This book presents high-quality original contributions on positive systems, including topics such as: monotone dynamical systems in mathematical biology and game theory; mathematical developments for networked systems in biology, chemistry and the social sciences; linear and nonlinear positive operators; dynamical analysis, observation and control of positive distributed parameter systems; stochastic realization theory; biological systems with positive variables and positive controls; iterated function systems; nonnegative dynamic processes; and dimensioning problems for collaborative systems. The book comprises a selection of the best papers presented at the POSTA 2016, the 5th International Symposium on Positive Systems, which was held in Rome, Italy, in September 2016. This conference series represents a targeted response to the growing need for research that reports on and critically discusses a wide range of topics concerning the theory and applications of positive systems.

This volume aims to present recent advances in database technology from the viewpoint of the novel database paradigms proposed in the last decade. It focuses on the theory of the extended relational model, and an example of an extended relational database programming language, Algres, is described. A free copy of Algres complements this work, and is available on the Internet. The work should be of interest to graduate studen ts following advanced database courses, advanced data-oriented applications developers, and researchers in the field of database programming languages and software engineering who need a flexible prototyping platform for the development of software tools.