Search results for ""Taylor Francis Inc""

The field of encapsulation, especially microencapsulation, is a rapidly growing area of research and product development. The Handbook of Encapsulation and Controlled Release covers the entire field, presenting the fundamental processes involved and exploring how to use those processes for different applications in industry. Written at a level comprehensible to non-experts, it is a rich source of technical information and current practices in research and industry.This book is particularly designed for scientists and engineers working in various industries, including food, consumer products, pharmaceuticals, medicine, agriculture, nutraceuticals, dietary supplements, cosmetics, flavors, and fragrances. It offers a broad perspective on a variety of applications and processes, providing research information, figures, tables, illustrations, and references.The book also lays the groundwork for further advancements in encapsulation technology and controlled release applications. Catering to professionals, researchers, students, and general readers in academia, industry, and research institutions, the Handbook of Encapsulation and Controlled Release is a much-needed reference on the state of the field and an authoritative resource for continued research and development in encapsulation and controlled release technologies.

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This book on urban regeneration takes an approach that captures the increasing urbanization of modern living in all parts of the world. Revitalization of built and natural surroundings needs to take place to achieve resilient environmental, social, and economic success. The book looks at proactive natural and built regeneration strategies to increase biocapacity as well as contribute to quality urbanism. Adapting and coping approaches found within big city success stories illustrate the challenges of modern urban living.

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Computer Systems Architecture provides IT professionals and students with the necessary understanding of computer hardware. It addresses the ongoing issues related to computer hardware and discusses the solutions supplied by the industry.The book describes trends in computing solutions that led to the current available infrastructures, tracing the initial need for computers to recent concepts such as the Internet of Things. It covers computers’ data representation, explains how computer architecture and its underlying meaning changed over the years, and examines the implementations and performance enhancements of the central processing unit (CPU). It then discusses the organization, hierarchy, and performance considerations of computer memory as applied by the operating system and illustrates how cache memory significantly improves performance.The author proceeds to explore the bus system, algorithms for ensuring data integrity, input and output (I/O) components, methods for performing I/O, various aspects relevant to software engineering, and nonvolatile storage devices, such as hard drives and technologies for enhancing performance and reliability. He also describes virtualization and cloud computing and the emergence of software-based systems’ architectures.Accessible to software engineers and developers as well as students in IT disciplines, this book enhances readers’ understanding of the hardware infrastructure used in software engineering projects. It enables readers to better optimize system usage by focusing on the principles used in hardware systems design and the methods for enhancing performance.

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Computational Trust Models and Machine Learning provides a detailed introduction to the concept of trust and its application in various computer science areas, including multi-agent systems, online social networks, and communication systems. Identifying trust modeling challenges that cannot be addressed by traditional approaches, this book: Explains how reputation-based systems are used to determine trust in diverse online communities Describes how machine learning techniques are employed to build robust reputation systems Explores two distinctive approaches to determining credibility of resources—one where the human role is implicit, and one that leverages human input explicitly Shows how decision support can be facilitated by computational trust models Discusses collaborative filtering-based trust aware recommendation systems Defines a framework for translating a trust modeling problem into a learning problem Investigates the objectivity of human feedback, emphasizing the need to filter out outlying opinions Computational Trust Models and Machine Learning effectively demonstrates how novel machine learning techniques can improve the accuracy of trust assessment.

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Remediation of groundwater is complex and often challenging. But the cost of pump and treat technology, coupled with the dismal results achieved, has paved the way for newer, better technologies to be developed. Among these techniques is permeable reactive barrier (PRB) technology, which allows groundwater to pass through a buried porous barrier that either captures the contaminants or breaks them down. And although this approach is gaining popularity, there are few references available on the subject. Until now. Permeable Reactive Barrier: Sustainable Groundwater Remediation brings together the information required to plan, design/model, and apply a successful, cost-effective, and sustainable PRB technology.With contributions from pioneers in this area, the book covers state-of-the-art information on PRB technology. It details design criteria, predictive modeling, and application to contaminants beyond petroleum hydrocarbons, including inorganics and radionuclides. The text also examines implementation stages such as the initial feasibility assessment, laboratory treatability studies (including column studies), estimation of PRB design parameters, and development of a long-term monitoring network for the performance evaluation of the barrier. It also outlines the predictive tools required for life cycle analysis and cost/performance assessment.A review of current PRB technology and its applications, this book includes case studies that exemplify the concepts discussed. It helps you determine when to recommend PRB, what information is needed from the site investigation to design it, and what regulatory validation is required.

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Skin and Systemic Disease: A Clinician’s Guide acts as an essential clinical guide for health care providers during patient care. The opening chapter is based on skin findings that have numerous systemic associations, such as flushing or pruritus, providing clinicians with quick access to key information and illustrations pertaining to particular conditions. Subsequent chapters focus on more defined skin disorders that are routinely associated with systemic disease, such as dermatomyositis.Information on each disorder’s etiopathogenesis, clinical manifestations, and systemic manifestations is presented in every chapter, where appropriate, along with guidance on evaluation and management of the disorder. This book is an invaluable resource for health care providers trying to diagnose and treat patients presenting with skin symptoms that may indicate systemic disease.

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Forensic Analysis of Tattoos and Tattoo Inks is the single most comprehensive resource on the analysis of tattoo inks and use of tattoos as a tool in forensic investigations and criminalistics. The book begins with a history of tattoos and tattoo inks, and covers the use of tattoos throughout time as aids in the identification of individuals. It presents identification methods of identification through tattoos on charred, decomposed, mummified, or otherwise unidentifiable remains in both criminal investigations and mass disasters.This book provides an understanding of the process of tattooing and the roles of tattoos in criminological inquiry and legal matters. It scientifically evaluates tattoo inks, documenting the physical properties of the inks both macroscopically and microscopically as well as spectroscopically—identifying the optical and chemical properties of the various pigments found in these inks. A thorough analytical method is developed to conform to current laboratory accreditation standards and the satisfaction of legal standards such as Frye, Daubert and the Federal Rules of Evidence.Forensic Analysis of Tattoos and Inks shows how routine scientific inquiry can be applied to tattoo evidence by adding an objective component to interpretation, identification, and individualization of tattoos and tattoo inks in investigations. It presents the science and chemistry of tattoos and tattoo inks as a reliable tool in forensic casework and other related criminal and legal matters.

