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Fundamentals of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Analysis: Applying ArcGIS Pro
by Tao TangUnique and authoritative reference combining concepts, theories, and hands-on analysis in the ArcGIS Pro software environment Fundamentals of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Analysis bridges the gap between academic discussions and research with public and private professional practices in the field. The book discusses and illustrates essential concepts and theories, with tutorials showing students how to conduct hands-on analysis in the ArcGIS Pro software environment. Supplementary material for this text includes data files for the tutorials and student exercises. All datasets are sourced from public domains, including the US Census Bureau data, the New York State ITS Geospatial Services, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC), the GIS Services of Erie County New York, and others. Written by a highly qualified academic, the book covers topics such as: Digital data models representing geographic information, including vector, raster, and 3D modelsMethods of spatial data input in vector and raster data formats to incorporate geographic features and events with their attribute dataGeographic data collections in natural sciences, engineering, and social sciences, and relational, spatial, and structural querying of a databaseCoordinate systems, map projection, geo-referencing, geographic analyses, and internet-enabled geographic information sharingSpatial interpolation and spatial statistical analysis, network analysis, digital mapping, and map presentations Fundamentals of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Analysis is an essential reference for GIS analysts and technicians, urban planners, civil engineers, and computer scientists, along with students in related programs of study.
Advances in Artificial Intelligence Applications in Industrial and Systems Engineering (Advances in Industrial and Systems Engineering)
by Gavriel Salvendy Waldemar Karwowski Vincent DuffyComprehensive guide offering actionable strategies for enhancing human-centered AI, efficiency, and productivity in industrial and systems engineering through the power of AI. Advances in Artificial Intelligence Applications in Industrial and Systems Engineering is the first book in the Advances in Industrial and Systems Engineering series, offering insights into AI techniques, challenges, and applications across various industrial and systems engineering (ISE) domains. Not only does the book chart current AI trends and tools for effective integration, but it also raises pivotal ethical concerns and explores the latest methodologies, tools, and real-world examples relevant to today’s dynamic ISE landscape. Readers will gain a practical toolkit for effective integration and utilization of AI in system design and operation. The book also presents the current state of AI across big data analytics, machine learning, artificial intelligence tools, cloud-based AI applications, neural-based technologies, modeling and simulation in the metaverse, intelligent systems engineering, and more, and discusses future trends. Written by renowned international contributors for an international audience, Advances in Artificial Intelligence Applications in Industrial and Systems Engineering includes information on: Reinforcement learning, computer vision and perception, and safety considerations for autonomous systems (AS)(NLP) topics including language understanding and generation, sentiment analysis and text classification, and machine translationAI in healthcare, covering medical imaging and diagnostics, drug discovery and personalized medicine, and patient monitoring and predictive analysisCybersecurity, covering threat detection and intrusion prevention, fraud detection and risk management, and network securitySocial good applications including poverty alleviation and education, environmental sustainability, and disaster response and humanitarian aid. Advances in Artificial Intelligence Applications in Industrial and Systems Engineering is a timely, essential reference for engineering, computer science, and business professionals worldwide.
Science and Inequality: A Political Sociology
by Kelly Moore Scott FrickelScience and technology produce a wide range of benefits in society but they also create harm, both of which are unequally distributed across social groups and geographic regions. This incisive book provides a set of analytical tools to understand how inequality relating to science and technology is produced, and how the field can be reorganized to make good on its promise to improve life for all. Using a range of evidence and examples, Frickel and Moore show that science and technology are closely bound up with social inequalities, including linked problems of poor health, environmental degradation, racism, and sexism. They use the frame of “scientific inequality formations” to investigate the technoscientific sources of unequal power relations in society, examining issues such as the underdevelopment of non-profitable technologies, how laws and markets direct scientific advances, and the exclusion of certain social groups from the creation of knowledge and solutions relevant to their lives. This timely book illuminates interventions that redirect science and technology toward more equitable ends with the potential to be more widely distributed, charting a path to a more just future.
