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The book is about the "space race", starting from the earliest steps of astronautics to the Moon landings of Armstrong and Aldrin. The conquest of space began as a by-product of an exquisitely military project, the rapid, and efficient delivery of explosives, conventional and then nuclear, over great distances into enemy territory. It happened at the turn of World War II, first with the V2s, the Wunderwaffen that von Braun had created for his Führer, and, after the surrender of Germany and Japan, with the intercontinental ballistic missiles that the Russians and Americans built to serve as cabs for atomic bombs. Restrained by the fear of nuclear holocaust, the two great powers that had momentarily divided the government of the world turned the risky muscular confrontation into an unusual race to climb the sky: a stage race with a conventional finish line marked by the human landing on the Moon. Under the constant guidance of Sergei Korolev, the mysterious "chief designer", the Soviets got off to a surprise start and stayed in the lead until almost the end, with the Sputniks, the orbital flights of Gagarin and Tereshkova, the first spacewalk, and the unmanned soft landings on the Moon and Venus, only to be caught up and overtaken by the Americans at the very edge. An adventure that lasted a total of twelve years, marked by brilliant and courageous men, by astute and far-sighted politicians, by patriotism and ambition, and, as always, regulated by luck, which profoundly affected our world and the design of its future.
Based on original findings from research carried out in six low- and middle-income countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America, this book brings together conceptual and empirical analyses of private higher education and social and academic inequality, a topic largely unexplored in the social science literature, particularly on private higher education. Field surveys of different categories of actors in numerous private universities have combined common methods and tools in countries chosen for the differences in their social structures and the characteristics, organization and development of their private higher education systems. Based on these qualitative surveys, combined with available quantitative data on higher education, this book analyzes the production and reproduction of social and academic inequalities in countries as diverse as Argentina, Malaysia, Mexico, Peru, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Senegal and Vietnam. Finally, the historical and social structuringof the private education systems in the selected countries provides the framework for analyses that go beyond the traditional higher education demand/supply and public policy approaches to explore the perspective of the actors - institutional administrators, teaching staff and students.
This book provides selected contributions of the 3rd International Conference on Advanced Joining Processes, held in Braga, Portugal, on October 19¿20, 2023. The volume is dedicated to the current developments in mechanical joining (1st Section), joining by plastic deformation (2nd Section), and welding (3rd Section). The selected contributions represent the state of the art in advanced methods of joining. The book serves as a reference volume for researchers and graduate students working with advanced joining processes.
This book constitutes the thoroughly refereed and revised selected papers from the 12th International Conference on Pattern Recognition Applications and Methods, ICPRAM 2023, held in Lisbon, Portugal, during February 22-24, 2023. The 28 full papers and 42 short papers included in this book were carefully reviewed and selected from 157 submissions. They were organized in topical sections as follows: theory and methods and applications.
This volume constitutes revised selected papers of several workshops, the EDOC Forum and the Demonstrations and Doctoral Consortium track, which were held in conjunction with the 27th International Conference on Enterprise Design, Operations, and Computing, EDOC 2023, in Groningen, The Netherlands, during October 30-November 3, 2023. The 18 revised full papers and 7 short papers presented in this book were carefully reviewed and selected from 37 submissions. They stem from the following satellite events: - Workshop on Intelligent Digital Architecture, Methods, and Services for Industry 4.0 and Society 5.0 (IDAMS)- Workshop on Empirical Methodologies for Research in Enterprise Architecture and Service-Oriented Computing (iRESEARCH)- Workshop on the Modelling and Implementation of Digital Twins for Complex Systems (MIDas4CS)- Workshop on Service-oriented Enterprise Architecture for Enterprise Engineering (SoEA4EE)- EDOC Forum- Demonstrations Track- Doctoral Consortium
The role of library and information sciences (LIS) in, for, and about Arctic and Northern studies is underexplored. This book examines the intersection of LIS and Arctic/Northern scholarship, research, and study by considering the Arctic and North as a global information-knowledge society; demonstrates practical and applied ways that librarians, archivists, curators, and other information scholars and professionals can participate and have participated in real activities within Arctic and Northern environments; explains how LIS - as a discipline focused on data, information, and knowledge - has a significant role to play in Arctic and Northern endeavours; and emphasises the inter-/multi- disciplinary nature of what are Arctic studies and Northern studies and the placement of LIS into that structure. Even though LIS has historically been overlooked in Northern and Arctic matters, this book suggests that LIS is in a remarkable position to add value to future Arctic/Northern studies. Thisbook is of interest to scientists, researchers, scholars, educators, professionals, and students globally working in Northern and Arctic contexts and/or with Northern and Arctic pursuits in mind.
