Gravitational Wave Astrophysics

Gravitational Wave Astrophysics

This bookoffers review chapters written by invited speakers of the 3rd Session of the Sant Cugat Forum on Astrophysics – Gravitational Waves Astrophysics. All chapters have been peer reviewed. The book goes beyond normal conference proceedings in that itprovides a wide panorama of the astrophysics of gravitational waves and serves as a reference work for researchers in the field.

Carlos F. Sopuerta is working at the Institute of Space Sciences (CSIC-IEEC)Barcelonaas a Ramn y Cajal Researcher. His main research interest lies in the new area of Gravitational Wave Astronomy.,

Gravitational Wave Astrophysics

Giants of Eclipse: The Aurigae Stars and Other Binary Systems

Giants of Eclipse: The Aurigae Stars and Other Binary Systems

The zeta Aurigae stars are the rare but illustrious sub-group of binary stars that undergo the dramatic phenomenon of ‘chromospheric eclipse’. This book provides detailed descriptions of the ten known systemsillustrates them richly with examples of new spectraand places them in the context of stellar structure and evolution.Comprised of a large cool giant plus a small hot dwarfthese key eclipsing binaries reveal fascinating changes in their spectra very close to total eclipsewhen the hot star shines through differing heights of the ‘chromosphere’or outer atmosphereof the giant star. The phenomenon provides astrophysics with the means of analyzing the outer atmosphere of a giant star and how that material is shed into space. The physics of these critical events can be explained qualitativelybut it is more challenging to extract hard facts from the observationsand tough to model the chromosphere in any detail.The book offers current thinking on mechanisms for heating a star’s chromosphere and on how a star loses massand relates this science synergistically to studies of other stars and binariesand to the increasing relevance of contributions from new techniques in interferometry and asteroseismology. It also includes a detailed discussion of the enigmatic star epsilon Aurigaewhich had recently undergone one of its very infrequent and very baffling eclipses. Though not a zeta Aurigae systemepsilon Aurigae is a true ‘Giant’ among eclipsing stars.The 7 chapters of this bookwritten by a group of expertshave been carefully edited to form a coherent volume that offers a thorough overview of the subject to both professional and student.

For many years Dr Griffin pursued research into stellar spectraprincipally of composite-spectrum binariesat Cambridge (UK)supporting it with observations acquired at major telescopes overseas. She now continues those interests in Canadaat the Dominion Astrophysical Observatory near Victoriaand makes her observations there. The prime research objectives are to determine the masses and other fundamental parameters of both component starsand to examine their evolutionary status. She also champions initiatives to recover the information in pre-digital (photographic) observations through programmes of appropriate digitization.Dr. Ake is a Program Director at Computer Sciences Corporation supporting the Hubble Space Telescopethe James Webb Space Telescopethe Milkulski Archive for Space Telescopesand the Kepler Data Management Center projects at Space Telescope Science Institute. His research interests center on evolved stars and binary systemsparticularly UV and FUV spectroscopic investigations from space of red giants and supergiants with hot secondary companions. He is currently studying the evolutionary status of cool stars with main sequence B- and A-type secondaries to refine the fundamental stellar parameters of the evolved components.,

Giants of Eclipse: The Aurigae Stars and Other Binary Systems

Economic Stress, Human Capital and Families in Asia

Economic Stress, Human Capital and Families in Asia

This book presents recent findings about the consequences and policy implications of economic stress for human capital development and family well-being in Asia. The scope of the chapters goes beyond the impact of current financial crisis to include the effect of economic deprivation families in Asia experience as a result of job loss, low-wage employment, and catastrophic natural calamities. The studies show how macro-level economic stress can filter down through households to affect individuals economic and socio-psychological well-being. The chapters reveal a wide spectrum of economic stresses experienced by families in Asia that is linked to poor human capital development, emotional distress, health problems, changing fertility patterns, more frequent geographic movement, and less supportive parenting behavior. The elderly, women, children, low-skilled workers are particularly vulnerable. The economic shocks in the past several decades have exposed the vulnerability of the family institution and the weaknesses in this regions social protection system that can lead to detrimental long-term effects on human capital development. This book is relevant for researchers and students in fields such as Family Studies, Globalization, Development, Social Problems, Social Stratification, Social Inequalities, Poverty and Welfare, Education, and Social Policies.

