Reviews (34)

The Case for a Creator is a Slam Dunk
For decades, many scientists, educators and the media have portrayed the theories of Darwinian evolution and the naturalistic formation of the universe as the products of proven science. Public schools and universities continue to teach these theories as the exclusive explanations for the formation of the universe, living creatures and human consciousness. As recently as last month a scientist believing in a Creator was scratched from an NPR program discussing creation, and teachers are still prohibited from criticizing Darwinism or favorably discussing intelligent design theories in public schools.

But is science really backing up Darwin and the spontaneous creation of the universe? Is belief in God as the Creator of all things consistent with the latest discoveries in science? Lee Strobel's latest book, The Case for a Creator, attempts to determine and explain whether the arrow of science is pointing in the direction of God or Darwin.

Strobel presents solid scientific and philosophical evidence supporting the idea that God as Creator is the only reasonable theory for creation. Strobel's case is built on information garnered from interviews with several experts in the fields of biology, physics, cosmology, astronomy, biochemistry and the human mind.

Strobel's latest book follows the patterns of his previous books, The Case for Christ and The Case for Faith. In all three books Strobel creates a narrative of investigative journalism delving into the mysteries in question.

The Case for a Creator begins with Strobel providing an introduction to the conflict between theories of Darwinian evolution and intelligent design. He gives his own history of buying into the godless theories of creation hook, line and sinker during his years in high school and college. It was his faith in these theories that led him to accept atheism as a reasonable approach to life. His later investigations into the evidence for Christ and faith led him to reject atheism and to accept Christ as Lord and Savior.

The premise for this book is found in a quote by Stephen Meyer, Ph. D, one of the experts interviewed by Strobel. He says, "Science and faith are not at war. When scientific evidence and biblical teaching are correctly interpreted, they can and do support each other. I'd say to anyone who doubts that: investigate the evidence yourself."

The Case for a Creator invites readers to investigate the evidence. Strobel lays it out for you in as readable a manner as I think possible.

Critics claim that Strobel sets the table in favor of a Creator by interviewing only experts who believe in the Creator rather than other theories. It is true that he does not interview any atheistic scientists, but he uses many of their arguments to query the experts he interviews.

In fact, he regular quotes Darwin and his supporters. He quotes several other opposing scientists such as Stephen Hawking and Stephen Jay Gould. Strobel presents many of the theories opposing theism. What becomes clear while reading this book is that many educators and researchers are committed to keeping God out of the equation at all costs, even at the cost of clinging to outdated and imaginative theories of creation.

Strobel gives his readers plentiful ammunition to attack the theories espoused by the evolutionists and atheists in any arena. As he shows, the holes in atheistic theories require much more faith to fill than is required to believe that an intelligent God created all things according to Biblical truths.

An outstanding overview of the scientific evidence for God
This book is an introduction into the various areas of scientific study where a true search for truth includes not arbitrarily self limiting to a naturalistic or materialistic philosophy to explain the universe and life as we know it.

The book starts with Lee Strobel describing his own journey to atheism through his love for Darwinism and science, coupled with a journalistic obsession with always digging deeper. Despite the fact that this book had the potential to be dry and overly academic, it never is. From the opening personal background, to the depiction of his journalistic assignment to cover a debate on school textbooks in rural West Virginia, to the "conversational" tone to his presentation of scientific evidence from the experts, the book is always readable and engaging.

This is a well written overview to the fact that science and faith are not as mutually exclusive as we have been led to believe. In fact, much scientific evidence clearly points to a Creator. Whether it is big-bang cosmology, or the complexity of the bio-chemical process, design is everywhere. However, this is only part of the story. The book starts with first punching holes in most of the famous Darwin and Evolution "icons" which prompted Lee to abandon a belief in God to begin with.

That the famous "Haeckel" embryo drawings are faked and have been known as such for decades, has not kept them from being included in modern textbooks to show evidence for Darwin's theories. The amount of liberty that has been taken with weak arguments for macro-evolution points to a naturalistic philosophy, not scientific evidence, which is driving much of what passes for scientific study in the area of origins of life. See the book "Icons of Evolution" for a deeper look.

The chapter on "the Evidence of Consciousness" is in itself worth buying the book. J.P. Moreland and others discuss whether a computer will someday have "spiritual" experiences, and look into the scientific origins of philosophy made famous by Rene Decartes. The debate as to whether our consciousness is a result of mere physical brain activity which reaches a certain level, or is evidence of something beyond the physical, is a fascinating discussion.

I highly recommend this book. It is a wonderful introduction to scientific evidence from renowned scientists with impeccable credentials that align science with faith in a way that is both logically and rationally sound. While I agree that he could have interviewed a wider range of people, the theories and works from non-theists like Robert Gould, Richard Dawkins, and others are well presented. It is also a great place to start research on the subject, as there are dozens of works sited and noted from William Demski, Michael Behe, William Lane Craig, Stephen Hawking, and others. Start here, and then read deeper. The result will be the same as there truly is a scientific "case for a Creator".

Fair and thorough
Lee has told a captivating and compelling case for the existence of a supernatural Creator. He interviews a topnotch list of experts on the issue of science and faith and poses the tough questions that we all ask from time to time.

Having said that i wonder why William Lane Craig was interviewed on the cosmological argument (big bang theory) and not astrophysicist Hugh Ross? Ross has been one of the pioneers for using the big bang to prove the existence of God and has written some ground breaking books on the topic such as The Creator and the Cosmos and The Fingerprint of God.

The book is superbly written, covering all the objections fairly and writing in a way that keeps the reader interested. He is sure to stay clear of the young/old earth controversy which i don't think is wise since it is a major stumbling block to non-believers. The 6-10,000 yr old universe/Earth proposed by groups like Institute for Creation Research and Answers in Genesis is so scientifically implausable that it is making a laughing stock of the Christian faith. This is the reason that many atheists/skeptics won't accept Christ since they think that Christianity must be false since it is pushing an absurd doctrine. The Christian should work hard to counter the misconception that to believe in the Biblical world view is to swallow the nonsense of a 10,000 yr old Earth.

no
As noted elsewhere, hyperbolic language is a not a mark of intellectual honesty. "Convincing evidence" is presented many times, and, once, "convincing historical evidence". The accomplishments, citations, and titles of interviewees are listed exhaustively. Over-the-top descriptions are seeded throughout the book.

