The eleventh COSPAR colloquium The Outer Heliosphere: The Next Frontiers was held in Potsdam, Germany, from 24-28 July, 2000, and is the second dedicated to this subject after the first one held in Warsaw, Poland in 1989.
Roughly a century has passed after the first ideas by Oliver Lodge, George Francis Fitzgerald and Kristan Birkeland about particle clouds emanating from the Sun and interacting with the Earth environment. Only a few decades after the formulation of the concepts of a continuous solar corpuscular radiation by Ludwig Bierman and a solar wind by Eugene Parker, heliospheric physics has evolved into an important branch of astrophysical research. Numerous spacecraft missions have increased the knowledge about the heliosphere tremendously. Now, at the beginning of a new millenium it seems possible, by newly developed propulasion technologies to send a spacecraft beyond the boundaries of the heliosphere. Such an Interstellar Proce will start the in-situ exploration of interstellar space and, thus, can be considered as the first true astrophysical spacecraft. The year 2000 appeared to be a highly welcome occassion to review the achievements since the last COSPAR Colloquia 11 years ago, to summarize the present developments and to give new impulse for future activities in heliospheric research.

Composed of a set of lectures and tutorial reviews, this book stems from a summer school devoted to the gravitational aspects of the sun and their geophysical consequences. Contribitions elaborate on the gravitational distortions of the sun which can be used to gain some knowledge of the sun's interior and surface phenomena but which also influences the sun's irradience and thus ultimately the earth's climate. Last but not least, it is shown that these small distortions constitute a formidable challenge to solar astrometry, and the final part of the book describes the observational difficulties in defining unequivocally the solar diameter.

This book covers the results obtained in the Tera op Workbench project during a four years period from 2004 to 2008. The Tera op Workbench project is a colla- ration betweenthe High PerformanceComputingCenter Stuttgart (HLRS) and NEC Deutschland GmbH (NEC-HPCE) to support users to achieve their research goals using high performance computing. The Tera op Workbench supports users of the HLRS systems to enable and - cilitate leading edge scienti c research. This is achieved by optimizing their codes and improving the process work ow which results from the integration of diff- ent modules into a "hybrid vector system". The assessment and demonstration of industrial relevance is another goal of the cooperation. The Tera op Workbench project consists of numerous individual codes, grouped together by application area and developed and maintained by researchers or c- mercial organizations. Within the project, several of the codes have shown the ab- ity to reach beyond the TFlop/s threshold of sustained performance. This created the possibility for new science and a deeper understanding of the underlying physics. The papers in this book demonstrate the value of the project for different scienti c areas.

This biography summarizes the seminal contributions to auroral and space science of Carl Stormer (1874 - 1957). He was the first to develop precise photographic methods to calculate heights and morphologies of diverse auroral forms during four solar cycles. Stormer independently devised numerical techniques to determine the trajectories of high-energy charged particles allowed and forbidden in the Earth's magnetic field. His theoretical analyses explained cosmic ray access to the upper atmosphere, 20 years before they were identified by other scientists. Stormer's crowning achievement, "The Polar Aurora," published when he was 81 years old, stands to this day as a regularly cited guide in graduate-level courses on space physics. The authors present the life of this prodigious scientist in relation to the cultural life of early 20th century in Norway and to the development of the space sciences in the post-Sputnik era.

The book deals with the development of continual models of turbulent natural media. Such models serve as a ground for the statement and numerical evaluation of the key problems of the structure and evolution of the numerous astrophysical and geophysical objects. The processes of ordering (self-organization) in an originally chaotic turbulent medium are addressed and treated in detail with the use of irreversible thermodynamics and stochastic dynamics approaches which underlie the respective models. Different examples of ordering set up in the natural environment and outer space are brought and thoroughly discussed, the main focus being given to the protoplanetary discs formation and evolution.

