Research Books

Flak played an integral part of Germany's air defenses during World War I and II. This well-researched and well-written volume looks at the development of the antiaircraft artillery, its organization, employment and manning. No other book I have ever come across has done as good a job as this one in discussing the antiaircraft artillery of the Luftwaffe and the German Army. The production of the excellent "88," the wartime development of radar and other aspects are presented in this volume.

FLAK: German Anti-Aircraft Defenses, 1914-1945 by Edward Westermann is the definitive study of Germany's ground-based air defenses. This meticulously researched book takes the reader from the early days of air defense and traces the development of ground-based air defense from its vestigial theoretical roots in WW1 through the learning days of the war in Spain and culminates with a thorough analysis of the effectiveness of ground-based versus fighter air defenses.

Westermann masterfully weaves all aspects of the development of the 88 with the other less-well-known and understood defenses used by Germany such as smoke screens and decoy sites, the high-level of damage to bombers from Flak that increased fighter kills as they pounced on stragglers, the decrease in accuracy from bombers trying to evade Flak, the coordination with night-fighters (the Wild Boars), as well as the development of improved targeting devices such as radar.

Westermann shows that in the early days of the war and indeed into 1942, the Flak arm of the Luftwaffe was taking a heavy toll on Allied bombers. He discusses the evolution of bomber strategy in dealing with the Flak, as well as decisions made by the Luftwaffe that would lead to a decrease in Flak kill averages and a precipitous drop in the effectiveness of all ground-based air defenses from 1943 on due to material shortages, bomber technology, allied countermeasures, and less skilled Flak crews such as women and children replacing trained units.

The book is a dense study filled with graphs and charts that help show the effectiveness of Flak versus fighters (and indeed shows that both were most effective when used in tandem), yet it is an easy read that is very logically laid-out.

For myself this book was an eye-opener. My grandfather was in Flak from 1938-1945. He began as a range-finder (Entfernungsmesser) operator on 88s preparing for sea-lion, and later became a radar operator. This probably saved his life. As more and more Flak men were pulled into line units to fight on the ground in Russia and elsewhere, the skilled radar operators stayed on the Western Front to monitor the daily fleets of aircraft flying to Germany and they provided what little early-warning the Luftwaffe would have until everything collapsed. It gave me a better understanding of my grandfather's service as well as an appreciation for what Westermann terms the world's most advanced air-defense network at the time.

Westermann is a professor at the School for Air & Space Studies in Montgomery, Alabama, and is another of the Showalter-style of disciples. This book is very specialized, and thus not for the average WWII buff. However, if you have any interest in the subject this is great military history, touching upon social, economic & political aspects of air defense as well as standard military history stuff. It necessarily has some discussion of fighter defense as well as flak, and that discussion is well-handled and interesting enough to make me think the author should have gone on to write a companion book on the air/fighter defense aspect.

Good scholarly review of the subject. Goes into the politics, economics, and effectiveness of the German flak defences. The author's case for the effectiveness of the flak arm is very persuasive. Would have been nice to have had more personal recollections of ex-flak gunners.

As a Navy officier of brown waters, I was expecting to find more about the coastal combat. Diesel submarines and mines are the real threat instead of harpoon.
"To know tactics one must know tecnology" That is true but also one must know the brown waters itself.
Since there is no delimination in the Aegean Sea, There must not be dash lines on the maps.

Hughes brings the reader through successive eras of Naval Strategy, threading common themes about what has changed and what has remained constant, and how (and why) tactics on the water differ from those on land. His updated edition demonstrates the likely impact of advances in technology and shifting political realities on naval power, with implication on tactics, training, and equipment. The work is refreshing not only because contemporary works on naval strategy are relatively uncommon, but also because he lays out in easy to follow fashion the challenges that our navies will face. This is particularily important in an era of shrinking overseas land presence, as the Navy will be called upon to project power more frequently. His stark description of 'exchange ratios' and their implications serve an important reminder to the West of the perils of the fight. The book will comfortably take its spot on your bookshelf beside the numerous general, land, and air strategy books available. I only wish there was more written on this topic.

