Forbidden Lego
It just may be impossible to exhaust the creative potential of LEGO(R) bricks. With an active imagination as your guide, there are endless possibilities----provided you follow the LEGO Company's official (and sensible) rules. This means no cutting or tampering with bricks, creating models that shoot unapproved projectiles, or using non-standard parts with any LEGO product. After all, those little precision-molded ABS bricks can be dangerous on the wrong hands! Well, toss those rules out the window. Forbidden LEGO introduces you to the type of free-style building that LEGO's master builders do for fun in the back room. Using LEGO bricks in combination with common household materials (from rubber bands and glue to plastic spoons and ping-pong balls) along with some very unorthodox building techniques, you'll learn to create working models that LEGO would never endorse. Try your hand at a toy gun that shoots LEGO plates, a candy catapult, a high voltage LEGO vehicle, a continuous-fire ping-pong ball launcher, and other useless but incredibly fun inventions. Once you get into the spirit, you'll want to try inventing your own rule-breaking models. Forbidden Lego's authors share tips and tricks that will inspire you and help you turn your visions into reality. Nothing's against the rules in this book!
International Mining Geology 2026 Conference Proceedings
The proceedings will highlight the depth, diversity, and innovation of our global mining geology community at a time when the industry is transforming more rapidly than ever before. You will find new approaches to orebody knowledge, advances in geological modelling, practical solutions that enhance reconciliation and create value in modern mining operations.Mining geologists continue to sit at the critical intersection of science, technology, and value creation. These proceedings will inspire collaboration, spark new ideas, and support the ongoing growth of our profession. We also acknowledge the work of the many peer reviewers who volunteer their time to guide the authors towards delivering a very high standard of technical papers.
The Future of Energy Systems
This Reprint gathers recent research on the modelling, optimisation, cybersecurity, and operation of modern electric power systems with high penetrations of renewable energy sources, electric vehicles, and distributed energy resources. The contributions address system-level transformation, distribution network operation, and digital innovation for smart grids. Included studies examine modelling pathways toward net-zero power systems, the impact of digital technologies on sustainability, and technical frameworks for distribution system operators integrating distributed energy resources. Distribution-level challenges such as network reconfiguration, medium-voltage islands with high prosumer penetration, and flexible demand-side management are also explored. Data-driven and artificial intelligence methods feature prominently, including comparative analyses of gradient boosting and deep learning for short-term load forecasting and optimisation-based approaches to enhance smart grid reliability. Cybersecurity and resilience are central themes, with investigations of cyber attacks, intrusion detection, authentication in electric vehicle charging infrastructure, and secure EV grid integration strategies. Collectively, the contributions offer an integrated perspective on the technical, operational, and security challenges shaping resilient, intelligent, and sustainable power systems in the era of deep electrification.
Adoption of New Technologies and Practices for Sustainable and Smart Agriculture
This Reprint presents a curated collection of research from a Sustainability Special Issue on the adoption of new technologies and practices for sustainable and smart agriculture. It brings together studies that address how digital and intelligent methods can support more resilient and resource-efficient farming systems. The collected papers reflect a broad and practical scope, including smart agriculture, decision support, green computing, data fusion, and pattern recognition. Across the published contributions, the emphasis is on integrating sensing, data processing, and intelligent analytics to improve monitoring, management, and sustainability outcomes in agriculture. The Reprint is especially relevant for readers interested in the intersection of artificial intelligence, data-driven methods, and real-world agricultural practices, with coverage ranging from crop- and soil-related applications to farm-level sustainability assessment and digital technology adoption.
Ionic Polymers
The book explores the fundamental science, recent developments, and future prospects of ionic polymers as key enablers of smart material systems. It provides a comprehensive understanding of their chemistry, structure-property relationships, and diverse applications in modern engineering, healthcare, robotics, and energy devices. The work covers the interdisciplinary research efforts in materials science, robotics, biomedical engineering and electronics. It demonstrates energy harvesting and storage capabilities of ionic polymers and uniquely addresses how ionic polymers can be used for flexible capacitors and self-powered sensors, crucial for next-gen wearable electronics and IoT. Theoretical understanding and practical insights. Valuable resource for any students and researchers seeking in-depth knowledge on ionic polymer-based smart technologies.
