Book Description
Dr. Francis Collins, head of the Human Genome Project, is one of the world's leading scientists. He works at the cutting edge of the study of DNA, the code of life. Yet he is also a man of unshakable faith in God and scripture. He believes that God cares about us and can intervene in human affairs -- on rare occasions, even miraculously. Collins has personally discovered some of the scientific evidence for the common descent of all living creatures, even though he repudiates the materialist, atheistic worldview argued by many prominent Darwinists.
In short, Dr. Collins provides a satisfying solution for the dilemma that haunts everyone who believes in God and respects science. Faith in God and faith in science can be harmonious -- combined into one worldview. The God that he believes in is a God who can listen to prayers and cares about our souls. The biological science he has advanced is compatible with such a God. For Collins, science does not conflict with the Bible, science enhances it.
For many years Dr. Collins kept his views largely to himself, as he helped oversee the Human Genome Project's stunning sequencing of the code of life. Now, in what may be the most important melding of reason and revelation since C. S. Lewis's Mere Christianity, Dr. Collins explains himself in detail. The Language of God makes the case for God and for science. Dr. Collins considers and rejects several positions along the spectrum from atheism to young-earth creationism -- including agnosticism and Intelligent Design. Instead, he proposes a new synthesis, a new way to think about an active, caring God who created humankind through evolutionary processes.
He has heard every argument against faith from scientists, and he can refute them. He has also heard the needless rejection of scientific truths by some people of faith, and he can counter that, too. He explains his own journey from atheism to faith, and then takes readers on a stunning tour of modern science to show that physics, chemistry, and biology can all fit together with belief in God and the Bible. The Language of God is essential reading for anyone who wonders about the deepest questions of all: Why are we here? How did we get here? And what does life mean?
Customer Reviews:
A Reconcilliation Between Evolution and Faith.......2007-10-20
This is an outstanding book for many reasons. The author's credentials as a man of science cannot be questioned and he supports his religious views well with quotes from the Bible and CS Lewis.
If you are struggling to be able to believe in God and Evolution at the same time this is the book to read. Collins lays it out in a plain english, very logical progression. By the time he is done you will probably feel foolish not to at least consider the fact that you should beloeve in both Evolution and God.
His frequent references to CS Lewis' Mere Christianity led me to read that book as well.
If you are searching for God and have questions about Science vs Faith I strongly suggest you read The Language of God and follow it up with Mere Christianity.
gman.......2007-10-14
When I first received this book from a friend, not knowing anything about the book, I was excited to read. I thought there would be some wonderful explanations of DNA (perhaps in layman terms) and its elegance.
Big Disappointment. This book is just a defense of Theistic Evolution. With many of the same tired arguments.
His defense of faith is almost entirely quotes of C.S. Lewis... so please, just read C.S. Lewis.
His defense of Evolution has many of the same arguments we've heard before...
"But how did self-replicating organisms arise in the first place? It is fair to say that at the present time we simply do not know. No current hypothesis comes close to explaining how in the space of a mere 150 million years, the prebiotic environment that existed on planet Earth give rise to life." p. 90
He goes on to explain that someday we may know. Francis, what happens if we find out something different? This feels sort of like the Theory-of-the-Gaps.
"No serious biologist today doubts the theory of evolution to explain the marvelous complexity and diversity of life." p 99
Your basic Tautology argument.
He does a poor job dismantling the creationist and Intelligent Design arguments, basically claiming their arguments simply are not true, without much support.
I believe he tries to make you feel foolish if you do not believe in evolution, or are even attempting to make arguments against it.
There is a small portion of the book which is a bright spot, and I learned something new. That was the appendix, on bioethics, discussing stem cell research and cloning.
In the end, if you're looking for a good textbook on Theistic Evolution, this is the book for you. If not, don't waste your time.
Evolution of a Genetic Scientist.......2007-10-13
This book is a thoughtful, well-reasoned answer to extreme fundamentalists and to the extreme atheistic scientists such as Christopher Hitchins and Richard Dawkins. It is the evolution of a leading scientist from atheist to Christian. I found the book though an interview on Point of inquiry, a podcast devoted to rational humanism.
No Tower of Babel Here.......2007-10-10
The Language of God is genius in Dr. Collins' skill in conveying the complexity of science and the wonder of the divine in easy-to-understand language. No polemics, no rhetoric, just the facts and they logically point to the existence of God. At last, a credible read for both the science-minded and the evangelicals among us.
Suzette Martinez Standring
Believing in God Not a Problem for Scientists and Engineers.......2007-10-08
Having heard Francis Collins speak on this topic several years ago, I eagerly awaited the chance to read this book. I was not disappointed.
This book is one which will be appreciated by every scientist and engineer as being genuine. There is no white-washing science, or diminishing its importance in our world. Collins is a scientist and it is clear that he loves his life's work. And at the same time, he recounts his personal journey to faith in God. He does not leave his intellect behind when he searches for God. Every person's journey is different, but it is fascinating to read an account of how a smart, clear thinker fully reconciles his faith in God with the incredible world that God created, while also recognizing that neither diminishes the other.
As an engineer who also has worked for the Catholic Church, I most enjoyed the parallels that he made between scientific developments and his belief in God. I've found many parallels of my own during my journey and it was a pleasure to read about the connections Collins has discovered.
On the negative side, I found the part on evolution a bit too long. Evolution is a hot button for many people, however, which is probably why he dwelled on it for so many pages. Also, the Appendix had some opinions that were counter to Catholic teaching. But despite these shortcomings, this is a book that will bring much good in helping people realize that God and the world are not "opposites" but rather both co-exist extremely well together! This may be obvious to many of us since God created the world, but not to everyone, yet.
