This is a book about the scientific process and how you apply it to data in ecology. You will learn how to plan for data collection, how to assemble data, how to analyze data and finally how to present the results. The book uses Microsoft Excel and the powerful Open Source R program to carry out data handling as well as producing graphs. Statistical approaches covered include: data exploration; tests for difference - t-test and U-test; correlation - Spearman's rank test and Pearson product-moment; association including Chi-squared tests and goodness of fit; multivariate testing using analysis of variance (ANOVA) and Kruskal-Wallis test; and multiple regression. Key skills taught in this book include: how to plan ecological projects; how to record and assemble your data; how to use R and Excel for data analysis and graphs; how to carry out a wide range of statistical analyses including analysis of variance and regression; how to create professional looking graphs; and how to present your results. New in this edition: a completely revised chapter on graphics including graph types and their uses, Excel Chart Tools, R graphics commands and producing different chart types in Excel and in R; an expanded range of support material online, including; example data, exercises and additional notes & explanations; a new chapter on basic community statistics, biodiversity and similarity; chapter summaries and end-of-chapter exercises. Praise for the first edition: This book is a superb way in for all those looking at how to design investigations and collect data to support their findings. - Sue Townsend, Biodiversity Learning Manager, Field Studies Council [M]akes it easy for the reader to synthesise R and Excel and there is extra help and sample data available on the free companion webpage if needed. I recommended this text to the university library as well as to colleagues at my student workshops on R. Although I initially bought this book when I wanted to discover R I actually also learned new techniques for data manipulation and management in Excel - Mark Edwards, EcoBlogging A must for anyone getting to grips with data analysis using R and excel. - Amazon 5-star review It has been very easy to follow and will be perfect for anyone. - Amazon 5-star review A solid introduction to working with Excel and R. The writing is clear and informative, the book provides plenty of examples and figures so that each string of code in R or step in Excel is understood by the reader. - Goodreads, 4-star review

Hone your advanced Excel 2016 skills. And earn the credential that proves it! Demonstrate your expertise with Microsoft Excel! Designed to help you practice and prepare for Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS): Excel Expert 2016 certification, this official Study Guide delivers: In-depth preparation for each MOS objective Detailed procedures to help build the skills measured by the exam Hands-on tasks to practice what you've learned Ready-made practice files Sharpen the skills measured by these objectives: Create and Manage Workbooks Apply Custom Formatting and Layouts Create Advanced Formulas Perform Data Analysis Create Advanced Charts and PivotTables

This book is a collection of writings by active researchers in the field of Artificial General Intelligence, on topics of central importance in the field. Each chapter focuses on one theoretical problem, proposes a novel solution, and is written in sufficiently non-technical language to be understandable by advanced undergraduates or scientists in allied fields. This book is the very first collection in the field of Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) focusing on theoretical, conceptual, and philosophical issues in the creation of thinking machines. All the authors are researchers actively developing AGI projects, thus distinguishing the book from much of the theoretical cognitive science and AI literature, which is generally quite divorced from practical AGI system building issues. And the discussions are presented in a way that makes the problems and proposed solutions understandable to a wide readership of non-specialists, providing a distinction from the journal and conference-proceedings literature. The book will benefit AGI researchers and students by giving them a solid orientation in the conceptual foundations of the field (which is not currently available anywhere); and it would benefit researchers in allied fields by giving them a high-level view of the current state of thinking in the AGI field. Furthermore, by addressing key topics in the field in a coherent way, the collection as a whole may play an important role in guiding future research in both theoretical and practical AGI, and in linking AGI research with work in allied disciplines

This book is a compilation of a selected subset of research articles presented at the Eighth INFORMS Computing Society Conference, held in Chandler, Arizona, from January 8 to 10, 2003. The articles in this book represent the diversity and depth of the interface between ORiMS (operations research and the management sciences) and CS/AI (computer science and artificial intelligence ). This volume starts with two papers that represent the reflective and integrative thinking that is critical to any scientific discipline. These two articles present philosophical perspectives on computation, covering a variety of traditional and newer methods for modeling, solving, and explaining mathematical models. The next set includes articles that study machine learning and computational heuristics, and is followed by articles that address issues in performance testing of solution algorithms and heuristics. These two sets of papers demonstrate the richness of thought that takes place at the ORiMS and CSI AI interface. The final set of articles demonstrates the usefulness of these and other methods at the interface towards solving problems in the real world, covering e-commerce, workflow, electronic negotiation, music, parallel computation, and telecommunications. The articles in this collection represent the results of cross-fertilization between ORiMS and CSI AI, making possible advances that could have not been achieved in isolation. The continuing aim ofthe INFORMS Computing Society and this research conference is to invigorate and further develop this interface.

