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A Controlled Phase Gate Between a Single Atom and an Optical Photon (Springer Theses)

by Andreas Reiserer

This thesis reports on major steps towards the realization of scalable quantum networks. It addresses the experimental implementation of a deterministic interaction mechanism between flying optical photons and a single trapped atom. In particular, it demonstrates the nondestructive detection of an optical photon. To this end, single rubidium atoms are trapped in a three-dimensional optical lattice at the center of an optical cavity in the strong coupling regime. Full control over the atomic state -- its position, its motion, and its electronic state -- is achieved with laser beams applied along the resonator and from the side. When faint laser pulses are reflected from the resonator, the combined atom-photon state acquires a state-dependent phase shift. In a first series of experiments, this is employed to nondestructively detect optical photons by measuring the atomic state after the reflection process. Then, quantum bits are encoded in the polarization of the laser pulse and in the Zeeman state of the atom. The state-dependent phase shift mediates a deterministic universal quantum gate between the atom and one or two successively reflected photons, which is used to generate entangled atom-photon, atom-photon-photon, and photon-photon states out of separable input states.

A Cooperative Species: Human Reciprocity and Its Evolution

by Samuel Bowles Herbert Gintis

A fascinating look at the evolutionary origins of cooperationWhy do humans, uniquely among animals, cooperate in large numbers to advance projects for the common good? Contrary to the conventional wisdom in biology and economics, this generous and civic-minded behavior is widespread and cannot be explained simply by far-sighted self-interest or a desire to help close genealogical kin.In A Cooperative Species, Samuel Bowles and Herbert Gintis—pioneers in the new experimental and evolutionary science of human behavior—show that the central issue is not why selfish people act generously, but instead how genetic and cultural evolution has produced a species in which substantial numbers make sacrifices to uphold ethical norms and to help even total strangers.The authors describe how, for thousands of generations, cooperation with fellow group members has been essential to survival. Groups that created institutions to protect the civic-minded from exploitation by the selfish flourished and prevailed in conflicts with less cooperative groups. Key to this process was the evolution of social emotions such as shame and guilt, and our capacity to internalize social norms so that acting ethically became a personal goal rather than simply a prudent way to avoid punishment.Using experimental, archaeological, genetic, and ethnographic data to calibrate models of the coevolution of genes and culture as well as prehistoric warfare and other forms of group competition, A Cooperative Species provides a compelling and novel account of how humans came to be moral and cooperative.

A Counselor's Introduction to Neuroscience

by Bill Mchenry Angela M. Sikorski Jim Mchenry

The book is about the complexities of human brain and counselling. The authors have clearly explained the overlap of these two fields, that is easily comprehensible by a lay man.

A Course in Classical Physics 1—Mechanics (Undergraduate Lecture Notes in Physics)

by Alessandro Bettini

This first volume covers the mechanics of point particles, gravitation, extended systems (starting from the two-body system), the basic concepts of relativistic mechanics and the mechanics of rigid bodies and fluids. It is part of a four-volume textbook, which covers electromagnetism, mechanics, fluids and thermodynamics, and waves and light, and is designed to reflect the typical syllabus during the first two years of a calculus-based university physics program. Throughout all four volumes, particular attention is paid to in-depth clarification of conceptual aspects, and to this end the historical roots of the principal concepts are traced. Writings by the founders of classical mechanics, G. Galilei and I. Newton, are reproduced, encouraging students to consult them. Emphasis is also consistently placed on the experimental basis of the concepts, highlighting the experimental nature of physics. Whenever feasible at the elementary level, concepts relevant to more advanced courses in modern physics are included. Each chapter begins with an introduction that briefly describes the subjects to be discussed and ends with a summary of the main results. A number of “Questions” are included to help readers check their level of understanding.The textbook offers an ideal resource for physics students, lecturers and, last but not least, all those seeking a deeper understanding of the experimental basics of physics.

A Course in Classical Physics 2--Fluids and Thermodynamics: Fluids And Thermodynamics (Undergraduate Lecture Notes in Physics)

by Alessandro Bettini

This second volume covers the mechanics of fluids, the principles of thermodynamics and their applications (without reference to the microscopic structure of systems), and the microscopic interpretation of thermodynamics. It is part of a four-volume textbook, which covers electromagnetism, mechanics, fluids and thermodynamics, and waves and light, is designed to reflect the typical syllabus during the first two years of a calculus-based university physics program. Throughout all four volumes, particular attention is paid to in-depth clarification of conceptual aspects, and to this end the historical roots of the principal concepts are traced. Emphasis is also consistently placed on the experimental basis of the concepts, highlighting the experimental nature of physics. Whenever feasible at the elementary level, concepts relevant to more advanced courses in quantum mechanics and atomic, solid state, nuclear, and particle physics are included. Each chapter begins with an introduction that briefly describes the subjects to be discussed and ends with a summary of the main results. A number of "Questions" are included to help readers check their level of understanding. The textbook offers an ideal resource for physics students, lecturers and, last but not least, all those seeking a deeper understanding of the experimental basics of physics.

