No, urban centers aren't the death of the environment, argues New Yorker staff writer Owen. In terms of the per capita production of greenhouse gases, New York City ranks last nationwide. A confirmed city girl, I'm biased, but I still say this is important. Copyright 2009 Reed Business Information.
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While the conventional wisdom condemns it as an environmental nightmare, Manhattan is by far the greenest place in America, argues this stimulating eco-urbanist manifesto. According to Owen (Sheetrock and Shellac), staff writer at the New Yorker, New York City is a model of sustainability: its extreme density and compactness梐nd horrifically congested traffic梕ncourage a carfree lifestyle centered on walking and public transit; its massive apartment buildings use the heat escaping from one dwelling to warm the ones adjoining it; as a result, he notes, New Yorkers' per capita greenhouse gas emissions are less than a third of the average American's. The author attacks the "powerful anti-urban bias of American environmentalists" like Michael Pollan and Amory Lovins, whose rurally situated, auto-dependent Rocky Mountain Institute he paints as an ecological disaster area. The environmental movement's disdain for cities and fetishization of open space, backyard compost heaps, locavorism and high-tech gadgetry like solar panels and triple-paned windows is, he warns, a formula for wasteful sprawl and green-washed consumerism. Owen's lucid, biting prose crackles with striking facts that yield paradigm-shifting insights. The result is a compelling analysis of the world's environmental predicament that upends orthodox opinion and points the way to practical solutions. (Sept.)

本书是著名钢琴家、文艺批评家查尔斯•罗森谈音乐何以动人心弦的一本书。罗森从乐理出发，结合自身丰富的演奏经验，清晰、有条理地解释了音乐怎样对人的情感带来波动，什么样的音乐是激发人类情感的音乐。
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罗森的文字一如其演奏：巧妙、精确、极富洞察力，时刻准备迎接挑战……他的分析既清晰又具有说服力，直指问题的核心。倘若你做好准备听罗森讲课，毫无疑问会被他外科医生一般精确的分析风格影响。《音乐与情感》不只改变了我们理解音乐的方式，更涉及我们应该如何看待艺术本身。——《卫报》
作为一位可敬的钢琴家，也作为《古典风格》的作者，罗森的声音总是值得倾听。他在本书中选取的范例与所作的细节分析有技巧地解释了音乐究竟如何表达情感。——《星期日泰晤士报》
力度的变化、速度的不同、连音符的长短—— 罗森切入的方式如此直截了当却又那样特殊，灵巧地带领我们靠近音乐的内涵……罗森之所以如此特别，正在于分析音乐中那些激昂、漫无边际又充满对抗意识的情感时，他所展现的整体审美图景。
——《音乐时报》