Four-volume collection featuring Marvel Comics superheroes. In 'X-Men Origins - Wolverine' (2009) Hugh Jackman reprises his role as clawed mutant Wolverine, formerly James Logan, in this blockbuster action prequel. The film, set over the years leading up to the events of the 2003 'X-Men' movie, follows the young Logan from the first awakenings of his mutant powers in childhood up to his amnesiac rebirth as Wolverine, and recounts his tumultuous relationship with his ferocious half-brother, Victor Creed, aka Sabretooth (Liev Schreiber), and the events that lead him to sign up to the ominous Weapon X programme. In 'Daredevil' (2003), Ben Affleck stars as Matt Murdock who, after being blinded by a spillage of toxic waste when he was a boy, develops his other senses to an incredible degree, allowing him to navigate the city with pinpoint accuracy. Now he works by day as a lawyer, and by night he becomes the Daredevil when he uses his supersenses to continue his fight against underworld supervillain Kingpin (Michael Clarke Duncan). In 'Elektra' (2005) Jennifer Garner plays Elektra Natchios, a hired assassin who is reunited with her old martial arts master, Stick (Terence Stamp). When she is given an assignment to kill Mark Miller (Goran Visnjic) and his daughter, Abby (Kristin Prout), her conscience gets the better of her and she decides to protect them instead, provoking the wrath of martial arts syndicate 'The Hand'. Finally, in 'Fantastic 4: Rise of the Silver Surfer' (2007), the sequel to the 2005 adaptation of the comic book, Sue Storm, aka The Invisible Girl (Jessica Alba), and Reed Richards, aka Mr. Fantastic (Ioan Gruffudd), prepare for their upcoming, superhero-studded wedding celebration. But Reed is preoccupied by reports of a bizarre, comet-like object hurtling toward the Earth with tremendous force. When the object hits the island of Manhattan, destroying much of the city in its wake, its identity becomes resoundingly clear: 'it' is actually a psychotic villain known as The Silver Surfer (voice of Laurence Fishburne) who aims to destroy the Earth. Sue and Reed decide to summon Ben Grimm, aka The Thing (Michael Chiklis), and Johnny Storm, aka The Human Torch (Chris Evans), to take on the Surfer - and end up battling not only him, but an obnoxious army general (Andre Braugher) and the cantankerous Victor Von Doom (Julian MacMahon), who has broken out of the icy prison that held him captive at the end of the first movie.

Romantic comedy starring Kristen Bell, Josh Duhamel and Danny DeVito. Beth Harper (Bell) is a young, career-driven New Yorker who has hitherto been very unlucky in love. While on a whirlwind trip to Rome for her sister's wedding, she is attracted to the best man, Nick (Duhamel), but is dismayed to see him with another woman and turns to drink to drown her disappointment. In her drunken state she delves for coins in the famed 'Fontana de Amore', and is amazed on her return to New York to find herself being pursued by not one but five love-crazed men - including the delectable Nick. But is he really in love with her, or simply under the fountain's spell?

Mark Smoot, professional Landscape architect and passionate photographer from California, took a job in South Africa in 1982 at the height of Apartheid. Fascinated to learn about this new world, he began taking road trips, exploring dusty roads and remote villages with his Nikon on the car seat beside him.

Mark’s focus soon became the self-built, rural homes of the indigenous peoples that he found to be meticulously maintained, decorated with loving care and fitting in complete harmony with their surroundings. The resulting portfolio of 577 full-colour photographs, taken over seven years and poignantly capturing a time and cultures that no longer exist, remained boxed away for decades as Mark continued to travel and work around the world. Finally, while locked down during the global covid-19 pandemic, Mark took out the photographs and put them together with 26 sketch illustrations, construction methods, tribal histories and his memories of adventures into this 303 page volume.

Mark’s work provides a rare insight into the lives (at that time) of indigenous peoples from 14 tribal groups of 6 different countries and the complex historical forces that impacted their traditions and vernacular architecture.

This book analyzes the interactions of international criminal tribunals established since the 1990s with international, national and regional bodies, making recommendations for the International Criminal Court (ICC) as it goes forward. Placing the core issues within the statutory framework of the Rome Statute and major policy considerations, the authors examine ways in which the ICC can best coordinate with other accountability mechanisms on national and regional prosecutions, the UN Security Council, cooperation on the enforcement of arrest warrants, national non-judicial processes and amicus briefs from non-governmental organizations (NGOs). This timely evaluation of the experiences of the ad hoc international criminal tribunals spotlights the legal, political and coordination issues that will likely impact the ICC's current mandate to adjudicate core international crimes. It explores how governments, inter-governmental bodies and global civil society might best collaborate to strengthen national capacity to investigate and prosecute atrocity crimes in pursuit of global justice. The book also considers the challenge of state cooperation with international criminal tribunals, identifying lessons for the ICC, while emphasizing the need for positive complementarity between the emerging African Criminal Court and the ICC. Lawyers, judges, NGOs, government officials, academics, and policy makers at all levels will value this book as an important resource on transitional justice and the place of justice in the aftermath of conflict and mass atrocity.