The Human Shock Absorber
You stand between a grieving elder who just lost her home and a project team frustrated by delays. You translate between two worlds that cannot hear each other. By evening, you are hollowed out, and tomorrow you will do it again.This is the life of the social performance practitioner: the person companies send to the front line when mining or energy projects collide with the communities that live on top of them. It is one of the most emotionally demanding roles in the extractive industry, and one of the least understood.The Human Shock Absorber is the first book to tell their story. Drawing on years of fieldwork across Sub-Saharan Africa and Europe, including mediating over two thousand grievance claims, Thomas Gaultier maps the invisible profession from the inside: the psychological toll, the ethical dilemmas, the quiet victories, and the practical tools that keep practitioners standing.Part testimony, part survival guide, this book covers: - The Invisible Profession - What community relations practitioners actually do, why it matters, and why it is so often misunderstood by the organizations that employ them- The Weight We Carry - Trauma, burnout, isolation, and the physical toll of working in the space between corporate interests and community needs- Practical Tools for Survival - Conflict resolution strategies for real stakes, navigating difficult conversations, building resilience, and protecting your career- Finding Meaning in the Middle - The ethics of being in the middle, the moral weight of witnessing, making peace with imperfect impact, and a manifesto for the professionThis book is for: - Community relations officers and social performance practitioners at any career stage- Managers and leaders who oversee community relations functions and want to understand what their teams experience- Anyone entering the field who wants to know what they are getting into
Determining the Effectiveness of Water Utility Field Crews and Work Teams
Water utility managers often struggle identifying ways to effectively manage their field crews and work teams. This book provides practical, industry-standard considerations to assist them in assessing, developing, implementing, maintaining, and enhancing the productivity of their workers. It also offers insight into increasing the efforts of underperforming employees without diminishing the activities of high performers. This is an essential tool for water utilities interested in providing the most cost-efficient, consistently reliable service to their customers.
Mediating Extractive Conflicts
When a mining project lands on a community's doorstep, the conflicts that follow are never simple. Generic mediation training does not prepare you for this.Power imbalances, cultural divides, historical grievances, and livelihoods at stake: company-community disputes in the extractive sector demand a fundamentally different approach to mediation. This handbook delivers it.Built from over fifteen years of frontline practice resolving extractive and infrastructure disputes across West Africa, Southern Africa, Europe, and Latin America, Mediating Extractive Conflicts walks practitioners step by step through the realities of company-community conflict. You will learn how to read a room where one side holds all the economic power, how to work with trauma without being consumed by it, and how to design processes that communities actually trust.Inside this 19-chapter handbook, you will find: - Core mediation principles adapted for extractive industry power dynamics- Communication and facilitation techniques for high-tension, cross-cultural settings- Conflict analysis frameworks for mining, energy, and infrastructure disputes- Process design methods that build legitimacy with both companies and communities- Guidance on trauma-informed mediation and mediator self-care- Strategies for managing impasses, resistance scenarios, and breakdowns in trust- Post-agreement implementation and monitoring tools- Digital mediation approaches for remote and hybrid contexts- Real-world case studies and ready-to-use simulation exercises- 53 visual frameworks, checklists, and flowcharts- Glossary, bibliography, and practitioner resource guideWho this book is for: Whether you are a mediator entering the extractive sector, a community relations officer managing escalating tensions, a social performance professional navigating competing demands, or a development practitioner supporting affected communities, this book was written for you.
Interior Design Towards the Sustainable Environment
This Reprint explores the contribution of interior design towards the building of a sustainable environment. New paradigms in the field of the sustainable environment set new challenges for designers and define new research areas. The studies presented inspire actions aimed at inclusive design and sustainable well-being. Attention is focused on four thematic groups: pro-life technical aspects, human beings and spatial satisfaction, pro-health actions, and sustainable society.
Rocket Propellant Technology
Rocket Propulsion has come of age. Although its potentialities and capabilities in many areas have been recognized for centuries, it is only in recent years that scientists have had the materials and the manufacturing techniques at their command so they could control and direct the tremendous forces available. Space exploration and manned flights by astronauts have brought the science of rocketry to the attention of the general public. It has also stimulated the interest of students at all levels of advancement in the technical details of space flight. Rocket Propellant Technologies is written for serious students of astronautics. This volume reviews briefly the history of rocketry and the fundamental principles connected with rocket propulsion. Types of propellants, the chemical reactions involved, and the techniques used in manufacturing are explained. The merits of solid and liquid fuels are enumerated. Exotic propellants of the future are discussed, with reasons why their development is essential. Finally, the safety aspects of manufacturing and testing rocket propellants are given in detail. The Amateur Rocket Association under whose guidance this series has been prepared, serves as a focal point for many related activities, bringing new ideas to the attention of its members and offering suggestions for future lines of research.
