Copolymerization: Toward a Systematic Approach

Book Description

Copolymerization is a very widely used industrial process, in fact the dominant process in macromolecular chemistry. With the advent of widespread computing power, this book will be very useful both to academic researchers in copolymerization and to researchers in industry concerned with the synthesis of polymers such as plastics, rubbers, chemical fibers, and paints. A disk with 15 computer programs accompanies the book.

Book Description

The purpose, level, and style of this new edition conform to the tenets set forth in the original preface. The authors continue with their tack of developing simultaneously theory and applications, intertwined so that they refurbish and elucidate each other.
The authors have made three main kinds of changes. First, they have enlarged on the topics treated in the first edition. Second, they have added many exercises and problems at the end of each chapter. Third, and most important, they have supplied, in new chapters, broad introductory discussions of several classes of stochastic processes not dealt with in the first edition, notably martingales, renewal and fluctuation phenomena associated with random sums, stationary stochastic processes, and diffusion theory.

Customer Reviews:

This book is a mess.......2006-04-11

This book was published back in the 70s, before the advent of LaTeX. And it shows. In particular, it is no good as a reference for this reason: each time you try to look something up, the page is too overcrowded with symbols to find what you're looking for. In addition, to use this book to learn stochastic processes puts you through a whole lot more trouble than you'll probably need. Each deduction in the book is long, boring, and hard. Since I've read other books which are not, I'm going to assume it's the fault of the authors and their lack of LaTeX.

This book, not unlike quite a few in probability and statistics (e.g. Billingsley), is popular because old professors used it and don't bother to find a new one.

come to read prepared.......2002-11-30

Before going to the book, one advise is to have prerequisite to this topic, i.e. you need to come prepared with strong statistic and probability background since many of the derivation and proof assume the reader is well into the probability theory. I took the class from Stanford department of statistics, man, it doubled the time I spend comparing other statistics students since my training on probability is rather self-taught and not quite systemetic. Well, overall, it's a classic..

A wonderful introduction to stochastic processes.......2001-11-21

This is one of those rare mathematical books that is both deeply
informative, and a sheer pleasure to read. The book is written in a
delightful old mathematical style, where the authors take you by hand
through the difficult passages and derivations. The intuition about
stochastic processes is so well conveyed, and the mathematics so well
explained, that the book can be read with little or no recourse to
pencil and paper, much as if it were an armchair book. The book
presents a comprehensive overview of the theory of stochastic
processes, and I wholeheartedly recommend it to anyone interested into
learning their foundations.

Better have a math PHd.......2001-06-08

Very mathematical oriented, not at all intuitive. Of limited use to financial quants without extensive formal training in advanced mathematics.

A comprehensive, systematic, and intuitive introduction.......2000-06-21

A remarkable well organised work. Every chapter contains all needed definitions and formulas, deep discussions of their meanings, proofs, and examples, all extraordinarily well blended. Also every chapter has two set of problems. The 'elementary problems' require applying the material covered. The 'problems' require to prove results, they provide an excellent ground to develop this skill. Some times the classic format proof-theorem is used, but usually the ideas flow: starting with a problem, introducing necessary definitions and finding a solution eventually a theorem is stated as a natural consequence.

The writing style is similar to the immortal 'Introduction to Probability Theory' and its Applications' by Feller, with a similar mixture of rigorous mathematics and probabilistic intuition. Though 'A First Course...' only reviews the basics, it has some common topics with Feller's and covers more advanced topics.

The style of the book is the perfect opposite of 'Introduction to probability Models' by Sheldon Ross, which is written in a much more flamboyant style, full of surprises and amazement, and requires the constant use of pencil and paper to follow the developments. These two sources can be combined to master the subject, despite the fact that students often find Ross's magnificent work too hard to follow. (Of course, some will say that it is a bad book, and that the professor can't teach...)

Even though 'A First Course...' is rarely used as a textbook (bad marketing?) after taking courses on multivariable calculus and basic probability, an undergraduate student is ready to read this book. Measure theory is barely used, and it is a surprise to see how far can one go using only probabilistic intuition. The book is also well suited to doctoral courses.

