Nowadays neural computation has become an interdisciplinary field in its own right; researches have been conducted ranging from diverse disciplines, e.g. computational neuroscience and cognitive science, mathematics, physics, computer science, and other engineering disciplines. From different perspectives, neural computation provides an alternative methodology to understand brain functions and cognitive process and to solve challenging real-world problems effectively.

Trends in Neural Computation includes twenty chapters either contributed from leading experts or formed by extending well selected papers presented in the 2005 International Conference on Natural Computation. The edited book aims to reflect the latest progresses made in different areas of neural computation, including theoretical neural computation, biologically plausible neural modeling, computational cognitive science, artificial neural networks architectures and learning algorithms and their applications in real-world problems."

For almost four decades, Software Engineering: A Practitioner's Approach (SEPA) has been the world's leading textbook in software engineering. The ninth edition represents a major restructuring and update of previous editions, solidifying the book's position as the most comprehensive guide to this important subject.

This text in the series "Innovations in GIS", continues the theme of directions in geographical information systems research established by the four previous Research UK (GISRUK) conferences. The chapters reflect the interdisciplinary nature of GIS research and includes coverage of such themes as: virtual GIS; spatial analysis; artificial intelligence; spatial agents and fuzzy systems; and space-time GIS and GIS applications.

An ideal reference source for CEOs, marketing and sales managers, sales consultants, and students of international marketing, Guide to Software Export provides a step-by-step approach to initiating or expanding international software sales. It teaches you how to examine critically your candidate product for exportability; how to find distributors, agents, and resellers abroad; how to identify the best distribution structure for export; and much, much more Not content with providing just the guidelines for setting up, expanding, and managing your international sales channels, Guide to Software Export advises you on pitfalls to avoid, important legal and financial considerations associated with software export, and essential market and distribution information. In an effort to cover all the bases, this comprehensive text also discusses: negotiating partnerships electronic marketing evaluating the competition cultural assumptions and biases adapting software for use in Asian markets information sources on the Internet distribution channel strategiesIf you re not satisfied with your company 's international sales performance or you want to get into the global market, Guide to Software Export can help you guide your company through the transition. With the book 's easy-to-follow advice and checkpoints, you are sure to bring new levels of success to your company, so act now and get out in the forefront of software exporting.

In the past few years, an increasing number of colleges and universities have added courses in biomedical ethics to their curricula. To some extent, these additions serve to satisfy student demands for "relevance. " But it is also true that such changes reflect a deepening desire on the part of the academic community to deal effectively with a host of problems which must be solved if we are to have a health-care delivery system which is efficient, humane, and just. To a large degree, these problems are the unique result of both rapidly changing moral values and dramatic advances in biomedical technology. The past decade has witnessed sudden and conspicuous controversy over the morality and legality of new practices relating to abortion, therapy for the mentally ill, experimentation using human subjects, forms of genetic interven tion, and euthanasia. Malpractice suits abound, and astronomical fees for malpractice insurance threaten the very possibility of medical and health-care practice. Without the backing of a clear moral consensus, the law is frequently forced into resolving these conflicts only to see the moral issues involved still hotly debated and the validity of the existing law further questioned. Take abortion, for example. Rather than settling the legal issue, the Supreme Court's original abortion decision in Roe v. Wade (1973), seems only to have spurred further legal debate. And of course, whether or not abortion is a mo rally ac ceptable procedure is still the subject of heated dispute."

The emergence and widespread use personal computers and network technologies have seen the development of interest in the use of computers to support cooperative work. This volume presents the proceedings of the ninth European conference on Computer Supported Cooperative Work (CSCW). This is a multidisciplinary area that embraces the development of new technologies grounded in actual cooperative practices. These proceedings contain a collection of papers that reflect the variegated research activities in the field. The volume includes papers addressing novel interaction technologies for CSCW systems, new models and architectures for groupware systems, studies of communication and coordination among mobile actors, studies of cooperative work in complex settings, studies of groupware systems in actual use in real-world settings, and theories and techniques to support the development of cooperative applications. The papers present emerging technologies alongside new methods and approaches to the development of this important class of applications. The work in this volume represents the best of the current research and practice within CSCW. The collection of papers presented here will appeal to researchers and practitioners alike, as they combine an understanding of the nature of work with the possibility offered by new technologies.