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Foundations of Analysis covers the basics of real analysis for a one- or two-semester course. In a straightforward and concise way, it helps students understand the key ideas and apply the theorems. The book’s accessible approach will appeal to a wide range of students and instructors.Each section begins with a boxed introduction that familiarizes students with the upcoming topics and sets the stage for the work to be done. Each section ends with several questions that ask students to review what they have just learned. The text is also scattered with notes pointing out places where different pieces of terminology seem to conflict with each other or where different ideas appear not to fit together properly. In addition, many remarks throughout help put the material in perspective.As with any real analysis text, exercises are powerful and effective learning tools. This book is no exception. Each chapter generally contains at least 50 exercises that build in difficulty, with an exercise set at the end of every section. This allows students to more easily link the exercises to the material in the section.

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Flow Injection Analysis of Food Additives gives you the tools you need to analyze food and beverage additives using FIA. This sets it apart from other books that simply focus on the theoretical basis and principles of FIA or on the design of equipment, instrumentation, manifold, and setting mechanism. Truly unprecedented in its scope, this book represents the work of 80 authors from 14 countries who combine efforts to give you the first review on measurements of additives and other substances by FIA in relation to the use of additives in food.The book consists of ten sections. The first section provides an introduction to the topic and reviews the origin of FIA, including recent developments and future trends. The next six sections discuss the determination of additives. These sections are divided based on the official classification of additives according to function by the EU. In the final three sections, you will find a review of the determination of antioxidant capacity, antimicrobial effects, and acidity by FIA.All chapters are organized in the same way: The first part begins with a small introduction in relation to the importance of the additive or compound in foods and beverages and discusses the legislation affecting their use and control. The second part focuses on the determination of the compound or additive by FIA in different foods or beverages, with sample preparation and extraction from a food/beverage on the one hand and FIA methods used for the separation and detection on the other.

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This book covers a wealth of knowledge from experts and informed stakeholders on the best ways to understand, prevent, and control fall-related risk exposures. Featured are subjects on: (1) a public health view of fall problems and strategic goals; (2) the sciences behind human falls and injury risk; (3) research on slips, trips and falls; (4) practical applications of prevention and protection tools and methods in industrial sectors and home/communities; (5) fall incident investigation and reconstruction; and (6) knowledge gaps, emerging issues, and recommendations for fall protection research and fall mitigation.

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The book provides advice on how to prepare for the examination and how questions should be approached to obtain the highest marks. With more than 350 questions, preparation tips and extensive answer explanations, it is the definitive resource for those attempting the DRCOG. The book is comprehensive and authoritative: written by an experienced author and overseen by a well-respected expert in the field. It is the essential revision guide for those preparing for this examination.

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Featuring contributions from major technology vendors, industry consortia, and government and private research establishments, the Industrial Communication Technology Handbook, Second Edition provides comprehensive and authoritative coverage of wire- and wireless-based specialized communication networks used in plant and factory automation, automotive applications, avionics, building automation, energy and power systems, train applications, and more.New to the Second Edition: 46 brand-new chapters and 21 substantially revised chapters Inclusion of the latest, most significant developments in specialized communication technologies and systems Addition of new application domains for specialized networks The Industrial Communication Technology Handbook, Second Edition supplies readers with a thorough understanding of the application-specific requirements for communication services and their supporting technologies. It is useful to a broad spectrum of professionals involved in the conception, design, development, standardization, and use of specialized communication networks as well as academic institutions engaged in engineering education and vocational training.

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Offering a different, more engaging approach to teaching and learning, Organic Chemistry: A Mechanistic Approach classifies organic chemistry according to mechanism rather than by functional group. The book elicits an understanding of the material, by means of problem solving, instead of purely requiring memorization. The text enables a deep understanding of underlying principles that can be applied to a wide range of problems and systems. It also teaches a way of thinking and analysis that will serve students well across many academic disciplines.Covering all the key aspects of organic chemistry, this text emphasizes the development of skills through a student-centered approach. In order to provide a contemporary feel to the subject, the author has included some of the more modern synthetic approaches. In addition, later chapters address the biological, environmental, industrial, and forensic aspects of organic chemistry.Pedagogical Features: Extensive review problems, which are the central means of integrating the material "Focus boxes" that highlight key points in the chapters An instructors’ website with full lecture notes in animated PowerPoint, a solutions manual in both Word and PowerPoint format, and additional problems for use in tests A student website with solutions to review problems, and additional challenging problems and solutions for the ambitious, in animated PowerPoint and text versions

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Stochastic Modeling for Medical Image Analysis provides a brief introduction to medical imaging, stochastic modeling, and model-guided image analysis.Today, image-guided computer-assisted diagnostics (CAD) faces two basic challenging problems. The first is the computationally feasible and accurate modeling of images from different modalities to obtain clinically useful information. The second is the accurate and fast inferring of meaningful and clinically valid CAD decisions and/or predictions on the basis of model-guided image analysis.To help address this, this book details original stochastic appearance and shape models with computationally feasible and efficient learning techniques for improving the performance of object detection, segmentation, alignment, and analysis in a number of important CAD applications.The book demonstrates accurate descriptions of visual appearances and shapes of the goal objects and their background to help solve a number of important and challenging CAD problems. The models focus on the first-order marginals of pixel/voxel-wise signals and second- or higher-order Markov-Gibbs random fields of these signals and/or labels of regions supporting the goal objects in the lattice. This valuable resource presents the latest state of the art in stochastic modeling for medical image analysis while incorporating fully tested experimental results throughout.

