Books published by Springer Nature Singapore

The book collects papers on several topics in probability and stochastic processes. These papers have been presented at a conference organised in honour of Professor Rajeeva L. Karandikar who turned 65 in 2021. He was a distinguished researcher and a teacher at the Indian Statistical Institute (ISI), Delhi Centre, for many years. He has been a multi-faceted academician, interacting with the Government of India and the industry. He has left an indelible mark in every endeavour of his and in his several different avatars¿be it in the ISI, in the industry or as Director of Chennai Mathematical Institute. This book will be useful to senior undergraduate and graduate students, as well as researchers in probability, statistics and related fields.

Multimedia watermarking is a key ingredient for integrity verification, transaction tracking, copyright protection, authentication, copy control, and forgery detection. This book provides an extensive survey from the fundamentals to cutting-edge digital watermarking techniques. One of the crucial aspects of multimedia security is the ability to detect forged/tampered regions from the multimedia object. In this book, we emphasized how tampering detection, localization, and recovery of manipulated information not only limits but also eliminates the scope of unauthorized usage. Finally, this book provides the groundwork for understanding the role of intelligent machines and blockchain in achieving better security in multimedia watermarking.Readers will find it easy to comprehend the wide variety of applications, theoretical principles, and effective solutions for protecting intellectual rights soon after reading this book.

This book constitutes the second volume of 'Religion Matters: The Contemporary Relevance of Religion' (Springer, 2020). Offering a fresh and much-needed perspective, it explores the role of religion in the modern, neo-liberal world. The book acclaims that 'religion' is a contextual and contested term, which is extensively discussed in the Introduction.Designed to be read selectively, this book allows readers to delve into topics and traditions of specific interest without the necessity of reading the entire volume. In contrast to volume 1, where contributors critically engaged with religion and various disciplines, this book poses a fundamental question: Can religion contribute to the discipline under consideration?Authors were selected based on their ability to address this question. Some chapters concluded that religion may offer very little to the discipline under consideration, highlighting the value of volume 1's critical stance on the place of religion incontemporary society. However, the project's overall aim remained somewhat unfulfilled, leading to the creation of this second volume.The primary omission from the first book was a comprehensive exploration of the sciences and health sciences, which this second volume aims to rectify. Furthermore, additional authors were chosen to investigate the nature of connectedness facilitated by religion, horizontally through membership within wider communities, societies, cultures, or religious traditions, and vertically by examining historical relationships within a particular faith tradition, culture, community, or society. This volume also broadens its focus to include non-Christian perspectives, Indigenous perspectives, and an increased representation of female contributors.

This book provides an in-depth study of biomedical image analysis. It reviews and summarizes previous research work in biomedical image analysis and also provides a brief introduction to other computation techniques, such as fuzzy sets, neutrosophic sets, clustering algorithm and fast forward quantum optimization algorithm, focusing on how these techniques can be integrated into different phases of the biomedical image analysis. In particular, this book describes novel methods resulting from the fuzzy sets, neutrosophic sets, clustering algorithm and fast forward quantum optimization algorithm. It also demonstrates how a new quantum-clustering based model can be successfully applied in the context of clustering the COVID-19 CT scans. Thanks to its easy-to-read style and the clear explanations of the models, the book can be used as a concise yet comprehensive reference guide to biomedical image analysis, and will be valuable not only for graduate students, but also for researchers and professionals working for academic, business and government institutes and medical colleges.

This book first attempts to explore the nexus between urban innovation and sustainable development goals (SDGs). It puts together global examples of urban innovation initiatives, highlighting practical, policy-oriented, social, and technological interventions. The case studies are divided into four clusters of ¿green cities¿, ¿inclusive cities¿, ¿resilient cities¿, and ¿healthy cities¿. In doing so, the book maps various global examples of urban innovation for sustainable pathways and directions. It also highlights means of implementation of tool and technologies, data, financing, and governance. The overarching aim is to provide a holistic overview of urban innovation sustainable development nexus, which would help future policy development, paradigm shifts, and technological applications.By summarising a selection of successful initiatives, interventions, and projects, this book highlights how urban innovation could accelerate achieving SDGs. The lessons learned from each case studycluster are narrated as knowledge transfer platforms for future city development and achieving sustainable development. These lessons will be beneficial to practitioners and governments, as well as researchers and academics who are interested in urban innovation research. City case studies included in the book are based on their success stories as role models for other cities in developed and developing nations. This collection helps us portray a more holistic image of urban innovation aligned with the SDGs and pathways to achieving them.

