West African Youth Challenges and Opportunity Pathways
This book explores obstacles that impede, and potential pathways toward improving, the material and psychological well-being of youth in and from West Africa. Contributors range from researchers to practitioners, offering a transatlantic, transcontinental set of perspectives on the mounting evidence that, whether they reside in poor “underdeveloped” or wealthier (OECD) countries, young people who live in poverty and are African-born or of African descent are disproportionately burdened by the global phenomenon of increasing income inequality.
Well-being, Sustainability and Social Development : The Netherlands 1850–2050
Examines more than two centuries of societal development using novel historical and statistical approaches. It applies the well-being monitor developed by Statistics Netherlands that has been endorsed by a significant part of the international, statistical community. The study also reveals the importance of natural capital: soil, air, water and subsoil resources, showing their relation with the social structure of the ‘here and now´. Treatment and trade of natural resources also impacted on the quality of life ‘later’ and ‘elsewhere.’ Further, the book illustrates the role of natural capital by dividing the capital into three types of raw materials and concomitant material flows: bio-raw materials, mineral and fossil subsoil resources.
Wellbeing Economics : The Capabilities Approach to Prosperity
Addresses fundamental issues affecting wellbeing outcomes. Drawing inspiration from the capabilities approach of Nobel Prize winner Amartya Sen, the book demonstrates how persons can enhance prosperity through their own actions and through collaboration with others. The book examines national public policy, but its analysis also focuses on choices made by individuals, households, families, civil society, local government and the global community. It therefore offers important insights for anyone concerned with improving personal wellbeing and community prosperity.
Well Logging for Earth Scientists
Well logging lies at the intersection of applied geophysics, petroleum and geotechnical engineering. It has its roots in the tentative electrical measurements in well bores which were made by the Schlumberger brothers some 80 years ago in the earliest days of systematic petroleum exploration. Today, a variety of specialized instruments is used to obtain measurements from the borehole during, as well as after, the drilling process. This readable and authoritative treatment of the physics of these measurements dispels the "black magic" of well log interpretation by relating them, including those obtained by the latest generation of tools, to rock physics. It offers a thorough exposé of the physical basis of borehole geophysical measurements, as well as an introduction to practical petrophysics -- extracting desired properties from well log measurements.
Web Intelligence Meets Brain Informatics ; 1st WICI International Workshop, WImBI 2006, Beijing, China, December 15-16, 2006, Revised Selected and Invited Papers
the book include: workshop was the first in the field to focus on the interplay between (a) intelligent technologies, especially in the context of WI and (b) studies on human intelligence as explored in neuroscience, cognitive psychology, and brain science instrumentation.The book, as a volume in the Springer LNCS/LNAI state-of-the-art survey, will be a milestone publication, with research visions and blueprints, for com-puter scientists and practitioners at large in this exciting interdisciplinaryarea.
Web Information Systems Engineering - WISE 2005 ; 6th International Conference on Web Information Systems Engineering, New York, NY, USA, November 20-22, 2005, Proceedings
This book constitutes the proceedings of the 6th International Conference on Web Information Systems Engineering, WISE 2005, held in New York, NY, USA, in November 2005. The papers are organized in topical sections on Web mining, Web information retrieval, metadata management, ontology and semantic Web, XML, Web service method, Web service structure, collaborative methodology, P2P, ubiquitous and mobile, document retrieval applications, Web services and e-commerce, recommendation and Web information extraction, P2P, grid and distributed management, and advanced issues.
Weak Links : The Universal Key to the Stability of Networks and Complex Systems
How can our societies be stabilized in a crisis? Why can we enjoy and understand Shakespeare? Why are fruitflies uniform? How do omnivorous eating habits aid our survival? What makes the Mona Lisa’s smile beautiful? How do women keep our social structures intact? – Could there possibly be a single answer to all these questions? This book shows that the statement: "weak links stabilize complex systems" provides the key to understanding each of these intriguing puzzles, and many others too. The author (recipient of several distinguished science communication prizes) uses weak (low affinity, low probability) interactions as a thread to introduce a vast variety of networks from proteins to economics and ecosystems.