Strobel does bring to light complex theories and offers some of their history, though slanted to Intelligent Design. No book featuring science can be all bad.

A created universe provides moral structure, according to Strobel. The idea of random evolution does not. Whatever.

I Encourage Everyone To Read This And More.................
The Case For A Creator follows a logical and well thought out process. Strobel poses the questions on such topics as evolution, faith and science, the big bang, fine-tuning of the universe, earth's place in the cosmos, the origin of life, DNA, and the mind. The authors facts and evidence leads one to the confident conclusion that we can make the case for a Creator with scientific facts. I would encourage everyone to read this book much like another one I found here on Amazon called "The Book Of Thomas," by Daniel Aber and Gabreael.

The Book of Thomas is written in a similar format to this one (Question and Answer), which makes it a quick, to the point, easy read. Some of the subjects covered in their book are: The Christ Consciousness, Universal Laws, DNA, Reincarnation, The Process of Charting, and much more ... Read more

Book Description

Science has recently begun to prove what ancient myth and religion have always espoused: There may be such a thing as a life force.

Lynne McTaggart, indefatigable investigative journalist, reveals a radical new biological paradigm -- that on our most fundamental level, the human mind and body are not distinct and separate from their environment but a packet of pulsating power constantly interacting with this vast energy sea.

The Field is a highly readable scientific detective story that offers a stunning picture of an interconnected universe and a new scientific theory that makes sense of supernatural phenomena. Original, well researched, and well documented by distinguished sources, The Field is a book of hope and inspiration for today's world.

Reviews (19)

Scientists Explore the Last Frontier - the Zero Point Field
With an ear for human interest and eye for detail, Lynne McTaggart masterfully tells the true story in THE FIELD of how pioneers in science and consciousness research are working to achieve a more complete understanding of the true nature of reality -- an understanding which includes (rather than ignores) consciousness.

THE FIELD describes how scientists have gradually become aware of what appears to be a unifying energy structure in our universe. This "Zero Point Field" provides us with a simpler explanation for how things work than previous overly-complex ideas require. Simplicity in science is a good thing, because it generally indicates which theories will win out as time goes by. The Zero Point Field theory demonstrates it's elegant simplicity by allowing physicists to derive the famous equation F=ma (rather than take it as a starting assumption), and by helping medical practitioners understand the underlying scientific basis for homeopathy.

Our scientific conceptualization of this universe has changed considerably over the last few centuries and now faces one of the biggest overhauls ever -- and THE FIELD demonstrates why the Zero Point Field is likely to be the last frontier for us to explore. THE FIELD is packed with detailed descriptions of some of the most exciting experiments recently conducted by leading researchers in the field of consciousness such as: Cleve Backster, Jacques Benveniste, William Braud, Bob Jahn, Edgar Mitchell, Fritz-Albert Popp, Hal Puthoff, Rupert Sheldrake, Russell Targ, Elisabeth Targ, and Charles Tart.

I give this book my highest recommendation.

Lucid Exploration Of The Quantum-Holistic View Of Reality
In The Field, the author takes the reader along on a quest to understand the metaphysics that underlie our perceived universe. This book mainly reviews the data and theories of scientists exploring new paradigms in physics, consciousness, and subtle energy fields. While the evidence in these areas is open to theoretical interpretation, the findings consistently disprove dominant materialistic and mechanistic notions about life and the universe. The Field makes it evident that a deep analysis of scientific paradigms will lead those seeking a greater truth into the realm of metaphysics and consciousness, which have traditionally been the terrain of mystics, philosophers and spiritual seekers. This book provides an excellent overview of the most important developments in the sciences that examine the most vital issues of existence. This book is also great for challenging materialists and even some religious fanatics, as it documents contradictions to widely held beliefs.

Stunning Information
A fantastic piece of scientific reporting, knowledgeable enough to explain complex physics processes so that the lay person can understand. Adding to this other reading I've done, it makes it clear that science and philosophy are moving closer to each other. Those of us with minds open enough to at least speculate and imagine, are seeing and hearing scientific support for things we've known intuitively for a long time. What an exciting book!

Fantastic bridge spanning science and the "paranormal"
I have background in engineering and also work as a lecturer for the Silva UltraMind System. I recommend this book to everyone who attends my class. Its a great read and hard to put down. The only drawback may be the authors constant reference to Physics(frequency, zero-point field, resonance, Fourier Series) that may put off readers without a basic science background.

eye opening !!
I recommend everybody to read this book !
The theory of the author explains many until now unexplained things. ... Read more

Book Description

Like its predecessors, this edition stresses intuitive understanding of principles rather than learning by mathematical proof. Provides broad coverage of statistical procedures used in all the health science disciplines. This version contains a greater emphasis on computer applications, and most of the statistical techniques include the MINITAB commands by which they can be applied. ... Read more

Reviews (5)

Very Good
I have used this and other texts by Daniel over the years and I find you can not go wrong with his works. He is a no nonsense author and a very good writer who uses plenty of examples. Get his nonparametric book also.

Solid introductory reference
The title is very appropriate - this text provides a solid foundation in biostats. I used it for an intro course in grad school, and working through the text was very worthwhile. Previously cloudy concepts are now more clear, and I have a great reference for future use. More in-depth biostats deserves a consultation with a statistician, not a longer text. I agree with other reviewers that there are occasional mistakes (which need to be fixed - this is not even the first edition), but overall I would still highly recommend it.

Decent introductory text; but shoddy construction
Well, if I still refer to this text after having taken Intro to Biostats almost 3 years ago, then this book can't be all that bad. For the money, however, the publisher could have at least made the book more durable. This book starts to fall apart after only about a month of use- I kid you not!