Based on the author's lecture notes and research, this well-illustrated and comprehensive text is one of the first to provide an introduction to image registration with particular emphasis on numerical methods in medical imaging. Ideal for researchers in industry and academia, it is also a suitable study guide for graduate mathematicians, computer scientists, engineers, medical physicists, and radiologists. Image registration is utilised whenever information obtained from different viewpoints needs to be combined or compared and unwanted distortion needs to be eliminated. For example, CCTV images, ultrasound images, brain scan images, fingerprint and retinal scanning. Modersitzki's book provides a systematic introduction to the theoretical, practical, and numerical aspects of image registration, with special emphasis on medical applications. Various techniques are described, discussed and compared using numerous illustrations. The text starts with an introduction to the mathematical principles and the motivating example of the Human Neuroscanning Project whose aim is to build an atlas of the human brain through reconstructing essential information out of deformed images of sections of a prepared brain. The introduction is followed by coverage of parametric image registrations such as landmark based, principal axes based, and optimal affine linear registration. Basic distance measures like sum of squared differences, correlation, and mutual information are also discussed. The next section is devoted to state-of-the-art non-parametric image registrations where general variational based framework for image registration is presented and used to describe and compare well-known and new image registration techniques. Finally, efficient numerical schemes for the underlying partial differential equations are presented and discussed. This text treats the basic mathematical principles, including aspects from approximation theory, image processing, numerics, partial differential equations, and statistics, with a strong focus on numerical methods in image processing. Providing a systematic and general framework for image registration, the book not only presents state-of-the-art concepts but also summarises and classifies the numerous techniques to be found in the literature.

Following the breakthrough in the last decade in identifying the key parameters for time and depth imaging in anisotropic media and developing practical methodologies for estimating them from seismic data, this title primarily focuses on the far reaching exploration benefits of anisotropic processing.

This volume provides the first comprehensive description of reflection seismic signatures and processing methods in anisotropic media. It identifies the key parameters for time and depth imaging in transversely isotropic media and describes practical methodologies for estimating them from seismic data. Also, it contains a thorough discussion of the important issues of uniqueness and stability of seismic velocity analysis in the presence of anisotropy. The book contains a complete description of anisotropic imaging methods, from the theoretical background to algorithms to implementation issues. Numerous applications to synthetic and field data illustrate the improvements achieved by the anisotropic processing and the possibility of using the estimated anisotropic parameters in lithology discrimination.

This book presents lecture materials from the Third LOFAR Data School, transformed into a coherent and complete reference book describing the LOFAR design, along with descriptions of primary science cases, data processing techniques, and recipes for data handling. Together with hands-on exercises the chapters, based on the lecture notes, teach fundamentals and practical knowledge. LOFAR is a new and innovative radio telescope operating at low radio frequencies (10-250 MHz) and is the first of a new generation of radio interferometers that are leading the way to the ambitious Square Kilometre Array (SKA) to be built in the next decade. This unique reference guide serves as a primary information source for research groups around the world that seek to make the most of LOFAR data, as well as those who will push these topics forward to the next level with the design, construction, and realization of the SKA. This book will also be useful as supplementary reading material for any astrophysics overview or astrophysical techniques course, particularly those geared towards radio astronomy (and radio astronomy techniques).

This text is an introduction to the physics of collisional plasmas, as opposed to plasmas in space. It is intended for graduate students in physics and engineering . The first chapter introduces with progressively increasing detail, the fundamental concepts of plasma physic. The motion of individual charged particles in various configurations of electric and magnetic fields is detailed in the second chapter while the third chapter considers the collective motion of the plasma particles described according to a hydrodynamic model. The fourth chapter is most original in that it introduces a general approach to energy balance, valid for all types of discharges comprising direct current(DC) and high frequency (HF) discharges, including an applied static magnetic field. The basic concepts required in this fourth chapter have been progressively introduced in the previous chapters.

The text is enriched with approx. 100 figures, and alphabetical index and 45 fully resolved problems. Mathematical and physical appendices provide complementary information or allow to go deeper in a given subject.

The Pacific Rim Conferences for the first decade from the mid 1980's to the mid 1990's were primary concerned with binary stars research. The Conference expanded to all areas of Stellar Astrophysics for the last two meetings in Hong Kong; at Hong Kong University of Science and Technology in 1997 and at the Hong Kong University in 1999. At the conclusion of the very successful Pacific Rim Conference on Stellar Astrophysics held in Hong Kong University, members of the Sci entific Organizing Committee began planning for the next conference. We approached Professor Tan Lu of Nanjing University and Professor Tipei Li of the Institute of High Energy Physics about hosting a con ference in China. The city of Xi'an in Shaanxi province and a city in Yunnan province, were considered to be the most likely locations. It be came crucial to find the right person to serve as Chair (or Co-chairs) for the Local Organizing Committee. Initially, Professor Lu was the logical choice but he declined for personal reasons. Professor Li was invited to lead a new department of Astrophysics at Tsinghua University so he could not take on the additional load of chairing the LOC. Professor Gang Zhao of Beijing Astronomical Observatory was approached to take on the task but he also declined. This has been a busy time for Chinese astronomers. The SOC decided to have the conference dedicated to honor Dr. Helmut A."

