springer us springer us nov 2002 (33 Ergebnisse)

Buch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware -On March 15, 2002 we held a workshop on network interdiction and the more general problem of stochastic mixed integer programming at the University of California, Davis. Jesús De Loera and I co-chaired the event, which included presentations of on-going research and discussion. At the workshop, we decided to produce a volume of timely work on the topics. This volume is the result. Each chapter represents state-of-the-art research and all of them were refereed by leading investigators in the respective fields. Problems - sociated with protecting and attacking computer, transportation, and social networks gain importance as the world becomes more dep- dent on interconnected systems. Optimization models that address the stochastic nature of these problems are an important part of the research agenda. This work relies on recent efforts to provide methods for - dressing stochastic mixed integer programs. The book is organized with interdiction papers first and the stochastic programming papers in the second part. A nice overview of the papers is provided in the Foreward written by Roger Wets.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 148 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware -Asymptotic methods belong to the, perhaps, most romantic area of modern mathematics. They are widely known and have been used in me chanics, physics and other exact sciences for many, many decades. But more than this, asymptotic ideas are found in all branches of human knowledge, indeed in all areas of life. In this broader context they have not and perhaps cannot be fully formalized. However, they are mar velous, they leave room for fantasy, guesses and intuition; they bring us very near to the border of the realm of art. Many books have been written and published about asymptotic meth ods. Most of them presume a mathematically sophisticated reader. The authors here attempt to describe asymptotic methods on a more accessi ble level, hoping to address a wider range of readers. They have avoided the extreme of banishing formulae entirely, as done in some popular science books that attempt to describe mathematical methods with no mathematics. This is impossible (and not wise). Rather, the authors have tried to keep the mathematics at a moderate level. At the same time, using simple examples, they think they have been able to illustrate all the key ideas of asymptotic methods and approaches, to depict in de tail the results of their application to various branches of knowledg- from astronomy, mechanics, and physics to biology, psychology and art. The book is supplemented by several appendices, one of which con tains the profound ideas of R. G.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 270 pp. Englisch.

Taschenbuch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware -This is a broad-based text on the fundamentals of explosive behavior and the application of explosives in civil engineering, industrial processes, aerospace applications, and military uses.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 452 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware -ALLISON JAMES Globalization seems to be the word on everyone¿s lips, with politicians as much as academics extolling its benefits as well as its contradictions. For some, globali- tion means, in practice, that whether in Bangkok or Boston, in London or Rio, as travelers from wealthy countries they can be sure to find the beer, the pizzas, and the jeans that they can at home; they can be both at home and away simulta- ously. For others, though, globalization has had rather different, often less bene- cial, consequences. In their everyday lives people have come to find themselves tied in, albeit in often unseen ways, into larger economic and political systems over which they have no control; yet these systems cause radical changes¿often for the worse rather than the better¿in the pattern of their daily lives. And it is those who have least voice whose lives are usually affected the most. In this book attention is drawn systematically¿really for the first time¿to a consideration of how processes of globalization variously impact upon the lives of children. Such an approach is not only most welcome in the field of childhood studies, but also long overdue. It will, at last, enable us to begin to contextualize in a broader framework some of the many issues to do with ch- dren¿s rights and participation which have long been discussed as separate and discrete issues within childhood studies.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 200 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware -Models & Methods for Project Selection systematically examines in this book treatment the latest work in the field of project selection modeling. The models presented are drawn from mathematical programming, decision theory, and finance. These models are examined in two categorical streams: the management science stream and the financial model stream. The book describes the assumptions and limitations of each model and provides appropriate solution methodologies. Its organization follows three main themes:\*Criteria for Choice: Chapters 1-3 investigate the effect of the choice of optimization criteria on the results of the portfolio optimization problem.\*Risk and Uncertainty: Chapters 4-7 deal with uncertainty in the project selection problem.\*Non-Linearity and Interdependence: These chapters deal with problems of non-linearity and interdependence as they arise in the project selection problem. Chapters 8, 9 and 10 present solution methodologies, which can be used to solve these most general project selection models.