Conceived for both computer scientists and biologists alike, this collection of 22 essays highlights the important new role that computers play in developmental biology research. Essays show how through computer modeling, researchers gain further insight into developmental processes. Featured essays also cover their use in designing computer algorithms to tackle computer science problems in areas like neural network design, robot control, evolvable hardware, and more. Peter Bentley, noted for his prolific research on evolutionary computation, and Sanjeev Kumar head up a respected team to guide readers through these very complex and fascinating disciplines.
* Covers both developmental biology and computational development -- the only book of its kind
* Provides introductory material and more detailed information on BOTH disciplines
* Includes contribututions from Richard Dawkins, Lewis Wolpert, Ian Stewart, and many other experts

This comprehensive book draws together experts to explore how knowledge technologies can be exploited to create new multimedia applications, and how multimedia technologies can provide new contexts for the use of knowledge technologies. Thorough coverage of all relevant topics is given. The step-by-step approach guides the reader from fundamental enabling technologies of ontologies, analysis and reasoning, through to applications which have hitherto had less attention.

This book provides a conceptual and computational framework to study how the nervous system exploits the anatomical properties of limbs to produce mechanical function. The study of the neural control of limbs has historically emphasized the use of optimization to find solutions to the muscle redundancy problem. That is, how does the nervous system select a specific muscle coordination pattern when the many muscles of a limb allow for multiple solutions? I revisit this problem from the emerging perspective of neuromechanics that emphasizes finding and implementing families of feasible solutions, instead of a single and unique optimal solution. Those families of feasible solutions emerge naturally from the interactions among the feasible neural commands, anatomy of the limb, and constraints of the task. Such alternative perspective to the neural control of limb function is not only biologically plausible, but sheds light on the most central tenets and debates in the fields of neural control, robotics, rehabilitation, and brain-body co-evolutionary adaptations. This perspective developed from courses I taught to engineers and life scientists at Cornell University and the University of Southern California, and is made possible by combining fundamental concepts from mechanics, anatomy, mathematics, robotics and neuroscience with advances in the field of computational geometry. Fundamentals of Neuromechanics is intended for neuroscientists, roboticists, engineers, physicians, evolutionary biologists, athletes, and physical and occupational therapists seeking to advance their understanding of neuromechanics. Therefore, the tone is decidedly pedagogical, engaging, integrative, and practical to make it accessible to people coming from a broad spectrum of disciplines. I attempt to tread the line between making the mathematical exposition accessible to life scientists, and convey the wonder and complexity of neuroscience to engineers and computational scientists. While no one approach can hope to definitively resolve the important questions in these related fields, I hope to provide you with the fundamental background and tools to allow you to contribute to the emerging field of neuromechanics.

The importance of knowledge and information technology management has been emphasized both by researchers and practitioners in order for companies to compete in the global market. Now such technologies have become crucial in a sense that there is a need to understand the business and operations strategies, as well as how the development of IT would contribute to knowledge management and therefore increase competitiveness. Knowledge and Information Technology Management: Human and Social Perspectives strives to explore the human resource and social dimensions of knowledge and IT management, to discuss the opportunities and major issues related to the management of people along the supply chain in Internet marketing, and to provide an understanding of how the human resource and the IT management should complement each other for improved communication and competitiveness.

Here is a thorough, not-overly-complex introduction to the three technical foundations for multimedia applications across the Internet: communications (principles, technologies and networking); compressive encoding of digital media; and Internet protocol and services. All the contributing systems elements are explained through descriptive text and numerous illustrative figures; the result is a book well-suited toward non-specialists, preferably with technical background, who need well-composed tutorial introductions to the three foundation areas. The text discusses the latest advances in digital audio and video encoding, optical and wireless communications technologies, high-speed access networks, and IP-based media streaming, all crucial enablers of the multimedia Internet.

Understanding how the human brain represents, stores, and processes information is one of the greatest unsolved mysteries of science today. The cerebral cortex is the seat of most of the mental capabilities that distinguish humans from other animals and, once understood, it will almost certainly lead to a better knowledge of other brain nuclei. Although neuroscience research has been underway for 150 years, very little progress has been made. What is needed is a key concept that will trigger a full understanding of existing information, and will also help to identify future directions for research. This book aims to help identify this key concept. Including contributions from leading experts in the field, it provides an overview of different conceptual frameworks that indicate how some pieces of the neuroscience puzzle fit together. It offers a representative selection of current ideas, concepts, analyses, calculations and computer experiments, and also looks at important advances such as the application of new modeling methodologies. Computational Models for Neuroscience will be essential reading for anyone who needs to keep up-to-date with the latest ideas in computational neuroscience, machine intelligence, and intelligent systems. It will also be useful background reading for advanced undergraduates and postgraduates taking courses in neuroscience and psychology.

