Of course such branching can lead to very confusing jumbles of code unless the programmer makes an effort at structure, clarity and commenting.
If my recollection is correct (and I began programming with Fortran and Algol in the mid 60's), the above was about the only form of branching available in the earliest Fortran, but certainly by the late 60's programmers had less easily abused control statements such as IF..THEN..ELSE, as well as the functions and subroutines that had been used since the beginning or near it. Djikstra's shocking 1968 proposal was that programmers should be limited to a carefully defined set of such 'structured' tools, and the simple GOTO (who the heck knows what or where statement 275 is in the above example?) totally abandoned.
Overall, an excellent book for its history and observations on software development and its problems. I'd give those parts alone 5*, or maybe 4.5* for the occasional statement that seems a bit off, but because the story of Chandler and OSAF itself was mostly pretty dull, or at least unmotivated, to me, I'll knock it down to 4*. If office desktop managers really perk you up, you may enjoy it more fully than I did.
Interesting, but like the project it covers, the book rambles on with little focus.......2007-08-10
I bought this book based on a write-up in one of the trade mags. I found it interesting. It's quite a mix of IT historical anecdotes, project management insights, and programming and system architecture methodologies all woven around the story of OASF's Chandler PIM project. However, in the end, like the project it covers, it suffers from lack of structure and overall focus. It rambles on, and the musings and tangents occasionally stray far. There is a "stuck in limbo" quality to the story telling as there is with the project. Eventually the author has to reach some sort of closure, which is abrupt and forced. Overall, I enjoyed the tale. I have a formal IT background and enjoyed revisiting many of the concepts reviewed. However, by the end, it was getting to be a tedious read.
Average customer rating:
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The World is Charged: The Transcendent with Us
Francis R. Smith
Manufacturer: Herder & Herder
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
 General
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Inspirational
| Catholicism
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Catholic
| Theology
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ASIN: 0824521161 |
Book Description
A clear and complelling introduction to the way Christians think about a mystery. Major themes include scripture, the Catholic tradition, modern developments such as liberation and feminist theology, and the search for faith today.
Amazon.com
Fans of high-end chocolate delights have long flocked to Robert Linxe's La Maison du Chocolat, a Paris-based confection-boutique "chain." La Maison du Chocolat, blissfully photo-illustrated in color, offers readers an introduction to Linxe's art and craft, plus 65 recipes for a wide range of treats, from candies and cakes to creams, mousses, soufflés, and more. Though not difficult in themselves, the recipes are sometimes flawed (baking sheets, for example, are called for when baking pans are required, and dimensions for these are frequently omitted). Experienced bakers can fill in the blanks, but the rest of us will probably do best to enjoy the book as a record of one man's passion and its mouthwatering realization.
Beginning with a paean to Linxe's artisanal skill--he's been called the sorcerer of ganache--the book then provides an investigation of chocolate bean types, each of which has its own role in the chocolate-making process, plus a glimpse at Linxe's exacting candy-making process. The recipes come next, and include such temptations as Chocolate-Almond Cake with Lemon Cream, Extra-Rich Brownies, Chocolate Raspberry Mousse, and Bittersweet Chocolate-Nut Candy. A chapter on frozen desserts and beverages, which includes a definitive hot chocolate recipe, follows, as does a section on basic preparations and techniques, like tempering. Interspersed throughout are introductions to the extraordinary (and wonderfully named) Linxe confections, such as the chocolate-mint Zagora. These further disable readers already wobbly from the chocolate euphoria Linxe's candies--and now his book--provide. --Arthur Boehm
Book Description
Every exquisite delicacy created by the world-renowned La Maison du Chocolat is unrivaled chocolate perfection. Made only of the purest, freshest ingredients, legendary chocolatier Robert Linxe's mouthwatering confections are noble, artistic creations that capture the essence of chocolate in its truest form and exalt its taste in every memorable, undiluted bite.
Now, for the first time ever, Linxe reveals his bewitching chocolate dessert recipes and chocolate-making knowledge in this sumptuously photographed volume. Here, he shares his philosophy, his vision as artisan-creator, his high standards of quality, his use of the purest ingredients, and his chocolate innovations and secrets. With 65 recipes-all beloved classics with the remarkable Linxe touch-from the ultimate chocolate profiterole to the most tender chocolate cake-this impressive volume is the definitive word on the subject and an irresistible treat for cooks, brides-to-be, and the millions of chocophiles worldwide.
Customer Reviews:
Glorious Outstanding Magnificent.......2006-06-04
Top flight book from the most famous chocolatier in the world. I go to Paris and make this shop my first and last stop. Good recipes and accurate. I bought an extra book and framed many of the photos. Recipes turn out perfectly.