Acute Medicine: A Practical Guide to the Management of Medical Emergencies
by Mridula Rajwani Leila Vaziri Ivie GbinigieRevised edition of a leading educational resource on acute medicine, updated with existing guidance and new, exciting areas of research Acute Medicine is a quick reference guide that details a comprehensive range of acute medical emergencies affecting different organ systems with the latest guidelines and evidence for management of these emergencies. It includes discussions around location of care, including principles of ambulatory care or same day emergency care and the different services that are in place to provide acute care within the community (e.g. hospital at home). The book adopts a unique approach to clinical assessment by outlining key priorities during acute critical periods, along with ongoing management considerations after diagnosis and initial treatment. This new edition covers the latest research and applications in this rapidly developing field, such as point-of-care ultrasound, its role in frontline medicine, and its use in clinical assessment. Contributed to by experts in their fields sharing the latest and ground-breaking best clinical practice, Acute Medicine includes information on: Hypotension and shock, reduced consciousness level, delirium, and falls in older people Acute chest pain, palpitations, transient loss of consciousness, acute breathlessness and respiratory failure, and pleural effusion Acute headaches, seizures and epilepsy, weakness and paralysis, acute sensory symptoms, and loss of vision Acute upper and lower gastrointestinal bleeding, alcoholic hepatitis, urinary tract infections, and acute liver failure Cellulitis and necrotizing fasciitis, erythroderma and toxic epidermal necrolysis, septic arthritis, acute vasculitis, and acute gout and pseudogout Acute Medicine serves as an excellent one-stop reference for practitioners in the field, physicians, residents, nurses, nurse practitioners, physician associates, and many more. It may also be used as a revision aid for those in undergraduate or postgraduate education.
Building Effective Privacy Programs: Cybersecurity from Principles to Practice
by Jason Edwards Griffin WeaverPresents a structured approach to privacy management, an indispensable resource for safeguarding data in an ever-evolving digital landscape In today’s data-driven world, protecting personal information has become a critical priority for organizations of all sizes. Building Effective Privacy Programs: Cybersecurity from Principles to Practice equips professionals with the tools and knowledge to design, implement, and sustain robust privacy programs. Seamlessly integrating foundational principles, advanced privacy concepts, and actionable strategies, this practical guide serves as a detailed roadmap for navigating the complex landscape of data privacy. Bridging the gap between theoretical concepts and practical implementation, Building Effective Privacy Programs combines in-depth analysis with practical insights, offering step-by-step instructions on building privacy-by-design frameworks, conducting privacy impact assessments, and managing compliance with global regulations. In-depth chapters feature real-world case studies and examples that illustrate the application of privacy practices in a variety of scenarios, complemented by discussions of emerging trends such as artificial intelligence, blockchain, IoT, and more. Providing timely and comprehensive coverage of privacy principles, regulatory compliance, and actionable strategies, Building Effective Privacy Programs: Addresses all essential areas of cyberprivacy, from foundational principles to advanced topicsPresents detailed analysis of major laws, such as GDPR, CCPA, and HIPAA, and their practical implicationsOffers strategies to integrate privacy principles into business processes and IT systemsCovers industry-specific applications for healthcare, finance, and technology sectorsHighlights successful privacy program implementations and lessons learned from enforcement actionsIncludes glossaries, comparison charts, sample policies, and additional resources for quick reference Written by seasoned professionals with deep expertise in privacy law, cybersecurity, and data protection, Building Effective Privacy Programs: Cybersecurity from Principles to Practice is a vital reference for privacy officers, legal advisors, IT professionals, and business executives responsible for data governance and regulatory compliance. It is also an excellent textbook for advanced courses in cybersecurity, information systems, business law, and business management.
