Sky Bird

Sky Bird continues the saga of one woman's struggle to endure adversity and find joy in the uncertainty pervading America in the late 1930s. Deborah Nelson experiences her share of hardship with the Depression, drought, and dust storms as she struggles to retain her farm and family in western Kansas. Family secrets and friendships have an impact on those in the neighborhood.

Woodcock are one of the oddest birds in North America. They are a shorebird that got lost and ended up in the scrubby parts of the forest, and look like they were put together with the leftover parts of other birds. Oddities aside, each spring they rise to great beauty with their sky dance at dusk. Greg Hoch combines natural history, land management, scientific knowledge, and personal observation to examine this little game bird. Woodcock have a complex life history and the management of their habitat is also complex. The health of this bird can be considered a key indicator of what good forests look like.

“Sky-birds and Ravishers is a matter-of-fact account of an earthly Hell, a South African jail. Kheswa’s eye is unflinching: the horrors—of institutionalised rape and degradation—are told in a brisk, almost casual way, which renders them all the more immediate. It’s a dark, visceral read, with just a glimmer of hope at the end. Compelling, raw and memorable.” - Simon Maginn, Author of ‘Sheep’ 21-year-old, Sosobala NoZulu, is part of a notorious gang, called CMB, Cash Money Brothers, based in Durban. He lives a fast and reckless life, often involved in car theft, and bank robberies. When his girlfriend, Sandy Gumede is brutally raped, he decides to take the law in his own hands and kills the rapist, Sifiso Mkhize in cold blood, in the Westville Shopping Centre parking lot. Sosobala is arrested and found guilty and sentenced to a maximum of ten years imprisonment for the first-degree murder of Sifiso. He arrives at the Westville Prison and is recruited by Chopper to join the 26’s gang. He tows the line until a young man arrives in their cell and his abuse in the dead of night galvanises Sosobala to intervene, which results in a string of unintended consequences. Musa Kheswa is a reformed gangster and he wrote this book as a warning for the youngsters in the townships who idolise gangsters without realizing how bad life in South African prisons are.

The white clouds in the sky are winding and comfortable, reflecting the light of the scorching sun. People in Little shilin town also start a busy day because of this weather.

An entertaining and eye-opening relationship book in the tradition of the million-copy bestseller The Five Love Languages How can two people who love each other not get along? Most relationships founder not from a lack of love, but from a lack of understanding. In Lovebirds, couples therapist and birdwatcher Trevor Silvester shows how birds of a different feather can flock together. The quizzes in Lovebirds reveal which of eight birds you are, and which your partner is. Are you a ground bird or a sky bird? A sight bird or a song bird? If you’re an owl, and you spend a lot of time talking to yourself, then how do you get along with a nightingale, one of the great song birds, which directs most of its talking outward? If you’re a swan, and you prefer to stay on the ground, knowing things up close and in detail, then what kind of future do you have with a swift, which trusts its instincts over logic and can live happily in the clouds? Whimsical and wise, and with charming illustrations, Lovebirds puts a whole new spin on the relationship book.

Entertainment Weekly's 27 Female Authors Who Rule Sci-Fi and Fantasy Right Now Winner of the 2017 Nebula Award for Best Novel Finalist for the 2017 Hugo Award for Best Novel Paste's 50 Best Books of the 21st Century (So Far) List “The book is full of quirkiness and playful detail...but there's an overwhelming depth and poignancy to its virtuoso ending.” —NPR From the former editor-in-chief of io9.com, a stunning Nebula Award-winning and Hugo-shortlisted novel about the end of the world—and the beginning of our future An ancient society of witches and a hipster technological startup go to war in order to prevent the world from tearing itself apart. To further complicate things, each of the groups’ most promising followers (Patricia, a brilliant witch and Laurence, an engineering “wunderkind”) may just be in love with each other. As the battle between magic and science wages in San Francisco against the backdrop of international chaos, Laurence and Patricia are forced to choose sides. But their choices will determine the fate of the planet and all mankind. In a fashion unique to Charlie Jane Anders, All the Birds in the Sky offers a humorous and, at times, heart-breaking exploration of growing up extraordinary in a world filled with cruelty, scientific ingenuity, and magic. At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

An accessible, authoritative, and up-to-date computer vision textbook offering a comprehensive introduction to the foundations of the field that incorporates the latest deep learning advances. Machine learning has revolutionized computer vision, but the methods of today have deep roots in the history of the field. Providing a much-needed modern treatment, this accessible and up-to-date textbook comprehensively introduces the foundations of computer vision while incorporating the latest deep learning advances. Taking a holistic approach that goes beyond machine learning, it addresses fundamental issues in the task of vision and the relationship of machine vision to human perception. Foundations of Computer Vision covers topics not standard in other texts, including transformers, diffusion models, statistical image models, issues of fairness and ethics, and the research process. To emphasize intuitive learning, concepts are presented in short, lucid chapters alongside extensive illustrations, questions, and examples. Written by leaders in the field and honed by a decade of classroom experience, this engaging and highly teachable book offers an essential next-generation view of computer vision. Up-to-date treatment integrates classic computer vision and deep learning Accessible approach emphasizes fundamentals and assumes little background knowledge Student-friendly presentation features extensive examples and images Proven in the classroom Instructor resources include slides, solutions, and source code