This book presents ideas developed by Paul Cobb and his colleagues that have significantly influenced the field of mathematics education over the past three decades. In this volume, they are brought together for readers to present a clear view of how the field has changed during that time. During his career Cobb moved from looking at a single child's mathematical reasoning, to a class learning a particular mathematical topic, to a group of school teachers, and to a school district with all its teachers, teachers' teachers and principals. It was his wish to make a real difference and his constantly revised understanding of what it takes to do so that dictated this gradual broadening of the unit of analysis. This development is presented in this book with the help of chronologically organized previously published papers, each of which represents a distinct stage in this intellectual journey and is preceded by a new commentary that sheds additional light on the processes of reconceptualization and thus helps the reader to understand the reasons, mechanisms, and outcomes of researchers’ constant pursuit of new insights. This book thus demonstrates how research develops and evolves when theory and practice are taken as mutually informing aspects of the researcher’s work. In this sense, the volume is relevant to audiences primarily interested in practical aspects of mathematics education as well as to those whose primary interests lie in theoretical developments.

Since the origin of the modern sciences, our views on discovery and creativity had a remarkable history. Originally, discovery was seen as an integral part of methodology and the logic of discovery as algorithmic or nearly algorithmic. During the nineteenth century, conceptions in line with romanticism led to the famous opposition between the context of discovery and the context of justification, culminating in a view that banned discovery from methodology. The revival of the methodological investigation of discovery, which started some thirty years ago, derived its major impetus from historical and sociological studies of the sciences and from developments within cognitive psychology and artificial intelligence. Today, a large majority of philosophers of science agrees that the classical conception as well as the romantic conception are mistaken. Against the classical conception, it is generally accepted that truly novel discoveries are not the result of simply applying some standardized procedure. Against the romantic conception, it is rejected that discoveries are produced by unstructured flashes of insight. An especially important result of the contemporary study concerns the availability of (descriptive and normative) models for explaining discoveries and creative processes. Descriptive models mainly aim at explaining the origin of novel products; normative models moreover address the question how rational researchers should proceed when confronted with problems for which a standard procedure is missing. The present book provides an overview of these models and of the important changes they induced within methodology. As appears from several papers, the methodological study of discovery and creativity led to profound changes in our conceptions of justification and acceptance, of rationality, of scientific change, and of conceptual change. The book contains contributions from both historians and philosophers of science. All of them, however, are methodological in the contemporary sense of the term. The central values of this methodology are empirical accurateness, clarity and precision, and rationality. The different contributions realize these values by their interdisciplinary nature. Some philosophically oriented papers rely on historical case studies and results from the cognitive sciences, others on recent results from the computer sciences and/or non-standard logics. The historically oriented papers address central philosophical questions and hypotheses.

Confounding all conventional wisdom, the fertility rate in the Islamic Republic of Iran fell from around 7.0 births per woman in the early 1980s to 1.9 births per woman in 2006. That this, the largest and fastest fall in fertility ever recorded, should have occurred in one of the world’s few Islamic Republics demands explanation. This book, based upon a decade of research is the first to attempt such an explanation. The book documents the progress of the fertility decline and displays its association with social and economic characteristics. It addresses an explanation of the phenomenal fall of fertility in this Islamic context by considering the relevance of standard theories of fertility transition. The book is rich in data as well as the application of different demographic methods to interpret the data. All the available national demographic data are used in addition to two major surveys conducted by the authors. Demographic description is preceded by a socio-political history of Iran in recent decades, providing a context for the demographic changes. The authors conclude with their views on the importance of specific socio-economic and political changes to the demographic transition. Their concluding arguments suggest continued low fertility in Iran. The book is recommended to not only demographers, social scientists, and gender specialists, but also to policy makers and those who are interested in social and demographic changes in Iran and other Islamic countries in the Middle East. It is also a useful reference for demography students and researchers who are interested in applying fertility theories in designing surveys and analysing data.

The first of a planned six volumes of Gurwitsch’s writings, this volume contains, above all, the English translation of his __Esquisse de phénoménologie constitutive,__ the text based on his four lecture courses at Institute d’Histoire des Sciences et des Techniques at the Sorbonne during the 1930s. These lectures were regularly attended by Maurice Merleau-Ponty. The book relates Husserlian or constitutive phenomenology to modern first philosophy and the philosophy of the human as well as the natural sciences and was nearly finished when Gurwitsch had to flee to the United States before Germany conquered France. In addition, this volume contains what is in effect Gurwitsch’s autobiographical sketch, critical reviews of works by Gaston Berger, Jean Hering, Maurice Merleau-Ponty, Maurice Pradines, and Ives Simone, members of the French intellectual milieu of the 1930s when French phenomenology initially developed, and also two originally unpublished essays from that period. Finally, there are three essays and two reviews from Gurwitsch’s American period in which phenomenological philosophy and especially his revised account of the noema is also placed in historical perspective.

This volume analyzes morphological and morphonological phenomena from a number of distinct Slavic languages. It does so in an innovative manner, yet also positions the analysis in the context of current morphological debates. It is thus a valuable contribution both to comparative Slavic morphology and general morphological theory. Moreover, the book is the first attempt at a theory of conversion and subtraction relevant to languages with rich inflectional morphology. It contributes to our structural understanding of the nature of word. As the first illustration of subtraction with examples from southern Slavic languages, it is an excellent source of specialist data. The book’s theoretical framework is easily accessible and applicable to other languages, which makes it attractive to researchers on Slavic languages and general linguists alike. The volume will also appeal to general morphologists, typologists, and advanced students in linguistics. Erscheinungsdatum: 15.01.2011

This work presents and philosophically analyzes the early modern and modern history of the theory concerning the soul of the world, anima mundi. The initial question of the investigation is why there was a revival of this theory in the time of the early German Romanticism, whereas the concept of the anima mundi had been rejected in the earlier, classical period of European philosophy (early and mature Enlightenment). The presentation and analysis starts from the Leibnizian-Wolffian school, generally hostile to the theory, and covers classical eighteenth-century physico-theology, also reluctant to accept an anima mundi. Next, it discusses early modern and modern Christian philosophical Cabbala (Böhme and Ötinger), an intellectual tradition which to some extent tolerated the idea of a soul of the world. The philosophical relationship between Spinoza and Spinozism on the one hand, and the anima mundi theory on the other is also examined. An analysis of Giordano Bruno’s utilization of the concept anima del mondo is the last step before we give an account of how and why German Romanticism, especially Baader and Schelling asserted and applied the theory of the Weltseele. The purpose of the work is to prove that the philosophical insufficiency of a concept of God as an ens extramundanum instigated the Romantics to think an anima mundi that can act as a divine and quasi-infinite intermediary between God and Nature, as a locum tenens of God in physical reality.

Exploring one of the central themes in science education theory, this volume examines how science education can be considered as a scientific activity within a broad post-positivist notion of science. Many students find learning science extremely problematic, whatever level of education they have reached. At the end of the 1970s a new approach to tackling learning difficulties in science was developed, drawing on ideas from psychology and cognitive science, and centred on the way students build up new knowledge in reference to their existing ideas. ‘Constructivism’ became the dominant paradigm in science education research for two decades, spawning a vast body of literature reporting aspects of learners’ ideas in different science topics. However, Constructivism came under fire as it was recognised that the research did not offer immediate and simple prescriptions for effective science teaching. The whole approach was widely criticised, in particular by those who saw it as having ‘anti-science’ leanings. In this book, the notion of scientific research programmes is used to understand the development, limitations and potential of constructivism. It is shown that constructivist work in science education fits into a coherent programme exploring the contingencies of learning science. The author goes further to address criticisms of constructivism; evaluate progress in the field; and suggest directions for future research. It is concluded that constructivism has provided the foundations for a progressive research programme that continues to guide enquiry into learning and teaching science.

This handbook provides the most comprehensive reference on linguistic fieldwork on the market bringing together all the reader needs to carry out successful linguistic fieldwork. The book is based on the experiences of two veteran linguistic fieldworkers and advice from more than twenty active fieldwork researchers. They provide an encyclopedic review of current publications on linguistic fieldwork and offer a unique survey of past and present approaches and solutions to problems in the field. They also examine the historical, political, and social variables correlating with fieldwork in different areas of the world. The book includes information omitted in most other texts on the subject, such as the collection, representation, management, and methods of extracting grammatical information from discourse and conversational data. Extensive practical fieldwork tips are provided, as well as a handy sketch of major typological features for use in linguistic analysis.

