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How Music Works: A Physical Culture Theory
by Rolf BaderHow do we understand culture and shape its future? How do we cross the bridge between culture as ideas and feelings and physical, cultural objects, all this within the endless variety and complexity of modern and traditional societies? This book proposes a Physical Culture Theory, taking culture as a self-organizing impulse pattern of electric forces. Bridging the gap to consciousness, the Physical Culture Theory proposes that consciousness content, what we think, hear, feel, or see is also just this: spatio-temporal electric fields. Music is a perfect candidate to elaborate on such a Physical Culture Theory. Music is all three, musical instrument acoustics, music psychology, and music ethnology. They emerge into living musical systems like all life is self-organization. Therefore the Physical Culture Theory knows no split between nature and nurture, hard and soft sciences, brains and musical instruments. It formulates mathematically complex systems as Physical Models rather than Artificial Intelligence. It includes ethical rules for maintaining life and finds culture and arts to be Human Rights. Enlarging these ideas and mathematical methods into all fields of culture, ecology, economy, or the like will be the task for the next decades to come.
How Nature Works: Complexity in Interdisciplinary Research and Applications
by Ali Sanayei Otto E. Rössler Hector Zenil Ivan ZelinkaThis book is based on the outcome of the "2012 Interdisciplinary Symposium on Complex Systems" held at the island of Kos. The book consists of 12 selected papers of the symposium starting with a comprehensive overview and classification of complexity problems, continuing by chapters about complexity, its observation, modeling and its applications to solving various problems including real-life applications. More exactly, readers will have an encounter with the structural complexity of vortex flows, the use of chaotic dynamics within evolutionary algorithms, complexity in synthetic biology, types of complexity hidden inside evolutionary dynamics and possible controlling methods, complexity of rugged landscapes, and more. All selected papers represent innovative ideas, philosophical overviews and state-of-the-art discussions on aspects of complexity. The book will be useful as instructional material for senior undergraduate and entry-level graduate students in computer science, physics, applied mathematics and engineering-type work in the area of complexity. The book will also be valuable as a resource of knowledge for practitioners who want to apply complexity to solve real-life problems in their own challenging applications. The authors and editors hope that readers will be inspired to do their own experiments and simulations, based on information reported in this book, thereby moving beyond the scope of the book.
How Not to Fail at Projects: Stopping the Project Management Insanity Spiral
by Claude H. MaleyThey say that repeating the same thing and expecting a different result is insanity. This book aims to analyze the reasons for failure in project management. It is filled with stories, anecdotes and satires that highlight how organizations and project managers fall into an “insanity spiral”. It provides seven Sanity Checks designed to keep project managers from repeating the same mistakes and to help them become project champions: The first sanity check is how and when to appoint a project manager. This first sanity check may be familiar and may well bring back memories of starting a career in project management. The second sanity check is the comprehension of why a project is needed. It helps to overcome the misunderstanding that many have on the nature of projects and its management. The third sanity check is the understanding of the unknown and emphasizes the importance of risk management. The fourth sanity check is capturing who needs what. It is about the constant pursuit to satisfy a host of individuals and at times the, sometimes seemingly, unsurmountable quest to secure resources for a project. The fifth sanity check is who does what. It also deals with satisfying stakeholders and obtaining resources. The sixth sanity check is outside assistance. It is all about breaking the us versus them syndrome when outsourcing in a project. The seventh and most important sanity check is engaging the efforts of others as it deals with people—the lifeblood of any organization. The book concludes with a chapter on composing and building powerful microservices. With the exponential growth of IoT devices, microservices are being developed and deployed on resource-constrained but resource-intensive devices in order to provide people-centric applications. The book discusses the challenges of these applications. Finally, the book looks at the role of microservices in smart environments and upcoming trends including ubiquitous yet disappearing microservices.
