springer apr 1998 (254 risultati)

Buch. Condizione: Neu. Neuware -The Compact Disc (CD), as a standardized information carrier, has become one of the most successful consumer products ever marketed. Although the original disc was intended for audio playback, its specific advantages opened very quickly the way towards various computer applications. The standardization of the Compact Disc Read-Only Memory (CD-ROM) and of all succeeding similar products, like Compact Disc interactive (CD-i), Photo and Video CD, CD Recordable (CD-R), and CD Rewritable (CD R/W), has substantially enlarged the range of possible applications. The plastic disc represented from the very beginning a removable medium of large storage capacity. The advent of the personal computer accompa nied by the increasing demand for both data distribution and exchange have strongly marked the evolution of the CD-ROM drive. The number of sold CD-ROM units exceeded 60 millions in 1997 when compared to about 2.5 millions in 1992. As computing power continuously improved over the years, computer pe ripherals have also targeted better performance specifications. In particular, the speed of CD-ROM drives increased from the so-called 1X in 1984 to dou ble speed in 1992, and further to 32X at the beginning of 1998. The average time needed to access data on disc has dropped from about 300 ms to less than 90 ms within the same period of time.

Buch. Condizione: Neu. Neuware - Earthquakes and Atmospheric Hazards contains a selection of papers that were presented as part of the Sixth International Symposium on Natural and Man-Made Hazards (HAZARDS-96) held in Toronto, Canada during July, 1996. The Symposium was very timely, given the large number of natural disasters that have occurred in various parts of the world during the 1990s, the United Nations' International Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction (IDNDR). The human reaction to these disasters has varied widely from one event to the next and the economic and social costs have been immense with damage running into billions of dollars. Having in everyone's mind the Northridge, California (1994) and the Kobe, Japan (1995) earthquakes, the volcanoes in the Philippines, the cyclones and related storm surges in Bangladesh, and the floods in North America and Europe caused by heavy rains, the Symposium attracted more than one hundred papers covering various aspects of these events. The eleven papers included in this volume deal with the scientific and management issues of those earthquakes and atmospheric hazards that occurred during the late 1990s, with emphasis on the preparedness aspects. A summary report of the HAZARDS-96 Symposium and recommendations adopted by the participants is also included. Earthquakes and Atmospheric Hazards forms an excellent reference for scientists, students, engineers, the insurance industry, authorities specializing in public safety and natural hazards preparedness and mitigation plans.

Buch. Condizione: Neu. Neuware - Processing of Vocalization Signals in Neurons of the Inferior Colliculus and Medial Geniculate Body; J. Syka, et al. Coding of FM and AM Sounds at the Auditory Midbrain; P.W.F. Poon, et al. Inhibition and Inhibitory Plasticity in the Mammalian Auditory Midbrain; M.B. Calford, Y. Saalmann. Neuronal Periodicity Coding and Pitch Effects; G. Langner. Specialization's of the Auditory System for the Analysis of Natural Sounds; I. Nelken, et al. The Processing of Species-Specific Complex Sounds by the Ascending and Descending Auditory Systems; N. Suga, et al. A Connected Mandarin Speech Recognition System Using Dynamic Programming Bayesian Neural Networks; C.-C. Huang, et al. A computational Model of Birdsong Learning by Auditory Experience and Auditory Feedback; K. Doya, T.J. Sejnowski. On Recent Results in Modeling of Sensory Neurons; P. Lánsky. Interneurons Which Shape Response Properties in Dorsal Cochlear Nucleus; E.D. Young, I. Nelken. Behavioral and Physiological Studies of Sound Localization in the Cat; T.C.T. Yin, L.C. Populin. The Processing of Auditory Stimuli for Eye Movements in the Posterior Parietal Cortex of Monkeys; R.A. Andersen, et al. 9 Additional Chapters. Poster Abstracts of the Conference. Index.

