What a book..."The Book of life." Why it's a modern cartoon book of paleontology. Though its wonderful life-like illustrations and tree-of-life charts are delivered as scientific facts, they are simply graphic theories that illustrators doll up into hypothetical reality. If you like science and fiction, here is a book for you. The realistic pictures belie the text, which says: "We do not even know how to conceptualize, much less to draw the worldview that would place Homo sapiens into proper relationship with the history of life."

Its authors caveat is that "science can only operate as a work in progress without perfect knowledge, and we much therefore leave a great deal out from ignorance --- especially in a historical field like paleontology, where we must work with the strictly limited evidence of a very imperfect fossil record." It's that fossil record, that the book presumes is accurate in its layer-by-layer record through time, that requires scrutiny. The oldest fossils are found in the bottom layers and the youngest in the top layers of rock, but little or no evidence is presented to provide skeptical readers information they can decipher for themselves as to the accuracy of fossil dating by rock layers. Are we to believe, without exception, that the fossil record is progressive from bottom to top? What about fossilized trees that protrude through millions of years of time? They are conveniently omitted. Michael Benton of England's Bristol University, one of the book's contributors, says "All the periods in the geological time scale receive their names in recognition of obvious changes in the fossil record." Yet, to the contrary, Benton adds, "the history of Earth's crust has been far too violent to preserve much more than a random sample."

Its general editor, Stephen Jay Gould, is magnanimous in his promotion of a single theory of man's origins, from monkeys he and most other fossil hunters say.

There may be missing pieces to the paleontological puzzle, but the bone diggers cliam they have finally filled in the evolutional blanks and can conclusively attest to the idea that life evolved from simpler single-celled organisms into modern man. The book's most ardent opponents are taken head on by Gould: "The lack of fossil intermediates had often been cited by creationists as a supposedly prime example for their contention that intermediate forms not only haven't been found in the fossil record but can even be conceived." But Gould holds a trump card. He says: "a lovely series of intermediary steps have now been found in rocks.... in Pakistan. This elegant series, giving lie to the creationist claims, includes the almost perfectly intermediate Ambulocetus (literally, the walking whale), a form with substantial rear legs to complement the front legs already known from many fossil whales, and clearly well adapted both for swimming and for adequate, if limited, movement on land." Oddly, the book never shows a drawing of Ambulocetus, but does have an illustration of a skeleton of a 400-million year old fish with a small underside fin bone the authors claim "must have evolved" into legs in four-legged animals. Man's imagination is not found wanting here. Out of millions of fossils collected and stored in museums, is Ambulocetus the main piece of evidence for evolutionary theory?

Richard Benton says that Charles Darwin had hoped the fossil record would eventually confirm his theory of evolution, but "this has not happened," says Benton. Darwin hoped newly-discovered fossils would connect the dots into a clear evolutionary pattern. The book attempts to do that with its fictional drawings of apes evolving into pre-humans (hominids) and then modern man. Yet the book is not without contradictions. It says: "It remains uncertain whether chimpanzees are more closely related to modern humans or to the gorilla."

The horse is shown as evolving from a small, four-toed to a large one-toed animal over millions of years. There are different varieties of horses, yet there is no evidence that a horse ever evolved from another lower form of animal, nor that horses evolved into any other form of animal.

Another evolutionary puzzle that goes unexplained in the book is the pollination of flowers. How did bees and flowers arrive simultaneously in nature? What directed the appearance of one separate kingdom of life (insects) with that of another?

The book describes 6 1/2-foot millipedes and dragonflies with the wing span of a seagull, but gives no explanation for them. Life was unusual in the past and not all forms fit evolutionary patterns. Consider the popular supposition that life evolved from the sea onto land. That would make more advanced forms of intelligence land bearing. But the aquatic dolphins defy that model, since they are among the smartest mammals.

The book maintains an "out of Africa" scenario for the geographical origins of man, but recent fossil finds in Australia challenge that theory and even the book's authors admit that "a single new skull in an unexpected time or place could still rewrite the primate story." Consider Java man (Homo erectus), once considered the "missing link" and dated at 1.8 million years old. Modern dating methods now estimate Java man to be no more than 50,000 years of age, a fact that was omitted from this text.