Hypertext, email, word-processing: electronic technologies have revolutionized the way we write language. How does language on screen work differently from language on the page? What new literacy skills are needed and how do we teach them?
"Page to Screen" collects some of the best contemporary thinkers in the fields of literacy and technology to discuss the impacts of new media on language. The contributors analyze the potential of new forms of text, the increased emphasis on visual representation, new forms of rhetoric, learning in the age of global communication networks and new approaches to storytelling.
Timely and important, this collection tackles important questions about the future of language and the way we use and teach it.

Documents, such as drawings, memos and specifications, form an essential function in the design and construction industry. Throughout the lifecycle of a built asset, starting from an initial design idea, right through to a final built form and its ongoing management, thousands, even millions of documents can be used to convey various forms of information to a range of interested parties. In many ways, therefore, the success of a design, or construction-based company, relies upon an understanding of the use of documents, as well as the technologies and techniques that are used to create them.

The Digital Document provides an extensive background to the issues and technologies surrounding this very important topic. It examines a technical subject in an insightful manner that is neither intimidating nor confusing, even to the novice computer user. By introducing the subject through a series of preliminary reviews of current practices and essential computing technologies, the reader is able to better appreciate the benefits and capabilities of a wide range of digital document types. This book explores the role of documents in a professional practice, examines the components, capabilities, viability, and use of digital documents in the design and construction industry, and identifies and explains many of the
standards in use today.
In order to facilitate a better understanding of digital document technologies, a number of essential reviews are provided including:
- the definition and purpose of a document
- how documents are typically used by design professionals
- the nature of the digital document environment
- the data types which make up digital documents
The Digital Document is an essential reference for the architect, engineer or design professional that wants to find out more about effective communication in the digital workplace.
Bruce Duyshart is an IT Project Manager with Lend Lease Corporation and specialises in the development and implementation of digital media and information management technologies on design and construction projects. He holds a Masters degree in Architecture and is also an academic associate of the Faculty of Architecture, Building and Planning at the University of Melbourne. He has written numerous papers on emerging technologies in the architecture, engineering and construction industry, and has developed Internet web sites for the Royal Australian Institute of Architects and Architecture Media.
Only book available on this subjectMeets an increasing awareness of the importance of digital documentsEndorsed by influential organisations and institutions: Lend Lease, The University of Melbourne and the Royal Australian Institute of Architects

Formal Techniques in Real-Time and Fault-Tolerant Systems focuses on the state of the art in formal specification, development and verification of fault-tolerant computing systems. The term fault-tolerance' refers to a system having properties which enable it to deliver its specified function despite (certain) faults of its subsystem. Fault-tolerance is achieved by adding extra hardware and/or software which corrects the effects of faults. In this sense, a system can be called fault-tolerant if it can be proved that the resulting (extended) system under some model of reliability meets the reliability requirements. The main theme of Formal Techniques in Real-Time and Fault-Tolerant Systems can be formulated as follows: how do the specification, development and verification of conventional and fault-tolerant systems differ? How do the notations, methodology and tools used in design and development of fault-tolerant and conventional systems differ? Formal Techniques in Real-Time and Fault-Tolerant Systems is divided into two parts. The chapters in Part One set the stage for what follows by defining the basic notions and practices of the field of design and specification of fault-tolerant systems. The chapters in Part Two represent the how-to' section, containing examples of the use of formal methods in specification and development of fault-tolerant systems. The book serves as an excellent reference for researchers in both academia and industry, and may be used as a text for advanced courses on the subject.

