AI

Tokyopop finally releases the final volume of Paradise Kiss (Parakiss for short)! Do you know how long I've been waiting for this, it's been torturous since I am a huge fan of Yazawa-san. *bows down*. Here is what the back says from Tokyopop:

Fashion, glamour, divas and designers put on their best threads and put on a show-stopping catwalk, featuring Yukari in the creations by the always stylish and aloof George. George's unusual and gorgeous creations receive mixed reactions, with more attention going to Yukari's good looks than the clothes she modeled.

With his future uncertain, his and Yukari's relationship comes to a crossroads. He has never found himself so enamored with one woman, yet his career might not unfold as he has always planned. Was the somewhat cold reception at the fashion show a preview to the reaction he can expect to his future designs?

As George wrestles with his next step following graduation from design school, the rest of the Paradise Kiss crew debate their next moves. Yukari wants to go to school but also pursue modeling, and with exams coming up, it's hard to concentrate with George seeming so distant and upset. As the crew struggles with their post-graduation plans, the New Year approaches. Major decisions will be made and lives will be altered ... forever.

What will become of Paradise Kiss?!

** SPOILERS **

As hinted in TKP's synopsis, "Major decisions will be made and lives will be altered ... forever. What will become of Paradise Kiss?!" we learn that Parakiss is no more. v_v

Kaori, George's gal-friend that studies in England visits him at his apartment. Yukari and George are there celebrating Christmas Eve together which is interrupted by Kaori. Yukari becomes jealous of Kaori's relationship towards George and starts to cry. George has told Kaori a lot of personal feelings on designing clothes and whether or not he should switch his interests towards make up. Everything he does is all talented and amazing =P! Kaori urges him to study in England with her because his 'style' will be favoured there than Japan. We see that George wishes to go there but has a 'burden' in which he cares for his mother. Since his mother is not married to his father, they are not entitled in the "will" so if anything were to happen to George's father, who would support them? With George's talent, he knows he can support himself but not live in such luxury but for his mother...?

Yukari listens the conversation between George and Kaori and feels left out. Thinking that she's only a "doll" whose only purpose is too look pretty and wear clothes. This is when Yukari discovers George's close-bond to Kaori and worries about her relationship between George. George has never slept with Kaori, instead he considers her a special friend that understands him.

George has not told the gang (Miwako, Arashi, and Isabella) about his decision to leave Parakiss so they continue working hard to make more new pieces to their brand name. Yukari was about to tell Miwako but realizes that it's something George must tell to them. She doesn't "chicken-out" okay! =P

Kaori visits George's father at his work and convinces him to allow George to study in England, but to keep herself out as a secret. George meets up with his father at the expensive Japanese restaurant where he first took Yukari on their first date. His father accidentally slips that it was Kaori who had visited him about George's problem. His father has talked to lawyers and have changed his will to insure the security of his mother and his son. *aww* ^^; Of course, George tells Kaori but hides the secret that he knew it was her who had convinced his dad to change the will.

As we all know, the frienship between Arashi and Hiro is not good. Their friendship has been ruined because Arashi has 'stole' Miwako away from Hiro. At Arashi's place, Miwako sends a sms message to Hiro's cell phone and sends back messages while Arashi is sleeping. She falls asleep but awakens when she sees Arashi reading her messages! Angry from the messages, Arashi throws her cellphone and breaks it. Miwako cries and Arashi feels guilty for his actions.

Miwako goes shopping with Yukari to both buy the same cellphones. They decide on a flip-phone with digicam capabilities so they can share pictures with each other! (It's not fair, I want a cellcam... *sobs* v-v). Arashi offers to pay for Miwako's cellphone and they are interrupted from George's excitemend of selling one of their designs to a store.

* END OF SPOILERS *

There's is more but I currently do not have the time so I will be back to update this review in the next few days. ^_^;

Yukari agrees to model for Paradise Kiss (George, Isabella, Arashi, and of course Miwako) and they begin to work on THE DRESS to enter in the competition. Yukari becomes attach to George in a romantic relationship but knowing George he'll just go for anyone! ;P We are introduced to new characters that are from Ai Yazawa's previous work, Gokinjo. Miwako and her sister, Mikako (she's introduced in this volume) looks exactly the same when in fact, Mikako is much older than her little sister.

