Called "the world's conscience" and one of the 100 most influential people of our time by Time magazine, Jan Egeland has been the public face of the United Nations. As Undersecretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, he was in charge of the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) for three and a half years. One of the bravest and most adventuresome figures on the international scene, Egeland takes us to the frontlines of war and chaos in Iraq, to scenes of ethnic cleansing in Darfur, to the ground zeroes of famine, earthquakes, and tsunamis. He challenges the first world to act. A Billion Lives is his on-the-ground account of his work in the most dangerous places in the world, where he has led relief efforts, negotiated truces with warlords, and intervened in what many had thought to be hopeless situations. As one of Secretary-General Kofi Annan's closest advisers, Jan Egeland was at the heart of crises during a difficult period in UN history, when the organization was plagued by the divisive aftermath of the Iraq war, the Oil-for-Food scandal, and terror attacks against UN workers. On the day Egeland came to New York to take up his job, the UN building in Baghdad was destroyed by a huge bomb, killing one of his predecessors, Sergio de Mello. Two months later Annan sent Egeland to Iraq to judge whether the UN could keep a presence there. Since that first mission to Baghdad, Egeland has been envoy to such places as Darfur, Eastern Congo, Lebanon, Gaza, Northern Israel, Northern Uganda, and Colombia. He coordinated the massive international relief efforts after the Indian Ocean tsunami and South Asian earthquake. As a negotiator and activist, Egeland is famous for direct language, whether he's addressing warlords, guerrilla leaders, generals, or heads of state. A Billion Lives is his passionate, adventure-filled eyewitness account of the catastrophes the world faces. And so Egeland writes that he has met the best and worst among us, has "confronted warlords, mass murderers, and tyrants, but [has] met many more peacemakers, relief workers, and human rights activists who risk their lives at humanity's first line of defense." In spite of the desperate need of so many, Egeland is convinced that, "For the vast majority of people, the world is getting better, that there is more peace, more people fed and educated, and fewer forced to become refugees than a generation ago. So there is reason for optimism," he concludes in this groundbreaking book that does not flinch but holds out reasons for hope.
In this book a detailed and systematic treatment of asymptotic methods in the theory of plates and shells is presented. The main features of the book are the basic principles of asymptotics and their applications, traditional approaches such as regular and singular perturbations, as well as new approaches such as the composite equations approach. The book introduces the reader to the field of asymptotic simplification of the problems of the theory of plates and shells and will be useful as a handbook of methods of asymptotic integration. Providing a state-of-the-art review of asymptotic applications, this book will be useful as an introduction to the field for novices as well as a reference book for specialists.
From the reviews: "A unique feature of this book is the nice blend of engineering vividness and mathematical rigour. [...] The authors are to be congratulated for their valuable contribution to the literature in the area of theoretical thermoelasticity and vibration of plates." Journal of Sound and Vibration
The quantum statistical properties of radiation represent an important branch of modern physics with rapidly increasing applications in spectroscopy, quantum generators of radiation, optical communication, etc. They have also an increasing role in fields other than pure physics, such as biophysics, psychophysics, biology, etc. Interesting applications have been developed in high energy elementary particle collisions. The present monograph represents an extension and continuation of the previous monograph by this author entitled Coherence of Light (Van Nostrand Reinhold Company, London 1972, translated into Russian in the Publishing House Mir, Moscow 1974, second edition published by D. Reidel, Dordrecht-Boston 1985) and ofa review chapter in Progress in Optics, Vol. 18 (edited by E. Wolf, North-Holland Publishing Company, Amsterdam 1980) as well. It applies the fundamental tools of the coherent-state technique, as described in Coherence of Light, to particular studies of the quantum statistical properties of radiation interacting with matter. In particular. nonlinear optical processes are considered, and purely quantum phenom ena such as antibunching of photons, their sub-Poisson behaviour and squeezing of vacuum fluctuations are discussed. Compared to the first edition of this book, pub lished in 1984, we have added much more information about squeezing of vacuum fluctuations in nonlinear optical process in this second edition; further we have included the description of experiments and their results performed from that time. Also a new brief chapter on nonlinear dynamics and chaos in quantum statistical optics has been included.
