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Books > Science & Mathematics > Physics > Applied physics & special topics
This book offers a practical introduction to helium refrigeration
engineering, taking a logical and structured approach to the
design, building, commissioning, operation and maintenance of
refrigeration systems. It begins with a short refresher of
cryogenic principles, and a review of the theory of heat
exchangers, allowing the reader to understand the importance of the
heat exchanger role in the various thermodynamic cycle structures.
The cycles are considered from the simplest (Joule Thomson) to the
most complicated ones for the very large refrigeration plants and,
finally, those operating at temperatures lower than 4.5 K. The
focus then turns to the operation, ability and limitations of the
main components, including room temperature cycle screw
compressors, heat exchangers, cryogenic expansion turbines,
cryogenic centrifugal compressors and circulators. The book also
describes the basic principles of process control and studies the
operating situations of helium plants, with emphasis on high level
efficiency. A major issue is helium purity, and the book explains
why helium is polluted, how to purify it and then how to check its
purity, to ensure that all components are filled with pure helium
prior to starting. Although the intention of the book is not to
design thermodynamic cycles, it is of interest to a designer or
operator of a cryogenic system to perform some simplified
calculations to get an idea of how components or systems are
behaving. Throughout the book, such calculations are generally
performed using Microsoft (R) Excel and the Gaspak (R) or Hepak (R)
software.
Have you ever seen a comet? It is a marvelous experience, one that
all humans can share, that spawns a deep yearning to understand the
spectacle. Have you ever wondered what comets are and why
astronomers spend so much time studying them? Now, a comet expert
and an astronomical historian have come together to produce the
unique book that you now hold in your hands. Using their several
decades of teaching experience, the authors have concisely
presented the information you need to comprehend these majestic
apparitions that grace our night skies. No mathematical proficiency
is needed, in fact, this book doesn't contain a single equation!
Comets are cosmic Rosetta stones, bridging our current knowledge by
digging back to the earliest days of our Solar Systems. How did
life arise on Earth? Did comets play a significant role in bringing
water and the necessary organic matter to our early Earth? How
about the dinosaurs? Were they driven to extinction by a cometary
impact 66 million years ago? Comets may be both the enablers and
destroyers of life on Earth as we know it. These are some of the
tantalizing questions discussed here. If you so desire, steps are
given to join the ranks of amateur comet hunters. Astronomy is one
of the last sciences where amateurs play a significant role. Your
reward for discovery? A comet officially bearing your name in the
history books! The next Great Comet is on its way, we just do not
know when it will arrive. Armed with this book, you will be ready
to enjoy this unforgettable event.
Volcanoes have terrified and, at the same time, fascinated
civilizations for thousands of years. Many aspects of volcanoes,
most notably the eruptive processes and the compositional
variations of magma, have been widely investigated for several
decades and today constitute the core of any volcanology textbook.
Nevertheless, in the last two decades, boosted by the availability
of volcano monitoring data, there has been an increasing interest
in the pre-eruptive processes related to the shallow accumulation
and to the transfer of magma approaching the surface, as well as in
the resulting structure of volcanoes. These are innovative and
essential aspects of modern volcanology and, as driving volcanic
unrest, their understanding also improves hazard assessment and
eruption forecasting. So far, the significant progress made in
unravelling these volcano-tectonic processes has not been supported
by a comprehensive overview. This monograph aims at filling this
gap, describing the pre-eruptive processes related to the
structure, deformation and tectonics of volcanoes, at the local and
regional scale, in any tectonic setting. The monograph is organized
into three sections ("Fundamentals", "Magma migration towards the
surface" and "The regional perspective"), consisting of thirteen
chapters that are lavishly illustrated. The reader is accompanied
in a journey within the volcano factory, discovering the processes
associated with the shallow accumulation of magma and its transfer
towards the surface, how these control the structure of volcanoes
and their activity and, ultimately, improve our ability to estimate
hazard and forecast eruption. The potential readership includes any
academic, researcher and upper undergraduate student interested in
volcanology, magma intrusions, structural geology, tectonics,
geodesy, as well as geology and geophysics in general.
Offers an accessible text and reference (a cosmic-ray manual) for
graduate students entering the field and high-energy
astrophysicists will find this an accessible cosmic-ray manual Easy
to read for the general astronomer, the first part describes the
standard model of cosmic rays based on our understanding of modern
particle physics. Presents the acceleration scenario in some detail
in supernovae explosions as well as in the passage of cosmic rays
through the Galaxy. Compares experimental data in the atmosphere as
well as underground are compared with theoretical models
Authored by world-class scientists and scholars, the Handbook of
Natural Resources, Second Edition, is an excellent reference for
understanding the consequences of changing natural resources to the
degradation of ecological integrity and the sustainability of life.