"Contrasting with conventional Neo-Confucian attempts to recast the Confucian heritage in light of modern Western values, this book offers a Reconstructionist Confucian project to reclaim Confucian resources to meet contemporary moral and public policy challenges. Ruiping Fan argues that popular accounts of human goods and social justice within the dominant individualist culture of the West are too insubstantial to direct a life of virtue and a proper structure of society. Instead, he demonstrates that the moral insights of Confucian thought are precisely those needed to fill the moral vacuum developing in post-communist China and to address similar problems in the West. The book has a depth of reflection on the Confucian tradition through a comparative philosophical strategy and a breadth of contemporary issues addressed unrivaled by any other work on these topics. It is the first in English to explore not only the endeavor to revive Confucianism in contemporary China, but also brings such an endeavor to bear upon the important ethical, social, and political difficulties being faced in 21st century China. The book should be of interest to any philosopher working in application of traditional Chinese philosophy to contemporary issues as well as any reader interested in comparative cultural and ethical studies. FAN Ruiping's courageous book addresses the question of what should replace communism in China. He defends a Confucian morality that sharply contrasts with liberal individualism and draws implications for concrete issues like morality in business and health-care reform. The book is both provocative and plausible, and it is a must-read for anybody concerned about China's future. And perhaps it will inspire liberals to question their own commitments.-Daniel A. Bell, Tsinghua University This is an important volume in contemporary philosophical thought, deeply and creatively rooted in Confucian scholarship. It is the only major attempt in English to capture Confucian thought that does not distort that thought through background Western philosophical assumptions and commitments. Fan's work will have an enduring impact. In a world in which no one can ignore contemporary Chinese thought, this volume is essential reading.-Nicholas Capaldi, Loyola University New Orleans " -- Library of Congress

Organocatalysis has emerged as one of the hot topics in organic chemistry in recent years, as confirmed by the rapid-growing interest that researchers have shown in this field. Enantioselective Organocatalyzed Reaction Volume I and II provides a critical review of the state-of-the-art developments in Organocatalysis, with a special focus on the asymmetric transformation that it enables. These volumes, written by leading experts in the field, discuss a broad range of synthetic transformations and offer an up-to-date coverage of organocatalyzed reactions such as: • Conjugate addition; • Aldol addition; • Oxidation; • Reduction; • Cycloaddition; • Mannich reaction; • Asymmetric f untionalization; • Enantioselective protonation; • General aspects of asymmetric cyclization; • Asymmetric desymmetrization processes. By presenting a complete panorama of the use of organocatalysts in organic reaction, Enantioselective Organocatalyzed Reaction will help the global audience of scientists engaged in this area of research to develop new catalysts as well as new fields of applications in organic synthesis.

Belief revision theory and philosophy of science both aspire to shed light on the dynamics of knowledge – on how our view of the world changes (typically) in the light of new evidence. Yet these two areas of research have long seemed strangely detached from each other, as witnessed by the small number of cross-references and researchers working in both domains. One may speculate as to what has brought about this surprising, and perhaps unfortunate, state of affairs. One factor may be that while belief revision theory has traditionally been pursued in a bottom- up manner, focusing on the endeavors of single inquirers, philosophers of science, inspired by logical empiricism, have tended to be more interested in science as a multi-agent or agent-independent phenomenon. Erscheinungsdatum: 03.11.2010

Handbook of Marine Natural Products takes a fresh approach to describing the major themes of research in this rapidly developing field. This two volume℗ reference work begins with a section that provides a taxonomic survey of the secondary metabolites of diverse marine life including microbes, algae, and invertebrates. This is followed by a demonstration of the techniques and strategies employed in modern structure elucidation of complex natural products. The natural roles of marine natural products are then explored in a series of focused chapters which include the topics of symbiosis, anti-predation and antifouling, chemical interactions, and defence against UV stress. Various routes which facilitate the understanding of marine natural product biosynthesis are subsequently explained and these are followed by an extensive set of chapters on the biomedical potential of marine natural products. The latter portion of this section considers the technologies and scientific disciplines necessary for advancing bioactive marine natural product lead compounds into actual pharmaceuticals. The℗ reference work℗ finishes with a selection of chapters describing marine toxins and their impact on public health and seafood resources. Final thoughts presented at the end of the℗ second volume℗ focus on the future of this field of investigation and discovery research. This publication℗ is presented as a reference handbook and general concepts are emphasized and illustrated with numerous interesting examples, graphical information, and a comprehensive index. Handbook of Marine Natural Products introduces students who are at advanced undergraduate and entry graduate student levels to this fascinating multidisciplinary field. It is an ideal desk companion℗ for courses focusing on this contemporary area. The first contemporary handbook to solely feature the broad field of marine product chemistry Handles all dimensions of the field and therefore suitable for organic chemists, biochemists, geneticists, pharmacologists Suitable for undergraduates, graduates and researchers

The __Encyclopedia of Nanotechnology__ provides a comprehensive and multi-disciplinary reference to the many fields relevant to the general field of nanotechnology. It aims to be a comprehensive and genuinely international reference work and will be aimed at graduate students, researchers, and practitioners. The __Encyclopedia of Nanotechnology__ introduces a large number of terms, devices and processes which are related to the multi-disciplinary field of Nanotechnology. For each entry in this 4 volume set a 4-10 page description is provided by an expert in the field. Contributions are made by experts from the US, Europe and Asia, making this a comprehensive and truly international Reference Work. The authors are typically from academia, however one quarter of all entries were written by persons from industry. Topics covered in the Reference Work include: - Nano- Microfabrication Processes and Materials for Fabrication - Nanoscale Measurement Techniques - Nanostructures - Nanomaterials - Nanomechanics - Molecular Modeling and Its Role in Advancing Nanotechnology - MEMS/NEMS - Microfluidics and Nanofluidics - Biomedical Engineering and Biodevices - Bio/Nanotechnology and Nanomedicine - Bio/Nanotechnology for cellular engineering - Drug Delivery – Technology and Applications - Assembly - Organic Electronics - Nano-optical Devices - Micro/nano Integration - Materials, Coatings and Surface Treatments for Nanotribology - Micro/NanoReliability – thermal, mechanical etc. - Biomimetics

Urban planning is a complex field of knowledge and practice. Through the decades, theoretical debate has formed an eclectic set of possible perspectives, without finding, in our opinion, a coherent paradigmatic framework which can adequately guide the interpretation and action in urban planning. The hypothesis of this book is that the attempts of founding an autonomous planning theory are inadequate if they do not explore two interconnected fields: architecture and public policies. The book critically reviews a selected set of current practices and theoretical founding works of modern and contemporary urban planning by highlighting the continuous search for the epistemic legitimization of a large variety of experiences. The distinctive contribution of this book is a documented critique to the eclecticism and abstraction of the main international trends in current planning theory. The dialogic relationship with the traditions of architecture and public policy is proposed here in order to critically review planning theory and practice. The outcome is the proposal of a paradigmatic framework that, in the authors' opinion, can adequately guide reflections and actions. A pragmatic and interpretative heritage and the project-orientated approach are the basis of this new spatial planning paradigm. Pier Carlo Palermo is Dean of the School of Architecture and Society at the Politecnico di Milano, where he founded and directed the Department of Architecture and Planning. His m ain research interests concern the theory and history of urbanism, urban studies, spatial planning and policy design. He has worked as planning consultant on programmes of national and international interest (EU Programmes, Italian Ministries of Economics, Environment, and Infrastructure and other territorial institutions). He has published numerous books on these topics. His most recent publications include: Innovation in Planning. Italian Experiences, Actar, Barcelona, 2006; I Limiti del Possibile. Governo del Territorio e Qualità dello Sviluppo, Donzelli, Rome, 2009. Davide Ponzini received his PhD in Urban Planning from the Politecnico di Milano where he is currently Assistant Professor in Urban Planning. His research activity focuses on the role of cultural policies and contemporary architecture in urban transformation and local development, and more recently on issues of urban planning and policy tools. He was visiting scholar at Yale University, Johns Hopkins University and Columbia University. He is the author of Il Territorio dei Beni Culturali, Carocci, Rome, 2008, editor (with Mattias Legnér) of Cultural Quarters and Urban Transformation, Gotlandica Forlag, Visby, 2009, as well as author of several articles published in Italian and international scientific journals

Practice-based learning--the kind of education that comes from experiencing real work in real situations--has always been a prerequisite to qualification in professions such as medicine. However, there is growing interest in how practice-based models of learning can assist the initial preparation for and further development of skills for a wider range of occupations. Rather than being seen as a tool of first-time training, it is now viewed as a potentially important facet of professional development and life-long learning. This book provides perspectives on practice-based learning from a range of disciplines and fields of work. The collection here draws on a wide spectrum of perspectives to illustrate as well as to critically appraise approaches to practice-based learning. The book's two sections first explore the conceptual foundations of learning through practice, and then provide detailed examples of its implementation. Long-standing practice-based approaches to learning have been used in many professions and trades. Indeed, admission to the trades and major professions (e.g. medicine, law, accountancy) can only be realised after completing extended periods of practice in authentic practice settings. However, the growing contemporary interest in using practice-based learning in more extensive contexts has arisen from concerns about the direct employability of graduates and the increasing focus on occupation-specific courses in both vocations and higher education. It is an especially urgent issue in an era of critical skill shortages, rapidly transforming work requirements and an aging workforce combined with a looming shortage of new workforce entrants. We must better understand how existing models of practice-based learning are enacted in order to identify how they can be applied to different kinds of employment and workplaces. The contributions to this volume explore ways in which learning through practice can be conceptualised, enacted, and appraised through an analysis of the traditions, purposes, and processes that support this learning--including curriculum models and pedagogic practices

