Origins and Revolutions: Human Identity in Earliest Prehistory Review

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Origins and Revolutions: Human Identity in Earliest Prehistory ReviewI got much more than I expected. Gamble works in archaeology but takes some of the latest ideas to bring the subject to today's cutting edge. He attempts three basic efforts roughly paralleling the three sections of the book. He first demolishes the easy storylines of what has passed as prehistoric "revolutions" such as the Neolithic as being pretty much along the lines of magic bullet theories where first we had X (fill in the blank: big brains, language, agriculture, etc.) and then we had significant jumps to people who looked surprisingly close to ... us. The historical connections within European archaeology to various ideologies and cultural preconceptions don't get neglected in his critique.
Then he turns in the second section to his serious rebuilding of archaeology by emphasizing the need to bring the people back into the artefacts. And for this he turns very productively to material culture studies and many of the thinkers who are testing the waters of material agency. Sometimes his language can seem a little convoluted, but the ideas are rich, well illustrated, given many examples from many excavations throughout prehistory, and convincing. Just listing his ideas for how people used objects and tools gives a feel for the way he brings artefacts into people-using forms: sets and nets, enchainment and accumulation, containers and instruments, consuming and fragmenting, additive and reductive technologies, planning depth and tactical depth and curation (maintaining technology over time), and childscape within habitscape. His use of the studies of others who have recreated individual archaeological sites for the manufacture of blades and flakes in the use of flint to apply these concepts brings life to the imagined activities uncovered in these studies. The ample examples, photos, and drawings greatly reduce the tedium of the sometimes heavy theory.
In the last section he then takes his new concepts and applies them to give a different sense of the gradual movement of prehistory. Here, the richness of the extant archaeological studies tumbles out as he brings his new concepts into simpler view. This part was the easiest and most rewarding to read. He is probing how to rebuild the contours of prehistory without the facile origins and revolutions that have defined it sometimes in the past.
What is best about the book for those of us who are not archaeologists is the exploration of material agency and the social-action dimensions of objects. What was oddly missing from the book were connections to biology and evolution, especially cultural evolution. Presumably, he left this out to keep the focus from becoming too wide, but the issues he raises beg to be integrated with cultural evolutionary theory and other fields such as cognitive science. What he does give us, thankfully, is a deep overview of the field of prehistoric studies and a promising set of tools to explore material agency, which is tenaciously taking hold within material culture studies and which is philosophically radical.Origins and Revolutions: Human Identity in Earliest Prehistory OverviewIn this innovative study Clive Gamble presents and questions two of the most famous descriptions of change in prehistory. The first is the 'human revolution', when evidence for art, music, religion and language first appears. The second is the economic and social revolution of the Neolithic period. Gamble identifies the historical agendas behind 'origins research' and presents a bold new alternative to these established frameworks, relating the study of change to the material basis of human identity.He examines, through artefact proxies, how changing identities can be understood using embodied material metaphors and in two major case-studies charts the prehistory of innovations, asking, did agriculture really change the social world? This is an important and challenging book that will be essential reading for every student and scholar of prehistory.

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Eat My Dust: Early Women Motorists (The Johns Hopkins University Studies in Historical and Political Science) Review

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Eat My Dust: Early Women Motorists (The Johns Hopkins University Studies in Historical and Political Science) ReviewWe know how was it that women got the vote, how they end up doing the jobs that until then had been reserved for men, how the women's movement fought for civil and reproductive rights. Now we know how and when women got behind the wheel.
And yet the issue of mobility, independent and autonomous mobility for women, is not a minor one, especially in the countries that are the focus of Clarsen's book. Australia, the US, and British colonial Africa had to overcome variously defined tyrannies of distance, and they did so with the automobile and the long distance travelling that it allowed for the first time.
Eat my Dust fills a gap: it deals with beautiful cars and enterprising women and with a double revolution - women taking charge on the one hand, and cars becoming fast on the other. Life would not have been the same ever again.
Women, like their male counterparts (and despite their male counterparts), immediately saw the car's potential and the sometime exhilarating freedom that it could bring. They enjoyed it and did not look back, except through the rear mirror.
An especially good aspect of this book is its appeal to different audiences and that it can be read at different levels.Eat My Dust: Early Women Motorists (The Johns Hopkins University Studies in Historical and Political Science) OverviewThe history of the automobile would be incomplete without considering the influence of the car on the lives and careers of women in the earliest decades of the twentieth century. Illuminating the relationship between women and cars with case studies from across the globe,Eat My Dust challenges the received wisdom that men embraced automobile technology more naturally than did women.Georgine Clarsen highlights the personal stories of women from the United States, Britain, Australia, and colonial Africa from the early days of motoring until 1930. She notes the different ways in which these women embraced automobile technology in their national and cultural context. As mechanics and taxi drivers-like Australian Alice Anderson and Brit Sheila O'Neil-and long-distance adventurers and political activists-like South Africans Margaret Belcher and Ellen Budgell and American suffragist Sara Bard Field-women sought to define the technology in their own terms and according to their own needs. They challenged traditional notions of femininity through their love of cars and proved they were articulate, confident, and mechanically savvy motorists in their own right.More than new chapters in automobile history, these stories locate women motorists within twentieth-century debates about class, gender, sexuality, race, and nation. (2008)