A Course in Classical Physics 3 -- Electromagnetism: Electromagnetism (Undergraduate Lecture Notes in Physics)

by Alessandro Bettini

Focusing on electromagnetism, this third volume of a four-volume textbook covers the electric field under static conditions, constant electric currents and their laws, the magnetic field in a vacuum, electromagnetic induction, magnetic energy under static conditions, the magnetic properties of matter, and the unified description of electromagnetic phenomena provided by Maxwell's equations. The four-volume textbook as a whole covers electromagnetism, mechanics, fluids and thermodynamics, and waves and light, and is designed to reflect the typical syllabus during the first two years of a calculus-based university physics program. Throughout all four volumes, particular attention is paid to in-depth clarification of conceptual aspects, and to this end the historical roots of the principal concepts are traced. Emphasis is also consistently placed on the experimental basis of the concepts, highlighting the experimental nature of physics. Whenever feasible at the elementary level, concepts relevant to more advanced courses in quantum mechanics and atomic, solid state, nuclear, and particle physics are included. The textbook offers an ideal resource for physics students, lecturers and, last but not least, all those seeking a deeper understanding of the experimental basics of physics.

A Course in Classical Physics 4 - Waves and Light (Undergraduate Lecture Notes in Physics)

by Alessandro Bettini

This fourth volume of a four-volume textbook covers the oscillations of systems with one or more degrees of freedom; the concept of waves, focusing on light and sound; phase and group velocities, their physical meaning, and their measurement; diffraction and interference of light; polarization phenomena; and the formation of images in the eye and in optical instruments. The textbook as a whole covers electromagnetism, mechanics, fluids and thermodynamics, and waves and light, and is designed to reflect the typical syllabus during the first two years of a calculus-based university physics program. Throughout all four volumes, particular attention is paid to in-depth clarification of conceptual aspects, and to this end the historical roots of the principal concepts are traced. Emphasis is also consistently placed on the experimental basis of the concepts, highlighting the experimental nature of physics. Whenever feasible at the elementary level, concepts relevant to more advanced courses in quantum mechanics and atomic, solid state, nuclear, and particle physics are included. The textbook offers an ideal resource for physics students, lecturers and, last but not least, all those seeking a deeper understanding of the experimental basics of physics.

A Course in Lens Design (Springer Series in Optical Sciences #183)

by Chris Velzel

A Course in Lens Design is an instruction in the design of image-forming optical systems. It teaches how a satisfactory design can be obtained in a straightforward way. Theory is limited to a minimum, and used to support the practical design work. The book introduces geometrical optics, optical instruments and aberrations. It gives a description of the process of lens design and of the strategies used in this process. Half of its content is devoted to the design of sixteen types of lenses, described in detail from beginning to end. This book is different from most other books on lens design because it stresses the importance of the initial phases of the design process: (paraxial) lay-out and (thin-lens) pre-design. The argument for this change of accent is that in these phases much information can be obtained about the properties of the lens to be designed. This information can be used in later phases of the design. This makes A Course in Lens Design a useful self-study book and a suitable basis for an introductory course in lens design. The mathematics mainly used is college algebra, in a few sections calculus is applied. The book could be used by students of engineering and technical physics and by engineers and scientists.

A Course in Luminescence Measurements and Analyses for Radiation Dosimetry

by Stephen W. McKeever

A Course in Luminescence Measurements and Analyses for Radiation Dosimetry A complete approach to the three key techniques in luminescence dosimetry In A Course in Luminescence Measurements and Analyses for Radiation Dosimetry, expert researcher Stephen McKeever delivers a holistic and comprehensive exploration of the three main luminescence techniques used in radiation dosimetry: thermoluminescence, optically stimulated luminescence, and radiophotoluminescence. The author demonstrates how the three techniques are related to one another and how they compare to each other. Throughout, the author’s focus is on pedagogy, including state-of-the-art research only where it is relevant to demonstrate a key principle or where it reveals a critical insight into physical mechanisms. The primary purpose of the book is to teach beginning researchers about the three aforementioned techniques, their similarities and distinctions, and their applications. A Course in Luminescence Measurements and Analyses for Radiation Dosimetry offers access to a companion website that includes original data sets and problems to be solved by the reader. The book also includes: A thorough introduction to the field of luminescence applications in radiation dosimetry, including a history of the subject. Comprehensive explorations of introductory models and kinetics, including the concepts of thermoluminescence, optically stimulated luminescence, and radiophotoluminescence. Practical discussions of luminescence curve shapes, including the determination of trapping parameters from experimental thermoluminescence and optically stimulated luminescence data. In-depth examinations of dose-response functions, superlinearity, supralinearity, and sublinearity, as well as the causes of non-linearity. Detailed examples with well-known materials. A Course in Luminescence Measurements and Analyses for Radiation Dosimetry is an invaluable guide for undergraduate and graduate students in the field of radiation dosimetry, as well as faculty and professionals in the field.

