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Chitin is the second most abundant biopolymer after cellulose and is a resourceful copious and cheap biomaterial discovered in 1859 owing to significant industrial and technological utility. Raw chitin-chitosan resembles keratin in its biological functions. Chitin chemistry vastly developed via innate unparalleled biological features and exceptional physicochemical characters. Chitosan endures assorted chemical/physical modifications easily at free proactive functionalities, yet intact bulk properties are achieved through processing, viz., film, membrane, composite, hybrid, nanofibre, nanoparticle, hydrogel and scaffolds. Rapidly lessen bioresources signify chitosan as an option due to renewable eco-friendliness and drive embryonic myriad applications in S

Bats have a poor image for the public at large because they are often feared. This is usually due to ignorance. In this book, we have eight chapters on bats covering countries such as Algeria, Bulgaria, France, Pakistan, Poland, the UK and the USA and subjects ranging from acoustic monitoring of bat species for distribution and conservation purposes to various bat-borne and bat-carried diseases. These diseases cannot be taken lightly but should not be a reason for panic or to fear or even kill bats. Bats will not cause any harm if we let them live in peace. With the added knowledge through this book, we should know how best to cope with bats, which need all our support in the changing environments and climates.

MEMS by becoming a part of various applications ranging from smartphones to automobiles has become an integral part of our everyday life. MEMS is building synergy between previously unrelated fields such as biology, microelectronics and communications, to improve the quality of human life. The sensors in MEMS gather information from the surrounding, which is then processed by the electronics for decision-making to control the environment. MEMS offers opportunities to miniaturize devices, integrate them with electronics and realize cost savings through batch fabrication. MEMS technology has enhanced many important applications in domains such as consumer electronics, biotechnology and communication and it holds great promise for continued contributions in the future. This book focuses on understanding the design, development and various applications of MEMS sensors.

This book in two sections represents the current trend of research in ecology and biology of earthworms. In section "Ecology and Diversity" the authors reported the ecological and geographical uniqueness and diversity of earthworms in different environmental terrains of Siberia and Mexico. Functional interaction between earthworms and soil nematodes was elucidated with reference to vermicomposting and agricultural systems. Importance of digital library was highlighted for inventorization and taxonomical identification of earthworms. In section "Vermicomposting" the importance of maintaining pure cultures was discussed from the viewpoint of growth rate and the reproduction of composting species. This section includes article describing the management-related issues like roles of physicochemical parameters of soil and feed mixture on growth and reproduction of commercially important species of earthworm.

The societies of the twenty-first century are subject to social, cultural, political, and economic changes. In this context, the school is asked to educate the future citizens in the present. To respond to this kaleidoscopic reality, the school is immersed in a pedagogical revolution. In this book, the reader will find a selection of avant-garde research works from different disciplines and contexts, which have their epicenter in the school and in the faculties of education. New issues in pedagogy and education, and new roles of teachers and students, are discussed in a global and diverse context. And new methodological and formative proposals are also proposed to build the ideal school and the ideal teacher, from the initial and continuous teacher training.

The nanofiltration technique lies between ultrafiltration and reverse osmosis techniques, and it is considered a low-cost process and is capable of removing pesticides, organic matter, desalination of sea water, oil process and pollutants from industrial wastewater. However, the main challenge in implementation of nanofiltration membrane is its ability towards fouling and low performance at high temperature. The use of nanoparticles in the manufacturing of membranes allows for a high degree of control over membrane fouling. Nanoparticle-based membranes can be developed by assembling engineered nanoparticles into porous membranes or blending them with polymeric or inorganic membranes. This book covers topics from multiple ranges from manufacturing of nanofiltration membranes and their applications in wastewater treatment, drinking water treatment, and removal of pollutants, to addressing the fouling issues.

Free radicals are atoms or molecules containing unpaired electrons. Damage occurs when the free radical encounters another molecule and seeks to find another electron to pair its unpaired electron. Free radicals can cause mutation in different biological compounds such as protein, nucleic acids, and lipids, and the damage caused by the free radicals lead to various diseases (cancer, cardiovascular disease, aging, etc.). Antioxidants are helpful in reducing and preventing damage from free radical reactions because of their ability to donate electrons, which neutralize the radical without forming another. Ascorbic acid, for example, can lose an electron to a free radical and remain stable itself by passing its unstable electron around the antioxidant molecule. Unfortunately, new data indicate that the synthetic antioxidants used in the industry could have carcinogenic effects on human cells, thus fueling an intense search for new, natural, and efficient antioxidants. Therefore, the current book discusses the role and source of antioxidant compounds in nutrition and diets. Also, the current book includes nine chapters contributed by experts around the world, and the chapters are categorized into two sections: "Antioxidant Compounds and Biological Activities" and "Natural Antioxidants and Applications."