"A bit egotistical, but a worthy gift".......2005-02-18
I agree with reviwers' comments on the photography - exceptional shots of works of art. I have been working with pastry and food for 12 years, and recommend this book as an excellent gift for someone. Constructively speaking however, it is not perfect. There are typographical errors, most trivial, several in recipes (not trivial). I thought the format a bit too much 'coffee table', and the fonts used too small and hard to read for some small neasures. The small fonts also wasted paper - large sections of blank paper in the pages. Regardless, the recipes are excellent and flavorful - don't be afraid to use the chocolate you have available. As a companion book, take a look at 'Belgian Chocolates' by Roger Geerts (1990). They are a great set!
arm chair cookbook.......2002-06-05
I have been wanting this book for a while, but I waited a long time (too long) to buy it. This book is not only visually beautiful, it has some interesting information about chocolate in general, as well as some really intriguing recipes - some of them are on a professional level and are quite complex, but a lot of them are pretty simple and sound very nice. Even if you never make a recipe out of this book, I don't think that you will regret buying it.
Close to perfection.......2002-02-27
Chocolate is one of the four basic food groups. The others are, some say, wine and garlic, with furious debate over the fourth.
Linxe has, over a lifetime, created a veritable ode to chocolate in many forms, and his five stores in Paris are well worth the visit (you will come out much poorer except in chocolate). His New York jewel, which has moved slightly downtown from the East 70s to Madison Avenue, is worth seeing and smelling close up--any chocolate lover will understand.
The soul of Linxe's art with chocolate is captured in this magnificent book. The photographs alone are sinfully sensual.
A baker friend says that the recipes are within her grasp if she only had the time, and the money, and could get all the ingredients conveniently. She and I both agreed, and this was pointed out by another reviewer, that the history and diversity of chocolate is a significant omission, but wanting more data on chocolate is perhaps greedy on our part and we should not sit around lazily on a chocolate high, with some decent pinot noir on the side, but get out and do our own research.
For what it is, and not for what it omits, this is a great book. It makes one want to fly to Paris right this second, and there one can find all the other vital food groups as well.
a beautiful book but.............2001-05-09
An absolutly gorgerous book. I think I am a little greedy in that I was expecting more from this book. I believe there are around 60 recipes. Some are divine, some were the standards found in many books and some I don't think were worth putting in(like chocolate dipped dried fruit). There are numerous lush pictures and poetic discriptions of candies made at La Maison Du Chocolat but no actual recipes or guidelines for candy making. Although I may sound critical, the book is truly beautiful and one can sense the author's passion for his art.
Amazon.com
This is science fiction without the fiction--and more mind-bending than anything you ever saw on Star Trek. Moravec, a professor of robotics at Carnegie Mellon University, envisions a not-too-distant future in which robots of superhuman intelligence have picked up the evolutionary baton from their human creators and headed out into space to colonize the universe.
This isn't anything that a million sci-fi paperbacks haven't already envisioned. The difference lies in Moravec's practical-minded mapping of the technological, economic, and social steps that could lead to that vision. Starting with the modest accomplishments of contemporary robotics research, he projects a likely course for the next 40 years of robot development, predicting the rise of superintelligent, creative, emotionally complex cyberbeings and the end of human labor by the middle of the next century.
After Moravec makes this point, his projections start to get really wild: robot corporations will take up residence in outer space with rogue cyborgs; planet-size robots will cruise the solar system looking for smaller bots to assimilate; and eventually every atom in the entire galaxy will be transformed into data-storage space, with a full-scale simulation of human civilization running as a subroutine somewhere.
His last chapter, which mingles the latest in avant-garde physics with hints of Borges's most intoxicating metaphysical conceits, is a breathtaking piece of hallucinatory eschatology. Moravec concludes by reminding us that even the wildest long-range predictions about the technological future never turn out to be as unhinged as they should have been. --Julian Dibbell
Book Description
In this compelling book, Hans Moravec predicts that machines will attain human levels of intelligence by the year 2040, and that by 2050, they will surpass us. But even though Moravec predicts the end of the domination by human beings, his is not a bleak vision. Far from railing against a future in which machines rule the world, Moravec embraces it, taking the startling view that intelligent robots will actually be our evolutionary heirs. "Intelligent machines, which will grow from us, learn our skills, and share our goals and values, can be viewed as children of our minds." And since they are our children, we will want them to outdistance us. In fact, in a bid for immortality, many of our descendants will choose to transform into "ex humans," as they upload themselves into advanced computers. This provocative new book, the highly anticipated follow-up to his bestselling volume Mind Children, charts the trajectory of robotics in breathtaking detail. A must read for artificial intelligence, technology, and computer enthusiasts, Moravec's freewheeling but informed speculations present a future far different than we ever dared imagine.
Customer Reviews:
Exceeds expectations created by its title.......2006-09-04
With high praise from such giants as Sir Arthur C. Clarke and Doctor David Brin on the dust jacket, I asked myself where I, unlettered and relative to them barely conscious, think I'm going trying to write a review. I have a friend who likes to say he never lets ignorance stop him from expressing his opinion on a subject. Guess I remember that one `cause it fits me so well, so here goes.
