My great friend Frank Palmer died on June 1st 2000. I had known him for fifteen years and helped him with the photographs for all but one of his books. In that period I never met anyone who had a bad word for him. He was a true character from the old fleet street. He treated me like his son and I miss him like my father...... He was a great journalist & author - please read his books and enjoy the life we both experienced....

Writing linguistic textbooks is not easy. Given that the intended audience is usually undergraduate students, you are supposed to start from the basics, you cannot assume any previous knowledge of the topics covered and you have to go to extreme lengths (literally) to make sure that the main ideas and issues are clear. All this does not mean that you can be divulgative, on the contrary, the use in university courses prevents you from using an informal, discursive style and requires you to explain all the necessary terminology and the (sometimes very technical) analyses proposed in the literature. In the field of linguistics, then, the textbook is supposed to do what in other disciplines is attained by at least four other books (or courses): explain the foundations and goals of the field, be a technical introduction to the discipline, be a reference book, where you can look up things you have forgotten, and finally also act as an intermediate course, which can enable you to go on to read the specialised literature on your own. Needless to say, the result is often a clumsy 600 pages monstrosity which manages to be dry, shallow, dispersive and incomplete at the same time. Trying to acquire a vast and technical discipline from such a book alone can be a very frustrating experience, as those of us who tried to teach themselves linguistics (or a subfield of it) by reading textbooks on their own know only too well. It is therefore all the more remarkable what professor emeritus Frank Palmer has achieved with this book. It provides a thorough and clear discussion of the notion of Grammatical Relation (such as Subject, Object etc.) and the much more difficult one of Grammatical Role (such as Agent, Patient, etc.), and uses them to analyse a wide variety of typologically different languages. This alone would have been a monumental achievement, but professor Palmer goes on to discuss how Grammatical Roles and Relations are matched in the world's languages, which means discussing vast and thorny topics like Case Systems, and to illustrate the mechanisms, such as the passive, that languages use to switch the identities between Role and Relation. To cover all this material with clarity and in less than 300 pages you have to be very sure of what you want to say, and professor Palmer certainly is, but even if he has his own theory about these topics, and argues it clearly and convincingly, he refrains from imposing it on recalcitrant data. On the contrary, he often quotes alternative analyses, showing the pros and cons of each one. This kind of theory neutral approach to such complicated issues could have produced a confusing and inconclusive comparison of badly summarised theories, but professor Palmer always manages to focus on the relevant issues and clearly show the different consequences of each approach. It is really impossible to understate the richness in ideas and data contained in this book: the reader will learn about fairly exotic languages (some of them not familiar even to professional linguists: I must admit I had never heard of "Awngi" (p. 231) before) and grammatical devices (such as the Antipassive, Active Systems, Split Ergativity etc.) which are discussed only in the most specialised publications. What is more important, she will be able to place all these data in a precise and comprehensive theory, with which the reader can go on to explore these fascinating topics on her own.

In the book "Randall Made Knives" the author states that Bo Randall purchased a copy of "Tool Steel Simplified" in 1938 and that it quickly became "dog-eared and smudged from use." I received my copy this morning and quickly found why Bo cherished his copy. "Tool Steel Simplified" is probably one of the best investments I've made in a long time. Long out of print but the info contained within it's covers is just great. Quite in depth for a book that is titled "simplified." If you are a prospective knife maker and are contemplating forging yourself a blade this is a must have. Already my copy is covered with post-its.

As the only extant full-length bio of ELP, "Welcome Back My Friends" serves the purpose of telling their story in as straightforward a manner as possible, going year-by-year and covering all of the high and low points with a fair amount of detail and research. It could be much more detailed, and as mentioned it is somewhat of a whitewash, since the authors are so clearly in love with the band that even low points like "Love Beach" and "In The Hot Seat" are given positive spins.(Ironically, one of ELP's best projects, the "Pictures At An Exhibition" film from 1971, is one of the few things that is harshly criticized here).