At the end of the 20th century, a tremendous progress was made in biotechnology in its widest sense. This progress was largely possible as a result of joint efforts of top academic researchers in both pure fundamental sciences and applied research. The surplus value of such interdisciplinary approaches was clearly highlighted during the 9th European Congress on Biotechnology that was held in Brussels, Belgium (11-15 July, 1999). The present volume in the 'Focus on Biotechnology' series, entiteld 'Physics and Chemistry Basis for Biotechnology' contains selected presentations from this meeting, A collection of experts has made serious efforts to present some of the latest developments in various scientific fields and to unveil prospective evolutions on the threshold of the new millenium. In all contributions the emphasis is on emerging new areas of research in which physicochemical principles form the foundation. In reading the different chapters, it appears that more than ever significant advances in biotechnology very often depend on breakthroughs in the biotechnology itself (e.g.

This book ushers in a new era of experimental and theoretical investigations into collective processes, structure formation, and self-organization of nuclear matter. It reports the results of experiments wherein for the first time the nuclei constituting our world (those displayed in Mendeleev's table as well as the super-heavy ones) have been artificially created. Pioneering breakthroughs are described, achieved at the Proton-21 Laboratory, Kiev, Ukraine, in a variety of new physical and technological directions.A detailed description of the main experiments, their analyses, and the interpretation of copious experimental data are given, along with the methodology governing key measurements and the processing algorithms of the data that empirically confirm the occurrence of macroscopic self-organizing processes leading to the nuclear transformations of various materials.

This book collects extended and specialized reviews on topics linking astrophysics and particle physics at a level intermediate between a graduate student and a young researcher. The book includes also three reviews on observational techniques used in forefront astrophysics and short articles on research performed in Latin America. The reviews, updated and written by specialized researchers, describe the state of the art in the related research topics. This book is a valuable complement not only for research but also for lecturers in specialized course of high energy astrophysics, cosmic ray astrophysics and particle physics."

This volume, written by experts in the field, discusses the current understanding of the biophysical principles that govern RNA folding, with featured RNAs including the ribosomal RNAs, viral RNAs, and self-splicing introns. In addition to the fundamental features of RNA folding, the central experimental and computational approaches in the field are presented with an emphasis on their individual strengths and limitations, and how they can be combined to be more powerful than any method alone; these approaches include NMR, single molecule fluorescence, site-directed spin labeling, structure mapping, comparative sequence analysis, graph theory, course - grained 3D modeling, and more. This volume will be of interest to professional researchers and advanced students entering the field of RNA folding.

This book provides an up-to-date understanding of the progress and current problems of the interplay of nonlocality in the classical theories of gravitation and quantum theory. These problems lie on the border between general relativity and quantum physics, including quantum gravity.

Jean-Pierre Vigier continually labeled one of les heretiques de la science, l'eternel resistant et le patriarche is yet a pillar of modern physics and mathematics, with one leg firmly planted in theory and the other in empiricism spanning a career of nearly 60 years with a publication vitae quickly approaching 400! He wrote of his mentor Louis de Broglie "Great physicists fight great battles", which perhaps applies even more so to 1 Jean-Pierre Vigier himself . If fortune allows a visit to Paris, reported to be the city of love, and certainly one of the most beautiful and interesting cities in the world; one has been treated to a visual and cultural feast. For example a leisurely stroll from the Musee du Louvre along the Champs-Elysees to the Arc de Triomphe would instill even the least creative soul with the entelechies of a poets muse. It is perhaps open to theoretical interpretation, but if causal conditions have allowed one to be a physicist, visiting Paris, one may have taken opportunity to visit the portion of the old Latin quarter in place Jussieu where Pierre et Marie Curie Universite, reported to be 'the best university in France', is stationed.