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Alphabet to Email : How Written English Evolved and Where It's Heading Review

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Alphabet to Email : How Written English Evolved and Where It's Heading ReviewEvery communications technology has significantly affected the nature of human language. With the growing ubiquity of the Internet, this is an appropriate time to take a look at the effect of technological change on language and to see if historical patterns repeat themselves in the virtual world.
I am personally fascinated by languages. I'm amazed by the richness and variety of human communication, and by the constant change in vocabulary, grammar and style. In comparison to other languages, written English is pretty close to spoken English-even parts of this review uses language similar to what I might use in an intellectual conversation about a book on linguistics. Still, I thought that I'd give Baron a chance, and see what she had to say. I'm glad that I did.
This is not a book for academics. It is written for the educated and somewhat motivated layperson. With a glib style, and a keen awareness of the need to explain linguistic concepts to her readers, Baron's book is informative and enjoyable. According to the author, written English was once virtually identical to speech, serving as a record of spoken words. As needs changed, and technology permitted, language patterns in written English diverged significantly from spoken English. However, and perhaps motivated by the requirements and capabilities of new transportation and telecommunications technologies, written English has made a decisive retreat from the formal, and appears to be reconverging towards spoken language patterns.
She paints a dynamic picture of the historical ballet of written English. The give and take as the prescriptivists (think William Safire) and the descriptivists each have their day.Since the 1960s, American dictionaries have been largely descriptive, no longer trying to impose the ideals of their editors on the language, but instead trying to provide a written reference to actual usage (this is why contemporary dictionaries include profanities).
Not being a big fan of anything written before the late 19th century, I can easily accept that written language has become less formal. For me, Mark Twain was one of the earliest writers to use a style that doesn't feel horribly anachronistic. Interestingly enough, Twain was the first author to provide his publisher with a typewritten book manuscript. Baron makes a compelling case for the influence of technology, like the typewriter, on the English language. Again and again, the significance of new communications technologies is often completely misunderstood. Conservative social elements resist new technologies out of concern for their perceived negative effect on cultural values. Perhaps justifying this natural social backlash, once a communications technology becomes commonplace, it results in permanent changes on written and spoken language.
So what will be the effect of the Internet on our mother tongue? I wouldn't spoil a good story by leaking the ending, but I can tell you that her conclusions are well-reasoned and highly credible. If you are even mildly interested in language issues, communications, or the social effects of the Internet, then you will find this an enjoyable and informative text. If you are interested in further reading or research, you'll be pleased with the lengthy bibliography.Alphabet to Email : How Written English Evolved and Where It's Heading OverviewIn Alphabet to Email Naomi Baron takes us on a fascinating and often entertaining journey through the history of the English language, showing how technology - especially email - is gradually stripping language of its formality.Drawing together strands of thinking about writing, speech, pedagogy, technology, and globalization, Naomi Baron explores the ever-changing relationship between speech and writing and considers the implications of current language trends on the future of written English.Alphabet to Email will appeal to anyone who is curious about how the English language has changed over the centuries and where it might be going.

