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Author: Steve McCurdy Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform ISBN: 9781514746868 Category : Golden Gate Bridge (San Francisco, Calif.) Languages : en Pages : 0
Book Description
This is the fascinating the story of how a few great Americans, between 1930 and 1952, overcame incredible challenges to build some of the world's most remarkable architectural wonders. Drawing upon his impressive knowledge of American history, the author chronicles the country's emergence in the Roaring Twenties as the world's pre-eminent builder of great dams, bridges, and skyscrapers. He skillfully combines little-known back stories with vintage photographs to show how America's architects, engineers and contractors, working with arcane technologies and slide rules, used innovation, ingenuity, and inspiration to build some of the world's most extraordinary structures faster and better than they have been built before or since. Mr. McCurdy's narrative includes: - Hoover Dam In the depths of the Great Depression, a man from Maine named Frank Crowe assembled a rag-tag army of 5,000 unemployed men in the middle of the Mojave Desert. Working in conditions that were sometimes brutal, without the benefit of modern technologies, Crowe and his men not only built the world's greatest dam, but they finished it under budget two years ahead of schedule. - The Golden Gate Bridge In his account of the building of this celebrated bridge, McCurdy tells the little-known back story of Charles Ellis. Fired by a boss jealous of his engineering genius, Ellis worked tirelessly behind the scenes, without pay or acknowledgement, to write the bid specifications for every single component of the bridge. Although he is now regarded as the father of the bridge, Ellis received no recognition during his lifetime. - The Empire State Building Paul Starrett was an organizational genius, and is often referred to as the father of the American skyscraper. McCurdy tells the remarkable story of how, in 1931, Starrett built the Empire State Building from ribbon cutting to completion in the astonishing time of 391 days, a record which has never been challenged and which amazes structural engineers to this day. - The Pentagon Prior to the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, 40,000 War Department personnel in Washington DC were spread out among 22 separate buildings. One man was given the task of bringing them all together under one roof. Less than eight months after he broke ground, Brehon Burke Somervell was moving employees into the world's largest building, the 6.6 million square foot Pentagon. - The SS United States When he was eight years old, William Francis Gibbs began dreaming of building the world's greatest ocean liner. Fifty-eight years later, on May 14, 1952, Gibbs guided his thousand foot long dream ship into open waters. With the greatest power to weight ratio ever achieved in any passenger vessel, the SS United States broke the transatlantic crossing speed record by 10 hours on her maiden voyage. In the second half of Epic Achievements Against Incredible Odds, the author carefully traces the country's post-war decline as the world's great builder, and identifies and analyzes the causes of its slide. McCurdy ends his book with a frank and compelling assessment of how, when and whether, the United States will ever bounce back and re-establish its supremacy as the world's master builder of architectural icons. Order this book now to enjoy the unforgettable stories of the men behind of some of history's most enduring engineering accomplishments.