At first glance the concepts of time and of Petri nets are quite contrary: while time determines the occurrences of events in a system, classic Petri nets consider their causal relationships and they represent events as concurrent systems. But if we take a closer look at how time and causality are intertwined we realize that there are many possible ways in which time and Petri nets interact. This book takes a closer look at three time-dependent Petri nets: Time Petri nets, Timed Petri nets, and Petri nets with time windows.

The author first explains classic Petri nets and their fundamental properties. Then the pivotal contribution of the book is the introduction of different algorithms that allow us to analyze time-dependent Petri nets. For Time Petri nets, the author presents an algorithm that proves the behavioral equivalence of a net where time is designed once with real and once with natural numbers, so we can reduce the state space and consider the integer states exclusively. For Timed Petri nets, the author introduces two time-dependent state equations, providing a sufficient condition for the non-reachability of states, and she also defines a local transformation for converting these nets into Time Petri nets. Finally, she shows that Petri nets with time-windows have the ability to realize every transition sequence fired in the net omitting time restrictions.

These classes of time-dependent Petri nets show that time alone does not change the power of a Petri net, in fact time may or may not be used to force firing. For Time Petri nets and Timed Petri nets we can say that they are Turing-powerful, and thus more powerful than classic Petri nets, because there is a compulsion to fire at some point in time. By contrast, Petri nets with time-windows have no compulsion to fire, their expressiveness power is less than that of Turing-machines.

This book derives from advanced lectures, and the text is supported throughout withexamples and exercises. It issuitable for graduate courses in computer science, mathematics, engineering, and related disciplines, and as a reference for researchers."

Explores both counter-terrorism and enabling policy dimensions of emerging information technologies in national security

After the September 11th attacks, "connecting the dots" has become the watchword for using information and intelligence to protect the United States from future terrorist attacks. Advanced and emerging information technologies offer key assets in confronting a secretive, asymmetric, and networked enemy. Yet, in a free and open society, policies must ensure that these powerful technologies are used responsibly, and that privacy and civil liberties remain protected.

Emergent Information Technologies and Enabling Policies for Counter-Terrorism provides a unique, integrated treatment of cutting-edge counter-terrorism technologies and their corresponding policy options. Featuring contributions from nationally recognized authorities and experts, this book brings together a diverse knowledge base for those charged with protecting our nation from terrorist attacks while preserving our civil liberties.

Topics covered include: Counter-terrorism modeling Quantitative and computational social science Signal processing and information management techniques Semantic Web and knowledge management technologies Information and intelligence sharing technologies Text/data processing and language translation technologies Social network analysis Legal standards for data mining Potential structures for enabling policies Technical system designto support policy

Countering terrorism in today's world requires innovative technologies and corresponding creative policies; the two cannot be practically and realistically addressed separately. Emergent Information Technologies and Enabling Policies for Counter-Terrorism offers a comprehensive examination of both areas, serving as an essential resource for students, practitioners, researchers, developers, and decision-makers.

Rapid increases in chip complexity, increasingly faster clocks, and the proliferation of portable devices have combined to make power dissipation an important design parameter. The power consumption of a digital system determines its heat dissipation as well as battery life. For some systems, power has become the most critical design constraint. Computer-Aided Design Techniques for Low Power Sequential Logic Circuits presents a methodology for low power design. The authors first present a survey of techniques for estimating the average power dissipation of a logic circuit. At the logic level, power dissipation is directly related to average switching activity. A symbolic simulation method that accurately computes the average switching activity in logic circuits is then described. This method is extended to handle sequential logic circuits by modeling correlation in time and by calculating the probabilities of present state lines. Computer-Aided Design Techniques for Low Power Sequential Logic Circuits then presents a survey of methods to optimize logic circuits for low power dissipation which target reduced switching activity. A method to retime a sequential logic circuit where registers are repositioned such that the overall glitching in the circuit is minimized is also described. The authors then detail a powerful optimization method that is based on selectively precomputing the output logic values of a circuit one clock cycle before they are required, and using the precomputed value to reduce internal switching activity in the succeeding clock cycle. Presented next is a survey of methods that reduce switching activity in circuits described at the register-transfer and behavioral levels. Also described is a scheduling algorithm that reduces power dissipation by maximising the inactivity period of the modules in a given circuit. Computer-Aided Design Techniques for Low Power Sequential Logic Circuits concludes with a summary and directions for future research.

