Iterative Learning Control : Robustness and Monotonic Convergence for Interval Systems
This monograph studies the design of robust, monotonically-convergent iterative learning controllers for discrete-time systems. Two key problems with the fundamentals of iterative learning control (ILC) design as treated by existing work are: first, many ILC design strategies assume nominal knowledge of the system to be controlled and; second, it is well-known that many ILC algorithms do not produce monotonic convergence, though in applications monotonic convergence is often essential. Iterative Learning Control takes account of the recently-developed comprehensive approach to robust ILC analysis and design established to handle the situation where the plant model is uncertain. Considering ILC in the iteration domain, it presents a unified analysis and design framework that enables designers to consider both robustness and monotonic convergence for typical uncertainty models, including parametric interval uncertainties, iteration-domain frequency uncertainty, and iteration-domain stochastic uncertainty.
Iterative Approximation of Fixed Points
The aim of this monograph is to give a unified introductory treatment of the most important iterative methods for constructing fixed points of nonlinear contractive type mappings. It summarizes the most significant contributions in the area by presenting, for each iterative method considered (Picard iteration, Krasnoselskij iteration, Mann iteration, Ishikawa iteration etc.), some of the most relevant, interesting, representative and actual convergence theorems. Applications to the solution of nonlinear operator equations as well as the appropriate error analysis of the main iterative methods, are also presented.
Isotopes in the Water Cycle : Past, Present and Future of a Developing Science
This monograph presents state of the art applications and new developments of isotopes in hydrology, environmental disciplines and climate change studies. Coverage ranges from the assessment of groundwater resources in terms of recharge and flow regime to studies of the past and present global environmental and climate changes.
Isotopes in Palaeoenvironmental Research
This thorough reference shows how stable isotopes can be applied to understanding the palaeoenvironment, with chapters on the interpretation of isotopes in water, tree rings, bones and teeth, lake sediments, speleothems and marine sediments.
Composite Materials : Properties as Influenced by Phase Geometry
This book deals with the mechanical and physical behavior of composites as influenced by composite geometry. This monograph provides a comprehensive introduction for researchers and students to modern composite materials research with a special emphasis on the influence of geometry to materials properties. Composite Materials enables the reader to a better understanding of the behavior of natural composites, improvement of such materials, and design of new materials with prescribed properties.
Complex-valued neural networks
This book is the first monograph ever on complex-valued neural networks, which lends itself to graduate and undergraduate courses in electrical engineering, informatics, control engineering, mechanics, robotics, bioengineering, and other relevant fields. It is useful for those beginning their studies, for instance, adaptive signal processing for highly functional sensing and imaging, control in unknown and changing environment, brainlike information processing, robotics inspired by human neural systems, and interdisciplinary studies to realize comfortable society. It is also helpful to those who carry out research and development regarding new products and services at companies.
Complex Inorganic Solids : Structural, Stability, and Magnetic Properties of Alloys
One the key aspects of this volume is to cut across the traditional taxonomy of disciplines in the study of alloys. Hence there has been a deliberate attempt to integrate the different approaches taken towards alloys as a class of materials in different fields, ranging from geology to metallurgical engineering. The emphasis of this book is to highlight commonalities between different fields with respect to how alloys are studied. The topics in this book fall into several themes, which suggest a number of different classification schemes. We have chosen a scheme that classifies the papers in the volume into the categories Microstructural Considerations, Ordering, Kinetics and Diffusion, Magnetic Considerations and Elastic Considerations. The book has juxtaposed apparently disparate approaches to similar physical processes, in the hope of revealing a more dynamic character of the processes under consideration. This monograph will invigorate new kinds of discussion and reveal challenges and new avenues to the description and prediction of properties of materials in the solid state and the conditions that produce them
Complex dynamics : Advanced system dynamics in complex variables
Complex Dynamics: Advanced System Dynamics in Complex Variables is a graduate-level monographic textbook. It is designed as a comprehensive introduction into methods and techniques of modern complex-valued nonlinear dynamics with its various physical and non-physical applications.
Compactifying Moduli Spaces for Abelian Varieties
This volume presents the construction of canonical modular compactifications of moduli spaces for polarized Abelian varieties (possibly with level structure), building on the earlier work of Alexeev, Nakamura, and Namikawa. This provides a different approach to compactifying these spaces than the more classical approach using toroical embeddings, which are not canonical. There are two main new contributions in this monograph: (1) The introduction of logarithmic geometry as understood by Fontaine, Illusie, and Kato to the study of degenerating Abelian varieties; and (2) the construction of canonical compactifications for moduli spaces with higher degree polarizations based on stack-theoretic techniques and a study of the theta group.
Climatic Change and its Impacts : An Overview Focusing on Switzerland
This book focuses upon climate processes, variability and change and applies the general principles related to these issues, particularly in Switzerland. Although a small country, Switzerland is characterized by complex topography where climatic processes are often enhanced due to the presence of the Alps. In addition, there is a remarkable density of observational data in both the natural and social sciences that enable a comprehensive assessment of climate processes, their long-term trends and their impacts. This book is intended for students from the undergraduate level onwards and researchers interested in climate issues specific to the alpine region.