Rocket Propellant Technology
Rocket Propulsion has come of age. Although its potentialities and capabilities in many areas have been recognized for centuries, it is only in recent years that scientists have had the materials and the manufacturing techniques at their command so they could control and direct the tremendous forces available. Space exploration and manned flights by astronauts have brought the science of rocketry to the attention of the general public. It has also stimulated the interest of students at all levels of advancement in the technical details of space flight. Rocket Propellant Technologies is written for serious students of astronautics. This volume reviews briefly the history of rocketry and the fundamental principles connected with rocket propulsion. Types of propellants, the chemical reactions involved, and the techniques used in manufacturing are explained. The merits of solid and liquid fuels are enumerated. Exotic propellants of the future are discussed, with reasons why their development is essential. Finally, the safety aspects of manufacturing and testing rocket propellants are given in detail. The Amateur Rocket Association under whose guidance this series has been prepared, serves as a focal point for many related activities, bringing new ideas to the attention of its members and offering suggestions for future lines of research.
Keeping Ducks & Geese
This is a comprehensive and attractive lifestyle guide to keeping ducks and geese - from what to consider before buying them, how to house them, their welfare and even egg selection.They make wonderful and rewarding pets, and come in all shapes, sizes and colours, providing delicious eggs which are high in protein and are ideal for baking superior cakes. Geese make handy lawn mowers and ducks are perfect for vegetable and allotment gardeners as they love to feast on insects and other pests. With so much versatility, the desire to rear ducks and geese has never been greater.The book begins with a fascinating brief history of domesticated waterfowl, and then moves onto first considerations before purchasing your ducks or geese, such as goose and duck anatomy and behavior.There is a detailed section on all of the 40 common breeds of duck and goose, enabling you to make the right decision about which ones to choose. The book features extensive information on planning and welfare, helping you to ensure that you have the right type of space and housing, along with important feeding information. There are also guidelines on how to deal with any eventuality, such as telling the neighbors, going away on holiday and cleaning.Useful for anyone considering breeding from their waterfowl, there is advice on egg production, egg incubation and hatching, as well as a whole section on rearing.A lavish lifestyle chapter provides recipes for using the rich eggs, along with fun activities for all of the family including quill making and decorating eggs.Keeping Ducks and Geese fuses contemporary lifestyle design and an authoritative text, to appeal not only to those who already keep waterfowl, but also to those who are thinking of having them or even just aspire to the self-sufficient lifestyle that they represent.
Model Predictive Control Made Easy
A clear, intuitive, and practical introduction to one of the most powerful control techniques in modern engineering.Model Predictive Control (MPC) is everywhere-running chemical plants, stabilizing drones, optimizing HVAC systems, steering autonomous cars, and shaping the future of robotics and energy systems. Yet for many engineers, MPC still feels intimidating: too much math, too many assumptions, too many black-box solvers.This book fixes that.Model Predictive Control Made Easy takes you from intuition to implementation with clarity rarely found in technical literature. Instead of drowning you in equations, it builds understanding step by step-starting with how you drive a car, and ending with how to design real-time controllers that respect constraints, anticipate the future, and remain robust in the face of uncertainty.You'll learn: Why MPC works through simple, memorable analogiesHow to build prediction models using state-space systemsHow horizons, costs, and constraints shape controller behaviorHow to tune Q, R, and terminal costs without guessworkHow to handle actuator limits, rate limits, and safety constraintsHow to design offset-free MPC using disturbance modelsHow robust MPC and constraint tightening keep real systems safeWhy MPC reduces to LQR when constraints disappear-and why that mattersEvery chapter is written to be read by real engineers, not mathematicians. The explanations are crisp. The examples are practical. The insights come from real-world experience, not abstract theory.Whether you're working in robotics, automotive systems, process control, aerospace, or embedded systems, this book gives you the mental model and practical tools to design MPC controllers with confidence.If you've ever wanted MPC explained simply, clearly, and correctly-this is the book.
