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This book constitutes the proceedings of the 11th International Conference on Big Data Analytics in Astronomy, Science, and Engineering, BDA 2023, which took place in Aizu, Japan during December 5-7, 2023. The 19 full papers included in this book were carefully reviewed and selected from 55 submissions. They were organized in topical sections as follows: Data management and visualization; data science: architectures and systems; data science and applications; and cyber systems and information security.

This book constitutes the refereed conference proceedings of the second International Conference on Speech and Language Technologies for Low-Resource Languages, SPELLL 2023, held in Perundurai, Erode, India, during December 6-8, 2023. The 27 full papers and 6 short papers presented in this book were carefully reviewed and selected from 94 submissions. The papers are divided into the following topical sections: language resources; language technologies; speech technologies; and workshops - regional fake, MMLOW, LC4.

This text builds upon the over 1500 papers published in peer-reviewed journals revealing that there are more than 200 biological codes in living systems. The author claims this experimental fact is bound to change biology forever. This book shows how this very discovery reveals that coding is a new mechanism of life, just as the discovery of electromagnetism revealed the existence of a new physical force in the universe. The existence of many biological codes, furthermore, Barbieri argues, is one of those experimental facts that have extraordinary theoretical consequences. It implies that coding is not only a mechanism that constantly operates in all living systems, but also a mechanism of evolution, more precisely a mechanism that gave origin to the absolute novelties of the history of life. This amounts to saying that evolution took place by two distinct mechanisms, by natural selection and by natural conventions, two mechanisms that are fundamentally different because natural selection is the result of copying and deals with information whereas natural conventions are the result of coding and deal with meaning. This volume appeals to students and researchers working in the fields of semiotics, philosophy, biology and mathematics.

This book presents the essential characteristics of the different satellite motions. Satellite motions can be classified as anomalistic, draconitic, tropical, Hansen-, Kepler-, meridional, Sun-synodical, Moon-synodical motion, depending on the relevant reference point. When two of these types of motions (in some cases even more than two) are coupled, satellite orbits are obtained, which are called equivalence orbits in this book. They share the special properties of the different coupled motions and are therefore of particular interest in the selection of special satellite orbits.In the book the author calculates mean equivalence orbits with secular perturbation formulas, as well as true equivalence orbits considering a complete orbit model including periodic motion effects. Some of the equivalence orbits can be determined unambiguously and with extremely high accuracy, they are stable in the long term. Others can only be found with low accuracy and reduced stability. The author investigates all possible combinations and the associated general equations of condition are derived in each case. Some well-known families of satellite orbits, such as the Sun-synchronous orbits, can be interpreted as mean equivalence orbits. The study of their stability is of great interest in orbit mechanics. Special applications and numerous numerical examples, graphical representations of all possible ranges of the Kepler elements, and detailed studies of the stability of particularly important equivalence orbits are carried out using the Brouwer orbit model as well as the modification by Eckstein.This lays the foundation for possible refinements using arbitrary extended orbital models and for possibly required orbital corrections. Numerous problems are to deepen the treated topics and/or to stimulate for further investigations.The book will be of interest to Astrodynamics and Aerospace Engineers as well as graduate students studying satellite orbits.

Radio astronomy is irreversibly moving towards the exabyte era. In the advent of all-sky radio observations, efficient tools and methods to manage the large data volume generated have become imperative. This book brings together the knowledge of several different research fields to present an overview of current state-of-the-art methods in data-intensive radio astronomy. Its approach is comprehensive and data-centric, offering a coherent look at the four distinct parts of the data lifecycle: Data creation, storage and archivesData processingPost-processing and data analysisData access and reuse Large data management has been the topic of discussion within the astronomical community for decades. Some relevant areas explored in this volume are: ongoing technological innovations in interferometers and computing facilities; difficulties and possible solutions for the huge processing demands of radio telescope projects such as LOFAR, MeerKat, ASKAP; concepts for reliable and fast storage for archiving; and more. Written by experts across astrophysics, high-energy particle physics, data science, and computer science, this volume will help researchers and advanced students better understand the current state of data-intensive radio astronomy and tackle the major problems that may arise from future instruments.

