Mike Hansell's Books

Built by Animals

The natural history of animal architecture

By: Mike Hansell

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Built by Animals

The natural history of animal architecture

By: Mike Hansell

From termite mounds that in relative terms are three times as tall as a skyscraper, to the elaborate nests of social birds and the deadly traps of spiders, the constructions of the animal world can amaze and at times humble our own engineering and technology. But how do creatures with such small brains build these complex structures? What drives them to do it? Which skills are innate and which learned? Here, Mike Hansell looks at the extraordinary structures that animals build - whether homes, traps, or courtship displays - and reveals the biology behind their behaviour. He shows how small-brained animals achieve complex feats in a small-brained way, by repeating many simple actions and using highly evolved self-secreted materials. On the other hand, the building feats or tool use of large-brained animals, such as humans or chimps, require significantly more complex and costly behaviour. We look at wasp's nests, leaf-cutting ants, caddisflies and amoebae, and even the extraordinary bower bird, who seduces his mate with a decorated pile of twigs, baubles, feathers and berries. Hansell explores how animal structures evolved over time, how insect societies emerge, how animals can alter their wider habitat, and even whether some animals have an aesthetic sense.

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Page Count

280

Publisher

OUP Oxford

Published Date

ISBN 10

0191578606

ISBN 13

9780191578601

Animal Architecture

By: Mike Hansell

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Animal Architecture

By: Mike Hansell

Construction behaviour occurs across the entire spectrum of the animal kingdom and affects the survival of both builders and other organisms associated with them. Animal Architecture provides a comprehensive overview of the biology of animal building. The book recognizes three broad categories of built structure: homes, traps, and courtship displays. Even though some of these structures are complex and very large, the behaviour required to build them is generally simple and the anatomy for building unspecialized. Standardization of building materials helps to keep building repertoires simple, while self-organizing effects help create complexity. In a case-study approach to function, insects demonstrate how homes can remain operational while they grow, spiderwebs illustrate mechanical design, and the displays of bowerbirds raise the possibility of persuasion through design rather than just decoration. Studies of the costs to builders provide evidence of optimal designs and of trade-offs with other life history traits. As ecosystem engineers, the influence of builders is extensive and their effect is generally to enhance biodiversity through niche construction. Animal builders can therefore represent model species for the study of the emerging subject of environmental inheritance. Building, and in particular building with silk, has been demonstrated to have important evolutionary consequences. This book is intended for students and researchers in comparative animal biology, but will also be of relevance and use to the increasing numbers of architects and civil engineers interested in developing ideas from the animal kingdom.

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Page Count

334

Publisher

OUP Oxford

Published Date

ISBN 10

0191523178

ISBN 13

9780191523175

Bird Nests and Construction Behaviour

By: Mike Hansell

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Bird Nests and Construction Behaviour

By: Mike Hansell

Bird Nests and Construction Behaviour provides a broad view of our understanding of the biology of the nests, bowers and tools made by birds. It illustrates how, among vertebrates, the building abilities of birds are more impressive and consistent than for any other builders other than ourselves, yet birds seem to require no special equipment, and use quite uncomplicated behaviour. In doing so, the book raises general issues in the field of behavioural ecology including the costs of reproduction, sexual selection and the organisation and complexity of behaviour. Written for students and researchers of animal behaviour, behavioural ecology and ornithology, it will nevertheless make fascinating reading for architects and engineers interested in understanding how structures are created by animals.

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Page Count

302

Publisher

Cambridge University Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

1139429086

ISBN 13

9781139429085

Twilight War

The Folly of U.S. Space Dominance

By: Mike Moore

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Twilight War

The Folly of U.S. Space Dominance

By: Mike Moore

Considering the historical background of space militarization and providing an overview of the United States' efforts to militarily dominate space since the dawn of the space age, this book argues that America must either ensure that space-related weapons are verifiably banned for all nations through an international treaty or definitively choose a policy of unilateral space dominance that may lead to an arms race in space and possibly to another cold war. Through a careful discussion of the history of space programs, their impact on past policies and events, the tactical and strategic influence of space weapons on the engagement of war, and the potential pitfalls of a dominance strategy, this book concludes that unilateral military dominance of space by the United States would be a supreme mistake and that it would make Americans less secure.

