Mr. Ellsberg's accomplisments are hardly known outside a select group. Yet what he was able to do during the war impacted the entire war effort in that theater of operations. The techniques he used are still practiced today. The tone and view are from an officers perspective so if you want to learn about what it was like to be a diver I recommend "Descent into Darkness" by Raymer. Salvage Man shows the behind the scenes action that is often not known or completely misunderstood by those at the working level. As a working diver I could appreciate the size and scope of the tasks Mr. Ellsberg was expected to accomplish. In typical military or diving fashion, he was not given the people or equipment that would have been expected. This book is great for sharpening your skills if you are a diver or supervisor who would like to see other ways of getting things done.

Edward Ellsberg (1891-1983) was a brilliant marine engineer who developed salvage techniques still in use today. His work often saved the hides of the senior navy brass who frequently caused the situations Ellsberg fixed. His raising of two sunken submarines in the 1920's led to public recognition and special promotion by act of Congress. During WWII his work played an immense role in furthering the Allied war effort. His name deserves to be remembered as that of a truly great American who strove to do his best in any situation and who placed excellence above personal gain. I enjoyed this work after having grown up reading Ellsberg's own books. Alden has done an outstanding job of which Ellsberg would be proud.

Admiral Ellsburg was a great American. He was intelligent beyond books. He figured out methods for how to do things that we still use today. It is truely fascinating to learn about this man who did so much for his country.

This is a magnificent combination of text, photos, and drawings covering the period when the U.S. Navy came of age. In addition to depicting the ships, the book also does a great job of showing what day-to-day life was like in the Navy of that time. Just hope the publisher elects to reprint it!

I am just a beginner birdwatcher and this book was so easy for me to locate the different birds I saw. Very informative-Good drawings and a great price. I just love this book. Being from the Pacific Northwest I didn't want to look through the books that displayed all North American birds. It would take me forever to find the bird I saw and I would forget most of the time what the features were. With this book-refined down to the pacific northwest birds- it is so easy and QUICK to identify the birds in my backyard and on the coast. Pick one up today....you won't be disappointed.

Thirty years ago I asked a dedicated bass fisherman in Ocala,Floida, Dick Heath, a USGS employee,what was the best way to catch large mouth bass. He said "moon up moon down" so fast that I didn't understand what he was saying. After my third question of "what are you saying", he slowly said "moon up---------moon down" and then explained the concept of the "Solanar Tables" by Richard Alden Knight. He then gave me the address for direct mail order. I ordered the book-- for maybe $6.00--and it arrived in a few couple of weeks. A few weeks later(I had not yet read the book even though it was pocket sized and didn't have over twenty or so pages) I was putting away my fishing equipment in my new home on a lake north of Tampa, Florida. I decided to walk down to my lake shore (maybe a hundred feet)and cast a few times with a jitterbug lure on my new Zebco rod and 33 reel. Within 30 minutes I landed a five pound largemouth bass. Maybe two weeks later I read the book and saw that the time was exactly at the time the book showed as a "major feeding period". Just a cooincident I thought, but in the next few weeks I began noticing that I caught bass in the periods indicated in the book, and didn't catch fishin other times. Exactly one year later, in the time shown in the book, I caught a nine pound bass, and this experience continued for the next fourteen years I lived on the lake. When I moved in 1985, I stopped ordering the book. Seven years ago(1992) I moved to Daytona Beach, and tried to find out where I could buy the book. Calls to local bookstores were unsuccessful and none of the local fishing stores or fishing camps knew what I was talking about. They were as blank as I was in 1966 and had no suggestions. Tonight, after coming home from another unsuccessful fishing trip with my nine year old stepson, I logged on to my new computer, went to Alta Vista, searched for "Solanar Tables", and ended up at Amazon--"Moon Up-Moon Down". After more than 30 years of not hearing--or seeing the term-here it was on my screen. And while proceeding to order the book, I came to this opportunity to provide a review. I doubt that any book review has ever been written over thirty years after the book was read. Believe me---IT WORKS!!! And if you want a live testimonial-I will provide it!!! "Give a 'man' a fish, and he eats for a day! Teach him to fish--and he eats for a lifetime". My nine year old has a much longer lifetime ahead than his 61 year old stepfather!!