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Nearly two billion people depend on hundreds of millions of smallholder farmers for food security. Yet, these farmers’ lives also hang in the balance due to their extreme vulnerability to the risks of soil degradation and depletion, soil exhaustion, climate change, and numerous biotic and abiotic stresses. Soil Management of Smallholder Agriculture explores the potential smallholder agriculture hold for advancing global food security and outlines the challenges to achieving this goal.The book addresses the challenges and opportunities that resource-poor and small landholders face and provides recommended management practices to alleviate soil-related constraints, and increase and sustain crop yield and production. It discusses the cultural, economic, social, and technological aspects of sustainable soil management for smallholder farmers. It then examines soil-related and institutional constraints, principles of sustainable agriculture, soil quality improvement, nutrient and soil fertility management, soil carbon sequestration, soil security, efficient use of resources, and agronomic production. Edited by experts, the book makes the case for the adoption of proven technologies of sustainable intensification, producing more from less, both for advancing agronomic production and adapting to changing climate. It outlines a strategy that will usher in a soil-based Green Revolution by increasing the use efficiency of energy-based inputs such as fertilizers, pesticides, and irrigation to restore soil quality, and sequestering carbon in the terrestrial ecosystems. This strategy helps small farms narrow the gap between the actual and attainable crop yield.

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Nanotechnology offers a revolutionary and definitive approach for the efficient delivery of drug molecules to non-healthy tissues and cells. This first volume of a series of two volumes analyzes the basics in the development of drug-loaded nanoplatforms, the so-called nanomedicines. Special attention is given to physicochemical engineering, pharmacokinetics, biocompatibility and biodegradability, representative nanoplatforms (based on lipids, polymers, cyclodextrins, metals, carbon, silica, iron oxides, etc.), and advanced nano-engineering strategies for passive, ligand-mediated, and/or stimuli-sensitive drug delivery and release.

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Opportunistic networking, by definition, allows devices to communicate whenever a window of opportunity is available. Many emerging technologies employ opportunistic exchanges of information. This book addresses this trend in communications engineering, taking into account three specific areas—vehicular, device-to-device (D2D), and cognitive radio—while describing the opportunistic communication methods of each. From smart homes to smart cities, smart agriculture to never-die-networks and beyond, the text explores the state of the art of opportunistic networking, providing the latest research, developments, and practices in one concise source.

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Shifting from external to internal set-up steps and optimizing your set-up procedure is only the first step in achieving world-class performance. What’s most important is what comes next, cutting down internal set-up times and achieving changeovers that last only a few minutes.Quick Changeover Concepts Applied: Dramatically Reduce Set-Up Time and Increase Production Flexibility with SMED provides a comprehensive overview of changeovers from a strategic, tactical, and operational perspective. It outlines specific strategies that can help readers shorten internal set-up steps through the physical analysis of machine elements. The method presented is the result of a synthesis of Shigeo Shingo’s classic single-minute exchange of die (SMED) methodology with modern engineering techniques. Providing readers with the understanding required to significantly reduce internal set-up times, the book explains why efficient changeovers are critical to production scheduling. It redefines set-up and set-up time and details a step-by-step method for developing quick changeover methods in a manner where changes can be realized with minimal spending. Properly implemented, the quick changeover concepts presented, can help you reduce set-up times by up to 95 percent.The book uses language that is easy to understand to make it accessible to all functions along the value stream—from shop floor operators and industrial engineers to machine designers. It introduces the concept of systems engineering, explains the set-up process and its various elements, and addresses the financial aspects of set-up.Maintaining an analytical focus, the text describes the theoretical details and includes numerous application examples for every step. It also includes an extensive chapter on fasteners and connection material that presents alternative methods to connect elements that can save you valuable time.

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Diseases of Edible Oilseed Crops presents an unprecedentedly thorough collection of information on the diseases of cultivated annual oilseed crops, including peanut, rapeseed-mustard, sesame, soybean, sunflower, and safflower. Written by internationally recognized researchers, this book covers and integrates worldwide literature in the field up to 2014, setting it apart from other books that are only of regional importance.The book focuses on major diseases of economic importance to each crop. Each chapter is devoted to a type of crop and a profile of affecting diseases according to geographical occurrence, epidemiology, symptoms, causal pathogens, host-pathogen interactions, biotechnological aspects, and the latest approaches to understanding host-pathogen interactions. It also includes discussions on developments on controversial subjects in research in order to stimulate thinking and further conversation with an eye toward improvements and resolutions.Research on oilseed crop diseases has expanded tremendously in the past 30 years, primarily as an effort to reduce losses to various stresses, including crop diseases. In the war against hunger and malnutrition, it is necessary to enhance and update knowledge about crop diseases and managing them. By compiling decades of information from previously scattered research into a single globally minded volume, Diseases of Edible Oilseed Crops provides these much-needed updates and enhancements.

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Biology and Management of Invasive Quagga and Zebra Mussels in the Western United States is a synthesis of the biology and management of invasive mussels from scientists and managers working on invasive quagga and zebra mussels in the western United States. Invasive dreissenid mussels have spread throughout southwestern United States at unprecedented speeds, and present a unique threat to native ecosystems. This book documents the efforts, both successful and unsuccessful, of individuals and agencies after dreissenid mussels invaded the West. Although the book is designed specifically for scientists and managers fighting invasive mussels in western waterbodies, it offers an opportunity for scientists and lake managers worldwide to compare successful strategies relevant to their unique situation. It includes guidance documents and protocols related to early detection, prevention, regulation, monitoring, and control of these invasive pests in the West. It compares quagga and zebra mussels in the western United States with those mussels colonizing the Great Lakes and European waters.