This book covers the various ways in which rivers discharge water and sediment load, which is characteristic of the current situation caused by both human activity and the natural riverine environment. The knowledge of river inclinations and flow patterns points to more river ecosystem management and current multifaceted conditions. Technology advancements in river watershed studies have demonstrated the difference between natural river systems and human-influenced hydrological environments and surface processes. Lastly, the relationship between river systems and modern activity is impacted by climate change which is also discussed in this volume. This edited book is organized into four parts, each discussing a different aspect of modern river science for watershed management, including GIS and hydrogeological applications, rainfall-runoff modeling that is up to date, hydrological processes, artificial intelligence, and GIS. Moreover, it provides a wealth of information aboutwatershed management, particularly for researchers and experts in the hydrogeological field. It covers advanced applications of river morphometric dynamics conditions, flood risk assessment, sediment load discharge, and their flux measurements, as well as field-oriented aspects of the river environment and GIS. The book can be used to update current river science studies and to expand scientific understanding for projects related to studies. The edited book is primarily intended for postgraduate students, researchers, and experts and practitioners in the fields of hydrology, field hydrogeology (water resource exploration), dam studies, and groundwater potential investigation. It is also intended for young researchers, scholars, and practitioners working in the field of water resource exploration.
This book features the proceedings of the 6th EAI International Conference on Big Data Innovation for Sustainable Cognitive Computing (BDCC 2023). The papers feature detail on cognitive computing and its self-learning systems that use data mining, pattern recognition and natural language processing (NLP) to mirror the way the human brain works. This international conference focuses on technologies from knowledge representation techniques and natural language processing algorithms to dynamic learning approaches. Topics covered include Data Science for Cognitive Analysis, Real-Time Ubiquitous Data Science, Platform for Privacy Preserving Data Science, and Internet-Based Cognitive Platform.
This book features a collection of high-quality and peer-reviewed papers from 2023 14th International Conference on Environmental Science and Technology, which was held in Shandong, China, during November 23-25, 2023. ICEST is held annually as a platform for presentation of new advances and research results in the fields of Environmental Science and Technology. With the continuous development of human society, environmental problems are becoming more and more serious. Recently, we face some difficult problems such as: global climate change, ozone layer destruction and depletion, acid rain pollution, desertification, and water resources crisis. Based on the theme this year, the presentations include the topical areas of environmental sustainability, waste minimization, solid waste management, water pollution control, water treatment and reclamation, air pollution control, carbon capture and storage and environmental monitoring, etc.
We present a Machine Learning (ML) approach to monitoring and classifying noise pollution. Both methods of monitoring and classification have been proven successful. MATLAB and Python code was generated to monitor all types of noise pollution from the collected data, while ML was trained to classify these data. ML algorithms showed promising performance in monitoring the different sound classes such as highways, railways, trains and birds, airports and many more. It is observed that all the data obtained by both methods can be used to control noise pollution levels and for data analytics. They can help decision making and policy making by stakeholders such as municipalities, housing authorities and urban planners in smart cities. The findings indicate that ML can be used effectively in monitoring and measurement. Improvements can be obtained by enhancing the data collection methods. The intention is to develop more ML platforms from which to construct a less noisy. The second objective of this study was to visualize and analyze the data of 18 types of noise pollution that have been collected from 16 different locations in Malaysia. All the collected data were stored in Tableau software. Through the use of both qualitative and quantitative measurements, the data collected for this project was then combined to create a noise map database that can help smart cities make informed decisions.
