Lee Scott and white-water expert turned sustainability consultant Jib Ellison, the result is nothing less than a green business revolution.Wal-Mart—long the target of local businesses, labor advocates, and environmentalists who deplore its outsourced, big-box methods—has embraced an unprecedented green makeover, which is now spreading worldwide. The retail giant that rose from Sam Walton's Ozarks dime store is leveraging the power of 200 million weekly customers to drive waste, toxics, and carbon emissions out of its stores and products. Neither an act of charity nor an empty greenwash, Wal-Mart's green move reflects its river guide's simple, compelling philosophy: that the most sustainable, clean, energy-efficient, and waste-free company will beat its competitors every time. Not just in some distant, utopian future but today.From energy conservation, recycling, and hybrid trucks to reduced packaging and partnerships with environmentalists it once met only in court, Wal-Mart has used sustainability to boost its bottom line even in a tough economy—belying the age-old claim that going green kills jobs and profits. Now the global apparel business, the American dairy industry, big agriculture, and even Wall Street are following Wal-Mart's lead, along with the 100,000 manufacturers whose products must become more sustainable to remain on Wal-Mart's shelves. Here Pulitzer Prize winner and bestselling author Edward Humes charts the course of this unlikely second industrial revolution, in which corporate titans who once believed profit and planet must be at odds are learning that the best business just may be a force of nature.

    So when he finds out that someone very important to him is working on a US container ship in the treacherous seas off the East African coast, he fears the worst.Within days the ship is hijacked by pirates. Taking matters into his own hands, Ben embarks upon the most daring rescue mission of his career … because this is no ordinary hostage situation.There is something on board the ship that’s more precious than life itself – and a bloodthirsty tyrant will kill to possess it.As events spiral out of control, Ben Hope’s skill and resourcefulness will be tested like never before. Ben would die to protect those close to him, but in a hostile environment, against ruthless warriors, even the ultimate sacrifice might not be enough…THE DEVIL’S KINGDOMHeld hostage by a despicable tyrant in the heart of Africa, it’s not looking good for Ben Hope.General Khosa’s lust for blood is matched only by his lust for power – and he wants to use Ben’s superior military skills to turn his rabble of inexperienced boys into an army of lethal soldiers.If Ben refuses, Khosa will kill the person he loves most. If he cooperates, he’ll bring more death and devastation to the world’s most violent, war-torn nation.Either way, Ben will have blood on his hands – unless he can defeat Khosa. It seems an impossible task. But for Ben Hope, anything is possible…

    Right?! Machine Learning is a branch of computer science that wants to stop programming computers using a detailed list of commands to follow blindly. Instead, their aim is to implement high-level routines that teach computers how to approach new and unknown problems – these are called algorithms. In practice, they want to give computers the ability to Learn and to Adapt. We can use these algorithms to obtain insights, recognize patterns and make predictions from data, images, sounds or videos we have never seen before – or even knew existed. Unfortunately, the true power and applications of today’s Machine Learning Algorithms remain deeply misunderstood by most people. Through this book I want fix this confusion, I want to shed light on the most relevant Machine Learning Algorithms used in the industry. I will show you exactly how each algorithm works, why it works and when you should use it. Supervised Learning Algorithms K-Nearest Neighbour Naïve Bayes Regressions Unsupervised Learning Algorithms: Support Vector Machines Neural Networks Decision Trees

    A young girl submerged into a galactic conflict. A single chance to help win the war. The daughter of a royal family, Brie Northstar believes she knows what to expect from life. She's wrong. During a routine shuttle trip to one of the outer planets, Brie's transport is destroyed and she finds herself thrust into a centuries old conflict between three warring planets, a conflict she is suddenly in the middle of. Yet somehow this young teenager from Athelon has skills and abilities she shouldn't have - she can't have. Now separated from her family with only her wits - and her newfound abilities - to help she travels from planet to planet, risking her life to prevent galactic destruction and unite a rebellion to save the galaxy. For the first time ever - the complete nine book War of the Three Planets series is available in a single omnibus for a ridiculously low price. If you love Ender's Game you will love War of the Three Planets.

    The tree is decorated, the mistletoe is in place, and the crab puffs are to die for. Nothing can spoil this celebration…except for some wayward magic and a pesky ghost who crashes the party.SPIRITS OF BOURBON STREETIt’s Halloween on Bourbon Street, and white witch Jade Calhoun is ready to party. But when a sexy spirit traps everyone in the past, she’s forced to forgo the cocktails in order to save those she loves...again.A MIRACLE ON BOURBON STREETIt’s Christmas Eve and Jade Calhoun’s ready for a quiet, magical night with her husband Kane. But when Santa demons and energy-stealing elves start wreaking havoc, it’s going to take a miracle on Bourbon Street to save Christmas.A BOURBON STREET VALENTINEIt’s Valentine’s Day and magic’s in the air. Only Kat Hart never expected her handmade jewelry to be at the center of everything. So when her night out at Cupid’s Ball turns into a competition to be a handsome stranger’s wife, it’s up to her to break the spell…or she might get more than she bargained for.SPIRITS, HURRICANES, AND THE KREWE OF GHOULIt’s Halloween and Pyper Rayne’s all vamped up, ready to play the vampire bride. And so is Ida May, her resident ghost. But when the “vampires” they're partying with start to appear to be real, there’s more at stake than just a little bite.KISSED BY TEMPTATIONThe last place sex-witch Mati Ballintine wants to be is at a holiday sorority party. But when the high angel from the council orders her to protect a new angel recruit, she has no choice but to go and grit her teeth through the frat boys’ advances.
The night turns from bad to worse when a demon appears and is hell-bent on taking the angel to Hell. Mati and her incubus boyfriend Vaughn will need to combine forces to not only save the angel, but everyone else the demon leaves in his wake.