Buch. Condizione: Neu. Neuware - The major purpose of this book is to contribute to better economic policy analysis through improvements in models studying the economic impacts of carbon dioxide (CO2) and other greenhouse gases, and to show ways in which economic instruments can effectively be put to use to alleviate such problems. Global Environmental Economics is an integrated economic assessment of GHG emissions impacting economic growth and welfare change along major considerations of uncertainty, technological change and cooperation. A theoretical treatment of the issues is emphasized, using modern tools of economic theory and based on `simple' models that yield illustrative results in terms of `what-if' questions. With this focus the book distinguishes itself uniquely from other economic analytic approaches in the field that have appeared in the past few years. It focuses on the analysis, control and optimization of modelling forms rather than the collection and analysis of data. More concretely, the book searches for optimal fossil fuel use, research and technology policies rather than prediction of the future. The collection appeals to researchers interested in environmental economics, economic theory, and mathematical methods (in particular optimal-control theory) and economic growth.

Buch. Condizione: Neu. Neuware - This book outlines a scientific approach to understanding and treating children and adolescents who display a severe pattern of aggressive antisocial behavior. Unlike other works which tend to focus exclusively on research data or practical guidelines for treatment approaches, this valuable reference integrates both of these aspects, providing clear guidelines for intervention based on the most current research. Outstanding features include 23 tables and figures, and two chapters detailing a comprehensive approach to treatment tailored to the needs of the individual child or adolescent.

Buch. Condizione: Neu. Neuware - Economic Restructuring and the Growing Uncertainty of the Middle Class focuses on a relatively new research area which is becoming increasingly more important: the growing uncertainty of the middle class. Until recently, members of the middle class were not only assured of a good social and economic position but also of the continuation of this position. Nowadays, economic and organisational changes are threatening this once secure position. The boundaries between the middle classes and the working class are becoming less and less visible. `Making a career', which was in the past central for middle class people, is becoming ever more difficult. Moreover, organisational restructuring is threatening their employment. It seems that insecurity is becoming a central element in the lives of members of the middle class. In this book experts from several European countries discuss the question of to what extent the position of the middle class is really changing. They also discuss the mechanisms that are propelling these changes, and the effects these changes have on the attitudes of middle-class people. As the experts are from several parts of Europe (Great Britain, Germany, The Netherlands, Greece, Spain and Russia), the reader can compare the situation of the middle classes in these various countries. This book contains valuable information for anyone interested in this important topic: not only for those involved in the studies of economic and organisational change and social stratification and those interested in the similarities and differences between European countries, but (amongst others) for policy-makers, managers, and trade union representatives who will be dealing with problems induced by the changes that are discussed in the book.

Buch. Condizione: Neu. Neuware - Ideas linked to rational choice theory started to appear frequently in the economics literature in the 1960s and 1970s, but the attention given to rationality widened to include commentators presenting far-reaching appraisals and critiques. The literature grew to a steady flow and spanned diverse areas of thought including socialist and `rational-choice Marxist' assessments, and other approaches including institutional, sociological, psychological, ethical, choice-theoretical, strategic, and game-theoretical treatments of rationality. This diversity of literature led to the creation of this volume. What does rationality mean Was there some common core of meaning that held all of these seemingly disparate developments together, or were there discernable schools of thought with peculiarities that set them clearly apart from one another The essays in this volume illustrate that diversity, and despite the variety of approaches there remains a common core of meaning that accommodates not so much a radically different set of concepts of rationality as a highly variegated array of methods and approaches to this subject. Contributors address topics of their choice on the concept of rationality in economics, and the selection of these contributors is meant to represent a variety of backgrounds and approaches.

Buch. Condizione: Neu. Neuware - Economic values are increasingly used in policy analysis and legal settings. With the growing recognition that many of the things that benefit or harm people are outside the market system, have come increasing efforts to develop nonmarket valuation techniques. One such technique is the contingent valuation method (CVM). CVM seeks to value environmental and other nonmarket goods and services by asking individuals about their values using survey methods. These procedures are different from the `revealed-preference' methods that economists have historically employed to estimate economic values. Why depart from well-established revealed-preference procedures and apply a `stated-preference' method like CVM For nonmarket goods and services, revealed-preference methods have two shortcomings that those applying CVM hope to avoid. First, revealed-preference methods involve econometric problems that have yet to be fully overcome. The second shortcoming of revealed-preference methods is that such methods, when applied to environmental amenities, are likely to be only partial measures of value. Given the tremendous interest that exists in economic values and the limitations of revealed-preference methods, it is not surprising that interest in CVM has grown rapidly. Environmental Resource Valuation reviews the application of CVM and compares American experiences in nonmarket evaluation with those in other countries.