This book presents the theoretical frame for studying lumped nonsmooth dynamical systems: the mathematical methods are recalled, and adapted numerical methods are introduced (differential inclusions, maximal monotone operators, Filippov theory, Aizerman theory, etc.). Tools available for the analysis of classical smooth nonlinear dynamics (stability analysis, the Melnikov method, bifurcation scenarios, numerical integrators, solvers, etc.) are extended to the nonsmooth frame. Many models and applications arising from mechanical engineering, electrical circuits, material behavior and civil engineering are investigated to illustrate theoretical and computational developments.
Despite tremendous advances made in fracture mechanics of concrete in recent years, very little information has been available on the nature of fracture processes and on reliable test methods for determining parameters for the different models. Moreover, most texts on this topic discuss numerical modeling but fail to consider experimentation. This book fills these gaps and synthesizes progress in the field in a simple, straightforward manner geared to practical applications.
Orthotics: A Comprehensive Clinical Approach is an innovative and comprehensive new text that provides essential information about contemporary orthoses to guide the student and clinician in prescribing and utilizing these appliances in neuromuscular, musculoskeletal, and integumentary rehabilitation. Written by recognized authorities in the field, Joan Edelstein, MA, PT, FISPO and Jan Bruckner, PhD, PT, this is a prime resource for practitioners and clinicians. Individual chapters cover orthoses for the foot, ankle, knee, hip, trunk, neck, shoulder, elbow, wrist, and hand. Orthoses for patients with paraplegia, burns, and soft tissue contractures are detailed and illustrated. Prescription guidelines, evaluation techniques, goal setting, and training procedures are presented. Each chapter has interesting thought questions and case studies to promote clinical reasoning and problem-solving skills. A unique feature of this text is the inclusion of a point-counterpoint discussion to demonstrate how clinicians can manage the same patient in different ways. This approach inspires broader thinking about clinical management.
This new addition to the Fast Facts series is a pithy guide for novice nurse educators to the development, revision, and evaluation of programs and curricula that meet the standard requirements of the National Council of State Boards of Nursing, the NLNAC, and CCNE. Applying the concepts and principles of Systems Theory, the guide moves through the development process to include evaluation procedures where decisions are based on data. It addresses the common definitions of curriculum, how to design a curriculum, and how to design courses in accordance with the organizing elements of the program. The guide covers the purposes and development of a mission statement and of a program philosophy, as well as how to select an organizational framework. Curriculum implementation and faculty development requirements are also explored, in addition to educational and program outcomes and their evaluation. Organized for quick access and ease of use, each chapter defines key terms, summarizes important points, and lists resources for additional study. Key Features: Designed for use by all nursing educators regardless of educational environment or type of learner Breaks each step of the program development process into manageable parts that build on each other Uses concepts and principles of Systems Theory to guide curriculum development and evaluation Assists new nurse educators in quickly identifying the individual elements of a program and grasping the connections between them
The purpose of this 4-volume set is to examine some of the applications of lasers in polymer science and technology. Now available for the first time, up-to-date information on this fascinating subject is compiled and presented in compact form. This set focuses on current research and developments in the application of lasers in polymer and biopolymer chemistry. It includes experimental and theoretical details, apparatus, techniques, and applications. This set is a useful source for researchers, students, polymer chemists, and physicists involved in this astonishing field of high technology.
Thirty years ago, Zavoisky, in Moscow (USSR), reported the first successful experi mental observations of the ESR phenomenon. Its application to polymer problems began about 20 years ago. ESR belongs to the most specific and useful methods in the study of polymer reactions. The main purpose of this book is to collect the present available information on the applications of electron spin resonance (ESR) spectroscopy in polymer research. The book has been written both for those who want an introduction to this field, and for those who are aheady familiar with ESR and are interested in application to polymers. Therefore, the fundamental principles of ESR spectroscopy are first out lined, the experimental methods including computer applications are described in more detail, and the main emphasis is on the application of ESR methods to polymer problems. Many results obtained are only briefly treated for lack of space. The authors hope that this book will provide a useful source of information by giving a coherent treatment and extensive references to original papers, reviews, and discussions in monographs and books. In this way we hope to encourage polymer chemists, organic chemists, biochemists, physicists, and material scientists to apply ESR methods to their research problems.