The worst
Now I know why some governments burn books. Use your copy for your next campfire.

Many Many mistakes.
Let's look at chapter 9. You will find the following mistakes. (1) Page 419. Figure 9.4.5 (d) r squared - 1, it should be r squared - 0. (2) Page 417 Formula (9.4.1) "-" should be "+" (3) Page 421 8. Statistical decision. Where did they get 8.25? (4) Page 403 Figure 9.2.1 intercept=0 Normally, it is not 0. Anyway, 0 is not totally wrong.

I hate this book. ... Read more

Book Description

We've all heard of the Big Bang, and yet few of us truly know what it is.

Renowned for making difficult ideas much less difficult than they might first appear, Simon Singh is our perfect guide to explaining why cosmologists believe that the Big Bang is an accurate description of the origin and evolution of the universe.

This highly readable and entertaining book tells the story of the many brilliant, often eccentric scientists who fought against the establishment idea of an eternal and unchanging cosmos. From such early Greek cosmologists as Anaximander to recent satellite measurements taken deep in space, Big Bang is a narrative full of anecdotes and personal histories. With characteristic clarity, Simon Singh tells the centuries-long story of mankind's attempt to understand how the universe came to be, a story which itself begins some 14 billion years ago (give or take a billion years). Simon Singh shows us that it is within the capability of all of us -- in his expert hands -- to understand the Big Bang: the fundamental theory in all of science, and a high point -- perhaps the high point -- of human achievement.

Reviews (118)

Fair, accurate, and well-reasoned--up to a point.
I detest creationism. I'm an agnostic. I have a degree in zoology.

This is a good book.

Jonathan Wells' motives may well be suspect, and the purpose of this book may well be to supply ammunition for creationists who want to attack their local school curricula. According to an article by Wells on a Unification Church website, http://www.tparents.org/library/unification/talks/wells/DARWIN.htm , "Father's words, my studies, and my prayers convinced me that I should devote my life to destroying Darwinism."

It doesn't matter.

This is a good, well-written, cogently argued book. Up until about page 229, I think what it says is accurate and reasonably fair. It is a good example of critical discussion.

Well's "icons of evolution" are well-known textbook examples of supposed facts that support the Neodarwinian theory of evolution: industrial melanism, Darwin's finches, etc. I don't think see how you can challenge him here; these are not straw men, these really are the "textbook examples."

Wells proceeds to argue that each of these "facts" is misinformation or worse. And I think his critiques are quite justifiable.

He also asserts that these "facts" are widely known to be faulty, yet continue to be repeated in textbooks. He implies strongly that the reason for this is that there is an extrascientific agenda at work. Here we get into murkier waters, but, yes, I believe that pressure from religious dogmatists has forced evolutionists into a dogmatism of their own. Scientists have been too willing to circle the wagons and present a united public front against the creationists.

I've read a number of articles that attack this book, and I think most of them do not succeed very well. For example, Wells points out, correctly enough, that the textbook photographs of _Biston betularia_ on light and dark-colored tree-trunks are all but fake. What can possibly be said in defense of faked photographs in textbooks? That it doesn't matter, because many other textbook pictures are also fake? That many nature photographs might best be described as posed illustrations of true facts? Or (worst of all) that if something is true it is OK to use inaccurate but memorable pictures to illustrate it?

School committee members may fear, perhaps justifiably, that irate citizens are going demand that school biology textbooks be labelled with the "warning labels" he so helpfully provides in Appendix II. And certainly the notion of "warning labels for textbooks" is a politically charged attack.

But even the actual text of his "warning labels" is reasonable enough: ("WARNING: Archaeopterix is probably not the ancestor of modern birds, and its own ancestors remain highly controversial; other missing links are now being sought;" "WARNING: Darwin's tree of live does not fit the fossil record of the Cambrian explosion, and molecular evidence does not support a simple branching-tree pattern.")

Perhaps Wells is a dogmatist who is cleverly feigning the spirit of free inquiry in order to make an effective attack. And quite possibly Wells deserves to be attacked _ad hominem_. But I think it is best to speak to the actual words he puts on the page.

And I can go with him at least as far as page 229. I say if he's right, he's right-and-up to page 229-I think he IS right, by and large, for the most part.

Shocking Exposè of Evolutionary Myths
After an in-person interview with Jonathan Wells on this book, several things stand out to make this book shockingly significant: 1) The 10 beloved evolutionary icons (popular examples of "evidence" purportedly showing the validity of Darwinian macro-evolution) are all known to be misleading if not flat out fraudulent -- even within the ranks of Darwinian and neo-Darwinian scholars. 2) Wells points out that the continued use of these "icons" in biology text books (and he names titles and publishers - to their shame!) betrays a metaphysical agenda that bears no resemblance to objective science. And lastly, 3) Wells is no raving creationism propagandist. With his double doctorates (Yale and Berkeley), his scholarship is exemplary, and for those who care to know a little more about the authors of the books they read, he has a genuine warmth and friendliness not often associated with "scholarly types." Considering the propagation of the faulty examples of Darwinian evolution listed in the biology texts today, this book is a step toward a badly needed corrective toward a more honest and objective reading of biological science.

To see the book for what it is...
There are plenty of other books written recently that directly challenge evolutionary theory. In my view, the importance of this book isn't to prove evolution is false, but to reveal the zealous propagation of the so-called "facts" of evolution. That many textbooks today that still use these eroneous "icons" to demonstrate the "facts" of evolution is exactly what the author claims: misleading. Students have been taught to be uncritical of evolution from textbooks that use these misrepresentations.

A better approach, though perhaps an unpopular compromise in the view of evolutionists is the "Teach the Controversy" proposal recently adopted by the State Board of Education of Ohio. Interestingly, National Academy of Sciences president Bruce Alberts has recently and fervently opposed "Teach the Controversy". And in Wells' book, he quotes the Academy's booklet on science teaching:

"This process of public scrutiny... is an essential part of science. It works to eliminate individual bias and subjectivity, because others must also be able to determine whether a proposed explanation is consistent with the available evidence."

