Norman Anderson has written a gripping story of one of the engineering marvels of both the nineteenth and the twentieth century, the ferris wheel. The idea of this contraption may be as old as the water wheel, and written descriptions and drawings of pleasure wheels go back at least four centuries. There have been dozens of experiments with design and construction early portable wheels by Strobel, the Condermans, Sullivan and others; one-of-a-kind wheels like Schnitzler s Asbury Park wheel with a tower and Stubb s water-turned wheel at Electric Park in Waterloo, Iowa; giant wheels in London,...

It is now widely recognized that research on human health requires more than a focus on human biology and disease entities. Lifestyles, attitudes, stress, education, income--all are now understood to contribute to the spread of disease, the effectiveness of curative therapies, and the prevention of illness, as well as to good health and an enhanced sense of well-being. However, despite such developments and the rise of interdisciplinary research, there is still considerable debate about how best to conduct research and shape policies that insightfully integrate concepts and methods drawn from...