Climate-Smart Food
This book asks just how climate-smart our food really is. It follows an average day's worth of food and drink to see where it comes from, how far it travels, and the carbon price we all pay for it. From our breakfast tea and toast, through breaktime chocolate bar, to take-away supper, Dave Reay explores the weather extremes the world’s farmers are already dealing with, and what new threats climate change will bring. Readers will encounter heat waves and hurricanes, wildfires and deadly toxins, as well as some truly climate-smart solutions. In every case there are responses that could cut emissions while boosting resilience and livelihoods. Ultimately we are all in this together, our decisions on what food we buy and how we consume it send life-changing ripples right through the global web that is our food supply.
Climate risk in Africa : Adaptation and resilience
This book highlights the complexities around making adaptation decisions and building resilience in the face of climate risk. It is based on experiences in sub-Saharan Africa through the Future Climate For Africa (FCFA) applied research programme. It begins by dealing with underlying principles and structures designed to facilitate effective engagement about climate risk, including the robustness of information and the construction of knowledge through co-production
Climate change : Environment and history of the Near East
When the ?rst edition of this book was published in 2004, the following year 2005 has happened to have been the warmest year since 1880, when the ?rst reliable worldwide instrumental records came into existance. Claiming no li- age between the publication of our book and the temperature record, yet this record demonstrates the trend of increase in the global surface temperatures during thepast20years,reinforcedbyevidenceofriseofatmosphere’sand oceans’ temperatures, and increased melting of ice and snow in the arctic and antarctic regions as well as on mountain tops. All these observations are par- leled by the increase in the quantity of heat trapping gases in the atmosphere, causing most probably, the global greenhouse effect. In order to try and predict, what might be the impact of this effect on the on the natural and human environments of the Near East, (Figs. 1–1d) the authors adopted the saying that the past is the key for the future. The practical conclusion of this principle says that the acquiring knowledge of the impact of past climate changes on the nature and human societies, may allow conclusions with regard to future possible impact of climate changes. By correlating proxy data of all types, paleo-sea and lake levels, paleo-hydrology, pollen pro?les, environmental isotopes as well as archaeological and historical documents, the authors tried to collect as much as possible of this knowledge.
Clashes of Knowledge : Orthodoxies and Heterodoxies in Science and Religion
"Clashes of Knowledge" is the first volume of a series called "Knowledge and Space" dealing with spatial disparities of knowledge and the impact of the spatial context on the production and application of knowledge. The contributions in this book explore the conflicts between various types of knowledge, especially between orthodox and heterodox knowledge systems, which range from religious fundamentalism to heresies within the scientific community itself.
Cities in Transition : Globalization, Political Change and Urban Development
This book was written with the aim of showing that even in the era of globalization developments appearing in cities are not subject to almost unconditional global forces. Rather, universal forces are decisive eventualities in the process of urban restructuring, often influencing its course and speed, yet developments and particularities within a city strongly influence the course of events and the extent to which negative characteristics of globalization might occur.
Cities between competitiveness and cohesion : Discourses, realities and implementation
The book shows that spatial and urban policy continues to be a key site of policy intervention and experimentation. Different national welfare systems, political cultures, and socio-economic conditions combine and recombine to address policy problems and opportunities. Collectively, the authors argue that the examined policy initiatives reflect and reproduce these broader changes and shifting ways of thinking about the appropriate relationships between citizens, businesses, and the state.
Chromatography for Sustainable Polymeric Materials : Renewable, Degradable and Recyclable
This volume is a valuable contribution to sustainability research. … This interesting, well-written book provides the reader with an excellent resource on how to effectively use simple chromatographic techniques to aid in determining processing conditions, additive formulations, quality control, service life, degradation pathways, and more.
Chiral Soliton Models for Baryons
This concise research monograph introduces and reviews the concept of chiral soliton models for baryons. In these models, baryons emerge as (topological) defects of the chiral field. The many applications shed light on a number of bayron properties, ranging from static properties via nucleon resonances and deep inelastic scattering to even heavy ion collisions. As far as possible, the theoretical investigations are confronted with experiment. Conceived to bridge the gap between advanced graduate textbooks and the research literature, this volume also features a number of appendices to help nonspecialist readers to follow in more detail some of the calculations in the main text.
Childlessness in Europe : Contexts, Causes, and Consequences
This open access book provides an overview of childlessness throughout Europe. It offers a collection of papers written by leading demographers and sociologists that examine contexts, causes, and consequences of childlessness in countries throughout the region.The book features data from all over Europe. It specifically highlights patterns of childlessness in Germany, France, the United Kingdom, Finland, Sweden, Austria and Switzerland. An additional chapter on childlessness in the United States puts the European experience in perspective.
Chemical Youth : Navigating Uncertainty in Search of the Good Life
This book explores how young people engage with chemical substances in their everyday lives. It builds upon and supplements a large body of literature on young people’s use of drugs and alcohol to highlight the subjectivities and socialities that chemical use enables across diverse socio-cultural settings, illustrating how young people seek to avoid harm, while harnessing the beneficial effects of chemical use.



















