This book with its clear explanation of the nature of the universe assumes no prior knowledge of astronomy or cosmology and so will attract interested public and new amateur astronomers.It provides much more on large-scale structures than other popular-level cosmology books. The mix of cosmology /large scale structures/anthropic principle and perspective on the universe should, as far as the author knows, be unique. A special colour feature incorporated in the book will offer three-dimensional views of the surrounding universe to ever greater depths.

The revealing of the phenomenon of superhydrophobicity (the "lotus-effect") has stimulated an interest in wetting of real (rough and chemically heterogeneous) surfaces. In spite of the fact that wetting has been exposed to intensive research for more than 200 years, there still is a broad field open for theoretical and experimental research, including recently revealed superhydrophobic, superoleophobic and superhydrophilic surfaces, so-called liquid marbles, wetting transitions, etc. This book integrates all these aspects within a general framework of wetting of real surfaces, where physical and chemical heterogeneity is essential. Wetting of rough/heterogeneous surfaces is discussed through the use of the variational approach developed recently by the author. It allows natural and elegant grounding of main equations describing wetting of solid surfaces, i.e. Young, Wenzel and Cassie-Baxter equations. The problems of superhydrophobicity, wetting transitions and contact angle hysteresis are discussed in much detail, in view of novel models and new experimental data. The second edition surveys the last achievements in the field of wetting of real surfaces, including new chapters devoted to the wetting of lubricated and gradient surfaces and reactive wetting, which have seen the rapid progress in the last decade. Additional reading, surveying the progress across the entire field of wetting of real surfaces, is suggested to the reader. Contents What is surface tension? Wetting of ideal surfaces Contact angle hysteresis Dynamics of wetting Wetting of rough and chemically heterogeneous surfaces: the Wenzel and Cassie Models Superhydrophobicity, superhydrophilicity, and the rose petal effect Wetting transitions on rough surfaces Electrowetting and wetting in the presence of external fields Nonstick droplets Wetting of lubricated surfaces

Line intensity mapping (LIM) is an observational technique that probes the large-scale structure of the Universe by collecting light from a wide field of the sky. This book demonstrates a novel analysis method for LIM using machine learning (ML) technologies. The author develops a conditional generative adversarial network that separates designated emission signals from sources at different epochs. It thus provides, for the first time, an efficient way to extract signals from LIM data with foreground noise. The method is complementary to conventional statistical methods such as cross-correlation analysis. When applied to three-dimensional LIM data with wavelength information, high reproducibility is achieved under realistic conditions. The book further investigates how the trained machine extracts the signals, and discusses the limitation of the ML methods. Lastly an application of the LIM data to a study of cosmic reionization is presented. This book benefits students and researchers who are interested in using machine learning to multi-dimensional data not only in astronomy but also in general applications.

High Time Resolution Astrophysics (HTRA) is an important new window to the universe and a vital tool in understanding a range of phenomena from diverse objects and radiative processes. This importance is demonstrated in this volume with the description of a number of topics in astrophysics, including quantum optics, cataclysmic variables, pulsars, X-ray binaries and stellar pulsations to name a few. Underlining this science foundation, technological developments in both instrumentation and detectors are described. These instruments and detectors combined cover a wide range of timescales and can measure fluxes, spectra and polarisation. These advances make it possible for HTRA to make a big contribution to our understanding of the Universe in the next decade.

A monograph on inflationary cosmology and cosmological phase transitions, investigating modern cosmology's relationship to elementary particle physics. This work also includes a non-technical discussion of inflationary cosmology for those unfamiliar with the theory.

Cellular Endocrinology in Health and Disease, Second Edition, describes the underlying basis of endocrine function, providing an important tool to understand the fundamentals of endocrine diseases. Delivering a comprehensive review of the basic science of endocrinology, from cell biology to human disease, this work explores and dissects the function of a number of cellular systems. The new edition provides an understanding of how endocrine glands function by integrating information resulting in biological effects on both local and systemic levels, also providing new information on the molecular physiopathogenesis of endocrine neoplasic cells. The new edition expands the most used chapters from the first edition and proposes a series of substitutions and additions to the table of contents. New chapters cover signaling, brown adipose tissue, hypothalamic cell models, cellular basis of insulin resistance, genetics and epigenetics of neuroendocrine tumors, and a series of chapters on endocrine-related cancer. Providing content that crosses disciplines, Cellular Endocrinology in Health and Disease, Second Edition, details how cellular endocrine function contributes to system physiology and mediates endocrine disorders. A methods section proves novel and useful approaches across research focus that will be attractive to medical students, residents, and specialists in the field of endocrinology, as well as to those interested in cellular regulation. Editors Alfredo Ulloa-Aguirre and Ya-Xiong Tao, experts in molecular and cellular aspects of endocrinology, deliver contributions carefully selected for relevance, impact, and clarity of expression from leading field experts