As a basic resource and information manual, the book does its job by providing in-depth song analyses, a very complete discography and complete concert date list. The song analyses are interesting, although some tracks are reviewed in much greater detail than others. The information on the bandmembers' personal lives if perhaps the weakest, although there is as much as could be gleaned from interviews. Until Emerson's elusive autobiography is released, this is the best way for ELP fans, both old and new, to read up on as much info as is currently available on the group. However, the best rock bios tend to put the artist in question against an overview of the era they influenced and were influenced by, and this is largely ignored outside of passing references to other prog acts, making it seem unusually insular.

Once I began reading this book it was hard to put down. This is the definitive, end-all story, from beginning to end, of ELP. Its all here: the early days of E, L, and P, the formation of the "Show That Never Ends", the hits, the misses, the fights, the breakups, the reconciliations, more fights, more reconciliations and tours, etc. etc. Also, there is plenty of trivia, behind the scenes information, and analysis of the music, instruments and people connected with the band. This book is laid out very logically, in a chronological order and represents the first time a publication has been available which tells the entire story, in a professional manner, from beginning to end. George Forrester and company are to be commended on being factual without being opinionated or judgmental. ELP had plenty of "wrong turns" and less than successful changes in musical direction through the years, but those events are all reported in a factual manner rather than a condescending one. One of the hidden gems of this book is the information provided in the back. George Forrester gives us a piece by piece analysis of all the major album tracks. Even more valuable is a chronological listing of EVERY concert ever played by the guys, from the beginning all the way through recent years, along with radio broadcasts and interviews. There's even internet sources listed for staying current on the band's activities. This is one of those must-own items if you are, or ever were a fan of the greatest band in rock n roll.

At long last a book on the greatest band ever to ever exist.This book will not be a disappointment for ELP fans.It digs deep into the band's creativity and what drove them to make the best music possible.It also delves into the personal histories of the band;upbringing,musical influences, earlier bands and musical projects outside of ELP.The book also includes an excellent analysis of their music album by album.This section alone is worth the price of admission.It explains in great detail how ideas for songs came about and how they developed as well as paying great attention to technical detail.Also included are tour dates and a discography unlike any other seen before.Make no mistake,this band produced the most creative music ever heard.They defied traditional rock music by combining it with elements of folk,jazz and of course the classics.As individuals they excelled: Keith Emerson,who single-handedly brought keyboards to the forefront and is a master composer.Then there's Greg Lake,whose voice and lyrics-some written with King Crimson bandmate Pete Sinfield-were the perfect compliment for Emerson's adventurous music.Also notwithstanding are his skills as a bassist,guitarist and producer.Last but by no means least is Carl Palmer,quite simply the greatest drummer in rock history.This is a book that belongs on every fan's bookshelf.It is a complete and thorough history and it will not disappoint.As a longtime fan,I thank the authors for a job well done and highly recommend this book

This book does a good job of discussing why groundwater extraction (pump and treat or whatever else you want to call it) is not useful for cleanup of petroleum contaminated sites, rendering it best suited for hydraulic control of plumes.

The author also has a pretty good discussion regarding lifecycle design considerations and the various steps to go through/questions to ask with regard to effluent treatment and equipment sizing.

Some of the technology descriptions appears to be taken from design of remediation systems by suthersan, but both books were published by the same company so i guess that shouldn't really be a surprise. Both books offer different perspectives, so I find them both to be pretty useful, however, I like this one a little more because the author seems to be more of a practical guy whereas suthersan is more theoretical.

I would recommend this book to anyone interested in expanding their knowledge of the design and correct application of remediation technologies.

This is the fourth novel of the Inspector "Jacko" Jackson series. As usual, I have read it out of sequence and it is the first that I have encountered. Jackson is a detective of the Major Crimes Squad and has been assigned a tantalizing Police Constable to investigate the murder of a tv producer, Penny Browne. Penny Browne is the sister of Russell Browne who happens to be a rising political star of the Tory party. Penny, unlike her conservative brother, was much further to the left and was planning on doing a documentary that would be damaging to Russell's career. Throw in the fact that Penny was having an affair with a married man who happens to be Russell's greatest political opponent. The plot is complex and there are many surprises and twists and turns. The novel is highly political in nature and as I am not very familiar with the ins and outs of British political history it can be daunting at times. But you will enjoy the various police characters and their interactions. The major players in the novel are well developed and it is a thoroughly enjoyable police procedural.