Average customer rating:
- And This review would be a prime example
- The Man Behind Frankfurt Is the True Joker, or Else There Is None
- One of the most salient features of our culture is that there is so much
- Philosophical B.S. - Tossed it in the Garbage
- To BS Or Not To BS
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On Bullshit
Harry G. Frankfurt
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On Truth
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![Freakonomics [Revised and Expanded]: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything](http://images-eu.amazon.com/images/P/0061234001.01.THUMBZZZ.jpg)
Freakonomics [Revised and Expanded]: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything
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Crimes Against Logic
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The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference
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Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking
ASIN: 0691122946 |
Amazon.com
"One of the most salient features of our culture is that there is so much bullshit," Harry G. Frankfurt writes, in what must surely be the most eyebrow-raising opener in modern philosophical prose. "Everyone knows this. Each of us contributes his share. But we tend to take the situation for granted." This compact little book, as pungent as the phenomenon it explores, attempts to articulate a theory of this contemporary scourge--what it is, what it does, and why there's so much of it. The result is entertaining and enlightening in almost equal measure. It can't be denied; part of the book's charm is the puerile pleasure of reading classic academic discourse punctuated at regular intervals by the word "bullshit." More pertinent is Frankfurt's focus on intentions--the practice of bullshit, rather than its end result. Bullshitting, as he notes, is not exactly lying, and bullshit remains bullshit whether it's true or false. The difference lies in the bullshitter's complete disregard for whether what he's saying corresponds to facts in the physical world: he "does not reject the authority of the truth, as the liar does, and oppose himself to it. He pays no attention to it at all. By virtue of this, bullshit is a greater enemy of the truth than lies are."
This may sound all too familiar to those of use who still live in the "reality-based community" and must deal with a world convulsed by those who do not. But Frankfurt leaves such political implications to his readers. Instead, he points to one source of bullshit's unprecedented expansion in recent years, the postmodern skepticism of objective truth in favor of sincerity, or as he defines it, staying true to subjective experience. But what makes us think that anything in our nature is more stable or inherent than what lies outside it? Thus, Frankfurt concludes, with an observation as tiny and perfect as the rest of this exquisite book, "sincerity itself is bullshit." --Mary Park
Book Description
One of the most salient features of our culture is that there is so much bullshit. Everyone knows this. Each of us contributes his share. But we tend to take the situation for granted. Most people are rather confident of their ability to recognize bullshit and to avoid being taken in by it. So the phenomenon has not aroused much deliberate concern. We have no clear understanding of what bullshit is, why there is so much of it, or what functions it serves. And we lack a conscientiously developed appreciation of what it means to us. In other words, as Harry Frankfurt writes, "we have no theory."
Frankfurt, one of the world's most influential moral philosophers, attempts to build such a theory here. With his characteristic combination of philosophical acuity, psychological insight, and wry humor, Frankfurt proceeds by exploring how bullshit and the related concept of humbug are distinct from lying. He argues that bullshitters misrepresent themselves to their audience not as liars do, that is, by deliberately making false claims about what is true. In fact, bullshit need not be untrue at all.
Rather, bullshitters seek to convey a certain impression of themselves without being concerned about whether anything at all is true. They quietly change the rules governing their end of the conversation so that claims about truth and falsity are irrelevant. Frankfurt concludes that although bullshit can take many innocent forms, excessive indulgence in it can eventually undermine the practitioner's capacity to tell the truth in a way that lying does not. Liars at least acknowledge that it matters what is true. By virtue of this, Frankfurt writes, bullshit is a greater enemy of the truth than lies are.
Customer Reviews:
And This review would be a prime example.......2007-10-22
I may not know how to describe it but I thought I could identify it when I heard it.
If Professor Frankfurt injected as much humor in his classes as is evident in this extended essay, I am certain that I would have enjoyed spending an hour or so in his presence three times a week. However, to make such an affirmative claim is nearly as sophistic as this book which has less to do with academic investigation of the subject matter than to compel the reader to examine self-conceptualization.
For such a short work, it is filled with multi-leveled pearls of wisdom that make writing this review and in many respects any review, a clear indicator of the writer's self absorption. The books opens with the declaration "Each of us contributes his share" and much later points out "... is unavoidable whenever circumstances require someone to talk without knowing what he is talking about...whether by their own propensities or by the demand of others -to speak extensively about matters of which they are to some degree ignorant."
For those who have read it and hopefully "get it," I sincerely believe the old professor is a proponent of David Hume and knows the time is right to find a dependable sheepdog. Since I felt the need to have the subject matter explained to me, it's pretty clear like so many others, I am highly susceptible to it.
The Man Behind Frankfurt Is the True Joker, or Else There Is None.......2007-10-20
People have suggested that this book is a joke, that the audience is being had. The book is small, printed as though for children, contains nothing of any meaning yet fulfills the requirements of academic philosophical theorizing: limitless abstraction, complex sentence structure and advanced theoretical vocabulary. It is a clear demonstration of how academic theoretical prose allows one to generate text without saying anything. Obviously a critique of modern academic philosophy is implicit the moment one realizes that this passed muster and got published.
The self-irony is complete in that the word BS is spelled out on the cover: the joke couldn't be any more obvious. What really makes it apparent that someone masterminded this as a joke however is the marketing strategy: this book was actually mass-marketed with an appearance on the Daily Show that sealed it's entry to the bestseller lists. That, more than anything else, was the joke behind this work. It is the same as Sokal, for whom the deciding moment was the acceptance of his essay into an academic journal. But who is the joker here?
Some have suggested this is Frankfurt's joke on the reader. I disagree. Frankfurt has spent his entire life philosophizing about the meaning of words like Love, Care, and Duty. Here is an excerpt from The Reasons of Love, said to be one of the most insightful passages:
"I am willing to admit that most of our actions are in accordance with duty; but, if we look closer at our thoughts and aspirations, we everywhere come upon the dear self, which is always salient, and it is this instead of the stern command of duty (which would often require self-denial) which supports our plans. "
For Frankfurt, chasing the bleary meanings of ill-defined words through conceptual mazes in his head; adding, subtracting and multiplying entities which from the outset evade definition, have been this man's single marketable skill and the foundation for his career. This man literally believes that profitable insight can be gained by defining the relationship between "caring" and "love". So those who make Frankfurt the mastermind, I feel, are mistaken.
