This edited volume focuses on how we can protect our environment and enhance environmental sustainability when faced with changes and pressures imposed by our expansive needs. The volume unites multiple subject areas within sustainability, enabling the techniques and philosophy in the chapters to be applied to research areas in environmental science, plant sciences, energy, biodiversity and conservation. The chapters from expert contributors cover topics such as mathematical modelling tools used to monitor diversity of plant species, and the stability of ecosystem services such as biogeochemical cycling. Empirical research presented here also brings together mathematical developments in the important fields of robotics including kinematics, dynamics, path planning, control, vision, and swarmanoids. Through this book readers will also discover about rainfall-runoff modelling which will give them a better idea of the effects of climate change on the sustainability of water resources at the watershed scale. Modelling approaches will also be examined that maximize readers insights into the global problem of energy transition, i.e. the switch to an energy production system using renewable resources only. Collective and discrete insights are made to assist with synergy which should progress well beyond this book. Insight is also given to assist policy formations, development and implementations. The book has a strong multi-disciplinary nature at its core, and will appeal to both generalist readers and specialists in information technology, mathematics, biology, physics, chemistry and environmental sciences.

Object-Oriented Computer Simulation of Discrete-Event Systems offers a comprehensive presentation of a wide repertoire of computer simulation techniques available to the modelers of dynamic systems. Unlike other books on simulation, this book includes a complete and balanced description of all essential issues relevant to computer simulation of discrete event systems, and it teaches simulation users how to design, program and exploit their own computer simulation models. In addition, it uses the object-oriented methodology throughout the book as its main programming platform. The reader is expected to have some background in the theory of probability and statistics and only a little programming experience in C++, as the book is not tied down to any particular simulation language. The book also provides 50 complete simulation problems to assist with writing such simulation programs. Object-Oriented Computer Simulation of Discrete-Event Systems demonstrates the basic and generic concepts used in computer simulation of discrete-event systems in a comprehensive, uniform and self-contained manner.

The gathering and storage of data indexed in space and time are experiencing unprecedented growth, demanding for advanced and adapted tools to analyse them. This thesis deals with the exploration and modelling of complex high-frequency and non-stationary spatio-temporal data. It proposes an efficient framework in modelling with machine learning algorithms spatio-temporal fields measured on irregular monitoring networks, accounting for high dimensional input space and large data sets. The uncertainty quantification is enabled by specifying this framework with the extreme learning machine, a particular type of artificial neural network for which analytical results, variance estimation and confidence intervals are developed. Particular attention is also paid to a highly versatile exploratory data analysis tool based on information theory, the Fisher-Shannon analysis, which can be used to assess the complexity of distributional properties of temporal, spatial and spatio-temporal data sets. Examples of the proposed methodologies are concentrated on data from environmental sciences, with an emphasis on wind speed modelling in complex mountainous terrain and the resulting renewable energy assessment. The contributions of this thesis can find a large number of applications in several research domains where exploration, understanding, clustering, interpolation and forecasting of complex phenomena are of utmost importance.

Introduction to Computational Models with Python explains how to implement computational models using the flexible and easy-to-use Python programming language. The book uses the Python programming language interpreter and several packages from the huge Python Library that improve the performance of numerical computing, such as the Numpy and Scipy modules. The Python source code and data files are available on the author's website. The book's five sections present: An overview of problem solving and simple Python programs, introducing the basic models and techniques for designing and implementing problem solutions, independent of software and hardware tools Programming principles with the Python programming language, covering basic programming concepts, data definitions, programming structures with flowcharts and pseudo-code, solving problems, and algorithms Python lists, arrays, basic data structures, object orientation, linked lists, recursion, and running programs under Linux Implementation of computational models with Python using Numpy, with examples and case studies The modeling of linear optimization problems, from problem formulation to implementation of computational models This book introduces the principles of computational modeling as well as the approaches of multi- and interdisciplinary computing to beginners in the field. It provides the foundation for more advanced studies in scientific computing, including parallel computing using MPI, grid computing, and other methods and techniques used in high-performance computing.

