Biomineralization II : Mineralization Using Synthetic Polymers and Templates
In nature, biological organisms produce mineralized tissues such as bone, teeth, diatoms, and shells. Biomineralization is the sophisticated process of production of these inorganic minerals by living organisms. Construction of organic–inorganic hybrid materials with controlled mineralization analogous to those produced by nature has recently received much attention because it can aid in understanding the mechanisms of the biomineralization process and development of biomimetic materials processing. The biomineralization processes use aqueous solutions at temperatures below 100 ◦C and no toxic intermediates are produced in these systems. This series presents critical reviews of the present position and future trends in modern chemical research. The short and concise reports on chemistry are each written by world renowned experts. This series is still valid and useful after 5 or 10 years.
Biomineralization I : Crystallization and Self-Organization Process
The five chapters of Biomineralization, volume 1, provide a bridge between the mineralogy and the organic substrates that enable the mineral formation by organisms in nature and under laboratory conditions. The book is a most useful reference for all concerned with biomineralization and biogenic minerals.In nature, biological organisms produce mineralized tissues such as bone, teeth, diatoms, and shells. Biomineralization is the sophisticated process of production of these inorganic minerals by living organisms. Construction of organic–inorganic hybrid materials with controlled mineralization analogous to those produced by nature has recently received much attention because it can aid in understanding the mechanisms of the biomineralization process and development of biomimetic materials processing.
Biological Membrane Ion Channels : Dynamics, Structure, and Applications
Ion channels are biological nanotubes that are formed by membrane proteins. Because ion channels regulate all electrical activities in living cells, understanding their mechanisms at a molecular level is a fundamental problem in biology. This book deals with recent breakthroughs in ion-channel research that have been brought about by the combined effort of experimental biophysicists and computational physicists, who together are beginning to unravel the story of these exquisitely designed biomolecules. With chapters by leading experts.
Biochemical Mechanisms of Detoxification in Higher Plants : Basis of Phytoremediation
Plants play a key role in purifying the biosphere of the toxic effects of industrial activity. This book shows how systematic application of the results of investigations into the metabolism of xenobiotics (foreign, often toxic substances) in plants could make a vastly increased contribution to planetary well-being. Deep physiological knowledge gained from an accumulation of experimental data enables the great differences between the detoxifying abilities of different plants for compounds of different chemical nature to be optimally exploited. Hence planting could be far more systematically adapted to actual environmental needs than is actually the case at present.
Augmented Humanity : Being and Remaining Agentic in a Digitalized World
This book will examine the implications of digitalization for the understanding of humanity, conceived as a community of intelligent agency. It addresses important topics across a range of social and behavioral theories and identifies a range of novel mechanisms and their social behavioral effects. Across the book, the author highlights the expansion of intelligent processing capability brought about by digitalization and the challenges this exposes for integrating artificial and human capabilities
Atomistic modeling of materials failure
Atomistic Modeling of Materials Failure is an introduction to molecular and atomistic modeling techniques applied to solid deformation and fracture. Focusing on a variety of brittle, ductile and geometrically confined materials, this detailed overview includes computational methods at the atomic scale, and describes how these techniques can be used to model the dynamics of cracks, dislocations and other deformation mechanisms.
Aspects of physical biology : Biological water, protein solutions, transport and replication
The present volume focuses on three main subtopics (biological water, protein solutions as well as transport and replication), presenting for each of the them the on-going debates on recent results. The role of water in biological processes, the mechanisms of protein folding, the phases and cooperative effects in biological solutions, the thermodynamic description of replication, transport and neural activity, all are subjects that are revised in this volume, based on new experiments and new theoretical interpretations.
Analyzing uncertainty in civil engineering
This volume addresses the issue of uncertainty in civil engineering from design to construction. Failures do occur in practice. Attributing them to a residual system risk or a faulty execution of the project does not properly cover the range of causes. A closer scrutiny of the adopted design, the engineering model, the data, the soil-construction-interaction and the model assumptions is required. Usually, the uncertainties in initial and boundary conditions are abundant. Current engineering practice often leaves these issues aside, despite the fact that new scientific tools have been developed in the past decades that allow a rational description of uncertainties of all kinds, from model uncertainty to data uncertainty. It is the aim of this volume to have a critical look at current engineering risk concepts in order to raise awareness of uncertainty in numerical computations, shortcomings of a strictly probabilistic safety concept, geotechnical models of failure mechanisms and their implications for construction management, execution, and the juristic question of responsibility. In addition, a number of the new procedures for modelling uncertainty are explained.
Analysis and Synthesis of Logics : How to Cut and Paste Reasoning Systems
Starting with simple examples showing the relevance of cutting and pasting logics, the monograph develops a mathematical theory of combining and decomposing logics, ranging from propositional and first-order based logics to higher-order based logics as well as to non-truth functional logics. The theory covers mechanisms for combining semantic structures and deductive systems either of the same or different nature (for instance, two Hilbert calculi or a Hilbert calculus and a tableau calculus). The important issue of preservation of properties is extensively addressed. For instance, sufficient conditions are provided for a combined logic to be sound and complete when the original component logics are known to be sound and complete.