Covering the Age of Sail, WW1, WW2 and the Missile Age, Fleet Tactics and Coastal Combat examines the trends and constants of warfare in a comprehensive and concise book. Examining the need to mass fire power and the benefit of the first effective strike, this book provides a sound base for tactical though. Updated from Fleet Tactics, Fleet Tactics and Coastal Combat includes relevant information to the new arena that the navy will be finding its self in - littoral combat. Many examples and equations are given in this book to illustrate the points Captain Hughes makes. A must read for anyone who is interested in the evolution of naval combat.

The dismanteling of the Soviet Union brought about a fundamental shift in how we analyze the role of a modern nuclear navy. Large fleet to fleet battles between technologically sophisticated opponents is still a remote possibility, however, surface group actions of the future will certainly resemble smaller more tactical battles as well. The idea of skirmishes and close-quarters combat between vessles must be understood. So to the more immense multi-unit combat possibilities.
This is the spectrum "Fleet Tactics" seeks to analyze. It does this remarkabley well. It also explores more intangible factors. Moral and leadership are terms often used but rarely integrated into a coherant strategy towards victory. It seems taken for granted, but the author shows how we must take nothing for granted when restructuring our tactical phillospohy. Re-examining age old ideas and historic battles is only one side of the coin. Here, we have a book that does this but holds up such notions for the purpose of building better tactical thinking.
I have read both the original edition and this newe, updated one... the changes are clear. We have a book that picks up where naval theory as of 1990 left off. While still managing to represent its original content with value towards the tactician in naval warfare.
Read this book is you are interested in more than just bland analyses of age old battles. Read it if you want to develope a strong understanding of how naval conflicts of almost every kind should be fought. Read it if you want to develope a sound understanding of the timeless tactical cornerstones in naval strategy.

I always wondered why a cup of coffee gets me going every morning. After reading Food, Mood & Money, I understand the workings of my body and realize the importance of increasing my dopamine in the morning, which gets you up and going. According to the author, Helmut Julinot, drinking a cup of coffee gets your dopamine going. Also, I never knew about serotonin and how it's involved with making you calm and I learned that you can achieve that calmness by what you eat. I've cerainly changed my eating habits, especially dinner, so that I sleep much better. The advice and information on vitamin/mineral supplements is excellent and I've modified my supplementation. I know this sounds hard to believe, but since I have been following Julinot's advice, I have been making more money! Additionally, the book is well-written, an easy read and the stories are engaging. For me, it's the bible for a good life!

Throughout my life I have continued to read and study whatever I could pertaining to blood sugar regulation problems and how various supplements could help alleviate the problem to a great degree. I learned that poor insulin regulation is the major factor in many serious health issues such as diabetes, heart disease, weight control and depression. When I purchased my
first copy of Food, Mood and Money five years ago, I was excited to find how all the pieces of the puzzle fell into place. I was excited to learn how what we eat affects our moods and our ability to reach our full potential in today's world. It made perfect sense to me and I found it to be true and effective. After my first purchase of Food, Mood and Money I went back to
school and have achieved so much more in these last five years than I ever believed was possible. It still amazes me when I think of it. I have just bought my second copy, and I heartily recommend this book to anyone who wants to become a dynamic, successful human being by overcoming anxiety, apathy and shyness.

Being a late-bloomer it took me a few months after receiving a complimentary copy of this excellent book before I realized what a gem I had in my hands. Suffering from seratonin deficiency, Mood swings etc all my life I finally got a handle on what I saw as imbalances in my system and not a mental health issue.Going boldly forth I never looked back. I introduced this book to friends and even my Dentist (her holistic apprach to Dentistry made her open to this) who by removing my amalgam fillings made the Info in that book even more effective.To have an incredible amount of Information in Food, Mood, look at the supplement section,I say Bravo! and thank you for sharing a lifetime of research into energy,awareness and empowering us to make informed decision in regards to life and health.Highly recommend this book to all who like to take their sense of well-being seriously.