Flood catastrophes which happened world-wide have shown that it is not sufficient to characterize the hazard caused by the natural phenomenon "flood" with the well-known 3M-approach (measuring, mapping and modelling). Due to the recent shift in paradigms from a safety oriented approach to risk based planning it became necessary to consider the harmful impacts of hazards. The planning tasks changed from attempts to minimise hazards towards interventions to reduce exposure or susceptibility and nowadays to enhance the capacities to increase resilience. Scientific interest shifts more and more towards interdisciplinary approaches, which are needed to avoid disaster. This book deals with many aspects of flood risk management in a comprehensive way. As risks depend on hazard and vulnerabilities, not only geophysical tools for flood forecasting and planning are presented, but also socio-economic problems of flood management are discussed. Starting with precipitation and meteorological tools to its forecasting, hydrological models are described in their applications for operational flood forecasts, considering model uncertainties and their interactions with hydraulic and groundwater models. With regard to flood risk planning, regionalization aspects and the options to utilize historic floods are discussed. New hydrological tools for flood risk assessments for dams and reservoirs are presented. Problems and options to quantify socio-economic risks and how to consider them in multi-criteria assessments of flood risk planning are discussed. This book contributes to the contemporary efforts to reduce flood risk at the European scale. Using many real-world examples, it is useful for scientists and practitioners at different levels and with different interests.

The well-being of children represents a challenge not yet fully confronted and The Handbook of Child Well-being supplies its readers with a thorough overview of the complexities and implications regarding the scientific and practical pursuit of children's well-being. The handbook addresses the concept of well-being through an in-depth analysis of the perspectives and vocabularies of various disciplines such as, philosophy, theology, psychology and sociology. It covers important issues in child well-being and the problems of the general politics of well-being as well as the implementation of interventional programs and measures. In addition the handbook deals with the methods of measuring well-being for a scientifically grounded understanding and also for policy-making. The interdisciplinary set up of the handbook makes it a unique work that offers readers from a vast scope of child-related disciplines and professions a profound overview of the complexities and implications of the scientific and practical pursuit of children’s well-being.

Cette étude a pour objet la conception husserlienne de l’imagination ainsi que son lien essentiel avec une radicale subversion de la notion de réalité. L’une des audaces remarquables de la philosophie de Husserl tient dans sa définition de l’image comme intuition c’est-� -dire comme capable de fournir un remplissement de la visée. Est ainsi dévoilé un imaginaire plus fondamental que le simple fruit de mon imagination et nous découvrons en lui un mode de présence spécifique des choses mêmes : la présence flottante. La manière dont nous concevons le réel est alors bouleversée. C’est la présence et l’être même de tout être qui exigent une redéfinition afin d’intégrer une dimension d’ubiquité et de diffraction sensible. Ainsi Husserl invite � se méfier du prétendu caractère implacable de la réalité et refuse de l’hypostasier en soi. Il entend révéler la dimension cachée, transcendantale, de notre monde, mais montre également que ces profondeurs se définissent comme le « royaume des Mères » : en elles règnent les esquisses, les analogies, les fantômes et le « flottement entre être et non être ». Dès lors, si l’imaginaire est une dimension du réel, comment vivre dans ce monde ambigu ? Ne sommes-nous pas responsables de ces êtres inachevés sollicitant nos reprises créatrices ? Comment parvenir � la maîtrise rationnelle d’un sens sensible, fluent, esquissé et miroitant ? L’on peut ainsi dévoiler un lien essentiel entre la philosophie husserlienne de l’imaginaire et sa réflexion sur la crise moderne.