The drwing style is a bit wierd, but possible to adjust to. And so worth doing so!
Yukari is one of those perfect kind of girls: Very studious, always obeying her parents wishes, never doing anything unexpected, wrong, or, well, anything except perfect. She doesn't have an easy time with it, though. When she runs into a punk and a transvestite on the street one day and is asked to modle clothing for them, she adamently refuses. At first. But then she meets George, the designer for Para-kiss, and she has to wonder if she should accept their invitation into this new, wonderful, and forbidden world.

Gives concrete explanation of each algorithm and real examples. Most other AI books were a blur until I read this one.

I enjoyed working through this text, but not without some re-visiting of my calculus classes and trigonometry brush-ups.
All in all a very good book, and also a great Graduate level reference for the inner workings of actual Artificial Intelligence algorithms.
If you are well prepared, this book is to the point, and well worth the read. Prepare for a visit to College-level Physics theorems, as many algorithms given require a working knowledge of the advanced principles of the science.

Hope this helps-

Re the comments below, I contact the publisher on the Internet and ask if they had a erratum sheet. In less than a day, a copy was sent to me, and they also have those sheets onsite for most of their publications. Additionally, a second edition was released in October which corrected the identifiable errors. A class act in my opinion.

No symbol of American strength and progress says super power more vividly than Air Force One, the flying center of democratic government when our president travels. This informative and interesting book traces the history of chief executive flying from Franklin D. Roosevelt to George W. Bush. Each president brought his own personality to the plane: John Kennedy was often hoisted in a steel cage to the entrance to avoid climbing the stairs with his ailing back; Richard Nixon preferred to remain isolated once aboard and seldom moved about the plane; Jimmy Carter used flights on Air Force One as a reward or inducement for congressional members' votes; Bill Clinton liked to pack the plane with political luminaries; in November Bush flew Air Force One into the heart of a hostile Baghdad to have Thanksgiving with our military in Iraq. There are numerous photographs and anecdotes about the plane and its place in history. There's also a foreword by broadcast journalist Bob Schiefer who was on board many flights in the Gerald Ford and Carter administrations.

This book would be of great interest to "presidential" buffs! There are wonderful, never before seen photos (at least to me)! I especially love the photo of President & Mrs. Reagan greeting their dog! However, I beleive the Reagans' dog was named "Rex" not Millie..as the caption states!

Van Hardesty brings a special expertise to this specialized aviation history by being the curator of the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum. Air Force One: The Aircraft That Shaped The Modern Presidency is a reader engaging, informed and informative presentation on those advances in air travel which have affected the American Presidency and enabled America's leaders to make more and farther-ranging visits around the world. More than 260 color and archival photographs illustrate this absorbing story of the air vehicles that have served the American President in the twentieth century. Air Force One is a strongly recommended contribution to both Aviation History reference collections and American Political Science supplemental reading lists.

It would be a good idea to have read the other two volumes before reading this one. However, there is a "the story thus far" section at the beginning, plus a few brief character summaries, so if you do end up starting with this one, at least you get a little help. When this volume starts, Yota is trying to keep Ai from disappearing forever. Things go wrong, of course, but Ai isn't destroyed (did you really think she would be, what with the title and all?). She doesn't seem to remember Yota, though, and there are some more complications. Although he loves Ai, Yota still cares for Moemi, and now there's someone else who likes him.

The story was interesting, and the art was still lovely. That's why this book still gets such a high rating. However, all the further romantic complications kind of got on my nerves. Aren't two women enough?! With Ai's amnesia to drive him crazy, I don't think it was really necessary to add another girl (Nobuko) to the list of people Yota loves/likes too much to want to hurt. I suppose I'm just glad that Masakazu Katsura changed Nobuko's hairstyle so that it wasn't so much like Moemi's - they looked so alike that I kept confusing them. Anyway, it's still a good series, but I hope that there aren't too many more characters added to the mix.

Volume 3 of the serialized story of the relationship between Yota and Ai is *not* the place to start. Go to the beginning, Preproduction, it'll be well worth the money. People who *have* read the first two volumes should need little encouragement to pick up this one, as it starts right with the cliffhanger that ended the second volume.