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Matter and Mind: A Philosophical Inquiry (Boston Studies in the Philosophy of Science) Review

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Matter and Mind: A Philosophical Inquiry (Boston Studies in the Philosophy of Science) ReviewMy impression of this book, which I read two or three months ago, was mediocre...- The first third offers a concise introduction in Bunge's materialist ontology, which definitely is worth reading. For a theoretical physicist like myself (despite my taste for mathematical beauty) formalisations should serve a purpose: namely solve empirical (incl. technological) problems! (Popper always emphasised this point: Definitions, conceptual issues, etc. are not interesting, therefore one ought to concentrate on real problems!) A reader may sometimes get the impression, that Bunge's system is "l'art pour l'art"; one wonders, whether the laborious construction of Bunge's conceptual apparatus is worth the trouble (particularly with the fact in mind, that no other author uses Bunge's terminology), i.e. whether it pays off in terms of scientific fecundity.
- The author sometimes treats other philosophers and thinkers very unfairly: What he critises often is but a caricature or at least a rather distorted, mutilated version of what his "opponents" really wrote. For example his harsh rejection of sociobiology and evolutionary psychology: Admittedly, many more popular books on these subjects indeed are highly speculative just-so-stories and scientifically doubtful (e.g. when the description of some drakes to lurk behind bushes and and leap out in order to sexually assault passing ducks is offered as an explanation of mens' equally sinister dispositions...), but that is certainly not representative (cf. for example, E. Voland: "Soziobiologie" or D. Buss's latest edition of his "Evolutionary Psychology")!
- His habit of insulting almost everybody that has a name in intellectual history I found rather childish and misplaced. His harsh judgements are hardly ever given any substantial arguments for. (E.g. defaming the currently dominant paradigm of biology, the gene-centred view of evolution, as a "pseudoscientific popular myth" in my eyes requires an adequately intensive or extensive argumentation.)
- Bunge's views on quantum theory (and more modern developments in physics) are outright for the most part dated or even wrong. (E.g. the Bell inequalities do not rule out theories with hidden parameters, only local ones.) Where foundational issues of physics (or biology) are concerned, look up the more recent (and deeper) literature: Roger Penrose, Jeffrey Bub, Lawrence Sklar, Hans-Dieter Zeh, Roland Omnès, etc.
- The book is pretty repetitive: Bunge's main thesis that we must not ontologically separate a function from its medium (e.g. the mind (="mental life") as a function of the brain from the brain itself) is repeated over and over and integrated into Bunge's own systemic approach, which is a middleground between a "nothing but..."-reductionism (like physicalism that does not take into account the complexity of the world and its structure, thus risking scientific sterility) and holism (which is either semantically obscure or empirically not true). That part is ok, but not too profound... The conceptual framework of Bunge's materialism is indeed exceedingly helpful to tackle some pressing problems of philosophy of science (which includes for me "philosophy of mind"). However, the main task is still to be done: elaborating a theory of consciousness. Here, the excellent analyses of contemporary thinkers like Daniel Dennett, Sean Searle, Thomas Metzinger or Susan Blackmore are rather to be considered more in detail.
-The analysis of the two mainstream approaches to the 'free will' debate, compatibilism and incompatibilism, is pretty weak. You'd better read the respective entries in the Stanford Encyclopedia (or, of course, the loci classici themselves like Hume's "Enquiry concerning Human Understand" or Schopenhauer's essay "On the Freedom of the Will" ) instead.Matter and Mind: A Philosophical Inquiry (Boston Studies in the Philosophy of Science) OverviewThis book discusses two of the oldest and hardest problems in both science and philosophy: What is matter?, and What is mind? A reason for tackling both problems in a single book is that two of the most influential views in modern philosophy are that the universe is mental (idealism), and that the everything real is material (materialism). Most of the thinkers who espouse a materialist view of mind have obsolete ideas about matter, whereas those who claim that science supports idealism have not explained how the universe could have existed before humans emerged. Besides, both groups tend to ignore the other levels of existence-chemical, biological, social, and technological.If such levels and the concomitant emergence processes are ignored, the physicalism/spiritualism dilemma remains unsolved, whereas if they are included, the alleged mysteries are shown to be problems that science is treating successfully.

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History, Culture, and Religion of the Hellenistic Age Review