Buch. Condizione: Neu. Neuware - Students in Technical and Agricultural faculties spend only a limited amount of time on general economics, environmental economics and resource economics. However, while their knowledge of economics may be limited, they often have adequate mathematical skills. The objective of The Economic Metabolism, therefore, is to present these three branches of economics in an integrated, mathematically oriented way, so that the subjects can be taught together, without losing time on separate economics courses. While the approach adopted is mathematical, the mathematics used is certainly not too difficult for the target group: university students in technical and/or agricultural faculties will be used to far more difficult mathematics. After studying the book, the basic/intermediate level student should be able to understand the basic principles of economics, especially microeconomics; understand the economic principles of environmental policy; understand the economic principles of resource extraction; apply the standards for efficiency and sustainability; and apply the theory to practical problems.

Buch. Condizione: Neu. Neuware - In the `Preliminary Dissertation' of his Theodicy, Leibniz declares himself an apologist for the compatibilist doctrines of original sin, election and reprobation propounded by the theologians of the Augsburg Confession. According to those theologians, man's actions are determined but man retains the power to act otherwise and therefore is responsible for his actions. Savage argues that Leibniz, in formulating his apology, availed himself of both his doctrine of possible worlds and his finite-infinite analysis distinction (the latter being applied within the former). Savage challenges the dogma that Leibniz's metaphysical principles entail that individuals are powerless to act otherwise and that God cannot conceive of them acting otherwise. He argues that interpreters deduce the dogma from those principles with the aid of dubious extra-textual premises, for example, that a Leibnizian individual has only one complete concept or cannot be persons other than the person it actually is.

Buch. Condizione: Neu. Neuware.

Buch. Condizione: Neu. Neuware - This book represents an attempt to treat three aspects of digital systems, design, prototyping and customization, in an integrated manner using two major technologies: VHSIC Hardware Description Language (VHDL) as a modeling and specification tool, and Field-Programmable Logic Devices (FPLDs) as an implementation technology. They together make a very powerful combination for complex digital systems rapid design and prototyping as the important steps towards manufacturing, or, in the case of feasible quantities, they also provide fast system manufacturing. Combining these two technologies makes possible implementation of very complex digital systems at the desk. VHDL has become a standard tool to capture features of digital systems in a form of behavioral, dataflow or structural models providing a high degree of flexibility. When augmented by a good simulator, VHDL enables extensive verification of features of the system under design, reducing uncertainties at the latter phases of design process. As such, it becomes an unavoidable modeling tool to model digital systems at various levels of abstraction.

Buch. Condizione: Neu. Neuware - This book gives a comprehensive coverage of Internet technologies. It provides both an extensive and contemporary review of developments in the field and also gives details of current research. Consideration is given to the likely impact upon communications, business, entertainment and education. Areas covered include: developments in the network protocols on which the Internet is based; the evolving capability of the Internet to carry audio and video traffic and the developments in security and payment technologies which are opening up a wide range of commercial electronic applications. As the importance of the Internet continues to increase, this book will be of interest to most businesses. Several case studies of on-line services are are included. This book will prove useful not only to reesearchers in the communications and computing sectors working directly in the development of the technology, but also to people working in banking and finance. Business users of the Internet will also find this book to be invaluable in the development of such applications as Internet trading and corporate Intranets.

