This book provides the research directions for new or junior researchers who are going to use machine learning approaches for biological pattern discovery. The book was written based on the research experience of the author's several research projects in collaboration with biologists worldwide. The chapters are organised to address individual biological pattern discovery problems. For each subject, the research methodologies and the machine learning algorithms which can be employed are introduced and compared. Importantly, each chapter was written with the aim to help the readers to transfer their knowledge in theory to practical implementation smoothly. Therefore, the R programming environment was used for each subject in the chapters. The author hopes that this book can inspire new or junior researchers' interest in biological pattern discovery using machine learning algorithms.

Social Perspective is a course set over one academic year for intermediate learners of Chinese. In two volumes, it focuses on developing learners' language competency to a high advanced plus/advanced level (ACTFL/CEFR B2-C1) through exploring social issues in contemporary China. The textbook draws upon the discussion of a wide range of current social issues in China to provide students with a real-life background to increase their debating and written skills. Volume I explores five topics: gender equality, e-commerce, Internet culture, food and health, and environmental protection. The textbook is written in fluent, accurate and high-quality Chinese language which is conveniently broken down to highlight all the important language elements (expressions, vocabulary, phrases and grammar). This course will equip students with language production capability at an advanced level and prepare students for the transition from academic study to employment. Each lesson includes a wide range of language drills and exercises designed to quickly improve learners' oral expression and conceptual understanding through group discussions, essays, presentations, bidirectional translation and critical reflection. Online resources such as audio recordings, dictation exercises and supplementary reading material are also included. Written by a team of highly experienced teachers, Social Perspective is the ideal course to progress intermediate students to an advanced level. Academics and researchers with an interest in Chinese contemporary social issues will also find this a useful tool for further language study.

Focusing on contemporary ideas about how aged care is provided, this book poses the question: How can people who are aged and frail live out the final phase of their lives with dignity? In seeking answers, the author examines what it means to be 'at home' in residential care in a novel and compassionate way. In an ethnographic study of how elderly residents can be given the right care, this book provides a new route into the bodily realities of ageing. It is a vital contribution to the search for alternative approaches to aged care provision.

* highlights important language elements by utilising original and recent Chinese texts regarding social issues * Designed to progress learners' language competency to an advanced level through a natural connection between Chinese language learning and Chinese Social Studies. * Facilitates language learning and provides important insight for the formation of cross-cultural relationships. * Prepares readers for the transition from academic study to employment. * Written by a team of native and non-native speakers.

* highlights important language elements by utilising original and recent Chinese texts regarding social issues * Designed to progress learners' language competency to an advanced level through a natural connection between Chinese language learning and Chinese Social Studies. * Facilitates language learning and provides important insight for the formation of cross-cultural relationships. * Prepares readers for the transition from academic study to employment. * Written by a team of native and non-native speakers.

Social Perspective is a course set over one academic year for intermediate learners of Chinese. In two volumes, it focuses on developing learners' language competency to a high advanced plus/advanced level (ACTFL/CEFR B2-C1) through exploring social issues in contemporary China. The textbook draws upon the discussion of a wide range of current social issues in China to provide students with a real-life background to increase their debating and written skills. Volume I explores five topics: gender equality, e-commerce, Internet culture, food and health, and environmental protection. The textbook is written in fluent, accurate and high-quality Chinese language which is conveniently broken down to highlight all the important language elements (expressions, vocabulary, phrases and grammar). This course will equip students with language production capability at an advanced level and prepare students for the transition from academic study to employment. Each lesson includes a wide range of language drills and exercises designed to quickly improve learners' oral expression and conceptual understanding through group discussions, essays, presentations, bidirectional translation and critical reflection. Online resources such as audio recordings, dictation exercises and supplementary reading material are also included. Written by a team of highly experienced teachers, Social Perspective is the ideal course to progress intermediate students to an advanced level. Academics and researchers with an interest in Chinese contemporary social issues will also find this a useful tool for further language study.

Regarding the set of all feature attributes in a given database as the universal set, this monograph discusses various nonadditive set functions that describe the interaction among the contributions from feature attributes towards a considered target attribute. Then, the relevant nonlinear integrals are investigated. These integrals can be applied as aggregation tools in information fusion and data mining, such as synthetic evaluation, nonlinear multiregressions, and nonlinear classifications. Some methods of fuzzification are also introduced for nonlinear integrals such that fuzzy data can be treated and fuzzy information is retrievable.

The book is suitable as a text for graduate courses in mathematics, computer science, and information science. It is also useful to researchers in the relevant area.

This book covers a wide range of subjects in applying machine learning approaches for bioinformatics projects. The book succeeds on two key unique features. First, it introduces the most widely used machine learning approaches in bioinformatics and discusses, with evaluations from real case studies, how they are used in individual bioinformatics projects. Second, it introduces state-of-the-art bioinformatics research methods. The theoretical parts and the practical parts are well integrated for readers to follow the existing procedures in individual research. Unlike most of the bioinformatics books on the market, the content coverage is not limited to just one subject. A broad spectrum of relevant topics in bioinformatics including systematic data mining and computational systems biology researches are brought together in this book, thereby offering an efficient and convenient platform for teaching purposes. An essential reference for both final year undergraduates and graduate students in universities, as well as a comprehensive handbook for new researchers, this book will also serve as a practical guide for software development in relevant bioinformatics projects.

The Intelligent Data Engineering and Automated Learning (IDEAL) conf- ence series began in 1998 in Hong Kong, when the world started to experience information and data explosion and to demand for better, intelligent meth- ologies and techniques. It has since developed, enjoyed success in recent years, and become a unique annual international forum dedicated to emerging topics and technologies in intelligent data analysis and mining, knowledge discovery, automated learning and agent technology, as well as interdisciplinary appli- tions, especially bioinformatics. These techniques are common and applicable to many ?elds. The multidisciplinary nature of research nowadays is pushing the boundaries and one of the principal aims of the IDEAL conference is to p- mote interactions and collaborations between disciplines, which are bene?cial and bringing fruitful solutions. This volume of Lecture Notes in Computer Science contains accepted papers presented at IDEAL 2004, held in Exeter, UK, August 25-27, 2004. The conf- ence received 272 submissions from all over the world, which were subsequently refereed by the ProgramCommittee. Among them 124 high-quality papers were accepted and included in the proceedings. IDEAL 2004 enjoyed outstanding keynote talks by distinguished guest speakers, Jim Austin, Mark Girolami, Ross King, Lei Xu and Robert Esnouf. This year IDEAL also teamed up with three international journals, namely the International Journal of Neural Systems, the Journal of Mathematical M- elling and Algorithms, and Neural Computing & Applications. Three special issues on Bioinformatics, Learning Algorithms, and Neural Networks & Data Mining, respectively, have been scheduled for selected papers from IDEAL 2004.