One might wonder why all the fuss over adoption of critical evalutation of evolutionary theory if indeed there is no evidence against it? Maybe they are a bit worried that recent polls have shown that the public is overwhelmingly open to "Teaching the Controversy"? Another example is the Ohio ACLU, which has launched an investigation and threatened a lawsuit over "Teach the Controversy" (see: http://www.acluohio.org). If one steps back from the details of the debate, perhaps it really is plain to see that many evolutionists are not even open to critical analysis of their "theory".

Note, then, the long history of misleading "icons" that Wells documents in the book. When these errors were originally uncovered (which was long before this book was written), were the textbooks changed to correct them? Or were they silently ignored and left uncorrected in order to stymie criticism of supposed "fact"? In the introduction of the book, Wells acknowledges that "In several cases, they [contributors to his research] chose anonymity because their careers might suffer at the hands of people who strongly disagree with the conclusions of this book." This remark is highly believable when you consider the responses that have been written to this book including reviews here at Amazon and in the scientific community as well.

Garbage!
This book's arguments are completely dishonest. It is based on a complete lack of understanding of the theory of evolution that is horribly tainted by blatantly unwarranted faith in mythical creation. Evolution is upheld by EVIDENCE, which is something creationism does not have. As with ALL scientific theories there can be disagreements and discussion and changes as evidence, technology and science themselves evolve. Even if some grand discovery somehow proved evolution to be incorrect it does not mean that creationism would become true by default. Creationism is not based on any kind of science. It is the distortion of truth to make it fit within the bounds of biblical myth. It is very unfortunate that christians who claim to uphold the truth are so willing to ignore facts and fabricate their own form of "science" in order to propogate lies. The bible is NOT a science book. It is not even a history book. It is a book of myths. Man made fairy tales. The supporters of creationism wish to return us to the Dark Ages where all facts are derived from the bible and all who disagree are tortured and burned to death by the church. It is very sad that more christians do not see that they are self decieved.

Interesting perspective; needs better writing....
Just finished this book, and thought it was interesting, but not nearly as intersting as the venom it has stirred up here on the review boards. As I understood the text, Wells is not attempting to provide an alternative explanation to Darwinism, but rather point out the near-dogmatic fervor to which strict Darwinists adhere to the theory (despite the flaws of that theory).

I wish there had been better examples than Wells himself provides; he does a good job of debunking the public myths of Darwinism, but doesn't offer any explanation as to why Darwinism is so widely accepted. Surely there must be some substantive evidence other than a simple knee-jerk reaction to the possibility of intelligent design.

What I find most provocative about this book (despite its limitations) is that Wells doesn't attempt to phrase the argument in terms of evolution-vs-creationism (as many reviews here seem to do); rather, he attempts to dissect Darwinism based solely on the content of the messages in the public sphere. This opens up the discussion to alternate perspectives, neither pure Creationistic or neo-Darwinistic in nature. ... Read more

Book Description

Design to be used alongside Trefil:  The Sciences, 4E, this Study Guide contains many elements that foster student success.  Included are chapter reviews, learning objectives, key chapter concepts and key concept charts. The ties between science and math are reinforced with key formulas and equations. Links to scientists and their findings are outlined to help improve your comprehension of key subject area concepts. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Great for non-Science major
As a business major, satisfying a Science requirement, I have found this book to be informative, interesting and great fun. I believe it to be will written and thorough. Information is wonderfully balanced by illustrations, fyi's and interesting supplemental facts. I have one significant complaint to register with the authors/publishers of this text. The review and discussion questions should be answered either at the end of the book or in the review book. It is extremely disappointing that these answers are not available. As a student with a 3.86 average, I take my education very seriously and find it discouraging and somewhat insulting that I can not check my own work. I would STRONGLY suggest that those answers are made available within the text or on web. Thanks! ... Read more

Book Description

The success of the first edition of Generalized Linear Models led to the updated Second Edition, which continues to provide a definitive unified, treatment of methods for the analysis of diverse types of data. Today, it remains popular for its clarity, richness of content and direct relevance to agricultural, biological, health, engineering, and other applications.The authors focus on examining the way a response variable depends on a combination of explanatory variables, treatment, and classification variables. They give particular emphasis to the important case where the dependence occurs through some unknown, linear combination of the explanatory variables.The Second Edition includes topics added to the core of the first edition, including conditional and marginal likelihood methods, estimating equations, and models for dispersion effects and components of dispersion. The discussion of other topics-log-linear and related models, log odds-ratio regression models, multinomial response models, inverse linear and related models, quasi-likelihood functions, and model checking-was expanded and incorporates significant revisions.Comprehension of the material requires simply a knowledge of matrix theory and the basic ideas of probability theory, but for the most part, the book is self-contained. Therefore, with its worked examples, plentiful exercises, and topics of direct use to researchers in many disciplines, Generalized Linear Models serves as ideal text, self-study guide, and reference. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

first great treatment of generalized linear models
Nelder and Wedderburn wrote the seminal paper on generalized linear models in the 1970s. Since then John Nelder has pioneered the research and software development of the methods. This is the first of several excellent texts on generalized linear models. It illustrates how through the use of a link function many classical statistical models can be unified into one general form of model. This unification is helpful both theoretically and computationally. Various applications are presented in a clear manner.

Very comprehensive, very helpful.
The first edition is already a well-known text and reference, this expanded version is even better. Very comprehensive and very helpful.

One of the best books on modelling
This is an important book. It is a mature, deep introduction to generalized linear models.

General linear models extend multiple linear models to include cases in which the distribution of the dependent variable is part of the exponential family and the expected value of the dependent variable is a function of the linear predictor. Besides the normal (Gaussian) distribution, the binomial distribution, the Poisson distribution and the Gamma distribution, are just some of the exponential family members most frequently encountered in the scientific literature. Using appropriate functions to join the dependent variable to the linear predictor many classic models of applied statistics are included in the broad frame of generalized linear models: "logistic regression", log-linear models, Cox's proportional hazards models are just some of them.

