Soft Computing Evaluation Logic. The LSP Decision Method and Its Applications

Written by one of the few top internationally recognized experts in the field, this book concentrates on those topics that will remain fundamental, such as low power computing, reversible programming languages, and applications in thermodynamics. It describes reversible computing from various points of view: Boolean algebra, group theory, logic circuits, low-power electronics, communication, software, quantum computing. It is this multidisciplinary approach that makes it unique. Backed by numerous examples, this is useful for all levels of the scientific and academic community, from undergraduates to established academics.

The golden standard evaluation reference text Now in its second edition, Evaluation Theory, Models, and Applications is the vital text on evaluation models, perfect for classroom use as a textbook, and as a professional evaluation reference. The book begins with an overview of the evaluation field and program evaluation standards, and proceeds to cover the most widely used evaluation approaches. With new evaluation designs and the inclusion of the latest literature from the field, this Second Edition is an essential update for professionals and students who want to stay current. Understanding and choosing evaluation approaches is critical to many professions, and Evaluation Theory, Models, and Applications, Second Edition is the benchmark evaluation guide. Authors Daniel L. Stufflebeam and Chris L. S. Coryn, widely considered experts in the evaluation field, introduce and describe 23 program evaluation approaches, including, new to this edition, transformative evaluation, participatory evaluation, consumer feedback, and meta-analysis. Evaluation Theory, Models, and Applications, Second Edition facilitates the process of planning, conducting, and assessing program evaluations. The highlighted evaluation approaches include: Experimental and quasi-experimental design evaluations Daniel L. Stufflebeam's CIPP Model Michael Scriven's Consumer-Oriented Evaluation Michael Patton's Utilization-Focused Evaluation Robert Stake's Responsive/Stakeholder-Centered Evaluation Case Study Evaluation Key readings listed at the end of each chapter direct readers to the most important references for each topic. Learning objectives, review questions, student exercises, and instructor support materials complete the collection of tools. Choosing from evaluation approaches can be an overwhelming process, but Evaluation Theory, Models, and Applications, Second Edition updates the core evaluation concepts with the latest research, making this complex field accessible in just one book.

The first book to be published on the Theta method, outlining under what conditions the method outperforms other forecasting methods This book is the first to detail the Theta method of forecasting – one of the most difficult-to-beat forecasting benchmarks, which topped the biggest forecasting competition in the world in 2000: the M3 competition. Written by two of the leading experts in the forecasting field, it illuminates the exact replication of the method and under what conditions the method outperforms other forecasting methods. Recent developments such as multivariate models are also included, as are a series of practical applications in finance, economics, and healthcare. The book also offers practical tools in MS Excel and guidance, as well as provisional access, for the use of R source code and respective packages. Forecasting with the Theta Method: Theory and Applications includes three main parts. The first part, titled Theory, Methods, Models & Applications details the new theory about the method. The second part, Applications & Performance in Forecasting Competitions, describes empirical results and simulations on the method. The last part roadmaps future research and also include contributions from another leading scholar of the method – Dr. Fotios Petropoulos. First ever book to be published on the Theta Method Explores new theory and exact conditions under which methods would outperform most forecasting benchmarks Clearly written with practical applications Employs R – open source code with all included implementations Forecasting with the Theta Method: Theory and Applications is a valuable tool for both academics and practitioners involved in forecasting and respective software development.

