Il volume espone la ricerca condotta dall'autore durante la dissertazione dottorale sostenuta con successo presso la Pontificia Facoltà Teologica 'Marianum' di Roma nel 2014. L'autore rilegge le formulazioni dogmatiche cattoliche dell'Immacolata (1854) e dell'Assunzione (1950) della Madre di Gesù alla luce del paradigma filosofico, antropologico e culturale del 'dono', evidenziandone lo spessore teologico trinitario, cristologico, pneumatologico, ecclesiologico, ecumenico e simbolico. Ciò permette di analizzare questi fatti salvifici, doni dell'Unitrino a Maria, non più secondo il modello di un 'privilegio escludente', fortemente diffuso in passato nella mariologia cattolica, ma secondo il modello di un 'umanesimo includente e profetico'.

By turns lyrical and philosophical, witty and baffling, A School for Fools confounds all expectations of the novel. Here we find not one reliable narrator but two “unreliable” narrators: the young man who is a student at the “school for fools” and his double. What begins as a reverie (with frequent interruptions) comes to seem a sort of fairy-tale quest not for gold or marriage but for self-knowledge. The currents of consciousness running through the novel are passionate and profound. Memories of childhood summers at the dacha are contemporaneous with the present, the dead are alive, and the beloved is present in the wind. Here is a tale either of madness or of the life of the imagination, in conversation with reason, straining at the limits of language; in the words of Vladimir Nabokov, “an enchanting, tragic, and touching work.”

Sasha Sokolov was born in 1943 in Canada, the son of a high-ranking Soviet diplomat. Sokolov studied journalism at Moscow State University and attempted to escape from the USSR, for which he was imprisoned. In 1975, he was allowed to leave the country following an international human rights scandal. The manuscript of A School for Fools, his first novel, was smuggled out of the Soviet Union that same year, and published to great acclaim in the west.A School for Fools has been translated into over twenty languages. Sokolov is the recipient of the prestigious Andrei Bely Prize in 1981, and of the Pushkin Prize for Literature in 1996. He is also the author of novelsAstrophobia and Between Dog and Wolf, and of a book of essays In the House of the Hanged.

'Ravarino è già stato trattato in vari volumi, che costituiscono ormai una bibliografia non trascurabile. Dopo il padre Girolamo Tiraboschi, che ne accennò nei suoi Storia dell'augusta Badia di S. Silvestro di Nonantola e Dizionario topografico-storico [...] più recentemente è stato soprattutto il benemerito maestro Bruno Lodi a ricostruire un quadro complessivo per la storia del territorio comunale e ad approfondirne aspetti specifici nelle sue molte opere. Vari altri argomenti sono stati studiati e descritti dal maestro. [...] La vita della parrocchia, della sua chiesa e dei fedeli che la popolano non avevano invece ancora visto un esame approfondito. [...] L'opera di don Bogus?aw Kulesza che ora presentiamo ha quindi l'indiscutibile merito di raccogliere per la prima volta ciò che riguarda i molti secoli di vita della Parrocchia di San Giovanni Battista in Ravarino e di trattarne. È tuttavia l'opposto di un'opera iniziale, di primo approccio all'argomento. La parrocchia viene qui considerata in una quantità tale di elementi, che il testo potrebbe essere considerato conclusivo, se mai ciò fosse possibile nel campo della storia'. (Dalla Presentazione di don Riccardo Fangarezzi)

The monograph addresses a problem of stochastic analysis based on the uncertainty assessment by simulation and application of this method in ecology and steel industry under uncertainty. The first chapter defines the Monte Carlo (MC) method and random variables in stochastic models. Chapter two deals with the contamination transport in porous media. Stochastic approach for Municipal Solid Waste transit time contaminants modeling using MC simulation has been worked out. The third chapter describes the risk analysis of the waste to energy facility proposal for Konin city, including the financial aspects. Environmental impact assessment of the ArcelorMittal Steel Power Plant, in Kraków – in the chapter four – is given. Thus, four scenarios of the energy mix production processes were studied. Chapter five contains examples of using ecological Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) – a relatively new method of environmental impact assessment – which help in preparing pro-ecological strategy, and which can lead to reducing the amount of wastes produced in the ArcelorMittal Steel Plant production processes. Moreover, real input and output data of selected processes under uncertainty, mainly used in the LCA technique, have been examined. The last chapter of this monograph contains final summary. The log-normal probability distribution, widely used in risk analysis and environmental management, in order to develop a stochastic analysis of the LCA, as well as uniform distribution for stochastic approach of pollution transport in porous media has been proposed. The distributions employed in this monograph are assembled from site-specific data, data existing in the most current literature, and professional judgment.

Drawing on more than fifteen years’ experience teaching English language learners, Marilyn Pryle has designed and classroom-tested these ten writing assignments that support the particular needs of ELLs. Each assignment includes whole-class lessons to introduce the topic and teach about genre; leveled mini-lessons that address students’ needs at the beginner, intermediate, and advanced language-proficiency levels; reproducible prewriting activities; and a rubric. Filled with scaffolding ideas, conferring tips, student work, and more, this resource gives teachers the tools to help their English Language Learners develop effective writing skills. For use with Grades 5 & Up.

