In the most reliable and readable guide to effective writing for the Americans of today, Wilson answers questions of meaning, grammar, pronunciation, punctuation, and spelling in thousands of clear, concise entries. His guide is unique in presenting a systematic, comprehensive view of language as determined by context. Wilson provides a simple chart of contexts -from oratorical speech to intimate, from formal writing to informal -and explains in which contexts a particular usage is appropriate, and in which it is not. The Columbia Guide to Standard Written American English provides the answers to questions about American English the way no other guide can with: * an AZ format for quick reference; * over five thousand entries, more than any other usage book; * sensible and useful advice based on the most current linguistic research; * a convenient chart of levels of speech and writing geared to context; * both descriptive and prescriptive entries for guidance; * guidelines for nonsexist usage; * individual entries for all language terms. A vibrant description of how our language is being spoken and written at the end of the twentieth century -and how we ourselves can use it most effectively -The Columbia Guide to Standard American English is the ideal handbook to language etiquette: friendly, sensible, and reliable.

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"In one volume, Beverly Woolf provides a thorough and engaging introduction to the field of intelligent tutoring and related AI-based educational systems, covering the multiple approaches nascent in the field along with detailed case studies and the practical details of implementation. There is much to savor, both for the seasoned practitioner and those sampling the field for the first time." -- William R. Murray, Ph.D., Senior Research Scientist, Knowledge Systems Research, Boeing Phantom Works

"The book has broad coverage of all the interdisciplinary aspects that the field draws upon. No one, except an expert intelligent tutoring builder like Beverly could have written this book. She uses as examples of intelligent tutoring system from others leading intelligent tutoring, as well as talking about systems her and her colleagues have built." - Neil T. Heffernan, Assistant Professor, Computer Science Dept, Fuller Labs

"Woolf"s Building Intelligent Interactive Tutors is a thorough, clear, logical description of the science, technology, methods, and rationale behind a very important, up-and-coming, educational technology: Intelligent Tutoring Systems. It will be very beneficial to developers and users (teachers and students) of ITSs and those who make instructional technology acquisition decisions. It"s sure to become the standard, referenced ITS text." - Dick Stottler, President, Stottler Henke Associates, Inc. 

The sociological study of economic activity has witnessed a significant resurgence. Recent texts have chronicled economic sociology's nineteenth-century origins while pointing to the importance of context and power in economic life, yet the field lacks a clear understanding of the role that concepts at different levels of abstraction play in its organization. Economic Sociology fills this critical gap by surveying the current state of the field while advancing a framework for further theoretical development.

Alejandro Portes examines economic sociology's principal assumptions, key explanatory concepts, and selected research sites. He argues that economic activity is embedded in social and cultural relations, but also that power and the unintended consequences of rational purposive action must be factored in when seeking to explain or predict economic behavior. Drawing upon a wealth of examples, Portes identifies three strategic sites of research--the informal economy, ethnic enclaves, and transnational communities--and he eschews grand narratives in favor of mid-range theories that help us understand specific kinds of social action.

The book shows how the meta-assumptions of economic sociology can be transformed, under certain conditions, into testable propositions, and puts forward a theoretical agenda aimed at moving the field out of its present impasse.