The harrowing true story of the Scottish battalion that spent over three years in Japanese captivity during World War II. Posted to Singapore in 1937 with their families, the members of the 2nd Battalion, Gordon Highlanders found themselves fighting bravely when the Japanese invaded Malaya in December 1941. But by mid-February came the surrender of Singapore, and those who were not killed became POWs. After initial incarceration in Singapore, the Gordons were dispersed to work on the famous Thai-Burma railway, in the mines of Taiwan and Japan, and on other slave labor projects. The conditions they existed under defy modern comprehension. Others died trapped in hell-ships torpedoed by allied submarines. Of the thousand men involved initially, over four hundred had died before liberation in summer 1945. Despite their diverse backgrounds, all the men had been bound by close regimental spirit, and all suffered hard labor, starvation, brutality, and tropical diseases. Rank was no protection from death. The author of this history has researched the plight of these extraordinary men, so many of whom never saw their native Scotland again. Despite the grim conditions, he captures the strong collective regimental spirit and the humor and cooperation that saved so many who would otherwise have perished. This is an inspiring tale of courage and survival against appalling odds.

2nd Battalion, Gordon Highlanders was posted to Singapore in 1937 with their families. When the Japanese invaded Malaya in December 1941, the Battalion fought bravely until the surrender of Singapore on 14 February 1942. Those who were not killed became POWs. Of the 1000 men involved initially, over 400 had died by their liberation in summer 1945. Despite the diverse background of the members of the Battalion, all were bound by close regimental spirit. As POWs, all suffered hard labor, starvation, brutality and tropical diseases. Rank was no protection from death. After initial incarceration in Singapore, the Gordons were dispersed to work on the famous Thai-Burma railway, in the mines of Taiwan and Japan and on other slave labor projects. Conditions defy modern comprehension. Others died trapped in hell-ships torpedoed by allied submarines. The author has researched the plight of these extraordinary men, so many of whom never saw their native Scotland again. Despite the grim conditions, he captures the strong collective regimental spirit and the humor and cooperation that saved so many who would have otherwise have perished - as many did. This is an inspiring tale of courage and survival against appalling odds.

Japan was a party to the Axis Alliance with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy. However, it ignored repeated German demands to harm the 40,000 Jews who found themselves under Japanese occupation during World War Two. This book attempts to answer why they behaved in a relatively humane fashion towards the Jews.

In recent years, the exhilarating sense of discovery in the realm of physics has almost become the exclusive right of the specialist in the field. Books on contemporary physics tend to be oversimplified or too technical for the general reader to gain a proper appreciation of the appeal that this scientific quest holds for the modern-day physicist.Invitation To Contemporary Physics, however, offers a unique opportunity for the layman or new student to share in the fascination and excitement of seven of the most enthralling areas at the research frontiers of modern day physics: lasers, superconductivity, symmetries, chaos, the evolution of stars, elementary particles and cosmology.Organized into independent chapters, the book allows the reader to delve into each topic separately. Each chapter is also designed to commence at an elementary level, thus requiring little prior background knowledge from the reader. It is then developed in stages of increasing difficulty, but in such a way that any keen and determined reader will be able to comprehend. Emphasis is placed on understanding the basic principles behind the facts and ideas.The excitement and fascination in the intellectual pursuit of present-day physics is far too compelling to be left solely to the experts. The authors in this Invitation To Contemporary Physics have therefore answered the challenge of bringing it all home to the general reader. This book serves as a captivating introduction to modern-day physics for the layman, and is also an ideal reference text for a university course aiming at a general survey of contemporary physics.