A friend of mine recommended this book to me through a chat-site for people who like horror fiction. He warned me that it wasn't the typical vampire-horror fare and that, if I like "old fashioned" (stereotypical) type vampire fiction, I might not like NOCTURNES AND NEON... They were wrong!! I LOVED this book! I fell in love with the characters! I have since tried finding other books by MR. Armstead, but apparently he's a first-timer. If so, I sure hope he's working on more adventures with Quinn, The Adversary and his friends Novembre and Professor Silver! HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

NOCTURNES AND NEON was a fun read! I enjoyed the inspired craziness of some of the more homicidal characters and I liked the way the author kept building a sense of history in the conflicts, it gave depth to the way the characters interacted with each other.

The lead characters were very cool and very exciting: I liked Montgomery Quinn and Professor Patricia Silver. And I liked Mr. Armstead's creation of a whole vampire sub-culture with its own rules and codes of conduct. These blood-suckers were built for the New Millenium!

There were some elements of police procedural novels and espionage fiction in the book that I could have done without. I'm just not a fan of gun-toting, tough-talking secret agents. But their use made sense in the context of the book and I truly enjoyed the use of the Mafia family involved with the Moon-Chosen vampires. Again, Mr. Armstead made it make sense. This book doesn't seem to follow any real rules for horror fiction and goes it own way. And that, too, I appreciated!

Not boring and not the same old thing! Read and enjoy!

Wow! that's the only word that came to my mind when I turned the last page of this unforgettable supernatural thriller!Armstead has written one of the most gripping, violent imaginative vampire novels I've read since discovering Brian Lumley. He tells us a tale of vendattas than span the centuries and lethal conspiracies. He creates a new myth for vampires and he calls his creations Moon-chosen and they seek a biogenetics experiment that will control their blood-lust called the Need and walk in daylight! One of those who will oppose their plan is one of the formidable heroes that has ever been on a printed page. A immortal, unstoppable being called Montgomery Quinn and the vampires called him The Adversary!.He is one of the Olympians, a race of of immortal beings who's hunt vampires! He is aided on his mission by Professor Patricia Silver, Father Clement, a priest and exsoldier and Lorenz Novembre, a lethal agent of darklink, clandestine organization that battles occult forces!

Armstead's novel has brutal scenes of gunfights and hand to hand combat between our heroes and the dark forces. This book combines
intrigue and conspiracy worthy of Robert Ludlum as our heroes must contend with no only the vampires but their mafia connections and rogue government agents! The villians that dwell in this epic also execellent like the twisted and sadistic warlock Creighter, evil vampire lord Cartarrian and the sinister and seductive vampiress Helinor and brutal mafia don Vic Palmiotta.In this book entranced as Armstead takes you back in time showing some one the battles Quinn has had with vampires and showing also the arrogant cruel nature of this moon chosen as seek torture and kill humans for hunger and their amusement.Pick up this book and enter Quinn's world of vampires, warlocks and vengeance than spans centuries! and Mr. Armstead please write a sequel!

I am 17 years old, and I had just discovered Belloc (in The Path to Rome - lucky me!) when my grandma gave me this biography for Christmas. So it was all news to me; I've never read another biography of him. I loved all the quotes and anecdotes, and the prose is outstanding. It was often very sad, especially towards the end...

Here I have to say something about the reviewer who gave it two stars. I understand his feelings, I think, but his view of history is somewhat distorted: I'm sure he'd agree that the Catholic Reformation and Counter-Reformation were even more energetic with "intelligence and activity" than the Catholic Revival - with all of the saints, missionaries, scholars, artists and composers who worked to bring Europe and all the world to Christ. That said, the Catholic revival (literary and otherwise) was a unique and exhilarating period in the Church. It was not a "last twitching" before a "long decline" - the revival began in the early 19th century and continued about 60 years into the 20th. The decline was not long and slow but sudden and catastrophic - it has been going about 35 years. Every empirically measurable statistic in the 20th cen. Church - Mass attendance, vocations, converts, belief in key doctrines, etc. - shows either a high, constant rate or a steady upward trend - until the 1960's, when there is a sudden, almost exponential drop. The Church just hits a wall. It can't be wholy blamed on "sex, drugs, and rock 'n roll"; there is no equivalent collapse in Protestant denominations. Everything was just different after the council and the new Mass and all that. It's a good thing that Belloc didn't have to see this - it would have broken his heart. On the other hand, we need his fighting spirit now more than ever...