As with all of the National Audubon Society's field guides, the "National Audubon Society Field Guide to the Rocky Mountain States" is a most worthwhile purchase, perfect as a gift or for your own collection. The guide is durable and very portable, which makes it well suited for use in the outdoors. More importantly, it has excellent content. Despite its small size, the field guide contains a wealth of information. In addition to the usual focus on flora and fauna species, there is information on constellations, parks, ecosystems, and more. While the depth and detail of the information in the various sections is not vast, the breadth of subject matter more than makes up for this; the information presented is ideal for a general field guide. Moreover, the book is beautiful, filled with gorgeous color photographs. Residents of the Rocky Mountain states and non-residents will both love it.

A good book for the researcher. No stories just the facts. The text is laid out like a computer file. From the beginnning of WWII until the end, each engagement by a USN submarine is documented. Location, date and time, method of attack, shots fired, target type and size, and result. Japanese confirmation, if known, is also noted.

Any one interested in Islam should have this book. So many books try to tell you what Islam is. This anthology *shows* you Islam through classic works from within the tradition. It has elegant translations for important passages from the Quran, and extensive excerpts from the hadith of the Prophet (anecdotes about him that are normative for Muslims, as a kind of scripture). There is an excellent chapter on Islamic Law displaying the logic and content of that complex field. There is a generous and appealing section on Sufism (Islamic mysticism). And finally, theology and minoritarian movements are both explored through wide-ranging excerpts that discuss predestination, the role of dissent, and the significance of the Prophet's son-in-law, Ali. Unlike the textbooks that abound, Word of Islam helps the reader not just to understand, but to appreciate these sometimes complex topics through careful choices of material and through lucid and sympathetic introductions. And the translations are both accurate and very sensitive.. I've given away several copies and everyone who has received one has loved it. It's also a wonderful classroom text, and discussion-group support.

This classic guide was the first of its type, and thus probably got more people into birding than any other book. Peterson uses ink drawings to show the important "field marks" for identifying species. The downside to these drawings is that they tend to idealize the birds, showing them in perfect postures and making the field marks more prominent than they really are. Many competitors, such as the Audubon Guide and the Stokes Guide, use photographs instead. Photographs give a more accurate portrayal of the subtleties of color and pattern in plumage, but there are always those poor shots in a photographic guide that are blurry or show the bird at a bad angle. Whether you decide that a guide based on drawings or photographs is best for you, I would strongly suggest that you pick up an audio recording of birdsongs, such as "Birding by Ear," or the "Field Guide to Eastern/Central Bird Songs," both put out by Peterson's. As any experienced birder will tell you, the ear is just as important as the eye, especially in summer, when birds are often hidden by foliage.

I've got several field guides dealing with the identification of birds. This one from Roger Tory Peterson is the best and most impressive. I first got a copy of it many years ago when I was very young. I've always taken it with me whenever I go birdwatching. I have that much confidence in it. Peterson's drawings are excellent, clear, and in full color. The field guide includes all of the birds of eastern and central North America. This includes accidentals, exotics, and escapes. The field guide also includes roadside and flight silhouettes. These silhouettes really do help in the identification of many species of birds. The book also has a systematic checklist that you can use to mark off the birds that you've seen. Range maps are included, too. All the vital information needed to identify birds in the field is here. Information such as habitat, voice, and length. The range maps have a section of their own in the back of the book. Peterson's method of identifying birds by conspicuous field marks (The "Peterson System") is great. This system has always been a real help. Arrows point to various parts of the bird that most readily help to identify it. There's also a section in the front of the guide that explains how to identify birds. This section is very informative. I've used this field guide for many years. I have other field guides that stay on the shelf whenever I go birdwatching. This guide from Roger Tory Peterson isn't one of those. This is the best field guide on the market. I recommend it.