This book provides readers with the necessary background information and advanced concepts in the field of circuits, at the crossroads between physics, mathematics and system theory. It covers various engineering subfields, such as electrical devices and circuits, and their electronic counterparts. Based on the idea that a modern university course should provide students with conceptual tools to understand the behavior of both linear and nonlinear circuits, to approach current problems posed by new, cutting-edge devices and to address future developments and challenges, the book places equal emphasis on linear and nonlinear, two-terminal and multi-terminal, as well as active and passive circuit components. This second volume focuses on dynamical circuits, which are characterized by time evolution and by the concept of state. The content is divided into a set of introductory and a set of advanced-level topics, mirroring the approach used in the previously published volume. Whenever possible, circuits are compared to physical systems of different natures (e.g. mechanical or biological) that exhibit the same dynamical behavior. The book also features a wealth of examples and numerous solved problems. Further topics, such as a more general framing of linear and nonlinear components, will be discussed in volume 3.

The publication of this book is extremely timely, for the next major advances in manned space flight after Project Apollo will most likely be made in earth orbital operations. Manned exploration of the moon will certainly continue after the initial landing, but it will be performed essentially with the Saturn V launch vehicles and Apollo spacecraft developed in Apollo, especially in the early phases. Modifications to this basic hardware will increase operating capabilities to permit extensive lunar explo ration during prolonged stay times by the astronauts on the moon's surface. Manned orbital space stations have been studied for years, and NASA is already well along in development of its first attempt to provide more spacious accommo dations for astronaut-scientists in its Saturn Workshop program. While the Workshop is certainly not the ultimate space station of which our technology is capable, it is a workable, poor man's approach to the immediate need for using and expanding our present manned space flight capability without a de trimentalloss of momentum. The approach of converting a Saturn rocket stage into a manned laboratory and observatory in space is an improvisation that matches the use of the jerry-built Jupiter C back in 1958 to launch Explorer I. Let's hope that it can get the job done just as effectively.

This book provides an accessible, yet thorough, introduction to special and general relativity, crafted and class-tested over many years of teaching. Suitable for advanced undergraduate and graduate students, this book provides clear descriptions of how to approach the mathematics and physics involved. It is also contains the latest exciting developments in the field, including dark energy, gravitational waves, and frame dragging. The table of contents has been carefully developed in consultation with a large number of instructors teaching courses worldwide, to ensure its wide applicability to modules on relativity and gravitation. Features: A clear, accessible writing style, presenting a sophisticated approach to the subject, that remains suitable for advanced undergraduate students and above Class-tested over many years To be accompanied by a partner volume on 'Advanced Topics' for students to further extend their learning

Today, courses on biophysics are taught in almost all universities in the world, often in separate biophysics departments or divisions. This reflects the enormous growth of the field, even though the problem of its formal definition remains unsettled. In spite of this lack of definition, biophysics, which can be considered as an amalgamation of the biological and the physical sciences, is recognized as a major scientific activity that has led to spectacular developments in biology. It has increased our knowledge of biological systems to such an extent that even industrial and commercial interests are now beginning to put their stamps on biological research. A major part of these developments took place during the last two decades. Therefore, an introductory textbook on biophysics that was published a dozen years ago (c. Sybesma, An Introduction to Biophysics, Academic Press, 1977) no longer could fulfil " ... the need for a comprehensive but elementary textbook ... -" (R. Cammack, Nature 272 (1978), 96). However, because of the increased proliferation of biophysics into higher education, the need for introductory course texts on biophysics is stronger than ever. This fact, together with valuable comments of many readers, have encouraged me to revise the original book.

