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Hepatitis C virus-host interactions and therapeutics : Current insights and future perspectives
The burden of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection on the public health care system continues to remain significant despite the remarkable progress made in HCV therapeutics in the recent past. There are now almost a dozen oral interferon-free direct-acting antivirals available for the treatment of hepatitis C virus infection. Despite advances in the treatment of HCV, therapeutic gaps remain that are yet to be fully explored. Researchers and scientists still strive to understand virus-host interactions to map the disease’s progression along with extrahepatic manifestations and virus invasion strategies impacting the host’s immune system. This book briefly discusses the biology of HCV infection, virus-host interactions, molecular epidemiology of the infection, and the full spectrum of immune responses to hepatitis C. It also provides in-depth information about HCV, clinical diagnostics, and therapeutic knowledge to all stakeholders involved in HCV screening, diagnosis, treatment, and management.
Hebbian Learning and Negative Feedback Networks
This book is the outcome of a decade’s research into a speci?c architecture and associated learning mechanism for an arti?cial neural network: the - chitecture involves negative feedback and the learning mechanism is simple Hebbian learning. The research began with my own thesis at the University of Strathclyde, Scotland, under Professor Douglas McGregor which culminated with me being awarded a PhD in 1995 [52], the title of which was “Negative Feedback as an Organising Principle for Arti?cial Neural Networks”. Naturally enough, having established this theme, when I began to sup- vise PhD students of my own, we continued to develop this concept and this book owes much to the research and theses of these students at the Applied Computational Intelligence Research Unit in the University of Paisley . All of Chapters 3 to 8 deal with single stream arti?cial neural networks.
Health technology assessments by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence : A qualitative study
This volume dissects the robustness of the agency’s technology appraisal processes as NICE evaluates innovative methods for diagnosis and intervention. Given the unique features of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)—starting with it being diagnosed mainly in children and adolescents, its high comorbidity with other psychiatric conditions, and its considerable economic impact—the disorder is a perfect focal point for discussion.
Headway in Spatial Data Handling ; 13th International Symposium on Spatial Data Handling
For sustainable development, climate change or more simply resource sharing and economic development, this information helps to - cilitate human activities and to foresee the impact of these activities in space as well as, inversely, the impact of space on our lives. The Inter- tional Symposium on Spatial Data Handing (SDH) is a primary research forum where questions related to spatial and temporal modelling and analysis, data integration, visual representation or semantics are raised.
Handbook of Social Movements Across Disciplines
Researchers and students from divergent academic disciplines share an interest in the study of social movements and collective action. Through a variety of disciplinary approaches and techniques, researchers seek to understand the emergence and development of collective action. In the last few decades, the field of social-movements-studies has proliferated enormously, covering a wide array of movements, issues and places. With this growth, social movement scholars have criticized the traditional vision of collective mobilization as the results of irrational behavior and have instead developed a range of new approaches. The expansion of the field has also led to increased theoretical debates and attempts to synthesize the different perspectives. With this in mind, this seminal volume revisits the disciplinary roots of social movement studies. Each discipline raises its own questions and approaches the subject from a different perspective. This volume combines these divergent perspectives into one cohesive, comprehensive work.
Handbook of International Investment Law and Policy
The Handbook will feature more than 80 contributions from leading experts (academics, lawyers, government officials), including Vivienne Bath, M. Sornarajah, Mélida Hodgson, Rahul Donde, Roberto Echandi, Andrew Mitchell, Ernst-Ulrich Petersmann, Christina L. Beharry, Krista Nadakavukaren Schefer, Leon Trakman, Prabhash Ranjan, Emmanuel Jacomy, Mariel Dimsey, Stavros Brekoulakis, Romesh Weeramantry, Nathalie Bernasconi-Osterwalder, David Collins, Damilola S. Olawuyi, Katia Fach Gomez, Jaemin Lee, Alejandro Carballo-Leyda, Patrick W. Pearsall, Mark Feldman, Surya Deva, Luke Nottage, Rafael Leal-Arcas, James Nedumpara, Rodrigo Polanco, etc.
