Wang Books

This is a basic introduction to the thought of Confucius. It provides the historical background to the emergence of his thought, and also outlines the historical role Confucius' teaching has had in the educational and political system of China. The first value of Confucius' is ' learning' and the educated Man is the ideal product and bureaucrat- administrator in the Chinese ruling system. Education and learning are for not for isolated ivory tower reality, but must be directed to social action. The Confucian teaching is generally regarded as secular and does not invoke ordinarily the supernatural. The focus is on human relationships and considerable emphasis is given to ritual ( li). The Confucian ideal is for the person to show ' jen' which is a kind of respect and understanding of the other. The understanding ( shu) means something like putting oneself in the other's shoes and not doing to them what one would not want done to oneself. The emphasis on ' right action'in relation to others has special weight in family relations. The relation between parents and children, and between members of the family and older brother are given special emphasis. People are expected to show respect for their parents and provide for them in life, and also show respect for them when they are not in this world. The Confucian ideal became the norm for Chinese society for tens of generations and through the greatest share of Chinese history. When the Communists came to power in China they blamed the Confucian ideal for not having adjusted and trained China to be a part of the modern world. Yet in many ways Dawson makes clear the Confucian way of seeing the world remains strong in Chinese society. The strength of the Chinese family connection is evidenced throughout the large Diaspora of the Chinese.
This is an excellent , clearly written introduction for someone like myself who knows very little about Chinese thought. The parallel to certain elements in Jewish thought ( The emphasis on learning, and on being a ' mensch' ( jen) are two apparent elements here is striking. But of course in Judaism the emphasis is on human relation to a personal God, and walking in the ways that God prescribes.
In any case I highly recommend this small work.

I agree with the previous reviewer; it's a clear and concise introduction for someone who wants to get acquainted with some of the basic Confucian tenets. Too bad its o.p.

Excellant study of Confucius's teachings organized by topic.
Here are the chapters: 1. Confucius, 2. Learning and teaching, 3. Ritual and music, 4. Humaneness and other virtues, 5. Gentlemen and knights, 6. Government and people, 7. A Confucian China.

Very clear and well writed, Expone advance theories in analysis and interpretation. And provoques interesanting ideas.
Worth while reading, in particular for the people interested in this field

Artists, intellectuals, and analysts alike, will find that Cracking Up: The Work of Unconscious Experience adds new depth and dimension to the creative process. Over the past decade Christopher Bollas' writing has been striking for it's exploration into the workings of the unconscious, particularly the driving forces of creativity and it's opposite, destruction. Bollas revisits Freud's notion of unconscious communication, tackling the difficult question: how can that which is unconscious and by definition unknowable, be conveyed and received within the conscious realm? He delves into the ways in which a `separate sense' of self is formed, the mysteries of the uncanny and the `unthought known.'

Bollas's original concept of `psychic genera,' which he distinguishes from psychic trauma, is integral to a psychoanalysis which derives from models of health as well as psychopathology. He posits that Freud's method of dream analysis -- association and interpretation -- may be used as a paradigm for understanding the intra-psychic processes which result in`unconscious freedom,' or the ability to creatively use objects and environment. The unconscious mechanism by which such `genera' are produced involves a necessary dialectic between condensation and dissemination in the taking in of data from the environment . . .

In addition, Bollas in Cracking Up, describes a psyche which, when overwhelmed by trauma, is restricted or `blanked out,' thus foreclosing the possibility of authentic self expression and vital object relationships. Bollas' descriptions of `psychic genera' and psychic trauma provide the clinician a new means of assessing diagnoses as well as a patient's capacity for psychoanalysis. His focused thinking renews the significance of the free-associative method and sheds new light on certain valuable clinical instruments such as: empathy, intuition, and unconscious communication in the therapeutic exchange.

