Products Books

I wold like to lean mor rice straw composit as is wood .
What kind of book may I lean .
Thank your help.

I wold like to lean mor rice straw composit as is wood .
What kind of book may I lean .
Thank your help.

A corporate name is everything - it's what holds your reputation and value. "Value Creation: The Power of Brand Equity" is a guide for business managers to make the most of their brand and to make it make them money. Highlighting that a corporation's values can play a big role in attracting customers, and keeping those customers. Also highlighting essential advice to help whoever manages a brand to maintain the value and not lose it, "Value Creation: The Power of Brand Equity" is highly recommended for community library business collections and for any in charge of there brands future.

From a consumer or client point of view, a brand is essentially an implied contract that reduces purchase uncertainty. A successful brand increases trust and reduces uncertainty among buyers, employees, suppliers, investors and other stakeholders.

Ron Strauss and William Neal dive deep into brand importance and mechanics in their new book Value Creation: The Power of Brand Equity. This book shows the role that brands play as intangible assets, why intangible assets are a large share of a firm's market value, and how investors associate brands with a firm's intrinsic market value.

Brand value, the authors argue, can be and should be measured. When the asset-value of brands is measured, it can be effectively managed to improve stockholder value. What's measured can be improved. It's worth improving your company's brand, as strong brands:

* provide a platform for efficient new product launches
* reduce marketing and selling costs per sales unit
* create pricing and margin advantages in the near term
* build and protect near and long term enterprise market value for stakeholders
* create meaning, relevance and loyalty for stakeholders (employees, channels, etc.)

A brand is a defensible long-term asset a company owns, say Strauss and Neal. Competitors can quickly replicate product or service performance; they can meet or beat prices; they can enter channels and markets freely. But competitors cannot quickly build the confidence of consumers and clients. And therein lies the value of a brand.

The authors, both 35-year veterans of the branding and market research world, begin with this manifesto: "Brands are the most valuable assets that a corporation owns. Brands are the key source of sustainable competitive advantage. Brands are the `invisible hand' of management, leading employees to do the right things. Top management understanding of the company's corporate, product and service brands and how they create value is the key to long-term success. If a company has weak brands, it is automatically at a competitive disadvantage - price competition and cost cutting will dominate management thinking and actions; employee morale will suffer."

Neal and Strauss are evangelizers of the brand--your brand. Most companies, they note, do not actively measure their brand assets or lead their organization in a way that maximizes that value. But companies should be doing so. In Chapter 6, "The Current State of Brand Measurement," the authors examine popular brand value/brand equity measurement systems and academically demonstrate the strengths and weaknesses of each of those systems. They introduce and explain a new measurement system and explain how to calculate brand value, brand equity and total brand value.

Throughout the book are many examples of companies that have systems and processes to actively measure and improve their brands. From Starbucks to Honda to Mayo Clinic, the authors dissect and examine what makes a good brand. And these are the elements of a successful brand:

* key stakeholders' values are reflected in the brand's attributes
* the company's mission and vision are consistent with the brand strategy
* management `interrogates reality' outside the company to keep the brand differentiated and relevant
* the brand's unique set of attributes, less its costs of ownership, yields benefits sufficient to drive choice within its consideration set
* what the company thinks, how it acts, what it does, all support the brand promise so that stakeholders' experiences with the brand meet or exceed expectations

I recently spoke with Ron Strauss by telephone and asked him two questions regarding brands:

How should companies make decisions?
"If one accepts our premise, then it spawns a fundamental shift in the way corporations are led and managed. Decisions are driven by what improves the brand asset value of the firm. Assessing how investments will improve the total value of the firm's brand assets drives investment priorities. The inevitable financial trade-offs that management faces should be driven by this question: How, and by how much, will this investment improve the asset value of our brands?"

How does building a brand apply to a small business or service-based business?
"A key to business success is loyal customers and employees. Making your employees and customers your most vocal advocates is a great way to generate effective word-of-mouth communications and referrals.

"One of the greatest reasons customers leave is `perceived indifference.' Customers think they're taken for granted. Make sure that you recognize your customers (and employees) and make them feel special. Or make sure that when they call you, they can reach you, and if they can't, that you'll get back to them within a specified period of time. Then do it! Keeping promises, small and big, is fundamental to building trust, and trust is one of the core values of all brands. In fact, trust is fundamental to all relationships.

"Your brand can act as an organizing principle for your company, encoding values, behaviors and performance so that all parts of your company mesh to create brand experiences that make customers come back, employees proud, and owners happy."

If creating value is a top initiative in your business, you'll want to read this book.

Anything by Clive Barker is worth having. This calendar can be displayed anywhere in the house and will definitely provoke comments.