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History, Culture, and Religion of the Hellenistic Age ReviewHelmut Koester's History, Culture and Religion of the Hellenistic Age is Volume One to his Introduction to the New Testament. It is intended to provide an introduction, but the reader will come away with much more than that. This review covers only the first volume.
Koester covers a wide range of topics pertaining to the ancient world including political, religious, intellectual, and technological histories and seems to demonstrate thorough knowledge of each. His intention is to provide a linear transition between Old and New Testaments and place the entire Bible into its proper historical context. Many religious groups including the Maccabees, Pharisees, and Samaritans are placed in perspective to the greater world in which the interacted. The reader will fully understand what the political and intellectual world was like during the time Christianity was being established.
Koester's unique way of identifying chapters and subparts makes for quick and easy internal cross reference, though his alpha-numeric style is similar to a government regulation or corporate standard operating procedure.
Though his knowledge of his subject matter is unquestionable, Koester does demonstrate several weaknesses that readers must accommodate. He has a strong pro-Hellenistic bias, particularly evident in Chapter 3 when he claims Galen's books are "the last truly great medical works from the ancient times" or how the "Roman period and beyond" were a "decline of scholarship and science." Koester's work is occasionally detailed to the point of tediousness. His chapters on the many religious cults and philosophies do not appear to be written for the casual reader. The level of detail demonstrates his knowledge but come across as somewhat confusing. He also dwells exclusively in the world of political and intellectual leaders, the common people are not described in any convincing detail. This is peculiar because the focus of the Bible, particularly the New Testament is upon the ordinary people who often get caught up in the intrigues and realities of the Roman world.
A final weakness is in his presentation style. He provides no notes to any sources throughout the book. He lists bibliographies for each chapter, but does not differentiate between his work and that of others.
Yet this is still a valuable book that can teach much of the world of the New Testament. Christianity and the New Testament did not evolve in a vacuum, and Koester does much to help the reader fully appreciate what the world in which they did emerge in was like.History, Culture, and Religion of the Hellenistic Age OverviewAmong the striking features that distinguish thiscomprehensive two-volume work, now complete in its second edition,from other books of similar title are its wide historical scope, itstreatment of early Christian literature in the chronological sequence,and the inclusion of over sixty noncanonical Christian documents.Volume 2, after considering problems related to the interpretationof early Christian writings - transmission, canon, text, formcriticism, literary criticism, and narrative and rhetorical criticism- unfolds the story of the early Christian communities and theirliterature from John the Baptist and Jesus to Justin Martyr,Valentinus, and Polycarp. This narrative has been written in areadable, nontechnical style, supplemented by current bibliographiesfor each selection that include listings of the best editions oforiginal texts as well as the most accessible English translations. Anessential work for students, teachers, and clergy, this set will alsoappeal to the educated layperson looking for a scholarly treatment ofthe New Testament and its background in the world of Jewish andGreco-Roman antiquity.

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A Message of Ancient Days Review

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A Message of Ancient Days ReviewI have used Houghton-Miffin Social Studies books in my Home School for two years now and I would highly recommend them because they are really well written. They bring History to life, they are colorful, down-to-earth, easy to understand and include time-lines. The lessons are easily divided up for you with headers of Lesson 1 (etc)--even without the teacher's edition and make studying and learning fun, easy, and exciting. These books really get you involved with the way things were and how and why they relate to you today.
Include in each chapter are focus points, key terms, lots of illustrations with full explanations, charts, colorful-detailed maps, and "Sliced view" of objects to see inside of things (like houses, buildings, etc). Though, I believe that you can sometimes find "workbooks" to go along with these books, I found them unnecessary as there are lots of activities included at the end of each lesson in the Review section, including: Focus questions, Connect questions, Citizenship, Critical thinking, and Writing Activities. Also along the side of the text are included Questions to provoke thought as you read the text, which are great discussion starters.
Also included in the chapters are sections for discussions and decisions which can be used for further research and reports. Finally Chapter Reviews make excellent "Tests" or "Quizzes" with a lot of open end and essay questions.
I am using these Houghton-Miffin Social Studies books again this year for teaching 6th grade (Ancient Days of world history) and already have my books for next year (World History Medieval Days).
My student is excited about history with these books and looks forward to our lessons--If they're fun and exciting, then they aren't just another subject he HAS to do, it's a subject he WANTS to do! How much better can you get than that?
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Visual History of the English Bible, A: The Tumultuous Tale of the World's Bestselling Book Review

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Visual History of the English Bible, A: The Tumultuous Tale of the World's Bestselling Book ReviewI have read this book several times and cannot recommend it highly enough. Dr. Brake's writing manages to be informative while remaining interesting; the book is both factual and lively. The illustrations and stories of the author's personal Bible collecting make the book worthwhile on its own. The history sections are essential reading for everyone who treasures God's Word or who just wants to know how we came to have the Bible in English as it is today. A Visual History of the English Bible is not just for seminary students or pastors; it contains very accessible and important information for today's Christians. I am happy to have a copy on my shelves and think you will be too.Visual History of the English Bible, A: The Tumultuous Tale of the World's Bestselling Book Overview

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The Equation That Couldn't Be Solved: How Mathematical Genius Discovered the Language of Symmetry Review