Kalman Filters Made Easy
Kalman Filters Made Easy is the engineer's companion for understanding uncertainty - not as an abstract mathematical idea, but as a concrete, unavoidable part of every real-world system.Drawing from practical examples across robotics, drones, autonomous vehicles, and sensor-driven devices, this book explains why measurements drift, why models fail, and why even the best sensors can't be trusted on their own. You'll explore the real sources of uncertainty - sensor noise, environmental interference, timing jitter, model imperfections, and even human engineering choices - all illustrated with relatable scenarios such as GPS drift, accelerometer bias, and unpredictable sensor timing.As the book states, "The world is messy. Sensors are imperfect. Nothing we measure is ever exactly right."Instead of overwhelming you with formulas, the book builds intuition step by step. You'll learn how engineers think about uncertainty as a "cloud" around the truth, how predictions make that cloud grow, and how measurements shrink it again. You'll see why relying only on sensors leads to jitter, why relying only on models leads to drift, and how Kalman filters intelligently combine both to produce the best possible estimate of a hidden state.As the text explains, "Two imperfect pieces of evidence, combined intelligently, are better than either one on its own."By the end, you'll understand not just how Kalman filters work, but why they are structured the way they are - and how to apply them to real engineering problems. Whether you're building drones, robots, autonomous systems, or any device that must make sense of noisy data, this book gives you the mental models, intuition, and practical insight to design systems that work reliably even when the world doesn't cooperate
Seismic Analysis and Design of Ocean and Underground Structures
Recent Progress, Challenges and Outlooks of Insulation System in HVDC
Polymer Interfacial Characteristics
The interfaces in polymer blends and IPN directly influence properties and applications of polymers. This book describes how interfacial characteristics influence different material properties. Interfaces are crucial for many properties and applications of polymers especially in polymer blends, where the interface between different polymers plays a critical role for mechanical properties and the application of ultra-strength composite materials.
Artificial Intelligence and Algorithms with Their Applications
The Complete Guide to Lab-Grown Diamonds
The Complete Guide to Lab-Grown Diamonds is the definitive handbook for understanding the science, ethics, and innovation behind one of the most transformative shifts in the jewelry industry. Written by Harvard-trained lab scientist Tim Colten, this comprehensive work spans the entire lifecycle of lab-grown diamonds, from their creation in high-tech laboratories to their role in sustainable luxury and modern consumer trends.With clarity and authority, Colten explains the core science behind HPHT and CVD synthesis methods, the grading and certification processes, and the practical realities of customization, resale, and ownership. Each chapter covers essential topics including the environmental benefits of lab-grown diamonds, their influence on modern fine jewelry design, and the technological advancements supporting their growing popularity in both consumer and industrial markets.This book explores: The differences between natural and lab-grown diamondsThe step-by-step processes of diamond synthesisGrading standards and quality comparison (the 4Cs)Wholesale and retail industry dynamicsCustomer motivations and evolving shopping experiencesCustom jewelry design, long-term ownership, and resale valueThe ethical and environmental impact of lab-grown stonesFuture trends including digital certification and provenanceWhether you are a jeweler, gemologist, designer, student, or informed consumer, The Complete Guide to Lab-Grown Diamonds delivers valuable insight into a new era of responsible luxury. It is an essential resource for anyone who believes that beauty, science, and ethics can come together to redefine tradition.
Quantum Deterrence
From the moment states learned to turn intercepted signals into strategic advantage, cryptography has been more than a technical craft: it has been a way of organising power. Today, more powerful computation is reshaping that contest in distinctive ways. The risk is not only that tomorrow's machines may read today's encrypted archives, but that the mere possibility of future decryption changes what rivals collect, what institutions must protect, and how long trust can reasonably last.Quantum Deterrence explains the strategic implications of post-quantum cryptography without treating it as a single technological cliff-edge. Kenan Durveil shows how encryption standards shift, why key management is often the true point of failure, and how "harvest now decrypt later" turns long-lived data into a reserve of influence. Moving across protocols, certificates, archives, and constrained communications, the book focuses on the institutional realities that determine outcomes: legacy systems that cannot be updated, vendors that set defaults for the world, and governance structures that struggle to own long-horizon risk.Written for students, general readers, and policy and security audiences, the book provides a clear framework for cryptographic migration as a coordination and credibility problem. Readers finish with a sharper understanding of which systems are most exposed, why capability gaps can produce asymmetric advantage, and what deterrence can mean when secrecy may fail after the fact. The central lesson is durable: in a world where mathematics and machines keep advancing, the decisive question is whether institutions can change as quickly as the threat model does.
Advanced Composite Materials for Structure Strengthening and Resilience Improving
This Special Issue of Buildings focuses on "Advanced Composite Materials for Structure Strengthening and Resilience Improving". Advanced composite materials are characterized by their high strength, stiffness and specific functions. In combination with modern automatic manufacturing processes, it has become more convenient to fabricate advanced composites. However, the construction industry has not yet accepted the wide structural use of these new materials because it does not fully know the advantages of composites in comparison with traditional materials, such as concrete or steel. This Special Issue aims to highlight recent scientific achievements in mechanics, technology, and the analysis of composite materials and structural elements at an advanced level. Related topics include, but are not limited to, mechanics of composite materials for structures strengthening; design of resilience structures; strengthening by composite materials; manufacturing technology of composite materials; experimental or numerical study of composite materials and devices; experimental or numerical study of structure strengthening by composite materials; smart composites.