The "atmosphere of English Catholicism". I think Pearse does convey some of this. What struck me when I began to read English Catholic literature was this overpowering sense of elegy, and an awareness of injustice past and present that was almost too painful to read - but all of it balanced by levity and satire and soldierly faith. It was quite intoxicating to someone young and idealistic, and unaccustomed to it. It is found in many writers - you could almost tell that JRR Tolkien was an English Catholic just by reading "The Lord of the Rings" and "The Silmarilion". It even turns up in Chesterton's detective stories...

I think that Pearse does give us some of this atmosphere, but he is not really relating Belloc to the post-conciliar Church. A lot of Catholic authors today just don't want to think about this disparity - Pearse included? I hope not. Anyway, this is a very enjoyable biography with many stories of Belloc's life - his travels to Rome and America, his exploits in Parliament (with excerpts from his very provocative speeches!) his friendships with Chesterton and Maurice Baring... I still wish that Pearse would put photographs in his books through. Oh well.

Joseph Pearce has carved out a niche for himself as the primary biographer of Catholic Literary Greats. His volumes on Chesterton, Tolkien, and other literary figures are well worth reading. Although he has written of Hillaire Belloc in many of his other works, "Old Thunder" finally gives Belloc his due. The man who is remembered by many as a writer of children's verse is revealed to us as a powerhouse of journalism, fiction, and poetry. At the same time, we see a man of intense Catholic piety and devotion making his way through struggles with finances and the early loss of his greatly beloved wife.

If you enjoy literary biography, you'll find Pearce is a master. Jump in with "Old Thunder" and make the rounds through all of Pearce's work.

For Catholic Converts, "Old Thunder" is a must read. I am certain it is not the most well researched nor scholarly work on Belloc or the period of Catholic literary rennasaince. But as an introduction to the period and the players it is an excellent book.

Historians and biographers such as Joseph Pearce seem to be held in low regard by their peers. Nonetheless, in bringing charaters such as Belloc to the less well read they are invaluable.

The value of this book is also multiplied by Mr. Pearce's prose. Few writers of non-fiction are so preasurable to read. Old Thunder is an extraordinary biography.