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 216 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware -In 1958 an academic paper on corporate finance written by two professors (Merton Miller and Frances Modigliani, who were later awarded the Nobel prize for their research efforts) was published in The American Economic Review. One prime conclusion of their paper was that the exact form of a firm's capital structure did not affect the firm's value. Later papers by the same two authors and by many others modified the assumptions and changed this conclusion. We now think that capital structure decisions do affect a firm's value and corporate managers should understand better the financing alternatives that are available. One of the most important financial decisions is the decision to buy or lease assets. The leasing industry is large and getting larger. Unfortunately, it is very easy for a firm to evaluate incorrectly lease alternatives (see Chapter 12). The capital structure decision is one of the three most important financial decisions that management make (the distribution of earnings and the capital budgeting decisions are the other two contenders). Managers should increase their understanding of capital structure alternatives and remember that choosing the best capital structure is an art and not an exact simple calculation. But applying the art can be improved with understanding. 236 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware -Based on in-depth interviews designed to determine what trust is, how it is built, and how it is destroyed, this important new resource provides extensive insight into the fundamental process of interpersonal trust in the day-to-day lives of average people. The Social Construction of Trust furnishes qualitative data analysis and offers a detailed definition of trust in a sociological context. Discussing the theoretical and methodological foundation of the work, The Social Construction of TrustExamines the stages of the interactional construction of trust orientation;Investigates the form and content of trust violation;Analyzes forgiveness based on reconciliation through trust reconstruction;Presents a perspective on the relationship between trust and self;Delineates the practice of trust in interpersonal relationships;And more.This unique text is a valuable reference for sociologists, social and clinical psychologists, and students in these disciplines.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 194 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware -The paraoxonase or PON family of genes resides on human chromosome 7q2t-22 in the order PONt, PON3 and PON2. PONt was one of the early genes identified as an environmentally relevant gene, in that it is important in determining an individual's sensitivity or resistance to exposure from specific organophosphorus (OP) insecticides. Paraoxonase (PONt) is an A esterase (i. e. , not inhibited by OP compounds) initially identified for its ability to catalytically hydrolyze paraoxon, the toxic metabolite (oxon form) of the insecticide parathion. Evidence accumulated in the past several years has established that this enzyme, which is present at variable levels in liver and serum of different individuals, is an important determinant of sensitivity to toxicity of specific organophosphorus compounds including chlorpyrifos oxon and diazoxon. Recent experiments have pointed out that it is the catalytic efficiency of PONt together with the levels of PONt that are important in determining the degree of resistance. Surprisingly, even though PONt has a higher catalytic efficiency than PONtQ)92 for paraoxon RJ92 hydrolysis, it does not provide significant in vivo protection against an exposure to paraoxon. Interest in this enzyme has also emerged from the finding that it displays genetic polymorphisms in most populations, with a significant number of the individuals in a given population canying a PONt gene that puts them at risk for a specific OP exposure.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 240 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware -The electrocardiogram (ECG) remains the most accessible and inexpensive diagnostic tool to evaluate the patient presenting with symptoms suggestive of acute myocardial ischemia. It plays a crucial role in decision making about the aggressiveness of therapy especially in relation to reperfusion therapy, because such therapy has resulted in a considerable reduction in mortality from acute myocardial infarction. Several factors play a role in the amount of myocardial tissue that can be salvaged by reperfusion therapy, such as the time interval between onset of coronary occlusion and reperfusion, site and size of the jeopardized area, type of reperfusion attempt (thrombolytic agent or an intracoronary catheter intervention), presence or absence of risk factors for thrombolytic agents, etc. Most important in decision making on reperfusion therapy and the type of intervention is to look for markers indicating a higher mortality rate from myocardial infarction. The ECG is a reliable, inexpensive, non-invasive instrument to obtain that information. Recently it has become clear that both in anterior and inferior myocardial infarction, the ECG frequently allows not only to identify the infarct related coronary artery, but also the site of occlusion in that artery and therefore the size of the jeopardized area. Obviously, the more proximal the occlusion, the larger the area at risk and the more aggressive the reperfusion attempt. 144 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware -Combinatorics is one of the fastest growing elds of mathematics. In large measure this is because many practical problems can be modeled and then e ciently solved using combinatorial theory. This real world motivation for studying algorithmic combinatorics has led not only to the development of many software packages but also to some beautiful mathematics which has nodirectapplicationtoappliedproblems. Inthisvolumewehighlightsome exciting recent developments in algorithmic combinatorics. Most practical applications of algorithmic combinatorics would be - possible without the use of the computer. As computers become ever more powerful, more and more applications become possible. Computational biology is one example of a relatively new eld in which algorithmic c- binatorics plays a key role. The chapter by Sagot and Wakabayashi in this volumediscusseshowcombinatorialtoolscanbeusedtosearchforpatterns in DNA and protein sequences. The information technology revolution has not only allowed for the r- olution of practical problems using combinatorial techniques, it has also been the source of many new combinatorial problems. One example is - dio channel assignment. In this problem we have a number of transmitters each of which must handle a number of calls. Each call must be assigned a frequency in such a way that interference is avoided (thus calls handled by the same transmitter are assigned di erent frequencies as are calls handled by transmitters which are near each other). The explosive growth in the use of the frequency spectrum due to, e. g. , mobile telephone networks, has made it a very valuable resource.