This book contains suggestions on healthy living that frankly I have never heard before. It combines the known benefits of exercising with not only proper eating habits but suggests what to eat and what time of the day to eat them. When you do these two things along with supplementing your diet with vitamin and mineral supplements, you may experience a much happier and longer life. This was a very eye-opening book for me. I would suggest that if you read this book, you also read "What Your Medical Doctor Does Not Tell You About Nutritional Supplements, May Be Killing You!" Another book everyone should have in their personal library!

The essays presented thoughtfully by Dr. Zimmerman are essential readings for anyone interested in residential care. Zimmerman poignantly details the attainable progress achieved by children diagnosed with primary attachment disorders. His desire to understand rather than judge these children fosters a loving and structured environment enabling psychological progress in terms of autonomy and social acceptance. Zimmerman's ability to relate theory to practical interventions makes The Forsaken Child a book to be kept toward the front of the shelf.

The essays presented thoughtfully by Dr. Zimmerman are essential readings for anyone interested in residential care. Zimmerman poignantly details the attainable progress achieved by children diagnosed with primary attachment disorders. His desire to understand rather than judge these children fosters a loving and structured environment enabling psychological progress in terms of autonomy and social acceptance. Zimmerman's ability to relate theory to practical interventions makes The Forsaken Child a book to be kept toward the front of the shelf.

This is an excellent collection of essays by Zimmerman. Having worked in residential treatment centers of both persuasions mentioned in one of the essays (disciplinary control vs. benign milieu), and having seen the outcomes, it was reassuring to see such a well-presented case for the latter. Zimmerman's essays move clearly from the history of residential treatment, to a commentary on the current political climate regarding residential care, to Zimmerman's own clinical experiences within a psychoanalytically-oriented (benign) milieu. His use of a social-constructivist perspective in the analysis of an adolescent boy is fascinating, and it lays to rest any anxiety a new clinician (such as myself) might have about the relative inactivity of the classical analyst (...you'll have to read this book to see what I mean). I highly recommend this book to anybody who works with children, whether in a clinical setting or not, as it lays out a "way of being" with children to help them develop a sense of the world that people care.

In "The Forsaken Child: Essays on Group Care and Individual Therapy" D. Patrick Zimmerman presents a critical inquiry of individual therapy and group care for emotionally disturbed children and adolescents. His considerations of the historical origins of group care for troubled youth, the implications of the introduction of managed care concepts into the mental health care system, and the presentation of detailed clinical case material delve into theoretical concerns that most professionals neglect to consider. Destined to become a classic in the field, "The Forsaken Child" is a book that every mental health professional working with children and adolescents should add to their collections.

The 2007 edition of the "free radical bible". I strongly recommend this book to anyone currently in or seeking to enter the field of free radical biology. Are you a grad student writing quals or T32/F32? A post-doc going for PI/K99? A seasoned PI trying for the second R01 related to free radicals? One of the fastest ways for a proposal to get tossed is to propose questionable methods. Simply reviewing Pubmed is insufficient, since many papers also use questionable methods to assay for species such as superoxide or lipid peroxides. With this book one can easily reference the oxidative stress markers of interest and quickly determine a reliable method that is commonly accepted, as well as pinpoint the paper referenced to include in your own reference section.

Excellent book that provides a thorough grounding to the field. Keep the updated editions coming every few years and it will continue to stay at the top.

Free radical biology has become a big research area. This text is definitely a helpful tool for students and professionals alike. Halliwell and Gutteridge are both the "authorities" in free radical research. The book contains the basic concepts of metabolism, metal interactions, free radical formation, and antioxidation. The book then relates these processes (that is, oxidative and nitorsative stresses) to pathological events using various disease paradigms. The text contains good illustrations. It is an excellent reference material for everyone who is entering the field of free radical biology and medicine.

Excellent book that provides a thorough grounding to the field. Keep the updated editions coming every few years and it will continue to stay at the top.

Not being involved in education, I was pleasantly surprised to find Free to Learn very accessible and informative. Izumi and Yan write in a very engaging way, and I came out of the book knowing quite a bit about the ins and outs of charter schools. I definitely recommend this book to anyone interested in meeting the educational needs of our children.

