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Unscrewed: Salvage and Reuse Motors, Gears, Switches, and More from Your Old Electronics
by Ed SobeyPerfect for the do-it-yourselfer, this handy guide to household electronics gives the weekend workbench enthusiast a multitude of ideas on how to salvage valuable parts from old electronics and turn them into useful gadgets once more. This handbook is loaded with information and helpful tips for disassembling old and broken electronics. Each of the more than 50 deconstruction projects includes a "treasures cache" of the components to be found, a required tools list, and step-by-step instructions with photos on how to safely extract the working components. Projects include building a desk lamp from an old flatbed scanner, a barbeque supercharger from a Dustbuster impeller, and a robot from the gears, rollers, and stepper motor found in an ink-jet printer. Now, old VHS players and fax machines will find new life with these fun ideas.
The Unseen Body: A Doctor's Journey Through the Hidden Wonders of Human Anatomy
by Jonathan ReismanIn his beautifully written prose, Dr Jonathan Reisman - physician, adventure traveller and naturalist - allows readers to navigate their insides like an explorer discovering a new world.Through his offbeat adventures in healthcare and travel, Reisman discovers new perspectives on the body: a trip to the Alaskan Arctic reveals that fat is not the enemy, but the hero; a stint in the Himalayas uncovers the boundary where the brain ends and the mind begins; and eating a sheep's head in Iceland offers a lesson in empathy. By relating his experiences in far-flung lands and among unique cultures back to the body's inner workings, he shows how our organs live inextricably intertwined lives in an internal ecosystem that reflects the natural world around us.Reisman's unique perspective on the natural world and his expert wielding of wit ultimately helps us make sense of our lives, our bodies and our world in a way readers have never before imagined.'An elegant, elegiac, and deeply enjoyable meander through human anatomy . . . the images Reisman conjures will linger long after you've devoured his delightful prose.' - Nicola Twilley, co-author of Until Proven Safe and co-host of Gastropod podcast
The Unseen Body: A Doctor's Journey Through the Hidden Wonders of Human Anatomy
by Jonathan ReismanIn his beautifully written prose, Dr Jonathan Reisman - physician, adventure traveller and naturalist - allows listeners to navigate their insides like an explorer discovering a new world.Through his offbeat adventures in healthcare and travel, Reisman discovers new perspectives on the body: a trip to the Alaskan Arctic reveals that fat is not the enemy, but the hero; a stint in the Himalayas uncovers the boundary where the brain ends and the mind begins; and eating a sheep's head in Iceland offers a lesson in empathy. By relating his experiences in far-flung lands and among unique cultures back to the body's inner workings, he shows how our organs live inextricably intertwined lives in an internal ecosystem that reflects the natural world around us.Reisman's unique perspective on the natural world and his expert wielding of wit ultimately helps us make sense of our lives, our bodies and our world in a way readers have never before imagined.'An elegant, elegiac, and deeply enjoyable meander through human anatomy . . . the images Reisman conjures will linger long after you've devoured his delightful prose.' - Nicola Twilley, co-author of Until Proven Safe and co-host of Gastropod podcast(P) 2021 Macmillan Audio
Unseen Universe: New Secrets of the Cosmos Revealed by the James Webb Space Telescope
by Dr Caroline HarperThis is the universe as you've never seen it before. Discover how the awe-inspiring images from Webb are rapidly changing our understanding of our solar system and beyond.From the towering dust cliffs of the Carina Nebula to Jupiter glowing like an iridescent disco ball in the sky, these stunning new images have captured the imagination of millions all over the world. Launched on 25th December 2021, the James Webb Space Telescope is the most powerful and complex space telescope ever built, capturing a glimpse of deep space billions of years in the past. Now, Dr Caroline Harper and contributing astrophysicists from across Europe and the USA use Webb's photography to answer 10 of the biggest questions humankind has about the universe, including:· How are stars born?· How do galaxies form and evolve?· What are the origins of black holes?· Where do planets get their water?· Are we alone in the universe?· Is the universe expanding or infinite?Discover the science behind these beautiful images, which are revealing hidden details of the universe and clues to how it all began, and what awaits us in the future.