Artists, intellectuals, and analysts alike, will find that Cracking Up: The Work of Unconscious Experience adds new depth and dimension to the creative process. Over the past decade Christopher Bollas' writing has been striking for it's exploration into the workings of the unconscious, particularly the driving forces of creativity and it's opposite, destruction. Bollas revisits Freud's notion of unconscious communication, tackling the difficult question: how can that which is unconscious and by definition unknowable, be conveyed and received within the conscious realm? He delves into the ways in which a `separate sense' of self is formed, the mysteries of the uncanny and the `unthought known.'

Bollas's original concept of `psychic genera,' which he distinguishes from psychic trauma, is integral to a psychoanalysis which derives from models of health as well as psychopathology. He posits that Freud's method of dream analysis -- association and interpretation -- may be used as a paradigm for understanding the intra-psychic processes which result in`unconscious freedom,' or the ability to creatively use objects and environment. The unconscious mechanism by which such `genera' are produced involves a necessary dialectic between condensation and dissemination in the taking in of data from the environment . . .

In addition, Bollas in Cracking Up, describes a psyche which, when overwhelmed by trauma, is restricted or `blanked out,' thus foreclosing the possibility of authentic self expression and vital object relationships. Bollas' descriptions of `psychic genera' and psychic trauma provide the clinician a new means of assessing diagnoses as well as a patient's capacity for psychoanalysis. His focused thinking renews the significance of the free-associative method and sheds new light on certain valuable clinical instruments such as: empathy, intuition, and unconscious communication in the therapeutic exchange.

If you have ever sat down with quill pen to attempt a blank verse tragedy, only to tear up your notes, this is the book for you. Tragedy as a genre remains the rara avis in the history of art, and its brief appearances seem to accompany periods of history going into high gear. Its reappearance in the early modern, followed by its steady decline in modernist amnesia, is a challenge to our basic conceptions of the technological quick fix, and the presumption our potential is open to our rational powers. Steiner reviews the enigma of this history, on and off, and focusses on the 'death' of the genre in more recent modern times, cataloguing the consistent string of failures even in many of the best later poets, from Dryden to Keats. Some might disagree with the verdict, yet one must confront the facts, which cannot, however, condemn us to the final demise of this artform, since its very history shows its sudden and unexpected rebirth. Yet the whole question is bound in some primordial evolution of language and its poetics, as these seem better tilled soil at the beginning than over the course of subsequent development, witness the richness of the first source, Homer's Iliad, the master chord from which the tragical melody sounds its echoes.

The tragedy has lost its real dimension in the modern times . The triviality understood as the absence of psychic tensions. We hardly are capable to experience this state due we have found the immediate solution : the therapy , and any other way of easy activity allows us to escape . We want to know about our micro destinies reading the horoscopes .
In the other hand all the religions have confined its real meaning to spiritual designs and literally has invaded its territories . Shakespeare appears after centuries of silence in this sense . But the XVII century was a trivial century ; you only find cynicism and tedious.
"All the men have conscience of the tragedy in the life but the tragedy as theatrical way is not universal"
Steiner makes an intelligent study about the tragedy ,and goes far beyond .
Excellent text all the way.

Steiner argues that Tragedy is an Artform unique to the Western world. In his opening pages he makes the claim that for the Judaic sensibility there is no tragedy as it is " vehement in its conviction that the order of the universe and of man's estate is accessible to reason."pp.4 For Steiner tragedy arises out of a contrary view"necessity is blind and man's encounter with it shall rob him of his eyes, whether in Thebes or in Gaza."pp.5 For Steiner this is a Greek assertion.Steiner makes a learned survey of Western Literature showing the points at where tragic genius has flourished, and the many more where it has been attempted and failed. Close to the end of the work he makes this observation "..tragedy is that form of art which requires the intolerable burden of God's presence. It is now dead because His shadow no longer falls upon us as it fell on Agamemnon or Macbeth or Athalie. " Steiner then goes on to talk briefly about the possibility of renewal of tragedy under different circumstances.
This work is a stellar piece of literary criticism- whether one takes issue with Steiner and believes Job on the one hand , and Willy Loman in another way , are tragic characters after all.