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 368 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware -Secure Broadcast Communication in Wired and Wireless Networks presents a set of fundamental protocols for building secure information distribution systems. Applications include wireless broadcast, IP multicast, sensor networks and webs, ad hoc networks, and satellite broadcast. This book presents and compares new techniques for basic operations including:\*key distribution for access control\*source authentication of transmissions, and\*non-repudiation of streams.This book discusses how to realize these operations both with high performance processors and resource constrained processors. It shows how to protect against adversaries who inject packets or eavesdrop. The focus is on functional descriptions rather than theoretical discussions. Protocols are presented as basic building blocks that can be combined with each other and traditional security protocols. The book illustrates these protocols in practice by presenting a real implementation that provides security for an ad hoc sensor network.This book can serve as a textbook or supplementary reading in graduate level courses on security or networking, or can be used for self study.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 244 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware -Genetics and Genomics for the Cardiologist is a concise, but comprehensive volume for the clinical cardiologist or medical student interested in learning how molecular genetics is now being applied to prevention and treatment of heart diseases, from DNA tests to pharmacogenomics and gene-based therapeutics. The volume, written in a plain language, contains detailed figures. A rich glossary, three appendices, many references and several URLs provide additional sources of information.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 244 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware -Peroxisome Proliferator Activated Receptors (PPARs) attract great attention in light of the wide spectrum of genes of biological and medical relevance identified as under their control. As a consequence, our knowledge of the role of these receptors in physiology and pathology continues to grow at a fast pace and PPARs have become an interesting target for the treatment of many pathological conditions, including diabetes and atherosclerosis. This volume provides an authoritative view of the current clinical and scientific developments within this evolving area of study.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 196 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware -Evolutionary psychology has been dominated by one particular method for studying the mind and behavior. This is the first book to both question that monopoly and suggest a broad range of particular alternatives. Psychologists, philosophers, biologists, anthropologists, and others offer different methods for combining psychology and evolution. They recommend specific changes to evolutionary psychology using a wide variety of theoretical assumptions. In addition, some essays analyze the underpinnings of the dominant method, relate it to the context of evolutionary and psychological theory and to general philosophy of science, and discuss how to test approaches to evolutionary psychology. The aim of this collection is not to reject evolutionary psychology but to open up new vistas which students and researchers can use to ensure that evolutionary psychology continues to thrive.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 288 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware -Sequence - Evolution - Function is an introduction to the computational approaches that play a critical role in the emerging new branch of biology known as functional genomics. The book provides the reader with an understanding of the principles and approaches of functional genomics and of the potential and limitations of computational and experimental approaches to genome analysis.Sequence - Evolution - Function should help bridge the 'digital divide' between biologists and computer scientists, allowing biologists to better grasp the peculiarities of the emerging field of Genome Biology and to learn how to benefit from the enormous amount of sequence data available in the public databases. The book is non-technical with respect to the computer methods for genome analysis and discusses these methods from the user's viewpoint, without addressing mathematical and algorithmic details. Prior practical familiarity with the basic methods for sequence analysis is a major advantage, but a reader without such experience will be able to use the book as an introduction to these methods. This book is perfect for introductory level courses in computational methods for comparative and functional genomics.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 488 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware -As a stand-alone volume, Transistor Circuits For Spacecraft Power System presents numerous transistor circuits and building blocks associated with power electronics in general, and examines the major subsystem components for solar-based spacecraft power systems. The technique and concept, of 'continuity of states' for nonlinear circuits handling power transfer under cyclic excitation is introduced in Part I and further developed throughout the book. This powerful technique employing matrix formulation bypasses eigen-transients and yields steady-state responses rapidly. Closed-loop treatments are also given for large-scale linear circuits, many closed-form solutions for control loop-gain, conducted susceptibility, output impedance, etc. are covered. Extensive mathematical procedures are retained to highlight the importance of analytical flows.The author also reviews the evolution of solar-based spacecraft power systems; introduces modes of operations: discharge (boost), shunt, and charge; and covers pulse-width-modulated (PWM) boost power converter for both DC and AC conditions. A configuration tree for shunt mode operation is conceived. Based on the configuration tree, the best topologies, sequential PWM shunt and ripple-regulated free-running shunt, are intensively examined and formulated.Transistor Circuits For Spacecraft Power System provides important information for understanding the relationship between earthbound semiconductor circuits and space borne vehicles.