I read this book and i think it should be read with caution and with an open mind. The author is brillant and makes alot of sense on paper however, in the addiction/recovery field for 20 years I personally would not use this book for the main reason it offers no assistance in the deep emotions that are underneath the addictions and teaches nothing on how to deal with them. Rediscovering yourself is wonderful and beautiful but the fact remains that alcoholic/addicts have habitual and self destructive behaviors and if the emotions are not addressed and you don't have constructive tools to deal with something like if you just got a call and a loved one was killed in a car accident and those emotions come up and the first thing that comes to mind is wanting the comfort of a drink..where in this book does it address that or a solution? It doesn't address the true difficulties of emotions and the role they play in addiction. Anyone can drop an addicitive substance but when they do many emotions come up to the surface they never knew they had. Fear being the main one. No matter how logical it sounds in this book those overwhelming feelings need a place and when tragedy hits all the logic and brillance of this book will leave you with nowhere to turn. I am a firm believer that everyone has a God inside their heart and that it is that God that is available 24/7 and this is not about AA or religion it's about the choice to believe that no matter what one faces you don't have to drink or participate in addictions or the addictive behaviors that continue even while sober if we pray to the God we have in our heart to help us. No man on earth has the divine wisdom and guidance one can get from a personal relationship with God and you dont' need AA to get it. You need a willing heart and a true desire to change and to go to God with a simple prayer " God help me" and he is available for free and you don't have to be intelligent or even be able to read or write. Use this book for constructive ways to think and to move forward and the education of the mind and it's graphs are outstanding. This book is very educational and explains addictions but logic and all the power of knowledge somehow never changes one's deceitful heart or self absorption and Dr. De Sena's belief that we don't need God to overcome addiction is true. We can stop at any time but then what? How do we FEEL?? How many times people would say happiness is from within but how do we get to the happiness within? Not by knowledge. We all know addiction is destructive. We don't want to do these things and even after we drop them we get angry that we lost our comfort of a drink or whatever we use and we find that we can read this book but the emotions we feels are still there screaming out..Fear of failure..I know better but I feel like I need this..Only a personal relationship with God can comfort and get us to truly change and live free of the bondage of our deceitful addictive minds and behaviors..My personal opinion is to feed your mind everyday with books, tv, radio etc. that are spiritual based and remind you that you have God. Meditation books that are God based have been my number one tool as a drug/alcohol/addictive behavior counselor and having a notebook to write everyday any worry or concern or emotion that comes up and once you write it you turn it over to the God inside your heart and release yourself from feeling responsible for everything. The harder you are on yourself the further you receded. The more you write and release the freedom comes along with the daily injesion of positive stories of hope and truth of how God transforms people and brings them not only sober but to the purpose and destiny of their life. Only God knows each person. There is no man who can advise you to what is best for you except God. So I end with saying I agree with Dr. De Sena's premise for choices completely. I am not against AA or 12 step but will not ever believe that a manmade book, program or a manmade religion is ever the solution. It's your own personal relationship with God that will be the path to not only sobriety but destiny/purpose and a true transformation and this is what I teach and have seen the most success and miracles in those who take the time to pray and listen and follow God's voice and block out man's. If someone has a suggestion for you always take it to God for he is the only one who knows you and what will work for you in all areas..have a true journey and enjoy the education of this book but never forget that true success is in being a loving person and no matter how many times you may fail God is always forgiving and right there to pick you up and start over. Everyday is a new chance and the idea of one day at a time just means let's not miss our chances today to give and receive love for we never know when we or our loved ones shall pass and if love is number one for the day it is more powerful than any addiction in the world..

I am a physician who has worked in addiction medicine for many years. I read Overcoming Your Alcohol, Drug and Recovery Habits after reading all the reviews at Amazon.com. Since it's against Amazon.com rules to comment on specific reviews, I will say that I felt compelled to write this review because there are dogmatic "recovery" thinkers who will make false statements about the contents of this book to deceive you. Please know that Dr. DeSena goes beyond the traditional treatment/recovery mindset, which routinely stresses, (unconstructively for many) that the substance abuser's "deep emotional troubles" are the root cause of their addictions. Simply stated, there is no universal law of addiction that states there MUST be some deep, troubling emotion(s) underlying all addictive behavior. There is again no universal law for overcoming an addiction that requires said "deep emotions" to be "treated." Furthermore, using religious mumbo-jumbo and talk of God, these "recovery experts" will insist that you can only manage your emotions and maintain your sobriety with Divine guidance. Such propaganda is a proselytizing tactic used to convert the substance abuser to the "recovery expert's" particular theological beliefs.

Traditional addiction treatment focuses excessively on emotions both during the treatment phase and for dealing with life post addiction. While managing your emotions is important, your emotions are not as unmanageable as most addiction treatment providers and the recovering community would have you believe. In fact Dr. DeSena notes the following in reference to emotions: "Addiction therapists want to analyze your emotional/psychological disturbances. By dint of mastering ones addictive behavior, these disturbances typically fade and emotional stability and general well-being often follow within a few weeks of stopping drinking/drugging..." This is something the traditional addiction treatment providers don't want you to know.

