College Algebra in Context with Applications for the Managerial, Life, and Social Sciences (2nd Edition) (MathXL Tutorials on CD Series)

Book Description

Learn the Skills. Apply the Concepts.

This second edition of College Algebra in Context continues to be application driven, and uses real-data problems to motivate student interest in the skills and concepts of algebra. The focus on real-world applications is designed to correspond to problems that students may encounter when they move on to future math classes or when they enter the work force. This edition contains improved content and a greater focus on motivating students to succeed in the course through its emphasis on applications.

Understanding and Calculating the Odds: Probability Theory Basics and Calculus Guide for Beginners, with Applications in Games of Chance and Everyday Life

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Average introduction to probability
Finally a readable math book!
Excellent primer and not only

Understanding and Calculating the Odds: Probability Theory Basics and Calculus Guide for Beginners, with Applications in Games of Chance and Everyday Life
Catalin Barboianu
Manufacturer: INFAROM
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 9738752019

Book Description

Man's daily life is full of decisional situations. Whether we have math skills or not, we frequently estimate and compare probabilities, sometimes without realizing it, especially when making decisions. But probabilities are not just simple numbers attached objectively or subjectively to events, as they perhaps look, and their calculus and usage is highly predisposed to qualitative or quantitative errors in the absence of proper knowledge. That is why a book explaining the probability concept and its interpretations and applications for non-mathematicians is a necessity. This is an enlightening journey through the world of probability theory. Its multiple goals are to help the reader understand what probability really means, to teach the reader how to rigorously perform and apply the probability calculus, even without a solid mathematical background, and to stimulate the reader to go deeper into the notions involved. In the first part, the author tries to build a clear image of the probability concept by reconstructing its mathematical definition step by step through its constituent notions. It starts with a general presentation of the conceptual ensemble word - definition - notion - model any theory is based on when trying to reproduce reality. Then, the probability notion is defined and explained starting from the classical definition to the definition for the countable case; then probability is presented as a limit and as a measure. This book presents not only the mathematical concept of probability, but also its philosophical aspects, the relativity of probability and its applications and even the psychology of probability. All explanations are made in a comprehensible manner and are supported with suggestive examples from nature and daily life and even with challenging math paradoxes. After these points are laid out the math chapter follows. It contains all the notions and principal theoretical results that ground Probability Theory, starting with fundamental notions like Sets, Functions, Boole algebras, and Sequences, and continuing with Measure Theory Basics - Tribes, Borel sets, Measurable spaces, and Measure, ending with Field of events, Sigma-fields, Probability, Conditional probability, Discrete random variables, Classical probability distributions, and Convergence. And, of course, it includes all important theorems and results dealing with them. A special section is dedicated to Combinatorics and combinatorial calculus. Readers with no minimal mathematical background may choose to skip this chapter because the teaching material is structured for developing probability calculus skills based on algorithmic procedures. This is the subject of the chapter titled Beginners' Calculus Guide, in which the reader is taught to apply the properties of probability and to perform calculations in practical applications. The skills acquired here can be practiced on the more than 200 solved and unsolved problems and exercises in the book. Gamblers have a dedicated chapter, which is a large collection of applied probability results covering most of the gaming situations from the major games of chance: Slots, Roulette, Blackjack and Texas Hold'em Poker. The author brings important contributions to the decision theory, offering in the last chapter a mathematical model on which to base proof that a probability-based strategy is theoretically optimum, which has immediate applications in games as well as decisional situations from daily life. Everyone should find something of interest here: philosophers and mathematicians may focus on the sections on philosophical matters of the probability model and decisional matters, students and non-mathematicians can find solid A to Z teaching material about Probability Theory and the practical person can find all the tools needed to apply and perform probability calculus without a teacher.

Customer Reviews:

Average introduction to probability.......2007-02-09

This book covers the basics in probability including boole algebras, measure spaces, law of large numbers, combinatorics, discrete random variables and bayesian probability.

