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Transionospheric Synthetic Aperture Imaging (Applied and Numerical Harmonic Analysis)
by Mikhail Gilman Erick Smith Semyon TsynkovThis landmark monograph presents the most recent mathematical developments in the analysis of ionospheric distortions of SAR images and offers innovative new strategies for their mitigation. As a prerequisite to addressing these topics, the book also discusses the radar ambiguity theory as it applies to synthetic aperture imaging and the propagation of radio waves through the ionospheric plasma, including the anisotropic and turbulent cases. In addition, it covers a host of related subjects, such as the mathematical modeling of extended radar targets (as opposed to point-wise targets) and the scattering of radio waves off those targets, as well as the theoretical analysis of the start-stop approximation, which is used routinely in SAR signal processing but often without proper justification.The mathematics in this volume is clean and rigorous – no assumptions are hidden or ambiguously stated. The resulting work is truly interdisciplinary, providing both a comprehensive and thorough exposition of the field, as well as an accurate account of a range of relevant physical processes and phenomena. The book is intended for applied mathematicians interested in the area of radar imaging or, more generally, remote sensing, as well as physicists and electrical/electronic engineers who develop/operate spaceborne SAR sensors and perform the data processing. The methods in the book are also useful for researchers and practitioners working on other types of imaging. Moreover, the book is accessible to graduate students in applied mathematics, physics, engineering, and related disciplines. Praise for Transionospheric Synthetic Aperture Imaging: “I perceive that this text will mark a turning point in the field of synthetic aperture radar research and practice. I believe this text will instigate a new era of more rigorous image formation relieving the research, development and practitioner communities of inconsistent physical assumptions and numerical approaches.” – Richard Albanese, Senior Scientist, Albanese Defense and Energy Development LLC
The Soils of Wisconsin (World Soils Book Series)
by James G. Bockheim Alfred E. HarteminkThis book provides an up-to-date and comprehensive report on the soils of Wisconsin, a state that offers a rich tapestry of soils. It discusses the relevant soil forming factors and soil processes in detail and subsequently reviews the main soil regions and dominant soil orders, including paleosols and endemic and endangered soils. The last chapters address soils in a changing climate and provide an evaluation of their monetary value and crop yield potential. Richly illustrated, the book offers both a valuable teaching resource and essential guide for policymakers, land users, and all those interested in the soils of Wisconsin.
Using Risk Analysis for Flood Protection Assessment
by Martina Zeleňáková Lenka ZvijákováThis book explores the benefits of using risk analysis techniques in the evaluation of flood protection structures, and examines the results of the environmental impact assessment for selected planned flood protection projects. The objective of the book is to propose a methodology for environmental impact assessment in water management. In more detail, flood mitigation measures are investigated with the aim of selecting the best option for the approval process. This methodology is intended to streamline the process of environmental impact assessment for structures in the field of the water management. The book’s environmental impact assessment system for water management structures analyzes the respective risks for different options. The results are intended to support the selection of future projects that pose minimum risks to the environment. Comparison of alternatives and designation of the optimal variant are implemented on the basis of selected criteria that objectively describe the characteristics of the planned alternatives and their respective impacts on the environment. The proposed Guideline for environmental impact assessment of flood protection objects employs multi-parametric risk analysis, a method intended to not only enhance the transparency and sensitivity of the evaluation process, but also successfully addresses the requirements of environmental impact assessment systems in the European Union. These modifications are intended to improve the outcomes of the environmental impact assessment, but may also be applied to other infrastructure projects. The case study proves that the primary aim – to improve transparency and minimize subjectivity in the environmental impact assessment process specific to flood protection structure projects – is met for the planned project in Kružlov, Slovakia.