Whether you're a parent, an education professional, or simply a concerned citizen, Free to Learn is a valuable resource on top-performing charter schools, and how they've raised the standards for scholastic achievement. Izumi and Yan offer a collection of compelling case studies that give hope to teachers and students still struggling under the yoke of classroom bureaucracy. The model charter schools profiled are well researched, and provide an insightful look at how breaking the public school orthodoxy with charter school reform can make a difference in the lives of children everywhere. Free to Learn was an enjoyable read, and I highly recommend it.

I found Free to Learn insightful, as the authors navigate through several different charter school success stories, highlighting inefficiencies in public schools and the mechanisms that allow charter schools to more adequately handle these situations, without superfluously extolling virtue. Yan and Izumi deftly touch upon both commonalities and differences between these successful charters - emphasizing the fact that there is no "one size fits all" solution. Yet, comparisons with non-successful charters are included for a balanced viewpoint. Lastly, the personal stories of those students lives affected or the principals and teachers driving positive change give this policy book a very human feel.

Breathtaking in its scope, dazzling in its depth, "Free to Learn" is a must-read for anyone who cares about our educational system. Whether you are a veteran in education policy or a newcomer to the field, Yan and Izumi's enthusiasm for the subject matter and cogent writing style will keep you glued to the pages. The comprehensive analysis makes it a powerful resource for educators and policymakers alike. This is simply the most articulate and best-informed book you can buy on the timely and compelling subject of charter schools.

During a recent flight, included with my carry on luggage was a copy of "Fun With GPS", a relatively new publication from ESRI press by Don Cooke. The author is the founder of GDT, recently acquired by Tele Atlas, and has an extensive resume, including having played a key role in the creation of TIGER.
Jumping right in, the book provides the reader with an introduction to GPS along with a useful primer on mapping and the proper use of a GPS. The "meat" of the book is really from Chapters 3 onward. This is where Cooke provides numerous informative, educational, and interesting examples of real-life uses and applications of GPS. Even better, each example explains (in detail) a fun use, detailed instructions, photos/images, useful web links, and interesting commentary.

Particularly useful (and educational) small sections devoted to mapping, GIS, accuracy, and GPS concepts & terminology are included. After all, simply capturing and storing GPS coordinates is hardly of use, particularly to the layman. It's the understanding of the data, along with integration of maps and/or GIS that really makes GPS fun! A particularly interesting and "bang on" quote from the book that really struck a cord with me... "GIS really does put the fun into GPS". My take... indeed it does!

So who should buy or read Fun With GPS? If you happen to be one of millions of users of a GPS or a GPS-enabled mobile device then you'll no doubt find this book to be a valuable addition to your library. Can the book provide specific examples that apply to your lifestyle? Likely so since numerous specific examples and applications of GPS uses have been provided. These include:
Geocaching
Degree confluence chasing
GIS/mapping
Ice skating
Hockey
Skiing
Racing (auto)
Hiking
Sailing
Polo
Camping
Golf
Rowing
Sky diving

If you happen to have a hobby included above then Don has provided a detailed example application of how you will find GPS to be useful and fun.

Finally, the heart of the book comes in chapters 2 and 8. Chapter 2 offers an awesome primer on mapping. Cooke uses the free ArcExplorer GIS data viewer from ESRI and the complimentary (and free) DNR Garmin program from the Minnesota DNR as the focus of a tutorial on using your GPS data with a GIS without spending a dime. Both programs are totally free and detailed instructions for use have been provided to get you up and running and help get your GPS data off the device and used within a real application.

Chapter 8 is devoted to the use of GPS in schools and in the community. Interesting sample uses focus on the use of GPS by a museum to track visitors, mapping of a restored cemetery by grade school students, and even how to write your name with a GPS track log. Students attempting any of these sample projects will no doubt get a great introductory education to mapping and geospatial concepts, but will still have some addictive fun with their GPS as well... they may also even solve a community problem or address a local conservation issue.

