Best Selling Books by M. Barr

Physicist Stephen M. Barr's lucid Student's Guide to Natural Science aims to give students an understanding, in broad outline, of the nature, history, and great ideas of natural science from ancient times to the present, with a primary focus on physics. Barr begins with the contributions of the ancient Greeks, in particular the two great ideas that reality can be understood by the systematic use of reason and that phenomena have natural explanations. He goes on to discuss, among other things, the medieval roots of the scientific revolution of the seventeenth century, the role played by religion in fostering the idea of a lawful natural order, and the major breakthroughs of modern physics, including how many newer "revolutionary" theories are in fact related to much older ones. Throughout this thoughtful guide, Barr draws his readers' attention to the larger themes and trends of scientific history, including the increasing unification and "mathematization" of our view of the physical world that has resulted in the laws of nature appearing more and more as forming a single harmonious mathematical edifice.

After man evolved in Africa, he decided to separate from living as one with nature. The allegory of Adam and Eve being kicked out of Eden is this act, which means mankind turned against nature, thinking he could create a better reality-civilization. Even today, humanity still tries to improve and create an ideal existence that always seems to be beyond his grasp. This was, and still is, his Temptation. In Genesis Was Right, amateur historian Stephen Barr examines the characteristics of civilization and demonstrates how they have become so integral to civilization that any change - especially one that may prevent a downfall - has become nearly impossible. In Barr's critical glimpse into the history of our civilization, in thirteen chapters he scrutinizes the life processes of the universe, the life stages within our galaxy, and those of mankind's very civilization. The earth's slow stages that we barely perceive are paralleled by our civilization's slow stages. We react to this in various ways that are the changing characteristics of our societies. With the onset of global warming and the shortage of petroleum, raw materials, and fresh water, Barr's comprehensive look at the history of our civilization will encourage others to learn from the mistakes of those who came before us and reexamine our current lifestyle, ultimately building a better future for our world.

The Manhattan skyline is one of the great wonders of the modern world. But how and why did it form? Much has been written about the city's architecture and its general history, but little work has explored the economic forces that created the skyline. In Building the Skyline, Jason Barr chronicles the economic history of the Manhattan skyline. In the process, he debunks some widely held misconceptions about the city's history. Starting with Manhattan's natural and geological history, Barr moves on to how these formations influenced early land use and the development of neighborhoods, including the dense tenement neighborhoods of Five Points and the Lower East Side, and how these early decisions eventually impacted the location of skyscrapers built during the Skyscraper Revolution at the end of the 19th century. Barr then explores the economic history of skyscrapers and the skyline, investigating the reasons for their heights, frequencies, locations, and shapes. He discusses why skyscrapers emerged downtown and why they appeared three miles to the north in midtown-but not in between the two areas. Contrary to popular belief, this was not due to the depths of Manhattan's bedrock, nor the presence of Grand Central Station. Rather, midtown's emergence was a response to the economic and demographic forces that were taking place north of 14th Street after the Civil War. Building the Skyline also presents the first rigorous investigation of the causes of the building boom during the Roaring Twenties. Contrary to conventional wisdom, the boom was largely a rational response to the economic growth of the nation and city. The last chapter investigates the value of Manhattan Island and the relationship between skyscrapers and land prices. Finally, an Epilogue offers policy recommendations for a resilient and robust future skyline.

From one of the world’s top experts on the economics of skyscrapers—a fascinating account of the ever-growing quest for super tall buildings across the globe. The world’s skyscrapers have brought us awe and wonder, and yet they remain controversial—for their high costs, shadows, and overt grandiosity. But, decade by decade, they keep getting higher and higher. What is driving this global building spree of epic proportions? In Cities in the Sky, author Jason Barr explains all: why they appeal to cities and nations, how they get financed, why they succeed economically, and how they change a city’s skyline and enable the world’s greatest metropolises to thrive in the 21st century. From the Empire State Building (1,250 feet) to the Shanghai Tower (2,073 feet) and everywhere in between, Barr explains the unique architectural and engineering efforts that led to the creation of each. Along the way, Barr visits and unpacks some surprising myths about the earliest skyscrapers and the growth of American skylines after World War II, which incorporated a new suite of technologies that spread to the rest of the world in the 1990s. Barr also explores why London banned skyscrapers at the end of the 19th century but then embraced them in the 21st and explains how Hong Kong created the densest cluster of skyscrapers on the planet. Also covered is the dramatic result of China’s “skyscraper fever” and then on to the Arabian Peninsula to see what drove Dubai to build the world’s tallest building, the Burj Khalifa, which at 2,717 feet, is higher than the new One World Trade Center in New York by three football fields. Filled with fascinating details for urbanists, architecture buffs, and urban design enthusiasts alike, Cities in the Sky addresses the good, bad, and ugly for cities that have embraced vertical skylines and offers us a glimpse to the future to see whether cities around the world will continue their journey ever upwards.