This textbook arises from a master's course taught by the author at the University of Coimbra. It takes the reader from the very classical Galois theorem for fields to its generalization to the case of rings. Given a finite-dimensional Galois extension of fields, the classical bijection between the intermediate field extensions and the subgroups of the corresponding Galois group was extended by Grothendieck as an equivalence between finite-dimensional split algebras and finite sets on which the Galois group acts. Adding further profinite topologies on the Galois group and the sets on which it acts, these two theorems become valid in arbitrary dimension. Taking advantage of the power of category theory, the second part of the book generalizes this most general Galois theorem for fields to the case of commutative rings. This book should be of interest to field theorists and ring theorists wanting to discover new techniques which make it possible to liberate Galois theory from its traditional restricted context of field theory. It should also be of great interest to category theorists who want to apply their everyday techniques to produce deep results in other domains of mathematics.

This book initially delves into its fundamentals to initiate the exploration of online incentive mechanisms in wireless communications. Three case studies are provided to elaborate details on designing online mechanism design in practical system. For crowdsensing with random task arrivals, this book introduces a linear online incentive mechanism model with insurance of the quality of information for each incoming task. In the context of edge computing systems, the authors model a nonlinear online incentive mechanism with the consideration of mobile users' energy budget constraints. It also explores online incentive mechanism for collaborative task offloading in mobile edge computing to achieve on-arrival instant responses. This book not only disseminates current knowledge but also sheds light on future research directions. The design of incentive mechanisms in wireless communication systems is of paramount importance as it encourages dormant terminals within networks to contribute their valuable resources. The consideration of randomness of network processes enhances the mechanism design under online settings and decision making on the fly. This book endeavours to bridge existing knowledge gaps by comprehensively presenting and developing fundamental insights into online incentive mechanisms and their design methods in the realm of wireless communications. It's one of the first books to provide a comprehensive understanding of the fundamental principles of online incentive mechanisms and their intricately designed methods in the dynamic world of wireless communications. Future research directions include an investigation in the evolving domain of online incentive mechanism designs within wireless communications. This book strikes a balance between theoretical knowledge and practical application, making it a valuable resource for both researchers and practitioners in the field of wireless communications and network economics. Advanced-level students majoring in computer science and/or electrical engineering will want to purchase this book as a study guide.

This book features a selection of papers presented at the 15th International Conference "Economies of the Balkan and Eastern European Countries" (EBEEC), held at the University of the Aegean in Chios, Greece, May 12-14, 2023. The EBEEC conference serves as an annual meeting of policy makers from Eastern European and Balkan countries as well as scientists. More than 300 researchers and students attended the conference and presented their work in parallel sessions.This volume deals with various aspects of economic growth, prosperity and (environmental, social and economic) sustainability of countries in the region in the context of globalization and digitalization. It also examines topics such as consumer behavior towards new products and services, human capital, teleworking, the food market, international trade and foreign direct investment. In turn, the book proposes frameworks and solutions to help countries deal with and manage the complex local and global environment.

This volume features more than 20 essays that explore the work of one of the most important contemporary philosophers of mathematics. It will help readers to better appreciate this significant and prolific philosopher. Within philosophy of mathematics, Penelope Maddy initially advocated realism. She then went on to advance naturalism. Both of her positions became very influential in the field, along with her other work in the philosophy of logic. The contributors comment on and otherwise engage with Maddy's work. They also weigh in on the state of set theory and its philosophy, the philosophy and history of logic, naturalism, skepticism, and the myriad other areas to which Maddy left her mark. Overall, coverage traces her influence on these various ideas over the years. It will also help readers to better understand how philosophers working at the forefront of these areas see these concepts today. These essays will be essential reading for the wide group of philosophers working in these different areas as well as graduate students studying philosophy of mathematics and logic and the other related issues to which Maddy has contributed. The volume will also appeal to logicians and set theorists in general, as well as to philosophers working in analytic philosophy more widely, as well as to those working in the history of philosophy.

