COST is an intergovernmental framework for European Cooperation in Science and Technology, allowing the coordination of nationally-funded research on a European level. Part of COST was COST Action C26 Urban Habitat Constructions Under Catastrophic Events, which started in 2006 and held its final conference in Naples, Italy, on 16-18 September 2010. The main objective of COST Action C26 was to increase the knowledge of the behaviour of constructions in urban habitat under catastrophic events (earthquakes, fire, wind, impact, explosions etc.), in order to predict their response when both the applied loading and the inherent structural resistance are combined in such a way that the safety level reaches unacceptable values, leading in some cases to a premature collapse.

Urban Habitat Constructions Under Catastrophic Events collects 151 papers from internationally recognized outstanding experts from 46 countries that were presented at the final conference: 82 contributions from COST experts and 69 from external authors. They are subdivided into 5 sections, which exactly correspond to the 5 Chapters of the Final Report of the COST Action C26 activity:

(I) Characterization of catastrophic actions on constructions;

(II) Analysis of behaviour of constructions under catastrophic events;

(III) Evaluation of vulnerability of constructions;

(IV) Protecting, strengthening and repairing;

(V) Strategy and guidelines for damage prevention.

Urban Habitat Constructions Under Catastrophic Events will be of interest to academics and engineers in civil and structural engineering, especially those involved in fire resistance, earthquake resistance, impact and explosion resistance, and resistance to Infrequent Loading Conditions.

'New Challenges and Visions for Mining' contains selected papers from the 21st World Mining Congress & Expo (KrakA3w and Katowice, Poland, 7-11 September 2008), and will be invaluable to academics, professionals and engineers working in mining and rock mechanics.

In 1950, Mexican American miners went on strike for fair working conditions in Hanover, New Mexico. When an injunction prohibited miners from picketing, their wives took over the picket lines - an unprecedented act that disrupted mining families but ultimately ensured the strikers' victory in 1952. In ""On Strike and on Film"", Ellen Baker examines the building of a leftist union that linked class justice to ethnic equality. She shows how women's participation in union activities paved the way for their taking over the picket lines and thereby forcing their husbands, and the union, to face troubling questions about gender equality. Baker also explores the collaboration between mining families and blacklisted Hollywood filmmakers that resulted in the controversial 1954 film ""Salt of the Earth"". She shows how this worker-artist alliance gave the mining families a unique chance to clarify the meanings of the strike in their own lives and allowed the filmmakers to create a progressive alternative to Hollywood productions. An inspiring story of working-class solidarity, Mexican American dignity, and women's liberation, ""Salt of the Earth"" was itself blacklisted by powerful anticommunists, yet the movie has endured as a vital contribution to American cinema.

The First International Conference on Concrete Repair, Rehabilitation and Retrofitting (ICCRRR 2005) was held in Cape Town, South Africa, from 21-23 November 2005. The conference was a collaborative venture by researchers from the South African Research Programme in Concrete Materials (based at the Universities of Cape Town and The Witwatersrand) and The Construction Materials Section at Leipzig University in Germany. The conference has come at an opportune moment for concrete construction worldwide and sought to focus on an increasingly important aspect in modern infrastructure provision and retention: that of appropriately repairing, maintaining, rehabilitating, and if necessary retrofitting existing infrastructure with a view to extending its life and maximising its economic return. The conference Proceedings contain papers, presented at the conference, and classified into a total of 15 sub themes which can be grouped under the four main themes of (i) Concrete durability aspects, (ii) Condition assessment of concrete structures, (iii) Concrete repair, rehabilitation and retrofitting, and (iv) Performance monitoring and health assessment. The major interest in terms of submissions exists in the fields of concrete durability aspects in connection with material compositions, NDE/NDT and measurement techniques, repair methods and materials, and structural strengthening and retrofitting techniques. The large number of high-quality papers presented and the wide range of relevant topics covered confirm that these Proceedings will be a valued reference for many working in the important fields of concrete durability and repair and that they form a suitable base for discussion and provide suggestions for future development and research.

A two part study of coal supply systems and development of the industry in the territory of the former USSR. The first part covers the role of coal in the economy, provides an overview of current status and forecast of the eight major coal basins and environmental problems associated with the industry. It concludes with a discussion of the principles and problems related to the development of regional energy problems.
Part Two covers technological advances and development of coal carbonization, gasification, liquifaction and agglomeration. The book ends with a discussion on how to improve efficiency and information on coal waste utilization.

Increasingly stringent environmental regulations and industry adoption of waste minimization guidelines have thus, stimulated the need for the development of recycling and reuse options for metal related waste. This book, therefore, gives an overview of the waste generation, recycle and reuse along the mining, beneficiation, extraction, manufacturing and post-consumer value chain. This book reviews current status and future trends in the recycling and reuse of mineral and metal waste and also details the policy and legislation regarding the waste management, health and environmental impacts in the mining, beneficiation, metal extraction and manufacturing processes. This book is a useful reference for engineers and researchers in industry, policymakers and legislators in governance, and academics on the current status and future trends in the recycling and reuse of mineral and metal waste. Some of the key features of the book are as follows: Holistic approach to waste generation, recycling and reuse along the minerals and metals extraction. Detailed overview of metallurgical waste generation. Practical examples with complete flow sheets, techniques and interventions on waste management. Integrates the technical issues related to efficient resources utilization with the policy and regulatory framework. Novel approach to addressing future commodity shortages.

This book takes an unflinching look at one of the most contentious labour conflicts in North American history, and a brave indictment of the destructive collusion between business interests and Mexico's government.