I give it 4 stars for being one of the only books on the topic of microsimulation/agent-based modeling in finance.

The author's research is very interesting and promising. The book reviews similar microsimulation attempts by others.

However, there is no guidance as to the implementation of microsimulation studies in finance. The eauations/models of finance are easily found elsewhere .... but how do you turn them into a simulation project (?)...

It is a bit unseemly to speak of a bargain when it comes to a book on mysticism but this one really is. The original price was [amount]; I can only assume there was an over-printing. The five writers included in this book are some of the most insightful modern thinkers on the subject. Michael Sells treatment of mysticism in Islam makes for rich reflection. He seems to have a noetic understanding of the subject: "The encountering of the secret is not so much a resolution of mystery (transcending duality) through a comprehensive knowledge as it is a deepening of mystery through unresolvable paradox."

Daniel Merkur makes an excellent discussion of the "unitive experience." He takes a cross cultural approach that gives the reader a fair estimate of what the actual experience of mystical union is for the mystic in practical terms: "Unitive visions are clearly variant forms of unitive ideas in which the ideas have undergone symboliztion into pictorial form, much as ideas do during the dreams of natural sleep.

...

Moshe Halbertal, professor of Jewish thought and philosophy at Hebrew University, relates the following tale about heaven and hell in his Introduction to "People of the Book: Canon, Meaning and Authority": "Don't think that hell is where people are consumed by fire for their sins or that heaven is where they are rewarded with pleasures for their piety. What really happens is that God gathers everybody in one large hall. Then He gives them the Talmud and commands them to start studying. For the wicked, studying Talmud is hell. For the pious, it's heaven."

Halbertal's tale amusingly illustrates the importance that sacred texts play in Judaism and provides a fitting entrée into this short, but fascinating, exploration of the development and importance of the Bible, the Mishnah and the Talmud as canonical works of the Jewish community.

Halbertal begins with a short introduction adumbrating the meaning of a "canonical" text and its various guises. The adjective, of course, refers to a text's special status in a community. The special status of a canon can be "normative" (it is obeyed and followed as the law of a community), "formative" (it is a curriculum that is taught, read, transmitted, and interpreted) or "exemplary" (it is a paradigm for aesthetic value and achievement). For example, the Talmud is both a normative and a formative canon of the traditional Jewish community; normative in the sense that it establishes appropriate behavior in many aspects of life, formative in the sense that it is a fundamental text that is the object of endless interpretation and debate and, in some cases, the intellectual sine qua non of membership in the community.

From this brief introduction, "People of the Book" then explores, in successive chapters (which mirror the chronological development of each successive text), the canonization of the Bible, the Mishnah, and the Talmud and what the ascendancy of each of these texts meant for the formation of authority and meaning in the Jewish community. He also explores the challenges that philosophy and Kabbalah posed to the Talmudic canon in the Middle Ages and closes with a short appendix discussing how Hobbes and Spinoza appropriated and interpreted the canonical text of the Hebrew Bible in their political philosophy.

In less than one hundred fifty pages (excluding the extensive footnotes), Moshe Halbertal has written a challenging and thoughtful exploration of the development of the canonical works of Judaism and how those canonical works shaped authority and meaning in the community and between the community and the non-Jewish world. "People of the Book" is a concise, but intellectually rich, exegesis of the key texts of Judaism and how those texts shaped Jewish thought through the ages.

This is a collection of essays, naturally, on Durrenmatt. Most are informative and insightful - some, if you cannot read German are a challange - for they provide no translations of the quotes they use. A bit frustrating. But there is still enough here to make it well worth buying.

Good coverage for scheduling-type or operations research simulation problems. Great coverage of non-uniform variable distributions, with useful (and hard to find elsewhere) code for generating them, as well as help in choosing which distribution is needed for a given problem. Taught me a lot.

This "sefer" was very helpful to me in laying out the Halachic issues that one must face when careing for a criticlly ill relative: What is the Halachic definition of death? How does this differ from brain death? When are heroic measures required? When are they optional? And when are they inappropriate? How is the contemporary notion of quality of life dealt with in Halacha? While not a substitute for consulting with the family rabbi, nontheless this is a must read book for Frum Baby Boomers who are now part of the Sandwich Generation.

This is a useful reference book for applied probabilists whose research uses stochastic ordering relationships.