Further extensions to the "base" family of generalized linear models, such as those based on the use of quasi-likelihood functions, and models in which both the expected value and the dispersion are function of a linear predictor, are well presented in the book.

Examples, and exercises, introduce many non-banal, useful, designs.

There are some minor drawbacks. Some more advanced topics might have been introduced more smoothly (i.e. conditional likelihood). Some other topics are better understood when you are already familiar with the specific object of study (i.e. Cox's proportional hazards models as a generalized linear model). The book does not provide software examples, nor is it related with any specific statistical package. However, the maturity of the reader to whom the book is addressed should be so high that translating the majority of the examples presented in the book in the "language" of a familiar statistical package should not be a problem. ... Read more

Book Description

By identifying the structure of DNA, the molecule of life, Francis Crick and James Watson revolutionized biochemistry and won themselves a Nobel Prize. At the time, Watson was only twenty-four, a young scientist hungry to make his mark. His uncompromisingly honest account of the heady days of their thrilling sprint against other world-class researchers to solve one of science's greatest mysteries gives a dazzlingly clear picture of a world of brilliant scientists with great gifts, very human ambitions, and bitter rivalries. With humility unspoiled by false modesty, Watson relates his and Crick's desperate efforts to beat Linus Pauling to the Holy Grail of life sciences, the identification of the basic building block of life. Never has a scientist been so truthful in capturing in words the flavor of his work. ... Read more

Reviews (65)

Double Helix....Stairway to Genetics
I found the book to be the complete antithesis to the expected writings hidden behind the scientific cover. Watson and his clan's quest for the helixical structure of DNA made for an entertaining voyage within these pages. Unexpectedly, as many scientific based books that I have been privy to read lately, this book was very approachable, dare I say readable. The exploits recounted by Watson were very entertaining; they could even be considered witty and humorous although it was biosciences humor. The teamwork and competition aspects of the discovery of the double helix were unexpected but welcomed because I felt that they were the driving forces behind the people. I was impressed by Watson, Crick and Franklin all bringing something to the proverbial table even though I found it a tad bit lucky or coincidental, but that is how these things work sometimes. This, accompanied with the race against Linus Pauling (already a recognized scientist of the time) helped lend to an educational, insightful and entertaining few hours of reading about the basic structure of all of us. I felt like I took a little something with me when I was finished with this work.......and I do mean literally.

REVIEW FOR PROFESSOR STEINER.
The Double Helix, by James D. Watson is a great book. I have learned a lot by reading this book. It is a simple book that contains lots of humor. I have discovered that Watson is a smart, but at the same time funny, while competing with an admired scientist, Linus Pauling. Watson makes the book fun to read because he conveys his process vividly and shows how important DNA is to the world. All of this started in a dumpy, worn down chemical lab at Cambridge University called "The Cavendish." Watson was interested in investigating the structure of DNA to gain more insight into genetics. James Watson shows that his discovery was also part of Francis Crick, his partner that helped him. However, Crick was sometimes not very helpful because he wondered off. Watson had to get use to the structure of Cambridge where they had meals and everyone sat together on a special table on an elevated platform and were expected to engage in an enlightened conversation. I also like the part where Watson is honest by showing his ignorance on X-ray crystallographic techniques. I also enjoy the sarcasm in chapter 15 where they say, "After Pauling's success, no one could claim that faith in helices implied anything but an uncomplicated brain." Also the information from page 83 describes that ratio of bases of DNA: where A-T and C-G, which is what I have learned in class. Therefore, I believe that The Double Helix is a great book worth reading because it does not contain much technical terms and is also a short book that will show important the discovery of DNA was and still is to the world.

Important Discover...but not the most invigorating book
Ok. I'm giving this book a 4 because of the importance of the discover of the structure of DNA. In terms of actual reading material, however, I'd probably give it a 2 or 3. I do believe that James Watson is a great scientist, but he is not writer. His writing style is only adequete and far from interesting and he really doesn't do a great job of putting interest into the subject matter. Someone who does not have at least a little background in the general concepts or biology/organic chemistry/physics will probably not get much out of this book.

Now on to the science side of the book. Watson describes the various events that took place while he, Franscis Crick, Maurice Wilkins, and Rosalind Franklin worked on discovering the structure of DNA. Again, Watson does not really put much vigor into these events but does describe them realistically (science can't always do interesting). He focuses on his relationship with Crick, battles with Franklin, and competetion with Linus Pauling--the Nobel prize winning chemist who ironically get the structure of DNA wrong. Through his writing, Watson at times reveals his pompousness and his ignorance of certain scientific concepts, but overall shows his devout eagerness of discovery.

I would say that this is an important book to read if you are at all interested in science. However, it is probably too boring for just a fun read.

