History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)

Book Description

Recorded history is a finely-woven magic fabric of intricate lies about events predating the sixteenth century. There is not a single piece of evidence that can be reliably and independently traced back earlier than the eleventh century. This book details events that are substantiated by hard facts and logic, and validated by new astronomical research and statistical analysis of ancient sources.

Customer Reviews:

Calculations are only as good as your numbers.......2007-08-03

Yes, we can all agree that mainstream history is nearly 100% BS due to politics, economics, ego, problems with dating techniques, and various conspiracies. Agreed. But, I've been researching the distinct possibility that human history (in terms of civilizations) are much more ancient than we've been told, so coming across this book was very interesting to me. I wondered how Fomenko could be wrong (if at all) because he is very persuasive in his presentations. Then it dawned on me. If at previous times in prehistory, due to the various catastrophies that are well documented (comets, asteroids, planetary disruptions, plasma discharge, pole reversals, etc) the Earth was in a different position in relation to the sun, different tilt on its axis, different orbit, different rotation (in terms of velocity and DIRECTION), and the continents were in different positions, then would this not cause the ancients to see the sky (constellations) differently? In other words, is Fomenko making erronious assumptions about the physics of the Earth in pre-history, which then corrupt his data with regards to dating the relevant astrology? The last event to seriously disrupt our planet occured roughly 3500 years ago, according to other good researchers, so is it possible Fomenko has been confused by this? The vastly different physics of our planet in the not so distant past may explain this confusion, which is not to say the "mainstream" version of history is correct; on the contrary. I am not an expert in these fields, but wanted to see if this idea could spark discussion.

Pants on fire?.......2007-07-19

Will people ever read before spamming? Yes, Jesuits could not rewrite world history alone, they had help. Anyway, Dr Prof Acad A.Fomenko does not point to jesuits as the driving force of world wide history manipulation in published volumes 1,2,3;, actually he barely mentions the poor devils. Check it with 'Search inside' feature, please. China is rarely mentioned either, in fact, Dr Fomenko is completely eurocentric. Right, his theory contradicts all mainstream schools of history, because in their actual state they are all built on blatantly erroneus chronology. You don't need a mysterious cabal (conspiracy) to falsify history, the falsification is its modus operandi. It is inherent to history(ians) to falsify (distort) events, as it is inherent to humans to boast as it is inherent to power (authority) to legimize itself by referrring to glorious past made to its own order. Dr Prof Fomenko and team have identified scores of instances of such manipulation in Russian, European, etc.. history, and delivered valid statistical proof thereof. His own 'reconstruction' is completely another story. Forget c14 as a valid method of dating. W.Libby has initially discovered a brilliant method of INDEPENDENT dating. Too bad, c14 method has become a joke after a forced marrige with dendrochronology with consensual chronological scale inbuilt. Radiocarbon method can't stand blind tests, but is so very productive as a rubberstamp.

Accepted History & Chronology Must Be Changed. .......2007-04-09

There is no doubt that history as most know it is a sham, & institution's version of History both University & Church is fradulent & inaccurate. Everything was established with an agenda, The real "Dark Ages" are now when we have access to incredible amounts of information past authorities & more important 'common folk' didn't have but our institutions & educators are slow to evolve because of what has ignorantly & arrogantly been taught for too long. This is on many subjects not just Chronology.

For anyone to question "Why would a Mathematician have anything credible to say of History?" The answer is from Dr. Fomenko's preface in the book: "It would be worthwhile to remind the reader that in the XVI-XVII century Chronology was considered to be a subdivision of Mathematics." These volumes could possibly be some of the most important works to date & should be read by everyone with an interest in History, especially professors & educators who have a duty to the public. I have read both books & must say that 'Chronology 1' has some very eye opening & revolutionary information. Even if these volumes are part true the implications are profound & opens the doors to further investigations & questions which must be done. I speak several different lanquages & must say the logic Dr. Fomenko uses with "inflection" of words & words being read from left to right in one region & right to left in another then written backwards, the removal of vowels & get down to basics of words, or different cities & locations having the same name etc. is correct. Vowel usage has always been optional & varied, actually complicating linquistics & study. The first thing one has to understand is that words never had a fixed spelling in history like we do now, the spelling of words was mutable & regional, as well as names & titles of people were vast, varied & changed, NOTHING WAS FIXED or understood linear. Matters of Life & Death as well as financial profiteering yesterday & today were & are made with ignorant, illogical & conspiratorial views of history & reality, it's time people get closer to the Truth & society collectively grow up.