Analysis and Numerics for Conservation Laws
The physical and chemical mechanisms as well as the sizes of these processes are quite different. So are the motivations for studying them scientifically.The super- 8 nova is a thermo-nuclear explosion on a scale of 10 cm. Astrophysicists try to understand them in order to get insight into fundamental properties of the universe. In hows around airfoils of commercial airliners at the scale of 3 10 cm shock waves occur that influence the stability of the wings as well as fuel consumption in ight. This requires appropriate design of the shape and structure of airfoils by engineers. Knocking occurs in combustion, a chemical 1 process, and must be avoided since it damages motors. The scale is 10 cm and these processes must be optimized for efficiency and environmental conside- tions. The common thread is that the underlying ?uid ?ows may at a certain scale of observation be described by basically the same type of hyperbolic s- tems of partial differential equations in divergence form, called conservation laws. Astrophysicists, engineers and mathematicians share a common interest in scientific progress on theory for these equations and the development of computational methods for solutions of the equations. Due to their wide applicability in modeling of continua. A substantial portion of mathematical research is related to the analysis and numerical approximation of solutions to such equations. Hyperbolic conservation laws in two or more space dimensions still poseone of the main challenges to modern mathematics.
Allocating public and private resources across generations : Riding the age waves ; Vol .2
The chapters in this volume greatly develop our understanding of the nature and measurement of transfers, their motives and mechanisms, and their macro-level dimensions, especially in the context of demographic transitions.
Africa-Europe Research and Innovation Cooperation : Global Challenges, Bi-regional Responses
Concerned with the evolution and achievements of cooperation in research and innovation between Africa and Europe, and points to the need for more diversified funding and finance mechanisms, and for novel models of collaboration to attract new actors and innovative ideas. It reflects on the political, economic, diplomatic and scientific rationale for cooperation, while also examining practical developments, illustrated with examples, in the fields of food security, health, and climate change. The need to mobilise scientific knowledge and to ensure equality and fairness in the cooperation are recurrent themes. Africa-Europe Cooperation in Research and Innovation is essential reading for policy makers and researchers in international relations and science diplomacy.
Advances in Robot Kinematics : Mechanisms and Motion
This book presents 53 independently reviewed papers which embody the latest advances in the theory, design, control and application of robotic systems, which are intended for a variety of purposes such as manipulation, manufacturing, automation, surgery, locomotion and biomechanics.
Advances in Evolutionary Computing for System Design
Evolutionary computing paradigms offer robust and powerful adaptive search mechanisms for system design. This book includes thirteen chapters covering a wide area of topics in evolutionary computing and applications including: -Introduction to evolutionary computing in system design - Evolutionary neuro-fuzzy systems - Evolution of fuzzy controllers - Genetic algorithms for multi-classifier design -Evolutionary grooming of traffic -Evolutionary particle swarms -Fuzzy logic systems using genetic algorithms - Evolutionary algorithms and immune learning for neural network-based controller design - Distributed problem solving using evolutionary learning -Evolutionary computing within grid environment -Evolutionary game theory in wireless mesh networks - Hybrid multiobjective evolutionary algorithms for the sailor assignment problem - Evolutionary techniques in hardware optimization
Advances in Evolutionary Algorithms : Theory, Design and Practice
The goal of this book is to provide effective optimization algorithms for solving a broad class of problems quickly, accurately, and reliably by employing evolutionary mechanisms. In this regard, five significant issues have been investigated: Bridging the gap between theory and practice of GEAs, thereby providing practical design guidelines. Demonstrating the practical use of the suggested road map. Offering a useful tool to significantly enhance the exploratory power in time-constrained and memory-limited applications. Providing a class of promising procedures that are capable of scalably solving hard problems in the continuous domain. Opening an important track for multiobjective GEA research that relies on decomposition principle.
Advances in Automatic Differentiation
Covers advances in automatic differentiation theory and practice. Computer scientists and mathematicians will learn about recent developments in automatic differentiation theory as well as mechanisms for the construction of robust and powerful automatic differentiation tools. Computational scientists and engineers will benefit from the discussion of various applications, which provide insight into effective strategies for using automatic differentiation for inverse problems and design optimization.
Advanced organic chemistry ; Part A : structure and mechanisms
Advanced Organic Chemistry Part A provides a close look at the structural concepts and mechanistic patterns that are fundamental to organic chemistry. It relates those mechanistic patterns, including relative reactivity and stereochemistry, to underlying structural factors. Understanding these concepts and relationships will allow students to recognize the cohesive patterns of reactivity in organic chemistry. Part A: Structure and Mechanism and Part B: Reaction and Synthesis - taken together - are intended to provide the advanced undergraduate or beginning graduate student in chemistry with a foundation to comprehend and use the research literature in organic chemistry
Abuse of Dominant Position : New Interpretation, New Enforcement Mechanisms?
As part of its review of competition law that started in the late 1990s, the European Commission proposes to revise its interpretation and application of the Treaty’s prohibition of abuses of dominant positions. Also, it has instigated a debate about the promotion of private enforcement of EC competition law. The chapters in this volume critically appraise the Commission’s proposals, including the most recent ones. The authors also highlight the repercussions of the proposed ‘more economic approach’ to abuses of dominant positions on private litigants’ opportunities to bring damages actions in national courts for such abuses.

