The first 118 pages is basically a short story on probability summarizing the next 200 pages. The problem is the author uses an unnecessarily complex writing style enough to frustrate any individual whose first language is english what to say of others. Regardless, after a few pages you get used to it.

The mathematical chapter is really not mathematical at all. It is simply a statement of definitions, properties and theorems with no justification ( proofs ) and only a spattering of justification.

The prize however, is the problems and algorithms with plenty of solved examples. This has it's merits but at some points the author solves problems by a circuitous and often confusing route. There are other much simpler ways to solve these problems.

Regardless, I relished the fact that the author gives a general problem solving method rather than present formulas to memorize. This enhances intuition and understanding.

Finally a readable math book!.......2006-07-04

It covers fundamentals well, easy to read, good variety of problems, nice examples, philosophic sections are interesting. It has everything. I've never seen a probability book with such good examples and algorithms of solving. Most books on probability give you all of the equations, but they don't really tell you how to apply them to real situations. It is the book on probability that I have been looking for. Great.

Excellent primer and not only.......2006-06-23

This is the book to start with and to finish with. In this big book (in size and amount of information) you will find all you need to know about both theoretical and applied probability. The author made the text comprehensible for all categories of readers: laymen, students and advanced. And the result is a masterly exposition with amazing clarity. I read a lot of textbooks on this subject, but I found no one to touch on all basic issues in such a teachable manner. Each subject has a short, concise and to the point exposition. Great job and a very useful product.

Calculus with Applications for the Life Sciences

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interesting applications

Calculus with Applications for the Life Sciences
Raymond N. Greenwell , Nathan P. Ritchey , and Margaret L. Lial
Manufacturer: Addison Wesley
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0201745828

Customer Reviews:

interesting applications.......2005-02-17

If you are majoring in the life sciences, then the authors have striven to teach calculus in a manner that will interest and motivate you. Here, life sciences encompasses both the biological sciences and various social sciences like finance and economics.

The authors customise the course via numerous examples and problems in each chapter. To be sure, in the text, outside the examples, it is a straightforward explanation of the important ideas in caculus, like finding derivates and solving differential equations. Which is as it should be. The maths is independent of the applications, after all. But much of the value of the book to you is in those examples and problems.

There is a fascinating plethora of problems. I will only cite a few: Modelling a foot and mouth disease epidemic. Alcohol concentration in a person's blood as a function of time. Rate of pollution entering a lake. The Gini coefficient of income inequality in a country.

The book shows that the uses of calculus in the life sciences are myriad and worthy of your understanding and appreciation.

College Mathematics and Calculus With Applications to Management, Life and Social Sciences

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College Mathematics and Calculus With Applications to Management, Life and Social Sciences
Karl J. Smith
Manufacturer: Thomson Brooks/Cole
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Brief Calculus With Applications: In Business & the Social & Life Sciences

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Brief Calculus With Applications: In Business & the Social & Life Sciences
Daniel C. Alexander
Manufacturer: H & H Pub Co
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Calculus with Applications to Business and the Life Sciences

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Calculus with Applications to Business and the Life Sciences
Abe Mizrahi , and Michael Sullivan
Manufacturer: John Wiley & Sons Inc
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Calculus with applications to social and life sciences

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Calculus with applications to social and life sciences
William LeRoy Hart
Manufacturer: Page Ficklin
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

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ASIN: B0006WDG6W

Calculus With Applications to the Management, Life, and Social Sciences

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Calculus With Applications to the Management, Life, and Social Sciences
Lawrence E. Spence , and Charles Vanden Eynden
Manufacturer: Scott Foresman & Co
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Calculus with Technology for Business, Economics, Life and Social Sciences

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Calculus with Technology for Business, Economics, Life and Social Sciences
Raymond A. Barnett , and Michael R. Ziegler
Manufacturer: Prentice Hall
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0135682053

Book Description

Prepares the reader to deal with a variety of calculus topics, including calculus for business, economics, social sciences, or life sciences. Focusing on computational skills, ideas, and problem solving, it deals with the mathematics required to use such modern technology as graphic calculators and computers, and considers the interplay between geometric, algebraic, and numerical ideas.