"WHAT DOES NOT NEED TO BE BIG, WILL BE SMALL," a word by an engineer at a recent conference on chips technology. This sentence is particularly true for chemistry. Microfabrication technology emerged from microelectronics into areas like mechanics and now chemistry and biology. The engineering of micron and submicron sized features on the surface of silicon, glass and polymers opens a whole new world. Micromotors smaller than human hair have been fabricated and they work fine. It is the declared goal of the authors to bring these different worlds together in this volume. Authors have been carefully chosen to guarantee for the quality of the contents. An engineer, a chemist or a biologist will find new impulses from the various chapters in this book.

Bad Hofgastein who made the very successful Salzburger Abend with indi- nous music from Salzburg possible. Special thanks also to the former director of the Institute of Astronomy in Vienna, Prof. Paul Jackson for his generous private donation. We should not forget our hosts Mr. and Mrs. Winkler and their employees from the hotel who made the stay quite enjoyable. None of us will forget the very last evening, when the staff of kitchen under the le- ership of the cook himself came to offer us as farewell the famous Salzburger Nockerln, a traditional Austrian dessert. Everyone got a lot of scienti?c input during the lectures and the discussions and, to summarize, we all had a spl- did week in Salzburg in the Hotel Winkler. We all hope to come again in 2008 to discuss new results and new perspectives on a high level scienti?c standard in the Gasteinertal. Rudolf Dvorak and Sylvio Ferraz-Mello Celestial Mechanics and Dynamical Astronomy (2005) 92:1-18 (c) Springer 2005 DOI 10. 1007/s10569-005-3314-7 FROM ASTROMETRY TO CELESTIAL MECHANICS: ORBIT DETERMINATION WITH VERY SHORT ARCS (Heinrich K. Eichhorn Memorial Lecture) 1 2 ? ' ANDREA MILANI and ZORAN KNEZEVIC 1 Department of Mathematics, University of Pisa, via Buonarroti 2, 56127 Pisa, Italy, e-mail: milani@dm. unipi. it 2 Astronomical Observatory, Volgina 7, 11160 Belgrade 74, Serbia and Montenegro, e-mail: zoran@aob. bg. ac.

This two volume set introduces the up-to-date high-tech applications of Aggregation-Induced Emission (AIE) luminogens in biosensing, bioimaging, and biomedicine. The 2nd volume presents the applications of AIE materials in biomedicine, including the utilizations in biomedical polymers, organic nanoprobes, photosensitizer, photothermal agents, AIEgens-based delivery systems, etc. It is an essential reference for materials scientists, chemists, physicists and biological chemists.

This book includes nine chapters written by internationally recognized experts, covering all aspects of millisecond pulsars in one concise and cohesive volume. These aspects include pulsations powered by stellar spin, accretion and thermonuclear burning of accreted matter, their physics and utility, stellar evolution and the extreme physics of super-dense stellar cores. The book includes substantial background material as well as recent theoretical and multi-wavelength observational results. The volume will thus be useful for professional astronomers and graduate students alike. What is the behavior of the strong nuclear interaction, and what are the matter constituents at ultrahigh densities in neutron star cores? How do old neutron stars in binaries evolve? How does their magnetosphere interact with the surrounding plasma to accelerate particles and emit radiation observed at all wavelengths? These are just a few of the questions that millisecond pulsars are helping us answer and will settle in the near future with the next generation of instruments. Such quickly rotating, highly magnetized neutron stars are remarkable natural laboratories that allow us to investigate the fundamental constituents of matter and their interactions under extreme conditions that cannot be reproduced in terrestrial laboratories.

Through application of the Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics (SPH) method, this monograph mainly focuses on large deformations and flow failure simulations of geomaterials and movement behavior, which are always involved in geo-disasters. The work covers the theoretical background, numerical techniques, code implementation issues, and many novel and interesting applications. Two-dimensional and three-dimensional SPH models in the framework of both hydrodynamics and solid mechanics are established, with detailed descriptions. The monograph also contains many appealing and practical examples of geo-disaster modeling and analysis, including the fluidized movement of flow-like landslides, lateral spread of liquefied soils, and flow slides in landfills. In the documented SPH simulations, the propagation of geo-disasters is effectively reproduced. Dynamic behaviors of geomaterials during propagation are ascertained, including sliding path, flow velocity, maximum distance reached, and distribution of deposits. In this way, the monograph presents a means for mapping hazardous areas, estimating hazard intensity, and identifying and designing appropriate protective measures.