Water-filtered Infrared A (wIRA) irradiation : from research to clinical settings
The aim of this book is to provide a unique, timely, critical and comprehensive compilation of more than 30 years of robust international experimental and clinical research related to the basic science and therapeutic application of water-filtered infrared-A (wIRA) and hyperthermia in oncology, psychiatry (depression), musculoskeletal disorders, dermatology, infectiology, and surgery. This is an internationally absolutely unique attempt which publication is timely and of great interest in medical as well as in natural sciences.
Water Resources and Hydrometeorology of the Arab Region
The great importance of detailed data and their use in generating interdisciplinary scientific knowledge on the development and utilisation of the water systems of the Arab region, with its widespread water stress and desert areas, is well established. With increasing consumption of water in the region backed up by the growing population, the per capita availability of freshwater in the coming years is expected to cause severe scarcity, unless some fundamental and anticipatory changes are introduced in the management of their water systems. Towards that end, such a rich book will prove to be a great help. The book is the last one written by the author and the depth of data presentation and analysis clearly indicates the professional maturity with which it has been written. Accordingly, the book is the final expression of the lifelong work and scholarship of Professor Mamdouh Shahin.
Water Quality Hazards and Dispersion of Pollutants
Water resources are under stress worldwide and one of the elements of this stress - man's impact on water quality constitutes a key problem especially in well-developed countries. This problem receives an increasing attention of the public, politicians, decision makers nowadays. People have to answer how to achieve any given level and pattern of water quality in particular watercourses and also how to mitigate the catastrophes that are inseparable elements of civilization. The EU water framework directive, which came into force at the end of 2000, changes the way of monitoring, assessing and managing water in European countries. Three groups of quality elements (biological, hydromorphological and physico-chemical) have been identified in the water framework directive as necessary to classify the ecological status of a particular water body.
War related neuropsychological disease: Epilepsy
Among the consequences of war, the impact on the mental health of the civilian population is one of the most significant. Studies of the general population show a definite increase in the incidence and prevalence of mental disorders. Women are more affected than men. Other vulnerable groups are children, the elderly and the disabled. Prevalence rates are associated with the degree of trauma, and the availability of physical and emotional support. The use of cultural and religious coping strategies is frequent in developing countries. Epilepsy is a chronic non communicable disease of the brain that affects people of all ages. Around 50 million people worldwide have epilepsy, making it one of the most common neurological diseases globally. Nearly 80% of people with epilepsy live in low- and middle-income countries, it is estimated that up to 70% of people living with epilepsy could live seizure- free if properly diagnosed and treated.
Wafer Level 3-D ICs Process Technology
The core of the book discusses alternative technology platforms for pre-packaging wafer level 3-D ICs, with an emphasis on wafer-to-wafer stacking. Driven by the need for improved performance, a number of companies, consortia and universities are researching methods to use short, monolithically-fabricated, vertical interconnections to replace the long interconnects found in 2-D ICs. Stacking disparate technologies to provide various combinations of densely-packed functions, such as logic, memory, MEMS, displays, RF, mixed-signal, sensors, and power delivery is potentially possible with 3-D heterogeneous integration, making this technology the "Holy Grail" of system integration.
Vulnerability in Scandinavian art and culture
In this book, seventeen scholars discuss how contemporary Scandinavian art and media have become important arenas to articulate and stage various forms of vulnerability in the Scandinavian welfare states.
Volunteering and Social Inclusion : Interrelations between Unemployment and Civic Engagement in Germany and Great Britain
Conceptualising employment and volunteering as two distinct forms of social inclusion, Susanne Strauß analyses their interrelations in Germany and Great Britain. On the basis of household panel data, she answers questions such as: Does job loss lead people to give up their volunteer work? Or do people who have lost their job keep up their volunteering activities to use them as an alternative source of social recognition? Does volunteering help with finding a new job? By comparing the situation in two different countries, the author stresses that differences in labour market institutions lead to distinct answers. Moreover, the study points to variations with respect to gender, education and the type of volunteering organisations.
