstable regions, The Stone is featuring recent work by Jeff McMahan, a philosopher and professor at Rutgers University, on “just war theory” — a set of ethical principles pertaining to violent conflict, whose origins can be traced back to Augustine, that still influence the politics and morality of war today. The work will be published in two parts on consecutive days — the first dealing with the background and history of the traditional just war theory, and second consisting of the author’s critique of that theory. — The Editors' back

Royce Millar, Ben Schneiders and Chris Vdelago, Catholic Inc. What th Church is really worth, 'A six-month investigation by The Age has found that the church misled the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse by grossly undervaluing its property portfolio while claiming that increased payments to abuse survivors would likely require cuts to its social programs.' back