Very Interesting.......2007-03-07

It is a good proposal and I believe it will mature into something even better in the future. I think it deserves to be read.

History as Science Fiction.......2007-01-10

Anatoly Fomenko has written a very intriguing book, full of pictures, charts, and computer 'proof' of his thesis: backwards of AD900 we don't really know what happened or when. Between AD900 and AD1600 there is more certainty, but there is still a lot of fuzzy ground, and things don't get reliable until we get past the 1600's where the printing press made it very difficult for the perpetrators of this timeline manipulation to change anything that had been committed to print. The Dark Ages did not happen. Books were burned for a reason. One organization has doubled the actual length of its existence by expanding the real chronology. Read why.

I had always wondered why Christ died about AD33 and yet men waited until the 11th century to form the Knights Templar, the Cathars, etc and go after the Holy Land by force. Why the 1000 year gap? Turns out there wasn't more than a 10-12 year gap and he proves it using astronomy. This also implies that the planet is not as old as we have been told, and current Christian and other creationist scientists are already championing that idea without being aware of Fomenko's book. The two groups, creationist scientists and the Russian mathematical analysts corroborate each other. Fascinating.

Of course, all this flies in the face of what we have been told traditionally is the 'proper' chronology of western civilization, and most readers will experience 'cognitive dissonance' in reading this book. It means that our history going backwards from AD1600 becomes progressively more incorrect and unreliable until it cannot be trusted at all... in the space of 700-800 years.

Naturally, the curious, open-minded reader will want to know WHO did this, WHY, and did any of the events we think of as really ancient ever happen?
Dr. Fomenko is a respected scientist/mathematician at Moscow State University who has already answered these questions to the satisfaction of his initially skeptical colleagues. Most of them are now believers, a few still refuse to believe (the usual diehards), and of course the western press has ignored Fomenko's work -- for obvious reasons when you read the book. The ones who perpetrated this chronology ruse have a lot to answer for. They are still with us. That's why this book is a well-kept secret.

I gave the book a 4-star rating because I was unable to check out some of his claims; those I checked were as he said. But if even 1/3 of his claims are true, this punches a big hole in what we think is our history, the meaning of western civilization, our educational process (for repeating the ruse as gospel), and the trustworthiness of the organization that perpetrated this ruse, well-intentioned or not.

This book relates to current research into a Young Earth paradigm, to John Keel's discoveries about our planet, and Fr Malachi Martin's insights (in his now out-of-print books). We are indeed sheep who are manipulated and kept ignorant -- for a reason. While knowing what these men have to say may be the "booby prize" (as in: 'what can you do with this knowledge?'), it will provide interesting reading. Didn't someone say: "...and the Truth will set you free."?? For you to judge if this book contains the truth.

Quaternions and Rotation Sequences: A Primer with Applications to Orbits, Aerospace and Virtual Reality

Average customer rating:

All four elements...
Quaternions for you
Excellent - But for Position-Level Kinematics Only
Great for fixed rotations, bad for simulation
Truly this work will be a classic

Quaternions and Rotation Sequences: A Primer with Applications to Orbits, Aerospace and Virtual Reality
J. B. Kuipers
Manufacturer: Princeton University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0691102988

Book Description

Ever since the Irish mathematician William Rowan Hamilton introduced quaternions in the nineteenth century--a feat he celebrated by carving the founding equations into a stone bridge--mathematicians and engineers have been fascinated by these mathematical objects. Today, they are used in applications as various as describing the geometry of spacetime, guiding the Space Shuttle, and developing computer applications in virtual reality. In this book, J. B. Kuipers introduces quaternions for scientists and engineers who have not encountered them before and shows how they can be used in a variety of practical situations.

