Microfinance, EU structural funds and capacity building for managing authorities : A comparative analysis of European convergence regions
Presents a study of capacity building and structural funds in public managing authorities for the microcredit sector. It presents two surveys to highlight the strengths and weaknesses of the managing authorities' capacity building. The first survey investigates the authorities' need for and interests in capacity building activities, assessing the areas in which capacity building support is needed, and explores the different types of support offered. The second survey analyses the results of the microcredit and microfinance programming activity, investigating its target groups and other operational features. It examines the key monitoring and reporting issues involved in this activity, before analysing the regulatory framework of the microcredit and microfinance sector.
Microbial Root Endophytes
Plant roots may not only be colonized by mycorrhizal fungi, but also by a myriad of bacterial and fungal root endophytes that are usually not considered by the investigators of classic symbioses. This is the first book dedicated to the interactions of non-mycorrhizal microbial endophytes with plant roots. The phenotypes of these interactions can be extremely plastic, depending on environmental factors, nutritional status, genetic disposition and developmental stages of the two partners. The book deals with diversity, life history strategies, interactions, applications in agriculture and forestry, methods for isolation, cultivation, and both conventional and molecular methods for identification and detection of these endophytes. The comprehensive reviews demonstrate the high diversity of interactions and will provoke further studies to better understand the mechanisms which determine whether a plant-microbial interaction remains asymptomatic, leads to disease or to a mutualistic interaction.
Microbial Linear Plasmids
Microbial Linear Plasmids constitutes the first attempt to comprehensively assemble current knowledge of different types of such elements, highlight recent developments in the field, and challenge the distinction between viruses and linear plasmids.
Microarray technology and Its applications
The genomics revolution would not have been possible without the 'parallelisation' offered by microarray technology. This technological - and commercial - success has been since emulated by other applications areas, with a tremendous amplification of innovation. This book describes the fundamentals and latest developments in microarray technology, as well as its future directions. It presents detailed overviews of the different techniques of fabricating microarrays, of the chemistries and preparative steps involved, of the different types of microarrays, and of the instrumentation and optical issues involved.
Microalgae Building Enclosures : Design and Engineering Principles
Aims to provide design, engineering, and biotechnical guidelines for microalgae building enclosures that need to be considered for symbiotic relations among the built environment, humans, and ecosystems. Introduces the theoretical background of microalgae as a bioremediator and future energy system and their potential roles toward sustainable and healthy built environments. Part II exemplifies interventions and multiple benefits of microalgae systems in product, architecture, urban, and infrastructure applications across the globe including Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, South America, and North America. Part III explains the design and engineering criteria, biotechnical design requirements, and various performance metrics for microalgae architecture. Finally, Part IV investigates potential building applications in low-rise buildings, high-rise buildings, and energy-efficient retrofitting. The book also includes international case studies of microalgae building systems within various building types and climates.
Metric Handbook : Planning and Design Data
A major handbook of planning and design data for architects and architecture students. Covering basic design data for all the major building types, it is the ideal starting point for any project. For each building type, the book gives the basic design requirements and all the principal dimensional data, and succinct guidance on how to use the information and what regulations the designer needs to be aware of.
Methods in Gut microbial ecology for ruminants
As a result of various human activities, such as increase in human population,decrease in arable land due to soil degradation, urbanization, industrialization and associated increase in the demand for livestock products, dramatic changes are occurring in the global ruminant livestock sector. These changes includeshift inthesize of regional livestock populations and in the types of management and feeding systems under which ruminant livestock are held, and increased demand of a wider range of quality attributes from animal agriculture, not just of the products themselves but also of the methods used in their production. The livestock sector will need to respond to new challenges of increasing live stock productivity while protecting environment and human health and conservingbiodiversity and natural resources. The micro-organisms in the digestive tracts of ruminant livestock have a profound in?uence on the conversion offeedinto end products, which can impact on the- imal and theenvironment. As the livestock sector grows particularly in developing countries, there will be an increasing need to understand these processes for b- ter management and use ofbothfeed and other natural resources that underpinthe development of sustainable feeding systems.