Asymptotic Methods for Engineers is based on the authors’ many years of practical experience in the application of asymptotic methods to solve engineering problems. This book is devoted to modern asymptotic methods (AM), which is widely used in engineering, applied sciences, physics, and applied mathematics. Avoiding complex formal calculations and justifications, the book’s main goal is to describe the main ideas and algorithms. Moreover, not only is there a presentation of the main AM, but there is also a focus on demonstrating their unity and inseparable connection with the methods of summation and asymptotic interpolation. The book will be useful for students and researchers from applied mathematics and physics and of interest to doctoral and graduate students, university and industry professors from various branches of engineering (mechanical, civil, electro-mechanical, etc.).
It is clear that our environment is changing, and not for the better. Companies cannot ignore environmental issues anymore. Public awareness is growing, legislation is tightening, and demand for ISO 14000 compliance is rising. For many, however, the field of environmental management (including ISO 14000) is full of unfamiliar terms, high learning curves, unproductive approaches, much frustration, and often little action. If environmental management is to become widely accepted and self-motivated in industry, it must connect to the basic motivators for business: increased competitiveness and profitability. Activity-Based Cost And Environmental Management: A Different Approach to the ISO 14000 Compliance demonstrates how environmental assessment and management can be performed based upon familiar principles: cost accounting and cost management. Specifically, this book describes how the well-established Activity-Based Costing and Management principles can be extended with non-monetary environmental dimensions. The result is a single, integrated framework called Activity-Based Cost and Environmental Management that provides the tools and abilities to do both environmental management and cost management in an integrated manner and according to modern management principles. This integration of economic and environmental dimensions based upon familiar cost accounting and management principles makes it easier for decision-makers to not only include the environment in their decision-making, but also to identify, rank and prioritize opportunities for win-win situations where competitiveness is increased and environmental impact reduced at the same time. In this book, the basic concepts of Activity-Based Cost and Environmental Management are described, as well as how to make your own integrated Activity-Based Cost and Environmental Management implementations and how to get the most out of them using uncertainty distributions, Monte Carlo simulations, and sensitivity charts. Among others, the book includes chapters on environmental management and Activity-Based Costing, as well as several real-life case studies from companies for which the authors implemented Activity-Based Cost and Environmental Management systems.
The Third Edition of this successful textbook introduces students to the major concepts, models, and approaches surrounding the public sector. Now fully updated to include coverage of the New Public Management (NPM), The Public Sector is the most comprehensive textbook on theories of public policy and public administration. The Public Sector is introduced within a three-part framework: public resource allocation, redistribution and regulation. Jan-Erik Lane explains the basic concepts of each of these broad areas, and goes on to examine their consequences for various approaches to the making and implementation of public policy. The book explores models of management, effectiveness and efficiency, and evaluates the contribution, among many, of public choice and neo-institutionalist approaches, organizational theory, models of normative policy-making and, expanded in this edition, the theory of fiscal federalism. The New Edition retains chapters on public sector reform and continues to contrast the logic of the new management state with that of the old administrative state before introducing the basic ideas of New Public Management. The Public Sector will be essential reading to all students seeking a deeper understanding of the modern state and government across political science and public policy, administration and management.
Although budgetary institutions are very diverse, both between and within countries, this text identifies key elements in the budgetary process common to all forms of representative government. It develops a step-by-step model that can be used to explain, predict and analyze budgetary decisions.