The book is primarily an exposition of the quaternion, a 4-tuple, and its primary application in a rotation operator. But Kuipers also presents the more conventional and familiar 3 x 3 (9-element) matrix rotation operator. These parallel presentations allow the reader to judge which approaches are preferable for specific applications. The volume is divided into three main parts. The opening chapters present introductory material and establish the book's terminology and notation. The next part presents the mathematical properties of quaternions, including quaternion algebra and geometry. It includes more advanced special topics in spherical trigonometry, along with an introduction to quaternion calculus and perturbation theory, required in many situations involving dynamics and kinematics. In the final section, Kuipers discusses state-of-the-art applications. He presents a six degree-of-freedom electromagnetic position and orientation transducer and concludes by discussing the computer graphics necessary for the development of applications in virtual reality.

Customer Reviews:

All four elements..........2007-09-17

Quaternions are not as intuitive as 3x3 matrices however this book give a strong understanding of quaternions so that the reader can let go of the 3x3 matrix and successfully, in my case at least, change over to only using quaternions. This has proven useful in my simulations for, and firmware code for, satellite attitude determination and control. In the version I have of this book, there are some mistakes that hopefully will be corrected, but the mistakes are obvious and easy to overlook. I hate quaternions but they are powerful tools in solving real world problems. This book made quaternions interesting and bearable. If you already have a really good understanding of quaternions, this book might help, but it has a long introduction into quaternions so you might want to review the book using the online outline to see if it actually covers more than what you might already know.

Quaternions for you.......2007-07-14

This is an excellent book, it's right up there with Gilbert Strang's Linear Algebra texts.
Want to understand quaternions and rotational matrices, well this is the book for you. Starts with the basics, coordinated transformations and such, and moves at a reasonable pace into quaternions. Others at work, looking at this book felt that they understood the text. Interestingly these were software engineers that never really gotten basic college calculus. Never could understand why many software people are so light on math. Different part of the brain I guess. Author vs. engineer.

Excellent - But for Position-Level Kinematics Only.......2007-06-20

This is a very thorough and user-friendly book for understanding quaternions. However, to my disappointment, it covers only position-level kinematics. On the applications part, I find that the absence of velocity-level, and acceleration-level kinematics, and the relations to the angular-velocity and angular-acceleration vectors, are completely missing in action, and prevent this book from becoming a real practical text to support some real applications. Add these, and I believe this will become the textbook for the topic.

Great for fixed rotations, bad for simulation.......2007-03-11

This book would be hard to beat for its clear and simple discussion of matrix rotations. It goes through practical derivations, and give a golden equation at the end. Additionally these equations are re-referenced and re-used many times. Excellent style! After a great introductory review, three different useful rotations are discussed:
Aerospace sequence: matrix rotations given heading, pitch and roll
Orbit Ephemeris: figure out where a satellite will be given 3 parameters
Great Circle Navigation: get a surface heading to any point on the earth

Sequences, however, means the combination fixed rotation components and NOT time series. For someone trying to do physics simulation, this book offers nothing on angular velocities, angular momentum or the representation of multi-modal or harmonic rotational inertia. Topics that involve movement under inertia are not discussed (e.g. the tumble of a spinning satellite, or the similar "Feymann Frisbee" which provided the simple insight that lead to the Nobel Prize). For this, I recommend *also* getting "Introduction to Space Dynamics" by Thomson which is harder to read, but includes more advanced examples. These two books combined will give you the basis of writing your own physics simulation software.

Simply put, this book alone would be all you need for a basic flight simulator game, but it won't help simulate an airplane tumbling out of control (under angualar momenutum, objects can and often do rotate in more than one inertial axis).

Truly this work will be a classic.......2006-02-09

This book is one of the very few mathematical, engineering, physics texts that I have come across in my 37 year career that stands out as a classic to be. I read the entire book and because it is so good, it is one of the few that I actually retained.
The book SAVES TIME. It saves time because you can learn the material without second guessing what the author is trying to say, because he wrote the book to TEACH you the material, not so you could stand in awe at his skill.
Because he took this topic and made it understandable in a way that so few books of its type do, his skill is evident in his clarity.
Anyone who can teach a subject like this in a book, with no classroom instruction knows his subject cold.
This is a winner. Big time.