NEW VERSION This book introduces readers to the astonishing civilisation of the Incas. Its novelty lies in its general but highly informative synthesis of their history and astronomy through the accounts of contemporary chronicles and recent archaeological findings. Richly illustrated with the author's own photographs, it will attract the attention of seasoned travellers interested in ancient civilisations and keen to discover what people were capable of achieving so long ago, but also any reader interested in the history and prehistory of South American peoples, including students or university researchers wanting to know more about the pre-Columbian civilizations of Peru. The Inca civilisation was in fact the culmination of cultural contributions from a dozen or so complex pre-Columbian civilizations, such as those of Chavín, Nazca, Wari, or Tiwanaku. Intensely spiritual, the Inca people attributed metaphysical powers to all manner of objects and places they considered sacred, but at the same time the numerous alignments in their buildings show that they result from careful observations of the Sun, the Moon, and the stars at different times of the year. Indeed, the Incas were an essentially agrarian people, so time measurement and calendar devices were essential for the purely pragmatic problem of planning agricultural tasks during the tropical year. The book sets out to describe the Incas in their historical and geographical context, avoiding specialization or excessive technicality, but retaining a certain scientific rigor, and including a detailed consideration of their interest in the sky and astronomy. OLD VERSION The aim of this book is to transport the reader to the heart of the marvelous and fascinating history of the Andean peoples.This work synthesizes information about the Inca civilization and those which preceded it and highlights for these cultures the intimate relationships between the life of the peoples and the observation of the sky. The novelty of this work lies in the general character of the synthesis, avoiding specialization or excessive technicality but retaining the scientific rigor. The text immediately immerses the reader in the surprising cultural diversity of Peru. It quickly becomes apparent that limiting the history to only the Inca Empire would amount to considering only part of the historical diversity of this society and would neglect a major part of its richness.The prestigious Inca civilization was in fact the culmination of the cultural contributions of a dozen astonishing and complex pre-Columbian civilizations such as those of Chavín, Nazca, Wari or Tiwanaku. A major part of the book is focused on the study of the sky and on astronomy, which was of considerable importance in the peruvian universe. If these populations devoted themselves to observing the Sun, the Moon or the brightest planets, they also observed certain "dark" constellations appearing clearly in contrast against the bright background of the Milky Way which played an important role in the cosmic conception of the pre-Columbian worlds. The study of numerous architectural alignments testifies to the fact that these result from astronomical considerations such as the observations of the Sun and other stars (the Pleiades for example) at privileged moments (solstices and equinoxes) of the year. The importance of time measurement and calendar devices used for correct planning of agricultural tasks during the different seasons of the tropical year is also emphasized. The observation of the Sun certainly played a key role in the Inca civilization, particularly for determining the privileged moments of the astronomical year in relation to the agrarian rhythms associated with the tropical year. The history of the Inca people is imbued with an astonishing and pervasive spirituality that is discussed in great detail. These people in fact attributed metaphysical power to objects and places considered sacred which were integrated into a system of privileged directions radiating from the Cuzco temple of the Sun. On reading the various chapters of this book, the reader will undoubtedly retain the dominant idea that Peru has a long, eventful and fascinating history of very rich cultures and civilizations. This book is aimed at a rather wide and cultivated audience, passionate about history, ethnology, and astronomy of south american cultures. It is also intended for students or university researchers interested in the pre-Columbian civilizations of Peru.

This series of essays, written by scholars and practitioners of engineering and music after visits to indigenous communities in Bolivia and Sierra Leone, illustrate the experiences, conversations, and insights that arose from consilient research. As the authors and contributors dive more deeply into each other's Western traditions of expertise, a surprising commonality emerges between music and technology - a commonality rooted in ignorance toward the power of indigeneity. This is an unexplored area of inquiry in both engineering and music. Each discipline follows rigorous traditions in Western academic institutions that have not only disregarded but have demeaned ancestral and indigenous traditions. By bringing together diverse artists and engineers, this exploration examines how engaging with non-Western knowledge can alter the understanding of Western experts in any field.

This book presents the proceedings of the NeuroIS Retreat 2023, May 30¿June 1, Vienna, Austria, reporting on topics at the intersection of information systems (IS) research, neurophysiology and the brain sciences. Readers will discover the latest findings from top scholars in the field of NeuroIS, which offer detailed insights on the neurobiology underlying IS behavior, essential methods and tools and their applications for IS, as well as the application of neuroscience and neurophysiological theories to advance IS theory.

This book explores fundamental and advanced concepts related to the AI-enabled Edge Technology paradigm, also known as Edge Intelligence, within the framework of the Internet of Things (IoT). Expanding the application of Edge computing is increasingly necessary. This can involve exploring automated, intelligent computational learning theorems, and ANN-oriented, trustworthy machine learning perspectives to enhance computational intelligence. The book functions as a valuable resource for professionals in the sector and also acts as a comprehensive learning tool for newcomers in the field of AI-enabled Edge Technologies and their applications, covering both fundamental and advanced concepts. This book uses data and network engineering and intelligent decision support system-by-design principles to design a reliable IoT edge-cloud ecosystem and to implement cyber-physical pervasive infrastructure solutions. The book will help readers understand the design architecture and AI algorithms and learn analytics through IoT edge, device-edge and the state-of-the-art in cloud-IoT countermeasures. The book is a valuable reference for anyone doing undergraduate or postgraduate studies, conducting research, or working in the computer science, information technology, electronics engineering, and complicated mathematical modeling domains.

