Customer Reviews (4)

Maybe theoretical physicists don't know finance
This book is one more in the long line of books that takes an author's training in a field of science or engineering and then tries to export it wholesale into understanding the markets.I've seen it done with engineersusing the principles of signal processing and torque, physicists using --believe it or not -- general relativity, so I guess I should not besurprised someone would pull out the really big guns of modern physics.Itmay be fun for the author's fellow physicists, but speaking as a financeprofessional with a Ph.D. and nearly twenty years on Wall Street, there area lot of other places I would be going to understand and implementcontingent claim theory before I would invest the time or money in thisbook.

Applies theory from modern physics to financial analysis
Although I am not specialized in the field of financial analysis, I believe that it is important and useful to quantitatively describe financial phenomena. Therefore, this new theory and new method willcertainly contribute to the establishment of a standard model of financialanalysis. I hope the publication of this book will help people tounderstand, improve and apply the theory, introduced from moderntheoretical physics by the author, for practical application in financialanalysis.

Identifies new concepts, tools & applications for finance
The recognition of patterns in natural systems is the most significant step towards the full understanding of the dynamics of such systems. In the context of financial markets, the degree to which one appreciates thesedynamics is the degree to which one is profitable.Beliefs-PreferencesGauge Symmetry Group and Replication of Contingent Claims in a GeneralMarket Environment not only identifies the key concepts in theunderstanding of the financial markets, but also lays out a rich display oftools and applications with which to analyze financial phenomena.

Fromthe book's outset, the emphasis is on the role and formulation ofmathematical symmetries, which govern the evolution of quantities such asderivative payoffs or prices in the marketplace. The key concept issummarized in the words of the author when he conjectures that, "theabsence of some type of arbitrage opportunity in the marketplace indicatesthe presence of a certain inherent symmetry."From this powerfulobservation, he proceeds to formulate the active degrees of freedom in themarket (i.e. the market participants) and the symmetric implications ofthis statement. The identification of arbitrage opportunities, that is, thepractical application of this observation, comes straight from basingoneself in this non-varying quality of the market and seeing wheredeviations exist. As such, Dr. Kholodnyi's book is a gift to financialpractitioners. Only when one knows what the market should be doing can oneappreciate the instances when the market is behaving in an unusual fashion.

Considered in a wider sense, the tools laid out in this text demonstratethe power of the symmetry principle. Physicists have long been accustomedto using gauged symmetries in the analysis of high-energy phenomena. Byusing the same techniques to understand an area as applied as the financialmarkets, Beliefs-Preferences Gauge Symmetry Group and Replication ofContingent Claims in a General Market Environment heralds the dawn ofpotential new technologies for such disparate areas of science as quantummechanics and biological systems.

As these techniques mature in the senseof becoming widely available financial tools, Dr. Kholodnyi's book willbecome the standard text for a rigorous analysis of financial phenomena.The text requires a strong mathematical background and some familiaritywith mathematical rigor. However, since rigor leads to reliability, theviability of any financial strategies will ultimately depend on theunderstanding of the tools laid out so cleanly in this text.

Book introduces powerful tools from physics into finance
Dr. Valery Kholodnyi's book, "Beliefs-Preferences Gauge Symmetry Group and Replication of Contingent Claims in a General Market Environment" is a remarkable work, from the innovative principal ideato the precise development of the details. The book can be complimentedboth for its overall depth of presentation and structure. Starting from avery general new model of the market environment, the author sets up aformal algebraic system that allows the powerful tools and fundamentalprinciples of symmetry from physics and math to be used.This approachalso shows the way to potentially formalize other sciences that aretraditionally thought of as being less suitable for rigorous mathematicaltreatment.

For me it was also impressive to observe the structuralorganization of the book. The necessary financial and mathematicalbackground material isreviewed prior to its use, so that the work can beappreciated on its own even by readers with less experience in group theoryor other mathematicaltools used in the book. The presentation of materialis clear and precise throughout the book, with continuous and logicaldevelopment of ideas --not a "given" among the books of this typeand certainly an impressive indication of the author's writing skills andthe amount of work put into the book.