In his 1950 paper Computing Machinery and Intelligence, Alan Turing grouped the arguments opposing the possibility of machine intelligence into the following nine categories:
1- The Theological Objection - thinking is a function of the soul. Machines have no souls, so cannot think.
2 - The "Heads in the Sand" Objection - Thinking machines cannot be possible because the consequences would be too dreadful.
3 - The Mathematical Objection - Mechanical reasoning has certain provable limitations that human thought may not share.
4 - The Argument from Consciousness - Machines have no inner experiences to give meaning to their utterances, actions, or internal operations.
5 - Arguments from Various Disabilities - Machines will never be kind, moral, joyous, perceptive, original, etc.
6 - Lady Lovelace's Objection - Computers do only what we program them to do.
7 - The Argument from Continuity in the Nervous System - Nerves respond to arbitrarily tiny signal differences, while computers work in fixed-size steps.
8 - The Argument from Informality of Behavior - It is not possible to specify for a machine what to do in every possible circumstance a human might encounter.
9 - The Argument from Extrasensory Perception - Humans sometimes sense remote or future information unavailable to deterministic processes in computers.
Moravec provides current arguments countering each item above, but central to all seems to be this: the principle difference between human and machine is we are conscious. This state, however, is so complex we are unable to explain it. Neither do we understand how or from where it arises in our brains.
The author offers a compelling posit; If as of Robot's publication (1999), the most powerful computers could process a million MIPS (million instructions per second), computers capable of a billion MIPS should be just over the horizon. It will be then, Moravec projects, that the mysterious and exclusively human state we call "consciousness" will be revealed to be not exclusive at all, but merely the capacity to accumulate, process, and interpret sufficient amounts of data in the span of each instant of time - and that when this is achieved, computers will sense the state of their surroundings and thus become "conscious" in the same way we are.
He lays the groundwork for this leap carefully, detailing his personal experiences in robotics and the pace of advances in the field. Arriving at the present day situation, he then takes us step by careful step into the future. It's all completely understandable and reasonable. He's right - know what I'm saying?
Eventually though, his vision of the future exceeds my ability to absorb. I confess to less than a complete understanding of his universe of the future. One thing I did get loud and clear: there were no humans there.
Consider robots an intellectual mutation. These creatures we make will first surpass and then replace us, become us, probably in very much the same way we ourselves replaced the less capable lifeforms we arose from in the distant past. It's not a grim future the author envisions for humanity; it's a comfortable even spiritual retirement. Refuse to accept this, and you'll need to deny Darwin's theories too. Think about it.
Art Tirrell is the author of the underwater adventure novel "The Secret Ever Keeps" which does not contain robotics but does contain "...Simply put, the best underwater scenes I've ever read..." Meg W, reviewer.
IS.......2006-02-10
Hans Moravec 3D mapping technology will give computer depth perception; the capability of identify objects; and the ability to recognize texture, color, and material composition. Moravec initial 3D map prototype constructed a 256x256x64 cell volume equating to 4 million plus cells; the prototype used three cameras, produced a stereoscopic range, and generated 5,000 evidence rays in 5 seconds. The hope was the 3D map would allow robots to navigate effectively. CPU power was needed. 1,000 MIP is the minimum powered required to create the 3D map; the robot speed is a slow travel at this computational threshold; the 3D map will allow the robot to find doors, stairs, walls, and other 3D objects. 3D maps robots will be used by industrial companies and these robots will take the form of Automatic Ground Vehicles and fork-lift trucks and simple consumer vacuum cleaners.
Moravec three rules of robot success are: 1) The robot must be reasonable priced 2) The customer should not have to call in specialist to put a robot to work or to change its routine 3) The robot must be reliable for at least six months before encountering a problem or a situation requiring downtime for reprogramming or other alterations.
In the 90s, Dean Pomerleau built ALVINN, a neural network with 5,000 adjustable connections, whose desired desire was built to imitate a human driver; the NN output determined the steering position; some of the camera pictures simulated being further left in the lane with corresponding adjustments in steering; NN time to learn new roads was reduced to 5 minutes; the system provided neural interconnection weights for many road types. A new road type was determined by comparing the lower half of the image with the upper half and if they matched the road up ahead was the same locally, otherwise the new road type was added to the library. The NN input was a low resolution of the road using the blue from green substitution. In 1991, ALVINN traversed a busy 30km highway at 70km/h and Pomerleau earned his PHd.
Todd Jochem, a student of Pomerleau, built the next generation of code called RALPH. RALPH used 32x32 pixel low resolution picture of the road. The land ahead appeared as a wedge in the distance. If the road angles left or right, it estimated the blur in brightness changes, one cell from the next and the sharpest vector was kept. RALPH learning was instantaneous and driving became a technique of sliding over memorized vectors. RALPH drove from Washington DC to San Diego, 98.2% of the time in control, at an average speed of 100km/hr.
