In this book we will look at what planetary nebulae are, where they come from and where they go. We will discuss what mechanisms cause these beautiful markers of stellar demise as well as what causes them to form their variety of shapes. How we measure various aspects of planetary nebulae such as what they are made of will also be explored. Though we will give some aspects of planetary nebulae mathematical treatment, the main points should be accessible to people with only a limited background in mathematics. A short glossary of some of the more arcane astronomical terms is at the end of the book to help in understanding. Included at the end of each chapter is an extensive bibliography to the peer reviewed research on these objects and I would encourage the reader interested in an even deeper understanding to read these articles.

"Advances in Imaging and Electron Physics " merges two long-running serials--"Advances in Electronics and Electron Physics" and "Advances in Optical and Electron Microscopy."
This series features extended articles on the physics of electron devices (especially semiconductor devices), particle optics at high and low energies, microlithography, image science and digital image processing, electromagnetic wave propagation, electron microscopy, and the computing methods used in all these domains.
* Contributions from leading international scholars and industry experts
* Discusses hot topic areas and presents current and future research trends
* Invaluable reference and guide for physicists, engineers and mathematicians

"Advances in Imaging and Electron Physics " merges two long-running serials--"Advances in Electronics and Electron Physics" and "Advances in Optical and Electron Microscopy."
This series features extended articles on the physics of electron devices (especially semiconductor devices), particle optics at high and low energies, microlithography, image science and digital image processing, electromagnetic wave propagation, electron microscopy, and the computing methods used in all these domains.
* Contributions from leading international scholars and industry experts
* Discusses hot topic areas and presents current and future research trends
* Invaluable reference and guide for physicists, engineers and mathematicians

"Advances in Imaging and Electron Physics " merges two long-running serials--"Advances in Electronics and Electron Physics" and "Advances in Optical and Electron Microscopy."
This series features extended articles on the physics of electron devices (especially semiconductor devices), particle optics at high and low energies, microlithography, image science and digital image processing, electromagnetic wave propagation, electron microscopy, and the computing methods used in all these domains.
* Contributions from leading international scholars and industry experts
* Discusses hot topic areas and presents current and future research trends
* Invaluable reference and guide for physicists, engineers and mathematicians

"Advances in Imaging and Electron Physics " merges two long-running serials--"Advances in Electronics and Electron Physics" and "Advances in Optical and Electron Microscopy."
This series features extended articles on the physics of electron devices (especially semiconductor devices), particle optics at high and low energies, microlithography, image science and digital image processing, electromagnetic wave propagation, electron microscopy, and the computing methods used in all these domains.
* Contributions from leading international scholars and industry experts
* Discusses hot topic areas and presents current and future research trends
* Invaluable reference and guide for physicists, engineers and mathematicians

The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) was successfully launched on June 18, 2009 and joined an international eet of satellites (Japan's SELENE/Kaguya, China's Chang'E, and India's Chandrayaan-1) that have recently orbited the Moon for scienti c exploration p- poses. LRO is the rst step to ful ll the US national space goal to return humans to the Moon's surface, which is a primary objective of NASA's Exploration Systems Mission - rectorate (ESMD). TheinitialLROmissionphasehasaone-yeardurationfullyfundedunder ESMD support. LRO is expected to have an extended phase of operations for at least two additional years to undertake further lunar science measurements that are directly linked to objectives outlined in the National Academy of Science's report on the Scienti c Context for Exploration of the Moon (SCEM). All data from LRO will be deposited in the Planetary Data System (PDS) archive so as to be usable for both exploration and science by the widest possible community. A NASA Announcement of Opportunity (AO) solicited proposals for LRO instruments with associated exploration measurement investigations. A rigorous evaluation process - volving scienti c peer review, in combination with technical, cost and management risk assessments, recommended six instruments for LRO development and deployment. The competitively selected instruments are: Cosmic Ray Telescope for the Effects of Rad- tion (CRaTER), Diviner Lunar Radiometer Experiment (DLRE), Lyman-Alpha Mapping Project (LAMP), Lunar Exploration Neutron Detector (LEND), Lunar Orbiter Laser - timeter (LOLA), and Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera (LROC).