The study of stellar dynamics is experiencing an exciting new wave of interest thanks to observational campaigns and the ready availability of powerful computers. Whilst its relevance includes many areas of astrophysics, from the structure of the Milky Way to dark matter halos, few texts are suited to advanced students. This volume provides a broad overview of the key concepts beyond the elementary level, bridging the gap between the standard texts and specialist literature. The author reviews Newtonian gravity in depth before examining the dynamical properties of collisional and collisionless stellar-dynamical systems that result from gravitational interactions. Guided examples and exercises ensure a thorough grounding in the mathematics, while discussions of important practical applications give a complete picture of the subject. Readers are given a sound working knowledge of the fundamental ideas and techniques employed in the field and the conceptual background needed to progress to more advanced graduate-level treatises.

In the middle of the 20th century, Genrich Altshuller, a Russian engineer, analysed hundreds of thousands of patents and scientific publications. From this analysis, he developed TRIZ (G. Altshuller, "40 Principles: TRIZ Keys to Technical Innovation. TRIZ Tools," Volume 1, First Edition, Technical Innovation Center, Inc. , Worcester, MA, January 1998; Y. Salamatov, "TRIZ: The Right Solution at the Right Time. A Guide to Innovative Problem Solving. " Insytec B. V. , 1999), the theory of inventive problem solving, together with a series of practical tools for helping engineers solving technical problems. Among these tools and theories, the substance-field theory gives a structured way of representing problems, the patterns of evolution show the lifecycle of technical systems, the contradiction matrix tells you how to resolve technical contradictions, using the forty principles that describe common ways of improving technical systems. For example, if you want to increase the strength of a device, without adding too much extra weight to it, the contradiction matrix tells you that you can use "Principle 1: Segmentation," or "Principle 8: Counterweight," or "Principle 15: Dynamicity," or "Principle 40: Composite Materials. " I really like two particular ones: "Principle 1: Segmentation," and Principle 15: Dynamicity. " "Segmentation" shows how systems evolve from an initial monolithic form into a set of independent parts, then eventually increasing the number of parts until each part becomes small enough that it cannot be identified anymore.

This book reflects the current status of theoretical and experimental research of graphene based nanostructures, in particular quantum dots, at a level accessible to young researchers, graduate students, experimentalists and theorists. It presents the current state of research of graphene quantum dots, a single or few monolayer thick islands of graphene. It introduces the reader to the electronic and optical properties of graphite, intercalated graphite and graphene, including Dirac fermions, Berry's phase associated with sublattices and valley degeneracy, covers single particle properties of graphene quantum dots, electron-electron interaction, magnetic properties and optical properties of gated graphene nanostructures. The electronic, optical and magnetic properties of the graphene quantum dots as a function of size, shape, type of edge and carrier density are considered. Special attention is paid to the understanding of edges and the emergence of edge states for zigzag edges. Atomistic tight binding and effective mass approaches to single particle calculations are performed. Furthermore, the theoretical and numerical treatment of electron-electron interactions at the mean-field, HF, DFT and configuration-interaction level is described in detail.

The Theory Institute in Solar-Terrestrial Physics was held at Boston College 19-26 August 1982. The program consisted of a two-week School followed by the first theory conference in the field. This book is based upon the lectures presented at the School. Several years ago there was a convergence of efforts to promote the role of theory in space plasma physics. Reports from the National Academy of Sciences and NASA advisory committees documented the disciplinary maturity of solar-terrestrial physics and recommended that theorists play a greater role in the continued development of the field. The so-called theory program in solar-terrestrial physics was established by NASA in 1979 and implemented in accordance with the guidelines set forth by a panel of scientists, primarily theorists, in the field. The same panel motivated the Boston College program. Published proceedings of the school would provide curricular materials for the training of graduate students in solar-terrestrial physics. J.M. Forbes, T.E. Holzer, A.J. Hundhausen, A.D. Richmond, and G.L. Siscoe were the principal architects of the curriculum of the School, and I am grateful for their contributions. Each also lectured at the School. The chapters in this book were prepared by the authors themselves with one exception. The chapters by Parker are edited reproductions of his lectures. Unfortunately, it is our loss that the lectures of Holzer and Hundhausen are not included in the book.