Graphing calculator enhancement for Hoffmann and Bradley Brief calculus with applications, fifth edition ;: And, Calculus for business, economics, and the social and life sciences, fifth edition

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Graphing calculator enhancement for Hoffmann and Bradley Brief calculus with applications, fifth edition ;: And, Calculus for business, economics, and the social and life sciences, fifth edition
Carolyn L Meitler
Manufacturer: McGraw-Hill
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

Book Description

* Examines the links between woodcarving and deforestation, conservation, and international trade with case studies from Australia, India, Africa, and Mexico
* Highlights the vital importance of traditional industries to rural economies: more money and jobs are generated per unit of wood in woodcarving than in any other part of the timber industry
* Part of the cutting-edge People and Plants series

Much has been published on the impacts of logging in tropical forests for timber, but relatively little has yet been written about the effects of felling hardwood and softwood trees for commercial scale woodcarving enterprises. "Carving Out a Future" is the first thorough examination of the international woodcarving trade and its critical links to rural livelihoods, deforestation, biodiversity and conservation, forestry and forest policy, and the international trade regime. A range of case studies from Australia, India, Africa, and Mexico provide a lens for examining the critical issues relating to the significant impacts of woodcarving on forests, conservation efforts, the need to promote sustainable rural livelihoods, and efforts to promote fair trade so that skilled artisans in developing countries get a fair economic return.

Customer Reviews:

Woodcarving: eonomic livelihood/environmental impact.......2006-04-23

Anthony Cunningham, et.al. edit CARVING OUT A FUTURE: FORESTS, LIVELIHOODS AND THE INTERNATIONAL WOODCARVING TRADE, which provides a detailed coverage on the cultural and economic contribution of woodcarving to livelihoods and its affect upon the environment. A global overview of the topic moves to regional focus of woodcarving efforts in Asia, Africa, and South America, with chapters outlining issues in both sustainability and woodcarving economics. It's a scholarly ethnobotanical survey which is especially recommended for college-level holdings on the topic.

Traditions and Business Principles for Livelihoods Improvement.......2006-01-14

Traditional knowledge and skills as intellectual property of local people are valued for its potential contribution to the sustainability of ecosystems and livelihoods improvement of local communities. In particular, supporting local livelihoods has implications for environmental conservation. Role of traditional knowledge for the conservation science is acknowledged but the evidence related to its direct contribution to household income is often overlooked*. The book, "Carving Out a Future: Forests, Livelihoods and the International Woodcarving Trade" edited by Anthony Cunningham, Brian Belcher and Bruce Campbell provides opportunity to explore if, and under what conditions, traditional knowledge on woodcarving contributes to livelihoods improvement and household incomes. There has been a paucity of good studies on woodcarving and this pioneering work is a great addition to the field.

Engravings and carvings are the earliest and enduring form of sculptures produced by humans. The Middle Stone Age abstract representations engraved on pieces of red ochre from Blombos Cave in South Africa have been dated about 77,000 years ago. These engravings support the evidence for emergence of modern human behavior at least 35,000 years before the start of the Upper Paleolithic#. Furthermore, origin of the figurative art is now considered as a crucial threshold in human evolution. Figurines carved from mammoth ivory at Hohle Fels Cave in the Swabian Jura, Germany provide evidence for the appearance of figurative art more than 30,000 years ago. These Aurignacian sculptures belong to one of the oldest traditions of figurative art known worldwide*.

Starting with these pioneering steps, a continuous history of nature-society interactions gave rise to a large body of traditional knowledge in diverse fields including: (i) hunting, fishing and gathering; (ii) agriculture, animal husbandry, tree cultivation; (iii) preparation, conservation and distribution of food; (iv) location, collection and storage of water; (v) coping with disease and injury; (vi) interpretation of climatic phenomena; (vii) manufacture of clothing, tools, crafts and woodcarving; (viii) construction and maintenance of shelter; (ix) orientation and navigation on land and sea; (x) management of nature-society interactions; and (xi) adaptation to environmental/social change.

