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Elsevier

Books in Social sciences and humanities

  • Rutland Street

    The Story of an Educational Experiment for Disadvantaged Children in Dublin
    • 1st Edition
    • Séamas Holland
    • English
    Rutland Street is a project that explores the ways in which education can help develop human’s innate abilities and the importance of this concept to the educational needs of the disadvantaged. The book consists of a recording of the valuable experience gained during pre-school and junior school of the subject children between the ages of 3 to 8, who belong to a poor family. The text provides a background of the Bernard van Leer Foundation, which is the initiator of the project. The description of the geographical location of the project site as well as the history of the location and its residents are given. The planning of the project is explained. The background and implementation of the educational program that will be used for the project is discussed in detail. Another program is initiated to include the adults of the area in the development of the Rutland Street project. The book is an interesting read for people concerned with humanitarian projects and for educators, students, and researchers in the field of sociology.

  • Britain Observed

    A Russian's View
    • 1st Edition
    • V. V. Ovchinnikov
    • English
    Britain Observed: A Russian's View focuses on the understanding of the customs, identity, political and social structure, and societal relations of the British. The book first underscores some of the misperceptions of the British of Russia, the author's country. The text also highlights the experiences of the author when he first arrived in Britain, noting the process of acclimatization that he has undergone. The manuscript emphasizes the appreciation of the author of the sceneries in England, as the sloping hills, fertile meadows, and village church spires that emerge from the hilltops are mentioned. The author also signifies that England is the kingdom of private life and says that neighbors maintain a certain degree of secrecy, and that they discourage intrusion into their private lives. The text also conveys how the author perceives the structure of the government and how Buckingham Palace influences the functions and operations of the government. The book is a fine reference for readers who want to learn the traditions, political considerations, and identity of the British.

  • The Craft of Social Anthropology

    • 1st Edition
    • A. L. Epstein
    • English
    The Craft of Social Anthropology focuses on the methodologies, approaches, and techniques used in the study of social anthropology, as well as anthropological analysis of marriage, divorce, and religious rituals. The book first discusses intensive study of small sample communities and quantification in social anthropology, including quantification and anthropological approach, role of quantification, types of quantitative data, and data collection and processing. The manuscript then examines the frequency of divorce. Topics include divorce ratios, marriage classified by duration, divorce without mortality, and risks of divorce. The text focuses on genealogies, as well as genealogies and pedigrees, terminological and prescriptive diagrams, and illustrative genealogical diagrams. The manuscript also ponders on the extended-case method and situational analysis and data of economics in anthropological analysis. Saora rituals, shamanism, and witchcraft are also discussed. The publication is a vital reference for readers interested in social anthropology.

  • The Arts and Personal Growth

    Curriculum Issues in Arts Education
    • 1st Edition
    • Malcolm Ross
    • English
    The Arts and Personal Growth focuses on the influence of arts education to personal growth, including the development of curriculum that puts the study of the arts at the core and learning of the arts in different time frames and educational considerations. The book is composed of papers derived from the conference conducted at Dillington House in Somerset from July 23 to 28, 1979 under the auspices of the University of Exeter with assistance from the Michael Marks Charitable Trust. The selection first outlines the meaning of the arts and the need for school curriculum to include both social and political settings in curriculum development. The book then examines the interrelations of arts education, curriculum, and multi-cultural society, putting emphasis on the contention that minorities have brought with them valid cultures that have various art forms. The text underscores the need to put arts at the highest consideration in curriculum development. The challenges posed to teachers of arts and the ability of experts in the arts to maintain natural and human artefacts are noted. The manuscript also ponders on the reality that learning the arts surpasses age and educational boundaries. The influence of art to a sound personal development is also mentioned. The publication is a dependable reference for readers and art patrons interested in the value of arts in personal growth.

  • Criteria for Awarding School Leaving Certificates

    An International Discussion
    • 1st Edition
    • Frances M. Ottobre
    • English
    Criteria for Awarding School Leaving Certificates: An International Discussion focuses on formal and official evaluation of school learning and student achievement at the time schooling is discontinued. The book is based on the proceedings of the 1977 Conference of the International Association for Educational Assessment held at the Kenyatta Conference Center in Nairobi, Kenya on May 23-28, 1977. The selection first discusses school leaving examinations as a function of external and educational factors and the terms of reference for school leaving examinations. The book also takes a look at the comparability of grading standards in public examinations in England and Wales; basic assessment issues in school-leaving examination programs; and the case for school leaving examinations in The Netherlands. The text reviews the alternatives to school leaving examinations in Sweden and Brazil, as well as the abolition of final examination, transition from secondary school to higher education, and support structures. The book also ponders on the structure of secondary school system in Austria, Australia, Bermuda, Cyprus, Hong Kong, India, and Ireland. The selection is a dependable reference for readers interested in school learning and student achievement measurements.