Unseen Universe: New Secrets of the Cosmos Revealed by the James Webb Space Telescope
by Dr Caroline HarperThis is the universe as you've never seen it before. Discover how the awe-inspiring images from Webb are rapidly changing our understanding of our solar system and beyond.From the towering dust cliffs of the Carina Nebula to Jupiter glowing like an iridescent disco ball in the sky, these stunning new images have captured the imagination of millions all over the world. Launched on 25th December 2021, the James Webb Space Telescope is the most powerful and complex space telescope ever built, capturing a glimpse of deep space billions of years in the past. Now, Dr Caroline Harper and contributing astrophysicists from across Europe and the USA use Webb's photography to answer 10 of the biggest questions humankind has about the universe, including:· How are stars born?· How do galaxies form and evolve?· What are the origins of black holes?· Where do planets get their water?· Are we alone in the universe?· Is the universe expanding or infinite?Discover the science behind these beautiful images, which are revealing hidden details of the universe and clues to how it all began, and what awaits us in the future.
Unser Gehirn und die Welt: Wer die Welt verstehen will, muss unser Gehirn verstehen
by Wolfgang KlimeschEs gibt verschiedene Zugänge zur Erforschung des Gehirns. Hier wird in einem ersten Schritt die evolutive Perspektive gewählt. In gewisser Hinsicht ‚erzählt‘ die Gehirnanatomie die evolutive Entwicklung, weil bekannt ist, welche Regionen sich sehr früh und welche sich später entwickelt haben. So nennt man z.B. eine im menschlichen Gehirn sehr alte Region, den Hirnstamm auch ‚Reptiliengehirn‘, weil sie in ihrer Struktur große Ähnlichkeiten mit den Gehirnen von Reptilien hat.Die erste Hälfte des Buches beschäftigt sich mit der Frage, was uns antreibt und ob wir einen freien Willen haben. Es wird argumentiert, dass uralte Gehirnregionen über endogene Aktivierungen - auf die wir bewusst zumindest nicht direkt Einfluss nehmen können - unser Verhalten anleiten, d.h. mit einem gewissen Spielraum steuern. Zu ihnen gehören nicht nur der Wach-Schlaf Zyklus, sondern verschiedene Verhaltensanleitung, die im Dienste des Überlebens und der Reproduktion stehen. Viele dieser Verhaltensanleitungen sind Emotionen, die unser Verhalten in der sozialen Welt lenken. Kein Wunder, dass unser Gehirn primär auf all das spezialisiert ist, was in der sozialen Welt im Vordergrund steht: Kommunikation, soziale Intelligenz, Reproduktion und Brutpflege.Die zweite Hälfte beschäftigt sich mit der Anatomie und Physiologie kognitiver Prozesse. Dabei zeigt sich, dass die Grundlagen der Kognition völlig anders sind, als jene, die Emotionen zugrunde liegen. Im Mittelpunkt steht die Beobachtung, dass die elektrische Aktivität des Gehirns aus Schwingungen besteht und dass Gedächtnis, Denken und Bewusstsein ohne sie nicht möglich sind. Es wird hervorgehoben, dass Gehirnfunktionen 4-dimensional sind, weil sie neben der 3-dimensionalen Ausbreitung neuronaler Netze nur in der Zeit - als 4. Dimension – beschrieben werden können. Es wird gezeigt, dass Gehirnzeit Struktur hat, die als Hierarchie von Gehirn- und Körperschwingungen mathematisch beschrieben werden kann. Die Untersuchung von Gehirnschwingungen führt uns in die algorithmische Welt. In einem abschließenden Kapitel werden Zusammenhänge zwischen sozialer, physischer und algorithmischer Welt diskutiert.