This book stands out as a breath of fresh air compared to many other very well written books about families in China's recent history. It is a saga of generations of scholars and how they lived, struggled, and persevered. The book is a memoir, an epic story, an autobiography, and a biography of the author's father, a leading scholar of international law who returned to China at the dawn of the new communist China upon completing his Ph.D. in the US.

The book was inspired by poems collected by the author's father that were written for him by his father. The author depicts the stories of each family member spanning three generations. Returning to their roots and passing along deep understanding and appreciation were the themes that played out in each generation of the family and epitomized by the title of the book. Each story is painted in vivid color with a genuine and unpolished brush. I felt that I was not reading a book; rather, I was living their lives with them through the ups and downs. I felt their pain and joy, and her family became mine. Even though I grew up in China in a similar period as the author did, I never got to know China in this kind of intimate way until I read this book. I thank the author for giving me this special gift.

Woven in the fabric of each story are beautiful tales full of cultural wisdom that are uniquely Chinese. "The Bridge of Knowing Fish" and "the Story of Tui-Qiao" are just two examples. Reading this book is a culturally enriching experience for Chinese or westerners alike.

Standing straight with honesty and pride is the image that I see from this beautiful family. Their love and support for each other endured and strengthened them through the darkest period in China's history. Injustice, humiliation, loss of loved ones, and suppression--none of these ever shook their faith, dignity, integrity and a sense of destiny.

Readers of this book also gain a special insight into the country of China today. Through the window of this family, I feel that one can draw an understanding of where the strength of the country comes from.

I could not put the book down, and at the same time, I did not want to finish reading the book too soon. This is a rare find that I am glad I did not miss. I highly recommend this book for anyone who is interested in China in general; or who would like to learn Chinese contemporary history, sociology, anthropology, family structure, and women's studies. No matter what the reason, you will come away richer in mind and stronger in spirit.

This is a great autobiography. True and original!
Different from the books of the genre that are focused on the last fifty years in China and written by the people from the "red upper class," so to speak, this book is about the life of the people who were powerless and more likely to be the targets of the political movements happened so frequently in China during that period due to their family background.

With her love, the author told us an amazing family story of three generations.
Her family members were highly educated in both Chinese and Western cultures. Her grandparents would have lived a comfortable life if China had not been rifted with warfare in the 1930s and the early 1940s. The ruthless, hostile political circumstances in the last century in China destroyed their good life and filled their life with frustrations. They were not characteristically strong people, except the author's maternal grandfather, but they courageously maintained their belief in life and in the goodness of human nature, even after the loved ones' deaths. Even under heavy political pressures, they never stopped loving each other, as well as others.

Writing her story mainly by portraying the family members without strictly following major events chronologically, the author seemed making a photo album for her loved ones. In China, under "red terror" some people were forced to denounce their elders and their friends by breaking off their relationship with them. It's also a common practice during that period to destroy their family albums and old pictures. Only when one keeps this in mind, can he understand how important this album created by this book is to her family and how important the similar books are in general in terms of searching an untold history.

In many places, the author showed us Romanized Chinese words and expressions followed by rich, vivid explanations. She also told us many well-known, moving Chinese stories in this book. All these make this book very helpful to Westerners in studying and understanding Chinese language, culture, and history.

A book that is very well written, interesting, true and unique!

Through its vivid, detailed and truthful descriptions, the book let me relive that part of history in China as an ordinary Chinese who had a similar background and stimulated tremendous emotional resonance in me. The book truthfully recorded and lively depicted what an ordinary intellectual family had been through in the past century, especially in the past 50 years. A part of Chinese history that is too important to forget and so important to China's future development.

Unlike many books of this kind that focused on upper class Chinese and their political or personal secrets, this book focused on how ordinary Chinese lived through that part of history with its many vivid, detailed and humorous stories, happy and sad. Therefore, this book can bring you much closer to the real life of Chinese and make you understand China and Chinese people much better.