Quantum mechanics is widely recognized as the basic law which governs all of nature, including all materials and devices. It has always been essential to the understanding of material properties, and as devices become smaller it is also essential for studying their behavior. Nevertheless, only a small fraction of graduate engineers and materials scientists take a course giving a systematic presentation of the subject. The courses for physics students tend to focus on the fundamentals and formal background, rather than on application, and do not fill the need. This invaluable text has been designed to fill the very apparent gap.The book covers those parts of quantum theory which may be necessary for a modern engineer. It focuses on the approximations and concepts which allow estimates of the entire range of properties of nuclei, atoms, molecules, and solids, as well as the behavior of lasers and other quantum-optic devices. It may well prove useful also to graduate students in physics, whose courses on quantum theory tend not to include any of these applications. The material has been the basis of a course taught to graduate engineering students for the past four years at Stanford University.Topics Discussed: Foundations; Simple Systems; Hamiltonian Mechanics; Atoms and Nuclei; Molecules; Crystals; Transitions; Tunneling; Transition Rates; Statistical Mechanics; Transport; Noise; Energy Bands; Electron Dynamics in Solids; Vibrations in Solids; Creation and Annihilation Operators; Phonons; Photons and Lasers; Coherent States; Coulomb Effects; Cooperative Phenomena; Magnetism; Shake-off Excitations; Exercise Problems.A supplementary Instructor's Solutions Manual is available for this book.

Silicon, the basic material for a multibillion-dollar industry, is the most widely researched and applied semiconductor, and its surfaces are the most thoroughly studied of all semiconductor surfaces. Silicon Surfaces and Formation of Interfaces may be used as an introduction to graduate-level physics and chemical physics. Moreover, it gives a specialized and comprehensive description of the most common faces of silicon crystals as well as their interaction with adsorbates and overlayers. This knowledge is presented in a systematic and easy-to-follow way. Discussion of each system is preceded by a brief overview which categorizes the features and physical mechanisms before the details are presented. The literature is easily available, and the references am numerous and organized in tables, allowing a search without the need to browse through the text.

Though this volume focuses on a scientific understanding of physics on the atomistic and mesoscopic levels, it also highlights existing and potential links between basic research in surface science and applications in the silicon industry. It will be valuable to anyone writing a paper, thesis, or proposal in the field of silicon surfaces.

This volume is one outcome of the 6th International Conference on Paleoceano graphy (ICP VI). The conference was held August 23-28, 1998 in Lisbon, Portugal. The meeting followed the traditional format of a small number of invited oral presentations complemented by a large number ofcontributed posters. Over 550 participants attended, representing thirty countries and nearly 450 posters were presented. The invited speakers addressed the main themes of the 5oral sessions. The session topics were: Polar-Tropical and Interhemisphere Linkages; Does the Ocean Cause, or Respond to, Abrupt Climatic Changes?; Biotic Responses to Major Paleoceanographic Changes; Past Warm Climates; and Innovations In Monitoring Ocean History. This is the first time in ICP history that the Conference Proceedings are published. The aim of the organisers with the publication of this book is two-fold: to provide a useful review of the field and to document the ideas/controversies raised during the con ference that may stimulate future work. The book reflects the initial intentions of the conference, but it is not a conven tional conference proceedings, given that the papers have been reviewed by formal exter nal referees. Each of the conference topics is introduced by a review article designed to summarize the state of the art in each theme followed by articles prepared by the invited speakers. As with most conference proceedings, each theme is covered heterogenously. Some topics have all the expected contributions, others are less well covered."

The PUILS series delivers up-to-date reviews of progress in Ultrafast Intense Laser Science, a newly emerging interdisciplinary research field spanning atomic and molecular physics, molecular science, and optical science, which has been stimulated by the recent developments in ultrafast laser technologies. Each volume compiles peer-reviewed articles authored by researchers at the forefront of each their own subfields of UILS. Every chapter opens with an overview of the topics to be discussed, so that researchers unfamiliar to the subfield, as well as graduate students, can grasp the importance and attractions of the research topic at hand; these are followed by reports of cutting-edge discoveries. This ninth volume covers a broad range of topics from this interdisciplinary research field, focusing on ultrafast molecular responses to an intense laser field, advanced techniques for attosecond pulse generation, atomic and molecular responses to attosecond pulses, photoelectron spectroscopy of atoms and molecules interacting with intense light fields, and attosecond pulse interaction with solid materials.

Ring polymers are one of the last big mysteries in polymer physics, and this thesis tackles the problem of describing their behaviour when interacting in dense solutions and with complex environments and reports key findings that help shed light on these complex issues. The systems investigated are not restricted to artificial polymer systems, but also cover biologically inspired ensembles, contributing to the broad applicability and interest of the conclusions reached. One of the most remarkable findings is the unambiguous evidence that rings inter-penetrate when in dense solutions; here this behaviour is shown to lead to the emergence of a glassy state solely driven by the topology of the constituents. This novel glassy state is unconventional in its nature and, thanks to its universal properties inherited from polymer physics, will attract the attention of a wide range of physicists in the years to come.