Buch. Condizione: Neu. Neuware -The Compact Disc (CD), as a standardized information carrier, has become one of the most successful consumer products ever marketed. Although the original disc was intended for audio playback, its specific advantages opened very quickly the way towards various computer applications. The standardization of the Compact Disc Read-Only Memory (CD-ROM) and of all succeeding similar products, like Compact Disc interactive (CD-i), Photo and Video CD, CD Recordable (CD-R), and CD Rewritable (CD R/W), has substantially enlarged the range of possible applications. The plastic disc represented from the very beginning a removable medium of large storage capacity. The advent of the personal computer accompa nied by the increasing demand for both data distribution and exchange have strongly marked the evolution of the CD-ROM drive. The number of sold CD-ROM units exceeded 60 millions in 1997 when compared to about 2.5 millions in 1992. As computing power continuously improved over the years, computer pe ripherals have also targeted better performance specifications. In particular, the speed of CD-ROM drives increased from the so-called 1X in 1984 to dou ble speed in 1992, and further to 32X at the beginning of 1998. The average time needed to access data on disc has dropped from about 300 ms to less than 90 ms within the same period of time. 158 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Condizione: Neu. Neuware - The condition of prolonged obstructive jaundice with patent bile ducts was first described in 1851 by Addison and Gull of Guy's Hospital, London. The term primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC) was defined in 1950 by Ahrens and colleagues of the Rockefeller Institute, New York. The condition was considered rare but this changed in 1965 with the discovery of a definitive diagnostic serum mitochondrial antibody test and the recognition that a raised serum alkaline phosphatase value, often discovered incidentally, could be a diagnostic pointer. If the diagnosis is made earlier, the end stages are rarely reached as death is replaced by liver transplantation. On November 6th 1997, in Chicago, an International Faculty discussed in depth the clinical features, pathogenesis and treatment of PBC, no longer considered a rare disease. The course of PBC is long, but some 18 years after the discovery of a positive mitochondrial antibody test in a symptom free patient with normal serum biochemistry, 83% will have developed abnormal tests and 76% will be symptomatic. Identification of those who will progress rapidly is difficult. The serum antimitochondrial profile may be useful but this is a very specialist technique. Mathematical prognostic models are useful in therapeutic trials and in the selection and timing of patients for liver transplantation but have limited value in individual patients. An increasing serum bilirubin level remains the most important indicator of rapid progression. Its value however can be negated by the use of ursodeoxycholic acid which has a bilirubin-lowering effect.

Buch. Condizione: Neu. Neuware - Recent years have seen tremendous progress in unraveling the molecular basis of different plant-microbe interactions. Knowledge has accumulated on the mecha nisms of the microbial infection of plants, which can lead to either disease or resistance. The mechanisms developed by plants to interact with microbes, whether viruses, bacteria, or fungi, involve events that can lead to symbiotic association or to disease or tumor formation. Cell death caused by pathogen infection has been of great interest for many years because of its association with plant resistance. There appear to be two types of plant cell death associated with pathogen infection, a rapid hypersensitive cell death localized at the site of infection during an incompatible interaction between a resistant plant and an avirulent pathogen, and a slow, normosensitive plant cell death that spreads beyond the site of infection during some compatible interactions involving a susceptible plant and a virulent, necrogenic pathogen. Plants possess a number of defense mechanisms against infection, such as (i) production of phytoalexin, (ii) formation of hydrolases, (iii) accumulation of hydroxyproline-rich glycoprotein and lignin deposition, (iv) production of pathogen-related proteins, (v) produc tion of oligosaccharides, jasmonic acid, and various other phenolic substances, and (vi) production of toxin-metabolizing enzymes. Based on these observations, insertion of a single suitable gene in a particular plant has yielded promising results in imparting resistance against specific infection or disease. It appears that a signal received after microbe infection triggers different signal transduction pathways.

Buch. Condizione: Neu. Neuware - The studies by Santiago Ram6n y Cajal on astrocytes, and the extense work developed by Pio del Rio Hortega dealing with microglia and oligodendrocytes are with no doubt two important milestones of neurobiology, and specially cf glial research. Since these classical studies, the curiosity for understanding glial cells has continuously grown. During the last two decades, the development of new meth ods of study, including cell culture techniques and the use of histochemical and immunocytochemical markers, has allowed a remarkable advance in this field. This increasing interest is reflected by the creation of local and international glial networks, the publication of the journal Glia, the celebration of periodic interna tional meetings and the publication of extensive books focused on glial cells. In February 1997, with the establishment of the Spanish Glial Network, arose the early idea of publishing a compendium of selected work by Spanish glial research teams, which has fmally materialised in Understanding Glial Cel/s, a book whose objective is to present topics of current interest in glial cell biology.