Creativity, invention and language are brought out as unique human characteristics. Yet the true uniqueness of man is not emphasized. Humans biologically stand apart from animals in so many ways. Humans can be tickled whereas animals cannot. Humans shed emotional tears, animals do not. The book does not dare venture beyond structure and function, beyond cells and DNA, to ask the question posed by philosophers --- does man have a soul? The Bible speaks of a soul 533 times, this "book of life," not once.

Gould's temple is science. He calls the scientific method "that infallible guide to empirical truth." Science works by elimination. It can only work from experiment to experiment, eliminating what is not true. It can say what is probable, it can never say what is true. Gould appears to begrudge the shackles of science by stepping outside its boundaries in overstating what it can accomplish. Whereas creationists await the day they will stand in judgment before God, for the evolutionists Gould says "Someday, perhaps, we shall me our ancestors face to face." Imagine, standing there looking at a man-like monkey skeleton.

One cannot fault the flaws in this book. After all, it was written by highly evolved apes.

You would have expected more time and detail to the ermergence of the nervous system and the Cambrian Explosion. A more up-to-date section on human evolution (no mention of Ardipithecus Ramidus) but on the whole the book is a good synthesis of the state of the knowledge in this field.

This singular book gives a very nice popular overview of the state-of-the-art in paleontology, chronologically covering everything from the Archean to the evolution of man. It is a beautifully illustrated and well-written book, although the text is perhaps sometimes a bit too technical and dense for the paleontological novice.
And please don't buy some creationists' claims that this is science fiction. The contents of this book is based on material from thousands of scientific articles in peer-reviewed scientific journals such as "Nature" and "Science", representing the fruits of the hard labour of paleontologists from all over the world. And the fossil record, even if it is convincing in itself, is far from the only support for evolution. Independent evidence for evolution can also be found in biogeography, development, molecular analyses (gene DNA, junk DNA, mtDNA etc), anatomical analyses, and even field observations of new species evolving. This large amount of evidence is why evolution is considered an established and undisputable fact. Of course, if one rather than facts wants comic book fantasies such as humans coexisting with dinosaurs and evil scientists conspiring to hide the truth, then one should look for creationist books instead. Or comic books.

In response to Hank Adams review on Esther Ross, Stillaguamish Champion. Regarding the weakness ascribed to the book by Hank when Ruby is delving into comments made by Mad Bear about Dick Gregory. In footnote 6 of Chapter 7, a reference is made to the citation for Ruby's claim of Mad Bear's judgement of Gregory. The source cited is Arlington Times December 15, 1966: "Of the Nisquallies, the Tuscarora remarked that they had made a bad mistake by importing Dick Gregory, Negro comedian, to draw attention to their cause. (Gregory was arrested and brought to trial last month on a charge of illegal fishing.) The Indian and Negro problems are not the same. There is no parallel, Indians owned and occupied the land, while the Negro people were brought in as slaves of the white man. Therefore, he said, the Medicine Creek Treaty was not allowed at Gregory's trial." The authors properly cited their source of information before making the statement.

