A Year In the Life of an ESL (English Second Language) Student: Idioms and Vocabulary You Can't Live Without

A Year In the Life of an ESL (English Second Language) Student: Idioms and Vocabulary You Can't Live Without
Average customer rating:

An ESL text you really "can't live without"

Good application of the lexical method.

An excellent resource for English as a Second Language classrooms or self-study for students learning English

Francis Nails It!

An Invaluable Work Book

A Year In the Life of an ESL (English Second Language) Student: Idioms and Vocabulary You Can't Live Without
Edward J. Francis
Manufacturer: Trafford Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 1412020034
Release Date: 2006-06-30

Book Description

A Year in the Life of an ESL Student is an essential addition to the advanced level ESL classroom. By studying the varied and interesting dialogues and completeing the challenging exercises, students will dramatically improve their comprehension and usage of everyday idioms and advanced vocabulary.

The book follows Andre, a student from Switzerland, as he spends a year completing his English studies at a private language school in North America: from his arrival at the airport, to getting around the city, to attending school, to hanging out with his classmates. All of the situations and corresponding language are real and directly relevant to adult ESL students.

So join Andre on his one-year adventure. It's about to begin just outside the airport terminal.

Please visit the website at ayearinthelife.net.

Customer Reviews:

An ESL text you really "can't live without".......2006-12-02

Research in second language vocabulary acquisition demonstrates that learning idioms is one of the most important aspects of acquiring a second language. ESL students who do not understand idioms will not be able to understand a large portion of the English language. Consider that an ESL student can understand the grammar of the phrase "kick the bucket" without having any clue as to its actual meaning. Furthermore, ESL students who do not understand idioms will have a much harder time fitting into the culture of native English speakers. This struggle can be severely detrimental to a learner's intrinsic motivation, which is one of the most important factors influencing language learning success. A Year in the Life of an ESL Student: Idioms and Vocabulary You Can't Live Without is an outstanding resource that addresses this important issue of idioms by teaching ESL students an expansive number of them in an engaging and enjoyable manner.

As to the expansiveness of the text, it provides idioms that address a wide variety of situations from attending a TOEFL class to suntanning on the beach. The following examples give a glimpse of the range of idiomatic expressions that students will learn: "better late than never," "cover for someone (to)," "hangover," and "work one's butt off (to)." The presentation of each idiom is clear with each of them first appearing in bold letters in a stimulating dialogue. This feature of the book is beneficial since research has shown that lexical items are much better remembered when learned in authentic contexts. As the author states, "Context is the key to making the daunting task of understanding and using idiomatic English not only possible, but enjoyable too." The dialogues are followed by pages where each idiom is placed in glossary format. After that, there are a significant number of exercises for students to learn the idioms interactively.

Beyond meeting a need in the ESL community, the other aspect of this text that makes it so successful is its engaging style. Many language learning materials present grammatical and cultural information with pictures and other helpful graphics; however, when it comes to vocabulary and idioms these items are often still presented in lists. On the other hand, A Year in the Life places idioms in interesting dialogues that often contain humor and are related to the actual experiences that an ESL student may have. In addition to the dialogues, learners also have the opportunity to learn idioms by playing games. Two common exercises found throughout the book are crosswords and word searches. The realistic dialogues and the exercises make learning the idioms interesting and fun.

Considering the need for a text of this kind in the ESL community and its engaging style, I would recommend it without reservation to both ESL teachers and students. A Year in the Life will lead learners into a much more native-like competence.

Good application of the lexical method........2006-11-20

Michael Lewis caused quite a stir in the world of ESL when he published his "The Lexical Approach" in 1993. Lewis's point was basically thus: ESL students are force feed too much English grammar. The idea that grammar can be mastered and then students fill in the blanks with vocabulary is naïve, according to Lewis, and makes it difficult for students to understand natural English phrases such as "Let's have a coffee," because students have only studied "Shall we drink coffee?" Having taught English to Japanese students, who are taught grammar and only grammar in high school, I found this to be a huge obstacle. Lewis's book caused a huge sensation on the ESL teaching community, and many teachers thought they didn't have to teach grammar anymore, it was fine just to teach idiom after idiom. Lewis followed up a few years later with a book on how to apply the lexical approach, saying that it is idioms, expressions and grammar are not so far removed from grammar. In other words, idioms and expressions should be taught as a part of grammar.

Since Lewis shook up the ESL world, there have been attempts to bring out commercial textbooks that implement the Lexical Approach. However, most of them are not so different than previous textbooks, with traditional grammar the focus of the lesson, and idioms kind of tacked on as an afterthought. "A Year in the Life of an ESL Student" does a good job of introducing idioms as an integral part of communication, not just as an added bonus. Colorful idioms such as "Drink like a fish" or "toss one's cookies", as well as expressions that are not idioms, but present difficulties to ESL students, such as "mope around" are presented in natural conversations, and than reinforced through various exercises, such as crossword puzzles, word find exercises, and so on. Many ESL students have the goal of being able to watch Hollywood movies with no subtitles. Just studying grammar and straight vocabulary will never allow this to happen. However, this book will equip students with hundreds of natural and useful expressions that will help them understand and by able to speak more natural English.

The book focuses on a Swiss student, Andre, as he studies for a year at a private language school in North America. All of the conversations in the book involve Andre and his friends at the language school. Students will like this because it makes the stories easy to follow and understand. Teachers will like this book because there are lots of good exercises in each of the 16 chapters, making it easy to teach good lessons with no or very little preparation. Then there is the theme of this book, studying language abroad for a year. This should be the goal of many of your students, and if it is not, studying with this text will hopefully get them interested in the possibility. For classes with more advanced students, this can be a good springboard for a discussion on the topic.