How Not to Network a Nation: The Uneasy History of the Soviet Internet
by Benjamin PetersBetween 1959 and 1989, Soviet scientists and officials made numerous attempts to network their nation -- to construct a nationwide computer network. None of these attempts succeeded, and the enterprise had been abandoned by the time the Soviet Union fell apart. Meanwhile, ARPANET, the American precursor to the Internet, went online in 1969. Why did the Soviet network, with top-level scientists and patriotic incentives, fail while the American network succeeded? In How Not to Network a Nation, Benjamin Peters reverses the usual cold war dualities and argues that the American ARPANET took shape thanks to well-managed state subsidies and collaborative research environments and the Soviet network projects stumbled because of unregulated competition among self-interested institutions, bureaucrats, and others. The capitalists behaved like socialists while the socialists behaved like capitalists. After examining the midcentury rise of cybernetics, the science of self-governing systems, and the emergence in the Soviet Union of economic cybernetics, Peters complicates this uneasy role reversal while chronicling the various Soviet attempts to build a "unified information network." Drawing on previously unknown archival and historical materials, he focuses on the final, and most ambitious of these projects, the All-State Automated System of Management (OGAS), and its principal promoter, Viktor M. Glushkov. Peters describes the rise and fall of OGAS -- its theoretical and practical reach, its vision of a national economy managed by network, the bureaucratic obstacles it encountered, and the institutional stalemate that killed it. Finally, he considers the implications of the Soviet experience for today's networked world.
How Not to Network a Nation: The Uneasy History of the Soviet Internet (Information Policy)
by Benjamin PetersHow, despite thirty years of effort, Soviet attempts to build a national computer network were undone by socialists who seemed to behave like capitalists.Between 1959 and 1989, Soviet scientists and officials made numerous attempts to network their nation—to construct a nationwide computer network. None of these attempts succeeded, and the enterprise had been abandoned by the time the Soviet Union fell apart. Meanwhile, ARPANET, the American precursor to the Internet, went online in 1969. Why did the Soviet network, with top-level scientists and patriotic incentives, fail while the American network succeeded? In How Not to Network a Nation, Benjamin Peters reverses the usual cold war dualities and argues that the American ARPANET took shape thanks to well-managed state subsidies and collaborative research environments and the Soviet network projects stumbled because of unregulated competition among self-interested institutions, bureaucrats, and others. The capitalists behaved like socialists while the socialists behaved like capitalists. After examining the midcentury rise of cybernetics, the science of self-governing systems, and the emergence in the Soviet Union of economic cybernetics, Peters complicates this uneasy role reversal while chronicling the various Soviet attempts to build a “unified information network.” Drawing on previously unknown archival and historical materials, he focuses on the final, and most ambitious of these projects, the All-State Automated System of Management (OGAS), and its principal promoter, Viktor M. Glushkov. Peters describes the rise and fall of OGAS—its theoretical and practical reach, its vision of a national economy managed by network, the bureaucratic obstacles it encountered, and the institutional stalemate that killed it. Finally, he considers the implications of the Soviet experience for today's networked world.
How Old Are You?
by Amy TaoWhen it’s your birthday, you add one Earth year to your age. Have you ever wondered how old you would be in Saturn years? What about Mars? Read on to learn about the planets of our solar system and how long it takes for them to complete one whole orbit.
How Oliver Olson Changed the World
by Claudia MillsAfraid he will always be an outsider like ex-planet Pluto, nine-year-old Oliver finally shows his extremely overprotective parents that he is capable of doing great things without their help while his class is studying the solar system.
How Professionals Make Decisions (Expertise: Research and Applications Series)
by Henry Montgomery Raanan Lipshitz Berndt BrehmerThis volume is the fruit of the 5th conference on Naturalistic Decision Making which focused on the importance of studying people who have some degree of expertise in the domain in which they make decisions. The substantive concerns pertain to how individuals and groups make decisions in professional and organizational settings, and to develop suit
How Round Is Your Circle?: Where Engineering and Mathematics Meet
by John Bryant Chris SangwinHow do you draw a straight line? How do you determine if a circle is really round? These may sound like simple or even trivial mathematical problems, but to an engineer the answers can mean the difference between success and failure. How Round Is Your Circle? invites readers to explore many of the same fundamental questions that working engineers deal with every day--it's challenging, hands-on, and fun. John Bryant and Chris Sangwin illustrate how physical models are created from abstract mathematical ones. Using elementary geometry and trigonometry, they guide readers through paper-and-pencil reconstructions of mathematical problems and show them how to construct actual physical models themselves--directions included. It's an effective and entertaining way to explain how applied mathematics and engineering work together to solve problems, everything from keeping a piston aligned in its cylinder to ensuring that automotive driveshafts rotate smoothly. Intriguingly, checking the roundness of a manufactured object is trickier than one might think. When does the width of a saw blade affect an engineer's calculations--or, for that matter, the width of a physical line? When does a measurement need to be exact and when will an approximation suffice? Bryant and Sangwin tackle questions like these and enliven their discussions with many fascinating highlights from engineering history. Generously illustrated, How Round Is Your Circle? reveals some of the hidden complexities in everyday things.