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 236 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware -Already today more than 90% of all programmable processors are employed in embedded systems. This number is actually not surprising, contemplating that in a typical home you might find one or two PCs equipped with high of embedded systems, performance standard processors, but probably dozens including electronic entertainment, household, and telecom devices, each of them equipped with one or more embedded processors. Moreover, the elec tronic components of upper-class cars incorporate easily over one hundred pro cessors. Hence, efficient embedded processor design is certainly an area worth looking at. The question arises why programmable processors are so popular in embed ded system design. The answer lies in the fact that they help to narrow the gap between chip capacity and designer productivity. Embedded processors cores are nothing but one step further towards improved design reuse, just along the lines of standard cells in logic synthesis and macrocells in RTL synthesis in earlier times of IC design. Additionally, programmable processors permit to migrate functionality from hardware to software, resulting in an even improved reuse factor as well as greatly increased flexibility.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 242 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware -In the past decade we have witnessed the birth and maturing of a field of research centering on the Ca2+ signaling functions of cyclic ADP-ribose (cADPR) and nicotinic acid adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NAADP), which structures and mechanisms of action are truly unique among all Ca2+ messengers. A wide range of physiological functions are now known to be mediated by them in cells spanning three biological kingdoms from protist, plant to animal. This is the first book devoted entirely to the field. The story behind the emergence of the field is told and followed by comprehensive reviews of the enzymology, regulations and gene structures of ADP-ribosyl cyclases responsible for metabolizing cADPR and NAADP. Also covered is some of the current methodology developed for and widely used in the field. The rest of the book focuses on and details the Ca2+ signaling mechanisms and specific physiological functions of these two messengers in various cellular systems.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 484 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware -The international initiative on Enterprise Inter- and Intra-Organisational Integration (EI3-IC) had the objective to increase both international consen sus (IC) and public awareness on enterprise integration. In these proceedings we intend to present the current status in inter- and intra-organisational inte gration for electronic commerce and thereby to further increase awareness and consensus within academia and industry about enterprise inter-and intra organisational integration. The conference proceedings contain the papers presented at the ICEIMT conference in Valencia, Spain, selected papers presented at the different workshops and three papers on the initiative itself: overview, history and results. The proceedings follow the conference structure with each section (Parts 2 to 5) starting with the workgroup reports, followed by a particular view on the section theme and additional papers either presented at the con ference or during the related workshop. Section editorials discuss the differ ent contributions. As stated in the paper by Nell and Goranson in section 1 the results from all workshops indicate the important role of business processes in the area of e-commerce and virtual enterprises. Sharing relevant knowledge between co operating partners and making it available for decision support at all levels of management and across organisational boundaries will significantly en hance the trust between the partners on the different levels of partner opera tions (strategy, policy, operation and transaction). Clearly business process modelling can significantly enhance establishment, operation and decom mission of the required collaboration. 448 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware -Over the past 20 years, the field of information systems has grown dramatically in theoretical diversity and global reach. This growth is reflected in the language that policy makers and organizational stakeholders use when they talk about their IT plans. As information technology penetrates further into organizational and global life, it becomes ever more important to articulate assumptions embedded in the discourse. This will help to clarify the complex and yet conceptually improvised or pasted-up worldview that becomes embodied in systems. The assumptions point to particular domains of discourse. The discourse sets up conventions and boundaries. It thus shapes what can or cannot legitimately be talked about, researched, addressed, or solved within the scope of IT.A number of practical and theoretical topics are discussed in detail, including:\*Globalization, development, and space;\*Mobilization of power;\*ERP systems;\*IS planning and projects;\*Critical research and the study of discourse;\*Public institutions;\*Analytical frameworks.This book contains the selected proceedings of the Working Conference on Global and Organizational Discourse About Information Technology, sponsored by the International Federation for Information Processing (IFIP) and held in Barcelona, Spain in December 2002.