An excellent resource for English as a Second Language classrooms or self-study for students learning English.......2006-02-09

A Year In The Life Of An ESL Student: Idioms And Vocabulary You Can't Live Without is an excellent resource for English as a Second Language classrooms or self-study for students learning English. Following Andre, a student from Switzerland spending a year completing his English studies at a private language school, the lessons cover a wide variety of language situations directly relevant to adult ESL students, from disembarking at the airport to getting around the city to hanging out with classmates. A Year In The Life Of An ESL Student is particularly valuable for its definitions of common idioms - English phrases with a specific meaning that is not immediately identifiable to those unfamiliar with the language's nuances, such as "blow someone away" (astonish someone), "into something" (enjoy something), "give someone a ring" (phone someone), and much more. Simple exercises for idiom recognition and daily use and a host of online resources round out this consumable textbook.

Francis Nails It!.......2005-09-01

Never before in my 20 years of E.S.L. teaching have I seen a better idioms textbook. A Year in the Life is simple to use, is extremely comprehensive, and helps meet a need for relevant, structured, higher level material dealing with spoken English. There are a variety of exercises and activities that can be utilized/skipped according to needs and tastes, and the extensive definitions and examples make it possible for students to learn correct usage at home. All in all, a great find for students and teachers alike. Bravo Mr. Francis!

An Invaluable Work Book.......2005-05-23

One of the most challenging difficulties teachers of a second language face is creating an atmosphere where the learning process becomes meaningful and at the same time practical, painless and enjoyable.

From my own personal experience learning French, it was only when my ear became tuned in to the nuances and subtleties of the language, and I ceased translating from English to French, that I achieved a certain amount of fluency.

One of the keys that aided my personal plight was being immersed into situations, where I had no alternative than to make myself understood to individuals, who could not converse in English, such as in a shopping mall, a restaurant, or hotel.

When I picked up a copy of Edward J. Francis' A Year In The Life Of An ESL Student: Idioms And Vocabulary You Can't Live Without, I asked myself, would life not have been far simpler if I had at my disposal this excellent workbook?

Francis is an ESL professional with over 15 years of teaching experience. He has put together an innovative and creative workbook that serves as a compliment to the classroom teaching of English as a second language.
Specifically, through the various exercises included in the book, students are exposed to a variety of practical circumstances, wherein certain words and idioms are regularly employed.
Rather than just providing vocabulary for the sake of language, students are stimulated by true- life situations rather than abstract concepts.

Divided into sixteen chapters, the workbook format follows the life of André, a student from Switzerland, who spends a year in North America in a private language school learning English. André experiences include his arrival in the country, wandering around the city, sitting in the student lounge, attending a TOEFL class, eating dinner with a roommate, shopping in a mall, picking up a friend at the airport, a day at the beach, waiting for a fireworks show, working out at a fitness club, drinking in a bar, catching a movie, driving to a cabin for the weekend, finishing classes, snowboarding and returning home.

Each chapter is set in motion with a conversation between André and another party, wherein certain key words and idioms are identified and printed in bold letters, and subsequently defined. As an example, where André works out at a fitness club, some of the key words and phrases are tuckered out, cleaned up my act, kicked the habit, pooped, carried away, do wonders for and many more.
This is followed by a series of exercises where the words are reinforced by having the student match the words/idioms, use them within sentences, complete a cross word puzzle, rewrite sentences using the word/idiom from the dialogue, fill in the blanks, comprehension questions, discussion questions, and identifying where certain words were more apt to be heard.

Also included at the back of the workbook are a list of related websites to the topics covered, answers to the exercises, and a glossary of terms.

No doubt, the traditional methods of teaching a second language are passé. Gone are the days when students only regurgitated vocabulary and rattled off verbs without integrating what they have learned into everyday situations. For the most part, with excellent workbooks as, A Year In The Life Of An ESL Student: Idioms And Vocabulary You Can't Live Without, there is recognition that what is the key to learning a second language is creativity, innovation and experimentation in the classroom.
This workbook should be a must for anyone who wishes to learn English, and will definitely prove to be an invaluable learning aid.

Norm Goldman, Editor of Bookpleasures.com

Average customer rating:

Epigenetics - a timely and important text.
An invaluable educational tool
Represents the Current State of the Art

Epigenetics

Manufacturer: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0879697245

Customer Reviews:

Epigenetics - a timely and important text........2007-05-15

It is becoming clear that epigenetic mechanisms are responsible for a large number of "genetic" events in the organism, both under normal and pathological circumstances. This advanced text (suitable for advanced undergraduates and beginning graduate students) brings together, in a very readable way, the various mechanisms of epigenetic heredity.

An invaluable educational tool.......2007-04-11

Epigenetics is a scientific textbook written to teach advanced undergraduate and graduate college students about epigenetic mechanisms, which regulate gene expression in many biological processes. Chapters cover histone modifications, chromatin remodeling, DNA methylation, siRNAs and gene silencing, X-chromosome inactivation, epigenetics in microbes, plants, insects and mammals, and much more. An in-depth, scholarly, and informative instructional reference, interspersed with occasional color photographs and diagrams, featuring an extensive list of references and a general summary at the end of each chapter to aid comprehension. An invaluable educational tool for specialized college science courses, as well as for professionals in the field of biology seeking to sharpen their understanding of modern epigenetics.

Represents the Current State of the Art.......2006-12-19

Wikipedia says: 'Epigenetics is the study of epigenetic inheritance, a set of reversible heritable changes in gene function or other cell phenotype that occur without a change in DNA sequence (genotype).'

That's a pretty general definition, and you can get into some pretty good arguments that this or that word should be changed.

The fundamental discoveries that began the field began to be discussed in 1941, but it grew slowly until fairly recent years. By 2004 the science had developed enough that the 69th Cold Spring Harbor Symposium on Quantitative Biology covered the topic. Many of the authors of this book attended that symposium and the seeds for this book were sown.

The book was written by about forty of the preeminent researchers in the field. It consists of 24 chapters covering virtually all known aspects of the subject. It can serve as a reference work for the current state of the art, or could be used as a text for advanced undergraduate or graduate courses on gene regulation.