This edited collection is a follow-up to Algoma University's inaugural conference on mental health and addiction held at the Brampton campus in Ontario, Canada. We live in a society where many marginalized communities continue to bear a historically disproportionate burden on their psychological, mental, and economic well-being, especially under the Covid-19 pandemic. Covid-19 has had a continuing impact on marginalized and racialized communities at all levels. We are now witnessing the compounded effects in the form of a worsening mental health and addiction crisis and its subsequent impact on children's education, service delivery, and overall psychosocial well-being.Covid-19 has widened the gap and increased poverty disparities between high-income and low-income individuals. Furthermore, it has affected the psychosocial resilience of people. As communities of scholars, practitioners, and researchers, we have a responsibility to address these existential issues in ways that are ethical and transformative. This type of engagement should help mitigate the consequences of the pandemic in an intersectional manner. These conversations should assist us in understanding and addressing the trauma and suffering that marginalized communities and individuals continue to endure. Together, we can work to find answers to mental health and addiction challenges, while valuing people's histories and realities within this intersectional engagement.This book aims to redefine psychiatric discourse in the age of the pandemic and encourage us to imagine how the world can be reformed in ways that are both ethical and political. It has the potential to shed light on the values and realities of communities in discussions of medical sociology, particularly concerning the impact of Covid-19 on marginalized communities.This book is structured into three volumes. Volume one delves into the repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic on the mental health of various ethnic groups. Volume two specifically addresses the impact of the pandemic on the mental health of Afro-Black individuals. Volume three explores the connections between the COVID-19 pandemic, psychological well-being, and colonialism.

This edited collection is a follow-up to Algoma University's inaugural conference on mental health and addiction held at the Brampton campus in Ontario, Canada. We live in a society where many marginalized communities continue to bear a historically disproportionate burden on their psychological, mental, and economic well-being, especially under the Covid-19 pandemic. Covid-19 has had a continuing impact on marginalized and racialized communities at all levels. We are now witnessing the compounded effects in the form of a worsening mental health and addiction crisis and its subsequent impact on children's education, service delivery, and overall psychosocial well-being. Covid-19 has widened the gap and increased poverty disparities between high-income and low-income individuals. Furthermore, it has affected the psychosocial resilience of people. As communities of scholars, practitioners, and researchers, we have a responsibility to address these existential issues in ways that are ethical and transformative. This type of engagement should help mitigate the consequences of the pandemic in an intersectional manner. These conversations should assist us in understanding and addressing the trauma and suffering that marginalized communities and individuals continue to endure. Together, we can work to find answers to mental health and addiction challenges, while valuing people's histories and realities within this intersectional engagement. This book aims to redefine psychiatric discourse in the age of the pandemic and encourage us to imagine how the world can be reformed in ways that are both ethical and political. It has the potential to shed light on the values and realities of communities in discussions of medical sociology, particularly concerning the impact of Covid-19 on marginalized communities. This book is structured into three volumes. Volume one delves into the repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic on the mental health of various ethnic groups. Volume two specifically addresses the impact of the pandemic on the mental health of Afro-Black individuals. Volume three explores the connections between the COVID-19 pandemic, psychological well-being, and colonialism.

Focusing on emerging features of digital transformation, digital economy, digital innovation, and digital entrepreneurship, this edited volume highlights new aspects of digital transformation and research progress in the field. Chapters cover a wide range of topics such as: promoting the growth of the digital economy through the alertness of entrepreneurs; predicting entrepreneurial performance through the lens of entrepreneurial orientation and digital adoption with a machine learning approach; proposing a guide to emphasize the key aspects of social media analytics; examining the digital pathology ecosystem and key drivers for investment in more efficient disease diagnosis and monitoring; exploring how humane orientation contributes to the intention to use digital entrepreneurship with a gender perspective. Concluding with a review of the extant digital economy literature, the volume proposes a future research agenda which will be useful not only for researchers and academics, but also for entrepreneurs and policymakers.