Over the past 80 years, the way that citation frequency was counted and analyzed changed dramatically from the early manual transcribing and statistical computation of citation data to computer-based citation data creation and its manipulation.""Author Cocitation Analysis: Quantitative Methods for Mapping the Intellectual Structure of an Academic Discipline"" provides a blueprint for researchers to follow in a wide variety of investigations. Pertinent to faculty, researchers, and graduate students in any academic field, this book introduces an alternative approach to conducting author cocitation analysis (ACA) without relying on commercial citation databases.

Computer simulations not only belong to the most important methods for the theoretical investigation of granular materials, but provide the tools that have enabled much of the expanding research by physicists and engineers. The present book is intended to serve as an introduction to the application of numerical methods to systems of granular particles. Accordingly emphasis is on a general understanding of the subject rather than on the presentation of latest advances in numerical algorithms. Although a basic knowledge of C++ is needed for the understanding of the numerical methods and algorithms in the book, it avoids usage of elegant but complicated algorithms to remain accessible for those who prefer to use a different programming language. While the book focuses more on models than on the physics of granular material, many applications to real systems are presented.

New approaches to teaching are inherently important for any teacher, faculty member, or corporate trainer involved with the application of technology-based resources for instruction and learning. ICTs for Modern Educational and Instructional Advancement: New Approaches to Teaching explores current models and issues involved with online course development, assessment, and blended learning. Collecting an international collaboration of experts, this Premier Reference Source takes a futuristic peek at the classroom of the new millenium and emerging technologies expected in the 21st century.

OCS is becoming the dominant product for large-scale collaborationblending core functions of e-mail, file serving, and diary management with the additional functionality of web conferencing, instant messaging, and wireless access. Pro Oracle Collaboration Suite 10g provides all you need to know to install and configure OCS for use, but this book is much more than a to-do list.

It covers the architecture of the server processes and the applications, giving you the theoretical background to take OCS beyond the basics. Theres no need to worry if youre new to the Oracle database, Oracle Components for Java environment (OC4J), HTTP web servers, or LDAP Internet directorieseverything is explained carefully. But if you are already familiar with these topics, youll learn how to fully exploit them in order to optimize your OCS installation.

This isn't a book about the Object Data Standard; it's the complete,
fully authoritative version of the standard itself, presented by the
researchers who developed it. This book provides all the details
comprising ODMG 3.0, making the latest version of the specification
the most mature and most flexible yet.

When it comes to storing objects in databases, ODMG 3.0 is a
standard with which you need to be familiar-whether you design,
develop, or implement object database products, object-to-relational
database mapping products, or applications based on these products.
* Presents authoritative, completely up-to-date information not available anywhere else.
* Documents all the changes found in version 3.0, including enhancements to the Java language binding, greater semantic precision, and various improvements and corrections throughout the standard.
* Pays special attention to the broadening of the standard to support recent developments in object-to-database mappings (ODMs) that allow objects to be stored in relational databases.
* Provides a way to write Java, C++, or Smalltalk code that works with the entire spectrum of database products, while taking full advantage of your organization's preferred platform.
* Continues to cover everything retained from version 2.0, including key details relating to C++, Smalltalk, and Object Query Language.
* Establishes a level of stability for this increasingly important specification.

The Model-Free Prediction Principle expounded upon in this monograph is based on the simple notion of transforming a complex dataset to one that is easier to work with, e.g., i.i.d. or Gaussian. As such, it restores the emphasis on observable quantities, i.e., current and future data, as opposed to unobservable model parameters and estimates thereof, and yields optimal predictors in diverse settings such as regression and time series. Furthermore, the Model-Free Bootstrap takes us beyond point prediction in order to construct frequentist prediction intervals without resort to unrealistic assumptions such as normality. Prediction has been traditionally approached via a model-based paradigm, i.e., (a) fit a model to the data at hand, and (b) use the fitted model to extrapolate/predict future data. Due to both mathematical and computational constraints, 20th century statistical practice focused mostly on parametric models. Fortunately, with the advent of widely accessible powerful computing in the late 1970s, computer-intensive methods such as the bootstrap and cross-validation freed practitioners from the limitations of parametric models, and paved the way towards the `big data' era of the 21st century. Nonetheless, there is a further step one may take, i.e., going beyond even nonparametric models; this is where the Model-Free Prediction Principle is useful. Interestingly, being able to predict a response variable Y associated with a regressor variable X taking on any possible value seems to inadvertently also achieve the main goal of modeling, i.e., trying to describe how Y depends on X. Hence, as prediction can be treated as a by-product of model-fitting, key estimation problems can be addressed as a by-product of being able to perform prediction. In other words, a practitioner can use Model-Free Prediction ideas in order to additionally obtain point estimates and confidence intervals for relevant parameters leading to an alternative, transformation-based approach to statistical inference.