In 1879, Carpentry and Building magazine launched its first house design competitionfor a cheap house. Forty-two competitions, eighty-six winning designs, and a slew ofnear winners and losers resulted in a body of work that offers an entire history of anarchitectural culture. The competitions represented a vital period of transition in delineating roles and responsibilities of architectural services and building trades. The contests helped to define the training, education, and values of "practical architects" and to solidify house-planning ideals. The lives and work of ordinary architects who competed in Carpentry and Building contests offer a reinterpretation of architectural professionalization in this time period.Cheap and Tasteful Dwellings thoroughly explores the results of these competitions, conducted over a thirty-year period from 1879 to 1909. The book outlines the philosophybehind and procedures developed for running the competitions; looks at characteristicsof the eighty-six winners of the competitions; examines the nature of architecturalpractices during the period; analyzes the winning competition designs; and providesbiographical details of competition winners and losers.A landmark book in architectural history, Cheap and Tasteful Dwellings makes a compelling case for the theory of convenient arrangement--its history, its role, its principles, its relationship to contemporary interior design education, and its meaning to American architecture. More importantly, the book explains the impact of Carpentry and Building's contests in furthering the tenets of convenient arrangement for house design. By using extensive material from the magazine, Jennings leaves little doubt as to how important this overlooked story is to the history of American architecture as a whole.
A new class of (not necessarily bounded) operators related to (mainly infinite) directed trees is introduced and investigated. Operators in question are to be considered as a generalization of classical weighted shifts, on the one hand, and of weighted adjacency operators, on the other; they are called weighted shifts on directed trees. The basic properties of such operators, including closedness, adjoints, polar decomposition and moduli are studied. Circularity and the Fredholmness of weighted shifts on directed trees are discussed. The relationships between domains of a weighted shift on a directed tree and its adjoint are described. Hyponormality, cohyponormality, subnormality and complete hyperexpansivity of such operators are entirely characterized in terms of their weights. Related questions that arose during the study of the topic are solved as well.
This is the story of a profound revolution in the way biologists explore life's history, understand its evolutionary processes, and reveal its diversity. It is about life's smallest entities, deepest diversity, and greatest cellular biomass: the microbiosphere. Jan Sapp introduces us to a new field of evolutionary biology and a new brand of molecular evolutionists who descend to the foundations of evolution on Earth to explore the origins of the genetic system and the primary life forms from which all others have emerged. In so doing, he examines-from Lamarck to the present-the means of pursuing the evolution of complexity, and of depicting the greatest differences among organisms. The New Foundations of Evolution takes us into a world that classical evolutionists could never have imagined: a deep phylogeny based on three domains of life and multiple kingdoms, and created by mechanisms very unlike those considered by Darwin and his followers. Evolution by leaps seems to occur regularly in the microbial world where molecular evolutionists have shown the inheritance of acquired genes and genomes are major modes of evolutionary innovation. Revisiting the history of microbiology for the first time from the perspective of evolutionary biology, Sapp shows why classical Darwinian conceptions centering on questions of the origin of species were forged without a microbial foundation, why classical microbiologists considered it impossible to know the course of evolution, and classical molecular biologists considered the evolution of the molecular genetic system to be beyond understanding. In telling this stirring story of scientific iconoclasm, this book elucidates how the new evolutionary biology arose, what methods and assumptions underpin it, and the fiery controversies that continue to shape biologists' understanding of the foundations of evolution today.
Asymptotic Methods in the Theory of Plates with Mixed Boundary Conditions comprehensively covers the theoretical background of asymptotic approaches and their use in solving mechanical engineering-oriented problems of structural members, primarily plates (statics and dynamics) with mixed boundary conditions. The first part of this book introduces the theory and application of asymptotic methods and includes a series of approaches that have been omitted or not rigorously treated in the existing literature. These lesser known approaches include the method of summation and construction of the asymptotically equivalent functions, methods of small and large delta, and the homotopy perturbations method. The second part of the book contains original results devoted to the solution of the mixed problems of the theory of plates, including statics, dynamics and stability of the studied objects. In addition, the applicability of the approaches presented to other related linear or nonlinear problems is addressed. Key features: • Includes analytical solving of mixed boundary value problems • Introduces modern asymptotic and summation procedures • Presents asymptotic approaches for nonlinear dynamics of rods, beams and plates • Covers statics, dynamics and stability of plates with mixed boundary conditions • Explains links between the Adomian and homotopy perturbation approaches Asymptotic Methods in the Theory of Plates with Mixed Boundary Conditions is a comprehensive reference for researchers and practitioners working in the field of Mechanics of Solids and Mechanical Engineering, and is also a valuable resource for graduate and postgraduate students from Civil and Mechanical Engineering.