This book is the Second Edition of the ground-breaking book on faster-than-light travel Bright Stars, Bright Universe: Advancing Civilization by Colonization of the Solar System and the Stars using a Fast Quark Drive which described a new approach to spacecraft propulsion that could enable Mankind to travel to the stars, and beyond, to the galaxies of the known universe. In this edition we add Appendices to the original edition (together with a few minor changes to the First Edition) on Seeing and Navigating through the Cosmos on superluminal starships; Complex Thrust using Braided Accelerators; Suspended Animation to keep the biological clocks of starship occupants in sync with earth time; Engineering very long life starship and life support components; Robot guidance and robot exploratory starships; and Fuel consumption on starships. At the time of this writing the United States appears headed towards a deficit of ten or eleven trillion dollars over the next ten years. It appears that a likely cost for starship R&D would be of the order of half a trillion dollars spread over perhaps thirty years - a small amount relative to the projected US deficit - with an enormous reward for success. On a yearly basis this expense averages to about seventeen billion dollars per year. Since the NASA budget is eighteen billion dollars a year, the cost of the starship program is comparable and quite affordable. The formation of an international consortium would further reduce the per country costs. If the United States paid sixty per cent of the costs then its share would be about ten billion dollars per year. It is a venture of great significance to the future of Mankind. The cost is relatively small; the benefits are potentially enormous! In a series of recent books we explored the theoretical importance of superluminal (faster-than-light) particles called tachyons in the derivation of the form of the Standard Model of Elementary Particles. We also showed some of the remarkable features of superluminal particles such as reverse fission, length dilation, and time contraction - quite the opposite of sublight phenomena. In this book we examine the possibility of superluminal starship propulsion for interstellar exploration and colonization. We begin the book with a statement of the earth's present condition and the need to expand into space or face a slow decline into a cultural and social miasma. Then we develop a new plan for the exploration and colonization of this solar system since it appears that current announced plans have missed the mark and do not have an overall long-term approach. Since this solar system lacks enough planets that are congenial for human life we consider the possibility of colonizing planets around other stars. Many plans have been proposed for interstellar spaceships - starships. But they are usually impractical for some good reason(s). In this book we will consider superluminal (beyond light speed) starships based on tachyon dynamics. They provide a practical means of starship propulsion although much R&D must be done before the proposed starships can be built. Once built they will support speeds up to 5,000 to 30,000 times the speed of light and beyond making the universe Mankind's backyard. Travel times to other galaxies could be as short as a few months. Superluminal starships open the door to a vast expansion of humanity into the universe in the large! As world population grows, and human social needs also grow, the capacity of the world to mount a major space effort will diminish. So a major space initiative with a well-thought out game plan is required now, while we still have the resources.

"Advances in Imaging and Electron Physics " merges two long-running serials--"Advances in Electronics and Electron Physics" and "Advances in Optical and Electron Microscopy."
This series features extended articles on the physics of electron devices (especially semiconductor devices), particle optics at high and low energies, microlithography, image science and digital image processing, electromagnetic wave propagation, electron microscopy, and the computing methods used in all these domains.
* Contributions from leading international scholars and industry experts
* Discusses hot topic areas and presents current and future research trends
* Invaluable reference and guide for physicists, engineers and mathematicians

This book is intended to be a course about the creation and evolution of the universe at large, including the basic macroscopic building blocks (galaxies) and the overall large-scale structure. This text covers a broad range of topics for a graduate-level class in a physics department where students' available credit hours for astrophysics classes are limited. The sections cover galactic structure, external galaxies, galaxy clustering, active galaxies, general relativity and cosmology.

Advances in Imaging and Electron Physics merges two long-running serials--Advances in Electronics and Electron Physics and Advances in Optical and Electron Microscopy. This series features extended articles on the physics of electron devices (especially semiconductor devices), particle optics at high and low energies, microlithography, image science and digital image processing, electromagnetic wave propagation, electron microscopy, and the computing methods used in all these domains.

Updated with contributions from leading international scholars and industry experts
Discusses hot topic areas and presents current and future research trends
Provides an invaluable reference and guide for physicists, engineers and mathematicians

Gene therapy as a potential method for treatment of genetic disorders and other malignancies as well as treatment of many cancers has attracted a great amount of attention in recent years. Current research focuses on stable and smart drug/gene delivery systems, including controlled release. Smart nanostructures have been considered as a promising approach when applied to drug and gene delivery systems, and could solve the problems related to the inefficient transfer of medication to the affected cells.