THE CITY AFTER THE AUTOMOBILE by Moshe Safdie. I found it an interesting review of urban architecture and what many might find as more desirable high density living, assuming your dream is high density living. However, in my opinion, this book offers little in the way of mobility solutions. One idea Safdie presents is the availability of U cars, presumably government provided, at airports, office buildings, park & ride lots, etc. His system would save time parking but that is so little to be gained in return for such massive trade-offs. He maintains that aspect alone would allow rail to displace airline usage in the northeast corridor, make urban rail greatly used, etc., failing to recognize the inherent weaknesses in the "transfer" system he would make worse. I could not determine how this improves on the present rental car or taxi system or why we would want to replace the existing system with a national system of providing cars for everyone everywhere. I found the logistical questions unanswered; the assignment of personal responsibility for bad driving unaddressed; as well the notion that every possible origin and destination would have to be provided with the maximum number of cars that would ever be needed at any one time at all times and in all places. The notion of all of our mobility provided by and maintained by the government is something that our society would not accept and could not afford. Mr. Safdie's demonstrated knowledge of transportation history, transportation, in general, and transit, in particular, leave much to be desired. He perpetuates that myth that streetcars were put out of business by car, oil and tire manufacturers. He believes that intercity high speed mag lev systems running at 300 miles per hour are applicable within urban areas. How many stations could you have in an urban area and allow for trains to get to and slow down from 300 MPH speeds. He talks about economies of scale disregarding the higher costs of living in dense "downtown" areas. Safdie's contention that communication and culture can exist only in high density appalls me. Melvin Y. Zucker

Persons interested in finding ways to get cities out of the auto and rail transit mess will be disappointed - because Safdie doesn't know anything about urban transportation. He does know about humane architecture and his thoughts on this subject are very good. He suggests two new urban transportation modes. One is the Utility-car, a small rentable probably electric car that is sitting around everywhere ready for you to use - if you have the right smart card to make it go. This is not a new idea as it is already being done widely in Europe and even in the U.S. The other is the Conveyor which is highly similar to Personal Rapid Transit (PRT) which has been worked on by many people around the world since the early 1970's. The Raytheon Company is building a U.S. version right now called PRT 2000. Beyond transportation, Safdie suggests we need the New Cardo, a linear downtown that has lots of street life. This idea appears in a plan for the Urban Detroit Area prepared in the 1960's by Doxiadis and Associates for the Detroit Edison Company. The book highlights the fact that architects and urban transportation planners never talk to each other. Apparently, architect's don't read the literature either. Persons interested in a advanced transportation technologies can see what is available and learn the history of this field at a website called Innovative Transportation Technologies: http://weber.u.washington.edu/~jbs/itran

Flaws there might be. Logistical errors there might be. Totally impractical aspects there might be. But none of it detracts from what this book is. Some architects build to the practical present, and some build to the ideal future. Safdie does the latter. Genius does not require anything more than vision, and this book glows with that. A new way to live; a better way to exist. Humankind has never, in all the spans of history, moved forward. It has always been dragged by a few farsighted and great individuals. Buy this book. Read this book. And see an apsect of our future that will one day be a reality. It won't be Safdie's vision through and through. But it will be Safdie's vision. Leap in on the ground floor now, as humanity prepares to embark on its next stage of growth - without even realizing it.

While some of the information provided in this book has some accuracy, the circumstances leading up to the events are not discussed.

This book is very one-sided, and focuses only on the misfortunes of the Palestinian people, which were largely brought upon them by their corrupt government and fanatic Islamists. It doesn't not mention the almost daily suicide bombings and ambushes on Israelis.

The many horrific photographs displayed in this book are of Palestinians reaping the rewards of their peaceful demonstrations, and are nothing compared to what is shown in the news after another suicide bombing. Perhaps hurling rocks and shooting rifles is not the most peaceful way to demonstrate. The book's Jewish authors can be compared to Jews for Jesus, seeking to create controversy for the sake of attention.

I would not bother wasting any time on this "book".

I find it atrocious that two jewish people can go to such pains in order to demonize there own people. This attitude does not surprise me in the least, considering the fact that the jews have historically always been there worst enemy.

I am saddended but understanding of those ignorant peoples who come to erronious conclusions regarding the conflict in the Middle East. However, the lies told in this book do not come from ignorant people nor are these authors strangers to the realities of the conflict in the Middle East. Rather, these are people who feel a need to undermine there own people under the facade of "humanitarianism".