Author: Steve McCurdy Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform ISBN: 9781514746868 Category : Golden Gate Bridge (San Francisco, Calif.) Languages : en Pages : 0
Book Description
This is the fascinating the story of how a few great Americans, between 1930 and 1952, overcame incredible challenges to build some of the world's most remarkable architectural wonders. Drawing upon his impressive knowledge of American history, the author chronicles the country's emergence in the Roaring Twenties as the world's pre-eminent builder of great dams, bridges, and skyscrapers. He skillfully combines little-known back stories with vintage photographs to show how America's architects, engineers and contractors, working with arcane technologies and slide rules, used innovation, ingenuity, and inspiration to build some of the world's most extraordinary structures faster and better than they have been built before or since. Mr. McCurdy's narrative includes: - Hoover Dam In the depths of the Great Depression, a man from Maine named Frank Crowe assembled a rag-tag army of 5,000 unemployed men in the middle of the Mojave Desert. Working in conditions that were sometimes brutal, without the benefit of modern technologies, Crowe and his men not only built the world's greatest dam, but they finished it under budget two years ahead of schedule. - The Golden Gate Bridge In his account of the building of this celebrated bridge, McCurdy tells the little-known back story of Charles Ellis. Fired by a boss jealous of his engineering genius, Ellis worked tirelessly behind the scenes, without pay or acknowledgement, to write the bid specifications for every single component of the bridge. Although he is now regarded as the father of the bridge, Ellis received no recognition during his lifetime. - The Empire State Building Paul Starrett was an organizational genius, and is often referred to as the father of the American skyscraper. McCurdy tells the remarkable story of how, in 1931, Starrett built the Empire State Building from ribbon cutting to completion in the astonishing time of 391 days, a record which has never been challenged and which amazes structural engineers to this day. - The Pentagon Prior to the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, 40,000 War Department personnel in Washington DC were spread out among 22 separate buildings. One man was given the task of bringing them all together under one roof. Less than eight months after he broke ground, Brehon Burke Somervell was moving employees into the world's largest building, the 6.6 million square foot Pentagon. - The SS United States When he was eight years old, William Francis Gibbs began dreaming of building the world's greatest ocean liner. Fifty-eight years later, on May 14, 1952, Gibbs guided his thousand foot long dream ship into open waters. With the greatest power to weight ratio ever achieved in any passenger vessel, the SS United States broke the transatlantic crossing speed record by 10 hours on her maiden voyage. In the second half of Epic Achievements Against Incredible Odds, the author carefully traces the country's post-war decline as the world's great builder, and identifies and analyzes the causes of its slide. McCurdy ends his book with a frank and compelling assessment of how, when and whether, the United States will ever bounce back and re-establish its supremacy as the world's master builder of architectural icons. Order this book now to enjoy the unforgettable stories of the men behind of some of history's most enduring engineering accomplishments.
Author: Alfred Russel Wallace Publisher: Harvard University Press ISBN: 0674726022 Category : Biography & Autobiography Languages : en Pages : 588
Book Description
Marking the centennial of Alfred Russel Wallace's death, James Costa presents an elegant edition of the "Species Notebook" of 1855-1859, which Wallace kept during his Malay Archipelago expedition. Presented in facsimile with text transcription and annotations, this never-before-published document provides a window into the travels, trials, and genius of the co-discoverer of natural selection. In one section, headed "Note for Organic Law of Change"--a critique of geologist Charles Lyell's anti-evolutionary arguments--Wallace sketches a book he would never write, owing to the unexpected events of 1858. In that year he sent a manuscript announcing his discovery of natural selection to Charles Darwin. Lyell and the botanist Joseph Hooker proposed a joint reading at the Linnean Society of his scientific paper with Darwin's earlier private writings on the subject. Darwin would go on to publish On the Origin of Species in 1859, to much acclaim; pre-empted, Wallace's first book on evolution waited two decades, but by then he had abandoned his original concept. On the Organic Law of Change realizes in spirit Wallace's unfinished project, and asserts his stature as not only a founder of biogeography and the preeminent tropical biologist of his day but as Darwin's equal.
Author: Sander M. Goldberg Publisher: Oxford University Press ISBN: 0195357566 Category : Literary Criticism Languages : en Pages : 209
Book Description
This book is a major new study of the epic poetry of Republican Rome. Goldberg treats the creators of these now-fragmentary works not simply as predecessors of Vergil, but as pioneers and poets in their own right. But Goldberg goes beyond practical criticism, exploring in the literary experiments of Andronicus, Naevius, Ennius, and Cicero issues of poetry and patronage, cultural assimilation and national ideology, modeling and originality that both come to characterize Roman literature of all periods and continue to shape modern responses to that literature. What emerges from Goldberg's study is both a fresh perspective on Vergil's achievement and new insights into the cultural dynamics of second-century Rome.
