Books published by Springer

Questo libro tratta una selezione di argomenti fondamentali dell'ingegneria del traffico utili per la progettazione e il controllo delle strutture autostradali. La trattazione è concisa, ma non trascura di esaminare gli aspetti teorici più recenti e cruciali che sono alla base di numerose applicazioni dell'ingegneria autostradale, come, ad esempio, gli aspetti essenziali del calcolo dell'affidabilità dei flussi di traffico autostradale e del controllo automatizzato dei sistemi autostradali. Per rendere questi argomenti più facili da seguire, vengono forniti numerosi esempi di applicazioni lavorative, che vengono illustrate in modo molto dettagliato. In tutti i contenuti è stato adottato uno stile intuitivo e discorsivo, piuttosto che formale.Il libro offre quindi conoscenze pratiche e aggiornate su diversi aspetti dell'ingegneria del traffico, che interessano un ampio pubblico di studenti, ricercatori, pianificatori dei trasporti, specialisti del trasporto pubblico, urbanisti e decisori.

Strategic decision-making with a focus on economics is the fundamental requirement to generate efficiency and improve productivity in any manufacturing environment. In the 21st century, the science of drug development is an established field that requires a dedicated and synergistic partnership between various subject matter experts. Unfortunately, pharmaceutical research is complicated, time-consuming, attritive, and costly, with development costs ranging from $4 billion to $11 billion per commercialized drug. There are nearly 500 biotech and big pharma companies in the US that are developing new drug products for a vast number of therapeutic indications. Due to the high attrition rate in clinical trials, a small percentage of these drugs get commercialized. Still, a very high amount of resources are being spent on drug development from a societal perspective. Despite being an economically intense activity, the current state of drug product development makes a limited effort to integrate economics into product design and development. For example, pharmaceutical scientists are excellent at a data-driven decision-making process that requires technical elements and a few strategic elements. However, there is minimal integration of financial valuation elements (commonly employed in other high tech industries such as fine chemicals, automotive, aerospace, etc.) into pharmaceutical drug development. Unfortunately, this hurts the sustainability of the health system of which these products will be a part in the future.A desirable future state is the one that integrates fundamentals of economics in product design and development so that the decision-making is parameterized, the cost of goods could be lowered, wastage can be reduced, patient-centricity is built into the design, and manufacturing/distribution efficiencies can be gained. The financial benefits of such an approach could allow for these savings to be passed on to the stakeholders and improve the value proposition of pharmaceuticals, which is critical to maintaining the innovation potential. This book hopes to introduce the reader to this desired future state of pharmaceutical drug development.

This proceedings book provides selections from the 2022 Topical Issues in International Political Geography (TIPG) meeting. It addresses the main issues of contemporary political geography and international relations, providing a platform for discussion and collaboration of experts primarily in the fields of Political Geography, Geopolitics, and International Relations. Participants from all over the world consider the controversies and challenges posed by globalization, focusing, in particular, on the ideologies of globalization and regionalism, migration crises, prevention of ethnic conflicts, and measures to promote sustainable development. The content of the book will be interesting to experts, academics, and students in these communities.

Minerals are essential commodities for the growth of mankind, and all the progress of humanity owes unequivocally to minerals. However, winning minerals through mining has always been cursed, and mankind has paid a heavy price for mining in the form of great loss of flora and fauna and unprecedented impact on the environment. Notwithstanding any arguments either in favor or against, one cannot deny that for the progression, advancement, and security of nations mining is indispensable, compulsory, and unavoidable trade. It is in the best interest of every stakeholder; a sustainable approach to mining must be adopted. Sustainability has many dimensions, two most important being: the optimum utilization of mined-out materials and creating value-added products from the mining wastes. Taking a cue from this, an international seminar was organized on "Prospects and Challenges of Mineral Based Products and Utilization of Wastes for the 'Make in India' Initiative" at Hotel Radisson Blu from 10-12 November 2022. The conference was attended by about 120 delegates from all over India. This book is a compilation of selected papers presented during the conference, broadly divided into the following groups: (a) rare earth elements, (b) ferrous minerals, (c) non-ferrous minerals, (d) industrial minerals, (e) waste utilization and valorization and (f) other significant contributions. Written by experts and edited by academicians and technocrats, this book promises to be a valuable and essential reading for professionals, researchers, as well as students.