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Page Count

542

Publisher

Independent Institute

Published Date

ISBN 10

1598132652

ISBN 13

9781598132656

Long Shot

By: Mike Piazza

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Long Shot

By: Mike Piazza

The twelve-time All-Star catcher describes the inspiration he gleaned from his self-made father, his early career with the Dodgers, his memorable 2000 World Series with the Mets, and the controversies that have marked his career.

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Page Count

384

Publisher

Simon and Schuster

Published Date

ISBN 10

1439150230

ISBN 13

9781439150238

Fire from the Sky

By: Ron Greer and Mike Wicks

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Fire from the Sky

By: Ron Greer and Mike Wicks

This is the story of the last few months of WWII in the Pacific, seen through the eyes of one man, a radio operator aboard a B29 Superfortress who kept a diary of 28 missions over Japan. The diary tells of the horrors of war. It was written in darkness, and often fear, with a pen-light during lonely hours confined for up to 18 hours at a time. Herb Greer our main author, 23 years old, frightened and sitting on up to 20,000 pounds of jellied gasoline (napalm), while blindly flying through constant flak bursts and fighter opposition. The plane is blacked out save the dull red glow of the instrument panels as they pass through the target area. Suddenly the most intense bright light floods the aircraft, blinding us - the tension in the aircraft shot up, hearts started beating a whole lot faster as we instantly realized that we were being singled out of the sky by a searchlight and were now firmly in the sights of air and ground fire, we were the main act, and center stage. From that moment everything went into slow motion as we pass through the target - seconds felt like minutes and minutes, hours. BOOM, an explosion, the plane rocks, bucks, flak is searing its way through the fragile fabric of the fuselage, loose items are flying around, I'm scared - they say you can taste fear - well they're absolutely right. This personal view gives us two perspectives, the first is the story of Herb Greer speaking to us aboard a B29 through the written entries of his diary and then the second recounted from his armchair 60 years later. Written with an immediacy that can only be shared by those who were there, while capturing for posterity their bravery and dignity of sacrifice.

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Page Count

294

Publisher

iUniverse

Published Date

ISBN 10

1475997132

ISBN 13

9781475997132

Campbell Soup Company

By: Martha Esposito Shea,Mike Mathis

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Campbell Soup Company

By: Martha Esposito Shea,Mike Mathis

Campbell soup is as American as apple pie and the Fourth of July. Cans of tomato, chicken noodle, and cream of mushroom soup, sporting the company's distinctive red-and-white labels have found places on millions of dinner tables around the globe. In 1869, fruit merchant Joseph Campbell and icebox manufacturer Abraham Anderson formed the Joseph A. Campbell Preserve Company, purveyors of canned tomatoes, vegetables, jellies, soups, condiments, and mincemeat. In 1897, general manager Arthur Dorrance decided to hire his twenty-four-year-old nephew, John T. Dorrance. It was on John Dorrance's ingenious invention of condensed soup in 1897 that the company's fortunes grew and expanded far beyond its Camden, New Jersey headquarters. Campbell Soup Company opens the company's archives with a wonderful assortment of photographs. Among the images are those of aproned workers dicing carrots and of white-hatted chefs stirring vats of boiling soups. Also pictured is the factory where America's original comfort food was conceived. In these pages, readers will learn the history behind the iconic red-and-white cans touted by such celebrities as Ronald Reagan, George Burns, Gracie Allen, and Johnny Carson. Today, in addition to soup, the company produces such well-known brands as Pepperidge Farm, Franco-American, V8, Prego, and Godiva. Campbell Soup Company traces the history of a small, southern New Jersey canning concern that made its products staples of American living.

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Page Count

134

Publisher

Arcadia Publishing

Published Date

ISBN 10

0738510580

ISBN 13

9780738510583

1919 - A Land Fit for Heroes

Britain at Peace

By: Mike Hutton

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1919 - A Land Fit for Heroes

Britain at Peace

By: Mike Hutton

After a brief period of celebration, reality began to sink in. Britain was exhausted and consumed by grief. There was a growing fear of revolution.