Someone behind him, who suggested this book be mass-marketed, and got him a book-deal and a spot on the daily-show, someone there is the Mastermind. Unless, of course, there is no mastermind, and no one is silently chuckling at this joke. For those of you who think this is a joke, listen to Frankfurt's interviews and read his other works its all equally worthless as this. IHNT.
Whoever was behind him, whoever suggested this idea for a book, and whoever arranged his book-deal and
One of the most salient features of our culture is that there is so much.......2007-10-07
... of the substance that HGF writes a whole book, within limits, about, but that we poor Amazon reviewers are not allowed to use.
Within limits, because the book is so short, that a full quotation (minus the word, of course) could count as a rather long review. That is so, because the book is entirely self-reflective, it writes about itself. It moves in perfect circles and ignores all limits of seriousness and keeps this righteous attitude throughout. I love it.
The most remarkable achievement is that it manages to charge 10 bucks for itself, plus transportation charges, the latter amounting, in case of a single book parcel to China, to a quite unproportional amount of money and weight/volume of packing material. One could say, the book duplicates its contents via viral infections in Amazon charges and packing material.
Does this count as non-sexual replication? Or am I talking something that must remain unnamed?
Philosophical B.S. - Tossed it in the Garbage.......2007-10-01
Was hoping to find a good practical guide to spot B.S. tactics. Instead got philosphical-speak. Title is ironic. I feel like I was B.S.'d into buying the book. First to toss of dozens of business and behavior books I've purchased over the past couple of years.
To BS Or Not To BS.......2007-06-12
When I first heard about this book, my initial reaction was to wonder why the famous professor hadn't used his prestige to write about something important, namely, sophistry. For the most part, BS is merely exaggeration--we recognize it; and we know how to deal with it. Sophistry, on the other hand, is more subtle, seductive, sneaky, and snaky. The best sophistries are not quickly recognized as the deceptions they are.
Look at all these reviews. Many serious people have written with utter seriousness about Professor Frankfurt's low-calorie confection. Which tells me that sophistry is on a roll.
I read this book twice, in order to write an essay about it. Finally, the whole tiny tome seems to boil down to a few bizarre conceits, which are themselves sophistries, most infamously: liars care more about truth than people who BS; and sincerity itself is BS. Oh, really? Not unless you simply ignore the definitions of the words. In that same world, 2 + 2 nicely rounds off to 17.
My overwhelming impression is that this is a splendid book for students majoring in philosophy and, indeed, all students of philosphy. They can deconstruct this book--boldly wading into thickets of stately language, laying rough hands on delicate nonsequiturs--and thereby become better thinkers. Think of it as a primer, a rite of passage, an inoculation.
Average customer rating:
- Great philosophy behind it
- Amazing.
- Magical journey...
- Classic in any lanugage
- A story for all ages
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Le Petit Prince (French Language Edition)
Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
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ASIN: 0156013983 |
Book Description
In 2000 Harcourt proudly reissued Antoine de Saint-Exupéry's masterpiece, The Little Prince, in a sparkling new format. Newly translated by Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Richard Howard, this timeless classic was embraced by critics and readers across the country for its purity and beauty of expression. And Saint-Exupéry's beloved artwork was restored and remastered to present his work in its original and vibrant colors.
Now Harcourt is issuing uniform full-color foreign language editions. The restored artwork glows like never before. These affordable and beautiful editions are sure to delight an entire new generation of readers, students, children, and adults for whom Saint-Exupéry's story will open the door to a new understanding of life.
Customer Reviews:
Great philosophy behind it.......2007-09-28
I half-expected this book to be a children's book but it actually contained philosophical ideals people would often ask themselves in life. Highly recommended
Amazing........2007-08-08
I place this on a par, in it's own way, with Kahlil Gibran's The Prophet.
Deeply meaningful, cloaked in a tale of a child. I read part of it at my mother's funeral. Not that it is a sad story, per se. But there was not a dry eye in the house when I finished.
What it has to say on loving and on loss is absolutely worth more than this book costs and every minute you spend reading it.
Magical journey..........2007-06-13
My first book ever was The little prince. It was my dad's first present on the day I was born. Since then I have read it at least 20 times, and every time I read it it delivers a different message. I think this is a book that will be enjoyed by kids as well as adults. This french version is beautiful, and very similar to the one my dad gave me in spanish. Has the original drawings with nice colors. As someone stated this book can be interpreted in different ways and that's why it's so magical. I consider it one of the best short stories ever. A true masterpice.
Classic in any lanugage.......2007-03-12
I've read this book many times, sometimes in English, sometimes in French. I've read it for pleasure. I've studied it. I've taught it. I love it. The fox's secret is an important lesson for us all and one I appreciate being reminded of. I recommend this book to anyone, it's been translated into over 100 languages. (It's been translated more than any book besides the Bible I've heard.) I love sharing it with people which is why I will teach it as long as I'm teaching and I will read it aloud to my children when I have them.
A story for all ages.......2007-02-01
Although I believe that this book is for everyone young or old, I think that "grown ups" will appreciate it more than kids.
The book has passages that remind the adult of the innocent little kid within.
In a lot of ways, the wisdom in the story comes as somehow a reality check.
In depth the book is about life, relationships (the little prince and the rose), friendships (the little prince and the fox) and human caracteristics...
I have read this story so many times and every time I discover something "new". This book is a work of art!
If you speak French, I recommend the French language edition over the English one.
Customer Reviews:
Good for the price........2007-07-11
Slightly bent and wrinkled but still usable, of course I got it used but it still worked for my English class.
Current issues and enduring questions.......2005-09-28
The book is just what I needed for class. Also I find it to be very helpful in writing papers
Book Description
This is an important book for teachers, administrators, prospective teachers, college professors, or anyone seeking to provide quality teaching to children in their first years of schooling.