Discover a unique and modern treatment of topology employing a cross-disciplinary approach Implemented recently to understand diverse topics, such as cell biology, superconductors, and robot motion, topology has been transformed from a theoretical field that highlights mathematical theory to a subject that plays a growing role in nearly all fields of scientific investigation. Moving from the concrete to the abstract, Topology and Its Applications displays both the beauty and utility of topology, first presenting the essentials of topology followed by its emerging role within the new frontiers in research. Filling a gap between the teaching of topology and its modern uses in real-world phenomena, Topology and Its Applications is organized around the mathematical theory of topology, a framework of rigorous theorems, and clear, elegant proofs. This book is the first of its kind to present applications in computer graphics, economics, dynamical systems, condensed matter physics, biology, robotics, chemistry, cosmology, material science, computational topology, and population modeling, as well as other areas of science and engineering. Many of these applications are presented in optional sections, allowing an instructor to customize the presentation. The author presents a diversity of topological areas, including point-set topology, geometric topology, differential topology, and algebraic/combinatorial topology. Topics within these areas include: Open sets Compactness Homotopy Surface classification Index theory on surfaces Manifolds and complexes Topological groups The fundamental group and homology Special «core intuition» segments throughout the book briefly explain the basic intuition essential to understanding several topics. A generous number of figures and examples, many of which come from applications such as liquid crystals, space probe data, and computer graphics, are all available from the publisher's Web site.

As audio and telecommunication technologies develop, there is an increasing need to evaluate the technical and perceptual performance of these innovations. A growing number of new technologies (e.g. low bit-rate coding) are based on specific properties of the auditory system, which are often highly non-linear. This means that the auditory quality of such systems cannot be measured by traditional physical measures (such as distortion, frequency response etc.), but only by perceptual evaluations in the form of listening tests. Perceptual Audio Evaluation provides a comprehensive guide to the many variables that need to be considered before, during and after experiments. Including the selection of the content of the programme material to be reproduced, technical aspects of the production of the programme material, the experimental set-up including calibration, and the statistical planning of the experiment and subsequent analysis of the data. Perceptual Audio Evaluation: Provides a complete and accessible guide to the motives, theory and practical application of perceptual evaluation of reproduced sound. Discusses all the variables of perceptual evaluation, their control and their possible influence on the results. Covers in detail all international standards on the topic. Is illustrated throughout with tables, figures and worked solutions. Perceptual Audio Evaluation will appeal to audio and speech engineers as well as researchers in audio and speech laboratories. Postgraduate students in engineering or acoustics and undergraduate students studying psychoacoustics, speech audio processing and signal processing will also find this an essential reference.

An extensive update to a classic text Stochastic geometry and spatial statistics play a fundamental role in many modern branches of physics, materials sciences, engineering, biology and environmental sciences. They offer successful models for the description of random two- and three-dimensional micro and macro structures and statistical methods for their analysis. The previous edition of this book has served as the key reference in its field for over 18 years and is regarded as the best treatment of the subject of stochastic geometry, both as a subject with vital applications to spatial statistics and as a very interesting field of mathematics in its own right. This edition: Presents a wealth of models for spatial patterns and related statistical methods. Provides a great survey of the modern theory of random tessellations, including many new models that became tractable only in the last few years. Includes new sections on random networks and random graphs to review the recent ever growing interest in these areas. Provides an excellent introduction to theory and modelling of point processes, which covers some very latest developments. Illustrate the forefront theory of random sets, with many applications. Adds new results to the discussion of fibre and surface processes. Offers an updated collection of useful stereological methods. Includes 700 new references. Is written in an accessible style enabling non-mathematicians to benefit from this book. Provides a companion website hosting information on recent developments in the field www.wiley.com/go/cskm Stochastic Geometry and its Applications is ideally suited for researchers in physics, materials science, biology and ecological sciences as well as mathematicians and statisticians. It should also serve as a valuable introduction to the subject for students of mathematics and statistics.

Introduces the theory and applications of the extended finite element method (XFEM) in the linear and nonlinear problems of continua, structures and geomechanics Explores the concept of partition of unity, various enrichment functions, and fundamentals of XFEM formulation. Covers numerous applications of XFEM including fracture mechanics, large deformation, plasticity, multiphase flow, hydraulic fracturing and contact problems Accompanied by a website hosting source code and examples