This book analyzes the interactions of international criminal tribunals established since the 1990s with international, national and regional bodies, making recommendations for the International Criminal Court (ICC) as it goes forward. Placing the core issues within the statutory framework of the Rome Statute and major policy considerations, the authors examine ways in which the ICC can best coordinate with other accountability mechanisms on national and regional prosecutions, the UN Security Council, cooperation on the enforcement of arrest warrants, national non-judicial processes and amicus briefs from non-governmental organizations (NGOs). This timely evaluation of the experiences of the ad hoc international criminal tribunals spotlights the legal, political and coordination issues that will likely impact the ICC's current mandate to adjudicate core international crimes. It explores how governments, inter-governmental bodies and global civil society might best collaborate to strengthen national capacity to investigate and prosecute atrocity crimes in pursuit of global justice. The book also considers the challenge of state cooperation with international criminal tribunals, identifying lessons for the ICC, while emphasizing the need for positive complementarity between the emerging African Criminal Court and the ICC. Lawyers, judges, NGOs, government officials, academics, and policy makers at all levels will value this book as an important resource on transitional justice and the place of justice in the aftermath of conflict and mass atrocity.

The Times Art Book of the Year 2021 FINALIST FOR THE PLUTARCH AWARD 2022 'Must surely be the definitive life of Francis Bacon ... A biography that no Bacon fan - or indeed foe - can afford to overlook ... Mesmerising' THE TIMES 'A magnificent triumph ... I was captivated by every line' OBSERVER A decade in the making, based upon hundreds of interviews and extensive new material, Pulitzer Prize winners Mark Stevens and Annalyn Swan have written a startlingly original portrait - rich, complex, and subtle - of a commanding modern figure. Bacon concealed many important aspects of his life. He described himself as an asthmatic child in Ireland with foxhunting parents and a tyrannical father, but he was also rescued by a series of formidable women - women who in this biography emerge in their own right. He was never just a dissolute young man but was also a passionate reader, largely self-taught. Early on, influenced by Eileen Gray, he became a hard-working and ambitious designer, a brief career explored here in detail for the first time. He dreamed of remaking the modern room. Bacon worked no less hard or ambitiously as a painter, at first with little success. Throughout the 1930s and early '40s he suffered ongoing failures, growing isolated and often ill. His health issues throughout his life were far more significant than he revealed. Then came his astonishing breakthrough in 1944, with Three Studies for Figures at the Base of a Crucifixion. In the following decades, he emerged as one of the great iconoclasts and bon vivants of his time, a Wildean figure whom one friend called 'a terrific grandee.' Bacon was typically celebrated as a sexual adventurer who liked rough trade, but he never stopped longing for a serious committed relationship, however painful. He continued to make disturbing images of the strangeness within, but developed into a more varied artist than has been recognised, creating in particular an extraordinary series of self-portraits. He was an artist who believed in chance and paradox: the iconoclast eventually became an icon. This is a story, deeply researched and masterfully told, of a sickly boy who became one of the great figures of his time. The twentieth century does not know itself without Bacon.

Offering a fresh take on laser engineering, Laser Modeling: A Numerical Approach with Algebra and Calculus presents algebraic models and traditional calculus-based methods in tandem to make concepts easier to digest and apply in the real world. Each technique is introduced alongside a practical, solved example based on a commercial laser. Assuming some knowledge of the nature of light, emission of radiation, and basic atomic physics, the text: Explains how to formulate an accurate gain threshold equation as well as determine small-signal gain Discusses gain saturation and introduces a novel pass-by-pass model for rapid implementation of "what if?" scenarios Outlines the calculus-based Rigrod approach in a simplified manner to aid in comprehension Considers thermal effects on solid-state lasers and other lasers with new and efficient quasi-three-level materials Demonstrates how the convolution method is used to predict the effect of temperature drift on a DPSS system Describes the technique and technology of Q-switching and provides a simple model for predicting output power Addresses non-linear optics and supplies a simple model for calculating optimal crystal length Examines common laser systems, answering basic design questions and summarizing parameters Includes downloadable Microsoft (R) Excel (TM) spreadsheets, allowing models to be customized for specific lasers Don't let the mathematical rigor of solutions get in the way of understanding the concepts. Laser Modeling: A Numerical Approach with Algebra and Calculus covers laser theory in an accessible way that can be applied immediately, and numerically, to real laser systems.