Nonetheless, Dr. DeSena empowers the reader by showing him or her how to develop emotional security and self-reliance. He explains how your thinking creates your emotions/feelings and offers solid advice based on empirical evidence to show you how to better manage your thinking, which in turn leads to healthier, positive emotions-even if some tragedy should befall you. He addresses this through the "Downsize story" and he talks of how to attain a new perspective of your circumstances and environment to help you fine-tune your healthier, positive emotions. This is particularly helpful during sobriety's early days when emotions can run high and the urge to intoxicate is strongest. It is equally helpful for handling post addiction urges and for dealing with life's ever changing conditions as you live your newly sober life.

Many people simply want to end their self-defeating addictions and get on with their lives. They want to escape the "God speeches," and the incessant babble of miracles, which encompass the recovering mentality. Nevertheless, God is paramount in many people's lives whether or not addiction is an issue. Indeed, Dr. DeSena talks about pursuing God, religion and spirituality when you want, with whom you want, and if you want-not because you have to pursue them as the means to get and stay sober-and not because you must pursue them to handle your emotions, either. The choice to incorporate them into your life is YOURS, not zealous missionaries who masquerade as addiction/recovery counselors and experts on emotions.

So, read Overcoming Your Alcohol, Drug and Recovery Habits. I heartily recommend it. It exposes, (with candor and at times with fitting, well placed humor) recovery/addiction treatment nonsense. It contains the proven methods used by those who know how to end their self-defeating addiction(s), manage their lives and emotions, and who also live quite happily. This book gives you all that and more without the sermons of theistic extremists who evangelize their particular brand of God controlled recovery in callous disregard of the truth, your needs and your sensibilities.

Dr. Jim DeSena's book goes beyond what I had been searching for. While I had read many of the alternative AA recovery books and found them very helpful, it was Overcoming Your Alcohol, Drug and Recovery Habits that I found extremely helpful. As if the words were written especially for me, this book spoke to me like no other. The information in this book answered the gnawing questions about "recovery" that have plagued me for years. For one, all of the alternative books still spoke of recovering from alcohol and drugs. At best, they spoke of becoming fully recovered. But none of the alternative books ever suggested discarding the "recovery," "recovering," "recovered" mentality as Dr. DeSena's book does. His use of the word, "Discovery" instead of recovery was a liberating breath of fresh air. I found this concept alone to be most empowering.

Also, Dr. DeSena's unique look at the recovery process really hit home. This is a process that for many people in "recovery," Dr. DeSena terms, "The Recovery Merry-Go-Round." Rehab after rehab, therapist after therapist, and AA meeting after AA meeting was the recovery merry-go-round that I had been spinning on for years. Yet after all that, I never felt secure with my "sobriety." My "sobriety" was a merely a temporary "gift," given one-day-at-a-time, which I could only keep if I continued working the AA program and attending meetings. I truly believe that all that is behind me now. I have chalked up my recovering past to a hard lesson that I'll never repeat. I've begun to live a recovery-free life of Discovery. It's something I never dreamed possible, but it is possible. I now know what freedom feels like. And for me, it's not only freedom from alcohol and drugs, (I finally feel secure about my sobriety) but it's also freedom from a lifetime of meetings and recovering. Now that's a real gift! It's clear why the title of Dr. DeSena's book speaks of overcoming your alcohol, drug AND recovery habits. This book has changed my life. Thank you, Dr. Jim DeSena, thank you.

While the books premise is interesting and creative, I did not come away with the feeling that the authors had proved their point. Too many questions were left unanswered, such as why are broken fossils are found along the edges of the pyramid blocks. Entertaining, but too far outside of mainstream science to be believable.

I read this title when it was first published based on a brief in William Corliss' "Science Frontiers". This book is easy to understand and its premise easy to grasp and accept. It is out of print, but generally used copies can be found using the usual online searches. Check your local public and college libraries for copies as well.

There is no ancient account of the way the pyramids were built. The story told to Herodotus during his visit 2500 years ago suggests that the Egyptian tour guides of that time were as full of flummery as tour guides are today, and unaware of their country's history.

The conventional view -- that individual stones were used -- might work if all four sides were under construction at the same time, but this requires ramps or scaffolding. It is typical in such a model for a single ramp to wrap around.

