Chaos, Nonlinearity, Complexity : The Dynamical Paradigm of Nature
This carefully edited book presents a focused debate on the mathematics and physics of chaos, nonlinearity and complexity in nature. It explores the role of non-extensive statistical mechanics in non-equilibrium thermodynamics, and presents an overview of the strong nonlinearity of chaos and complexity in natural systems that draws on the relevant mathematics from topology, measure-theory, inverse and ill-posed problems, set-valued analysis, and nonlinear functional analysis. It presents a self-contained scientific theory of complexity and complex systems as the steady state of non-equilibrium systems, denoting a homeostatic dynamic equilibrium between stabilizing order and destabilizing disorder.
Challenges for Computational Intelligence
Computational Intelligence (CI) is used as a name to cover many existing branches of science, with artificial neural networks, fuzzy systems and evolutionary computation forming its core. In recent years CI has been extended by adding many other subdisciplines and it became quite obvious that this new field also requires a series of challenging problems that will give it a sense of direction. Without setting up clear goals and yardsticks to measure progress on the way many research efforts are wasted.The book written by top experts in CI provides such clear directions and the much-needed focus on the most important and challenging research issues, showing a roadmap how to achieve ambitious goals.
Causality of Psychological Injury : Presenting Evidence in Court
This sequel to the authors’ Psychological Knowledge in Court offers a welcome expansion on key concepts, terms, and issues in causality, bringing much needed clarity to psychological injury assessments and the legal contexts that employ them. Focusing on PTSD, traumatic brain injury, and chronic pain (and grounding readers in salient U.S. and Canadian case law), Causality sets out a multifactorial causality framework to facilitate admissibility of psychological evidence in court. Issues concerning malingering are examined in depth, as are clinical gray areas that can jeopardize validity. At the same time, the book clearly explains what lawyers and clinicians need to understand about each other’s work—of crucial importance since the two sides often seem to speak at cross-purposes.
Buildings : Theory and Applications
This book treats Jacques Tits's beautiful theory of buildings, making that theory accessible to readers with minimal background. It includes all the material of the earlier book Buildings by the second-named author, published by Springer-Verlag in 1989, which gave an introduction to buildings from the classical (simplicial) point of view. This new book also includes two other approaches to buildings, which nicely complement the simplicial approach: On the one hand, buildings may be viewed as abstract sets of chambers with a Weyl-group-valued distance function; this point of view has become increasingly important in the theory and applications of buildings. On the other hand, buildings may be viewed as metric spaces. Beginners can still use parts of the new book as a friendly introduction to buildings, but the book also contains valuable material for the active researcher.
Building the Foundation : Whole Numbers in the Primary Grades : The 23rd ICMI Study
This twenty-third ICMI Study addresses for the first time mathematics teaching and learning in the primary school (and pre-school) setting, while also taking international perspectives, socio-cultural diversity and institutional constraints into account. One of the main challenges of designing the first ICMI primary school study of this kind is the complex nature of mathematics at the early level. Accordingly, a focus area that is central to the discussion was chosen, together with a number of related questions. The broad area of Whole Number Arithmetic (WNA), including operations and relations and arithmetic word problems, forms the core content of all primary mathematics curricula. this study presents a meta-level analysis and synthesis of what is currently known about WNA, providing a useful base from which to gauge gaps and shortcomings, as well as an opportunity to learn from the practices of different countries and contexts.
Brouwer meets Husserl : On the Phenomenology of Choice Sequences
Can the straight line be analysed mathematically such that it does not fall apart into a set of discrete points, as is usually done but through which its fundamental continuity is lost? And are there objects of pure mathematics that can change through time? The mathematician and philosopher L.E.J. Brouwer argued that the two questions are closely related and that the answer to both is "yes''. To this end he introduced a new kind of object into mathematics, the choice sequence. But other mathematicians and philosophers have been voicing objections to choice sequences from the start. This book aims to provide a sound philosophical basis for Brouwer's choice sequences by subjecting them to a phenomenological critique in the style of the later Husserl.
Brain-computer interfaces : An international sssessment of research and development trends
This WTEC study gathered information on worldwide status and trends in BCI research to disseminate to government decisionmakers and the research community. The study reviewed and assessed the state of the art in sensor technology, the biotic-abiotic interface and biocompatibility, data analysis and modeling, hardware implementation, systems engineering, functional electrical stimulation, noninvasive communication systems, and cognitive and emotional neuroprostheses in academic research and industry.
Bosnian Refugees in America : New Communities, New Cultures
The book considers the diverse experiences of urban and rural families before the war and the effects of the timing of their departure from Bosnia upon their experience of resettlement.
Borderless Knowledge : Understanding the “New” Internationalisation of Research and Higher Education in Norway
this book analyses patterns of internationalisation comprising the national and supranational level, the level of higher education institutions and private companies, as well as the level of individual researchers and graduates. As a laboratory for studying internationalisation the book uses the case of Norway, a small knowledge system set in an open society, political system and economy. The case offers exceptionally good data on the developments in its research and higher education system that record changes over time and across the different parts and levels of a national knowledge system.
Bonding in Microsystem Technology
Bonding in Microsystem Technology starts with descriptions of terminology, kinds of microsystems and market analysis. Followed by the presentation of mechanisms of wet etching, set of process parameters, description of micromachining methods, examples of procedures, process flow-charts and applications of basic micromechanical structures in microsystems are shown. Next, high-temperature, low temperature and room-temperature bonding and their applications in microsystem technology are presented. The following part of the book contains the detailed description of anodic bonding, starting from analysis of properties of glasses suitable for anodic bonding, and discussion of the nature of the process. Next all types of anodic bonding and sealing procedures used in microsystem technology are presented.