- Harvard Educational Review
Among the many changes to sweep American literacy education has been a move toward whole class instruction. Nonetheless, children still bring to literacy a wide range of experiences and competencies. How, then, might teachers best support a literate community yet still meet the needs of individual readers? For Fountas and Pinnell, the answer lies in guided reading, which allows children to develop as individual readers within the context of a small group. Their new book is the richest, most comprehensive guided reading resource available today and the first systematic offering of instructional support for guided reading adherents.
Guided Reading was written for K-3 classroom teachers, reading resource teachers, teacher educators, preservice teachers, researchers, administrators, and staff developers. Based on the authors' nine years of research and development, it explains how to create a balanced literacy program based on guided reading and supported by read aloud, shared reading, interactive writing, and other approaches. While there is an entire chapter devoted solely to the process by which children become literate, every chapter clearly presents the theoretical underpinnings of the practices it suggests. Also included are guidelines for:
observation and assessment
dynamic grouping of readers
creating sets of leveled books
selecting and introducing books
teaching for strategies
classroom management.
Best of all, there are well over 2,500 leveled books in the Appendixes, along with many other reproducible resources that teachers will use for years to come.
"Good first teaching is the foundation of education and the right of every child," assert the authors. With the publication of this book, educators themselves will find the foundation in reading skills instruction they so rightly deserve.
Customer Reviews:
Great Book - How to make great Guided Reading groups.......2007-05-14
Great classroom resource. Photocopy the worksheets to organize your groups with ease. Activities of what students not in teacher led groups could be doning with photocopy cards you can use in a chart to organize.
This book was highly recommended to me, I borrowed a copy, then decided I needed my own.
Guided Reading:Good First Teaching for All Children.......2006-02-24
Great book to help teachers organize their classroom for guided reading groups. Has wonderful ideas to impliment learning centers and management of those centers while teaching guided reading groups. Our school has a copy of this book for each teacher to model their classroom after.
outstanding!.......2003-07-05
I knew that my guided reading program needed to change, but didn't no exactly how to go about improving it. This book has all the answers! Although I'm on summer break, I can't wait to go back in the fall and get started on my new literacy program, putting into practice all the things I've learned from this book.
Wonderful source for Primary Teacher!.......2000-10-02
I had this book at close tabs at all times. I really loved the icons they have at the back of the book (these are center icons). I photocopied and laminated them, and used them to rotated the children through their centers daily. I LOVE the list of books for each reading level. A big help when choosing books to read with each reading group. Excellent book. A must have in each classroom.
Awesome Book for Primary Teachers.......2000-07-24
Fountas and SuPinnel have written a book that has all the answers to any questions I have ever needed regarding teaching reading with groups. I have been teaching for 5 years and have finally found a book that really gives me clear explanantions, ideas, etc. The biggest question any teacher (especially beginning teachers) I know has ever asked themselves (including myself) was: "WHAT ARE THE REST OF THE CHILDREN DOING, while one works with a guided reading group? I have heard many ideas BUT this book has the best and most organized answer ever. If you have the same question(s) then you have to get this book. The entire book is fantastic, as Ms. Giacobbe put it, in the foreword, "why didn't someone tell us this before?" I felt the best part of this awesome book was Chapter Five: Managing the Classroom. The "Work Board" idea is one I've seen before but never truly understood until I read this book. The authors clearly tell you how to make, organize, and use the work board. They even explain, in detail, each Literacy Activity: Browsing Boxes, ABC, Listening, Art, Writing, Reading Around the Room, Independent Reading, Poem Box, Buddy Reading, and much more. Chapter Thirteen had some great ideas for Literacy Activities, specifically the Letter and Word Activities. The ABC Center ideas were excellent. Reading this book makes you want to do it all! I can't wait until the Fall!
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- Calculations are only as good as your numbers
- Pants on fire?
- Accepted History & Chronology Must Be Changed.
- Very Interesting
- History as Science Fiction
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History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)
Anatoly Fomenko
Manufacturer: Mithec
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Similar Items:
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History: Fiction or Science? Chronology 2 (Chronology)
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History: Fiction or Science? Astronomical methods as applied to chronology. Ptolemy's Almagest. Chronology III
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Discovering the Mysteries of Ancient America: Lost History And Legends, Unearthed And Explored
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They Cast No Shadows: A Collection of Essays on the Illuminati, Revisionist History, and Suppressed Technologies
ASIN: 2913621058 |
Book Description
Recorded history is a finely-woven magic fabric of intricate lies about events predating the sixteenth century. There is not a single piece of evidence that can be reliably and independently traced back earlier than the eleventh century. This book details events that are substantiated by hard facts and logic, and validated by new astronomical research and statistical analysis of ancient sources.
Customer Reviews:
Calculations are only as good as your numbers.......2007-08-03
Yes, we can all agree that mainstream history is nearly 100% BS due to politics, economics, ego, problems with dating techniques, and various conspiracies. Agreed. But, I've been researching the distinct possibility that human history (in terms of civilizations) are much more ancient than we've been told, so coming across this book was very interesting to me. I wondered how Fomenko could be wrong (if at all) because he is very persuasive in his presentations. Then it dawned on me. If at previous times in prehistory, due to the various catastrophies that are well documented (comets, asteroids, planetary disruptions, plasma discharge, pole reversals, etc) the Earth was in a different position in relation to the sun, different tilt on its axis, different orbit, different rotation (in terms of velocity and DIRECTION), and the continents were in different positions, then would this not cause the ancients to see the sky (constellations) differently? In other words, is Fomenko making erronious assumptions about the physics of the Earth in pre-history, which then corrupt his data with regards to dating the relevant astrology? The last event to seriously disrupt our planet occured roughly 3500 years ago, according to other good researchers, so is it possible Fomenko has been confused by this? The vastly different physics of our planet in the not so distant past may explain this confusion, which is not to say the "mainstream" version of history is correct; on the contrary. I am not an expert in these fields, but wanted to see if this idea could spark discussion.
