الصفحة 1
الصفحة 1
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Blood Pressure Monitoring in Cardiovascular Medicine and Therapeutics

In this newly updated second edition of Blood Pressure Monitoring in Cardiovascular Medicine and Therapeutics, William B. White, MD, and a panel of highly distinguished clinicians give a critical review of every aspect of the evaluation of high blood pressure. This includes home and ambulatory blood pressure monitoring, the relationship between whole-day blood pressure and the cardiovascular disease process, and the effects of antihypertensive therapies on these blood pressure parameters. World-class contributors describe the significant advances in our understanding of the circadian pathophysiology of cardiovascular disorders and demonstrate that ambulatory blood pressure values are independent predictors of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality.

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Antimalarial medicinal plants

Malaria continues to affect a large population of the world, especially in third world countries. The spread of drug-resistant parasites demonstrates the need for antimalarial agents with various modes of action. The search for remedies derived from medicinal plants for the treatment of malaria is reliant on accurate ethnobotanical and ethnopharmacological information obtained from traditional medical practitioners. Antimalarial Medicinal Plants provides information on bioactive compounds and therapeutic potentials of several antimalarial plant species found around the globe. This book evaluates these plant species with respect to their biology, diversity, distribution, and pharmacological values.

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Agroecological transitions : From theory to practice in local participatory design

There is wide agreement on the need to change the prevalent agricultural models, given their negative impacts and their incompatibility with current societal issues. Agroecological transition has been promoted as a potential solution to the ecological, social and economic problems generated by these models. It however involves a systemic, multi-scale and transdisciplinary process. Due to this complexity, the overall picture of what farms and food systems “actually are” and “might be” may not be apparent at the individual level. Yet individuals’ knowledge and values provide complementary insights on how to proceed in deepening ecological modernisation. Expertise can also provide landmarks to be considered in that process. Because local stakeholders’ experience and skills are key resources in the adaptation and adoption of agroecological transition, new conceptual and methodological frameworks and tools have to be developed to support them in the design process of such a complex transition. This book presents feedback from the ‘Territorial Agroecological Transition in Action’- TATA-BOX research project, which was devoted to these specific issues.

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Machine Ethics : From Machine Morals to the Machinery of Morality

Offers the first systematic guide to machine ethics, bridging between computer science, social sciences and philosophy. Based on a dialogue between an AI scientist and a novelist philosopher, the book discusses important findings on which moral values machines can be taught and how. In turn, it investigates what kind of artificial intelligence (AI) people do actually want.

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Applied and computational mathematics for digital environments

Contains the 11 papers that were accepted and published in the Special Issue “Applied and Computational Mathematics for Digital Environments” of the MDPI Mathematics journal. The topics of interest include, among others, scientific research, applied tasks, and problems in the following areas: The construction of mathematical and information models of intelligent computer systems for monitoring and controlling the parameters of digital environments; The development of intelligent optimization algorithms that search for optimal parameter values of mathematical and information models in digital environments; Software and mathematical technologies in the implementation of intelligent monitoring and computer control of the parameters of digital environments; The development and application of mathematical and information models, machine learning methods, and artificial intelligence for the analysis and processing of big data in digital environments.

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Advanced dental metallic materials

Delivers a broad and concise look at advanced metallic materials used for dental applications. This book aims to bring the readers closer to the specific purpose of dental metallic materials meeting specific criteria and materials properties such as biocompatibility, non-toxicity, resistance to corrosion, long-term durability, appropriate strength and toughness, as well as corresponding values of modulus of elasticity.

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Business Unusual : Values, Uncertainty and the Psychology of Brand Resilience

This book reveals the psychology behind how we feel about businesses, their communications and their leaders in a digital world. From understanding the new dynamics shaping online behaviour, to the evolving expectations driving employees and consumers, Business Unusual will teach you how to build a resilient business - one that is built on trust, an engaged and fulfilled workforce, and the brand values that can empower you to craft resonant communications and relationships.

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Banking for Family Business: A New Challenge for Wealth Management

Hints of globalization have actually been around for several decades, even though they made only a modest impact; however, the availability of global capital and advances in communication technology have emp- sized the process of internationalization and the tools available to connect and integrate business activities to answer to more complex needs of c- ents. Moreover, the financial scandals and the review of mutual fund trade activity in the US by the Attorney General Elliot Spitzer have highlighted the importance to focus all efforts on renewing the confidence of prof- sional investors and their clients who have entrusted their capital to asset managers. Therefore, there is a growing need in the market to reinforce the concept of “Shared Positive Values” among the entire industry and among its stakeholders.

