The Common Law is Oliver Wendell Holmes' most sustained work of jurisprudence. In it the careful reader will discern traces of his later thought as found in both his legal opinions and other writings. At the outset of The Common Law Holmes posits that he is concerned with establishing that the common law can meet the changing needs of society while preserving continuity with the past. A common law judge must be creative, both in determining the society's current needs, and in discerning how best to address these needs in a way that is continuous with past judicial decisions. In this way, the law evolves by moving out of its past, adapting to the needs of the present, and establishing a direction for the future. To Holmes' way of thinking, this approach is superior to imposing order in accordance with a philosophical position or theory because the law would thereby lose the flexibility it requires in responding to the needs and demands of disputing parties as well as society as a whole. According to Holmes, the social environment--the economic, moral, and political milieu--alters over time. Therefore in order to remain responsive to this social environment, the law must change as well. But the law is also part of this environment and impacts it. There is, then, a continual reciprocity between the law and the social arrangements in which it is contextualized. And, as with the evolution of species, there is no starting over. Rather, in most cases, a judge takes existing legal concepts and principles, as these have been memorialized in legal precedent, and adapts them, often unconsciously, to fit the requirements of a particular case and present social conditions.

The range of energy systems carried by this volume is inclusive, encompassingthermal and gas turbines, renewable power, fuel cells (low and high temperature), nuclear power generation (fission and fusion) and the transmission and storage of the energy produced. The editors consider aspects of the hydrogen economy, as well as the materials employed in the design of batteries, and in energy conversion in a range of devices and actuators. Over 80 articles have been selected which discuss the applications of materials to these energy systems, with emphasis placed upon the generation of nuclear energy. The whole assembly provides the reader with an up-to-date understanding of the applications of the entire range of materials of engineering importance, across metals, ceramics and polymeric materials.
Aconcise desk reference work for material scientists working with energy systemsBridges the divide between materials science and engineering of complex systemSignificantly more cost-effective than purchase of the main "Encyclopedia of Materials: Science and Technology "for departmental budgets"

This innovative Research Handbook answers crucial questions about how individuals and organisations can make a difference towards sustainability. Offering an integrative perspective on sustainability agency, it reviews individual, active, organisational and relational forms of sustainability agency, demonstrating the capacity of individuals and organisations to act toward sustainable futures. The Research Handbook investigates the relationships between agency and sustainability, demonstrating the importance of agency for different types of sustainability challenges, including mitigating environmental change and resource depletion. International contributors offer a multidisciplinary overview of the field, constructing detailed literature reviews on its many angles and variations. Concluding with a consolidative meta-review of sustainability agency, the Research Handbook offers directions for future research in the discipline. Crucial reading for scholars and researchers of sustainability, this cutting-edge Research Handbook is particularly useful for those exploring new avenues for research in relation to agency. It will also benefit graduate students looking for an interdisciplinary perspective in the field, as well as practitioners, advocates and NGOs hoping to understand ways in which sustainability can be enacted in various contexts.