This open access volume explores the impact of globalization on the contemporary study of deep-time art. The book addresses seven main themes and uses these themes to explore theoretical, methodological, ethical, and practical developments that are orienting the study of Pleistocene and Holocene arts in the age of globalization. Bringing together studies in genetics, visualization, and the proliferation of increasingly sophisticated archaeological research, this leads to vast quantities of materials and techniques being incorporated into the analysis of visual cultures. The present volume aims to contribute to the emerging body of research on globalization in rock art studies exploring seven interrelated topics. Topics covered include new theoretical frameworks, technical and interpretive developments in the age of globalization, highlights new geographic areas, and offers perspectives from art history and indigenous knowledge. The book goes onto provide comparative approaches on rock art globally and studies the impact of globalization in the research, preservation, and management of deep-time art. This book appeals to archaeologists and art historians working in rock art.
This book offers a comprehensive overview of atomically precise electrocatalysts, including single-atom, dual-atom, and multi-atom catalysts, which are considered to be superior electrode materials for fuel cells and water electrolyzers. By presenting a systematic examination of these materials in ascending order of metal atom number, the book provides a deep understanding of their synthesis processes, energy applications, and potential for improving their performance. Unlike any contemporary book on the topic, this book explores the reaction mechanisms and structure-performance relationships in catalytic processes at atomic level. Essentially, by driving the development of fuel cells and water electrocatalyzers, this book helps meet the world's growing energy demands. With its cutting-edge insights, this book is an indispensable resource for researchers, engineers, and students working in the field of renewable energy.
This book explores the need for innovative approaches to administrative digitization, leveraging technologies such as AI, blockchain, and smart processes to meet citizens' expectations, with a particular focus on the role of Chief Digital Officers (CDOs) in driving successful digital transformations within public institutions. Administrative digitization requires fresh inputs to match the leaps seen in the industry sector, utilizing technologies like AI-driven automation, blockchain transactions, and security tools. Smart process solutions are seen as transformative in upholding service standards aligned with citizens' state expectations. Unlike commercial companies, collaboration offers those overseeing public sector digitization enhanced scaling opportunities by drawing from experiences in other regions and metropolises, directly applicable and reusable. In the public realm, digital strategies mirror legal and social conditions, necessitating adjustments and adaptation options for Chief Digital Officers as they lead digital transformation. Methodological focal points in task structure redesign, process optimization, and motivating actors yield diverse action areas for the CDO's new role in public institutions. This book explores the instruments, strategies, and attitudes necessary to successfully implement transformative initiatives in organizations, emphasizing proven concepts with practical applicability, enabling readers to derive their own interaction options as digital guidance leaders. The book is a concise introduction to the specific requirements for visionary designers driving dynamic changes in user-centric public services.
This book presents machine learning approaches to identify the most important predictors of crucial variables for dealing with the challenges of managing production units and designing agriculture policies. The book focuses on the agricultural sector in the European Union and considers statistical information from the Farm Accountancy Data Network (FADN).Presently, statistical databases present a lot of information for many indicators and, in these contexts, one of the main tasks is to identify the most important predictors of certain indicators. In this way, the book presents approaches to identifying the most relevant variables that best support the design of adjusted farming policies and management plans. These subjects are currently important for students, public institutions and farmers. To achieve these objectives, the book considers the IBM SPSS Modeler procedures as well as the respective models suggested by this software.The book is read by students in production engineering, economics and agricultural studies, public bodies and managers in the farming sector.
This book constitutes the proceedings of the 45th Annual Conference of the German Association for Pattern Recognition, DAGM-GCPR 2023, which took place in Heidelberg, Germany, during September 19-22, 2023. The 40 full papers included in these proceedings were carefully reviewed and selected from 76 submissions. They were organized in topical sections as follows: Segmentation and action recognition; 3D reconstruction and neural rendering; Photogrammetry and remote sensing; Pattern recognition in the life sciences; Interpretable machine learning; Weak supervision and online learning; Robust models.