Locusts And Wild Honey
Locusts and wild honey presents a reflective collection of nature essays that celebrate close observation, patience, and quiet engagement with the natural world. The book focuses on seasonal rhythms and the intricate relationships between living creatures and their environments, using bees as a central lens for understanding balance and cooperation in nature. Detailed descriptions of hive activity reveal patterns of labor, communication, and renewal that mirror broader natural processes. The narrative emphasizes attentiveness, encouraging readers to slow down and notice subtle changes in light, sound, and movement. Rather than presenting nature as distant or dramatic, the essays highlight everyday wonders found in fields, woods, and gardens. Careful observation becomes a form of reflection, blending scientific curiosity with personal insight. The writing values harmony over domination, suggesting that understanding grows from respect and familiarity. Through calm prose and vivid imagery, the book fosters appreciation for natural cycles, resilience, and the quiet intelligence present within the living world.
Recent Advances in Smart Design and Manufacturing Technology
This Special Issue collects eight peer-reviewed papers showcasing recent developments in design and manufacturing technologies, with a particular focus on the integration of advanced materials, process innovation, human-centered design, and digitalization. The contributions reflect how modern manufacturing is increasingly multidisciplinary, merging design, production, and system intelligence. The main topics covered include the following: Four-dimensional printing and smart structures, introducing self-folding mechanisms enabled by pre-stressed materials;Optimization of additive and hybrid processes, including parameter tuning for FFF with PVA supports and design strategies for directed energy deposition;Precision machining studies applied to aerospace alloys, analyzing hole quality and tool wear;Human-centric manufacturing, with on-field ergonomics assessment and human-error analysis in collaborative robotics;IoT-based monitoring and scheduling optimization for flexible manufacturing systems, improving responsiveness and reliability.
Optimal Control of Wind and Wave Energy Converters
The Optimal Control of Wind and Wave Energy Converters entail employing advanced algorithms and methodologies to enhance energy capture while ensuring a consistent power output from turbines and wave energy systems. This process requires the modification of operational parameters such as blade pitch and generator speed in reaction to varying conditions, aiming to achieve maximum power point tracking, reduce mechanical stress, and enhance grid integration, particularly in complex offshore settings. The main aspects pursued refer to: Maximizing energy capture: The goal of optimal control is to guarantee that the devices function at their maximum power point by dynamically modifying their physical or electrical attributes in real-time;Reducing stress: Through the management of factors such as blade pitch and yaw, control systems alleviate mechanical loads and structural stress on the devices, thereby prolonging their operational lifespan;Enhancing stability: Variations in wind and wave energy have the potential to disrupt the electrical grid. Implementing optimal control strategies can alleviate these power fluctuations, resulting in a more stable and dependable power supply.
Research on the Crack Control of Concrete
This Reprint presents a collection of recent research advances on the cracking mechanisms, durability evolution, structural performance, and prevention strategies of concrete materials. The contributions cover a broad range of topics, including early-age shrinkage modeling of internally confined concrete, moisture diffusion under varying environmental conditions, mixed-mode fracture propagation, strain-energy-based cracking load estimation, and probabilistic numerical modeling of large structural elements. The Reprint also includes studies on seasonal water-heat coupling effects in permafrost roadbeds and the early-stage mechanical properties of fiber-reinforced coral concrete. Together, these articles offer an updated perspective on experimental characterization, theoretical development, and computational modeling, reflecting ongoing efforts to better understand and predict the complex multi-physics behavior that governs concrete performance in engineering applications. This Reprint aims to support continued scientific inquiry and provide researchers with an integrated view of current progress in concrete mechanics and structural materials.
