|
|
|
The Structure of Scientific Revolutions
There's a "Frank & Ernest" comic strip showing a chick breaking out of its shell, looking around, and saying, "Oh, wow! Paradigm shift!" Blame the late Thomas Kuhn. Few indeed are the philosophers or historians influential enough to make it into the funny papers, but Kuhn is one. The Structure of Scientific Revolutions is indeed a paradigmatic work in the history of science. Kuhn's use of terms such as "paradigm shift" and "normal science," his ideas of how scientists move from disdain through doubt to acceptance of a new theory, his stress on social and psychological factors in science--all have had profound effects on historians, scientists, philosophers, critics, writers, business gurus, and even the cartoonist in the street. Some scientists (such as Steven Weinberg and Ernst Mayr) are profoundly irritated by Kuhn, especially by the doubts he casts--or the way his work has been used to cast doubt--on the idea of scientific progress. Yet it has been said that the acceptance of plate tectonics in the 1960s, for instance, was sped by geologists' reluctance to be on the downside of a paradigm shift. Even Weinberg has said that "Structure has had a wider influence than any other book on the history of science." As one of Kuhn's obituaries noted, "We all live in a post-Kuhnian age." --Mary Ellen Curtin.
Price: $7.53
[Notify me when price goes down.]
|
|
The New Paradigm for Financial Markets: The Credit Crisis of 2008 and What It Means
In the midst of the most serious financial upheaval since the Great Depression, legendary financier George Soros explores the origins of the crisis and its implications for the future. Soros, whose breadth of experience in financial markets is unrivaled, places the current crisis in the context of decades of study of how individuals and institutions handle the boom and bust cycles that now dominate global economic activity. “This is the worst financial crisis since the 1930s,” writes Soros in characterizing the scale of financial distress spreading across Wall Street and other financial centers around the world. In a concise essay that combines practical insight with philosophical depth, Soros makes an invaluable contribution to our understanding of the great credit crisis and its implications for our nation and the world. .
Price: $13.61
[ Notify me when price goes down.]
|
|
The Spontaneous Healing of Belief: Shattering the Paradigm of False Limits
What would it mean to discover that everything from the DNA of life, to the future of our world, is based upon a simple Reality Code—one that we can change and upgrade by choice? New revelations in physics and biology suggest that we’re about to find out! A growing body of scientific evidence suggests that our universe works like a Consciousness Computer. Rather than the number codes of typical software, our Consciousness Computer uses a language that we all have, yet are only beginning to understand. Life’s reality code is based in the language of human emotion and focused belief. Knowing that belief is our reality-maker, the way we think of ourselves and our world is now more important than ever! For us to change the beliefs that have led to war, disease, and the failed careers and relationships of our past we need a reason to see things differently. Our ancestors used miracles to change what they believed. Today we use science. The Spontaneous Healing of Belief offers us both: the miracles that open the door to a powerful new way of seeing the world, and the science that tells us why the miracles are possible, revealing: why we are not limited by the “laws” of physics and biology as we know them today Once we become aware of the paradigm-shattering discoveries and true-life miracles, we must think of ourselves differently. And that difference is where the spontaneous healing of belief begins. .
Price: $14.65
[ Notify me when price goes down.]
|
|
The Sustainability Revolution: Portrait of a Paradigm Shift
Sustainability has become a buzzword in the last decade, but its full meaning is complex, emerging from a range of different sectors. In practice, it has become the springboard for millions of individuals throughout the world who are forging the fastest and most profound social transformation of our time-the sustainability revolution. The Sustainability Revolution paints a picture of this largely unrecognized phenomenon from the point of view of five major sectors of society: Community (government and international institutions)
Commerce (business)
Resource extraction (forestry, farming, fisheries etc.)
Ecological design (architecture, technology)
Biosphere (conservation, biodiversity etc.) The book analyzes sustainability as defined by each of these sectors in terms of the principles, declarations and intentions that have emerged from conferences and publications, and which serve as guidelines for policy decisions and future activities. Common themes are then explored, including: An emphasis on stewardship
The need for economic restructuring promoting no waste and equitable distribution
An understanding and respect for the principles of nature
The restoration of life forms
An intergenerational perspective on solutions Concluding that these themes in turn represent a new set of values that define this paradigm shift, The Sustainability Revolution describes innovative sustainable projects and policies in Colombia, Brazil, India and the Netherlands and examines future trends. Complete with a useful resources list, this is the first book of its kind and will appeal to business and government policymakers, academics and all interested in sustainability. Andrs R. Edwards is an educator, author, media designer and environmental systems consultant who has specialized in sustainability topics for the past 15 years. The founder and president of EduTracks, an exhibit design and fabrication firm specializing in green building and sustainable education programs for parks, towns and companies, he lives in northern California. .