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 564 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware -YUNMIN ZHU In the past two decades, multi sensor or multi-source information fusion tech niques have attracted more and more attention in practice, where observations are processed in a distributed manner and decisions or estimates are made at the individual processors, and processed data (or compressed observations) are then transmitted to a fusion center where the final global decision or estimate is made. A system with multiple distributed sensors has many advantages over one with a single sensor. These include an increase in the capability, reliability, robustness and survivability of the system. Distributed decision or estimation fusion prob lems for cases with statistically independent observations or observation noises have received significant attention (see Varshney's book Distributed Detec tion and Data Fusion, New York: Springer-Verlag, 1997, Bar-Shalom's book Multitarget-Multisensor Tracking: Advanced Applications, vol. 1-3, Artech House, 1990, 1992,2000). Problems with statistically dependent observations or observation noises are more difficult and have received much less study. In practice, however, one often sees decision or estimation fusion problems with statistically dependent observations or observation noises. For instance, when several sensors are used to detect a random signal in the presence of observation noise, the sensor observations could not be statistically independent when the signal is present. This book provides a more complete treatment of the fundamentals of multi sensor decision and estimation fusion in order to deal with general random ob servations or observation noises that are correlated across the sensors.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 264 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware -Nanotribology: Critical Assessment and Research Needs is an excellent reference for both academic and industrial researchers working in the fields of nanotechnology, tribology, mechanical engineering, materials science and engineering, MEMS, NEMS, magnetic recording, and biomedical devices. It will also be of interest to those pursuing scanning probe microscopy, nanoimaging, mesomanufacturing, sensors, actuators, aerospace, defense (controllers, microsystems), and military systems.Nanotribology: Critical Assessment and Research Needs provides a critical assessment of the current state of the art of nanotribology within the context of MEMS, mesomanufacturing, nanotechnology and microsystems. It contains chapters written by the leading experts in these fields. It identifies gaps in current knowledge and barriers to applications, and recommends research areas that need to be addressed to enable the rapid development of technologies.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 458 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware - Multimedia Mining: A Highway to Intelligent Multimedia Documents brings together experts in digital media content analysis, state-of-art data mining and knowledge discovery in multimedia database systems, knowledge engineers and domain experts from diverse applied disciplines.Multimedia documents are ubiquitous and often required, if not essential, in many applications today. This phenomenon has made multimedia documents widespread and extremely large. There are tools for managing and searching within these collections, but the need for tools to extract hidden useful knowledge embedded within multimedia objects is becoming pressing and central for many decision-making applications. The tools needed today are tools for discovering relationships between objects or segments within multimedia document components, such as classifying images based on their content, extracting patterns in sound, categorizing speech and music, and recognizing and tracking objects in video streams.

Buch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware - Taking Stock in Delinquency is the comprehensive synthesis of the empirical findings of seven important ongoing longitudinal studies of delinquency. The seven projects included in this volume represent much of the diversity found in individual-based panel studies of antisocial behavior. Individually and collectively, the results of these investigations have been published in a wide range of disciplinary outlets, thus making it difficult to identify common themes and general principles. This volume intends to provide a comprehensive and unified picture of empirical results, both within these studies and across them. One of the fundamental purposes of Taking Stock in Delinquency is to examine the extent to which these studies answer the basic question of the origins of delinquent and criminal careers despite their varying guiding theories, methods, and settings.Taking Stock in Delinquency is an important resource for criminologists, psychologists, sociologists, and upper-level students on juvenile delinquency, criminology, developmental psychology, and deviant behavior.

Buch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware - This textbook takes as a premise that, in order to make intelligent diagnosis and provide a rational treatment in disorders of the nervous system, it is necessary to develop the capacity to answer the basic questions of clinical neurology:(1) Where is the disease process located (2) What is the nature of the disease process The purpose of this textbook is to enable the medical student to acquire the basic information of the neurosciences and neurology and most importantly the ability to apply that information to the solution of clinical problems. The authors also suggest that hospital trips be a part of any Clinical Neurosciences Course so that the student can put into actual practice what he has learned in the classroom.We believe that this textbook will be of value to the student throughout the four years of the medical school curriculum. Medical, psychiatry and neurology residents may also find this text of value as an introduction or review.