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Hazardous Air Pollutants: Case Studies from Asia examines the variety of public health problems, such as cardiovascular disease, respiratory disease, increased mortality, and impaired mental health, that are severely affecting multiple Asian countries as a result of exposure to high concentrations of air pollution in the wake of rapid industrialization. The contributors to this book have direct research experience in health problems caused by air pollution in the countries under discussion. The countries analyzed include China, Taiwan, Japan, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Korea.The book is divided in two sections. Each chapter of the first section focuses on one country and summarizes multiple key aspects that contextualize public health issues within it, including Geography Meteorology Economics Demographics Sources of air pollution Epidemiological findings Biological mechanisms The first section also assesses the exposure and risk within each country. The second section introduces new fields of air pollution research, the impact of vehicle emission regulations, the effects of coal energy generation, and climate change.Presented in a concise and methodical manner, this book provides an up-to-date overview of the air pollution levels, health findings, and air quality policies of Asian countries. It expands understanding about the effects of air pollution on public health in Asia and lays a groundwork for future approaches to research and policy.

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Written to Eurocode 7 and the UK National AnnexUpdated to reflect the current usage of Eurocode 7, along with relevant parts of the British Standards, Pile Design and Construction Practice, Sixth Edition maintains the empirical correlations of the original—combining practical know how with scientific knowledge —and emphasizing relevant principles and applications of soil mechanics and design. Contractors, geotechnical engineers and engineering geologists responsible for designing and constructing piled foundations can find the most current types of pile, piling equipment, and relevant methods in this latest work. The book summarizes recent changes, including new codified design procedures addressing design parameters and partial safety factors. It also presents several examples, many based on actual problems.Broad and Comprehensive In Its Coverage Contains material applicable to modern computational practice Provides new sections on the construction of micropiles and CFA piles, pile-soil interaction, verification of pile materials, piling for integral bridge abutments, use of polymer stabilising fluids, and more Includes calculations of the resistance of piles to compressive loads, pile groups under compressive loading, piled foundations for resisting uplift and lateral loading, and the structural design of piles and pile groups Covers marine structures, durability of piled foundations, ground investigations, and pile testing Addresses miscellaneous problems such as machinery foundations, underpinning, mining subsidence areas, geothermal piles, and unexploded ordnance Pile Design and Construction Practice, Sixth Edition serves as a comprehensive guide for practicing geotechnical engineers and engineering geologists. This text also works as a resource for piling contractors and graduate students studying geotechnical engineering.

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"This kind of systematic work is exactly what is needed for people to help bridge traditional Ayurvedic practice with modern science."—Venkatraman Ramakrishnan, Nobel laureate, current president of the Royal Society and group leader at the Medical Research Council Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Cambridge Biomedical Campus, UKAyurvedic Pharmacopoeial Plant Drugs: Expanded Therapeutics is the first review of all the therapeutic sections of 456 plant drugs in the first six volumes of the Ayurvedic Pharmacopoeia of India. It covers pharmacognosy of classical Ayurvedic herbs, their chemical constituents, therapeutic uses, and doses on the basis of contemporary scientific literature.The book reviews the classical attributes, compounds, and textual references of Ayurvedic plant drugs and updates the pharmacopoeial attributes of Ayurvedic herbs and formulations to make them more industry-oriented and facilitate their implementation. Sanskrit terminology has been converted into English equivalents, and botanical names assigned to Ayurvedic herbs in the text have been reviewed in historical as well as contemporary contexts. This will assist those who are not conversant with Sanskrit or have found multiple names of the same herb in Ayurvedic reference works and in different regions of India. With these salient features, this book provides an added scientific edge to the new generation of Ayurvedic students, faculty members, researchers, and enterprising phytopharmaceutical scientists. In addition, the scientific temper of this resource will help unravel many of the intricacies of classical Ayurveda.

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This book presents a concise synthesis of the current knowledge and recent advances in the structure, organization and functional role of the cytoskeleton in endothelial cells. Particular attention has been given to the different features of the regulation of vascular function mediated by the endothelium. Since cytoskeleton is a scaffolding element that regulates the architecture of the cell and additionally controls several fundamental aspects of intracellular signaling, this book will serve as a comprehensive resource for those interested in these fascinating biological processes associated with vascular biology. The book has been divided into two major sections: general aspects of the endothelial cytoskeleton and the role of the role of the endothelial cytoskeleton in different functions of the vascular wall.

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As social networking continues to evolve and expand, the opportunities for deviant and criminal behavior have multiplied. Social Networking as a Criminal Enterprise explores how new avenues for social networking criminality have affected our criminal justice system.With insight from field experts, this book examines: The history of social networking and the process of developing an online identity Schools of criminological theory and how they relate to criminality on social networking websites Forms of criminal behavior that can be performed utilizing social networking websites Criminality via texting, identity theft, and hacking Adolescents as offenders and victims in cyberbullying and digital piracy Online sexual victimization, including child pornography and sexual solicitation of youth The book concludes by discussing law enforcement’s response, including new techniques and training, type of evidence, and use of experts. It also discusses how the corrections system has been affected by these types of offenders. Discussion questions at the end of each chapter encourage critical thinking and case studies help place the material in context. Ideal for students and scholars, the book offers a comprehensive examination of how the emergence of social networking has affected criminality online, and how it has impacted the criminal justice system.

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Plants under abiotic stress are those suffering from drought, extreme temperatures, flood and other natural—but non-living—factors. Abiotic stress is responsible for reduced yields in several major crops, and climate change is focusing research in this area. To minimize cellular damage cause by such stresses, plants have evolved complex, well coordinated adaptive responses that operate at the transcriptional level. Understanding these processes is key to manipulating plant performance to withstand stress. This book deals with the role of gene silencing in the adaptation of plants to these stresses, and documents the molecular regulatory systems for the abiotic response.

