Books published by Imperial College Press

The lectures included in this series of papers cover a variety of topics, ranging from the Earth's climate to pests and pesticides, illustrating the diverse and interdisciplinary nature of environmental issues and problems.

This illustrated volume on venous diseases aims to fill the requirements of primary care staff and trainees for information on the diagnosis and management of the different conditions and their complications.

Examines the questions: What can science do for the theatre? And what can the theatre do for science? which raise challenges for both theatre professionals and scientists. This book includes texts of the author's two plays, "Insufficiency" and "Phallacy", to offer concrete examples of plays dealing with actual (rather than invented) chemistry.

Suitable for undergraduates in the physical and biological sciences, as well as graduates in engineering and materials science, this title deals with single-site heterogeneous catalysts (SSHCs) and presents both principles of design and applications, such as the benign synthesis of nylon 6 and vitamin B3.

Focuses on nano-biomedical engineering. This title follows four groups within the field, namely nano-biomechanics, nano-bioimaging, nano-biodevices, and nano-biointervention.

Deals with the requirements of space physics. This title describes the Earth's plasma environment, followed by a derivation of single particle motions in electromagnetic fields, with applications to the Earth's magnetosphere. It discusses the origin and effects of collisions and conductivities and solar wind-magnetosphere coupling.

Presents the important results of probability and statistics without making heavy mathematical demands on the reader. This title enables an intelligent reader to properly assess statistical information and to understand that the same information can be presented in different ways.

Presents a comprehensive overview of the modern theory of spectral line broadening and shifting by pressure of atmospheric gases. This book describes semi-classical methods for calculating vibrotational line widths and shifts, including various modifications and developments realised by the authors themselves.

Presents a description of the physiologic manifestations of sleep that are significant from the viewpoint of the principle of homeostasis. This book shows that the systemic homeostatic regulation of many physiologic variables underlying cellular life is not active in a particular state of the ultradian sleep cycle in mammals.

Explores the concept of knowledge discovery processes and enhances decision-making capability through the use of intelligent agents like ants, termites and honey bees. This title provides readers with an integrated set of concepts and techniques for understanding knowledge discovery and its practical utility.

This is an original and wide-ranging account of the careers of a close-knit group of highly influential ecologists working in Britain from the late 1960s onwards. The book can also be read as a history of some recent developments in ecology. One of the group, Robert May, is a past president of the Royal Society, and the author of what many see as the most important treatise in theoretical ecology of the later twentieth century. That the group flourished was due not only to May's intellectual leadership, but also to the guiding hand of T. R. E. Southwood. Southwood ended his career as Linacre Professor of Zoology at the University of Oxford, where he also served a term as Vice-Chancellor. Earlier, as a professor and director of the Silwood Park campus of Imperial College London, he brought the group together. Since it began to coalesce at Silwood it has been named here the Silwood Circle. Southwood promoted the interests of its members with the larger aim of raising the profile of ecological and environmental science in Britain. Given public anxiety over the environment and the loss of ecosystems, his actions were well-timed.Ecology, which had been on the scientific margins in the first half of the twentieth century, came to be viewed as a science central to modern existence. The book illustrates its importance to many areas. Members of the Silwood Circle have acted as government advisors in the areas of conservation and biodiversity, resource management, pest control, food policy, genetically modified crops, sustainable agriculture, international development, defence against biological weapons, and epidemiology and infectious disease control. In recounting the science they carried out, and how they made their careers, the book reflects also on the role of the group, and the nature of scientific success.

Provides a comprehensive description of the field of gene delivery, gene therapy and genetic pharmacology, with descriptions of the main gene transfer vectors and a set of selected therapeutic applications, along with safety considerations.

A collection of original scientific articles from a group of outstanding scientists around the world who have worked or are affiliated with the Nobel Laureate Professor William N Lipscomb throughout his scientific career. It is suitable to young students worldwide.

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.

Contains 31 peer-reviewed papers based on the presentations at the 7th International Annual Workshop on Bioinformatics and Systems Biology (IBSB 2007) held at the Human Genome Center, Institute of Medical Science, University of Tokyo from July 31 to August 2, 2007. This volume is dedicated to the memory of Prof Dr H C Reinhart Heinrich.

Contains papers presented at the 18th International Conference on Genome Informatics (GIW 2007) held at the Biopolis, Singapore from December 3 to 5, 2007. This book contains abstracts from the five invited speakers such as: Frank Eisenhaber, Sir David Lane, Hanah Margalit, Lawrence Stanton, and Michael Zhang.

Companies like Enron, WorldCom, and Siemens have defined the dark side of the corporate world in 21st century. This 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.