Bücher veröffentlicht von Springer

This book examines the intricate web linking water science and society using diverse philosophical lenses. Highlighting the tensions within the threads of this web, we spotlight major conceptual tightropes that water researchers tread daily. To effectively navigate these delicate threads, a 'healthy' tension in the encompassing web is necessary. Drawing inspiration from Freud's examination of tensions in "Society and Its Discontents," we illuminate the tension-filled paradoxes inherent to water science, emphasizing the challenges in keeping these paradoxical threads taut enough to ensure a navigable and sustainable bond with society. Central to our narrative is the escalating societal urge to quantify and 'manage' water--something interwoven throughout every environmental layer, including the fabric of our being. An excessive focus on management may alienate users from their water realities, jeopardizing the vital threads that sustainability tether water science and society. Consequently, this book explores compelling and inescapable tensions that resist tidy universal resolution, such as: the language of water science, including its mathematical reductions (i.e., models); the effect of water's commodification on its science; hydrology's intersection with colonialism; and other concerns that reveal distortions in our hydrology. We aim to aid water professionals in recognizing and fine-tuning the paradoxes intrinsic to their work. To underscore the interwoven complexity of contemporary hydrology, "Hydrology and Its Discontents" guides readers into the tempestuous depths of water research, all the while urging a recalibration of perspectives and motivations.

​This book renews the concept of the symbolic function, exploring human capacity to create and utilize symbols, semiotic systems, and realities. It offers a unique theoretical perspective on the early psychological growth of children, focusing on the symbolic function's role in their development . In this sense, it offer new conception of the emergence of symbolic function and language. It further presents detailed analyses of semiotic function manifestations and their integration around age three, signifying a child's entry into the "symbolic species" and its profound influence on overall mental development. This book deals with issues related to the symbolic function in general, as well as its origin and development. It further presents detailed analyses of semiotic function manifestations and their integration around age three, signifying a child's entry into the symbolic species and its profound influence on overall mental development. This text serves as a valuable academic resource for university teachers, researchers and students interested in gaining a comprehensive understanding of the complex interplay between cognitive, socio-emotional development, and social practices in the emergence of symbolic function in early childhood.

This book presents the latest knowledge, trends, and advances in cell transplantation and innovations in developing microspheres, 3D biomaterial constructs to enhance transfer, and cell survival to specific regions of the brain. Neurodegenerative diseases and brain injury are increasing. Medications currently only temporarily reduce some of the symptoms but do not cure or delay progression of the disease. Development of effective treatments dramatically improves the independent living and quality of life of patients. Cell transplantation strategies offer an approach to facilitating brain repair, but efficacy is often limited by low in vivo survival rates of cells that are injected in suspension. Transplanting cells that are attached to or encapsulated within a biomaterial construct has the advantage of maintaining cell-cell and cell-material interactions and improving cell survival in vivo. Biomaterials that have been used in preclinical studies to assist with in vivo cell transfer and survival include heparin-chitosan microspheres, poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) microspheres, RADA 16 microspheres, poly(desaminotyrosyl tyrosine ethyl ester carbonate) microscale scaffolds, carbon nanotubes, collagen-chitosan scaffolds, poly(L-lactic acid) scaffolds, agarose hydrogels, gelatin methacrylate hydrogels, and agarose micro-columns with an extracellular matrix interior. Incorporating growth factors (e.g., glial-derived neurotrophic factor, neurotrophin 3) into the biomaterial constructs increased cell survival and incorporation into the host tissue. International experts in the fields of both experimental and clinical neurological research contribute chapters to this book and discuss the latest achievements in cell transplantation and matrix-assisted cell transfer/survival technologies for diseases such as Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, and brain injuries such as stroke and traumatic brain injury. It is envisaged that research findings in experimental animal models of Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, traumatic brain injury, and stroke promote clinical trials using biomaterial-assisted transfer of cells.

