The Tour de France is established each year as an endurance race that lasts for about an entire month and encompasses the entire range of French lands. In 1919, following the armistice ending World War One, the Tour resumed after a multi-year hiatus. It included areas in the northeast that were decimated from warfare. Many of the riders, too, had personally experienced the tumults of war. The French people needed something to boost morale as…
Both Woodrow Wilson and World War I are generally overlooked by American historians because FDR and World War II tends to overshadow them. However, as Berg makes clear, both set the stage for the American century by transforming an isolationist country into the dominant player on the world stage. The son of a Presbyterian minister and a university president, US President Woodrow Wilson led America into this change. Although Congress never accepted his major creation…
Many people stroll through life feeling like they don’t deserve the good life that they have. They feel like an imposter and may expressly label themselves as such. When they receive compliments or praise, they reflexively deflect them by explaining that they were just lucky or that they have good helpers. Some explain that this was only due to their religion or family. Unfortunately, these statements tend to minimize one’s own appreciation of the talent…
I’ve worked as a software developer in Agile environments since around 2014 and have enjoyed the productivity and quality gains that this paradigm provides. This workplace loosely implements Agile and accomplishes amazing feats of productivity. In this book, Ashar distills Agile concepts into easy-to-read chunks that can be quickly implemented. This book empowers managers to organize their team’s work more effectively so that customers can benefit more readily. Ashar begins this guide by stating that…
Now in a sixth edition, this textbook is the seminal introduction to the field of epidemiology, or the study of disease in populations. It stands in the historical stream of Dr. Gordis, a leader of epidemiology at Johns Hopkins. Replete with diagrams, cartoons, case studies, and in-depth analysis, this work paints a comprehensive picture of the field in the 21st century. In the first section, the authors provide an introduction to epidemiology as it relates…
Many times, pro-environment reforms get labeled as inefficient, expensive, or pie-in-the-sky. A lot of this happens because economic forces want to maintain the status quo. In this work, Abad presents a series of practical steps that can make your lifestyle (i.e., your routine) more environmentally friendly. Together, these simple changes can help the ecosystem – and save you money! For each proposed change, he computes the net-benefit for our planet as well as for your…
This tale, set in the fall of Germany in World War II, unpacks themes of love, loss, the Third Reich, the Holocaust, and the meaning of life. One of the main characters Max returns home after being injured fighting for the Nazis only to find his mother housing two Jewish girls in the attic. All the girls’ relatives have been murdered. Max’s values – formed by the Hitler Youth in rebellion against his Christian parents…
The life of Napoleon Bonaparte provides historical writers with one of the deepest wells of inspiration to dwell upon. His life, beginning as a poor child on the island of Corsica, once extended the French Empire to the far reaches of Europe. Yet it eventually collapsed, and he was sent into exile… twice. Paradoxically, he is associated with liberte, egalite, et fraternite, yet maintained slavery in Haiti for reasons of financial expedience. His love-life is…
Miles Davis is known worldwide for musical genius expressed on his trumpet and through his musical groups. He was a figurehead in many countries for jazz, the quintessentially American cultural expression. In this autobiography, he teamed with Troupe to tell his story just before he died. With Troupe, he talked openly about his struggles with drugs, women, and racism. He spoke bluntly about the people who surrounded him and shared insight into the creative forces…
Medicine, wherever it is practiced, involves heavy things that are not for the faint of heart. Outcomes sometimes involve death, and errors are not always (or often) easy to spot. Poor outcomes can haunt doctors and nurses both professionally and personally – almost as much as they can haunt the families of patients. Nonetheless, in the United States, no comprehensive system exists to monitor medical errors. As Ofri details in this well-written and timely book,…