Search results for ""Imperial College Press""

This textbook introduces the tools and language of modern geometric mechanics to advanced undergraduate and beginning graduate students in mathematics, physics, and engineering. It treats the dynamics of rotating, spinning and rolling rigid bodies from a geometric viewpoint, by formulating their solutions as coadjoint motions generated by Lie groups. The only prerequisites are linear algebra, multivariable calculus and some familiarity with Euler-Lagrange variational principles and canonical Poisson brackets in classical mechanics at the beginning undergraduate level.Variational calculus on tangent spaces of Lie groups is explained in the context of familiar concrete examples. Through these examples, the student develops skills in performing computational manipulations, starting from vectors and matrices, working through the theory of quaternions to understand rotations, and then transferring these skills to the computation of more abstract adjoint and coadjoint motions, Lie-Poisson Hamiltonian formulations, momentum maps and finally dynamics with nonholonomic constraints.The 120 Exercises and 55 Worked Answers help the student to grasp the essential aspects of the subject, and to develop proficiency in using the powerful methods of geometric mechanics. In addition, all theorems are stated and proved explicitly. The book's many examples and worked exercises make it ideal for both classroom use and self-study.

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In this Completely Revised and Extended Edition with a significantly enhanced content, all Chapters have been updated considering relevant literature and recent developments until 2016 together with application oriented examples with a focus on Industrial Biocatalysis. Newly treated topics comprise among others systems metabolic engineering approaches, metagenome screening, new tools for pathway engineering, and de-novo computational design as actual research areas in biocatalysis. Information about different aspects of RNA technologies, and completely new Chapters on 'Fluorescent Proteins' and 'Biocatalysis and Nanotechnology' are also included.

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How to achieve unlimited, safe, clean and low-cost energy by laser- or beam-driven inertial nuclear fusion has preoccupied all winners of the Edward Teller Medal since its inception in 1991. This book presents their findings, meeting discussions, and personal insights from Edward Teller himself. Expect discussion of important advances anticipated in the future such as multi-billion dollar fusion research projects (NIF), and new schemes such as the petawatt-picosecond laser-plasma interactions evoking new physics and coupling mechanisms.For the first time, laser technology of the new century is providing the very short and extremely intense energetic pulses needed for fusion energy from next generation power stations, which produce energy at cost several times lower than any other source. The long-sought dream to directly ignite frozen heavy hydrogen for controlled use is close to being realized. Years of research on plasmas and lasers carried out worldwide in highly sophisticated experiments is summarized. The coverage begins with the work of John Nuckolls and Nobel Laureate Nikolai Basov and leads to the new scheme of plasma block acceleration via the nonlinear ponderomotive force. Edward Teller Lectures is one of the first guides to these new developments.

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This book provides a comprehensive introduction to the physics of the photovoltaic cell. It is suitable for undergraduates, graduate students, and researchers new to the field. It covers: basic physics of semiconductors in photovoltaic devices; physical models of solar cell operation; characteristics and design of common types of solar cell; and approaches to increasing solar cell efficiency. The text explains the terms and concepts of solar cell device physics and shows the reader how to formulate and solve relevant physical problems. Exercises and worked solutions are included.

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This book is designed to enable non-native English speakers to write science research for publication in English. It can also be used by English speakers and is a practical, user-friendly book intended as a fast, do-it-yourself guide for those whose English language proficiency is above intermediate. The approach is based on material developed from teaching graduate students at Imperial College London and has been extensively piloted. The book guides the reader through the process of writing science research and will also help with writing a Master's or Doctoral thesis in English.Science writing is much easier than it looks because the structure and language are conventional. The aim of this book is to help the reader discover a template or model for science research writing and then to provide the grammar and vocabulary tools needed to operate that model. There are five units: Introduction, Methodology, Results, Discussion/Conclusion and Abstract. The reader develops a model for each section of the research article through sample texts and exercises; this is followed by a Grammar and Writing Skills section designed to respond to frequently-asked questions as well as a Vocabulary list including examples of how the words and phrases are to be used.

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This book is a step by step illustrated guide to planning and writing dissertations and theses for undergraduate and graduate science students. Topics covered include advice on writing each section of a thesis as well as general discussions on collecting and organizing references, keeping records, presenting data, interacting with a supervisor and avoiding academic misconduct. Recommendations about how to use word processors and other software packages effectively are included, as well as advice on the use of other resources. A concise summary of important points of English grammar is given, along with appendices listing frequently confused words and wordy phrases to avoid. Further appendices are provided, including one on SI units. The aim is to provide an easy-to-read guide that gives students practical advice about all aspects of writing a science thesis or dissertation, starting from writing a thesis plan and finishing with the viva and corrections to the thesis.

