Kimberly Petrovic Female, Single. USA

This book is especially useful to researchers like myself who work with experimental design and trying to figure out the best way to go about answering certain questions. Lipsey's book is dry, but then again, remember that he is not writing a novel in which our mind can become lost. He is writing so that researchers running statistics, for instance, know how large a sample size needs to be (n = ??) in order to have enough power to, well, run the stats and make subsequent conclusions based on those stats. (Otherwise, what is the point?)

Lipsey is concerned with legitimacy... that of alpha coefficients as well as statistical legitimacy, experimental design's legitimacy, reliability and validity, and all things related to quantitative research. This book is now a reference for me as I work my way through tough questions related to research design. I would highly recommend this book, as Lipsey also has a way of explaining some of the most complex concepts known to researchers and statisticians.

Clarice Lispector is my latest literary discovery!

Actually, a friend thought that I would appreciate this tome's attempt to describe and examine the complexity of a person's inner being... her beguiling inner self, complete with a heart that cannot be tamed.

Emotions are rarely -- if ever -- black and white, cut and dry. We deal with shades of gray most of the time, adding color as we go. Sometimes in fragments of brilliant hues, as mirrors the author's writing style. Sometimes as the result of extreme joy or sadness (as Lispector wrote this before the end of WWII)... and every emotion in-between.

Simply cannot decide with whom I would agree more. I've an appreciation for Chomsky and his stellar work on syntax and language... as well as Foucault and his critique of the medical system and physicians. Chomsky and his research/scholarly work are powerhouses, and his ideas re: language (hierarchies) relate in such an 'obvious' manner to humans and human nature. At the same time, the palpable honesty of Foucault -- the late, great, extremely intelligent (and proudly/bravely homosexual) son of a physician -- is as felt as the <<ouvre>> about which he wrote in other works.

I'll re-read this, as the combined and individual brilliance of these thinkers is too much for any one time. Still, to capture a mere glimpse of their thoughts is something <<increible>>.

Wish I could do more with data sets that lend themselves to HLM analyses. We're often talking about huge databases that are not always easy to manage. I've built from scratch my fair share of databases, though I imagine the databases primed for HLM are formidable opponents! Still, I'm ready for the challenge!

This book is best when used in conjuction with the computer-based program... because you've GOTTA run the numbers, which can be nested within... and nested within... and nested within... Quite a lot of numbers to handle on any given day, but the book makes these more manageable. Great if you enjoy math and its "language."

Although I'm in the throes of reading this book while reminding myself of the basics pertaining to regression analyses, this book is quite helpful. All you ever wanted to know about interaction effects but were afraid to ask. Dense. Intense. Very useful.

Great as a reference book, too. Also check out the series' publication on LOGISTIC regression.

A number of years ago, Elie Wiesel spoke in New Mexico... where I lived at that time. I decided to go with friends to hear Elie speak about the Holocaust as well as his experiences and memories as an adolescent and almost-man growing up in a concentration camp during WWII. Not only was I moved deeply, but the entire auditorium was silent and nearly in tears as Elie talked about the tortures but -- more importantly -- about the determination to forgive, to seek peace, and to work for the benefits of humanity as a result of witnessing firsthand the cruelties that we humans can inflict on one another.

Which led me to read "Night." Once while in New Mexico. Three or four times while back in the Portland/Seattle area. And then three or four times more while instructing undergraduate students in a class entitled, "Death, Dying and Bereavement" at the University of Connecticut. I just finished reading the book -- a slim though powerful "quick" read -- again today. Elie's words cause more than a little wrenching of the soul. Especially if you really focus on what he is saying. He doesn't mince words. No flowery speech. Just tells it like he remembers it. And makes some of us want to cry while also remembering that the darkest 'night' of the mind and soul can be eclipsed by the glorious arrival of the daytime light.