Health Advisories (HAs) are prepared by the Criteria and Standards Division, Office of Drinking Water (ODW) of the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) in Washington, D.C. Documents summarized in this volume are part of the Health Advisory Program sponsored by ODW in response to the public need for guidance during emergency situations involving drinking water contamination. They provide technical guidance to public health officials on health effects, analytical methodologies, and treatment technologies associated with drinking water contamination. The HAs for 15 unregulated volatile organic chemicals were developed jointly by the Environmental Criteria and Assessment Office and ODW. Each HA contains information regarding the nature of adverse health effects associated with the contaminant and contaminant concentrations that would not be anticipated to cause an adverse effect following various periods of exposure. In addition, the HA summarizes information on occurrence, analytical methods, environmental fate, and treatment techniques for the contaminant.
In last years increasing attention has been again devoted to interpretations of quantum theory. In the same time interesting quantum optical experiments have been performed using nonlinear optical processes, in particular frequency down conversion, which provided new information about nature of a photon on the basis of interference and correlation (coincidence) phenomena. Such single-photon and twin-photon effects of quantum optics provide new point of view of interpretations of quantum theory and new tests of its principles. The purpose of this book is to discuss these questions. To follow this goal we give brief reviews of principles of quantum theory and of quantum theory of measurement. As a fundamental theoretical tool the coherent state technique is adopted based on a general algebraic treatment, including the de scription of interaction of radiation and matter. Typical quantum behaviour of physical systems is exhibited by nonclassical optical phenomena, which can be examined using photon interferences and correlations. These phenomena are closely related to violation of various classical inequalities and Bell's in equalities. The most important part of this book discusses quantum optical experiments supporting quantum theory. This book may be considered as a continuation of previous monographs by one of the authors on Coherence of Light (Van Nostrand Reinhold, London 1972, second edition D. Reidel, Dordrecht 1985) and on Quantum Statistics of Linear and Nonlinear Optical Phenomena (D. Reidel, Dordrecht 1984, second edition Kluwer, Dordrecht 1991), which may serve as a preparation for reading this book.
This industrially relevant resource covers all established and emerging analytical methods for the deformulation of polymeric materials, with emphasis on the non-polymeric components. Each technique is evaluated on its technical and industrial merits. Emphasis is on understanding (principles and characteristics) and industrial applicability. Extensively illustrated throughout with over 200 figures, 400 tables, and 3,000 references.
The Dirichlet problem has a very long history in mathematics and its importance in partial differential equations, harmonic analysis, potential theory and the applied sciences is well-known. In the last decade the Dirichlet problem with L2-boundary data has attracted the attention of several mathematicians. The significant features of this recent research are the use of weighted Sobolev spaces, existence results for elliptic equations under very weak regularity assumptions on coefficients, energy estimates involving L2-norm of a boundary data and the construction of a space larger than the usual Sobolev space W1,2 such that every L2-function on the boundary of a given set is the trace of a suitable element of this space. The book gives a concise account of main aspects of these recent developments and is intended for researchers and graduate students. Some basic knowledge of Sobolev spaces and measure theory is required.