Author: Nigel Mansell Publisher: Simon and Schuster ISBN: 1471151824 Category : Biography & Autobiography Languages : en Pages : 384
Book Description
After finishing as runner-up three times in the drivers' world championship, in 1992 Mansell finally secured the title. It was the crowning achievement of a hugely successful career, in which he won 31 Grand Prix, a record for a British driver that stood until Lewis Hamilton overhauled him in 2014. Always an aggressive driver, his exciting style meant he was hailed as a hero by his millions of fans in the UK and around the world. Out of the car, he was outspoken and charismatic, which merely served to enhance his reputation. Now, 20 years after he retired from F1, Mansell looks back on a stellar career in which he battled against many legends of the sport, from Lauda through the Senna and Prost years and on to Schumacher. He provides vivid insights into what it was like to race against those greats in an era when the risks to drivers were enormous. He explains what motivated him to get to the top, and takes the reader behind the scenes to give an unrivalled insight into the sport and the key moments of his career. Still closely involved in Formula One, Mansell assesses how F1 has changed, and gives his authoritative verdict on the sport, the cars and the drivers. It is an unmissable account from one of Britain's greatest sporting heroes.
Author: Rob Johnson Publisher: Thames & Hudson ISBN: 0500770875 Category : History Languages : en Pages : 251
Book Description
How military forces have prevailed against the odds, explained through vivid narratives and specially commissioned battle plans. Throughout history men and women have fought, endured, and sometimes emerged victorious though the odds were against them. What conditions must exist to enable relatively small or weak forces to challenge and even overcome the strong? Here are twenty historical examples, from 1777 to the present, that reveal both the common themes and the exceptional aspects of those achievements. The examples range from George Washington’s rebuilding of the patriot army in the Revolutionary War to the defense of the Philippines in 1941–42, from Si´mon Boli´var’s liberation of South America to Finland’s defiance of the Soviet Union in the Winter War of 1939. The courage of the Devonshire Regiment at Bois des Buttes in France in 1918 shows what skillful and determined resistance can achieve, though—as in the defense of Stalingrad in 1943—isolated forces were often left with no option but to fight. The resolve that accompanies a last-ditch effort is demonstrated in the Israeli Defense of the Golan Heights in 1973. Two more recent examples— the Battle of Debecka Pass in Iraq in 2003 and the battle of the Patrol Bases in Afghanistan, 2006–08—show that some themes from these extraordi-nary historic achievements are still played out in warfare today.
Author: Craig Nelson Publisher: Penguin ISBN: 1101057734 Category : History Languages : en Pages : 492
Book Description
A New York Times Bestseller "Celebrates a bold era when voyaging beyond the Earth was deemed crucial to national security and pride." -The Wall Street Journal Restoring the drama, majesty, and sheer improbability of an American triumph, this is award-winning historian Craig Nelson's definitive and thrilling story of man's first trip to the moon. At 9:32 a.m. on July 16, 1969, the Apollo 11 rocket launched in the presence of more than a million spectators who had gathered to witness a truly historic event. Through interviews, 23,000 pages of NASA oral histories, and declassified CIA documents on the space race, Rocket Men presents a vivid narrative of the moon mission, taking readers on the journey to one of the last frontiers of the human imagination.
Author: Publisher: JD Tremblay ISBN: Category : Biography & Autobiography Languages : en Pages : 601
Book Description
Do you need help finding clarity in reaching your goals and discovering purpose in life? Are you hungry for more and still can’t decipher how to get to the next level? This endless search without answers had me thinking depressingly for years. “If your goals are not scaring you, set the bar higher." – JD Tremblay. I have never resonated with a quote that captures my life’s motto so accurately. Consequently, I had to perform exceedingly above the average norm to reach the point where my purpose began to invigorate my hunger for more. Fear can be an intense stimulus to energize your hunger or can cripple you. Despite countless undesired setbacks, I have always strived for extra. Who will be your guide as you navigate toward a solution to these vital decisions? I am JD Tremblay, a finisher of some of the world's most extreme triathlons, including the Epicdeca. Here to share with you that it’s acceptable to have lofty ambitions if you put the effort in the right direction. Setting high objectives should daunt you. However, they should also provide a driving force to achieve whatever you prearranged for yourself. In this book, you will find how I overcame some of my challenges to be one of only three athletes worldwide to complete the Epicdeca, and most importantly, how you can flip my experiences into fuel for your journey. I put my body and mind beyond demanding adversities to eventually triumph over them and be able to impart this wisdom through this concise manuscript. No worries! I learned that personal struggles come and go; the key is to yearn for knowledge and growth. Join me on this voyage and explore how you can cultivate a hunger for success that may bring about amazing transformations in your life.