Between Mobility and Migration : The Multi-Level Governance of Intra-European Movement
Offers a critical perspective on intra-European mobility and migration by using new empirical data and theoretical discussions. It develops a theoretical and empirical analysis of the consequences of intra-European movement for sending and receiving urban regions in The Netherlands, Sweden, Austria, Turkey, Poland and Czech Republic.The book conceptualizes Central and Eastern European (CEE) migration by distinguishing between different types of CEE migrants and consequences. This involves a mapping of migration corridors within Europe, a unique empirical analysis of consequences for urban regions, and an analysis of governance responses. Next to the European and country perspectives on this phenomenon, the book focuses on the local perspective of urban regions where most mobile citizens settle (either permanently or temporarily). This way the book puts the analysis of intra-European movement in the perspective of broader theoretical debates in migration studies and beyond.
Being apart from reasons : The role of reasons in public and private moral decision-making
The book presents objections to the most common response given by contemporary legal and political theorists to the moral complexity of decision-making in modern societies, namely: the attempt to release public agents from their argumentative burden by insulating a particular set of reasons from the general.
Basic theoretical physics : A concise overview
This concise treatment embraces, in four parts, all the main aspects of theoretical physics (I . Mechanics and Basic Relativity, II. Electrodynamics and Aspects of Optics, III. Non-relativistic Quantum Mechanics, IV. Thermodynamics and Statistical Physics). It summarizes the material that every graduate student, physicist working in industry, or physics teacher should master during his or her degree course. It thus serves both as an excellent revision and preparation tool, and as a convenient reference source, covering the whole of theoretical physics. It may also be successfully employed to deepen its readers' insight and add new dimensions to their understanding of these fundamental concepts. Recent topics such as holography and quantum cryptography are included, thus making this a unique contribution to the learning material for theoretical physics.
Basic Real Analysis
Basic Real Analysis and Advanced Real Analysis (available separately or together as a Set) systematically develop those concepts and tools in real analysis that are vital to every mathematician, whether pure or applied, aspiring or established. These works present a comprehensive treatment with a global view of the subject, emphasizing the connections between real analysis and other branches of mathematics.
Barriers and Biases in Computer-Mediated Knowledge Communication : And How They May Be Overcome
This books deals with computer-mediated cooperation and communication scenarios in teaching and learning situations, leisure activities (e.g. laypersons looking for expert information on the internet), and net-based communication at work. Such scenarios will become increasingly important. But the successful use of such computer-mediated settings is not trivial. Cooperative learning and work itself requires special skills and strategies. And the technical settings with sometimes restricted, sometimes new possibilities for communication add problems on top of the cooperation itself. What are the barriers in computer-mediated communication for cooperative learning and work? Which are the most relevant biases in computer-mediated information processing? Based on empirical research the contributors from psychology, education and computer sciences offer different perspectives on the nature and causes of such barriers.
Axiom of Choice
AC, the axiom of choice, because of its non-constructive character, is the most controversial mathematical axiom, shunned by some, used indiscriminately by others. This treatise shows paradigmatically that:Disasters happen without AC: Many fundamental mathematical results fail (being equivalent in ZF to AC or to some weak form of AC).Disasters happen with AC: Many undesirable mathematical monsters are being created (e.g., non measurable sets and undeterminate games).Illuminating examples are drawn from diverse areas of mathematics, particularly from general topology, but also from algebra, order theory, elementary analysis, measure theory, game theory, and graph theory.
Average-Cost Control of Stochastic Manufacturing Systems
This book is concerned with hierarchical control of manufacturing systems under uncertainty. It focuses on system performance measured in long-run average cost criteria, exploring the relationship between control problems with a discounted cost and that with a long-run average cost in connection with hierarchical control. A new theory is articulated that shows that hierarchical decision making in the context of a goal-seeking manufacturing system can lead to a near optimization of its objective. The approach in the book considers manufacturing systems in which events occur at different time scales.
Avalanche Dynamics : Dynamics of Rapid Flows of Dense Granular Avalanches
Avalanches, debris, mudflows and landslides are common and natural phenomena that occur worldwide, predominantly in mountainous regions. With an emphasis on snow avalanches, this book sets out to provide a survey and discussion about the motion of avalanche-like flows from initiation to run out. An important aspect of this book is the formulation and investigation of a simple but appropriate continuum mechanical model for the realistic prediction of geophysical flows of granular material. This will help the practitioners in the field to better understand the physical input and provide them with a tool for their work. Originating from many lectures the authors have given over the years, this instructive volume brings the reader to the forefront of research - an aim also supported by an extensive bibliogrpahy of almost 500 entries.
Atmospheric Re-Entry Vehicle Mechanics
this book offers a comprehensive and state of the art analysis of aerodynamic and flight mechanic entry topics. In addition, it provides a large set of application exercises and solutions. It is addressed to university and engineering school students, as well as engineers in aerospace companies and government agencies, or simply curious readers.
Atmospheric Boundary Layers : Nature, Theory, and Application to Environmental Modelling and Security
This collection of peer reviewed papers represents a concise, up-to-date summary of our current knowledge of planetary boundary layer (PBL) physics and parameterization. As such, it makes a major contribution to the interchange of knowledge and ideas between physicists, meteorologists and environmental modellers and sets out the course to be followed in subsequent research to improve PBL parameterizations in climate, numerical weather prediction, air quality, and emergency preparedness models. Major themes covered are: Nature and theory of turbulent boundary layers, Boundary layer flows - modelling and applications to environmental security, Nature, theory and modelling of boundary-layer flows, and Air flows within and above urban and other complex canopies - air-sea-ice interactions.



