I want to personally thank the author for taking the time and pains to write his book for me and countless others who stumble around in the world of physics, mathematics and engineering trying to get a grasp on our massive field. His contribution shines.

Feynman's Lost Lecture: The Motion of Planets Around the Sun

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If you are a Feynman fan
Feynman's proof of the law of ellipses
Lucid explanation of Feynman's proof of the law of ellipses
An Entertaining And Captivating Lecture
authors create a labour of love for Feynman

Feynman's Lost Lecture: The Motion of Planets Around the Sun
David L. Goodstein , Judith R. Goodstein , and Richard Phillips Feynman
Manufacturer: W. W. Norton & Company
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0393039188

Amazon.com

Richard Feynman, the rock star of theoretical physics, has left an image that belies his nerdy side. Not many bongo-playing surfer beatniks would have spent hours of their spare time proving Newton's law of elliptical planetary motion using only plane geometry. But Feynman's Lost Lecture: The Motion of Planets Around the Sun shows that the great man did just that. Originally delivered to an introductory physics class at Caltech in 1963, this 76-minute CD and book set contains everything the math-savvy listener needs to savor the pleasures of applied math. Caltech physicist David L. Goodstein and archivist Judith R. Goodstein found the notes and tape amid another professor's papers and set to work making sense of them; unfortunately, photographs of the blackboard drawings didn't survive. The book briefly covers their find and recovery work, then presents the proof as reconstructed--crucial reading if one is to follow the lecture. There's nothing easy about it, as Feynman acknowledges in the lecture:

I am going to give what I will call an elementary demonstration. "Elementary" means that very little is required to know ahead of time in order to understand it, except to have an infinite amount of intelligence.

He means, instead, that he is strictly using geometrical methods to reach his destination, which explains why it was so difficult to reconstruct without his diagrams. His charming Brooklyn accent and good humor show through in this lecture, even if the material is quite a bit drier than his fans might expect. Still, those interested in adding a new dimension to their understanding of this brilliant scientist--and those with a deep interest in Newtonian physics--will find The Motion of Planets Around the Sun a rare and unexpected treat. --Rob Lightner

Book Description

Rescued from obscurity, Feynman's Lost Lecture is a blessing for all Feynman followers. Most know Richard Feynman for the hilarious anecdotes and exploits in his best-selling books "Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman!" and "What Do You Care What Other People Think?" But not always obvious in those stories was his brilliance as a pure scientist--one of the century's greatest physicists. With this book and CD, we hear the voice of the great Feynman in all his ingenuity, insight, and acumen for argument. This breathtaking lecture--"The Motion of the Planets Around the Sun"--uses nothing more advanced than high-school geometry to explain why the planets orbit the sun elliptically rather than in perfect circles, and conclusively demonstrates the astonishing fact that has mystified and intrigued thinkers since Newton: Nature obeys mathematics.

David and Judith Goodstein give us a beautifully written short memoir of life with Feynman, provide meticulous commentary on the lecture itself, and relate the exciting story of their effort to chase down one of Feynman's most original and scintillating lectures. David and Judith Goodstein live in Pasadena, California.

Customer Reviews:

If you are a Feynman fan.......2007-09-04

This is a lot of fun -- if. If you are pretty good at mathematical games and have a love for all things Feynman. What makes it work is the CD with Feynman giving the lecture. He goes at the speed of light, but he is always amazing, even when you have no idea what he just said! I can't imagine what it was like for the young folks trying to make sense out of what was going on. But, I bet he inspired them for the rest of their careers. He still does that to people today. If you want a sample of the Feynman magic this is a tough place to start. But do find a way to start.