Scattered and Filtered Solar UV Measurements provides comprehensive information about the scattered and filtered solar UV environment, the techniques to measure this radiation and the resulting UV exposures to humans. The incidence of skin cancer and sun-related eye disorders can be reduced by the minimization of exposures to UV radiation. For this to occur, a greater understanding of the solar UV exposure to humans for varying conditions and in different environments is necessary. Accordingly, this book aims to quantify, understand and provide information on the filtered and scattered solar UV.
This book is aimed at students and new researchers in the field of solar UV and environmental measurements; however there is sufficient detail to provide a valuable reference for the experienced researcher. Researchers and students in atmospheric sciences, health sciences, environmental monitoring, photobiology and skin cancer prevention will find this monograph useful.

This book presents the structure formation and dynamics of animate and inanimate matter on the nanometre scale. This is a new interdisciplinary field known as Meso-Bio-Nano (MBN) science that lies at the intersection of physics, chemistry, biology and material science. Special attention in the book is devoted to investigations of the structure, properties and dynamics of complex MBN systems by means of photonic, electronic, heavy particle and atomic collisions. This includes problems of fusion and fission, fragmentation, surfaces and interfaces, reactivity, nanoscale phase and morphological transitions, irradiation-driven transformations of complex molecular systems, collective electron excitations, radiation damage and biodamage, channeling phenomena and many more. Emphasis in the book is placed on the theoretical and computational physics research advances in these areas and related state-of-the-art experiments. Particular attention in the book is devoted to the utilization of advanced computational techniques and high-performance computing in studies of the dynamics of systems.

This book presents established and new approaches to perform calculations of electrostatic interactions at the nanoscale, with particular focus on molecular biology applications. It is based on the proceedings of the Computational Electrostatics for Biological Applications international meeting, which brought together researchers in computational disciplines to discuss and explore diverse methods to improve electrostatic calculations. Fostering an interdisciplinary approach to the description of complex physical and biological problems, this book encompasses contributions originating in the fields of geometry processing, shape modeling, applied mathematics, and computational biology and chemistry. The main topics covered are theoretical and numerical aspects of the solution of the Poisson-Boltzmann equation, surveys and comparison among geometric approaches to the modelling of molecular surfaces and related discretization and computational issues. It also includes a number of contributions addressing applications in biology, biophysics and nanotechnology. The book is primarily intended as a reference for researchers in the computational molecular biology and chemistry fields. As such, it also aims at becoming a key source of information for a wide range of scientists who need to know how modeling and computing at the molecular level may influence the design and interpretation of their experiments.

"Cell and Tissue Engineering" introduces the principles and new approaches in cell and tissue engineering. It includes both the fundamentals and the current trends in cell and tissue engineering, in a way useful both to a novice and an expert in the field. The book is composed of 13 chapters all of which are written by the leading experts. It is organized to gradually assemble an insight in cell and tissue function starting form a molecular nano-level, extending to a cellular micro-level and finishing at the tissue macro-level. In specific, biological, physiological, biophysical, biochemical, medical, and engineering aspects are covered from the standpoint of the development of functional substitutes of biological tissues for potential clinical use. Topics in the area of cell engineering include cell membrane biophysics, structure and function of the cytoskeleton, cell-extracellular matrix interactions, and mechanotransduction. In the area of tissue engineering the focus is on the in vitro cultivation of functional tissue equivalents based on the integrated use of isolated cells, biomaterials, and bioreactors. The book also reviews novel techniques for cell and tissue imaging and characterization, some of which are described in detail such as atomic force microscopy. Finally, mathematical modeling methods are presented as valuable and indispensable tools in cell and tissue engineering. Numerous illustrations enhance the quality and ease of use of the presented material.

This book presents an overview of the field of bioelectricity by demonstrating the biological significance of electromagnetic fields, electrical properties of tissue, biological effects of electromagnetic energy, and therapeutic applications and health hazards of electromagnetic energy.