This book presents the fundamental principles of thermodynamics and heat transfer, providing a solid foundation for understanding energy systems. From the core concepts of basic thermodynamic state parameters and ideal gases to the complexities of real gases and vapors, this book provides the knowledge to analyze and manipulate energy in various engineering applications. It covers topics such as heat capacity, thermodynamic processes, and the First Law of Thermodynamics, giving insights into how energy is harnessed and utilized. The book explores advanced subjects like second law thermodynamics, circular cycles, and the thermodynamic analysis of thermal power cycle installations, unveiling the intricacies of energy efficiency. The second section of the book shifts focus to heat transfer mechanisms, covering thermal conductivity, convective heat transfer, and thermal radiation. The book is useful to anyone interested in the complexities of energy dynamics in engineering systems.

This third edition book offers a paradigm shift in thinking (from binary to complex) and enables visibility for the intersectionality of multiple identities that range from privileged to oppressed. For example, real people's heterogeneous racial identities within the same racial group are visible. A paradigm shift in learning (from conceptual to transformative) connects conceptual learning (cognition) to their experience (affect). ".... transformation does not simply emerge due to the individual's awareness.... but is experienced" (Benetka & Joerchel, 2016, p. 22). Uncensored first-person (subjective) written responses to specific questions to access unconscious and implicit bias will connect the writer's experience to conceptual learning of diversity, equity, and inclusion. Writing in third person (objective) interrupts the transformative aspect by bypassing the accessibility of inner experience. Writing in first-person connects the writer to their experience which allows the unconscious to be accessed if it is practiced on a regular basis. This book is for everyone who wants to implement diversity, equity, and inclusion measures by learning to access their unconscious bias. Understanding social justice and equity and good intentions alone do not lead to accessing unconscious bias.

This textbook examines how service firms manage their international operations. For the first time, it brings together insights from the fragmented literature on this subject into an accessible textbook. Further, it is unique in its focus on service firms' internationalization and international management. Beginning with an overview of the international environment in which service firms operate, it subsequently describes multinational service firms and their internationalization processes, strategies and organization. Unlike most texts on international services, the book goes beyond internationalization to address the ongoing management of service firms. It not only addresses functions such as global service marketing, financial management and human resource management, but also discusses aspects such as global account management, global service delivery and international project management, as well as the topical issue of managing distributed virtual teams. A dedicated chapter focuses on offshore shared services and business process outsourcing. These chapters are complemented by a discussion on international corporate governance and corporate social responsibility. The book is intended for students preparing for international careers in the service sector. Each chapter includes case studies, illustrations, highlighted definitions, a chapter summary and exercises.

This book is devoted to combinatorial aspects of the theory of symmetric functions. This rich, interesting and highly nontrivial part of algebraic combinatorics has numerous applications to algebraic geometry, topology, representation theory and other areas of mathematics. Along with classical material, such as Schur polynomials and Young diagrams, less standard subjects are also covered, including Schubert polynomials and Danilov-Koshevoy arrays. Requiring only standard prerequisites in algebra and discrete mathematics, the book will be accessible to undergraduate students and can serve as a basis for a semester-long course. It contains more than a hundred exercises of various difficulty, with hints and solutions. Primarily aimed at undergraduate and graduate students, it will also be of interest to anyone who wishes to learn more about modern algebraic combinatorics and its usage in other areas of mathematics.

The purpose of this timely and stimulating book is to thoroughly prepare students, early researchers, and career scholars in establishing their digital identity online. Broadly defined, digital identity is one's online history - that is, it is any trail a person has left in his or her life that is now online. In academics, the issue is of digital presence is of utmost importance, as a digital identity frames one's professional reputation, doing so by promoting and defining a person's knowledge and research in their respective field. Written by an accomplished interdisciplinary team of scholars in library science and related fields, this unique guide addresses the development of professional identity as a continuous, dynamic process that is constantly evolving, generally starting from university study and moving through one's professional work life. It goes without saying that building your digital identity as a researcher can be an effective way to publicize your work among your peers, but, the authors emphasize, this activity must be done carefully and skillfully. Indeed, developing these skills can forge a path to professional advancement in hiring, promotion, and tenure. Moreover, a well-designed digital presence can help build networks which can lead to collaborations, increased research, and grants. In addition, having a well-managed digital identity helps an academic engage with the public by strategically disseminating one's knowledge to students, public, and the media. Importantly, it can also help prevent misinformation. Whether readers are new in the field of research and publishing, or have a well-established portfolio of written literature, this handy title will provide vital guidance in establishing a digital presence, covering a wide range of issues. Key topics discussed, for example, include academic digital platforms and tools to consider when using them, working with academic librarians, social media platforms, choosing digital identity management tools like Open Researcher and Contributor ID or ORCID, the importance of author metrics and the h-index, and maintaining and curating a professional website, to name just several areas discussed. An invaluable contribution to the career literature, Building Your Academic Research Digital Identity will enable readers to strategically understand all the tools, platforms, and metrics needed to establish and cultivate one's crucially important digital profile.