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The two most wanted terrorists in Southeast Asia — a Malaysian and a Singaporean — are on the run in the Philippines, but they manage to keep their friends and family updated on Facebook. Filipinos connect with al-Qaeda-linked groups in Somalia and Yemen. The black flag — embedded in al-Qaeda lore — pops up on websites and Facebook pages from around the world, including the Philippines, Indonesia, the Middle East, Afghanistan, Australia, and North Africa. The black flag is believed to herald an apocalypse that brings Islam's triumph. These are a few of the signs that define terrorism's new battleground: the Internet and social media.In this groundbreaking work of investigative journalism, Maria Ressa traces the spread of terrorism from the training camps of Afghanistan to Southeast Asia and the Philippines. Through research done at the International Center for Political Violence & Terrorism Research in Singapore and sociograms created by the CORE Lab at the Naval Postgraduate School, the book examines the social networks which spread the virulent ideology that powered terrorist attacks in the past 10 years.Many of the stories here have never been told before, including details about the 10 days during which Ressa led the crisis team in the Ces Drilon kidnapping case by the Abu Sayyaf in 2008. The book forms the powerful narrative that glues together the social networks — both physical and virtual — which spread the jihadi virus from bin Laden to Facebook.

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This textbook introduces the tools and language of modern geometric mechanics to advanced undergraduate and beginning graduate students in mathematics, physics and engineering. It treats the dynamics of ray optics, resonant oscillators and the elastic spherical pendulum from a unified geometric viewpoint, by formulating their solutions using reduction by Lie-group symmetries. The only prerequisites are linear algebra, calculus and some familiarity with the Euler-Lagrange variational principles and canonical Poisson brackets in classical mechanics at the beginning undergraduate level.The ideas and concepts of geometric mechanics are explained in the context of explicit examples. Through these examples, the student develops skills in performing computational manipulations, starting from Fermat's principle, working through the theory of differential forms on manifolds and transferring these ideas to the applications of reduction by symmetry to reveal Lie-Poisson Hamiltonian formulations and momentum maps in physical applications.The many Exercises and Worked Answers aid the student to grasp the essential aspects of the subject. In addition, the modern language and application of differential forms is explained in the context of geometric mechanics, so that the importance of Lie derivatives and their flows is clear. All theorems are stated and proved explicitly.The book's many worked exercises make it ideal for both classroom use and self-study. In particular, a substantial appendix containing both introductory examples and enhanced coursework problems with worked answers is included to help the student develop proficiency in using the powerful methods of geometric mechanics.

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This book has been developed over many years from several popular courses taught to students at both Birmingham and London universities. It provides an important step in introducing principles and concepts within the field of toxicology. The underlying mechanisms of toxicity are highlighted through examples taken from gases, minerals, plants, fungi, bacteria, marine creatures, industrial chemicals and pharmacological agents.In this second edition, the text has been completely revised and expanded with the addition of six new chapters — carbon monoxide, hydrofluoric acid, lead, mushroom, toxins, paracetamol, paraquat and diquat. Each chapter is self-sufficient, enabling readers to dip into chapters of interest at random without any lack of understanding. The book is informative, with numerous clinical details, and will appeal to those who wish to delve into this fascinating subject.

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This book proposes a set of models to describe fuzzy multi-objective decision making (MODM), fuzzy multi-criteria decision making (MCDM), fuzzy group decision making (GDM) and fuzzy multi-objective group decision-making problems, respectively. It also gives a set of related methods (including algorithms) to solve these problems. One distinguishing feature of this book is that it provides two decision support systems software for readers to apply these proposed methods. A set of real-world applications and some new directions in this area are then described to further instruct readers how to use these methods and software in their practice.

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A product of the Framework V research project, this book addresses one of the key problems facing the EU today: Why is the ‘new’ EU so much poorer than the ‘old’, and how will EU enlargement help to solve the problem? Focusing on the productivity problems underlying the East-West gap, it looks in particular at the role that foreign investment and R&D can play in closing it. Against that background, the book assesses what role proactive development policy might play in attacking the roots of low social productivity. Concluding that there will be a clear-cut process of convergence between East and West, albeit an incomplete one, it finishes with an assessment of the patterns of competitiveness, East and West, that are likely to emerge from this process of incomplete convergence.The material is based on a rich archive of empirical material which no competing title can match, and combines in-depth interviews with standard quantitative approaches and critical policy analysis.