Without spoiling the second volume, the resolution of the cliffhanger takes up the first quarter of the book, and is the confrontation that provides the climax to the anime OAV series. The rest of the volume is brand-new ground. Ai is rescued from her creator, or perhaps not, as she soon disappears. Yota has the barest of evidence that she existed at all, as he carries on through the rest of winter.

A new school year starts (in spring in Japan), and Yota is held back a year. Neither of his friends, Takashi and Moemi, know what to make of the changes in Yota. A girl named Nobuko met Yota a couple years back and has gotten transferred to his school in hopes of meeting him again, and then there is Ai. Ai shows up as a fellow student in his class, but she has no memory of Yota.

Yota is torn, he still loves Moemi, whose relationship with Takashi is still not working out, Nobuko reminds him a bit of Ai, and she definitely likes him, and Ai is still Ai, even if she is disturbed by how much Yota seems to know about her. Yota's nobility gets the best of him again as he tries to keep from hurting Nobuko even as he tries to figure out what is going on with Ai.

Katsura pulls off a great turning point in the story in vol3. We are introduced to a new love interest, Ai is eventually returned but has amnesia, and more angst and suffering is experience. the art work is fantastic and by the end you'll be jumping to get vol 4.

Any student of aviation or U.S. history will enjoy this flight through sixty years of presidential transport. In an attractive package crammed with beautiful portraits of the world's most-recognized airplane, author Robert Dorr turns his encyclopedic knowledge of civil and military aviation to chronicling the evolution of this American flagship of the skies. From the converted military cargo planes used by FDR during World War II, to the gleaming prop-driven Constellation favored by Ike, to the historic Boeing 707 that carried JFK in life and death, Dorr shows how these airplanes came to embody American power and prestige in their global travels. While he covers the technical details of each aircraft and shows how the President's plane evolved with civil and military aviation advances, the book also provides glimpses into presidential character. Nixon, for example, was polite but reserved on his jet, and almost never ventured up to the cockpit. LBJ treated his fleet of aircraft like flying offices, wheeling and dealing with congressmen and politicians as he corralled them into flights to their districts or to his Texas ranch. President Reagan was a favorite of his flight crews, and returned their respect with casual visits to their communications and flight stations. Jimmy Carter, uncomfortable with the imperial aura of Air Force One, removed the "V" (for VIP) prefix from its official VC-137 designation. He also exasperated his radio operators on occasion by discussing classified information "in the clear" (as was his prerogative, of course). The changes in Air Force One parallel many of the advances in air transport technology since the late 1930's, and reflect the changing role of the presidency over six decades. Air Force One has served as private jet and potential doomsday command post. Today it's a global ambassador of American power. Robert Dorr does justice to his subject with clear writing and the behind-the-scenes access that take readers inside this fascinating aircraft. His book is almost as good as a ride on the 747 that now carries President George W. Bush.

There are a lot of words between these two covers, but I was especially taken by the photos --- especially those which show the special area at Andrews Air Force Base, Maryland, where AIR FORCE ONE, the president's plane, lives.

This is really two books in one. It's partly what's going on today, including some inner secrets. It's also partly a history of presidential air travel. The author tells what happened to AIR FORCE ONE on September 11, 2001, and he also recounts the past experiences of presidents like Franklin D. Roosevelt, who was the first to fly while in office.

I was honored to have been able to assist Bob Dorr in the creation of this book with photographs from my Presidential collection. With superb text in all aspects, the selected photos certainly aid in providing a reader the clearest look yet at the aviation fleet devoted to serving the President as he conducts national and international business.

AIR FORCE ONE by Robert F. Dorr is by far is the best review yet of the history, types of aircraft and logistics essential to the safe and timely travel by our Chief Executive and an impressive display of American prestige.

I first read Paradise Kiss in the Japanese mag, Zipper. Since I don't know Japanese, I don't know what the story is all about but just admire the drawings( the clothes are just so awesome!). Now I have read the manga (finally!) and I think Ai Yazawa is quite stick to the reality that we need to face every day. Of course, she has magnified the small parts which makes the manga a lot funnier than we are in real life. But this does not make her manga plain. The clothes are so glamorous (u will wish to wear those out!) and detailed; and the characters are very different from one another. Trust me, you will like it! ( I bought some of her other mangas too!)

