Simon Cozens
Simon Cozens is an open source programmer and author.He has released over 100 Perl modules,including Email::Simple,Mail::Audit,Maypole,Plucene,and B::Generate.He s the coauthor of Beginning Perl (Wrox)and Extending and Embedding Perl (Manning)and was the managing editor of Perl.com from 2001 to 2004.A graduate of Oxford University with a degree in Japanese,he now lives in Wales and enjoys Japanese and Greek food,bizarre music,and fine typography.
The animal on the cover of Advanced Perl Programming,Second Edition is a black
leopard.Most leopards are easily recognized by the rosette-patterned spots on their coat.Black leopards,often called black panthers,also have these spots,but they are difficult to see because of the darkness of the fur.Black leopards are born into the same litters as the more common yellowish leopards.They occur most frequently in the wet,forested areas of India and southeast Asia,where the dark color aids in camouflage and hunting.
Leopards are among the most widely distributed wild cats.Their range extends
throughout most of Africa and India and into much of Asia,the Middle East,and the
East Indies.Highly adaptable,leopards are able to hunt almost any animal,and can
live in both very wet and arid conditions.Because they almost always share their range with bigger cats,such as lions or tigers,leopards are very cautious.After catching its prey,the leopard will carry it high up into a tree to devour it.The incredible strength of the leopard enables it to climb while carrying animals up to three times its own body weight.