Another uniqueness of the book is that it's very rich in cultural contents. The stories it tells were richly supported by many cultural backgrounds and descriptions. It's a good book for non-Chinese readers to understand Chinese social and cultural backgrounds and to learn Chinese culture.

I hail the author for her unique and creative efforts in writing the book and strongly recommend it to readers, Chinese or non-Chinese.

This is a must buy book for both kinds of people: students or people in academia and practitioners who want to understand different type of risk they face at a macro or micro level. The reasons I like this book on risk management better than thousand others already out there are following. I like to describe this book as having two sections, both the sections are very important and people can focus on either depending on what they are looking for. The first part of the book provides a very good understanding of the risks faced by managers, for example risk managers, head of a trading portolfio or a desk or even CEOs. Very often these people face risk which are hard to quantify or even understand and are not often talked about. The author draws from personal experience and provides interesting case studies,. which makes this part of the book a pleasure to read. I learnt about model risk, reputation risk and other such risks which typically a junior person on a trading desk is not exposed to. So this understanding is very valuable in order to communicate with your boss or to get more insights about risks that management may care about.
The Second part of the book focusses on risk management of different type of instruments, instruments range from plain vanilla to complex path dependent options. It spans through assets classes as well. As promised by the author, the level of mathematical and quantitative background required is kept to the minimum. The text provides intuition about what market variables or market moves a specific instruments depends on rather than complex formulae to price such instruments. For somebody like me, who has a little more mathematical background than an average reader, the text points to latest research or specific papers that I can explore if I want to flex my quantitative muscle.
The book is full of very interesting exercises and case studies, which are truly practical. This is something which is completely different from many texts that I have seen on this topic.
Overall, I highly recommend this book to anybody who has anything to do with trading financial instruments.

Allen's book is absolutely phenomenal. Most of the risk management books out there are too technical to be of any practical use. Allen truly focuses on the practice of risk management and gives us insights on how to be a truly good risk manager. Traders could benefit from his insights as well. I particularly liked his breakdown of linear vs. non-linear risks, and liquid vs. non-liquid positions. In terms of the practical risk management of options (vanilla and exotics) I haven't seen anything this clear and this comprehensive. The accompanying CD is an absolute blessing in order to fully understand the concepts like price vol matrices, etc. This should be a required additional reading for all students in financial mathematics/MBA programs around the world! Well Done Mr. Allen!!

Allen delivers the most insightful look at market risk management for dealers since the Group of 30 Report. While other books are taking on an increasingly bureaucratic tone when it comes to risk management, Allen is refreshingly proactive. I really like the treatment of valuation reserves. His discussion of managing spot, forward and options risks bridges the gap between what a trader is thinking and what a risk manager should be thinking. This isn't a book for the sort of risk manager who hasn't been on the trading floor in a few months. It is a tactical book for the pro who works shoulder to shoulder with quants, traders and salespeople. Note that the book is qualitative. For the quantitative side of all this, see Holton's landmark "Value-at-Risk".

Max Frish wrote this book after WW-II, about how his countrymen ignored Hitler until it was too late. It is presented in the metaphor of an arsonist in the neighborhood who comes to live in a house of a certain Mr. Biedermann, who is so concerned about "not appearing unlikeable", he refuses to believe the new tenant of being the arsonist, in spite of him reeking of gasoline, and storing gasoline in the attic of the house where he stays, and the arsonist's provocative words and behavior. The arsonist continues asking everyone were he can get gasoline, fuses, matches, etc., saying "you don't really believe I would do such a thing, do you?" while homes go up in flames -- but Biedermann is in denial, and so in the end, his home is filled with barrels of gasoline, and the arsonist asks him for matches... which are freely given. Valid today also, regarding Islam in the West. Europe is in full-tilt denial about the dangers of Islam, and every tiny security measure is treated as an "offense" and so nobody wants to appear "impolite". Handing over the ports to Dubai, and now the latest news, giving a Chinese company owned by high-up CP officials the job of nuclear security examination of cargoe. Goodness, we don't wish to upset anyone by suggesting, they might do something bad! Too many Biedermann's in high-up government postions, and in the mass-media, apologetically ignoring even the guys who reek of gasoline...

