Taking Off

In Clear Lake, Texas, a group of astronauts has begun training for the Challenger mission. Among them is a teacher named Christa McAuliffe, the woman chosen to be the first teacher in space. When Annie meets Christa, she is fascinated by her determination and courage. Following Christa's NASA journey through the news, Annie sees that Christa seems to be an ordinary person, like Annie herself, and yet Christa is reaching amazing heights-like flying on the space shuttle. Feeling so inspired, Annie is devastated when the shuttle launch turns to tragedy. But Annie must remember that Christa would have wanted her to keep reaching for her dreams, despite any obstacle.

Witness the true story of how Mary Wilkins Ellis’ childhood passion for flying led to an exciting career in the air, written and illustrated by a Caldecott Medalist. As a child, Mary Wilkins Ellis longed to fly, but she had to wait until she was 16 before she could have her first lesson. She soon became the youngest licensed pilot in her English county, but then all civilian flight was banned when Germany launched its attacks on Britain in 1940. Mary was grounded. One day she chanced to hear a radio appeal for Britons with pilot’s licenses—even women—to join the Air Transport Auxiliary and ferry brand new fighter planes to Royal Air Force bases. Mary immediately applied, and spent the rest of the war delivering hundreds of different kinds of aircraft—most of which she’d never flown before—forming lifelong bonds with her colleagues, surviving many a close call, and helping to save her country from destruction. After the war she became a flight instructor, ran an air taxi service, then managed an airfield, the only woman in Europe to do so. In her spare time, she won rallies in her racing car. Mary’s childhood dream became a thrilling lifetime aloft, lasting until she died at 101. With watercolor and ink illustrations which perfectly capture the exhilaration of flying, Taking Off brings this little-known figure and her can-do spirit to life. Extensive material in the back of the book includes additional information about Mary Wilkins Ellis and the Airport Transport Auxiliary, as well as sources.

International author, speaker and world traveller, Merrian Styles shares her experiences living as an expat for over twenty years, travelling to over 25 destinations worldwide. In this book the author shares decades of tips and strategies that are essential for survival and successful living and working abroad. Merrian is renowned as the "Expat Expert". You'll learn: - What it takes to be paid to travel - Strategies from the greats, how they did it, how I did it, and how you can too - The essential keys to successful living and working overseas - How intuition, insight and self-evaluation contribute to your success - How to feel on top of the world regardless of where you are living - The critical top 10 tips for your safety and survival while travelling abroad - The everlasting benefits and rewards of taking that leap into the unknown.

2003 marks the centennial of manned flight, a major anniversary for an Earth-shattering accomplishment. The papers contained in this volume were presented at the 2003 American Association for the Advancement of Science Annual Meeting.

This book provides a detailed step-by-step guide to taking off building work. It is pitched at a basic introductory level especially suitable for technicians entering the construction industry from school, perhaps intending to follow a trade or technical career. An ideal workbook for students of quantity surveying, construction and civil engineering when learning to measure building work. It introduces students to the most basic aspects of measurement and prepares them for learning the more complex areas of taking off. The book works through examples based on the measurement of a simple traditional pair of semi-detached (duplex) houses, with the relevant construction technology explained throughout. Although the format largely follows United Kingdom taking-off practice and conventions, it will be directly applicable to international practice in countries broadly following United Kingdom conventions. Each chapter presents a worked example from the substructure, through to masonry walls, upper floors, roofing, internal finishes, windows and doors. The examples are matched to an exercise for students and include a commentary of why and how the take-off work is being done. Concentrating specifically on the skilled task of taking off, the examples are designed to give confidence and practice rather than theoretical knowledge. This practical book is ideal for use on the Design, Surveying and Planning T Level; HNC Construction; and undergraduate and non-cognate postgraduate courses in Quantity Surveying, Construction and Building Surveying.

Maryellen strives to invent a flying machine, become famous, and get her sister's wedding off the ground.

The Abraham Path is the route of cultural and spiritual tourism that retraces the journey made by Abraham (Ibrahim) through the heart of the Middle East some four thousand years ago. This book recounts the inner and spiritual foortprints of the first study tour along the entire Abraham Path conducted in November 2006 by a group of pacifists and theologians under the guidance of the Program on Conflict Negotiation at Harvard Law School.