Rod Brooks declared the model based approach to robotics was unworkable. Brooks designed behavior control through layers, he called reflexes, for example, one behavior might cause the robot to steer away from an obstacle and another keep the robot traveling along the wall. The limiting ability to reflexive modeling was a limitation in cognitive ability, like a moth trapped in a street light. Brooks designed Cog which represented a larger number of learning reflexes allowing the robot to learn visually by imitation. Moravec thinks that reflexive technology will accomplish its desired goal, however, states, "I think there is a faster route, on that imitates at a higher level of abstraction" referencing conditioning modeling. Moravec concludes most practical automatic machines are behavior based.
The retina modeling is the benchmark breakthrough for the beginning of modern robotics. The retina is a centimeter across and a half millimeter thick and has 100 million neurons: horizontal cells which are light sensitive, narrower bipolar cells connected by Amacrine cells, and ganglion cell, which bundle to form the optic nerve. A million ganglion cells measure light intensity and differences over space and time. A 1000 MIPs machine could match the 10 scans a second.
1st generation robots will emerge around 2010 and possess 3,000 mips computation power; their size, shape, and strength will be human like; they will be efficient mobile devices on flat ground and able to traverse stair and manipulate everyday objects; and 2,4, and 6 legged robots will be able to cross most terrains and carry their own power supply, moving slowly, and for short distances. The robots will be heavy with perhaps three motors per limb. Movement may be done through shape bending alloys. A "Shape Bending alloy" bends at room temperature, but when heat is applied, it will return to its original shape with force. Robots will be able to perceive their surroundings with sensors, video camera configured for stereoscopic vision necessary to construct a 3D map and from the map it will be able to recognize locations, plan trajectories, and detect objects by color, shape, and location.
2nd generation robots will emerge around 2020 and have 100,000 MIPS, a 30 fold increase in computation power. 2nd gen robots will be capable of adaptive learning; the robots will adjust its behavior in response to the action past effectiveness, as the robot actual behavior is nudged closer to the human ideal. Robots will be packaged with learning models and probably be capable of being trained by humans through conditioning modules and these conditioning modules watch for desirable and undesirable situations that act on task oriented programs. Conditioning signals come in two categories: positive which raise the probabilities and negative which lowers the probabilities; character is a product of the suite of condition modules of he host. 2nd gen robots will be able to learned from 1st gen robots. 2nd gen robots will use central computer stimulations of robots, in action, to approximate results by gathering data and generalizing from the data, of other robots. A proper simulation would the result of thousands of learned models for various basic interactions and these simulations would be used to effectively construct condition suite by super central computers. 2nd generation robots will find jobs everywhere.
3rd generation robots will have 3 million MIPS and they will learn by faster through trial and error simulation, done by human supervision and super computers at the factory which will be capable of stimulating in real time. The robot will be able to recognize objects for what it is, so the proper interaction modules can be brought up called perception modules. Because these robots will be processing faster than real time they can run prediction simulations to determine if a response will turn out badly and alter its plan of action. In the spare time the computer could preplay previous experiences and try variations on them, learning new ways to improve performance and invent its own simple programs in response to a specialized conditioning module. Adaption is a process of corrective sequences of robot actions and how close they are to the desired end, very similar to the affects of genetic algorithms. These robots will need time to play and use their ability to adapt, imitate, and create simple programs of its own. They will have a theorm prover to find an absolutely correct solution, of arbitrary generality, subtlety, and deviousness, if one exists.
The 4th generation machine will have 100 million MIPS and advanced mechanized reasoning. These robots will write their own programs, understand natural languages, and understand concept and statements more deeply.
Philosophically Moravec wrestles with the word "IS". What is the purpose of this life? Mans purpose is too be born, learn good over evil, and gain increase through a family. Man environment provides beauty and enjoyment for man. A machine should never have dominion over a man. Moravec explains the purpose of man within the context of natural laws. He calls the natural laws stable, measurable, definable, and reliable. Any rationale beyond natural law is considered obscured. Existence cannot be explained by natural laws only. Even Moravec cannot advocate annihilation and clings to the idea that his consciousness will continue either in another form or through robots. God is the reason for mans existence and man exists to become like God. Since God exists than natural laws must be lower level laws. Moravec theorm is incomplete considering the final destination of man.
Man exists to chose between Good from Evil. A conditioning robot cannot expect to achieve this discernment unless higher moral laws govern it. The acquisition of intelligence is beneficial within a natural law sphere but does not necessary suggest the robot will be capable of choosing good over evil. The devil is very intelligent, yet he did not chose good over evil. If a man is more intelligent than his parents, do we call him better?