Esther Ross, Stillaguamish Champion, reads like a novel. It is the thirteenth book by Robert H. Ruby and John A. Brown, co-authors of several popular Pacific Northwest Indian ethnohistories. American Indian activist LaDonna Harris describes it as "A story about an American Indian woman who takes incredible risks." Esther's daring schemes for tribal identification were played out over fifty years (1926-1976).
Legislators who met up with Ross still mention the fiery-eyed Indian woman chief obsessed with the goal of federal recognition of the Stillaguamish people. The tribe was a signatory of the 1855 Point Elliott Treaty, yet without federal recognition the Stillaguamish could not carry into effect the treaty promises-rights to certain lands, use of certain waterways. Eventually the policy makers with whom Esther kept company by way of her frequent trips to the Capitol declared her a nuisance. Her long-winded speeches, highly repetitive, and her disregard for protocol irritated the officials; she would talk far beyond her allotted time, and she wouldn't go home.
Ruby and Brown invested almost a decade piecing together Esther's story after her son Frank offered them the five footlockers of primary documents and secondary source materials which Esther had kept. While the materials provided a close look at twentieth-century Indian politics and federal policy, the compelling subject was Esther Ross, a woman ordinary and extraordinary, complex and creative, tricky and tenacious as a bulldog.
Ruby points out that Ross "was a double minority, one-fourth Indian and a feminist before that word was coined." Hard to believe that this same Esther never knew she was Indian until near the end of her high school years. Her father was Norwegian, and Esther lived her girlhood in white Northern California society. Her mother, not noticeably Indian, did not enlighten her daughter regarding Stillaguamish blood quantum. Esther's father died when she was ten. When Esther was twenty-two, in response to a call from Indian relatives in distress, Esther and her mother moved to Washington State where Esther, ignorant of tribal history, decided to "uncover her identity."
To strengthen her quest Esther searched the vicinity of the Stillaguamish River for a legitimate source of land to qualify as a land base for her people. She sought ancestral burial grounds from the whites who owned and plowed them. Instead she was offered some bones from an exposed site. Applying her flair for the dramatic, Esther would spill these human bone fragments across the desk of governor Dan Evans in Olympia and later, display them in the national Capitol.
In pre-war days Esther's foot-going treks to visit Stillaguamish families increased the tribal membership to more than sixty, but post-war visits revealed a group more interested in award moneys than in Esther's larger goals.
During 1964 Esther's path crossed that of Herbert Holdridge, a retired brigadier general who advocated buying up Nevada desert land and turning it into a sovereign nation for American Indians. However, she had far greater interest in fishing rights for the Stillaguamish, a matter of sustenance and revenue. Joining the Poor People's Campaign (1968), Esther and her son Frank were bused to DC where Esther made her presence felt.
The Boldt Case would make the difference. The federal government was contesting the state of Washington's control of Indian fishing rights. The government attorney advised that Indians were entitled to fifty percent of the fish harvest; the state had ruled five percent. Judge George Boldt would try the case in Tacoma's U.S. District Court. And Esther Ross would have her "fifteen minutes." Fortunately for Esther-and the courtroom-David Getches represented Esther as special counsel. When she took the stand, he guided her through a review of Stillaguamish River history. Judge Boldt's ruling favored the tribes. The grumbling of non-Indian commercial fishers was heard for years, but the Stillaguamish had won the right to fish.
It would be difficult to add up the thousands and thousands of miles Esther Ross traveled during her fifty-year crusade for Stillaguamish recognition by the federal government. Or to say how many state capitols she visited, how many elected officials heard her speak-badgering, cajoling, but never threatening-on behalf of all unrecognized tribes who 120 years ago had chosen to stay on their homelands rather than accept the reserves chosen by white men. Their great-grandfathers had signed a treaty that would preserve fishing rights, but those rights had been denied the landless Indians. Esther became, eventually, champion for the whole, her mission self-sustained despite her meager income. Esther's complete and absolute dedication was not doubted. Perhaps this accounted for her supporters even among those persons who deplored her outrageous schemes.
Among such schemes was one that would temporarily disrupt the national Bicentennial pageant. The escapade began June, 1975 in Blaine, Washington, near the Canadian border, where three horse-drawn wagons and Western-clad riders headed for the 200th National Birthday Celebration, a 3000-mile trek to Valley Forge. It was son Frank's idea to set up an attack, to waylay the wagon train until the Secretary of the Interior unconditionally recognized the Stillaguamish tribe. Frank called television and radio stations, and Paul Harvey on his daily national newscast announced the impending attack. Indian activism of the 1970s was recalled-siege at Wounded Knee, takeover at Alcatraz, trouble at Fort Lawton. The "attack" might prove to be more than symbolic.
At Stillaguamish headquarters (Island Crossing), Frank stopped the wagons. And Esther, age 71, a wrinkled little woman wearing Indian clothing, stood in the middle of the road and read her speech. An assistant to the interior secretary assured Esther that the document granting tribal recognition would be ready in thirty days. Eight months then passed without word from the government, and a new secretary of the interior, Thomas Kleppe, was appointed.
Two years after the Boldt decision Esther "recruited" a steelhead trout from the Stillaguamish river to play a part in a scheme that stunk to high heaven. Needing to familiarize Kleppe with her drive for tribal recognition, she air-freighted him a frozen 18-pound trout labeled "Washington Salmon." The flying fish had begun to age en route; on arrival, dockers, holding their noses, wanted someone from Interior to take it off their hands immediately. Kleppe's response to Esther was to thank her and mention his preference for beef, saying he had given the beautiful fish to his neighbors.
Esther had problems within her tribe. They referred to her style of leadership as nepotism and resented her hiring whites as assistants. They challenged her right to increase, then decrease, the blood quantum for tribal enrollment to suit her personal intent. They openly wondered how much of tribal funds she was spending on herself. The Stillaguamish wanted Esther stripped of privileges and functions. It was more than two years since the promise made at the wagon train; push needed to become shove. Esther Ross sued the Department of Interior. Judge June L. Green heard the case. On October 27, 1976 Esther Ross' goal was achieved: the Stillaguamish had a recognized place in time.
During January, 1988 Esther began to sicken. Ever-protective son Frank cared for his mother until her death August 1, 1988, a month short of her 84th birthday.