This book discusses the implications of artificial intelligence (AI) on post-COVID-19 international relations. With the decline and fall of U.S. global leadership and the emergence of new powerful actors, as hastened by the global pandemic, new arms are now used in new forms of wars with new players. The balance of power swings between geostrategic interests and those linked to the global governance of virtual space and the race to technological sovereignty. Chapters focus on the challenges imposed by these changes on different parts of the international system--law, governance, diplomacy, international psychological security--and articulate new strategies and ethical policies as possible solutions. The volume is interdisciplinary and will appeal to researchers, students, and professionals across fields interested in the ethics of AI in the international system.

The Light Metals symposia at the TMS Annual Meeting & Exhibition present the most recent developments, discoveries, and practices in primary aluminum science and technology. The annual Light Metals volume has become the definitive reference in the field of aluminum production and related light metal technologies. The 2024 collection includes contributions from the following symposia: - Alumina & Bauxite - Aluminum Alloys: Development and Manufacturing - Aluminum Reduction Technology - Electrode Technology for Aluminum Production - Melt Processing, Casting and Recycling - Scandium Extraction and Use in Aluminum Alloys

Making intelligent devices and systems is the science and engineering of artificial intelligence (AI). In order to solve many of the most difficult problems in computer science, this important multidisciplinary discipline plays a crucial role in the field of technology nowadays. The book also addresses the topic of machine learning because it is closely related to AI. By no means is the list of subjects below intended to be comprehensive. The main objective of this book is to provide researchers, scientists, business professionals, and academics insight into original theories and research findings on the use of human cognitive models in diverse real-world computing applications. Through this book, the authors built an interdisciplinary forum where researchers from many fields may share their work and explore how to engineer human brain processes, learning mechanisms, and decision-making processes.

This textbook introduces readers to digital business from a management standpoint. It provides an overview of the foundations of digital business with basics, activities and success factors, and an analytical view on user behavior. Dedicated chapters on mobile and social media present fundamental aspects, discuss applications and address key success factors. The Internet of Things (IoT) is subsequently introduced in the context of big data, cloud computing and connecting technologies, with a focus on industry 4.0 and the industrial metaverse. In addition, areas such as smart business services, smart homes and digital consumer applications as well as artificial intelligence, quantum computing and automation based on artificial intelligence will be analysed. The book then turns to digital business models in the B2C (business-to-consumer) and B2B (business-to-business) sectors.Building on the business model concepts, the book addresses digital business strategy, discussingthe strategic digital business environment and digital business value activity systems (dVASs), as well as strategy development in the context of digital business. Special chapters explore the implications of strategy for digital marketing and digital procurement. Lastly, the book discusses the fundamentals of digital business technologies and security, and provides an outline of digital business implementation. A comprehensive case study on Google/Alphabet, explaining Google's organizational history, its integrated business model and its market environment, rounds out the book.

This accessible and engaging textbook presents a concise introduction to the exciting field of artificial intelligence (AI). The broad-ranging discussion covers the key subdisciplines within the field, describing practical algorithms and concrete applications in the areas of agents, logic, search, reasoning under uncertainty, machine learning, neural networks, and reinforcement learning. Fully revised and updated, this much-anticipated third edition also includes new material on deep learning.Topics and features: - Presents an application-focused and hands-on approach to learning, with supplementary teaching resources provided at an associated website - Introduces convolutional neural networks as the currently most important type of deep learning networks with applications to image classification (NEW) - Contains numerous study exercises and solutions, highlighted examples, definitions, theorems, and illustrative cartoons - Reports on developments in deep learning, including applications of neural networks to large language models as used in state-of-the-art chatbots as well as to the generation of music and art (NEW) - Includes chapters on predicate logic, PROLOG, heuristic search, probabilistic reasoning, machine learning and data mining, neural networks, and reinforcement learning - Covers various classical machine learning algorithms and introduces important general concepts such as cross validation, data normalization, performance metrics and data augmentation (NEW)- Includes a section on AI and society, discussing the implications of AI on topics such as employment and transportation Ideal for foundation courses or modules on AI, this easy-to-read textbook offers an excellent overview of the field for students of computer science and other technical disciplines, requiring no more than a high-school level of knowledge of mathematics to understand the material.Dr. Wolfgang Ertel is a professor at the Institute for Artificial Intelligence at the Ravensburg-Weingarten University of Applied Sciences, Germany.

