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Book reviews for "Bowers,_C._A." sorted by average review score:

Let Them Eat Data: How Computers Affect Education, Cultural Diversity, and the Prospects of Ecological Sustainability
Published in Paperback by University of Georgia Press (20 October, 2000)
Author: C. A. Bowers
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Technology is an addictive drug...
Bowers' work is an excellent argument for careful reconsideration of "pushing" computing tools as a panacea. I was especially struck by hi intimation that technology is like a drug that causes addiction. Books of this type should be required reading for a variety of policymakers, and this particular book makes the issue of 'tech addiction" easy to understand.

A social analysis of the computer's effects on life
How do computers affect such diverse social issues as cultural diversity, educational quality and ecological systems? Let Them Eat Data provides a social analysis of the computer's effects on life, considering how computer-enforced cultural patterns contribute to global ecological problems. A unique, involving probe of some unusual effects of the new computer world.

Informative, insightful, & thought-provoking
In Let Them Eat Data: How Computers Affect Education, Cultural Diversity, And The Prospects Of Ecological Sustainability, C.A. Bowers discusses the issues that arise from the gap between common perceptions and the realities of global computing. These issues include the misuse use of the theory of evolution to justify and legitimate the global spread of computers. Bowers also covers the ecological and cultural implications of unmooring knowledge from its local contexts as it is digitized, commodified, and packaged for global consumption. Let Them Eat Data is informative, insightful, thought-provoking, and highly recommended reading for those with an interest in how the computer and the Internet are influencing popular culture, education, as well as creation and dissemination of information.


Educating for Eco-Justice and Community
Published in Paperback by University of Georgia Press (September, 2001)
Author: C. A. Bowers
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All educators should read this book!
After last year's impressive "Let Them Eat Data: How Computers Affect Education, Cultural Diversity, and the Prospects of Ecological Sustainability", this new book of Bowers establishes him in my view firmly as the Noam Chomsky of Environmental Education. Just as the latter has convincingly shown that the entire spectrum of mainstream politics, from conservative to progressive, shares in fact the same basic convictions with regard to Western capitalism and the US's right to govern the world, Bowers has made clear that almost all educational theories that were elaborated in the last half a century, including those intending to be progressive and radical, ignore the cultural roots of the ecological crisis we face. However radical and critical they might be of the capitalist system and its exploitation, they still buy into the modern myths of anthropocentrism, linear progress, development and the autonomous individual as the basic social unit. By doing this and by largely ignoring the environmental degradation, these theories perpetuate the system they claim to criticise.
Against these theories of Dewey, Freire, Peter McLaren, Henry Giroux and others, Bowers sets his eco-justice-based approach. Its most fundamental element is the insight that any educational reform has to be set within the framework of sustainability. Or in Bowers' words: "Reform efforts that contribute to eco-justice must address the right of future generations to inhabit an environment that has not been diminished by the greed and materialism of the current generation." This is the sine qua non and whatever we endeavour as teachers has to be judged against this background: "environmental issues must have primacy in thinking about educational reform." Bowers is very clear about the fact that only a society that reduces its dependence on consumerism, technology and experts can repeal the commodification of all aspects of life and thereby stands a chance of survival.
I believe that Bowers is a unique voice in the discourse of environmental education/ education for sustainability. This is due to two aspects of his work: firstly, he has the courage to question deeply held believes and fundamental convictions which others either dare not touch or are unaware of. Secondly, he has recognised that educational practice cannot continue to be a specialist discipline ignorant of the wider world around it. Only if education, just like any other (professional) activity, is framed by the limited carrying capacity of our planet, will there be any chance of it fulfilling its potential.

Every educator should read this book!
After last year's impressive "Let Them Eat Data: How Computers Affect Education, Cultural Diversity, and the Prospects of Ecological Sustainability", this new book of Bowers establishes him in my view firmly as the Noam Chomsky of Environmental Education. Just as the latter has convincingly shown that the entire spectrum of mainstream politics, from conservative to progressive, shares in fact the same basic convictions with regard to Western capitalism and the US's right to govern the world, Bowers has made clear that almost all educational theories that were elaborated in the last half a century, including those intending to be progressive and radical, ignore the cultural roots of the ecological crisis we face. However radical and critical they might be of the capitalist system and its exploitation, they still buy into the modern myths of anthropocentrism, linear progress, development and the autonomous individual as the basic social unit. By doing this and by largely ignoring the environmental degradation, these theories perpetuate the system they claim to criticise.
Against these theories of Dewey, Freire, Peter McLaren, Henry Giroux and others, Bowers sets his eco-justice-based approach. Its most fundamental element is the insight that any educational reform has to be set within the framework of sustainability. Or in Bowers' words: "Reform efforts that contribute to eco-justice must address the right of future generations to inhabit an environment that has not been diminished by the greed and materialism of the current generation." This is the sine qua non and whatever we endeavour as teachers has to be judged against this background: "environmental issues must have primacy in thinking about educational reform." Bowers is very clear about the fact that only a society that reduces its dependence on consumerism, technology and experts can repeal the commodification of all aspects of life and thereby stands a chance of survival.
I believe that Bowers is a unique voice in the discourse of environmental education/ education for sustainability. This is due to two aspects of his work: firstly, he has the courage to question deeply held believes and fundamental convictions which others either dare not touch or are unaware of. Secondly, he has recognised that educational practice cannot continue to be a specialist discipline ignorant of the wider world around it. Only if education, just like any other (professional) activity, is framed by the limited carrying capacity of our planet, will there be any chance of it fulfilling its potential.