Pants on fire?.......2007-07-19
Will people ever read before spamming? Yes, Jesuits could not rewrite world history alone, they had help. Anyway, Dr Prof Acad A.Fomenko does not point to jesuits as the driving force of world wide history manipulation in published volumes 1,2,3;, actually he barely mentions the poor devils. Check it with 'Search inside' feature, please. China is rarely mentioned either, in fact, Dr Fomenko is completely eurocentric. Right, his theory contradicts all mainstream schools of history, because in their actual state they are all built on blatantly erroneus chronology. You don't need a mysterious cabal (conspiracy) to falsify history, the falsification is its modus operandi. It is inherent to history(ians) to falsify (distort) events, as it is inherent to humans to boast as it is inherent to power (authority) to legimize itself by referrring to glorious past made to its own order. Dr Prof Fomenko and team have identified scores of instances of such manipulation in Russian, European, etc.. history, and delivered valid statistical proof thereof. His own 'reconstruction' is completely another story. Forget c14 as a valid method of dating. W.Libby has initially discovered a brilliant method of INDEPENDENT dating. Too bad, c14 method has become a joke after a forced marrige with dendrochronology with consensual chronological scale inbuilt. Radiocarbon method can't stand blind tests, but is so very productive as a rubberstamp.
Accepted History & Chronology Must Be Changed. .......2007-04-09
There is no doubt that history as most know it is a sham, & institution's version of History both University & Church is fradulent & inaccurate. Everything was established with an agenda, The real "Dark Ages" are now when we have access to incredible amounts of information past authorities & more important 'common folk' didn't have but our institutions & educators are slow to evolve because of what has ignorantly & arrogantly been taught for too long. This is on many subjects not just Chronology.
For anyone to question "Why would a Mathematician have anything credible to say of History?" The answer is from Dr. Fomenko's preface in the book: "It would be worthwhile to remind the reader that in the XVI-XVII century Chronology was considered to be a subdivision of Mathematics." These volumes could possibly be some of the most important works to date & should be read by everyone with an interest in History, especially professors & educators who have a duty to the public. I have read both books & must say that 'Chronology 1' has some very eye opening & revolutionary information. Even if these volumes are part true the implications are profound & opens the doors to further investigations & questions which must be done. I speak several different lanquages & must say the logic Dr. Fomenko uses with "inflection" of words & words being read from left to right in one region & right to left in another then written backwards, the removal of vowels & get down to basics of words, or different cities & locations having the same name etc. is correct. Vowel usage has always been optional & varied, actually complicating linquistics & study. The first thing one has to understand is that words never had a fixed spelling in history like we do now, the spelling of words was mutable & regional, as well as names & titles of people were vast, varied & changed, NOTHING WAS FIXED or understood linear. Matters of Life & Death as well as financial profiteering yesterday & today were & are made with ignorant, illogical & conspiratorial views of history & reality, it's time people get closer to the Truth & society collectively grow up.
Very Interesting.......2007-03-07
It is a good proposal and I believe it will mature into something even better in the future. I think it deserves to be read.
History as Science Fiction.......2007-01-10
Anatoly Fomenko has written a very intriguing book, full of pictures, charts, and computer 'proof' of his thesis: backwards of AD900 we don't really know what happened or when. Between AD900 and AD1600 there is more certainty, but there is still a lot of fuzzy ground, and things don't get reliable until we get past the 1600's where the printing press made it very difficult for the perpetrators of this timeline manipulation to change anything that had been committed to print. The Dark Ages did not happen. Books were burned for a reason. One organization has doubled the actual length of its existence by expanding the real chronology. Read why.
I had always wondered why Christ died about AD33 and yet men waited until the 11th century to form the Knights Templar, the Cathars, etc and go after the Holy Land by force. Why the 1000 year gap? Turns out there wasn't more than a 10-12 year gap and he proves it using astronomy. This also implies that the planet is not as old as we have been told, and current Christian and other creationist scientists are already championing that idea without being aware of Fomenko's book. The two groups, creationist scientists and the Russian mathematical analysts corroborate each other. Fascinating.
Of course, all this flies in the face of what we have been told traditionally is the 'proper' chronology of western civilization, and most readers will experience 'cognitive dissonance' in reading this book. It means that our history going backwards from AD1600 becomes progressively more incorrect and unreliable until it cannot be trusted at all... in the space of 700-800 years.
Naturally, the curious, open-minded reader will want to know WHO did this, WHY, and did any of the events we think of as really ancient ever happen?
Dr. Fomenko is a respected scientist/mathematician at Moscow State University who has already answered these questions to the satisfaction of his initially skeptical colleagues. Most of them are now believers, a few still refuse to believe (the usual diehards), and of course the western press has ignored Fomenko's work -- for obvious reasons when you read the book. The ones who perpetrated this chronology ruse have a lot to answer for. They are still with us. That's why this book is a well-kept secret.
I gave the book a 4-star rating because I was unable to check out some of his claims; those I checked were as he said. But if even 1/3 of his claims are true, this punches a big hole in what we think is our history, the meaning of western civilization, our educational process (for repeating the ruse as gospel), and the trustworthiness of the organization that perpetrated this ruse, well-intentioned or not.
This book relates to current research into a Young Earth paradigm, to John Keel's discoveries about our planet, and Fr Malachi Martin's insights (in his now out-of-print books). We are indeed sheep who are manipulated and kept ignorant -- for a reason. While knowing what these men have to say may be the "booby prize" (as in: 'what can you do with this knowledge?'), it will provide interesting reading. Didn't someone say: "...and the Truth will set you free."?? For you to judge if this book contains the truth.
Customer Reviews:
Fantastic! Not just for reading teachers!.......2007-06-12
This is an important work for any teacher to read. It helps the teacher focus on how he or she can actively shape a student's identity by helping the student to develop a firm concept of self. Detailed questions and examples are given. I found this work very helpful to think about, although I don't intend to teach reading or become a reading coach. The work has helped guide me into thinking about how to turn students into powerful, confident, human beings.
Wonderful! Love it!
