Jonathan Crary's Techniques of the Observer provides a dramatically new perspective on the visual culture of the nineteenth century, reassessing problems of both visual modernism and social modernity. This analysis of the historical formation of the observer is a compelling account of the prehistory of the society of the spectacle. In Techniques of the Observer Jonathan Crary provides a dramatically new perspective on the visual culture of the nineteenth century, reassessing problems of both visual modernism and social modernity. Inverting conventional approaches, Crary considers the problem of visuality not through the study of art works and images, but by analyzing the historical construction of the observer. He insists that the problems of vision are inseparable from the operation of social power and examines how, beginning in the 1820s, the observer became the site of new discourses and practices that situated vision within the body as a physiological event. Alongside the sudden appearance of physiological optics, Crary points out, theories and models of "subjective vision" were developed that gave the observer a new autonomy and productivity while simultaneously allowing new forms of control and standardization of vision. Crary examines a range of diverse work in philosophy, in the empirical sciences, and in the elements of an emerging mass visual culture. He discusses at length the significance of optical apparatuses such as the stereoscope and of precinematic devices, detailing how they were the product of new physiological knowledge. He also shows how these forms of mass culture, usually labeled as "realist," were in fact based on abstract models of vision, and he suggests that mimetic or perspectival notions of vision and representation were initially abandoned in the first half of the nineteenth century within a variety of powerful institutions and discourses, well before the modernist painting of the 1870s and 1880s.

Observers are digital algorithms that combine sensor outputs with knowledge of the system to provide results superior to traditional structures, which rely wholly on sensors. Observers have been used in selected industries for years, but most books explain them with complex mathematics. Observers in Control Systems uses intuitive discussion, software experiments, and supporting analysis to explain the advantages and disadvantages of observers. If you are working in controls and want to improve your control systems, observers could be the technology you need and this book will give you a clear, thorough explanation of how they work and how to use them. Control systems and devices have become the most essential part of nearly all mechanical systems, machines, devices and manufacturing systems throughout the world. Increasingly the efficiency of production, the reliability of output and increased energy savings are a direct result of the quality and deployment of the control system. A modern and essential tool within the engineer's kit is the Observer which helps improve the performance and reduce the cost of these systems. George Ellis is the author of the highly successful Control System Design Guide (Second Edition). Unlike most controls books, which are written by control theorists and academics, Ellis is a leading engineer, designer, author and lecturer working in industry directly with the users of industrial motion control systems. Observers in Control Systems is written for all professional engineers and is designed to be utilized without an in-depth background in control theory. This is a "real-world" book which will demonstrate how observers work and how they can improve your control system. It also shows how observers operate when conditions are not ideal and teaches the reader how to quickly tune an observer in a working system. Software Available online: A free updated and enhanced version of the author's popular Visual ModelQ allows the reader to practice the concepts with Visual ModelQ models on a PC. Based on a virtual laboratory, all key topics are demonstrated with more than twenty control system models. The models are written in Visual ModelQ ,and are available on the Internet to every reader with a PC. - Teaches observers and Kalman filters from an intuitive perspective - Explains how to reduce control system susceptibility to noise - Shows how to design an adaptive controller based on estimating parameter variation using observers - Shows how to improve a control system's ability to reject disturbances - Key topics are demonstrated with PC-based models of control systems. The models are written in both MatLab® and ModelQ; models are available free of charge

Wall Street Journal Best Selling Book The two anchors in Kat's frenzied life have been her father; a famous baseball pitcher turned team manager, and her son, who is following in his grandfather's footsteps. When both anchors become unstable, Kat's life tips dangerously out of balance. The market and her finances flip, and relationships start slipping through her fingers. Eager for solutions, she turns to find uncanny wisdom from places she never expected. The Observer unpacks the idea of 180-degree thinking, which changes everything for Kat. Now, seemingly impossible goals come into focus with crystal clear clarity. As Kat focuses on the right things, the impossible becomes her new reality. Imparted with truth and wisdom, The Observer is a classic for discovering the peak performer within yourself. This timeless story of success principles is more important today than it has ever been before as uncertainty lurks right around the corner. “A powerful work with insights that, once applied, will help you lift your life to a completely new level.” —Robin Sharma, #1 bestselling author of The 5AM Club and The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari Kat has it all—money, success, recognition, influence—except the one thing she desperately desires: a fulfilled life. A business entrepreneur in the high-end sportswear industry, Kat is driven in relentless pursuit of ever-greater success.