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The Equation That Couldn't Be Solved: How Mathematical Genius Discovered the Language of Symmetry ReviewMario Livio's title suggests an exploration of unsolvable equations, in particular the drama enshrouding the mathematical conundrum of solving general, fifth degree polynomial equations, known as quintics. His subtitle, "How Mathematical Genius Discovered the Language of Symmetry," indicates that his work will also explore the role of symmetry in ultimately resolving the question of whether such polynomials could be solved by a formulas using nothing more than addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, and nth roots. These two subjects portend an interesting discussion on the solvability of equations and the peculiar mathematical race in Renaissance Europe to "discover" the magical formulas for solving cubics and quartics.
One could reasonably expect that the groundbreaking work of Tartaglia, Cardano. Ferraro, Galois, Abel, Kronecker, Hermite, and Klein would be encompassed in this survey, and indeed they are. However, purchasers of this book are given no indication that they will spend well over half their reading time on rehashes of Abel's tragic life story and the mythology of Evariste Galois's foolish death, Emmy Noether's challenges as a woman mathematician in Germany, a history of group theory, Einstein's theory of relativity, the place of string theory in modern cosmology, the survival benefits of symmetry in evolution, Daniel Gorenstein's 30-year proof that "every finite simple group is either a member of one of the eighteen families or is one of the twenty-six sporadic groups," a trite and unnecessary diversion on human creativity, and finally, an even more outlandish (and utterly inconclusive) "comparison" of Galois's brain with that of Albert Einstein. The persevering reader can only conclude that anything and everything that remotely touches upon the quintic and Galois's work was given a chapter of its own, a mathematical version of "everything but the kitchen sink." The end result is an unfortunate mishmash, a sort of treetop skimming of modern mathematics, post-Newtonian physics, and cognitive theory.
Sadly, Mr. Livio misses a number of opportunities to enlighten his readers on the theory of polynomials, the nature of their roots, and the curious symmetries one encounters. For example, he makes no effort to discuss the nature of polynomial roots beyond a short Appendix, and he passes on the chance to detail the marvelous symmetry of imaginary roots in equations such as x^6 = 1. While he outlines the general thrust of Galois's approach to the unsolvability of quintics, Livio also mentions that Hermite found a method to solve the general quintic using elliptic functions, but we are not told how such a solution is discovered. What about sixth degree polynomials and beyond? Mr. Livio doesn't tell us - he's too busy worrying over the fairness of the first draft lottery in 1970. There is also the small matter of the author's style of explication. At times, such as his introduction to symmetry, he writes for a general, non-mathematical audience. Later, he tosses out references to elliptic functions without explanation and culminates his group theory discussion with sentences like, "We can use the family tree of these subgroups to create a sequence of composition factors (order of the parent group divided by that of the maximal normal subgroup)."
What THE EQUATION THAT COULDN'T BE SOLVED really needed was a good editor to bring these widespread ramblings into focus. A bit of truth in advertising might have been appropriate as well, but a book entitled "The Role of Group Theory in Modern Mathematics and Science" (primarily what this book is about, along with the author's peculiar obsession with Evariste Galois's death by duel) wouldn't tap well into the market developed by Keith Devlin, John Allen Paulos, Ian Stewart, Eli Maor, Simon Singh, and other popularizers of mathematics for mass market audiences. In the end, this book falls short of its companions for its sheer lack of focus and somewhat misleading cover presentation. At times, the book is interesting; at others, regrettably, it's simply too much of a superficial slog through too many loosely connected disciplines.The Equation That Couldn't Be Solved: How Mathematical Genius Discovered the Language of Symmetry Overview

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In Brown's Wake: Legacies of America's Educational Landmark (Law and Current Events Masters) Review

