Books about Absorbing from Amazon.com

A fascinating reminder of how contemporary prejudices color the way each generation looks at the nation's past.

In this "thought-provoking study" (Library Journal), historian Kyle Ward—the widely acclaimed co-author of History Lessons—gives us another fascinating look at the biases inherent in the way we learn about our history. Juxtaposing passages from U.S. history textbooks from different eras, History in the Making provides us with intriguing new perspectives on familiar historical events and the ways in which they have been represented over time.

The hardcover edition of History in the Making struck a chord among readers of popular history, and Ward was featured on NPR's popular series How the Understanding of U.S. History Changes. "Interesting and useful," according to Booklist, the book "convincingly illustrates how texts change as social and political attitudes evolve.

With excerpts that span two hundred years, from Columbus's arrival to the Boston Massacre, from women's suffrage to Japanese internment, History in the Making exposes the stark contrasts between the lessons different generations have been taught about our past. "A good starting point for anyone interested in history and subjectivity" (Kirkus), this immensely readable book is proof positive that your history is not your grandparent's history and won't be your children's history..
Price: $7.71 [Notify me when price goes down.]

Since 1988, millions of people have discovered the relief of having Uncle John in the bathroom with them! No more frantic searches at the last minute for that perfect magazine article No more agonizing choices between light reading and the serious stuff. Uncle John's Absolutely Absorbing Bathroom Reader collects humorous stories, interesting facts, and useless trivia chosen specifically for temporary reading needs. This edition includes:

*Weird tourist traps
*Who invented daylight savings time?
*The birth of the calendar
*The history of the bra

Plus, it continues with the regular features readers look forward to, such as the stories behind popular songs, the origins of famous phrases, proverbs from prime-time television, and memorable people who made their mark in 15 minutes..
Price: $0.98 [Notify me when price goes down.]

INSPIRED BY THE HIT TELEVISION SHOW-
Advice for the kid inside every one of its 27 million adult fans.

Spongebob Squarepants is the most famous sponge on the planet, and for good reason. Straddling the line between childlike innocence and mature contentment, he is particularly well-liked and well-adjusted. While he screws up from time to time, his absorbent nature demands that he learn from his mistakes. In this delightful book, it is the reader who learns ten different lessons for getting the most out of life and how to apply them, with Spongebob and other residents of Bikini Bottom as examples.

Some spongy secrets to happiness:

- Handling Fear-like Spongebob's fear of making an imperfect Krabby Patty.
- Job Contentment-even a fry cook at the bottom of the ocean can have a blast.
- Coping with harsh reality-is like how a sponge and a squirrel in an underwater space suit should probably just remain friends.

Capturing all the quirky humor that has made the show a phenomenal success, this is the ultimate book for Spongebob fans..
Price: $0.01 [Notify me when price goes down.]

Among numerical methods applied in acoustics, the Finite Element Method (FEM)  is normally favored for interior problems whereas the Boundary Element Method (BEM) is quite popular for exterior ones.

That is why this valuable reference provides a complete survey of methods for computational acoustics, namely FEM and BEM. It demonstrates that both methods can be effectively used in the complementary cases.

The chapters by well-known authors are evenly balanced: 10 chapters on FEM and 10 on BEM. An initial conceptual chapter describes the derivation of the wave equation and supplies a unified approach to FEM and BEM for the harmonic case. A categorization of the remaining chapters and a personal outlook complete this introduction. In what follows, both FEM and BEM are discussed in the context of very different problems.

Firstly, this comprises numerical issues, e.g. convergence, multi-frequency solutions and highly efficient methods; and secondly, solutions techniques for the particular difficulties that arise with external problems, e.g. discussion of absorbing boundaries for FEM and treatment of the non-uniqueness problem for BEM. Finally, both parts on FEM and on BEM are completed by chapters on related problems, e.g. formulations for fluid-structure interaction. In addition to time-harmonic problems, transient problems are considered in some chapters. Many theoretical and industrial applications are presented.

Overall, this book is a unified review of the state-of-the-art on FEM and BEM for computational acoustics.

.
Price: $134.14 [Notify me when price goes down.]

Bound to a naval officer in a loveless marriage, Pauline Wainwright comes to India against her will and finds herself thrust into the turmoil that surrounds a remote English outpost threatened by the Bengal Army. In her adopted land, during forays into the idyllic countryside, between encounters with wild animals, amid chaos of war preparations, Pauline strangely finds peace. She makes several friends and wins the admiration and love of two strong men. As their military situation deteriorates, the three draw strength from one another and throw themselves into a mad scramble to avert a terrible catastrophe. Heroic efforts to defend the garrison and acts of incredible bravery are counterpointed by squabbles, spineless direction, and ultimate desertion by the fort's leadership. Misfortune after misfortune haunt the survivors. Still the fortress holds, inspired by memories of an England which they may never see again. The climax of A Flight of Green Parrots occurs in a suffocating dungeon where Pauline desperately attempts to save her men and a hundred others from a fate history only knows as the Black Hole of Calcutta..
Price: $7.19 [Notify me when price goes down.]