Navigating Digital Transformation: The Dynamics of Educational Technology Adoption (Assessment of Educational Technology)
by Longwei ZhengThis book explores the process of educators’ technology adoption, which is crucial for digital transformation in today's educational landscape. It is based on rigorous research which highlights the dynamics of technology adoption, the evolution of institutional culture, and the development of digital artifacts as educators navigate the incorporation of educational technology. Through a thorough analysis of the complex factors influencing technology adoption, the book seeks to bridge theory and practice, technology and teaching methods, policy, and execution, to promote more effective and meaningful educational innovation and transformation.This book confronts the challenges within this field by illustrating the development process of teachers' technology adoption. It introduces novel representations and analytics of technology adoption dynamics, offering new insights into the mechanisms behind teachers' technological understanding beyond mere self-reported acceptance. Through a thorough analysis of the complex factors influencing technology adoption, the book seeks to bridge theory and practice, technology and teaching methods, policy, and execution, to promote more effective and meaningful educational innovation and transformation. To study the short- and long-term effects that may improve the assessment of interventions, the author proposes a dynamic model. The reader is also introduced to a framework based on a downscaling scheme that can project cultural factors of the institution onto a teacher’s implementation behaviour. The book further considers navigating through technological integration by inspecting technology-related quality of teaching artifacts. It considers patterns of integrating digital tools and teaching practice that can be identified by examining the technology-specific quality of digital artifacts shaped by teachers.This book targets several key groups in the education sector, including educators, researchers, policymakers, and educational technology professionals. The author shares the knowledge to support the integration of technology and transformation in education by providing interdisciplinary perspectives and practical strategies.
Chemistry Calculations for Beginners
by John Obimakinde Samuel Obimakinde Ebenezer Obimakinde Fredrick AkinboladeWith decades of combined experience as science teachers at both school and undergraduate levels, the authors have recognised that one of the greatest challenges faced by students studying chemistry is grasping the complexity of the numerous numerical problems found in most parts of the subject. This text is crafted to provide a clear and accessible pathway to overcoming this challenge by assisting students, especially novices or those with minimal knowledge of the subject, in performing chemistry calculations. The content covers fundamental calculations crucial to understanding the principles of chemistry, making it an invaluable tool for students aiming to excel in their studies.Key features Designed with a student-friendly approach, including detailed explanation of chemical concepts underlying each type of calculation, step-by-step explanations, alternative methods for solving problems, numerous practice exercises, answers to practice exercises and appendices The book is tailored to suit various curricula, ensuring relevance for a diverse audience Encompasses a wide range of calculations, offering students a thorough understanding of essential chemistry concepts Serves as an excellent resource for exam preparation and equips students with skills applicable to future scientific endeavours. Employs straightforward language to ensure ease of understanding for beginners Uses IUPAC conventions, underscoring the universal nature of chemistry
The Experience of ‘Defending’ the Doctoral Dissertation: International Comparative Studies of the Final Oral Examination (Routledge Research in Higher Education)
by Michael Byram Maria StoichevaThis volume describes, compares, and analyses the experience of ‘defending’ the doctoral dissertation in a final oral examination in universities and traditions in the European Higher Education Area (EHEA) and beyond.Forming the basis for a comparative study of the different traditions, 11 case study chapters include analysis of the regulatory framework; semi-structured interviews with candidates, examiners, and supervisors; and ethnographic observations of the defence. Cases are drawn from universities in Bulgaria, Denmark, England, France, Germany, Italy, Portugal, Slovenia, the USA, and China. Further chapters analyse comparatively the findings in the case studies and explore crucial themes such as the nature and purpose of the defence, the composition of examining committees, the role of supervisors, and the idea of the defence as ritual and performance.Providing unprecedented levels of detail into a process often perceived as hidden from academic debate, this book will enrich the experience of both new and existing candidates as well as examiners and supervisors, and will be of further interest to researchers, scholars, and postgraduate students working on the study of higher education, international and comparative education, and assessment in higher education.
