Such is the voice of Shan Sa's unforgettable heroine in her latest literary masterpiece, Empress. Empress Wu, one of China's most controversial figures, was its first and only female emperor, who emerged in the seventh century during the great Tang Dynasty and ushered in a golden age. Throughout history, her name has been defamed and her story distorted by those taking vengeance on a woman who dared to become emperor. But now, for the first time in thirteen centuries, Empress Wu (or Heavenlight, as we come to know her) flings open the gates of the Forbidden City and tells her own astonishing tale—revealing a fascinating, complex figure who in many ways remains modern to this day. Writing with epic assurance, poetry, and vivid historic detail, Shan Sa plumbs the psychological and philosophical depths of what it means to be a striving mortal in a tumultuous, power-hungry world. Empress is a great literary feat and a revelation for the ages.
As the Japanese military invades 1930s Manchuria, a young girl approaches her own sexual coming of age. Drawn into a complex triangle with two boys, she distracts herself from the onslaught of adulthood by playing the game of go with strangers in a public square--and yet the force of desire, like the occupation, proves inevitable. Unbeknownst to the girl who plays go, her most worthy and frequent opponent is a Japanese soldier in disguise. Captivated by her beauty as much as by her bold, unpredictable approach to the strategy game, the soldier finds his loyalties challenged. Is there room on the path to war for that most revolutionary of acts: falling in love?
Every five hundred years, the phoenix would bear all the sins and suffering of the human world and be reborn from the fire. Five hundred years had passed since the start of the Phoenix Dynasty, and the phoenix sacrificial ceremony was just around the corner. However, the divine Holy Maiden had yet to descend, causing everyone's hearts to become anxious as chaotic scenes frequently appeared. The Demon Lord was also about to make his move, intending to obtain the spirit of the phoenix and unify the demon realm. The beautiful young girl, the Shura, carried a secret mission and entered the strange palace. After a few twists and turns, not only did she solve the mystery of her past, she even resolved a calamity in the mortal world.
Every five hundred years, the phoenix would bear all the sins and suffering of the human world and be reborn from the fire. Five hundred years had passed since the start of the Phoenix Dynasty, and the phoenix sacrificial ceremony was just around the corner. However, the divine Holy Maiden had yet to descend, causing everyone's hearts to become anxious as chaotic scenes frequently appeared. The Demon Lord was also about to make his move, intending to obtain the spirit of the phoenix and unify the demon realm. The beautiful young girl, the Shura, carried a secret mission and entered the strange palace. After a few twists and turns, not only did she solve the mystery of her past, she even resolved a calamity in the mortal world.
Après une série de meurtres, le calme de la petite ville de Blackwood fut rompu à jamais. Des victimes disparaissent, mais personne ne semble être au courant de la situation. C’est après avoir sauvé une camarade de classe que Damien Walker devient à son tour la cible du tueur aux pouvoirs surnaturels et devra se battre afin de protéger ceux qu’il aime. C’est au cours de son périple qu’il réalise que le monde est inhabité par des créatures, fantômes et phénomènes étranges, mais c’est une mystérieuse organisation nommée Aether qui influencera son destin. Damien décide de devenir un chasseur de monstres avec l’aide de deux jeunes hommes a fin de retrouver le tueur: le début d’une longue chasse entre la vie et la mort ne fait que commencer. Chaque mystère ne fait qu’ouvrir de nombreuses portes conduisant à plus de questions que de réponses, car la vérité existe dans une mince ligne entre le réel et l’inexplicable. Il est du devoir des chasseurs de trouver les réponses afin de découvrir ce qui se cache derrière toutes ces morts. Qui est le tueur? Que veut-il? Et pourquoi Damien devient celui qui doit mettre fin à une histoire qui persiste depuis bien trop longtemps? Chaque contrat accomplit le rapprochera de la vérité pour lui faire découvrir la face cachée de ce travail infernal. Qui sera le chasseur et qui serra le chassé?
One of the masters of Pure Land Buddhism shows how to have a vision of the Land Sukhavati and its Lord by using the sutra as a manual of visualization.