    Before his success as an author Goodkind worked primarily as a painter, as well as doing carpentry and woodworking. Goodkind is a proponent of Ayn Rand's philosophical approach of Objectivism, with references to Rand's ideas and novels referenced in his works.The Sword of Truth series sold twenty-five million copies worldwide and was translated into more than twenty languages. It was adapted into a television series called Legend of the Seeker, premiering November 1, 2008 but canceled after two seasons in May, 2010.

    He shows that there are many ways of achieving happiness; for example, there is the inherent happiness that comes with the love of a child; the competitive happiness of triumphing over your opponents; the sensual happiness of the hedonist. Rather than preaching a particular behavior or way of life, Morris provides knowledge that we can use, if we wish, to make ourselves happier.

    But what sort of person was the young Albert Einstein, before he became universally acclaimed as the archetypal genius? And how did his genius unfold? In this brilliant new Kindle Single, scientist Robyn Arianrhod blends biography with popular science to tell the story of how young Albert developed a theory that – unknown to him at first – contained the seeds of his extraordinary equation E = mc2. Arianrhod, who wrote her PhD on Einstein’s general theory of relativity, makes the ideas behind the equation accessible to the lay reader, and sets young Einstein’s exploration of these ideas against the backdrop of his first loves, his family and marriage, and, above all, his childlike wonder at the nature of the universe. She introduces his heroes and scientific inspirations, and the friends who believed in him when no one else did. In personalising Einstein, she brings to life both the man and his science, in a short, easy-to-read narrative. In showing how he discovered his famous equation, and what it means, she draws a compelling portrait of this prodigious intellect whose unfathomable grasp of the building blocks of physics would change our world forever. About the Author: Dr Robyn Arianrhod is the author of two critically acclaimed works of popular science and scientific history: Einstein’s Heroes: Imagining the World Through the Language of Mathematics, and Seduced by Logic: Émilie du Châtelet, Mary Somerville and the Newtonian Revolution. Both were shortlisted for major book awards and are published in the USA. Einstein’s Heroes was translated into several languages. Robyn was awarded her PhD for research on Einstein’s general theory of relativity and has lectured in applied mathematics (including special relativity) for many years. She is currently an Adjunct Research Fellow in the School of Mathematical Sciences at Monash University in Melbourne, where she is undertaking research on the structure of relativistic space-times. She is also a technical reviewer for the American Mathematical Society. Praise for Robyn Arianrhod's books: Einstein’s Heroes ‘Arianrhod’s achievement is to so masterfully combine history, biography, and mathematics as to absorb and enlighten even the mathematically maladroit’ – Booklist ‘An intriguing blend of science, history, and biography . . . Arianrhod’s well-written, fascinating discussion of intertwined topics is highly recommended’ – Library Journal (starred review) ‘A thrilling story . . . Arianrhod brings out the human side of the scientists’ – Bloombergnews ‘Offers readers an engaging intellectual exercise combining physics, language, mathematics, and biography’ – Science News Seduced by Logic ‘Seduced by Logic offers the lay reader an easy and agreeable introduction to the evolution of some crucial scientific debates . . . One cannot help be captivated by her intellectual honesty and enthusiasm’ – Times Higher Education ‘An elegant and inspiring history of how scientific revolutions make their way’ – Edward Dolnick, The Clockwork Universe ‘Here is a skillfully written tapestry of the science, history and portrayal of two of the most charismatic women of mathematical science. Robyn Arianrhod has produced a captivating masterpiece’ – Joseph Mazur, author of Euclid in the Rainforest and What’s Luck Got to Do with It?

    Yet, while common, oak woodlands are anything but ordinary. In a book rich in illustration and suffused with wonder, author Kate Marianchild combines extensive research and years of personal experience to explore some of the marvelous plants and animals that the oak woodlands nurture. Acorn woodpeckers unite in marriages of up to ten mates and raise their young cooperatively. Ground squirrels roll in rattlesnake skins to hide their scent from hungry snakes. Manzanita's rust-colored, paper-thin bark peels away in time for the summer solstice, exposing sinuous contours that are cool to the touch even on the hottest day. Conveying up-to-the-minute scientific findings with a storyteller's skill, Marianchild introduces us to a host of remarkable creatures in a world close by, a world that rustles, hums, and sings with the sounds of wild things.