"Practical Aspects of Computational Chemistry" presents contributions on a range of aspects of Computational Chemistry applied to a variety of research fields. The chapters focus on recent theoretical developments which have been used to investigate structures and properties of large systems with minimal computational resources. Studies include those in the gas phase, various solvents, various aspects of computational multiscale modeling, Monte Carlo simulations, chirality, the multiple minima problem for protein folding, the nature of binding in different species and dihydrogen bonds, carbon nanotubes and hydrogen storage, adsorption and decomposition of organophosphorus compounds, X-ray crystallography, proton transfer, structure-activity relationships, a description of the REACH programs of the European Union for chemical regulatory purposes, reactions of nucleic acid bases with endogenous and exogenous reactive oxygen species and different aspects of nucleic acid bases, base pairs and base tetrads. Table of Contents Cover Practical Aspects of Computational Chemistry I ISBN 9789400709188 Preface Contents Contributors Chapter 1: Models--Experiment--Computation: A History of Ideas in Structural Chemistry 1.1 Introduction 1.2 Frank Westheimer and the Origin of Molecular Mechanics 1.3 Gilbert N. Lewis's Models of Atoms and Bonding 1.4 VSEPRing an Efficient Model 1.5 Non-bonded Interactions 1.6 Origins of Experimental Molecular Structure Determination 1.7 Structural Chemistry in Molecular Biology 1.8 The Theory of Resonance and the Discovery of Alpha-Helix 1.9 Some Major Contributors to the MO Approach 1.10 Physical Content of Metric 1.11 John A. Pople's Comprehensive Program 1.12 Final Thoughts References Chapter 2: Many-Body Brillouin-Wigner Theories: Developmentand Prospects 2.1 Introduction 2.2 Brillouin-Wigner Theories 2.2.1 Brillouin-Wigner Expansions 2.2.2 Single-Reference Brillouin-Wigner Expansions 2.2.3 Multi-Reference Brillouin-Wigner Expansions 2.2.4 Rayleigh-Schrödinger and Brillouin-Wigner Perturbation Theories and A Posteriori `Many-Body' Corrections 2.3 Digression: Collaborative Virtual Environments for Many-Body Brillouin-Wigner Theories 2.4 Applications of Many-Body Brillouin-Wigner Theories 2.5 Future Directions 2.5.1 Relativistic Many-Body Brillouin-Wigner Theories 2.5.2 Fock Space Brillouin-Wigner Methods References Chapter 3: Multireference State-Specific Coupled Cluster Theory with a Complete Active Space Reference 3.1 Introduction 3.2 Multireference State-Specific Generalization of CCSD Theory 3.2.1 The CASCCD Method 3.3 Multireference State-Specific Coupled Cluster Theory with Complete Account of Single and Double Excitations: The CASCCSD Method 3.4 Automated Derivation of the CC Equations and Generation of the Computer Code for Solving Them 3.5 Numerical Results 3.6 Conclusions References Chapter 4: Relativistic Effects in Chemistry and a Two-Component Theory 4.1 Introduction 4.2 Relativistic Effects in Atoms and Molecules 4.2.1 Dissociation Energies and Strong Chemical Bonds to Gold 4.2.2 Electric Properties 4.2.3 Chemical Reactions o 4.2.3.1 Equilibrium Reaction Energies o 4.2.3.2 Hydrolysis of Group 11 and 12 Cations 4.2.4 Atomic Core Ionization Potentials 4.2.5 Molecular Core Electron Binding Energies 4.3 Basis of Relativistic Theory 4.3.1 One-Electron Dirac Equation 4.3.2 Relativistic Theory of Many-Particle Systems 4.4 Two-Component Relativistic Theories 4.4.1 Infinite Order Two-Component Method (IOTC) 4.4.2 Matrix Formulation 4.5 The Change of Picture Problem 4.6 Quasi-Relativistic or Exact Two-Component Method 4.7 Summary References Chapter 5: On the Electronic, Vibrational and Relativistic Contributions to the Linear and Nonlinear Optical Properties of Molecules 5.1 Introduction 5.2 The Correlation, Relativistic and Vibrational Contributions to the L&NLO Properties of ZnS, CdS and HgS 5.3 Vibrational Corrections by Numerov-Cooley Integration 5.4 Relativistic Corrections of the L&NLO Properties of Coinage Metal Hydrides 5.5 Cyclopropenone and Cyclopropenethione 5.6 Hyperpolarizabilities of the Hydrides of Li, Na and K 5.7 Electronic and Vibrational Contributions to Pyrrole 5.8 Linear and Nonlinear Optical Properties of Fullerene Derivatives and Endohedral Fullerenes 5.8.1 Substituted Dihydro-Fullerenes 5.8.2 Endohedral Fullerenes o 5.8.2.1 Nuclear Relaxation Contribution to the VibrationalNLO Properties 5.9 Nonlinear Optical Properties Due to Large Amplitude Vibrational Motions, with an Application to the Inversion Motion in NH3 5.10 Summary References Chapter 6: Using Chebyshev-Filtered Subspace Iteration and Windowing Methods to Solve the Kohn-Sham Problem 6.1 Introduction 6.2 Eigenvalue Problems in Density Functional Calculations 6.3 Numerical Methods for Parallel Platforms 6.4 The Nonlinear Chebyshev-Filtered Subspace Iteration 6.4.1 Chebyshev-Filtered Subspace Iteration 6.4.2 Chebyshev Filters and Estimation of Bounds 6.5 Window Filtering 6.6 Diagonalization in the First SCF Iteration 6.7 Numerical Results 6.8 Concluding Remarks References Chapter 7: Electronic Structure of Solids and Surfaces with WIEN2k 7.1 Introduction 7.2 Quantum Mechanics 7.3 The Augmented Plane Wave Based Method and WIEN2k 7.4 Properties and Applications 7.4.1 Verwey Transition in YBaFe2O5 7.4.2 Nanomesh with h-BN on a Rh(111) Surface 7.4.3 The Misfit Layer Compounds 7.4.4 Performance of Various GGA Functionals 7.5 Summary and Conclusion References Chapter 8: Model Core Potentials in the First Decade of the XXI Century 8.1 Introduction 8.1.1 Separability of the Valence and Core Spaces 8.1.2 Effective Core Potential Method 8.1.3 Model Core Potential Method o 8.1.3.1 General Formalism of Model Core Potential Method o 8.1.3.2 Versions of the Model Core Potential Method 8.1.4 Determination of the Model Core Potential Parameters 8.2 General Improvements in Parameterization and Basis Sets 8.3 New Approach to Relativistic Effects 8.3.1 Scalar-Relativistic Effect in Model Core Potential Method 8.3.2 Spin-Orbit Coupling in Model Core Potential Method o 8.3.2.1 Breit-Pauli and Douglas-Kroll Spin-Orbit-Coupling Operators o 8.3.2.2 Determination of the Model Core Potential Valence Space o 8.3.2.3 Basis Sets for the New Model Core Potentials o 8.3.2.4 Performance of the DK-SOC Adapted Model Core Potential 8.3.3 A Digression: From MCP to SOC 8.4 Model Core Potential Applications in the Last 10 Years 8.5 Summary and Outlook References Chapter 9: Practical Aspects of Quantum Monte Carlo for the Electronic Structure of Molecules 9.1 Introduction 9.2 Quantum Monte Carlo Approaches 9.2.1 Variational Monte Carlo (VMC) 9.2.2 Diffusion Monte Carlo (DMC) 9.2.3 Fixed-Node DMC (FN-DMC) 9.2.4 Self-Healing DMC (SH-DMC) 9.2.5 Auxiliary Field QMC (AF-QMC) 9.2.6 Reptation QMC (RQMC) 9.2.7 Full CI QMC (FCI-QMC) 9.2.8 Time-Dependent QMC (TD-QMC) 9.2.9 Applications 9.3 Trial Wave Functions 9.3.1 Antisymmetric Wave Functions 9.3.2 Backflow Transformed Wave Functions 9.3.3 Effective Core Potentials (ECP) 9.3.4 Jastrow Wave Functions 9.3.5 Trial Wave Function Optimization 9.4 Computational Considerations 9.4.1 Scaling Analysis 9.4.2 Molecular Orbital Evaluation 9.4.3 Correlation Function Evaluation 9.4.4 Load Balancing 9.4.5 Parallelization and Hardware Acceleration 9.5 Conclusions References Chapter 10: Relativistic Quantum Monte Carlo Method 10.1 Introduction 10.2 Qumatum Monte Carlo Method 10.2.1 Quantum Monte Carlo Foundations 10.2.2 Variational Monte Carlo Method 10.2.3 Diffusion Monte Carlo Method 10.2.4 Wave Functions and Selective Sampling in Optimization 10.2.5 Electron-Nucleus Coalescence Condition 10.3 Relativistic Quantum Monte Carlo Method 10.3.1 Dirac Hamiltonian 10.3.2 Breit-Pauli Hamiltonian 10.3.3 ZORA Hamiltonian 10.3.4 Implementation of the ZORA Method into the MO Program 10.3.5 Local Energy for ZORA Hamiltonian 10.3.6 Electron-Nucleus Cusp Condition in ZORA-QMC Method 10.3.7 Cusp Correction Algorithm 10.4 R4QMC Program 10.5 Illustrative Results 10.5.1 Cusp Correction Effects 10.5.2 Cu Systems 10.6 Conclusions References Chapter 11: Computer Aided Nanomaterials Design - Self-assembly, Nanooptics, Molecular Electronics/Spintronics, and Fast DNA Sequencing 11.1 Introduction 11.2 Self-assembled Materials 11.2.1 Organic Nanotubes 11.2.2 Organic Nano-Scale Lens and Optical Properties 11.2.3 Nano-Mechanical Devices 11.3 Nano-Scale Electronic Materials 11.3.1 Theoretical Description of Nano-Scale Electronic Transport Phenomena 11.3.2 Electron Transport in 1-Dimensional Nanowire 11.3.3 Role of Electrodes in Molecular Electronics 11.3.4 Graphene Nanoribbon as a Spintronic Memory Device 11.4 Nano-Scale Molecular Sensors and DNA Sequencing 11.4.1 Ionophores/Receptors and Chemical Sensors 11.4.2 Graphene Nanoribbon as a Future DNA Sequencing Device 11.5 Concluding Remarks References Chapter 12: Computational Molecular Engineering for Nanodevices and Nanosystems 12.1 Introduction 12.1.1 Vibrational Electronics "Vibronics" 12.1.2 Molecular Electrostatic Potentials 12.1.3 Molecular Orbital Theory 12.1.4 Sensor Devices 12.2 Molecular Engineering Theory 12.2.1 Ab Initio Molecular Orbital Theory 12.2.2 Basis Sets 12.2.3 Hartree-Fock Theory 12.2.4 Density Functional Theory 12.2.5 Hybrid Functionals 12.2.6 Single Molecule Conductance 12.3 Optimum Fit Material for a Nano-Micro Interface 12.4 Graphene Based Sensors 12.5 Molecular Interface to Read Molecular Electrostatic Potentials Based Electronics 12.5.1 Graphene MEP Amplifier 12.6 Communication Between Molecular Scenarios: Single Molecule Detection Using Graphene Electrodes 12.7 Vibronics and Plasmonic Graphene Sensors 12.8 Graphene Vibronics Sensor 12.9 Plasmonic Graphene Sensors 12.10 Graphene Mixer 12.11 Conclusions - Summary References Chapter 13: Theoretical Studies of Thymine-Thymine Photodimerization: Using Ground State Dynamics to Model Photoreaction 13.1 Introduction 13.2 A Ground State Model for TT Dimerization in DNA 13.3 Model Calibration with dT20 and dA20dT20 13.3.1 Background 13.3.2 Computational Details 13.3.3 Results 13.4 Sequence Dependence of TT Dimerization in DNA Hairpins 13.4.1 Background 13.4.2 Computational Details 13.4.3 Results 13.5 Application to Locked Nucleic Acids 13.5.1 Background 13.5.2 Computational Details 13.5.3 Results 13.6 Quenching of TT Dimer Formation in Trinucleotides by Purines 13.6.1 Background 13.6.2 Computational Details 13.6.3 Results 13.7 Concluding Remarks References Chapter 14: Excited State Structural Analysis: TDDFT and Related Models 14.1 Introduction 14.2 CIS and Related RPA and TDDFT Methods 14.3 Main Structural Indices 14.4 CT and Hole-Particle Interpretation; Other Structural Indices 14.5 ESSA of Some Generic Systems 14.5.1 pp \* -Transitions 14.5.2 n\*p - and ss\* -Transitions 14.5.3 Weakly Coupled Subsystems 14.5.4 Intramolecular Mixing of Local and CT Excitations 14.6 Some Photochemical Applications 14.7 Extension of ESSA to the General CI Case 14.8 Concluding Remarks References Chapter 15: VCD Chirality Transfer: A New Insight into the Intermolecular Interactions 15.1 Introduction 15.2 The Physical Manifestation of Optical Activity in Chiroptical Spectroscopic Methods 15.2.1 Chiroptical Methods 15.2.2 Chirality Transfer 15.2.3 Mode Robustness 15.3 Methods of Calculations of the VCD Spectra 15.3.1 The Molecular Origin of Vibrational Circular Dichroism 15.3.2 Practical Aspects of the Calculations: Methods, Basis Set, Software o 15.3.2.1 Electronic Structure Methods o 15.3.2.2 The Basis Set Requirements o 15.3.2.3 Implementation Procedure and Program Packages 15.4 Applications of VCD to Study Chirality Transfer 15.5 Perspectives References Chapter 16: Non-hydrogen-Bonding Intramolecular Interactions: Important but Often Overlooked 16.1 Noncovalent Interactions 16.2 The Electrostatic Potential 16.3 Some Noncovalent Intramolecular Interactions 16.3.1 The Nitro Group 16.3.2 The Si-O-N Linkage 16.3.3 Some 1,3 Si--O Interactions 16.3.4 Conformation Stabilization 16.4 Summary References Chapter 17: X-H...p and X-H...s Interactions - Hydrogen Bonds with Multicenter Proton Acceptors 17.1 Classification of Hydrogen Bonds According to Properties of Proton Donor and Proton Acceptor 17.2 Energies of X-H...p and X-H...s Interactions 17.3 The Use of Quantum Theory of `Atoms in Molecules' to Characterize X-H...p and X-H...s Interactions 17.4 The Case of Multicenter Proton Acceptors 17.5 Summary References Chapter 18: Computational Approaches Towards Modeling Finite Molecular Assemblies: Role of Cation-p, p-p and Hydrogen Bonding Interactions 18.1 Introduction 18.2 Noncovalent Interactions 18.2.1 Cation-p Interactions o 18.2.1.1 Computational Details o 18.2.1.2 Impact of Different Cations and Preferential Site of Binding to Aromatic Group o 18.2.1.3 s vs p Binding of Cations to Heteroaromatic Systems o 18.2.1.4 Cation-Aromatic Database o 18.2.1.5 Size of System o 18.2.1.6 Solvation 18.2.2 p-p Interactions 18.2.3 Hydrogen Bonding 18.3 Cooperativity 18.4 Correlation and Dispersion 18.5 Materials 18.6 Molecular Dynamics 18.7 Biological Relevance 18.8 Outlook References Chapter 19: Unusual Properties of Usual Molecules. Conformational Analysis of Cyclohexene, Its Derivatives and Heterocyclic Analogues 19.1 Conformational Properties of Cyclohexene 19.2 Derivatives of Cyclohexene Containing Exocyclic Double Bond 19.2.1 Derivatives of Cyclohexene with Conjugated Double Bonds 19.2.2 Derivatives of Cyclohexene with Non-conjugated Double Bonds 19.3 Tetrahydroheterocycles 19.3.1 Tetrahydroheterocycles Containing Chalcogen 19.3.2 Tetrahydroheterocycles Containing Pnictogen 19.4 Conclusions References Chapter 20: Molecular Models of the Stabilization of Bivalent Metal Cations in Zeolite Catalysts 20.1 Introduction 20.2 Structural Forms of the Stabilization of Single Bivalent Metal Ions in Cationic Positions of Zeolites 20.3 OxoBinuclear Structures of the Alkaline Earth (AE) Metal Cations 20.3.1 Reactivity of the Me2OX Clusters in the AE Zeolites o 20.3.1.1 CO Oxidation o 20.3.1.2 CO2 Interaction with the MeOXMe(MOR) Species o 20.3.1.3 AE Carbonate Interaction with Methanol 20.4 On the Feasible Ways of the Polynuclear Metal-Oxo Clusters Formation 20.5 On Possible Forms of Single Fe(II) Ion Stabilization in Fe/HZSM-5 Selective Oxidation Catalyst 20.5.1 The Electronic Structure of FeOa Centers 20.5.2 The Impact of the Radical Electronic State of FeOa on Oxidative Reactions 20.6 Outlook References Chapter 21: Towards Involvement of Interactions of Nucleic Acid Bases with Minerals in the Origin of Life: Quantum Chemical Approach 21.1 Introduction 21.2 Computational Details 21.3 Experimental Studies of Interactions of Minerals with DNA 21.4 Theoretical Studies of Nucleic Acid Bases and Their Interactions with Water, Cations and Minerals 21.4.1 Wächterhäuser Experiment 21.4.2 Interactions of Nucleic Acid Bases with Sodium Cation and Water 21.4.3 Interactions of Nucleic Acid Bases with Clay Minerals o 21.4.3.1 Geometrical Parameters and Charges of Thymine and Uracil Adsorbed on Minerals of Kaolinite Group o 21.4.3.2 Interactions of Thymine and Uracil with Hydrated Surface of Minerals of the Kaolinite Group o 21.4.3.3 Energetics of Thymine and Uracil Adsorbed on Hydrated Surface of Minerals of the Kaolinite Group o 21.4.3.4 Implication to Origin of Life 21.5 Conclusions References Index