Reliability
Over three decades of global experience in asset management, maintenance, and reliability have shaped this deeply personal and insightful exploration of what is required to keep complex industrial systems running. From the oil fields to mines, from manufacturing facilities to utilities to municipal infrastructure, Emilio Sarno has worked with tradespeople, engineers, and executives, learning and sharing invaluable lessons about the operation and maintenance of the assets that move our world forward.This honest reflection is an experience-driven guide to the dos and don'ts of reliability, drawn from a career that spans management, engineering, project leadership, and consulting across industries and continents. Mr. Sarno shares hard-earned insights, cautionary tales, and philosophical perspectives that may challenge conventional thinking. Whether you're a frontline technician, a reliability engineer, or a leader navigating the complexities of asset performance, this book offers practical wisdom from a seasoned professional. This work is also a tribute to the unsung heroes who ensure our physical assets perform as expected, day in and day out, even with limited resources and under immense pressure. Expect stories, not formulas. Expect disagreement, not dogma. Above all, expect a thoughtful contribution to the ongoing conversation about reliability within the broader context of asset management.
Green Building Project Management
The implementation of green buildings is a method through which the construction industry can cope with ecological pressure, and this pathway has effectively promoted the green development of this sector. Currently, the green building concept has made some progress through different evaluation systems, but scientific issues in the project management process still deserve the attention of scholars. In particular, the impact of policy systems, artificial intelligence, and big data, technology adoption and risks, and the role of upstream and downstream of the supply chain have brought many new challenges to green building project management. This Reprint, "Green Building Project Management", confronts these issues, addressing one of the most pressing challenges of our time.
Urban Climatic Suitability Design and Risk Management
As a result of rapid urbanization, increasing population size, and complex human behavior, the urban climate is increasingly deteriorating. In particular, urban infrastructure style and the features of nature and humanity make the urban climate a unique entity with distinct spatio-temporal characteristics. A series of environmental and energy risks associated with the urban climate are continually being identified. The excessive utilization of air conditioning and large amounts of anthropogenic heat emissions have led to prominent high-temperature thermal safety issues, increased building energy consumption, and associated carbon emissions. Understanding the formation mechanisms and control strategies of the urban climate is an important foundation for constructing climate-resilient cities. This Special Issue aims to explore a series of urban climate-related measurements, simulations, and models, as well as newly proposed advanced techniques. Cross-disciplinary research topics covered in this Special Issue include multi-scale urban climate analysis, human thermal comfort discussions, simulations of urban thermal environment, application of green building design, etc. This Special Issue seeks to promote the construction of a research-oriented urban climate change operational system, strengthen monitoring, impact assessment, and risk assessment, improve climate change adaptation and carbon emission assessments, and enhance the climate resilience and security of cities.
Sustainable and Efficient Maritime Operations
This Reprint presents a collection of studies addressing sustainable and efficient maritime operations from technological, environmental, and managerial perspectives. The contributions reflect recent advances in maritime research, covering themes such as alternative fuels, emission reduction strategies, digitalization, intelligent decision support, port operations, maritime communications, safety management, and system resilience. Together, the papers illustrate how operational efficiency, environmental performance, and safety considerations are increasingly interconnected within modern maritime systems. The Reprint highlights the growing role of data-driven methods, artificial intelligence, and optimization techniques in improving maritime decision-making, while also emphasizing the continued importance of human expertise in safety-critical environments. Several studies provide system-level and lifecycle-based analyses of decarbonization pathways, offering insights into the economic and environmental implications of fuel transitions and emission abatement technologies. Other contributions focus on resilience and risk-related challenges, reflecting the sector's exposure to uncertainty, disruptions, and evolving regulatory pressures. Overall, this Reprint captures current research directions and practical concerns shaping maritime operations, providing an integrated reference for researchers, practitioners, and policymakers interested in sustainability, digital transformation, and operational performance in the maritime domain.
Reliability
Over three decades of global experience in asset management, maintenance, and reliability have shaped this deeply personal and insightful exploration of what is required to keep complex industrial systems running. From the oil fields to mines, from manufacturing facilities to utilities to municipal infrastructure, Emilio Sarno has worked with tradespeople, engineers, and executives, learning and sharing invaluable lessons about the operation and maintenance of the assets that move our world forward.This honest reflection is an experience-driven guide to the dos and don'ts of reliability, drawn from a career that spans management, engineering, project leadership, and consulting across industries and continents. Mr. Sarno shares hard-earned insights, cautionary tales, and philosophical perspectives that may challenge conventional thinking. Whether you're a frontline technician, a reliability engineer, or a leader navigating the complexities of asset performance, this book offers practical wisdom from a seasoned professional. This work is also a tribute to the unsung heroes who ensure our physical assets perform as expected, day in and day out, even with limited resources and under immense pressure. Expect stories, not formulas. Expect disagreement, not dogma. Above all, expect a thoughtful contribution to the ongoing conversation about reliability within the broader context of asset management.