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This book bridges the gap between advances in basic biology and chemistry and technological applications in the field of toxicity assessments. It describes areas of progress in the laboratory and clinic and discusses aspects of cellular organelles. It also covers the basic principles and applications of modern toxicological tools such as transcriptomic, proteomic, and metabolomic approaches. The recent developments on molecular modeling and systems biology are described with an eye on the future establishment of virtual cell technology. Finally the clinical implications for the understanding of acute and chronic renal toxicity are studied.

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Computational biomechanics is an emerging research field that seeks to understand the complex biomechanical behaviors of normal and pathological human joints to come up with new methods of orthopedic treatment and rehabilitation.Computational Biomechanics of the Musculoskeletal System collects the latest research and cutting-edge techniques used in computational biomechanics, focusing on orthopedic and rehabilitation engineering applications. The book covers state-of-the-art techniques and the latest research related to computational biomechanics, in particular finite element analysis and its potential applications in orthopedics and rehabilitation engineering. It offers a glimpse into the exciting potentials for computational modeling in medical research and biomechanical simulation. The book is organized according to anatomical location—foot and ankle, knee, hip, spine, and head and teeth. Each chapter details the scientific questions/medical problems addressed by modeling, basic anatomy of the body part, computational model development and techniques used, related experimental studies for model setup and validation, and clinical applications. Plenty of useful biomechanical information is provided for a variety of applications, especially for the optimal design of body support devices and prosthetic implants.This book is an excellent resource for engineering students and young researchers in bioengineering. Clinicians involved in orthopedics and rehabilitation engineering may find this work to be both informative and highly relevant to their clinical practice.

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This textbook offers an introduction to the foundations of spectroscopic methods and provides a bridge between basic concepts and experimental applications in fields as diverse as materials science, biology, solar energy conversion, and environmental science. The author emphasizes the use of time-dependent theory to link the spectral response in the frequency domain to the behavior of molecules in the time domain, strengthened by two brand new chapters on nonlinear optical spectroscopy and time-resolved spectroscopy. Theoretical underpinnings are presented to the extent necessary for readers to understand how to apply spectroscopic tools to their own interests.

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Artificial Intelligence Tools: Decision Support Systems in Condition Monitoring and Diagnosis discusses various white- and black-box approaches to fault diagnosis in condition monitoring (CM). This indispensable resource: Addresses nearest-neighbor-based, clustering-based, statistical, and information theory-based techniques Considers the merits of each technique as well as the issues associated with real-life application Covers classification methods, from neural networks to Bayesian and support vector machines Proposes fuzzy logic to explain the uncertainties associated with diagnostic processes Provides data sets, sample signals, and MATLAB® code for algorithm testing Artificial Intelligence Tools: Decision Support Systems in Condition Monitoring and Diagnosis delivers a thorough evaluation of the latest AI tools for CM, describing the most common fault diagnosis techniques used and the data acquired when these techniques are applied.

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Written by internationally acknowledged experts in the customer and patient experience movement, Achieving Patient (aka Customer) Experience Excellence: Lessons From a Successful Cultural Transformation in a Hospital clearly outlines the principles and development phases of a great customer experience transformation. Using an engaging story, it allows readers to follow the journey of Community General, a healthcare organization that went from struggling to being nationally recognized for its performance and customer satisfaction success.Demonstrating how Community General was able to achieve its cultural transformation, the book presents valuable lessons learned that can be applied across a range of industries, including healthcare, telecom, and financial services. Each chapter begins with a case study that describes the experiences of the authors—the director of customer experience design, the director of imaging services, a consultant, and a business psychologist—allowing readers to learn from their success and struggles.Each chapter also includes a management learning section that provides practical advice and helpful tips for healthcare managers on their journey towards achieving excellence in the patient experience. Representing decades of battle-tested experience, this book will not only help you understand the components required to build a customer-centric culture, but will also provide the mindset you will need to strike the ideal balance between patient (aka customer) satisfaction and business benefit.

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Failed and fragile states often govern through the criminalization of otherwise inconsequential or tolerated acts. These weak states also frequently use kidnapping, murder, and other violent or oppressive tactics to maintain order and stay in power. State Fragility Around the World: Fractured Justice and Fierce Reprisal analyzes the path to state failure, one manifestation of which appears through the fragility and dysfunction of its criminal justice system. This book examines what happens when a government loses the ability, or will, to provide basic goods and services to its constituents.Acknowledging the tremendous variability of failed and fragile states, the case studies and analyses contained in this book suggest the existence of functional and structural attributes common across most state systems. The authors explore the plights of various states in which key elements related to their criminal justice systems are weak or fragile. States under examination include Mexico, Afghanistan, Iran, Syria, and Georgia. Special attention is given to Somalia, Sudan, and South Sudan, which serve as examples of what happens to a state that fails in virtually all aspects of governance.Using a unique approach, State Fragility Around the World articulates a specific method for assessing relative state fragility. Using this method, natural groupings of relative fragility and stability evolve, providing an unprecedented way to compare social phenomena and functionality across national and regional borders. Readers will also gain a deeper understanding of what it means to be a fragile state as well as how state fragility affects core freedoms, the criminal justice process, and mechanisms of punishment.

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This new edition of the bestselling Handbook of Thermoplastics incorporates recent developments and advances in thermoplastics with regard to materials development, processing, properties, and applications. With contributions from 65 internationally recognized authorities in the field, the second edition features new and updated discussions of several topics, including: Polymer nanocomposites Laser processing of thermoplastic composites Bioplastics Natural fiber thermoplastic composites Materials selection Design and application Additives for thermoplastics Recycling of thermoplastics Regulatory and legislative issues related to health, safety, and the environment The book also discusses state-of-the-art techniques in science and technology as well as environmental assessment with regard to the impact of thermoplastics. Each chapter is written in a review format that covers: Historical development and commercialization Polymerization and process technologies Structural and phase characteristics in relation to use properties The effects of additives on properties and applications Blends, alloys, copolymers, and composites derived from thermoplastics Applications Giving thorough coverage of the most recent trends in research and practice, the Handbook of Thermoplastics, Second Edition is an indispensable resource for experienced and practicing professionals as well as upper-level undergraduate and graduate students in a wide range of disciplines and industries.

