The issue concerning the legitimacy of the modern age was more pressing for the Europeans than for the Americans, largely because of the latter's historic distancing from Catholicism and the tradition of scholarship funded by the catholic church. Thus for the American reader the very notion that the modern age may be "illegitimate" somehow may ring hollow, if not outright absurd. This book defends the status of the modern age against any suggestion that somehow it may be an aberration, a condition gone awry. The modern age, in all its seeming anti-religious tendencies fueled especially by the scientific drive for the truth, is the 'legitimate' heir to the tradition of taking literally to heart,"Ye shall know the Truth, and the Truth shall set you free". This book focuses on the philosophical foundations of Medieval theology and Nominalism that paved the way for secularization in the modern age. Blumenberg, with his astonishing scholarship and intellectual prowess makes it clear that, intentionally or not, much of what passed for pious and official christian theology during the middle ages actually had very little to do with "religion" per se (Christ's ethical teaching), and everything to do with Greek philosophy, especially Aristotle's, under the guise of church dogma. In serving theology, attributes of God in His omnipotence and omniscience were framed around the notion of absolutes, leading to unresolvable contradictions and paradoxes. For example, the idea that God should be omnipotent necessarily meant He ought to be capable of creating a rock so heavy that even He cound not lift it. This book is simply the most facinating and in-depth account of the strange doings of the Church Fathers in their relentless quest for the Truth. Blumenberg shows that it was ultimately the Church, in allowing astronomy as one of the topics to be studied, while forbidding others (curiosity itself was considered a sin, an 'extra-vagance', meaning, 'going outside the path'), provided the very possibility that led to secularization of the modern age. According to the author, the Church formulated its dogma primarily in response to and against Gnosticism, but failed in completely eradicating all the Gnostic elements, thus laying itself open to "infection" later on. The return of Gnosticism takes on the form of science, which makes a virtue of being clear about what it does not and cannot know, and questions the ground of any claim that arrogates omniscience. This work makes a compelling case for our age: For better or for worse, the fate of the modern age was decided a long time ago when the West became Christendom. ....

I must repeat the other reviewer and call this a neglected masterpiece--one that could be very useful to secular thinkers at the present moment. One need only shop around this site to see that Evangelical Christians are speaking out loudly and eloquently about a variety of cultural and philosophical issues. This is a welcome development that should be beneficial to cultural debate in the long run. However, if you are of a more secular persuasion (as I am), you want to have your dukes up, so to speak, in order to answer many of the claims that are being made. Sadly, many secular thinkers have gotten lazy in their habits of thinking about religion, resulting in stances that are intellectually shaky, not to mention needlessly disrespectful to persons of faith. Blumenberg's book emerged from a context that was highly sophisticated and highly Christian, intellectually speaking at least (see Wallace's excellent introduction). For this reason, he was forced to think through the philosophical conflicts between religion and the secular much more rigorously than we are used to doing, and his careful methods stand as a welcome corrective to our own. One of his major accomplishments is to tackle the argument from origins used by many Christian thinkers (the argument that because our nation/culture/university system was founded on Christian principles, any secularizing deviation from this system must be illegitimate). He argues against this notion very meticulously and at multiple levels. In conversations with intelligent Christians I have found his way of thinking very helpful. Blumenberg is weak on the issue of subjectivity, never really clarifying what he thinks a secular subject might be, and this is connected to a general lack of interest in any kind of politics. For this reason, he's been ignored by most secular thinkers here, who focus a great deal on questions of identity and subjectivity. His strength, though, is that he eposes gaps in Christian thinking so carefully that many gaps in our current secular thinking are exposed as well. In this way, I think he has more to teach us about our secular identities than many have assumed. A laborious, exhausting, and utterly eye-opening book.