Not a Science Nerd
Science and I have never been on a level playing field. We go together like jalapenos and cheesecake. When the opportunity arose to do extra credit for my biology class, I was ecstatic. That is until I found out exactly what the assignment was. I had to read a book, a scientific one of course, from a list compiled by my instructor, write a review, and post it on here on Amazon. If I wasn't so desperate for the extra points I would have torn that book list into a million pieces, but describing my need for an A as desperate would be an understatement. Naturally, I chose the book with the least amount of pages, James Watson's Double Helix. The title alone made me drowsy. I was in for a big surprise, though. I actually enjoyed the book and even learned a little bit in the process. The story was extremely well told and I found myself eagerly awaiting the answer to Mr. Watson's burning question, "What does DNA look like?"
James Watson was en exceptionally intelligent man, as was clearly demonstrated in his book by his eloquent writing style, extensive vocabulary, and impressive syntax. He was, however, not an intimidating scientist, which allowed me to relate to his story with ease. Watson was full of ideas, a quick study, and very receptive to the work of his superiors, but at the time of his brilliant discovery, he was merely a student, fighting to get funded for his research. He had studied biology, chemistry, and physics, but was not particularly fond of any of them. Unfortunately, Mr. Watson was at a disadvantage because all three disciplines were the building blocks for understanding the composition and structure of DNA.
Although James Watson was funded to research viruses while away in England, his immediate fascination with DNA quickly derailed his educational focus, and with several incorrect theories about DNA already spread, he was unquestionably discouraged from his desired area of study. The entire book boasted his bliss and reverence, having met and worked with some of the worlds most famous and respected scientists. Watson was clever enough to draw knowledge from each of them which assisted him throughout the stages of the project.
The best part about reading the book was that while I was devouring my literature, my Biology professor was covering DNA and genetics in class. I felt like the smartest kid in the world because I truly understood all the material he was discussing, thanks to Mr. Watson. The novel included supportive illustrations which assisted me in following some of the more difficult language, such as nitrogenous bases, and phosphate groups. I was astounded to know that I had a firm grasp of a minute portion of the scientific world.
I thought the book was great primarily because I could understand it. While it may sound facetious, it's absolutely true. Unless you love science, the terminology involved sounds completely foreign. I was utterly terrified just thinking about how I was going to attempt to comprehend my newfound author. My fright was quickly put to ease as I turned each page. Initially I was dreading reading a few pages per night, and soon found myself reading five chapters a night and finished the book, in its entirety, within just a few days. I would undeniably recommend this book to anyone like me who feels inferior when it comes to the sciences. It is a superb account of a scientific breakthrough intertwined with a story of friendship, inspiration, competition, and triumph.

Shame on you, "Doctor" Watson
Shame on Watson for "taking" data from Rosalind Franklin and not even acknowledging it. My wife and I watched the Nova program "Secret of Photo 51" and was outraged. This book is a how Watson would like the world to believe how HE discovers the structure of DNA. Stanford refused to publish this book. Watson's ethics is questionable.

If you read this, make sure you read the books about Rosalind Franklin also in order to get the truth. ... Read more

Book Description

With its reader-friendly style, extensive use of color, and emphasis on concepts and abundant real-world applications, PHYSICAL SCIENCE, Second Edition affords students a smooth entrance into the world of science. The level of mathematical skill necessary to use the text is suitable for non-majors. Renowned chemist Raymond Chang of Williams College brings his expertise as a chemistry educator to the author team. ... Read more

Book Description

An accredited Ohio high school math teacher who is also a math instructor at Ohio’s Youngstown State University offers Ohio high school students comprehensive preparation for the math exit exam. The test, which is taken in stages in the tenth-through-twelfth grades, is a prerequisite for high school graduation in Ohio. This brand-new manual’s subject review opens with a chapter on number, number sense, and operations; then goes on to review patterns, functions, and algebra; geometry and spatial sense; measurement; and data analysis and probability. The manual concludes with three full-length sample Ohio Graduation Tests (OGTs) with solutions for all problems. Valuable appendices offer an OGT calculator primer, an OGT mathematics reference sheet, and a glossary of mathematical terminology. The book is an excellent learning tool for individual students or for use in classrooms, featuring more than 800 OGT problems, examples and exercises with an explanation accompanying the solution of every problem. ... Read more

Book Description

In recent years, photonics has found increasing applications in such areas as communications, signal processing,computing, sensing, display, printing, and energy transport. Now, Fundamentals of Photonics is the first self-contained introductory-level textbook to offer a thorough surveyof this rapidly expanding area of engineering and applied physics. Featuring a logical blend of theory and applications, coverage includes detailed accounts of the primary theories of light, including ray optics,wave optics, electromagnetic optics, and photon optics, as well as the interaction of light with matter, andthe theory of semiconductor materials and their optical properties.

Presented at increasing levels ofcomplexity, these sections serve as building blocks for the treatment of more advanced topics, such asFourier optics and holography, guidedwave and fiber optics, photon sources and detectors, electro-opticand acousto-optic devices, nonlinear optical devices, fiber-optic communications, and photonic switching and computing. Included are such vital topics as:

• Generation of coherent lightby lasers, and incoherent lightby luminescence sources suchas light-emitting diodes
• Transmission of light throughoptical components (lenses, apertures, and imagingsystems), waveguides, and fibers
• Modulation, switching, and scanning of light through the use of electrically, acoustically, and opticallycontrolled devices
• Amplification and frequency conversion of light by the use of wave interactions in nonlinear materialsDetection of light by means of semiconductor photodetectors

Each chapter contains summaries,highlighted equations, problem setsand exercises, and selected readinglists. Examples of real systems areincluded to emphasize the conceptsgoverning applications of currentinterest, and appendices summarizethe properties of one- andtwo-dimensional Fourier transforms,linear-systems theory, and modes oflinear systems. ... Read more

Reviews (13)

One stop review and reference for the photonics engineer
Just got my copy and wish I had ordered it much earlier! I find it to be much more useful than the Handbook of Optics. It's very refreshing to find a book which has not been dumbed down so far as to be useless, yet not so mathematical as to be a stumbling block. This is one of the standard textbooks for undergraduate Photonics at Stanford.

Best overview of photonics
Very well-written overview of the major topics of photonics. Excellent mix of theory and practical applications. I particularly like the book's structure, taking the reader logically through the sequence of geometric, wave, electromagnetic, and quantum optics. There is nothing superfluous in this book - its 900 pages are packed with useful information. It's written in an incredibly precise and error-free manner.

Good Dictionary to Optics for Researching
I say straight, the book, is best refence book of my Opticals . It is just as a dictionary for looking up when reading paper or topical books . I think, the book is very necessary for ones study/researching on optics/solid/EM..etc
. the book is worthy of called " Bable "

solution manaul
This is a very good book in this vital area of physics and eng.Therefore i have recomended this book to be taught this year to my students.I shall be grateful if you can send me the solution manaul and any other related material availaible electronically.

best regards.

saleh.

Exhaustive but verbose
The book is divided into three parts, one covering general topics in optics, second part lasers and third part, brief discussion of assorted topics.

The book is exhaustive and verbose. As a first book on photonics I would not recommend it. The information on lasers is enormous but the language fails to convey good understanding.