Suppose, a mans interactions are evil but the results are good, do we call him justified? If robots convert all matter into digital virtual reality, do we say ou existence has improved? An existence that is force upon us. Intelligence must yield to agency which is the freedom to act and not be acted upon. Intelligence alone can not to the reason for existing, intelligence is only part of the meaning of existence, choice and accountability is the larger portion of existence. Man choice is to learn and to discover the "why and how" knowledge necessary, too reject evil. This is not an automated task which can be programmed because opposition and temptation complicate the algorithm into a chaotic mess, of uncertain and solid morality, for an hedonist. A robot will not know how to choice good and evil because it can know sense a higher purpose and morality, so its action will not follow a higher purpose.
On Speculating about the ultimate future of intelligence.......2005-06-22
We all wish to know what will ultimately become of us, of that which we care about, the people we love.
One way Mankind has of receiving answers to this is through Religion.
Another way is through speculating on the basis of scientific knowledge and understanding.
Here the Speculations are preceded by a survey of the current state of Robotics.
This is preliminary to a set of projections of the distant future in which biologically- based beings i.e. us , are going to be not supplemented but essentially transcended and replaced by silicon- system artificial intelligences, robots of Intelligence far beyond our own.
The old- style humans , those who choose not to somehow transmit their identities into the new ' super- silicon beings' will kind of hang on as patronized parasites enjoying life as one big freebie thanks to their successful successors.
At this point some of us ' cool' to what is to come.
Magnificent minds simulating scenarios of infinite alternative lives simply do not warm our old aging hearts.
The prospect of monstrously beautiful recombinations in hyperspace of cyberbeings just does not turn us on.
Our minds are in the more mundane, the smaller seeings of our own inner poetries, the lives we make the people we love.
This kind of speculative stuff seems a minor curiosity when measured against the thick, dense , impossibly , non- controllable unpredictability of our small everyday lives.
Forgive us, Future- see-ers of the great Machine- meaning, we are staying home with our own for now.
Very intriguing read.......2005-04-04
I'll readily and happily admit that I'm no expert in robotics or the theory of Artificial Intelligence; I've had exactly one course in the subject, and know most of what I know thanks to Scientific American, Popular Mechanics, and the like. With that caveat out of the way, I can say with absolute certainty that THIS BOOK IS RIGHT! THE ROBOTS ARE COMING! RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!
Whoops, sorry, that's just wishful thinking. Seriously, this is a good book, well-written and interesting throughout. Though I personally felt that Moravec got a bit spacey (pun intended, if you've read the book) towards the end, the possibilities he raises are fascinating. As to how temporally accurate his predictions are, again, I can't say, though robotic vacuums did arrive essentially on schedule, and in general most of what he suggests seems feasible.
Like some of the other reviewers, I appreciate a book that runs counter, in large part, to the 'end-of-humanity' theme that seems to accompany the idea of robots gaining mind. As cool as "The Matrix," "Terminator," or "I, Robot" might be on the screen, a real-life instantiation of those themes would be less than cool. Being a fan of Occam's razor myself, I don't know that I'd expect the robots to expend enormous amounts of energy to enslave or exterminate us, assuming we didn't make ourselves too much of a nuisance, an this seems to be the tune Moravec himself sings.
Anyhow, this is a book that is occasionally puissant, hardly ever dull, and often thought-provoking. Any potential buyers may want to wait a few years, though, to see if Moravec keeps on schedule and releases a new version, as per his established pattern.
Automation and quality of life.......2004-09-11
The best book on the future of robotics and automation! However, Hans believes robots are our wonderful mind children and should grow into powerful machines that evolve quickly past us. He is then horrified that some humans may transform themselves into machines and become very dangerous. Why won't his mind children be just as dangerous or more dangerous? At least a mind-transferred human might seek pleasure and fun. While Hans' logical AI robots make their galactic invasion plans!
Why not engineer automation to its pleasure giving limits? Instead of giving robots a high quality of life, design automation to increase EVERYONE quality of life and wealth on Earth???
Book Description
What is the PERSONAL SIGNIFICANCE of the six transcendent events of the Restoration? What power do they have to change individual attitudes and behavior? In this groundbreaking book, Dr. Stephen R. Covey teaches that these events answer seven foundational questions, each of which affects our capacity to fulfill our divine potential.
• WHO? Who is God? Who is Christ? Who am I? Who are you?
• WHOSE? Whose are we? To whom do we belong? Who paid the price? Who is the source of our salvation?
• HOW? How do I get back to my God, my Father, my Creator? How can I become a partaker of the divine nature?
• WHERE? Where do I go? Where can I find support, opportunity to serve, and direction for my life?
• WHAT? What do I do? What is my work in mortality?
• WHY? What's it all about? Why am I on earth? Why do I need to be married for time and eternity?
• WHEN? The seventh question is answered in the sequence of the six events.
