ACRL College & Research Libraries News

Association of College & Research Libraries

New Publications

George M. Eberhart

The Atoms of Language: The Mind's Hid- den Rules of Grammar,by Mark C. Baker (276 pages, September 2001), demonstrates that underlying all languages is a basic set of universal parameters (among them word order and verb complexity) comparable to the atoms in the periodic table of elements used by chemists. Starting with the example of the Navajo Code Talkers, whose trans- missions during World War II of Allied messages in their native language stymied Japanese cryptographers, Baker shows how these building blocks interact to create the intricacies of English, Mohawk, Turkish, Welsh, Swahili, and many other forms. A unique and lucid treatment of the struc- ture and diversity of language. $28.00. Basic Books. ISBN 0-465-00521-7.

Australia: The Complete Encyclopedia(912 pages, September 2001) features more than 2,0 color photographs, detailed maps, and exten- sive descriptions of the history, natural history, government, culture, and geography of the Austra- lian continent. Written by a team of 24 writers, schol- ars, and scientists, this vol- ume offers an in-depth look at every region in the country, from the Sydney Opera House to the Kimberley in the north, Australia’s last frontier. In- formation on most major towns and cities, parks, wine regions, and natural features will prove useful to armchair travelers as well as students and scholars. An accompany- ing CD-ROM contains all the text and im- ages from the book as well as some ex- tras. $60.00. Firefly Books. ISBN 1-55297- 543-6.

Lee and His Army in Confederate History,by Gary W. Gallagher (295 pages, September 2001), documents the remark- able faith that Southern soldiers and civil- ians had in Robert E. Lee, even after the fortunes of the Army of Northern Virginia turned after Gettysburg. All but one of the eight essays in this volume are reprinted from Gallagher’s other books, but they all explore the complex relationship between Lee’s campaigns and Southern morale. The essay written specially for this book ex- amines how the Lost Cause writings of Jubal Early and Douglas Southall Freeman presented the military defeat of the bril- liant Lee against overwhelming odds as the essence of Confederate history, rather than the often messy political and social turbu- lence of the slaveholding republic and its peculiar institution. $29-95. University of North Carolina. ISBN 0- 8078-2631-6.

Medieval Yorkshire Towns,by George Sheeran (212 pages, October 2001), looks at architecture and town planning in the medi- eval towns of Yorkshire in the north of England and how it reflected the chang- ing social structures in the 12th to the 15th centuries. Profusely illustrated with both modern photos and historical prints, the book should make an instructive guidebook for architecture students planning a visit. $20.00. Edinburgh University (distributed by Columbia University). ISBN 1-85331- 242-8.

Remarkable Luminous Phenomena in Nature,compiled by William R. Corliss (419 pages, October 2001), is a catalog of geophysical data and observations that cannot be explained readily by prevailing scientific theories. The latest in the author’s series of catalogs of scientific anomalies, this volume covers odd atmospheric and marine lights. Included are aurora-like phenomena (auroral odors, transient sky brightenings, black auroras, and auroral displays correlated with thunderstorms, earthquakes, and meteors); ball lightning (rod-shaped ball lightning, materialization within enclosures, globes with spikes or diverging rays); diffuse electrical discharge phenomena (unusual St. Elmo’s fire, earthquake lights, luminous aerial bubbles, and luminous patches on clouds); lightning anomalies (crown flash, lightning figures, shadowgraphs, and neutron generation in lightning bolts); low-level meteorlike luminous phenomena; low-level and high-level nocturnal lights; and marine phosphorescent displays (marine light wheels, underwater lightning, moving and stationary phosphorescent bands, and milky sea). Each anomaly is rated for the quality of data supporting it and the degree to which it can or cannot be explained by current scientific laws. $24.95. The Sourcebook Project, P.O. Box 107, Glen Arm, MD 21057. ISBN 0-915554-44-5.

George M. Eberhart is senior editor of American Libraries; e-mail: geberhart@ala.org

Neustadt, Germany, 1960s. Ball lightning hits a tree and fragments into many smaller balls. From William Corliss, Remarkable Luminous Phenomena in Nature.