Being a nature freak myself, I enjoy just leafing through this guide to look at all of the wonderful species of birds that there are, just in Eastern North America. Peterson's genious and talent are very evident in this book. His drawings show his meticulous efforts to help educate beginners and pros alike about the wonderful world of Ornithology. Although the gull and warbler section of the book are quite lengthy, they are so important because of the great diversity of those species. This is a fantastic companion on family trips, especially those that are out of your normal realm. I first used the field guide in my junior Honors Biology class when we watched in the fall for the migrating geese and ducks and also in the spring for the returning travelers. Peterson specifically notes the identification arrows that can eleviate confusion about certain members of the same genus. Also, his range maps assist in answering questions about the whereabouts of certain birds at certain times of the year. I love to feed birds in my backyard while identifying all of my visitors throughout the summer. His checklist is also very helpful. My most thrilling birding moment was when I saw a pair of bald eagles hunting for fish within two miles of my high school! To see them in the book and to see them in person are two completely different things. Also, another area of interest is the description of the calls of birds. I always wonder how someone could come up with words to describe the sound that a bird makes. But Peterson does a wonderful job in describing these tones. Another helpful entity is his overhead views of the larger birds, like eagles and hawks.
All in all this guide is one of the most helpful guides I have ever used. This is the perfect type of company that you should take on your vacations, camping trips, and outdoor activities. Not only does this guide help to identify birds in their natural habitat, it also helps people appreciate the gifts that nature has to offer. Peterson's descriptions are unmatched in the world of birding and birdwatching. From mergansers to kites to finches to exotics, this guide covers all birds, all in one cover.

Reading this book reminded me of attending a good conference where lots of company executives provide detailed examples of the issues they faced, and how they went about dealing with those issues. Since such conferences usually cost several hundred dollars, this book is a real bargain -- and you don't have to get on an airplane and fly someplace!

One of the strengths of the book is that you receive several perspectives on the context for each case history. The editors describe what each case means, and the conclusions section summarizes general patterns. Also, each case is presented in the same format which makes it easier to understand what is being shared. I was particularly grateful for the exhibits (which exist in electronic form in the CD enclosed in the book). I also appreciated that the cases were primarily written by Human Resources professionals inside the companies, rather than being a consultant's take on what happened.

Having said all those positive things, let me share some concerns. First, I looked in vain for my favorite examples of outstanding work in recruiting, retention, knowledge encouragement, and executive development. If this book is about "best practices" where were GE, Disney, Motorola, Ritz Carlton, and SAS Institute? Second, many of the cases involved companies that are better known for their poor performance than for excellence. If they are developing their people so well, what happened? Third, a lot of these cases involve new initiatives where the long-term consequences are hard to see. Fourth, the profit impact on the organizations was not well documented. That makes it hard to use these cases as examples to encourage your own company to follow suit. Fifth, as change management processes, most of these cases are far behind the curve of what is described in Peter Senge's various books of case histories such as The Dance of Change. Part of the reason seems to be that a number of these cases aren't very new.

Of the cases in the book, I recommend the ServiceMASTER, Westinghouse, Johnson & Johnson, Allstate, and Case Corporation examples as the most helpful to me. I mention that because there's a lot of material in this book. I read a lot and rapidly, and I found this book hard to tackle. By being more selective in what you go after, you can help avoid some of that problem. Naturally, if your own issues are only in a few areas, just look at those cases.

Develop the full potential of everyone, beginning with yourself!

"The principal goal of this book is to provide you with the key ingredients taken from best-companies to help you create and enhance your organization and human resource development (OD/HRD) initiative. Through a case study approach, this book provides practical, easy-to-apply tools, instruments, training, concepts, and competency models that can be used as benchmarks for the successful implementation of your specific OD/HRD initiative (from the Introduction)."

In this context, Louis Carter, David Giber, and Marshall Goldsmith (editors) divide core part of this book -Organization and Human Resources Development Case Studies- into following five OD/HRD topic areas:

I. Organization Development and Change: In this section, W. Warner Burke says, "Seven rich cases (Kraft Foods, Nortel, ServiceMASTER, SmithKline Beecham, Westinghouse, CK Witko, and Xerox) of organization development and change are discussed...The cases cover a wide range of change from how OD occurs every day to deep change in an organization's culture...Without doubt we can learn from these cases. And learn we must. Changing organization is too intricate to be left to novices. We have indeed learned and noted at the outset, but we still have much to learn. As one who has been involved for more than 35 years, helping organizations change is both thrilling and very satisfying. Learning, however, is the most exciting part (pp.6-8)."