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Page Count

319

Publisher

Amberley Publishing Limited

Published Date

ISBN 10

1445679124

ISBN 13

9781445679129

Robin Hood Handbook

The Outlaw in History, Myth and Legend

By: Mike Dixon-Kennedy

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Robin Hood Handbook

The Outlaw in History, Myth and Legend

By: Mike Dixon-Kennedy

Robin Hood, whether riding through the glen, robbing the rich to pay the poor or giving the Sheriff of Nottingham his come-uppance, is one of the most captivating and controversial legendary figures. Was there a historical figure behind the legends? Did Robin and his Merry Men rampage through Sherwood Forest? Or did he spend most of his time in Barnsdale Wood in Yorkshire? And is the story of the freedom-loving Saxons refusing to be put under the Norman yoke, as portrayed in the Errol Flynn films, true?Mike Dixon-Kennedy ranges far and wide in his quest to present a complete picture of the exploits of this indestructible hero, drawing on ballads, poems, proverbs, films, novels, folklore, musicals and place-names.

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Page Count

395

Publisher

The History Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

0752495607

ISBN 13

9780752495606

Forecasting Profit

By: Mike Metcalfe

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Forecasting Profit

By: Mike Metcalfe

This book is about managing the task of forecasting profit. It builds a case for using multiple methods, providing examples of each method, and suggesting practical techniques to use in dealing with the issues and problems of accuracy in profit forecasts. All the elements that infringe on profits (costs, sales, budgeting, investment, and loan default) are examined within this framework. In addition to synthesizing the research, Professor Metcalfe has applied his own research work on forecast modeling and judgmental methods. The final result is a practical reference book for making more accurate profit forecasts.

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Page Count

354

Publisher

Springer Science & Business Media

Published Date

ISBN 10

1461522552

ISBN 13

9781461522553

The Complete Idiot's Guide to Sports History & Trivia

By: Mike McGovern

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The Complete Idiot's Guide to Sports History & Trivia

By: Mike McGovern

For the sports fan, this guide offers fascinating facts and tidbits on baseball, football, basketball, hockey, the Olympic Games, tennis, figure skating, soccer, and more. It contains special sections on women's sports, young people's sports, and the Special Olympics, and includes listings of winners of the World Series, the Super Bowl, the Stanley Cup, and other major competetions.

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Page Count

386

Publisher

Penguin

Published Date

ISBN 10

0028639634

ISBN 13

9780028639635

Sting of the Scorpion

The Inside Story of the Long Range Desert Group

By: Mike Morgan

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Sting of the Scorpion

The Inside Story of the Long Range Desert Group

By: Mike Morgan

The exclusive, authorised inside story of the tough LRDG raiders of the Second World War, drawn from the unpublished records of the famous force. The unit won unrivalled mastery of the North African desert in their wide-ranging and heavily armed trucks, earning grudging praise even from Rommel, the Desert Fox himself, for their skilful reconnaissance, punishing raids and powers of evasion.

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184

Publisher

The History Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

0752480340

ISBN 13

9780752480343

Clinical Director of Pathology

Tackling the Role

By: Mike Galloway

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Clinical Director of Pathology

Tackling the Role

By: Mike Galloway

These practical books written by members of the British Association of Medical Managers (BAMM) help clinical directors tackle their role as medical managers. They provide information and guidance, to enable their readers to benefit from the sharing of learning, good ideas and best practice

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Page Count

184

Publisher

CRC Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

1315343460

ISBN 13

9781315343464

Personal Recovery and Mental Illness

A Guide for Mental Health Professionals

By: Mike Slade

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Personal Recovery and Mental Illness

A Guide for Mental Health Professionals

By: Mike Slade

Recovery is a concept which has emerged from the experiences of people with mental illness. It involves a shift away from traditional clinical preoccupations such as managing risk and avoiding relapse, towards new priorities of supporting the person in working towards their own goals and taking responsibility for their own life. This book sets an agenda for mental health services internationally, by converting these ideas of recovery into an action plan for professionals. The underlying principles are explored, and five reasons identified for why supporting recovery should be the primary goal. A new conceptual basis for mental health services is described - the Personal Recovery Framework - which gives primacy to the person over the illness, and identifies the contribution of personal and social identity to recovery. These are brought to life through twenty-six case studies from around the world.