This book is devoted to the systems rethinking of the role of the leading digital technologies and circular innovations to reduce the environmental footprint of the modern economy. The target audience of this book consists of scientists who explore environmental economics, energy economics, and sustainable development. In this book, they will find a consistent take on the impact of the economy on the environment from the perspective of a new scientific concept--the environmental footprint of the economy, described through the lens of the UN SDGs. This book is also useful for public agencies of energy and environmental economics and environmentally responsible enterprises. In this book, they will find applied recommendations on improving the efficiency of the use of high technologies and responsible innovations to reduce the environmental footprint of the modern economy.The book provides numerous real-world examples, case studies, and recommendations on unlocking the environmental potential of high technologies (Big Data, Ubiquitous Computing (UC), Robotics, Artificial Intelligence (AI), and the Internet of Things (IoT)) and responsible innovations (ESG investments, environmental taxation, green jobs), which allow reaching net-zero emission and building a carbon-neutral circular economy. The interest in this book is also attributable to the fact that it takes into account the specifics of developed and less-developed countries. The book puts more focus on the real-life and case experience of Central Asia and the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU).

This book provides comprehensive coverage of the Korean alphabet, Hangul, and includes a synthesis of research findings relating to reading in the non-Roman alphabet. This, in turn, contributes to the science of reading through an understanding of reading mechanisms that are essential for all writing systems, and that are particular for a given writing system. Hangul has been recognized as "the world's best alphabet," "one of the great intellectual achievements of Mankind," and "alphabet's epitome, a star among alphabets" by some linguists and historians. It is known that writing systems have evolved based on the ecological principle that visual signs are culturally selected to match objects found in natural scenes through selection pressures for optimal visual processing. However, Hangul is an exception. It was purposely invented by King Sejong in the 15th century to combat the illiteracy prevalent at the time. The chapters excavate the historical background of Hangul, and the unique characteristics of Hangul that contribute to learnability and efficiency. The author presents empirical evidence of psycholinguistic research into reading Hangul, building theories and presenting implications for the science of reading. This book is relevant to students, researchers and practitioners in applied linguistics, psycholinguistics, language studies, reading studies, and grammatology, with a particular focus on the Korean alphabet.

This book is the first review book to use the multiple-choice question format in pediatric neurosurgery. More than 500 MCQs are provided in a convenient format that is suitable for self-study.The mission of the book is to help readers understand the content and maintain the knowledge, rather than merely finding answers for complicated questions. The strategy and the format of the questions provide a step-by-step, thorough explanation of each disease from the definition, associated anatomy, pathology, clinical features, radiology to surgical decision-making, and surgical tricks, providing a comprehensive and concise overview. Answers and definitions appear immediately below the questions to facilitate information retention. It is an important asset for residents across neurosurgical disciplines as it includes much of the pediatric neurosurgery knowledge that neurosurgical residents need to prepare for their certification tests. It is also useful for those seeking ways to solidify their knowledge or maintain their current certification. This book is an adjunct to the existing texts and does not intend to be the primary source of information; it rather aims to help readers identify their relevant strengths and weaknesses in the area.

This open access book addresses relationships that develop from the complex set of legislative, regulatory, and institutional arrangements that arise in the governance of high-hazard industries, especially those connected with safety. It analyses the difference in practices between high-hazard sectors such as nuclear power, chemical processing, and transport with those in the finance and healthcare sectors. The relationship between regulating and regulated entities is important in ensuring that safety is not subordinated to other concerns and in maintaining public confidence. As a result, the brief addresses various pressures and trade-offs inherent in that relationship, trade-offs between such considerations as: cost of the oversight activity and its effectiveness; regulator independence and its level of competency and understanding of the risks involved; ability to provide advice on meeting regulatory goals and being able to criticize decisions made; and effectiveness and intrusion in operational activities. The contributors show how, over time, a more horizontal or "decentred" approach to regulatory oversight has appeared, with a larger degree of delegation of certain decisions to industry and a greater role for a range of third parties such as certification bodies, auditors, insurers, industry associations and NGOs. This book is of interest to academics working in the fields of safety science or organizational management and to practitioners, regulators and policy-makers concerned with health and safety and critical infrastructure.