Social Capital, Resilience and Adaptation on Small Islands: Climate Change on the Isles of Scilly (Climate Change Management)
by Jan PetzoldThe book deals with the role of social capital regarding its potential to increase small islands’ adaptive capacity to climate change. The case study of the Isles of Scilly, UK, shows how social structures can play a very important role for climate change adaptation. It is argued that social features have to be understood in a non-deterministic and potentially ambivalent manner, according to their place-specific geographical, cultural and historical context. Only then, risk management and adaptation strategies can succeed and function in a sustainable way. The findings have relevance for the further refinement of social capital theory and social emergence. Combined with the perspective of resilience, this approach is also relevant from a policy standpoint, given that small islands have been identified as hotspots not only due to their vulnerability, but also because they serve as examples for media and politics to advance the agenda of environmental protection. >
Handbook on Advances in Remote Sensing and Geographic Information Systems: Paradigms and Applications in Forest Landscape Modeling (Intelligent Systems Reference Library #122)
by Margarita N. Favorskaya Lakhmi C. JainThis book presents the latest advances in remote-sensing and geographic information systems and applications. It is divided into four parts, focusing on Airborne Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) and Optical Measurements of Forests; Individual Tree Modelling; Landscape Scene Modelling; and Forest Eco-system Modelling. Given the scope of its coverage, the book offers a valuable resource for students, researchers, practitioners, and educators interested in remote sensing and geographic information systems and applications.
Climate Change Adaptation and Forest Dependent Communities: An Analytical Perspective of Different Agro-Climatic Regions of West Bengal, India (SpringerBriefs in Environmental Science)
by Jyotish Prakash BasuThis book addresses the livelihood impacts of climate change, vulnerability and adaptation measures on the forest dependent communities of India. Research presented here focuses on three different agro-climatic areas of West Bengal, namely the coastal Sundarban, the drought-prone region and the mountainous region. Readers will discover the main climate induced vulnerabilities that affect livelihoods of forest communities, understand how to evaluate the expected impacts of climate change at different levels under different climate change scenarios, and be able to assess and measure the implied major social, environmental and economic impacts.Particular attention is also given to the role of the Indian governmental policy (including national forest policy of 1988) to reduce climate-related vulnerabilities. Chapters also highlight two main approaches to vulnerability assessment in socio-ecological systems. The first is the impact-based approach, which assesses the potential impacts of climate change on forest dependent people. The second is the vulnerability-based approach, which assesses social sensitivity and adaptive capacity to respond to stresses. Development practitioners, government implementing agencies, and researchers in environmental science and policy will find this book appealing.
Hydrogeology of a Large Oil-and-Gas Basin in Central Patagonia: San Jorge Gulf Basin, Argentina (SpringerBriefs in Latin American Studies)
by Mario Alberto Hernández Nilda González Lisandro HernándezThis book analyzes the most important geohydrological aspects of the San Jorge Gulf Basin (Chubut and Santa Cruz provinces, Argentine Patagonia), with a particular focus on the physical and hydrodynamic characteristics of the system. Discovered in 1907, the San Jorge Gulf Basin was the first petroleum and gas-producing basin in Argentina. It is also one of the most important areas with real prospects for non-conventional exploitation (shale oil-gas). After characterizing the hydroclimatic background (hydrometeorological parameters and water balance), the book describes the main physical aspects: geomorphology, soils and surface as well as subsoil geology, especially lithology, structures, stratigraphy and hydrogeology.
Innovative Trend Methodologies in Science and Engineering
by Zekâi ŞenThis book covers all types of literature on existing trend analysis approaches, but more than 60% of the methodologies are developed here and some of them are reflected to scientific literature and others are also innovative versions, modifications or improvements. The suggested methodologies help to design, develop, manage and deliver scientific applications and training to meet the needs of interested staff in companies, industries and universities including students.Technical content and expertise are also provided from different theoretical and especially active roles in the design, development and delivery of science in particular and economics and business in general. It is also ensured that, wherever possible and technically appropriate, priority is given to the inclusion and integration of real life data, examples and processes within the book content.The time seems right, because available books just focus on special sectors (fashion, social, business). This book reviews all the available trend approaches in the present literature on rational and logical bases.
Flood Modeling, Prediction and Mitigation
by Zekâi ŞenThis book draws on the author’s professional experience and expertise in humid and arid regions to familiarize readers with the basic scientific philosophy and methods regarding floods and their impacts on human life and property. The basis of each model, algorithm and calculation methodology is presented, together with logical and analytical strategies. Global warming and climate change trends are addressed, while flood risk assessments, vulnerability, preventive and mitigation procedures are explained systematically, helping readers apply them in a rational and effective manner. Lastly, real-world project applications are highlighted in each section, ensuring readers grasp not only the theoretical aspects but also their concrete implementation.
