Many excellent books analyze models/methods to represent curves and surfaces in Computer-Aided Design &
Manufacturing (CAD/CAM) systems, but this is the first one focusing on solving some very complex geometric
modeling problems underlying many engineering applications. The authors identify these bottleneck problems,
analyze them in detail, and present state-of-the-art solution algorithms. These important problems are:

"Intersection problems" (Chapters 5 and 6), "Distance calculations" (Chapter 7),
"Curve/Surface Interrogation" (Chapters 8 and 9), "Computation of Shortest Paths" (Chapter 10), and
"Offset Curves and Surfaces" (Chapter 11).

In each one of the above chapters, the corresponding problem is fully analyzed using tools from advanced
Geometric Modeling, Numerical Methods and Differential Geometry, some of which are new results previously
available only in research journals. The authors have done an excellent job in collecting all these results in
a single volume, offering an invaluable tool to CAD/CAM professionals who do not have the time to study
and analyze themselves all this literature.

The solutions proposed go beyond standard tricks and heuristics: the problems are formulated as systems
of nonlinear equations and reliable solution-algorithms are offered based either on standard methods or
on fresh research. Robustness issues (accuracy, treatment of special cases, singularities, etc) are at the center
of discussion guiding the reader on dealing with the most difficult aspects of geometric-software development.

In short, this book is a powerful tool for CAD/CAM professionals (software architects/developers,
consultants, engineers/users, academic teachers and researchers, etc) as:
1) Very useful results are analyzed, that alternatively are available only in advanced mathematical texts and current research publications.
2) Problems are discussed in detail using theoretical results as well as examples.
3) Robust solution methods are presented, based on a solid mathematical analysis as opposed to heuristics.
4) All prerequisites are fully analyzed in the first 4 chapters, making the volume self-contained.

This is excellent work. I've already worn out my first copy of the tapes and, sadly, this isn't available as a CD. Courtney and Aldred are both exceptional voice actors and do a wonderful job in bringing selected stories from the book Short Trips to life. This is a worthy investment for a Who Fan with a long drive or with children s/he wants to help introduce to reading since a child can follow along with the text in the (not included) book version.

I must say that The Silent Woman is not only one of the best books I have read by Edward Marston, yet one of the best books I have ever read period. Edward has given it the best qualities a mystery novel should have and he has with out a doubt turned it into something special!

I think any musical theatre or opera performer will relate to the accessible and sympathetic way De Mallet Burgess and Skilbeck communicate their ideas. They have a real insider's grasp of their subject. I've had a go at some of the exercises and I am already becoming aware of aspects of my stage work that I know will benefit. What makes this book so enjoyable is that it is written from the performer's point of view. There is never any attempt to mystify. Quite the opposite - the gauntlet of detailed technical excellence is thrown down without ever forgetting that the ultimate aim is to put on a jolly good show; probably underfunded; possibly underrehearsed but with heart and soul. Excellent!

If you are confused about which of the myriad of skin care formulas you should be using, this book will help you understand what they are to do and which is best for you. excellent book

With the turn of each page, the book's illustrations will grow to five feet. On one side of the book, peer into a cutaway of Chicago's John Hancock Center. On the flip side, size up the world's tallest structures--from Ulm Cathedral spire to the CN Tower--all drawn to scale. Climb to the top as the story of skyscrapers unfolds in this unforgettable book.

In the course of my life I have spent many hours pouring over volume after volume of musical history. I am a professional clarinetist. Most things written by musicologists are incredibly boring. It's nothing personal against them, it just simply is. I will never forget the time I sat in the Deering Library in Northwestern University and read the introduction to Baker's Biographical Dictionary of Musicians. I had been in the library for the better part of the day, and decided to find out what Mr. Slonimsky had to say. I was immeadtley engrossed with the writing. Slonimsky was not only fluent and informative. He was downright funny. I was amazed to be reading a book that weighed more than most small dogs, and still find it funny. I came to realize that Slonimsky was no ordinary musicologist. He was an incredibly intresting man. He was not only a historian, but a composer. He compiled an enormous volume of scales and patterns whick most jazz players use frequently. At the age of 85, his best friend was Frank Zappa. He is the only musicologist I have ever known that appeared on the Carson Show. And, he is also the most accurate historian I have ever read. Slonimsky goes to great length to verify his sources. I would be willing to belive just about anything published under his pen. This Book of Musical Anectdotes is no exception. It is full of strange, and true tales of the most famous of musicians. All great musicians are genuises, and most of them are very strange. Mr. Slonimsky captures the true essence of the composers, and lets us see what else they did besides compose glorious music. A truly excellent, witty book.

I realy liked the book as for the first time I have the chance to have a book with more illustrations and pictures and less words . The approach is very practical and there is also a chapter dealing with the equipment for surgery and great chapter for the post op and follow up. STRONGLY RECOMMENDED

Eyal Nachmias DVM BSC Pet Clinic ISRAEL

Somewhere about two thirds of the way through this book I put it down & said to myself "these people are crazy!" Then I picked it up again and said "But Gosh, I wish I could have been there". A good chunk of the book is background to clipper ships in general & specifically the history of the "last American Clipper" but there is also the riveting account of a group of "crazies" who find the remains of SNOWSQUALL abandoned and rotting at a dock in the South Atlantic and do their best to save at least part of her for a maritime museum back in the States. That they succeed (at least in part) frankly left me a little teary-eyed. Those of you who aren't at least a little bit "odd" when it comes to Tall Ships may say "why bother?" My guess is that after reading this book you may begin to understand. For those of us who already have the disease, you will be rooting for the authors and their friends the whole way. Nicely written, nicely illustrated, a real "keeper".

Not all history is made by the likes of George Washington, Napolean, or Babe Ruth--larger than life individuals. Sometimes, lesser known luminaries from smaller locales make a significant mark. Such is the case with Nicholas Comfort, as shown exquisitely by Robert Cottrell. Professor Cottrell, the author of biographies about I.F. Stone and Roger Nash Baldwin, recounts in this carefully researched and beautifully told biography the story of a minor character in history who bravely stood up to larger forces. Comfort, a professor of religion at the University of Oklahoma, was ahead of his time--in a region not necessarily receptive to his mindset. For example, Comfort stood up against racism by confronting the KKK and befriending black leaders. He stood up to the powers of a people at war by supporting pascifism. Cottrell's biography depicts the actions of a brave man with unpopular convictions. This compelling biography is told with compassion, and again marks Cottrell as one of our most important biographers of the radical left.