Feynman's proof of the law of ellipses.......2007-02-04

First we see that planets sweep out equal areas in equal times, following Newton's easy proof. Now to prove that planets move in ellipses. Cut the orbit into infinitesimal, equiangular pieces (as seen from the sun). Each little piece of the orbit corresponds to the velocity vector at that point. Draw a velocity diagram by moving all of these velocity vectors so that they have a common origin point. Obviously, as we move around the orbit, the velocity vector will make one revolution around the origin. In fact, it will trace out a circle, as we shall now prove. The orbit is cut into infinitesimal triangles with equal angles at the sun, so clearly these triangles are similar with a scaling factor r, i.e. an area scaling factor r^2. But time is the same as area, so time also varies as r^2. The change in velocity in one of these pieces is force*time=(1/r^2)*(r^2)=independent of r, so the dv steps in the velocity diagram are all of equal size, and because of the equiangular division they all make equal angles with each other (dv parallel to PS), so the velocity vector does indeed trace out a circle, and the equiangular division of the orbit as seen from the sun translates to an equiangular division of this circle as seen from its center. Of course, the center of the circle is not the origin of the velocity vectors; in particular, the velocity vector going through the center of the circle is the longest velocity vector, so it corresponds to the position on the orbit closest to the sun (as is obvious by the law of equal areas). If we turn the orbit diagram so that this position is straight to the right of the sun, then the longest arrow in the velocity diagram points straight up, since the velocity vector drawn in the orbit diagram will of course be parallel to the tangent to the orbit. When we have advanced a given angle beyond this starting point on the orbit (as seen from the sun), the corresponding velocity vector (i.e. the tangent to the orbit at this point) is found by advancing the same angle in the velocity diagram (as seen from the center of the circle) and connecting this boundary point with the origin of the velocity vectors, and conversely. So the velocity diagram contains complete information about the tangents of the orbit, so it contains complete information about the orbit up to scaling. So the problem becomes: for any velocity diagram, to recreate the orbit. To do this we turn the velocity diagram 90 degrees to the right. To recreate the orbit we must now find a curve that is always perpendicular to the velocity vectors. This can be done as follows. For any point p on the circumference of the velocity diagram circle, draw the line connecting it to the origin O of the velocity vectors and the line connecting it to the center C of the circle. Mark the point P where the perpendicular bisector of Op cuts Cp as a point on the orbit. Now we prove that the orbit generated in this way, as p moves around the circle, is an ellipse (we assume O to be inside the circle; if it was on the boundary the orbit would be a parabola, etc.). The perpendicular bisector cuts the triangle OPp into congruent halves (SAS), making OP=Pp, so CP+OP=CP+Pp=radius of the circle=independent of p, so P traces out an ellipse with foci C and O, and the perpendicular bisector is tangent to this ellipse (because all its other points are outside of the ellipse because they have greater sum of distances to the foci), as required. QED.

Lucid explanation of Feynman's proof of the law of ellipses.......2003-09-11

The book first walks you through the works of Copernicus, Galileo, Brahe and Kepler. Then it gives a brief account of Feynman's life and his work. Then, through numerous diagrams, the authors clearly explain Feynman's ingenious proof of the law of ellipses. Finally, the book presents Feynman's lecture "The Motion of Planets Around the Sun".

It is amazing how Feynman, starting on the lines of Newton, and then not being able to follow Newton's reasoning, devised a different but elegant proof of the law of ellipses.

An Entertaining And Captivating Lecture.......2003-04-04

This Review refers to the paperback edition of Feynman's Lost Lecture: The Motion of Planets Around the Sun with audio CD.

The title of Goodstein's book, Feynman's Lost Lecture, may be a bit misleading in terms of the overall content. The book is, in truth, mainly an explanation of the elliptic patterns performed by the planets, among other things, that an unpublished Feynman lecture originally referred to (although the lecture is included in text and on CD, the lecture is only a fraction of the overall book). Goodstein provides a geometrical means of explaining elliptical patterns that even a non-physicist will find easily comprehensible, especially considering the frequency of companion diagrams. The book also includes a rather unique introduction providing a brief biography of Feynman along with the author's personal experiences related to the well-known physicist. An unexpected, but greatly appreciated, addition is Feynman's original notes regarding his lecture contained in the back of the book.

Feynman's Lost Lecture details how to use geometric proofs to find answers to problems such as the speed of a planet when in motion around the sun and how to prove geometrically that an object is an ellipse. The author properly explains and demonstrates these concepts throughout the book via written and visual examples.