Buch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware -This book is about Granular Computing (GC) - an emerging conceptual and of information processing. As the name suggests, GC concerns computing paradigm processing of complex information entities - information granules. In essence, information granules arise in the process of abstraction of data and derivation of knowledge from information. Information granules are everywhere. We commonly use granules of time (seconds, months, years). We granulate images; millions of pixels manipulated individually by computers appear to us as granules representing physical objects. In natural language, we operate on the basis of word-granules that become crucial entities used to realize interaction and communication between humans. Intuitively, we sense that information granules are at the heart of all our perceptual activities. In the past, several formal frameworks and tools, geared for processing specific information granules, have been proposed. Interval analysis, rough sets, fuzzy sets have all played important role in knowledge representation and processing. Subsequently, information granulation and information granules arose in numerous application domains. Well-known ideas of rule-based systems dwell inherently on information granules. Qualitative modeling, being one of the leading threads of AI, operates on a level of information granules. Multi-tier architectures and hierarchical systems (such as those encountered in control engineering), planning and scheduling systems all exploit information granularity. We also utilize information granules when it comes to functionality granulation, reusability of information and efficient ways of developing underlying information infrastructures.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 480 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware -A new, comprehensive review of the radiographic examination of the post-operative GI tract. Organized on an organ by organ basis, emphasis is placed on conventional studies, supplemented by cross-sectional imaging. Operative techniques and normal post-operative anatomy are depicted with many schematic line drawings. Normal changes, as well as early and late complications are discussed and abundantly illustrated. A must have reference for general radiologists, specialists in gastrointestinal surgery and radiology medical libraries.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 404 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware -Despite approximately 50 years of progress in the management of com plex congenital heart disease, hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS) has been one of the last cardiac malformations to yield to effective surgical treat ment. The surgical therapies for hypoplastic left heart syndrome have evolved by two quite disparate routes. One approach has been the staged reconstruc tion operations utilizing an initial operation pioneered by many but developed by Dr. William Norwood and subsequently modified by many other investigators. The first stage reconstruction operation has been refined and standardized such that the majority of infants now proceed to second and third stage reconstruc tive operations culminating in a Pontan Kreutzer single ventricle physiology. An alternative surgical approach has been the development of neonatal and infant heart transplantation for HLHS. This approach also has had a signifi cant impact on the treatment of HLHS and other cardiac malformations and has been associated with good intermediate term results. Both of the thera peutic approaches devised for treatment of hypoplastic left heart syndrome have been effective and the outcomes are continuing to improve with each.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 444 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware -In these essays Heinz von Foerster discusses some of the fundamental principles that govern how we know the world and how we process the information from which we derive that knowledge. Included are path- breaking articles concerning the principles of computation in neural nets (1967), the definition of self-organizing systems (1960), the nature of cognition (1970), as well as recent expansions on these themes (e.g. 'How recursive is communication,' 1993). Working with Norbert Wiener, Warren McCullough, and others in the 1960s and 1970s, von Foerster was one of the founders of the science of cybernetics, which has had profound effects both on modern systems theory and on the philosophy of cognition. At the Biological Computer Laboratory at the University of Illinois he produced the first parallel computers and contributed to many other developments in the theory of computation and cognition.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 380 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware - The purpose ofthis book isto provide acritical appraisal oftheconcept thatschizophreniacan becaused by viralinfections. The ability of viruses to cause psychiatric symptoms is not in question - the mental depression following a bout with mononucleosis or hallucinations associated with herpesencephalitisarewell-described examples. However,aviraloriginfor chronic disorders such as autism, schizophrenia, and bipolar disorder, is another matter. The claim of an infectious etiology for these disorders has beenmetinthemainstream scientific community byavagueskepticism that occasionally erupts into stringent criticism. Too often, however, the viral hypotheses of these disorders is simply disregarded; marginalized with the hopethat itwillgoaway sothatthe 'serious' researchaimed atuncovering therealcauseoftheseillnesses willnotloseitsfocus.This beingsaid,much of the criticism is valid, and as a researcher with formal training in both neuroscience and viral immunology, I view the proposed viral etiology of thesedisorderswithaskepticaleye. Nevertheless, one cannot ignore the growing number of well-performed studies pointing to the role of viral infections as important antecedents of schizophreniaand other disorders inthe schizophreniaspectrum. Inthe last 30 years there have been hundreds of articles in peer-reviewed journals presenting evidenceorpositingtheoriestosuggestthatatleastsomecasesof schizophrenia have a viral origin. Moreover, many schizophrenia experts have been calling for the recognition that schizophrenia isa heterogeneous group of disorders that may have different causes. This idea of disease heterogeneity is reaching a crescendo, and there is undoubtedly a place for viruses among alternative etiologies; but we have to look. The intellectual climate tolooknowisbetterthanitwas20yearsago,inpartbecause inthe last 2 decades a number of chronic diseases of unknown etiology (e.g. gastric ulcers, Kaposi's sarcoma, hepatocellular carcinoma) have been ascribedtoinfectiouscauses.