The consecutive chapters on Martingales and Brownian Motion are unparalleled, a unique collection of basic examples is used to illustrate results on Stopping Times and Convergence. Also, Measure Theory is introduced at this point in a very appealing manner. These concepts are then used to obtain classical results on Brownian Motion and other topics. Students interested in Stochastic Calculus (not covered in this book) and its many application in Finances, Engineering, Operations Research and Computer Science can acquire solid foundations here.

The chapter on Stationary Processes is also very special, it provides solid foundations for Econometrics and Time Series and it is often quoted in research papers.

In short: an excellent book to acquire solid foundations on Stochastic Processes, the only source I know for a simple and systematic introduction of certain topics.

Book Description

The best known prose work by the winner of the 1980 Nobel Prize for Literature examines the moral and intellectual conflicts faced by men and women living under totalitarianism of the left or right.

Customer Reviews:

Essential.......2006-07-28

This book is outstanding. It's one of the few books I really wish everyone was familiar with. I mean that. A lot of times if a book is really good, I sort of like that I've read it and other people haven't. It gives me sort of a shallow, self absorbed kick. This one is too good for that though.

One word to the wise, this book is not simply about how bad communism is/was, though it adresses that in detail. It's also about how any form of totalitarianism, which squelches thre freedom of the human mind is totally awful. So the way to read this is not really to say, "hey look this proves that those leftists/rightists I've always hated are totally evil and screwed up." No, it's more to look at any absolutist ideology being peddled a little bit askance. Whether it's right wing radio, or left wing marches led by A.N.S.W.E.R. anyone who thinks they are right %100 of the time is probably a shady character. I didn't make that up, I got it from the quote he used in the front of the book. But I was too lazy to go downstairs and grab the book to get the exact quote. So there you have it. This book is incredible. I'm pretty confident you'll like it. Unless you're some kind of psycho (sorry If I'm hurting your feelings).

This will help you understand the real affect of communism on a country.......2006-05-20

Without a doubt this book is one of historical perspective. The reason it is important, is that it was written in 1953, by a man who had seen how fascism, dictatorship, genocide, communism and stalinism does not just to people but to a society as a whole.

Milosz lived in Poland between the two world wars, and watched how a nation that had been eliminated by three countries, one hundred and thirty years ago; can itself, become a war monger and a destroyer of 'other' cultures in the name of rebirth. He then saw another nation (Hitler's Germany) waste it's people and soul trying to prove that they were superior to everyone else. Lastly, he watched a nation, supposedly in the name of the 'people' destroy other nations and cultures in the name of those same people.

Stalin said that the death of one man is a tragedy, the death of millions are just statistics. Stalin of course was a great maker of statistics. When the 'People's Democracies' were created in Eastern Europe after WWII, their stated objective was to create a classless society, for the enhancement of the proletariat. Unfortunely, not everyone wanted to be enhanced. But, under the theory that, it is better to imprison twenty innocent people than to miss one criminal, millions were killed, tortured, and dispossessed; in order to create a 'worker's paradise'.

Milosz's stories are a warning to those that would collaborate in their own destruction.

Visions of the Utopian Ideal.......2006-04-08

Looking at modern day people of the left, I often notice that they have a vision of their ideologies, whether socialist, feminist, multiculturalist, etc. etc. etc., that is utopian in nature and almost impenetrable to negative feedback about the actual consequences of their policies. Exactly what is it in the human psyche that allows some ideologies to hook into someone's consciousness with such tenacity?

Czeslaw Milosz had the same questions in his day when communism was in the ascendancy on the world stage and appeared to have the winds of history at its back. He wrote THE CAPTIVE MIND in an attempt to address such issues by telling us the stories of several authors captured by the communist ideal. The result is a classic book still timely to the same issues today as we read of talented individuals willing to sell their talents, and alas their souls, over to an ideal of human perfection while justifying the trail of mass destruction and slaughter that came about instead.