This book presents a selection of the best papers from the 17th International Conference on Business Excellence, "Rethinking Business: Sustainable Leadership in a VUCA World" (ICBE 2023), held in Bucharest, Romania, in March 2023.In today's rapidly evolving landscape, characterized by volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity (VUCA), the need to reshape business practices has become paramount. The book showcases research findings and perspectives on the new challenges particularly posed by the digital economy and research systems. Focusing on revolving business and developing sustainable leadership, it offers valuable insights into the present context of global crisis, together with solutions for the real-world challenges we face today.

Sketching is a universal activity that first appears when we play as children, but later, it is often overlooked as a useful skill in adult work - yet it can bring multiple benefits to research and practice in multiple domains. Specifically, Human Computer Interaction embraces interdisciplinary practices, and amongst those, sketching has proven to be a valuable addition to the skill set of researchers, practitioners, and educators in both academia and industry. Many individuals lack the confidence to take up pen and paper after years of non-practice, but it is possible to re-learn these lost skills, improve on them, and apply them in practical ways to all areas of work and research. This book takes the reader on an active journey in sketching: from scribbles and playful interpretations to hands-on practical applications in storyboarding, and further, in examining qualitative analysis using sketching practice in HCI. Readers will learn a wide range of techniques andapplied methods for utilizing sketching within the context of HCI, guided by the experienced authors, and join the larger community of those who employ (and enjoy) sketching in Human Computer Interaction.

Various natural and man-made hazards are nowadays increasingly considered as disasters, particularly by individual and communities are lacking in awareness and where a system as a whole has no adequate management mechanism. Consequently, the world is facing serious negative outcome in form of loss of life, injury, disability, loss of property, infrastructure, and economic disruption followed by psycho-social disorders. Other than this, disasters adversely affect wildlife and environment in long terms. Developing countries are worst sufferers as these regions are poorly prepared for potential hazards at one hand and are exposed to disasters due to the complexity of (socio-cultural, economic and physical) vulnerability. Government, World communities, NGOs are recognizing the problems and are trying to build resilient communities to reduce disaster impact at various levels.Year 1990-99 was observed as the decade for natural disaster reduction by United Nations (UN) and United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (UNISDR) was established to support and coordinate this movement. Year 2015 has been very important in the history as three global agreements have been signed by global communities (Sustainable development goals, Paris agreement and Sendai framework for DRR). Where, SDGs are extension of MDGs to make the planet more sustainable. It proposed 17 goals and 15 years' time frame adopted in the year 2015. SDGs target various social, cultural, economic, challenges followed by wildlife, environmental protection through knowledge share and technological innovation among all member countries. In December 2015, UNFCCC reached a landmark agreement to combat climate change and to accelerate and intensify the actions and investments needed for a sustainable low carbon future known as Paris agreement. Sendai Framework 2015 is voluntary, non-binding agreement which recognizes that the state has the primary role to reduce disasterrisk but that responsibility should be shared with other stakeholders including local government, the private sector and other stakeholders. This framework focuses on the pre-disaster management rather than post disaster relief and recovery. This book is an insight into the various issues related to the emerging disasters (both natural and man-made), vulnerable communities, and government initiatives taken with a geographical focus on India. This volume contains selected chapters written by faculty and research scholars. This book is an empirical work on disasters vulnerabilities and management which will benefit researchers, academicians, professional, practitioners and policy makers.