The conference underlying the anthology was held at Kliczkow Castle, Wroclaw, Poland in April 2007, drawing over 100 communication and journalism academics and political scientists from eastern and western Europe to analyze media systems in a manner inspired by Daniel C. Hallim and Paulo Mancini's 2004 Comparing Media Systems: Three Models of Media and Politics. Topics of the 14 papers here include in search of a label for the Russian media system, a perspective from South Africa on triggers and signs of change, public service broadcasting in Ukraine, Czech journalists looking for a new professional self-image after the collapse of the old media system, main professional dilemmas of journalists in Poland, and comparing media systems and media content in online newspapers from 10 eastern and western European countries. Distributed in the US by Books International. Annotation ©2010 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Computer vision encompasses the construction of integrated vision systems and the application of vision to problems of real-world importance. The process of creating 3D models is still rather difficult, requiring mechanical measurement of the camera positions or manual alignment of partial 3D views of a scene. However using algorithms, it is possible to take a collection of stereo-pair images of a scene and then automatically produce a photo-realistic, geometrically accurate digital 3D model.

This book provides a comprehensive introduction to the methods, theories and algorithms of 3D computer vision. Almost every theoretical issue is underpinned with practical implementation or a working algorithm using pseudo-code and complete code written in C++ and MatLab®. There is the additional clarification of an accompanying website with downloadable software, case studies and exercises. Organised in three parts, Cyganek and Siebert give a brief history of vision research, and subsequently:  

• present basic low-level image processing operations for image matching, including a separate chapter on image matching algorithms;
• explain scale-space vision, as well as space reconstruction and multiview integration;
• demonstrate a variety of practical applications for 3D surface imaging and analysis;
• provide concise appendices on topics such as the basics of projective geometry and tensor calculus for image processing, distortion and noise in images plus image warping procedures.

An Introduction to 3D Computer Vision Algorithms and Techniques is a valuable reference for practitioners and programmers working in 3D computer vision, image processing and analysis as well as computer visualisation. It would also be of interest to advanced students and researchers in the fields of engineering, computer science, clinical photography, robotics, graphics and mathematics.

One of Pope John Paul II's most important legacies is his repeated call to a 'new evangelization,' the need to reevangelize traditionally Christian societies that are hurtling toward secularization. This book brings together the best scholarship on this topic.

They’ve been called “visionary” by both Newsweek and Time, hailed as “the ad world’s most talked-about agency” by USA Today, and dubbed “the next big thing” by Business 2.0. They launched the Mini car craze in America, took on Big Tobacco in the controversial Truth campaign, sexed up Virgin Airlines, and made Burger King sizzle once again. And they did it with bold publicity stunts, infectious viral marketing strategies, funny masks, folding paper, outrageous Internet hoaxes, and a weird, garter belt–wearing chicken who became a cultural sensation. And this random madness has a very sound method to it: Hoopla.

In Hoopla, the secret inner workings of this freewheeling, break-the-mold idea factory are revealed for the first time. Veteran journalist Warren Berger, who has tracked and reported on the CP+B phenomenon over the past decade, fully examines and deconstructs the methods that lie behind the agency’s seeming madness, while the striking images throughout the book (captioned by the CP+B creative team) provide insights into the logic, intuition, mischief, and passion that leads to the creation of Hoopla. The result is a fascinating journey into a realm of unbridled creativity.

See the madness. Read the method. Hoopla.

Hoopla also includes practical, step-by-step advice on how to find and promote big ideas (even on a shoestring budget), and how to generate excitement and hype in today’s cluttered, noisy communications landscape. If you’re a marketer, a communicator of any type, or anyone who needs to get out a message and generate some buzz, Hoopla will change the way you think about the art of communication.

Judging by the frequency with which it makes an appearance in television news shows and late night stand up routines, the frivolous lawsuit has become part and parcel of our national culture. A woman sues McDonald's because she was scalded when she spilled her coffee. Thousands file lawsuits claiming they were injured by Agent Orange, silicone breast implants, or Bendectin although scientists report these substances do not cause the diseases in question. The United States, conventional wisdom has it, is a hyperlitigious society, propelled by avaricious lawyers, harebrained judges, and runaway juries. Lawsuits waste money and time and, moreover, many are simply groundless.

Carl T. Bogus is not so sure. In Why Lawsuits Are Good for America, Bogus argues that common law works far better than commonly understood. Indeed, Bogus contends that while the system can and occasionally does produce “wrong” results, it is very difficult for it to make flatly irrational decisions. Blending history, theory, empirical data, and colorful case studies, Bogus explains why the common law, rather than being outdated, may be more necessary than ever.

As Bogus sees it, the common law is an essential adjunct to governmental regulation—essential, in part, because it is not as easily manipulated by big business. Meanwhile, big business has launched an all out war on the common law. “Tort reform”—measures designed to make more difficult for individuals to sue corporations—one of the ten proposals in the Republican Contract With America, and George W. Bush's first major initiative as Governor of Texas. And much of what we have come to believe about the system comes from a coordinated propaganda effort by big business and its allies.

Bogus makes a compelling case for the necessity of safeguarding the system from current assaults. Why Lawsuits Are Good for America provides broad historical overviews of the development of American common law, torts, products liability, as well as fresh and provocative arguments about the role of the system of “disciplined democracy” in the twenty-first century.

Tracking for search and rescue not only requires that the dog be trained to follow the human scent exclusively, but that he be able to begin tracking in a variety of circumstances, from a variety of scent sources, and in almost any type of terrain and conditions. Most importantly, however, training a search and rescue dog means sacrificing precision of tracking form for speed and accuracy on the track, in situations where every minute may count in finding search victims and saving their lives.

Tracking for Search and Rescue Dogs gives practical advice on every facet of training dogs for this vital work, from choosing dogs to training tracklayers, from basic training to training with complex search scripts. This book is geared to preparing dog and handler for real search situations.