Microarray Gene Expression Data Analysis: A Beginner's Guide

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A good introduction to the topic
Well written, short explanations but nevertheless understandable

Microarray Gene Expression Data Analysis: A Beginner's Guide
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Book Description

Microarray technology is arguably the most important recent breakthrough in molecular biology. It enables researchers to obtain snapshots of gene expression for all the genes in a genome in a single experiment. Microarray experiments generate massive amounts of data that can be analysed to extract new knowledge about the underlying biological processes.This guide covers aspects of designing microarray experiments and analysing the data generated, and includes information on some of the tools that are available from non-commercial sources. Concepts and principles underpinning gene expression analysis are emphasised, and wherever possible the mathematics has been simplified. The guide is intended for use by graduates and researchers in bioinformatics and the life sciences and is also suitable for statisticians who are interested in the approaches currently used to study gene expression.

Customer Reviews:

A good introduction to the topic .......2007-05-20

Microarrays are a tool for monitoring gene expression levels for thousands of genes in parallel. This technology is very useful since patterns in the gene expression can be used for molecular characterization of phenomena that range from disease states and response to stimuli to the differences between cells of different types. The amount of information obtained from one microarray experiment can be large. These large amounts of information present new challenges in the areas of data storage, management, and analysis by biologists who are not accustomed to dealing with this much data. Also, the software used for data analysis is usually written by mathematicians and statisticians that have a minimum of training in biology.

This book addresses some of the issues faced by researchers who are beginning their first microarray experiments. It covers various aspects of designing and analyzing the results of microarray experiments. Microarrays are not limited to the study of gene expression, but this remains the most common use of the technology and therefore is the only use of arrays discussed here. This book attempts to explain the underlying concepts and principles routinely used in analysis of gene expression data. The book should be accessible by statisticians, computer scientists, and students of bioinformatics who want a grounding in the types of analysis currently used to study microarray data.

The book begins with an introductory chapter which is followed by three major chapters. As with any technology that has the capacity to detect small changes in a highly dynamic system, the underlying experimental design and the manner in which an experiment is conducted is critical for obtaining high quality data. Chapter two addresses these issues. The raw data from microarray experiments are images that must be transformed and organized into gene expression matrices. These transformations are the subject of chapter 3. Finally, in chapter 4, the common methods used for analyzing gene expression data matrices with the goal of obtaining new insights into biology are discussed. The book does a pretty good job of providing the reader with a general understanding of the nature of microarray data and how it can be analyzed. It was never meant to be a reference book or a comprehensive review, just a gentle introduction.

Well written, short explanations but nevertheless understandable.......2005-07-06

Certainly, this book can not give a complete description of microarrays, neither from an experimental nor a theoretical side. Nevertheless, the issues presented and discussed provide the reader with a solid basis for more advanced studies.

In my opinion, this book is well written, the explanations given are descriptive and understandable and its overall organization is plausible. I recommend this book as an introduction for the analysis of microarray data, because it provides a good overview of existing methods in this field. A warning: This does not mean, that all these methods are thorougly expained! It just provides an overview!! If you want to learn, e.g., clustering methods, you should consult another book (probably no other book about microarrays but a decent book dealing only with data analysis in general or clustering methods...)

From So Simple a Beginning: Darwin's Four Great Books (Voyage of the Beagle, The Origin of Species, The Descent of Man, The Expression of Emotions in Man and Animals)

Average customer rating:

Can't Beat It
Four classics
Wonderful writing wrong package
Too big
From So Simple a Beginning: Darwin's Four Great Books (Voyage of the H.M.S. Beagle, The Origin of Species, The Descent of Man, T

From So Simple a Beginning: Darwin's Four Great Books (Voyage of the Beagle, The Origin of Species, The Descent of Man, The Expression of Emotions in Man and Animals)
Charles Darwin
Manufacturer: W. W. Norton
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Binding: Hardcover

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Book Description

A gorgeous gift and a landmark work that is an essential addition to everyone's personal library.

Never before have the four great works of Charles Darwin—Voyage of the H.M.S. Beagle (1845), The Origin of Species (1859), The Descent of Man (1871), and The Expression of Emotions in Man and Animals (1872)—been collected under one cover. Undertaking this challenging endeavor 123 years after Darwin's death, two-time Pulitzer Prize winner Edward O. Wilson has written an introductory essay for the occasion, while providing new, insightful introductions to each of the four volumes and an afterword that examines the fate of evolutionary theory in an era of religious resistance. In addition, Wilson has crafted a creative new index to accompany these four texts, which links the nineteenth-century, Darwinian evolutionary concepts to contemporary biological thought. Beautifully slipcased, and including restored versions of the original illustrations, From So Simple a Beginning turns our attention to the astounding power of the natural creative process and the magnificence of its products. Slipcased hardcover; 101 illustrations, map.

Customer Reviews:

Can't Beat It.......2007-04-03

I bought this book knowing very little about Darwin or his theories. From So Simple a Beginning was an easy read about a very interesting man. I would hope that not just supporters of evolution would read this book there is more to the man then just one theory.

Four classics.......2007-01-12

Excellent in every particular. Five stars in delivery time, condition, quality of the experience.

Wonderful writing wrong package.......2007-01-10

There is no gainsaying the writings of Darwin or the thinking of my favorite living scientist, E.O.Wilson. But the package is wrong.
Four books in one. Too heavy, too cumbersome. Discouraging.

Too big.......2007-01-05

This book is way too big to hold to read, so it is not useful. From the picture I thought I was ordering 4 different books in a book holder, not one giant book. I recommend buying them separately unless you have very strong arms and wrists.