Phytoremediation: Management of Environmental Contaminants, Volume 5
by Abid A. Ansari Sarvajeet Singh Gill Ritu Gill Guy R. Lanza Lee NewmanThis text details the plant-assisted remediation method, “phytoremediation”, which involves the interaction of plant roots and associated rhizospheric microorganisms for the remediation of soil contaminated with high levels of metals, pesticides, solvents, radionuclides, explosives, crude oil, organic compounds and various other contaminants. Many chapters highlight and compare the efficiency and economic advantages of phytoremediation to currently practiced soil and water treatment practices.Volume 5 of Phytoremediation: Management of Environmental Contaminants provides the capstone of the series. Taken together, the five volumes provide a broad–based global synopsis of the current applications of phytoremediation using plants and the microbial communities associated with their roots to decontaminate terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems.
Understanding and Analysis: The California Air Resources Board Forest Offset Protocol (SpringerBriefs in Environmental Science)
by Eric Marland Grant Domke Jason Hoyle Gregg Marland Laurel Bates Alex Helms Benjamin Jones Tamara Kowalczyk Tatyana B. Ruseva Celina SzymanskiThis book is a product of the initial phase of a broader study evaluating the voluntary and regulatory compliance protocols that are used to account for the contributions of forests in U.S.-based greenhouse gas (GHG) mitigation programs. The research presented here is particularly concerned with these protocols’ use of the USDA Forest Service’s Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) data to describe forest conditions, ownership, and management scenarios, and is oriented towards providing regulators and other interested parties with an objective comparison of the options, uncertainties, and opportunities available to offset GHG emissions through forest management. Chapters focus on the protocols for recognizing forest carbon offsets in the California carbon cap-and-trade program, as described in the Compliance Offset Protocol; U.S. Forest Projects (California Air Resources Board, 2011).Readers will discover the protocols used for quantifying the offset of GHG emissions through forest-related project activity. As such, its scope includes a review of the current methods used in voluntary and compliance forest protocols, an evaluation of the metrics used to assign baselines and determine additionality in the forest offset protocols, an examination of key quantitative and qualitative components and assumptions, and a discussion of opportunities for modifying forest offset protocols, in light of the rapidly changing GHG-related policy and regulatory environment. Finally, the report also discusses accounting and policy issues that create potential barriers to participation in the California cap-and-trade program, and overall programmatic additionality in addressing the needs of a mitigation strategy.
Green’s Functions in Classical Physics (Lecture Notes in Physics #938)
by Tom RotherThis book presents the Green’s function formalism in a basic way and demonstrates its usefulness for applications to several well-known problems in classical physics which are usually solved not by this formalism but other approaches. The book bridges the gap between applications of the Green’s function formalism in quantum physics and classical physics. This book is written as an introduction for graduate students and researchers who want to become more familiar with the Green’s function formalism. In 1828 George Green has published an essay that was unfortunately sunken into oblivion shortly after its publication. It was rediscovered only after several years by the later Lord Kelvin. But since this time, using Green’s functions for solving partial differential equations in physics has become an important mathematical tool. While the conceptual and epistemological importance of these functions were essentially discovered and discussed in modern physics - especially in quantum field theory and quantum statistics - these aspects are rarely touched in classical physics. In doing it, this book provides an interesting and sometimes new point of view on several aspects and problems in classical physics, like the Kepler motion or the description of certain classical probability experiments in finite event spaces. A short outlook on quantum mechanical problems concludes this book.
Morphodynamics of Mediterranean Mixed Sand and Gravel Coasts (SpringerBriefs in Earth Sciences)
by Miguel Ortega-Sánchez Rafael J. Bergillos Alejandro López-Ruiz Miguel A. LosadaThis book describes recent advances in the morphodynamics of mixed sand and gravel Mediterranean coasts, and provides updates and new methods for their study and management. It assesses how the differences in the geomorphic setting, in comparison with traditional sandy beaches, result in distinctive physical processes governing the dynamics of these coasts. Further, on the basis of field measurements, theoretical analysis and numerical modeling carried out at two study sites in southern Spain over the last 15 years, the book studies, analyzes and compares these physical processes and mechanisms. It also shows that the narrow and complex bathymetries and inner shelves modify the wave propagation patterns and hence, the longshore sediment transport gradients along the coast. Given the correlation between the changes in these gradients and the shoreline evolution over time, it identifies the complexity of the inner shelf bathymetries as the main driver of coastal changes and describes these processes in detail using, in the plan view, the inter-annual evolution of unaltered and “altered by human” beaches. Lastly, the book details how the generation and subsequent overlapping of berms across the beach profile are responsible for the sediment variability at depth and cross-shore, and concludes that the total run-up (including the water-level) is a more influential variable than wave height in the erosional/depositional response of these beaches.