My name is Sandra M. Allen, Chief Esther R. Ross Was my Mom and grandmother.

My brother David has received a history book for his birthday about yrs after grandma passed away in 1990 and we had noticed that the full information wasn't in it about Stillaguamish and this is when we decided to have Esther's(grandmas)story written.

I spent from birth till I was 16years old on the road with grandma and I had an education that I thought should be shared and here it is. To me Grandma was a role model and someone I wanted to live my life by and follow. In the book tells everything both good and bad in some eyes, but everyone has a opion. When my dad (Frank)and myself talked about it too me I wanted a book out because I wanted to have people read and see what she did and was able to do. To me she did more then she was ever given credit for. David and myself gave our education while growing up but in this book everyone can see why we are proud to have had the experience. I have finished high school and college this year will be going on to law school to finish grandmas work... I will be going for Land and Water rights and am very proud to have had her as a Mom and as a role model. My Father Chief Frank Allen passed away one week before seeing the cover of the book on May 14.2001 it was given to us at the gave site, this is to us a wonderful book and has everything in it that we wanted and to my brother David and myself we hope schools will use it and hope that it encourages people to not give up and that one person can make a difference. This women you all are reading about was a legend, role modle,history maker,mother,and friend. She had people who couldn't stand to be around her and she had people who couldn't wait to see her she was a honor to be around and I am proud to say this book is a 5 star. This wasn't to be about facts or to please everyone this book is from us to you the readers its not just one more book Ruby and Brown have written, this is a part of our lives and a way to keep it all together for our children and grandchildren and so on this is opening up our lives to you to share with you what kind of women she was, she was a loving, caring and I wouldn't be who I am today if it wasn't for her and my dad Frank Allen, I would have been like my other siblings out drinking and no education or just given up but my goal in life is to be like her and do as she would have me do. So please take the time and read about my mother/grandmother, and see why we wanted to share her life with you and I hope she can be a role model for you also or your children. I was with Esther till she was taken from us and went on to school and when I graduated I dedicated my diploma to my grandma and dad cause without them I wouldn't have had the wisdom or strength to try and be the most I could be....

So please share this with others and I hope the memories of our life with our mom/grandmother and father will live on. Dad and Grandma always were together and now they are together in peace.
I miss dad and grandma so Dearly but with this it makes it as they are here with us still and I can still her my grandmas voice when I read the book so many memories. Some people have a scrap book we have a history richer to us then gold that is what dad and grandma left me the richest person on earth a life time of fighting and tears and sweat to give me and my children and theirs an IDENTITY and its one we hold close to our hearts.

It is just okay.

Being a big fan of the film version of The Paper Chase I was kind of expecting a 1940's book that would flesh out the character of Ford and add some depth to the story but what arrived from Amazon was copyright 1978 and had references to mini skirts, getting high, and a quote about Vietnam War protests.

I enjoyed reading it but it was not nearly as good as the movie. It didn't much new plot developments; maybe 15% of the book consists of new things that are not in the film version of The Paper Chase. For example Hart and Ford are at a diner when a guy runs in, snatches a hamburger from the plate of the people next to them at the counter, runs outside and stands there banging on the window and giving them "the finger". Hart, curious, goes out to talk to the fellow and ends up in a fistfight. One benefit was you could be inside Hart's head and know what he was thinking. Susan is much colder to Hart in the book too.