Buch. Condizione: Neu. Neuware - Our purposes in this preface are, first, to reiterate our view of Current Ornithology's role; second, to describe briefly the contents of this vol ume; and third, to acknowledge the generous help of our Editorial Board and of the reviewers we have consulted about the contents of Volumes 13 and 14. As far as we know, Current Ornithology is the only English-lan guage publication currently devoted exclusively to extensive reviews and syntheses of topics pertaining to all aspects of the biology of birds. Its chapters deal with subjects falling under such diverse rubrics as ecology, evolution, behavior, phylogeny, behavioral ecology, anatomy and physiology, and conservation biology, but all focus primarily on birds. Its authors, whether members of the National Academy or young investigators just beginning their careers, are leading authorities on their subjects, and its referees are selected for their knowledge and expertise in the topics covered by the chapters they are asked to review.

Buch. Condizione: Neu. Neuware - Interest in angiogenesis research remains strong in recent years and exciting new discoveries, about modulators of angiogenesis, their receptors, the transduction mechanisms and the angiogenic genes involved, have contributed to our present day understanding of this complex process. This knowledge has provided the basis and broadened the scope of angiogenesis - based therapy in oncology and many other clinical conditions. This monograph contains the contributions to the NATO Advanced Study Institute on 'Angiogenesis: Models, Modulators and Clinical Applications', which was held in Rhodes, Greece, from June 20-30, 1997. This was the fourth of a series of NATO supported international meetings on Angiogenesis aiming to bring together basic scientists with clinicians to exchange ideas, disseminate new knowledge and discuss the present status and potential new directions in this fast moving area of biomedical research. The International Organising Committee that included Drs. E. Dejana, C Haudenschild, M. Hackel, H. Kleinman, P. Lelkes, M. Presta, P. Polverini, D. Thompson, has provided invaluable help with their insightful suggestions in the formulation of the scientific program for which I am grateful. I wish to thank all the participants for their enthusiastic participation and their complimentary comments on the success of the conference.

Buch. Condizione: Neu. Neuware - Searching for Semantics: Data Mining, Reverse Engineering Stefano Spaccapietra Fred M aryanski Swiss Federal Institute of Technology University of Connecticut Lausanne, Switzerland Storrs, CT, USA REVIEW AND FUTURE DIRECTIONS In the last few years, database semantics research has turned sharply from a highly theoretical domain to one with more focus on practical aspects. The DS- 7 Working Conference held in October 1997 in Leysin, Switzerland, demon strated the more pragmatic orientation of the current generation of leading researchers. The papers presented at the meeting emphasized the two major areas: the discovery of semantics and semantic data modeling. The work in the latter category indicates that although object-oriented database management systems have emerged as commercially viable prod ucts, many fundamental modeling issues require further investigation. Today's object-oriented systems provide the capability to describe complex objects and include techniques for mapping from a relational database to objects. However, we must further explore the expression of information regarding the dimensions of time and space. Semantic models possess the richness to describe systems containing spatial and temporal data. The challenge of in corporating these features in a manner that promotes efficient manipulation by the subject specialist still requires extensive development.