With the fast growth ofmultimedia information, content-based video anal- ysis, indexing and representation have attracted increasing attention in re- cent years. Many applications have emerged in these areas such as video- on-demand, distributed multimedia systems, digital video libraries, distance learning/education, entertainment, surveillance and geographical information systems. The need for content-based video indexing and retrieval was also rec- ognized by ISOIMPEG, and a new international standard called "Multimedia Content Description Interface" (or in short, MPEG-7)was initialized in 1998 and finalized in September 2001. In this context, a systematic and thorough review ofexisting approaches as well as the state-of-the-art techniques in video content analysis, indexing and representation areas are investigated and studied in this book. In addition, we will specifically elaborate on a system which analyzes, indexes and abstracts movie contents based on the integration ofmultiple media modalities. Content ofeach part ofthis book is briefly previewed below. In the first part, we segment a video sequence into a set ofcascaded shots, where a shot consistsofone or more continuouslyrecorded image frames. Both raw and compressedvideo data will beinvestigated. Moreover, consideringthat there are always non-story units in real TV programs such as commercials, a novel commercial break detection/extraction scheme is developed which ex- ploits both audio and visual cues to achieve robust results. Specifically, we first employ visual cues such as the video data statistics, the camera cut fre- quency, and the existenceofdelimiting black frames between commercials and programs, to obtain coarse-level detection results.

Research in the field of multimedia metadata is especially challenging: Lots of scientific publications and reports on research projects are published every year and the range of possible applications is diverse and huge. This book gives an overview on fundamental issues within the field of multimedia metadata focusing on contextualized, ubiquitous, accessible and interoperable services on a higher semantic level. The book in hand provides a selection of basic articles being a base for multimedia metadata research. Furthermore it presents a view on the current state of the art in multimedia metadata research. It provides information from versatile applications domains (Broadcasting, Interactive TV, E-Learning and Social Software) such as: Multimedia on the Web 2.0 - Databases for Multimedia (Meta-)Data - Multimedia Information Retrieval and Evaluation - Multimedia Metadata Standards - Ontologies for Multimedia.

The multimedia metadata community (www.multimedia-metadata.info), wherefrom this book originated, brings together experts from research and industry in the area of multimedia metadata research and application development. The community bridges the gap between an academic research and an industrial scale development of innovative products. By summarizing the work of the community this book contributes to the aforementioned fields by addressing these topics for a broad range of readers.

* With Oracle 10g, for the first time, much of the Spatial functionality is provided for free (rather than as a priced option) in the database, thus massively increasing the potential audience. * Shows how any Oracle application that has a spatial element (e.g. postcode) can take advantage of Spatial functionality. * Contains case studies of more advanced applications of Spatial in healthcare, telecom ,retail, and distribution . * Oracle Spatial is recognized to be the standard platform for enterprise land management, mapping, telecom, transportation, and utility applications. Every major GIS tool vendor supports Oracle Spatial and all major map data providers deliver their data in Oracle Spatial format. * The book will be based on extensive feedback from training courses, discussion lists, and customers. It will recommend best practice approaches to the most common problems with which developers struggle. * The authors are all experienced and well-respected experts. The Oracle personnel contributing have a decade of experience with Spatial and in helping partners and customers fully leverage its capabilities. The technical reviewers include lead developers of the product. * Rather than simplified code snippets, the book provides real solutions that people can then build upon themselves.

This book brings together some of the most influential pieces of research undertaken around the world in design synthesis. It is the first comprehensive work of this kind and covers all three aspects of research in design synthesis:- understanding what constitutes and influences synthesis;- the major approaches to synthesis;- the diverse range of tools that are created to support this crucial design task.The chapters are comprised of cutting edge research and established methods, written by the originators of this growing field of research. They cover all major generic synthesis approaches i.e., composition, retrieval, change and repair, and tackle problems that come from a wide variety of domains within architecture and engineering as well as areas of application including clocks, sensors and medical devices. The book contains an editorial introduction to the chapters and the broader context of research they represent. With its range of tools and methods covered, it is an ideal introduction to design synthesis for those intending to research in this area as well as being a valuable source of ideas for educators and practitioners of engineering design.

This book introduces the latest progress in six degrees of freedom (6-DoF) haptic rendering with the focus on a new approach for simulating force/torque feedback in performing tasks that require dexterous manipulation skills. One of the major challenges in 6-DoF haptic rendering is to resolve the conflict between high speed and high fidelity requirements, especially in simulating a tool interacting with both rigid and deformable objects in a narrow space and with fine features. The book presents a configuration-based optimization approach to tackle this challenge. Addressing a key issue in many VR-based simulation systems, the book will be of particular interest to researchers and professionals in the areas of surgical simulation, rehabilitation, virtual assembly, and inspection and maintenance.