Applying computational intelligence for product design is a fast-growing and promising research area in computer sciences and industrial engineering. However, there is currently a lack of books, which discuss this research area. This book discusses a wide range of computational intelligence techniques for implementation on product design. It covers common issues on product design from identification of customer requirements in product design, determination of importance of customer requirements, determination of optimal design attributes, relating design attributes and customer satisfaction, integration of marketing aspects into product design, affective product design, to quality control of new products. Approaches for refinement of computational intelligence are discussed, in order to address different issues on product design. Cases studies of product design in terms of development of real-world new products are included, in order to illustrate the design procedures, as well as the effectiveness of the computational intelligence based approaches to product design. This book covers the state-of-art of computational intelligence methods for product design, which provides a clear picture to post-graduate students in industrial engineering and computer science. It is particularly suitable for researchers and professionals working on computational intelligence for product design. It provides concepts, techniques and methodologies, for product designers in applying computational intelligence to deal with product design.
Advanced, recent developments in biochips and medical imaging Biochips and Medical Imaging is designed as a professional resource, covering recent biochip and medical imaging developments. Within the text, the authors encourage uniting aspects of engineering, biology, and medicine to facilitate advancements in the field of molecular diagnostics and imaging. Biochips are microchips for efficiently screening biological analytes. This book aims at presenting information on the state-of-the-art and emerging biosensors, biochips, and imaging devices of the body's systems, including the endocrine, circulatory, and immune systems. Medical diagnostics includes biochips (in-vitro diagnostics) and medical and molecular imaging (in-vivo imaging). Biochips and Medical Imaging explores the role of in-vitro and in-vivo diagnostics. It enables an instructor to share in-depth examples of the use of biochips in diagnosing cancer and cardiovascular diseases. Provides real-life knowledge on biochips and medical imaging, written by leading researchers Serves as a resource for professionals working in the biochip or imaging fields Features an accessible approach for anyone interested in biochips and their applications Readers of Biochips and Medical Imaging can expand their knowledge of medical technology, even if they have no biological knowledge and a limited math background. With its focus on important developments, this book is sure to also capture the interest of bioengineering and biomaterials scientists, structural biologists, electrical engineers, and nanotechnologists.
Woman, This King will definitely conquer you!" The wise and cold Prince was about to get married for the first time. The secret service had arrived and traversed the world. They were useless firewood turned into geniuses, and the Prince of Devilish Charm was very domineering. He was pretending to be the young princess in order to cause trouble. If Your Highness wants to get married, you have to ask if she agrees!
A timely introduction to current research on PID and predictive control by one of the leading authors on the subject PID and Predictive Control of Electric Drives and Power Supplies using MATLAB/Simulink examines the classical control system strategies, such as PID control, feed-forward control and cascade control, which are widely used in current practice. The authors share their experiences in actual design and implementation of the control systems on laboratory test-beds, taking the reader from the fundamentals through to more sophisticated design and analysis. The book contains sections on closed-loop performance analysis in both frequency domain and time domain, presented to help the designer in selection of controller parameters and validation of the control system. Continuous-time model predictive control systems are designed for the drives and power supplies, and operational constraints are imposed in the design. Discrete-time model predictive control systems are designed based on the discretization of the physical models, which will appeal to readers who are more familiar with sampled-data control system. Soft sensors and observers will be discussed for low cost implementation. Resonant control of the electric drives and power supply will be discussed to deal with the problems of bias in sensors and unbalanced three phase AC currents. Brings together both classical control systems and predictive control systems in a logical style from introductory through to advanced levels Demonstrates how simulation and experimental results are used to support theoretical analysis and the proposed design algorithms MATLAB and Simulink tutorials are given in each chapter to show the readers how to take the theory to applications. Includes MATLAB and Simulink software using xPC Target for teaching purposes A companion website is available Researchers and industrial engineers; and graduate students on electrical engineering courses will find this a valuable resource.
Ten years later he was reincarnated but was surprised to find someone posing as himself as the head of the chinese power group which is hidden in what kind of conspiracy in order to solve the mystery. To save their own he sent for a body art training institutions male drillmaster led a team composed of beauty opened the modern city against the sky journey
This book reports recent major advances in automated reasoning in geometry. The authors have developed a method and implemented a computer program which, for the first time, produces short and readable proofs for hundreds of geometry theorems.The book begins with chapters introducing the method at an elementary level, which are accessible to high school students; latter chapters concentrate on the main theme: the algorithms and computer implementation of the method.This book brings researchers in artificial intelligence, computer science and mathematics to a new research frontier of automated geometry reasoning. In addition, it can be used as a supplementary geometry textbook for students, teachers and geometers. By presenting a systematic way of proving geometry theorems, it makes the learning and teaching of geometry easier and may change the way of geometry education.