Boundary Element Method for Magnetohydrodynamic Flow" offers one of the first systematic and detailed treatments of the application of boundary element method (BEM) to magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) flow problems. It aims to fill in the gaps left by the earlier books on the application of BEM to some physical problems such as fluid dynamics, elasticity, and geophysics. An overview of the theory of MHD flow and a comprehensive mathematical formulation of BEM for convection-diffusion-type differential equations are provided by the authors, who heavily rely on their research and experience in the disciplines of BEM and MHD flow. The book first discusses the basic principles of the BEM approach for the MHD duct flow problems in coupled form with the fundamental solution derived by the authors. Specifically, the BEM solutions of MHD flow in pipes of rectangular or circular cross-sections, and MHD flow in infinite regions, are all covered emphasizing the convergence of infinite boundary integrals. This book, especially, concentrates on the MHD flow in regions with partly insulated partly perfectly conducting boundaries by BEM giving also the parabolic boundary layer thickness emanating from the points of discontinuities on the walls. The book secondly includes the dual reciprocity boundary element technique (DRBEM), an alternative form of BEM that expands the applicability of BEM to MHD flow and heat transfer problems as well as buoyancy MHD flow with magnetic potential and inductionless MHD flow. The purpose of the book is to serve as a research book for applied mathematicians, engineers, scientists, and graduate students who wish to learn in-depth about the formulation and application of BEM in MHD flow problems. As such, it is an invaluable resource and a major contribution to the numerical solution of MHD flow problems.

This open access book creates conceptual links between political emotions, citizenship, home and belonging. The book describes that, in the case of decided return and reintegration to a post-conflict society and a fragmented state, like Bosnia and Herzegovina, the returnees do not conceptualize the emotional dimension of their BiH citizenship as home and belonging as this citizenship does not make them feel safe and secure. Instead, ¿feeling at home¿ is found in family, place and time, while belonging is categorized as ethnic, religious, relational, landscape, linguistic, and economic. The emotional dimension of the home state citizenship is constituted through a wide spectrum of emotions, ranging from anger, frustration, fear, guilt, shame, disappointment, nostalgia, powerlessness, to patriotic love, pride, defiance, joy, happiness and hope. This book provides a valuable resource to students and scholars of migration and diaspora studies, as well as political scientists, human geographers and anthropologists.

This book takes the small rural town of La Calera, in the outskirts of the Colombian capital of Bogotá, as a case study to analyze how residents from different social classes - wealthier ex-urban newcomers arriving to traditionally peasant and rural areas - interact to decide how nature will be used in the face of further urban expansion. Contrary to the conflicts in other gentrification cases, including those of "green" gentrification, this book shows how newcomers and longtimers in La Calera use environmental concerns to bridge social class rifts and push the state to provide water, public space, and decision-making power. Residents see abundant ecological resources like water and land around them, but they do not have access to aqueducts, green public space or power over planning decisions affecting the distribution of these resources. As a response, and to challenge the state more effectively, newcomers and longtimers create inter-class alliances through what the author calls third nature: the way residents try to both protect and keep using existing ecological goods. To do so, despite high levels of class inequality, residents had a similar goal of protecting ecological resources around them by intervening in the physical and political landscapes against a state that induces scarcity, selectively enforcing environmental policies to the detriment of Calerunos. As cities all around the Global South continue to grow, urban expansion posits a threat to the environment by transforming agricultural and protected areas into denser residential or touristic spaces. Moreover, as natural resources become scarcer in the face of climate change, inequality might further existing environmental privileges and vulnerabilities. By examining closely how Calerunos bridge class inequalities for environmental reasons, this case highlights processes that inform other gentrifying rural spaces around the world.

This book summarizes the past, present, and future work in biotribology with a special emphasis on its applications in the design and manufacture of biomedical devices and their potential future uses. The book covers several aspects of biotribology such as biocompatible materials, joint tribology, skin tribology, oral tribology, tribology of the other human bodies or tissues, animal tribology, plant tribology, medical device tribology, and more.This is an essential reference for academics, biomedical researchers, biologists, tribologists, chemists, physicists, biomedical scientists, materials engineers, mechanical engineers and other professionals in related engineering, medicine, and biomedical industries. This book can also serve as a useful research text for undergraduate and graduate engineering courses such as tribology, materials, biomaterials, material characterization, interface science, and biomedical science.