Unser Klima und das Energieproblem: Wie unser Energiebedarf klimaschonend gedeckt werden kann (essentials)
by Klaus StierstadtDieses essential gibt einen Überblick über die Veränderungen unseres Klimas, ihre Ursachen und ihre Folgen. Der Energiebedarf der Menschheit wird heute weitgehend auf klimaschädliche Weise gedeckt. Die Alternative dazu, die Sonnenenergie, würde unseren Bedarf tausendfach befriedigen. Aber diese Option wird aus überwiegend wirtschaftlichen Gründen viel zu wenig genutzt. In diesem essential werden anschließend die Energiewandler besprochen, mit denen man die Sonnenenergie verfügbar machen kann. Einige andere moderne Energiequellen, wie zum Beispiel die Kernenergie, sind entweder nicht ausreichend, noch utopisch oder auf andere Weise umweltschädlich. Ein Ausblick zeigt, dass unser Energieproblem mit ökonomischer Vernunft durch globale Nutzung der Sonnenenergie leicht zu lösen wäre. Das Klima könnte so noch rechtzeitig stabilisiert werden
Unser Platz im Universum: Astronomie anhand alter Entdeckungen verstehen
by Sun KwokWenn Sie schon immer die Grundprinzipien der Astronomie und der Himmelsbewegungen verstehen wollten, sollten Sie dieses Buch lesen. Anhand von Bildern des Himmels, die von verschiedenen Orten der Erde aus beobachtet wurden, sowie von Zeichnungen alter astronomischer Methoden und Werkzeuge erzählt Prof. Sun Kwok diese Geschichte auf unterhaltsame und faszinierende Weise.Seit den Anfängen der menschlichen Zivilisation haben sich die Menschen Gedanken über die Struktur des Kosmos und unseren Platz im Universum gemacht. Vor mehr als 2.000 Jahren wussten unsere Vorfahren bereits, dass die Jahreszeiten ungleichmäßig verlaufen, dass die Erde frei im Raum schwebt, und dass es Sterne gibt, die sie nicht sehen können. Aus ihren Himmelsbeobachtungen schlossen sie, dass die Erde rund ist. Mit einfachen Werkzeugen und mathematischen Methoden bestimmten die Astronomen der Antike die Größe der Erde und des Mondes, die Entfernung zum Mond und die Länge der Monate und des Jahres genau.Mit einem raffinierten Gerät, der Armillarsphäre, konnten die griechischen Astronomen die Zeiten des Sonnenaufgangs und des Sonnenuntergangs an jedem Tag des Jahres und an jedem Ort der Erde vorhersagen. Sie entwickelten ausgeklügelte mathematische Modelle, um die Bewegungen des Mars für Hunderte von Jahren in die Zukunft vorauszusagen.Finden Sie heraus, wie die antiken Beobachter diese bemerkenswerten Leistungen vollbrachten. Mit minimalem Einsatz von Mathematik zeichnet dieses Buch die Spuren unserer Vorfahren nach, erklärt ihre intellektuelle Reise in einfachen Worten und erforscht die philosophischen Bedeutungen dieser Entdeckungen.
Unsettled: What Climate Science Tells Us, What It Doesn't, and Why It Matters
by Steven E. Koonin"Surging sea levels are inundating the coasts." "Hurricanes and tornadoes are becoming fiercer and more frequent." "Climate change will be an economic disaster." You've heard all this presented as fact. But according to science, all of these statements are profoundly misleading. When it comes to climate change, the media, politicians, and other prominent voices have declared that "the science is settled." In reality, the long game of telephone from research to reports to the popular media is corrupted by misunderstanding and misinformation. Core questions—about the way the climate is responding to our influence, and what the impacts will be—remain largely unanswered. The climate is changing, but the why and how aren't as clear as you've probably been led to believe. Now, one of America's most distinguished scientists is clearing away the fog to explain what science really says (and doesn't say) about our changing climate. In Unsettled: What Climate Science Tells Us, What It Doesn't, and Why It Matters, Steven Koonin draws upon his decades of experience—including as a top science advisor to the Obama administration—to provide up-to-date insights and expert perspective free from political agendas. Fascinating, clear-headed, and full of surprises, this book gives readers the tools to both understand the climate issue and be savvier consumers of science media in general. Koonin takes readers behind the headlines to the more nuanced science itself, showing us where it comes from and guiding us through the implications of the evidence. He dispels popular myths and unveils little-known truths: despite a dramatic rise in greenhouse gas emissions, global temperatures actually decreased from 1940 to 1970. What's more, the models we use to predict the future aren't able to accurately describe the climate of the past, suggesting they are deeply flawed. Koonin also tackles society's response to a changing climate, using data-driven analysis to explain why many proposed "solutions" would be ineffective, and discussing how alternatives like adaptation and, if necessary, geoengineering will ensure humanity continues to prosper. Unsettled is a reality check buoyed by hope, offering the truth about climate science that you aren't getting elsewhere—what we know, what we don't, and what it all means for our future.