This book presents the fundamentals of thermodynamics and is designed to serve as a comprehensive textbook for advanced undergraduate and graduate students. It caters to those who seek a deeper understanding of how irreversibility impacts thermodynamic processes between equilibrium states. Additionally, it aims to provide a thorough grasp of the underlying physical mechanisms governing the macroscopic behavior of multiphase and multicomponent systems, both in equilibrium and non-equilibrium states.

This book provides a comprehensive study of structural design and optimization of different truss structures for size, shape, and topology of structure. It describes truss optimization based on into three categories: size optimization, shape optimization, and topology optimization.It also studies the performance of metaheuristic algorithms developed after 2011 for truss optimization problems. The results highlight the best approach to achieve the best performance of the structural design. Pseudo codes of all the methods are provided at the end of the book so that it can be used by the researchers, practitioners, and students to test it for different real-world systems.This book ideal for structural design engineers to realize the appropriate systems with properly optimized parameters as well as designers, practitioners, consultants involved in structural designs, researchers, academics, and graduate students in mechanical, civil, and architectural engineering.

This book is focused on geriatric patients in critically ill conditions in the Emergency Room. Their percentage is very high, about 60% of the total percentage of patients, and the availability of intensive care admission is reduced for them as clearly shown during last Covid-19 pandemic. However, the modern approach is not yet able to stop the frailty cascade after hospitalization. In this book authors offer an analysis to overcome this gap. The volume contains two main sections: in the first one, authors discuss recommendations and guidelines for setting organizations and treatment through different case reports of practical management of critically ill geriatric patients (especially patients treated with noninvasive ventilation). In the second part, they analyze the territorial networks that take charge of the older patients. Furthermore, a chapter will be reserved to a comparative investigation of the different types of hospital territorial integration in Europe. The book, written by renowned experts in their fields and by their teams, represents a new tool rich of suggestions for all those physicians involved in the management of this frail population.

This book presents a new approach to understanding the foundation of quantum physics through the "quantum wave model" hypothesis. It addresses some of the key challenges in the current quantum theory, including the conflict between quantum mechanics and relativity, and offers a comprehensive solution to many of the existing mysteries in the field. By proposing that the vacuum is a dielectric medium and quantum particles are quantized excitation waves of the vacuum, the book provides a clear physical interpretation of wave-particle duality and explains the physical basis of energy, momentum, and mass.With topics ranging from the physical foundation of quantum mechanics to the derivation of the quantum wave equations and the resolution of the conflict between quantum physics and relativity, this book offers a comprehensive overview of the most pressing issues in the field. Written at a level accessible to undergraduate students and senior researcher scientists alike, this book offers a valuable resource for anyone seeking a deeper understanding of quantum mechanics and its fundamental role in shaping our understanding of the physical world.

This book is a comprehensive guide to understanding the potential of artificial intelligence (AI) in improving business functions, as well as the limitations and challenges that come with its implementation. In this book, readers will learn about the various opportunities that AI presents in business, including how it can automate routine tasks, reduce errors, and increase efficiency. The book covers a range of topics, including how AI can be used in financial reporting, auditing, fraud detection, and tax preparation. However, the book also explores the limitations of AI in business, such as the need for skilled professionals, data quality, and the potential for bias. It examines the challenges that companies face when implementing AI in business functions, including the need for ethical considerations, transparency, and accountability. The book is written for business professionals, business leaders, and anyone interested in the potential of AI in business functions. It offers practical advice on how to implement AI effectively and provides insights into the latest developments in AI technology. Through case studies and real-world examples, readers will gain a deeper understanding of how AI can be used to enhance business functions, as well as the potential pitfalls and limitations to be aware of. Overall, "AI in Business: Opportunities and Limitations" is an essential guide for anyone looking to harness the power of AI to improve their business functions, and to stay ahead in an increasingly competitive business environment.