Data and its technologies now play a large and growing role in humanities research and teaching. This book addresses the needs of humanities scholars who seek deeper expertise in the area of data modeling and representation. The authors, all experts in digital humanities, offer a clear explanation of key technical principles, a grounded discussion of case studies, and an exploration of important theoretical concerns. The book opens with an orientation, giving the reader a history of data modeling in the humanities and a grounding in the technical concepts necessary to understand and engage with the second part of the book. The second part of the book is a wide-ranging exploration of topics central for a deeper understanding of data modeling in digital humanities. Chapters cover data modeling standards and the role they play in shaping digital humanities practice, traditional forms of modeling in the humanities and how they have been transformed by digital approaches, ontologies which seek to anchor meaning in digital humanities resources, and how data models inhabit the other analytical tools used in digital humanities research. It concludes with a glossary chapter that explains specific terms and concepts for data modeling in the digital humanities context. This book is a unique and invaluable resource for teaching and practising data modeling in a digital humanities context.

Computational Creativity, Concept Invention, and General Intelligence in their own right all are flourishing research disciplines producing surprising and captivating results that continuously influence and change our view on where the limits of intelligent machines lie, each day pushing the boundaries a bit further. By 2014, all three fields also have left their marks on everyday life - machine-composed music has been performed in concert halls, automated theorem provers are accepted tools in enterprises' R&D departments, and cognitive architectures are being integrated in pilot assistance systems for next generation airplanes. Still, although the corresponding aims and goals are clearly similar (as are the common methods and approaches), the developments in each of these areas have happened mostly individually within the respective community and without closer relationships to the goings-on in the other two disciplines. In order to overcome this gap and to provide a common platform for interaction and exchange between the different directions, the International Workshops on "Computational Creativity, Concept Invention, and General Intelligence" (C3GI) have been started. At ECAI-2012 and IJCAI-2013, the first and second edition of C3GI each gathered researchers from all three fields, presenting recent developments and results from their research and in dialogue and joint debates bridging the disciplinary boundaries. The chapters contained in this book are based on expanded versions of accepted contributions to the workshops and additional selected contributions by renowned researchers in the relevant fields. Individually, they give an account of the state-of-the-art in their respective area, discussing both, theoretical approaches as well as implemented systems. When taken together and looked at from an integrative perspective, the book in its totality offers a starting point for a (re)integration of Computational Creativity, Concept Invention, and General Intelligence, making visible common lines of work and theoretical underpinnings, and pointing at chances and opportunities arising from the interplay of the three fields.

This introductory textbook is designed for a one-semester course on the use of the matrix and analytical methods for the performance analysis of telecommunication systems. It provides an introduction to the modelling and analysis of telecommunication systems for a broad interdisciplinary audience of students in mathematics and applied disciplines such as computer science, electronics engineering, and operations research.

This book discusses major technical advancements and research findings in the field of prognostic modelling in healthcare image and data analysis. The use of prognostic modelling as predictive models to solve complex problems of data mining and analysis in health care is the feature of this book. The book examines the recent technologies and studies that reached the practical level and becoming available in preclinical and clinical practices in computational intelligence. The main areas of interest covered in this book are highest quality, original work that contributes to the basic science of processing, analysing and utilizing all aspects of advanced computational prognostic modelling in healthcare image and data analysis.

At the intersection of astronautics, computer science, and social science, this book introduces the challenges and insights associated with computer simulation of human society in outer space, and of the dynamics of terrestrial enthusiasm for space exploration. Never before have so many dynamic representations of space-related social systems existed, some deeply analyzing the logical implications of social-scientific theories, and others open for experience by the general public as computer-generated virtual worlds. Fascinating software ranges from multi-agent artificial intelligence models of civilization, to space-oriented massively multiplayer online games, to educational programs suitable for schools or even for the world's space exploration agencies. At the present time, when actual forays by humans into space are scarce, computer simulations of space societies are an excellent way to prepare for a renaissance of exploration beyond the bounds of Earth.

This book systematically introduces readers to the finite element analysis software DIANA (DIsplacement ANAlyzer) and its applications in civil engineering. Developed by TNO Corporation in the 1970s, DIANA is frequently used in civil engineering and engineering mechanics. Unlike the software user's manual, which provides a comprehensive introduction and theoretical analysis, this book presents a simplified overview of the basic background theory to help beginners master the software quickly. It also discusses GUI operation and the command console in Python language, and includes examples involving classical modeling operations to help readers review each section. Both the book and DIANA itself are valuable resources for students and researchers in all the structural engineering fields, such as civil engineering, bridge engineering, geotechnical engineering, tunnel engineering, underground structural engineering, irrigation, municipal engineering and fire engineering.