Magnetic methods are widely used in exploration, engineering, borehole and global geophysics, and the subjects of this book are the physical and mathematical principles of these methods regardless of the area of application.
Beginning with Ampere's law, the force of interaction between currents is analyzed, and then the concept of the magnetic field is introduced and the fundamental features are discussed.
Special attention is paid to measurements of relaxation processes, including topics as the spin echoes or refocusing. Also the special role of the magnetic method in the development of the plate tectonic theory is described.
* covers all the physical and mathematical principles of magnetic methods regardless of the area of application.
* presents thorough developments of magnetic methods.

In this book the author presents the state-of-the-art electromagnetic (EM)
theories and methods employed in EM geophysical exploration.
The book brings together the fundamental theory of EM fields and the practical
aspects of EM exploration for mineral and energy resources.
This text is unique in its breadth and completeness in providing an
overview of EM geophysical exploration technology.

The book is divided into four parts covering the foundations of EM
field theory and its applications, and emerging geophysical methods.
Part I is an introduction to the field theory required for baseline
understanding.
Part II is an overview of all the basic elements of
geophysical EM theory, from Maxwell's fundamental equations to modern
methods of modeling the EM field in complex 3-D geoelectrical formations.
Part III deals with the regularized solution of ill-posed
inverse electromagnetic problems, the multidimensional migration and imaging of
electromagnetic data, and general interpretation techniques.
Part IV describes major geophysical electromagnetic methods direct current (DC), induced polarization (IP), magnetotelluric
(MT), and controlled-source electromagnetic (CSEM) methods and covers
different applications of EM methods in exploration geophysics, including
minerals and HC exploration, environmental study, and crustal study.
* Presents theoretical and methodological findings, as well as examples of applications of recently developed algorithms and software in solving practical problems
* Describes the practical importance of electromagnetic data through enabling discussions on a construction of a closed technological cycle, processing, analysis and three-dimensional interpretation
* Updates current findings in the field, especially with MT, magnetovariational and seismo-electrical methods and the practice of 3D interpretations"

"Advances in Imaging and Electron Physics" merges two long-running serials--"Advances in Electronics and Electron Physics" and "Advances in Optical and Electron Microscopy." This series features extended articles on the physics of electron devices (especially semiconductor devices), particle optics at high and low energies, microlithography, image science and digital image processing, electromagnetic wave propagation, electron microscopy, and the computing methods used in all these domains.

This book focuses on functional aspects of nanostructured materials that have a high relevance to immediate applications, such as catalysis, energy harvesting, energy storage, optical properties and surface functionalization via self-assembly. Additionally, there are chapters devoted to massive nanostructured materials and composites and covering basic properties and requirements of this new class of engineering materials. Especially the issues concerning stability, reliability and mechanical performance are mandatory aspects that need to be regarded carefully for any nanostructured engineering material.

"Advances in Imaging and Electron Physics" merges two long-running serials--"Advances in Electronics and Electron Physics" and "Advances in Optical and Electron Microscopy." This series features extended articles on the physics of electron devices (especially semiconductor devices), particle optics at high and low energies, microlithography, image science and digital image processing, electromagnetic wave propagation, electron microscopy, and the computing methods used in all these domains.
* Updated with contributions from leading international scholars and industry experts
* Discusses hot topic areas and presents current and future research trends
* Invaluable reference and guide for physicists, engineers and mathematicians

"Venus has always been associated with the feminine in astrology and in culture, yet little emphasis is placed upon the wisdom aspect of the planet. With the cycles of Venus we are given insight into the unfolding of wisdom within ourselves and society, especially with the cycle of Venus' inferior conjunctions - the so-called 2nd order cycle of the planet. In her timely and much-needed work, Firegazing, Gail has brilliantly outlined the meaning and import of these cycles and the deeper meaning of a planet that often only receives a passing notice in astrology, yet is so intimately connected with our own lives and what it is to be human. When Venus passes across the face of the solar orb, we are given opportunity to gaze into the very fire of the soul itself. Well done, Gail " - Malvin Artley