I hope the book will continue tofind a good response among the financial professionals for whom it isintended. ... Read more

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Novel microorganisms which are capable of growth at environmental extremes have long been a rich resource for fundamental research. Of more recent interest is the recognition and exploitation of their genetic and biotechnological potential. This volume provides a much-needed summary of fundamental and applied research in the field. ... Read more

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This book is a considerable step towards a better-informed debate between free-trader and environmentalist interests brought on in international trade negotiations. It presents results of an empirical investigation of the interaction between growth, international trade, and the environment in Chile, China, Costa Rica, Indonesia, Morocco, and Vietnam, using a common computable general equilibrium modelling approach.
The book meshes analytical results, methodology, and detailed empirical analysis in a comprehensive appraisal of the interface between outward-oriented growth and the environment, with particular reference to the policy challenges faced by developing countries. The latter arguably have the greatest stake in successful co-ordination of free trade and domestic environmental policies to achieve higher living standards while protecting their environment. The conjecture of inevitable growth-environment trade-off is not sustained by the analysis. The book provides reliable guidance toward constructive reconciliation of economic and environmental aspirations. ... Read more

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Addressing the struggle for environmental justice, grassroots democracy, and a sustainable society from a variety of Mexican American perspectives, this book draws on the ideas and experiences of people from all walks of life--activists, farmworkers, union organizers, land managers, educators, and many others--who provide a clear overview of the most critical ecological issues facing Mexican-origin people today.Peña provides an environmental history for both sides of the border and shows how contemporary environmental justice struggles in Mexican American communities have challenged dominant concepts of environmentalism. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Dont buy from this user!!!
I needed a textbook for my college course so I bought a book called Mexican Americans and the Environment: Tierra y Vida (The Mexican American Experience) (Purchased on 09/14/2008) by Devon G. Peña. I still havent received the book from him and i missed a chunk of my classes because i couldnt read the book on time.. I tried contacting him through email, but he wouldnt reply me back..
So make the right choice..

More Mexicans, less environment?
An adequate introduction, but smacks of a Southwestern/ parochial 'reconquista' ("El Norte" is filled with back-packing urban elites who are not as sensitive to environmental issues as Mexican-Americans who have had their 'homeland' usurped). Pena also fails to mention the Mexican government's historic involvement in assisting the migration of Mexicans to the U.S. to serve capitalist interests, and, early Mexico's hostile treatment of Indians (in current N.M) centuries ago. Still, I'd like to see my native born (Mexican-American)daughter read the book and filter through some of the weak spots to get an idea of the eco-battles she'll probably be waging in either an urban or rural environment she'll call home. Pena fails as well to consider the impact on the American env. as more and more Mexicans cross the border and attempt to make a home here as well. ... Read more

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The environment inflames passions in people on all points of the political spectrum. Controversies over such issues as the rise of cancer in industrialized countries, climate change, and urban sprawl have skyrocketed as we recognize the impact that humans have on the environment. Many people become immersed in these controversies at a local level before they know much about the topic - the nuances of many environmental conflicts are often overlooked as the media focuses on the adversarial nature of the conflict. This reference resource provides students, teachers, librarians, and citizens as a whole with the necessary first step in understanding these hot-button issues. Each entry identifies the issue involved, who was holding various points of view or positions, where and when the conflict occurred, and explains the cultural, social, and political context and dimensions of the conflict.

Battleground: Environment provides in-depth analysis of over 100 of the most controversial topics involving the environment, including childhood asthma, the Kyoto Summit and Treaty, smart growth, the Three Gorges Dam in China, and genetically modified food.

Entries include descriptions of public policies and discussions of the future of the controversy. Each entry concludes with cross references and a short, relevant bibliography suitable for student research. The resource includes numerous sidebars that discuss in detail particular local controversies that illuminate the complexity of the topics discussed.

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Do you work or exercise in intense heat, frigid cold, high altitude, deep water, or polluted air? If so, Dr. Lawrence Armstrong will help you perform in those elements. This one-of-a-kind reference is your best guide to surviving and thriving in harsh environmental conditions. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

BORROW IT !
This book is as far from "easy reading" as it gets!(I suggest a look at the sample pages)As a Personal Trainer, I was bombarded with details, rather than simply the results, of complicated studies and research. This book could have been summarized in 50 pages for the general public. The information is excellent but too scientific. Borrow it if you really need scientific specifics.

Performance in the Extremes Made Easy to Understand
Lawrence Armstrong, one of the most respected exercise physiologists today, has done a wonderful job with bringing difficult topics back down to earth.In this book, Armstrong discusses everything from cold andwindchill to altitude to heat, and how your body responds to theseextremes.

The area of human performance and the effect the environmenthas on it is not always easy to understand.I think that Armstrong hasdone a great job in relaying pertinent information, especially on cold andaltitude, in an easily understandable fashion.You don't have to be aphysiologist yourself to learn from this book.

