This volume presents twelve case studies that use RAISE - Rigorous Approach to Industrial Software Engineering - to construct, analyse, develop and apply formal specifications. The case studies cover a wide range of application areas including government finance, case-based reasoning, multi-language text processing, object-oriented design patterns, component-based software design and natural resource management. By illustrating the variety of uses of formal specifications, the case studies also raise questions about the creation, purpose and scope of formal models before they are built....

Chemical fertilizers have had a significant impact on food production in the recent past, and are today an indispensable part of modern agriculture. On the other hand, the oil crisis of the 1970s and the current Middle East problems are constant reminders of the vulnerability of our fossil fuel dependent agriculture. There are vast areas of the developing world where N fertilizers are neither available nor affordable and, in most of these countries, balance of payment problems have resulted in the removal of N fertilizer subsidies. The external costs of environmental degradation and human...

Chemical fertilizers have had a significant impact on food production in the recent past, and are today an indispensable part of modern agriculture. On the other hand, the oil crisis of the 1970s and the current Middle East problems are constant reminders of the vulnerability of our fossil fuel dependent agriculture. There are vast areas of the developing world where N fertilizers are neither available nor affordable and, in most of these countries, balance of payment problems have resulted in the removal of N fertilizer subsidies. The external costs of environmental degradation and human...