Goodstein presents the topics in such a fashion that the reader can easily try for himself\herself the idea portrayed. This is generally due to a generous selection of diagrams and exemplary situations, which properly convey the ideas that Goodstein presents (although it would probably be much more beneficial if more of the diagrams accompanied Feynman's actual lecture). The main text is also of a form easily understood and more than adequately conveys the topic that the author presents. However, the literary style is slightly lacking - in that it often becomes a bit informal in description and detail.

Overall, the literary shortcomings do not interfere with the author's ability to convey the topic and makes for a rather interesting read. Yet another above-par lecture accompanied by a surprisingly above-par explanation, Feynman's Lost Lecture: The Motion of Planets Around the Sun is more than worth it's price and should be a welcome addition to any reader's (both physicists and non-physicists alike) personal library.

authors create a labour of love for Feynman.......2002-07-22

This book is a labour of love by Judith and David Goodstein for their friend Richard Feynman. I really enjoyed the revelations of the human side of the great physicist, especially the 20 page reminiscene by David Goodstein (a fellow physicist at cal tech) and Feynman's sometimes gruff answers to questions after the lecture. A different view of the human side of Feynman than what you read in "Surely, you're joking". I found the technical side of the book even more rewarding (see next paragraph) but be warned: this is pretty intense geometry and logic - I have a hard time imagining anyone without at least a couple years of post secondary math or physics or engineering following all the arguments.

But if you have the background and patience, it's some pretty cool stuff. Like many folks, I learned planetary dynamics using calculus, not geometry, and so this was my first exposure to the elegant relationship between velocity diagrams and orbits. While Feynman's lecture is somewhat unorganized and not entirely clear, the book does a great job filling in the blanks. There are certainly some rough spots (way too much time on the initial simple properties of ellipses, the argument connecting Kepler's third law to the law of gravitation is not clear, and more) but anyone with sufficient background willing to invest a few hours will be able to get past these minor problems. I kind of like how the pace accelerates to a ridiculous level by the end, leaving you to pretty much work out all the hard details of Rutherford's law of scattering for yourself.

Customer Reviews:

my favorite atlas.......2006-04-28

I was looking for a good atlas for the orbit. I had a tough time deciding between this and the atlas by jelks and zide "Surgcial Anatomy of the Orbit." Both are excellent, and you cant go wrong either way. I chose the Dutton book because it is mostly drawings and diagrams which I prefer as opposed to photographs of tissue dissections (although the Jelks/Zide book has some diagrams as well). The illustrations in Dutton are excellent, and the text, if you take the time to read it, is not bad either. Would highly recommend. Zide has come out with a new atlas, which may be worth checking out as well.

The BEST in its field.......2000-04-15

An excellent reference to anatomy of the region. The author's background in zoology provided us with beautiful remarks in comparative anatomy, and supplied valuable information about evolution of the human orbit. In accordance with the author's style in writing, this textbook is concise yet complete. A must for any ophthalmic plastic surgeon.

The Best Available.......2000-02-26

This book is simply the best available reference for detailed anatomy of the orbit. The drawings are superb and the radiographic images are outstanding. It is extremely well-referenced. As an ophthalmic anesthesiologist, I find this volume to be an indispensible part of my professional library.

Average customer rating:

Could have been better
Orbital Reading!
Not finished yet but had to put my voice out there.
Great Nance!
Awesome

Orbit: A Novel
John J. Nance
Manufacturer: Pocket Star
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

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ASIN: 074347662X

Book Description

In this "heart-pounding" (Seattle Post-Intelligencer) aviation thriller, New York Times bestselling author John J. Nance ventures forward to 2009, taking readers on a riveting journey of life or death.

His once-in-a-lifetime chance...

Disillusioned with his life, when Kip Dawson wins a passenger seat on one of American Space Adventure's commercial spaceflights, it's a dream come true. Although his acceptance of the prize strikes terror in his family, Kip sets off, ready for adventure. But a successful launch quickly morphs into chaos -- a micrometeor punches through the wall of the spacecraft, leaving the radios as dead as the pilot.

... becomes a global fight for survival.

With nothing to do but wait for death, Kip composes his epitaph on the ship's laptop computer. Little does he know an audience of millions would soon discover his cries -- sparking a massive rescue mission in his honor. With no idea the world can hear him, his heroism in the face of death may sabotage his best chance of survival.