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This book brings together some of the leading researchers in the actively investigated field of oxidative stress, an area of study which is of importance to human health and disease. It examines oxidative stress in a variety of models, at rest and after exercise, in young and old. Key concepts of oxidative stress, exercise and aging are presented in clear and easy-to-understand terms. Oxidative stress in different types of exercises — isometric, isotonic and sports — is explained in detail, with several chapters focusing on acute and chronic adaptations of skeletal muscles following both aerobic and non-aerobic exercises. The book includes current knowledge of the underlying mechanisms influencing health and disease processes associated with oxidative stress.

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This book presents a selective collection of papers from the 20th International Symposium on Computer and Information Sciences, held in Istanbul, Turkey. The selected papers span a wide spectrum of topics in computer networks, including internet and multimedia, security and cryptography, wireless networks, parallel and distributed computing, and performance evaluation. These papers represent the results of the latest research of academicians from more than 30 countries.

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We often forget that the science underpinning our contemporary civilization is not a marmoreal edifice. On the contrary, at each moment in its development over past centuries, it grew and advanced through the efforts of individuals and the institutions they created. As Director of the Royal Institution and its Davy Faraday Research Laboratory throughout the 1990s, the author had a unique vantage point to observe how places and people condition the way science has been shaped in the past and continues to be today. The author's background as a practicing solid state chemist, with a lively concern for issues engaging public awareness of science, have led him to recognize and celebrate, not just the remarkable contributions and unusual lives of past scientific heroes like Rumford and Faraday, but also their present day successors. Over the years, this insight has resulted in a wide variety of articles and essays, spread through many publications; a selection of these is collected in this book.The tapestry of science does not just consist of facts uncovered about the natural world and the laws that connect them. As perhaps the finest product of the human mind, its substance and direction are strongly conditioned (some might even say determined) by the people drawn to take part in it and the environments in which they work. This book is an edited collection of essays on aspects of the lives of some famous (as well as less well-known) scientists and places where science is carried out, combined with popular accounts of some of the science the author himself has been involved in. Although it focuses on the Royal Institution and some of those associated with it, it ranges more widely to embrace some contemporary scientists known personally to the author, each of whom had an unusual and distinctive career. At the same time, the science itself, while at the cutting edge, is placed firmly in its historical perspective. The essays are collected into themes, each of which is prefaced and put in context by a short introduction.

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This unique volume presents the first successful surgical strategy to repair the spinal root and the associated spinal cord injury that follows from severe traction injuries to the brachial and lumbosacral nerve plexus. The basic science background to this novel surgical technique is described, and the contemporary palliative procedures as well as clinical and ancillary assessments are given together with a meticulous description of the functional outcome of the surgery.Covering the research that led to the author's pioneering application of this surgical technique to the clinical human situation, the book provides a comprehensive overview of the author's work as a leading basic scientist and nerve surgeon. It is a journey from ideas born in the laboratory to successful application to a difficult human problem involving loss of function and severe pain from a certain type of spinal cord injury.The first step leading to the treatment of a severe and devastating spinal cord injury has been taken and is described in this book.

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This book provides a broad introduction to the fascinating subject of sleep, a behavioral state in which human beings spend a third of their life span, and a topic which interests not only the specialist but also the layperson. Everybody knows that well-being also depends on undisturbed, normal sleep.The Physiologic Nature of Sleep is self-contained in presentation. It may be used as an advanced textbook by graduate students and even ambitious undergraduates in biology, medicine and psychology. It is also suitable for the expert hypnologist who wishes to have an overview of some of the classic and fundamental achievements in sleep research. The explanations in the book are detailed enough to capture the interest of the curious reader, and complete enough to provide the necessary background material needed to go further into the subject and explore the research literature.

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A new approach to the character theory of the symmetric group has been developed during the past fifteen years which is in many ways more efficient, more transparent, and more elementary. In this approach, to each permutation is assigned a class function of the corresponding symmetric group. Problems in character theory can thereby be transferred into a completely different setting and reduced to combinatorial problems on permutations in a natural and uniform way.This is the first account in book form entirely devoted to the new “noncommutative method”. As a modern and comprehensive survey of the classical theory the book contains such fundamental results as the Murnaghan-Nakayama and Littlewood-Richardson rules as well as more recent applications in enumerative combinatorics and in the theory of the free Lie algebra. But it is also an introduction to the vibrant theory of certain combinatorial Hopf algebras such as the Malvenuto-Reutenauer algebra of permutations.The three detailed appendices on group characters, the Solomon descent algebra and the Robinson-Schensted correspondence makes the material self-contained and suitable for undergraduate level. Students and researchers alike will find that noncommutative character theory is a source of inspiration and an illuminating approach to this versatile field of algebraic combinatorics.