This monograph discusses the concept of solidarity. Using Germany as a case study, the book investigates how political actors - political parties in specific - use the term solidarity in their programmatic documents. It maps out the attitudes, features, and behaviors that the parties continuously denote as expressions of solidarity and reconstructs the generalized concept of solidarity held by each party. It categorizes earlier ideas of solidarity into micro and macro perspectives and uses both theoretical and empirical considerations to build a model of solidarity and identify the elements that make solidarity what it is.Departing from the typical procedure in intellectual history research, this volume takes inspiration from Wittgenstein, starting with the language and tracing it back to its historical setting. Thus, it avoids the trap of speaking of only one meaning of solidarity and allows for more attuned analysis of the differences in understanding the concept. Furthermore, it links the scientific study of the concept of solidarity with research on political competition, and - in broader sense - political theory and party politics research. Closing the gap in scientific coverage of the concept of solidarity, this book will be of interest to students and researchers studying political theory, political sociology, political philosophy, political history, and political parties.

Land deterioration, drought, desertification, and water resources shrinkage threaten natural resources, negatively impacting environmental, economic, and political stability. The increasing occurrence of climate change (extremes) impacts land degradation processes, soil erosion by water and wind, and salinization. The researchers have invested several years of scientific research in natural resources deterioration, including soil degradation and erosion, land degradation, desertification, and climate changes, which are interesting enough. However, the link between science and policymaking appears to be less active as serious actions do not take fast. The eighteen chapters of this book focus more on topics related to natural resources deterioration, such as land degradation, desertification, drought, climate change, and analysis of numerous case studies. This book presents experts' overviews, study results, experiences, and knowledge of natural resources deterioration in MENA countries. It attracts researchers, experts, scholars, scientists, academics, students, practitioners, graduates, or anybody interested in land degradation, desertification, climate change, and natural hazards that fall within natural resources deterioration. Therefore, researchers keep continuing to do their investigations and produce results that convince stakeholders and policymaking to act immediately towards protecting natural resources and their sustainability.

The first of two companion books addressed the biology and clinical aspects of ovarian cancer. The companion title, Ovarian Cancer: Molecular & Diagnostic Imaging and Treatment Strategies, discussed both classic and the most recent imaging approaches for detection, early diagnosis and treatment of ovarian cancer. This volume, Cell & Molecular Biology of Ovarian Cancer, covers classic and modern cell and molecular biology as well as genetics, epigenetics, mitochondrial dysfunctions and apoptosis, cancer stem cells, angiogenesis, progression to metastasis, and treatment strategies including clinical trials related to ovarian cancer. Taken together, these two volumes form one comprehensive and invaluable contribution to the literature.The first of two companion books addressed the biology and clinical aspects of ovarian cancer. The companion title, Ovarian Cancer: Molecular & Diagnostic Imaging and Treatment Strategies, discussed both classic and the most recent imaging approaches for detection, early diagnosis and treatment of ovarian cancer. This volume, Cell & Molecular Biology of Ovarian Cancer, covers classic and modern cell and molecular biology as well as genetics, epigenetics, mitochondrial dysfunctions and apoptosis, cancer stem cells, angiogenesis, progression to metastasis, and treatment strategies including clinical trials related to ovarian cancer. Taken together, these two volumes form one comprehensive and invaluable contribution to the literature.

This book covers speckle image formation using a variety of modulated apertures. The central theme revolves around theoretical analyses, specifically the calculation of impulse responses or Point Spread Functions (PSFs) corresponding to these apertures. These calculations provide crucial insights into the resolution inherent in the resulting speckle images. The book begins with an examination of the recognition of the direction of new apertures from elongated speckle images, setting the stage for subsequent discussions. The theoretical analyses extend to diverse aperture designs, including Gaussian, graded-index, and modulated apertures. The book delves into the nuanced dynamics of contrast in speckle images, exploring the Voigt distribution and the effects of modulation on contrast.In addition to aperture-centric discussions, the book addresses the processing of the formed speckle images. The chapters impart a comprehensive understanding of speckle imaging, encompassing discrimination in microscopy using digital speckle images, the utilization of concentric hexagonal pupils, and the exploration of irregular apertures. The book culminates in a detailed exploration of speckle imaging in the context of an annular Hermite Gaussian laser beam.Overall, this book serves as a valuable resource for researchers and academics seeking a profound exploration of speckle image formation, modulation, and processing across a spectrum of apertures and theoretical frameworks.