Unsettled Borders: The Militarized Science of Surveillance on Sacred Indigenous Land (Dissident Acts)
by Felicity Amaya SchaefferIn Unsettled Borders Felicity Amaya Schaeffer examines the ongoing settler colonial war over the US-Mexico border from the perspective of Apache, Tohono O’odham, and Maya who fight to protect their sacred land. Schaeffer traces the scientific and technological development of militarized border surveillance across time and space from Spanish colonial lookout points in Arizona and Mexico to the Indian wars, when the US cavalry hired Native scouts to track Apache fleeing into Mexico, to the occupation of the Tohono O’odham reservation and the recent launch of robotic bee swarms. Labeled “Optics Valley,” Arizona builds on a global history of violent dispossession and containment of Native peoples and migrants by branding itself as a profitable hub for surveillance. Schaeffer reverses the logic of borders by turning to Indigenous sacredsciences: ancestral land-based practices that are critical to reversing the ecological and social violence of surveillance, extraction, and occupation.
Unsettled Minds: Psychology and the American Search for Spiritual Assurance, 1830–1940
by Christopher G. WhiteThe book examines the concept of religion by turning to the religious lives of nineteenth- and twentieth-century Americans who rejected older religious traditions and turned to scientific psychologies to help them formulate new ideas about the self and new practices concerning spiritual growth.
Unsettled (Updated and Expanded Edition): What Climate Science Tells Us, What It Doesn't, and Why It Matters
by Steven E. KooninIn this updated and expanded edition of climate scientist Steven Koonin&’s groundbreaking book, go behind the headlines to discover the latest eye-opening data about climate change—with unbiased facts and realistic steps for the future."Greenland&’s ice loss is accelerating.""Extreme temperatures are causing more fatalities.""Rapid 'climate action' is essential to avoid a future climate disaster."You've heard all this presented as fact. But according to science, all of these statements are profoundly misleading.With the new edition of Unsettled, Steven Koonin draws on decades of experience—including as a top science advisor to the Obama administration—to clear away the fog and explain what science really says (and doesn't say). With a new introduction, this edition now features reflections on an additional three years of eye-opening data, alternatives to unrealistic &“net zero&” solutions, global energy inequalities, and the energy crisis arising from the war in Ukraine. When it comes to climate change, the media, politicians, and other prominent voices have declared that &“the science is settled.&” In reality, the climate is changing, but the why and how aren&’t as clear as you&’ve probably been led to believe. Koonin takes readers behind the headlines, dispels popular myths, and unveils little-known truths: Despite rising greenhouse gas emissions, global temperatures decreased from 1940 to 1970Models currently used to predict the future do not accurately describe the climate of the past, and modelers themselves strongly doubt their regional predictionsThere is no compelling evidence that hurricanes are becoming more frequent—or that predictions of rapid sea level rise have any validity Unsettled is a reality check buoyed by hope, offering the truth about climate science—what we know, what we don&’t, and what it all means for our future.
The Unsettling Outdoors: Environmental Estrangement in Everyday Life (RGS-IBG Book Series)
by Russell HitchingsHow is it that, in the course of everyday life, people are drawn away from greenspace experiences that are often good for them? By attending to the apparently idle talk of those who are living them out, this book shows us why we should attend to the processes involved. Develops an original perspective on how greenspace benefits are promoted Shows how greenspace experiences can unsettle the practices of everyday life Draws on several years of field research and over 180 interviews Makes new links between geographies of nature and the study of social practices Uses a focus on social practices to reimagine the research interview Offers a wealth of suggestions for future researchers in this field
Unsettling Responsibility in Science Education: Indigenous Science, Deconstruction, and the Multicultural Science Education Debate (Palgrave Studies in Educational Futures)
by Marc HigginsThis open access book engages with the response-ability of science education to Indigenous ways-of-living-with-Nature. Higgins deconstructs the ways in which the structures of science education—its concepts, categories, policies, and practices—contribute to the exclusion (or problematic inclusion) of Indigenous science while also shaping its ability respond. Herein, he undertakes an unsettling homework to address the ways in which settler colonial logics linger and lurk within sedimented and stratified knowledge-practices, turning the gaze back onto science education. This homework critically inhabits culture, theory, ontology, and history as they relate to the multicultural science education debate, a central curricular location that acts as both a potential entry point and problematic gatekeeping device, in order to (re)open the space of responsiveness towards Indigenous ways-of-knowing-in-being.