Various chapters in the book by different authors introduce a large body of knowledge within the pages of this hugely informative book. Amid a diverse body of knowledge, the art woodcarving is of particular interest because it combines aesthetics with utility. Contribution of woodcarvings to livelihoods is now well researched in Kenya, South Africa, Uganda, Zimbabwe, Indonesia, and Mexico. Oaxacan wood carvings from Mexico are known worldwide. For instance, the woodcarvings in Kenya are estimated to support livelihoods of ~80,000 carvers and their 500,000 dependents, generating export earnings of $US20 million to markets in North America, Asia, and Europe. Likewise, woodcarving in South Africa provides household income between US$500-2000 per year, which is about 80% of the household cash. Export earning in Bali region of Indonesia amounts to US$100 million annually. A range of case studies in the book from Australia, India, Africa and Mexico provide convincing evidence of woodcraft's critical links to rural livelihoods, deforestation, biodiversity and conservation, forestry and forest policy and the international trade regime.

I take a different approach to review this work as it would worthwhile to explore, by implications and analysis derived from the book. I take two states of India as an example. Although study of woodcarvings in India has just begun, the country has emerged as one of the largest producers of woodcarvings globally. Woodcarving export in 2002-03 amounted to Rs. 5113.5 million (US$ 113.55 million). The noteworthy issue here is that even as many states in India are rich in traditional woodcarving, their contribution to the national export pool varies widely. In order to search the enabling factors, apart from the existence of traditional knowledge, it is useful to compare the woodcarving enterprises in Rajasthan (western India: wood deficit region) and Jharkhand (eastern India: wood surplus region).

Jodhpur in Rajasthan has rich tradition of woodcarving in the form of wood figurines, deities and artistic furniture. During the ancient and medieval periods, rulers of Rajasthan supported the woodcraft by providing patronage to woodcarvers and artisans. Woodcarving has now developed into a leading enterprise that thrives partly on local wood from plantations and partly on purchase of wood from adjoining states. Woodcraft industry in Jodhpur now provides employment to more than one lakh people and generates exports of at least Rs. 400 crores annually$. Woodcarving contributes substantially to household income too ranging between Rs. 20,000 to Rs. 37,000 per annum depending upon the skills of woodcarvers. Although this income is substantial compared to the average per capita income of India (Rs.12,414), but the profit margins on woodcraft products manufactured by artisans are only 7-10% while profit margins for exporters are as high as 25-35% (see the chapter in the book by S. Chatterjee et al. p. 103-119). This is very similar to other traditional knowledge based enterprises where middlemen earn 35-40% of the total profit.

Similar to Jodhpur, many districts in Jharkhand too have rich tradition of woodcraft. Jharkhand is particularly known for deities, artistic furniture and variety of musical instruments known locally as arbansi, bansuri, damama, dhak, dhamsa, dhol, ghanta, jurinagra, karha, kartal, madanvari, mandar, manjhira, nagara, sahnai, sankh, singa, tasa, thapchanchu, visamdhanki etc. In addition, toy making is also developing as a new craft industry using a variety of soft wood trees available in plenty within Jharkhand. The contribution of woodcraft to household income or the total volume of trade in Jharkhand is not known, but our preliminary survey indicates that the exports are negligible and the average household income for artisans who sell their products locally remains below Rs. 8000 annually.