For anyone interested inhuman performance, from beginners to experts, this is a text you would wantto have on your shelf. ... Read more

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Since the first Earth Day in 1970, environmentalism has become woven into the fabric of American life. Concern for environmental quality has influenced how we think, work, and recreate; what we buy; and how we govern. But popular consensus on the environment is more complicated than it appears. The real question is no longer whether Americans side with environmentalism, but the depth of their commitment. This book argues that understanding public opinion, the grassroots of the "green" revolution, is essential to sustaining genuine environmental progress. The long-term success of the environmental movement will be measured not only by its legislative achievements, but by its ability to persuade average citizens to back up their words with action and to further alter their voting patterns, buying habits, and lifestyles.The Grassroots of a Green Revolution uses polling data from a wide variety of sources to explore the myths, inconsistencies, and tensions that characterize public thinking on environmental issues. The book defines and describes key characteristics of public opinion, including direction, strength, stability, distribution, and consistency, and shows how those qualities influence behavior. The book uses that body of evidence to weigh the significance of environmental concern in U.S. politics and policy and to provide pragmatic advice for decisionmakers in their efforts to motivate Americans to act in an environmentally responsible way. ... Read more

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This book follows the work of the 'Good Roots Project' - a multi-year forestry and agriculture research project in the Philippines. The scheme is an attempt on the part of industry, science and the government to better understand the processes of deforestation and initiate a strategy by which stressed upland ecosystems can be returned to productive stability. This comparative study aims quite simply, to help the farmers of the island to help themselves.

Ben Wallace the director of the study investigates the issues surrounding the project, how the initiatives have been implemented, and the future for the island as the population growth rates continue to expand and more land is increasingly given over to agriculture.

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Life Support brings together the best medical information available on the implications for human health of the global environmental crisis. Written by prominent physicians and public health experts who see environmental degradation as a serious threat to public health, it provides essential information for health professionals, policymakers, concerned citizens, and environmental activists.The book, which is a sequel to the 1993 Critical Condition, covers a broad range of topics, including air and water pollution, population and consumption, climate change, ozone depletion, ultraviolet radiation, biodiversity loss, habitat destruction, war, and vulnerable populations (workers and children). It also discusses such controversial topics as environmental endocrine disruption and risk assessment. The focus is on solutions. Each chapter ends with specific recommendations for actions to solve particular environmental health problems.Underlying the book are three major themes: that the habitat is an important determinant of human health, that prevention of human illness must involve protection of the environment, and that well-informed physicians can and should communicate with the public and policymakers about environmental hazards. ... Read more

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This book is a comparative history of the development of ideas about nature, particularly of the importance of native nature in the Anglo settler countries of the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.It examines the development of natural history, settlers' adaptations to the end of expansion, scientists' shift from natural history to ecology, and the rise of environmentalism.Addressing not only scientific knowledge but also popular issues from hunting to landscape painting, this book explores the ways in which English-speaking settlers looked at nature in their new lands. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

My dad wrote this book.
...and it's dedicated to me, so I kind of had to read it.Still, I'm glad I did.It was more interesting than I expected, discussing the evolution of settlers to being "native" to North America and the Antipodes. About a chapter into it, I stopped reading out of fillial duty, and keptgoing because I was interested.(How could I resist the events on-boardthe H.M.S. Bounty being described as "a crisis in laborrelations"?)

Now, I'm going to have to read his other books.So, inmy unbiased opinion, buy lots of copies so that I can go to grad school.

My dad wrote this book.
...and it's dedicated to me, so I kind of had to read it.Still, I'm glad I did.It was more interesting than I expected, discussing the evolution of settlers to being "native" to North America and the Antipodes. About a chapter into it, I stopped reading out of fillial duty, and keptgoing because I was interested.(How could I resist the events on-boardthe H.M.S. Bounty being described as "a crisis in laborrelations"?)