This book contains essential contributions to enrich and broaden the application field of pragmatics. It provides an example of how the fruitful reflections and refined conceptual distinctions born in the philosophical field can find a practical application in addressing social, cognitive, clinical, and psychological problems. Its chapters address, from different points of view, the relationship between pragmatic linguistics and philosophy, and outline the possible application of pragmatic theories to different domains. Developed during the third Pragmasophia international conference, whose name is derived from the Greek terms πρᾶγμα (action, fact) and σοϕία (knowledge, science), the book aligns itself with its aim to study human actions and activities and how they take shape through language. But 'Pragma' and 'Sophia' also signal another purpose: highlighting the importance of creating links between empirical investigations on language use, and more traditional philosophical approaches. In this reading, 'Pragma' represents the experimental goal devoted to analysing and interpreting language facts. In contrast, the term 'Sophia' recalls the original vocation of past philosophers to pursue an ideal of 'pure knowledge', disconnected from any practical-economic interest. While maintaining the conference's original purpose of encouraging productive comparisons between different approaches, the book consists of two sections: first, on philosophical approaches, recalls more theoretical aspects (closer to the term 'Sophia'); the second, 'Inferential and Cognitive Pragmatics, ' addresses more practical issues affecting domains such as Greek literature, pragmatic disorders, dictionary entries, and speech analysis. The reader, whether in linguists, philosophy or psychology, obtains a complete overview of the most advanced current research lines, both theoretical and empirical, and thus contributes to broadening the scope of pragmatics.

Nanotechnology-based nanomaterials have revolutionized the field of advanced medical applications by offering new possibilities for treatment and diagnosis. Nano-form materials have become increasingly important in modern healthcare due to their ability to improve bioactivity and therapeutic efficiency. For example, nanomaterials can target specific cells or tissues in the body, which can result in more effective treatments with fewer side effects. However, it is important to carefully control the toxicity of nanomedicine and study its potential toxic effects to ensure patient safety.Moreover, nanomaterials have shown promise in controlling various types of bacteria, viruses, and even SARS-CoV-2. Their small size and unique properties make them effective tools for combating infectious diseases. This book, "Nanoparticles in Modern Antimicrobial and Antiviral Applications," aims to address key issues related to nanoparticles and their potential applicationsin healthcare. The book covers topics such as encapsulated polymer systems and their potential applications in COVID-19 treatment, which are not commonly found in other books. As such, it is a valuable resource for those interested in this field and can provide new insights into the use of nanomaterials for medical applications.

This monograph explores key principles in the modern theory of dynamic optimization, incorporating important advances in the field to provide a comprehensive, mathematically rigorous reference. Emphasis is placed on nonsmooth analytic techniques, and an in-depth treatment of necessary conditions, minimizer regularity, and global optimality conditions related to the Hamilton-Jacobi equation is given. New, streamlined proofs of fundamental theorems are incorporated throughout the text that eliminate earlier, cumbersome reductions and constructions. The first chapter offers an extended overview of dynamic optimization and its history that details the shortcomings of the elementary theory and demonstrates how a deeper analysis aims to overcome them. Aspects of dynamic programming well-matched to analytical techniques are considered in the final chapter, including characterization of extended-value functions associated with problems having endpoint and state constraints, inverse verification theorems, sensitivity relationships, and links to the maximum principle.This text will be a valuable resource for those seeking an understanding of dynamic optimization. The lucid exposition, insights into the field, and comprehensive coverage will benefit postgraduates, researchers, and professionals in system science, control engineering, optimization, and applied mathematics.

This book investigates the relationships between gestures and artefacts theoretically and historically, by analyzing different phenomena stemming from a variety of fields such as robotics, archaeology, gesture studies, anthropology, philosophy, and gestural practices like choreography, music performance, and composition. It underlines how embodiment and technology change the interplay between maker and artefact over time and appeals to students and researchers in these fields. Its goal is to enable the reader to understand that the recurring topics and questions as well as multi-level similarities are by no means accidental, but can best be understood if one pays attention to the intertwinements of materiality and cognition, praxis and techne.

This volume investigates the challenges and opportunities for designing, manufacturing and operating off-Earth infrastructures in order to establish adaptive human habitats. The adaptive aspects are considered with respect to the development of adequate infrastructures designed to support human activities. Given the limitations in bringing materials from Earth, utilisation of in-situ resources is crucial for establishing and maintaining these infrastructures.Adaptive on-and off-Earth Environments focuses, among other aspects, on the design, production, and operation processes required to build and maintain such off-Earth infrastructures, while heavily relying on In-Situ Resource Utilisation (ISRU). Such design, production, and operation processes integrate cyber-physical approaches developed and tested on Earth. The challenge is to adapt on-Earth approaches to off-Earth applications aiming at technology advancement and ultimately transfer from on- to off-Earth research. Thischallenge is addressed with contributions from various disciplines ranging from power generation to architecture, construction, and materials engineering involving ISRU for manufacturing processes. All chapters, related to these disciplines, are structured with an emphasis on computing and adaptivity of on-Earth technology to off-Earth applications and vice versa to serve society at large.