Fun with GPS is truly a fun read. I admit, I have a dusty, 2 year old Garmin somewhere on my desk, however, it wasn't until I read this book that I had much interest in turning it on! I plan on locating a geocache in the near future and I also plan on capturing a degree confluence or two!

[...]

Do you remember when a GPS device was expensive and heavy and only to be used for serious work? The inexorable progress of Moore's Law has laid that low. So along comes ESRI Press with this lighthearted book by Cooke. Outreach to the young masses. He talks about fun and cool things you can do with a GPS transponder. All the things we never had.

You might wish to thumb through his suggestions. See if any catch your fancy. Or, if you like these ideas, try also looking up the magazine "Make" published by O'Reilly. It has the same freewheeling spirit seen here.

Think 'GPS' and what comes to mind? Usually in-car navigation systems - but there's much more to GPS and ordinary users may find these devices can be attached to about anything to be use for interesting results. Maps and photos come with each outlined project for hobbyists, athletes, drivers, teachers and more. Use GPS devices to track and map activities, or in a treasure hunt, or to GPS a model airplane's abilities: there's a lot a GPS device can accomplish, and Fun With GPS covers it all.

This is a spectacular book that treats GPS with a light (and fun) touch without any sacrifice of technical substance. Though aimed at beginners, GPS savants will find it equally useful, both for elegant insights as well as ideas on how to teach others about GPS. I teach land navigation and regularly consult this book for inspiration regarding new ways to keep the material fresh in my classes.

This is great for its intended use. Has all the info one needs to complete the class associated with it.

I received my book from R Cohen in good conditions, with the best price and very soon (actually before than I expected). I strongly recommend him.

Amazingly boring subject for me. Only got it because I had to. It is written well.

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I read this book about 1982. I used to work the night shift at a hospital and on Sunday mornings, I recall listening to a Sunday Morning NPR talk show. One morning, Howard Cosel interviewed the author of Righteous Gentile. I was completely fascinated by this story that I had never heard. Howard was masterful in his interview and I was so taken that I immediately purchased the book and read it. It is riveting and I could not put it down until I had consumed it all. I am always in amazed wonderment at ordinary people who perform extraordinary acts under dire conditions. Wallenberg was such a man. The story is, of course, a tragedy of Shakespearean proportions, as Wallenberg disappears into the Russian Gulag. I irony of his imprisonment in the Gulag after having saved so many Jews from their fate in the Holocost. It is one of those books that is uplifting because it reminds us of both the good and evil that humans are capable of.

John Bierman's terrifically tragic Wallenberg biography,'Righteous Gentile' is divided into two parts;the first 119 pages lead up to his kidnapping by the Russians on
January 17,1945.The last 97 pages deal with the world's apathy in securing his release from the Gulag.Thousands of Jews and some non-Jews owe their lives to Wallenberg's intervention on
"behalf of the Swedish government"-which dealt with the Wallenberg kidnapping issue as buroucracies tend to do.Bierman's Wallenberg book was published in 1981-and there were credible reports that Wallenberg was still vegetating in the Soviet prison system.The sin of allowing this to happen-is beyond unforgivable.

Raoul Wallenberg was a Swedish aristocrat who managed to save thousands of Hungarian Jews from the gas chambers in the closing months of 1944. His relief agency in Budapest issued bogus Swedish passports to as many Jews as possible. By dint of his commanding personality, his ingenuity, and his talent for pulling the wool over the eyes of dimwitted Nazi functionaries, he contrived to convince the German and Hungarian authorities to respect these entirely extralegal documents. In mid-January 1945, he was summoned to the Soviet embassy in newly-"liberated" Budapest, and he was never seen again.