The problems in the book are tough and without an answer key, it would be difficult to glean any understanding from it.

However it is a useful reference book to have and and I would recommend using it wisely alongwith other material. ... Read more

Book Description

As part of the ongoing Wiley Series in Mechanical Engineering, this edited volume serves as a complete reference and guide to the many facets of instrumentation and control engineering. Broad in coverage and scope, it provides practicing engineers with the latest data and activities taking place in the field. Will give you an idea of the depth and breadth of coverage as reflected in the variety of topics explored, including systems engineering concepts; instrument static analysis; grounding and cabling techniques; bridge transducers; position, velocity, acceleration; force; torque, pressure and temperature transducers; signal processing and transmission; control system performance and modification; number controllers for machine tools and robots; and state-space analysis for dynamic and control systems. ... Read more

Book Description

Bombs are as old as hatred itself. But it was the twentieth century--one hundred years of incredible scientific progress and terrible war--that brought forth the Big One, the Bomb, humanity's most powerful and destructive invention. In The Bomb: A Life, Gerard DeGroot tells the story of this once unimaginable weapon that--at least since 8:16 a.m. on August 6, 1945--has haunted our dreams and threatened our existence.

The Bomb has killed hundreds of thousands outright, condemned many more to lingering deaths, and made vast tracts of land unfit for life. For decades it dominated the psyches of millions, becoming a touchstone of popular culture, celebrated or decried in mass political movements, films, songs, and books. DeGroot traces the life of the Bomb from its birth in turn-of-the-century physics labs of Europe to a childhood in the New Mexico desert of the 1940s, from adolescence and early adulthood in Nagasaki and Bikini, Australia and Kazakhstan to maturity in test sites and missile silos around the globe. His book portrays the Bomb's short but significant existence in all its scope, providing us with a portrait of the times and the people--from Oppenheimer to Sakharov, Stalin to Reagan--whose legacy still shapes our world.

Book Description

This well-established text describes the principles, applications and design of the medical instrumentation most commonly used in hospitals. Because equipment changes with time, the authors stress fundamental principles of operation and general types of equipment. They avoid detailed descriptions and photographs of specific models. Design principles are emphasized so that a scientist with only some background in electronics can gain enough information to design instruments that may not be commercially available. Since biomedical engineering is an interdisciplinary field, the authors have provided varied healthcare industry applications for each type of instrument. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Electronic Medical Instrumentation
As a coursebook, I found 'Medical Instrumentation' to be a sound survey of electrical medical diagnostic instrumentation. The book does review electrical therapeutic medical instrumentation; however, it's coverage is not as thorough.

This is an excellent resource for engineers planning to specialize in medical device design.

A good understanding of physiology is necessary to fully utilize the Medical Instrumentation text. If you have little medical background, I recommend Review of Medical Physiology (by William Ganong) as a companion.

Could be More Simple
Explains dynamic characteristics of circuits very well. It has a ton of information - which can be too much. If you are just starting out in a course on instrumentation, I would recommend, "Principles of Bioinstrumentation" by Normann. His book is much simpler. Ideally, you should get both,..., it depends what level you are at (as a 4th year bioengineering student, I preferred the simple version...)

very good
This book is very good about medical devices and application

The content is almost identical to the second edition
It was with great enthusiasm that we ordered the 3rd edition of Professor's Webster big hit. With all my respects for Professor Webster, I was personally disapointed to observe that this edition has almost the same content as the second one. Maybe it is worth mentioning that I have adopted this text for my bioinstrumentation course from the very first edition. It is amazing that some of the very good and recent works done by Prof. Webster's team of engineers and students was not at all included. Even the references are almost the same as the second edition. As the second edition had really something to say compared to the first one, the natural expectation was to see a 3rd edition much more elaborated in terms of novelties in the field. The amount of new material put into this edition seems not to justify the publication of the 3rd edition. ... Read more

Book Description

One or two-semester introductory science course for non-scientists. May be a requirement for education majors. Covers physics, chemistry, astronomy, and earth science. Integrated science course also covers biology. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Superb!
I used this book for two years during my Polytechnic days. The explanations are very clear. Examples also demonstrated the concepts in a manner which is very detailed (i.e. no skipping of steps).

Highly recommended! ... Read more

Book Description

Part of the Basic Skills in Electricity and Electronics Series, Electricity makes the introduction to this discipline easy to understand. The program assumes no previous training in the subject; only arithmetic and an introduction to algebra are used in explanations and problems. The text begins with a coverage of the fundamentals of direct current. This leads to a unified presentation of subject generally associated with alternating currents. Throughout the text, concepts build from one chapter to another. This important feature enables students to develop a unified understanding of electricity and the applications of electricity.

A dedication to student learning is evident throughout the text. Every page features a vertical color bar that focuses on key words. Many illustrations with a unique four-color design highlight the most important elements. Short self-tests (with answers provided) are presented throughout the text to offer immediate reinforcement and build students' confidence. Another valuable feature is the summary of key concepts found at the end of each chapter. This new edition also includes performance objectives and critical-thinking questions for every chapter.

The Activities Manual offers a wide variety of hands-on applications, including experiments that emphasize practical aspects of troubleshooting. It also includes pretests and posttests, research projects, and construction projects.

The Instructor's Manual is designed to help you present a unifed course. It contains answers to all problems in the text and representative data for all the experiments. New to this edition of the Instructor's Manual is a computerized test generator. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Electricity, Not Electronics
Electricity.
This is a subject that is often glossed over or dismissed in favor of Electronics.

A firm grasp of Electricity is needed before one can hope to master Electronics.

This remarkable book does just that. It is written in an intuitive manner allowing a novice to progress through the subject with ease.

For the those who practice Electricity for a living, it is a welcome refresher. Even the "Old Salt" who has been doing it for years: there are lots of "Ah Ha's," yet to be discovered.

This Book should not be underestimated or dismissed; it is worth exploring.