Price: $9.56
[ Notify me when price goes down.]
|
|
The Experience Economy: Work Is Theater & Every Business a Stage
Sometime during the last 30 years, the service economy emerged as the dominant engine of economic activity. At first, critics who were uncomfortable with the intangible nature of services bemoaned the decline of the goods-based economy, which, thanks to many factors, had increasingly become commoditized. Successful companies, such as Nordstrom, Starbucks, Saturn, and IBM, discovered that the best way to differentiate one product from another--clothes, food, cars, computers--was to add service. But, according to Joseph Pine and James Gilmore, the bar of economic offerings is being raised again. In The Experience Economy, the authors argue that the service economy is about to be superseded with something that critics will find even more ephemeral (and controversial) than services ever were: experiences. In part because of technology and the increasing expectations of consumers, services today are starting to look like commodities. The authors write that "Those businesses that relegate themselves to the diminishing world of goods and services will be rendered irrelevant. To avoid this fate, you must learn to stage a rich, compelling experience." Many will find the idea of staging experiences as a requirement for business survival far-fetched. However, the authors make a compelling case, and consider successful companies that are already packaging their offerings as experiences, from Disney to AOL. Far-reaching and thought-provoking, The Experience Economy is for marketing professionals and anyone looking to gain a fresh perspective on what business landscape might look like in the years to come. Recommended. --Harry C. Edwards.
Price: $11.90
[Notify me when price goes down.]
|
|
Writing Effective Use Cases (Agile Software Development Series)
Alistair Cockburn's Writing Effective Use Cases is an approachable, informative, and very intelligent treatment of an essential topic of software design. "Use cases" describe how "actors" interact with computer systems and are essential to software-modeling requirements. For anyone who designs software, this title offers some real insight into writing use cases that are clear and correct and lead to better and less costly software. The focus of this text is on use cases that are written, as opposed to modeled in UML. This book may change your mind about the advantages of writing step-by-step descriptions of the way users (or actors) interact with systems. Besides being an exceptionally clear writer, the author has plenty to say about what works and what doesn't when it comes to creating use cases. There are several standout bits of expertise on display here, including excellent techniques for finding the right "scope" for use cases. (The book uses a color scheme in which blue indicates a sea-level use case that's just right, while higher-level use cases are white, and overly detailed ones are indigo. Cockburn also provides notational symbols to document these levels of detail within a design.) This book contains numerous tips on the writing style for use cases and plenty of practical advice for managing projects that require a large number of use cases. One particular strength lies in the numerous actual use cases (many with impressive detail) that are borrowed from real-world projects, and demonstrate both good and bad practices. Even though the author expresses a preference for the format of use cases, he presents a variety of styles, including UML graphical versions. The explanation of how use cases fit into the rest of the software engineering process is especially good. The book concludes with several dozen concrete tips for writing better use cases. Software engineering books often get bogged down in theory. Not so in Writing Effective Use Cases, a slender volume with a practical focus, a concise presentation style, and something truly valuable to say. This book will benefit most anyone who designs software for a living. --Richard Dragan Topics covered: - Introduction to use cases
- Requirements
- Usage narratives
- Actors and goals
- Stakeholders
- Graphical models for use cases
- Scope for use cases (enterprise-level through nuts-and-bolts use cases)
- Primary and supporting actors
- Goal levels: user goals, summary level, and subfunctions
- Preconditions, triggers, and guarantees
- Main success scenarios
- Extensions for describing failures
| - Formats for use cases (including fully dressed one- and two-column formats)
- Use case templates for five common project types
- Managing use cases for large projects
- CRUD use cases
- Business-process modeling
- Missing requirements
- Moving from use cases to user-interface design
- Test cases
- eXtreme Programming (XP) and use cases
- Sample problem use cases
- Tips for writing use cases
- Use cases and UML diagrams
| |
.
Price: $30.98
[ Notify me when price goes down.]
|
|
Marquee Series: Microsoft Office 2007 Brief - Windows XP - W/CD
What You'll Find InsideThe Marquee Series provides a highly effective, visual approach to learning the essential skills in Word, Excel, Access, PowerPoint, Windows, and Internet Explorer. Graduated instruction allows students to move from easy step-by-step learning to validating skills through case-based projects. It facilitates self-paced accelerated and traditional learning. Designed specifically for Introduction to Computers and Computer Literacy courses, the Marquee Series is available in both Windows XP and Windows Vista platforms. * Ensures students have a solid foundation in technical literacy through practice with realistic projects * Dedicated sections on integration skills highlight the power and efficiency of the Office suite.
Price: $70.80
[ Notify me when price goes down.]
|
|
Reinventing the Museum, Historical and Contemporary Perspectives on the Paradigm Shift
|
|
|
|
|