The book continues to use quantitative and empirical research methods to summarize and analyze the achievements of government openness in China in 2020. It points out that in 2020, the exploration of standardization and standardization of government affairs openness is accelerating, decision-making openness is making steady progress, and government affairs services, administrative law enforcement, and management results are all making significant progress. However, in the future, it is still necessary to further enhance the awareness of openness, identify the needs of the public, integrate openness into the whole process of government affairs activities, and improve the level of information security. Besides, the book for the first time first carries out a third-party assessment of the government affairs publicity in the national free trade zones and free trade zones, and releases research reports on the publicity of administrative punishment information, government news release,work and production resumption information, and health science popularization information.

This book provides a comprehensive platform for the research, scientific and educational communities working on electrocatalysis. It covers water electrolysis from different fields of catalysis research, deals with the fundamentals and critically discusses the precise and correct use of evaluating parameters and their calculation for a fair evaluation. Readers find an analysis to probe the origin of different bottlenecks in water electrolysis and scientific methods to enhance the electrode selectivity with high intrinsic activity, effective mass and electron transfer ability, abundant active sites with super hydrophilicity-aerophobicity characteristics and structural, mechanical and chemical stability with high corrosion resistance.

This book looks into the processes sustaining the administrative reform in Chinese local government and the roles of different actors during different phases by tracing a vivid administrative reform process in Shunde district, Guangdong province between 2009 and 2014. In 2008, Chinese central government initiated a new round of large-scale, top-to-bottom administrative reform¿¿mega-ministry¿ administrative reform¿to address the long-lasting administrative problems. Against this background, the reforms in Shunde government (county level) operated well and sustained for several years, which was enlarged to the administrative licensing field and hence influenced Chinäs reforms in the following 10 years. Shunde case could allow us a better peep at the factors that contribute to the sustenance of reform. The analyses in this book find that sustenance of reform reflects, ironically, the logics of both path dependence and path creation. The past reform trajectories have created a favorable background for further reform to evolve, and a receptive ground in which exogenous forces interacted with the local reform-minded actors to create the new reform innovations. The combination of path dependence and path creation kept local reform afloat.

This book describes the disability rights movement that started in the USA and its influence on the disability rights movement in Lebanon, which has led to the endorsement of the Lebanese Disability Act 220/2000. The book introduces the reader to the Lebanese Disability Act 220/ 2000, its definition of disability, and its relation to the medical and social models of disabilities and then articulate the Act articles. Then, it defines the inclusive design paradigm that acknowledges the needs of all people at each stage of their life cycle and presents the difference between inclusive design and accessibility and disability notions. Moreover, the book reviews the different international accessible design standards (American and French) that are adopted in Lebanon with the absence of a nationalized Lebanese design standard and its effect on eliminating barriers and enhancing accessibility at university buildings. Besides, the book presents students' experiences and their satisfaction with the university built environments. 6 university buildings case studies at the American University of Beirut are assessed and analysed to check whether they adopt the inclusive design approach and then propose inclusive design solutions for both heritage and modern university buildings. What makes the book unique is its combination of empirical and theoretical application of inclusive design. The last section, reflects the author¿s inclusive design teaching pedagogy. In this section, the author shares samples of students¿ class design project and provides recommendations and guidelines for teaching inclusive design so it becomes mainstream.

This book includes original, peer-reviewed research papers from the 14th China Academic Conference on Printing and Packaging (CACPP 2023), held in Beijing, China on November 24-26, 2023. The proceedings cover the latest findings in color science and technology, image processing technology, digital media technology, mechanical and electronic engineering and numerical control, materials and detection, printing and packaging technology, and so on. As such, the book is of interest to university researchers, R&D engineers and graduate students in the fields of color science, image science, materials science, computer science, digital media, network technology, smart manufacturing technology and printing and packaging.