This book examines women's behavioral health (defined as alcohol, drug use, and mental health) problems from a population or public health perspective. It provides the current state of knowledge for women¿s behavioral health and examines the need for behavioral health services and implications for policy. It also reviews major issues in the organization, financing, and provision of women¿s behavioral health services.Global and national studies show that women are nearly twice as likely as men to have selected mental disorders. There also has been increasing attention to the social, behavioral, institutional, and economic determinants of health that result in service inequities for women in the United States compared to women in other countries. This textbook highlights mental and substance use disorders of particular concern to women, emphasizes services research issues in women¿s behavioral health, incorporates the social determinants of health, and provides a discussion of these critical issues from an interprofessional and interdisciplinary public health perspective. It also presents an overview of the epidemiology of mental and substance use disorders across the lifespan of women and service delivery issues from a population and system-level perspective. Applied services research chapters comprise the book's 14 chapter contributions that are organized into three parts: Part I. Framing Women¿s Behavioral Health; Part II. Selected At-Risk Populations; and Part III. Services Delivery issues.Women's Behavioral Health: A Public Health Perspective is a textbook for advanced undergraduate and graduate students in many academic disciplines, including the social and behavioral sciences, public health, women¿s studies, medical anthropology, and medical sociology. It also is useful for postdoctoral students in public health, population health, and the health professions. This volume can serve as a reference book for academicians and researchers in community and social psychology, community health, community nursing, community and preventive medicine, and public health; practitioners and policymakers at various levels of government; and behavioral health professionals at mental health and substance use programs in various national and global healthcare organizations.

This book is for patients with thyroid diseases and anyone interested in the thyroid, including carers of thyroid patients, members of the lay public and healthcare workers who deal with thyroid patients. The intention is to provide the means by which good quality information about the thyroid gland and its diseases can be found, accessed, weighed and judged for scientific merit. The book can be read like a story, but can also serve readers as a reference manual when looking for information on a thyroid-related topic. Thyroid diseases affect 10% of the population. People with thyroid problems, their family, carers and health professionals often seek information. The available sources are disappointing and misleading. There is an unmet need and a desire by patients, the lay public, students and early career healthcare workers to learn how to access and appraise the evidence, which is rarely fulfilled by existing resources. The book consists of two parts. Part One contains six chapters. The first Chapter ("Obstacles to seeking the truth") discusses the common hurdles that can come between us and the knowledge we seek. Chapter Two ("Thyroid basics") is an overview of the structure and function of the thyroid gland and the common diseases that affect it, narrated through the convoluted history of discoveries relating to the thyroid. In Chapter Three ("What is the evidence") evidence-based medicine is discussed, how different medical publications are classified, the processes involved in publishing medical papers and how they are structured. This is relevant and important in understanding the selection process in play that a piece of academic work is subjected to before it reaches its readers, how it varies and how it may correlate with the quality of the end product. Chapter Four ('Mining the truth') is about conducting searches. It identifies appropriate search engines and gives tips on how to stay on course. Chapter Five ("Appraising the evidence") outlines how to judge the quality of published papers based on checklists. Chapter Six ("Interpreting the evidence") will help extract the meaning of a piece of research. Part Two ("What is the optimal range?") is an example of a common question asked by patients with hypothyroidism (the commonest thyroid condition). It will reveal a truth that should be making headlines and attracting the attention of patient advocates, thyroid specialists, their professional organisations and the public at large. Yet all relevant parties seem to choose to ignore it and channel their energies in other directions. It is an example of good science yielding valuable knowledge, which is undermined and made worthless by poor implementation. Herein lies the most important message of this book: seeking truth and getting close to it is not enough, how it is used to change the lives of patients is what really matters. Relevant references are included at the end of each chapter to indicate the sources in case the reader wishes to access them.

This book enhances readers¿ understanding of matrix acidizing and its pivotal role in the oil and gas industry. It is a comprehensive guide to maximizing reservoir performance. The book explores carbonate reservoirs, where acid meets rock, and indicates pathways to increased well productivity. Based on extensive research, the book has insights for students, professionals, and researchers and all those interesting in realizing the full potential of oil and gas reservoirs.