My 2013 Trafford Award Winner Book tells the absolute truth on the above mentioned subjects but wikipedia "encyclopedia" (and wikimedia foundation associated projects & sites) has nothing to do with the absolute truth and all of their articles are incorrect and/or are missing important, pertinent information!!! Why wikipedia aka wiki-PEDO-ia's wiki-OCCULT-ism can never ever be trusted? Why leftist, stoic, too liberal wikicrapia is full of wikihomopedoidiots lifetime rejects? Why wiki-PEDO-ia must never, ever be supported or sponsored in any way, shape or form!? http://archive.is/Y0BB wiki-PEDO-ia accusing innocent old people of killing heads of state (this is just a drop in an ocean of utmost wikistupidity, wikihypocrisy, wikignorance, wikiarrogance, wikicontradictions of cold, indifferent editors, especially by its utmost pathetic, rude as hell bureaucrats, administrators and stewards) http://archive.is/k1iQk wiki-PEE-doia info with many true comments by different editors from all walks of life!?! https://archive.is/8Cm8E additional wiki-PEE-doia info, why never, ever trust it or support it in any shape, way or form!?! Why there is no privac y at all on wikicrapia? Once you are banned, wikimedia foundation will treat you worse than garbage, you are no longer human being to them. Why not donate to wikirefuse? http://xahlee.info/w/do_not_donate_to_Wikipedia.html https://archive.is/2NgXW Jimmy Donal 'Jimbo' Wales strongly discourages use of his wiki-PEDO-ia (IN ANY LANGUAGE) as a source in any school or for any project: https://archive.is/tNKVr Wiki-PEE-dia has long, long, long unresolved history of all sorts of problems: https://ritualabuse.us/ritualabuse/articles/wikipedia-has-a-long-history-of-problems/ Check out J.P.L. Lubek's original (or updated) theories on Cosmological Constant and my other original (or updated) theories on/about the universe (physics of the universe): https://archive.is/QWT2W
The field of forensic neuropathology covers such controversial topics as the effects of repeated brain trauma in football players and how babies probably cannot die from being shaken. Jan Leestma is one of the most respected voices in this area. A timely update to his classic reference, Forensic Neuropathology: Third Edition presents an encyclopedic exposition of neuropathological conditions that may have forensic import. Reflecting the latest research, this edition includes expanded sections on multiple trauma, one punch/one hit arterial injuries, and the physiology of respiratory control. It presents new perspectives and rules regarding expert testimony and evidence admissibility occasioned by Daubert and related Supreme Court cases. The book explores how these rulings affect forensic pathologists, neuropathologists, and other potential experts as well as how they interact with the legal system. Several chapters examine the mechanisms and pathophysiology of neuropathological conditions and discuss the biomechanical basis for neurological injury. Where possible, aging and dating methodology is included for various processes. More than 325 updated full-color illustrations complement the text along with diagrams, tables, and figures that illustrate the textual material and can be useful as exhibits in court. An extensive bibliography provides background information and facilitates further research.
How women increasingly became economic agents in early modern Europe is the focus of this stimulating book, which highlights how female agency was crucial for understanding the development of the Western European economy and sheds light on economic development today. Jan Luiten van Zanden, Tine De Moor and Sarah Carmichael argue that over centuries a "European Marriage Pattern" developed, characterized by high numbers of singles among men and women, high marriage ages among men and women, and neolocality, where the couple forms a new nuclear household and did not co-reside with the parents of either bride or groom. This was due to the influence of the Catholic Church's teachings of marriage based on consensus, the rise of labor markets, and institutions concerning property transfers between generations that enhanced wage labor by women. Over time an unprecedented demographic regime was created and embedded in a highly commercial environment in which households interacted frequently with labor, capital and commodity markets. This was one of the main causes of the gradual move away from a Malthusian state towards an economy able to generate long-term economic growth. The authors explore how the pattern was influenced by and influenced female human capital formation, access to the capital market, and participation in the labor market. They use numerous measures of economic activity, including the unique "Girlpower-Index" that measures the average age at first marriage of women minus the spousal age gap, with higher absolute age at marriage and lower spousal age gap both indicating greater female agency and autonomy. The book also examines how this measure can increase understanding of contemporary dynamics of women and the economy. The authors thus shed light on the degree to which women are allowed to play an influential role in and on the economy and society, which varies greatly from one society to another.
