The definitive, behind-the-scenes story of the most innovative airline in America A few years ago, an unknown entrepreneur named David Neeleman uprooted his wife and nine kids from Utah to New York, dreaming of a bold new company that would make jaded travelers fall in love with flying again. Barbara S. Peterson has been reporting on JetBlue since the “Jet who?” days when few outsiders believed in the company. Drawing on exclusive interviews with more than seventy-five insiders, from mechanics on the tarmac to the CEO, she weaves together a dynamic story of how JetBlue has blended outstanding customer service, inspirational leadership, savvy marketing, and disciplined financial management to come out on top. “It’s fun to read about simple ideas that change the way we do things . . . and it’s always fun to watch the whoosh of good ideas hit the brick walls of habit and bureaucracy. . . .The smart, fast, little guy wins!” —Los Angeles Times “A quick, breezy read studded with mini-profiles, snippets of aviation history and amusing anecdotes.” —The Wall Street Journal “An engaging peek into the open cockpits of the airline industry, its foibles and pitfalls, written by someone who knows the industry, yet still loves to fly. This book is the chronicle of one little airline that could.” —Book Page “Peterson moves beyond personalities to detail how Neeleman crafted more of a branded travel experience than an airline.” —BusinessWeek “[Peterson] gets the inside scoop on JetBlue’s quirky corporate culture and Neeleman’s fresh approach to an antiquated business model.” —Advertising Age

This sure-to-be controversial book features direct and funny assaults on censorship, plus entertaining and erudite explorations of the psychological, religious, social, and historical landscape of obscenity. Playful and sophisticated, Blue Streak takes readers far beyond mere naughtiness and into the realm of literature.

In the early 1950s the United States wished to concentrate its defence resources on the development of a 4,000 mile range intercontinental ballistic missile. As a stop-gap measure, US defence chiefs hoped to assist Britain with the development of its own intermediate range missile. Despite US concerns that British resources were limited the Air Ministry nonetheless proceeded with the missile, called Blue Streak, to fulfil the operational requirement which would give Britain an independent deterrent which should remain invulnerable until the early 1970s. Blue Streak: Britain's Medium Range Ballistic Missile traces the path from the political decision to issue the contracts through the early development and testing both in the UK and in Australia. The reasons for the project's cancellation are considered and Blue Streak's subsequent role as the first stage of the ELDO civilian satellite launcher is noted. A requirement of the project was the need to base the missiles in underground launchers to protect them from attack. This aspect of the project is fully covered using recently available information and specially drawn plans.

The hacker's approach to Special Relativity grew out of an attempt to demystify the puzzling features of the theory to intelligent but intuition-blocked lay persons by a strategy aimed at this particular handicap: The insufficiently understood basic concepts, the most obstinate stumbling blocks, are explained at length first. The four-dimensional cornerstone of the theory, the all-important Invariant, is presented as a geometric structure analogous to the Diagonal of a box-like Frame of Reference to which Time is subsequently added as the Fourth Dimension. The exposition of the theory of Special Relativity is primarily intuition-oriented while remaining also geometrically conceptualized and mathematically developed. It is built up from scratch around First Principles starting out with our primitive notions of Space, Time and Motion which are then continually updated and refined. The conceptual tools and terminology for investigating Linear Motion at Uniform Velocity are provided in a step-by-step fashion and always visualized by suitable illustrations. The Spacetime "terrain" (curved but not spherical) and its "domains" (Past, Present and Future) are defined, mapped and explained. The standard topics of Special Relativity are individually elaborated in the already introduced step-by-step fashion and its mathematical results, the equations, are not just displayed in print as usually done in undergraduate textbooks but are actually derived from familiar situations using only elementary algebra, the simplest possible math for the task. These derivations are additionally written out fully in longhand for the benefit of those still inexperienced or whose math has all gone to rust. The Theory of Relativity is covered in sufficient detail to make this book an optional supplement in a college-level physics course. It can also serve as a source of information and insight in high-school and adult science clubs but, above all, it was meant to be a self-study manual, a virtual class room at home, a do-it-yourself tutoring aid. Besides standard fare, two speculative topics are included: (1) a "Faster than Light" chapter dealing with its chief reputed consequence, the reversal of Time Arrow once the travel speed has "crashed" the "Light Barrier," and (2) a tentative description of a very-very fast moving object caught by our wide-open eyes or by a super-fast shutter speed camera. The book and its intended readership are described in the Preface. Basic concepts and a brief historical background of the theory are given in the Introduction. In Chapters I-XV, you'll find the main topics and in the Postscript, there are additional comments pertinent to, but reaching above and beyond, the contents of this book.

“An atmospheric late-1930s adventure with old-time cinematic appeal. Fans of fast-paced, far-fetched action will lap it up as enthusiastically as Sam swallows his favorite brand of sardines.” —Kirkus Reviews Lantern Sam is the wise-cracking, sarcastic, talking cat (for those who can hear him, that is) who lives on board the Lake Erie Shoreliner train and is one of the best detectives no one knows about. He doesn’t have much patience for humans (unless they bring him sardines), but when 10-year-old traveler Henry can’t find his new friend, the exuberant Ellie, Sam’s enlisted to help. A ransom note is soon discovered and just like that, Sam and Henry are on the case, with the help of Clarence the Conductor (who supplies Sam’s sardines). But is Ellie still on board the train? Did the salesman with his trunk full of samples sneak her off? And why does that couple keep acting so suspiciously? Veteran middle-grade mystery author Michael D. Beil has crafted a hilarious and appealing adventure set in the 1930s that’s chock-full of quirky characters and red herrings, and all with an irresistible cat at its center.

The Blue Streak -- the Great American Freight Train -- holds records as the world's fastest freight train and for hauling freight for a remarkable 60 years. Tells how the Southern Pacific built and developed this extraordinary fast freight, and the stories that surround it. By Fred W. Frailey. 8 1/2 x 11 1/2; 168 pgs.; 180 photos; 25 illus.; includes dust jacket.

Get ready to board the same roller coaster that the North Carolina Tar Heels rode all the way to the 2009 national championship. Dan Wiederer, who covered the team as a reporter with The Fayetteville Observer, provides an insiders view of an unforgettable season that included ups, downs, twists, and turns. From a startling and dispiriting 2008 Final Four loss to Kansas to the blowout defeat of Michigan State in the next year's national title game, youll relive record-breaking performances, exhilarating victories and losses that caused panic. Discover what went on behind closed doors with never-before-told tales from players, coaches, and media members who were there every step of the way. Plus, youll read hilarious anecdotes of how the UNC players kept themselves entertained and came together off the basketball court. In addition to going behind the scenes with the title-winning team, youll join Wiederer as he analyzes where its players rank in the pantheon of UNC greats, and youll discover the role that former players continue to play at the school. Discover what makes North Carolina basketball so great and relive one of its most unforgettable seasons ever in Blue Streak.