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As final examinations approach, medical students often become overwhelmed by the sheer volume of knowledge required to pass all subjects in one go, including surgery, medicine, obstetrics and gynaecology, pharmacology, and psychiatry. Students cannot know each of these subjects in as much detail as they did during their individual attachments and they need to concentrate on important topics rather than minutiae.Whereas existing textbooks cover many topics very well and in great detail, they are lengthy and difficult to read in a short space of time; some subjects are poorly covered and give no real understanding of practical management and logical thought processes — the exact requirements for passing finals.In this second edition, each chapter has been extensively rewritten and updated with the help of experts in their respective subjects.

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This book is a significant contribution to the state of the art in the field of computational bioengineering — from the need for a living human database to meshless methods in biomechanics, from computational mechanobiology to the evaluation of stresses in hip prosthesis replacement, from lattice Boltzmann methods for analyzing blood flow to the analysis of fluid movement in long bones, among other interesting topics treated herein. Well-known international experts in bioengineering have contributed to the book, giving it a unique style and cutting-edge material for graduate students, academic researchers and design bioengineers, as well as those interested in getting a better understanding of such complex and fascinating human and living processes.

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This book enables readers without specialist knowledge to understand the ways in which materials can be used to enhance people's lives. The range is vast — from simple contact uses, through artificial limbs, to permanently implanted devices.To appreciate the medical applications of materials, it is necessary to understand why they are used. Therefore, a discussion on the nature and behaviour of materials is preceded by a survey of the evolution of modern surgical techniques. The effect of “foreign” materials on the body's immune system is then considered, followed by a study of specific uses of materials, including extra-corporeal machines and implanted devices.The last chapter deals with new and highly sophisticated techniques — including minimal access surgery, robotics, nanotechnology, natural polymers, and the growth of “artificial” organs — and concludes with a look at the future.

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In a brilliant flash about fourteen billion years ago, time and matter were born in a single instant of creation. An immensely hot and dense universe began its rapid expansion everywhere, creating space where there was no space and time where there was no time. In the intense fire just after the beginning, the lightest elements were forged, later to form primordial clouds that eventually evolved into galaxies, stars, and planets. This evolution is the story told in this fascinating book. Interwoven with the storyline are short pieces on the pioneering men and women who revealed those wonders to us.

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This book gives a systematic exposition of abrasive erosion and corrosion of hydraulic machinery in both theory and engineering practice, and is the first comprehensive volume to cover this area in depth.All the important subjects are discussed including fundamentals, calculation, analysis and numerical simulation of liquid-solid flow design, erosion-resistant materials, interaction between cavitation and abrasive erosion, and corrosion of hydraulic machinery.

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This volume in the Hydraulic Machinery Book series deals with cavitation and its effects in turbines and pumps. After introducing cavitation and its relation with hydraulic machines, the invited contributors throughout the world review in detail relevant cavitation subjects from fundamental phenomena to various problems and solution measures in hydraulic machines. The authors are internationally recognized experts in their fields.

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Throughout history, flow visualization has been an important tool in fluid dynamics research. It has been used extensively in the fields of engineering, physics, medical science, meteorology, oceanography and sport aerodynamics, to name just a few. The importance of flow visualization led Professor F N M Brown (1971) of the University of Notre-Dame to comment, “… A man is not a dog to smell out each individual track, he is a man to see, and seeing, to analyze…” This statement encapsulates the importance of first visualizing the flow before proceeding with detailed measurement and mathematical modeling. In addition, there is a great deal of esthetic pleasure to be gained from seeing the results of flow visualization. This aspect of flow visualization reaches out to the general public: we are all familiar with the aspect of clouds in the sky, the trail of cigarette smoke, and the swirling patterns to be seen in rivers and seas.Unlike previous publications which concentrated mainly on the theoretical aspect of flow visualization, this book focuses on the techniques required to perform high quality flow visualization. It is aimed primarily at the practitioner of flow visualization studies. Obtaining good flow visualization results is, in many ways, more an art than a science, and experience plays a deciding role. Hence each chapter of this invaluable volume has been written by an expert in a particular technique.

