Showing posts with label Columbia University Press. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Columbia University Press. Show all posts

12/11/2009

Review of Dynamics of Dinosaurs (Paperback)

A lot of things about dinosaurs (and other extinct large animals) we will never know. And a lot of questions are out there. Questions like "Could Tyrannosaurus rex run?", "What was their top speed?", "Did sauropods hold their neck horizontally or vertically?" or "Could large quadrupedal dinosaurs rear up on their hind legs?"

This book treats the animals that these questions are about as "nothing more" than engineering projects, similar to large buildings, bridges or mechanical machines.

Using realistic values for things like compressability and tensile stress properties of substances like bones, cartilage, tendons, etc. and using laws of physics and formulas from structural engineering Alexander tries to answer some of these questions.

The results are very interesting. If you're interesting in dinosaurs and how they really could have been in real life, this is a book you should not miss.



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12/08/2009

Review of The Columbia Granger's Index to Poetry in Anthologies: Thirteenth Edition (Hardcover)

O man. It blows my head. All the greatest poetry in English, together, on a CD...all that Blake, man. i have been experimenting with connecting the data output straight into my brain, via a portable CD turntable secreted under my mitre. That Tessa Kale must be really something.



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