From So Simple a Beginning: Darwin's Four Great Books (Voyage of the H.M.S. Beagle, The Origin of Species, The Descent of Man, T.......2006-07-02

Good

Emotions Revealed, Second Edition: Recognizing Faces and Feelings to Improve Communication and Emotional Life

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Emotions Revealed, Second Edition: Recognizing Faces and Feelings to Improve Communication and Emotional Life
Paul Ekman
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Book Description

'A tour de force. If you read this book, you'll never look at other people in quite the same way again.'-Malcolm Gladwell Renowned psychologist Paul Ekman explains the roots of our emotions-anger, fear, disgust, sadness, and happiness-and shows how they cascade across our faces, providing clear signals to those who can identify the clues. As featured in Malcolm Gladwell's bestseller Blink, Ekman's Facial Action Coding System offers intense training in recognizing feelings in spouses, children, colleagues, even strangers on the street. In Emotions Revealed, Ekman distills decades of research into a practical, mind-opening, and life-changing guide to reading the emotions of those around us. He answers such questions as: How does our body signal to others whether we are slightly sad or anguished, peeved or enraged? Can we learn to distinguish between a polite smile and the genuine thing? Can we ever truly control our emotions? Packed with unique exercises and photographs, and a new chapter on emotions and lying that encompasses security and terrorism as well as gut decisions, Emotions Revealed is an indispensable resource for navigating our emotional world.

The Extended Phenotype: The Long Reach of the Gene (Popular Science)

Average customer rating:

Good info
More delving for truth, less bashing falsehood
Very extended
Injustamente esquecido
Difficult but eminently worthwhile

The Extended Phenotype: The Long Reach of the Gene (Popular Science)
Richard Dawkins
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Book Description

By the best selling author of The Selfish Gene 'This entertaining and thought-provoking book is an excellent illustration of why the study of evolution is in such an exciting ferment these days.' Science 'The Extended Phenotype is a sequel to The Selfish Gene . . . he writes so clearly it could be understood by anyone prepared to make the effort' John Maynard Smith, London Review of Books 'Dawkins is quite incapable of being boring this characteristically brilliant and stimulating book is original and provocative throughout, and immensely enjoyable.' G. A. Parker, Heredity 'The extended phenotype is certainly a big idea and it is pressed hard in dramatic language.' Sydney Brenner, Nature 'Richard Dawkins, our most radical Darwinian thinker, is also our best science writer.' Douglas Adams 'Dawkins is a superb communicator. His books are some of the best books ever written on science.' Megan Tressider, Guardian 'Dawkins is a genius of science popularization.' Mark Ridley, The Times

Customer Reviews:

Good info.......2007-08-23

Beware that this book is a lot more technical than the Selfish Gene, although Dawkins writes it in a similar fashion and includes a glossary for the tricky terms.

I did find it more repetitive than I was expecting as Dawkins really strives to drive the point home, but as a whole it's still a great book.

More delving for truth, less bashing falsehood.......2007-05-18

Lots of people seem to know about Dawkins as a Enthusiastic Bright, or at least as a 'staunch atheist'. Selfish Gene takes digs at religion. Blind Watchmaker certainly takes digs at religion. Ancestor's Tale even seems to have some (though I've not got all through it yet.) I haven't even opened "The God Delusion" yet, and I can make a good guess about the digging I'll find there.

The Extended Phenotype, on the other hand, is pretty well free of anti-religious side commentary. It reads much more like a scientist making a case to his peers, and less like a science writer trying to explain things to a nonscientific audience. That means freedom from much of any religious commentary (I don't remember any, so if there was some, it was minor), but it also means the writing style is a little less conversational. It still feels recognizably Dawkins to me, but the emphasis is more on making his point and less on getting people to listen.

I'd say it's a less /fun/ read than, for example, Blind Watchmaker or Selfish Gene, but at the same time it's a more /interesting/ read.

Very extended.......2007-01-18

Thought book was very well written, although it was hard to follow in some places. But this is a more detailed account of evolution and how the gene and DNA make up what we our today. Overall great work done by one of the best scientists in the field today.

Injustamente esquecido.......2007-01-10

Este é um dos livros de referência do Richard Dawkins mas que é frequentemente relegado como uma obra secundária. Este livro traz uma ótica nova sobre a relação entre genótipo e o fenótipo e em última análise com o indivíduo, redefinindo praticamente este último conceito.
Para os leitores tardios do autor, este livro pode parecer muito técnico já que foi escrito após O Gene Egoísta e visava reforçar alguns pontos de vista desta obra e introduzir todo um novo conceito de fenótipo, isto torna a leitura mais acessível para os que têm maior fluência nas ciências biomédicas mas em momento algum compromete o entendimento da questão central do livro pelo público interessado em ciência mas mais leigo nesta área.

Difficult but eminently worthwhile.......2006-12-30

This is a long and difficult book, although not as long and difficult as it might be if it had been written by somebody without Richard Dawkins' gift for clarity of thought and expression.

The crux of Dawkins' thesis is expressed early on and much of what follows is a very detailed supporting argument. What he wants us to see is that the "selfish gene" has a reach that extends beyond the confines of the individual organism that houses the gene. The phenotype of our genes is the human organism in all its glory; however the extended phenotype of our genes is not only the human organism but part of the environment in which the organism finds itself. In other words, the gene has the power to influence not only our behavior but the behavior and structure of elements in the world in which we live.

This thesis is not as striking to me as it has been to many others mainly because I have studied Eastern religious views, and it is a tenant of such views that the distinction between ourselves (the "selfish organism," in Dawkins' terminology) and the environment is an artificial one, an illusion actually. We are part and parcel of all that is around us and within us, and the boundary of our skin is merely functional. We cannot be understood by looking at only our bodies. Dawkins makes the point that looking at a beaver and microscopically examining it and its genes is not sufficient to an understanding of what a beaver is. We have to also consider the dams that the beaver builds, the trees that it gnaws down and even the streams that it dams and turns into lakes.

Presenting a point of view somewhat at odds with that of Dawkins (and one that I think that Dawkins does not sufficiently appreciate) is Franklin M. Harold in his book, The Way of the Cell: Molecules, Organisms and the Order of Life (2001). He writes, "Organisms process matter and energy as well as information; each represents a dynamic node in a whirlpool of several currents, and self-reproduction is a property of the collective, not of genes.... DNA is a peculiar sort of software, that can only be correctly interpreted by its own unique hardware.... [S]ending aliens the genome of a cat is no substitute for sending the cat itself--complete with mice." (p. 221)

Dawkins tries to discount the view of those he calls "group selectionists" who see life from a "group benefit" viewpoint. Dawkins has, since writing this book, stepped back from this position to allow that some group selection may take place. I believe some day he may see the world not from a "selfish gene" point of view, and not from a "selfish organism" point of view, but from a "selfish ecosystem" perspective--well, more likely his successors will see this, since the work of a lifetime is not easily amended in one's later years.