This expert and self-contained authored handbook provides comprehensive coverage of liquid crystals from the fundamental materials science, physics, and modeling through cutting-edge applications. Written by an author with over 40 years of active experience in this growing field, it offers an unprecedented self-contained treatment of this key research area. Liquid Crystals are a state of matter sharing properties that are usually associated with both solids and liquids. Their study belongs to wider field of soft condensed matter physics, an area growing in importance because of the new physics being discovered and the possibilities of various technological applications being developed. Liquid crystals continue to have a revolutionary technological impact and consistently pose new challenges of basic understanding. While the experimental side of liquid crystal research is very well developed, theoretical understanding has lagged, and this volume fills a gap in thepublished literature in terms of rigorous treatment of mathematical and computer modeling approaches. Volume I of this handbook deals with the physical foundations and fundamental aspects of liquid crystals, addressing their physical properties, measurement techniques, and various types. Overall, this handbook serves as the ultimate scholarly guide for researchers, scientists, and engineers seeking to unlock the full potential of liquid crystals. It offers a comprehensive understanding of these materials and their diverse applications, empowering readers to navigate the complex intricacies of liquid crystal science and technology.

Aeroelasticity is an essential discipline for the design of airplanes, unmanned systems, and innovative configurations. This book introduces the subject of unsteady aerodynamics and dynamic aeroelasticity by presenting industry-standard techniques, such as the Doublet Lattice Method for nonplanar wing systems. "Introduction to Unsteady Aerodynamics and Dynamic Aeroelasticity'' is a useful reference for aerospace engineers and users of NASTRAN and ZAERO but is also an excellent complementary textbook for senior undergraduate and graduate students. The theoretical material includes: - Fundamental equations of aerodynamics. - Concepts of Velocity and Acceleration Potentials. - Theory of small perturbations. - Virtual displacements and work, Hamilton's Principle, and Lagrange's Equations. - Aeroelastic equations expressed in the time, Laplace, and Fourier domains. - Concept of Generalized Aerodynamic Force Matrix. - Complete derivation of the nonplanar kernel for unsteady aerodynamic analyses. - Detailed derivation of the Doublet Lattice Method. - Linear Time-Invariant systems and stability analysis. - Rational function approximation for the generalized aerodynamic force matrix. - Fluid-structure boundary conditions and splining. - Root locus technique. - Techniques to find the flutter point: k, k-E, p-k, non-iterative p-k, g, second-order g, GAAM, p, p-L, p-p, and CV methods.

The book presents practical information about the design and construction of building projects by addressing the principles of each method, unveiling background factors for requirements, and state-of-the-art application details. Science and technology provide thousands of construction materials, vast construction methods, and various construction equipment and tools for realizing diverse architectural and engineering design projects. From market perspectives for new participants, the current construction practices are chaotic, having wide material and method options with globally available traders. On the other hand, within this global market, there is a growing awareness and need for practical information among society and new participants in the industry about general and globally available construction methods and technologies. Rather than focusing on materials, available construction methods, and technologies were described in the book content concerning their classification systems. The subjects and topics are represented in a well-structured hierarchy supported by clear and narrative figures. The book presents general design and application principles of construction methods and technologies without diving into engineering calculations and formulas to keep the content easily understandable by all AEC practitioners and participants. Instead, state-of-the-art construction applications were explained to unveil the logic and application requirements at the background of systems and methods. It also serves as a teaching tool for undergraduate students in architecture, engineering, and construction.