The capacity of humans to destroy their environment is playing out like a Greek tragedy in the Mediterranean Sea. After having coexisted with a diversity of marine animals throughout their history, humans have broken the balance in recent decades, and the survival of countless marine creatures is now increasingly uncertain. However, unlike in classical tragedies, real-life entities are not necessarily doomed by their fate, and there must be hope to turn the tide in nature's favour. Lack of concrete conservation action might be simply due to a lack of awareness: how can we feel sad about a loss if we don't know what we are losing? "Sailing Across a Wounded Sea" is the story of an ideal journey around the Mediterranean to meet its non-human inhabitants, consisting of real episodes collected over half a century as the author observed real animals, exchanged views with a variety of contacts, and argued for such views in the policy arena. Encountering whales, dolphins, seals and rays in their habitat and on their terms will hopefully contribute to building up in readers a collective commitment to help secure a future for these species. A future where they are allowed to flourish as they were meant to - had humans never trod so heavily on the sea's delicate ecological balance and the interwoven natural processes. Giuseppe Notarbartolo di Sciara has been involved for a lifetime in protecting marine biodiversity in various capacities - as a scientist, civil servant, advocate and sailor. Having studied in California and worked with whales, dolphins and sharks worldwide, he returned to the Mediterranean in 1985, keen on using his acquired tools to discover more about the ancient sea's natural history. Here, he described small but vibrant populations of fin and sperm whales, along with various species of dolphins, manta rays and the monk seal. At the same time, seeing the Mediterranean's progressive degradation at the hands of humans, he felt a surge of rebellion against this squandering of natural values, and wished to raise awareness of the existence of these marine natural treasures and the risk of losing them.
The book provides a comprehensive overview of research and concepts related to shame and aging, in the context of social change, upheavals and paradigm shifts, from transdisciplinary, cultural and transcultural perspectives. Drawing upon the editors' previous works on the topic of shame, this volume discusses the contexts of shame and aging from theoretical, conceptual, and empirical perspectives. The toxic and stressful aspects of shame have been the focus of scientific analysis and discourse on shame and aging. This volume explicitly makes the dimensions of shame a resource for individuals, and collective transformation processes the object of research in the context of aging. It looks at emerging lifestyle, political, socio-economic and health contexts. It looks at how and why the frequency, intensity and handling of feelings of shame change over the course of life; the impact of shame on emotional well-being and mental health of older people; the impact of shame on social relationships and social engagement of older people in different cultures; the role of cultural values and norms in the development and processing of feelings of shame, especially in older people, and how these can be used for self-development; and the differences in the way older people in different cultures deal with feelings of shame and the way these can be used to develop effective strategies and techniques for older people to cope with shame. The editors and contributors thereby take cultural and gender aspects, as well as positive psychology and resource-orientated concepts, such as salutogenesis, resilience, happiness, fortitude, locus of control, faith- or strengths-based approaches into account and contextualize them against processes of social upheaval and transformation.
This volume discusses the adsorptive profiles of microplastic (MP) pollutants, covering their structural identity, sorption ability and degradation due to photolytic, hydrolytic, mechanical, and other environmental factors. In addition to the quantitation of (MPs) in the environment, the book unveils the deleterious effects on aquatic species and humans due to adsorbed inorganic/organic contaminants on the surface of MPs. The present book finds its uniqueness by presenting in-depth discussions on the interactions and mechanisms of microplastics with organic pollutants, microalgae, and human systems. The interactions and mechanisms between microplastics and microalgae are explored to understand the possible remediation pathways in microplastic contaminated water resources. Students and researchers in the fields of environmental science and engineering, biotechnology, aquaculture, marine technology, and water chemistry can benefit from this book. Furthermore, industries, NGOs and stakeholders dealing with wastewater, solid waste/environmental pollution will find this book useful.