Based on the content of the bestselling and CHOICE awarded
Encyclopedia of Natural Resources, this new edition demonstrates
the major challenges that the society is facing for the
sustainability of all wellbeing on planet Earth. The experience,
evidence, methods, and models used in studying natural resources
are presented in six stand-alone volumes, arranged along the main
systems: land, water, and air. It reviews state-of-the-art
knowledge, highlights advances made in different areas, and
provides guidance for the appropriate use of remote sensing data in
the study of natural resources on a global scale. The six volumes
in this set cover: Terrestrial Ecosystems and Biodiversity;
Landscape and Land Capacity; Wetlands and Habitats; Fresh Water and
Watersheds; Coastal and Marine Environments; and finally Atmosphere
and Climate. Written in an easy-to-reference manner, the Handbook
of Natural Resources, Second Edition, as a complete set, is
essential for anyone looking for a deeper understanding of the
science and management of natural resources. Public and private
libraries, educational and research institutions, scientists,
scholars, and resource managers will benefit enormously from this
set. Individual volumes and chapters can also be used in a wide
variety of both graduate and undergraduate courses in environmental
science and natural science courses at different levels and
disciplines, such as biology, geography, Earth system science,
ecology, etc.
Written by a leading expert on comets, this textbook is divided
into seven main elements with a view to allowing advanced students
to appreciate the interconnections between the different elements.
The author opens with a brief introductory segment on the
motivation for studying comets and the overall scope of the book.
The first chapter describes fundamental aspects most usually
addressed by ground-based observation. The author then looks at the
basic physical phenomena in four separate chapters addressing the
nucleus, the emitted gas, the emitted dust, and the solar wind
interaction. Each chapter introduces the basic physics and
chemistry but then new specific measurements by Rosetta instruments
at comet Churyumov-Gerasimenko are brought in. A concerted effort
has been made to distinguish between established fact and
conjecture. Deviations and inconsistencies are brought out and
their significance explained. Links to previous observations of
comets Tempel 1, Wild 2, Hartley 2, Halley and others are made. The
author then closes with three smaller chapters on related objects,
the loss of comets, and prospects for future exploration. This
textbook includes over 275 graphics and figures - most of which are
original. Thorough explanations and derivations are included
throughout the chapters. The text is therefore designed to support
MSc. students and new PhD students in the field wanting to gain a
solid overview of the state-of-the-art.
This book highlights the use of LEDs in biomedical photoacoustic
imaging. In chapters written by key opinion leaders in the field,
it covers a broad range of topics, including fundamentals,
principles, instrumentation, image reconstruction and data/image
processing methods, preclinical and clinical applications of
LED-based photoacoustic imaging. Apart from preclinical imaging
studies and early clinical pilot studies using LED-based
photoacoustics, the book includes a chapter exploring the
opportunities and challenges of clinical translation from an
industry perspective. Given its scope, the book will appeal to
scientists and engineers in academia and industry, as well as
medical experts interested in the clinical applications of
photoacoustic imaging.
Exploring the mechanical features of biological cells, including
their architecture and stability, this textbook is a pedagogical
introduction to the interdisciplinary fields of cell mechanics and
soft matter physics from both experimental and theoretical
perspectives. This second edition has been greatly updated and
expanded, with new chapters on complex filaments, the cell division
cycle, the mechanisms of control and organization in the cell, and
fluctuation phenomena. The textbook is now in full color which
enhances the diagrams and allows the inclusion of new microscopy
images. With around 280 end-of-chapter exercises exploring further
applications, this textbook is ideal for advanced undergraduate and
graduate students in physics and biomedical engineering. A website
hosted by the author contains extra support material, diagrams and
lecture notes, and is available at www.cambridge.org/Boal.
This book reports on the extraordinary observation of TeV gamma
rays from the Crab Pulsar, the most energetic light ever detected
from this type of object. It presents detailed information on the
painstaking analysis of the unprecedentedly large dataset from the
MAGIC telescopes, and comprehensively discusses the implications of
pulsed TeV gamma rays for state-of-the-art pulsar emission models.
Using these results, the book subsequently explores new testing
methodologies for Lorentz Invariance Violation, in terms of a
wavelength-dependent speed of light. The book also covers an
updated search for Very-High-Energy (VHE), >100 GeV, emissions
from millisecond pulsars using the Large Area Telescope on board
the Fermi satellite, as well as a study on the promising Pulsar
Wind Nebula candidate PSR J0631. The observation of VHE gamma rays
is essential to studying the non-thermal sources of radiation in
our Universe. Rotating neutron stars, also known as pulsars, are an
extreme source class known to emit VHE gamma rays. However, to date
only two pulsars have been detected with emissions above 100 GeV,
and our understanding of their emission mechanism is still lacking.