How Safe is Safe Enough?: Technological Risks, Real and Perceived
by E. E. LewisEvery time an airplane crashes, a gas line explodes, a bridge collapses, or a contaminant escapes the public questions whether the benefits that technology brings are worth its risks. Written in laymen's language, How Safe Is Safe Enough? explores the realities of the risks that technology presents and the public's perceptions of them. E. E. Lewis examines how these perceptions are reconciled with economic interests and risk assessors' analyses in messy and often contentious political processes that determine acceptable levels of safety-levels that often depend more on the perceived nature of the risks than on the number of deaths or injuries that they cause. The author explains why things fail and why design necessitates tradeoffs between performance, cost, and safety. He details methods for identifying and eliminating design flaws and illustrates the consequences when they fail. Lewis examines faulty machine interfaces that cause disastrous human errors and highlights how cost cutting and maintenance neglect have led to catastrophic consequence.How Safe Is Safe Enough? explores how society determines adequate levels of safety, outlining the announcement and enforcement of safety regulations and addressing controversies surrounding cost-benefit analysis. The author argues that large regulatory effects stem from the public's wide-ranging perceptions of three classes of accidents: the many everyday accidents causing one or two deaths at a time, rare disasters causing large loss of life, and toxic releases leading to uncertain future health risks. The nuclear disaster at Fukushima culminates the discussion, exemplifying the dichotomies faced in reconciling professional risk assessors' statistical approaches with the citizenry's fears and perceptions. For better or worse, technology permeates our lives, and much of it we don't understand-how it works and what the chances are that it will fail dangerously. Such interest and concerns are at the heart of this authoritative, provocative analysis.
How Science Runs: Impressions from a Scientific Career
by Eric J. MittemeijerThis book offers a considered yet entertaining reflection on the progress of modern scientific research. The winding path of science can only be understood by revealing the personal, human side of scientific research, demystifying the actions of the scientist and exposing the human drama on the stage of science. The book looks at the true nature of contemporary science and scientists through the lens of the personal experiences of the author, a renowned and leading materials scientist, over the last half century. It examines the positive threads of modern scientific progress in sober juxtaposition to the manifest negative developments arising from stiff competition within the current academic landscape. A collection of stories and real-life anecdotes is presented in parallel to the career of the author, providing a first-hand account of important achievements in the field of materials science. As a result, this book provides fascinating reading for students, seasoned scientists, and anybody else interested in the workings and machinations of modern science.
How Science Works: Exploring effective pedagogy and practice
by Rob ToplisHow Science Works provides student and practising teachers with a comprehensive introduction to one of the most dramatic changes to the secondary science curriculum.? Underpinned by the latest research in the field, it explores the emergence and meaning of How Science Works and reviews major developments in pedagogy and practice. With chapters structured around three key themes - why How Science Works, what it is and how to teach it – expert contributors explore issues including the need for curriculum change, arguments for scientific literacy for all, school students’ views about science, what we understand about scientific methods, types of scientific enquiry, and, importantly, effective pedagogies and their implications for practice. Aiming to promote discussion and reflection on the ways forward for this new and emerging area of the school science curriculum, it considers: teaching controversial issues in science argumentation and questioning for effective teaching enhancing investigative science and developing reasoned scientific judgments the role of ICT in exploring How Science Works teaching science outside the classroom. How Science Works is a source of guidance for all student, new and experienced teachers of secondary science, interested in investigating how the curriculum can provide creativity and engagement for all school students.