The idea that the "stones" could be formed in situ is compelling on its own, but gains credence due to the difficulty of quarrying, smoothing, transporting, and placing full sized stones with such rapidity, particularly in the new, incredible, pseudo-historical claims by Zahi Hawass that there were no slaves in ancient Egypt, and that the stones of the Great Pyramid aren't nearly as numerous or as heavy as has been claimed.

The destruction of the mountain in Brazil which has been a hand-dug gold mine for forty or so years supports the credibility of Davidovits' idea -- that mountain has vanished and a huge pit opened under the old site, 40 pounds at a time, using ordinary digging tools and handmade ladders.

This book is highly recommended. Read it instead of the attacks that have been made against it, against the author, and against favorable reviews.

-:- No, the pyramids weren't used to generate electricity during the Old Kingdom.

-:- No, the pyramids weren't built by extraterrestrials or Atlanteans.

-:- Yes, the pyramids were used as tombs, but were robbed centuries ago.

-:- Yes, the Biblical Israelites may have constructed pyramids, but those were Middle Kingdom in date, and located in the Fayyum (see Herodotus' discussion of those mud brick structures which have for the most part vanished).

Also recommended:

-:- Voices of the Rocks by Robert Schoch et al

-:- Serpent in the Sky by John Anthony West

-:- The Mysteries of the Sphinx (VHS)

-:- Plato Prehistorian by Mary Settegast

-:- Ages In Chaos by Immanuel Velikovsky

-:- The Secret of Crete by Hans Wunderlich (out of print)

This is one of the most curious theories I have ever encountered, and I encountered it by chance walking through the stacks of a large library. The theory that the Pyramids were built by a process of pouring concrete is so ingenious that I have always been left wondering if it is correct, and why it is never cited anywhere else. This interpretation would resolve at once many of the difficulties involved in explaining the original construction of such tremendous structures, for as the author notes the usual accounts confront a host of contradictions.

Antenna books follow either the practical approach (e.g. Carr's Practical Antenna Handbook) or the mathematical approach (e.g. John Kraus's Antennas). To be a true antenna expert, one has to know both. But for the majority of us who are not equipped to handle the mathematical approach, the practical approach will do just fine, in which case I would recommend ARRL's Antenna Book and Carr's Practical Antenna Book. Carr's book is more readable, but ARRL's is much more comprehensive.

I get the uneasy feeling, however, that Carr may not be a true antenna expert. For one thing, I am not aware that he writes research-level papers on the subject. Moreover, his book has hints of what appears to be his disdain of the mathematical approach. These two things do not really bother me. What is more significant, however, is that he seems to have made some fundamental errors. For example, on page 127 he describes a vertical wire with the current going up. If you look DOWN into the wire, you will see concentric circles of the magnetic field about the wire. Whereas Carr says the circles will appear clockwise (left-hand rule), all my other books say they will appear counterclockwise (right-hand rule, from the Biot-Savart law). For example, page 82 of John Kraus's Electromagnetics With Applications (Fifth Edition) says that the circles are counterclockwise. Kraus is a famous expert on antennas, and has been awarded IEEE's Thomas Edison gold medal and Heinrich Hertz gold medal. See also page 136 of Schaums Outline, Electromagnetics, Second Edition, which agrees with Kraus.

I am not an expert on the subject, so I may be wrong in my analysis. If indeed Carr has made a mistake, that mistake is not a typo error (he calls it the left-hand rule and the diagram shows a left hand) but is a basic misunderstanding of the subject. It is almost like saying that electrons are positively charged, or that the electric field is the positive gradient of the electric potential.

On the other hand, ARRL's book gives me the assurance that it was written by experts. That reassurance is important to me, a non-expert on the subject.

Anyway, the subject of antennas is too vast for any one individual to cover comprehensively, simply because each antenna type requires a lot of time for analysis and experimentation. Hence I prefer ARRL's multi-author approach (with technical checks and balances) to Carr's one-man approach. Moreover, Carr contains no bibliographical references, whereas ARRL provides you with tons of references for further reading.

