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Posted By : Anthony G Williams - 4/16/2007 11:02 AM
This book, by Brian Hayes, is a well-illustrated description and explanation of all of the odd industrial and agricultural structures which dot the (mainly US) landscape.
 
It includes mining, waterworks, oil and gas, power plants and the power grid, communications, roads, railways, bridges and tunnels, aviation, shipping, waste and recycling, and food and farming.
 
A fascinating read, and potentially useful to authors in providing background material for scenes which you may want to set in such environments.
 

Tony Williams
Scales (2007)
The Foresight War (2004)
http://www.quarry.nildram.co.uk



Posted By : erazmus - 4/16/2007 12:42 PM
This just went on my "to get" list, tell me more about it.
Mike

Michael D. Turner
"Psyched Up" in _Turn the other Chick_-ed. E. Friesner-Baen books
www.baen.com
"Dutchman Rescue"in Continuum SF #6
www.continuumsciencefiction.com/orders.htm

"An Incident at Black Tongue Tavern" in _Bash Down the Door and Slice Open the Badguy_ from Fantasist Enterprises:
www.fantasistent.com/books/anthologies/BASH.php


Posted By : Anthony G Williams - 4/16/2007 4:24 PM
Well, it's a bit hard to say a lot more than I have. To give a f'rinstance, he outlines how the power distribution system works, shows photos of typical installations and describes what all the bits are, shows pics of the power lines and describes why pylons are the shape they are, what kind of insulators are used and why, how the voltages vary from place to place, and so on - everything from (and including) the power stations to when the juice hits your home.
 
All sorts of interesting little bits of info: did you know that the developed world all agreed on 50 hertz as the frequency for electricity supply (I hope I'm getting this right - electricity was when I lost interest in physics at school), then the USA decided to go for 60 hertz instead in order to protect their home market for electrical goods? Ah, the power of big business...
 

Tony Williams
Scales (2007)
The Foresight War (2004)
http://www.quarry.nildram.co.uk



Posted By : Jeff Stehman - 4/16/2007 5:50 PM
Added to my to-be-read list.

--Jeff Stehman


Posted By : Bill Ward - 4/16/2007 6:20 PM
Sounds like a great reference.

Posted By : erazmus - 4/17/2007 2:03 PM
I wsas fishing for ISBN type information.
It would be cool to have a nice book for all that, instead of using my thirty year old notes from imagery interpeter's school. I sometimes think the fact that I still know how to distinguish a cement plant from a brick factory in a photo taken from miles above is a little pathetic.
Mike

Michael D. Turner
"Psyched Up" in _Turn the other Chick_-ed. E. Friesner-Baen books
www.baen.com
"Dutchman Rescue"in Continuum SF #6
www.continuumsciencefiction.com/orders.htm

"An Incident at Black Tongue Tavern" in _Bash Down the Door and Slice Open the Badguy_ from Fantasist Enterprises:
www.fantasistent.com/books/anthologies/BASH.php


Posted By : Anthony G Williams - 4/17/2007 2:38 PM
ISBN-13 = 978-0-393-32959-9

ISBN-10 = 0-393-32959-3

Published by W W Norton, New York and London

Tony Williams
Scales (2007)
The Foresight War (2004)
http://www.quarry.nildram.co.uk



Posted By : erazmus - 4/17/2007 4:22 PM
Thanks.
Mike

Michael D. Turner
"Psyched Up" in _Turn the other Chick_-ed. E. Friesner-Baen books
www.baen.com
"Dutchman Rescue"in Continuum SF #6
www.continuumsciencefiction.com/orders.htm

"An Incident at Black Tongue Tavern" in _Bash Down the Door and Slice Open the Badguy_ from Fantasist Enterprises:
www.fantasistent.com/books/anthologies/BASH.php


Posted By : cussedness - 5/6/2007 7:09 PM
awesome. I just added it to my want list.

Janrae Frank
I have no skeletons in my closet, they are all hanging from the yardarm.

Once there were three brothers, Brandrahoon the vampire, Isranon called the Dawnhand, speaker to spirits, and Waejonan the Accursed, first of sa’necari. Isranon defied his brothers and was destroyed, his descendants forced into the darkness.

Blood Rites
www.fictionwise.com/ebooks/eBook29989.htm
website
www.janraefrank.com
Darkzone
www.janraefrank.com/Vanilla.1.0.1/


Posted By : MichaelEhart - 11/3/2007 1:26 PM
I think I'll ask the library to order this--- something that lots of people could use, not just wiriters.

Buy my book!
The Servant of the Manthycore available Nov. 17th from DEP
Illustrated by Rachel Marks, with an introduction by Michael Moorcock
Read me in 2007!
"The View From the Shotglass Floor" Ray Gun Revival, Feb 2007
"Voice of the Spoiler" The Sword Review, June 2007
"Servant of the Manthycore" The Sword Review, July 2007
"Darkling I Listen; and for Many a Time" Fear and Trembling, coming soon!
"Weaving Spiders Come Not Here" The Sword Review, August 2007
"Six Zombies Doing That Mick Jagger Strut" Damned in Dixie, Summer 2007
"Nothing But Our Tears" The Sword Review, September 2007
"Night of Shadows, Night of Knives" Magic and Mechanica, Fall 2007
"The Scarlet Colored Beast" The Sword Review, October 2007
"The Stars by Law, Forbidden" Unparalleled Journeys II, November 2007
"Who Comes for the Mother's Fruit" Every Day Fiction, November 2007
"Stand, Stand, Shall They Cry" Flashing Swords, November 2007
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