The realistic generation of virtual doubles of real-world actors has been the focus of computer graphics research for many years. However, some problems still remain unsolved: it is still time-consuming to generate character animations using the traditional skeleton-based pipeline, passive performance capture of human actors wearing arbitrary everyday apparel is still challenging, and until now, there is only a limited amount of techniques for processing and modifying mesh animations, in contrast to the huge amount of skeleton-based techniques. In this thesis, we propose algorithmic solutions to each of these problems. First, two efficient mesh-based alternatives to simplify the overall character animation process are proposed. Although abandoning the concept of a kinematic skeleton, both techniques can be directly integrated in the traditional pipeline, generating animations with realistic body deformations. Thereafter, three passive performance capture methods are presented which employ a deformable model as underlying scene representation. The techniques are able to jointly reconstruct spatio-temporally coherent time-varying geometry, motion, and textural surface appearance of subjects wearing loose and everyday apparel. Moreover, the acquired high-quality reconstructions enable us to render realistic 3D Videos. At the end, two novel algorithms for processing mesh animations are described. The first one enables the fully-automatic conversion of a mesh animation into a skeletonbased animation and the second one automatically converts a mesh animation into an animation collage, a new artistic style for rendering animations. The methods described in the thesis can be regarded as solutions to specific problems or important building blocks for a larger application. As a whole, they form a powerful system to accurately capture, manipulate and realistically render realworld human performances, exceeding the capabilities of many related capture techniques. By this means, we are able to correctly capture the motion, the timevarying details and the texture information of a real human performing, and transform it into a fully-rigged character animation, that can be directly used by an animator, or use it to realistically display the actor from arbitrary viewpoints.

As climate change takes hold, there is an ever-growing need to develop and apply strategies that optimize the use of natural resources, both on land and in water. This book covers a huge range of strategies that can be applied to various sectors, from forests to flood control. Its aim, as with resource management itself, is to combine economics, policy and science to help rehabilitate and preserve our natural resources. Beginning with papers on carbon sequestration, including the practice of artificial desertification, the topics move on to cover the use of distributed modeling and neural networks in estimating water availability and distribution. Further chapters look at uncertainty analysis applied to the spatial variation of hydrologic resources, and finally the book covers attempts at estimating meteorological parameters in the context of hydrological variables such as evapo-transpiration from stream flow. Within the next decade, the effects of climate change will be severe, and felt by ordinary human beings. This book proposes a raft of measures that can mitigate, if not reverse, the impact of global warming on the resources we have all come to depend on. Key themes: climate change, water availability, neuro-genetic models, carbon sequestration, biomass carbon, remote sensing, distributed hydrologic simulation Bipal Jana is Senior Research Fellow in the School of Water Resources Engineering. He has more than 17 years of experience in the fields of environmental engineering and management. He has completed his bachelor and master degrees in Science at Calcutta University and MBA (P G D Environmental Management) at the Indian Institute of Social Welfare and Business Management(IISWBM). He has authored over 10 papers in national and international publications. Mrinmoy Majumder is Senior Research Fellow in the School of Water Resources Engineering. He has obtained his bachelor in Electrical Engineering from Utkal University and his master degree in Water Resources from Jadavpur University. He is the author of 2 books and more than 10 publications in national and international journals.

‘Clinical epidemiology’ is now widely promoted and taught as a ‘basic science’ of Evidence-Based Medicine, of clinical EBM to be specific.  This book, however, is mostly about that which Miettinen takes to be the necessary substitute for this now-so-fashionable subject – namely, Theory of Clinical Medicine together with its subordinate Theory of Clinical Research. The leit motif in all of this is Miettinen’s perception of the need, and opportunity, to bring major improvements into clinical medicine in this Information Age, now that theoretical progress has made feasible the development of practice-guiding Expert Systems for it. Parts of this text constitute essential reading for whoever is expected, or otherwise inclined, to study – or teach – ‘clinical epidemiology,’ and the same is true of those who set policy for the education of future clinicians; but practically all of it is essential reading for future – and current – academics in the various disciplines of clinical medicine.  After all, the text is the result of a concentrated effort, over a half-century no less, to really understand both clinical and community medicine and the research to advance the knowledge-base of these.  Research epidemiologists, too, will find this text interesting and instructive.