In one major way, I am disappointed with the book. One of the more powerful statements that I read about totalitarian ideologies of the past was that there were numerous people outside of the ideological circle screaming their heads off about what was going on. Yet there was some mechanism or mechanisms within the ideology itself which prevented such negative feedback from entering the loop. My own experience with ideologues has demonstrated this time and again. It is just breathtaking to hear the unbelievable verbal gymnastics and mental contortions used to maintain a belief in one's sytem. I was hoping that THE CAPTIVE MIND would explore the pschological infrastructure of the totalitarian mentality far more than it does. Well, I cannot have everything, I suppose.

A reader should be aware that THE CAPTIVE MIND can be a tad difficult. Milosz often switches perspectives from his voice to others to hypotheticals and back again without clearly delineating the shifts. This can make a cursory reading ineffective and possibly even misleading. The book is not that hardgoing, so taking one's time is recommended.

Another peal to truth against totalitarian, war apologist confused.......2005-09-26

"... This book speaks of the horrors of communism, a crime against humanity that killed tens of millions and a crime that many of the perpetrators still haven't been called to account for. Instead, we get "anti-war" rallies sponsored by these same butchers...."

Woah. Obviously this reviewer cheers for libertarian ideology, but these lines really show the way the modern conservative movement has in effect mutated and desecrated the great ideas of classical liberals and libertarians.

You must think that the current US foreign policy, militarism, and a national defense centralized in the pentagon protects Christian liberty from totalitarianism, right? And that common private individuals excercising their constitutional rights are unpatriotic stalinist terrorist liberty-haters? Right?

In Bourne's words, "War is the HEALTH OF THE STATE (emphasis added)". The wars governments have waged are the very main inoculator for the expansion of centralized States. Especially in regards to the US, where anti-communism transformed the conservative movement into chickenhawk clones squawking for big government and BIG morality administered by Washington DC.

It is the state which must draft civilians, or take their lives to fight for government in a war. Any enemy is suspect by the state, and always enough the very civilians in that government who dissent are some of the biggest "enemies" of the government in wartime, the "butcher" war veterans (who have actually seen service), little old ladies and average Americans.

War engorges the government to naturally take away the rights of the citizenry. National defense brings with it suppresion of liberty. The above reviewer is with his neoconservative sympathizers apologizing for all totalitarians who wage violence against innocents by that very arrogant, paternalistic badgering against the hated anti-war protestors, some of which are the true conservatives and know what a society of liberty needs: peace (maybe some actual defense too, how about it, Dubya?)

Now, to the actual book. A brilliant defense of liberal values from a nation of liberal thinkers, bravely through its history defending the best of the West for the East. Milosz and his dreamlike style should be best read in the original slavic for the full effect (like most foreign books), but its another anti-statist classic if its read in english anyway.

The reasons why.......2003-12-11

I often wonder as I read about the horrors committed by the worst regimes in history, how the people that perpetrate crimes against humanity can live with themselves. What is the motive and reasoning of those who praise the slaughter of innocents?

The Captive Mind sheds a little bit of light into these darkest corners of the human psyche. It describes the path that leads righeous people on the road to immorality, written by a man who, along with his friends and comerads, traveled that road but took another path before he came to his final destination.

Captive Hearts, Captive Minds : Freedom and Recovery from Cults and Other Abusive Relationships

Average customer rating:

Outstanding!
A self-help resource for survivors of harmful relationships
Sane Advice for Those Leaving Cults
Excellent Resource!
An essential roadmap to recovery

Captive Hearts, Captive Minds : Freedom and Recovery from Cults and Other Abusive Relationships
Madeleine Landau Tobias , Janja Lalich , and Michael Langone
Manufacturer: Hunter House (CA)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0897931440

Book Description

Cult victims and those who have suffered abusive relationships often suffer from fear, confusion, low self-esteem, and post-traumatic stress. Take Back Your Life explains the seductive draw that leads people into such situations, provides guidelines for assessing what happened, and hands-on tools for getting back on track. Written for victims, their families, and professionals, this book leads readers through the healing process.