Economic Stress, Human Capital and Families in Asia

Guide to J2EE

Guide to J2EE

Enterprise Java experts John Hunt and Chris Loftus take the reader through the core technologies that make up the Enterprise Edition of the Java 2 platform (J2EE). They cover all the aspects of J2EE that both the professional and student needs to know to build multi-tier enterprise applications in Java. This includes the various technologies, design methodology, and design patterns. The text contains fully worked examples, built up throughout the book, which enables the reader to quickly develop multi-tier applications. An invaluable text for those who want to build enterprise wide applications in Java.

Guide to J2EE

Meta-Programming and Model-Driven Meta-Program Development

Meta-Programming and Model-Driven Meta-Program Development

Meta-Programming and Model-Driven Meta-Program Development: Principles, Processes and Techniques presents an overall analysis of meta-programming, focusing on insights of meta-programming techniques, heterogeneous meta-program development processes in the context of model-driven, feature-based and transformative approaches.The fundamental concepts of meta-programming are still not thoroughly understood, in this well organized book divided into three parts the authors help to address this. Chapters include: Taxonomy of fundamental concepts of meta-programming; Concept of structural heterogeneous meta-programming based on the original meta-language; Model-driven concept and feature-based modeling to the development process of meta-programs; Equivalent meta-program transformations and metrics to evaluate complexity of feature-based models and meta-programs; Variety of academic research case studies within different application domains to experimentally verify the soundness of the investigated approaches.Both authors are professors at Kaunas University of Technology with 15 years research and teaching experience in the field. Meta-Programming and Model-Driven Meta-Program Development: Principles, Processes and Techniques is aimed at post-graduates in computer science and software engineering and researchers and program system developers wishing to extend their knowledge in this rapidly evolving sector of science and technology.

Meta-Programming and Model-Driven Meta-Program Development

Fundamentals of X Programming

Fundamentals of X Programming

This book provides an overview of the X Window System, focusing on characteristics that have significant impact on the development of both application programs and widgets. The X is the dominant window system under Unix, and X servers are available for Microsoft Windows, thus enabling graphics over a network in the PC world. Special attention to applications that go beyond graphical user interfaces (GUIs), such as visualization and imaging programs; issues affecting video games; and designing widgets with a complex appearance. While the book does not assume previous knowledge of X, it is intended for experienced programmers, especially those who want to write programs that go beyond simple GUIs.

Fundamentals of X Programming

C++ and Object-Oriented Numeric Computing

C++ and Object-Oriented Numeric Computing

This new text/reference presents an accessible, concise, but rather complete, introduction to the C++ programming language with special emphasis on object-oriented numeric computation for scientific and engineering program development. The description of the language is in compliance with ISO/ANSI standards and is platform independent for maximum versatility. Requiring only basic calculus and linear algebra as prerequisites, the book introduces concepts, techniques, and standard libraries of C++ in a manner that is easy to understand and uses such familiar examples as vectors, matrices, integrals, and complex numbers. It also contains an introduction to C++ programs for applications with many numberic methods that are fundamental to science and engineering computing: polynomial evaluation and interpolation; numeric integration; methods for solving nonlinear equations; systems of linear equations in full, band, and sparse matrix storage formats; and ordinary and partial differential equations. Numerous techniques and examples are provided on how to reduce (C and Fortran) run-time overhead and improve program efficiency. Topics and features: *concise coverage of C++ programming concepts with object-oriented emphasis*numerous examples, coding tools, sample programs and exercises for reinforcement and self-study purposes*develops and uses basic and advanced features, as well as standard libraries of C++*covers many fundamental numeric methods for scientific and engineering computing applications*downloadable user-defined numeric linear algebra library available from author web site With an accessible style, intuitive topic development, and numerous examples, the book is an excellent resource and guide to the power, versatility and efficiency of C++ programming for numeric computing applications. Advanced students, practitioners and professionals in computer science, engineering and scientific computing in general will find the book a practical guide and resource for their work and applications program development.