Customer Reviews:
Outstanding Book If You Want to Know Who Are.......2005-02-16
I was pleasently surprised with this latest work from Covey. It is outstanding, history explained and it is clear and to the point. If you are a student of the gospel and the First Vision this is the best I've found in twenty plus years. I have read it twice and am now reading with my wife.
A Compass to help point people in the correct direction.......2004-09-18
Another wonderful book from Stephen R. Covey. He has a wondeful way of communicating that show his love and in-depth understanding of the Gospel and it's precepts. This book builds on "The Divine Center" (Another Covey book published in the 80's). If we can follow the model that Covey put's forth in the pages of this book we will not only live more fulfilling lives, we will build better relationships with out Saviour and truly understand how to "become perfect in Christ". I would recommend this book to anyone who is searching for a compass to help point them in the correct direction for there life here on Earth.
Book Description
In The Passion of Isis and Osiris, Jean Houston, internationally renowned philosopher, psychologist, and explorer of world myth, takes us deep into the mysteries of Egypt, land of the ancient soul within us all. Houston brings this world to wonderful life, showing how the myth of Isis and Osiris gives modern readers a design for the marriage of body and soul, life and death, the tangible and the hidden. In detailed exercises and dramatic enactments that can be done in groups or alone, she demonstrates how we can identify the Isis and Osiris that are seeking reunion in each of us.
The Passion of Isis and Osiris re-creates nothing less than a moment of Egyptian magic that allows us to enter a consciousness that is the gateway to transcendent love. This story of two spiritual soulmates still has resonance for us today, whether we are seeking to join the disparate parts of self or searching for a mate to bond with, soul to soul.
Customer Reviews:
Great introduction to a timeless drama.......2002-03-11
Jean Houston succeeds in bringing a very ancient mythological story all the way to the present time. She really lives what she teaches, and she guides us to do so as well. Our lives can benefit a lot from the richness of ancient wisdom!
allright book..........2000-11-25
I know alot of the myth in the book isn't proven to be true as of now, with all my reading. But it is a very nice story. It is just kind of all over the place, and seperated with exersizes, like a school book or something. I thought the myth was wonderful, it gave such detail and all of Osirus and Isis, and the other Gods and Goddess involved. The book includes some information about Horus, Seth, Nephthys, Ra, Geb, and some others. It's a pretty nice book. I dont care for the exersizes, I just wanted to read and learn more about the myth, some of it in here is exagerated, but other than that it's nice.
Exercises a little lacking.......2000-07-23
This book is for those interested in an esoteric interruptaiton of Egyptian mythology. The first section of the book includes a varitety of myths which has have been re-interrupted, while the remaing part of the book are lessons for personal transformation. There is a lot of information contained in the book, but the exercises at the end of each section did not interest me that much.
for the open-minded spiritual person.......2000-06-15
This exploration of the world's most transcendent story of love is rewritten in its entirety within the first chapters. The reader lives the Egyptian tale of the twins Isis and Osiris through a dramatic romanticization of the renowned myth. The author shows how, via detailed exercises, this myth relates to the modern design of marriage and provides the reader with the search for oneself throughout.
Book Description
IT'S NOT JUST SEX. IT'S NOT JUST LOVE. IT'S SOMETHING MORE.... But what could be better than sex? How about lovemaking that sweeps people into new realities, producing altered states of consciousness a thousand times more powerful than the most earth-shattering orgasm? Lovemaking so spectacular that it truly is a religious experience? "Transcendent Sex" is not about the "Tantric method." It is about the best-kept secret in human history: that ordinary people, with no special training, can find themselves in different spiritual realms when making love -- an experience so profound that nothing will ever be the same. It is about sex that triggers episodes identical to the highest spiritual states -- as described in the annals of shamanism, yoga, Buddhism, Christianity, Judaism, and Islam -- including visions, channeling, reliving past lives, transcending the laws of physics, and seeing the face of God. This revealing book tells of lovers who engaged in sex as usual and suddenly found the veil between the worlds torn open. "Transcendent Sex," like any other spiritual awakening, changes lives. Atheists have become believers; long-standing psychological wounds have been healed; and the sexually abused have become whole. These are the inspiring, incredible true stories of people who experienced an ecstasy and fulfillment beyond the borders of this world.
Customer Reviews:
A groundbreaking book.......2006-03-27
Jenny Wade interviewed 91 people (identified through personal acquaintance networks) who spontaneously experienced transcendent awarenesses during sexual encounters. They report these experiences were so profoundly moving that their sexual encounters paled by comparison. In fact, the sexual climax was often experienced as a distraction or even as an annoyance.
A variety of transcendent experiences were identified by her subjects, including transfiguration of the sexual partner, shape shifting, channeling of spirit awarenesses, totally being in the present moment, cosmic awareness, out of body experiences, and past life recall.