This book, endorsed by EuSoMII, provides clinicians, researchers and scientists a useful handbook to navigate the intricate landscape of data harmonization, as we embark on a journey to improve the reproducibility, robustness and generalizability of multi-centric real-world data radiomic studies. In these pages, the authors delve into the foundational principles of radiomics and its far-reaching implications for precision medicine. They describe the different methodologies used in extracting quantitative features from medical images, the building blocks that enable the transformation of images into actionable predictions. This book sweeps from understanding the basis of harmonization to the implementation of all the knowledge acquired to date, with the aim of conveying the importance of harmonizing medical data and providing a useful guidance to enable its applicability and the future use of advanced radiomics-based models in routine clinical practice. As authors embark on this exploration of data harmonization in radiomics, they hope to ignite discussions, foster new ideas, and inspire researchers, clinicians, and scientists alike to embrace the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead. Together, they elevate radiomics as a reproducible technology and establish it as an indispensable and actionable tool in the quest for improved cancer diagnosis and treatment.

This open access book, the Community of Practice led by the VPH Institute, the Avicenna Alliance, and the In Silico World consortium has brought together 138 experts in In Silico Trials working in academia, the medical industry, regulatory bodies, hospitals, and consulting firms. Through a consensus process, these experts produced the first attempt to define some Good Simulation Practices on how to develop, evaluate, and use In Silico Trials. Good Simulation Practice constitutes an indispensable guide for anyone who is planning to engage at any title with In Silico Trials.

This book provides a knowledge base of the existing indigenous and local water knowledge, values, and practices, and how this water knowledge can be mainstreamed into the decision-making process. The book not only demonstrates the perks of using indigenous knowledge but also illustrates the barriers and gaps that should be considered while planning for mainstreaming traditional knowledge and values at a local scale. The chapters incorporate case studies from various parts of the world demonstrating how indigenous, and religious and cultural values of water have translated into water use and conservation behavior among indigenous people ensuring resource sustainability over a long period of time. There has been global attention towards combining indigenous and local knowledge with new information and innovation to attain future water security. In this regard, this book is timely, relevant, and significant as it is the first attempt, as per the best of our knowledge, to publish a book that solely addresses indigenous and local knowledge, values, and practices regarding water management, quality monitoring, use, and conservation. With increasing emphasis on the inclusion of indigenous and local knowledge into natural resource governance and conservation by international agencies like the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), the proposed book will significantly contribute to the existing knowledge base and demonstrate the importance of mainstreaming indigenous water knowledge and practices into water governance and decision making. The UN SDGs, recognizing the significance of indigenous knowledge systems, emphasized its inclusion in most aspects and principles of SDGs. Apart from direct links with SDGs like zero hunger (SDG 2), no poverty (SDG 1), and climate action (SDG 13), indigenous and local knowledge system is considered to be directly connected to clean water and sanitation (SDG 6). The book will be useful to researchers and students in the field of indigenous knowledge and education, water governance, community-level planning, and water sustainability. The book can be referred to for postgraduate courses and beyond, as well as policymakers, conservationists, non-governmental organizations, development practitioners, and local government officials.

This book provides a unique approach to understand the Nuclear Physics, especially from the experimental end. The highlight of this book is that special care has been taken to provide more experimental information, considering real experimental data which has been published in several journals. Special experimental focus is given to methodologies involving: offline gamma counting and online particle detection. The book provides information about recent developments in accelerators, overview of the detectors and concise information of associated electronics, data acquisition systems and computers for data analysis.

This book highlights recent advances in the area of machine learning and robotics-based soft computing applications. The book covers various artificial intelligence, machine learning, and mechanics, a mix of mechanical computational engineering work. The current computing era has a huge market/potential for machine learning, robotics, and soft computing techniques and their applications. With this in view, the book shares latest research and cutting-edge applications useful for professionals and researchers in these areas.¿

This book sheds light on systems that learn extensively, with purpose and naturally interact with humans. Improving operations and increasing competitive differentiation among manufacturing organizations by harnessing the power of cognitive abilities, IoT can help build and influence the flow of information¿making the shop floor more cognitive through effective processing, analysis, and operational optimization. Now we are seeing the first-hand potential of cognitive computing¿its ability to transform businesses, governments, and society. The real potential of the cognitive age can be realized by combining data analysis and statistical reasoning of machines with uniquely human qualities, such as self-directed goals, common sense, and moral values, improving operations and increasing competitive differentiation among manufacturing organizations. By harnessing the power of cognitive abilities, IoT can help build and influence the flow of information¿making the shop floor more cognitive through effective processing, analysis, and operational optimization. Cognitive initiatives come in all shapes and sizes, from change to strategy and everything in between. What most successful projects have in common, no matter how ambitious, is they start with a clear view of what technology can do. Therefore, the first job of a cognitive scientists is to gain a firm understanding of cognitive abilities, as presented in this book.