Whether you're taking the CPHIMS exam or simply want the most current and comprehensive overview in healthcare information and management systems today, this completely revised and updated fourth edition has it all. But for those preparing for the CPHIMS exam, this book is also an ideal study partner. The content reflects the outline of exam topics covering healthcare and technology environments; clinical informatics; analysis, design, selection, implementation, support, maintenance, testing, evaluation, privacy and security; and management and leadership. Candidates can challenge themselves with the sample multiple-choice questions given at the end of the book. The benefits of CPHIMS certification are broad and far-reaching. Certification is a process that is embraced in many industries, including healthcare information and technology. CPHIMS is recognized as the 'gold standard' in healthcare IT because it is developed by HIMSS, has a global focus and is valued by clinicians and non-clinicians, management and staff positions and technical and nontechnical individuals. Certification, specifically CPHIMS certification, provides a means by which employers can evaluate potential new hires, analyze job performance, evaluate employees, market IT services and motivate employees to enhance their skills and knowledge. Certification also provides employers with the evidence that the certificate holders have demonstrated an established level of job-related knowledge, skills and abilities and are competent practitioners of healthcare IT.

provides systematic solutions from formal test theory to automated test description methods, automated simulation test environment construction verifies the effectiveness of the theories, technologies and methods

Mastering interoperability in a computing environment consisting of different operating systems and hardware architectures is a key requirement which faces system engineers building distributed information systems. Distributed applications are a necessity in most central application sectors of the contemporary computerized society, for instance, in office automation, banking, manufacturing, telecommunication and transportation. This book focuses on the techniques available or under development, with the goal of easing the burden of constructing reliable and maintainable interoperable information systems. The topics covered in this book include: Management of distributed systems; Frameworks and construction tools; Open architectures and interoperability techniques; Experience with platforms like CORBA and RMI; Language interoperability (e.g. Java); Agents and mobility; Quality of service and fault tolerance; Workflow and object modelling issues; and Electronic commerce . The book contains the proceedings of the International Working Conference on Distributed Applications and Interoperable Systems II (DAIS'99), which was held June 28-July 1, 1999 in Helsinki, Finland. It was sponsored by the International Federation of Information Processing (IFIP). The conference program presents the state of the art in research concerning distributed and interoperable systems. This is a topical research area where much activity is currently in progress. Interesting new aspects and innovative contributions are still arising regularly. The DAIS series of conferences is one of the main international forums where these important findings are reported.

A broad introduction to the topic of aggregation functions is to be found in this book. It also provides a concise account of the properties and the main classes of such functions. Some state-of-the-art techniques are presented, along with many graphical illustrations and new interpolatory aggregation functions. Particular attention is paid to identification and construction of aggregation functions from application specific requirements and empirical data.

Applied Linear Regression for Business Analytics with R introduces regression analysis to business students using the R programming language with a focus on illustrating and solving real-time, topical problems. Specifically, this book presents modern and relevant case studies from the business world, along with clear and concise explanations of the theory, intuition, hands-on examples, and the coding required to employ regression modeling. Each chapter includes the mathematical formulation and details of regression analysis and provides in-depth practical analysis using the R programming language.