A Course in Mathematical Methods for Physicists

by Russell L. Herman

Based on the author's junior-level undergraduate course, this introductory textbook is designed for a course in mathematical physics. Focusing on the physics of oscillations and waves, A Course in Mathematical Methods for Physicists helps students understand the mathematical techniques needed for their future studies in physics. It takes a bottom-u

A Course in Quantum Many-Body Theory: From Conventional Fermi Liquids to Strongly Correlated Systems (Graduate Texts in Physics)

by Michele Fabrizio

This textbook presents various methods to deal with quantum many-body systems, mainly addressing interacting electrons. It focusses on basic tools to tackle quantum effects in macroscopic systems of interacting particles, and on fundamental concepts to interpret the behavior of such systems as revealed by experiments.The textbook starts from simple concepts like second quantization, which allows one to include the indistinguishability and statistics of particles in a rather simple framework, and linear response theory. Then, it gradually moves towards more technical and advanced subjects, including recent developments in the field. The diagrammatic technique is comprehensively discussed. Some of the advanced topics include Landau’s Fermi liquid theory, Luttinger liquids, the Kondo effect, and the Mott transition.The ultimate goal of the book is to gain comprehension of physical quantities that are routinely measured experimentally and fully characterize the system, therefore it is useful for graduate students but also young researchers studying and investigating the theoretical aspects of condensed matter physics.

A Course in Quantum Mechanics

by Nandita Rudra

The book is suitable for graduate and advanced level undergraduate students. Besides standard materials for the course, it also includes modern topics like coherent states, propagators and Feynman's path integral method, Landau levels, Aharonov Bohm Effect, parity operation, time reversal symmetry and Dirac relativisticequation.Please note: Taylor & Francis does not sell or distribute the Hardback in India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka

A Course in Theoretical Physics

by P. John Shepherd

This book is a comprehensive account of five extended modules covering the key branches of twentieth-century theoretical physics, taught by the author over a period of three decades to students on bachelor and master university degree courses in both physics and theoretical physics. The modules cover nonrelativistic quantum mechanics, thermal and statistical physics, many-body theory, classical field theory (including special relativity and electromagnetism), and, finally, relativistic quantum mechanics and gauge theories of quark and lepton interactions, all presented in a single, self-contained volume. In a number of universities, much of the material covered (for example, on Einstein’s general theory of relativity, on the BCS theory of superconductivity, and on the Standard Model, including the theory underlying the prediction of the Higgs boson) is taught in postgraduate courses to beginning PhD students. A distinctive feature of the book is that full, step-by-step mathematical proofs of all essential results are given, enabling a student who has completed a high-school mathematics course and the first year of a university physics degree course to understand and appreciate the derivations of very many of the most important results of twentieth-century theoretical physics.

A Course on Optimal Control (Springer Undergraduate Texts in Mathematics and Technology)

by Arjan van der Schaft Gjerrit Meinsma

This text provides a detailed and self-contained introduction to the core topics of optimal control for finite-dimensional deterministic dynamical systems. Skillfully designed to guide the student through the development of the subject, the book provides a rich collection of examples, exercises, illustrations, and applications, to support comprehension of the material. Solutions to odd-numbered exercises are included, while a complete set of solutions is available to instructors who adopt the text for their class. The book is adaptable to coursework for final year undergraduates in (applied) mathematics or beginning graduate students in engineering. Required mathematical background includes calculus, linear algebra, a basic knowledge of differential equations, as well as a rudimentary acquaintance with control systems. The book has developed out of lecture notes that were tested, adapted, and expanded over many years of teaching. Chapters 1-4 constitute thematerial for a basic course on optimal control, covering successively the calculus of variations, minimum principle, dynamic programming, and linear quadratic control. The additional Chapter 5 provides brief views to a number of selected topics related to optimal control, which are meant to peak the reader’s interest. Some mathematical background is summarized in Appendix A for easy review. Appendix B recalls some of the basics of differential equations and also provides a detailed treatment of Lyapunov stability theory including LaSalle’s invariance principle, as occasionally used in Chapters 3 and 4.