A masterpiece that defies summaries and labels. While MIT Press has, thankfully, translated four of Blumenberg's books, he is not "seeping" into the culture in spite of laudatory reviews by philosophers like Richard Rorty. This can't be because he's "difficult" (and he is difficult - an eloquent) - difficult writers like Derrida or Habermas have large (and largely academic) followings. Blumenberg rather resists "positions" around which flags can be planted, battle cries formulated. Amazingly empathetic, Blumenberg "thinks with" and through the Western philosophical tradition. His account of Late Medieval Nominalism as an irreparable rupture of Ancient and Christian cosmologies, presaging Descartes' "founding" of a distinctively modern epoch is worth the read - as is so much else. I can only hope Blumenberg's translator, Robert Wallace will bring us more from this author, who died in 1996.

First published in 1951, American Jewry And The Civil War by Rabbi Bertram Korn is a striking, comprehensive look at how the 150,000 American Jews were involved on both sides of America's deadliest conflict. Chapters include meticulous discussions on such matters as Rabbinical positions on the issue of slavery; Lincoln and the Jews; and anti-Semitism in both the North and the South. A wealth of references permeate exhaustive study, including transcripts of original correspondence that noteworthy Jewish leaders had with President Lincoln. American Jewry And The Civil War is a welcome and impressive contribution to Civil War studies and nineteenth century American Jewish history.

Half a century after it was written, Bertram W. Korn's AMERICAN JEWRY AND THE CIVIL WAR remains the definitive work on the topic of Jewish-American participation in the American Civil War. Unlike other Judaic historians, Dr. Korn displays no partisan bias, neither "Union" nor "Confederate", neither "Orthodox" nor "Pluralistic." His research is impeccable, and his scholarship is objective and pleasing to all.

OUTSTANDING!

from: "Jewish-American History on the Web"

Have you ever come to great a idea and gained great understanding in an instant and then break out in a cold sweat, due to the depth of that thought? And suddenly on day, just be browsing through the book store and just happen to pick up a book which carefully outlined your exact thought in black and white. Because that is what the case was with Mr.Wallace's book. Powerful!

A must read for any person looking to take the entrepreneurial plunge.

Chelonia: Return of the Sea Turtle is a valuable educational tool for children and a great read. I have been giving talks to kids in San Diego about sea turtles and Chelonia is a great way to wrap up my talks. Kids of all ages absolutely love this story of the rescue of an endangered sea turtle.

If your children love the ocean and marine animals then you should get this beautiful story.

The beautifully drawn children's picturebook Chelonia: Return Of The Sea Turtle is the very highly recommended and collaborative work of Dawn E. Navarro, Robert E. Snodgrass, and Wallace J. Nichols. Based upon a true story, the exciting and informative text is enhanced with accurate illustrations of the birds, sea mammals, fish, crustaceans, and vegetation associated with the sea and form the habitat and world of the sea turtle. a series of "Sea Log" sidebars provide educative informational asides that are a perfect augmentation to the lively and engaging story of a little girl who rescues a sea turtle and eventually returns it to the sea.

This highly readable textbook is probably the only one that has successfully dealt with the explosive growth of research and discovery in the exciting field of neuroscience. The 4th edition of the classic by Kuffler and Nicholls maintains the clear, logical and coherent presentation of its predecessors while keeping up with the latest work involving a range of techniques, from molecular genetics to functional MRI. The book's emphasis on the experimental and intellectual basis of knowledge in the field makes it ideal for graduate and advanced graduate students, even those with limited scientific background. It is doubtless no accident that the relatively compact new edition has kept the breadth and depth of earlier editions without becoming unwieldy. Its only real shortcoming is its hefty price, although it is still below most of the competition. It would be nice to see a paperback edition.

I can't imagine to find a book like this... It's excellent. It has many things that anybody can need in order to know more about this system and this kind of cells.