From the mind of Clive Barker to your home... a little rare piece of Clive to brighten your walls for 16 months. Whether or not you are a fan of his art this is a remarkable collection with a choice of two different covers. I had a hard time choosing! The creatures and humans (?) depicted are beyond anything my own imagination could conjure. I look forward to being inspired by these paintings - and for over a year! - in my own art. I just hope they don't affect my dreams...

This is a fantastic book. It must have taken decades for the author (Frank Crawford) to write all these things, to imagine so many simple experiments, to invent such instructive exercises. The approach is very concrete, with little mathematics in the beginning. Actually, the mathematics grows with the book in a very natural way. As one would expect, the apotheosis of this great show happens when light waves, that is optics, appears. There is a small kit of quarter plates, polaroids, etc, which permit you to make beautiful observations. The explanation of how Edwin Land hit on the idea of artificial nicols (polaroids) is one of my favorites. Whenever I teach anything connected to waves, even mathematical topics, like the Fourier theorem, I always give a look at this volume. Usually it pays! It is a pity that, by its content, it seldom fits in the usual courses.

Maybe the best volume of Berkeley physics. For those who are aware of series Berkeley Physics I have to say that it can be compared only with the second in Emags. It is a quite extensive book and covers almost everything concerning wave theory. Although it is rather old it is still one of the best reference books which however doesn't include the application of wave theory in quantum mechanics. The author explains with every detail the material and provides the reader with pictures that make the book comprehensive. It may be a big book but the reader can choose the chapters he or she wants and read the independantly. Although the material covers many applications of wave theory it is suggested for those who just want to learn the basic principles.

A PROVOCATIVE BOOK ON HUMAN CULTURE

"The Weaning of America", by Don Lutz, is a collection of essays addressing what the author calls environmental ethics. He explores issues through a variety of disciplines, including religion, philosophy, social psychology, cultural anthropology, holistic health and nutrition.

Beginning with the title essay, Lutz gives a concise, yet comprehensive statement about the consumption of dairy products. He explains how the milk of mammals varies significantly from species to species: cow's milk is best for cows, human milk is best for humans. Dairy products have been linked to a long list of diseases, including osteoporosis, despite the fact that some doctors and dietitians still advise people to drink milk to prevent bone loss. There is also a connection between dairy products and the four major killers as well -- heart disease, cancer, stroke and diabetes.

He goes on to explain that raising animals for human consumption, be it their milk or their flesh, is a very inefficient way to feed people. Animal agriculture, we discover, wastes more resources, and causes more environmental destruction than any other human activity. And because of the misuse of resources, is the primary cause of human starvation.

Making the convincing argument that we have no need to consume dairy products (or dead animals), Lutz argues that it is then clearly illogical and immoral to confine, exploit and slaughter them by the billions, simply for profit. He details the sad life experience of farm animals, especially the sons of dairy cows, veal calves. And only humans, he reminds us, reject and refuse the natural process of weaning.

Other essays include, 'Mixed Messages', which offers a fresh perspective on issues including television, role models and organized religion. A critical look at drug abuse, our acceptance of the damage done by legal drugs, and the failure of the 'war on drugs' make provocative reading.

In 'The Ultimate Hypocrisy', Lutz examines the origins of speciesism, and illustrates its causal connection to racism and sexism. In 'An Appetite for War', he exposes a similar link between animal agriculture and organized warfare. In the last of thirteen thoughtful essays, he makes the logical and ethical argument for vegetarianism. The recurring theme of this book is that there are a number of human ideas about our relationship to nature, and especially animals, that need desperately to be weaned from human culture. The most important being the philosophy of human supremacy, an egoistic belief system that has led to great suffering for all the inhabitants of this planet, including humans. Of potential value to all readers, "The Weaning of America" may be of special benefit to health professionals, teachers and new parents.

Review for The Weaning of America, by Don Lutz From William Hammock

The Weaning of America by Don Lutz is subtitled The Case Against Dairy Products and it certainly is that, but the book is much more. Lutz includes twelve other essays in which he examines the relationship between humans and other animals. Lutz clearly shows the underlying assumptions of our culture that have led us to the irrational separation between humans and the other creatures on earth. He makes a strong case for re-examining the ways that we think about cows, deer, pets and even fish. It is well worth the price for the reading list alone, which is included.

The U.S. Service Academies hold two best friends in Roger Miller and Linda Foster. The dynamic duo of photographer and author have once again produced a work of exceptional beauty & poetry. Their newest book, "West Point: An Inside Look at The Long Gray Line" is the third one in their patriotic series of photography books honoring our five U.S. Service Academies. It is arguably their best one yet.

Previous books on the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland and the U.S. Coast Guard Academy in New London, Connecticut reveal the photographer & authors' affinity for the maritime traditions of our seagoing services. The two reside in Baltimore, Maryland, and are never far from the sea. Their vast portfolio of work centers on the eastern seaboard, and the seafaring culture of that region. When perusing the pages of both the Navy and Coast Guard volumes, the reader can share Miller & Foster's sense of adventure and excitement in capturing both riverside campuses' picturesque, centuries-old traditions.