  • Historical Foundations of the Common Law

    • 1st Edition
    • S. F. C. Milsom
    • English
    Historical Foundations of the Common Law provides a general overview of the development of the common law. The book is comprised of 14 chapters that are organized into four parts. The first part deals with the institutional background and covers the centralization of justice; the institutions of the common law; and the rise of equity. The second part deals with land properties, while the third part talks about legal obligations. The last part details criminal administration and law. The text will be of great use to individuals who have an interest in the development of the common law.

  • Education for the Future

    The Case for Radical Change
    • 1st Edition
    • Philip A. Coggin
    • English
    Education for the Future: The Case for Radical Change focuses on the developments in educational systems and the role of teachers and learning institutions in shaping society. The book first ponders on the problems confronting progress in education, including the pressure on schools and teachers to perform according to the dictates of society. The need to develop curriculum in universities that can instill efficient learning for students is also underscored. The text also takes a look at the relationship of literary culture and the productive and distributive activities of the market place. The manuscript focuses on the influence of educational technology in the provision of aids in learning. The text also underscores that the solution to the problems of education in Britain should not be taken individually, but rather it should be treated as part of a larger pattern. The controversy in the establishment of the Gresham College is noted. The book is a dependable reference for readers interested in studying the development, issues, and trends in the educational system of Great Britain.

  • The Gas Situation in the ECE Region Around the Year 1990

    Proceedings of an International Symposium of the Committee on Gas of the Economic Commission for Europe, Held in Evian, France, at the Invitation of the Government of France, 2-5 October 1978
    • 1st Edition
    • Sam Stuart
    • English
    The Gas Situation in the ECE Region Around the Year 1990 contains the proceedings of an international symposium of the Committee on Gas of the Economic Commission for Europe, held in Evian, France, at the invitation of the Government of France, on October 2-5, 1978. The symposium provided a forum for evaluating the future of gas in the energy requirements of Europe and North America — the region encompassed by the Economic Commission for Europe (ECE), with emphasis on natural gas markets, consumption, and imports and exports. Comprised of 34 chapters, this book begins with an overview of the production of natural gas and other gases that exist within the ECE region or can be imported, followed by a discussion on possible sources of natural gas for France and the ECE area in 1990. Subsequent chapters focus on energy from liquefied natural gas; chances for alternative fuels in the gas industry; gas supplies in the United States; and high depth underground coal gasification as a potential energy source for the future. The economic aspects of gas gathering in the North Sea and gas consumption in Czechoslovakia up to 1990 are also examined, along with the use of natural gas for the production of olefins in Western Europe. This monograph will be of interest to economists and energy policymakers.

  • Language Functions and Brain Organization

    • 1st Edition
    • S. J. Segalowitz
    • English
    Language Functions and Brain Organization explores the question of how language is represented in the human brain. The discussions are organized around the following themes: whether language is a mental organ or a mental complex; the brain base for language; the requirements of a developmental theory of lateralization; and whether brain lateralization is a single construct. Comprised of 15 chapters, this volume begins with an assessment of the semantic and syntactic aspects of aphasic deficits and how these components can be selectively disrupted by focal brain damage, followed by a review of evidence for hemispheric asymmetries in processing phonological information. The reader is then introduced to pragmatic aspects of communication; the right hemisphere's contribution to language; and right-left asymmetries in the cerebral cortex and their implications for functional asymmetries. Subsequent chapters focus on left-hemisphere language specialization from the perspective of motor and perceptual functions; evidence for hemisphere asymmetry for language functioning in the thalamus; some difficulties in building a brain theory for visual experience; speech lateralization in infancy; and the relationship between cerebral functional asymmetries, maturation rate, and cognitive skills through the mediation of sex chromosomes. The book also considers language dysfunction in dementia and its connection to brain functioning, along with the variations produced in cases of bilingualism and the factors that may be critical for this issue. This monograph is addressed to researchers and students of the neuropsychology of language, whether they call themselves psychologists, neuropsychologists, neurologists, or linguists.

  • Integrable Systems in Quantum Field Theory and Statistical Mechanics

    • 1st Edition
    • M. Jimbo + 2 more
    • English
    Advanced Studies in Pure Mathematics, Volume 19: Integrable Systems in Quantum Field Theory and Statistical Mechanics provides information pertinent to the advances in the study of pure mathematics. This book covers a variety of topics, including statistical mechanics, eigenvalue spectrum, conformal field theory, quantum groups and integrable models, integrable field theory, and conformal invariant models. Organized into 17 chapters, this volume begins with an overview of the eigenvalues of the three-state superintegrable chiral Potts model of the associated spin chain by use of a functional equation. This text then illustrates the importance of the star-triangle equation with a few results for the two-dimensional Ising model. Other chapters consider the conformal field theories on manifolds with a boundary, and the constraints placed by modular invariance on their partition functions. This book discusses as well the topological invariants for knots and links. The final chapter deals with equations of motion for two-dimensional quantum field theory. This book is a valuable resource for mathematicians.

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