SOLID STATE CHEMISTRY AND ITS APPLICATIONS A comprehensive treatment of solid state chemistry complete with supplementary material and full colour illustrations from a leading expert in the field. Solid State Chemistry and its Applications, Second Edition delivers an advanced version of West’s classic text in solid state chemistry, expanding on the undergraduate Student Edition to present a comprehensive treatment of solid state chemistry suitable for advanced students and researchers. The book provides the reader with an up-to-date account of essential topics in solid state chemistry and recent developments in this rapidly developing field of inorganic chemistry. Significant updates and new content in this second edition include: A more extensive overview of important families of inorganic solids including spinels, perovskites, pyrochlores, garnets, Ruddlesden-Popper phases and many more New methods to synthesise inorganic solids, including sol-gel methods, combustion synthesis, atomic layer deposition, spray pyrolysis and microwave techniques Advances in electron microscopy, X-ray and electron spectroscopies New developments in electrical properties of materials, including high Tc superconductivity, lithium batteries, solid oxide fuel cells and smart windows Recent developments in optical properties, including fibre optics, solar cells and transparent conducting oxides Advances in magnetic properties including magnetoresistance and multiferroic materials Homogeneous and heterogeneous ceramics, characterization using impedance spectroscopy Thermoelectric materials, MXenes, low dimensional structures, memristors and many other functional materials Expanded coverage of glass, including metallic and fluoride glasses, cement and concrete, geopolymers, refractories and structural ceramics Overview of binary oxides of all the elements, their structures, properties and applications Featuring full color illustrations throughout, readers will also benefit from online supplementary materials including access to CrystalMaker® software and over 100 interactive crystal structure models. Perfect for advanced students seeking a detailed treatment of solid state chemistry, this new edition of Solid State Chemistry and its Applications will also earn a place as a desk reference in the libraries of experienced researchers in chemistry, crystallography, physics, and materials science.

Demonstrates the application of DSM to solve a broad range of operator equations The dynamical systems method (DSM) is a powerful computational method for solving operator equations. With this book as their guide, readers will master the application of DSM to solve a variety of linear and nonlinear problems as well as ill-posed and well-posed problems. The authors offer a clear, step-by-step, systematic development of DSM that enables readers to grasp the method's underlying logic and its numerous applications. Dynamical Systems Method and Applications begins with a general introduction and then sets forth the scope of DSM in Part One. Part Two introduces the discrepancy principle, and Part Three offers examples of numerical applications of DSM to solve a broad range of problems in science and engineering. Additional featured topics include: General nonlinear operator equations Operators satisfying a spectral assumption Newton-type methods without inversion of the derivative Numerical problems arising in applications Stable numerical differentiation Stable solution to ill-conditioned linear algebraic systems Throughout the chapters, the authors employ the use of figures and tables to help readers grasp and apply new concepts. Numerical examples offer original theoretical results based on the solution of practical problems involving ill-conditioned linear algebraic systems, and stable differentiation of noisy data. Written by internationally recognized authorities on the topic, Dynamical Systems Method and Applications is an excellent book for courses on numerical analysis, dynamical systems, operator theory, and applied mathematics at the graduate level. The book also serves as a valuable resource for professionals in the fields of mathematics, physics, and engineering.

A comprehensive, coherent, and in depth presentation of the state of the art in fuzzy clustering. Fuzzy clustering is now a mature and vibrant area of research with highly innovative advanced applications. Encapsulating this through presenting a careful selection of research contributions, this book addresses timely and relevant concepts and methods, whilst identifying major challenges and recent developments in the area. Split into five clear sections, Fundamentals, Visualization, Algorithms and Computational Aspects, Real-Time and Dynamic Clustering, and Applications and Case Studies, the book covers a wealth of novel, original and fully updated material, and in particular offers: a focus on the algorithmic and computational augmentations of fuzzy clustering and its effectiveness in handling high dimensional problems, distributed problem solving and uncertainty management. presentations of the important and relevant phases of cluster design, including the role of information granules, fuzzy sets in the realization of human-centricity facet of data analysis, as well as system modelling demonstrations of how the results facilitate further detailed development of models, and enhance interpretation aspects a carefully organized illustrative series of applications and case studies in which fuzzy clustering plays a pivotal role This book will be of key interest to engineers associated with fuzzy control, bioinformatics, data mining, image processing, and pattern recognition, while computer engineers, students and researchers, in most engineering disciplines, will find this an invaluable resource and research tool.