Dawkins gives what he calls "our own 'central theorem' of the extended phenotype" on page 233: "An animal's behaviour tends to maximize the survival of the genes 'for' that behaviour, whether or not those genes happen to be in the body of the particular animal performing it."

This is a mouthful. Clearly we can say that the genes of the reed warbler code for behavior that benefits the genes of the cuckoo who has laid its egg in the warbler's nest. This is what Dawkins has in mind. But then arises the question, "how far afield can the phenotype extend?" Here Dawkins gets cautious and writes, "The farthest action at a distance I can think of is a matter of several miles." (p. 233) Note the chosen terminology, "action at a distance." This is from physics of course causing Dawkins to ask if there is "a sharp cut-off" of the genes' reach or "an inverse square law" at work?

It is here that I believe Dawkins has come so, so close to that which he will not see (or couldn't see then), namely that everything works toward an ecology and that the idea of selfish genes and selfish organisms is a limited view. In truth the reach of the genes should be governed by something like an inverse square law since humans are now reaching beyond the solar system.

When we look at such great distances we might want to credit the dreaded and verboten "group selection" that Dawkins is at pains to reject. Just as some see our earth as "Gaia," an organism itself, so too might we see those organisms that have the means to survive the destruction of the home planet by migrating to other planets as being selected by group as opposed to other groups who have no such ability. Planet A produces beings that extend beyond their solar system; planet B produces beings that do not. Both planets blow up. Who is "selected" by the (extended) environment and who is not?

Dawkins is one of the geniuses of science, and I don't mean to argue with the great insights he has brought to biology, but my point is that it is always something of an artificiality to speak of living systems as confined to one level of existence or expression. We may think of earth creatures as being completely separate from the rest of the universe, yet without the sun, 93 million miles away, we would not exist; and come a supernova even many light years away, we will be affected.

So all is one and one is all in some extended sense. And using the word "selfish" (as Dawkins knows) at any level of life is merely to be anthropomorphic.

Daniel Dennett, in a new afterword written in 1999, asks if this book is science or philosophy, and he answers both. I agree, and it is science and philosophy of the highest order, aimed equally at the professional and at the educated layperson.

Biochemistry, The Expression and Transmission of Genetic Information

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Biochemistry, The Expression and Transmission of Genetic Information
Donald Voet , and Judith G. Voet
Manufacturer: Wiley
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Biochemistry | Biological Sciences | Science | Subjects | Books

General | Science | Subjects | Books

Biochemistry, Vol. 1: Biomolecules, Mechanisms of Enzyme Action, and Metabolism
Biochemistry
Molecular Cell Biology
Molecular Biology of the Cell, Fourth Edition

ASIN: 0471250899

Book Description

Since its first edition in 1990, over 250,000 students have used biochemistry by Donald Voet of the University of Pennsylvania and Judith Voet of Swarthmore College. It has been translated into six languages (Japanese, German, French, Spanish, Italian, and Czech) and is regarded around the world as the standard in its field.

The Third edition is now available in two volumes.

Volume One covers Biomolecules, Mechanisms of Enzyme Action, and Metabolism. (0-471-25090-2)
This text, Volume Two, covers the Expression and Transmission of Genetic Information.

Book Description

Outlines the relationship between genes and human experience. The understandings of gene expression emerging from the Human Genome Project are setting the stage for a profound expansion of our understanding of life. We are just now beginning to learn how the brain, body, and genes interact in everyday life. Here, Ernest Rossi introduces the new science of psychosocial genomics and explores how it will profoundly change our understanding of the pathways of communication among mind, body, and spirit.

Customer Reviews:

A Sourcebook for Therapy in the 21st Century.......2004-01-29

Dr. Rossi has again written a "trail blazing" book. Those familiar with his previous publications know the breadth of his work - a work spanning Ericksonian Hypnosis, Jungian Psychology, Mind-Body Healing, Biological rhythms, and the psychology of Dreaming. He has not written a book on mathematical models of healing but it is clear that he has also studied this area in considerable depth. All the subjects listed above are revisited and taken to new levels in this book.

In addition to these sections Dr. Rossi also shares some very clear and vivid descriptions of actual therapuetic work. In one section he gives an entire transcription of a therapy he did with a woman during a workshop. In another section he lists a series of therapeutic exercises that can be used to access each person's deeper capacities for self healing.

This latest book also places Dr. Rossi in the ranks of the great detectives. He has been systematically tracking down all of the current research relating experience to gene expression. He regularly scans the internet for all sources that may have new findings related to this subject. He asks us to remember that this is "work in progress." Investigators all over the world are unlocking how specific genes are "turned on" by different experiences. Dr. Rossi is the only person I know who is making an attempt to synthesize this information within in a larger psychological context.

Currently both our medical culture and our larger culture continues to propagate extremely primitive models of human development. According to one of the most popular we inherit certain "tendencies" or diseases that are expressed in a nervous system that is essentially fixed after birth. Thus, our best therapeutic efforts will be directed towards modifying the brains that have genetically predestined defects. With these assumptions pharmacology will be the main (often only) ingredient of help.

At the beginning of the book Dr Rossi points out that recent findings have overturned many of our old theories about how the nervous system is linked to experience. We now know that novelty, life-enriching experiences and physical exercise can activate neurogenesis. Such experiences can turn on gene expression within minutes throughout the body and brain. As a result, "every memory is a reframe." We can actually reconstruct ourselves from a genetic level on up when we are experiencing a healing environment.

Taken as a whole Dr. Rossi has written one of the great sourcebooks for healing to guide us into the 21st Century.