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Price and quality alone are no longer sufficient to gain competitive advantage. It is high quality knowledge which provides the opportunities for adding exclusive value to products and services. At the same time, the development of knowledge is gaining momentum. Knowledge is becoming obsolete more quickly and becomes more complex. The danger of this development is that organizations will continue to play the same competitive game and are often unaware that they are lagging behind.This book provides organizations with a way to shift the knowledge ambition and realize it in practice. For this purpose, an intelligent business strategy is offered based on the experiences of seven market leaders in The Netherlands, combined with modern insights from the organizational theory.The authors devote much attention to the tools available to the knowledge enterprise, such as lateral structures, personnel management and information technology.

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The concern over groundwater contamination has focused attention on the processes that influence the fate of chemicals in soil water systems. A major concern of groundwater contamination is the passage of these chemcials through the unsaturated zone and the relatively thin cover layers overlying the aquifers. Pollution due to diffuse sources is probably the most difficult to model. This is because the loads are usually non-homogeneous and they are also governed by spatially and temporally non-homogeneous, but dynamic, processes of chemical and biochemical phenomena.In this book, the estimation techniques and transfer functions of required input data from existing databases in geographic information systems are provided. Spatially variable input data, such as the type of soil, hydrological conditions, intensity of land use and atmospheric deposit of pollutants, are derived from basic land and climate characteristics. A model for the evaluation of land use and water management is also described. In addition, examples of field and regional studies on water management and policy analysis are provided.

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This is a unique book with a different aim from other books on the subject. The idea is to provide readers with the “big picture” first, yet at a level that helps further the study of physical chemistry. The text covers all the important topics in physical chemistry — thermodynamics, statistical thermodynamics, quantum chemistry, and chemical kinetics — staying rigorously close to the basic theory, using appropriate mathematics but avoiding long derivations. Moreover, the book is supplemented by a CD-ROM to make it more comprehensive, interactive and useful for a wider audience. The CD-ROM contains examples, extended discussion, exercises and details of important derivations to reinforce understanding of physical chemistry.

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This unique volume presents an up-to-date review of one of the world's major health problems — diseases caused by the four dengue viruses. It begins with an insightful story of the origin of dengue disease outbreaks, including the emergence of severe and fatal dengue hemorrhagic fever. The nature, structure and biology of the four dengue viruses are described, and a major portion of the book is focused on the epidemiology of dengue as a mosquito-borne disease. This is complemented by critiques of existing mosquito control programs by three groups of outstanding authorities. The strongest element of the volume is its comprehensive description of the current understanding of dengue disease pathogenesis, followed by an analysis of the pros and cons of five of the most controversial areas in the field: the WHO DEF case definition, secondary dengue infections, virulent viruses, the role of abnormal T cells and autoimmunity.

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Most books on environmental science focus on ecological or biological aspects of environmental conservation, often with a polemic agenda. The physics, if covered at all, is generally superficial. Using pertinent examples from the environment and the ways in which people interact with it, Physics of the Environment sets out to provide a cogent account of the underlying physical laws with a lucidity and rigor appropriate to an undergraduate course in the subject. Students will gain an understanding of the physical concepts that govern the world as well as an appreciation of the technologies of power generation and transport, and the impact these have on the environment.

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A Vertical Empire provides a description of the British rocketry and space programme from the 1950s to 1970s, detailing the Medium Range Ballistic Missile Blue Streak and its conversion to a satellite launcher as part of the European Launcher Development Organisation (ELDO). This extensively revised second edition includes material only made available in the past ten years and the text is supplemented by numerous photographs, sketches and statistics. The all-British satellite Black Arrow is described, as well as the research rocket Black Knight, the Blue Steel missile and the rocket powered interceptor aircraft.

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The exploration and extraction of the earth's resources are key issues in global industrial development. In the 21st century, emphasis has increasingly being placed on geo-engineering safety, engineering accountability and sustainability. With focus on rock engineering projects, Structural Geology and Rock Engineering uses case studies and an integrated engineering approach to provide an understanding of projects constructed on or in rock masses. Based on Professors Cosgrove and Hudson's university teaching at Imperial College London, as well as relevant short course presentations, it explains the processes required for engineering modelling, design and construction.The first half of the book provides step-by-step presentations of the principles of structural geology and rock mechanics with special emphasis on the integration between the two subjects. The second half of the book turns principles into practice. A wealth of practical engineering examples are presented, including evaluations of bridge foundations, quarries, dams, opencast coal mining, underground rock engineering, historical monuments and stone buildings.This up-to-date, well-illustrated guide is ideal for teachers, researchers and engineers interested in the study and practice of rock-based projects in engineering.