Horrible Stay Clear
This book is written for someone with a 6th grade education and no more. It talks about magamps for pete's sake. It dosen't even broach the subject of transistors. NO TRANSISTOR THEORY!! What in sakes is electronics if not transistors! The stupid objectives at the beginning of each chapter, and the even worst review problems at the end of each chapter are simply a waste of pages. I am a former nuke electrician from the navy and a current IC Fabrication Technician in the semiconductor industry. I purchased the book to just stay up on my studies, but this book fell way short. My fiancee's daughter has learned almost everything that is covered in this book, and she is only in the 7th grade. Be forewarned, a bad book indeed.

This is an excellent book for beginners in electricity.
This book is written in the standard format for a classroom environment, which makes it very easy to follow and find previously read topics you may have forgotten. However, some sections would be easier to learn with the aid of a teacher; although, it is still possible to learn the material without one. This book covers a wide range of topics for electricity, but not many applications of it. Over all, this book provides you with a strong foundation in the electrical field. ... Read more

Book Description

Many mathematics students have trouble the first time they take acourse, such as linear algebra, abstract algebra, introductory analysis, or discrete mathematics, in which they are asked to prove various theorems.This textbook will prepare students to make the transition from solving problems to proving theorems by teaching them the techniques needed to read and write proofs.The book begins with the basic concepts of logic and set theory, to familiarize students with the language of mathematics and how it is interpreted.These concepts are used as the basis for a step-by-step breakdown of the most important techniques used in constructing proofs.The author shows how complex proofs are built up from these smaller steps, using detailed "scratchwork" sections to expose the machinery of proofs about the natural numbers, relations, functions, and infinite sets.Numerous exercises give students the opportunity to construct their own proofs.No background beyond standard high school mathematics is assumed.This book will be useful to anyone interested in logic and proofs:computer scientists, philosophers, linguists, and of course mathematicians. ... Read more

Reviews (16)

A good start on writing proofs, but falls short!
I found that this book utilized a little too much set theory for beginning students. If the author could have given more concrete examples, perhaps from group theory or simpler ones from analysis or number theory, it would have been much better. For students wanting a more lucid exposition of proof techniques, I highly recommend, "100% Mathematical Proof" by Rowan Garnier and someone else,whos name escapes me at the moment. "100% Mathematical Proof" is far superior to this book, and it has answers to the exercises which is crucial to the beginning student learning on his/her own. Velleman needs to bring the abstract nearer to the concrete for the beginning student.

An excellent book
This is an excellent book for the early undergraduate student. It is actually two books in one. The first half is a careful review of Logic and the essentials of Set Theory with an emphasis on precise language. Thereafter a structured development of proof techniques is clearly presented using these tools. The second half of the book is a detailed presentation of introductory material about functions, relations, and a few aspects of more advanced set theory. These chapters serve as a wonderful introduction and show applications of the proof techniques developed earlier.
I have referred back to this book often in my own study of analysis and number theory. I recommend it highly. It will be very useful to any undergraduate proceeding through a mathematics curriculum. I recommend studying it early in the first semester, and re-reading it as time goes on.

Starts off good, and then goes off on a tangent.
I bought this book in the hopes that it would help me improve my proof writing skills. Being only a high school graduate (a month ago), I had practically no knowledge of set theory. The initial proof structures were great, and I enjoyed following the proofs from the premises and, through logical steps, to the desired conclusion. However, then the Set Theory came in. I can understand why a certain amount of set theory was necessary in order to be able to talk about certain types of proofs, but he goes so far into set theory in the book, that by a certain point, instead of following the logical flow of the proofs, I was trying to remember abstruse terminology he had mentioned briefly and trying, successfully for the most part, to understand what the actual proof meant, and why it would make sense that it was correct. Its possible that the reason I feel this way is because when I do proofs, I usually need to understand it intuitively first and then go from there, and it could be the case that this isn't possible with more abstract proofs. Overall, it was a good read, but unfortunately, he went a little too far into the set theory than was necessary. Reading it twice would fix that problem though. Another criticism is that there are no solutions to the exercises.

Breakthrough and Original ......
I recall it was a few years back when I encountered this little gem at my first analysis class. In fact this book wasn't assigned and instead we used Analysis by Lay. I didn't get essential proof tactics/strategies out of Lay's so I plunged myself into Library and after looking up one after another, I finally found this book. It is about as title says and not about Analysis. The book does not cover as much as one expects from Analysis books. But many of them I've seen seem to fail on teaching "how to prove" to study Analysis.

Velleman uses structured style as a technique. Two columns are prepared. The left column is Givens and right Goal. By restructuring Givens and Goal using relationships and definitions, some parts of Goal statement is moved to Givens, like peeling skins of onion. This process iterates until one finds the proving obvious. The whole process is a "scratch work" and a reader is able to see how the author structures the proof step by step, both from Goal and Givens viewpoints.

In past, there was only a Macintosh proofing program, but now Java version called Proof Designer is out. So Windows and Linux users alike can now enjoy this little program in conjunction with the book. Two disappointments with Proof Designer are that the output is only in the form of a traditional proof style which does not expose "the scratch work" and that the program does not use the two column style used in the book.

There are additional materials such as supplementary exercises, documentation, and a list of proof strategies (which is also available at the end of the book as a good reminder and reference), all available from author's site for free. [search in google like this: velleman "how to prove it" inurl:amherst]

After completion of this book, don't throw it away! Advance to Rudin's Principles of Mathematical Analysis and keep Velleman aside. Now one can work on complete proof of materials in Rudin with rigor and study how he constructs logical structures step by step in your own "structured" words!

Probably the best book out there but not perfect
A good basic introduction to understanding math proofs by understanding logic first. Only lacking in its connection to math proofs that one might actually see, in other words too basic (which is as much complement as a critcism.) ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Field Researchers' Bible
This is a "must-have" book for anyone engaged in field research or a student of field research methods. The approach is to maximize validity of research findings based on a number of considerations in the design of field research. Examines the pit-falls made by most new and inexperienced field researchers and evaluators. Before you conduct your next program evaluation, design an applied research study, or start to collect dissertation da