This is a great and inspiring story, and "Righteous Gentile" does justice to it. Bierman doesn't really succeed in explaining the origins of the idealism that led Wallenberg to volunteer for this job in the first place, but probably nobody could. What he does show is the skill and energy with which Wallenberg executed the task assigned to him. Actually "skill and energy" are ludicrously inadequate terms. Wallenberg not only distributed his passports, he tirelessly roamed around pulling Jews out of death marches and off trains bound for Auschwitz, he bossed Nazi thugs around in impeccable Hochdeutsch (and they listened), and he confronted Adolf Eichmann himself, all the while taking the most extraordinary risks. I can't say that Wallenberg was the greatest hero in recorded history, since I'm not familiar with all of it; suffice to say that he is by a very large margin the greatest hero I've ever read of, in fiction or history, and it is an inspiring and hopeful fact that someone like him ever existed. I am grateful to John Bierman for bringing this figure to such luminous and memorable life.

The only problem I have with the book is that half of it consists of speculations and rumor-cataloguing to the effect that Wallenberg was alive in the Gulag until about 1980. I believe that most authorities now think he was murdered by the Soviets long before this, perhaps after they failed to recruit him for espionage. This part of the book is therefore something of an anachronism. However, it doesn't detract from the general value of the book, which should be required reading for everybody, period.

A five star book about a five star hero.

The second world war threw-up some gigantic figures but ironically Raoul Wallenberg from neutral Sweden towers over all the rest.

Like the Good Samaritan he didn't pass on by but instead left his safe homeland to assist others by putting himself in danger day after day in the inferno that was Hungary during the dreadful days of 1944-45.

The man who saved a 100,000 jews from the clutches of Adolf Eichmann, the SS, and the Hungarian facists, the Arrow Cross ultimately fell foul of the Russian 'liberators.' He was never seen again as a free man after being taken into 'protective custody' by the Reds on 17 January 1945.

I read John Bierman's excellent book some 20 years ago and he charts the extraordinary crusade of his subject with a deft touch.

This is a book that will both inspire you, with Wallenberg's humanity and courage, and anger you that such a man could lose his liberty after fighting so hard for the freedom and safety of others.

In the pantheon of heroes Raoul Wallenberg-the righteous gentile-would have to be at the very top

Now in a new revised and reformatted edition, Gems in Myth, Legend, and Lore is an in-depth examination of the supposed mystic and magical qualities humanity has attributed to forty-six different gems throughout history. Written by jeweler, gemologist and educator Bruce G. Knuth, Gems in Myth, Legend, and Lore covers writings on gems throughout history, birthstones, literature concerning gems, the entire translated text of Marbode's eleventh century gem treatise, and much more. A cross-culture treasury of legends, and a first-rate addition to mythology and folklore reference shelves.

This book was worth every penny. It discussed myths and legends throughout history associated with a great variety of precious and semi-precious gemstones from different cultures. Very easy and interesting to read. The pictures were not as clear as I expected from a library bound book, but it doesn't really distract from the quality of information. The best book that I have found so far on the subject of gemstone lore. If you are gemologist, this is worth including in your library, as it is a welcome deviation from the science that most gemstone books cover.

Written by a gemologist/jeweler, Gems in Myth, Magic and Lore, combines minerological information with a comprehensive review of gemstone lore. Knuth begins the book with a succinct, but comprehensive, review of the history of gemstone lore as it coincides with the rise of gemology as a field of scientific study.

The second part of the book details 46 of the most common gemstones. Each gemstone entry includes a large photograph of the stone, minerological information and the gemstone lore. The lore is presented very respectfully with an acknowledgment that we do not know everything and that there are factual bases to many of these beliefs. As a bonus, there are numerous, well referenced footnotes for each of the stones.

In the third part of the book, he includes information that I have not found elsewhere such mythological gems and gems in literature. There is even a compete copy of a famous Lapidarium writen in the Middle Ages. This section also has some very useful and well done charts detailing things like birthstones through the ages and the significance of gemstone shape.

In my work as a jewelry designer, many of my customers ask my advice about which stones they should use for different forms of protection or as an aid to achieve their goals. In order to help them, I began researching gemstone history and lore. I have now read about 15 books on the subject and I have found that many of them offer contradictory explanations and/or information that is too general or too vague to be of much use. For my purposes, Knuth's book has been the most helpful.

Fantastic book. Full of gemstone lore that will dazzle, and impress. Great selling tool for anyone in the jewelry or gem trade.