Unsimple Truths: Science, Complexity, and Policy
by Sandra D. MitchellThe world is complex, but acknowledging its complexity requires an appreciation for the many roles context plays in shaping natural phenomena. In Unsimple Truths,Sandra Mitchell argues that the long-standing scientific and philosophical deference to reductive explanations founded on simple universal laws, linear causal models, and predict-and-act strategies fails to accommodate the kinds of knowledge that many contemporary sciences are providing about the world. She advocates, instead, for a new understanding that represents the rich, variegated, interdependent fabric of many levels and kinds of explanation that are integrated with one another to ground effective prediction and action. Mitchell draws from diverse fields including psychiatry, social insect biology, and studies of climate change to defend "integrative pluralism"---a theory of scientific practices that makes sense of how many natural and social sciences represent the multi-level, multi-component, dynamic structures they study. She explains how we must, in light of the now-acknowledged complexity and contingency of biological and social systems, revise how we conceptualize the world, how we investigate the world, and how we act in the world. Ultimately Unsimple Truths argues that the very idea of what should count as legitimate science itself should change.
Unsolaced: Along the Way to All That Is
by Gretel EhrlichFrom the author of the enduring classic The Solace of Open Spaces, here is a wondrous meditation on how water, light, wind, mountain, bird, and horse have shaped her life and her understanding of a world besieged by a climate crisis. Amid species extinctions and disintegrating ice sheets, this stunning collection of memories, observations, and narratives is acute and lyrical, Whitmanesque in breadth, and as elegant as a Japanese teahouse. &“Sentience and sunderance,&” Ehrlich writes. &“How we know what we know, who teaches us, how easy it is to lose it all.&” As if to stave off impending loss, she embarks on strenuous adventures to Greenland, Africa, Kosovo, Japan, and an uninhabited Alaskan island, always returning to her simple Wyoming cabin at the foot of the mountains and the trail that leads into the heart of them.
Unsolved History: Investigating Mysteries of the Past
by Joe NickellWhat constitutes historical truth is often subject to change. Joe Nickell demonstrates the techniques used in solving some of the world's most perplexing mysteries, such as the authenticity of Abraham Lincoln's celebrated Bixby letter, the 1913 disappearance of writer and journalist Ambrose Bierce, and the apparent real-life model for a mysterious character in a novel by Nathaniel Hawthorne. Nickell also uses newly uncovered evidence to further investigate the identity of the Nazi war criminal known as ""Ivan the Terrible.""