Customer Reviews:

Outstanding!.......2006-11-15

As an ex cultic relationship survivor cum exit counselor in training I can attest to this being the most comprehensive and helpful book to date I,ve read. THis book definitely encompasses all facets of what it is to go through the aftermath of a cultic experience. It is a warm and welcome friend as I repair my life. It is a must for not only the survivor but for the support system that helps the survivor repair the damage done. Best to all!

A self-help resource for survivors of harmful relationships.......2006-09-15

Take Back Your Life: Recovering From Cults and Abusive Relationships by co-authors Janja Lalich (Associate Professor of Sociology at California State University, Chico) & Madeleine Tobias (The Clinical Coordinator and a psycho therapist at the Vet Center in White River Junction) is a self-help resource for survivors of harmful relationships, whether with an individual or a group, and their loved ones. Chapters explain in plain terms the siren call abusive relationships have some people, and the confusion, low self-esteem, and post-traumatic stress experienced by the victim, along with suggestions for picking up the pieces of one's life and embracing the healing process. Of special note are the chapters addressing problems with family members and children in cults, and therapeutic concerns. Take Back Your Life is written primarily for lay readers however, and is a very sober, serious, and practical guide.

Sane Advice for Those Leaving Cults.......2006-08-24

We don't hear much these days about the Branch Davidians, Heaven's Gate or even Jim Jones. It's tempting to think that the cult movement has faded and that the world's attention is on more pressing matters -- like suicide bombers. But they are all of a piece, according to Chico State University Associate Professor of Sociology Janja Lalich.

In "Take Back Your Life: Recovering from Cults and Abusive Relationships" ($19.50 in paperback from Bay Tree Publishing), Lalich and co-author Madeleine Tobias, a Vermont psychotherapist, make clear that modern day cults have not disappeared. "If there is less street recruiting today, it is because many cults now use professional associations, campus organizations, self-help seminars, and the Internet as recruitment tools" to entice the unwary.

Who gets sucked into a cult? "Although the public tends to think, wrongly, that only those who are stupid, weird, crazy and aimless get involved in cults, this is simply untrue. ... We know that many cult members went to the best schools in the country, have advanced academic or professional degrees and had successful careers and lives prior to their involvement in a cult or cultic abusive relationship. But at a vulnerable moment, and we all have plenty of those in our lives (a lost love, a lost job, rejection, a death in the family and so on), a person can fall under the influence of someone who appears to offer answers or a sense of direction."

For the authors, "a group or relationship earns the label 'cult' on the basis of its methods and behaviors -- not on the basis of its beliefs. Often those of us who criticize cults are accused of wanting to deny people their freedoms, religious or otherwise. But what we critique and oppose is precisely the repression and stripping away of individual freedoms that tends to occur in cults. It is not beliefs that we oppose, but the exploitative manipulation of people's faith, commitment, and trust."

Written for those coming out of cults, as well as for family members and professionals, "Take Back Your Life" deals with common characteristics of myriad cult types: Eastern, religious and New Age cults; political, racist and terrorist cults; psychotherapy, human potential, mass transformational cults; commercial, multi-marking cults; occult, satanic or black-magic cults; one-on-one family cults; and cults of personality. Chapters deal with the cult experience, the process of healing, stories of families and children in cults and therapeutic issues.

The book features riveting personal accounts from ex-cult members and offers a wide range of resources for the person who is trying to retrieve his or her "pre-cult" personality. Education looms large, for that can begin to break down the narrow black-and-white thinking cult members often display. Many cults redefine common terms or introduce special vocabulary making it difficult for members to make sense of the world outside of even their own inner aspirations.

The authors are also concerned about those in the education and helping professions who don't see the dangers posed by cults both to the individual and the larger community. Part of the purpose of the book is to make a credible case that any course of therapy needs to take into account a patient's cult associations.