This stark difference in the two states, as discussed above, is intriguing and begs the question as to why the woodcarving knowledge in Jharkhand does not contribute substantially to household incomes? There are many conditions that can explain why the markets may not have worked in favour of poor people±, but, in addition to the necessary pre-condition of existence of local knowledge, three additional factors may have contributed to the growth of woodcraft industry in Jodhpur compared to Jharkhand. First, a supportive policy environment and governance is necessary to promote woodcarving industries as an important contribution to livelihoods improvement. Jharkhand being the newly created state, it has only recently issued a policy intent to boost the manufacturing of sophisticated and intricate handicrafts in cane, bamboo, woodcarving and lac-based items, while government has vigorously promoted and encouraged woodcraft industry in Rajasthan. Second, infrastructure has a decisive effect on development. Woodcarving industry in Jodhpur benefited from the infrastructural support such as an outstanding road network, communication, electricity and export promotion facilities including dry ports. Such facilities are comparatively less developed in Jharkhand. Indeed, Jharkhand has to travel 80% of the distance to reach the level equivalent to the state with the best infrastructure in India, compared to 56.9 for Rajasthan. Lastly, a vigorous investment to promote to tourism in Rajasthan provides a ready market and buyers from all over the world. In Jharkhand, however, tourism is yet to develop.
We can thus infer that a comparatively much better policy and governance, good infrastructure and a growing tourism play vital role in supporting local artisans and entrepreneurs to use their traditional knowledge for generating large household incomes. States desirous of promoting woodcraft as a revenue earning and poverty reduction strategy will do well in addressing the issues identified here.

Emergence of woodcarving as an important source of income to local artisans worldwide has three other advantages too: it facilitates long-term locking-up of carbon in carved wood coupled with creation of new carbon sequestration potential through intensified tree-growing; supports local knowledge on wood-carving and tree-growing, therefore, further strengthens livelihoods; and it also helps in promoting local trade and industry as a revenue-earning activity for the local governments. Processes such as these are expected to enhance the ability of developing countries to participate in the growing global economy.

To conclude, although more robust studies are required to get useful insights but there is some indication that traditional knowledge on woodcarving can support livelihoods improvement with suitable interventions identified here. Promoting woodcarving is expected to encourage application of other forms of traditional knowledge and skills such as tree-growing in agroecosystems to supply raw material for woodcarving enterprise. Because the species useful for woodcarving are often overexploited in forests, tree-planting in agroecosystems by local communities should be encouraged to supply wood for making woodcarving and reduce pressure on the forests. Integration of traditional knowledge with modern science and technology can bring new innovations. Innovations with already existing skills and knowledge such as woodcarving-rather than completely new interventions-may be a better option to concurrent efforts aimed at poverty reduction, livelihoods improvement and biodiversity conservation. The book by Cunnigham, Belcher and Campbell is a first comprehensive step in that direction. This work is destined to become a citation classic!!!

Endnotes
Cunningham, A., B. Belcher & B. Campbell (eds.). Carving Out a Future: Forests, Livelihoods and the International Woodcarving Trade. Earthscan, London, UK, pp.293, 2005.

Sayer, J. A. and Campbell, B. M., The Science of Sustainable Development: Local Livelihoods and the Global Environment. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK, 2004.

*Pandey, D.N., Ethnoforestry: Local Knowledge for Sustainable Forestry and Livelihood Security, Himanshu/AFN, New Delhi, 1998.

#Henshilwood, C. S. et al., Emergence of modern human behavior: Middle Stone Age engravings from South Africa. Science, 2002, 295, 1278-1280.

*Conard, N. J., Palaeolithic ivory sculptures from southwestern Germany and the origins of figurative art. Nature, 2003, 426, 830-832.

Pandey, D. N. Carbon sequestration in agroforestry systems, Climate Policy, 2, 2002, 367-377.

$Yadav, M. M., Research study on woodcraft and carving industry at Bastar in Chattissharh and Jodhpur in Rajasthan, IIFM, Bhopal, 2003.

±Scherr, S. J., White, A. and Kaimowitz, D., A New Agenda for Forest Conservation and Poverty Alleviation: Making Markets Work for Low-Income Producers, Washington, DC, Forest Trends and CIFOR, 2003.

Srivastava, S. K., Dutt, C. B., Nagaraja, R., Bandyopadhyay, S., Meena Rani, H. C., Hegde, V. S. and Jayaraman, V., Strategies for rural poverty alleviation in India: A perspective based on remote sensing and GIS-based nationwide wasteland mapping. Current Science, 2004, 87, 954-959.

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