A considerable amount of public debate and media print has been devoted to the “war between science and religion.” In his accessible and eminently readable new book, Stephen M. Barr demonstrates that what is really at war with religion is not science itself, but a philosophy called scientific materialism. Modern Physics and Ancient Faith argues that the great discoveries of modern physics are more compatible with the central teachings of Christianity and Judaism about God, the cosmos, and the human soul than with the atheistic viewpoint of scientific materialism. Scientific materialism grew out of scientific discoveries made from the time of Copernicus up to the beginning of the twentieth century. These discoveries led many thoughtful people to the conclusion that the universe has no cause or purpose, that the human race is an accidental by-product of blind material forces, and that the ultimate reality is matter itself. Barr contends that the revolutionary discoveries of the twentieth century run counter to this line of thought. He uses five of these discoveries—the Big Bang theory, unified field theories, anthropic coincidences, Gödel’s Theorem in mathematics, and quantum theory—to cast serious doubt on the materialist’s view of the world and to give greater credence to Judeo-Christian claims about God and the universe. Written in clear language, Barr’s rigorous and fair text explains modern physics to general readers without oversimplification. Using the insights of modern physics, he reveals that modern scientific discoveries and religious faith are deeply consonant. Anyone with an interest in science and religion will find Modern Physics and Ancient Faith invaluable.

Lonz of Middle Bass is the story of a man, a woman, a building and an island. It is a unique book, particularly in view of the fact that it not only covers the obvious story of George Lonz and his wife, Fannie, but effectively chronicles the history not only of the Lonz Winery, but also of Middle Bass Island, Ohio from the earliest explorations of Champlain in 1545 through the mid-nineteenth century when the island, as it is known today, began to emerge. The book is a reprint of the scarce and coveted 1982 edition, updated with an Appendix to cover the last 22 years. It also includes the stories from the August, 2000 Put-in-Bay Gazette about the tragedy in July, 2000, when the collapse of a terrace caused one fatality, injured many, and caused the winery to be closed for good earlier than planned. The author of the original version, Mr. Barr, from the grandstand of 21 years of being "summer people", was intrigued with the island story from the beginning of his sojourn. He had an opportunity to know personally many of the people who were George's contemporaries or were a part of the story. Bits and pieces of the chronicle found the author invading unexpected treasure troves. There was a trip to Toledo to talk with the Roesches about Indian artifacts, a luncheon with the Rameys in San Francisco to learn more of the Lonz husband-wife relationship, the gloomy interior of a New Orleans bookstore to find ancient maps of Lake Erie, and an antique shop in Charleston, South Carolina that reluctantly brought to light the plates of the Perry associates in the Battle of Lake Erie and the drawings of the Golden Eagle breaking ice. There were many, many phone calls to run down leads and a final visit to the Hayes Museum in Fremont, Ohio to find out about some of the island-owned boats. For those who have enjoyed the unique hospitality as offered by this unusual winery, for those who enjoy history - particularly of Middle Bass Island, the Lake Erie Islands or the Lake Erie south shore - and for those who simply enjoy a bottle of wine in an idyllic setting, this book will be interesting reading. Please visit the editor's web site at http://www.middlebass.org About the Editor Michael Gora is the Middle Bass Island Historian for the Lake Erie Islands Historical Society, and also operates the Middle Bass Island web site. A long-time summer resident, his goal is to spend more time on the island every year. A retired software executive, software developer and physicist, he is the author of over 30 technical papers and three technical books, and has also produced four reprints of Lake Erie Islands historical booklets. He is also the editor of the most complete history of the islands ever published, Lake Erie Islands - Sketches and Stories, which is available from Trafford. Excerpts

Our future can turn out in one of several ways, and it is humanity that must make the decision of which one it will be. Only one will be truly to mankind's advantage. Why this is so is the thrust of Our Ending Dark Age. Its premise is that when humans began using tools, we began to separate from nature. The long process of going from nature to separating from nature is our Dark Age, or Age of Adjustment. Mankind's best future is that wherein he is completely separate from nature. Why this is so is analyzed in Our Ending Dark Age as humankind's biology, psychology, evolution, economics, education, entrepreneurship and society are examined. This is done using the platform of history as the tie that holds all of these seemingly divergent subjects together. The role religion and opinion play in deciding the course of civilization is examined. The reader is then taken on an excursion that begins with the cellular basis of human anatomy, the meaning of Soul and Spirit, and traces history from our hunter-gatherer days to the magnificent future that awaits us if we put our minds to it.