This book is an in-depth exploration of blockchain and smart contracts technologies, systematically addressing their theoretical foundations while highlighting concrete applications in several key sectors. It begins by defining the fundamentals of blockchain and smart contracts, then ventures into the legal domain, analyzing the implications of automated contracts from both backend and frontend perspectives. A particular focus is placed on a sustainable design for cryptocurrencies, anticipating the principles and expectations of the future. The book then provides a detailed taxonomy of blockchain's financial applications, while also examining its role in managing scientific workflows. The fascinating world of NFTs is also explored, from the tokenization of fine arts to innovative event ticketing systems. The convergence between ontologies and blockchain technology is then highlighted, followed by an in-depth assessment of the implications of this technology in the telecommunicationssector, including a SWOT analysis of next-generation cellular networks. Written by academic researchers and industry experts, this book offers a complete and nuanced perspective on the transformational potential of blockchain.

Sustainable materials science and engineering is one of the important characteristics of the existing high-tech revolution. The advances of materials science pave way for technical advancements in materials science and industrial technologies throughout the world. Materials are regarded as critical component in all emerging industries. Exquisite preparation and manufacturing must be carried out before a new material may be used. Nevertheless, electronic materials are undeniably important in many aspects of life. Smart materials and structures is a multi-disciplinary platform dedicated to technical advances in smart materials, systems and structures, including intelligent materials, sensing and actuation, adaptive structures, and active control. Recently, sustainable materials and technologies reshape the electronics industry to build realistic applications. At present, without the impact of sustainability, the electronics industry faces challenges. Researchers are now more focused on understanding the fundamental science of nano, micro, and macro-scale aspects of materials and technologies for sustainable development with a special attention toward reducing the knowledge gap between materials and system designs. The main aim of this international conference is to address the new trends on smart sustainable materials field for industrial and electronics applications. The main purpose of this conference is to assess the recent development in the applied science involving research activity from micro- to macro-scale aspects of materials and technologies for sustainable applications. In such a context, particular emphasis is given to research papers tailored in order to improve electronic and industrial applications and market extension of sustainable materials.

This advanced textbook explores representations of signals in electric energy systems (EES) and their applications in tasks such as protection, monitoring, estimation, and control. EES plays a crucial role in energy conversion at levels ranging from personal devices and vehicles, such as cars, airplanes, and ships, to regions and even whole continents. The text provides a unified modeling framework for consistent EES analysis, design, and integration with physical and cyber environments. It includes tools that enable frequency-selective modeling, simulation, and control. In modern EES, the switching mode of operation introduces multiple frequency components in signals, and the book's modeling concepts help quantify the dynamics of harmonics in power networks. Coverage includes power electronic converters, electric machines and drives, and other power system components. One of the book's main focuses is characterizing EES transients, which is of significant engineering interest, especially for emerging control and protection strategies that utilize signal processing and microcontrollers. Dynamics Phasors in Energy Processing Systems is appropriate for graduate and advanced undergraduate courses in electric energy engineering and is a valuable professional resource for researchers and practitioners in industry, academia, and national laboratories.

This book features a collection of high-quality and peer-reviewed papers from the 2023 7th International Conference on Applied Economics and Business, which was held in Copenhagen, Denmark, during August 24-26, 2023. ICAEB is held annually as a platform for the presentation of new advances and research results in the fields of applied economics and business. Applied economics is a way of dealing with esoteric economic concepts in a practical and analytical way. It allows for decisions to be made that are underlined by theoretical economic principles but utilized in such a way that they transform into real work applications.The contributors cover topics such as environment, development, finance, forensics, information, institutions, international, labor, management, mathematics, currency, tourism and many more. Applied Economics affects all aspects of life and science and it is brought to the forefront in this collection of papers. The conference, with its aim to bring together economists from different fields, lends itself to a natural and rich collection of scientific papers all focused on the practical application of economic principles. The scope of this collection of papers will be useful to academics and practitioners who look to economics to help solve problems.

This book is a result of the 1st ARCH and DESN International Conference (previously Memaryat) Conference held at Effat university on the 8th and 9th of February 2023, and includes chapters dealing with the critical manifestation of "Man and Place" to accommodate and embrace social, economic, and environmental needs within a balanced, integrated system.The book is groundbreaking in that it brings together some of the brightest minds in academia and industry. The book includes a diverse range of contributions from esteemed academics and practitioners and offers a unique platform for thought-provoking discussions and innovative strategies that will help shape the cities of tomorrow.Further chapters include topics such as sustainability and creative transformations, smart cities, environmental resilience, resilient local economies, manufacturing innovations, and smart products. This book will be of interest to decision-makers, architects, interior designers, product designers, urban planners, urban designers, entrepreneurs, educators, and agencies.