The aim of this book is to explain this new technology and its advantages over previous imaging devices and to illustrate how it may be used in to define eye diseases, and in their treatment and facilitate treatment options. This atlas introduces the technical principles of SS-OCT imaging, OCTA stratification algorithm, and blood flow quantization. Through a collection of images and annotation of the microstructures of both the normal fundus and diseased eyes (for example, vitreous related disease, retinal diseased and choroidal disease) captured on SS-OCT to deepen the understanding of this new technology, as well as the interpretation of images. This atlas serves as a practical guide and is written for retinal specialist and clinicians with an interest in retinal diseases.

This book deals with the use of the hodograph equation in phase transformations in condensed matter, especially, for crystallization and solidification processes. The main focus of the book is the interpretation of the phase-field equations for isotropic and anisotropic interfaces based on the advanced Gibbs-Thomson and Herring conditions, respectively. Beginning with the basic ideas behind the extended irreversible thermodynamics, the kinetic phase-field model for slow and arbitrarily fast phase transformations is derived where the unified hodograph equation follows from: - the sharp interface limit of the diffuse interface or- the traveling wave solution of the propagating phase field.Under the example of solute trapping and disorder trapping effects, comparing theoretical results with molecular dynamics simulations, and with the analysis of experimental data, the concrete workability of the developed hodograph equation is demonstrated for widest range of driving force in phase transformations.

This edited volume examines the adolescent period across multiple cultural settings, and in a range of contemporary contexts (e.g., rural-vs-urban, political unrest/war, rapid globalization). It employs a multi-disciplinary lens, while addressing traditional issues (e.g., identity development) and recently emergent ones (e.g., social media). It contains four main sections: 1) adolescence and families in contexts with rapidly shifting societies/norms, 2) adolescence and families in the context of socio-political crisis and upheaval, 3) adolescence and families in the context of individual stress and strain, and 4) adolescent Identity development in the family and in transition to adulthood. Contributors to this volume are leading scholars from a range of disciplines (e.g., anthropology, psychology, family science) and thus explore adolescence from multiple perspectives. Cross-cutting themes include how the broader socio-ecological background and "ecocultural niche"shape various dimensions of adolescence, how the role of the family is redefined in these various contexts and circumstances, and how adolescent resilience and family strengths are formed across a broad range of settings. Throughout, this volume highlights the continued centrality of family in the development and well-being of adolescents across the globe. This is an essential resource for practitioners and researchers who treat and study adolescents.

This open access book provides an overview of urban digital platforms such as Airbnb and Deliveroo, which, along with Amazon, Google, Facebook, and other IT companies, constitute by now the infrastructures for other businesses to operate on and for our social life to go on. These platforms serve as standards-based techno-economic systems that simultaneously capture cooperation through remote coordination and organize labor via algorithm management.Based on a three-years research project, this contributed book outlines a general theory of platform capitalism that conceives these platforms not only as technical devices, but as generative engines that operate at the interface of several aspects, such as digitalization of forms of social cooperation; algorithm-based management of labor and participation; and private and vertical appropriation of profits. These elements are somehow iconic of the capitalist evolution of the last decades, and they open up a reflection on new forms of "primitive accumulation" (in particular regarding data), on the mechanisms used to capture and extract social surplus value, and on the logistic-financial dimensions of capital. Finally, in light of the transformations associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, the authors examine how platforms can evolve into hegemonic organizational structures.Assuming we are all already living in the age of the platform, this book takes a multifaceted approach--combining sociology with urban studies, and political sciences with economics--to grasp the challenges our societies face in terms of ensuring fair economic growth, adequate social protections, and labor rights. It will appeal to anyone interested in digital platforms and how they are changing the organization of labor, urban spaces, and forms of governance.