I'm soo happy that Miwako's on the front cover! ^_^ She's one of my favourite characters in Paradise Kiss besides Isabella (hoping he'll be on the front of v.5 *v*).

Anyways, in this volume lots of stuff happen. Yukari's relationship with George becomes more than kisses on the lips... it's more of all over her body. ^^; *SPOILER BEGINS* Yukari loses her virginity to George in Arashi's bed... hahaha Plus Yukari starts to become a professional model because she's got the whole 'package'! *SPOILER ENDS*

This series is absolutely wonderful! Yes, the ratings were a bit off rating it as teen but that was probably based on the first two volumes. The style is unique and the if you don't like the storyline, the art is worth it on its own. Yes, there is sex in this story but it's kind of important to the plotline. It helps develop the personalities that the characters have. This series has definitely been my favorite out of all others. I also recommend Kodocha and Chobits for anyone else who enjoys shoujo titles.

Waysun Liao's knowledge seems to be genuine. He has some valuable insights and ideas.

The chapters on the background and history of taiji are somewhat misleading. The author vastly oversimplifies the history of Chinese philosophy and collectively calls Taoist, Confucian, Moist, and Buddhist philosophies "Tai Chi ideals." The section on taiji's martial history takes much the same approach. The author never mentions Chen village and offers only a vague interpretation of taijiquan's history.

The most valuable portions of this book are the chapters on qi cultivation and the classics. The final sections offer translations and interpretations of three taiji classics, but to my disappointment the author offered no historical background or context for these classics -- not even a few sentences indicating who the authors were or what their role in taiji history was.

Waysun Liao is almost certainly one of the great masters of the North American continent, and his work shows this as well as he can.

This is a great fundamental text, useful for both students, enthusiasts and researchers. Many serious reviewers may have somehow been rendered unaware of how much ignorance there is even in the so called learned of taichi in this country. Master Waysun does a fantastic "101" way of clearing things up and hopefully encouraging those who are satisfied with being trendy and 'fit' to take up a further level of experience.

I had the pleasure of meeting Waysun Liao when studying with Master Greg Chapman and found him to be a most impressive figure. Whatever doubts one might have about Liao's take on Tai Chi can be immediately dispelled after seeing his first opponent set airborne from no touch at all.

While a simple work that by it self will offer only groundwork, this book is good for beginners, cynics, contrary martial artists and teachers alike.

I found this book valuable, but not outstanding. Waysun Liao is not personally known to me, but according to the sources in this book, he is an avid believer in Cheng Man Ching's perspective on Tai Chi. I am in no position to critique one perspective or another, but my take on this book was that it was tinted significantly by Master Cheng's perspective. That being said, I have not avidly studied Master Cheng (although I intend to read some of his/students' work), but there was a consistent underlying bias towards one way of looking that I wasn't convinced was originally intended by the "classics"authors. I'll try to explain what I mean in the paragraphs below.

The first section is an abridged history of Tai Chi. The next two chapters are on ch'i and jing, respecively. These two chapters are nice. They are Master Liao's (the author)insights into the concepts of ch'i and jing. He provides some nice descriptions and definitions of what he feels these terms mean, as well as medititative approaches to trying to develop ch'i and jing. As with the majority of books I've read, these definitions are things like "life energy", "internal energy" and "intrinsic energy"-- and the outcome after practicing his meditative technique is that you should soon "feel your ch'i".

Liao attempts to be more precise and detailed then that, but ultimately, as with many things, the reader is still reduced to "life energy" as the basis of all things. His descriptions include many analogical/symbolic diagrams that are sometimes helpful, but for me, mostly added nothing-- in fact, when he attempts to use real-life analogies, it's clear that his understanding of Newtonian physics is inadequate to truly use these types of examples to try and explain what he means. Ultimately, ch'i as the "energy of the universe" and "immune to the laws of time and space" is inadequate to the subject.

OTOH, his treatise on jing is interesting and informative, although still relies to heavily on his abstract definition of ch'i. Utilizing a hammer and nail analogy left me shaking my head in dismay. Liao does not always correlate his text with his hand-written diagrams. I did like his explanation of shoong, or relaxation.