In Red Modernism, Mark Steven asserts that modernism was highly attuned-and aesthetically responsive-to the overall spirit of communism. He considers the maturation of American poetry as a longitudinal arc, one that roughly followed the rise of the USSR through the Russian Revolution and its subsequent descent into Stalinism, opening up a hitherto underexplored domain in the political history of avant-garde literature. In doing so, Steven amplifies the resonance among the universal idea of communism, the revolutionary socialist state, and the American modernist poem. Focusing on three of the most significant figures in modernist poetry-Ezra Pound, William Carlos Williams, and Louis Zukofsky-Steven provides a theoretical and historical introduction to modernism's unique sense of communism while revealing how communist ideals and references were deeply embedded in modernist poetry. Moving between these poets and the work of T. S. Eliot, Langston Hughes, Muriel Rukeyser, Gertrude Stein, Wallace Stevens, and many others, the book combines a detailed analysis of technical devices and poetic values with a rich political and economic context. Persuasively charting a history of the avant-garde modernist poem in relation to communism, beginning in the 1910s and reaching into the 1940s, Red Modernism is an audacious examination of the twinned history of politics and poetry.

A poignant story about hopes, dreams, and how far one man's talent takes him before he realizes it's about what you do-and how you do it. Frank Ryder is unstoppable on the baseball field-his pitches arrive faster than a batter can swing, giving his opponents no chance. He's being heralded as a game-changing pitcher. But within the maelstrom of press, adulation, and wild speculation, Frank is a man alone. Haunted by a tragic incident from years past, he yearns to be the best but cannot reconcile the guilt he carries with the man everyone believes him to be. Frank's path to redemption leads him on a journey back to where his life changed forever, to visit his family, his high school coach, and his brother. Through reconnection and reconciliation with those also deeply affected by the devastating event of Frank's youth, he finds peace and his place in the world both in and outside the game. The Fireballer is a lyrical, moving story of undeniable talent and the life-changing power of forgiveness and a subtly romantic ode to America's favorite pastime.

My mother's first attempt at dying occurred nine days after her eighty-ninth birthday. I lived a carefree bachelor life, no children, few responsibilities outside of work, but that all changed when the call came. When she decided to come back to life, I decided to move from the dry heat of Los Angeles back to the high humidity of New Jersey to take over. My first task was to remove all hazards: her current caretakers. After, I asked my mom, "Do you trust me?" She whispered, "Yes." "Do you understand I will do everything in my power to keep you healthy and safe?" She nodded. "That means I'm in charge. And that means you must obey me." Her mood shifted in an instant. She looked me dead in the eye and puckered up her lips. I wasn't sure if this was a sign of surrender or one wishing me luck. I kissed her and hoped for the best. The parent/child role reversal was not unique to me, but how I dealt with it was. A Cup of Tea on the Commode chronicles my multi-taking adventures of filling Mom's last years with love, laughter, and joy. Though not always successful, I came pretty damn close.

Offering a fresh take on laser engineering, Laser Modeling: A Numerical Approach with Algebra and Calculus presents algebraic models and traditional calculus-based methods in tandem to make concepts easier to digest and apply in the real world. Each technique is introduced alongside a practical, solved example based on a commercial laser. Assuming some knowledge of the nature of light, emission of radiation, and basic atomic physics, the text: Explains how to formulate an accurate gain threshold equation as well as determine small-signal gain Discusses gain saturation and introduces a novel pass-by-pass model for rapid implementation of "what if?" scenarios Outlines the calculus-based Rigrod approach in a simplified manner to aid in comprehension Considers thermal effects on solid-state lasers and other lasers with new and efficient quasi-three-level materials Demonstrates how the convolution method is used to predict the effect of temperature drift on a DPSS system Describes the technique and technology of Q-switching and provides a simple model for predicting output power Addresses non-linear optics and supplies a simple model for calculating optimal crystal length Examines common laser systems, answering basic design questions and summarizing parameters Includes downloadable Microsoft (R) Excel (TM) spreadsheets, allowing models to be customized for specific lasers Don't let the mathematical rigor of solutions get in the way of understanding the concepts. Laser Modeling: A Numerical Approach with Algebra and Calculus covers laser theory in an accessible way that can be applied immediately, and numerically, to real laser systems.