In the Introduction, Wallace suggests that certain enduring business principles are analogous to a lighthouse which helps ships (and their captains) to make their way through dangerous situations. These principles provide entrepreneurs "guidance and safe passage as they navigate their way through the tight straits of the economy and successfully dock their ships at the port of entrepreneurial success....The purpose of this book is to provide guidance and understanding on the underlying business strategies that impact black entrepreneurial success in America." In fact, most (if not all) of the 52 principles can be of substantial benefit to anyone. Wallace organizes his material within four Parts, suggesting a program which has a one-year timeline:

Principles of Entrepreneurship Preparation [Weeks 1-13]

Principles of Building Entrepreneurial Success [Weeks 14-26]

Principles of Entrepreneurship Maintenance [Weeks 27-45]

Principles of Self-Actualization [Weeks 46-52]

As Wallaces explains, these various principles are introduced to the reader through "short, heartwarming true stories that were shared with me by successful black and minority entrepreneurs over the past twenty years. Each has an accompanying principle to be meditated upon for a week." Each of these stories illustrates how an individual was introduced to the principle and how she or he was able to leverage the event to help achieve a specific goal. Following each goal is a technical analysis of the pertinent principle.

One of the books greatest benefits is derived from a "Wisdom to Take Away" summary at the end of each chapter. For example, here is a portion of one of four mini-commentaries provided at the conclusion of the chapter devoted to Week 1: "Despite the difficulties, all of us are endowed with three types of assets: time, talent, and treasure. All of us are provided with 24 hours in each day to embrace and utilize these assets." Wallace is quite correct when suggesting that an entrepreneurial venture shares much in common with a voyage. Hence the appropriateness of the lighthouse metaphor. While reading the book, encouraged to think in terms of the one-year timeline while urged to focus on significant details in appropriate sequence, the reader really does have the feeling that Wallace is his caring as well as knowledgeable navigator. I suggest that those who share my high regard for this book also check out Marc Allen's Visionary Business. Both books share much in common (eg thoughtful, well-written, practical, and reassuring) even as they approach similar subjects from somewhat different perspectives. For those (regardless of race or gender) who are about to begin or are now embarked on an entrepreneurial "voyage", the two books are essential resources.

Soul Food: 52 Principles Of Black Entrepreneurial Success is an informative guide for the reader who is facing the special challenges shared by black Americans seeking to engage in an entrepreneurial enterprise in today's highly competitive local, regional, national, and global marketplaces. Robert Wallace has organized 52 basic principles for business success into four strategic categories (Preparation, Development, Maintenance, Self-Actualization) making Soul Food exceptionally "user friendly". Soul Food is highly recommended, essential reading for those seeking tangible and immediately applicable solutions to their problems as black businessmen and entrepreneurial.

The oft-difficult to find poetry of Robert Francis is included in this nice collection. Hopefully the publishing companies will realize that the poetry lovers out there will appreciate more Robert Francis.

I purchased this book for myself because it is always the first book out of the University of Cincinnati library during research. It is really that popular of a source. It is a perfect book for research, and covers every subject I have needed to study.

As a direct descendant, I can vouch for the accuracy and effectiveness of this volume. I hold the first copies of the originals of these works and the originals were donated by my family to Craigavon Museum Service. This is a fantastic work, a must.

As a fellow bio student to others I have but only one thing to say, Give me a break!! Do you know how long the book is ?!?!? And do you know how thick this book is?? If you are in AP bio, you have to know every single page by heart ! Ok, honestly, this book is good and probably the best AP bio book there is, just be sure to read this book over the summer to get the information. One test is 60 pages of text in this book. The book is also very comprehensive.

This book is very well structured, has wonderful illustrations, pictures, and diagrams. I agree that it is an excellent introductory biology text as it touches base with all facets of the subject.

"Biology: The Science of Life" is an extremely valuable guide to a thorough and complete understanding of basic biological concepts. In AP Bio, it not only helped me through the class, but caused me to permanently fall in love with biology. I'd love to meet the authors to thank them in person for this wonderful book. I'll buy it, because it will always offer me a connection to my first, playful, yet professional encounter with biology.