This book discusses fundamentally new biomedical imaging methods,
such as holography, holographic and resonant interferometry, and
speckle optics. It focuses on the development of holographic
interference microscopy and its use in the study of phase objects
such as nerve and muscle fibers subjected to the influence of laser
radiation, magnetic fields, and hyperbaric conditions. The book
shows how the myelin sheath and even the axon itself exhibit
waveguide properties, enabling a fresh new look at the mechanisms
of information transmission in the human body. The book presents
theoretically and experimentally tested holographic and
speckle-optical methods and devices used for investigating complex,
diffusely scattering surfaces such as skin and muscle tissue.
Additionally, it gives broad discussion of the authors' own
original fundamental and applied research dedicated to helping
physicians introduce new contact-less methods of diagnosis and
treatment of diseases of the cardiovascular and neuromuscular
systems into medical practice. The book is aimed at a broad
spectrum of scientific specialists in the fields of speckle optics,
holography, laser physics, morphology and cytochemistry, as well as
medical professionals such as physiologists, neuropathologists,
neurosurgeons, cardiologists and dentists.
This present book discusses the application of the methods to
astrophysical data from different perspectives. In this book, the
reader will encounter interesting chapters that discuss data
processing and pulsars, the complexity and information content of
our universe, the use of tessellation in astronomy,
characterization and classification of astronomical phenomena,
identification of extragalactic objects, classification of pulsars
and many other interesting chapters. The authors of these chapters
are experts in their field and have been carefully selected to
create this book so that the authors present to the community a
representative publication that shows a unique fusion of artificial
intelligence and astrophysics.
The Textbook of Ion Channels is a set of three volumes providing a
wide-ranging reference source on ion channels for students,
instructors, and researchers. Ion channels are membrane proteins
that control the electrical properties of neurons and cardiac
cells, mediate the detection and response to sensory stimuli like
light, sound, odor, and taste, and regulate the response to
physical stimuli like temperature and pressure. In non-excitable
tissues, ion channels are instrumental for the regulation of basic
salt balance that is critical for homeostasis. Ion channels are
located at the surface membrane of cells, giving them the unique
ability to communicate with the environment, as well as the
membrane of intracellular organelles, allowing them to regulate
internal homeostasis. Ion channels are fundamentally important for
human health and diseases, and are important targets for
pharmaceuticals in mental illness, heart disease, anesthesia, pain
and other clinical applications. The modern methods used in their
study are powerful and diverse, ranging from single ion-channel
measurement techniques to models of ion channel diseases in
animals, and human clinical trials for ion channel drugs. All three
volumes give the reader an introduction to fundamental concepts
needed to understand the mechanism of ion channels, a guide to the
technical aspects of ion channel research, offer a modern guide to
the properties of major ion channel families, and include coverage
of key examples of regulatory, physiological, and disease roles for
ion channels.
This book explains the physics behind seismic ground motions and
seismic waves to graduate and upper undergraduate students as well
as to professionals. Both seismic ground motions and seismic waves
are terms for "shaking" due to earthquakes, but it is common that
shaking in the near-field of an earthquake source is called seismic
ground motion and in the far-field is called seismic waves. Seismic
ground motion is often described by the tensor formula based on the
representation theorem, but in this book explicit formulation is
emphasized beginning with Augustus Edward Hough Love (1863 - 1940).
The book also explains in depth the equations and methods used for
analysis and computation of shaking close to an earthquake source.
In addition, it provides in detail information and knowledge
related to teleseismic body waves, which are frequently used in the
analysis of the source of an earthquake.
This is an overview of single molecule physics, the study of both
equilibrium and non-equilibrium properties at the single molecule
level. It begins with an introduction to this fascinating science
and includes a chapter on how to build the most popular instrument
for single molecule biophysics, the total internal reflection
fluorescence (TIRF) microscope. It concludes with the Poisson
process approach to statistical mechanics, explaining how to relate
the process to diverse areas and see how data analysis and error
bars are integral parts of science.
This book examines the origins and dynamical characteristics of
atmospheric inertia-gravity waves in the Antarctic mesosphere.
Gravity waves are relatively small-scale atmospheric waves with a
restoring force of buoyancy that can transport momentum upward from
the troposphere to the middle atmosphere. In previous studies, the
dynamical characteristics of mesospheric gravity waves have not
been fully examined using numerical simulations, since performing a
numerical simulation with a high resolution and a high model-top
requires considerable computational power. However, recent advances
in computational capabilities have allowed us to perform numerical
simulations using atmospheric general circulation models, which
cover the troposphere to the mesosphere with a sufficiently fine
horizontal resolution to resolve small-scale gravity waves. The
book first describes the simulation of mesospheric gravity waves
using a high-resolution non-hydrostatic atmospheric model with a
high model top. The accuracy of the numerical results was confirmed
by the first Mesosphere-Stratosphere-Troposphere/Incoherent
Scattering (MST/IS) radar observation in the Antarctic. It also
depicts the origins and propagation processes of mesospheric
gravity waves on the basis of the results of the high-resolution
numerical model. The behaviors of mesospheric gravity waves can be
clearly explained using both fundamental and cutting-edge theories
of fluid dynamics
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