Author: Gerard Charles Wilson Publisher: Gerard Charles Wilson Publisher ISBN: 1876262389 Category : History Languages : en Pages : 232
Book Description
A history of colonial Australia, not of the famous and heroic, but of the small people, the anonymous people who were the heartbeat of a growing nation In this first book of his social history series, the author sets out on a journey through Australia’s colonial history with his ancestors from British Isles. All arrived by the 1830s, two on the First Fleet in 1788. Most are from central and southern England. Four are from two little villages close by each other in Wiltshire: Semley and Donhead St Mary. In addition, two convicts and one free settler came from Dublin, Monaghan, and Donegal in Ireland, and a farming family of four came from Aberdeen in Scotland. It is surprising how much he finds out about them all—joys, successes, and tragedies. Their lives are anything but dull. James Joseph Wilson, who narrowly escaped the gallows and was surprisingly literate for a man thrice convicted of burglary, arrived in Port Jackson on board the Prince Regent in 1827. The colonial authorities assigned him to Robert Lowe, one of the Colony’s early landholders. Lowe sent him to Mudgee in north-western New South Wales to shepherd his flocks. Young 18-year-old hutkeeper James Joseph was one of the first inhabitants in the Mudgee area. He teamed up with fellow convict Michael Jones to look for land. They married sisters Jane and Elizabeth Harris, daughters of free settlers, and travelled northwest to the Coonamble area, 330 miles from Sydney, to set up their farms. The two freed convicts and the Harris sisters became his great-great-grandparents. Nine convicts are in the direct line of his ancestors. He traces their lives against the social and historical background of colonial Australia, presenting a very different picture from the view usually found in school history books. They all thrive, taking advantage of their second chance. This book is the story of their redemption. Besides offering the reader an interesting, sometimes gripping family story, he reveals the cultural continuities in which his ancestors acted and how they responded to those continuities in a totally different physical environment. He seeks to discover to what extent the outlook, culture and character of his ancestors worked to make his extended family and him what they are. Naming his family Catholic is not gratuitous. Religion, as a social and political force, always plays an important role in a nation. It is emphatically the case in Australia where the national establishment threw together a sizable underclass of (Irish) Catholics with the Protestant Ascendancy. How was that to work out in a democratic order where there was no legal disqualification based on religion? He deals with that. Second, of my original ancestors only three were Catholic. The rest were a mixture of Protestants, from the Church of England to Scottish Wesleyans, to dissenters. How the Wilsons ended up Catholic makes an interesting story. And, finally, perhaps most importantly, he sketches a picture of the way Australia developed as a new people and a new nation. In 1950, most Australians had an ancestry like his.
Author: John Burrow Publisher: Vintage ISBN: 0307268527 Category : History Languages : en Pages : 525
Book Description
Treating the practice of history not as an isolated pursuit but as an aspect of human society and an essential part of the culture of the West, John Burrow magnificently brings to life and explains the distinctive qualities found in the work of historians from the ancient Egyptians and Greeks to the present. With a light step and graceful narrative, he gathers together over 2,500 years of the moments and decisions that have helped create Western identity. This unique approach is an incredible lens with which to view the past. Standing alone in its ambition, scale and fascination, Burrow's history of history is certain to stand the test of time.
Author: Steve McCurdy
Author: Steve McCurdy
Author: Alfred Russel Wallace
Author: Sander M. Goldberg
Author: Nigel Mansell
Author: Rob Johnson
Author: Craig Nelson
Author: 
Author: Gerard Charles Wilson
Author: John Burrow
Author: