The Riddle of the Rainbow


Book Description

Rainbows have been a source of fascination since time immemorial. They have been the subject of myth and superstition, an inspiration to poets, a challenge to painters, the object of intense scientific interest and a touchstone for ideas about the nature of light and colour. Above all, the rainbow has been the embodiment of wonder from the earliest times to the present day. Beginning with the circumstances in which you are likely to see a rainbow and descriptions of its salient features, this book recounts and explains the myths and superstitions about rainbows, and describes how poets, painters and, above all, leading scientists in every age have sought to discover and understand the rainbow’s secrets. Readers with a love of nature and art and an interest in the history of science will enjoy this attractive and informative book.













Egyptian-Coptic Linguistics in Typological Perspective


Book Description

This volume presents the Egyptian-Coptic language in cross-linguistic (‘typological’) perspective. It is aimed at linguists of all stripes, especially typologists, historical linguists, and specialists in Egyptian-Coptic, Afroasiatic languages, or African languages. Uniquely, the contributions are written by both typologists and experts of Egyptian-Coptic and typologists. The former provide case studies dealing with particular aspects of the various phases of the Egyptian-Coptic language (e.g., COLLIER on conditional constructions), while the latter situate Egyptian-Coptic data in cross-linguistic perspective (e.g., those by GUELDEMANN and GENSLER). The volume also includes an introductory section that includes an overview of the Egyptian-Coptic language (HASPELMATH), a sketch of its sociohistorical setting (GROSSMAN & RICHTER), its relationship with language typology (RICHTER), and the way in which Egyptian-Coptic data should be presented to nonspecialists, focusing on transliteration and glossing (GROSSMAN & HASPELMATH). This is the first book to bring together language typology and the Egyptian-Coptic language in an explicit fashion.







Encyclopedia of the Neurological Sciences


Book Description

The Encyclopedia of the Neurological Sciences, Second Edition, Four Volume Set develops from the first edition, covering all areas of neurological sciences through over 1000 entries focused on a wide variety of topics in neurology, neurosurgery, psychiatry and other related areas of neuroscience. The contributing authors represent all aspects of neurology from many viewpoints and disciplines to provide a complete overview of the field. Entries are designed to be understandable without detailed background knowledge in the subject matter, and cross-referencing and suggested further reading lead the reader from a basic knowledge of the subject to more advanced understanding. The easy-to-use 'encyclopedic-dictionary' format of the Encyclopedia of the Neurological Sciences, Second Edition features alphabetic entries, extensive cross-referencing, and a thorough index for quick reference. The wealth of information provided by these four volumes makes this reference work a trusted source of valuable information for a wide range of researchers, from undergraduate students to academic researchers. Provides comprehensive coverage of the field of neurological science in over 1,000 entries in 4 volumes "Encyclopedic-dictionary" format provides for concise, readable entries and easy searching Presents complete, up-to-date information on 32 separate areas of neurology Entries are supplemented with extensive cross-referencing, useful references to primary research articles, and an extensive index