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Page Count

289

Publisher

Cambridge University Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

1139480073

ISBN 13

9781139480079

Exile on Wall Street

One Analyst's Fight to Save the Big Banks from Themselves

By: Mike Mayo

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Exile on Wall Street

One Analyst's Fight to Save the Big Banks from Themselves

By: Mike Mayo

An insider points out the holes that still exist on Wall Street and in the banking system Exile on Wall Street is a gripping read for anyone with an interest in business and finance, U.S. capitalism, the future of banking, and the root causes of the financial meltdown. Award winning, veteran sell side Wall Street analyst Mike Mayo writes about one of the biggest financial and political issues of our time – the role of finance and banks in the US. He has worked at six Wall Street firms, analyzing banks and protesting against bad practices for two decades. In Exile on Wall Street, Mayo: Lays out practices that have diminished capitalism and the banking sector Shares his battle scars from calling truth to power at some of the largest banks in the world and how he survived challenging the status quo to be credited as one of the few who saw the crisis coming Blows the lid off the true inner workings of the big banks and shows the ways in which Wall Street is just as bad today as it was pre-crash. Analyzes the fallout stemming from the market crash, pointing out the numerous holes that still exist in the system, and offers practical solutions. While it provides an education, this is no textbook. It is also an invaluable resource for finance practitioners and citizens alike.

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Page Count

208

Publisher

John Wiley & Sons

Published Date

ISBN 10

1118115465

ISBN 13

9781118115466

More Classic American Railroads

By: Mike Schafer

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More Classic American Railroads

By: Mike Schafer

In the latest mystery from New York Times bestselling author Charles Todd, World War I nurse and amateur sleuth Bess Crawford investigates an old murder that occurred during her childhood in India, a search for the truth that will transform her and leave her pondering a troubling question: How can facts lie? Bess Crawford enjoyed a wondrous childhood in India, where her father, a colonel in the British Army, was stationed on the Northwest Frontier. But an unforgettable incident darkened that happy time. In 1908, Colonel Crawford's regiment discovered that it had a murderer in its ranks, an officer who killed five people in India and England yet was never brought to trial. In the eyes of many of these soldiers, men defined by honor and duty, the crime was a stain on the regiment's reputation and on the good name of Bess's father, the Colonel Sahib, who had trained the killer. A decade later, tending to the wounded on the battlefields of France during World War I, Bess learns from a dying Indian sergeant that the supposed murderer, Lieutenant Wade, is alive—and serving at the Front. Bess cannot believe the shocking news. According to reliable reports, Wade's body had been seen deep in the Khyber Pass, where he had died trying to reach Afghanistan. Soon, though, her mind is racing. How had he escaped from India? What had driven a good man to murder in cold blood? Wanting answers, she uses her leave to investigate. In the village where the first three killings took place, she discovers that the locals are certain that the British soldier was innocent. Yet the present owner of the house where the crime was committed believes otherwise, and is convinced that Bess's father helped Wade flee. To settle the matter once and for all, Bess sets out to find Wade and let the courts decide. But when she stumbles on the horrific truth, something that even the famous writer Rudyard Kipling had kept secret all his life, she is shaken to her very core. The facts will damn Wade even as they reveal a brutal reality, a reality that could have been her own fate.

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Page Count

178

Publisher

Voyageur Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

076030758X

ISBN 13

9780760307588

Hawkeye Legends, Lists, & Lore

By: Mike Finn,Chad Leistikow

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Hawkeye Legends, Lists, & Lore

By: Mike Finn,Chad Leistikow

In this book, Hawkeye Legends, Lists and Lore, lowa's grand athletic history is chronicled in its most complete form ever and its athletes and teams of yesteryear are brought back to life. This book also lists the great and not-so-great moments in lowa athletic history in the 'Charts' features. These sections provide a handy factual resource to demonstrate Hawkeye individuals and teams that rank in the school's history. Hawkeye Legends, Lists and Lore is a must for anyone who is loyal to the Black and Gold and is the perfect gift for your favourite Hawkeye fan.

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Page Count

326

Publisher

Sports Publishing LLC

Published Date

ISBN 10

1571671781

ISBN 13

9781571671783

The 1995 Information Please Sports Almanac

By: Mike Meserole

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The 1995 Information Please Sports Almanac

By: Mike Meserole

Widely recognized by sportswriters and fans as the most complete and accurate annual sports record, this sixth edition promises to be the best volume yet. Impeccably researched, it features 64 additional pages and expanded sections on the Winter Olympics and World Cup soccer, 275 photos and cartoons, specially commissioned essays, complete statistics, thumb tabs, and much more.

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Page Count

900

Publisher

Mariner Books

Published Date

ISBN 10

0395665655

ISBN 13

9780395665657

The 1996 Information Please Sports Almanac

By: Mike Meserole

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The 1996 Information Please Sports Almanac

By: Mike Meserole

Profiles the record breakers and record makers, statistics and facts for professional and amateur sports, as well as highlighting both summer and winter olympics.

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