Buch. Condizione: Neu. Neuware - In recent years, there have been major advances in the treatment of patients with gynecologic malignancies. Perhaps the biggest advances have been in the area of ovarian cancer. Gynecologic Oncology focuses primarily upon this malignancy. This volume discusses cytoreductive surgery; screening for ovarian cancer; chemotherapy; new chemotherapeutic drugs; the controversy regarding the role of high-dose chemotherapy in gynecologic cancers; the hereditary basis for gynecologic malignancies; molecular genetics; molecular biology and new biologic therapies. Other topics covered are the treatment of all stages of cervical cancer, including radiotherapy. In addition, a chapter on advances in the pathology of gynecologic cancers is included. The advances made in the treatment of gynecologic malignancies are due, in part, to the clinical studies performed by many of the contributors to this volume. Clinical advances have been the result of multidisciplinary approaches which involve molecular biologists, pathologists, radiation therapists, surgeons and chemotherapists. Future advances will continue to rely upon collaborative interaction among these different disciplines.

Taschenbuch. Condizione: Neu. This item is printed on demand - it takes 3-4 days longer - Neuware -In einer Welt, die von Rationalität, Wissenschaft und Technik beherrscht wird, werden medizinische Behandlungen im allgemeinen nur danach bewertet, inwieweit sie wissenschaftlich überprüft wurden. Der Autor zeigt anhand der modernen Wissenschaftstheorie, daß dieser Vorrang der wissenschaftlichen Methodologie bei der Bewertung von Erkenntnissen aber nicht auf unerschütterlichen Fundamenten basiert, sondern auf historisch gewachsenen und sozial bedingten Annahmen über die Natur. Mit ihrer Hilfe haben wir ein Weltbild geschaffen, das uns bisher erfolgreich geleitet hat. Ausgehend von unserem unreflektierten Verständnis von Wissenschaft werden die vermeintlich sicheren Fundamente, auf denen unsere Hochschätzung der wissenschaftlichen Methodologie beruht, als das entlarvt, was sie sind: als hypothetische Annahmen, als Konstruktionen des Menschen, der in geschichtliche und soziale Prozesse eingebunden ist. Einerseits werden Wahrheit, Wirklichkeit und Wissenschaft relativiert und andererseits die aktive-kreative Rolle des Menschen in einer von ihm selbst geschaffenen Welt herausgestellt. Die Relativität der Grundlagen der Wissenschaft zu erkennen und sie als Herausforderung zu begreifen, ist das Anliegen des Autors. Wenn der Mensch versteht, daß er mit seiner wissenschaftlichen Tätigkeit Tatsachen schafft, dann ist der Weg offen für mehr Weitsicht, mehr Umsicht und mehr Toleranz. 276 pp. Deutsch.

Taschenbuch. Condizione: Neu. This item is printed on demand - it takes 3-4 days longer - Neuware -As reflected in the title, the purpose of this book is to guide clinicians in understanding and treating youth with severe antisocial behavior. Children and adolescents with conduct disorders operate at quite a high cost to society. In many opinion polls, juvenile crime and violence is rated as one of the most pressing concerns for many in our society. This widespread concern has prompted professionals from many disciplines to search for more effective interventions to prevent and treat youth with such disorders. This book is my attempt to summarize the current status of this very important endeavor. In providing this guide to clinicians, I have attempted to emphasize the critical link between understanding the clinical presentation, course, and causes of conduct disorders and designing effective interventions for children and adolescents with these disorders. Many past books, book chapters, and review articles have emphasized one or the other of these objectives. Some have provided excellent summaries of the vast amount of research on youth with conduct disorders without explicitly and clearly describing the clinical applica tions of this research. Others have focused on the implementation of specific interventions for youth with conduct disorders that is divorced from a basic understanding of the many diverse and clinically important characteristics of this population. The overriding theme of this book is that successful clinical inter vention requires an integration of both bodies of knowledge. 164 pp. Englisch.

Taschenbuch. Condizione: Neu. This item is printed on demand - it takes 3-4 days longer - Neuware -This book presents the refereed proceedings of the Second International B Conference, B'98, held in Montpellier, France, in April 1998.The book presents 15 revised full papers selected from 29 submissions as well as four invited contributions. The B method is enjoying rapidly increasing popularity for the specification and design of software. The book covers all aspects of the B technology, including introductory and methodological issues, theoretical investigations and industrial applications, B extension proposals and support tools, as well as comparisons or integration with other formal methods for software development. 328 pp. Englisch.