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In Brown's Wake: Legacies of America's Educational Landmark (Law and Current Events Masters) ReviewIn this work, Professor Martha Minow has crafted an excellent, scholarly survey of the setting and subsequent history of the U. S. Supreme Court's unanimous and momentous 1954 decision in Brown v. Board of Education.
Professor Minow examines the uses of Brown by those interested in the educational opportunity aspects of immigration, English as a second language, gender, and sexual identification and orientation. She investigates applications of Brown to educational matters of religion, disability, group-based definition, indigenous culture, and socio-economic status. She considers the evolution of the connections of Brown to issues of "school choice," including vouchers, taxation, and charter schools, the presence of social science research in educational litigation, and the international significance and influence of Brown. And, Professor Minow demonstrates that part of the legacy of Brown is the complication of a central declaration of that decision, viz., that "[s]eparate educational facilities are inherently unequal" (and, therefore, unconstitutional).
The decision in Brown v. Board of Education is the genesis of a remarkable array of claimed consequences, ranging, depending upon point of view, from undeniably good, through be-careful-what-you-wish-for, to simply irrational or worse. In Brown's Wake, by Martha Minow, is a concise, accessible, intelligent, reasonable, and easily five-star analysis of that decision's continuing importance in our civilization.In Brown's Wake: Legacies of America's Educational Landmark (Law and Current Events Masters) OverviewWhat is the legacy of Brown vs. Board of Education? While it is well known for establishing racial equality as a central commitment of American schools, the case also inspired social movements for equality in education across all lines of difference, including language, gender, disability, immigration status, socio-economic status, religion, and sexual orientation. Yet more than a half century after Brown, American schools are more racially separated than before, and educators, parents and policy makers still debate whether the ruling requires all-inclusive classrooms in terms of race, gender, disability, and other differences. In Brown's Wake examines the reverberations of Brown in American schools, including efforts to promote equal opportunities for all kinds of students.School choice, once a strategy for avoiding Brown, has emerged as a tool to promote integration and opportunities, even as charter schools and private school voucher programs enable new forms of self-separation by language, gender, disability, and ethnicity.Martha Minow, Dean of Harvard Law School, argues that the criteria placed on such initiatives carry serious consequences for both the character of American education and civil society itself.Although the original promise of Brown remains more symbolic than effective, Minow demonstrates the power of its vision in the struggles for equal education regardless of students' social identity, not only in the United States but also in many countries around the world. Further, she urges renewed commitment to the project of social integration even while acknowledging the complex obstacles that must be overcome.An elegant and concise overview of Brown and its aftermath, In Brown's Wake explores the broad-ranging and often surprising impact of one of the century's most important Supreme Court decisions.

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How Math Explains the World: A Guide to the Power of Numbers, from Car Repair to Modern Physics Review

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How Math Explains the World: A Guide to the Power of Numbers, from Car Repair to Modern Physics ReviewIt is made abundantly clear in this fascinating book that certain sub-disciplines in mathematics are extremely useful in describing the physical world in which we live. It is made equally clear, and admitted by the author, that many other of its sub-disciplines are (at least currently) completely useless in the sense that there are no known practical applications. The author, a mathematician, does an excellent job in providing the reader with an overview of both types of these sub-disciplines, while discussing various questions and issues in mathematics. To add a human element to these discussions, the author has peppered the text with many historical and micro-biographical snippets, as well as personal anecdotes - thus making the book all the more enjoyable. The writing style is authoritative, very friendly and generally clear; that is, some sections could have been made clearer if figures or diagrams had been included to complement the descriptions that are given, thus saving the reader a bit of re-reading and head scratching (such as in my case). The fact that many mathematical terms are used without being previously defined suggests that the reader should have some basic knowledge in math in order to better appreciate the topics being discussed. Consequently, the book would likely be most enjoyed by science and especially math buffs.How Math Explains the World: A Guide to the Power of Numbers, from Car Repair to Modern Physics Overview
In How Math Explains the World, mathematician Stein reveals how seemingly arcane mathematical investigations and discoveries have led to bigger, more world-shaking insights into the nature of our world. In the four main sections of the book, Stein tells the stories of the mathematical thinkers who discerned some of the most fundamental aspects of our universe. From their successes and failures, delusions, and even duels, the trajectories of their innovations—and their impact on society—are traced in this fascinating narrative. Quantum mechanics, space-time, chaos theory and the workings of complex systems, and the impossibility of a "perfect" democracy are all here. Stein's book is both mind-bending and practical, as he explains the best way for a salesman to plan a trip, examines why any thought you could have is imbedded in the number π , and—perhaps most importantly—answers one of the modern world's toughest questions: why the garage can never get your car repaired on time.

Friendly, entertaining, and fun, How Math Explains the World is the first book by one of California's most popular math teachers, a veteran of both "math for poets" and Princeton's Institute for Advanced Studies. And it's perfect for any reader wanting to know how math makes both science and the world tick.