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Americanization of the European Economy : A compact survey of American economic influence in Europe since the 1800s

Provides a comprehensive yet compact survey of the growth of American economic influence in Europe since the 1880s. Three distinct but cumulative waves of Americanization are identified. Americanization was (and still is) a complex process of technological, political, and cultural transfer, and this overview explains why and how the USA and the American model of industrial capitalism came to be accepted as the dominant paradigm of political economy in today's Europe. Americanization of the European Economy summarizes the ongoing discussion by business historians, sociologists, and political scientists and makes it accessible to all types of readers who are interested in political and economic development.

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Ambiguities in Decision-oriented Life Cycle Inventories: The Role of Mental Models and Values

Shows for the first time how mental models and values influence this attribution in the life cycle inventory step of LCA. One of the key findings is that the different management rules for a sustainable use of materials must be taken into account for the attribution of material and energy flows to a product. Otherwise, improvement options recommended by an LCA might turn out to even worsen the environmental situation if reassessed from a meta-perspective. As a consequence of this book, the claim of unambiguitiy (‘objectivity’) of the life cycle inventory must be abandoned. A group-model building process for LCA is developed that allows one to grasp the decision makers' mental models and values in the inventory analysis on a case- and situation-specific basis. Only by this, LCA results will become relevant in a decision-making process. Two case studies on the modelling of recycling and other end-of-life options of aluminium windows and beech wood railway sleepers in LCA complement the methodological part.

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A Risk-Benefit Perspective on Early Customer Integration

Customer integration in the early innovation phase has been considered the method of choice in theory and practice. Growing experience with the concept has shown unexpected side effects that may even outweigh its recognized advantages. Therefore, management needs to be able to assess in advance whether the involvement of customers will add overall value to each particular innovation project. To support but not to replace the final managerial decision, a mathematical formula is developed. It can be applied to all kinds of process structures, takes into account the risks and benefits contingent on a company's situation as well as risk-reducing and benefit-increasing measures and translates them into numerical values. The resulting figure indicates the prospective value of customer integration in a specific project.

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Appropriated Interiors

Uncoversthe ways interiors participate explicitly and implicitly in embedded cultural and societal values and explores timely emergent scholarship in the fields of interior design history, theory, and practice. An informative read for students and scholars of design history and theory, this collection considers the standards, assumptions, codes, and/or conventions that need to be dismantled and how we can expand our understanding of the history, theory, and practice of interior design to challenge the status quo.

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Cities After Crisis : Reinventing Neighborhood Design from the Ground-Up

The book details how these crises have led to a new urban vision—from avantgarde modern design to an artisan aesthetic that calls for simplicity and the everyday, from the sustainable development paradigm to a resilient vision that defends de-growth and the re-wilding of cities, from a homogenizing globalism to a new localism that values what is distinctive and nearby, from the privatization of the public realm to the commoning and self-governance of urban resources, and from top-down to bottom-up processes based on the engagement and empowerment of communities.

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Alvar Aalto and the future of architecture

Exposes dialogue between history, theory, design, construction, technology, and sensory experience by means of digital simulations that enhance the assessment and values of our material choices. It offers a critical look to the past to inspire the future. This new edition looks to Alvar Aalto as the primary protagonist for channeling discussions related to these topics. Architects like ALA, Shigeru Ban, 3XN, Peter Zumthor, and others also play the role of contemporary guides in this review. The work of Aalto and selected contemporary architects, along with computer modeling software, showcase the importance of comprehensive design.

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Affordable housing for smart villages

Initiates a fresh discussion of affordability in rural housing set in the context of the rapidly shifting balance between rural and urban populations. It conceptualises affordability in rural housing along a spectrum that is interlaced with cultural and social values integral to rural livelihoods at both personal and community level. Developed around four intersecting themes: explaining houses and housing in rural settings; exploring affordability in the context of aspirations and vulnerability; rural development agendas involving housing and communities; and construction for resilience in rural communities, the book provides an overview of some of the little understood and sometimes counter-intuitive best practices on rural affordability and affordable housing that have emerged in developing economies over the last thirty years.