The infamous "Butcher of Beirut" lie, can also be tolerated by those who claim that Sharon looked away as the SLA killed out a palestinian village. However, those (such as these authors) who claim that the Israelis themselves killed out the village, can be immediately discredited. Even the Palestinians themselves wouldn't tell the story in such a backwards manner.
These authors should be condemned in the strongest terms possible by any person who is commited to honesty and integrity.

This site documents the genocidal deal, Arafat's uncle - Hajj Amin Al Husseini made with Hitler to exterminate the Jews. This is a must read. P>In the last 2 years, there have been 14,500 Arab terrorist attacks against Israel. Arab massacres of whole Israeli families in the Sbarro and other restaurants. The bloodbath at a peaceful Passover seder meal attended by Holocaust survivors in Netanya. The deliberate sniper killings of so many Israeli motorists, the mowing down of Israeli mothers, fathers, children and just-born babies on the streets of Israel by cold blooded Arab killers. Buses exploding with hundreds of innocent Israeli men, women, and children - blown to unrecognizable smithereens. Arab terrorists who blow up disco's, cafe's, weddings and supermarkets where Jewish civilians are torn to pieces. Arab terrorists placing bombs in Universities butchering Jewish students.

When do you think the Arabs will realize, that murdering Israeli pizza-eaters, dance-club people, school kids, teenagers and sleeping five-year-olds is barbaric. Do these Arabs have any humanity.

It is becoming increasingly obvious, that the followers of Muhammed are not human beings.

Palestinians and Arabs talk how they will exterminate the Jews.


Sheikh Muhammed Siyam, a Hamas military leader said this. "I've been told to restrict or restrain what I say. I hope no one is recording me or taking any pictures, as none are allowed, because I'm going to speak the truth to you," Siyam said at the conference. "It's simple. Finish off the Israelis. Kill them all! Exterminate them! No peace ever! Do not bother to talk politics."

Syrian Defence Minister Mustafa Tlass, In May 2001 stated on Lebanon television, that if every Arab kills one Jew, there will be no Jews left at all

Hamas terrorist chief Sheikh Ahmed Yassin explains that Palestinian terrorism will in the end destroy Israel and that the Islamic state of Palestine will be built on the ruins of Israel in 2027.

Arafat talks about his final solution.
Arafat's speech in front of 40 Arab diplomats in the Grand Hotel in Stockholm, Sweden, on January 30, 1996. Was called "The Impending Collapse of Israel".

"We will take over everything including all of Jerusalem," he declared repeatedly. Arafat's plan has two main components aimed to cause the Jews to abandon Israel. "Within five years we will have six to seven million Arabs living on the West Bank and in Jerusalem. Arafat explained that this will be the beginning of a pressure campaign resulting within a few years in Israel's ultimate destruction. "You understand that we plan to eliminate the State of Israel and establish a purely Palestinian State. We will make life unbearable for Jews by psychological warfare and population explosion; Jews will not want to live among us Arabs!"

On the same day in 1993 on which Yasser Arafat signed the Declaration of
Principles on the White House lawn, he spoke the following words on Jordan TV:
"Since we cannot defeat Israel in war we do this in stages. We take any and every territory that we can of Palestine, and establish a sovereignty there, and we use it as a springboard to take more. When the time comes, we can get the Arab nations to join us for the final blow against Israel."

Because of the the Palestinians obsession with implementing Arafat's phase by phase plan to destroy Israel.
There's no safe haven for Jews. Not within Israel and not without. The earth is stained with their blood: From an El Al counter in Los Angeles to a beach resort in Kenya.

No where are the Jews safe from Arab terrorism. Israeli children, teenagers, their elderly, their scholars, Holocaust survivors, are all targets, at home and abroad. Israelis shopping for food, riding a bus, strolling across a campus, dining at restaurants, dancing in clubs, worshipping in synagogues. Not a blessed place in all the world is safe for Jews.

I have used both this grammar and Lambdin's. This grammar is better organized, however it is very challenging for students, because the paradigms come fast and furious. It also introduces a smaller vocabulary that is only relevant in translating narrative text.

A warning to those doing self-study: this is not useful for self study. Not enough explanation is given for certain grammatical features in BH.

This book is a great supplement to Dr. Bill William's study course through Berean; don't try to use it alone as a primer, though.