Peak of a brilliant career?.......2003-09-10

I mean this review to be brief so I'll state my conclusion at the start: this is an excellent book covering biochemistry up to psychotherapy. It is a must for any Rossi fan, if only because it has that 'culmination-of-a-brilliant-career' feel to it.

I discovered Rossi in the early 1980's and took one of his "64 questions in search of a graduate student" as my master's thesis. Since then I have digested his work and watched, sometimes in amazement, as clients changed and as I changed. Rossi's view of the mind-body in therapy works and is workable.

I had the pleasure of seeing him in Texas this summer (2003) and was mesmerized (pardon the pun) by the obvious skill of a master therapist. Between his demo to our group and reading this book with a view to integrate it into my work, I have found a revitalizing of my therapy practice that has pulled me out of a 2-year slump... enough said.

Thanks Dr. Rossi.

Excellent integration of biology and mind.......2003-05-01

As a clinical psychologist with a background in biochemistry, I am very thrilled to see the author to integrate the gene expression, environment and mind into a coherent and scientifically-based picture. The book offers a solid foundation for the biological bases for psychotherapy and provides a holistic viewpoint upon human activities. It is highly recommended !

Young at Art: Teaching Toddlers Self-Expression, Problem-Solving Skills, and an Appreciation for Art

Average customer rating:

Excellent resource if you can get past the preachy tone
An excellent how-to book
Valuable insights and info on how to teach art to kids
excellent book from wonderful woman
this book is an absolute must

Young at Art: Teaching Toddlers Self-Expression, Problem-Solving Skills, and an Appreciation for Art
Susan Striker
Manufacturer: Owl Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Study & Teaching | Reference | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

General | Instructional & How-To | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

Family Activities | Parenting & Families | Subjects | Books

General | Parenting | Parenting & Families | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

First Art : Art Experiences for Toddlers and Twos
Art for the Very Young: Ages 3-6
Please Touch
Preschool Art
The Big Messy Art Book: But Easy to Clean Up

ASIN: 0805066977

Amazon.com

Filled with great ideas and enthralling art activities, Young at Art introduces parents and caregivers to a fascinating world that Montessori teachers will find wonderfully familiar. Author Susan Striker created the delightfully different Anti-Coloring Book series and now turns her considerable talents to explaining concepts of child development in a manner that all of us can enjoy. She passionately believes that children can use artistic tools and methods as gateways to all forms of learning, from vocabulary building to early math skills and improved dexterity, and cautions parents to rethink the way we look at art materials. Pipe cleaners form wire sculptures far more detailed than their typical role as bug antenna, and toddlers can have a better experience painting with only one or two colors than they would with an entire palette that instantly turns a muddy brown. Including a wide range of group and individual activities for all age ranges (and even songs to sing during cleanup time), this book is a priceless addition to an art-loving family. Jill Lightner

Book Description

An inspiring guide to encouraging creativity in preschool-age children. Young at Art is the first and only book about the value and impact of art on very young children. Directed toward parents and educators of one-to five-year-olds, Susan Striker explains why childrens art is not a frill but the very foundation upon which all later fundamental skills are built.

Customer Reviews:

Excellent resource if you can get past the preachy tone.......2007-10-07

I got this book because I am very interested in developing my toddler's artistic and creative abilities. There are some great things about this book. And some very bad things.

The good:
- The descriptions of projects in the book are fantastic. The projects are innovative and really designed to allow children to freely express themselves. The projects made me think about art, and even about the world, differently and helped me to understand how the world looks from a toddler's perspective.
- There is a lot of detail given about why a particular activity is important, or why it should be done a certain way. In general, there's a lot of detail in the book, and the author does a great job suggesting variations on projects or ways to look at materials in a different way.
- The author clearly delineates which supplies you should use and how you should use them. The book is more or less a comprehensive curriculum for preschool art - there are suggested books to read, songs, recommendations on where to get art materials, etc. This would be an awesome resource for a homeschooling family, or for a preschool teacher looking to break away from the traditional way of looking at and teaching art.

Okay. That's what's good about the book. And believe me, there's a lot that's good. However. What's bad about the book would probably turn a lot of people off, and away from using the excellent activities in the book with their child. The bad:

- The author's tone is extremely judgmental, holier-than-thou, snarky, etc. It gets extraordinarily tiresome after the first few pages. The laundry list of things you should NEVER EVER EVER do is miles long and goes on for page after page after page. Let me sum some of them up for you - basically, everything you have ever done with your child in regards to art is wrong and everything they've done in daycare, preschool, with their grandparents, at the babysitter's, etc. is also wrong and has almost certainly irreparably damaged their fragile self-esteem, their creativity, and their budding artistic talent. Having kids make "holiday themed" art is wrong. Telling a child a picture is pretty is wrong. Giving kids more than one color of crayon at a time is wrong. Speaking sharply when a child draws on your wall, table, priceless heirloom Sargent portrait, etc. is wrong - you should speak calmly and redirect the child to draw on some paper without telling them drawing on the wall is wrong because hey, the kid was just trying to express him/herself. Altering your child's artwork in any way is wrong. Throwing even a single piece of artwork out is wrong and you are an insensitive parent if you do that. Putting kids' art on the refrigerator is wrong; you should take it to a frame shop and get it framed. Thinking you know what art is or what's best for your child is wrong; in fact, the author states that the more parents think they know about art, the more likely they are to "damage" their child by doing the wrong thing. The "wrong thing" is anything that the author didn't tell you to do. Oh, and never, ever give your child a coloring book or draw on a piece of paper with them or the Holy Gods of Art (and apparently the author thinks she is one) will smite you, with great vengeance and furious anger.
Exhausted yet? I could go on with the ways the author thinks parents permanently cripple their children's creativity by doing things people have done for decades - the selection above is from the first 20 pages of the book, before the author's even talked about any projects. Unfortunately, the scolding and proselytizing doesn't stop. Throughout the book the author takes any and every opportunity to point out to you what a crappy parent you are because you do X which is not the way the author would do it. It really, REALLY gets old.