Now, I'm going to have to read his other books.So, inmy unbiased opinion, buy lots of copies so that I can go to grad school. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (5)

Fascinating and Disturbing
Jacques Leslie writes detailed reports on the development of major dam systems in India, Southern Africa, and Australia.He examines all aspects of the politics involved in planning and financing these dams through the World Bank.He also describes on how these projects focus only on the main "benefits" of the dams such as irrigation or hydro power to the detriment of everything else including mass resettlement of local (poor) peoples that sound too similar to the constanting shifting of native peoples in the United States to make room for "civilization" and "development."In the process Leslie goes in to significant detail on the history, ecology, anthropology, and economics of these regions.This book should have received five stars, but for glaring omissions of the publisher.There is no index and no list of sources.Leslie is a journalist and this book reads like a series in a magazine.His content is wonderful and should not be missed.However, the editors should have included more detailed maps of the areas being discussed and diagrams or photographs of the dams would also have greatly added to the work (not even the cover photo has anything to do with the dams under discussion). In addition, Leslie had worked with photographers on some of these investigations and photographs of the dams and the areas in question would have been very helpful.Google Earth is a good backup to fill this void, but it seems like the publisher wanted to save money in publishing this book.As a result, Leslie's work is first rate, but the book as a whole has limited usefullness.

Deep Waters
I did not get the book that I thought that I was ordering. Will not be reading.

Good implicit indictment of dams, but could have gone farther, and weak on solutions
This book examines the consequences of large dams around the world.Leslie has constructed his book much like John McPhee's classic _Encounters with the Archdruid_.Whereas _Encounters_ had environmentalist David Brower confront three environmental "villains," Leslie simply hangs out with three would-be heroes: an anti-dam activist, a consultant who works on the human consequences of dams, and a water-system manager who is trying to manage the system in an environmentally responsible way.

The first third of the book looks at activist Medha Patkar and her efforts to stop the dam on the Narmada River at Sardar Sarovar.This was the first project the World Bank ever left before it was finished, though it is still being built without Bank support.

The second third examines Thayer Scudder, an anthropologist who got started in the dam business by studying a people in Zambia whose homeland was destroyed by a dam. After this, he was often hired as a consultant on (underfunded) resettlement projects - - someone who could propose remediation in exchange for giving his support.He spent his career searching in vain for a good dam, always optimistic that a properly-managed dam would be good for people.Ironically, his greatest success came in stopping a bad dam at the Okavango Delta, not helping a good one.

The final third of the book looks at Don Blackmore, a water manager who is trying to make Australia's huge Murray-Darling project sustainable.

Like McPhee, Leslie tries to stay in the background and let his three characters speak. Leslie clearly admires the commitment of the anti-dam activists; in contrast, he all but calls Scudder a sell-out.However, it's interesting that he concludes with Blackmore, the most powerful and pragmatic of the three.

Though Leslie doesn't spin it this way, this book provides a "damming" indictment of engineers.They love playing with their toys, and if anything goes wrong they simply blame "politics" or "greed."But Leslie makes clear that, even when a dam helps some people, it comes at the cost of harming a lot of people whose lives are destroyed by the reservoir - - to say nothing of a damaged ecosystem.This means that dams cannot be anything but "political" because the winners will lobby for the dam and the losers will try to stop it.Leslie doesn't examine dam financing but it is equally, and inevitably political: taxpayers (or aid donors) pay for a project that helps some people but not others.Why, exactly, should everyone give money to help only a few?

The book could be used to make a good case for free market environmentalism: if dam builders had to compensate all the people harmed, both upstream and downstream, and pay for the dam out of their own pockets, no dams would be built.They are neither individually profitable nor socially beneficial.They exist only because they benefit wealthy people - - and engineers.

The only question that remains is what we should do with the dams we have.Leslie's Australian hero, Don Blackmore, is struggling with that question.So is Leslie, and that is a major limitation of the book.

A fine addition not just to college-level collections, but to general-interest libraries as well.
DEEP WATER: THE EPIC STRUGGLE OVER DAMS, DISPLAYED PEOPLE, AND THE ENVIRONMENT charts the emerging crisis over dams and world water resources, using three figures - an anti-dam activist, an American anthropologist and an Australian water manager - to survey sites of the world's controversial dams. It's a hard-hitting survey tracing the effects of dams upon the common person, upon social and political institutions and choices, and upon world communities, and as such makes a fine addition not just to college-level collections, but to general-interest libraries as well.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

A Modern View of The Cadillac Desert
In the United States the building of large dams has basically ceased. The failure of the Teton Dam in Idaho and the publication of the seminal book 'The Cadillac Desert' pointed out that the construction of such dams had gone far enough. Of course the fact that most of the best sites had already been used may have had something to do with it.

This book brings the same study to what is going on in other parts of the world, specifically India, Southern Africa and Australia. Each of the three main sections takes on one of these regions from the viewpoint of the dams.