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Mathematical Models for Registration and Applications to Medical Imaging

Image registration is an emerging topic in image processing with many applications in medical imaging, picture and movie processing. The classical problem of image registration is concerned with ?nding an appropriate transformation between two data sets. This fuzzy de?nition of registration requires a mathematical modeling and in particular a mathematical speci?cation of the terms appropriate transformations and correlation between data sets. Depending on the type of application, typically Euler, rigid, plastic, elastic deformations are considered. The variety of similarity p measures ranges from a simpleL distance between the pixel values of the data to mutual information or entropy distances. This goal of this book is to highlight by some experts in industry and medicine relevant and emerging image registration applications and to show new emerging mathematical technologies in these areas. Currently, many registration application are solved based on variational prin- ple requiring sophisticated analysis, such as calculus of variations and the theory of partial differential equations, to name but a few. Due to the numerical compl- ity of registration problems ef?cient numerical realization are required. Concepts like multi-level solver for partial differential equations, non-convex optimization, and so on play an important role. Mathematical and numerical issues in the area of registration are discussed by some of the experts in this volume.

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Matematica generale con il calcolatore

By introducing mathematical objects, it teaches students how to use a computer to perform numerical and symbolic calculations, define a function and calculate its values, plot and explore graphs, and execute simple algorithms. The course is rich in examples, applications, and models, drawn from economics, physics, biology, statistics, and mathematics itself. The analysis of these models constitutes, in a certain sense, the true purpose of the mathematical theory covered. Automatic calculation tools (mathematics software, spreadsheets) are used extensively to explore and illustrate concepts and properties. Mathcad® software, in particular, was used, both as a calculation tool and as a simple yet powerful programming language. Considerable space is devoted to approximation, emphasizing the distinction between numerical and symbolic calculation; to algorithms as a synthesis of the syntactic and semantic aspects of mathematical objects; and to computer simulation, interpreted as a "physical" experiment and a source of conjecture. The ability to use a calculator marks a sort of "democratization" of mathematics: even complex results, which have always required a broad background of knowledge and laborious calculations, are now quickly accessible to anyone who understands the meaning of mathematical objects and knows how to use the syntax.

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Market-Consistent Actuarial Valuation

It is a challenging task to read the balance sheet of an insurance company. This derives from the fact that different positions are often measured by different yardsticks. Assets, for example, are mostly valued at market prices whereas liabilities are often measured by established actuarial methods. Market-Consistent Actuarial Valuation presents powerful methods to measure liabilities and assets in the same way. The mathematical framework that leads to market-consistent values for insurance liabilities is explained in detail by the authors. Topics covered are Stochastic discounting, Valuation portfolio in life and non-life insurance, Asset and liability management, Financial risks, Insurance technical risks, and Solvency.

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Marine resource damage assessment : Liability and compensation for environmental damage

MARE-DASM research focused on: (i) the estimation and distribution of marine contaminants in order to assess their long term effects (ecotoxicology); (ii) the integration of these result into a Biological Effects SubModel and a mathematical model assessing the risks associated with accidental spillage of oil at sea and the damage this can cause (modelling); (iii) the assessment of the willingness to pay for ecological damage, based on the Contingent Valuation Method (economics); (iv) the development and evaluation of measures to be taken in order to guarantee a sustainable use of the Belgian part of the North Sea, taking into account the economic and social interests and values (social economics); (v) the potential to develop technical and legal procedures that allow ecological damage to the marine environment to be evaluated and compensated, taking into account constraints in national and international liability legislation (legal).

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Managing Critical Infrastructure Risks

At the beginning of each year, there is a deluge of top-10 lists on just about every subject you can imagine. A top-10 list of biggest news stories, best-selling books, most popular music and movies, richest companies, and best places to visit or live. It seems everyone has his or her own top-10 list, reflecting, perhaps, differences in regional, national, and cultural values. Companies and governments most often tend to focus their top-10 lists on economic priorities, or priorities related to national defense, security, public health, and new infrastructure. This year, 2007, was no exception. Yet, increasingly, we see governments, private organizations, and companies advocating a new type of prioritization. This framework needs to reach beyond the realms of economics, world trade, and corporate management to include the environment, stakeholders, public preferences, and social goals. Moreover, corporations and individuals are not only interested in generic 10-best lists; they want lists tailored to their values, goals, and current economic and social state. For example, the U. S.

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