Dynamo theory is the study of the generation and maintenance of magnetic fields by fluid motion. It is important in many areas of physics, ranging from stellar and galactic dynamics, through solar physics and geomagnetism to reactor physics. This volume is the only modern introduction to the subject, and is comprised of the lectures given by leading specialists for an intensive course held at the Newton Institute in Cambridge, U.K. as part of a NATO Advanced Study Institute. Topics covered include planetary and solar dynamos, fast dynamos, and the use of symmetry principles to derive...

Computer vision is a rapidly developing and highly interdisciplinary field of computer science and engineering in which researchers are attempting to create vision algorithms that can analyze dynamic images at real-time rates. Real-time vision is needed for automated systems to keep pace with real-world activities and thus control or respond appropriately to them. This is the first book devoted to the subject of real-time computer vision, and it includes articles by some of the leading researchers in the world. The focus is on algorithms for interpreting visual input at video rates and on...

The problems of understanding and controlling disease present a range of mathematical challenges, from broad theoretical issues to specific practical ones, making epidemiology one of the most vibrant branches of applied biology. Progress in this field requires collaboration among leading researchers with a wide range of mathematical expertise and close involvement in applied fields across the social, medical and biological sciences. This volume surveys the current state of epidemic modeling in relation to basic aims such as understanding, prediction, and evaluation and implementation of...

Many fundamental theories of modern physics can be considered as descriptions of dynamical systems subjected to constraints. The study of these constrained dynamical systems, and in particular the problems of formulating them as quantum systems, has many profound links with geometry. These links were explored in the Symposium on Geometry and Gravity held at the Newton Institute in 1994. This book, which arose from a conference held during that symposium, is a collection of papers devoted to problems such as Chern-Simons theory, sigma-models, gauge invariance and loop quantization, general...

Certain nonlinear optimization problems arise in such areas as the theory of computation, pure and applied probability, and mathematical physics. These problems can be solved through linear methods, providing the usual number system is replaced with one that satisfies the idempotent law. Only recently has a systematic study of idempotency analysis emerged, triggered in part by a workshop organized by Hewlett-Packard's Basic Research Institute in the Mathematical Sciences (BRIMS), which brought together for the first time many leading researchers in the area. This volume, a record of that...

Why do we have Rwandas, Bosnias, and Somalias? This book explores the sources of such bitter, prolonged conflicts that result in immense human tragedies of civilian deaths and mass refugee flows. The author argues that such conflicts, and not wars between states, are the wars of the future. What can the United Nations and other international institutions do about them? Can organizations designed to manage conflicts between states successfully manage wars whose origins are domestic? The author develops some ideas about conflict resolution and peace derived from such recent experiences of war.

The study of security market imperfections, namely, the predictability of equity stock returns, is one of the fundamental research areas in financial modeling. In this book leading academics and investment researchers provide a complete and current account of work in this area, including both cross-sectional and time series analyses, as well as measurement of risk and prediction models that have been used by institutional investors. The case studies cover many worldwide markets including the United States, Japan, Asia, and Europe. Invaluable for courses in financial engineering, investment...

This volume shows how to invest assets over time to achieve satisfactory returns subject to uncertainties, various constraints and liability commitments. The papers utilize several approaches and integrate a number of techniques as well as discussing a variety of models that have either been implemented, are close to being implemented or represent new innovative approaches that may lead to future novel applications, that is, financial engineering. This is essential reading for all involved in analyzing the financial markets.

This accessible and comprehensive volume addresses modern developments in semantics and logic of computation and will be an important source for graduate students and researchers working in this area.

This is the first systematic introduction to electromagnetic duality and its generalizations. The authors, leading figures in this exciting new area of mathematical physics, describe the fundamental ideas, latest developments, and some earlier work whose significance has only recently become apparent. This volume will be essential reading for all those working in mathematical physics.