Unsolved Problems in Ecology
by Andrew Dobson Robert D. Holt David TilmanLeading ecologists discuss some of the most compelling open questions in the field todayUnsolved Problems in Ecology brings together many of the world's leading ecologists to discuss the most fundamental research questions confronting the field today. This diverse and thought-provoking collection of essays spans virtually all of the key subfields of the discipline, from behavioral and evolutionary ecology to population biology, community ecology, ecosystem ecology, disease ecology, and conservation biology. These essays are intended to stoke curiosity, challenge prevailing wisdom, and provoke new ways of thinking about ecology in light of new technologies and unprecedented environmental challenges brought on by climate and land-use change. Authoritative and accessible, Unsolved Problems in Ecology is ideal for graduate students in the early stages of their scientific careers and an essential resource for seasoned ecologists looking for exciting new directions to take their research.Sheds light on modern ecology's most important and compelling open questionsFeatures thought-provoking contributions from more than two dozen world-class ecologistsCovers behavior, evolution, communities, ecosystems, resource management, and moreDiscusses ways to raise the financial and intellectual profile of the disciplineAn invaluable resource for graduate students as well as seasoned ecologists
Unspeakable: Father-Daughter Incest in American History
by Lynn SaccoFirst place, Large Nonprofit Publishers Illustrated Covers, 2010 Washington Book PublishersNamed one of the Top Five Books of 2009 by Anne Grant, The Providence JournalThis history of father-daughter incest in the United States explains how cultural mores and political needs distorted attitudes toward and medical knowledge of patriarchal sexual abuse at a time when the nation was committed to the familial power of white fathers and the idealized white family.For much of the nineteenth century, father-daughter incest was understood to take place among all classes, and legal and extralegal attempts to deal with it tended to be swift and severe. But public understanding changed markedly during the Progressive Era, when accusations of incest began to be directed exclusively toward immigrants, blacks, and the lower socioeconomic classes. Focusing on early twentieth-century reform movements and that era’s epidemic of child gonorrhea, Lynn Sacco argues that middle- and upper-class white males, too, molested female children in their households, even as official records of their acts declined dramatically. Sacco draws on a wealth of sources, including professional journals, medical and court records, and private and public accounts, to explain how racial politics and professional self-interest among doctors, social workers, and professionals in allied fields drove claims and evidence of incest among middle- and upper-class white families into the shadows. The new feminism of the 1970s, she finds, brought allegations of father-daughter incest back into the light, creating new societal tensions. Against several different historical backdrops—public accusations of incest against "genteel" men in the nineteenth century, the epidemic of gonorrhea among young girls in the early twentieth century, and adult women’s incest narratives in the mid-to late twentieth century—Sacco demonstrates that attitude shifts about patriarchal sexual abuse were influenced by a variety of individuals and groups seeking to protect their own interests.
Unspeakable Horror: The Deadliest Shark Attacks in Maritime History
by Joseph B. HealyThe story of the USS Indianapolis is well-known. After delivering crucial components of the atomic bomb that would level Hiroshima in 1945, the Indianapolis was sunk by a Japanese submarine in the South China Sea. Of the nearly 1,200 men aboard, 900 survived the torpedoing, spilling into the sea. White tip sharks began attacking the next morning and after four days only 300 sailors were alive to rescue. Less famous are the many stories of ships sinking in shark-infested waters with gruesome results. Such as the Cape San Juan, a US troop transport ship that was torpedoed by a Japanese submarine in the Pacific Ocean near the Fiji Islands; nearly 700 of the survivors were killed by sharks. Or the HMS Birkenhead, which sunk off Danger Point, South Africa, in 1852, resulting in 440 shark-related fatalities. In 1927, the luxury Italian cruise liner Principessa Maldafa sank ninety miles off the coast of Albrohos Island while heading to Porto Seguro, Brazil. Nearly 300 who survived the wreck were killed by sharks. In 1909, the French steamer La Seyne collided with British India Steamship Co. liner Onda near Singapore, twenty-six miles from land. One hundred and one people were eventually killed by sharks. In the water, human intelligence is no match for a shark’s brutal, destructive instincts. Sharks are born to kill and eat: They detect distress, smell blood—and attack. Marine disasters such as those above result in humans becoming prey, floating in inner space as shadowy sharks swim below, ready to attack. Helpless to save yourself—floating and waiting, watching the malevolent creatures circle, knowing what will happen . . . a sudden swirl of water, a cloud of blood, the searing pain . . . until there is no more. This is unspeakable horror
The Unspeakable Unknown
by Eliot SappingfieldGuardians of the Galaxy meets The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy in this wild, warm-hearted, and hilarious sci-fi companion to A Problematic Paradox.Nikola Kross has battled aliens and won. But her father, who was kidnapped by evil extraterrestrials, is still missing, and now it's up to Nikola and her friends to find and rescue him before it's too late. He could be anywhere in the known universe, and they have little to go on except a desperate secret communication--"Kindly rescue me at your earliest convenience"--and an unhelpful clue that he's in a secure facility somewhere deep underground. But the extraterrestrials are still determined to capture Nikola. And if she gets abducted, she won't have to wonder where her father is . . . because she'll already be there. In this funny and exciting sequel, Nikola and her friends discover new and unexpected allies and come face-to-face with a strange and mysterious enemy, one so powerful and so dangerous, they dare not speak his name.