A Crack in Creation: Gene Editing and the Unthinkable Power to Control Evolution

by Jennifer A. Doudna Samuel H. Sternberg

A trailblazing biologist grapples with her role in the biggest scientific discovery of our era: a cheap, easy way of rewriting genetic code, with nearly limitless promise and peril. Not since the atomic bomb has a technology so alarmed its inventors that they warned the world about its use. Not, that is, until the spring of 2015, when biologist Jennifer Doudna called for a worldwide moratorium on the use of the new gene-editing tool CRISPR—a revolutionary new technology that she helped create—to make heritable changes in human embryos. The cheapest, simplest, most effective way of manipulating DNA ever known, CRISPR may well give us the cure to HIV, genetic diseases, and some cancers, and will help address the world’s hunger crisis. Yet even the tiniest changes to DNA could have myriad, unforeseeable consequences—to say nothing of the ethical and societal repercussions of intentionally mutating embryos to create “better” humans. Writing with fellow researcher Samuel Sternberg, Doudna shares the thrilling story of her discovery, and passionately argues that enormous responsibility comes with the ability to rewrite the code of life. With CRISPR, she shows, we have effectively taken control of evolution. What will we do with this unfathomable power?

A Criminology of the Human Species: Setting an Unsettling Tone (Palgrave Studies in Green Criminology)

by Yarin Eski

The book sketches out how the criminological lens could be used in the climate change debate around possible human extinction. It explores the extent to which the human species can be considered deviant in relation to other species of the contemporary biosphere, as humans seem to be the only species on Earth that does not live in natural balance with their environment (anymore). It discusses several unsettling topics in the public debate on climate change, specifically the taboo of how humans may not survive the ongoing climate change. It includes chapters on the Earth’s history of mass-extinctions, the global state of denial including toward the possibility that the human species could go extinct, and it considers humans' future as a deviant, fatal species outside of Earth, in outer-space, possibly on other planets. It puts forward and enriches the critical criminological tradition by conceptualizing and setting an unsettling tone within criminology and criminological research on the human species and our extinction, by daring criminologists (and victimologists) to ponder and seek empirical answers to controversial imaginations and questions about our possible extinction.

A Critical Appraisal of Viral Taxonomy

by R. E. Matthews

The overall aim of this volume is to review critically the current state of, and future prospects for developments in viral taxonomy.

A Critical Approach to International Water Management Trends

by Christian Bréthaut Rémi Schweizer

This edited volume provides a critical discussion of particular trends that are widely recognised to influence water management by comparing them with what is actually happening in the field. Among others, these trends include water security, adaptive or integrative management, and the water-energy-food nexus, which are often presented as essential means to reaching more sustainable and resilient water use. However, the extent to which these trends have managed to structure concrete practices in water management remains uncertain. Informed by empirically grounded research, each chapter of this work engages with a particular approach, concept or theory. Together, they provide a nuanced picture of trends in water management that require universal remedies and global norms.

A Critical Companion to Zoosemiotics: People, Paths, Ideas (Biosemiotics #5)

by Dario Martinelli

A critical companion of zoosemiotics is the first attempt to systematise the study of animal communication and signification through its most important and/or problematic terms and concepts, and its most representative scholars. It is a companion, in that it attempts to cover the entire range of key terms in the field, and it's critical, in that it aims not only to describe, but also to discuss, problematise and, in some cases, resolve, these terms.

A Critical Ethnography of an Outdoor School: Reimagining the Relationship between Science Education and Climate Change Politics (Critical Ethnographic Research in Education)

by Tristan Gleason

By using critical ethnographic research to explore the practices and policies that sustain a residential outdoor school in the US, this volume problematizes the relationship between science education and climate change politics in the United States. Weaving together empirical data from field work with theoretical resources spanning the sciences and humanities, this volume demonstrates how community activism, political alliances, and policy change have guaranteed the survival of an outdoor school in Oregon. This example enables artful re-examination of the relationship between science education, politics, and policy more broadly, as well as the relation of science education to climate change politics in particular. Gleason ultimately reconstructs science education towards epistemic and ontological pluralism, and illustrates how critical ethnographic research can instigate a reimagining of the relationship between curriculum and how we relate to the world. This text will benefit researchers, academics, and educators in higher education with an interest in the philosophical underpinnings and implications of science education, environmental education, and educational policy more broadly. Those specifically interested in critical ethnographic research will also benefit from this book.