Wow Canada!: Exploring This Land from Coast to Coast to Coast
Published in Paperback by Owl Communications (May, 2000)
Authors: Vivien Bowers and Daniel C. Hobbs
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WOW! The Kids Loved it!
I bought the Wow Canada book to use with the children I care for in their home. My thought was I would give them a sliver of an idea of life in another country! Little did I know that they would fall in love with Canada! One of my clients children tell their parents exact places in Canada that want to visit! Banff being a favorite! Each child I have shared this book with has gained so much knowledge and understanding of each provience. One can name all of the Proveinces by memory! I highly recommend this book! Looking for the same format for the US!

Wow, Canada is Great
Both my sons age 8 and 12 read this book from cover to cover. We live in Canada and are planning a trip to the western provinces this summer. Well they know all about the prairies now and have already decided where we should go next summer. The book is simple to read (my children's first language is French and they managed with no problems). It is filled with interesting tidbits and gave them a keen interest in our country.


Digital Analysis of Bite Mark Evidence
Published in Spiral-bound by Forensic Imaging Services LLC (01 February, 2000)
Authors: Raymond J. Johansen, Raymond Johansen, and C. M. Bowers
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DIGITAL ANALYSIS OF BITE MARK EVIDENCE
DIGITAL ANALYSIS OF BITE MARK EVIDENCE (Using Adobe® Photoshop®)

Raymond J. Johansen, DMD & C. Michael Bowers, DDS, JD

A BOOK REVIEW BY Howard S. Glazer, DDS, FAAFS

As we embark into the 21st century, state-of-the-art technology affords the forensic dentist the opportunity of using digital photography to better analyze and compare bite mark evidence.

Dr. Johansen and Bowers have provided a "how to" manual that specifically details those steps necessary to successfully use, and understand, digital analysis. It is imperative that the uniqueness of any individual characteristics of a bite mark, or those teeth that cause the mark, to be reliably, accurately and precisely analyzed in a replicable fashion. Such techniques do exist and the authors lead the reader to a full working knowledge of how to prepare, handle and utilize the evidence. All manipulations are handled via Adobe Photoshop 5.0®.

Subjects included in this text include: * scanning bite mark photographs * detecting and correcting photographic distortion * resizing the photograph to life size * printing, enhancing, and adding text to the photograph * scanning the suspect's casts and overlay fabrication * comparison methods

This book is a hands-on, reference that requires the operator to follow specific steps to achieve maximum and optimum results. At first, the tasks seem difficult, but repetition increases the operator's familiarity and ease of use. They include that a test case eases the reader's understanding and provide for immediate experience.

I encourage and enthusiastically recommend this book to all my forensic dental colleagues. The techniques learned herein will become the benchmark for digital analysis of photographic evidence.


The Dramatic Works in the Beaumont and Fletcher Canon
Published in Hardcover by Cambridge University Press (February, 1983)
Authors: John Fletcher, Francis Beaumont, Fredson Bowers, and C Bowers
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An interesting collection
Having taught B&F in my early 17th cent. drama class, I can recommend Wit without Money and, to some extent, The Wild-Goose Chase. I would not bother with Wife for a Month, one of the weakest and poorly written of their collaborations. Nevertheless, this is a handy book.


Go MAD: Make a Difference
Published in Paperback by Chess Press (15 April, 2003)
Authors: C. Kevin Wanzer, Eric Chester, Ed Gerety, Willie Jolley, Mark Bernstein, Mike Patrick, Byron V. Garrett, Patty Hendrickson, Keith Hawkins, and Ryan Underwood
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Go MAD: Make a Difference
My daughter LOVED this book. Sometimes I would hear her laughing from the other room as she read it. She would even bring up some of the issues she read about during dinner. She said that even though it was written by adults, it was presented in "her language" (funny, I thought she spoke English like the rest of us). She really liked the chapters by Mark Bernstein and Keith Hawkins in particular. Thanks for a great read. Go MAD is great!


The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling (The Wesleyan Edition of the Works of Henry Fielding)
Published in Paperback by Wesleyan Univ Pr (September, 1977)
Authors: Henry Fielding, Martin C. Battestin, and Fredson Bowers
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The Story of a Foundling
It was about time I read "Tom Jones." Fielding's 1749 novel gives us a panoramic view of 18th century British life. Its titular hero journeys among the low- and high-born trying to find his way in a world in which he occupies a precarious position. Fielding uses the sprawl of 800 pages to explore a multitude of social, political, and literary issues, gluing them together with an exquisitely outlandish, fully embodied sense of humour.