Taschenbuch. Condizione: Neu. This item is printed on demand - it takes 3-4 days longer - Neuware -This book constitutes the refereed proceedings of the 10th European Conference on Machine Learning, ECML-98, held in Chemnitz, Germany, in April 1998.The book presents 21 revised full papers and 25 short papers reporting on work in progress together with two invited contributions; the papers were selected from a total of 100 submissions. The book is divided in sections on applications of ML, Bayesian networks, feature selection, decision trees, support vector learning, multiple models for classification, inductive logic programming, relational learning, instance-based learning, clustering, genetic algorithms, reinforcement learning and neural networks. 440 pp. Englisch.

Taschenbuch. Condizione: Neu. This item is printed on demand - it takes 3-4 days longer - Neuware -This book constitutes the thoroughly refereed post-workshop proceedings of the 10th International Workshop on Languages and Compilers for Parallel Computing, LCPC'97, held in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA in August 1997The book presents 28 revised full papers together with four posters; all papers were carefully selected for presentation at the workshop and went through a thorough reviewing and revision phase afterwards. The papers are organized in topical sections on data locality, program analysis, automatic parallelization, HPF extensions and compilers, synchronization and communication, parallel programming models and language extensions, and instruction level parallelism. 448 pp. Englisch.

Taschenbuch. Condizione: Neu. This item is printed on demand - it takes 3-4 days longer - Neuware -A description of the design and implementation of spoken language dialogue within the context of spoken language dialogue systems development. Using an applications-oriented SLDS developed through the Danish Dialogue project, the authors describe the complete process involved; and in so doing present several innovative practical tools, such as dialogue design guidelines, in-depth evaluation methodologies, and speech functionality analysis. Their approach is firmly applications-oriented, describing the results applicable to industry and showing how the development of advanced applications drives research rather than vice versa. For everyone working on the R&D of spoken language services, especially in the area of telecommunications. 288 pp. Englisch.

Taschenbuch. Condizione: Neu. This item is printed on demand - it takes 3-4 days longer - Neuware -George Collins' discovery of Cylindrical Algebraic Decomposition (CAD) as a method for Quantifier Elimination (QE) for the elementary theory of real closed fields brought a major breakthrough in automating mathematics with recent important applications in high-tech areas (e.g. robot motion), also stimulating fundamental research in computer algebra over the past three decades.This volume is a state-of-the-art collection of important papers on CAD and QE and on the related area of algorithmic aspects of real geometry. It contains papers from a symposium held in Linz in 1993, reprints of seminal papers from the area including Tarski's landmark paper as well as a survey outlining the developments in CAD based QE that have taken place in the last twenty years. 456 pp. Englisch.

Taschenbuch. Condizione: Neu. This item is printed on demand - it takes 3-4 days longer - Neuware -Reasoning with incomplete information constitutes a major challenge for any intelligent system. In fact, we expect such systems not to become paralyzed by missing information but rather to arrive at plausible results by bridging the gaps in the information available.A versatile way of reasoning in the absence of information is to reason by default. This book aims at providing formal and practical means for automating reasoning with incomplete information by starting from the approach taken by the framework of default logic. For this endeavor, a bridge is spanned between formal semantics, over systems for default reasoning, to efficient implementation. 180 pp. Englisch.

Taschenbuch. Condizione: Neu. This item is printed on demand - it takes 3-4 days longer - Neuware -In this monograph, new structures of neural networks in multidimensional domains are introduced. These architectures are a generalization of the Multi-layer Perceptron (MLP) in Complex, Vectorial and Hypercomplex algebra. The approximation capabilities of these networks and their learning algorithms are discussed in a multidimensional context. The work includes the theoretical basis to address the properties of such structures and the advantages introduced in system modelling, function approximation and control. Some applications, referring to attractive themes in system engineering and a MATLAB software tool, are also reported. The appropriate background for this text is a knowledge of neural networks fundamentals. The manuscript is intended as a research report, but a great effort has been performed to make the subject comprehensible to graduate students in computer engineering, control engineering, computer sciences and related disciplines. 184 pp. Englisch.