Choice Words: How Our Language Affects Children's Learning.......2007-05-13
This book really changed my thinking about how to speak to children to promote the best learning, and what to say. Our words are powerful tools in the 'teacher's took kit' and must be used with care.
An amazing small, yet powerful book........2007-03-08
I couldn't put it down--which is often said of a novel, but maybe not so often about a professional book. I truly read the book for six hours, and only took a few breaks. I started out highlighting what I found provocative, but soon realized that that wasn't enough. I got out my post-its, and began to note bits of wisdom I didn't want to forget. I think I must have added 50 post-its!! It's not that the information is so new, but rather that it is such a reminder and "emphasizer" about how we talk to children, and treat them in our classrooms. I thank Mr. Johnston for his thoughtful approach, and love the organization of the book. I've shared bits and pieces of what I've read with the staff at my school, and plan to continue to do so for the rest of the year. I've ordered two more copies of the book to share with colleagues. Thank you for this inspiring book.
Choice Words/Love & Logic.......2006-08-12
This book aligns somewhat with the Love & Logic philosophy. I enjoyed the introduction as much as the book itself.
Great book.......2006-08-01
This book is a must read for new teachers. It has helped me a lot. It's also a good read for parents. I think that the principles in this book for teachers also relate well to how we speak to our children.
Book Description
This textbook/software package covers first-order language in a method appropriate for first and second courses in logic. The unique on-line grading services instantly grades solutions to hundred of computer exercises. It is specially devised to be used by philosophy instructors in a way that is useful to undergraduates of philosophy, computer science, mathematics, and linguistics.
The book is a completely rewritten and much improved version of The Language of First-order Logic. Introductory material is presented in a more systematic and accessible fashion. Advanced chapters include proofs of soundness and completeness for propositional and predicate logic, as well as an accessible sketch of Godel's first incompleteness theorem. The book is appropriate for a wide range of courses, from first logic courses for undergraduates (philosophy, mathematics, and computer science) to a first graduate logic course.
The package includes four pieces of software:
Tarski's World 5.0, a new version of the popular program that teaches the basic first-order language and its semantics; Fitch, a natural deduction proof environment for giving and checking first-order proofs;
Boole, a program that facilitates the construction and checking of truth tables and related notions (tautology, tautological consequence, etc.);
Submit, a program that allows students to submit exercises done with the above programs to the Grade Grinder, the automatic grading service.
Grade reports are returned to the student and, if requested, to the student's instructor, eliminating the need for tedious checking of homework. All programs will be available on both Windows and Macintosh OS. Instructors do not need to use the programs themselves in order to be able to take advantage of their pedagogical value.
The price of a new text/software package includes one Registration ID, which must be used each time work is submitted to the grading service. Once activated, the Registration ID is not transferable.
Customer Reviews:
This book sucks.......2007-09-28
I would just like to say that this book is the worst text book I've ever had to go through. Not necessarily the writers fault, it's the subject. It has absolutely no purpose and I actually feel dumber after having read/studied it. If you have any choice at all, do not take logic. Stay far far away from it.
Good service.......2007-08-23
The service was great and the time from purchase to reciept was fantastic. The only reason I did not give this a five (would really be more like a 4 3/4) is that the box was open at both ends with a note that if the box is opened then a return is not possible, which made me a little nervous. It all worked out, though, because the book and CD work great with no returns needed.
Superb coverage & pacing.......2007-02-22
I used this book in a distance learning course, so my experience was halfway between classroom and self-learning. There were moments when the instructor's very helpful remarks made a big difference by placing the immediate subject in a larger context or by giving me a hint for an especially tough proof. But the book itself is so well-paced that I'm convinced one can work one's way through it alone and get most of the benefit. The software is the key, because (if you get the latest edition and buy it new!) you have unlimited access to the Grade Grinder servers. No one need know how many typos or missteps you make in your proofs! Every problem can be solved, sooner or later, if you interact with the automatic grader. The writing style, level of editing, and succinctness of explanations are superb. I found the book plus its software quite a painless way to learn first-order logic.
The worst textbook experience of my life.......2006-10-23
This is the most frustrating piece of software I have ever encountered. The lack of help files was extremely frustrating when you were caught in a problem. The Grade Grinder was useless. It was not very intuitive and should only be used for computer science or mathematics courses.
Very much recommended.......2005-12-06
I originally hated both the book and the software. Now I find them both incredibly effective tools to learn the basics of first-order logic. The book and the software work together. I imagine it must be difficult to get a good grasp of the concepts introduced in the book without exercising them on the software. The software, particularly Boole, the program designed for proofs, does give you inmediate feedback on proofs - not the case when working with pen and paper. Yes, it takes a while to get used to it, but, in the end, the result is quite rewarding!
Book Description
The now-classic Metaphors We Live By changed our understanding of metaphor and its role in language and the mind. Metaphor, the authors explain, is a fundamental mechanism of mind, one that allows us to use what we know about our physical and social experience to provide understanding of countless other subjects. Because such metaphors structure our most basic understandings of our experience, they are "metaphors we live by"—metaphors that can shape our perceptions and actions without our ever noticing them.
In this updated edition of Lakoff and Johnson's influential book, the authors supply an afterword surveying how their theory of metaphor has developed within the cognitive sciences to become central to the contemporary understanding of how we think and how we express our thoughts in language.
Customer Reviews:
A little obvious.......2007-07-23
The book's focus is on the fact that many of the sayings we use in daily life can be seen as metaphors for more literal explanations. For example it takes a chapter to explain how we feel that "up" is "good" and "down" is "bad." It is not really a book for reading. It is a philosophical look at language. If you like 200 pages of explaining how the saying "You're the top" is a metaphor for about the top being better than the bottom than this is the book for you.
in opposition to the other reviews.......2007-06-01
After reading the other reviews, I feel obliged to opine about the book. I am a philosophy student. I generally introduce myself as a logician, but on the philosophy side. My areas of interest in philosophy are language, mind, epistemology, and metaphysics.