This new fourth edition of Allen's classic Astrophysical Quantities belongs on every astronomer's bookshelf. It has been thoroughly revised and brought up to date by a team of more than ninety internationally renowned astronomers and astrophysicists. While it follows the basic format of the original, this indispensable reference has grown to more than twice the size of the earlier editions to accommodate the great strides made in astronomy and astrophysics. It includes detailed tables of the most recent data on: - General constants and units - Atoms, molecules, and spectra - Observational astronomy at all wavelengths from radio to gamma-rays, and neutrinos - Planetary astronomy: Earth, planets and satellites, and solar system small bodies - The Sun, normal stars, and stars with special characteristics - Stellar populations - Cataclysmic and symbiotic variables, supernovae - Theoretical stellar evolution - Circumstellar and interstellar material - Star clusters, galaxies, quasars, and active galactic nuclei - Clusters and groups of galaxies - Cosmology. As well as much explanatory material and extensive and up-to-date bibliographies. The CD-ROM contains the full text of the book as a searchable PDF file.

This volume describes and discusses recent advances in angiogenesis research. The chapters are organized to address all biological length scales of angiogenesis: molecular, cellular and tissue in both in vivo and in vitro settings. Specific emphasis is given to novel methodologies and biomaterials that have been developed and applied to angiogenesis research. Angiogenesis experts from diverse fields including engineering, cell and developmental biology, chemistry and physics will be invited to contribute chapters which focus on the mechanical and chemical signals which affect and promote angiogenesis.

This book is a continuation of 'Acoustic and Elastic Wave Fields in Geophysics, Part I' published in 2000. The second volume is dedicated to propagation of linear plane, spherical and cylindrical acoustic waves in different media. Chapter 1 is devoted to principles of geometric acoustic in plane wave approximation. The eikonal and transport equations are derived. Ray tracing and wavefront construction techniques are explained. Chapter 2 deals with dynamic properties of wave fields. The behavior of pressure and displacements amplitudes in zero approximation is analysed in two ways: using Poynting vector and solving the transport equation. This chapter contains several examples related to shadow zones and caustics. In Chapter 3 using the results of analysis of high-frequency wave kinematics and dynamics some fundamental aspects of Kirchhoff migration are described. Chapters 4 and 5 are devoted to propagation of plane waves in media with flat boundaries in the case of normal and oblique incidence. Special attention is paid to the case when an incident angle exceeds the critical angles. Formation of normal modes in the waveguide is discussed. Chapter 6 deals with a spherical wave reflection and refraction. The steepest descent method is introduced to describe the behavior of reflected, transmitted, head and evanescent waves. In Chapter 7 propagation of stationary and transient waves in a waveguide formed by a flat layer with low velocity are investigated. Normal modes and waves related to the branch points of integrands under consideration are studied. Dispersive properties of normal modes are discussed. Chapter 8 describes wave propagation inside cylinder in acoustic media. Several appendices are added to help the reader understand different aspects of mathematics used in the book.

Ion channels are membrane proteins that act as gated pathways for the movement of ions across cell membranes. They play essential roles in the physiology of all cells. In recent years, an ever-increasing number of human and animal diseases have been found to result from defects in ion channel function. Most of these diseases arise from mutations in the genes encoding ion channel proteins, and they are now referred to as the channelopathies.
Ion Channels and Disease provides an informative and up-to-date account of our present understanding of ion channels and the molecular basis of ion channel diseases. It includes a basic introduction to the relevant aspects of molecular biology and biophysics and a brief description of the principal methods used to study channelopathies. For each channel, the relationship between its molecular structure and its functional properties is discussed and ways in which genetic mutations produce the disease phenotype are considered.
This book is intended for research workers and clinicians, as well as graduates and advanced undergraduates. The text is clear and lively and assumes little knowledge, yet it takes the reader to frontiers of what is currently known about this most exciting and medically important area of physiology.
Key Features
* Introduces the relevant aspects of molecular biology and biophysics
* Describes the principal methods used to study channelopathies
* Considers single classes of ion channels with summaries of the physiological role, subunit composition, molecular structure and chromosomal location, plus the relationship between channel structure and function
* Looks at those diseases associated with defective channel structures and regulation, including mutations affecting channel function and to what extent this change in channel function can account for the clinical phenotype