The state of the art of the bioengineering aspects of the morphology of microorganisms and their relationship to process performance are described in this volume. Materials and methods of the digital image analysis and mathematical modeling of hyphal elongation, branching and pellet formation as well as their application to various fungi and actinomycetes during the production of antibiotics and enzymes are presented.
Performance evaluation of increasingly complex human-made systems requires the use of simulation models. However, these systems are difficult to describe and capture by succinct mathematical models. The purpose of this book is to address the difficulties of the optimization of complex systems via simulation models or other computation-intensive models involving possible stochastic effects and discrete choices. This book establishes distinct advantages of the "softer" ordinal approach for search-based type problems, analyzes its general properties, and shows the many orders of magnitude improvement in computational efficiency that is possible.
Amauri is young and just trying to find her way after she seems to lose everything all at once. Her mother is supposedly murdered by a dope boy and both of her brothers leave her to fend for herself at the same time. Her aunt and uncle takes her in, but she can't help but feel like her life is incomplete. She feels like she has no one left in the world that is until NaQuario aka Qua comes back around. She's always had a crush on him, but he's only there to show her that she still has family left. At least that's what he's trying to convince her and himself. Qua has been around the block for a while, but when he's suddenly connected and plugged with the purest fish scale in the city of Dallas, his life seems to change in the blink of eye. The money flows in rapidly along with the hate. His enemies are now at an all time high and there's one person that's determined to bring him down. With everything suddenly being thrown at Qua, there's only one person that seems to bring him peace and happiness and it isn't his girlfriend, Stacy. Amauri is like a breath of fresh air for Qua. She's everything he seems to be missing in his life, but she's off limits being she is the the little sister of his best friend. Will the two be able to resist one another? And will Stacy let him go that easily or will his lifestyle be too much for young Amauri to handle, especially when Trap, a young boss comes into the picture to show her different. Rah and Tayanna have been together for almost four years. And the love they have for one another, seems unbreakable. But when Rah comes across a secret that Tayanna has been holding, things suddenly start to change. Rah no longer thinks Tayanna is the one for him and soughts a new love in Sa'Ronnie whom gives him everything he thought he had in Tayanna. The love the two shares blinds them both--forcing them to miss the wrath of Tayanna-but what no one anticipates is what Sa'Ronnie has in store as well. Jett likes to have his cake and eat it too. He has a beautiful girlfriend Symone at home doing everything possible to take care of her man and make him happy, but while running the streets with his boys, Jett is sure to take time out for his side-dime piece Savoya. Savoya is the coldest cook in the game and is tired of being Jett's little secret. What happens will she's no longer willing to share Jett and forces him to choose? Will he make the right choice? Or will the secret Savoya's hiding literally take her out the game?
Darwinian evolutionary theory is one of the most important theories in human history for it has equipped us with a valuable tool to understand the amazing world around us. There can be little surprise, therefore, that Evolutionary Computation (EC), inspired by natural evolution, has been so successful in providing high quality solutions in a large number of domains. EC includes a number of techniques, such as Genetic Algorithms, Genetic Programming, Evolution Strategy and Evolutionary Programming, which have been used in a diverse range of highly successful applications. This book brings together some of these EC applications in fields including electronics, telecommunications, health, bioinformatics, supply chain and other engineering domains, to give the audience, including both EC researchers and practitioners, a glimpse of this exciting rapidly evolving field.
The top ten hunters in the Blood Hunting Alliance, the Vampire Hunters, were powerful existences that made the vampires terrified.And the reason why Mo Fei was only ranked ninth, was greatly related to his soft heart.Could this little vampire who was starving because he didn't dare to kill anyone in front of him be the serial killer?Mo Fei, who had already failed to complete the mission too many times because he was softhearted, would probably cause him to be kicked out of the top ten this time around ...No. 3 Huntress Yin Dong, who came to an agreement with Mo Fei, was sent to an alliance court to cover Mo Fei. Under the merciless orders of the Public Prosecutor, he was sentenced to imprisonment for one month.This was not the first time for Sir Hua Hua, who had grown up with his Charm skill, to confront that old-fashioned prosecutor ... Tsk tsk, is it really that interesting to send our own people to jail?It was a malicious attempt to seduce YinDong, who had always been unrivalled in his field of love, but had instead fallen into his network of love ...