A mother pleads with her son not to sail on a certain steamer because she has dreamt - three times in a row - that the vessel will never reach its destination. Modern-day observers watch in awe as a ghost ship - blazing from bow to stern - dutifully reenacts a two-hundred-year-old tragedy that the observers'' fathers and grandfathers also watched reenacted with the same sense of awe. A crewman walks past a solitary figure seated in the ship''s restaurant only to turn a moment later and find the restaurant empty. A red glow appears in the darkness ahead of a modern warship, and the faint outline of an old galleon, her sails in tatters, is seen approaching against the wind - only to vanish a moment later before the startled eyes of observers. Such strange events have been seen for centuries and continue to be reported even today by witnesses who are, for the most part, sober and responsible human beings. In Lost at Sea folklore specialist Michael Goss and George Behe, an expert on maritime disasters, explore what lies behind these amazing narratives and enduring legends.

This handbook provides a comprehensive, practical, and independent guide to all aspects of making weather observations. The second edition has been fully updated throughout with new material, new instruments and technologies, and the latest reference and research materials. Traditional and modern weather instruments are covered, including how best to choose and to site a weather station, how to get the best out of your equipment, how to store and analyse your records and how to share your observations. The book's emphasis is on modern electronic instruments and automatic weather stations. It provides advice on replacing 'traditional' mercury-based thermometers and barometers with modern digital sensors, following implementation of the UN Minamata Convention outlawing mercury in the environment. The Weather Observer's Handbook will again prove to be an invaluable resource for both amateur observers choosing their first weather instruments and professional observers looking for a comprehensive and up-to-date guide.

This is an informative, up-to-date and well-illustrated guide to planetary observations for amateurs. After a brief description of the solar system and a chapter on the celestial sphere, readers are shown how to choose, test and use a telescope with various accessories and how to make observations and record results. For each planet and the asteroids, details are given of observational techniques, together with suggestions for how to make contributions of scientific value. From a general description and detailed observational history of each planet, observers can anticipate what they should see and assess their own observations. The chapter on planetary photography includes the revolutionary use of videography, charge coupled devices and video-assisted drawing. There are also chapters on making maps and planispheres and on photoelectric photometry.

Flying Cloud is the riveting and thoroughly researched tale of a truly unforgettable sea voyage during the days of the California gold rush. In 1851, navigator Eleanor Creesy set sail on the maiden voyage of the clipper ship Flying Cloud, traveling from New York to San Francisco in only 89 days. This swift passage set a world record that went unbroken for more than a century. Upon arrival in San Francisco, Flying Cloud became an enduring symbol of a young nation's daring frontier spirit. Illustrated with original maps and charts as well as historical photographs, Shaw's compelling narrative captures the drama of this thrilling adventure. In a position almost unheard of for a woman in the mid-19th century, Eleanor Creesy served as the ship's navigator. With only the sun, planets, and stars to guide her, she brought Flying Cloud safely around Cape Horn at the height of a winter blizzard, faced storms, dodged shoals, and found her way through calms to make the swift passage possible. Along with her husband, Josiah, the ship's captain, she sailed the mighty 3-masted clipper through 16,000 miles of the fiercest, most unpredictable oceans in the world. Shaw vividly recreates 19th-century seafaring conditions and customs, for both the crew and the passengers who entrusted their fate to an untested ship. Including excerpts from letters and diaries of passengers, Shaw recounts Flying Cloud's victory in the face of adversity—including sabotage, insubordination, and severe damage to the clipper's mainmast that might have sunk her with all hands lost. But the ship triumphed and would ultimately sail the world. Flying Cloud brings to life, for the first time, the glory of one of America's most important seafaring tales and one woman's incredible achievements.

"Singular history of the S.S. Kefalos, a tramp steamer crewed mainly by exiled Spanish Republicans that, among its many lives, transported arms and refugees from Mexico and the Balkans to the fledging state of Israel after World War II"--