An astonishing and heartbreaking study of the Polish Holocaust survivors who returned home only to face continued violence and anti-Semitism at the hands of their neighbors “[Fear] culminates in so keen a shock that even a student of the Jewish tragedy during World War II cannot fail to feel it.”—Elie Wiesel FINALIST FOR THE NATIONAL JEWISH BOOK AWARD • NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY THE WASHINGTON POST BOOK WORLD Poland suffered an exceedingly brutal Nazi occupation during the Second World War, in which 90 percent of the country’s three and a half million Jews perished. Yet despite this unprecedented calamity, Jewish Holocaust survivors returning to their hometowns in Poland after the war were further subjected to terror and bloodshed. The deadliest peacetime pogrom in twentieth-century Europe took place in the Polish town of Kielce on July 4, 1946. In Fear, Jan T. Gross addresses a vexing question: How was this possible? At the center of his investigation is a detailed reconstruction of the Kielce pogrom and how ordinary Poles responded to the spectacle of Jews being murdered by their fellow citizens. Anti-Semitism, Gross argues, became a common currency between the Communist regime and a society in which many were complicit in the Nazi campaign of plunder and murder—and for whom the Jewish survivors were a standing reproach. For more than half a century, the fate of Jewish Holocaust survivors in Poland was cloaked in guilt and shame. Writing with passion, brilliance, and fierce clarity, Jan T. Gross brings to light a truth that must never be ignored. Praise for Fear “That a civilized nation could have descended so low . . . such behavior must be documented, remembered, discussed. This Gross does, intelligently and exhaustively.”—The New York Times Book Review “Gripping . . . an especially powerful and, yes, painful reading experience . . . illuminating and searing.”—Los Angeles Times Book Review “Gross tells a devastating story. . . . One can only hope that this important book will make a difference.”—Boston Sunday Globe “A masterful work that sheds necessary light on a tragic and often-ignored aspect of postwar history.”—Booklist (starred review) “Astonishing . . . Gross supplies impeccable documentation.”—Baltimore Sun “Compelling . . . Gross builds a meticulous case.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review)
The political map of Eastern Europe changed dramatically in December 1991 when the leaders of Belarus, Russia, and Ukraine huddled together in a Bielavieza Forest retreat and decided to dissolve the 15 union republics, which composed the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR). One of those republics was the Belorussian Soviet Socialist Republic (BSSR). A United Nations member since 1945, Belarus has a rich cultural heritage that is seen as a promising base for the development of a solid national identity and for real independence. It is this cultural heritage and sense of history that nourish the ongoing efforts of the nationalist minority, as well as the larger democratic opposition, to resist the regime of President Alaksandr Luka?enka who is bent on restoring ties to Russia. Thus Belarus, with its burdens of the past and potential for the future, finds itself in a struggle that will affect not only its own destiny, but also the international structure of Eastern Europe. The A to Z of Belarus—through its chronology, introductory essays, appendixes, map, bibliography, and hundreds of cross-referenced dictionary entries on important persons, places, events, and institutions and significant political, economic, social, and cultural aspects—traces Belarus' history and provides a compass for the direction the country is heading.
Maiko Masquerade explores Japanese representations of the maiko, or apprentice geisha, in films, manga, and other popular media as an icon of exemplary girlhood. Jan Bardsley traces how the maiko, long stigmatized as a victim of sexual exploitation, emerges in the 2000s as the chaste keeper of Kyoto’s classical artistic traditions. Insider accounts by maiko and geisha, their leaders and fans, show pride in the training, challenges, and rewards maiko face. No longer viewed as a toy for men’s amusement, she serves as catalyst for women’s consumer fun. This change inspires stories of ordinary girls—and even one boy—striving to embody the maiko ideal, engaging in masquerades that highlight questions of personal choice, gender performance, and national identity.
This new edition updates Durbin & Koopman's important text on the state space approach to time series analysis. The distinguishing feature of state space time series models is that observations are regarded as made up of distinct components such as trend, seasonal, regression elements and disturbance terms, each of which is modelled separately. The techniques that emerge from this approach are very flexible and are capable of handling a much wider range of problems than the main analytical system currently in use for time series analysis, the Box-Jenkins ARIMA system. Additions to this second edition include the filtering of nonlinear and non-Gaussian series. Part I of the book obtains the mean and variance of the state, of a variable intended to measure the effect of an interaction and of regression coefficients, in terms of the observations. Part II extends the treatment to nonlinear and non-normal models. For these, analytical solutions are not available so methods are based on simulation.