Conference proceedings of 2009 (year of Darwin) international conference on Darwin, held in Israel.

More than 30-year operational satellite data have already been used for monitoring land, ocean and atmosphere. These applications have contributed to improve sustainable economy, produce healthy environment and enhance human life. The Advanced Research Workshop sponsored by NATO and organized by the USA’s National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and Ukrainian’s Space Agency bring the scientists with the most mature research designed for practical use. The goals were to select those which is used for services today and identify the areas to expand research and services. Scientific and application results of the Workshop presented in this book can be used today in agriculture, forestry, water resources, healthy coastal life and fisheries, climate and land cover change, anthropogenic activities and others. The presented papers provide information on how to use operational satellites and in situ measurements for early detection of large-scale droughts, floods and fires, diagnose crop and pasture annual losses, predict periods with health/unhealthy vegetation based on such climate forcing events as ENSO, monitor air quality and geomagnetic activities, assess land cover trends in responce to global warming etc. The available satellite/ground information and method is currently warn with a lead time sufficient to respond, recover and protect.

This Book Contributes To Our Growing Understanding Of The Nature And Development Of Language Learner Self-concept. It Assesses The Relevant Literature In The Disciplines Of Psychology And Applied Linguistics And Describes In-depth, Qualitative Research Examining The Self-concepts Of Tertiary-level Efl Learners. Although Researchers In Applied Linguistics And Sla Have Recognized The Importance Of Self-constructs, There Remains Little Empirical Work In The Context Of Foreign Language Learning That Focuses Exclusively And At Length On This Central Psychological Construct. The Content Of This Monograph Draws On Interdisciplinary Sources, With Input From Psychology And Applied Linguistics. It Will Appeal To Students And Researchers Interested In Language-learner Psychology As Well As Self-related Constructs In General. The Text Provides Insights Into How Learners View Themselves, And How These Self-beliefs Can Develop And Affect The Progress Of An Individual's Language Learning.--publisher's Description. Introduction -- What Is Self-concept? -- Understanding Self-concept In The Fll Context -- How Do Learners Form Their Self-concepts? -- Internal Frames Of Reference In Fl Self-concept Formation -- External Frames Of Reference In Fl Self-concept Formation -- Implications For Educators And Researchers -- Appendix A. Example Consent Form -- Appendix B. Bio-data Of Interview Participants -- Appendix C. Open-ended Interview Guidelines -- Appendix D. Written Narrative Descriptions : Guidelines -- Appendix E. Autobiographies : Guidelines -- Appendix F. Referencing Conventions For Data Extracts. Sarah Mercer. Includes Bibliographical References (pages 181-201) And Index.

Homer speaks of lightning bolts after which ‘a grim reek of sulphur bursts forth’ and the air was ‘?lled with reeking brimstone’. (Homer 3000 BC). The odour was not actually the smell of sulphur dioxide associated with burning sulphur, but rather was the ?rst recorded detection of the presence of another strong odour, that of ozone (O ) in Earth’s atmosphere. These molecules were formed by the passage of 3 lightning through the air, created by splitting the abundant molecular oxygen (O ) 2 molecules into two, followed by the addition of each of the free O atoms to another O to form the triatomic product. In fact, most of the ozone molecules present 2 in the atmosphere at any time have been made by this same two-step splitti- plus-combination process, although the initiating cause usually begins with very energetic solar ultraviolet (UV) radiation rather than lightning. Many thousands of years later, the modern history of ozone began with its synthesis in the laboratory of H. F. Schonbein in 1840 (Nolte 1999), although the positive con?rmation of its three-oxygen atom chemical formula came along sometime later. Scienti?c interest in high-altitude stratospheric ozone dates back to 1881 when Hartley measured the spectrum of ozone in the laboratory and found that its ability to absorb UV light extended only to 293nm at the long wavelength end (Hartley 1881a).

A rapid development in diverse areas of molecular biology and genetic engineering resulted in emergence of variety of tools. These tools are not only applicable to basic researches being carried out world over, but also exploited for precise detection of abnormal conditions in plants, animals and human body. Although a basic researcher is well versed with few techniques used by him/her in the laboratory, they may not be well acquainted with methodologies, which can be used to work out some of their own research problems. The picture is more blurred when the molecular diagnostic tools are to be used by physicians, scientists and technicians working in diagnostic laboratories in hospitals, industry and academic institutions. Since many of them are not trained in basics of these methods, they come across several gray areas in understanding of these tools. The accurate application of molecular diagnostic tools demands in depth understanding of the methodology for precise detection of the abnormal condition of living body. To meet the requirements of a good book on molecular diagnostics of students, physicians, scientists working in agricultural, veterinary, medical and pharmaceutical sciences, it needs to expose the reader lucidly to: Give basic science behind commonly used tools in diagnostics Expose the readers to detailed applications of these tools and Make them aware the availability of such diagnostic tools The book will attract additional audience of pathologists, medical microbiologists, pharmaceutical sciences, agricultural scientists and veterinary doctors if the following topics are incorporated at appropriate places in Unit II or separately as a part of Unit-III in the book. Molecular diagnosis of diseases in agricultural crops Molecular diagnosis of veterinary diseases. Molecular epidemiology, which helps to differentiate various epidemic strains and sources of disease outbreaks. Even in different units of the same hospital, the infections could be by different strains of the same species and the information becomes valuable for infection control strategies. Drug resistance is a growing problem for bacterial, fungal and parasitic microbes and the molecular biology tools can help to detect the drug resistance genes without the cultivation and in vitro sensitivity testing. Molecular diagnostics offers faster help in the selection of the proper antibiotic for the treatment of tuberculosis, which is a major problem of the in the developing world. The conventional culture and drug sensitivity testing of tuberculosis bacilli is laborious and time consuming, whereas molecular diagnosis offers rapid drug resistant gene detection even from direct clinical samples. The same approach for HIV, malaria and many more diseases needs to be considered. Molecular diagnostics in the detection of diseases during foetal life is an upcoming area in the foetal medicine in case of genetic abnormalities and infectious like TORCH complex etc. The book will be equally useful to students, scientists and professionals working in the field of molecular diagnostics. Erscheinungsdatum: 05.03.2010

This book will examine the relationship between collegiality and the collegial tradition in the context of the development of mass higher education. The collegial tradition in higher education has been shaped above all by the collegiate universities. In all its various forms (as commensality, as a mode of governance, and as a critical force in shaping the process of teaching, learning and research) the collegial tradition has found sustenance in many sectors of higher education. It may well be that the tradition as expressed in these forms now has more strength and depth in the non-collegiate than in the collegiate universities. This work will give a fuller picture of the present-day character of British (especially English) higher education. Although this is a book that will rely particularly upon the Oxford experience of collegiality, there will be extensive comparative and international reference to the idea of collegiality, the various challenges to it that have emerged within different national systems, and the contrasting patterns of adjustment to those challenges.

Drug-related problems in the elderly is intended to serve as a source of information and clinical support in geriatric pharmacotherapy for students as well as all health care professionals, e.g. physicians, nurses and pharmacists. Pharmacotherapy is of great importance to all mankind. Drugs are however powerful and must be handled appropriately. This is especially important for elderly patients. Drug-related problem is not a major subject in most university programmes in medicine or pharmacy. When there is no speci c course, there is often no book covering the topic. In our view, as teachers at various university courses, there has been a shortage of literature that re ects the most important aspects of drug-related problems in the elderly. Medical practitioners, nurses and pharmacists, need to have this knowledge to be able to serve their patients in the best way. This book covers most aspects of drug-related problems in the elderly. With b- ter knowledge of drug-related dif culties and risks we hope that elderly will have fewer drug-related problems and bene t more from their pharmacotherapy. Erscheinungsdatum: 22.07.2009

Aspergillosis is an infection or allergic response caused by the fungus Aspergillus. Aspergillus conidia are widely dispersed in the environment and can easily reach human lungs and/or paranasal sinuses: most people inhale Aspergillosis spores every day! The label Aspergillosis is used for several diverse clinical conditions. For instance, invasive Aspergillosis typically affects severely immunocompromised patients such as those with prolonged neutropenia or receiving therapy with steroids. On the other hand, allergic forms of Aspergillosis cause exuberant clinical syndromes that mostly affect patients with asthma and cystic fibrosis. Slowly destructive lung diseases may also occur in the apparently immunocompentent host, especially in the context of previous damage to the lung architecture. These are difficult-to-diagnose infections, and diagnostic tests perform differently depending on the specific scenario. This book summarizes the current knowledge about Aspergillosis, covering: * Epidemiology * Pathogenesis * Clinical manifestations * Diagnosis * Treatment * Prevention Written by internationally respected authors, the information presented in this book adds for a better understanding of Aspergillosis by providing a comprehensive and clear overview of all aspects associated with this complex disease.