How Slippery Is a Banana Peel?
by Rebecca DonnellyRebecca Donnelly's How Slippery Is a Banana Peel? is a picture book companion to Cats Are a Liquid celebrating the science and the slipperiness of banana peels—a perfect introduction to friction, featuring illustrations by Misa Saburi.Volcanoes roar,But banana peels race.Rockets soar,Like bananas through space.A group of kid-experimenters at a science fair explore the slipperiness of banana peels—a perfect introduction to scientific concepts! It's funny and STEM-inspired, with back matter on friction and a kitchen science experiment. These playful and mischievous banana peels will capture the imagination of readers.
How Smart Is Your City?: Technological Innovation, Ethics and Inclusiveness (Intelligent Systems, Control and Automation: Science and Engineering #98)
by Maria Isabel Aldinhas FerreiraThis book focuses on the potential benefits that the so-called smart technologies have been bringing to the urban reality and to the management and governance of the city, simultaneously highlighting the necessity for its responsible and ethically guided deployment, respecting essential humanistic values. The urban ecosystem has been, in the last decades, the locus to where the most advanced forms of technological innovation converge, creating intelligent management platforms meant to produce models of energy, water consumption, mobility/transportation, waste management and efficient cities. Due to the coincidence of the punctual overlap of its own genesis with the pandemics outbreak, the present book came to embody both the initial dream and desire of an intelligent city place of innovation, development and equity – a dream present in most of the chapters – and the fear not just of the pandemics per se, but of the consequences that this may have for the character of the intelligent city and for the nature of its relationship with its dwellers that, like a mother, it is supposed to nurture, shelter and protect.
How Smart Machines Think (The\mit Press Ser.)
by Sean GerrishEverything you've always wanted to know about self-driving cars, Netflix recommendations, IBM's Watson, and video game-playing computer programs.The future is here: Self-driving cars are on the streets, an algorithm gives you movie and TV recommendations, IBM's Watson triumphed on Jeopardy over puny human brains, computer programs can be trained to play Atari games. But how do all these things work? In this book, Sean Gerrish offers an engaging and accessible overview of the breakthroughs in artificial intelligence and machine learning that have made today's machines so smart.Gerrish outlines some of the key ideas that enable intelligent machines to perceive and interact with the world. He describes the software architecture that allows self-driving cars to stay on the road and to navigate crowded urban environments; the million-dollar Netflix competition for a better recommendation engine (which had an unexpected ending); and how programmers trained computers to perform certain behaviors by offering them treats, as if they were training a dog. He explains how artificial neural networks enable computers to perceive the world—and to play Atari video games better than humans. He explains Watson's famous victory on Jeopardy, and he looks at how computers play games, describing AlphaGo and Deep Blue, which beat reigning world champions at the strategy games of Go and chess. Computers have not yet mastered everything, however; Gerrish outlines the difficulties in creating intelligent agents that can successfully play video games like StarCraft that have evaded solution—at least for now. Gerrish weaves the stories behind these breakthroughs into the narrative, introducing readers to many of the researchers involved, and keeping technical details to a minimum. Science and technology buffs will find this book an essential guide to a future in which machines can outsmart people.
How Solar Energy Became Cheap: A Model for Low-Carbon Innovation
by Gregory F. NemetSolar energy is a substantial global industry, one that has generated trade disputes among superpowers, threatened the solvency of large energy companies, and prompted serious reconsideration of electric utility regulation rooted in the 1930s. One of the biggest payoffs from solar’s success is not the clean inexpensive electricity it can produce, but the lessons it provides for innovation in other technologies needed to address climate change. Despite the large literature on solar, including analyses of increasingly detailed datasets, the question as to how solar became inexpensive and why it took so long still remains unanswered. Drawing on developments in the US, Japan, Germany, Australia, and China, this book provides a truly comprehensive and international explanation for how solar has become inexpensive. Understanding the reasons for solar’s success enables us to take full advantage of solar’s potential. It can also teach us how to support other low-carbon technologies with analogous properties, including small modular nuclear reactors and direct air capture. However, the urgency of addressing climate change means that a key challenge in applying the solar model is in finding ways to speed up innovation. Offering suggestions and policy recommendations for accelerated innovation is another key contribution of this book. This book will be of great interest to students and scholars of energy technology and innovation, climate change and energy analysis and policy, as well as practitioners and policymakers working in the existing and emerging energy industries.