The action of the novel begins with a view of the Allworthy family, a landed gentleman, Thomas Allworthy and his sister, Bridget. Into this family is dropped an orphan, a foundling - a child, if you will, of questionable parentage. This child, Tom Jones, is raised alongside Bridget's child, Blifil, as relative equals. Both are tutored by two ideologues, the philosopher Square and the theologian Thwackum. Jones is a precocious, free-spirited youngster, spoiled by Allworthy while Blifil, the heir apparent to the estate, becomes the favourite pupil and spoiled accordingly by his mother. As the two youths age, Tom develops a fondness for the neighbour's daughter, Sophia Western.

Tom's sexual development begins to get him in trouble, as it tends to throughout the novel, and as a result of one such incident, coupled with the goading jealousy of Blifil, Tom is driven out of the Allworthy home, left to seek his fortunes in the world. Meeting his supposed father, Partridge, on the road, the two begin a quixotic ramble across England. Sophia, meanwhile, pressured into marrying Blifil, runs away from home, beginning her own voyage of discovery.

"Tom Jones" begins with the narrator likening literature to a meal, in which the paying customer comes expecting to be entertained and satisfied. All 18 books of "Tom Jones" start out with such authorial intrusions, each cluing us into the writer's craft, his interactions with his public, and various other topics. This voice is actually sustained throughout the novel, providing a supposedly impartial centre of moral value judgments - each of which seems to tend toward enforce Fielding's project of a realistic, and yet, didactic portrayal of a world full of flawed characters.

Some of the issues the novel deals most extensively with are modes of exchange, anxieties over female agency, and the power of rumour and reputation. Exchange and the ways in which value is figured include a wide range of goods - money, bodies, food, and stories - and are integral to the story. The treatment of women is a great concern in "Tom Jones": from Partridge's perpetual fear of witchcraft to the raging arguments between Squire Western and his sister over how Sophia should be treated, to general concerns about sexuality and virtue. A novel that can be in turns hilarious, disturbing, and provoking, "Tom Jones" is never dull. Despite its size, the pace of the novel is extremely fast and lively. So, get thee to a superstore and obtain thyself a copy of this excellent and highly entertaining novel.

A long read. . . but well worth it. . .Guffaw your heart out
Journey with a guy with much testosterone, but a HUGE heart. I was not looking forward to reading this book for my 18th Century British novel class, but upon starting to read I found it to be a pleasurable story. This piqaresque novel has a humor that I have seldom encountered in other narratives. What is ironic is that Fielding wrote this piece during one of the most traumatic periods of his life. His wife just passed away, his daughter was dying, and he was inflicted with the gout. One would never think it from the clever way the book is written. The point of view gives us an in so that we feel as if we ourselves have roles in the storyline. Rooting all the way for Tom despite his flaws, we find out more about human nature along the way. A good read, light a candle and sit down with some wine like they would've and enjoy this classic comical delight.

One of the Best!
I first picked up Tom Jones because to put it bluntly I am a bibliophile and it was a cheap book. However, I was suprised at how engaging and hilarious the story was despite the claims on the back cover, which are often far off. To tell the truth I did not expect to make it through this extremely lengthy tome, I only wanted to satisfy my curiousity.

Although I am a fan of Jane Austen I was shocked by the freshness and wit that Fielding's writing still retains. Every book in the novel begins with an essay by the author. Do not skip these, they are one of the best features of the book. My favorite is the essay before the ninth book which explains the purpose of these introductory chapters. What a riot!

The story of big hearted and big appetited Tom Jones and his adventures and misadventures is one long satirical gem. Fielding's interpretation of morals, piousness, love, and high society is still as hilarious and relevant as it was in the 18th century. For anyone who appreciates wit and history, this is a must read.


Foil Fencing (Wm C Brown Sports and Fitness Series)
Published in Paperback by WCB/McGraw-Hill (March, 1993)
Author: Muriel Bower
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A good basic guide to the sport
This is a clearly written basic introduction to Olympic-style sport foil fencing, with good illustrations. It is much more readable than most others, and is written for a U.S. audience. Foil is the weapon most often used to teach beginners, and though I am a sabre fencer I found this book very useful during my first year.


Manual of Forensic Odontology
Published in Paperback by Manticore Europe Limited (1995)
Authors: C. Michael Bowers DDS JD DABFO and Gary L. Bell DD DABFO
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Forensic Dentistry
A great book for the uninitiated. The book opens the world of forensic dentistry to the general dentist and health professional.


Agriculture, the Countryside and Land Use: An Economic Critique
Published in Paperback by Routledge (Import) (November, 1983)
Authors: J. K. Bowers and P. C. Cheshire
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