Radar scattering and imaging of rough surfaces is an active interdisciplinary area of research with many practical applications in fields such as mineral and resource exploration, ocean and physical oceanography, military and national defense, planetary exploration, city planning and land use, environmental science, and many more. By focusing on the most advanced analytical and numerical modeling and describing both forward and inverse modeling, Radar Scattering and Imaging of Rough Surfaces: Modeling and Applications with MATLAB® connects the scattering process to imaging techniques by vivid examples through numerical and experimental demonstrations and provides computer codes and practical uses. This book is unique in its simultaneous treatment of radar scattering and imaging. Key Features Bridges physical modeling with simulation for resolving radar imaging problems (the first comprehensive work to do so) Provides excellent basic and advanced information for microwave remote-sensing professionals in various fields of science and engineering Covers most advanced analytical and numerical modeling for both backscattering and bistatic scattering Includes MATLAB® codes useful not only for academics but also for radar engineers and scientists to develop tools applicable in different areas of earth studies Covering both the theoretical and the practical, Radar Scattering and Imaging of Rough Surfaces: Modeling and Applications with MATLAB® is an invaluable resource for professionals and students using remote sensing to study and explain the Earth and its processes. University and research institutes, electrical and radar engineers, remote-sensing image users, application software developers, students, and academics alike will benefit from this book. The author, Kun-Shan Chen, is an internationally known and respected engineer and scientist and an expert in the field of electromagnetic modeling.
This book provides a comprehensive description of a dosimetric technique called thermoluminescence dosimetry. There are hundreds of scientific papers on thermoluminescence and its applications, but none deal with the "handling" of the technique, except for some official documents regarding procedural tests which are now not easily found. For this reason the authors have written this book with the aim of describing in detail how to use this dosimetric method. This volume is a valuable guide not only on the proper handling of the TL dozemeters but also on the results obtained by their use. The book consists of nine chapters. The first three chapters cover the theory of thermoluminescence and the experimental methods used to evaluate the kinetics parameters. The next three chapters describe the practical aspects of setting up a thermoluminescent dosimetric system, specifically suggesting the procedures to be used in handling the TL dosimeters as well as all the related instrumentation. The algorithm correlating the TL emission to the radiation dosage is provided and explained. The precision and accuracy of the TL measurements are also discussed. The last three chapters are devoted to: (i) the practical procedure used in some specific application fields, (ii) a discussion about the lower limit of detection and (iii) the TL instrumentation. Several practical illustrative examples are given throughout the text. The book is intended for students and researchers learning new techniques and those working in the area of radiation dosimetry with a specific interest in the TL technique.
This is the first book to focus on respiratory health and diseases in Asia, where 60% of the world’s population reside. It is well known that disease patterns and health care delivery vary in different parts of the world. With divergent socioeconomic background, genetic makeup and environmental factors, health care issues take on a unique perspective in Asia. In this volume, respiratory health and diseases are presented and discussed with relevance to their unique epidemiology and management in Asia. The chapters are contributed by professional leaders who are highly respected for their clinical expertise in respiratory medicine in different parts of Asia. Many of them are internationally renowned for their academic excellence. Their collective extensive experience offers a wealth of knowledge that is invaluable to readers not only in Asia but also to other parts of the world. The high mobility of populations exposes clinicians to people from all over the world in their daily clinical practice. This informative book is a useful reference equally for medical students, clinicians in training and respiratory specialists. The editors of this volume are Professors Mary Ip, Moira Chan-Yeung and Wah Kit Lam of the University of Hong Kong, and Professor Nan Shan Zhong, Director of the Guangzhou Institute of Respiratory Disease.
As part of the International Year of the Health and Care Workers (IYHCW) 2021 Campaign activities, the World Health Professions Alliance (WHPA) led an analysis of the impact that COVID-19 had on the global health and care workforce for the World Health Organization (WHO). An evidence synthesis was developed using the information and summary reports from each of the WHPA stakeholders related to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on health and care workers (HCWs), in alignment with the standardized framework developed by WHO to measure the multi-dimensional impact of the pandemic on HCWs. The purpose of this report is to act as an advocacy document to global, regional and national leaders and decision-makers working in the health systems and health workforce domains, sensitizing them about the multi-dimensional impact of COVID-19 on HCWs, the need to think beyond just infections and deaths, and the importance of investing, protecting and safeguarding this workforce. Hence, addressing the impact of COVID-19 on HCWs should be comprehensive, ensuring not just the health and social well-being of the health and care workers, but also their availability and distribution and working conditions. Secondly, it also aims to draw the attention of human resources for health (HRH) planners, policy-makers, program managers, researchers and analysts to the standardized framework developed by WHO, and to motivate them to apply the framework to measure impact at national level.
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