Design of Very High-Frequency Multirate Switched-Capacitor Circuits presents the theory and the corresponding CMOS implementation of the novel multirate sampled-data analog interpolation technique which has its great potential on very high-frequency analog frond-end filtering due to its inherent dual advantage of reducing the speed of data-converters and DSP core together with the specification relaxation of the post continuous-time filtering. This technique completely eliminates the traditional phenomenon of sampled-and-hold frequency-shaping at the lower input sampling rate. Also, in order to tackle physical IC imperfections at very high frequency, the state-of-the-art circuit design and layout techniques for high-speed Switched-Capacitor (SC) circuits are comprehensively discussed:

-Optimum circuit architecture tradeoff analysis
-Simple speed and power trade-off analysis of active elements
-High-order filtering response accuracy with respect to capacitor-ratio mismatches
-Time-interleaved effect with respect to gain and offset mismatch
-Time-interleaved effect with respect to timing-skew and random jitter with non-uniformly holding
-Stage noise analysis and allocation scheme
-Substrate and supply noise reduction
-Gain-and offset-compensation techniques
-High-bandwidth low-power amplifier design and layout
-Very low timing-skew multiphase generation

Two tailor-made optimum design examples in CMOS are presented. The first one achieves a 3-stage 8-fold SC interpolating filter with 5.5MHz bandwidth and 108MHz output sampling rate for a NTSC/PAL CCIR 601 digital video at 3 V. Another is a 15-tap 57MHz SC FIR bandpass interpolating filter with 4-fold sampling rate increase to 320MHz and the first-time embedded frequency band up-translation for DDFS system at 2.5V. The corresponding chip prototype achieves so far the highest operating frequency, highest filter order and highest center frequency with highest dynamic range under the lowest supply voltage when compared to the previously reported high-frequency SC filters in CMOS.

It is with great pleasure that I present this fourth vol ume in the series "Advanced Applications in Pattern Recognition." It would be difficult to find two authors better versed in the design and application of parallel image processing systems, due to both their own many years of pioneering in the field and their encyclopedic knowledge of what is going on in uni versity and industrial laboratories around the world. The monograph is unique in its parallel presentation of orthogonal and hexagonal dissections, and the wealth of graphic illustration of algorithmic procedures for processing and analyz ing images in the various known implementations of parallel im age-processing architectures. This volume should find a place on the bookshelf of every practitioner of pattern recognition, image processing, and compu ter graphics. Morton Nadler General Editor vii PREFACE This book endeavors to introduce the reader to the subject of cellular logic and cellular automata and is devoted particu larly to those parts dealing with the manipulation of pictorial data. The study of cellular automata owes much to the pioneer ing work of John von Neumann during the 1950s. Von Neumann was interested in general problems in the behavior of computing structures and was immensely impressed by the complexity and performance of the human brain, which he felt must point to wards successful designs for automatic computing machines."

This book, about a newly emerging area of research in instructional technology, has as its title the acronym "CSCL." Initially, CSCL was chosen as an acronym for Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning. However, some would argue that "collaborative" is often not a descriptive term for what learners do in instructional settings; further, as the field develops, the technology used to support collaboration may not always involve computers, at least not in the direct ways they have been used to support instruction in the past. To avoid getting bogged down in this terminological debate, this book uses CSCL as a designation in its own right, leaving open to interpretation precisely what words it stands for.
The authors talk a great deal about the theory underlying their work. In part, this is because that is what they were asked to do, but it is also an indication of the state of the field. In an established paradigm in which the theories and methods are well agreed upon, such discussion is less central. CSCL, however, has not yet reached the stage of "normal" science. There is much to be worked out yet. This book is offered with the hope that it will help to define a direction for future work in this field.
The chapters appear in alphabetical order (except for the introductory chapter and the afterword) -- not for lack of a better way to organize the chapters, but rather because the organizational possibilities are too numerous and this order does not privilege one over another. By not imposing a topical organizing structure on this collection, it is hoped that readers will feel freer to explore the chapters in a way that best suits their needs.
COPY FOR BIND-CARD CD-ROM info ................................. There is an accompanying CD-Rom for this proceedings that will become available September 1998. Purchasers of the proceedings may obtain a copy of this CD-ROM at no cost by contacting Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc. phone: (201) 236-9500 toll-free: 1-800-9-BOOKS-9 (1-800-926-6579) 9am-5pm EST fax: (201) 236-0072 e-mail: [email protected] Web site: www.erlbaum.com address: 10 Industrial Avenue, Mahwah, NJ 07430-2262
The CD-ROM was funded through a grant from the National Science Foundation.

