Sir Edmund Hillary

"Tabin, a physician and adventure columnist for Penthouse , has climbed to the highest point on each of the world's continents. Here he details the more exciting of those climbs, including his failed attempts and final success on Everest and his expedition to conquer Mt. Vinson in Antarctica. Although once dubbed a ``Conquistador of the Useless,'' Tabin here demonstrates a deep interest in the indigenous peoples he encounters: the Sherpas in Tibet, the Stone Age Dani in Indonesia and the Mbuti pygmies in Zaire. Tributes to great adventurers he has known round out this splendid book. Photos not seen by PW." -Publishers Weekly

Half of the book is about the search for the elusive yeti -- the abominable snow man. The other half about studies on the physiological effects of high altitude. The team spent a winter at 19000 feet. Whereas Hillary's account is of a technical nature, Doig's is delightful, from the moment that Sir Edmund hires him after one look at his beer belly ('save a soul through mountaineering'), to the Kathmandu restaurant where an American tourist approaches Sir Edmund to ask if he may be interested in sharing a taxi to go out for a sighting of Mr. Everest, and the story of Khunjo Chumbi meeting the Queen! This is written from memory; I read the book about 40 years ago and enjoyed every moment of it.

Personal narrative of Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic Expedition, 1955-58.

This book recounts the author's 1977 expedition up the length of the Ganges river from its delta in the Bay of Bengal to near its source in the Himalayas.

First series, 1972-73, Technology and the frontiers of knowledge Saul Bellow: Literature in the age of technology. Daniel Bell: Technology, nature, and society. Edmundo O'Gorman: History, technology, and the pursuit of happiness. Sir Peter Medawar: Technology and evolution. Arthur C. Clarke: Technology and the limits of knowledge. Second series, 1973-74, Creativity and collaboration: Akio Morita: Creativity in modern industry. James D. Watson: The dissemination of unpublished information. Huw Wheldon: Creativity and collaboration in television programs. Moshe Safdie: Collective consciousness in making environment. Caspar W. Weinberger: Creativity and collaboration in government - The Budget Process Third series, 1974-75, The modern explorers Sir Edmund Hillary: South Pole - Continent of Adventure. Sir Fred Hoyle: On the origin of the universe. Willard F. Libby: Radiocarbon dating. Isaac Asimov: The moon as threshold.