Spear

An account of the legendary spear which pierced the side of Christ which has been invested with occult powers. It tells the story of the chain of men who possessed the spear, from Herod to Adolf Hitler, and how they sought to change the face of history by wielding its good and evil powers.

This monograph is devoted to the study of spear operators, that is, bounded linear operators G between Banach spaces X and Y satisfying that for every other bounded linear operator T:X → Y there exists a modulus-one scalar ω such that ǁ G+ωTǁ = 1 + ǁTǁ. This concept extends the properties of the identity operator in those Banach spaces having numerical index one. Many examples among classical spaces are provided, being one of them the Fourier transform on L1. The relationships with the Radon-Nikodým property, with Asplund spaces and with the duality, and some isometric and isomorphic consequences are provided. Finally, Lipschitz operators satisfying the Lipschitz version of the equation above are studied. The book could be of interest to young researchers and specialists in functional analysis, in particular to those interested in Banach spaces and their geometry. It is essentially self-contained and only basic knowledge of functional analysis is needed.

Newly recruited Eighth Legion tiros must embrace the life; a world of brutal training, merciless discipline and of pitiless Centurios. If young Gaius Crastinus and his comrades hope to survive ambush and death securing trade routes of the Province from Lusitanii hoards routinely crossing the border to raid and pillage; they must first endure their apprenticeship, the Rudimentum Militare. When disgruntled Senator Catiline arms a desperate army of ruthless, landless veterans and escaped slaves to terrorize Rome, the Eighth must act. Can these untried and outnumbered Legios survive hundreds of miles of grueling desert, deadly midwinter seas while mutinous internal factions threaten the Legion from within still emerge victorious?

Man and beast exert themselves to surviveby fight, flight, or submission. Respecting the pecking order prevents conflict, but when leaders are challenged, lethal fights for dominance may occur. However, the survival of the fittest is sometimes thwarted by the sheer tenacity of the underdog. In first century Corinth, nine-year-old Jason is teased and bullied by his pugnacious rival, Krato, who is two years older. Jasons grandfather urges him to take the submissive role until he and his rival are both adults. Then the two year difference will vanish, enabling Jason to throw off Krato's reign by beating him in the discus and javelin events at the Isthmian Games. When that long anticipated day arrives, Jason is both winner and loser. His dream turns into a nightmare. He flees for his life, bringing immense hardship on himself and his beloved Tabitha. Sexy Diana tries luring Jason in the wrong direction. The apostle Paul arrives with the holy gospel in their wicked city. The Christian message is woven into the fabric of choices and consequences. Circumstances beyond their control eventually bring the four Corinthians together in a place of horror. In the face of death, old beliefs are turned upside down. They only have a broken spear for defense.

It has been twenty years since the Romans first occupied Britannia, and the rebellion by Boudica and her people nears its bloody climax. Now, as the Roman army marches on Mona, the last protected village in Britannia, the only hope for her nation lies with Boudica. With so much to lose—the very lives of her children and an entire culture on the verge of obliteration—Boudica must find a way to save her people. In doing so, she will change the face of history forever.

Does the other side of the starry sky really exist? Split souls, strange memories, a strange and bizarre world of immortals, it was a scene from a legend. That year, he had revealed his true strength at the age of the weak crown. He had achieved his goals at a young age, and had smiled as he looked at the world. That year, he returned and looked around. His aura was like a mountain, and no one could compare to him.