Wade writes clearly, providing the background for understanding these transcendent sexual experiences in the context of more commonly reported transcendent experiences. She illustrates each of these types of experience with fascinating quotes from her subjects.
"I was taken up beyond my body and the warmth of the sun on my skin and the clear blue sky until I went in that golden sunlight and cerulean blue. Then I shot out beyond it into the vastness of space where all was silence and the blackness lit by stars. Everything there looked clear and beautiful and cold, yet I could feel the life pulsating through it, the fierce fires of the distant suns and burning stars. It was beauty and it was love and there I was in the middle of this universe stretching forever. I wanted to stay there always. --Rachel" (p.111)
The only criticism I can muster about this book is a minor unclarity about whether these transcendent experiences as sexual encounters are ever shared by both partners. On page 141 Wade clarifies that past life awarenesses are the only transcendent experiences that couples regularly share.
While transcendent sex as a Tantric meditative practice has been well known and extensively described, Wade clearly expands the boundaries of these experiences in this groundbreaking book.
Very Informative Reading .......2006-03-19
Caught this book out of the corner of my eye in the store, read the back and took it home... Had never seen or heard anything like it, and I'd love to find more info in this area.
If you've never had an "Experience", you may not get the message, but for those that have, it'll change your understanding of it. I wish I could sit down with the author.
Ordinary people with extraordinary experiences!.......2004-04-03
She's done it again! In Transcendent Sex, Dr. Jenny Wade relates the experiences of people just like you and me who have touched the divine, not by meditation or yoga or drugs, but simply by making love. Often these folks didn't even plan on having a transcendent experience, it just happened!
In her first book, Changes of Mind, Dr. Wade showed how consciousness develops over our lifetime and more importantly, how these discrete stages of development, she calls them MindSets, persist and shape our interactions at work and in other relationships. In effect we don't just have one `mind' inside our head, but several--each with it's own values, strengths and weaknesses--some more `evolved' than others. Gaining access to the higher states was thought to be a path reserved for the devoted practitioners of the mystic arts, but now she presents the stories of ordinary people having truly extraordinary experiences which transcend their day-to-day conscious minds. For some it reflects attainment of a higher state of awareness.
Why is this book important? I don't want to spoil the pleasure of your experience of sex, but if one of these invitations to glimpse a world beyond the limits of your bedroom comes unbidden, it will be comforting to know that you are not losing your mind, but in a way finding it. If these transcendent insights occur to one partner and not the other, you now have a basis for a deeper understanding of each other and the wonder of the universe by reflecting on the perhaps similar experiences of others.
As with Changes of Mind, Dr. Wade shows her uncanny ability to tease a taxonomy out of what some might leave as a collection of interesting but disparate tales. Using her familiar metrics of sense of self, sense of place and sense of time, she sifts the ninety or so interviews into groupings that not only enhance the reading, but also facilitate a quick reference should something troubling occur.
On that note, I should paraphrase Dr. Wade's admonition: not all transcendent experiences are welcome and some may be downright unsettling. While this is not a `How To' book, she does give some pointers on being open to the experience and also some advice on dealing with the darker aspects. Above all this is not a book about Sex or a guide to better orgasms: if pressed, I would say it's about the boundless spiritual energy that we all possess. It is a phenomenal book!
The Transcendent Jenny Wade.......2004-03-31
What Raymond Moody did for our understanding of death, Jenny Wade has done for sex -- namely, to show how sexual encounters between ordinary people can vault them into the realm of the transcendent, unleash powerful forces of spiritual transformation and ultimately lead to God-consciousness itself. "Transcendent Sex" is a superbly written work, with many fascinating stories of extraordinary experiences that can be spontaneously triggered by sex, and also demonstrates that many of these experiences are no different in form and content from those that are deliberately sought through a variety of spiritual practices. In addition, there are practical guides -- and warnings -- for those readers who would like to cultivate such episodes in their own sexual life. The author deserves a great deal of credit for bringing these experiences to light and showing how sex itself is not merely a hedonic delight that pleasures the senses, but can also become a means of spiritual awakening. A heaven-breaking book.
Average customer rating:
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The Lotus Transcendent Indian and Southeast Asian Sculpture from the Samuel Eilenberg Collection
Martin Lerner , and
Steven M. Kossak
Manufacturer: Metropolitan Museum of Art
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ASIN: 0300086342 |
Book Description
As we take our first breath of air, our soul enters our physical body and fills us with a radiant light, as it gently whispers into every cell of every baby girl that we are beautiful. Our light is naturally dazzling, as we trust in ourselves and honor our choices. But as our mind begins to develop, it becomes very busy—excited with all that we’re learning. Impressed with our new power, we realize that with the right demands, others will take notice. That’s when a new voice begins to emerge: the “I” of the mind,” or the ego. It can be found by simply listening to the chatter that incessantly carries on in our brain. These voices tell us what we “should have done,” what we “must look like,” or how we “need to be.” It can talk so much, and so loud, that if we listen to it long enough we’ll become so distracted from our soul that our light, once vibrant and radiant, becomes dull and dim.