How Space Works: The Facts Visually Explained (DK How Stuff Works)
by DKEmbark on an awe-inspiring and informative journey through our Solar System and beyond in this illuminating astronomy book! Discover how big the Universe is, why our view of the sky is constantly changing, what came before the Big Bang, and so much more in 3... 2... 1…. Blast Off! Inside the pages of this comprehensive guide to astronomy for beginners, you&’ll discover: • Simple text and step-by-step graphics that make astronomy easy to understand • Fun facts and tip-of-the-tongue questions are presented through bite-sized factoids and question-and-answer features • Clear explanations demystifying more advanced topics such as cosmic rays, dark matter, and black hole collisions Take a peek at what lies beyond the stratosphereThis out-of-this-world reference book about space introduces you to the weird and wonderful discipline of astronomy and space exploration. From the structure of the Milky Way to the Earth&’s nearest celestial body, the Moon, How Space Works takes you on an unforgettable tour through the stars and galaxies, and to the furthest reaches of space!Answering all your burning questions about space, from ancient white dwarf stars to the Mars Rover, this visual guide explains the essentials of astronomy through bold graphics and step-by-step artworks. It&’s the ultimate book for armchair astronomers and space-technology enthusiasts looking for reliable and up-to-date facts and explanations.Don&’t let the learning stop - try the rest of the series!DK's How Things Work series uses dynamic graphics and jargon-free text to explain the modern world simply and clearly. Packed with fascinating facts and stats, these visual guides cover everything from science to philosophy, making complex topics more accessible than ever before!
How Structures Work
by David YeomansStructural engineering is central to the design of a building. How the building behaves when subjected to various forces - the weight of the materials used to build it, the weight of the occupants or the traffic it carries, the force of the wind etc - is fundamental to its stability. The alliance between architecture and structural engineering is therefore critical to the successful design and completion of the buildings and infrastructure that surrounds us. Yet structure is often cloaked in mathematics which many architects and surveyors find difficult to understand. How Structures Work has been written to explain the behaviour of structures in a clear way without resorting to complex mathematics. This new edition includes a new chapter on construction materials, and significant revisions to, and reordering of the existing chapters. It is aimed at all who require a good qualitative understanding of structures and their behaviour, and as such will be of benefit to students of architecture, architectural history, building surveying and civil engineering. The straightforward, non-mathematical approach ensures it will also be suitable for a wider audience including building administrators, archaeologists and the interested layman.
How Super Cool Tech Works
by DKDiscover the mind-blowing high-tech inventions of the future! Incredible images reveal the secret inner workings of everything from drones and supercomputers to underwater hotels and flying cars.How Super Cool Tech Works explains how incredible technologies will shape the world of tomorrow. Explore robotics, space rockets, artificial intelligence, and even game consoles in this cutting-edge non-fiction science book for kids aged 9 and over. Also featured are state-of-the-art buildings, new ways of traveling, imaginative entertainment gadgets, and even how teleportation and invisibility cloaks might be possible in the future. Each exciting subject is explained in detail, via crisp images and engaging, child-friendly text. "How it works" panels explain each subject&’s secret inner workings.New and updated for 2020, How Super Cool Tech Works is a one-stop shop for kids who want to know what the latest and greatest technologies are, and how they will shape our world in the years to come.
How Technology Works: The Facts Visually Explained (DK How Stuff Works)
by DKHave you ever asked yourself how the inventions, gadgets, and devices that surround us actually work? Discover the hidden workings of everyday technology with this graphic guide.How Technology Works demystifies the machinery that keeps the modern world going, from simple objects such as zip fasteners and can openers to the latest, most sophisticated devices of the information age, including smartwatches, personal digital assistants, and driverless cars. It includes inventions that have changed the course of history, like the internal combustion engine, as well as technologies that might hold the key to our future survival, including solar cells and new kinds of farming to feed a growing population. Throughout the book, step-by-step explanations are supported by simple and original graphics that take devices apart and show you how they work. The opening chapter explains principles that underpin lots of devices, from basic mechanics to electricity to digital technology. From there, devices are grouped by application--such as the home, transportation, and computing--making them easy to find and placing similar devices side by side. How Technology Works is perfect for anyone who didn't have training in STEM subjects at school or is simply curious about how the modern world works.