Trends in Spatial Analysis and Modelling: Decision-Support and Planning Strategies (Geotechnologies and the Environment #19)
by Martin Behnisch Gotthard MeinelThis book is a collection of original research papers that focus on recent developments in Spatial Analysis and Modelling with direct relevance to settlements and infrastructure. Topics include new types of data (such as simulation data), applications of methods to support decision-making, and investigations of human-environment data in order to recognize significance for structures, functions and processes of attributes. Research incorporated ranges from theoretical through methodological to applied work. It is subdivided into four main parts: the first focusing on the research of settlements and infrastructure, the second studies aspects of Geographic Data Mining, the third presents contributions in the field of Spatial Modelling, System Dynamics and Geosimulation, and the fourth part is dedicated to Multi-Scale Representation and Analysis.The book is valuable to those with a scholarly interest in spatial sciences, urban and spatial planning, as well as anyone interested in spatial analysis and the planning of human settlements and infrastructure. Most of the selected papers were originally presented at the “International Land Use Symposium (ILUS 2015): Trends in Spatial Analysis and Modelling of Settlements and Infrastructure” November 11-13 2015, in Dresden, Germany.
Holographic Entanglement Entropy (Lecture Notes in Physics #931)
by Mukund Rangamani Tadashi TakayanagiThis book provides a comprehensive overview of developments in the field of holographic entanglement entropy. Within the context of the AdS/CFT correspondence, it is shown how quantum entanglement is computed by the area of certain extremal surfaces. The general lessons one can learn from this connection are drawn out for quantum field theories, many-body physics, and quantum gravity. An overview of the necessary background material is provided together with a flavor of the exciting open questions that are currently being discussed.The book is divided into four main parts. In the first part, the concept of entanglement, and methods for computing it, in quantum field theories is reviewed. In the second part, an overview of the AdS/CFT correspondence is given and the holographic entanglement entropy prescription is explained. In the third part, the time-dependence of entanglement entropy in out-of-equilibrium systems, and applications to many body physics are explored using holographic methods. The last part focuses on the connection between entanglement and geometry. Known constraints on the holographic map, as well as, elaboration of entanglement being a fundamental building block of geometry are explained. The book is a useful resource for researchers and graduate students interested in string theory and holography, condensed matter and quantum information, as it tries to connect these different subjects linked by the common theme of quantum entanglement.
Sustainability Reporting in Central and Eastern European Companies: International Empirical Insights (MIR Series in International Business)
by Péter Horváth Judith M. PütterThis collection of expert articles highlights the standards and practices concerning sustainability reporting among companies in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE). Due to the growing interest in corporate social responsibility issues, sustainability reporting has become increasingly common among businesses that claim to adhere to certain social, environmental and economic standards. While it can be observed that sustainability reporting is widely practiced in Western and Northern European countries, only few studies have been conducted on this topic in the CEE region. Drawing on a major empirical study involving researchers from 10 different CEE countries, this book addresses the status quo of sustainability reporting, outlines future prospects and provides essential recommendations for practitioners.
Holistic Simulation of Geotechnical Installation Processes: Theoretical Results and Applications (Lecture Notes in Applied and Computational Mechanics #82)
by Theodoros TriantafyllidisThis book provides recent developments and improvements in the modeling as well as application examples and is a complementary work to the previous Lecture Notes Vols. 77 and 80. It summarizes the fundamental work from scientists dealing with the development of constitutive models for soils, especially cyclic loading with special attention to the numerical implementation. In this volume the neo-hypoplasticity and the ISA (intergranular strain anisotropy) model in their extended version are presented. Furthermore, new contact elements with non-linear constitutive material laws and examples for their applications are given.Comparisons between the experimental and the numerical results show the effectiveness and the drawbacks and provide a useful and comprehensive pool for all the constitutive model developers and scientists in geotechnical engineering, who like to prove the soundness of new approaches.