His perspective pervades his Tai Chi Classics translation. The nice thing is that he translates the Classics for us non-fluent (in Chinese) readers. He then adds his own commentary, and it is heavily flavored with comments on ch'i etc. as he defines it--often where I felt the original translation wasn't referring to ch'i at all, but to other things. Sometimes his commentary is just saying it again in a slightly different way, IMO sometimes distorting the "original" meaning.

As with all things of this nature, there will be many perspectives. And it only takes one to really make a difference in specific individuals. I feel that Master Liao has given his best effort, with good intent, and that this is how HE truly understands these esoteric concepts. For that, this is a valuable book, and I think it provides a number of insights. I felt like I understood better what ch'i and jing and all that is when Masters use the terms, although I'm still not certain, just based on this book, what it actually is.

All in all, this book has and will improve my Tai Chi, and I think it brought me a step closer. But I wish there could be someone (check out Peter Ralston's early works) that could approach things on a more grand, open perspective, and gradually wheedle it down to the specifics, explaing how/why process-wise, it evolved. I didn't feel I got the BASIS for Master Liao's perspective that I think I needed to truly appreciate his effort.

Thanks for listening.

There is a lot of information is Guttmann's translations of Kuo's T'ai Chi Boxing Chronicle. However, I found much of it difficult to access. Kuo discusses many aspects at great length, especially the internal energy work of the system. To do so, he uses a very specialized vocabulary that is not always explained clearly. There are also points where I felt that the translator may not have chosen the best word to make the meaning clear. One example of this is where the text speaks of adding "strength to every separate strike." The word "strength" seems odd, as it suggests a muscular strength rather than a soft power. This may not have been the meaning, but it is an example of where more explanation by the translator would have helped. However, it is clear that the author knew a great deal about tai chi and has honestly tried to pass on what he knew. I found the section on if tai chi was only a soft art, or could it also contain hardness to be especially interesting. While I wouldn't recommend this as an introductory text, someone who already has a background in tai chi could get a lot out of The T'ai Chi Boxing Chronicle if they were willing to put in a bit of effort.

This is really a good book.
Absolutely not for beginners.
It is very deep in the analysis of almost all the Tai Chi aspects as you can see in the Book Summary listed by other reviewers. It really gave you material to think and work on.
Anyway sometime there are terms not explained that could really mislead the meaning of the matter. That's the reason why only 4 stars. I really and strongly recommend this book to all the instructors and advanced practitioners whatever style they practice. This is a book that will forever give you Tai Chi insights each time you read it.

"In this book we will examine the Chen family treasure, the chronicles that were hidden for nine generations until the time of Chen Wang Ting, near the end of the Ming dynasty...", P. 8.

For those new to Tai Chi: The practitioner of Tai Chi Chuan (trans. Grand Ultimate fist) must be willing to spend a great deal of time refining each movement. Tai Chi will teach even the most athletic practitioner to move muscles that they didn't know they had and to stretch their range of movement without loosing balance. To be soft but not weak, to deliver powerful strikes but not tense (Like a whip it may crack at the end but it is a flowing motion that gets it there). To listen to the opponents move and unbalance them (Granting the practitioner the ability to win a fight without hurting the opponent should he/she choose to do so). For health it is a non-impact exercise that will teach you how to use and strengthen your body. It is good for the elderly because the training is soft and gentle (In fact training with too much power will hinder ones Tai Chi development).

The Book: This book is for those who want to deepen their knowledge of Tai Chi. It breaks apart and gives detailed explanations of the philosophy, training methods, and learning sequence. It will NOT ACTUALLY TEACH YOU ANY OF THESE THINGS. It will only explain what you are looking to accomplish within each aspect of training. I would recommend this book for anyone who wants an overview of what Tai Chi is. Experienced practitioners should read and reread this book (as they improve in one skill something else will suddenly make sense). For learning applications I would recommend Feng Zhiqiang and Chen Xiaowang¡¦s English language book, ¡§Chen Style TaijiQuan¡¨, ISBN# 7505404806. I would not recommend attempting to learn a form from a book, find a qualified teacher or buy the video.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Introduction. The Overview

* The Yin-Yang Reversal Theory

* The Tai Chi Body

* Tai Chi Balance

* Tai Chi stillness and Action

* Awareness Energy

* Enlightenment Through Action

Chapter One. The Three Steps of Tai Chi Boxing Principles

* The Weak Beats the Strong

* The Slow Beats the Fast

Chapter Two. The Three Steps of Tai Chi Boxing

* Step One: Investigate the Body, the Form, the Waist, the Top of the Head, the Spine, and the Steps

