Architecture in Ancient Egypt and the Near East

Arts & Photography

Badawy, Alexander

Architecture

The M.I.T. Press

[MP3-CD audiobook format in Vinyl case.] [Read by Sean Runnette] Like any set of oral reflections, The Character of Physical Law has special value as a demonstration of the mind in action. The reader is particularly lucky in Richard Feynman - one of the most eminent and imaginative modern physicists. In these Messenger Lectures, originally delivered at Cornell University and recorded for television by the BBC, Richard Feynman offers an overview of selected physical laws and gathers their common features into one broad principle of invariance. He maintains at the outset that the importance of a physical law is not ''how clever we are to have found it out - but . . . how clever nature is to pay attention to it'' and steers his discussions toward a final exposition of the elegance and simplicity of all scientific laws. Rather than an essay on the most significant achievements in modern science, The Character of Physical Law is a statement of what is most remarkable in nature. Feynman's enlightened approach, his wit, and his enthusiasm make this a memorable exposition of the scientist's craft. The law of gravitation is the author's principal example. Relating the details of its discovery and stressing its mathematical character, he uses it to demonstrate the essential interaction of mathematics and physics. He views mathematics as the key to any system of scientific laws, suggesting that if it were possible to fill out the structure of scientific theory completely, the result would be an integrated set of mathematical axioms. The principles of conservation, symmetry, and time irreversibility are then considered in relation to developments in classical and modern physics, and in his final lecture, Feynman develops his own analysis of the process and future of scientific discovery.

The Character of Physical Law

Richard Feynman

Originally published in 1967; back in print in 2003.
As contemporary history in general, and political history in particular, this book will be of immeasurable interest to any student of East European affairs. It is based almost exclusively upon primary sources, and incorporates information secured by the author through direct interviews with Rumanian officials. By tracing the evolution of the "Rumanian course" from its ideological birth in the early 1940's to its practical application by Gherghiu-Dej and his successor and protégé, Nicole Ceausescu, the author has characterized not only independent nationalism but Communist rule as well.
Seemingly under the paternal tutelage of the Soviet Union, Rumania has in the past attracted little attention beyond the East European Communist bloc. While most countries paid scant attention, Rumania was busy smashing the image of her docility by systematically cementing policy to action in an attempt to assert her national independence. The origins and development of this independent course are set forth and explicated here, for the first time, in light of the political history of the Rumanian Communist Party. 
That Rumania resisted Khruschev's internationalism and exploited the inherently contradictory policy of "peaceful coexistence" to further nationalist aims; that Rumania collaborated with China and openly courted Western social and cultural currents of influence despite Soviet admonitions; that, in short, Rumania rejected the stultifying security of the Communist bloc-is shown to be no mere "historic accident" born of whims and on-the-spot decisions. Stephen Fischer-Galati's interpretation of these events recognizes the element of continuity in Rumanian politics and relegates prominence to those political personalities, notably Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej, who "as early as 1955... were cautiously pursuing national policies first formulated in 1945 and envisaging a possible eventual assertion of independence from the Kremlin." 
What emerged from the often precarious, always single-minded course followed by Rumania under the direction of Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej was "the attainment of the objective conditions for independent action within the framework of general international cooperation." In exercising the skills of the professional historian, Professor Fischer-Galati takes elements of rationalization and propaganda into account but simultaneously finds Rumanian contentions justified by the impressive advances made by the nationalist Communist Party in coping with the socioeconomic situation. 
Professor Fischer-Galati evaluates the extent of Rumanian transformation since 1944 with an eye to previously advanced claims and counterclaims, achieving thereby a balanced, objective view of national Communist fulfillment of Rumania's "historic legacy".

The New Rumania: From People's Democracy to Socialist Republic (The MIT Press)

History

Fischer-Galati, Stephen

Americas

HOMER: SEURAT SCIENCE OF PAINTING (CLO

HOMER, William Innes

History & Criticism

Thermophysics and spacecraft thermal control;: Technical papers selected from the AIAA 11th Aerospace Sciences Meeting, January 1973, and the AIAA 8th ... (Progress in astronautics and aeronautics)

Science & Math

Robert G. Hering

Astronomy & Space Science

December 31, 1965, brought to a close the International Years of the Quiet Sun (IQSY 1964-1965). The rich harvest of scientific results produced by this intensive study of the vast region between the sun and the earth is published in a series of 7 volumes, under the general title of Annals of the IQSY. The General Editorial Board for this project consists of 19 distinguished scientists gathered from 10 countries, with Professor W. J. G. Beynon as Chairman and Dr. C. M. Minnis as General Editor.  The IQSY was sponsored by the International Council of Scientific Unions. Its geophysical and solar observations were carried out by scientists in more than 70 countries. Since the dates of the IQSY were chosen to coincide with the period of minimum activity in the 11-year solar cycle, the results obtained form a complement and counterpart to those obtained in the International Geophysical Year (IGY 1957-1958), when the sun was in the most agitated state ever observed.