Handbook of Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry
This book takes a practical biopsychosocial approach to helping readers navigate this complex terrain.Early chapters trace the roots of psychosomatic medicine and consultation-liaison psychiatry, the nature of psychiatric diagnosis, and explain the clinical, educational, administrative, and research functions of CL psychiatry, and walk the reader through the basics of psychiatric consultation. They discuss common reasons for psychiatric consultation and the immediate management of urgent conditions such as agitation and suicidal behavior. From there, chapters feature case vignettes, practice guidelines, and specific information on topics as varied as postpartum depression, withdrawal symptoms, and chronic pain. And in keeping with this real-world orientation, contributors identify cultural issues, analyze ethical concerns, and flag the potential conflicts of interest that practitioners must recognize and prevent for successful practice.
Handbook of advanced magnetic materials : Vol 1 : Nanostructural effects ; Vol 2 : Characterization and simulation ; Vol 3 : Fabrication and processing ; Vol 4 : Properties and applications
The objective of Handbook of Advanced Magnetic Materials is to provide a timely, comprehensive review of recent progress in magnetic materials research. This broad yet detailed reference consists of four volumes: 1.) Nanostructured advanced magnetic materials, 2.) Characterization and simulation of advanced magnetic materials, 3.) Processing of advanced magnetic materials, and 4.) Properties and applications of advanced magnetic materials Emphasis is on the processing, experimental investigation, theoretical understanding, and application of nanostructured magnetic materials. The chapters, authored by worldwide known specialists, provide an introduction into the topics and review the latest advances in magnetic nanostructures and materials. This includes emerging new materials, scientific methods, and experimental techniques. The coverage is very broad and includes nanostructural effects, characterization and simulation, fabrication and processing, and properties and applications of advanced magnetic materials.
Guidelines for thermography in architecture and civil engineering : theory, application area, practical implementation
These guidelines convey in condensed form the authors' many years of experience in detecting thermal engineering defects and structural damage such as thermal bridges, air leaks or moisture penetration damage with a non-destructive and easily applicable method of measurement and investigation. As well as providing an introduction to the physical fundamentals of thermography, the book offers an up-to-date overview of the technology, structure, standards and selection criteria of common thermographic systems.
Guidebook to carbon neutrality in China : Macro and industry trends under new constraints
The book offers a comprehensive analysis of how the pursuit of carbon neutrality may influence the development of China's economy, and the country's biggest industries, while foreseeing the likely changes in people's lifestyles.
Group theory : Application to the physics of condensed matter
Every process in physics is governed by selection rules that are the consequence of symmetry requirements. The beauty and strength of group theory resides in the transformation of many complex symmetry operations into a very simple linear algebra. This concise and class-tested book has been pedagogically tailored over 30 years MIT and 2 years at the University Federal of Minas Gerais (UFMG) in Brazil. The approach centers on the conviction that teaching group theory in close connection with applications helps students to learn, understand and use it for their own needs. For this reason, the theoretical background is confined to the first 4 introductory chapters (6-8 classroom hours). From there, each chapter develops new theory while introducing applications so that the students can best retain new concepts, build on concepts learned the previous week, and see interrelations between topics as presented.
Global perspectives on health promotion effectiveness
This edited volume ... raises important questions about 'what counts as evidence and who gets to decide.' It presents important challenges to dominant biomedical approaches assessing evidence and effectiveness within health promotion ... offers an introduction to the key debates and challenges involved in the evaluation of health promotion programs, as well as some useful strategies for measuring their impact ... the authors acknowledge the value and legitimacy of a wide range of epistemological positions and scientific approaches and present their arguments using language and logic likely to be accessible and acceptable to researchers using different paradigms.
Geographies of the University
Raises awareness of the histories, geographies, and practices of universities and analyzes their role as key actors in today’s global knowledge economy. Universities are centers of research, teaching, and expertise with significant economic, social, and cultural impacts at different geographical scales. Scholars from a variety of disciplines and countries offer original analyses and discussions along five main themes: historical perspectives on the university as a site of knowledge production, cultural encounter, and political interest; institutional perspectives on university governance and the creation of innovative environments; relationships between universities and the city; the impact of universities on national and regional economies and cultures; and the processes of internationalization through student mobility, the creation of education hubs, and global regionalism in higher education.