Global Change studies are increasingly being considered a vital source of information to understand the Earth Environment, in particular in the framework of human-induced climate change and land use transformation. Satellite Earth Observing systems provide a unique tool to monitor those changes. While the range of applications and innovative techniques is constantly increasing, this book provides a summary of key case studies where satellite data offer critical information to understand the causes and effects of those environmental changes, minimizing their negative impacts. This book will be of interest to researchers and practitioners in the field of remote sensing, geographical information, meteorology and environmental sciences. Also scientists and graduate up to post-graduate level students in environmental science will find valuable information in this book. Erscheinungsdatum: 16.08.2010

Today, the challenge for Research on Children is the issue of the "good life". Discourses and the production of knowledge on the "good life" require a theoretical frame. This frame can be provided by various perspectives: the feminist ethic of care, the Human and Children's Rights Convention, the idea of welfare, or the Capability Approach. The aim of this book is to answer the question of how we can define and measure a "good life" for children growing up in the modern world. The book discusses the cogency of universalistic theories and explores the potential contribution of research on children and the possible integration of children into the research process and debates on the "good life". The articles collected in this book reflect the state of the art in research and discussions on this topic. Written by researchers from different countries and with expertise in various disciplines, the articles present theoretical and methodological analyses as well as empirical reports.

Michael Ryan (d. 1840) remains one of the most mysterious figures in the history of medical ethics, despite the fact that he was the only British physician during the middle years of the 19^th^ century to write about ethics in a systematic way. Michael Ryan’s Writings on Medical Ethics offers both an annotated reprint of his key ethical writings, and an extensive introductory essay that fills in many previously unknown details of Ryan’s life, analyzes the significance of his ethical works, and places him within the historical trajectory of the field of medical ethics. * Gathers the key ethical writings of an often overlooked author in one volume * Provides first detailed biography of Ryan * Ryan is compared and contrasted in detail with predecessors, Gregory and Percival * Highlights the unique, original contributions of Ryan to medical ethics

Community quality-of-life (QOL) indicators continue to gain attention and interest in their use as many communities and regions design and apply them. Evolving from early use as data systems, indicators are increasingly being integrated into overall planning and other public policy activities. Their use is found not only in monitoring and evaluation applications, but also in the context of increasing citizen partici- tion in guiding communities towards achieving desired goals. Indeed, the emphasis in many indicator applications now includes linking actions to outcomes – making sure that the indicators are integrated, useful and effective in helping communities address QOL issues. The use of QOL indicators to consider a full spectrum of c- munity and regional well-being is exciting and the focus on integration is certain to bring new and innovative applications to the forefront. This is the third book in a series covering best practices in community QOL indicators. Each volume presents individual cases (chapters) of communities at the local or regional levels that have designed and implemented community indicators programs. In Volume I, we present eight chapters from a variety of contexts – from the county level in the U. S. , to the large megalopolis of Sao Paulo, to looking at a cross section of communities throughout Europe. Also included are three chapters from Canada, a leader in applying community indicator systems. Erscheinungsdatum: 21.08.2009

The present volume is an exciting new collection of original essays by outstanding feminist theorists including Sally Haslanger, Marilyn Frye and Linda Alcoff. __Feminist Metaphysics__ is the first collection of articles addressing metaphysical issues from a feminist perspective. The essays cover central feminist topics including: the ontology of sex and gender, persons, identity and subjectivity, and the relations among experience, ideology and reality. Many of the papers combine cutting-edge feminist theory with contemporary metaphysics and the philosophy of language. The volume is also distinctive in including articles representing both analytic and continental perspectives on metaphysics. The essays are philosophically sophisticated and are primarily intended for a professional audience of philosophers and feminist theorists.

Based on a study of one secondary school located in a disadvantaged community in Australia, this book provides a different perspective on what it means to ‘play the game’ of schooling. Drawing on the perspectives of teachers, parents and students, this book is a window through which to explore the possibilities of schooling in disadvantaged communities. The authors contend that teachers, parents and students themselves are all involved in the game of reproducing disadvantage in schooling, but similarly, they can play a part in opening up opportunities for change to enhance learning for marginalised students. Rather than only attempting to transform students, teachers should be also be concerned to transform schooling; to provide educational opportunities that transform the life experiences of and open up opportunities for all young people, especially those disadvantaged by poverty and marginalised by difference. The book is also designed to stimulate understanding of the work of Bourdieu as well as of a Bourdieuian approach to research. Seeing transformative potential in his theoretical constructs, it airs the possibility that schools can be more than mere reproducers of society. __Carmen Mills and Trevor Gale take up a problem that Australia keeps trying to avoid: the very__ __unlevel playing field it has created__ __for its schools, its teachers, its students and their parents. This book lets you see how difficult this problem is on the ground, and compels you to think about what would be a better way forward.__**Professor Lyn Yates , Pro-Vice Chancellor Research from University of Melbourne, Australia** __Carmen Mills and Trevor Gale make two important contributions to the sociology of education in this timely book. Through a detailed case study of one disadvantaged school – Crimson Brook Secondary College in rural Australia - they elucidate not only how inequalities are reproduced and legitimated through many of the practices of schooling, but also the possibilities for policies and practices which interrupt and destabilize such outcomes. In so doing, they also make a significant contribution to Bourdieuian scholarship in their empirically grounded and reflexive application of his ‘thinking tools’ to their case study and deconstruction of the synchronous productive and reproductive character of schooling practices.__ **Professor Bob Lingard, The University of Queensland, Australia**

The second half of the past century witnessed a remarkable paradigm shift in approach to the understanding of igneous rocks. Global literature records a change from a classical petrographic approach to emphasis on mineral chemistry, trace element characteristics, tectonic setting, phase relations, and theoretical simulation of magma generation and evolution processes. This book contains contributions by international experts in different fields of igneous petrology and presents an overview of recent developments. This book is dedicated to the late Dr Mihir K. Bose, former professor of the Department of Geology, Presidency College, Calcutta, India, who actively participated in the development of this new global view of igneous petrology. Audience: This book will be valuable for scientists and researchers working in igneous petrology and geochemistry.

Organocatalysis has emerged as one of the hot topics in organic chemistry in recent years, as confirmed by the rapid-growing interest that researchers have shown in this field. Enantioselective Organocatalyzed Reaction Volume I and II provides a critical review of the state-of-the-art developments in Organocatalysis, with a special focus on the asymmetric transformation that it enables. These volumes, written by leading experts in the field, discuss a broad range of synthetic transformations and offer an up-to-date coverage of organocatalyzed reactions such as: • Conjugate addition; • Aldol addition; • Oxidation; • Reduction; • Cycloaddition; • Mannich reaction; • Asymmetric f untionalization; • Enantioselective protonation; • General aspects of asymmetric cyclization; • Asymmetric desymmetrization processes. By presenting a complete panorama of the use of organocatalysts in organic reaction, Enantioselective Organocatalyzed Reaction will help the global audience of scientists engaged in this area of research to develop new catalysts as well as new fields of applications in organic synthesis.

This book is about African and Asian cities. Illustrated through selected case cities, the book brings together a rich collection of papers by leading scholars and practitioners in Africa and Asia to offer empirical analysis and up-to-date discussions and assessments of the urban challenges and solutions for their cities. A number of key topics concerning housing, sustainable urban development and climate change in Africa and Asia are explored along with how policy interventions and partnerships deliver specific forms of urban development. Audience: This book is intended for all who are interested in the state of the cities and urban development in Africa and Asia. Africa and Asia present, in many ways, useful lessons in dealing with the burgeoning urban population, and the problems surrounding this influx of people and climate change in the developing world.

These volumes collect a selection of papers presented at the Founding Conference of the European Philosophy of Science Association meeting in Madrid. The volumes provide an excellent overview of the state of the art in philosophy of science as practised nowadays in different European countries.

This book presents a summary of the geology of the Transantarctic Mountains for Earth scientists who may want to work there or who need an overview of the geologic history of this region. In addition, the properties of the East Antarctic ice sheet and of the meteorites that accumulate on its surface are treated in separate chapters. The presentation ends with the Cenozoic glaciation of the Transantarctic Mountains including the limnology and geochemical evolution of the saline lakes in the ice-free valleys. • The subject matter in this book is presented in chronological order starting about 750 million years ago and continuing to the present time. • The chapters can be read selectively because the introduction to each chapter identifies the context that gives relevance to the subject matter to be discussed. • The text is richly illustrated with 330 original line drawings as well as with 182 color maps and photographs. • The book contains indexes of both subject matter and of authors’ names that allow it to be used as an encyclopedia of the Transantarctic Mountains and of the East Antarctic ice sheet. • Most of the chapters are supplemented by Appendices containing data tables, additional explanations of certain phenomena (e.g., the formation and seasonal destruction of stratospheric ozone), and illustrative calculations (e.g., 38Cl dates of meteorites). • The authors have spent a combined total of fourteen field seasons between 1964 and 1995 doing geological research in the Transantarctic Mountains with logistical support by the US Antarctic Program. • Although Antarctica is remote and inaccessible, tens of thousands of scientists of many nationalities and their assistants have worked there and even larger numbers of investigators will work there in the future.

