Every child knows what it means to play, but the rest of us can merely speculate. Is it a kind of adaptation, teaching us skills, inducting us into certain communities? Is it power, pursued in games of prowess? Fate, deployed in games of chance? Daydreaming, enacted in art? Or is it just frivolity? Brian Sutton-Smith, a leading proponent of play theory, considers each possibility as it has been proposed, elaborated, and debated in disciplines from biology, psychology, and education to metaphysics, mathematics, and sociology. Sutton-Smith focuses on play theories rooted in seven distinct "rhetorics"--the ancient discourses of Fate, Power, Communal Identity, and Frivolity and the modern discourses of Progress, the Imaginary, and the Self. In a sweeping analysis that moves from the question of play in child development to the implications of play for the Western work ethic, he explores the values, historical sources, and interests that have dictated the terms and forms of play put forth in each discourse's "objective" theory. This work reveals more distinctions and disjunctions than affinities, with one striking exception: however different their descriptions and interpretations of play, each rhetoric reveals a quirkiness, redundancy, and flexibility. In light of this, Sutton-Smith suggests that play might provide a model of the variability that allows for "natural" selection. As a form of mental feedback, play might nullify the rigidity that sets in after successful adaption, thus reinforcing animal and human variability. Further, he shows how these discourses, despite their differences, might offer the components for a new social science of play.

“This book is a contemporary classic—a shrewd and spirited guide to protecting ourselves from the jerks, bullies, tyrants, and trolls who seek to demean. We desperately need this antidote to the a-holes in our midst.”—Daniel H. Pink, best-selling author of To Sell Is Human and Drive How to avoid, outwit, and disarm assholes, from the author of the classic The No Asshole Rule As entertaining as it is useful, The Asshole Survival Guide delivers a cogent and methodical game plan for anybody who feels plagued by assholes. Sutton starts with diagnosis—what kind of asshole problem, exactly, are you dealing with? From there, he provides field-tested, evidence-based, and often surprising strategies for dealing with assholes—avoiding them, outwitting them, disarming them, sending them packing, and developing protective psychological armor. Sutton even teaches readers how to look inward to stifle their own inner jackass. Ultimately, this survival guide is about developing an outlook and personal plan that will help you preserve the sanity in your work life, and rescue all those perfectly good days from being ruined by some jerk. “Thought-provoking and often hilarious . . . An indispensable resource.”—Gretchen Rubin, best-selling author of The Happiness Project and Better Than Before “At last . . . clear steps for rejecting, deflecting, and deflating the jerks who blight our lives . . . Useful, evidence-based, and fun to read.”—Robert Cialdini, best-selling author of Influence and Pre-Suasion

This student text provides a foundation of theory and principles for those seeking sports management position. It provides an overview of the reasons and foundations for sport marketing as well as theoretical and research issues, and why market segmentation is important.

Aerospace Engineering/Mechanical Engineering The definitive text on rocket propulsion-now completely revised to reflect rapid advancements in the field For more than fifty years, this seminal text has been regarded as the single most authoritative sourcebook on rocket propulsion technology. More comprehensive and coherently organized than any other book on the subject, Rocket Propulsion Elements guides readers evenhandedly through the complex factors that shape propulsion, with both theory and practical design considerations. With more than a third of the text and illustrations either completely new or extensively revised, this latest edition includes current information on engine structures, nozzle theory, gas properties, thrust chambers, launch vehicles, and more. With a detailed table of contents breaking down each chapter into subsections-as well as an expanded index of key words-the Seventh Edition efficiently steers readers quickly to the information they need. Other highlights include: * Separate chapters on liquid, solid, and hybrid propulsion systems and a new chapter on thrust chambers including the new aerospike nozzle * Comprehensive coverage of rocket propulsion technology, with applications to space flight, satellite flight, and guided and unguided missiles * Problem-solving examples and exercises relevant to actual design situations * More than 340 illustrations, including photographs, tables, and graphs * Coherent, up-to-date chapter on electrical propulsion balancing fundamentals with practical aspects and applications For professional engineers in the aerospace and defense industries as well as undergraduate and graduate students in mechanical and aerospace engineering, this time-honored resource is indispensable for its scope of coverage and utility.

exhorting his audience to shed their delusions, pretensions and empty

A useful practical guide for professionals, parents, teachers and other caregivers. It presents detailed assessment tools as well as consistent strategies for managing challenging behavior. Successful sensory integration techniques include ... advice for a wide range of specific problems ... for adapting home, school, and childcare environments ... [and] creative suggestions for activities, equipment, and resources.

This comprehensive book is essential for would-be counselors, those working in the helping professions, and anyone who uses counseling skills as part of their work. With its practical, hands-on approach, a wealth of case studies, examples of skills, illustrations, exercises, and extensively updated resource sections, this updated edition is a valuable tool for tutors of counseling skills courses.

Showing you how to take a structured and organized approach to a wide range of literature review types, this book helps you to choose which approach is right for your research. Packed with constructive tools, examples, case studies and hands-on exercises, the book covers the full range of literature review techniques. New to This Edition: Full re-organization takes you step-by-step through the process from beginning to end New chapter showing you how to choose the right method for your project Practical guidance on integrating qualitative and quantitative data New coverage of rapid reviews Comprehensive inclusion of literature review tools, including concept analysis, scoping and mapping With an emphasis on the practical skills, this guide is essential for any student or researcher needing to get from first steps to a successful literature review.

Samuel Sutton Jr. grew up poor in Kinston, North Carolina. His childhood home had no central heat or hot water. He and his family walked seven miles roundtrip to church every Sunday because they didn't have a car. To help out, Sam picked tobacco during his summer vacations, starting at age ten. But Sam was to rise far in life from these humble beginnings. Joining the Navy in 1979, he embarked on a thirty-year military career, serving first as a sailor, then as an enlisted aide to the nation's top admirals and generals, and finally as a personal valet to presidents Bill Clinton, G. W. Bush, and Barack Obama. He worked a backbreaking schedule, juggling multiple tasks in a position that made him a virtual member of the First Family, an eyewitness to their public and private lives. Born to Serve is also a cautionary tale about the complex dynamics of race and politics at the highest levels of the military and government. From his first day as valet, Sam's close proximity to the president made him a target for those who craved access to the most powerful man in the world. That competitive pressure would prematurely end Sam's career as valet, but he went on to write a new chapter in his life by adopting a child out of the foster care system, guiding him in overcoming a difficult past, and raising him into a fine young man. Told with candor and warmth, this is the story of a man who overcame significant adversity to serve his country with tireless faith and dedication. "Who knew that a native son of Kinston, North Carolina would come to know kings, queens and presidents? Who knew that service in the Navy would become high-level service to the Nation? We knew, because in Samuel Sutton Jr. we saw the unmistakable mark of a Man of Principle." - Admiral & Mrs. J. Paul Reason, Washington, DC