In the epilogue of the book the author finally gets to express his view of the future. A view of the time when the dams are full of sediment, collapsing because of the aging concrete -- as he calls it, the ultimate litter. As he says, the future will look back on the dam building era, the automobile era, our time as an anomoly in the history of the world. ... Read more

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Sustainable Agriculture and the Environment in the Humid Tropics provides critically needed direction for developing strategies that both mitigate land degradation, deforestation, and biological resource losses and help the economic status of tropical countries through promotion of sustainable agricultural practices. 6 x 9. Index. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (2)

A Great Read & Excellent Resource
This book is a compilation of highly readable selections about humans and the natural world.It includes excerpts from the best classic and current writings in the field.I had feared it would be too technical, but it has quickly become one of my favorite reads and reference sources.

I'm a resource manager and also teach a survey course in environmental science.It's impossible to be an expert in environmental science, because the world we live in is far beyond our comprehension.As I tell students, studying the environment should be humbling.We earthlings know just enough about the earth to be dangerous, until we learn to manage ourselves and our societies.

This volume brings human and technical perspectives on the environment together, from the perpectives of history, anthropology, forestry, agriculture, engineering, theology, biology, medicine and other disciplines.Enjoy!

Great collection of environmental studies articles
One of the difficulties of the field we call "environmental studies" is that seemingly everything and anything is included within its scope.What aspect of humanities, social science, biology, chemistry, engineering, economics, et cetera, is NOT affected by and influencing the environment?

This book, useful as a text in an introductory environmental studies course, makes this point very clear. The authors state in their introductory comments, "Environmental Studies establishes knowledge of special natural phenomena and specific human institutional beliefs and practices.It then mediates between them.Environmental Studies characterizes complex natural conditions on Earth and describes the interface of human with non-human activity" (p. 2).

In additional, "A working description of Environmental Studies thus involves several levels.First, Environmental Studies pursues and draws upon individual disciplines to understand the constituent elements of larger problems and solutions.Then, to grasp and define such problems and issues, Environmental Studies combines the results of an appropriate set of these disciplines and may even foster new ones.Finally, in practical terms, Environmental Studies brings together relevant disciplines and concepts to address environmental issues and to resolve [or attempt to resolve] environmental problems" (p. 3).

What are these environmental problems, and potential solutions?

You've got 950 pages of them in this book.

All of the many readings are rather short (2-3 pages).Sometimes, this is because the article itself was short.Other times, the editors have whittled the article to its fundamentals. still in the original author's own words, but edited for brevity.

The authors focus on 10 interconnected issues:

- climate shock
- species in danger
- nuclear power
- biotechnology and GMOs
- sustainable development
- deforestation
- war and peace
- globalization
- wilderness
- the urban environment

That's part one.Part two discusses "foundational disciplines and topics":

- biological interactions (biodiversity, soil and agriculture, air and water, energy, and toxicology)
- human dimensions (the "inner life"; ethics, philosophy, and gender; poetry; history; and nature writing)
- social connections (politics and public policy, law and environmental justice, economics, human population, and anthropology)
- conviction and action

The topics above are also coordinated with the 10 general topics, so the reader can "see" the interdisciplinary nature of problem definitions and solutions.

From the biblical chapter of Genesis, to Silent Spring, to Chief Seattle's speech, and all the way to the environmental root and consequences of war, this volume has material of interest to all.

Very readable, interesting, well-organized, and highly recommended. ... Read more

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The realities of global economic integration are far more complex than many of its supporters or detractors acknowledge. One consequence of simplistic thinking about globalization, claims Robert Paehlke, is that we tend to focus on economic prosperity to the neglect of such other important considerations as environmental and social well-being. A first step toward righting this imbalance is the recognition that economic gains do not guarantee better lives or better communities and societies.

Democratic societies face a dilemma. Global economic integration produces a need for global political integration. Without it, national, state, and local governments are under pressure to forego environmental protection and social programs in order to be competitive. At the same time, global governance presents problems because of its scale and its inaccessibility to citizens. This book describes the consequences of this dilemma—such as political cynicism and lack of democratic participation—and proposes ways of dealing with it.

Paehlke seeks a middle ground between those who reject globalization and those who claim that it will create the best of all possible worlds. Because there is no returning to a world that is less economically, culturally, and politically integrated, he argues, we should make every effort to advance global cooperation and equity. He suggests specific interventions that could be built into international trade agreements, including global minimum wages and provisos that natural commodities from developing economies such as energy and forest cuttings not be allowed to decline in price relative to the manufactured goods of more advanced economies. He also suggests ways to improve domestic democratic effectiveness. ... Read more