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If you’ve employed consultants and embarked on a Lean transformation only to find your efforts stall after the consultants leave, this book will teach you what you must do to stay the course over the long term. Using a compelling novel format, Sustainable Lean: The Story of a Cultural Transformation illustrates the process of implementing a sustainable Lean transformation. The book follows Jim, the plant manager of an electronics firm that has already seen its first Lean initiative fail. Jim realizes that if he doesn’t act quickly, his job and the jobs of everyone in the factory might be in jeopardy. Jim meets a Lean consultant who agrees to help him implement and sustain a new transformation. Readers follow along as Jim learns invaluable lessons that help him and his plant see costs plummet, on-time delivery reach nearly 100 percent, and defects drop by close to 80 percent.Using simple terms and an ongoing example, the book demonstrates how to use top-down metrics to identify strategic and tactical opportunities for improvement. It describes how to conduct Hoshin Kanri (strategic policy deployment). It also describes the relationship between top-down metrics, organizational accountability, the breaking down of "stovepipes," and the concept of "alignment" that comes about as the result of Hoshin Kanri. Detailing a data-driven methodology to help you set boundaries for effective decision making, this book will inspire manufacturers to achieve world-class production and efficiency standards—one factory, one business at a time.

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The Handbook of Ordinary Differential Equations: Exact Solutions, Methods, and Problems, is an exceptional and complete reference for scientists and engineers as it contains over 7,000 ordinary differential equations with solutions. This book contains more equations and methods used in the field than any other book currently available.Included in the handbook are exact, asymptotic, approximate analytical, numerical symbolic and qualitative methods that are used for solving and analyzing linear and nonlinear equations. The authors also present formulas for effective construction of solutions and many different equations arising in various applications like heat transfer, elasticity, hydrodynamics and more. This extensive handbook is the perfect resource for engineers and scientists searching for an exhaustive reservoir of information on ordinary differential equations.

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Physical–Chemical Mechanics of Disperse Systems and Materials is a novel interdisciplinary area in the science of the disperse state of matter. It covers the broad spectrum of objects and systems with dimensions ranging from nanometers to millimeters and establishes a fundamental basis for controlling and tuning the properties of these systems as well as the processes taking place in them.Physical–chemical mechanics focuses on the analysis of the complex physical–chemical interfacial phenomena taking place both in the transition of a dispersed system into a material, such as in the course of pressing, sintering, hydration hardening, and sol-gel transitions, and in the course of the dispersion of bulk materials taking place in milling, mechanical treatment, friction and wear, and fracturing. These studies are based on thorough experimental investigation of contact interactions between particles in these processes.The book is divided into two sections. The first section covers basic principles of the formation, stability and rupture of contacts between particles in different media and in surfactant solutions, as well as the properties of coagulation structures and their rheology. The second section covers surface phenomena taking place in solid-like structures with phase contacts and in compact bodies with an emphasis on several applications and processes as well as the special role of the Rehbinder effect. Where appropriate and relevant, the book presents essays on specific significant and principal studies, such as the damageability of crystal and glass surfaces, the strength of industrial catalysts, the nano-mechanisms of cement hardening, the role of the structure-mechanical barrier in the stabilization of fluorinated systems, and contact interactions in papermaking. It also devotes attention to experimental methods used in physical–chemical mechanics, the direct measurement of contact strength, and relevant instrumentations.The book utilizes the content used over many years in lecture courses and includes fundamental material on colloid and surface chemistry, the strength of materials, rheology, and tensors, which makes it well suited for novices and experts in the field.

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Although there are countless books available on strategic management, there are few, if any, that supply practical coverage of strategic planning, execution, and measurement—until now. Considering the entire value chain, this book covers the complete process of strategic planning, execution, and measurement.Based on three decades of field-tested experience, Strategic Planning, Execution, and Measurement (SPEM): A Powerful Tool for CEOs provides both a consultant’s view and an entrepreneurial approach to strategic planning, execution, and measurement. Walking you through the process, it begins by defining world-class status, visions, missions, business models, and value chains. Next, it discusses the two most important prerequisites of strategic planning and includes a questionnaire to help you evaluate operations, systems, and structure in your organization.The book provides a matrix of 25 parameters for assessing the status of your organization that can help to pinpoint the perceptional gaps between top executives and owners. It includes a strategy bank with 150 generic strategies in the five performance areas of business and identifies methods for monitoring strategy execution that provide early warning signals. It also introduces the Entrepreneurial Score Card, a tool for improving the impact of strategic planning and execution in your organization.Detailing the structure and preparation process for the strategic plan, the book illustrates the financial impact of strategy execution and explains the various financial monitoring parameters used in the performance cards of individual employees. It concludes by describing an entrepreneurial approach to strategic planning and with a comprehensive case study that illustrates the entire strategy formulation process and its conversion into an annual budget.This book is ideal for CEOs, CFOs, COOs, business owners, heads of business verticals, heads of corporate planning or strategy, functional heads, teachers, students, and practicing consultants in the area of strategic planning.