- There's not a lot of backup provided for any of the author's claims. She's taught elementary school art for 25 years. She's not a child psychologist, a developmental specialist, a physical therapist, a special educator, a Ph.D. in education, or someone with an advanced degree in fine art. She apparently has done no studies or academic research on childhood art instruction, or at least she doesn't cite it in this book if she has. Yet she makes claims that really only have credence if they're provided by someone who has some kind of credential or who has data from a controlled study. Some of the claims are so outrageous, they are just begging for some kind of citation or backing evidence from some kind of expert source. She doesn't provide any of that. In the back of the book she thanks a few people who seem to have educational credentials but the majority of supporting cites in the text are unrelated to the counterintuitive and incredible-sounding "facts" she presents as the indisputable, gospel truth.

- The author does an awful lot of inappropriate projecting, claiming that kids feel this way or that way when X happens after they make art. Maybe she felt insulted when someone referred to her art as "pretty," or her kid was overly sensitive to being told not to color on the wall. But that doesn't mean all kids are that way and claiming that it's a simple equation of "you do X, and therefore your child's confidence and self-worth is destroyed" is both inappropriate and irresponsible. I am a little unsure how a parent drawing with a 2-year-old, who does not fully understand that other people exist as separate entities from him, will kill his creativity and artistic confidence at a young age. The two-year-old is not really aware that other people even have feelings, and is certainly not capable of seeing a parent making a line on a piece of paper as a negative value judgment about their own work. There's a lot the author claims that doesn't jive with contemporary research about how a child's self-concept or their relationships with others develop.

It's really tough to give this book the recommendation it probably deserves, because there's no way the average parent is going to read this and not either a. roll their eyes so much that they stick that way in their head eventually or b. feel terribly guilty about all the ways that they've doomed their child to life as a corporate accountants payable clerk instead of encouraging them to be the next Picasso. I think if you can read the book from the perspective of "I want to encourage my child to make art, and I'm not really sure how" and read the project descriptions, and skip all the holier-than-thou preaching, it is a great book and a wonderful resource for any parent. Let's face it, just by reading something like this, you are obviously a caring and involved parent. Having your kid carve a Jack O' Lantern on Halloween isn't going to permanently warp their creativity and their sense of self-worth, despite what this author says. You know that, and I know that. So take what's good from this and take the rest with an enormous grain of salt. Some amazing artists out there started out making "hand turkeys" at Thanksgiving and using the whole box of 64 crayons. A child's creativity and sense of self-worth are a whole lot more resilient than this author seems to think.

A book that I've found more helpful, which has the same themes about valuing the process of making the art over the product of the process is "First Art" by Maryann Kohl. The philosophies of Striker and Kohl are very similar but Kohl's book is a lot less preachy, and has the advantage of being VERY user-friendly (easy to read, supplies for projects clearly outlined, much less wordy, more focused on enabling parents to get their kids involved in art projects and less concerned with long-winded philosophizing, etc.), a lot more so than this book. All in all, I'm glad I read this but I think I'm going to use "First Art" a lot more on a day-to-day basis.

An excellent how-to book.......2007-03-15

If like me, you are a young mom trying to encourage your child's creativity to blossom, or even a preschool teacher, then this is definitely a worthwhile read...it comes with helpful strategies, and useful tips on how to promote creativity in young kids...and some ideas are common sense, but its upon reading the book that you really begin to see how other useful ideas might be implemented.

Valuable insights and info on how to teach art to kids.......2006-08-12

I found this book to be very valuable even though I do not agree with 100% of her theories. She gives a great overview of several medium and as well as the actual products she recommends and the best way to teach children how to learn through art. I can see how my kids have already benefited.

Where do I disagree? While I agree that children need to be creative and explore on their own - I do not believe that the occasional coloring book or craft project is going to squash the child's creativity. My children definitely know the difference between their art time and the crafts they do at pre-school to learn about the American flag, holidays etc. And these craft projects that center around topics do reinforce concepts and help them learn - something the author is opposed to (she explicity says that children do not learn about holidays through craft projects where they make Christmas trees etc.)

In spite of disagreeing on this point I found the book to be excellent and would recommend it.

excellent book from wonderful woman.......2006-07-08

Living near Susan Striker, I have had the opportunity to meet her on several occasions including having my oldest children (only at the time) participate in workshops with her. She is fabulous! The ideas in the book are easily incorporated and make a huge difference I think in inspiring children to work at their own level and enjoy the process. It has also helped me as a parent and home educator to feel more confident in guiding the process as well as selecting those rare excellent programs for children in art. Too many even "art schools" focus too much on the outcome or product. Doing it at home actually allows the children to be more of themselves. I also have personally witnessed the effects education wise on my children. My oldest is now 7 and reading at a junior high level. I followed this book and he was, on his own, writing his letters, name, etc at age 3 (well before his personal peer group) and I think this is because of the freedom giving to him in experimenting before then. His early markings were deemed valuable by us and so he kept wanting to do more and then copy us. I am purchasing another copy of this book for my sister and her just turning one year old son so they can enjoy art together as well.

this book is an absolute must.......2006-04-27

quick but to the point: this book is an excellent resource for parents and teachers, of which i am both. it is developmentally appropriate and her theories can be used in any setting of children ranging from special needs right up to gifted. this book allows me to never say "what do i do now with my 2 1/2 year old daughter?"

The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals

Average customer rating:

An enriching reading!
Darwin's faked evidence
The digital version is no bargain
After the BEAGLE, Darwin's "funnest" book!
A magnificent book, splendid new edition!