I received this as a present, waited a few months, and then read it in the course of a single day. This short play is about a middle-class businessman whose biggest anxiety revolves around the Firebugs, men in the city who are responsible for a recent rash of arsons. They enter homes as guests and, after staying the night or dining, take advantage of their hosts' hospitality and trust and burn down their homes. The protagonist, at the height of such crimes, allows a couple of young men to spend the night at his house and refuses to believe (because of pride or trust or some other variable) that the sawdust, matches, and gasoline that they bring into his attic could have anything to do with malicious intents. Frisch prevents the reader from really feeling sorry for the protagonist, who is humorously pathetic. The most interesting part, to me, is that what seems at first glance to be a caricature of human nature is, in fact, so close to reality.

I really liked this book. It is a dark drama, one that is frightening to hear. I acted in this play and I decided to pick up the book since I liked it so much. It's about a man named Biederman. Despite the warnings of "firebugs," or what we would call more-commonly arsonists, he invited a man into his house. A large, burly man that he couldn't say no to. He gave him home in the attic of his own house. His wife objected, of course, because she didn't want anyone who may be a pyromaniac living in her home. In the morning she promised herself she would get rid of the man in a perfectly polite manner. Instead, the man gave her the sad story of his youth and Frau Biederman allowed him into her house because she felt sorry for the man. So, the man invited a friend of his, without consulting Herr Biederman, by the name of Eisenring. Together they collected sawdust and oil barrels in the attic, and even promised Herr Biederman that they were the firebugs of the city and that they were going to burn the house down. But because it is his house, Gottlieb Biederman does not dismiss the two from his house. This is the story of a man who refuses to believe, and then blames all his mistakes on fate. I really enjoyed this creepy book. I think people who respect a drama such as his will, too.

The course made spoken Chinese fun and easy. My student uses it as an independent study tool and it works. It's like a video tutor. I showed 1 minute of the tape to a group of students in my university, they all learned how to say two basic sentences --- Ni Hao (Hello) and Qing Wen (Excuse me).

The video series comes with one of the easier follow along books that I have seen. The book can be used by itself but I strongly recommend to watch the tape. I have shown the video and book to my native speaking Mandarin teacher and she was very impressed as well. The main thing is that I have also shown the video to people who considered Chinese too difficult to learn. After viewing the video they had a totally different viewpoint. Really is very possible to learn to converse in Mandarin in a relatively short period of time. To me Mandarin is one of the most beautiful languages there is. That alone is reason enough to learn it and reason enough for any school to teach it. I think any school that teaches Mandarin should recommend and expose their students to this wonderful supplementary video learning material. I really can't imagine that anyone would be disappointed with these tapes. They really make learning fun!!

The course made spoken Chinese fun and easy. My student uses it as an independent study tool and it works. It's like a video tutor. I showed 1 minute of the tape to a group of students in my university, they all learned how to say two basic sentences --- Ni Hao (Hello) and Qing Wen (Excuse me).

A young pupil in post-war germany, Siggi Jepsen, is forced to write an article, because he failed in the german lesson. The theme is: The joy of duty. When thinking of duty, he is forced to think about his father, a police officer. During the Nazi Era, the so called "forbidden art" was removed by state forces. Jepsens father, in his urge to do his duty, whatever it may be, not asking about the consequences, does, whatever he has to do. Young Siggi Jepsen (10 years old) has another thinking of duty. He thinks, his duty is to preserve the paintings of the "forbidden art" of the artist Nansen and tries to conceil those sympathies from his father. This more or less silent conflict about duty is the intruiging part about the book.

what is the duty of man? What is the reaction of a small countryside town of the northernmost germany to the cruel Nazi-era? What are "normal people" like in extreme situations? This is described in Lenz'book in a very silent, innerflecting way.