This book is a call to action, a song of grace, whispering softly to anyone listening for the call of inner knowing. For many, the call is so quiet it is perceived as a vague yearning for something more in life. This is the call of the songbird in your heart. This book has a simple intention; to help the reader recognise the simple magnificence of being and point toward the purpose of life. The story is intended to be read on a lazy, contemplative afternoon. It is inspired by the work of Dainin Katagiri, H W L Poonja, Don Miguel Ruiz, Eckhart Tolle and Marianne Williamson. The story is told within the simple, yet beautiful context of everyday life. While no religious and spiritual traditions are promoted, they are all encouraged and respected. It is the author s sincere hope that the readers accept his challenge to take charge of their spiritual life and find their true nature. The book is in two parts. The first is "The Magnificence of Being, A Simple Message of Grace" -- the story of a journey of self-discovery. The second is "Acts of Contemplation, Freedom for a Glad Heart" -- a series of exercises designed to demonstrate the principles of Part I through the reader's own efforts. Illustrated in full-colour to enhance the reading experience.

Sometimes you need a dream, and journeying the length of America's longest road is as dreamy as it gets. Attempting to complete the Pan American Highway during 2020 was, well, ultimately quite extraordinary! In October of 2019, Mark and his partner Selly headed for Patagonia with huge doses of excitement, just a little naivety and zero hindsight. Waiting for them were volcanoes, glaciers, an abundance of wildlife and enduring friendships. Also waiting were riots, breakdowns, a comical Caribbean island robbery and a not so comical fire, hurricanes and the occasional near-death experience. Oh, and the small matter of a global pandemic trapping them inside a Nicaraguan jungle-filled volcano crater, for several months. But then a twist of fate introduced them to 'Mocha', an adorable stray dog who won their hearts and insisted upon commandeering Mark's pannier. Her escape from Central America and back to England will prove just as gruelling as for her human companions. Sometimes, when the world spins upside down, the plans just get better!

A thrilling and vivid work of history, Class War weaves together literature and politics to chart the making and unmaking of social class through revolutionary combat. In a narrative that spans the globe and more than two centuries of history, Mark Steven traces the history of class war from the Haitian Revolution to Black Lives Matter. Surveying the literature of revolution, from the poetry of Shelley and Byron to the novels of Émile Zola and Jack London, exploring the writings of Frantz Fanon, Che Guevara, and Assata Shakur, Class War reveals the interplay between military action and the politics of class, showing how solidarity flourishes in times of conflict. Written with verve and ranging across diverse historical settings, Class War traverses industrial battles, guerrilla insurgencies, and anticolonial resistance, as well as large-scale combat operations waged against capitalism's regimes and its interstate system. In our age of economic crisis, ecological catastrophe, and planetary unrest, Steven tells the stories of those whose actions will help guide future militants toward a revolutionary horizon.

Glimpse what went on behind the walls of EnglandA*s first Criminal Lunatic Asylum! Mark Stevens reveals what life was like for the criminally insane, over one hundred years ago. From fresh research into the Broadmoor archives, Mark has uncovered the lost lives of patients whose mental illnesses led them to become involved in crime. Discover the five women who went on to become mothers in Broadmoor, giving birth to new life when three of them had previously taken it. Find out how several Victorian immigrants ended their hopeful journeys to England in madness and disaster. And follow the nail-biting numerous escapes, actual and attempted, as the first doctors tried to assert control over the residents. As well as bringing the lives of forgotten inmates to light, this thrilling book reveals new perspectives on some of the hospitalA*s most famous Victorian patients: Edward Oxford, the bar boy who shot at Queen Victoria. Richard Dadd, the brilliant artist and murderer of his own father. William Chester Minor, veteran of the American Civil War who went on to play a key part in the first Oxford English Dictionary. Christiana Edmunds, A"The Chocolate Cream PoisonerA* and frustrated lover from Brighton.

A poignant story about hopes, dreams, and how far one man's talent takes him before he realizes it's about what you do-and how you do it. Frank Ryder is unstoppable on the baseball field-his pitches arrive faster than a batter can swing, giving his opponents no chance. He's being heralded as a game-changing pitcher. But within the maelstrom of press, adulation, and wild speculation, Frank is a man alone. Haunted by a tragic incident from years past, he yearns to be the best but cannot reconcile the guilt he carries with the man everyone believes him to be. Frank's path to redemption leads him on a journey back to where his life changed forever, to visit his family, his high school coach, and his brother. Through reconnection and reconciliation with those also deeply affected by the devastating event of Frank's youth, he finds peace and his place in the world both in and outside the game. The Fireballer is a lyrical, moving story of undeniable talent and the life-changing power of forgiveness and a subtly romantic ode to America's favorite pastime.

A concentrated study of the relationships between modernism and transformative left utopianism, this volume provides an introduction to Marx and Marxism for modernists, and an introduction to modernism for Marxists. Its guiding hypothesis is that Marx’s writing absorbed the lessons of artistic and cultural modernity as much as his legacy concretely shaped modernism across multiple media.