How Technology Works
by DKGet inside the machinery of the modern world and understand the science that makes it all work.Have you ever been tempted to take the back off your TV? Have you wondered about what's going on beneath your feet on the street where you live? How Technology Works lifts the lid on the technology you use all the time but take for granted. It also takes you to places you'll never get the chance to see, such as the inside of a nuclear storage facility or the crew capsule on top of a moon rocket. The book takes you on a journey of discovery, starting with technology at work inside the human body before exploring cities and factories and then blasting off into space. Along the way, you'll lose yourself in super-detailed illustrations that reveal amazing hidden things and explain how they work.How Technology Works is an inspiring guide that makes technology fun, fascinating, and accessible for curious minds of all ages.
How Terrorist Groups End: Lessons for Countering Al Qa'ida
by Martin C. Libicki Seth G. JonesAll terrorist groups eventually end. But how do they end? The evidence since 1968 indicates that most groups have ended because (1) they joined the political process (43 percent) or (2) local police and intelligence agencies arrested or killed key members (40 percent). Military force has rarely been the primary reason for the end of terrorist groups, and few groups within this time frame have achieved victory. This has significant implications for dealing with al Qa'ida and suggests fundamentally rethinking post-9/11 U.S. counterterrorism strategy: Policymakers need to understand where to prioritize their efforts with limited resources and attention. The authors report that religious terrorist groups take longer to eliminate than other groups and rarely achieve their objectives. The largest groups achieve their goals more often and last longer than the smallest ones do. Finally, groups from upper-income countries are more likely to be left-wing or nationalist and less likely to have religion as their motivation. The authors conclude that policing and intelligence, rather than military force, should form the backbone of U.S. efforts against al Qa'ida. And U.S. policymakers should end the use of the phrase 'war on terrorism' since there is no battlefield solution to defeating al Qa'ida.
How the Biosphere Works: Fresh Views Discovered While Growing Peppers
by Fred SpierHow the Biosphere Works: Fresh Views Discovered While Growing Peppers offers a simple and novel theoretical approach to understanding the history of the biosphere, including humanity’s place within it. It also helps to clarify what the possibilities and limitations are for future action. This is a subject of wide interest because today we are facing a great many environmental issues, many of which may appear unconnected. Yet all these issues are part of our biosphere. For making plans for the future and addressing our long-term survival and well-being, an integrated knowledge of our biosphere and its history is therefore indispensable. Key Features Documents what the biosphere is, and what our position as humans within it is today. Describes how the biosphere has become the way it is. Summarizes the novel simple theoretical model proposed in the book, and thus, how the biosphere functions. Predicts what the possibilities and limitations are for future human action Emphasizes how simple but careful observations can lead to far-reaching theoretical implications.
How the Earth Works: 60 Fun Activities for Exploring Volcanoes, Fossils, Earthquakes, and More
by Michelle O'Brien-PalmerEarth science comes alive for children 6 to 9 through 60 engrossing games, activities, and experiments. Kids “core sample” a filled cupcake and discover plate tectonics by floating graham cracker continents on a molten mantle of molasses. They learn how heat changes rocks by seeing how separate ingredients disappear when they bake Rice Krispie Treats. More activities show what causes earthquakes and what kinds of buildings resist their force. Growing sugar and salt crystals, “fossilizing” plastic insects, and modeling a variety of volcanoes add to the learning and the fun. Eight of the activities are tasty as well as informative. Silly songs help children remember new words and concepts, and a resource section gives inexpensive sources for rocks, minerals, and fossils. All the projects have been tested in homes and schools to make sure they are safe, effective, and fun.
How the Great Pyramid Was Built
by Craig B. Smith Zawi Hawass Mark LehnerGoing beyond even the expertise of archaeologists and historians, world-class engineer Craig B. Smith explores the planning and engineering behind the incredible Great Pyramid of Giza. How would the ancient Egyptians have developed their building plans, devised work schedules, managed laborers, solved specific design and engineering problems, or even improvised on the job? The answers are here, along with dazzling, one-of-a-kind color photographs and beautiful hand-drawn illustrations of tools, materials, and building techniques the ancient masters used. In his foreword to the book, Egypt's Undersecretary of State for the Giza Monuments Zahi Hawass explains the importance of understanding the Great Pyramid as a straightforward construction project.