The movie was a masterpiece. The book (at least the 1978 edition that arrived at my house) will only satisfy true fans of the film, desperate, perhaps, to wring a few more drops out of this great story in the manner that a fan of Star Wars might read "A Splinter In the Mind's Eye" (featuring Luke Skywalker as a character).

I know my hometown library lists, in their online catalog, a 1940 edition of the Paper Chase so surely there's an older version floating around. The one I got from Amazon, with it's references to the 1960's, seems like a modern rewrite of the novel, made expressly for fans of the movie.

It's a good book. "...law is rational, people are not." Without getting into the experience of the tradition, one would never know how much fun is to become part of it. One would only know "...how difficult is to extent the tradition." Enjoy!

The TV series based on this book was well done and I would very much like to read the book itself. Being a retired legal secretary, the series depicted many events in the life of a law student, as told to me by attorneys for whom I worked.

This book won't let you get stuck, it explains all concepts clearly. It offers a good beginning algebra review, and gives you a thorough dose of the tougher stuff.

I am not reselling my Basic and Intermediate Algebra books by the same author. These books explained algebra better than any book I've ever attempted to muddle through in the late 80's that's for sure!

First, I should share that I am the author ot this textbook! Next, I want to respond to the other review by saying that the criticisms are accurate for the premlinary edition, but not this first edition (with subtitle "Functions and Authentic Applications"). In fact, the first edition was not available when the other review was posted! In the first edition I completely rewrote the the text so that it is now really easy to follow. It even has a list of key points at the end of each section. The text has tons of current, interesting data sets that makes the course come alive. You will need to use a graphing calculator with this text. My students love using this text and I'm sure you will too!

Using this manual, I have r&r'd clutch, axles, timing chain, valvetrain, door hinges, oil pan gasket, chain tensioner, oil sending unit, water pump and many other maintenance repairs. Although the manual was useful, it was very clumsy to get around. You cannot reference a single repair without skipping around to 3 or more different chapters. Necessary details were often omitted, and special tools which are required to do the job are not listed. All though the manual was of assistance, I much preferred the Nissan Mfg. service manual.

how to replaced the front head lligh

i like the way it show how to do thin

This is really a good book for Java Developers who wish to develop XML based applications. Couple of chapters have good examples and explains concepts in a very clear format. Also the book is upto date with all the latest concepts in XML world.

I have been working with XML for a while now, and this book offered a great coverage of most aspects of what XML application developers need to know. I am not able to keep up with everything happening in this very broad part of the industry - and this book provided enough coverage of the areas I'm not able to focus on on a regular basis to help me stay current. I'd recommend it for anyone who's working with specific areas within XML and want to stay current with the broader scope of what is going on. I'd also recommend it for anyone who is new to XML and wants to know the various Java APIs out there.

This is surely one of the Best Books availale in Market for Java Developers. I have been waiting to read a Book which covers all the latest XML API and how use them using latest Java Tools. Thanks to Wrox Publications for bringing this book to us. It covers how to do XML programming using all the latest Java API line I/O Sockets, Developing Presentation Logic, Developing Configuration and Deployment logic, Using XML in B2B applications. In short no other book in Market provides such a clear understanding of how to develop Java Based XML Applications.

Also it clearly explains how to use the latest Java Based XML Parsers like Xerces, Xalan and more. Friends if you need to get upto date with all the latest Java Based Parsers and different XML API, then this Book is really the Best one.

This book actually shows very little understanding of the work done by Hubble or its relationship to other NASA missions. Many of the pictures attributed to the Hubble come from other missions; further, more than one artist's rendition is given as a Hubble image.

I can't even begin to describe the affect this book has had on my way of thinking in regards to the universe we live in and my own mortality. Before I read this book(a billion times)I was always interested in the universe and what was out there. A co-worker heard of my interest and bought me this book as a Christmas present. I thought, "wow. pretty cool". But in no way was I ready for the abundance if information placed at my disposal by this book. I'm just in awe when I read it. The author really does seem to have passion about our universe and it showed in the writing. The descriptions and hypotheticals are so vivid. You don't have to be some genious to understand what this book is telling you but it doesn't come of as "kiddy" either. To me that is what makes it so wonderful. It gives you the feeling that someone has actually traveled to the ends of the universe and their just telling you what it was like. Even the chapter on Earth is suprisingly very interesting. It gave me a new appreciation(and fear) for this planet. So calm and unassuming in comparison to other planets. But so powerful to all it's inhabitants. "Before our universe existed, there was no past, present, or future. Space did not exist, nor did vacuum. There was nothing-even dark cannot exist without light". wow

This book was, simply put, breathtaking. I don't know why someone would wish to sabotage the overall rating by giving this masterpiece one star...but clearly they were not reading the same book I was. To each their own. I found the facts within the book quite accurate myself....having read more than one hundred books of its kind and finding no inconsistencies. The pictures within the book itself were magnificent and well placed throughout the book. The text itself was also very informative and showed that the author was very well versed in the ways of the cosmos...both theoretically and factually. I highly recommend this book to anyone with interest in our cosmos. You won't be dissapointed.

Just some information about the street legends. Good quality paper and cover and some advertorial kind of pictures.That's all. I am very sorry but it is a wrong choice for me at least.

'Soul of the Game' is strictly a bestseller in my book. Thebook tells of where the most famous players came from: The streetcourts. This book is an inspiration to basketball players everywhere,including the pros. This a must read and should be honored as thebest in photography.

If you have that true love for the game of basketball and where it started than buy this book. It may not have a lot of writing, but it shows the writing in the biographical summaries of the greats the "Goat", "Destroyer", "Tiny", etc. Even know I didn't see any of the greats I still read about them. Much love to the "Goat" who stood before them all, who past away last year. Watch the movie "Rebound"!

I found the information for a 1988 Jeep Cherokee to be vague, superficial, and many times, incorrect. This might be due to production changes in the 1988 year. In looking for information on automatic transmissions, ignition system, engine control computer, or transfer case dissasembly or repair, the book says that this is beyond the home mechanic. Well, few other repairs even require a book for anyone with reasonable experience. I believe they are copping out. It was not worth reading.

Not bad, but get the Factory repair service manual, which is more accurate. Some wire diagrams are different.. good for the newbie, but better get some advice first, like Always use Quadra-trac fluid
in Transfer case, never anything else, the Friction cones will not tolarate it, since it is a full time 4 wheel drive. ( from 73-79 borg -warner)

As a beginner in home car mechanics I found this book very helpful. It helped me already with understanding my Jeep Wagoneer '73 (V8, 360). And I used it to replace the powerbrake booster, the powersteering pressure line, rear suspencion leaves, door window, door lock and so on. New jobs are coming and this book wil help me, I sure...

I am here looking for another service repair manual as the Haynes book has failed me three times now. The illustrations are lacking and the insructions often abbreviate some steps assuming you know what to do.

It does contain a lot of information but is severly lacking on helping one to locate the components.

This book covers complicated tasks such as engine overhauling and body repair very well. (Over all there is a need for more pictures though). But it does not cover in much detail anything beyond that, power steering pump repair for example or transaxle repair. I guess it is written for the home mechanic with limited skill or tools. It has a lot of sections on how to take parts off and put it back on but little on the details: for example electrical diagrams are not accurate as they only publish "Typical" wiring diagrams. So it is good for simple repairs only. Trouble shooting symptoms is sorely lacking. There are many sections on how to take a part off but not why or when you should take it off: for example how to trouble shoot when your injection valves need cleaning or how to determine when a pinging sound is due to the shock mount or a tie rod. Variations on the car engines were covered well from the non VTEC 2.2 L engines to the V6. This book however does not cover the 2.0L engine so some asian buyers be careful. It does not cover the transaxles much beyond taking it off and sending it for repair in an authorized shop.

In summary the book has some good and detailed sections for the the experienced mechanic like engine overhaul and some less detailed sections for the home mechanic like removing a power steering pump and brining it to an authorized repair shop. For its price I think the book is worth it. If there is something wrong with your car you have to diagnose it yourself as this book has limited diagnosis specific to the Accord. After you find out what the cause is, most likely the book will show you how to take the part off, then your are on your own.

This book is a must have for the DIY. Almost all areas are covered, from body work to electronic, engine, central console, etc. I don't have the original service manual, which cost over $60, but I think this book is already good enough for most of the tasks.

However, some photos are not very clear and some diagrams do not clearly identify which part of the engine it is drawing, and you will have to find it by yourself.