I am still giving Carr's book four stars because it is full of helpful information and genuine insight into antennas. Carr is an antenna veteran who explains things better than most experts do.

An overwhelming text written for the novice and well as the expert in mind. If you want to build an antenna or have looked up curiously at the antenna in your neighbor's yard, then this is the book that will give you the answer as well as anything else you could need to get into the world of communications and RXing.

As a radio operator for an Airborne Infantry (Long-Range Surveillance) unit, this book is indispensable! If you need an HF antenna for a certain wavelength or a specific job, or want an explanation of how long-range 'sky-wave' communications work, then this book is a must have!

I think it has the makings of a good handbook. However, I think the author should have had it reviewed by his RF colleagues. Being no RF expert, I was able to pick out several obvious mistakes. A few gems: Pg. 64, "Velocity factor (v) of 0.80, which means that the wave propagates along the line at 8 - 10 the speed of light". Pg 284, Hot S22 Methods, Lists all the S parameter formulas but leaves out S22.

Several times in the book, Joseph Carr tries to point out the significance of the Third-order intercept point with variations of the same graph along with variations of the same description. I would rather have settled for one in depth explanation. By the way Joseph, just how do you come up with the straight-line equation for the 3rd Order Response?

There were some good examples on plots using the Smith Charts. However, the graphs were barely legible.

This is my first Joseph Carr book and I am totally hooked.
Being a new ham and with no EE background, I find this book to be very clear and easy to understand, even for newbies like myself.

To fully grasp the ideas inside I would guess being a ham
helps. With basic college EE background this book sure is
a breeze to read. This is also a good handbook in case you forget RF fundamentals.

I am looking forward to buying more Josheph books.

frank chen, bx2ah, taipei

This book is a truly outstanding reference for the RF laboratory. (It is so good, that I'm thinking about buying a second copy just in case I ever lose the first) Although this book says it is a "technician's handbook", I think engineers and technicians alike will find this book invaluable. If you are a young engineer, this book will answer all of the "stupid" questions you're afraid to ask your more senior colleagues. If you are a senior engineer, this book will help you remember how to perform that obscure receiver benchmark measurement. You really can't lose with this book.

I really wanted to like this book, especially with the sub-plot of a geneological search. But the characters are so trite and the dialogue very wooden. I had to force myself to continue to get the questions answered and then, finally at the end...nothing. OK, the climax was surprising, but no motivation given, so you have no idea whay any of these characters are doing these goofy things. And they are so, well, blah. I suppose this was thrilling stuff back in 1974, well, maybe not then, either. And the climax comes in the last paragraph, you see how the two main characters intersect, sort of, but I was left wondering...is that it?! What a let-down. Save your time, don't bother with this book. I wish I had the hours back that I spent with it.

Joseph Hallahan has a flair for the unconventional in his writing. In The Search for Joseph Tully he manages to incorporate supernatural and genealogical themes into a very original suspense novel.

The Search for Joseph Tully has a nice sense of its own pacing. Hallahan carefully establishes a bleak mood early in the book, which he skillfully intensifies. The plot has two parallel threads: the genealogical research of a young Englishman into the family of one Joseph Tully; and the deepening feeling of foreboding experienced by a resident of an abandoned Brooklyn apartment building. The two threads are skillfully interwoven for an ending which is not so much surprising as stunning (I'm trying to keep the spoilers to a minimum here).

Hallahan is especially talented in drawing the supporting characters of the novel. The genealogical details manage to be compelling in their own right. The Brooklyn thread drags a little more, but on the whole this is a nicely calibrated work of suspense. It's truly a shame that Hallahan hasn't published more.

The best thriller I have ever read! It makes you shiver and tremble.

Are all over the places, for example, on bookpool.com
is it the same word for word review, just the name of "reviewer" is different, it is " Satish Vare from USA". All these sale's pitches make me very unhappy, least to say and it doesn't add to credibility of selling company either!

I just read the 1st book in the kit and passed the first exam on OCA/OCP for 9i SQL. Got 54/57.