Policy and Power in Education: The Rise and Fall of the LEA (Routledge Revivals)
by Peter Edwards Harold HellerThe fortunes of the education service in Britain have been intimately bound up with the vitality of the local education authorities, particularly in the decades following the 1944 Education Act. The passing of the 1988 Education Reform Act saw the LEAs in serious—perhaps terminal—decline.First published in 1992, Policy and Power in Education sets out to map the contours of this decline in power. It relates these changing fortunes not only to the social and political environment in Britain but also to wider developments in the industrialised world. It argues that post-colonial decline, economic retreat and insular self-satisfaction combined with basic structural flaws in the LEA system threaten its very existence in the last decade of the millennium. The capacity of the system to reform itself into more responsive modes is left as an open question in the face of ever tightening constraints from the Thatcherite tendency in government. The associated challenge to the curriculum is also explored, with the suggestion that an over-prescribed and specified curriculum will prove to be maladaptive against rapidly changing conditions for the twenty-first century. New paradigms of learning are described, while the broadly irrelevant search for utopias on the left is also sceptically reviewed.
Disciplina de La Iglesia Metodista Unida 2020/2024: Book of Discipline 2024 Spanish
by Abingdon PressEl libro de la Disciplina de la Iglesia Metodista Unida detalla el plan por el cual las personas metodistas unidas se gobiernan a sí mismas, y describe su comprensión de lo que se espera del laicado y del clero a medida que buscamos ser testigos efectivos en el mundo y hacer discípulos y discípulas de Jesucristo. Como producto de más de 200 años de conferencias generales de las denominaciones que forman la Iglesia Metodista Unida, la Disciplina honra el pasado y mira hacia el futuro.El libro de la Disciplina de la Iglesia Metodista Unida incluye:Leyes y gobierno de la iglesiaNuestra constituciónNuestra historiaNuestras normas doctrinalesNuestra tarea teológicaPalabras inspiradoras de WesleyY mucho más
Personality: Theories and Applications
by Eric ShiraevPersonality: Theories and Applications takes an interdisciplinary and cross-cultural approach to the study of personality. Author Eric Shiraev structures the text around three questions: What are the basic ideas and facts that we focus on? How do we study these ideas and facts? How do we apply them? Students will benefit from a deeper understanding of personality as they navigate a wide range of theories, empirical studies, and thought-provoking exercises, fostering enhanced critical thinking and knowledge. The Second Edition includes a new chapter on the digital domain of personality, incorporates the latest findings from the fields of behavioral economics and neuroscience, and offers expanded coverage of LGBTQ+ issues, including prejudice and cultural stereotypes. Included with this title: LMS Cartridge: Import this title’s instructor resources into your school’s learning management system (LMS) and save time. Don’t use an LMS? You can still access all of the same online resources for this title via the password-protected Instructor Resource Site.
Personality: Theories and Applications
by Eric ShiraevPersonality: Theories and Applications takes an interdisciplinary and cross-cultural approach to the study of personality. Author Eric Shiraev structures the text around three questions: What are the basic ideas and facts that we focus on? How do we study these ideas and facts? How do we apply them? Students will benefit from a deeper understanding of personality as they navigate a wide range of theories, empirical studies, and thought-provoking exercises, fostering enhanced critical thinking and knowledge. The Second Edition includes a new chapter on the digital domain of personality, incorporates the latest findings from the fields of behavioral economics and neuroscience, and offers expanded coverage of LGBTQ+ issues, including prejudice and cultural stereotypes. Included with this title: LMS Cartridge: Import this title’s instructor resources into your school’s learning management system (LMS) and save time. Don’t use an LMS? You can still access all of the same online resources for this title via the password-protected Instructor Resource Site.