"Take Back Your Life" is a book of hope, an excellent starting point for those thinking of exiting a cult and for those who are taking back their lives, one day at a time.

Excellent Resource!.......2006-07-13

Since leaving the cult Eckankar in 1998, and spending a lot of time on the internet trying to help others wake up, get out, and recover, I've read a lot of books on the subject of cults. "Take Back Your Life" is one of the best!! An invaluable resource for both recovering cultists and people involved in abusive relationships, and concerned friends and family members.

An essential roadmap to recovery.......2000-04-07

For me, the special usefulness of this book came in the form of material directed at children who grew up in a cult, who have no other frame of reference to go back to.

The information I gleaned here gave me that frame of reference, and helped me to "detox" from the environment which was so seductively calling me back. It explains and makes sense of some very bewildering and deceptive manipulation techniques. And it has helped my therapy by outlining the kinds of issues that children coming out of cults usually face.

This book has a universal appeal for all cult escapees because it focuses not on beliefs or practices, but rather on manipulations and psychological pressures which are commonly brought to bear in cults. I found it easy to identify experientally with the material, without being challenged and put off by attacks on my strange beleif system which I was still disengaging from.

Customer Reviews:

Good book, worth the time to read - target is college students.......2007-06-20

This is a very good book to encourage all Christians to take very seriously the commandment of Christ to love the Lord our God with all of our minds! Gill examines some of the common obstacles in today's world that serve as excuses for many which has resulted in a loss of the "Christian mind." He challenges Christians who are well-educated by today's standards to examine if they are thinking and applying their Christianity to their fields of study or expertise - most are not. Gill then dives in to explain what he thinks are the six characteristics which define a Christian way of thinking: (1) a theological mind; (2) a historical mind; (3) a humanist mind; (4) an ethical mind; (5) a truthful mind; and (6) an aesthetic mind. Gill goes on to encourage the reader to develop a plan that would strengthen their Christian mind, and learn to apply this Christian worldview in practical ways even at work. Gill obviously encourages a greater emphasis on reading and challenges Christians to redeem their time, not waste it watching TV!

The primary audience for the book seems to be college-aged students or young professionals who are looking to engage the world for Christ, but are lost as to what that looks like. The book is easy to read, and gives the reader some practical insight into developing a personal plan for self-examination as well as setting forth a comprehensive reading plan based in Scripture but fortified with the great works of the faith.

Taking every thought captive: Spiritual workouts to help renew your mind in God's truth

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Taking every thought captive: Spiritual workouts to help renew your mind in God's truth
Alaine Pakkala
Manufacturer: Lydia Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

Meditation | New Age | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 1886461325

Captive Hearts, Captive Minds: Freedom and Recovery from Cults and Abusive Relationships

Average customer rating:

Excellent!

Captive Hearts, Captive Minds: Freedom and Recovery from Cults and Abusive Relationships
Madeleine Landau Tobias , and Janja Lalich
Manufacturer: Hunter House
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Self-Help | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0897931459

Customer Reviews:

Excellent!.......2007-09-24

This is an excellent book for anyone who has survived abuse, whether in the family, in cults, or abusive relationships. Lots of helpful and insightful information for the recovery process. Highly recommended.

Average customer rating:

The Captive Mind
Czeslaw Milosz
Manufacturer: Vintage Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
ASIN: B000TZ8KZ8

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Captive Mind

Manufacturer: Vintage
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
ASIN: B000GSKB0U

Average customer rating:

Captive Mind
Raymond L. Rose
Manufacturer: Exhume Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Book Description

Captive Mind is a daily devotional book intended to develop awarness of God through daily activies. It is a user friendly guide to help Christians develop thought patterns consistant with Biblical virtues and become a disciple of Christ. It is intended for all Christians who love Christ and desire to be more like Him.

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The Captive Mind
Czeslaw Milosz
Manufacturer: Vintage Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding
ASIN: B0000CIN39

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The Captive Mind
Czeslaw Milosz
Manufacturer: Vintage Books A Division of Random House
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000UGFZDQ

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