II. Leadership Development: In this section, Jay A. Congerwrites that "In the cases that follow, we look at three companies (Boeing, Johnson & Johnson, and Sun Microsystems,Inc.) that have dedicated serious time and resources to leadership development...In addition, all three of the company cases make extended use of competency models, 360-degree feedback, and action learning (p.186)."

III. Recruitment and Retention: In this section of the book, John Sullivan writes, "you'll learn how three diverse companies tackled their retention and recruiting problems. Two of the firms are high tech (AMD and Cellular One), while another (Allstate) is in a more traditional industry. Both AMD and Cellular One focus on solving the hot issue of retention while Allstate takes a new look at the recruiting and selection processes. All three of the case studies use a scientific approach to identify which solutions have the most impact...All three of these case studies are worth examining because of their scientific methodology as well as their results. All are full of powerfull 'lessons learned' for those who are soon to begin a major recruitment or retention effort (pp.303-304)."

IV. Performance Management: This section examines performance management systems of Case Corporation and Sonoco. Edward E. Lawler III says that "the performance management systems in most organizations are contoversial, ineffective, and constantly under construction. They are so problematic that critics argue many organizations would be better off if they simply didn't have a performance management system, particularly one in which performance appraisals are tied to pay actions. But-and it is an important but- if individuals are not appraised, counseled, coached, and rewarded for performance, how can an organization pruduce the organized, coordinated, and motivated behavior that it takes to perform well? The answer most likely is that it can't (p.393)."

V. Coaching and Mentoring: Introduction of this section, Beverly Kaye writes, "the last 5 years have seen a groundswell in both arenas. And it's not just been more of the same; organizations have begun to use mentoring and coaching more purposefully. HR and OD practitioners have worked to utilize both interventions to meet pressing business problems having to do with the development and retention of talent, as well as the growth of future leaders. These interventions have been more systemic, more thoughtful, and more innovative than ever before. The case studies (Dow Corning, and MediaOne Group-AT&T) illustrate this trend. Both were motivated by specific business drivers, both were preceded by intensive research, both were implemented over time, and both were evaluated seriously. Readers will find them instructive, detailed, and engaging (p.438)."

Finally, Louis Carter (editor) says that "contributors were asked to indicate where they envision their organization is heading with its initiative within the next 5 to 10 years. Responses indicate that the contributors want to keep the organization on a track to continuously learn and develop its capabilities. Comments from some contributors indicate that they want to leverage lessons learned from this experience. Some contributors commented that they want to firmly ingrain the initiative into the organization to the point that it is almost invisible to the user, making it an accepted part of life at the company. Other contributors will continue to refine the present initiative in place, while others will expand their efforts into other business lines. Survey results clearly indicate that the present state of the initiatives represented in this book represent snapshots of moving targets. Further growth and innovation is inevitable for these best practice organizations, as they work to stay ahead of their competitors by embracing change and continuously learning and improving (pp.531-532)."

Strongly recommended.

Here in a single volume is about all that is needed to design, implement, and then monitor a program through which to achieve organizational transformation. Moreover, the editors have selected both information and wisdom which can help to ensure that such a program is comprehensive, cohesive, and cost-effective. The phrase "best practices" is apt but should not be misconstrued to mean that strategies and tactics which have been highly successful in some organizations are necessary going to be successful in all others. Moreover, I urge the reader to keep in mind that, although the organizations featured (e.g. Boeing, Johnson & Johnson, Kraft Foods, Nortel Networks, ServiceMASTER, SmithKline Beecham, and Sun Microsystems) are among the largest in their respective industries, much of the material in this book is also relevant to small-to-midsize organizations. My own rather extensive past experience with all manner of organizations (including non-profits) has convinced me that most people do not fear change; rather, they fear the unfamiliar. Hence the importance of three on-going initiatives: communicate, communicate, and communicate.