A Critical History of Schizophrenia (Palgrave Studies in the Theory and History of Psychology)

by Kieran McNally

Schizophrenia was 20th century psychiatry's arch concept of madness. Yet for most of that century it was both problematic and contentious. This history explores schizophrenia's historic instability via themes such as symptoms, definition, classification and anti-psychiatry. In doing so, it opens up new ways of understanding 20th century madness.

A Critical Overview of Biological Functions (SpringerBriefs in Philosophy)

by Justin Garson

This book is a critical survey of and guidebook to the literature on biological functions. It ties in with current debates and developments, and at the same time, it looks back on the state of discourse in naturalized teleology prior to the 1970s. It also presents three significant new proposals. First, it describes the generalized selected effects theory, which is one version of the selected effects theory, maintaining that the function of a trait consists in the activity that led to its differential persistence or reproduction in a population, and not merely its differential reproduction. Secondly, it advances "within-discipline pluralism" (as opposed to between-discipline pluralism) a new form of function pluralism, which emphasizes the coexistence of function concepts within diverse biological sub-disciplines. Lastly, it provides a critical assessment of recent alternatives to the selected effects theory of function, namely, the weak etiological theory and the systems-theoretic theory. The book argues that, to the extent that functions purport to offer causal explanations for the existence of a trait, there are no viable alternatives to the selected effects view. The debate about biological functions is still as relevant and important to biology and philosophy as it ever was. Recent controversies surrounding the ENCODE Project Consortium in genetics, the nature of psychiatric classification, and the value of ecological restoration, all point to the continuing relevance to biology of philosophical discussion about the nature of functions. In philosophy, ongoing debates about the nature of biological information, intentionality, health and disease, mechanism, and even biological trait classification, are closely related to debates about biological functions.

A Critique of Silviculture: Managing for Complexity

by K. David Coates Klaus J. Puettmann Christian C. Messier

The discipline of silviculture is at a crossroads. Silviculturists are under increasing pressure to develop practices that sustain the full function and dynamics of forested ecosystems and maintain ecosystem diversity and resilience while still providing needed wood products. A Critique of Silviculture offers a penetrating look at the current state of the field and provides suggestions for its future development. The book includes an overview of the historical developments of silvicultural techniques and describes how these developments are best understood in their contemporary philosophical, social, and ecological contexts. It also explains how the traditional strengths of silviculture are becoming limitations as society demands a varied set of benefits from forests and as we learn more about the importance of diversity on ecosystem functions and processes. The authors go on to explain how other fields, specifically ecology and complexity science, have developed in attempts to understand the diversity of nature and the variability and heterogeneity of ecosystems. The authors suggest that ideas and approaches from these fields could offer a road map to a new philosophical and practical approach that endorses managing forests as complex adaptive systems. A Critique of Silviculture bridges a gap between silviculture and ecology that has long hindered the adoption of new ideas. It breaks the mold of disciplinary thinking by directly linking new ideas and findings in ecology and complexity science to the field of silviculture. This is a critically important book that is essential reading for anyone involved with forest ecology, forestry, silviculture, or the management of forested ecosystems.

A Crude Look at the Whole: The Science of Complex Systems in Business, Life, and Society

by John H. Miller

Imagine trying to understand a stained glass window by breaking it into pieces and examining it one shard at a time. While you could probably learn a lot about each piece, you would have no idea about what the entire picture looks like. This is reductionism--the idea that to understand the world we only need to study its pieces--and it is how most social scientists approach their work. In A Crude Look at the Whole, social scientist and economist John H. Miller shows why we need to start looking at whole pictures. For one thing, whether we are talking about stock markets, computer networks, or biological organisms, individual parts only make sense when we remember that they are part of larger wholes. And perhaps more importantly, those wholes can take on behaviors that are strikingly different from that of their pieces. Miller, a leading expert in the computational study of complex adaptive systems, reveals astounding global patterns linking the organization of otherwise radically different structures: It might seem crude, but a beehive’s temperature control system can help predict market fluctuations and a mammal’s heartbeat can help us understand the "heartbeat” of a city and adapt urban planning accordingly. From enduring racial segregation to sudden stock market disasters, once we start drawing links between complex systems, we can start solving what otherwise might be totally intractable problems. Thanks to this revolutionary perspective, we can finally transcend the limits of reductionism and discover crucial new ideas. Scientifically founded and beautifully written, A Crude Look at the Whole is a powerful exploration of the challenges that we face as a society. As it reveals, taking the crude look might be the only way to truly see.

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