Here in the USA, it's difficult to imagine that the economy, international relationships, job loss and home foreclosures and the like can get any worse. I won't comment on President Bush, as I am a Democrat and you probably can figure out my opinion of him and his 'accomplishments' over the past eight years. Nonetheless, after reading "Night" one more time, I am reminded that a situation as bad as the current state of the USA can only get better. If Elie Wiesel survived far worse, then I can hang in there and live through this recession while maintaining common courtesy and human decency.

Okay. Everyone knows that all people possess numerous dimensions to themselves. I "live" in the mind most of the time; for better or for worse, I am a hardcore intellectual; but there is a definite physicality to myself... and that plays out in athleticism. Like surfing.

I have been athletic all of my life and believe that this has kept me in great shape. I love to surf whenever I have the chance. And I will admit that I ADORE KELLY SLATER. Many of you may not surf and have no idea who Slater is. That's fine. This book is an admirable intro to the world of surfing. Surfing, you see, is 'very zen.'

You learn certain lessons of life by surfing. For instance, with waves, sometimes you find them through much searching (e.g., in Indo or J-Bay, South Africa); other times, they find you when you're least expecting this to happen. Of course, you learn that you cannot control everything... especially not the Ocean. You respect its beauty and power to transform your life. You learn from your mistakes, and you try not to look back or you'll fall. (If you ever notice photos of surfers, they look forward... rarely do they look back.)

Surfing is extremely peaceful and, well, 'brotherly' in that you give up the ideas of brutal competition with one another. It's you and your wave. The Ocean is big enough for you, your wave, your 'brothers and sisters,' and their respective waves.

Slater talks about his personal history here. At first he used surfing for escape, so to speak. Then he went on to become the greatest surfer EVAAAH! Arguably, he IS the best surfer ever... a legend at only 36. He surfs as well as those younger and older. Being 30-something myself, I have followed Slater's career. Like I said, I adore him! Slater is a Zen master in his own right. Philosophical and unrattled. He reminds us that surfing is a lot like Life.

Finished this book in the matter of a couple days.

If you are highly analytical -- or wannabe -- then this book will keep the CPU of your mind firing as you apply logic throughout the plot in order to solve problems and understand enigmatic situations. Given the time period of this novel, you might find yourself enveloped in history. Wartime, to be exact. And for any gamers out there, this kinda reminds me of <<The Velvet Assassin>> genre of character, game, plot, etc. With lotsa codes to break.

Admittedly, the title caught my attention because of the software company (www.quicksilver.com) and the surfing gear franchise, too. Of the many "things" I personally adore, computers and surfing (like, waves in, like, California -- not just the Internet) are at the top of the list. Simply stated, Neal is AHEAD OF HIS TIME, even though he takes us back a few centuries via this masterpiece.

Yet, he is futuristic enough to keep the reader thinking outside of the past and present. Sure, we live in the present grounded in the past... but when you read Neal's books (whether "Quicksilver" or one of his many others), you are transported to another world of thought that stretches your mind and its boundaries as we know them. Or think we know them. I need to re-read parts of this to ensure that I "get" him. He is brilliant, and I need to keep pace with his take on society (past, present and future), technology and their interface.

If you're someone who travels a lot, this book is lengthy enough to keep you occupied while sitting in airports all across the world.

Although I purchased the book in NYC, I found that I read a good part of it while sitting in a Texas airport one summer day. May have been a mistake (??) to do so, as quite a few people looked my way, perhaps suggesting that I am a Communist? Not sure. I could be wrong.

Yet, even though my heritage is mostly Russian and I appreciate the history of Russia, China, and the relationship between the two Giants, I'm no Communist. Still, if you want to know more about the present-day global relationships that countries like R & C & the USA share, this is a great book to read. It's grounded in history, and the past is KEY to understanding the Now and the Forevermore.

Definitely a looooong book -- and the latter half (all about strategies employed during Mao's military battles) may appeal to some more than others. Will keep you reading well into the five-hour delays at LaGuardia, LAX and O'Hare.