This book celebrates and explores some philosophical issues raised by the work of Alan Weir, who is Professor Emeritus at the University of Glasgow, having previously held positions at the Universities of Oxford, Edinburgh and Queen's, Belfast. In a number of areas, Weir has elaborated strikingly original views which involve a radical departure from the mainstream. These include formalism in the philosophy of mathematics, and as well as naïve set theory, with a universal set, and a naïve theory of truth. In contrast to other contemporary defenders of the latter two theories, Weir rejects dialetheism and accepts classical rules for the logical connectives. He avoids contradictions by restricting certain structural inference rules, specifically some generalized versions of transitivity. In addition, Weir has developed radical versions of naturalism and physicalism (partly informed by his work on Quine) and perceptual realism. This collection includes contributions by a distinguished group of philosophers on Weir's philosophy, as well as a memoir and a new essay on the philosophy of mathematics by Weir himself.
This is an updated version of what is still the only text to address basic questions about how to model uncertainty in mathematical programming, including how to reformulate a deterministic model so that it can be analyzed in a stochastic setting. This second edition has important extensions regarding how to represent random phenomena in the models (also called scenario generation) as well as a new chapter on multi-stage models. This text would be suitable as a stand-alone or supplement for a second course in OR/MS or in optimization-oriented engineering disciplines where the instructor wants to explain where models come from and what the fundamental modeling issues are. The book is easy-to-read, highly illustrated with lots of examples and discussions. It will be suitable for graduate students and researchers working in operations research, mathematics, engineering and related departments where there is interest in learning how to model uncertainty. Alan King is a Research Staff Member at IBM's Thomas J. Watson Research Center in New York. Stein W. Wallace is a Professor of Operational Research and head of Center for Shipping and Logistics at NHH Norwegian School of Economics, Bergen, Norway.
The three-volume set LNICST 561, 562 563 constitutes the refereed post-conference proceedings of the 19th EAI International Conference on Collaborative Computing: Networking, Applications and Worksharing, CollaborateCom 2023, held in Corfu Island, Greece, during October 4-6, 2023. The 72 full papers presented in these proceedings were carefully reviewed and selected from 176 submissions. The papers are organized in the following topical sections: Volume I: Collaborative Computing, Edge Computing & Collaborative working, Blockchain applications, Code Search and Completion, Edge Computing Scheduling and Offloading.Volume II: Deep Learning and Application, Graph Computing, Security and Privacy Protection and Processing and Recognition.Volume III: Onsite Session Day2, Federated learning and application, Collaborative working, Edge Computing and Prediction, Optimization and Applications.
The three-volume set LNICST 561, 562 563 constitutes the refereed post-conference proceedings of the 19th EAI International Conference on Collaborative Computing: Networking, Applications and Worksharing, CollaborateCom 2023, held in Corfu Island, Greece, during October 4-6, 2023. The 72 full papers presented in these proceedings were carefully reviewed and selected from 176 submissions. The papers are organized in the following topical sections: Volume I: Collaborative Computing, Edge Computing & Collaborative working, Blockchain applications, Code Search and Completion, Edge Computing Scheduling and Offloading.Volume II: Deep Learning and Application, Graph Computing, Security and Privacy Protection and Processing and Recognition.Volume III: Onsite Session Day2, Federated learning and application, Collaborative working, Edge Computing and Prediction, Optimization and Applications.
The three-volume set LNICST 561, 562 563 constitutes the refereed post-conference proceedings of the 19th EAI International Conference on Collaborative Computing: Networking, Applications and Worksharing, CollaborateCom 2023, held in Corfu Island, Greece, during October 4-6, 2023. The 72 full papers presented in these proceedings were carefully reviewed and selected from 176 submissions. The papers are organized in the following topical sections: Volume I: Collaborative Computing, Edge Computing & Collaborative working, Blockchain applications, Code Search and Completion, Edge Computing Scheduling and Offloading.Volume II: Deep Learning and Application, Graph Computing, Security and Privacy Protection and Processing and Recognition.Volume III: Onsite Session Day2, Federated learning and application, Collaborative working, Edge Computing and Prediction, Optimization and Applications.
