Extraordinary Projects for Ordinary People


Book Description

Collected in this volume is a best-of selection from Instructables, reproduced for the first time outside of the web format, retaining all of the charm and ingenuity that make Instructables such a popular destination for internet users looking for new and fun projects designed by real people in an easy-to-digest way. Hundreds of Instructables are included, ranging from practical projects like making a butcher block counter top or building solar panels to fun and unique ideas for realistic werewolf costumes or transportable camping hot tubs. The difficulty of the projects ranges from beginner on up, but all are guaranteed to raise a smile or a “Why didn’t I think of that?” Numerous full-color pictures accompany each project, detailing each step of the process along the way. It’s an invitation to try a few yourself, and once you’re done, see if you don’t have a couple of ideas to share at Instructables.com.




Ordinary People, Extraordinary Lives


Book Description

Brings to life the breathtaking and often heartbreaking stories of the workers who built New York City in the Twentieth Century Ordinary People, Extraordinary Lives tells the stories of the men and women who built the City—of towering structures and the beam walkers who assembled them; of immigrant youths in factories and women in sweatshops; of longshoremen and typewriter girls; of dock workers and captains of industry. It provides a glimpse of the traditions they carried with them to this country and how they helped create new ones, in the form of labor organizations that provided recent immigrants, often overwhelmed by the intensity of New York life, with a sense of solidarity and security. Astounding in their own right, the book's photographic images, most drawn from seldom-seen labor movement photographers, are complemented by poignant oral histories which tell the stories behind the images. Among the extraordinary lives chronicled are those of Philip Keating, who, seven years after a fellow worker photographed him painting the Queensboro Bridge in 1949, plunged to his death from another worksite; William Atkinson, who broke the color bar at Macy’s and tells of fighting racism at home after fighting fascism abroad during World War II; and Cynthia Long, who fought gender barriers to become, in the late 1970s, an electrician with International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 3. With narratives at the beginning of each section providing historical context, this book brings the past clearly, emotionally, and fascinatingly alive.




Hidden Value


Book Description

The authors provide vivid, detailed case studies of several organizations to illustrate how long-term success comes from value-driven, inter-related systems that align good people management with corporate strategy.




The Life Project


Book Description

LONGLISTED FOR THE 2017 ORWELL PRIZE The remarkable story of a unique series of studies that have touched the lives of almost everyone in Britain today On 3rd March 1946 a survey began that is, today, the longest-running study of human development in the world, growing to encompass six generations of children, 150,000 individuals and some of the best-studied people on the planet. The simple act of observing human life has changed the way we are born, schooled, parent and die, irrevocably altering our understanding of inequality and health. This is the tale of these studies; the scientists who created and sustain them, the remarkable discoveries that have come from them. The envy of scientists around the world, they are one of Britain's best-kept secrets.




How to Do Absolutely Everything


Book Description

Continuing the Instructables series with Skyhorse Publishing, a mammoth collection of projects has been selected and curated for this special best-of volume of Instructables. The guides in this book cover the entire spectrum of possibilities that the popular website has to offer, showcasing how online communities can foster and nurture creativity. From outdoor agricultural projects to finding new uses for traditional household objects, the beauty of Instructables lies in their ingenuity and their ability to find new ways of looking at the same thing. How to Do Absolutely Everything has that in spades; the possibilities are limitless, thanks to not only the selection of projects available here, but also the new ideas you’ll build on after reading this book. Full-color photographs illustrate each project in intricate detail, providing images of both the individual steps of the process and the end product.




Ordinary People, Extraordinary Lives


Book Description

Tanohata in the 1950s was an isolated fishing village in the Tohoku region of Japan. Life there was so miserable that those who could leave did, and those who could not stayed on in a state of demoralization. By the 1980s, however, Tanohata had not only joined the mainstream of Japanese culture and economic life, but had done so with an adroitness that attracted national notice. The story of that dramatic transformation, written from the perspective of one who has both observed and participated in the changes for the last 20 years, brings into dramatic focus what is happening throughout Japan in the 20th century.




At Home with Handmade Books


Book Description

Making your own books is easier than you might think, and Erin Zamrzla shows you how, using Japanese methods to produce a range of delightful projects: from easy-to-fold accordion pamphlets to books using the intricate and distinctive Japanese stab stitch bindings. Traditional bookbinding techniques are applied to creative and contemporary projects that will interest a broad range of beginning crafters, DIYers, and book artists. Zamrzla makes all the techniques accessible and completely nonintimidating by providing clear, step-by-step instructions for even the more complicated stitches. Information on the basics of bookbinding, including book terminology, tools, and techniques are included, and many of the projects encourage the creative use of recycled materials. Each project is featured in a full-color photograph presenting it in a real-life setting. Additional photos and computer-drawn instructional illustrations offer step-by-step details of construction. Projects include: Unfolding Flower Notes: An accordion book that opens into a string of flowers. Tiny Souvenir Book: An accordion book with envelopes for pages so you can collect memories on the go. Return-to-Sender Mail Book: Made using a four-hole stab binding in the hemp-leaf pattern, the pages of this notebook are contained within an envelope cover so you can simply fill the pages, seal the end, and mail it to a friend, who can then add to the pages and send it back to you. Pillowcase Dream Book: Made using a Yamato binding-a simple two-hole stab binding-the cover of this book is sewn from a pillowcase. Tea Bag Tracing Book: The pages of this book are created from tea bags that are bound in a traditional account-book style.




I Didn't Do the Thing Today


Book Description

How to release productivity guilt and embrace the hidden values in our daily lives. Any given day brings a never-ending list of things to do. There’s the work thing, the catch-up thing, the laundry thing, the creative thing, the exercise thing, the family thing, the thing we don’t want to do, and the thing we’ve been putting off, despite it being the most important thing. Even on days when we get a lot done, the thing left undone can leave us feeling guilty, anxious, or disappointed. After five years of searching for the secret to productivity, Madeleine Dore discovered there isn’t one. Instead, we’re being set up to fail. I Didn’t Do the Thing Today is the inspiring call to take productivity off its pedestal—by dismantling our comparison to others, aspirational routines, and the unrealistic notions of what can be done in a day, we can finally embrace the joyful messiness and unpredictability of life. For anyone who has ever felt the pressure to do more, be more, achieve more, this antidote to our doing-obsession is the permission slip we all need to find our own way.




Managing Complex Projects


Book Description

For organizations to thrive, indeed to survive, in today's global economy, we must find ways to dramatically improve the performance of large-scale projects. Applying the concepts of complexity theory can complement conventional project management approaches and enable us to adapt to the unrelenting change that we ignore at our own peril. Managing Complex Projects: A New Model offers an innovative way of looking at projects and treating them as complex adaptive systems. Applying the principles of complexity thinking will enable project managers and leadership teams to manage large-scale initiatives successfully. • Explore how complexity thinking can be used to find new, creative ways to think about and manage projects • Diagnose complexity on a wide range of projects — from small, independent, short projects to highly complex, longer projects • Understand and manage the complexity of the business problem, opportunity, solution, and other dimensions that come into play when managing large-scale efforts Use the Project Complexity Model to determine the most effective approach to managing all aspects of a project based on the level of complexity involved.




Team Planning for Project Managers and Business Analysts


Book Description

Supplying busy project professionals with time-tested tips and templates for developing teams efficiently and effectively, Team Planning for Project Managers and Business Analysts provides the planning materials required to increase team collaboration and productivity in a global workplace.This comprehensive resource offers insights and access to c