Methods and Tools for Collaborative Networked Organizations
Provides a comprehensive set of reference materials derived from the results of the ECOLEAD project in one organized volume. The ECOLEAD project, a large 4-year European initiative, involved 28 organizations (from academia, research and industry), from 14 countries (in Europe and Latin America).Three main types of results from ECOLEAD are presented: (i) Conceptual frameworks and models, (ii) Methods and processes, and (iii) Software tools and systems.
Metathesis Polymerization
Clearly illustrated and demonstrated by the entire series of Advances in Polymer Science., the area of polymer science is a rapidly developing and growing field, strongly influencing other areas of chemistry. Among other polymerization techniques, those based on metathesis polymerization have experienced significant progress. With a rapidly developing armory of initiators on hand, one is now capable of polymerizing various types of functional monomers by metathesis-based techniques.The latest developments in all these areas of metathesis-based polymerizations are summarized in this book. It is designed to attract equally students and advanced scientists working in the areas of polymer science, physical, and organometallic chemistry by providing both extensive background information and up-to-date interdisciplinary knowledge. Special consideration has been given to the literature sections in order to facilitate further reading.
Metabolomics : The frontier of systems biology
Metabolism is the sum of the chemical reactions in cells that produce life-sustaining chemical energy and metabolites. In the post-genome era, metabolism has taken on new significance for biological scientists: metabolites are the chemical basis of phenotypes that are final expressions of genomic information. This book covers research on metabolomics, ranging from the development of specialized chemical analytical techniques to the construction of databases and methods for metabolic simulation. The authors have been directly involved in the development of all the subject areas, including capillary electrophoresis, liquid chromatography, mass spectrometry, metabolic databases, and metabolic simulation. Breakthrough achievements and the future of metabolome studies are described, making this book a valuable source for researchers in metabolomics in diverse fields, such as plant, animal, cellular, microbial, pharmaceutical, medical, and genetic sciences.
Memories in Wireless Systems
This book is a guide which treats many components used in mobile communications, and in particular focuses on non-volatile memories. It emerges following the conducting line of the non-volatile memory in the wireless system: On the one hand it develops the foundations of the interdisciplinary issues needed for design analysis and testing of the system. On the other hand it deals with many of the problems appearing when the systems are realized in industrial production. These cover the difficulties from the mobile system to the different types of non-volatile memories.
Membrane Computing ; Vol. 3850 ; 6th International Workshop, WMC 2005, Vienna, Austria, July 18-21, 2005, Revised Selected and Invited Papers
The papers in this volume cover all the main directions of research in membrane computing, ranging from theoretical topics in mathematics and computer science, to application issues, especially in biology. More specifically, these papers present research on topics such as: computational power and complexity classes, new types of P systems, relationships to Petri nets, quantum computing, and brane calculi, determinism vs. nondeterminism, hierarchies, the size of small families, algebraic approaches, and designing polynomial solutions to NP-complete problems through the use of membrane systems. Like the previous workshops,
Medical Emergencies in the Dental Office
Prepares dental professionals to promptly and proactively recognize and manage medical emergencies that may occur in the dental office. It details how to anticipate potential emergencies and what resources must be on hand to deal effectively with these situations. The book is arranged in eight sections concentrating on topics such as prevention of emergencies through patient evaluation (medical history) and specific types of more common emergencies that practitioners may encounter. "It successfully fulfils its aim of stimulating all members of the dental team to improve and maintain their skills in the effective prevention, recognition and management of medical emergencies.