Often when we meet a person who’s beautiful, we say that they “lit up the room.” The transcendently beautiful have an inner beacon that’s brilliantly lit and brimming with bliss. They’ve learned how to attract light while calming the ego—knowing that when the mind abides by the soul, the body, in turn, is connected to this knowingness, and transcendent beauty follows. Such people live in harmony—their health is abundant, their bodies are agile and fit, and their minds are vibrant and inspired. And while most people talk about attractiveness as being merely physical, true beauty definitely comes from the soul.
Transcendent Beauty will take you on a journey where you’ll see how easy it can be to shine yourself. One day without warning a shift will occur, and you’ll suddenly realize that you’re no longer trying to be beautiful—you are!
Customer Reviews:
A book every woman should have.......2007-02-19
This book opens your eyes for the beauty every woman posesses, including yourself. It really is a book that gives you laughter and tears, and bring you some answers perhaps, and recognition. I just love it!
Every woman needs this book!.......2006-04-21
I am reading Crystal's book "Transcendent Beauty" right now and all I can say is: Women have needed a book such as this for a loooooooooooong time!
Order it now!!! You need this book! Your soul needs this book!
What an amazing piece of literature...thank you Crystal for sharing not only the amazing information, but your life as well. I applaud any author that can be so open, so honest, and so revealing.
This is a book that you will see recommended for years to come. This book is a "work of art" and I truly believe that every woman should have this book on their nightstand.
Thank you Crystal, from the bottom of my heart-
You have blessed womankind with your words...
Transcendent Beauty.......2006-04-12
Today I feel alive. I feel that it's O.K. to be happy and feel love and give it. I don't need to feel the shame anymore. I won't share with you my life story, I can certainly tell you that Crystal was brought into my life for a reason. I first bought her book Simply Women, then traveled to see her speak. From there I am currently doing personal coaching and within a week I read this book. Everything is coming together. She is truly an amazing women and I thank God for her. I recommend this book to everyone, not just women. You feel a sense of peace with yourself and you just see things differently. She takes you through all the steps to help you along.
Thanks for this wonderful book Crystal! (I think this should be in Oprah's book club). Everyone needs to read it.
Crystal has done it again!.......2006-03-28
I cannot put this book down, which is coming from one who normally gets through a few chapters before falling asleep, and then eventually loses interest as the book gets buried underneath the old, ever-expanding, well-intentioned literary collection. In the case of previous books, all too often the self-growth terminology became difficult to comprehend, or the flow was continually interrupted by long-winded case histories that just didn't apply to me.
Not in this case, and in the case of Crystal's last book, Simply Woman. Her words of wisdom flow so beautifully that reading, understanding, and applying her guidance to many seemingly helpless situations make so much sense. Just about every page, starting right at page one, is dog-tailed with many, many paragraphs marked "WOW!" and "YES!".
Although I wanted to keep going till the last chapter, the decision to follow Crystal's request regarding completing journal entries throughout have provided me with some very nice "aha" moments of recognizing areas (and origins) of unnecessary hassles and grief.
My thirst for wanting to dig deeper into learning more about ways to best live my life and then also co-exist on this planet with others in a more peaceful, yet honest manner is being quenched and validated in ways that I had never, ever thought possible since reading sweet Crystal's books, and then doing coaching with this refreshingly honest, open, intuitive woman.
My plan is to purchase a copy of Transcendent Beauty for every close person (man and woman)who resides within my inner circle.
Book Description
In 1969, Bill Pinar was privileged to study with Dwayne Huebner at Teachers College. In a large room with 70 others, he watched an extraordinary figure in the distance--speaking a tongue few of them grasped--whom they all found compelling. They knew they were in the presence of a most remarkable and learned man. Huebner helped create the world which contemporary curriculum scholars now inhabit and labor to recreate as educators and theoreticians. His generative influence has been evident in many discourses, including the political, the phenomenological, the aesthetic, and the theological. This volume situates Huebner's work historically, emphasizing the ways it foreshadowed the reconceptualization of the field in the 1970s.
Books:
- Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance
- Drive to the East (Settling Accounts Trilogy, Book 2)
- Dungeons & Dragons Monster Gift Set (Dungeons & Dragons d20 3.5 Fantasy Roleplaying)
- Endymion
- First Meetings in Ender's Universe
- Fleet of Worlds
- Foundation and Empire (Foundation Novels)
- Foundations of Earth Science (4th Edition)
- Foundations of Financial Management (The Mcgraw-Hill/Irwin Series in Finance, Insurance, and Real Estate)
- Gabriel's Ghost
Books Index
Books Home
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Comparison to Soul of a New Machine unfair to Tracy Kidder.......2007-09-23
Painful.......2007-09-05