Fundamentals of LiDAR Remote Sensing
"Fundamentals of LiDAR Remote Sensing" by P.K. Garg and Arti Tiwari is a thorough exploration of LiDAR technology, its principles, and its applications. The book covers the basics of LiDAR, including its components, systems, and data processing techniques, as well as its applications in various domains such as agriculture, forestry, urban planning, and autonomous vehicles. With a focus on providing a deep understanding of laser scanning and its data processing techniques, the book addresses theories and practices of information extraction from LiDAR data, including terrain surface generation, forest inventory, and 3D modeling. Written by experts in the field, this comprehensive book is an essential resource for students and professionals working in diverse disciplines, including geomatics, civil engineering, earth sciences, and computer science.
Marketing Rewired
Marketing RewiredWhy you need to think differently in the Age of AI-Driven MarketingThe rules of marketing have changed. Today's buyers behave more like researchers than recipients, AI is transforming how decisions are made, and trust is your most valuable currency.In Marketing Rewired Why you need to think differently in the Age of AI-Driven Marketing, you'll find a radically practical playbook for the modern marketer. Combining strategic insight, behavioural psychology, commercial fluency, and the latest marketing technologies, this guide shows how to reframe your thinking, realign your teams, and rebuild marketing around long-term value.Whether you're leading a global marketing function or scaling a startup team, this book will help you craft strategy with foresight, act with clarity, and thrive in a world where the only constant is change.Bold, insightful, and full of real-world examples - this is not just a book; it's a call to lead the future of marketing.Inside, you'll learn how to: - Move beyond vanity metrics and short-term campaigns- Understand the hidden forces driving buyer decisions- Align sales, marketing, and success around shared revenue impact- Use AI not as a replacement but as a force multiplier- Build long-term brand trust while still accelerating growth
Technological Innovation - An Introduction
The book introduces technological (commercial) innovation, beginning with what it is and is not, and how it is connected to economic growth. It then covers the pathways by which such innovations are created, the origins from which most of them arise, models of innovation generation, enablers and limitations governing success rates, and approaches to integrating innovation into new product development. At the organizational level, the book introduces the management of innovation and innovation culture, barriers, and strategy. At a higher level, the book covers innovation ecosystems, the institutional players and how they can optimally interact, the global eras and waves of innovation, and where they fi t in the technological ages of human history. This all comes together in an overview of innovation outputs and impacts at the organizational, regional, and national levels, and the connections to productivity and competitiveness. This edition also includes an extensive dictionary.
Uncertainty and Reliability Analysis for Engineering Systems
Reliability is a fundamental performance indicator of products, critically influencing service life, operational safety, and market competitiveness. For complex engineering systems, such as aerospace equipment, intelligent manufacturing systems, and energy infrastructures, uncertainties in geometric dimensions, material properties, and external loads are significantly more pronounced than in conventional products. Manufacturing deviations, material degradation, and fluctuating operating conditions can substantially impair system reliability and may even result in catastrophic failures. Meeting the stringent reliability requirements of modern engineering systems therefore necessitates a comprehensive consideration of uncertainties throughout the entire lifecycle, including design optimization, precision manufacturing, and performance evaluation. Nevertheless, due to the complex interactions among multiple uncertainty sources and the high computational cost of reliability models, major challenges remain. These include efficient quantification of multi-source uncertainties, accurate reliability prediction for complex systems, and robust design methodologies under uncertainty. This Reprint highlights recent research advancements in reliability theory, methods, and engineering applications. By bringing together high-quality contributions, we aim to provide a platform for sharing insights, advancing research on key reliability challenges, and promoting the practical implementation of reliability-oriented solutions in engineering systems.
Advances in Wireless Communication
Wireless communications have evolved from a user-centered service, where the system design was primarily focused on providing adequate Quality of Service for voice services, to a system that connects things to form an entire ecosystem supporting users' everyday lives. They are no longer focused on connecting peers but rather on enabling everything around the user to perform context-aware automated routines to improve Quality of Life. To this end, machine learning algorithms must equip nodes with sufficient intelligence to scan the environment and learn the user's patterns, distinguishing everyday life situations from emergency and unusual events. This intelligence will prioritize data packets within the user ecosystem and for other parties, such as vehicles. To date, most devices transmit all available data to the user's smartphone, leaving the user to either discard, attend to, or ignore these notifications or to configure notification settings. However, this is not sustainable due to high energy consumption, high bandwidth usage, and the cumbersome process of configuring each node. In the same context, due to the environmental impact of the batteries in these devices, the search for clean, sustainable options to power nodes will have a major impact on wireless communication devices. As such, communication systems will consider the limited energy and charging times of energy-harvesting modules to decide what information to transmit and when. Hence, the design of wireless communications will require the use of energy consumption, security guarantees, machine learning, and IoT and social media communications.