This book, drawing from internationally renowned scales like Bayley and Gesell, develops a child developmental assessment scale based on research data from Chinese children. It stands as a meticulous creation of the Capital Institute of Pediatrics, a national-level institution for children¿s development research in China. The scale demonstrates good reliability and validity, meeting psychometric standards in various statistical aspects. In the revised scale, developmental quotients are classified into six levels, distributions of percentiles for developmental quotients are provided, and screening indices for autism spectrum disorders are added. In doing so, the revised scale can not only identify developmental delays but also concurrently screen for autism spectrum disorder risks, providing a foundational reference for tracking children¿s developmental status in follow-up studies. The book holds vital value and significance in fostering communication among scholars from universities and research institutions, as well as pediatricians, neurologists, and rehabilitation specialists in hospitals.

This book constitutes the refereed proceedings of the 9th China Health Information Processing Conference, CHIP 2023, held in Hangzhou, China, during October 27¿29, 2023. The 27 full papers included in this book were carefully reviewed and selected from 66 submissions. They were organized in topical sections as follows: healthcare information extraction; healthcare natural language processing; healthcare data mining and applications.

This edited collection develops a more balanced understanding of the dilemmas, challenges and opportunities associated with youth policy formulation and implementation in contemporary Saudi Arabia. It does so by considering the dilemmas, challenges and opportunities present in the contemporary Saudi sociopolitical, socioeconomic, and sociocultural spheres, as well as ways and means by which these can be addressed. Underpinning this is a comprehension of the necessity in understanding policies and processes as related to youth policy formulation and implementation. With regards to Saudi youth policy, decision makers want to be able to prioritize the most important issues. As such, policy and decision makers need ¿direction¿ in terms of policy formulation, policy recommendations and policy implementation - that is, they are often searching for viable policies that resonate with young Saudis. Furthermore, lessons can be learnt from previous youth policy initiatives by asking: Why was thispolicy successful? If this policy failed, what were the reasons? Did this policy resonate with young nationals? This edited book unpacks the ways in which comprehending policies and processes are important for youth policy development and implementation in Saudi Arabia. It is relevant to policymakers, as well as scholars in Gulf Studies, and Middle Eastern Studies more broadly, as well as those in youth studies, area studies, and social studies.

This book focuses on "doing Chinese philosophy", the concept of which is a derivative form of Ludwig Wittgenstein's expression "doing philosophy". On the one hand, its approach differs from the traditional philosophical study method, which tends to discuss rather than do; on the other, it focuses on the unique features of Chinese philosophy. The concept of "Chinese philosophy" combines classical philosophy and contemporary philosophy. Whether classical Chinese philosophy still holds power depends on its ability to compete with contemporary philosophies (from the West, or ideology). At the very least, it has to convincingly show that classical thought has a unique role in interpreting and shaping the function of modern spiritual culture. Providing insights into China's excellent philosophical ideas, this book will appeal to all readers who have a basic understanding of philosophy and are interested in Chinese philosophical thought. It not only explains the author's proposal for studying Chinese philosophy in terms of methodology, but also answers the question of how classic Chinese works should influence other cultures.

This book explains why universities, and academics within them, must engage with the diversity of knowledges and knowers that exist in the world. Through philosophical perspectives, theoretical frameworks and practical examples from around the world, the book searches for opportunities for renewal and inclusion in universities. It explains how higher education can better serve the purposes of social justice by re-evaluating the types of knowledge it promotes. Going beyond the identification and analysis of injustices in ways of knowing in academia, the book offers insights and examples of practices in teaching, research and work with the community which aim to move towards justice on an epistemic level. It argues that inclusion in the domain of knowledge can lead to the generation of knowledges and understandings that are more robust and better equipped to address the pressing needs of the plural worlds outside the university.Contributions are included from authors working in varied disciplinary and cultural contexts in universities, who describe and explicate their work towards identifying epistemic injustice and finding spaces to advance knowledge justice in theory and in practice. The book will be beneficial to academics and those with an interest in the role of universities in serving the public good.