* Step Two: Study Moving, Receiving, Collecting and Striking Energy

* Step Three: Study Following, Sinking, Lightness, and Dexterity

Chapter Three. Investigating the Method of Tai Chi Boxing¡¦s Push Hands

* Step One: The Push Hands System of Awareness Energy

* Step Two: The Posture and Force of Adhere, Stick, Connect, and Follow

* Step Three: Seeking Awareness Energy in Push Hands

Chapter Four. The Energies of the Eight Gates and Five Steps

* The Energies of the Eight Gates Clearly Defined

* The Five Steps Clearly Divided

* The Practice of the Set and its Representation of the Eight Gates and Five Steps

Chapter Five. The Sequence of Learning Tai Chi Boxing

* Part One: The Practice of the Set

* Part Two: The Practice of Drawing Silk

* Part Three: Learning to Separate Energies

* Part Four: The Practice of Chi Kung

* Part Five: The Practice of the Spirit of Vitality

* Part Six: Uniting the Inside with the Outside

* Part Seven: Getting the Opportunity and the Position

* Part Eight: Sacrificing Yourself to Follow the Opponent

* Part Nine: Knowing Yourself and Knowing the Enemy

* 1. The Order of Learning Tai Chi Boxing

* 2. The Foundation of Centrifugal Force

* 3. Lightness and Dexterity are Revolving

* 4. The Seventy-Two Essential Terms of the Chinese Boxing Art

* 5. The Yin-Yang Summary by Chen Chang Hsing

Chapter Six. Guidelines for Tai Chi Application

* The Nine Principles of the Practice of Tai Chi Boxing

* Tai Chi Boxing¡¦s Drawing of Silk

* The Nine Rules of Tai Chi Martial Arts

* The Tai Chi Boxing Book ¡§Kung Hsin Chieh¡¨

* Tai Chi Boxing¡¦s Chart for Evaluating Progress

* The Question of the Hard and the Soft

* Tai Chi Boxing¡¦s Definition and its Motion

The Ancient Poem of the Universal Post

I would like to start out by saying that Im not a fan of romance manga. Even with that said, this is a very good story. Its warm and touching, and the characters have very real emotions. Even if you hate romance, give this a try.

The basic story is, there is this guy, Kaoru Hanabishi. He has some troubles with his family and runs off to live by himself. Skip forward eighteen years, he lives in his own apartment and is a sophmore in college. Okay, one day he runs into this girl (Aoi Sakuraba) at the train station that is hopelessly lost, so he helps her out. her destination is on his way home anyway. she is there to find her childhood sweetheart who she has not seen for about eighteen years or so. She soon finds out that the man helping her is the man she has waited so long to meet. What follows is a funny, sexy, and entertaining story that keep you reading to the very last page.

P.S. this was the first Manga I have ever read and it was a good one :).

When Kaoru Hanabishi helped a young girl out at the train station he never thought it would be his ould friend Aoi Sakuraba who is set on being his wife. This manga is more of a guy's type of manga, but it's fine for girls to if you don't mind the nudity. But over all the story line is great! Tokyopop will never let you down when it comes to manga's and never have i been disapointed with them. Thanks!

the book are many free papers on internet.

There are very theory technologies but no new contents about DEVS.

These articles originated as papers from a recent meeting so that some may be found on the web. However,the articles are extended and stringently reviewed revisions of the original papers the collection itself is of great value since it amounts to a whole more than the sum. The introductory article is not just a precis of the contents, it does an excellent job of placing discrete event modeling and simulation technology within the context of AI, software engineering, and systems engineering.

Contrary to one reviewer, the book cannot be derived in any way from what's available on the web. If you are interested in new paradigms for technology, it belongs on your bookshelf.

This book offers a view of the potential of the discrete event paradigm to enhance not only modeling and simulation but many new technologies involving design, management and control. Many of the papers take the DEVS theory as presented in "Theory of Modeling and Simulation" (Zeigler, Praehofer,and Kim, Academic Press, 2000, 2nd Ed.) one step further into new application domains. Serves as a great companion to TMS2000.