Part One consists of Acknowledgments, About This Book, How to Use This Book, and an excellent Foreword by Richard Beckhard. Carter, Giber, and Goldsmith then shift their attention in Part Two of "Organization & Human Resources Development Case Studies." The individual case studies are distributed within this thematic structure:

Organizational Development & Change

Leadership Development

Recruitment & Retention

Performance Management

Coaching & Mentoring

Part Three: Conclusion consists of Research (OD/HRD Trends and Findings), Endnotes, About Linkage, Inc., About the Editors, Index, and How to Use the CD-ROM, terrific value-added benefit.

Back to Beckhard's Foreword for a moment. In it, he identifies six (6) "elements" which are basic to each case study; all are central to and sequential within the change process associated with organizational development/human resource development (OD/HRD). They are: Business Diagnosis, Assessment, Program Design, Implementation, On-the-Job Support, and Evaluation. It is helpful to keep these six "elements" clearly in mind while working your way through the abundance of information which the editors provide. Fortunately, they have organized the (sometimes daunting) material with meticulous care and write exceptionally well. I also urge you to use the same six "elements" as guidelines when determining what the design of your own program for organizational change should be, and, when selecting those strategies and tactics discussed in the book which are most appropriate to the implementation and evaluation of that program. This is especially true of decision-makers in small-to-midsize organizations.

Those who share my high regard for this book are urged to check out O'Toole's Leading Change, Katzenbach's Real Change Leaders as well as his Peak Performance , Kaplan and Norton's The Balanced Scorecard and The Strategy-Focused Organization, Quinn's Deep Change, O'Dell and Grayson's If Only We Knew What We Know, Isaacs' Dialogue and the Art of Thinking Together, and Senge's The Dance of Change. Those especially interested in Six Sigma are encouraged to check out (and read in this order) Pande's The Six Sigma Way, Breyfogle's Implementing Six Sigma, and Eckes's Making Six Sigma Last.

Robert Anton Wilson is one of the most forward thinkers of his time. Wilson's first book in this series leads you down his path of exploring the changes he underwent by using mind expanding drugs and experimenting with magick rituals. Wilson's storyline of his mind expansion intersects along the way with his real life and allows the reader an insight into what types of things were influencing his decisions as he probed deeper into this fantastical realm. The timeline shifts around but the reader is never dissatisfied. The second part of the book deals with the scientific basis behind his studies and those of other free thinkers such as Timothy Leary.

I first became interested in Wilson after reading the Illuminati trilogy. This book will only add to anyone's appreciation for that book and its author. This book provides some background into the events which are covered by the trilogy. In general, the Cosmic Trigger series begins with a bang. 4 stars losing one for the sometimes cryptic nature of the writing, but then again, that is RAW.

This is really the only book you need to buy by Robert A. Wilson; his fiction is pretty awful (cardboard characters and self-referential plots drowning in footnotes); and all his other nonfiction works are the same repetitive rambling about the strange soup he makes of his favorites: Leary's levels of consciousness, general semantics, James Joyce, western philosophy (all of which he well understands), mysticism (which he does not) and Wilson's own mediocre interpretation of the philosophical implications of the quantum theory (he's an old-school copenhagenist). Cosmic Trigger has all that but much more; autobiography lends it a lovely basic narrative structure that is far more affecting than any of his silly novels, it has the phantasmagoric black-comic mood he fails to quite pull off in fiction, and of course is written in his usual direct, smooth, readable, and frequently hilarious prose style. If only he weren't from the foul "take more dope" hedonistic-materialistic school of consciousness and hadn't therefore been eating acid like candy when he wrote this, we might even be able to relate some of these events from his internal universe of perception to the external universe we share.

This was my first introduction to the writings of Robert Anton Wilson, at a time in my life when the limited, inconsistant, and ludicrous models of reality offered by the world seemed too limiting to bear. What Wilson offers here appears (in my reality tunnel) to be a look into the largely misunderstood philosophy of agnosticism, as well as his own experiences with love, sex, drugs, yoga, magik, life, death, and governmental corruption.

Does this review capture Wilson, or Cosmic Trigger I in its entirety? Of course not, and Wilson is fully aware that his writings and non-beliefs defy any catagorization (his books are very hard to find in retail stores). All I can offer is my uninformed opinion that there is no wiser, more humorous, and generally more interesting than Robert Anton Wilson.