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Real analysis provides the fundamental underpinnings for calculus, arguably the most useful and influential mathematical idea ever invented. It is a core subject in any mathematics degree, and also one which many students find challenging. A Sequential Introduction to Real Analysis gives a fresh take on real analysis by formulating all the underlying concepts in terms of convergence of sequences. The result is a coherent, mathematically rigorous, but conceptually simple development of the standard theory of differential and integral calculus ideally suited to undergraduate students learning real analysis for the first time.This book can be used as the basis of an undergraduate real analysis course, or used as further reading material to give an alternative perspective within a conventional real analysis course.

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Synthetic Biology — A Primer (Revised Edition) presents an updated overview of the field of synthetic biology and the foundational concepts on which it is built. This revised edition includes new literature references, working and updated URL links, plus some new figures and text where progress in the field has been made.The book introduces readers to fundamental concepts in molecular biology and engineering and then explores the two major themes for synthetic biology, namely 'bottom-up' and 'top-down' engineering approaches. 'Top-down' engineering uses a conceptual framework of systematic design and engineering principles focused around the Design-Build-Test cycle and mathematical modelling. The 'bottom-up' approach involves the design and building of synthetic protocells using basic chemical and biochemical building blocks from scratch exploring the fundamental basis of living systems.Examples of cutting-edge applications designed using synthetic biology principles are presented, including: The book also describes the Internationally Genetically Engineered Machine (iGEM) competition, which brings together students and young researchers from around the world to carry out summer projects in synthetic biology. Finally, the primer includes a chapter on the ethical, legal and societal issues surrounding synthetic biology, illustrating the integration of social sciences into synthetic biology research.Final year undergraduates, postgraduates and established researchers interested in learning about the interdisciplinary field of synthetic biology will benefit from this up-to-date primer on synthetic biology.

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Advances in Earth Science outlines the latest developments and new research directions currently being made world-wide in the earth sciences. It contains invited and refereed articles by leading younger researchers on their cutting-edge research, but aimed at a general scientific audience.This exciting volume explains how powerful methodologies such as satellite remote sensing and supercomputing simulations are now profoundly changing research in the earth sciences; how the earth system is increasingly being viewed in a holistic way, linking the atmosphere, ocean and solid earth; and how the societal impact of the research in the earth sciences has never been more important.Published by Imperial College Press in collaboration with the Royal Society of London, the book features many articles originating from invited papers published in the Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society. Eleven of the distinguished contributors hold prestigious Royal Society Research Fellowships.

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The principle of local activity explains the emergence of complex patterns in a homogeneous medium. At first defined in the theory of nonlinear electronic circuits in a mathematically rigorous way, it can be generalized and proven at least for the class of nonlinear reaction-diffusion systems in physics, chemistry, biology, and brain research. Recently, it was realized by memristors for nanoelectronic device applications. In general, the emergence of complex patterns and structures is explained by symmetry breaking in homogeneous media, which is caused by local activity. This book argues that the principle of local activity is really fundamental in science, and can even be identified in quantum cosmology as symmetry breaking of local gauge symmetries generating the complexity of matter and forces in our universe. Applications are considered in economic, financial, and social systems with the emergence of equilibrium states, symmetry breaking at critical points of phase transitions and risky acting at the edge of chaos.

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Companies like Enron, WorldCom, and Siemens have defined the dark side of the corporate world in the 21st century. This timely book is designed to address the diverse requirements of directors and heightened investor awareness, with an intelligent and comprehensive presentation of the structure and practice of boardroom management.The second edition takes account of recent developments like the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, codes of conduct promulgated by non-government organizations and institutional investors, debates over the audit committee's roles and responsibilities, and new cases illustrating the problems facing directors as they negotiate the twin challenges of global competition and social responsibility. It walks readers through the legal and philosophical theories of corporate governance, translates these into practical implications for boardroom practices, and guides managers and directors on how to build their own frameworks for considering ethical and strategic issues that routinely appear in the boardroom. The practical approach is complemented by numerous illustrations and cases at the end of each chapter for discussion and self-appraisal.