Data Wise, Third Edition: Educators Collaborating So Each Learner Thrives
by Kathryn Parker Boudett Candice BocalaA revised and updated edition presents field-tested strategies to foster equity, inclusion, and continuous improvement in educational practice
Leveled Reading, Leveled Lives: How Students' Reading Achievement Has Been Held Back and What We Can Do About It
by Timothy ShanahanAn engaging and evidence-based examination of how reading instruction has been misinterpreted and misapplied for decades and how to right the course to improve reading skills for all students In Leveled Reading, Leveled Lives, leading literacy expert Timothy Shanahan curates a lively tour of the history of reading instruction in the United States, arguing that the most popular reading instruction method is failing students and suppressing their literacy achievement. He breaks down the reasons why teachers and researchers alike have favored this accepted wisdom, known as instructional-level theory, in US schools over the past five decades—and presents a compelling case for a new way forward that will bolster students&’ reading skills. Today it&’s not uncommon to find students in a fourth-grade classroom reading books suitable for third-, second-, or even first-graders. Teachers suggest books to students at their deemed &“instructional levels,&” but how these instructional levels are determined is suspect. With a comprehensive, critical analysis of instructional-level pedagogy, Shanahan exposes its shaky foundations and shows how faulty research findings have become so entrenched. He gathers an extensive body of research studies that overwhelmingly contradict the instructional-level theory and offers an evidence-based consideration of how educators must instead use grade-level reading to bring about maximum learning gains. This seminal book concludes with practical advice for implementing grade-level reading instruction, including detailed descriptions of the types of instruction and scaffolding needed to increase students&’ reading achievement, from teaching decoding and challenging texts to scaffolding reading to maintaining motivation. Shanahan asserts that a better approach can ensure that all students have an opportunity to leave high school with reading abilities commensurate with their personal, social, civic, and economic goals.
Management of Smallpox Eradication in India
by Lawrence B. BrilliantDoctor Lawrence Brilliant and Doctor Isao Arita, Chief, Smallpox Eradication Programme, World Health Organization, Geneva, Switzerland, visited West Bengal during the autumn of 1973 in order to initiate the first trial of the smallpox eradication program, namely, a statewide search for hidden cases in a population of sixty million. Eighteen months of intensive work produced a final result of the recording of the last smallpox case in India; the date of onset of rash was May 24, 1975. No more cases have been detected.
On Drama: Boundaries of Genre, Borders of Self (Theater: Theory/Text/Performance)
by Michael GoldmanThe latest book by noted critic and scholar Michael Goldman provides fresh and unexpected insights into the role played by genre in the experience of drama. Challenging the view that genre is by definition exclusion, and that its policing of boundaries is out of place in the neighborhood of art, Michael Goldman suggests that the lens of genre can provide keen insights for our understanding and appreciation of drama. For Goldman, it is important to consider drama as an exper-ience, an ongoing moment-to-moment process for audiences or readers. Everything changes, says Goldman, when we stop to think of genre as not entirely unlike rhyme or ambiguity--features whose primary interest for readers or audiences is as something that happens to us in a poem or play, as it happens. It is valuable to see that--as it operates in drama--the instability of the subject of genre has a specific and unique texture, one that can offer useful insights into our experience as viewers of and participants in drama. In this light, discussions of genre can help us to understand what drama as a special kind of social practice does for and with our lives. It is important that we work toward understanding the process of thinking about drama in this light--that we understand the power and complexity of drama--and Michael Goldman aims to do so in this book. Michael Goldman is Professor of English, Princeton University. He is author of a number of books, including Acting and Action in Shakespearean Tragedy, Shakespeare and the Energies of Drama, Ibsen: The Dramaturgy of Fear, and The Actor's Freedom: Toward a Theory of Drama.