Volcano Deformation : New Geodetic Monitoring Techniques
With contributions from some of the most experienced and knowledgeable experts in the field, the book desbribes the state-of-the-art techniques used by volcanologists to successfully predict volcanic eruptions. With chapters on GPS and synthetic aperture radar interferometry, Volcanic Deformation covers both the "classical" and emerging methodologies, and looks at the future challenges faced by scientists when predicting volcanic eruptions.
Voices of Trauma : Treating Psychological Trauma Across Cultures
Synthesizing insights from psychiatry, social psychology, and anthropology, Voices of Trauma: Treating Survivors across Cultures sets out a framework for therapy that is as culturally informed as it is productive. An international panel of 23 therapists offers contextual knowledge on PTSD, coping skills, and other trauma sequelae as they affect survivors of traumatic events. Case studies from Egypt to Chechnya demonstrate various therapeutic approaches (and the Cultural Formation of Diagnosis from the DSM-IV), often integrated with social agencies outside the clinical setting. Authors explore the balance of inter- and intrapersonal factors in reactions to trauma, dispel misconceptions that hinder progress in treatment, and provide profound examples of mutual trust and empathy, even how the wounded may heal the therapist.
Vocal Fold Paralysis
New therapeutic options and approaches have been developed based on an expanded knowledge of the underlying pathophysiology of vocal fold paralysis. The core of Vocal Fold Paralysis offers step-by-step descriptions and of the following therapies: vocal fold injection, medialization laryngoplasty, and arytenoid repositioning surgery. It also includes special topics such as reinnervation, vocal fold pacing, bilateral medialization, and pediatric and bilateral vocal fold paralysis. Vocal Fold Paralysis is a clinically useful reference for evaluation and treatment, as well as a summary of current knowledge and investigational approaches. This excellent guide fills a void within the field of otolaryngology and should not be missed by any otorhinolaryngologist, neurologist, phoniatrician or speech pathologist.
Vitreo-retinal Surgery ; 1st ed.
Progress in vitreo-retinal surgery is mercurial. Since this series is dedicated to new developments the reader is presented with a motley list of topics. The advancements described here may represent generally accepted progress in the field: New instruments, Macular hole surgery, Tumor biopsy. New ideas are set out to be tested for their benefit, for example: AMD surgery, Adjunctive pharmacotherapy. Reflections on incessant clinical problems in vitreo-retina surgery require superior scrutinization of established surgical techniques and indications: Posterior slippage, Inferior breaks, Subclinical retinal detachments. The editors will expand this list in future editions with topics like: new support for buckling surgery, enzyme assisted vitrectomy, new tamponades and other yet unknown fields of progress.
Vitiligo
Vitiligo is an acquired pigmentary skin disorder caused by the absence of pigmentary cells from the epidermis that results in white macules and patches on the body. Initial lesions occur most frequently on the hands, forearms, feet, and face, favoring a periocular or perioral distribution. The course of the disease is often unpredictable and varies in response to the treatment. Depigmentation often the cause of psychological distress, social stigmatization, and low self-esteem...
Vitamin deficiency
Vitamin deficiency is the condition of a long-term lack of a vitamin. When caused by not enough vitamin intake it is classified as a primary deficiency, whereas when due to an underlying disorder such as malabsorption it is called a secondary deficiency. An underlying disorder may be metabolic – as in a genetic defect for converting tryptophan to niacin – or from lifestyle choices that increase vitamin needs, such as smoking or drinking alcohol. Governments guidelines on vitamin deficiencies advise certain intakes for healthy people, with specific values for women, men, babies, the elderly, and during pregnancy or breastfeeding. Many countries have mandated vitamin food fortification programs to prevent commonly occurring vitamin deficiencies. Conversely hypervitaminosis refers to symptoms caused by vitamin intakes in excess of needs, especially for fat-soluble vitamins that can accumulate in body tissues.



