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Elementary Cryptanalysis 2nd edition (Anneli Lax New Mathematical Library) Review

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Elementary Cryptanalysis 2nd edition (Anneli Lax New Mathematical Library) ReviewThis book would be an excellent text for courses in cryptology where some of the students are in computer science. The mathematics behind the encryption/decryption is completely explained at a level where people with a weaker mathematical background can understand it. Basic number theory concepts such as congruences, simple linear algebra and frequency statistics are all the mathematics that is needed. The coverage is introductory, yet the reader is given a sufficiently deep exposure so that they can appreciate the significance and value of encryption in the modern world. The worked examples also impart the sense of intellectual challenge and stimulation that working in encryption can give.
The areas examined are:
*) Monoalphabetic ciphers using additive alphabets
*) General monoalphabetic substitution
*) Polyalphabetic substitution
*) Polygraphic systems
*) Transposition
*) RSA encryption
*) Perfect security - one-time pads
Many exercises with solutions are also included, which would allow a reader to use the book for self study as well.
Of all the areas of mathematics that I have taught, I had the most fun teaching a course in encryption and compression. Furthermore, given the feedback that I received from the students, they enjoyed it as well. This is one of the very best books on the basic tactics of encryption that has ever been published; I would not hesitate to use it as a text.
Published in Journal of Recreational Mathematics, reprinted with permission.Elementary Cryptanalysis 2nd edition (Anneli Lax New Mathematical Library) OverviewOriginally published in the New Mathematical Library almost half a century ago, this charming book explains how to solve cryptograms based on elementary mathematical principles, starting with the Caesar cipher and building up to progressively more sophisticated substitution methods. Todd Feil has updated the book for the technological age by adding two new chapters covering RSA public-key cryptography, one-time pads, and pseudo-random-number generators.Exercises are given throughout the text that will help the reader understand the concepts and practice the techniques presented. Software to ease the drudgery of making the necessary calculations is made available. The book assumes minimal mathematical prerequisites and therefore explains from scratch such concepts as summation notation, matrix multiplication, and modular arithmetic. Even the mathematically sophisticated reader, however, will find some of the exercises challenging. (Answers to the exercises appear in an appendix.)

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The Rise and Fall of Languages Review

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The Rise and Fall of Languages ReviewR M Dixon is a well known linguist who specializes in the aboriginal languages of Australia. In this captivating book, Dixon presents his theory of punctuated equilibrium (adopted from the idea of the same name by evolutionary theorists Stephen Jay Gould and Niles Eldredge) to describe how languages change. Dixon challenges linguists to dedicate more time to the study and description of the thousands of languages on the verge of extinction, rather than devote their energies to arcane formalisms. The author is also highly critical of those historical linguists who claim to have found evidence for the "mother of all languages", accusing them of poor methodology. Historical linguistics involves slow and painstaking analysis of language forms, and Dixon is not the first to chastise newcomers for shoddy work. Dixon's book is not overly technical, and is thus suited for both a professional and a lay audience. Anyone interested in learning more about the evolution of language should read Dixon's latest work.The Rise and Fall of Languages OverviewThis book puts forward a new approach to language change, the punctuated equilibrium model.This is based on the premise that during most of the 100,000 or more years that humans have had language, states of equilibrum have existed during which linguistic features diffused across the languages in a given area so that they gradually converged on a common prototype.From time to time, the state of equilibrium would be punctuated, with the expansion and split of peoples and of languages. Most recently, as a result of European colonization and globalization of communication, many languages face imminent extinction.

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One Hundred Names for Love: A Stroke, a Marriage, and the Language of Healing Review

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One Hundred Names for Love: A Stroke, a Marriage, and the Language of Healing ReviewOne Hundred Names for Love is Diane Ackerman's brilliant and inspirational memoir of how she and her husband, the writer Paul West, coped with the stroke that left him - at age 75 - unable to walk, speak, or care for himself in any of the most basic ways. Devastating though it was, the crisis actually couldn't have happened to a better couple - two creative individuals for whom language is nearly as essential as breathing. In addition to the standard treatment protocols, through much experimentation and faith in the brain's plasticity, Ackerman and West developed their own rehabilitation regimen as innovative and playful as it was exhausting.
Four years into West's recovery, Ackerman invites a doctor unfamiliar with the case to comment on her husband's most recent brain scan.
[The doctor] pointed out the damage from the past stroke, in the temporal and parietal lobes, a large dead patch in the frontal lobe, and missing bits elsewhere.
"I'd assume this man has been in a vegetative state," he said with a soft humanity.
On the contrary, Ackerman assures him. By "working the brain hard every day for four and a half years," her husband has not only regained his speech and mobility, but also has written several new books and published a variety of essays.
The doctor shakes his head. "I'm so glad you told me this about him," he said thoughtfully. "It's important to know what's possible."
Certainly possible for two immensely creative and determined human beings who have had the knowledge, will, means, and mutual devotion to take the healing process to its fullest potential. Creative medicine indeed. For which Ackerman and West deserve nothing but the highest regard. But despite all the advances in standard treatment for traumatic brain injury, I can't help but worry about the respective outcomes of the many thousands of brain-injured combat veterans returning to our shores with fewer long-term resources for recovery at their disposal.
One Hundred Names for Love: A Stroke, a Marriage, and the Language of Healing Overview