Crime in the Public Mind
by Kathlyn Taylor GaubatzCrime in the Public Mind explores the politics of crime and criminal justice, examining in depth what Americans think about penalties for criminal offenders. While some are resigned, others are desperate; a few are hopeful and forgiving, but most are frustrated and angry. In fact, fully eighty percent of the population believes that the court system should deal more harshly with criminal offenders. In this readable account, Kathlyn Taylor Gaubatz makes use of intensive interviews with Americans from varied walks of life in order to reveal the fascinating nuances in the public's views on criminal justice, and in their motivations for holding these views. She questions our easy acceptance of the very existence of a public consensus around such a complex, intractable issue as crime. Why do Americans support harsh penal policies when crime rates are actually falling? How does this attitude square with our increasingly liberal social ideas? What logic is there to support stiff sentencing when the vast majority of the public acknowledges that prisons have been powerless to reduce crime in our nation to an acceptable level? The author powerfully weaves narratives from those she interviewed to construct an in-depth theory about who joins and who spurns the consensus on criminal justice. She explores the complex relationship between our political beliefs and our attitudes toward crime, revealing in some cases a telling dissonance. Through careful argumentation and demonstration, Crime in the Public Mind concludes that Americans have become harsher on crime not in spite of becoming more liberal on a variety of other social issues, but at least in part because we have done so. At a time when crime has been called the political issue of the decade, Crime in the Public Mind forces us to confront our assumptions, to sort through our fear. It gives us an opportunity to balance our desire for safety and our desire to see justice done with our innate compassion and understanding. By exposing the paradoxes of our beliefs, the author pushes us to reconsider whether incarceration really is the answer to every criminal offense and invites us to contemplate saner and perhaps more effective approaches to criminal justice. "In the great tradition of Robert Lane's Political Ideology, Gaubatz has discovered that what the 'common man' (and woman) believes about crime and punishment is more complicated than the polling numbers would allow. While clearly in sympathy with those who dissent from get-tough approaches, she offers a balanced, insightful, and timely understanding of public attitudes about criminal justice. Experts, policymakers, students, and concerned citizens should read this fine book."- John J. DiIulio, Jr., Princeton University and Director, Brookings Institution Center for Public Management Kathlyn Taylor Gaubatz holds a Ph.D. in politics from Princeton University and is Executive Director of a non profit agency that provides housing, counseling, child-care, and other services to homeless families and individuals in San Franciso.
Penchant for Prejudice: Unraveling Bias in Judicial Decision-Making
by Linda Gayle MillsA Penchant for Prejudice combines a detailed empirical study of the decision-making practices of judges with a sophisticated theoretical argument which exposes contemporary myths about judging and suggests methods of incorporating the inevitable bias that is detected in this and other studies. Based on a unique study of the decisions of Social Security judges, the book challenges the meaning of judicial impartiality. Linda G. Mills finds that, in practice, bias is a consistent dimension of what is considered "impartial" decision-making. The results reveal that impartiality as the legal system now defines it, is itself a form of bias, and that a historically and contextually sensitive definition of bias, one which takes account of the communities and cultures that come to be judged in the legal system, must overcome the modern dualistic notion of imparitality as the exclusion of bias in order to respond to needs of the diversity of applicants and the judges who adjudicate their claims. According to Mills, the judicial bias she found reflected in her study seems not only to essentialize and stereotype applicants but also prevents judges from engaging vulnerable claimants in a way that the legal process positively demands. A Penchant for Prejudice will be of interest to students and scholars of law, judicial decisionmaking, and discrimination. Linda G. Mills is Assistant Professor of Social Welfare and Law, University of California, Los Angeles.
Antidumping: How It Works and Who Gets Hurt (Studies In International Economics)
by J. Michael FingerAntidumping is a threat to the liberal trading system that post-World War II Western leadership struggled courageously and effectively to create. It offers a GATT-legal means to destroy the GATT system, leading to restrictions on more U.S. imports than even the Multi-Fibre Arrangement. This book presents studies of five industries whose exports have been hard hit by antidumping actions. Each of these studies avoids the legalisms and the jargon of antidumping and answers a straightforward question: was the national economic interest of either the exporting or the importing country improved by the antidumping actions that were taken? The contributors not only ask questions and present viable answers, but also provide a proposal that offers both consistence with GATT and good economics.This book will be of interest to lawyers, political scientists, economists, and business people. It has intentionally avoided the specialized language of trade regulation so that it may be more readily accessible to anyone interested in international commercial policy.
