I must preface my remarks briefly with two items that found their way into our local news in order for my readers to more fully understand the concepts I have written about. First, the Hanford Nuclear repository on the Columbia River has consistently been a topic of debate and concern because of possible leakages of radioactive wastes and the risks to groundwater and the Columbia River. The governor recently addressed these concerns, and the debate is ongoing. Second, in March of 2013, a report was publicized regarding the Cascadian Subduction Zone by the Oregon Seismic Safety Policy Advisory Commission. The report, in brief, mentioned a "chilling forecast about NW quake." The zone in all probability is part of the Pacific Rim of Fire. This discovery's possible impacts on the Columbia Basin and its environs are up for debate. I decided that this was a good time to approach an independent publisher about my book, The Floodgates, which is a story of natural disaster and its social impact. I completed this project sometime prior to 9/11, but because of that tragedy and its aftermath, I decided that it was an inappropriate time to pursue a market for my book. In 2003, I returned to the book and went through the copyrighting process, which was completed in December of that year. I wrote The Floodgates to tell two stories: my own and the Pacific Northwest's. Personal narrative and geography have always been inseparable, as anyone from the Northwest knows. I tell this story through the fictional, albeit realistic, tragedy of a dam breaking. As a young child, I was fascinated with dams-the wonders of the Northwest. The cover picture of this book, which shows the Grand Coulee Dam circa 1951, is testimony to that. I gained much insight about my topic through laboring on her in late 1970. I ended up with a healthy dose of respect for the concrete behemoth as well as the stories of the people around it. With the advent of the Mt. St. Helens eruption on May 18, 1980, I returned my thoughts to the Grand Coulee, wondering what its fate would be in the event of disaster. The thought experiment brought me to the altered social and environmental landscape. In hindsight, we live increasingly in a technological world, one using instant messaging and cyberspace and with an ephemeral quality. With that in mind, I could not conclude my manuscript without introducing Chris, nerdy, aloof, and a consummate hacker, who manages, like a Don Quixote, to tip the windmills of the BPA grids.

In Global Risk Agility and Decision Making, Daniel Wagner and Dante Disparte, two leading authorities in global risk management, make a compelling case for the need to bring traditional approaches to risk management and decision making into the twenty-first century. Based on their own deep and multi-faceted experience in risk management across numerous firms in dozens of countries, the authors call for a greater sense of urgency from corporate boards, decision makers, line managers, policymakers, and risk practitioners to address and resolve the plethora of challenges facing today's private and public sector organizations. Set against the era of manmade risk, where transnational terrorism, cyber risk, and climate change are making traditional risk models increasingly obsolete, they argue that remaining passively on the side-lines of the global economy is dangerous, and that understanding and actively engaging the world is central to achieving risk agility. Their definition of risk agility taps into the survival and risk-taking instincts of the entrepreneur while establishing an organizational imperative focused on collective survival. The agile risk manager is part sociologist, anthropologist, psychologist, and quant. Risk agility implies not treating risk as a cost of doing business, but as a catalyst for growth. Wagner and Disparte bring the concept of risk agility to life through a series of case studies that cut across industries, countries and the public and private sectors. The rich, real-world examples underscore how once mighty organizations can be brought to their knees-and even their demise by simple miscalculations or a failure to just do the right thing. The reader is offered deep insights into specific risk domains that are shaping our world, including terrorism, cyber risk, climate change, and economic resource nationalism, as well as a frame of reference from which to think about risk management and decision making in our increasingly complicated world. This easily digestible book will shed new light on the often complex discipline of risk management. Readers will learn how risk management is being transformed from a business prevention function to a values-based framework for thriving in increasingly perilous times. From tackling governance structures and the tone at the top to advocating for greater transparency and adherence to value systems, this book will establish a new generation of risk leader, with clarion voices calling for greater risk agility. The rise of agile decision makers coincides with greater resilience and responsiveness in the era of manmade risk.

I must preface my remarks briefly with two items that found their way into our local news in order for my readers to more fully understand the concepts I have written about. First, the Hanford Nuclear repository on the Columbia River has consistently been a topic of debate and concern because of possible leakages of radioactive wastes and the risks to groundwater and the Columbia River. The governor recently addressed these concerns, and the debate is ongoing. Second, in March of 2013, a report was publicized regarding the Cascadian Subduction Zone by the Oregon Seismic Safety Policy Advisory Commission. The report, in brief, mentioned a "chilling forecast about NW quake." The zone in all probability is part of the Pacific Rim of Fire. This discovery's possible impacts on the Columbia Basin and its environs are up for debate. I decided that this was a good time to approach an independent publisher about my book, The Floodgates, which is a story of natural disaster and its social impact. I completed this project sometime prior to 9/11, but because of that tragedy and its aftermath, I decided that it was an inappropriate time to pursue a market for my book. In 2003, I returned to the book and went through the copyrighting process, which was completed in December of that year. I wrote The Floodgates to tell two stories: my own and the Pacific Northwest's. Personal narrative and geography have always been inseparable, as anyone from the Northwest knows. I tell this story through the fictional, albeit realistic, tragedy of a dam breaking. As a young child, I was fascinated with dams-the wonders of the Northwest. The cover picture of this book, which shows the Grand Coulee Dam circa 1951, is testimony to that. I gained much insight about my topic through laboring on her in late 1970. I ended up with a healthy dose of respect for the concrete behemoth as well as the stories of the people around it. With the advent of the Mt. St. Helens eruption on May 18, 1980, I returned my thoughts to the Grand Coulee, wondering what its fate would be in the event of disaster. The thought experiment brought me to the altered social and environmental landscape. In hindsight, we live increasingly in a technological world, one using instant messaging and cyberspace and with an ephemeral quality. With that in mind, I could not conclude my manuscript without introducing Chris, nerdy, aloof, and a consummate hacker, who manages, like a Don Quixote, to tip the windmills of the BPA grids.

Daniel Wagner's journey from his drug dealer days in Austria and his years in a Hindu meditation group to his record contract and musical ambitions to finding his life's purpose. This is not your typical marketing and business book, but a man's journey who doesn't ever give up and follows his dream. His unique philosophy fused from his life's experiences doesn't fail to touch your heart and will inspire you.

In this book a generic library of efficient metaheuristics for combinatorial optimization is presented. In the version at hand classes that feature local search, simulated annealing, tabu search, guided local search and greedy randomized adaptive search procedure were implemented. Most notably a generic implementation features the advantage that the problem dependent classes and methods only need to be realized once without targeting a specific algorithm because these parts of the source code are shared among all present algorithms contained in EAlib. This main advantage is then exemplary demonstrated with the quadratic assignment problem. The source code of the QAP example can also be used as an commented reference for future problems. Concluding the experimental results of the individual metaheuristics reached with the presented implementation are presented.

A singular, transcendent talent can change the fortunes of a hockey team instantly. Each year, NHL teams approach the draft with this knowledge, hoping that luck will be on their side and that their extensive scouting and analysis will pay off. In On the Clock: Vancouver Canucks, Daniel Wagner explores the fascinating, rollercoaster history of the Canucks at the draft, including tales of Stan Smyl, Trevor Linden, the Sedin twins, and more. Readers will go behind the scenes with top decision-makers as they evaluate, deliberate, and ultimately make the picks they hope will tip the fate of their franchise toward success. From seemingly surefire first-rounders to surprising late selections and the ones that got away, this is a must-read for Vancouver faithful and hockey fans eager for a glimpse at how teams are built.