Users have also to practice on other testing (or any other similar test guide) exams. Else, you may pass it borderline (or even fail borderline). So, a combo of this kit and an outside question-answer type practice exams should pass anybody.

Now, on to my next course - Oracle 9i DBA Fund I !!

okay, i'm not a salesman nor do i work for the publisher. If you search amazon.com for the individual book titles in this kit you'll find LOTS of great user reviews. that's why I bought this kit (as opposed to the many negative reviews for the Oracle press books and others). I took the first exam last week and passed it and I can tell you that this book helped me tremendously. The writing style is factual, with no fluff, and it's organized very well with plenty of great examples to illustrate concepts. Plus the CD-ROM contains the books in PDF format so searches are easy. I guess the only criticism I can think of is related to the practice exams. Don't get me wrong they were awesome (an exam for each chapter plus 3 sample exams and hundreds of flash cards), but the real exam had different types of questions, I mean the real exam was more challenging and thought-provoking. I breezed through the book's sample exams but used nearly the entire 2 hours taking the real one. I'm studying for the second exam now and so far love the style of the second book too. Now that I've been thru the first exam I think I know what to expect from Oracle so I'm reading the second book and taking the practice exams with a different perspective. These are great books, I can't imagine why people would give them anything less than 4 or 5 star unless they had a grudge against the authors or something...

The book is mistitled as 'Principles' since it does not really do justice to the foundations of the field. It is more of a compilations of the research work of a 'few' investigators in the field.

This is a great book, covering most details of its field. It describes the physicians (and their patients) dream of substituting organs and cells and it also shows, how mankind could not solve problems ' up to now. History of artificial organs lacking the full function is one point, but the focus is on cells and their ability to build complete organs ' and therefore the book looks on the pathway for the future of organ substitution.
The introduction covers some main ideas of tissue engineering ' what do we want ' what are we able to do ' what do we still have to get knowledge of. After a short review of the history, the essentials of cell biology (Growth, Differentiation) are being introduced. The reader should have an idea of developmental biology to be able to follow topics like induction and morphogenesis. The authors emphasize the importance of the extracellular matrix as one of organ-prosthesis' main building blocks (ECM = scaffold; cells = function; cell signalling = integration and physiology).
The second part describes technical aspects of in-vitro organ synthesis: tissue culture and ECM, tissue culture und growth factors, bioreactors and vascularization. The third part continues with in-vivo techniques of organ reparation, exemplified by methods for substitution of the ECM of skin, peripheral nerves and meniscus.
Parts 4 ' 6 develop models for the substitution of the ECM (Collagen, BioPolymers), their implantation in the receiving organism and the resulting immunologic problems (emphasized).
Parts 7 ' 20 are concerned with the organs themselves. After few words about stem cells and gene therapy the book explains reconstruction and substitution methods for breast, heart and blood vessels, Cornea, endocrine glands, liver (very good), kidney and haematopoietic system. Biomechanical problems are outlined in the part about the musculoskeletal system. On this place tissue engineering celebrates its oldest success (cartilage substitution). Today innervation processes are being focused.
The book continues with substitutes for the senses (ear and eye), nerve cells, nerve regeneration and neural stem cells. Dents and skin could be all to make an ill patient 'healthy' by substitutes, one might think. But no, western medicine also knows something about substitutes for womb and placenta'
On me the book made a good impression. The only point is: it's quite too much text and too few pictures. It addresses medicals after their exams, practicing physicians and biologists. Chapters focus on the basic principles. There is a large number of links to more detailed publications.

A vast, detailed summary of the latest advances in tissue engineering.

This star, you're lucky it got that.

Grizzly Bear, Megalisgirl@aol.com

I had a slight interest in radio before enrolling in a class at the University of Southern California. One day, I went to the bookstore to get my course books early and picked this one up. It's a true eye-opener and such a good reference text. If you have any desire to learn about radio in any facet at all, pick this one up - you won't regret it.

No doubt the best book ever on this subject. Wonderfully worthwhile.