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Effective process safety programs consist of three interrelated foundations—safety culture and leadership, process safety systems, and operational discipline—designed to prevent serious injuries and incidents resulting from toxic releases, fires, explosions, and uncontrolled reactions. Each of these foundations is important and one missing element can cause poor process safety performance.Process Safety: Key Concepts and Practical Approaches takes a systemic approach to the traditional process safety elements that have been identified for effective process safety programs. More effective process safety risk reduction efforts are achieved when these process safety systems, based on desired activities and results rather than by specific elements, are integrated and organized in a systems framework. This book provides key concepts, practical approaches, and tools for establishing and maintaining effective process safety programs to successfully identify, evaluate, and manage process hazards. It introduces process safety systems in a way that helps readers understand the purpose, design, and everyday use of overall process safety system requirements. Understanding what the systems are intended to achieve, understanding why they have been designed and implemented in a specific way, and understanding how they should function day-to-day is essential to ensure continued safe and reliable operations.

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The subject of mathematics is not something distant, strange, and abstract that you can only learn about—and often dislike—in school. It is in everyday situations, such as housekeeping, communications, traffic, and weather reports. Taking you on a trip into the world of mathematics, Do I Count? Stories from Mathematics supposedly describes the people behind the numbers and the places where mathematics is made.Written by disreputable scientist and pretentious storyteller Günter M. Ziegler and translated by Thomas von Foerster, the book presents mathematics and mathematicians in a manner that you have not previously encountered. It guides you on a scenic tour through the field, pointing out which beds were useful in constructing which theorems and which notebooks list the prizes for solving particular problems. Forgoing esoteric areas, the text relates mathematics to celebrities, history, travel, politics, science and technology, weather, clever puzzles, and the future. Can bees count? What do you think! Is 13 bad luck? Are there equations for everything? What’s the real practical value of the Pythagorean Theorem? Are there Sudoku puzzles with fewer than 17 entries and just one solution? Where and how do mathematicians work? Who invented proofs and why do we need them? Why is there no Nobel Prize for mathematics? What kind of life did Paul Erdős lead? Find out the answers to these and other questions in this entertaining book of stories. You’ll see that everyone counts, but no computation is needed. But then again why not buy a better book?

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The first book in The One-Day Expert series detailed the initial steps that Thomas, a young, high-potential plant manager in an industrial group, took to assess his plant’s situation through measurement of operators’ performance. The second book in the series, Implementing Standardized Work: Writing Standardized Work Forms focuses on the next step of this assessment—writing Standardized Work forms to help identify variability and waste.The book uses numerous examples, charts, and drawings to illustrate the interaction between operator, machine, and material. Besides process analysis, the book discusses process analysis charts, Standardized Work charts, Standardized Work combination tables, and operator work instructions. It also: Summarizes key points after each step to reinforce understanding Contains many illustrations to help make application easy Includes access to additional materials on the book’s website Since an operation can only be standardized if it is repeatable, the most important requirement for a real application of Standardized Work is minimum stability in the process. The book explains how to estimate the stability level of a process by performing process analysis. It also presents a multistage bar called Yamazumihyo to help you perform your own process analysis. After reading this book you will understand how to use Standardized Work forms as the starting point to establishing a safe and ergonomic work place that delivers quality products in an efficient manner.

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This handbook is an endeavour to cover many current, relevant, and essential topics related to decision sciences in a scientific manner. Using this handbook, graduate students, researchers, as well as practitioners from engineering, statistics, sociology, economics, etc. will find a new and refreshing paradigm shift as to how these topics can be put to use beneficially. Starting from the basics to advanced concepts, authors hope to make the readers well aware of the different theoretical and practical ideas, which are the focus of study in decision sciences nowadays. It includes an excellent bibliography/reference/journal list, information about a variety of datasets, illustrated pseudo-codes, and discussion of future trends in research. Covering topics ranging from optimization, networks and games, multi-objective optimization, inventory theory, statistical methods, artificial neural networks, times series analysis, simulation modeling, decision support system, data envelopment analysis, queueing theory, etc., this reference book is an attempt to make this area more meaningful for varied readers. Noteworthy features of this handbook are in-depth coverage of different topics, solved practical examples, unique datasets for a variety of examples in the areas of decision sciences, in-depth analysis of problems through colored charts, 3D diagrams, and discussions about software.

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The biological sciences cover a broad array of literature types, from younger fields like molecular biology with its reliance on recent journal articles, genomic databases, and protocol manuals to classic fields such as taxonomy with its scattered literature found in monographs and journals from the past three centuries. Using the Biological Literature: A Practical Guide, Fourth Edition is an annotated guide to selected resources in the biological sciences, presenting a wide-ranging list of important sources.This completely revised edition contains numerous new resources and descriptions of all entries including textbooks. The guide emphasizes current materials in the English language and includes retrospective references for historical perspective and to provide access to the taxonomic literature. It covers both print and electronic resources including monographs, journals, databases, indexes and abstracting tools, websites, and associations—providing users with listings of authoritative informational resources of both classical and recently published works.With chapters devoted to each of the main fields in the basic biological sciences, this book offers a guide to the best and most up-to-date resources in biology. It is appropriate for anyone interested in searching the biological literature, from undergraduate students to faculty, researchers, and librarians. The guide includes a supplementary website dedicated to keeping URLs of electronic and web-based resources up to date, a popular feature continued from the third edition.

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This volume explores decision-making styles, including cooperative, collaborative, avoidant, competitive, and dominate that are commonly modified by the culture. Culture is not a stagnant phenomenon, and many variables need to be considered to accurately evaluation cultural differences in decision-making styles. Among many cultural factors, the individual ("I" culture) – collectivism ("we" culture) dimension is one of the most important influential factor to be considered when studying culture difference, including decision-making styles.