Rural Sustainability: A Complex Systems Approach to Policy Analysis (SpringerBriefs in Geography)
by Qing TianThis volume applies the science of complexity to study coupled human-environment systems (CHES) and integrates ideas from the social sciences of climate change into a study of rural development amid flooding and urbanization in the Poyang Lake Region (PLR) of China. Author Qing Tian operationalizes the concept of sustainability and provides useful scientific analyses for sustainable development in less developed rural areas that are vulnerable to climatic hazards.The book uses a new sustainability framework that is centered on the concept of well-being to study rural development in PLR. The PLR study includes three major analyses: (1) a regional assessment of human well-being; (2) an empirical analysis of rural livelihoods; and (3) an agent-based computer model used to explore future rural development. These analyses provide a meaningful view of human development in the Poyang Lake Region and illustrate some of the complex local- and macro-level processes that shape the livelihoods of rural households in the dynamic process of urbanization. They generate useful insights about how government policy might effectively improve the well-being of rural households and promote sustainable development amid social, economic, and environmental changes.This case study has broader implications. Rural populations in the developing world are disproportionally affected by extreme climate events and climate change. Furthermore, the livelihoods of rural households in the developing world are increasingly under the influences of macro-level forces amid urbanization and globalization. This case study demonstrates that rural development policies must consider broader development dynamics at the national (and even global) level, as well as specific local social and environmental contexts. By treating climate as one of many factors that affect development in such places, we can provide policy recommendations that synergistically promote development and reduce climatic impacts and therefore facilitate mainstreaming climate adaptation into development.
Assessment of Energy Sources Using GIS
by Lubos MatejicekThis volume is a comprehensive guide to the use of geographic information systems (GIS) for the spatial analysis of supply and demand for energy in the global and local scale. It gathers the latest research and techniques in GIS for spatial and temporal analysis of energy systems, mapping of energy from fossil fuels, optimization of renewable energy sources, optimized deployment of existing power sources, and assessment of environmental impact of all of the above. Author Lubos Matejicek covers GIS for assessment a wide variety of energy sources, including fossil fuels, hydropower, wind power, solar energy, biomass energy, and nuclear power as well as the use of batteries and accumulators. The author also utilizes case studies to illustrate advanced techniques such as multicriteria analysis, environmental modeling for prediction of energy consumption, and the use of mobile computing and multimedia tools.
Advances in Laboratory Testing and Modelling of Soils and Shales (Springer Series in Geomechanics and Geoengineering)
by Alessio Ferrari Lyesse LalouiIn this spirit, the ATMSS International Workshop “Advances in Laboratory Testing & Modelling of Soils and Shales” (Villars-sur-Ollon, Switzerland; 18-20 January 2017) has been organized to promote the exchange of ideas, experience and state of the art among major experts active in the field of experimental testing and modelling of soils and shales. The Workshop has been organized under the auspices of the Technical Committees TC-101 “Laboratory Testing”, TC-106 “Unsaturated Soils” and TC-308 “Energy Geotechnics” of the International Society of Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering. This volume contains the invited keynote and feature lectures, as well as the papers that have been presented at the Workshop. The topics of the lectures and papers cover a wide range of theoretical and experimental research, including unsaturated behaviour of soils and shales, multiphysical testing of geomaterials, hydro–mechanical behaviour of shales and stiff clays, the geomechanical behaviour of the Opalinus Clay shale, advanced laboratory testing for site characterization and in–situ applications, and soil – structure interactions.