The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals
Charles Darwin , and Paul Ekman
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Emotions | Mental Health | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

General | Psychology & Counseling | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

The Descent of Man (Penguin Classics)
Emotions Revealed: Recognizing Faces and Feelings to Improve Communication and Emotional Life
Annual Editions: Psychology 06/07 (Annual Editions : Psychology)
The Origin of Species
The Autobiography of Charles Darwin 1809-1882

ASIN: 0195158067

Amazon.com

"Even cows, when they frisk about from pleasure, throw up their tails in a ridiculous fashion." So writes Charles Darwin in his magnum opus on how humans and animals display such emotions as fear, anger, disdain, and pleasure; it is work that has in most respects been sustained by later scientific research. First published in 1872, Darwin's greatest work was never issued in quite the shape its author intended: bits and pieces were left out of subsequent printings, most of them released after Darwin's death, and later editors made additions to suit the intellectual fashion of their times. This definitive edition, heavily annotated, brings us the book that Darwin would have wanted, and it is essential to any naturalist's library.

Book Description

In his study of infants and children (including observations of his own baby's smiles and pouts), of the insane, of painting and sculpture, of cats and dogs and monkeys, and of the ways that people in different cultures express their feelings, Darwin's insights have not been surpassed by modern science. This definitive edition of Darwin's masterpiece contains a substantial new Introduction and Afterword by Paul Ekman. Ekman also provides commentaries that use the latest scientific knowledge to elaborate, support, and occasionally challenge Darwin's study. For this edition, Ekman has returned to Darwin's original notes in order to produce for the first time a corrected, authoritative text illustrated by drawings and photographs positioned exactly as its author intended. "This new edition of Darwin's extraordinary book is a major event in the human sciences."-Steven Pinker "This new comprehensive edition of Expression will introduce a new generation of readers to Darwin's masterpiece, undiminished and intensely relevant even 125 years after publication."-Oliver Sacks "Ekman's contribution to his edition of Darwin's 1872 monograph can count as a book in its own right."-Ian Hacking, Times Literary Supplement

Customer Reviews:

An enriching reading!.......2006-03-04

This is the main contribution to interdisciplinary studies that converge in psychology and biology. It is a key piece inside Darwin `s work. If the well known decay of the compared psychology at the early years of the XX Century- when the evolutionism followers forgot about the behaviors and the psychologists did without anatomy and physiology- diminished briefly influence to the actual contributions, the culmination of the modern etiology has acted in favor for rediscover this extraordinary and even singular text.

What Darwin considers as true expressions are precisely, the reflexes and instincts that suppose not only the innate capacity to react of a determined way, but also the innate acknowledgement of that expression in the others.

A fundamental and unfairly not so known book that deserves to be recognized with major value.

Darwin's faked evidence.......2005-02-09

To those evolutionary behavioralists who salivate over "Emotions in Man and Animals," they'll get an even bigger charge reading it alongside "The Great Betrayal: Fraud in Science," by Horace Freeland Judson, which has a nice expose of Darwin's fraudulent photos. Behavioralists will especially love reading about the expressions induced by powerful electrical shocks to the heads of mental patients. Of course, Darwin had the electrodes painted out of the photos; but then, This is Science! Other photos are actually paintings, and most are staged, not spontaneous. "Emotions" is nonetheless a good read, as Darwin could write as well as he lied.

The digital version is no bargain.......2004-07-23

Darwin's work is groundbreaking, describing inborn emotional expression, including descriptions of animals as well as man. The book itself gets 4 stars for originality of concept and thoroughness of observation. The editing of the digital version leaves a lot to be desired, and gets 2 stars. No illustrations were included. None--and there is no warning about this anywhere. The pages were longer than the original version, so "footnotes" can be found at the bottom, middle, or top of a page. Some footnotes run into text, so if you're trying to read text and skip footnotes, sometimes it makes no sense whatsoever until you read a footnote, determine where the text actually started, and then re-read it including all the parts. Sometimes parts of sentences are just left out. This approach can work for a work of fiction, but I won't be buying any more "illustrated" or footnoted nonfiction digital books.

After the BEAGLE, Darwin's "funnest" book!.......2001-07-05

This is the second book that I throw my serious students after I make them read the Voyage. While the subject is serious, there is more than a hint of play throughout, and one can just imagine Darwin observing his own children for clues to discuss as each chapter unfolds. Although this book is of course not nearly as important as the Origin or even Descent, it is essentially part of the Long Argument, and is a great way of bringing behavioural topics to the fore in any discussion of evolution. A pity it is that many modern popularizers of "evolutionary psychology" seem to have missed parts of the form and substance that Darwin expresses here.

A magnificent book, splendid new edition!.......1998-11-16

Ever since I received Paul EkmanÕs new edition of DarwinÕs classic work, the book has been my constant companion. I carry it with me from room to room, picking it up to read whenever I have a few minutes.

You can open to just about any page and discover yet another gem. Whether you find a bit to read by chance, or whether you like to be guided by the fascinating table of contents and index, or whether you prefer to begin at the beginning, Darwin is always interesting and accessible. In view of our troubled world, I find it helpful to remember that empathy is an essential part of human and animal nature. It seems the study of emotion must lead us toward a deeper understanding of these universal, powerful forces that energize and transform our lives.

ÒExpressionÓ is really an old friend. As a young dance therapist in the 1960s, I was impressed first by DarwinÕs ability to describe the dynamic process of expressive movement. Obviously it is the emotions that motivate and shape the way we move. I learned then that his observations were gathered over a period of 30 years. His subjects included not only all kinds of animals, but also human infants, children and adults from every walk of life and from many different cultures. He approached the study of emotional expression from the perspective of art, literature and inner experience, as well as from muscles and the nervous system. Although it was first published over 125 years ago (1872) DarwinÕs work continues to inspire and inform contemporary research in many fields.

The new edition is simply outstanding. Paul EkmanÕs editing is clearly a Òlabor of love,Ó and at the same time a thorough, original scholarly contribution. I particularly like the way he places DarwinÕs work in a cultural and social/political context. EkmanÕs commentary offers rich resources as he quietly updates, re-frames or differs, yet more than anything, confirms and extends DarwinÕs observations. It is as if Ekman and Darwin were engaged in a kind of dialogue, each learning from the other. Thereader is a privileged witness.

Joan Chodorow

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