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Platelets in Cardiovascular Disease provides an in-depth and current coverage of relevant platelet biology and antiplatelet therapy that is in clinical use today and potentially for the future. The book provides a succinct overview of the critical role of platelets in cardiovascular medicine.Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of mortality worldwide, and recent research has found that the platelet is central to the genesis of heart attacks and stroke as well as many of the complications of angioplasty and bypass surgery. An explosion of knowledge of the biology of platelets has established their important role in the formation of blood clots and, perhaps more intriguingly, their role as inflammatory cells. This growth in information has been paralleled by the development of several drugs that can interfere with platelet action and thereby improve patient outcomes. Indeed, several antiplatelet drugs already in development may ultimately lead to marked advances in both the treatment and prevention of cardiovascular disease.Drawing upon a panel of international experts, Platelets in Cardiovascular Disease delivers a concise yet thorough review of the major developments in antiplatelet therapy. Practicing clinicians as well as those involved in the development of new antithrombotic therapies will find the book interesting and useful.

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This volume introduces readers to the world of disordered systems and to some of the remarkable probabilistic techniques developed in the field. The author explores in depth a class of directed polymer models to which much attention has been devoted in the last 25 years, in particular in the fields of physical and biological sciences. The models treated have been widely used in studying, for example, the phenomena of polymer pinning on a defect line, the behavior of copolymers in proximity to an interface between selective solvents and the DNA denaturation transition. In spite of the apparent heterogeneity of this list, in mathematical terms, a unified vision emerges. One is in fact dealing with the natural statistical mechanics systems built on classical renewal sequences by introducing one-body potentials.This volume is also a self-contained mathematical account of the state of the art for this class of statistical mechanics models.

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This book discusses the methods used in helio- and asteroseismology for the collection, analysis and interpretation of data. It is the first comprehensive discussion of helioseismic and asteroseismic methodology, collecting techniques from over 300 research papers spread out over decades, with a critical discussion and inter-comparison. It enables the reader to follow the path of inference from the collection of the data at the telescope through to the understanding gained in terms of the modeling of solar and stellar physics and stellar evolution.By focusing on how results are obtained, rather than on the results themselves, this book provides the essential background needed to understand this field, which is rapidly advancing due to the availability of modern observing facilities both on the ground and in space. The material is accessible for advanced undergraduates and post-graduates, and provides an essential resource for researchers in the field.

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This is the first major history of Imperial College London. The book tells the story of a new type of institution that came into being in 1907 with the federation of three older colleges. Imperial College was founded by the state for advanced university-level training in science and technology, and for the promotion of research in support of industry throughout the British Empire. True to its name the college built a wide number of Imperial links and was an outward looking institution from the start. Today, in the post-colonial world, it retains its outward-looking stance, both in its many international research connections, and with staff and students from around the world. Connections to industry and the state remain important. The College is one of Britain's premier research and teaching institutions, including now medicine alongside science and engineering. This book is an in-depth study of Imperial College; it covers both governance and academic activity within the larger context of political, economic and socio-cultural life in twentieth-century Britain.

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This engaging book provides a state-of-the-art introduction to the rapidly evolving field of mechanical circulatory support therapy in the care of patients with advanced heart failure. It is aimed at healthcare teams around the world who are involved in patient care, research, and teaching of advanced heart failure; healthcare professionals in training; and interested lay persons.In particular, this book• serves as a comprehensive resource and practice guide on all aspects of mechanical circulatory support therapy, starting with an overview on heart failure management and then continuing with the referral and evaluation, the care before and after mechanical circulatory support implantation, the analysis of outcomes and complications, as well as a description of research and societal perspectives in the field of mechanical circulatory support therapy;• is founded on the expertise of Columbia University Medical Center (New York City), which has one of the most renowned heart failure, mechanical circulatory support, and heart transplantation programs in the world;• takes a multidisciplinary integrated healthcare team approach, including the perspectives of cardiologists, cardiac surgeons, nurses, coordinators, social workers, psychologists, physical therapists, financial experts, and bioethicists; and• provides in a unique way the complementary viewpoints from the expert healthcare team's as well as the patient's and family's perspectives, with patient vignettes interspersed throughout the entire text.

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Space-time array communications have gained a great deal of interest in recent years. Its superior performance in practical multipath propagation environments has established it as a core aspect in next generation mobile networks, as well as several portable wireless communication systems. In fact the employment of the sensor array component has already been provided for in the current UMTS standard, and there is presently a major thrust to make space-time processing an important part of 3G/4G networks. This book hence attempts to bridge the knowledge gap, looking at the integration of two emerging technologies from an array manifold perspective — space-time array processing and spread spectrum multiple access communications. It covers a range of novel multiuser channel estimation and reception techniques, which is designed to provide mitigations of the various associated channel impairments in accordance to its environmental context. For convenience of the readers, the book is written in a self-contained modular format with its mathematical frameworks and tools readily extendable to other research domains.

