Books in the De Gruyter STEM series

This book introduces the basics of light scattering and then presents theoretical methods and applications of elastic light scattering spectrometry in the field of analytical chemistry. Different elastic light scattering probes and how to use elastic light scattering probes for the analysis of inorganic ions, organic molecules, nucleic acids, proteins, biological microparticles, water and the atmospheric environment are discussed in detail.

Almost 50 years have passed since the famous papers of Hugo Rietveld from the late sixties where he describes a method for the refinement of crystal structures from neutron powder diffraction data. Soon after, the potential of the method for laboratory X-ray powder diffraction was discovered. Although the method is now widely accepted, there are still many pitfalls in the theoretical understanding and in practical daily use. This book closes the gap with a theoretical introduction for each chapter followed by a practical approach.The flexible macro type language of the Topas Rietveld software can be considered as the defacto standard.

This book begins by explaining key concepts in programming, and elaborates on characteristic of class, including inheritance, derivation and polymorphism. It also introduces generic programming and Standard Template Library, I/O Stream Library and Exception Handling. The concepts and methods are illustrated via examples step by step, making the book an essential reading for beginners to C++ programming.

This volume deals with two complementary topics. On one hand the book deals with the problem of determining the the probability distribution of a positive compound random variable, a problem which appears in the banking and insurance industries, in many areas of operational research and in reliability problems in the engineering sciences. On the other hand, the methodology proposed to solve such problems, which is based on an application of the maximum entropy method to invert the Laplace transform of the distributions, can be applied to many other problems. The book contains applications to a large variety of problems, including the problem of dependence of the sample data used to estimate empirically the Laplace transform of the random variable.

Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) is the most recycled plastic in the world. This book covers all from the world market of PET to the many technologies and processes developed for separation, decontamination, recycling and manufacturing into food-grade and non-food-grade products of PET. Also, regulations, testing methods and analytical procedures according to the current regulatory framework are presented.

The present book is an introduction to the philosophy of mathematics. It asks philosophical questions concerning fundamental concepts, constructions and methods - this is done from the standpoint of mathematical research and teaching. It looks for answers both in mathematics and in the philosophy of mathematics from their beginnings till today. The reference point of the considerations is the introducing of the reals in the 19th century that marked an epochal turn in the foundations of mathematics. In the book problems connected with the concept of a number, with the infinity, the continuum and the infinitely small, with the applicability of mathematics as well as with sets, logic, provability and truth and with the axiomatic approach to mathematics are considered. In Chapter 6 the meaning of infinitesimals to mathematics and to the elements of analysis is presented. The authors of the present book are mathematicians. Their aim is to introduce mathematicians and teachers of mathematics as well as students into the philosophy of mathematics. The book is suitable also for professional philosophers as well as for students of philosophy, just because it approaches philosophy from the side of mathematics. The knowledge of mathematics needed to understand the text is elementary. Reports on historical conceptions. Thinking about today's mathematical doing and thinking. Recent developments. Based on the third, revised German edition. For mathematicians - students, teachers, researchers and lecturers - and readersinterested in mathematics and philosophy. a Contents On the way to the reals On the history of the philosophy of mathematics On fundamental questions of the philosophy of mathematics Sets and set theories Axiomatic approach and logic Thinking and calculating infinitesimally - First nonstandard steps Retrospection