From Culture to Ethnicity to Conflict: An Anthropological Perspective on Ethnic Conflict
by Jack David EllerIn the post-Cold War era, the most common and often the most violent conflicts are ethnic conflicts. Many people, including many scholars, see ethnic conflicts as a return to the past, as contests between ancient and well-defined groups with long-standing grievances and animosities. Jack David Eller argues instead that these conflicts are a defining phenomenon of the "new world order"--that they are, in many ways, modern-day inventions based only loosely on "traditional" cultures and hostilities. From Culture to Ethnicity to Conflict presents in-depth case studies on Sri Lanka, the Kurds, Rwanda and Burundi, Bosnia, and Quebec, along with two theoretical introductory chapters that offer the reader the tools to understand the relationship between "culture" or "tradition" and contemporary ethnic conflicts. Eller finds that ethnicity is not a simple instantiation of "traditional" culture, nor is conflict a simple consequence of ethnicity. Rather, each is constructed out of certain raw cultural materials, through a process of remembering, forgetting, interpreting, and inventing. Ultimately, Eller demonstrates, these groups are fighting not about culture, but with culture. No other book combines the level of analysis offered here with in-depth case studies of several important examples. It will appeal to anyone with an interest in understanding these conflicts. It will be assigned reading for students and scholars of cultural diversity and ethnic conflict in anthropology, history, political science, and peace and conflict studies. Jack David Eller is Assistant Professor of Anthropology, University of Colorado, Denver/Teikyo Loretto Heights University.
Police Interrogation and Confessions
by Yale KamisarA historical overview of the Supreme Court's efforts to deal with a most troublesome and most controversial cluster of problems from pre-Miranda days to the present time.
Black Detroit and the Rise of the UAW
by August Meier Elliott Rudwick Jr.For almost two decades, August Meier and Elliott Rudwick have roamed the frontier of Afro-American history, blazing trails that others have followed. This book forges a solid link between race and class conflict in the twentieth century.---Ira Berlin, The Nation"This fact-filled study is essential to students of the labor and civil rights movements."---David Kusnet, The New Republic"A fascinating slice of history illustrating important race and class issues that are still with us."---Library Journal"By ignoring the conventional lines between labor and black history, Meier and Rudwick have found an unexplored middle ground---the net of relations between the black community and white economic institutions---that shaped the working life of blacks in Detroit's auto plants. This is a major achievement."---David Brody, Professor Emeritus of History, University of California, Davis". . . an important work . . . one of the first to apply the nitty-gritty of social and institutional history to 20th century African American and labor history." ---Eric Arnesen, University of Illinois at ChicagoBlack Detroit and the Rise of the UAW is essential reading for historians of labor and race in America, as well those interested in Detroit's importance as a crucible for American urban history.