E-government has become a global phenomenon through its use of Internet technologies as a platform for exchanging information, providing services, and transacting with citizens, businesses, and other arms of government. E-Government Development and Diffusion: Inhibitors and Facilitators of Digital Democracy provides a comprehensive, integrative, and global assessment of the e-government evolution in terms of real-life success and failure cases. Containing research from leading international experts, this Premier Reference Source presents concepts from contemporary and diverse perspectives within the field.

This book provides a single comprehensive resource that reviews many of the current aircraft flight control programmes from the perspective of experienced practitioners directly involved in the projects. Each chapter discusses a specific aircraft flight programme covering the control system design considerations, control law architecture, simulation and analysis, flight test optimization and handling qualities evaluations. The programmes described have widely exploited modern interdisciplinary tools and techniques and the discussions include extensive flight test results. Many important `lessons learned' are included from the experience gained when design methods and requirements were tested and optimized in actual flight demonstration.

The articles in this proceedings were presented at the 13th International Conference of the Chilean Computer Science Society held in La Serena, Chile on October 14-16, 1993. A record number of 90 submissions were received this year in response to the call for papers. They came from 19 countries in four continents. The 44 articles presented here were selected by the program committee whose members were Ricardo Baeza-Yates (Chair, Univ. de Chile) Leopoldo Bertossi (U niv. Catolica de Chile) Jorge Boria (Schlumberger, USA & UNICEN, Argentina) Edgardo Broner (Univ. Simon Bolivar, Venezuela) Pere Brunet (Polytechnic of Catalunya, Spain) Jose Blakeley (Texas Instruments, USA) Eduardo Krell (Fundacion Chile) Tomas Lang (Univ. of California at Irvine, USA) Rosana Lanzelotte (PUC-Rio, Brazil) Stefano Levialdi (Univ. di Roma, Italy) Jorge Lobo (Univ. of Illinois at Chicago, USA) Jose Palazzo (UFRGS, Brazil) Christian Queinnec (Poly technique & INRIA, France) Gregory Rawlins (Indiana University, USA) Carlos Scheel (Tecnologico de Monterrey, Mexico) Robbert Van Renesse (Cornell Univ. , USA) The criteria for selection was based primarily on quality; we also considered relevance, clarity and the potential benefit to the community. The contents of these proceedings are organized on six main areas (number of papers in parentheses) : Algorithms and Data Structures (10); Databases and Information Systems (6); Distributed Systems and Computer Architecture (6); Logic and Knowledge (8); Petri Nets (4); and Software Engineering and Programming Languages (10). They also include one invited paper.

In this newly revised book On Sonic Art, Trevor Wishart takes a wide-ranging look at the new developments in music-making and musical aesthetics made possible by the advent of the computer and digital information processing. His emphasis is on musical rather than technical matters. Beginning with a critical analysis of the assumptions underlying the Western musical tradition and the traditional acoustic theories of Pythagoras and Helmholtz, he goes on to look in detail at such topics as the musical organization of complex sound-objects, using and manipulating representational sounds and the various dimensions of human and non-human utterance. In so doing, he seeks to learn lessons from areas (poetry and sound-poetry, film, sound effects and animal communication) not traditionally associated with the field of music.
About the Author
Trevor Wishart is a composer, living and working in the North of England. His musical works cover a wide range, from environmental music events staged in spe