Glass Furnaces
Glass furnaces: design, construction and operation by Wolfgang TrierTranslated from: Glasschmelz繹fen: Konstruktion und Betreibsverhalten originally published by Springer-Verlag 1984Translated by K. L. LoewensteinThe technology and the underlying science of all furnace types are covered in this extensive study. It's objective is to not only deal with the glass furnace in its basic construction and mode of operation, but to include the relevant technical background knowledge. The book describes the technical criteria, descriptions and designs of furnaces; construction elements and typical dimensions; selection and use of refractories in glass tank furnaces; the operation of glass tank furnaces; the general behaviour in operation of tank furnaces; mathematical models of glass tank furnaces; electric tank furnaces; day tanks; pot furnaces; the fuels and combustion; waste heat recovery; and emissions from glass furnaces.
Advanced Mobile Communications
This book offers a comprehensive exploration of wireless quantum optical communications. Drawing on the author's more than three decades of university teaching experience, it seamlessly bridges foundational quantum mechanics and quantum electrodynamics with cutting-edge developments like decoherence and quantum teleportation. It provides rigorous treatment of coherent and thermal radiation, single-path and multipath transmission, optimum quantum data detection and turbo equalization for quantum reception. This third volume of the Advanced Mobile Communications Series is an essential reference for researchers, engineers, and students seeking both depth and practical insight in the rapidly evolving field of quantum communications, delivering a thorough and accessible overview of wireless quantum optical communicationsestablishing a rigorous mathematical foundation for key quantum theoretical principles, andshowcases the potential, even in challenging or adverse environments.
Physical Chemistry of Polymers
Physical Chemistry of Polymers, now in its third and improved edition, introduces its concepts in a format targeted for a blended-learning approach. It provides a basis to bridge polymer chemistry, which targets microscopic structures, and polymer engineering, which targets macroscopic functions. Topics covered are single chain statistics, multi-chain interactions, and chain dynamics, both from a viewpoint of structure, properties (mostly mechanical ones), and their interrelation. In all that, the author encourages the reader to think conceptually.Structured as learning units, the chapters now feature concise summary boxes for each topic. On top, comprehensive solutions have been added to the unit exercises.
More Makers of American Machinist's Tools
Here is the much-anticipated sequel to the author's Makers of American Machinist's Tools and American Machinist's Tools: An Illustrated Directory of Patents, pioneering works on machinist s tools and their makers. These books together provide the most comprehensive historical directory ever of the machinist tool industry and its technology. This volume covers hundreds of additional makers. There is also new material on the Big Five makers, with several of their previously unknown tools. The research and illustrations in this, and Cope s earlier volumes, provide a truly unique and incomparable reference source for collectors, dealers and researchers.
Biomolecules
Biochemistry is the study of the structure and functions of biological macromolecules such as nucleic acids, proteins, carbohydrates and lipids. The book is organized in five chapters which covers the basic concepts and fascinating chemistry of biomolecules. It also exposes students to different metabolic pathways and concept of energy in biological system, and provides valuable material for the students of Chemistry, Biochemistry, Biotechnology and Bioscience. Includes new material in: Amino Acids, Peptides, and Proteins, Enzymes, Nucleic Acids.
Chemical Engineering: 25 Must-Know Process Design Principles
This book contains all essential design methods for chemical, biochemical, biofuels, food, cattle feed, diary, medicine, fertilizer, ceramics, detergents, skincare, and other processes. The 1st section covers classic process synthesis methods connecting process inputs to outputs by selecting unit operations and recycle streams. It covers innovative process intensification synthesis by defining functions and integrating them. It also covers evaluation methods for safety, health, environment, economics, and sustainability. The 2nd section is on reaction engineering and the 3rd on distillation. The 4th covers the base for all unit operation design, residence time distribution, heat, mass transfer, impulse transfer, and shear rate. The 5th covers design for circular economy, urban-industrial symbiosis, and industrial symbiosis. This book is relevant for industrial process researchers, developers, and designers, as well as for academic teachers, and students, as it can be used to get all relevant established information about chemical engineering design methods. The information can be found quickly due to its lucid structure with sections, chapters, sub-headings; basics, method, case application, references, and symbols and an index.