This volume comprises selected papers presented at the 14th International Conference on Scientific Computing in Electrical Engineering, SCEE 2022, held in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, in July 2022. The aim of the SCEE 2022 conference was to bring together scientists - mathematicians, electrical engineers, computer scientists, and physicists, from universities and industry - to have in-depth discussions of the latest scientific results in Computational Science and Engineering relevant to Electrical Engineering and to stimulate and inspire active participation of young researchers.This extensive reference work is divided into four parts: Part I Circuit Simulation and Design.- Part II Device Simulation.- Part III Computational Electromagnetics.- Part IV Mathematical and Computational Methods. Each part starts with a general introduction, followed by the respective contributions. The book will appeal to mathematicians and electricalengineers. Further, it introduces algorithm and program developers to recent advances in the other fields, while industry experts will be introduced to new programming tools and mathematical methods.
This new edition builds upon the foundational knowledge covered in the first edition, covering the epidemiology, pathogenesis, and clinical presentation of atopic dermatitis in both pediatric and adult patients. It provides an overview of the mechanism and presentation of atopic dermatitis and focuses on the management methods experienced dermatologists have used to successfully manage atopic dermatitis. The book includes new chapters describing the special considerations for atopic dermatitis in skin of color patients, dedicated chapters on topical and oral prescription management reflected the latest FDA-approved treatments, and also a chapter covering the updated guidelines from the American Academy of Dermatology. A final chapter includes updates on the future of atopic dermatitis treatment.This book provides physicians with insights into the management of atopic dermatitis, such as alternative treatments for pruritus, psychosocial impact on patients and families,assessing patient compliance, and patient resources.
This book provides a comprehensive review on tensor algebra, including tensor products, tensor unfolding, tensor eigenvalues, and tensor decompositions. Tensors are multidimensional arrays generalized from vectors and matrices, which can capture higher-order interactions within multiway data. In addition, tensors have wide applications in many domains such as signal processing, machine learning, and data analysis, and the author explores the role of tensors/tensor algebra in tensor-based dynamical systems where system evolutions are captured through various tensor products. The author provides an overview of existing literature on the topic and aims to inspire readers to learn, develop, and apply the framework of tensor-based dynamical systems.
This book explores the dynamics of how AI (Artificial Intelligence) technology intersects with cybersecurity challenges and threat intelligence as they evolve. Integrating AI into cybersecurity not only offers enhanced defense mechanisms, but this book introduces a paradigm shift illustrating how one conceptualize, detect and mitigate cyber threats. An in-depth exploration of AI-driven solutions is presented, including machine learning algorithms, data science modeling, generative AI modeling, threat intelligence frameworks and Explainable AI (XAI) models. As a roadmap or comprehensive guide to leveraging AI/XAI to defend digital ecosystems against evolving cyber threats, this book provides insights, modeling, real-world applications and research issues. Throughout this journey, the authors discover innovation, challenges, and opportunities. It provides a holistic perspective on the transformative role of AI in securing the digital world.Overall, the useof AI can transform the way one detects, responds and defends against threats, by enabling proactive threat detection, rapid response and adaptive defense mechanisms. AI-driven cybersecurity systems excel at analyzing vast datasets rapidly, identifying patterns that indicate malicious activities, detecting threats in real time as well as conducting predictive analytics for proactive solution. Moreover, AI enhances the ability to detect anomalies, predict potential threats, and respond swiftly, preventing risks from escalated. As cyber threats become increasingly diverse and relentless, incorporating AI/XAI into cybersecurity is not just a choice, but a necessity for improving resilience and staying ahead of ever-changing threats. This book targets advanced-level students in computer science as a secondary textbook. Researchers and industry professionals working in various areas, such as Cyber AI, Explainable and Responsible AI, Human-AI Collaboration, Automation and Intelligent Systems, Adaptive and Robust Security Systems, Cybersecurity Data Science and Data-Driven Decision Making will also find this book useful as reference book.
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