Unstable Nature: Order, Entropy, Becoming
by Auro Michele PeregoUnstable Nature is a popular science book offering a journey through the concept of instability in modern science with a focus on physics. Conceived for the curious reader wishing to go deeper in the fascinating and not yet popularised world of instabilities, it provides an immersion into paradoxical and unexpected phenomena - some of which hides in plain sight in our daily lives. The book is written without technical jargon, and new concepts and terminology needed for the narrative are introduced gradually based on examples taken from accessible everyday life. The chapters are connected through a path that starts from exploring instabilities at the planetary scale and then passes through a description of unstable dynamics in macroscopic settings such as in human mechanical artifacts, fluid waves, animal skin, vegetation structures, and chemical reactions, finally reaching the sub atomic scale and the biological processes of human thought. Before concluding with some general philosophical remarks, a modern landscape about the possibility of seeing instabilities not only as a detrimental effect but as resources to be harnessed for technology is explored. The book is enriched by a variety of professional anecdotes stemming from the direct research experience of the author. It features numerous connections of scientific concepts presented with other branches of the human experience and knowledge including philosophy, engineering, history of science, biology, chemistry, mathematics and computer science, poetry, and meditation. Key Features: Presents an exciting introduction to the topic, which is accessible to those without a scientific background Explores milestone discoveries in the history of the concept of instability in physics Contains anecdotes of key figures from the field, including James C. Maxwell, Alan Turing, Vladimir Zakharov, Edward Lorenz, Enrico Fermi, and Mary Tsingou
Unstable Systems (Mathematical Physics Studies)
by Lawrence Horwitz Yosef StraussThis book focuses on unstable systems both from the classical and the quantum mechanical points of view and studies the relations between them. The first part deals with quantum systems. Here the main generally used methods today, such as the Gamow approach, and the Wigner-Weisskopf method, are critically discussed. The quantum mechanical Lax-Phillips theory developed by the authors, based on the dilation theory of Nagy and Foias and its more general extension to approximate semigroup evolution is explained.The second part provides a description of approaches to classical stability analysis and introduces geometrical methods recently developed by the authors, which are shown to be highly effective in diagnosing instability and, in many cases, chaotic behavior. It is then shown that, in the framework of the theory of symplectic manifolds, there is a systematic algorithm for the construction of a canonical transformation of any standard potential model Hamiltonian to geometric form, making accessible powerful geometric methods for stability analysis in a wide range of applications.
Unsteady Flow in Open Channels
by Jurjen Battjes Robert Jan LabeurPractitioners in water engineering rely on a thorough understanding of shallow water flows in order to safeguard our habitat, while at the same time sustaining the water environment. This book proposes a unified theoretical framework for the different types of shallow flow, providing a coherent approach to interpret the behaviour of such flows, and highlighting the similarities and differences. Every major topic in the book is accompanied by worked examples illustrating the theoretical concepts. Practical examples, showcasing inspiring research and engineering applications from the past and present, provide insight into how the theory developed. The book is also supplemented by a range of online resources, available at www. cambridge. org/battjes, including problem sets and computer codes. A solutions manual is available for instructors. This book is intended for students and professionals working in environmental water systems, in areas such as coasts, rivers, harbours, drainage, and irrigation canals.
Unsteady Supersonic Combustion
by Mingbo Sun Hongbo Wang Zun Cai Jiajian ZhuThis book describes the unsteady phenomena needed to understand supersonic combustion. Following an initial chapter that introduces readers to the basic concepts in and classical studies on unsteady supersonic combustion, the book highlights recent studies on unsteady phenomena, which offer insights on e.g. interactions between acoustic waves and flames, flow dominating instability, ignition instability, flame flashback, and near-blowout-limit combustion. In turn, the book discusses in detail the fundamental mechanisms of these phenomena, and puts forward practical suggestions for future scramjet design.