This comprehensive introduction to polarized light provides students and researchers with the background and the specialized knowledge needed to fully utilize polarized light. It provides a basic introduction to the interaction of light with matter for those unfamiliar with photochemistry and photophysics. An in-depth discussion of polarizing optics is also given. Different analytical techniques are introduced and compared and introductions to the use of polarized light in various forms of spectroscopy are provided.
Key Features
* Starts at a basic level and develops tools for research problems
* Discusses practical devices for controlling polarized light
* Compares the Jones, Mueller, and Poincare sphere methods of analysis

In November 2009, Omar Luqmaan-Harris sent a text message to Stephanie Casher: "What if we started our own publishing company?" With those fateful words, Omar and Stephanie recruited James W. Lewis and stepped off the long, twisty road toward traditional book publication, and charted a new course. The three authors reclaimed destiny under the umbrella of their own creation, The Pantheon Collective (TPC). The goal was ambitious: establish a new publishing company, finish the edits/rewrites for the first book, cultivate an online presence, and launch their debut novel at an Atlanta book conference -- all within six months. "Ambitious" is an understatement. "Crazy" is more like it. In a no-holds-barred, reality-check look at independent book publication, Omar, Stephanie, and James reveal the behind-the-scenes chaos of prepping a new novel for launch. Read about the personal highs and lows from the unique perspectives of the author (James), editor (Stephanie) and marketing expert (Omar); and how the dream of publishing books was almost derailed by doubt, fear, stress, and infighting. Through it all, they persevered. These three inexperienced, yet determined "authorpreneurs" joined forces to shake up the publishing world, ultimately publishing four books in two years, selling nearly 30,000 copies, and receiving several literary awards. F.A.T.E. - From Authors to Entrepreneurs is a tale of burnout, conflict resolution, teamwork, and ultimately, success. TPC's tagline says it all: Three Minds. One mission. No Limits. Learn more at: www.pantheoncollective.com

MICHELLE LARSEN has found a man straight out of a romance novel--handsome, fit, educated, and pulling in a six-figure income. But despite the exceptional qualities and his obvious interest in her, things are moving too slow between them. Unlike most men who can't wait to get in her pants, this particular man refuses to take things to the next level.
DARYL JACKSON has grown tired of the nightclub scene and wants to settle down, but he has a secret that always seems to interrupt any potential love connection once he reveals it. He believes Michelle is the ideal woman, but can she handle the truth?
After six weeks of dating, and still no attempt from him to get her horizontal, Michelle grows sex-starved. She is driving herself crazy trying to figure out Daryl's problem During a weekend getaway in Palm Springs, Michelle finally puts an end to the what's-wrong-with-Daryl guessing game and demands to know what's up. Not only does Daryl answer all her questions, Michelle learns firsthand that you really need to be careful with what you wish for

People who date interracially are often called traitors to their own kind. Self-haters. Sellouts. Loan Officer Tammy McDonald has just come out of another failed relationship with a wannabe thug. To break this destructive pattern, she leaves her home city of Dallas for San Diego. As she settles in rainbow California, fantasies of meeting an ebony prince fade, so she eyes Dale Bristol as a potential ivory replacement. Terrell Jackson is San Diego's only black optometrist. Women regularly drop in for more than just eye exams, but he stays true to his girl Tasha until a wet dream unleashes a ridiculous outburst. Fed up with her jealous fits, he denounces the common "dedramanators" in his life-black women. Even though Penelope Miller was raised in the South by a racist father once affiliated with the KKK, she can't ignore her attraction to black men. But she never expected to fall in love with one...nor did she expect her "interracial felony" to threaten their lives. SELLOUT follows these three individuals and the consequences of dating outside their race. In the quest to find what they think is missing in their lives, they encounter guilt, fear and mess they never anticipated...including murder.

The congregation is a distinctly American religious structure, and is often overlooked in traditional studies of religion. But one cannot understand American religion without understanding the congregation.Volume 1: "Portraits of Twelve Religious Communities" chronicles the founding, growth, and development of congregations that represent the diverse and complex reality of American local religious cultures. The contributors explore multiple issues, from the fate of American Protestantism to the rise of charismatic revivalism.Volume 2: "New Perspectives in the Study of Congregations" builds upon those historical studies, and addresses three crucial questions: Where is the congregation located on the broader map of American cultural and religious life? What are congregations' distinctive qualities, tasks, and roles in American culture? And, what patterns of leadership characterize congregations in America?These essays are an indispensable tool for understanding American congregations and American religion as a whole.