A brand new edition of an internationally-renowned philosophy of science bestseller. Now well into its fourth decade, What is This Thing Called Science? has become something of a classic the world over, available in 19 languages. Each decade, Alan Chalmers has drawn on his experience as a teacher and researcher to improve and update the text. In his accessible style, Chalmers illuminates the major developments in the field of the philosophy of science over the past few years. The most significant feature of this fourth edition is the addition of an extensive postscript, in which Chalmers uses the results of his research into the history of atomism to illustrate and enliven key themes in the philosophy of science. Identifying the qualitative difference between knowledge of atoms as it figures in contemporary science and metaphysical speculations about atoms common in philosophy since the time of Democritus proves to be a highly revealing and instructive way to pinpoint key features of the answer to the question 'What is this thing called science?' This new edition ensures that the book holds its place as the leading introduction to the philosophy of science for the foreseeable future. 'Successive editions have retained and refined its clear, engaging and witty discussions of the most important topics in the field, incorporating the best new research in the field. This latest edition also adds a valuable layer of grounding in the history of science, particularly based on Chalmers' recent extensive research on the history of atomism'. Hasok Chang, Department of History and Philosophy of Science, Hans Rausing Professor of History and Philosophy of Science, University of Cambridge, UK

This book explores the methods needed for creating and manipulating HDR content. HDR is a step change from traditional imaging; more closely matching what we see with our eyes. In the years since the first edition of this book appeared, HDR has become much more widespread, moving from a research concept to a standard imaging method. This new edition incorporates all the many developments in HDR since the first edition and once again emphasizes practical tips, including the authors' popular HDR Toolbox (available on the authors' website) for MATLAB and gives readers the tools they need to develop and experiment with new techniques for creating compelling HDR content. Key Features: Contains the HDR Toolbox for readers' experimentation on authors' website Offers an up-to-date, detailed guide to the theory and practice of high dynamic range imaging Covers all aspects of the field, from capture to display Provides benchmarks for evaluating HDR imagery

Drawing on the results of his own scholarly research as well as that of others the author offers, for the first time, a comprehensive and documented history of theories of the atom from Democritus to the twentieth century. This is not history for its own sake. By critically reflecting on the various versions of atomic theories of the past the author is able to grapple with the question of what sets scientific knowledge apart from other kinds of knowledge, philosophical knowledge in particular. He thereby engages historically with issues concerning the nature and status of scientific knowledge that were dealt with in a more abstract way in his What Is This Thing Called Science?, a book that has been a standard text in philosophy of science for three decades and which is available in nineteen languages. Speculations about the fundamental structure of matter from Democritus to the seventeenth-century mechanical philosophers and beyond are construed as categorically distinct from atomic theories amenable to experimental investigation and support and as contributing little to the latter from a historical point of view. The thesis will provoke historians and philosophers of science alike and will require a revision of a range of standard views in the history of science and philosophy. The book is key reading for students and scholars in History and Philosophy of Science and will be instructive for and provide a challenge to philosophers, historians and scientists more generally.

Meeting the growing demands for speed and quality in rendering computer graphics images requires new techniques. Practical parallel rendering provides one of the most practical solutions. This book addresses the basic issues of rendering within a parallel or distributed computing environment, and considers the strengths and weaknesses of multiprocessor machines and networked render farms for graphics rendering. Case studies of working applications demonstrate, in detail, practical ways of dealing with complex issues involved in parallel processing.

High Dynamic Range Video: Concepts, Technologies and Applications gives an introduction to a full range of topics within the end-to-end HDR video pipeline, covering the issues around capturing HDR and stereo HDR video, such as ghosting and use of legacy LDR systems, how HDR video can be manipulated, including real-time mixing, the very latest designs for HDR displays, HDR video on mobile devices, and the applications of HDR video. With this book, the reader will gain an overview of the current state-of-the art of HDR video, learn the potential of HDR video to provide a step change to a wide range of imaging applications, and attain the knowledge needed to introduce HDR video in their own applications.

Meeting the growing demands for speed and quality in rendering computer graphics images requires new techniques. Practical parallel rendering provides one of the most practical solutions. This book addresses the basic issues of rendering within a parallel or distributed computing environment, and considers the strengths and weaknesses of multiprocessor machines and networked render farms for graphics rendering. Case studies of working applications demonstrate, in detail, practical ways of dealing with complex issues involved in parallel processing.

Drawing on the results of his own scholarly research as well as that of others the author offers, for the first time, a comprehensive and documented history of theories of the atom from Democritus to the twentieth century. This is not history for its own sake. By critically reflecting on the various versions of atomic theories of the past the author is able to grapple with the question of what sets scientific knowledge apart from other kinds of knowledge, philosophical knowledge in particular. He thereby engages historically with issues concerning the nature and status of scientific knowledge that were dealt with in a more abstract way in his What Is This Thing Called Science?, a book that has been a standard text in philosophy of science for three decades and which is available in nineteen languages. Speculations about the fundamental structure of matter from Democritus to the seventeenth-century mechanical philosophers and beyond are construed as categorically distinct from atomic theories amenable to experimental investigation and support and as contributing little to the latter from a historical point of view. The thesis will provoke historians and philosophers of science alike and will require a revision of a range of standard views in the history of science and philosophy. The book is key reading for students and scholars in History and Philosophy of Science and will be instructive for and provide a challenge to philosophers, historians and scientists more generally.

This book explores the methods needed for creating and manipulating HDR content. HDR is a step change from traditional imaging; more closely matching what we see with our eyes. In the years since the first edition of this book appeared, HDR has become much more widespread, moving from a research concept to a standard imaging method. This new edition incorporates all the many developments in HDR since the first edition and once again emphasizes practical tips, including the authors' popular HDR Toolbox (available on the authors' website) for MATLAB and gives readers the tools they need to develop and experiment with new techniques for creating compelling HDR content. Key Features: Contains the HDR Toolbox for readers' experimentation on authors' website Offers an up-to-date, detailed guide to the theory and practice of high dynamic range imaging Covers all aspects of the field, from capture to display Provides benchmarks for evaluating HDR imagery