This book, as witnessed by the previous reviews, has a strong impact on readers. I agree with this sentiment. However, I disagree with the other sentiments that are expressed by the other reviewers. The other reviewers take the conclusions that the authors come to on face value. However, they fail to see some of the logical consequences of their view. For instance, the authors seem to be committed to what in philosophical circles is called anti-realism. This position can be boiled down to the claim that there is no external world; that may be a little harsh, but I feel that it expresses the overall point of anti-realism. the authors are committed to this position because they argue that truth, which is usually taken to be a correspondance between our statements and the facts, coherence between our statements, or some variation of pragmatism, is dependent upon metaphorical structuring of our experiences and the metaphorical concepts fittting together. This seems suspiciously circular; our metaphors and the sentences they ground are true when they fit together with the experiences that are structured by those very metaphors. we are never coming in contact with the world as is. there is always a metaphor between us and the world (except, of course, in our primitive concepts, one wonders why if primitive concepts, like up-down, front-back, can be conceptualized from experience alone, other concepts cannot be as well).
On another topic, when considering what a metaphor is, we understand that a metaphor puts two different and distinct things into a "X is B" relationship. For instance, "love is a journey." However, not all sentences of the form "X is B" are metaphors; for instance, "humans are mammals". Some, for example, are definitions. How can we tell the definitions from the metaphors? The only way is to know that the two objects in the metaphor are, in fact, different and distinct. This, however, involves conceptual understanding of the two objects apart from the metaphor. Thus, the concept has to be formed prior to the metaphor; the metaphor does not structure or ground the concept.
All in all, as a logician, I found the book to be distressing. The authors never really gave enough conclusive evidence to convince me that our conceptual system is metaphorical. In fact, the more I read the more I was convinced that their scheme presupposed a non-metaphorical conceptual scheme. However, I would recommend the book, but not in isolation. Don't indoctrinate yourself. If you read this, read something in support of the opposing position (I wish I could direct you to something here, but I have not done much research on the responses to Lakoff and Johnson). Hear all the arguments before you make a judgement as to whether our conceptual system is metaphorical.
A step upwards in understanding cognition.......2007-05-30
Metaphors are to language as building materials are to construction.
That is the point of this book which -- being written at the tail end of the 1970s -- presciently predicted the findings of evolutionary psychology that would follow within the next twenty years.
Specifically, writers Lakoff and Johnson understood that language wasn't merely spiced by the occassional metaphor but actually enabled by them. In this way, spacial allusions and other physical comparisons inform languages ability to describe abstract phenomenon.
Do you follow my argument?
Are you in an opposing camp?
Do these sentiments bring you up?
Do they enlighten you?
The various manifestations of our choice of metaphor become in their own way our choice of reality.
The thoughts outlined in this book have been largely confirmed by research in evolutionary psychology which has shown that our language centers borrow heavily from cerebral material that originally was pressed into service for understanding spacial relationships. So understood, this book therefore raises interesting questions about the nature of how we cognate and properly followed up also tells us much about our propensity to religiously ideate, our politics and other faith choices in general.
For use in college philosphy course........2006-12-28
This book reads like a text book or graduate thesis. Those with short attention spans need not pick up this book. While it did make some enlightening points on the pervasiveness and necessity of metaphors in our thought process, the book then trudges on for about another 100 needless pages.
The basic point of the authors is that; "...we define our reality in terms of metaphors and then proceed to act on the basis of metaphors." In the process they get quite wordy and go through lengthy explanations including one long discourse on why we understand a sentence to be true. It tests your self-discipline to keep reading.
The last 40% of the book then dives into a lenghty debate of objectivism vs. subjectivism and the presentation of their experientialist alternative. The authors present and then continue to rehash their arguments in a debate against a nameless opponent: the evil objectivist. There is some lip service paid to the less evil subjectivist.
I did gain a new understanding of the importance of metaphors in our language and thought, but not much else that I wanted to learn. The information that I found useful could have been presented in a much shorter form, perhaps a white paper.
Unintended consequences..........2006-09-18
So, I picked up this book awhile ago thinking that it would be a good survey of one part of linguistics. Yes, it is that. BUT, after reading several chapters, I discovered an unintended consequence, or perhaps an unexpected consequence. Since of the several reviews I read, no one addressed this isse, I thought I would.
Simply put: This book has improved my writing and the impact of my writing. Now, I might normally hit upon the perfectly crafted sentence eventually, but this book highlights so many issues in language that I believe it will help sooner and more effectively. Not like a style manual or how-to-write book, but in the context of the metaphor, the subtle implications of the sentence and the inferences readers might make from its construction. This is pretty exciting.
Many reviewers evaluate the book from a far more intellectual perspective than I, but for the more pragmatic of you that think it can have this unintended consequence, it might be just right for you. At the same time, your grasp of this concept will have a much stronger framework and structure bringng happiness to the linguistic engineers in the crowd. And your language will improve with cool words or phrases like "homonymy", "metonymies", or "experiential gestalt". So I am not that literate.
So enjoy, it is a very nice, informative read!
Book Description
This book is for teachers, parents, and community organizers who are on the side of working-class children. It's about the resistance of working class children to the kind of education they typically receive, education designed to make them useful workers and obedient citizens. It's about working-class habits of communication and ways of using language that interfere with schooling. It's about a new brand of teachers, followers of Brazilian educator Paulo Freire who are developing effective methods for teaching powerful literacy in American working-class classrooms. It's about teacher networks where teachers devoted to equity and justice find mutual support. And it's about community organizers who are bringing working-class parents together around education issues and helping them mount effective demands for powerful literacy for their children.
