Only one man, the Olympic Gold Medalist in the decathlon, is officially deemed the World's Greatest Athlete. As an orphan who has never met his biological parents, as a recovering alcoholic, as the subject of a timelessly infamous advertising campaign, as the athlete of maybe the most publicised and shocking failure in the history of sports, and as a man who persevered through it all to dominate his sport like few athletes ever have, it is no wonder Track & Field News calls Dan's life, the stuff movies are made of. Dan's meteoric rise to prominence saw him take the No.1 world ranking less than two years removed from his only college season, and he became an overnight celebrity when cast alongside Dave Johnson in Reebok's massive Dan & Dave ad campaign. The commercials debuted during the Super Bowl, but when O'Brien infamously failed to qualify for the Olympic team it was called the most shocking moment in U.S. Olympic history, and to this day ESPN ranks it as one of the all-time sports busts. Undeterred, O'Brien went on to capture his record-tying fifth national championship in addition to a third consecutive world championship the first decathlete in history to do so. Then at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, with what seemed like an entire country in his corner, O'Brien completed his tale of redemption by becoming the oldest decathlete to ever win an Olympic gold medal. Now, through the pages of this profoundly inspiring and fast-paced memoir, Dan will chronicle his extraordinary career. This book also offers a window into the world of the decathlon and an inside look at some of its most influential athletes. O'Brien offers an insiders view of some of the greatest Olympic decathletes -- of Bill Toomey the intellectual artist, Milt Campbell the most inspirational, and Bruce Jenner as the man most driven.

If you're a woman entrepreneur, think big-and get funded! Clearing the Hurdles shows how to overcome the obstacles that face every entrepreneur, and the unique challenges women face in finding investors. Five experts on women entrepreneurship guide you every step of the way, through concept development, planning, strategy, resource acquisition, deployment, and growth. Discover how to align your business around your personal goals, fill "gaps " in your expertise-and access the money and networks you need to grow fast.

Each of us face hurdles right out of the starting block each morning. Some obstacles don't seem that large until you try to scale them alone. This study is designed especially for spiritual athletes who want to clear the obstacles that hinder their obedience to God's call. If some hurdles have tripped you up and you want to get back on your feet, you'll enjoy this biblical review of God's work in hurdlers just like you.

We are pleased to present the proceedings of the Second Workshop on Al- rithms in Bioinformatics (WABI 2002), which took place on September 17-21, 2002 in Rome, Italy. The WABI workshop was part of a three-conference me- ing, which, in addition to WABI, included the ESA and APPROX 2002. The three conferences are jointly called ALGO 2002, and were hosted by the F- ulty of Engineering, University of Rome “La Sapienza”. Seehttp://www.dis. uniroma1.it/ ̃algo02 for more details. The Workshop on Algorithms in Bioinformatics covers research in all areas of algorithmic work in bioinformatics and computational biology. The emphasis is on discrete algorithms that address important problems in molecular biology, genomics,andgenetics,thatarefoundedonsoundmodels,thatarecomputati- ally e?cient, and that have been implemented and tested in simulations and on real datasets. The goal is to present recent research results, including signi?cant work in progress, and to identify and explore directions of future research. Original research papers (including signi?cant work in progress) or sta- of-the-art surveys were solicited on all aspects of algorithms in bioinformatics, including, but not limited to: exact and approximate algorithms for genomics, genetics, sequence analysis, gene and signal recognition, alignment, molecular evolution, phylogenetics, structure determination or prediction, gene expression and gene networks, proteomics, functional genomics, and drug design.

Each event includes safety suggestions, teaching steps and drills, common errors and corrections, assessment and suggested performance standards.

When life takes a tragic turn . . . don't give up. Like most mothers, Jordan Lawrence's mom knew her first born was special from the moment he exited her womb and entered the race of life. His big brown eyes and day-one smile greeted everyone in the delivery room. Jordan was ready to take on the world. Then five months later, the unimaginable happened: two cars collided, and Jordan was in one of them. Suddenly, his bright future grew incredibly dim. Doctors didn't expect Jordan to survive his injuries, but God had a different plan. Jordan was still in the race, and so far from finished. Clearing the Hurdles: Facing Life's Obstacles with Determination to Overcome and Win [or Clearing the Hurdles: Facing Life's Obstacles with Determination to Win the Race] is Jordan's story of overcoming the looming obstacles on his long road toward recovery. Borrowing metaphors from his track-and-field days, Jordan shares how he has defied just about every "he'll never" declaration and shattered records along the way. He stresses the importance of starting well, being stretched, staying in your lane, and never giving up-especially after a setback. Jordan's personal story of tragedy and triumph will inspire you to face whatever obstacles you encounter in your race of life with faith, courage, and perseverance. After reading this book, you will discover that you have what it takes to overcome and clear every hurdle.

A complete discussion of fundamental and advanced topics in Item Response Theory written by pioneers in the field In Item Response Theory, accomplished psychometricians Darrell Bock and Robert Gibbons deliver a comprehensive and up-to-date exploration of the theoretical foundations and applications of Item Response Theory (IRT). Covering both unidimensional and multidimensional IRT, as well as related adaptive test administration of previously calibrated item banks, the book addresses the growing need for understanding of this topic as the use of IRT spreads to other fields. The first book on the topic that offers a complete and unified treatment of its subject, Item Response Theory prepares researchers and students to understand and apply IRT and multidimensional IRT to fields like education, mental health and marketing. Accessible to first year-graduate students with a foundation in the behavioral or social sciences, basic statistics, and generalized linear models, the book walks readers through everything from the logic of IRT to cutting edge applications of the technique. Readers will also benefit from the inclusion of: • A thorough introduction to the foundations of Item Response Theory, including its logic and origins, model-based measurement, psychological scaling, and classical test theory • An exploration of selected mathematical and statistical results, including points, point sets, and set operations, probability, sampling, and joint, conditional, and marginal probability • Discussions of unidimensional and multidimensional IRT models, including item parameter estimation with binary and polytomous data • Analysis of dimensionality, differential item functioning, and multiple group IRT Perfect for graduate students and researchers studying and working with psychometrics in psychology, quantitative psychology, educational measurement, marketing, and statistics, Item Response Theory will also benefit researchers interested in patient reported outcomes in health research.