"This book presents the state of art in the field of microbial zoonoses and sapronoses. It could be used as a textbook or manual in microbiology and medical zoology for students of human and veterinary medicine, including Ph. D. students, and for biomedicine scientists and medical practitioners and specialists as well. Surprisingly, severe zoonoses and sapronoses still appear that are either entirely new (e.g., SARS), newly recognized (Lyme borreliosis), resurging (West Nile fever in Europe), increasing in incidence (campylobacterosis), spatially expanding (West Nile fever in the Americas), with a changing range of hosts and/or vectors, with changing clinical manifestations or acquiring antibiotic resistance. The collective term for those diseases is (re)emerging infections, and most of them represent zoonoses and sapronoses (the rest are anthroponoses). The number of known zoonotic and sapronotic pathogens of humans is continually growing over 800 today. In the introductory part, short characteristics are given of infectious and epidemic process, including the role of environmental factors, possibilities of their epidemiological surveillance, and control. Much emphasis is laid on ecological aspects of these diseases (haematophagous vectors and their life history; vertebrate hosts of zoonoses; habitats of the agents and their geographic distribution; natural focality of diseases). Particular zoonoses and sapronoses are then characterized in the following brief paragraphs: source of human infection; animal disease; transmission mode; human disease; epidemiology; diagnostics; therapy; geographic distribution."--Cover

This book focuses on the language of educational research as well as on the language of education. It conceives both as social practices and investigates how rhetoric plays a part in the complex process of historically situated argumentation. The book aims to answer such questions as: ‘What is the nature of the arguments and the kinds of sources one relies on?’ and ‘What kind of reasoning is offered to convince practitioners?’ Taking postmodern criticism seriously, the contributors argue that the scholar or researcher cannot indulge in relativism or be satisfied with a description of particular cases. Instead, theoreticians as well as practitioners have to engage in sound thinking and dialogue. The chapters in this volume highlight relevant characteristics of the language of educational research. In addition, attention is paid to the language of particular debates which figure prominently in the wider educational context, such as the language of goals, of parenting, citizenship and capability. ‘This collection of thirteen essays focuses on the language of proofs, argument and rhetoric in educational research in a range of thematically related original pieces that explore the topic and its applications: forms of historical reasoning, the place of rhetoric, educational formalism, the knowledge economy, argumentation, and the role of evidence, amongst others. It explores both the philosophical and methodological meta-issues as well as the important of specific and particular educational languages. The resulting volume is genuinely enlightening and deserves to be read widely by both academic and students within the field of education and across the social sciences.’ Michael A. Peters, Educational Policy Studies, The University of Illinois, USA ‘The contributions to this timely collection of essays place the ‘language’ of education at the centre of a discussion about the practice of educational research and reminds us - both the established and the new researcher - of the need to reflect not only on what we do as researchers and the conceptual tools, methods and sources we use, but also on how we capture in words our actions and conclusions.’ Ian Grosvenor, University of Birmingham, UK This publication, as well as the ones that are mentioned in the preliminary pages of this work, were realized by the Research Community (FWO-Vlaanderen / Research Foundation Flanders, Belgium) Philosophy and History of the Discipline of Education: Evaluation and Evolution of the Criteria for Educational Research.

This monograph investigates the modular architecture of language through the nature of "uninterpretable" phi-features: person, number, gender, and Case. It provides new tools and evidence for the modular architecture of the human language faculty, a foundational topic of linguistic research. At the same time it develops a new theory for one of the core issues posed by the Minimalist Program: the relationship of syntax to its interfaces and the nature of uninterpretable features. The work sets out to establish a new cross-linguistic phenomenon to study the foregoing, person-governed last-resort repairs, which provides new insights into the nature of ergative/accusative Case and of Case licensing itself. This is the first monograph that explicitly addresses the syntactic vs. morphological status of uninterpretable phi-features and their relationship to interface systems in a similar way, drawing on person-based interactions among arguments as key data-base. Erscheinungsdatum: 30.11.2010

Over the last decade the structure of higher education in most countries has undergone significant change brought about by social demands for expanded access, technological developments, and market forces. In this period of change the traditional concerns with access and cost have been supplemented by a new concern with academic quality. As a consequence, new public policies on academic quality and new forms of academic quality assurance have rapidly emerged and swiftly migrated across continents and around the globe. The growing public debate about academic quality assurance within and across countries however has not always been well informed by analyses of the strengths and weaknesses of these new policy instruments. The Public Policy for Academic Quality Research Program (PPAQ) was designed to provide systematic analyses of innovative external quality assurance policies around the world. This volume presents the fourteen analyses of national policies on academic quality assurance conducted as part of the PPAQ Research Program utilizing the knowledge of informed international scholars. Each policy analysis examines the policy goals, implementation problems, and impacts of these newly developed national quality assurance instruments. The book concludes with an assessment of the lessons learned from these collected policy analyses and outlines the framework conditions that appear essential for assuring academic standards in the university sector.

The second of a planned six volume of Gurwitsch’s writings, this volume is a corrected version of a collection he published in 1966. It was intended to complement the English edition of The Field of Consciousness (1964), which is the third volume of these Works in English. It contains his own introduction addressing his motivation as a phenomenologist and the situation at the time of publication. Included are English translations of his doctoral thesis, Phenomenology of Thematics and the Pure Ego (1929) and the substantial study based on his first Sorbonne lecture course, "Some Aspects and Developments of Gestalt Psychology" (1936), which made his name in Paris when he fled there from Germany after the rise of National Socialism. Other studies draw on the work in psychiatry of Kurt Goldstein and relate phenomenology to René Descartes, William James, Immanuel Kant, and tendencies in modern thought, thus complementing the historical perspectives resorted of in Vol. I. Thematic problematics addressed include the noema, the ego, eideation, and logic.

This book contains a series of articles written by international experts in the fields of intellectual disability and quality of life. These articles explore a broad range of issues that impact on the quality of life of people with intellectual disabilities and their families. The book commences with a general discussion on defining quality of life and family quality of life, and the appropriateness of using these constructs in the field of intellectual disability. This is followed by an analysis of the effects of living arrangements and employment on quality of life. The book concludes with discussions on the unique issues facing children with intellectual disabilities and their families, as well as the issues faced by people with intellectual disabilities living in developing countries. This book will be of interest to intellectual disability researchers, quality of life researchers, social scientists, social workers, professionals working with people with intellectual disabilities, and policy makers at all level of government. In fact, anyone with an interest in improving the quality of life of people with intellectual disabilities will benefit from this book.

Human induced global climate change is the biggest challenge humankind faces today. Increasing amount of atmospheric greenhouse gases play a crucial role in the evolution of the climate. Without the understanding of the contributing processes, feedbacks and interactions we cannot predict the future changes and develop effective mitigation strategies. To decrease the uncertainty of the global studies detailed regional studies are needed surveying the regional characteristics of the atmospheric greenhouse gas budget and the influencing factors. Atmospheric Greenhouse Gases: The Hungarian Perspective covers a coherent subset of the Hungarian climate change oriented research that is directly related to greenhouse gases. Topics discussed in the book range from the monitoring of the concentrations and fluxes of atmospheric greenhouse gases, through the modeling of atmosphere-biosphere interaction and greenhouse gas exchange processes, to the review of the anthropogenic contribution of Hungary to the greenhouse gas budget of the atmosphere. The studies call the attention to the regional properties which may modulate the European scale or global picture on the variation of atmospheric greenhouse gases. Erscheinungsdatum: 05.11.2010

Buddhism points out that emphasizing individuality and promoting the greatest fulfillment of the desires of the individual conjointly lead to destruction. The book promotes the basic value-choices of Buddhism, namely happiness, peace and permanence. Happiness research convincingly shows that not material wealth but the richness of personal relationships determines happiness. Not things, but people make people happy. Western economics tries to provide people with happiness by supplying enormous quantities of things and today’s dominating business models are based on and cultivates narrow self-centeredness.But what people need are caring relationships and generosity. Buddhist economics makes these values accessible by direct provision. Peace can be achieved in nonviolent ways. Wanting less can substantially contribute to this endeavor and make it happen more easily. Permanence, or ecological sustainability, requires a drastic cutback in the present level of consumption and production globally. This reduction should not be an inconvenient exercise of self-sacrifice. In the noble ethos of reducing suffering it can be a positive development path for humanity. Erscheinungsdatum: 19.05.2011