OpenGeoSys Tutorial: Computational Hydrology II: Groundwater Quality Modeling (SpringerBriefs in Earth System Sciences)
by Agnes Sachse Erik Nixdorf Eunseon Jang Karsten Rink Thomas Fischer Beidou Xi Christof Beyer Sebastian Bauer Marc Walther Yuanyuan Sun Yonghui SongThis book explores the application of the open-source software OpenGeoSys (OGS) for hydrological numerical simulations concerning conservative and reactive transport modeling. It provides general information on the hydrological and groundwater flow modeling of a real case study and step-by-step model set-up with OGS, while also highlighting related components such as the OGS Data Explorer. The material is based on unpublished manuals and the results of a collaborative project between China and Germany (SUSTAIN H2O). Though the book is primarily intended for graduate students and applied scientists who deal with hydrological modeling, it also offers a valuable source of information for professional geoscientists wishing to expand their knowledge of the numerical modeling of hydrological processes including nitrate reactive transport modeling. This book is the second in a series that showcases further applications of computational modeling in hydrological science.
Corporate Social Responsibility in Times of Crisis: Practices and Cases from Europe, Africa and the World (CSR, Sustainability, Ethics & Governance)
by Samuel O. Idowu Stephen Vertigans Adriana Schiopoiu BurleaThis book explores national and transnational companies' Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) activities in times and settings in which they are confronted with economic and social challenges and analyzes these situations, ranging from the financial crisis to fourth generation sustainability. Presenting a number of different cases from various parts of Europe, North America and Africa, it showcases how companies respond to the challenges of the development, consultation, implementation, integration, measurement and consolidation of CSR. Further it specifies how these corporations deal with uncertainties over corporate and financial resources, global financial stability and growing evidence for climate change. The book describes CSR adaptation under challenging circumstances and argues for the strategic and operative legitimation of Corporate Social Responsibility in times of crisis.
Analytic, Algebraic and Geometric Aspects of Differential Equations: Będlewo, Poland, September 2015 (Trends in Mathematics)
by Galina Filipuk Yoshishige Haraoka Sławomir MichalikThis volume consists of invited lecture notes, survey papers and original research papers from the AAGADE school and conference held in Będlewo, Poland in September 2015. The contributions provide an overview of the current level of interaction between algebra, geometry and analysis and demonstrate the manifold aspects of the theory of ordinary and partial differential equations, while also pointing out the highly fruitful interrelations between those aspects. These interactions continue to yield new developments, not only in the theory of differential equations but also in several related areas of mathematics and physics such as differential geometry, representation theory, number theory and mathematical physics.The main goal of the volume is to introduce basic concepts, techniques, detailed and illustrative examples and theorems (in a manner suitable for non-specialists), and to present recent developments in the field, together with open problems for more advanced and experienced readers. It will be of interest to graduate students, early-career researchers and specialists in analysis, geometry, algebra and related areas, as well as anyone interested in learning new methods and techniques.
The Three-Body Problem and the Equations of Dynamics: Poincaré’s Foundational Work on Dynamical Systems Theory (Astrophysics and Space Science Library #443)
by Henri Poincaré Bruce D PoppHere is an accurate and readable translation of a seminal article by Henri Poincaré that is a classic in the study of dynamical systems popularly called chaos theory. In an effort to understand the stability of orbits in the solar system, Poincaré applied a Hamiltonian formulation to the equations of planetary motion and studied these differential equations in the limited case of three bodies to arrive at properties of the equations’ solutions, such as orbital resonances and horseshoe orbits. Poincaré wrote for professional mathematicians and astronomers interested in celestial mechanics and differential equations. Contemporary historians of math or science and researchers in dynamical systems and planetary motion with an interest in the origin or history of their field will find his work fascinating.
The Nature of Life and Its Potential to Survive (Astronomers' Universe)
by David S. StevensonThis book looks at the persistence of life and how difficult it would be to annihilate life, especially a species as successful as humanity. The idea that life in general is fragile is challenged by the hardiness of microbes, which shows that astrobiology on exoplanets and other satellites must be robust and plentiful. Microbes have adapted to virtually every niche on the planet, from the deep, hot biosphere, to the frigid heights of the upper troposphere. Life, it seems, is almost indestructible. The chapters in this work examine the various scenarios that might lead to the extermination of life, and why they will almost always fail. Life's highly adaptive nature ensures that it will cling on no matter how difficult the circumstances. Scientists are increasingly probing and questioning life's true limits in, on and above the Earth, and how these limits could be pushed elsewhere in the universe. This investigation puts life in its true astronomical context, with the reader taken on a journey to illustrate life's potential and perseverance.