Survey of IQSY Observations and Bibliography (Annals of the IGSY- International Years of the Quit Sun, Vol. 6)

Training in Indexing

Knight, G. Norman, Ed.

Oblong Sm Quarto, , PP.234, Elbert Peets 1886-1968

On the Art of Designing Cities: Selected Essays of Elbert Peets

Spreiregen, Paul D. Editor

Publication of this book completes a project begun with the first volume, Reactor Physics and Control. These books are the product of Project SIFTOR (Safety Information for the Technology of Reactors), a coordinated effort sponsored by the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission to evaluate critically, organize, and generalize the growing body of information concerned with safety problems in reactor design and operation. Many leading authorities have contributed to this project, and their studies range in treatment from normal, day-to-day operation to catastrophic accidents. The history of specific accidents is reviewed, as is that of destructive tests ("intentional accidents"). The results of numerous theoretical and experimental studies of reactor excursions ("run-aways") are synthesized by mathematical models. The problems of containing or confining the energy and radioactive debris that would be released by a serious accident at a reactor installation are considered in detail, as are the safety problems associated with non-nuclear phases of reactor design: mechanical components, chemical reactions, fluid flow, and heat transfer. Contents: "Materials and Metallurgy," Thomas O. Ziebold; "Fuel Elements," D. Gurinsky and S. Isserow; "Mechanical Design of Components for Reactor Systems," N. J. Palladino; "Fluid Flow," S. Levy; "Heat Transfer," W. Rohsenow and H. Fenech; "Chemical Reactions," L. Baker; "Fission Product Release," G. W. Parker and C. J. Barton; "Fission Product Behavior and Retention in Containment Systems," L. Silverman; "Radioactive Waste Management," W. Rodger and S. McLain; "The Concepts of Reactor Containment," T. J. Thompson; and "Containment and Confinement Structures," T. J. Thompson.

The Technology of Nuclear Reactor Safety, Vol. 2: Reactor Materials and Engineering

Engineering & Transportation

N. J. Palladino

S. Levy

H. Fenech

G. W. Parker

L. Silverman

W. A. Rodger

T. J. Thomson

L. Baker Jr.

Engineering

The purpose of this book is to explore several specific areas of research in two distinct but related fields: digital signal processing and modern control and estimation theory. There are enough similarities and differences in the philosophies, goals, and analytical techniques of the two fields to indicate that a concerted effort to understand these better might lead to some useful interaction and collaboration among researchers.  The author writes that his examination "will in general not be result-oriented. Instead, I have been most interested in understanding the goals of the research and the methods and approach used. Understanding the goals may help us to see why the techniques used in the two disciplines differ. Inspecting the methods and approaches may allow one to see areas in which concepts in one field may be usefully applied in the other. The book undoubtedly has a control-oriented flavor, since it reflects the author's background and also since the original purpose of this study was to present a control theorist's point of view at the 1976 Arden House Workshop on Digital Signal Processing. However, an effort has been made to explore avenues in both disciplines in order to encourage researchers in the two fields to continue along these lines."  Indeed, the book contains numerous suggestions for new research directions and speculations on possible new results, all of them a direct result of the purposeful mixing of the ideas of the two disciplines. For the benefit of researchers who may wish to follow up some of these suggestions and speculations, the author has assembled a comprehensive bibliography, consisting of more than 600 references.  In order to achieve his unique perspective of viewing each field in the context of the other, the author examines such topics as stability analysis of feedback control systems and digital filters subject to the effects of finite wordlength arithmetic; linear prediction, parameter identification, and relationships involving Kalman filtering and "fast" algorithms; system synthesis, realization, and implementation; two-dimensional filtering, decentralized control and estimation, and some of their connections with image processing; and aspects of nonlinear system theory, including homomorphic and bilinear systems.

Digital Signal Processing and Control and Estimation Theory: Points of Tangency, Areas of Intersection, and Parallel Directions

Computers & Technology

Alan S. Willsky

Networking & Cloud Computing

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