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Honor-based violence (HBV) is a crime committed to protect or defend the honor of a family and/or a community. It is usually triggered by the victim’s behavior, which the family and/or community regards as causing offense or dishonor. HBV has existed for thousands of years but has only very recently become a focus of law enforcement, policy makers, and statutory and non-statutory agencies. A volume in the CRC Press Advances in Police Theory and Practice Series, Honor-Based Violence: Policing and Prevention is designed to assist all those who confront these crimes in understanding what HBV is, how it can be recognized, and how we can support the victims, families, and communities that experience it.Topics include: An overview of what is known about the psychological and cultural factors relevant to understanding of HBV Gaps in current knowledge and the strengths and weaknesses of various investigative and management strategies Factors related to risk assessment of HBV Best practices, based on the authors’ experience, for individuals involved in all levels of policing HBV—from first responders to those involved in strategic management How working in partnership with multiple agencies can reduce risk, support investigations, and help protect victims The importance of sensitivity toward differences in race, culture, and religion The research and best practices are drawn largely from the work done by the Violent Crime Directorate of the Metropolitan Police Service (London, UK) managed by authors Gerry Campbell and Glen Lloyd. The accessible style of this text makes it a valuable resource for law enforcement and policing professionals who investigate these crimes and a suitable textbook for policing and criminal justice courses.

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Written by multidisciplinary experts in medicine, chemistry, and architecture, this book examines chemical sensitivity (CS). In 15 chapters fitted to 15 lectures, it discusses not only the medical explanation, but also the environmental factors of this hypersensitive reaction, such as chemistry and architectural aspects. The book overviews pollution-induced diseases such as Minamata Disease. It also points out the similarity of modern hypersensitivity syndromes to historical pollution diseases from the viewpoints of not only natural scientific aspects, but also social understanding of the disease.

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Illuminating opportunities to develop a more integrated approach to municipal water system design, Natural and Engineered Solutions for Drinking Water Supplies: Lessons from the Northeastern United States and Directions for Global Watershed Management explores critical factors in the decision-making processes for municipal water system delivery. The book offers vital insights to help inform management decisions on drinking water supply issues in other global regions in our increasingly energy- and carbon-constrained world.The study evaluates how six cities in the northeastern United States have made environmental, economic, and social decisions and adopted programs to protect and manage upland forests to produce clean drinking water throughout their long histories. New York, New York; Boston and Worcester, Massachusetts; New Haven and Bridgeport, Connecticut; and Portland, Maine have each managed city watersheds under different state regulations, planning and development incentives, biophysical constraints, social histories, and ownerships.Some of the overarching questions the book addresses relate to how managers should optimize the investments in their drinking water systems. What is the balance between the use of concrete/steel treatment plants (gray infrastructure) and forested/grassland/wetland areas (green infrastructure) to protect surface water quality? The case studies compare how engineered and/or natural systems are employed to protect water quality. The conclusions drawn establish that it makes environmental, economic, and social sense to protect and manage upland forests to produce water as a downstream service. Such stewardship is far more preferable than developing land and using engineering, technology, and artificial filtration as a solution to maintaining clean drinking water. Lessons learned from this insightful study provide effective recommendations for managers and policymakers that reflect the scientific realities of how forests and engineering can be best integrated into effective watershed management programs and under what circumstances.

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Bees are critically important for ecosystem function and biodiversity maintenance through their pollinating activity. Unfortunately, bee populations are faced with many threats, and evidence of a massive global pollination crisis is steadily growing. As a result, there is a need to understand and, ideally, predict how bees respond to pollution disturbance, to the changes over landscape gradients, and how their responses can vary in different habitats, which are influenced to different degrees by human activities.Modeling approaches are useful to simulate the behavior of whole population dynamics as well as to focus on important phenomena detrimental to bee-life history traits. They also allow simulation of how a disease or a pesticide can impact the survival and growth of a bee population. In Silico Bees provides a collection of computational methods to those primarily interested in the study of the ecology, ethology, and ecotoxicology of bees. The book presents different cases studies to enable readers to understand the significance and also the limitations of models in theoretical and applied bee research.The text covers modeling of honey bee society organization, infectious diseases in colonies, pesticide toxicity, chemical contamination of the hive, and more. Written by an international team of scientists, this book is of primary interest to those whose research or professional activity is directly concerned with the study of bees. It is also intended to provide graduate and post-graduate students with a clear and accessible text covering the main types of modeling approaches that can be used in terrestrial ecology and ecotoxicology.

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Responding to recent developments and a growing VLSI circuit manufacturing market, Technology Computer Aided Design: Simulation for VLSI MOSFET examines advanced MOSFET processes and devices through TCAD numerical simulations. The book provides a balanced summary of TCAD and MOSFET basic concepts, equations, physics, and new technologies related to TCAD and MOSFET. A firm grasp of these concepts allows for the design of better models, thus streamlining the design process, saving time and money. This book places emphasis on the importance of modeling and simulations of VLSI MOS transistors and TCAD software. Providing background concepts involved in the TCAD simulation of MOSFET devices, it presents concepts in a simplified manner, frequently using comparisons to everyday-life experiences. The book then explains concepts in depth, with required mathematics and program code. This book also details the classical semiconductor physics for understanding the principle of operations for VLSI MOS transistors, illustrates recent developments in the area of MOSFET and other electronic devices, and analyzes the evolution of the role of modeling and simulation of MOSFET. It also provides exposure to the two most commercially popular TCAD simulation tools Silvaco and Sentaurus.• Emphasizes the need for TCAD simulation to be included within VLSI design flow for nano-scale integrated circuits• Introduces the advantages of TCAD simulations for device and process technology characterization• Presents the fundamental physics and mathematics incorporated in the TCAD tools• Includes popular commercial TCAD simulation tools (Silvaco and Sentaurus)• Provides characterization of performances of VLSI MOSFETs through TCAD tools • Offers familiarization to compact modeling for VLSI circuit simulationR&D cost and time for electronic product development is drastically reduced by taking advantage of TCAD tools, making it indispensable for modern VLSI device technologies. They provide a means to characterize the MOS transistors and improve the VLSI circuit simulation procedure. The comprehensive information and systematic approach to design, characterization, fabrication, and computation of VLSI MOS transistor through TCAD tools presented in this book provides a thorough foundation for the development of models that simplify the design verification process and make it cost effective.

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