What can I say about this this book, apart from that it is an absolute must for anybody who is interested in Germany. Beautifully written, with strong characters that cover the whole spectrum of the German society. In my eyes within the top ten books ever.

Of course this book is about duty. Also about adolescence. Also about art. Everyone in the book has a duty to something. Siggi is a great character and seeing the world through his eyes makes one think about their own duties, makes one wonder when to face them and when to see that they are wrong.
I really enjoyed this book because to me it wasn't so much about the Nazi time, but about censorship and the duty to do art.
This is a book that if you like history, Germany, art or just a really good story you should read. It appeals to both sexes too.

As David Hilbert had wanted to make Math easy for any person on the street to understand, this book has surely achieved the goal. In the chapter on Group Theroy in the Bedroom, the author explained Klein 4-Group (I,P,R,Y) using mattress flipping, and Cyclic 4-Group by rotating 4 car tyres. One needs not have to go through the complicated Group jargons to appreciate its usefulness in daily life.

If you liked the book "Freakonomics: a rogue economist explores the hidden side of everything" (which I loved), there is a good chance you will like this one too. The author may have screwed-up giving it the title he did and by adding "and Other Mathematical Diversions", as it may put off or scare off a lot of people who would find it enjoyable. One would be hard pressed to find a mathematical equation anywhere in the book.

Take for instance the first chapter, "Clock of Ages", on the astronomical clock located in the Strasbourg Cathedral, in the city of Strasbourg, Alsace. Though the current version of the clock dates from 1843, not only was it designed to be Y2K compliant, it is also Y10K functional, designed to directly display the current year up to 9999 and the only revision needed to make it correct for subsequent years would be to paint the number "1" to the left of the display. It will continue to display such events as the correct date for Easter even in the year 19999 (Easter falls on April 3rd in 11842). Though solely a mechanical device, the gears of the clock were designed to be accurate to an error of less than one second per century. There is a gear in the clock that turns only once every 2,500 years and the celestial sphere out in front of the clock will complete one full precessional cycle after the passage of 25,806 years.

After his discussion of the beauty of the design of this clock, the author then takes up a philosophical discussion of time, asking if anyone will still care what date Easter will be in 11842, or even if we will still be counting in years of the Common Era.

The second chapter, "Follow the Money", demonstrates how through even an entirely random process, wealth tends to become concentrated in the hands of a few people, even in a fair system.

The remaining chapters are similarly varied and all are interesting.

A great book with a wide variety of interesting subjects and an engaging, erudite writing style.

This is an excellent collection of thought-provoking essays related to mathematics. Brian Hayes covers a wide array of topics through the lens of mathematics in an engaging, thought-provoking and entertaining manner.

The essays contained in this book, addressing topics such as the genetic code, the Continental Divide and randomness, among other topics, vary widely in subject matter, but share a common underlying theme. Specifically, each of these essays asks the reader to examine "things," such as the genetic code, from a unique perspective. Moreover, Hayes pulls the reader through a thoughtful and insightful problem framing approach that has broad applications across many disciplines.

I found the content and style across each essay to be first-rate. This book teaches the reader many things...most importantly, I feel it offers rare insight into the power of shifting perspective and framing problems.

I started reading my daughter this book at bedtime when she was about 10 months and she loves it. It's short enough for her tiny attention span, and the animal pop-ups seem very interesting to her. It also helps with learning certain body parts. It's a very sweet book. I love it too!

I purchased this book for my grandson,who will be 1 year old next week, and I can't wait for me, Nana, to read it to him. The illustrations are just
beautiful.

This is such a sweet book! Its a quick read and my little guy loves the pop ups. At 5 months old, this is one of his favorite books!!