Download Description

The year is 2009. For Kip Dawson, winning a passenger seat on one of American Space Adventure's commercial spaceflights is a dream come true. One grand shot of insanity and he can return to earth fulfilled. It's a bittersweet moment of triumph, however, muted by his wife's terror over his accepting the prize. The day of the launch, Kip tries to reconcile his wife's and daughters' fears and even tries calling his estranged son, to no avail. He sets off, vowing to make amends upon his return. But a successful launch quickly morphs into chaos when a micrometeor punches through the wall of the spacecraft, leaving the radios as dead as the pilot. In the blink of an eye, Kip Dawson is truly alone and has no way of navigating the ship home. With nothing to do but wait for death, Kip writes his epitaph on the ship's laptop computer, unaware that an audience of millions has discovered it and is tracking his every word on the Internet. As a massive struggle gets under way to rescue him, Kip has no idea that the world can hear his cries -- or that his heroism in the face of death may sabotage his best chance of survival.

Customer Reviews:

Could have been better.......2007-07-08

This book focuses on a good and interesting topic, but just gets to be a little to dramatic and unrealistic as it goes on. The action sequences were pretty good. I thought the ending (the very last chapter) was a little bit too corny, but that might just be me.

Orbital Reading!.......2007-07-02

I can only sum up reading this book with one word- "STELLAR"!. Having never read any of Nance's previous work and only stumbling on this book by the neat cover and interesting back synopsis, I gave it a glance. At page 5 I knew I had to have it, and polished it off in 3 days, unfortunately. I'll let the other contributors give you the story & their own synopsis; from my own read even my wife said, "I've never heard you laugh so much". There's lots of humor in all the right places, so much emotion with just the right blend of techno-babel. It's just perfect. 5 Stars isn't enough. Click "Add to Cart" right now, or run on down to a local bookstore and grab a copy. I can only hope his next book will be just as engrossing as this one. Thank you Nance! excellent read and you have a new fan.

Not finished yet but had to put my voice out there........2007-05-23

I'm only about 70% through with this novel and I am listening to it on CD. I really liked the beginning and the concept is really cool. Nance has a good eye for subtleties and paints a vivid picture.

But as I get deeper into the story I'm just having a hard time buying that this would ever happen. Sure, I do beleive a lot of people would tap into his story, but a billion people? And the things he writes a often pretty absurd if you ask me. I'm not sure if he would say these things even if he knew people weren't even going to be reading it.

But I should say I'm going to finish it, so that's what matters. I just felt like I should tell someone.

Great Nance!.......2007-05-12

I am a huge fan of John Nance, but even acknowledging that, I think this book was one of his best. It combined everything we expect from him (hair-raising thrills in the air and dramatic page-turning climaxes) with a real human side to the character of Kip. It was a character's realization of what he really wanted out of life when he was faced with the real possibility of it ending. It gets everyone thinking of what we would keep the same and what we would change. Great book!!!

Awesome.......2007-04-23

First John Nance book I've read. Incredibly moving and powerful thoughts coming from a man with only a few days to live. And to those reviewers who can't seem to get past the implausability, you need to know that this book isn't about a man trapped in space, it's about a man trapped in a life that is suffocating him in the same way the air in his doomed ship will, only more slowly. He could be locked in freezer in the basement or trapped in an abandoned mine and the finality of his life would not be different. Forget the space-ship and read this book people. It's not Dianetics or the Bible, but we could all learn from the self-introspection and self-honesty that Kip pours forth in spades. Dad's will not get through this without some tears . . .

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Statistical Orbit Determination
Byron Tapley , Bob Schutz , and George H. Born
Manufacturer: Academic Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0126836302

Book Description

This book presents fundmentals of orbit determination--from weighted least squares approaches (Gauss) to today's high-speed computer algorithms that provide accuracy within a few centimeters. Numerous examples and problems are provided to enhance readers' understanding of the material.

*Covers such topics as coordinate and time systems, square root filters, process noise techniques, and the use of fictitious parameters for absorbing un-modeled and incorrectly modeled forces acting on a satellite.
*Examples and exercises serve to illustrate the principles throughout each chapter.
*Detailed solutions to end-of-chapter exercises available to instructors.