Customer Reviews:
This book has little to do with SES and more to do with Communication.......2007-03-06
Set aside the terms literacy and the socioeconomic status that most readers of this book focus on. Read the book in terms of communication development, and develeopment of higher oder thinking and reasoning skills. These higher order thinking skills and communication styles are found in schools who's student are successfull, and in homes where learners are engaged in functional dialogue that enables them to shape their environment and act upon it. This is the heart of Literacy with an Attitude. As a teacher, this is a must read for every teacher to evaluate their own biases and provide direction for students who do come from "under-resourced" backgrounds. This book can also be useful for parents who want to evaluate their own teaching practices- becausae we all know, as Literacy with an Attitude teaches us too, that parents are a student's first and most influential teacher.
If you are teacher- read this book! Today! With the mandates of NCLB (closing the gap- even between low SES and higher), this book can provide some valuable insight and inspiration.
Essential.......2005-02-20
I found this book to be one of the most important books I've read. I was a working-class student, and Finn's description of typical attitudes astounded me, because I had those attitudes, but thought I was fiercely independent and radically individual. Oh, well.
It is written in a friendly and encouraging way, and offers proven methods to improve education across class and cultural divides.
Absolutly one of the best books you'll ever read!.......2002-08-24
If you have ever wondered what the difference is between children of working class families verses those of more afluence, (hint, it isn't simply the money) if you ever wondered what the difference could possibly be that leads some children into the chute toward dead-end factory jobs, while others have jobs that hold some promise, this is the book to read! Read it, then take a closer look at your child's classsroom, their homework, they way they are spoken to, etc. Take it with you as a guide and visit the classroom often, and at different times! You may be shocked at what they are actually learning. Be warned--that reading this book gives validity to the saying "The truth will set you free, but first, it will [upset] you ... !"
Finn looks at working-class literacy versus elite literacy.......2001-10-29
This book shows literacy at a socio-economic level, and what teachers of the working-class schools need to strive for in their classrooms. It answers descriptively the reasons schooling and literacy for the America's working-class children are not the same for other levels of the social spectrum. It is insightful and inspirational!
Too many oversights and contradictions.......1999-12-31
Finn contends that the degree of literacy that is taught and exercised in schools is a key determinant in attaining social position and agency. Professionals, managers, and executives acquire an empowering literacy that emphasizes evaluation, analysis, and synthesis in contrast to the functional literacy that is taught in working-class schools which leads to routine, non-creative work and diminished social role. It is Finn's mission to empower working-class kids through changes in the educational system that will create, what he calls, literacy with an attitude.
Finn arranges schools along a line including working-class, middle-class, affluent-professional, and executive elite schools.
Working-class schools are strictly teacher-directed emphasizing order and discipline. The subject matter is largely fragmented facts with little relevance to working-class lives. An uneasy standoff exists between derogatory teachers and reluctant students.
Middle-class students also have minimal input to the educational process but see the value in the information in textbooks and teachers' efforts. Anxiety-producing testing is emphasized but is accepted as essential for success in white-collar jobs. Competency is the goal, not creativity.
It is only in affluent-professional and executive-elite schools where empowering literacy is found. Students are able to participate in planning their own education. Creativity and problem solving take precedence over getting the facts right. The executive-elite schools stress academic excellence and the exercise of control. The affluent-professional schools are more wide-ranging and even willing to critique the social status-quo.
Finn finds that working-class culture itself has an impact in school settings. The dominant form of communication is implicit which relies on unspoken, shared opinions and beliefs. However, success in schools is dependent on the ability to fully use language. Also, working-class parents tend to emphasize obedience in younger children, not exploration. But constrained personalities can be at some disadvantage in settings where personal initiative is key for success, as in good schools.
So working class culture itself must be overcome to gain equal footing with articulate elites. But the Finn mission of extricating working-class kids from dead-end schools is fraught with other contradictions and difficulties.
It is difficult to understand Finn's claim that "the savage inequalities in schools are not the result of a conspicuous conspiracy to oppress the working class." It is Finn that describes the suppression of the fledgling corresponding societies in 1790 England who had a mission to empower the English working class via the extension of literacy. He further shows that a main factor in establishing public education was to control the working class. Why wouldn't the same sort of policies deployed by many levels of government and supported by business interests against the American labor movement throughout most of its history be reflected in the public education of the working class?
Finn proposes that "transforming" intellectuals who see schools as sites of social struggle for the working class will initiate change. He does not clearly address where sufficient numbers of these agents for change can be found. Nor does he explain why their actions would be tolerated by school officials and the larger society. It is somewhat disturbing to see proposed the use of children to achieve a social agenda.
It is unclear as to whether Finn fully appreciates the individualizing that occurs in the elite schools. It is individual creativity and excellence that is developed. But in Finn's new working-class schools, students become "collective" actors for social change. Is student solidarity equivalent to maximizing education? Where would the new schools fit among his school models?
A glaring piece that is missing from the book is the location and numbers of the various types of schools that he describes. One can only speculate that the middle-class school model predominates in the US. That data is necessary to get a handle on the feasibility and relevance of his proposal.
Finn's book ultimately does not come to grips with the contradictions within the working class itself as well as the demands of capitalism. Despite an emphasis on social class in the book, Finn does very little to acknowledge that working class education occurs within and is shaped by capitalistic class relations. And what he proposes would have ramifications for those relations. Capitalism does not require extensive education for most of its workers. Somehow the reader gets the feeling that close to an invisible hand is going to guide working- class students to empowerment nirvana despite the real obstacles noted.
Books:
- The Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar (Prima Official Game Guide)
- The Measure of a Man: A Spiritual Autobiography (Oprah's Book Club)
- The Organized Family Historian: How to File, Manage, and Protect Your Genealogical Research and Heirlooms (National Genealogical Society Guides)
- The Origins of Totalitarianism
- The Power New Testament, Third Edition
- The Rollercoaster Years
- The Secret Life of Houdini: The Making of America's First Superhero
- The Structural Transformation of the Public Sphere: An Inquiry into a Category of Bourgeois Society (Studies in Contemporary German Social Thought)
- The Structure of Scientific Revolutions
- The Tragic and the Ecstatic: The Musical Revolution of Wagner's Tristan and Isolde
Books Index
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Coming to Peace With Science: Bridging the Worlds Between Faith and Biology
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