Microbial organisms occupy a peculiar place in the human view of life. Microorganisms represent the richest repertoire of molecular and chemical diversity in nature as they underlie basic ecosystem processes. Microorganisms are used for various purposes including food production and preservation, management of pests and pathogens, bioleaching of metals, increasing soil fertility, generating biofuels, monitoring pollutants, cleaning up of oil spills, waste water treatment, assaying of chemicals and serving as tools for medical research. Besides microorganisms are the major sources of antimicrobial agents and produce a wide range of other important medicinal compounds including enzymes, enzyme inhibitors, antihelminthics, antitumor agents, insecticides, vitamins, immunosuppressants and immunomodulatoThe study of microbial diversity is thus important to solve new and emerging disease problems and to advance biotechnology.

The past five years have witnessed some dramatic developments in the general area of ferroelectric thin films materials and devices. Ferroelectrics are not new materials by any stretch ofimagination. Indeed, they have been known since the early partofthis century and popular ferroelectric materials such as Barium Titanate have been in use since the second world war. In the late sixties and seventies, a considerable amountofresearch and development effort was made to create a solid state nonvolatile memory using ferroelectrics in a vary simple matrix-addressed scheme. These attempts failed primarily due to problems associated with either the materials ordue to device architectures. The early eighties saw the advent of new materials processing approaches, such as sol-gel processing, that enabled researchers to fabricate sub-micron thin films of ferroelectric materials on a silicon substrate. These pioneering developments signaled the onsetofa revival in the areaofferroelectric thin films, especially ferroelectric nonvolatile memories. Research and development effort in ferroelectric materials and devices has now hit a feverish pitch, Many university laboratories, national laboratories and advanced R&D laboratories oflarge IC manufacturers are deeply involved in the pursuit of ferroelectric device technologies. Many companies worldwide are investing considerable manpower and resources into ferroelectric technologies. Some have already announced products ranging from embedded memories in micro controllers, low density stand-alone memories, microwave circuit elements, andrf identification tags. There is now considerable optimism that ferroelectric devices andproducts will occupy a significant market-share in the new millennium."

This edited volume is intended to address in a comprehensive and integrated manner three major areas of national and international security research from an information systems-centric perspective: legal and policy frameworks; intelligence and security informatics; and emergency preparedness and infrastructure protection. The discussions are replete with real-world case studies and examples that present the concepts using an integrated, action-oriented and theory-based approach to validate the frameworks presented and to provide specific insights on the technical approaches and organizational issues under investigation.
This book is intended to be used as both a textbook and a comprehensive research handbook. The contributors to this edited volume are renowned experts in their respective fields. Most of the chapters contained in this book provide an updated comprehensive survey of the related field and also specific findings from cutting-edging innovative research. To facilitate its adoption as a textbook, all the authors have included specific discussion questions that could be utilized to stimulate discussions and potentially further research in the area.
*Addresses three major areas of national and international security research from an information systems-centric perspective
*Focuses on legal and policy frameworks, intelligence and security informatics, and emergency preparedness and infrastructure protection
*Real-world case studies are used as examples to provide specific insights

The past five years have witnessed some dramatic developments in the general area of ferroelectric thin films materials and devices. Ferroelectrics are not new materials by any stretch ofimagination. Indeed, they have been known since the early partofthis century and popular ferroelectric materials such as Barium Titanate have been in use since the second world war. In the late sixties and seventies, a considerable amountofresearch and development effort was made to create a solid state nonvolatile memory using ferroelectrics in a vary simple matrix-addressed scheme. These attempts failed primarily due to problems associated with either the materials ordue to device architectures. The early eighties saw the advent of new materials processing approaches, such as sol-gel processing, that enabled researchers to fabricate sub-micron thin films of ferroelectric materials on a silicon substrate. These pioneering developments signaled the onsetofa revival in the areaofferroelectric thin films, especially ferroelectric nonvolatile memories. Research and development effort in ferroelectric materials and devices has now hit a feverish pitch, Many university laboratories, national laboratories and advanced R&D laboratories oflarge IC manufacturers are deeply involved in the pursuit of ferroelectric device technologies. Many companies worldwide are investing considerable manpower and resources into ferroelectric technologies. Some have already announced products ranging from embedded memories in micro controllers, low density stand-alone memories, microwave circuit elements, andrf identification tags. There is now considerable optimism that ferroelectric devices andproducts will occupy a significant market-share in the new millennium.

The book presents select proceedings of the 8th International and 29th All India Manufacturing Technology, Design and Research (AIMTDR 2021) conference. It covers recent advances in the realms of electro- physical and chemical machining, machining optimization, surface morphology and sustainable machining. The contents also include precision engineering, metrology and quality, automation and smart systems, enterprise manufacturing intelligence, among others. This book will evoke interest among academicians, researchers, and practicing engineers who aspire to comprehend advances pertaining to the domain of modern machining processes