Artificial Paradise: Science Fiction and American Reality (Studies In Literature And Science)
by Sharona E. Ben-Tov"The Artificial Paradise shows how science fiction is a powerful purveyor of cultural myths rooted in the history of the West, myths that shape American attitudes toward nature, technology, and the pursuit of happiness. Sharona Ben-Tov posits the theory that science fiction is an American "national mode of thinking" which seeks to replace nature with technological worlds- paradoxically, in hope of regaining a mythic, magical American Eden. Science fiction imagery- from fifties sci-fi through women's sci-fi and cyberpunk- keeps alive the desires of and anxieties born during the Scientific Revolution, when the Western view of nature changed radically. Ben-Tov discusses sci-fi classics like Dune, The Dispossessed, Neuromancer, Vonnegut's fiction, and the Aliens movie in relation to ancient and modern myths of nature, to scientific projects like the atom bomb, Strategic Defense Initiative, robotics, virtual reality, and to cultural psychology. The book will appeal to those interested in popular culture, literature, and feminist studies. It will also enchant general readers who are interested in science fiction, especially readers who want to understand more about the relationship between technology and society. "The Artificial Paradise sets out to map the cultural anxieties that have beset Western thinking since the Scientific Revolution, and to investigate the ills that flow from the split in Western thinking between nature and culture and subject and object, and how the split is expressed and reinforced in popular culture and particularly in written science fiction. . . . [A] thought-provoking, wide-ranging book written in an admirably lucid style."--Sarah Lefanu, author of Feminism and Science Fiction "The examination of America's uneasy relationship with nature is an illuminating approach which draws together science fiction studies and American studies. The witty and readable style should attract a wide readership."--Brian Attebery, Idaho State University "The Artificial Paradise is at once intellectually provocative, knowledgeable, and literate. As our lives become increasingly determined by technology, we will need to turn to such thinkers as Dr. Ben- Tov to guide us through its dangers and pleasures."--Alan Lightman, Massachusetts Institute of Technology Sharona Ben-Tov is Assistant Professor of Creative Writing and English, Bowling Green State University. She is author of During Ceasefire (Harper-Collins), a book of poems.
Recharting the Caribbean: Land, Law, and Citizenship in the British Virgin Islands
by Bill (William) MaurerIf, as many cultural critics have asserted, the world is becoming more like the Caribbean, then the task of charting what we mean by "the Caribbean" is an urgent one. This careful study of the British Virgin Islands (BVI) calls attention to the ways in which ideas about nature and choice have come to justify a social order in which half the population is deemed not to belong and is denied legal rights. The BVI, one of Britain's few remaining colonial possessions, has become an important destination point for Caribbean migrants and a center for international financial services. Bill Maurer traces how the BVI came to be defined, legally and popularly, as a territorial entity, and how BVIslanders came to define themselves as a "people" sharing a "culture." He argues that law has been central to the construction of ethnic, racial, and cultural differences that create boundaries between peoples and places and that facilitate the exploitation of labor, the exclusion of people from the political process, and the globalization of capital. Recharting the Caribbean will be important reading for anthropologist, legal scholars, and historians of colonial discourse. Bill Maurer is Assistant Professor of Anthropology, University of California at Irvine.
Serpents in the Sand: Essays in the Nonlinear Nature of Politics and Human Destiny
by Courtney BrownFor decades, social scientists have worked with models that have sought to quantify and explain human behavior. The common foundation for nearly all of these mathematical applications is the assumption of linear progression, equilibrium, and stability. Serpents in the Sand not only argues that political life is fundamentally nonlinear but thoroughly analyzes specific instances of extreme nonlinearity in politics. By so doing, Courtney Brown offers a guide to the reader on how to apply nonlinearity, including chaos theory, to real-world situations. The author develops his argument by in-depth analysis of four examples covering a broad spectrum of political life. He considers, first, the relationship between individual rationality and the influence of a voter's political milieu. He then turns to look at the dynamics behind the Johnson vs. Goldwater landslide presidential election of 1964. The fall of the Weimar Republic and the rise of Nazi Germany provide a third case study, followed, by an analysis of the relationship between democratic electoral politics and the ecological environment. Highly original in its finding, Serpents in the Sand resembles no other work on politics. It is the first study of nonlinearity in political behavior to base its argument on specific examples rather than on analogies to physical and ecological systems. Substantively, the book draws provocative conclusions from the test cases, examining for instance the potential for disaster in the oscillatory relationship between the way U.S. presidents are elected and the management of the country's environment. In the end, Serpents in the Sand extends its argument to the philosophy of human existence, showing that human behavior is as nonlinear as all other processes in the universe. Courtney Brown is Associate Professor of Political Science, Emory University.