This book covers developments in the theory of oscillations from diverse viewpoints, reflecting the fields multidisciplinary nature. It introduces the state-of-the-art in the theory and various applications of nonlinear dynamics. It also offers the first treatment of the asymptotic and homogenization methods in the theory of oscillations in combination with Pad approximations. With its wealth of interesting examples, this book will prove useful as an introduction to the field for novices and as a reference for specialists.
The introduction of synthetic organic chemicals into the environment during the last few decades has given rise to major concern about the ecotoxicological effects and ultimate fate of these compounds. The pollutants that are considered to be most hazardous because of their intrinsic toxicity, high exposure level, or recalcitrant behavior in the environment have been placed on blacklists and other policy priority lists. The fate of synthetic compounds that enter the environment is mainly determined by their rate of biodegradation, which therefore also has a major effect on the degree of bioaccumulation and the risk of ecotoxicological effects. The degree and rate of biodegradation is also of critical importance for the feasibility of biological techniques to clean up contaminated sites and waste streams. The biodegradation of xenobiotics has thus been the subject of numerous studies, which resulted in thousands of publications in scientific journals, books, and conference proceedings. These studies led to a deeper understanding of the diversity of biodegradation processes. As a result, it has become possible to enhance the rate of degradation of recalcitrant pollutants during biological treatment and to design completely new treatment processes. At present, much work is being done to expand the range of pollutants to which biodegradation can be applied, and to make treatment techniques less expensive and better applicable for waste streams which are difficult to handle.
Identities in Everyday Life explores how identity theory in social psychology can help us understand a wide array of issues across six areas of life including psychological well-being; authenticity; morality; gender, race, and sexuality; group membership; and early-to-later adult identities. Bringing together over 45 scholars presenting original theoretical or empirical work, the chapters build upon prior work to understand the source, development, and dynamics of individuals' identities as they unfold within and across situations. These studies not only advance scholarly research on identities, but they also provide an understanding of the relevance of identities for people's everyday lives. The findings are relevant to a broad-based set of researchers in the academy across disciplines in the social sciences, education, and health, to students at both the graduate and undergraduate level who are interested in identities at both a personal and professional level, to mental health professionals, and to the average person in society.
For a time it was almost a cliche to say that anthropology was a handmaiden of colonialism - by which was usually meant 'Western' colonialism. And this insinuation was assumed to somehow weaken the theoretical claims of anthropology and its fieldwork achievements. What this collection demonstrates is that colonialism was not only a Western phenomenon, but 'Eastern' as well. And that Japanese or Chinese anthropologists were also engaged in studying subject peoples. But wherever they were and whoever they were anthropologists always had a complex and problematic relationship with the colonial state. The latter saw some anthropologists' sympathy for 'the natives' as a threat, while on the other hand anthropological knowledge was used for the training of colonial officials. The impact of the colonial situation on the formation of anthropological theories is an important if not easily answered question, and the comparison of experiences in Asia offered in this book further helps to illuminate this complex relationship.
Efforts at coordination between nations are at the heart of the challenges of globalization. Despite steadily growing interdependencies, individual nations still have specific interests that present obstacles to globalization. While some challenges inspired by the need to coordinate are viewed as inevitable by many, they are less optimistic about prospects for success. Jan-Erik Lane argues that one should focus objectively upon the possibility of failures. Lane analyzes four kinds of challenges to interdependency, all of which are growing in geopolitical relevance. First, countries need to diminish their dependency on fossil fuel and shift to a reliable supply of energy, because fossil fuels are diminishing. Second, environmental degradation must be addressed, because it is accelerating under the strain of earth’s population. Lane advocates an ecological footprint approach. Third, a single global market economy and its complexities must be addressed, as national economies are increasingly opened. Finally, as traditional state sovereignty weakens, foreign military intervention in both international and intra-state conflicts increases. Governments are attempting to address these interdependencies, or reply to the challenges they pose, mainly through international organizations and regionalism. These efforts are discussed at length. In addition, problems with international law are reviewed, as Lane warns against the utopian hopes of global constitutionalism. Globalization also examines the potential consequences of failing to address the need for coordination in efforts to address shared global challenges.
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