The West Point book is no different. In its pages, you - the reader - see the future of our nation. Miller and Foster are shameless in communicating their own patriotism and admiration for the U.S. Army in the faces of its next generation of leaders. Handsome young men and beautiful young women reveal their pride, commitment, and youthful exuberance. This volume is considered a coffee table book, with an ostensible audience of the tens of thousands of U.S. Military Academy alumni, family, and friends. In reality, this book is a testament to the enduring traditions of our nation, and the timeless stories of youth seeking purpose and, ultimately, their place in this world. My wife and I had difficulty sharing the book - we both insisted on reading it immediately, page-by-page.

As with their previous works, Miller & Foster methodically researched every facet of life at the U.S. Military Academy in West Point, New York. Theirs was a collaborative effort - working with countless West Point graduates, including retired Generals H. Norman Schwarzkopf and Barry McCaffrey, as well as Astronaut Buzz Aldrin. Reading their personal remarks, in concert with the exceptional clarity of Miller's photography and the crisp prose of Foster's writing, give every reader entrée to the life, times, and enduring legacy of the U.S. Military Academy. This book is a true celebration of an American institution.

I cannot wait for the future books on the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, CO or the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy at Kings Point, New York.

If you're looking for a beautiful book that completely covers every aspect of present-day West Point, this is the book for you. The photography is gorgeous, the book is well organized and complete. There are close to 400 color pictures in the book and interesting text under each photo.

As a tutor I have used this book and this series for over 10 years with ESL and other students from 5th grade through high school. The short, easy lessons provide a great introduction to these important parts of language. They do not require much "homework" time to do, so students willingly do one a week. I recommend this series for tutors and teachers.

Reviews 30 prefixes. Each prefix is given two pages. A list of example words with the prefix and a picture to go with one of the words (i.e. antibiotic and a picture of a pill bottle with pills around it). Great for visual learners. The 2nd page is a review of the words and some fill in the blank.Two sister books about more prefixes and roots are Word Strength and Word Wisel.

I've read my share of vocab builder books. I've been all over the California coast in search of the best waves. I've tried all sorts of topical ointments for a "mystery" rash that flares up on my person from time to time. I've gone all over the US in pursuit of the best collegiate gymnastics competition I could find. I've watched American Anthem with Mitch Gaylord more times than I care to admit. What I haven't done is read a book that is better at improving word power than this one. Get this book if you are serious about improving your vocab.

I've studied many word learning systems, and I can say that Dr. Stallings takes the cake, so to speak. At first I thought that having 1800 2" X 5" notecards with big words on them would be burdensome, if not intimidating. I study all 1800 Tracs(insider lingo from Dr. Stallings) and their subsets every day. Having 1800 notecards that say things like titular, zeitgeist, and crescendo laying around my apartment when guests come over can be a bit awkward at times, but those uncultivated neophyte ingrates just don't appreciate the quintessential nuances of Dr. Stallings and his exquisite methodology.

The only drawback to Dr. Stallings' 1800 notecards is just that - what a paradox(Dr. Stallings taught me that one!). I lost a couple of cards - well, about 14 to be fastidious. I flushed curmudgeon down the toilet on accident when I was taking a dump(btw, a great time to use your cards)and my dog Pierre ate avant-garde(how apropos) and later regurgitated it(I don't use it anymore because I know it now). I take all 1786 cards when I go out by myself to Starbucks. Sometimes the coffee clerk kind of thinks I'm weird and people sort of stare when I start playing my "name that card" game with myself. But, like Dr. Stallings says, learning takes a backseat to no one or no thing. It all pays off when I spout off words like double entendre, moratorium, and vignette in every sentence and then say, "How do you like me now?" Sometimes people look perplexed, but I tell them that my vocabulary is bona fide, not some brazen bravado that I blithely and bombastically brandish under the auspices of erudition. If anyone wants to play the name game with me, email me. Good luck!

Excellent book for presenting not just objects with color but the feelings colors give us.

I love the pictures and very simple "story". The additional information on each page is great depending on age of child and interest and can start other discussions as well. This book will be used in my kindergarten classroom but I have also shared it with my grandson who is 3 years old and he became very excited by the pictures and initiated his own treasure hunt of yellow things in my home.

As advertised. The book was in great shape and the information in the book has been very helpful (as advertised). It is nice to have the CD to go along with the instructions in the book.

this childrens book is a positive learning experience for introducing music reading to young guitarists.the cd is extremely helpful as the child can point out the notes in the book while listening.the sound effects seem to capture the childs imagination an attention well.i use this book for 5year olds to 9.highly recommended.