This book serves as an illuminating introduction to the intricacies of the geometry of numbers. It commences by exploring basic concepts of convex sets and lattices in Euclidean space and goes on to delve into Minkowski¿s fundamental theorem for convex bodies and its applications. It discusses critical determinants and successive minima before explaining the core results of packings and coverings. The text goes on to delve into the significance of renowned conjectures such as Minkowski¿s conjecture regarding the product of linear forms, Watson¿s conjecture, and the conjecture of Bambah, Dumir, and Hans-Gill concerning non-homogeneous minima of indefinite quadratic forms. Dedicated to Prof. R.P. Bambah on his 98th birthday, a living legend of number theory in India, this comprehensive book addresses both homogeneous and non-homogeneous problems, while sprinkling in historical insights and highlighting unresolved questions in the field. It is ideally suited for beginnersembarking on self-study as well as for use as a text for a one- or two-semester introductory course.

The book reports on the development and validation of a computerized adaptive EFL test, which is used as an exit requirement for non-English-major undergraduates at a major Chinese university. Unlike the tests reported in previous research on computerized adaptive language test (CALT), which were mostly designed to assess vocabulary, grammar and reading, this test consists of listening and reading components using both dichotomously-scored stand-alone items and polytomously-scored testlet-based items. The book is an essential and stimulating read for researchers and graduate students in the testing domain, particularly for those who are interested in CALT, item response theory (IRT), and quantitative research methods in general. It also constitutes a solid reference resource for L2 teachers and test developers. One of the distinctive features of the book is its operationalization of assessment use argument (AUA) in the investigation of the construct validity of the CALT. Another strength of this book is that it provides insight into the specific procedures that are followed in the development of CALTs and addresses a few key issues, such as local item dependence and DIF detection that were ignored in previous CALT development research.

This book covers the latest developments in sustainable textiles and how they can help mitigate the fashion industry's environmental impact. It focuses on innovative textile production approaches by prioritizing eco-friendly materials, responsible sourcing, ethical manufacturing practices, using cutting-edge technology to create textiles that are not only sustainable but also high-performing and durable. This book further explores the wide range of possibilities for reducing the fashion industry's environmental impact, from natural dyeing techniques to biodegradable fibers. This book will be of interest to students, researchers, fashion industry professionals, environmentalists and anyone who is interested in learning more about sustainable fashion.

This book offers information on intelligent and computational techniques for microbial data associated with plant microbes, human microbes etc. The main focus of this book is to provide an insight on building smart sustainable solutions for microbial technology using intelligent computational techniques.Microbes are ubiquitous in nature, and their interactions among each other are important for colonizing diverse habitats. The core idea of sustainable computing is to deploy algorithms, models, policies and protocols to improve energy efficiency and management of resources, enhancing ecological balance, biological sustenance and other services on societal contexts. Chapters in this book explore the conventional methods as well as the most recently recognized high-throughput technologies which are important for productive agroecosystems to feed the growing global population. This book is of interest to teachers, researchers, microbiologist, computer bioinformatics scientists,plant and environmental scientist, and those interested in environment stewardship around the world. The book also serves as an advanced textbook material for undergraduate and graduate students of computer science, biomedicine, agriculture, human science, forestry, ecology, soil science, and environmental sciences and policy makers.

This book explores language teachers' identity learning through the lens of teacher emotions. This qualitative study, utilizing a longitudinal case study design, sets out to trace how four college English teachers at the case study university in East China respond emotionally towards the curriculum reform, how teacher identity learning takes place, and how emotions interact with the identity learning processes. Guided by the theoretical framework, this book adopts diversified methods to collect data across one academic year of curriculum implementation. It also discusses the findings which reveal that curriculum reform poses great emotional challenges for English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teachers, teachers who traverse across emotional geographies, orient to feeling rules, and perhaps translate emotion work into emotional capital. This book explores language teachers' identity learning.This book helps the researchers, policymakers, and other stakeholders involved in highereducation policymaking to understand how EFL teacher emotions can be utilized to support EFL teachers' identity learning and thus sustain curriculum reform efforts.