    

     ** Over 2,000 five star reviews across the series! ** FROM USA TODAY & AMAZON #1 BESTSELLING AUTHOR. Box set comprising: The Kill List, Drifter Part I, Drifter Part II, & Drifter Part III. ***SPOILERS AHEAD*** Meet retired cop, Sam Prichard. THE KILL LIST (Book 5) “Mr. Prichard, it said, the people you see in the photos will be killed within the next forty-eight hours, unless you stop me. I have been following your exploits closely, and I think that you are the one I need to make sure I stop doing this. I've been trying for more than fifteen years to kick this habit, but I can't. Normally, I don't strike so many times so close together, but in order to get you interested, I'm going to up the odds. I need you to do only two things: discover who each of my victims is, and then do all you can to stop me before I can kill each one. The first one will die exactly twenty-four hours after you receive this note. The second will die twelve hours after that... ...and the third twelve hours after that. If you cannot stop me before I can kill the third one, then no one can. Then there will be a fourth victim, but you get no clues for that one. Good luck." DRIFTER: PART I (Book 6) Sam takes on an odd case: he's hired to track down a man who has been thought to be dead for more than forty years, but recently showed up alive to visit his dying mother. Now his daughter, who never even met him, wants to ask him where he's been all this time, and why she grew up without him in her life. When that man turns out to be a former government assassin who's gone rogue, however, Sam decides it's time for him to bow out of the case--but then he learns that the one you think is the bad guy isn't always right. The supposedly rogue agent, it turns out, may actually be trying to save America from global Jihad. With everything from his family's safety to the future of America's Sovereignty on the line, Sam has to figure out who to trust and what to do, before it all blows up in his face. DRIFTER: PART II (Book 7) Sam Prichard is on his way to the most unbelievable mission any PI could ever blunder into--to stop a madman who thinks he is the Antichrist! The only problem is that this madman is smart, smart enough that he's been working toward this goal for many years, and never gotten caught. To make matters worse, there's no one to whom Sam can turn, because everyone in politics owes this man favors, and fears the day he reveals what he knows. With just a former CIA assassin at his side and a determination to save his country and the thousands that the madman is prepared to sacrifice to his false gods, Sam Prichard must go to the ends of the earth to try to stop the end of the world! DRIFTER: PART III (Book 8) When he was asked to locate a man who seemed to have disappeared in Vietnam but then turned up alive in Denver forty years later, he thought he was simply taking on a case to help bring closure to a daughter who felt abandoned. Unfortunately, there's a lot more to the story, and now Sam must ally himself to one of the most deadly, cold-blooded killers he's ever known. A rogue agent of the CIA has decided that a number of ancient prophecies, including those in the Bible, name him as the new world leader, and he will literally stop at nothing to achieve his goals.

    He meets Marlena, the beautiful young star of the equestrian act, married to August, the charismatic but twisted animal trainer. He also meets Rosie, an elephant who seems untrainable until he discovers a way to reach her...2 - AT THE WATER'S EDGEA gripping and poignant love story set in a remote village in the Scottish Highlands at the end of the Second World War.'The only fault I can find with this book is that I've already finished it' Jodi Picoult'Truly enthralling' Scotsman'Breathtaking' Harper's Bazaar1945. After disgracing themselves at a high society party, spoilt young Philadelphia socialites Maddie and Ellis Hyde are cut off from the family without a penny. Ellis decides their salvation will be to hunt down the Loch Ness Monster, a venture his father very publicly failed at. So, oblivious to WW2 raging around them, they make their way to the Scottish Highlands, where Maddie has to face reality and decide just who the real monsters are.3 - APE HOUSE The New York Times bestseller.'If you love animals like I do, it's a must read' Ellen DeGeneres'Had me instantly enraptured' Dallas Morning News'Wildly entertaining' Booklist (starred review)These bonobos are no ordinary apes. Like others of their species, they are capable of reason and carrying on deep relationships - but, unlike most bonobos, they also know American Sign Language.Isabel Duncan, a scientist at the Great Ape Language Lab, doesn't understand people, but animals she gets, especially the bonobos. Isabel feels more comfortable in their world than she's ever felt among humans . . . until she meets John Thigpen, a very married reporter who braves the ever-present animal rights protesters outside the lab to see what's really going on inside.When an explosion tears apart the lab, severly injuring Isabel and 'liberating' the apes to an unknown destination, John's human interest piece turns into the story of a lifetime.

    

    Thanks largely to YouTube clips posted by the sloth orphanage in Costa Rica, sloths have attracted a vast audience of admirers. Instead of seeing them as ridiculous anachronisms of which we know little, they have turned into creatures considered by many to be the most endearing on earth.Over much the same period, scientific investigations have also changed our view of sloths. No longer are they seen as total misfits in the modern world but, in the words of one specialist sloth investigator, they are 'masters of an alternative lifestyle'.In this wonderfully entertaining celebration of this most unique of creatures, William Hartston reveals the fascinating history of the sloth, from the prehistoric ground sloth to modern pygmy sloths in Panama, explores the current state of the science of sloths and reveals the truth behind sloth behaviour.