I just bought this book and found it very easy to read, as well as helpful with using my brand new telescope.
It starts off by giving a very entertaing general history of astronomy, with plenty of illustrations.
It then covers astronomy concepts, such as star types, azimuth, etc. Also included is a section on telescopes.
Then it has 12 or so full scale maps of the sky, for every time of the year in both southern and northern hemispheres.
The best section is the constellation section. It has at least one page for each constellation, with a map showing a detalied view of it and surrounding stars/clusters/galaxies. It gives the history of the constellation, other interesting objects to look for nearby, and a photograph showing what the constellation really looks like (without the lines connecting the stars). Very helpful.

This richly illustrated and clearly written book is a pleasure to read. Its author, David Levy, (discoverer of many comets, including Shoemaker-Levy which impacted Jupiter in 1994)is one of the great amauteur astronmers, and communicates his love of the heavens well. The star charts are done by Wil Tirion, the foremost celestial cartographer and author of many important sky atlases.

The book itself starts with a valuable historical perspective, discussing ancient astronomy and classical and modern astronomers. It progresses through a presentation of our place in the solar system and the universe, and discussons of planetary and deep sky objects. Various types of instruments for observing are also discussed. Finally, there is a section on each of the constellations, and the objects within them, enriched by historical information and even a guide to pronouncing some of the Arabic and Latin tongue-twisters one encounters.

The quality of the publication is first-rate. The illustrations range from ancient Chinese star charts through medievil earth-centric maps to images from the Hubble space telescope.

This is a book that will capture your interest, and supply many hours of pleasurable perusing on cloudy nights. The only drawback it that its hardcover, fairly thick format makes it less that ideal for the field.

This glossy covered handbook is a treasure trove of information aimed at the beginner and amatuer astronomer. The quality of the production is what impressives me most. Wonderful diagrams and photographs throughout compliment informative text. The sky charts are easily accessible and make for a ready reference when identifying constellations. The other chapters include "Skywatching through the ages", "Stars and Galaxies", "Skywatching tools and techniques", "Understanding the changing sky", "A tour of the solar system" and "Probing the universe". This book would make an ideal gift for persons just starting out in astronomy, as well as the more experienced. Highly recommended and a bargain price to boot.

This book is a definitive history of computers and chess up through Deep Thought in 1990. Largely a survey, it rarely takes a strong point of view of its own. For someone looking for such a history, or for a basic consideration of chess algorithms from alpha-beta pruning through hash tables, killer move tables, and quiesence, it is a fine book. For my money, though, it did not go into enough depth either in technical issues such as the details of even a simple evaluation function or move generator, or in the philosophical issues raised by computer chess.

This excellent book was and still is one of the state-of-the-art books in computer chess literature, dealing with both a very interesting history of computer chess, including many rare examples of the play of early programs, and several recent examples of the best actual programs, as well as discussing in sufficient detail the quite complex technical aspects of programming a computer to play chess.

In "The Challenge Is World Champion Kasparov", we are introduced to one of the first encounters between Garry Kasparov and the former incarnation of Deep Blue, then called Deep Thought, through the detailed discussion of the proceedings and analysis of both games. A game between Karpov and Deep Thought is also carefully analyzed.

Next, "The Early Ideas" present historically the pioneer works of Shannon, Turing, Zuse, and many others, whose theorical works provided the basement for writing procedures to allow a machine to play chess.

Then, in "The First Working Programs", we see Bernstein, Kotok, McCarthy, and other AI specialist, as they struggled to implement Shannon's ideas to make Jurassic computers play some passable chess. Several games between both computers and humans are discussed.

After these preliminary attemps, "The Formative Years" discusses more advanced programs, such as Greenblatt's MacHack VI program, Botvinnik's Pioneer, and specially Slate & Atkin's Chess program and soviet Kaissa, focusing both on the internal of the programs and on relevant sample games.

The following chapter, "The Challenges for the Levy Bet", tells us all the details of the famous Levy bet, nicely commented by co-author David Levy himself. The best games between him and Chess are commented, as well as a particularly beautiful miniature of Blitz against Belle.

As the field advances, "The Computer Becomes a Master" discusses the ever increasing achievements of the new generation of stronger hardware-assisted chess programs, such as Belle (written by Ken Thompson, who also has developed many Endgame Databases) and Cray Blitz (written by Bob Hyatt, who is also the author of Crafty, a strong freeware chess program), which use their incredibly fast underlying hardware to compensate for their lack of chess sophistication. We can also read all about how the first International human Masters began to know defeat against them on a regular basis.

The next step, the defeat of strong human Grandmasters, is introduced in "Eyeball to Eyeball with Grandmasters", where we see several commented games between the strongest chess programs, such as Deep Thought and Hitech, and human grandmasters such as Miles and Larsen. Also, microprocessor commercial chess program Mephisto has a close encounter of the 3rd kind against macroprocessor non-commercial Deep Thought, and far from ashamed, beats him hands down !

Once those historical details have been dealt with, the book enters into a discussion of the more advanced chess techniques there are, such as "Endgame Play and Endgame Databases", an area pioneered by Ken Thompson's Belle, where computers have conquered new grounds, and become invincible players. The development of a K+R vs K database is discussed in detail enough to allow anyone to program it, and then both games of the mini-match between grandmaster Walter Browne and Belle, the former trying to mate the computer with K+Q against K+R, are commented in detail.

A very technical chapter follows, "Search Techniques Used by Chess Programs", where the most advanced techniques are explained, such as Minimaxing, Alpha-Beta prunning, Iterative Deepening, and a large, detailed, and complete explanation of Hash tables, with many diagrams and examples, to make it crystal clear. Other aspects such as Time management, Evaluation functions, Move generation, etc. are thoroughly discussed as well.

The next chapter, "The Evolution of Computing Systems for Chess Programs", explains what lies ahead: faster processors, chess-specific hardware, multiprocessors, and makes dire predictions on the increment of playing strength all these advances will bring.

Once these almost unearthly machines have been shown, it is the time for down-to-earth-ones, the ones everyone can buy, and "Commecially Available Chess Computers and Software" introduces them all, from the primitive, very early Chess Challenger, to Mephisto Almeria announcing mate in 7 to a 2350 ELO player under tournament conditions.

On "Writing a Chess Program" gives a concise advice on how to write a chess program oneself, and by way of comparison shows a table with the ELO rating of the best chess programs as compared to that of their programmers and more chess-profficient technical advisors.

Finally, closing the book with a gem, "Stop Press" shows commercial program Mephisto Portoroz defeating former World Champion Anatoli Karpov during a simultaneous exhibition. That such a machine, which anyone could buy, without any special ultrafast hardware, can defend successfully against as superb a grandmaster as Karpov, says much about how far computer chess has progressed.

The book closes with an extensive bibliography given in "Additional Reading", and some information on the ICCA, given in "Appendix A: The International Computer Chess Association", and a table with complementary data in "Appendix B: Results of Major Tournaments".

If you like to program computers and you love chess then "How Computers Play Chess" is for you. This easy to read and intuitive book by Chess Master David Levy takes you on a tour guide of man's attempt to create a machine that can master that ancient game of strategy, Chess. You'll gain an introductory view of how computers go about playing the game of chess including the types the algorithms that are used and the general theorys behind these "thinking machines". Levy also introduces some of his own thoughts on the strenghts of computer chess and even includes a few pradictions on when a computer will be able to defeat a human world champion. I read this book in an attemp to satisfy a life long desire I've had to create a computer program that could be me in chess. I've found that this book as gotten me off to an excellent start

The cover says "Comets", but the text is not entirely devoted to the science of comets. It skims a lot of related subjects, but sometimes digresses a little too much. And this book is definitly popularized too far! Popularization is no excuse for (small) errors. IMHO, you'd better read "Cosmic Pinball" instead.

This book reveals the history of comets and their place in the universe in layman's language. The author talks about comet Shoemaker-Levy 9's collision with Jupiter, what could happen if a large extra-terrestrial body hit the Earth. Levy also discusses possible preparations which could be taken to prevent or prepare for such a cataclysmic event. But it is not really a doom-and-gloom type book. It is a book filled with interesting ideas and facts. Lots of b&w illustrations throughout.

This is a truly wonderful story not only giving a great deal of easy to understand information about comets, but doing it in such a way that it kept me at the 'edge of my seat' throughout. This book reveals the secrets of the beginning of life on earth, and possibly the end of civilization as we know it. I would give this book 5 stars, a great read from start to finish!

After picking this book up at a Sam's club out of curiosity I found that I couldn't put it down and ended up putting it in the cart. My companion is a begining Astronomy buff and he couldn't get enough eighther. We were reading it to each other and trying to read it at the same time. We have learned alot from this book and have put it to good use with his new telescope. I highly remommed this book to the person who has always wanted to get started in astronomy!

This beautifully produced book is a superb addition to the library of any backyard astronomer or anyone from eight to eighty. It's a best buy for several reasons.
The first is its outstanding quality. The second is the BEWARE!.
This book is actually a softcover, otherwise identical reprint of "Advanced Skywatching", ISBN: 0783549415, published in 1997, also by Time-Life.
Perhaps Time-Life used this subterfuge to catch unwary on-line shoppers that already own "Advanced Skywatching" (as I do), since you can't view the contents on-line to discover you already own the same book under a different name.

The complaint on the star charts about this book (or its twin) not covering the entire sky is not critical.
There isn't room on anyone's bookshelf for all the possible fun sky-hops, of which this book and its twin present abundant excellent examples. There are more and different, also challenging and instructive ones in another fine volume, "Turn Left at Orion", and many others.

Not to worry if you get sucked in. This one makes a fine gift for your favorite grandchild as mine will.
Add this to your "must have" list if you don't already own its twin. If you do, buy it anyhow and give it to someone special.
The price is astonishingly low for the fine content.

The young reader (or read-to) follows Blue through a day at school with Yellow and Orange Kittens, Green Puppy, Purple Kangaroo, and Magenta. In the charming, gentle manner that Blue's Clues manages so well, children are encouraged to think through several difficult social situations, such as: Blue has spilled her milk. Should she sit there and feel sad or clean it up? If someone takes Blue's usual spot in the reading circle, should she push in or sit elsewhere? The answers are obvious to adults, but not to toddlers and young children.

This is a fun book about Blue, and when she goes to school. It makes little kids think about what they would do if they were in Blue's situation. It is a really fun book!

This an excellent short textbook of what has happened to life on earth after small and grand extra-terrestrial collisions from comets and/or asteroids. Scientists now believe that cosmic collision shaped our solar system. The book starts off with the planet Jupiter being pounded by fragments of the Comet Shoemaker-Levy in the summer of 1994. This book also talks about the evolution of the universe, life on our planet, the origin of our moon, the fate of the dinosaurs, etc. Did the dinosaurs become extinct because of a huge cosmic collision 65 million years ago? Scientist seems to think so because of the evidence of the huge Chicxulub crater located at the tip of the Yucatan Peninsula. A gem of a book explaining ancient earth history and life on planet Earth.

The folks at Scientific American produced a true gem with "Cosmic Collisions." Although clearly written for a younger group of readers, this book provides very imformative background information on cosmic impacts past, present and future.

The smooth, steady pace of the writing, as well as liberal use of photographs and illustrations, complement the depth of the text. For such a small book, it is indeed a wonderful primer for adults and youngsters who are interested in this timely topic.

Typical Blues Clues format of figuring things out. My 2 year old loves flap books and this one is no exception. The reader is given clues as to which of three flaps to look under to find a specific characters present. Blue has a present for Steve, Steve has a present for Blue, Pail has a present for Shovel, Shovel has a present for Pail, etc. The book has no reference to Christmas or a birthday, however it is illustrated in the winter months. It is a very enjoyable book to re-read.

My almost-two-year-old son loves Blues Clues and this is a great book for his age group. The flaps are extra pieces of cardstock glued onto the pages. He hasn't yet pulled one off, but it would be easy to put back on if needs be. Other flap books we own have cutouts off the main page with the hidden part on it's own page inside. These kinds tear off easily and are harder to fix.

1/3 of this book - the starhopping section - is excellent. Just the right amount of commentary and detail for intermediate observational astronomy. The maps are also very good. Here's the problem: Only 1/2 of the sky is covered in the starhopping section! Why go halfway? A good number of interesting regions aren't covered at all. Instead, they clutter up the first 2/3 of the book with the usual info about types of telescope, stars, pictures of planets, etc. We've read and seen this before. Any library book tells you the same stuff. Use the pages to cover ALL regions of the sky. It's really a shame.

Another problem is the hardcover format, which makes the book difficult for field use. It's thin and tall, which doesn't help it to stay open. A spiral bound version would be better.

Time was, the Nature Store was everywhere in Canada, and you could depend on them for just the right Xmas gift or whatever. That's gone now, but they left the excellent Nature Company Guides behind.

This is the book of those who have gone beyond "the stars are up there" stage but aren't at the Hawking level yet. I loved the crispy photos and the straight from the shoulder directions (not pretentious or dumb). I recommend it highly if you want something with a little more meat to it.

This book is very helpful, even if you are just an amiture astronomer like me. This book tells you how to navigate through the Heavens. It tells you what stars you can see, the dates that you can see them, even the times that you cansee them. This book tells you what to look for when buying a telescope, how to spot a trash scope, and what types are good to purchase for your needs. This book tells about anything that you need to know, from nebulas and double stars, to planets and black holes. Advanced Skywatching tells you almost anything you want to know. This is a book that no astronomer, begining, advanced, or professional, should be without.

A short, pleasant, informative book. Numerous typos, poor quality black and white photos.

It was refreshing to read such passionate writing on eclipses--both the science behind them, and their effect on people's lives. I found Mr. Levy's journal of eclipses personally fascinating as well as informative.

It was refreshing to read such passionate writing on eclipses--both the science behind them, and their effect on people's lives. I found Mr. Levy's journal of eclipses personally fascinating as well as informative.

I came across this book by accident and ordered it due to the strength of the online reviews. However, had I had a quick browse of it first I wouldn't have.

I expected a serious attempt at systematically categorizing fallacies in thinking. What it actually is is a very rudimentary workbook for undergraduate psychology students that introduces some common failures in reasoning in a very simplistic way. For that purpose it may be fine. If you have already done much thinking or reading in this area you are likely to find this book dissapointing, and in a number of areas surprisingly naive.

Well written, with easy to understand examples of fallacious thought. The exercises are well thought out as well, helping the reader to really grok the subject.

I teach software testers how to explore and analyze products. I recommend this book to all my students.

I found it entertaining and insightful. But, the main thing I like about the book is that it's set up so that every chapter is a standalone tool for analysis. You can read and use one chapter without having to read any of the others. I collect books on critical thinking, and this is the only one I feel I can recommend to casual students of the art.