The articles in this book review hybrid experimental-computational methods applied to soft tissues which have been developed by worldwide specialists in the field. People developing computational models of soft tissues and organs will find solutions for calibrating the material parameters of their models; people performing tests on soft tissues will learn what to extract from the data and how to use these data for their models and people worried about the complexity of the biomechanical behavior of soft tissues will find relevant approaches to address this complexity.

Software, Animation and the Moving Image brings a unique perspective to the study of computer-generated animation by placing interviews undertaken with animators alongside an analysis of the user interface of animation software. Wood develops a novel framework for considering computer-generated images found in visual effects and animations.

Colloids are ubiquitous in the food, medical, cosmetics, polymers, water purification, and pharmaceutical industries. The thermal, mechanical, and storage properties of colloids are highly dependent on their interface morphology and their rheological behavior. Numerical methods provide a convenient and reliable tool for the study of colloids.

"Accelerated Lattice Boltzmann Model for Colloidal Suspensions" introduce the main building-blocks for an improved lattice Boltzmann based numerical tool designed for the study of colloidal rheology and interface morphology. This book also covers the migrating multi-block used to simulate single component, multi-component, multiphase, and single component multiphase flows and their validation by experimental, numerical, and analytical solutions.

Among other topics discussed are the hybrid lattice Boltzmann method (LBM) for surfactant-covered droplets; biological suspensions such as blood; used in conjunction with the suppression of coalescence for investigating the rheology of colloids and microvasculature blood flow.

The presented LBM model provides a flexible numerical platform consisting of various modules that could be used separately or in combination for the study of a variety of colloids and biological flow deformation problems."

Deeply rooted in fundamental research in Mathematics and Computer Science, Cellular Automata (CA) are recognized as an intuitive modeling paradigm for Complex Systems. Already very basic CA, with extremely simple micro dynamics such as the Game of Life, show an almost endless display of complex emergent behavior. Conversely, CA can also be designed to produce a desired emergent behavior, using either theoretical methodologies or evolutionary techniques. Meanwhile, beyond the original realm of applications - Physics, Computer Science, and Mathematics - CA have also become work horses in very different disciplines such as epidemiology, immunology, sociology, and finance. In this context of fast and impressive progress, spurred further by the enormous attraction these topics have on students, this book emerges as a welcome overview of the field for its practitioners, as well as a good starting point for detailed study on the graduate and post-graduate level. The book contains three parts, two major parts on theory and applications, and a smaller part on software. The theory part contains fundamental chapters on how to design and/or apply CA for many different areas. In the applications part a number of representative examples of really using CA in a broad range of disciplines is provided - this part will give the reader a good idea of the real strength of this kind of modeling as well as the incentive to apply CA in their own field of study. Finally, we included a smaller section on software, to highlight the important work that has been done to create high quality problem solving environments that allow to quickly and relatively easily implement a CA model and run simulations, both on the desktop and if needed, on High Performance Computing infrastructures.

The second volume of this research monograph describes a number of applications of Artificial Intelligence in the field of Customer Relationship Management with the focus of solving customer problems. We design a system that tries to understand the customer complaint, his mood, and what can be done to resolve an issue with the product or service. To solve a customer problem efficiently, we maintain a dialogue with the customer so that the problem can be clarified and multiple ways to fix it can be sought. We introduce dialogue management based on discourse analysis: a systematic linguistic way to handle the thought process of the author of the content to be delivered. We analyze user sentiments and personal traits to tailor dialogue management to individual customers. We also design a number of dialogue scenarios for CRM with replies following certain patterns and propose virtual and social dialogues for various modalities of communication with a customer. After we learn to detect fake content, deception and hypocrisy, we examine the domain of customer complaints. We simulate mental states, attitudes and emotions of a complainant and try to predict his behavior. Having suggested graph-based formal representations of complaint scenarios, we machine-learn them to identify the best action the customer support organization can chose to retain the complainant as a customer.

The new edition of 3D Game Textures: Create Professional Game Art Using Photoshop features the most up-to-date techniques that allow you to create your own unique textures, shaders, and materials. Revised to take new technology into account, it is an ideal hands-on resource for creating online worlds, simulations, web-based applications, and architectural visualization projects. Continuing the practical, no-nonsense approach of its predecessors, the fourth edition shows you how to advance your digital art skills with textures and shaders by exploring their interactions in single objects or entire scenes. It contains expanded coverage of shader nodes, and the companion website-www.lukeahearn.com/textures-has been updated to include video tutorials as well as updated sample textures, shaders, materials, actions, brushes, and all of the art from the book.