Systematic study of the geography distribution of the wood-processing industry has received recent Soviet attention, yet the results have been disappointing. Soviet work has been descriptive and lacking in critical analysis of the location problem. In particular, there has been little, if any, attempt to assess the geographic distribution of the industry within the general context of location theory and to evaluate the role played by individual location factors. This monograph is a case study in the application of linear programming techniques to the analysis of transportation patterns within the wood-processing industry. It will add to North American studies not only a knowledge of the location of wood-processing industries but also a better understanding of the factors which have influenced the location of wood-processing in the Soviet Union. (University of Toronto Department of Geography Research Publications No. 4).

United Fiber System, Ltd (UFS) seeks to secure financing for a 600,000 tonnes greenfield pulp mill project in South Kalimantan, Indonesia. It will be somewhat unique in Indonesia in that it will source its fiber entirely from sustainably managed plantations and will generate minimal negative impacts on natural forests and local communities. This brief has been prepared to promote a more informed and transparent dialogue on the proposed project among financial decision makers, policy makers, and other stakeholders. Based on a review of available documents and analyses, CIFOR has major questions regarding the social and environmental sustainability of the planned pulp mill and associated plantations. The issues are first limited information on the plantation development program provided by UFS. Secondly, the proposed project is likely to place direct pressures on the 77,000 ha of natural forest that reportedly remains at the PT Hutan Rindang Banua (PT HRB) plantation concession, and particularly on the 44,000 ha of areas covered by ‘mixed tropical hardwood’ (MTH) that were designated by Jaakko Poyry to be appropriate for plantation development. Thirdly, the development of a new 600,000 tonne pulp mill in South Kalimantan would compound the very significant problem of industrial over capacity that currently exists in Indonesia’s forestry sector. Fourth, while the proposed pulp mill and associated plantations could generate significant employment and associated benefits, there is a risk of serious negative impacts on surrounding communities, which have a population of over 60,000 people. Finally, the project’s current ownership structure lacks transparency, and this could lead to a lack of accountability if UFS or its affiliates fail to meet the commitments it is now making. As such, it is essential that financial decision makers, policy makers, and other interested parties design structures for ensuring accountability and transparency on the part of project principals.

Berau district has been one of East Kalimantan's largest sources of timber since the mid-1980s. Until the fall of the Suharto regime in 1998, most of the district's formal timber production was conducted by large-scale HPH concession holders, and the vast majority of the fiscal revenues generated flowed to the national government. Over the last several years, considerable volumes of logs have also been harvested illegally both by timber concessionaires and by small-scale manual loggers. Following the onset of Indonesia's regional autonomy and decentralization processes in late 1998, district officials moved aggressively to establish greater administrative control over the forest resources within their jurisdiction. They did so by allocating large numbers of small-scale forest conversion licenses, known as IPPK permits. Many of these were assigned to 'foundations' established by local entrepreneurs to coordinate the creation of logging ventures with village cooperatives and other community groups in parts of Berau with valuable stands of timber. When the central government pressured district governments to stop issuing IPPK permits within the officially designated 'Forest Estates' in late 2000, Berau officials shifted tactics and began allocating a new type of logging permit, known as IPKTM, in forested areas where individuals or community groups held titles of ownership or other types of land certificates. District officials have also pressured PT Inhutani I, the state forestry enterprise owned by the central government, and other HPH concession holders to enter into equity partnerships with the district government. This has given the district government a direct stake in protecting the operations ...

Analytic and probabilistic descriptions of low-altitude mean wind and turbulence have been investigated and a description selected. The effects of wind and turbulence on aerodynamics and aircraft motion have been analyzed. A model of wind and turbulence, suitable for the certification of landing and approach guidance and control systems by flight simulations, has been developed, and consideration has been given to implementation.

Zanes Trace was the first government-sanctioned road in the Northwest Territory of the United States. Lost to the ultimate transgressions of modern progress, the location of Zane's Trace has been the subject of speculation for well more than a century. A variety of congressional and territorial acts, correspondence, land records, and pioneer recollections will establish the original route and landowners on that route presented as never done before. Sourced and Indexed including 90 + color images of original documents, plats, maps, and more.

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A fantastical tale of improbable events, reminiscent of Lovecraft but not . . .

A children's book in verse describing a child's life and how they can overcome hard times. Includes educational pages about bugs and poetry as well.