Fuzzy Chaotic Systems : Modeling, Control, and Applications
"Fuzzy Chaotic Systems" provides original heuristic research achievements and insightful ideas on the interactions or intrinsic relationships between fuzzy logic and chaos theory. It presents the fundamental concepts of fuzzy logic and fuzzy control, chaos theory and chaos control, as well as thedefinition of chaos on the metric space of fuzzy sets. This monograph discusses and illustrates fuzzy modeling and fuzzy control of chaotic systems, synchronization, anti-control of chaos, intelligent digital redesign, spatiotemporal chaos and synchronization in complex fuzzy systems; as well as a practical application example of fuzzy-chaos-based cryptography. Like other very good books, this book may raise more questions than it can provide answers. It therefore generates a great potential to attract more attention to combine fuzzy systems with chaos theory and contains important seeds for future scientific research and engineering applications.
Future Interaction Design
In 1969 Herbert Simon wrote a book, The Science of the Artificial, in which he argued that cognitive science should have its area of application in the design of devices. He proposed the foundation of a science of the artificial related with cognitive science in the sense in which we have traditionally understood the relationship between the engineering disciplines and the basic sciences. Such a science has been called cognitive ergonomics or cognitive engineering (Norman 1986). Simon’s cognitive ergonomics (1969), would be independent of cognitive science, its basic science, although both would be closely related. Cognitive science would contribute knowledge on human cognitive processes, and cognitive ergonomics would contribute concrete problems of design that should be solved in the context of the creation of devices. Norman (1986), the author that coined the term cognitive engineering, conceived it as an applied cognitive science where the knowledge of cognitive science is combined with that of engineering to solve design problems. According to Norman, its objectives would be: (1) to understand the fundamental principles of human actions important for the development of the engineering of design principles, and (2) to build systems that are pleasant in their use.
Furnishing - Zoning
Deals with the relationships between building typology and building structure, and between spatial composition and interior design. The relationship between the briefing and the catalogue of requirements, and between shell construction and fit-out, is elucidated. Connections at walls, ceilings and floors are explained in detail and illustrated with case studies of selected projects. In addition, the authors demonstrate how a well-designed sequence of spaces can create added value by means, for example, of the choice of materials and the lighting scheme, or adaptability to accommodate new functions.
Frontiers in Research of the Renin-Angiotensin System on Human Disease
the major purpose of this seventh volume of Proteases in Biology and Disease series is to provide a topical and timely forum for the critical appraisal of an area of endocrine research that is expanding rapidly. In this book entitled “Frontiers in Research of the Renin-Angiotensin System on Human Disease”, a collection of 13 chapters from distinguished and world-class experts in the field has been presented on the contemporary research of the RAS in human disease.
Frontiers in Magnetic Materials
Frontiers in Magnetic Materials focuses on the current achievements and state-of-the-art advancements in magnetic materials. Several lines of development- High-Tc Superconductivity, Nanotechnology and refined experimental techniques among them – raised knowledge and interest in magnetic materials remarkably. The book comprises 24 chapters on the most relevant topics written by renowned international experts in the field. It is of central interest to researchers and specialists in Physics and Materials Science, both in academic and industrial research, as well as advanced students.
Freshwater Microplastics : Emerging Environmental Contaminants?
Focuses on microscopic plastic debris, also referred to as microplastics, which have been detected in aquatic environments around the globe and have accordingly raised serious concerns. The book explores whether microplastics represent emerging contaminants in freshwater systems, an area that remains underrepresented to date.Given the complexity of the issue, the book covers the current state-of-research on microplastics in rivers and lakes, including analytical aspects, environmental concentrations and sources, modelling approaches, interactions with biota, and ecological implications. To provide a broader perspective, the book also discusses lessons learned from nanomaterials and the implications of plastic debris for regulation, politics, economy, and society. In a research field that is rapidly evolving, it offers a solid overview for environmental chemists, engineers, and toxicologists, as well as water managers and policy-makers.
Freedom and Value : Freedom’s Influence on Welfare and Worldly Value
Freedom of the sort implicated in acting freely or with free will is important to the truth of different sorts of moral judgment, such as judgments of moral responsibility and those of moral obligation. Little thought, however, has been invested into whether appraisals of good or evil presuppose free will. The central aim of this book is to dispute this assumption by arguing for the relevance of free will to the truth of two sorts of such judgment: welfare-ranking judgments or judgments of personal well-being (when is one's life intrinsically good for the one who lives it?), and world-ranking judgments (when is a possible world intrinsically better than another?). The book also examines free will’s impact on the truth of such judgments for central issues in moral obligation and in the free will debate.