Examines classic algorithms, geometric diagrams, and mechanical principles for enhancing visualization of statistical estimation procedures and mathematical concepts in physics, engineering, and computer programming.

In this self-consistent monograph, the author gathers and describes different mathematical techniques and combines all together to form practical procedures for the inverse analyses. It puts together topics coming from mathematical programming, with soft computing and Proper Orthogonal Decomposition, in order to show, in the context of structural analyses, how the things work and what are the main problems one needs to tackle.

Throughout the book a number of examples and exercises are worked out in order to make reader practically familiar with discussed topics.

3D technology is not new; research on 3D started back in early 1960s. But unlike in previous times, 3D technology has now rapidly entered our daily life from cinema to office to home. Using 3D for education is a new yet challenging task. This book will present several innovative efforts using 3D for immersive and interactive learning covering a wide spectrum of education including gifted program, normal (technical) stream, and special needs education. The book will also share experience on curriculum-based 3D learning in classroom setting and co-curriculum-based 3D student research projects. The book is organized as follows. Chapter 1 introduces the fundamentals of 3D educational technology and their applications in immersive and interactive learning. Chapter 2 discusses the use of virtual reality in teaching and learning of Molecular Biology. Chapter 3 presents the daVinci Lab @ River Valley High School. Chapter 4 describes the 3D education development process. Chapter 5 studies the adaption 3D system for learning gains in lower secondary normal (technical) stream. Chapter 6 investigates the effects of virtual reality technology on spatial visualization skills. Chapter 7 showcases a sabbatical program for students to use 3D for Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) learning. Chapter 8 shares the use of 3D virtual pink dolphin to assist special education. The foreword of this book is written by Dr Cheah Horn Mun, Director, Education Technology Division, Ministry of Education, Singapore.

Get up and running with AutoCAD using Gindis' combination of step-by-step instruction, examples and insightful explanations. The emphasis from the beginning is on core concepts and practical application of AutoCAD in engineering, architecture, and design. Equally useful in instructor-led classroom training, self-study, or as a professional reference, the book is written with the user in mind by a long-time AutoCAD professional and instructor based on what works in the industry and the classroom.

The aim of the book is to give an accessible introduction of mathematical models and signal processing methods in speech and hearing sciences for senior undergraduate and beginning graduate students with basic knowledge of linear algebra, differential equations, numerical analysis, and probability. Speech and hearing sciences are fundamental to numerous technological advances of the digital world in the past decade, from music compression in MP3 to digital hearing aids, from network based voice enabled services to speech interaction with mobile phones. Mathematics and computation are intimately related to these leaps and bounds. On the other hand, speech and hearing are strongly interdisciplinary areas where dissimilar scientific and engineering publications and approaches often coexist and make it difficult for newcomers to enter.

This book presents tutorial overviews for many applications of variational methods to molecular modeling. Topics discussed include the Gibbs-Bogoliubov-Feynman variational principle, square-gradient models, classical density functional theories, self-consistent-field theories, phase-field methods, Ginzburg-Landau and Helfrich-type phenomenological models, dynamical density functional theory, and variational Monte Carlo methods. Illustrative examples are given to facilitate understanding of the basic concepts and quantitative prediction of the properties and rich behavior of diverse many-body systems ranging from inhomogeneous fluids, electrolytes and ionic liquids in micropores, colloidal dispersions, liquid crystals, polymer blends, lipid membranes, microemulsions, magnetic materials and high-temperature superconductors. All chapters are written by leading experts in the field and illustrated with tutorial examples for their practical applications to specific subjects. With emphasis placed on physical understanding rather than on rigorous mathematical derivations, the content is accessible to graduate students and researchers in the broad areas of materials science and engineering, chemistry, chemical and biomolecular engineering, applied mathematics, condensed-matter physics, without specific training in theoretical physics or calculus of variations.

This book presents in-depth coverage of laboratory experiments, theories, modeling techniques, and practices for the analysis and design of rock slopes in complex geological settings. It addresses new concepts in connection with the kinematical element method, discontinuity kinematical element method, integrated karst cave stochastic model-limit equilibrium method, improved strength reduction method, and fracture mechanics method, taking into account the relevant geological features. The book is chiefly intended as a reference guide for geotechnical engineering and engineering geology professionals, and as a textbook for related graduate courses.