C++ and Object-Oriented Numeric Computing

Bodies at Work

Bodies at Work

‘After reading this book it will be more difficult to ‘do’ the sociology of work and the sociology of the body in the absence of the other. In some quite exquisite ways it throws down a challenge which practitioners in both fields will find difficult to ignore’ – Paul Stewart, former editor of Work, Employment and Society, University of the West of England

Bodies at Work

Food Science and Technology

Food Science and Technology

This brand new comprehensive text and reference book is designed to cover all the essential elements of food science and technology, including all core aspects of major food science and technology degree programs being taught worldwide.

Food Science and Technology

Thinking with Diagrams

Thinking with Diagrams

This book provides an introductory overview of the rapid growth in interdisciplinary research into Thinking with Diagrams. Diagrammatic representations are becoming more common in everyday human experience, yet they offer unique challenges to cognitive science research. Neither linguistic nor perceptual theories are sufficient to completely explain their advantages and applications. These research challenges may be part of the reason why so many diagrams are badly designed or badly used. This is ironic when the user interfaces of computer software and the worldwide web are becoming so completely dominated by graphical and diagrammatic representations. This book includes chapters commissioned from leading researchers in the major disciplines involved in diagrams research. They review the philosophical status of diagrams, the cognitive processes involved in their application, and a range of specialist fields in which diagrams are central, including education, architectural design and visual programming languages. The result is immediately relevant to researchers in cognitive science and artificial intelligence, as well as in applied technology areas such as human-computer interaction and information design.

Thinking with Diagrams

Computer Organization and Architecture

Computer Organization and Architecture

This is the eBook of the printed book and may not include any media, website access codes, or print supplements that may come packaged with the bound book.

Computer Organization and Architecture

Sustainability by Design

Sustainability by Design

The developed world, increasingly aware of inconvenient truths about global warming and sustainability, is turning its attention to possible remedieseco-efficiency, sustainable development, and corporate social responsibility, among others. But such measures are mere Band-Aids, and they may actually do more harm than good, says John Ehrenfeld, a pioneer in the field of industrial ecology. In this deeply considered book, Ehrenfeld challenges conventional understandings of solving environmental problems and offers a radically new set of strategies to attain sustainability.

Sustainability by Design

Lifestyle Media and the Formation of the Self

Lifestyle Media and the Formation of the Self

‘Be the best you can be’ urge self-help books and makeover TV shows, but what kind of self is imagined as needing a makeover and what kind of self is imagined as the happy result? Drawing on recent sociology and psychology, this book explores the function of slummy mummies, headless zombies and living autopsies to creating an idea of self.

Lifestyle Media and the Formation of the Self

Basic Vision

Basic Vision

Why do things look blurry underwater? Why do people drive too fast in fog? How do you high-pass filter a cup of tea? What have mixer taps to do with colour vision? Basic Vision: An Introduction to Visual Perception demystifies the processes through which we see the world. Written by three authors with over 80 years of research and undergraduate teaching experience between them, it leads the reader step-by-step through the intricacies of visual processing, with full-colour illustrations on nearly every page. The writing style captures the excitement of recent research in neuroscience that has transformed our understanding of visual processing, but delivers it with a humour that keeps the reader enthused, rather than bemused. The book takes us through the various elements that come together as our perception of the world around us: the perception of size, colour, motion, and three-dimensional space. It illustrates the intricacy of the visual system, discussing its development during infancy, and revealing how the brain can get it wrong, either as a result of brain damage, through which the network of processes become compromised, or through illusion, where the brain compensates for mixed messages by seeing what it thinks should be there, rather than conveying the reality. The book also demonstrates the importance of contemporary techniques and methodology, and neuroscience-based techniques in particular, in driving forward our understanding of the visual system. Online Resource Centre The Online Resource Centre to accompany Basic Vision features: For registered adopters: Figures from the book available to download, to facilitate lecture preparation. Test bank of multiple choice questions – a readily available tool for either formative or summative assessment. A Journal Club, with questions to lead students through key research articles that relate to topics covered in the book. For students: Annotated web links, giving students ready access to these additional learning resources.