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You Are What You Speak: Grammar Grouches, Language Laws, and the Politics of Identity Review

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You Are What You Speak: Grammar Grouches, Language Laws, and the Politics of Identity ReviewDo you split infinitives and dare to think yourself reasonably intelligent? Do you regularly end sentences with prepositions and refuse to believe the end of civilization is nigh? Are you or are you not threatened by ebonics or worried (or not) that Spanish is going to swamp English? This is the book for you.
Lane Green's You Are What You Speak is sharp, funny and filled with insight into the politics and pretense of languages' guardians and scolds. Cutting right to the chase, Green gives us a brief history of grammar grouches from Cicero and John Dryden to modern day cranks like David Foster Wallace and that queen of cranks, Lynne Truss. In doing so, Green not only reassures us that language isn't going to hell in a hand basket--only a small minority have ever thought so--but that it is flourishing as it should, from the speakers' needs.
More importantly, his considerable depth of learning debunks many myths. The split infinitive police are supported not by facts but early grammarians who based their rules on their knowledge of Latin (where it is impossible to split one-word infinitives). In English though, it is possible to do so and only undesirable when it creates confusion. As for dangling preps, Green says, by all means do. There is no reason not to, and for clarity's sake, plenty of reasons to go ahead. He provides some delightful examples of when following the dangling prep rule is preposterous.
The author makes the important point that a few grouches have forgotten that language created writing not vice-versa. Hilarious criticisms of England's great poets and writers by grammarians cinches Green's argument that the scolds have lost all sense of perspective and proportion. Throughout the book he advocates clarity of thought and precision, not some hind bound adhesion to a rule established by a finger wagging grumpus. Bravo.
Subsequent chapters deal with the link between nation-building and national language, the politics of language and the sub rosa agenda of politicians when they deride and decry Black English or the "rise" of Spanish speaking Americans. The French Academy's efforts to stem the tide of English seems rather like herding cats, and an explanation of Chinese and Japanese alphabets instills a new respect for the often caricatured Asian nerd.
You Are What You Speak is the very best sort of language exercise: clear, entertaining and educative. Absolutely terrific!You Are What You Speak: Grammar Grouches, Language Laws, and the Politics of Identity Overview"An insightful, accessible examination of the way in which day-to-day speech is tangled in a complicated web of history, politics, race, economics and power." - KirkusWhat is it about other people's language that moves some of us to anxiety or even rage? For centuries, sticklers the world over have donned the cloak of authority to control the way people use words. Now this sensational new book strikes back to defend the fascinating, real-life diversity of this most basic human faculty.With the erudite yet accessible style that marks his work as a journalist, Robert Lane Greene takes readers on a rollicking tour around the world, illustrating with vivid anecdotes the role language beliefs play in shaping our identities, for good and ill. Beginning with literal myths, from the Tower of Babel to the bloody origins of the word "shibboleth," Greene shows how language "experts" went from myth-making to rule-making and from building cohesive communities to building modern nations. From the notion of one language's superiority to the common perception that phrases like "It's me" are "bad English," linguistic beliefs too often define "us" and distance "them," supporting class, ethnic, or national prejudices. In short: What we hear about language is often really about the politics of identity.Governments foolishly try to police language development (the French Academy), nationalism leads to the violent suppression of minority languages (Kurdish and Basque), and even Americans fear that the most successful language in world history (English) may be threatened by increased immigration. These false language beliefs are often tied to harmful political ends and can lead to the violation of basic human rights. Conversely, political involvement in language can sometimes prove beneficial, as with the Zionist revival of Hebrew or our present-day efforts to provide education in foreign languages essential to business, diplomacy, and intelligence. And yes, standardized languages play a crucial role in uniting modern societies.As this fascinating book shows, everything we've been taught to think about language may not be wrong—but it is often about something more than language alone. You Are What You Speak will certainly get people talking.

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