An award-winning text on the latest operational hydrometeorological forecasting and warning techniques for flood, drought, reservoir, water resources and water quality applications. Hydrometeorology: Forecasting and Applications is the latest edition of this award-winning book first published in 2010. It provides an introduction to the latest developments in this area for practicing engineers and scientists and examples of operational systems, including from the USA, UK, the Netherlands, Bangladesh and Nepal. It also provides useful background for undergraduate and postgraduate courses in areas such as engineering, earth sciences, environmental sciences, geography, meteorology and hydrology. Practical applications include flood warning, drought early warning, irrigation scheduling, hydropower generation, water pollution and water supply operations. Throughout, there is a focus on end-to-end warning systems, forecast uncertainty and risk-based and impact-based approaches. Each chapter now concludes with a summary of key points regarding current research themes and the extensive sets of references that were a feature of previous editions have been revised and updated. The first part considers meteorological and hydrological monitoring and forecasting techniques and approaches to issuing warnings and alerts. Hydrological forecasting topics include rainfall-runoff models, flow routing and data assimilation, forecast verification and ensemble techniques. Additional topics in this new edition include the role of low cost monitoring, citizen science and social media in monitoring and early warning applications. The text on weather radar, satellite precipitation estimates, hydrometry, catchment monitoring, numerical weather prediction, demand forecasting, uncertainty estimation and warning dissemination has been updated. The second part considers flood, drought, reservoir, water quality and water resources applications. As before, riverine and flash flood forecasts are considered separately including flash flood guidance techniques, community based flood warning systems and methods for providing early warnings of debris flows, surface water flooding and ice jam floods. Other applications include famine and drought early warning systems, reservoir and tidal barrier operations, bathing water quality alerts, harmful algal bloom prediction and seasonal flow forecasting. Land surface and global hydrological models are now discussed in more detail, including the opportunities from 'Big Data' and artificial intelligence. A new chapter on climate change prediction discusses approaches to assessing potential hydrological impacts and improving modelling techniques, including expert elicitation exercises and the use of experimental catchments. "There are few books that have ever attempted to discuss all aspects of hydrometeorology in one volume. This one does so." (from a review of the 1st edition in the Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society)

This proposed book aims to present an analysis of several crisis issues induced by global climate changes and implications at the micro-level, particularly from the perspective of ground-based study. Climate crisis leads to several socio-ecological issues which need to discuss with some empirical case studies from the contextual global evidences. Climatic crisis generates several social responses which are associated with mitigating issues in addition to sustainable development goals. Under these circumstances, several loopholes interlinked with climatic crisis need to expose in the present-day context. This book argues that it is important to understand the issues from multiple dimensions. It identifies some important dimensions to discuss in the process. Themes we purpose to cover are: several field-based studies are included for which micro-level field-based data would incorporate to understand current crisis induced by climate change, thus exposing the vulnerabilities of the communities which would be incorporated in different chapters with adequate representation of qualitative methods, modelling-based geospatial approach. Therefore, some secondary data-based studies have also been included to provide a broader picture. Additionally, this book aims to provide an interdisciplinary understanding of the issues mainly from the lenses of Geography, Economics, and Sociology as well as Environmental Studies too. Given the focus of this study, it is believed that an approach that harmonizes the cognitive domain from different discipline is appropriated. A combination of chapters using qualitative as well as quantitative methods also made this book exclusive from others. We believe that this edited book surely contributes the knowledge domain with some relevant chapters' discussion in the contemporary time and leads to reduce the gap of knowledge.

¿This book offers a comprehensive exploration of sustainable solid waste management practices in delta regions worldwide. With attention to detail, this work presents a systematic review, illuminating case studies, original research, and insightful meta-analyses tailored to address the unique challenges faced by delta environments. Home to over half a billion people, or approximately 7% of the global population, delta regions are dynamic ecological and social landscapes, despite accounting for only 1% of the world's land area. Yet, they play a pivotal role in national economies. Given the significant size and density of populations in these regions, understanding solid waste generation patterns, trends, and impacts is essential for global sustainability efforts. By focusing on deltaic regions, we aim to provide essential insights into effective policy planning and advancements in social and ecological sustainability. Explore a diverse array of topics, including the bioconversion of food waste into environmentally friendly compounds, sustainable production and disposal practices to address water quality concerns, and innovative waste management applications to combat channel clogging and flooding in delta districts. Delve into best practices for managing climate-related flood risks, addressing urban responses, and tackling environmental pollution associated with unmanaged waste disposal in delta catchments. Additionally, gain valuable insights into the regulatory framework guiding waste management practices, particularly in delta regions facing significant plastic pollution challenges. This book navigates the complexities of solid waste management in delta regions, paving the way for a more sustainable future.¿