Basic Vision

Living and Surviving in Harms Way

Living and Surviving in Harms Way

In Living and Surviving in Harm’s Way, experts investigate the psychological impact of how warriors live and survive in combat duty. They address the combat preparation of servicemen and women, their support systems, and their interpersonal and intrapersonal experiences. The text maintains a focus on cognitive-behavioral interventions for treating various combat-related disorders, and addresses psychological health and adjustment after leaving the battlefield. The text is logically organized for easy reading and reference, and covers often overlooked topics such as preparation and training of service personnel, women in combat, and the indirect effects of combat stress on family. This book is written by clinicians who have in some ways experienced what they write about, and resonates with mental health professionals, servicemen and women, and their families. Any clinician hoping to treat a serviceman or woman effectively cannot afford to overlook this book.

Living and Surviving in Harms Way

Gender, Lifespan and Quality of Life

Gender, Lifespan and Quality of Life

This publication addresses the gender dimensions of peoples lived experience and emphasizes how gender relationships differentially impact on womens and girls as well as mens and boys subjective well-being across the lifespan. It therefore fills a significant gap in the literature on quality of life and subjective well-being. The book brings together research which compares females and males subjective experiences of well-being at various life stages from a variety of countries and regions, particularly focusing on womens subjective well-being. Sex-disaggregation of data on objective conditions of quality of life is now routinely undertaken in many countries of the world. However, despite the burgeoning of objective data on sex differences in life conditions across the world, very little gender analysis is carried out to explain fully such difference and there is still a serious dearth of data on gender differences in subjective experiences of quality of life and well-being. This publication will assist researchers, teachers, service providers and policy makers in filling some of the gaps in currently available literature on the nexus between age and gender in producing differential experiences of subjective wellbeing.

Gender, Lifespan and Quality of Life

Artificial Psychology

Artificial Psychology

Is it possible to construct an artificial person? Researchers in the field of artificial intelligence have for decades been developing computer programs that emulate human intelligence. This book goes beyond intelligence and describes how close we are to recreating many of the other capacities that make us human. These abilities include learning, creativity, consciousness, and emotion.

Artificial Psychology

Self Healing Materials

Self Healing Materials

This book, the first published in this new sub-field of materials science, presents a coherent picture of the design principles and resulting properties of self-healing materials over all material classes, and offsets them to the current design principles for structural materials with improved mechanical properties. The book is not only a valuable asset for professional materials scientists but it is also suitable as a text book for courses at MSc level.

Self Healing Materials

Dignity Therapy

Dignity Therapy

Maintaining dignity for patients approaching death is a core principle of palliative care. Translating that principle into methods of guiding care at the end of life, however, can be a complicated and daunting task. Dignity therapy, a psychological intervention developed by Dr. Harvey Max Chochinov and his internationally lauded research group, has been designed specifically to address many of the psychological, existential, and spiritual challenges that patients and their families face as they grapple with the reality of life drawing to a close. Tested with patients with advanced illnesses in Canada, the United States, Australia, China, Scotland, England, and Denmark, dignity therapy has been shown to not only benefit patients, but their families as well. In the first book to lay out the blueprint for this unique and meaningful intervention, Chochinov addresses one of the most important dimensions of being human. Being alive means being vulnerable and mortal; he argues that dignity therapy offers a way to preserve meaning and hope for patients approaching death. Dignity Therapy: Final Words for Final Days is a beautiful introduction to this pioneering and innovative work. With history and foundations of dignity in care, and step by step guidance for readers interested in implementing the program, this volume illuminates how dignity therapy can change end-of-life experience for those about to die – and for those who will grieve their passing.

Dignity Therapy

Fundamentals in Nuclear Physics

Fundamentals in Nuclear Physics

This course explores nuclear physics and its applications ranging from the structure of nuclei and their reactions, to astrophysics and cosmology. The physics is introduced with arguments based on simple ideas such as the empirical structure of nuclear forces and its interplay with the Pauli principle and Coulomb repulsion. The book then develops elementary nuclear models and illustrates nuclear systematics with experimental data. Reactions and decays are discussed both phenomenologically and from the point of view of fundamental electro-weak interaction theory. The discussions of fission and fusion emphasize nuclear energy production. This leads directly into nuclear astrophysics and nucleosynthesis. The book ends with a presentation of the latest ideas about cosmology. As a primer this course will lay the foundations for more specialized subjects within the vast domain of nuclear physics as a whole.

Fundamentals in Nuclear Physics