Mediation in Collective Labor Conflicts
This book opens up the black box of mediation in collective conflicts through the analyses and comparisons of various systems. Mediation and related third party interventions such as conciliation and facilitation are discussed as effective prevention and regulation tools for different types of collective labor conflicts. These interventions fit in a new developed five-phase model of collective conflicts in organizations, going from capacity building in latent conflicts, through conciliation, mediation and arbitration in escalating phases, to rebuilding of trust after hot conflicts. The book regards to labor mediation systems, presenting comparative research on the perspectives of mediators and
Mechanics of Civil Engineering Structures
Presents the material needed by practicing engineers engaged in the design of civil engineering structures, and students of civil engineering. The book covers the fundamental principles of mechanics needed to understand the responses of structures to different types of load and provides the analytical and empirical tools for design. The title presents the mechanics of relevant structural elements—including columns, beams, frames, plates and shells—and the use of mechanical models for assessing design code application. Eleven chapters cover topics including stresses and strains; elastic beams and columns; inelastic and composite beams and columns; temperature and other kinematic loads; energy principles; stability and second-order effects for beams and columns; basics of vibration; indeterminate elastic-plastic structures; plates and shells.
Measuring Methane Production from Ruminants
The world’s livestock sector is amidst a major transformation, fuelled by high demand for meat and milk, which is likely to double over the next two decades in developing countries. The challenge is to enhance animal productivity without adversely affecting the environment. A key to this is reducing methane emissions from ruminants. The major limitation to ruminant production in many tropical regions of Africa, Asia and Latin America, where a large proportion of the global ruminant population is located, is poor nutrition. The productivity of animals is restricted by the low nitrogen and high fibre content of the native grasses and crop residues, which form the basis of the diets in these regions. Animals on these types of diets emit more methane than animals fed better quality temperate forages. These methane emissions represent a loss of digestible energy to the animal (up to 15%) as well as a threat to the environment.The challenge is to devise nutritional strategies and identify dietary components, particularly from locally available plant resources, that reduce methane emissions.
Mayo clinic infectious disease case review : With board-style questions and answers
Addresses many of the current-day illnesses seen by primary care clinicians and infectious diseases specialists. A case presentation format is used for all 54 chapters, and this framework serves as a wonderful educational tool that mirrors, in many respects, the objectives of a “case conference” format. The dozens of authors from different areas of our specialty have ensured that a robust clinical examination of specific infection syndromes has been included. In addition, the Question and Answer section solidifies the educational benefits for all levels and types of clinicians who seek an understanding of disease diagnosis, management, and prevention. A well-recognized characteristic of infectious diseases specialists is our focus on epidemiology, and this trait has served us well in developing successful clinical careers.
Mathematical Models of Financial Derivatives
Mathematical Models of Financial Derivatives is a textbook on the theory behind modeling derivatives using the financial engineering approach, focussing on the martingale pricing principles that are common to most derivative securities. A wide range of financial derivatives commonly traded in the equity and fixed income markets are analyzed, emphasizing on the aspects of pricing, hedging and their risk management. Starting from the renowned Black-Scholes-Merton formulation of option pricing model, readers are guided through the text on the new advances on the state-of-the-art derivative pricing models and interest rate models. Both analytic techniques and numerical methods for solving various types of derivative pricing models are emphasized.
Ion Channels
Ion channels play a vital role in basic physiological functions such as generation of electrical activity in nerves and muscle, control of cardiac excitability, intracellular signaling, hormone secretion, cell proliferation and many other biological processes. Because of their prevalence and the critical role they play in virtually all tissue types and organs, ion channels are also involved in a number of pathophysiological conditions. The aim of this volume is to review recent advances in the field of ion channel related diseases. Following an overview chapter summarizing the current state of ion channel screening technologies, five topics covering areas such as cancer, cardiac arrhythmias, cystic fibrosis, and pain have been selected, and the current state of knowledge is presented by leading experts in their field.
Introduction to Video Search Engines
Their book has a practical emphasis with the goal of bringing readers up to date on the state of the art in multimedia search technologies and systems. It explains the overall process of video content acquisition, indexing and retrieval with browsing, it provides overviews of constituent technologies such as information retrieval, Internet video systems, video and multimedia processing to extract index data, and it gives examples of research prototypes and existing commercial systems and describes their features.



