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great
great for optometry students also
Excellent anatomy text for Part I ophthalmology exam
Excellent brief overview
i,s one of he greats books i read in my life

Clinical Anatomy of the Eye
Richard S. Snell , and Michael A. Lemp
Manufacturer: Blackwell Publishing Limited
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 063204344X

Book Description

Clinical Anatomy of the Eye has proved to be a very popular textbook for ophthalmologists and optometrists in training all over the world. The objective of the book is to provide the reader with the basic knowledge of anatomy necessary to practice ophthalmology. It is recognised that this medical speciality requires a detailed knowledge of the eyeball and the surrounding structures. The specialist's knowledge should include not only gross anatomic features and their development, but also the microscopic anatomy of the eyeball and the ocular appendages. The nerve and blood supply to the

Customer Reviews:

great.......2006-05-12

this text is very well delivered for the resident and is comprehensive without being burdensome. one of the key anatomy books for ophthalmology.

great for optometry students also.......2000-04-09

I found this a great book to help me pass my Part I of boards. It is also a good reference for the future.

Excellent anatomy text for Part I ophthalmology exam.......2000-02-07

It is an excellent book to start with when studying clinical anatomy of the eye. I forgot most of the anatomy by the time I left med school. Snell's anatomy book gave me a concise but useful overview of the anatomy of the eye and have very useful clinical correlations at the end of each chapter and I found those were the best parts of the book.

Excellent brief overview.......1999-11-17

For opthamology exams it is far too brief, but excellent for an overview of the subject when "Wolff's Anatomy" is getting a bit heavy.

i,s one of he greats books i read in my life.......1999-02-14

this book is so good for the medical student in order to understand the eye and its anatomical strucher and later on it makes the student able to understand the diseases that affect the eyes

Mission Geometry: Orbit and Constellation Design and Management (Space Technology Library)

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Mission Geometry: Orbit and Constellation Design and Management (Space Technology Library)
James R Wertz
Manufacturer: Microcosm, Inc
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 1881883078

Book Description

Mission Geometry; Orbit and Constellation Design and Management (OCDM) provides greatly expanded detail on many topics first introduced in the 2 of the earlier Wertz works - Spacecraft Attitude Determination and Control (SADC) and Space Mission Analysis and Design (SMAD).

Book Description

Satellites as they cross the night sky look like moving stars, which can be accurately tracked by an observer with binoculars as well as by giant radars and large cameras. These observations help to determine the satellite’s orbit, which is sensitive to the drag of the upper atmosphere and to any irregularities in the gravity field of the Earth. Analysis of the orbit can be used to evaluate the density of the upper atmosphere and to define the shape of the Earth. Desmond King-Hele was the pioneer of this technique of orbit analysis, and this book tells us how the research began, before the launch of Sputnik in 1957. For thirty years King-Hele and his colleagues at the Royal Aircraft Establishment, Farnborough, developed and applied the technique to reveal much about the Earth and air at a very modest cost. In the 1960s the upper-atmosphere density was thoroughly mapped out for 100 to 2000 km, revealing immense variation of density with solar activity and between day and night. In the 1970s and 1980s a picture of the upper-atmosphere winds emerged, and the profile of the pear-shaped Earth was accurately charted. The number of satellites now orbiting the earth is over 5000. This book is the story of how this inexpensive research of their orbits developed to yield a rich harvest of knowledge about the Earth and its atmosphere, in a scientific narrative that is enlivened with many personal experiences.

Advances and Technical Standards in Neurosurgery, Vol. 31 (Advances and Technical Standards in Neurosurgery)

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Advances and Technical Standards in Neurosurgery, Vol. 31 (Advances and Technical Standards in Neurosurgery)

Manufacturer: Springer
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 321128253X

Book Description

This series, sponsored by the European Association of Neurosurgical Societies, has already become a classic. In general, one volume is published per year. The Advances section presents fields of neurosurgery and related areas in which important recent progress has been made. The Technical Standards section features detailed descriptions of standard procedures to assist young neurosurgeons in their post-graduate training. The contributions are written by experienced clinicians and are reviewed by all members of the Editorial Board.

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