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In recent years, the way open source software is developed has taken hold as a valid alternative to commercial proprietary methods, as have the products themselves, e.g., the Linux operating system, Apache web-server software, and Mozilla Firefox browser. But what is open source software? How is the open source community organized? What makes this new model successful? What effects has it had and might it have on the future of the IT industry, companies and government policies? These and many other questions are answered in this book.The first chapter gives a brief history of the open source community and the second chapter takes a close look at the relationship between intellectual property rights and software, both open source and proprietary. The next three chapters consider the who, the open source community, the how, software development both within and outside the community, and the what, open source projects and product quality. Chapters 6 and 7 focus on the different users of open source software: companies and governments respectively. These are followed by two chapters that interpret the phenomenon, first from an organizational point of view in Chapter 8 and then using the theory of complex adaptive systems in Chapter 9. The last chapter explores the current and potential applications of the concept underlying open source software in other fields.

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Covering both the theoretical and practical aspects of fault-tolerant mobile systems, and fault tolerance and analysis, this book tackles the current issues of reliability-based optimization of computer networks, fault-tolerant mobile systems, and fault tolerance and reliability of high speed and hierarchical networks.The book is divided into six parts to facilitate coverage of the material by course instructors and computer systems professionals. The sequence of chapters in each part ensures the gradual coverage of issues from the basics to the most recent developments. A useful set of references, including electronic sources, is listed at the end of each chapter.

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This volume is concerned with functional nanomaterials: materials containing specific, predictable nanostructure whose chemical composition or interfacial structure enable them to perform a specific job — destroy, sequester or detect some material that constitutes an environmental threat. Nanomaterials have a number of features that make them ideally suited for this job: high surface area, high reactivity, easy dispersability, and rapid diffusion. The purpose of this book is to showcase how these features can be tailored to address some of the environmental remediation and sensing/detection problems faced today. The leading researchers contributing to this volume paint a picture of diverse synthetic strategies, structures, materials and methods. The book is organized into sections on nanoparticle-based remediation strategies, nanostructured inorganic materials (such as layered materials like the apatites), nanostructured organic/inorganic hybrid materials, and the use of nanomaterials to enhance the performance of sensors. The chemistries captured by the contributors form a rich and colorful tapestry.

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This book summarizes the main results achieved in a four-year European Project on nonlinear and adaptive control. The project involves leading researchers from top-notch institutions: Imperial College London (Prof A Astolfi), Lund University (Prof A Rantzer), Supelec Paris (Prof R Ortega), University of Technology of Compiegne (Prof R Lozano), Grenoble Polytechnic (Prof C Canudas de Wit), University of Twente (Prof A van der Schaft), Politecnico of Milan (Prof S Bittanti), and Polytechnic University of Valencia (Prof P Albertos).The book also provides an introduction to theoretical advances in nonlinear and adaptive control and an overview of novel applications of advanced control theory, particularly topics on the control of partially known systems, under-actuated systems, and bioreactors.

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A concise, clear writing style and a detailed and rich coverage of topics are the reasons that students found the first edition of the book so engaging and useful.Riding on this wave, all chapters within the second edition of this popular book have been thoroughly updated and expanded, especially the human and animal materials. A wider range of animals is covered, including dogs and cats as well as farm animals. The use of cord blood for therapy, pre-implantation genetic diagnosis and animal cloning are also explored and dealt with.

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Because vertebrate circulations do not work when shrunk to insect sizes, insects may help us design our smallest machines. Within small bodies, bees separate diffusing substances in an open cavity assisted by locomotion and the beat of the heart. The open arthropod circulation, however, is most efficient when shrunk until its large three-dimensional volume of blood turns into a two-dimensional film of fluid covering only the internal surfaces. This transformation increases the chances to near-certainty that molecules can diffuse from one point to another without getting lost.The Incredible Shrinking Bee expresses mathematics in words so that most readers can compare today's microelectromechanical (MEMS) devices with a honeybee's circulation, introducing ideas of biominiaturization to workers interested in developing compact energy and chemical systems. When it comes to shrinking systems, bees have the edge on human ingenuity. A farrago of ideas and disciplines, The Incredible Shrinking Bee provides a springboard for discussion and research for computer scientists, entomologists, systems biologists, physiologists, mathematicians, engineers and anyone wanting to learn how bees move things around in their bodies to do what we are trying to do smaller and better.

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