Hematology has constantly been advancing in parallel with technological developments that have expanded our understanding of the phenotypic, genetic, and molecular complexity and extreme clinical and biological heterogeneity of blood diseases. This has in turn allowed for developing more effective and less toxic alternative therapeutic approaches directed against critical molecular pathways. The continuous and rather extensive influx of new information regarding the key features and underlying mechanisms as well as treatment options in hematology requires a frequent update of this topic. The primary objective of this book is to provide the specialists involved in the clinical management and experimental research in hematological diseases with comprehensive and concise information on some important theoretical and practical developments in the biology, clinical assessment, and treatment of patients, as well as on some molecular and pathogenetic mechanisms and the respective translation into novel therapies.

Neonatology is one of the areas of greatest development and evolution within pediatrics. The technoscientific advances in this area have led to an increase in the survival of premature infants who sometimes require sophisticated care. However, there is essential care that must be included in all centers that care for high-risk babies. This book includes important topics related to neonatal care grouped into four sections. In 14 chapters that address relevant issues about neonatal care, the book seeks to contribute to the clinical work of the health teams of neonatal units. Specialists in the field of neonatology from different countries have developed these chapters and through them they hope to share part of their experience.

This book contains 12 chapters dealing with the studies on volcanoes, their geological and geophysical setting, the theoretical aspects and the numerical modeling on volcanoes, the applications of volcanoes to the industry, and the impact of volcanoes on the human health, in different geological settings and using several techniques and methods, including the volcanology, the seismology, the statistical methods to assess the correlation between seismic and volcanic activity (modified Ripley's K-function to regional seismicity), the field geological survey of volcanic successions, the analytical methods of petrologic analysis, the petrography of the volcanic rocks with the individuation of the modal compositions of volcanic rocks and their comparison with major elements and trace elements in variation diagrams, and the argon isotopic measurements performed through the peak height comparison (unspiked) method. The oceanographic methods have also been applied to case studies of submarine volcanic edifices located in the Canary Islands (Atlantic Ocean), including the sampling of the water column with a conductivity-temperature-depth (CTD) sensor rosette with 24 Niskin bottles, in order to determinate key physical and chemical parameters, such as the total-scale pH, the total dissolved inorganic carbon (C), the total alkalinity (A), the temperature, the salinity, and the dissolved oxygen. Problems of volcanic risk mitigation have also been treated, regarding the eruption disasters in Indonesia, a country where a high number of people live next to the volcanoes, and characterized by the lack of public awareness of the eruption disasters. Petrographic methods have been successfully applied to the study of the Cretaceous magmatism of the layered gabbroids of the Chukotka region (Pekulney Ridge, Russia), and geodynamic implications have been successfully established through geological and petrographic studies. The relationships among the mantle wedge, the convective heat and mass transfer, the infiltration metasomatism, the zoning, and the mathematical models have been applied to the comprehension of complex volcanic areas through the theoretical aspects of volcanic studies on magmatic chambers coupled with numerical modeling, including finite element models (FEMs) in the individuation of volcanic deformations.

Flow cytometry's informative potential has been underestimated for many years because of a lack of adequate instruments, automation, reagents, and know-how to approach, integrate, and also substitute other techniques giving single information per assay. In the last decade, flow cytometers have become capable of performing high-throughput screening and high content analysis, evaluating tens of different samples' features in a single run up to 1536 formats on multiple cell populations. The introduction of imaging flow cytometry has filled the gap between flow cytometry and conventional high content imaging screening, putting flow cytometry at the center of many laboratories, which can now cover with a single instrument the vast majority of needs in research programs. The flow cytometry community is a multidisciplinary and diversified group with many different interests and fields of action. These characteristics have prompted the evolution of the techniques, applications, and instruments that allow the use of complex, sophisticated, and standardized and reliable flow cytometric assays in academic and industrial programs.

This book offers the current state of knowledge in the field of biofuels, presented by selected research centers from around the world. Biogas from waste production process and areas of application of biomethane were characterized. Also, possibilities of applications of wastes from fruit bunch of oil palm tree and high biomass/bagasse from sorghum and Bermuda grass for second-generation bioethanol were presented. Processes and mechanisms of biodiesel production, including the review of catalytic transesterification process, and careful analysis of kinetics, including bioreactor system for algae breeding, were widely analyzed. Problem of emissivity of NOx from engines fueled by B20 fuel was characterized. The closing chapters deal with the assessment of the potential of biofuels in Turkey, the components of refinery systems for production of biodegradable plastics from biomass. Also, a chapter concerning the environmental conditions of synthesis gas production as a universal raw material for the production of alternative fuels was also added.

One of the most interesting and at the same time most challenging fields of medicine and surgery has been that of organ donation and transplantation. It is a field that has made tremendous strides during the last few decades through the combined input and efforts of scientists from various specialties. What started as a dream of pioneers has become a reality for the thousands of our patients whose lives can now be saved and improved. However, at the same time, the challenges remain significant and so do the expectations. This book will be a collection of chapters describing these same challenges involved including the ethical, legal, and medical issues in organ donation and the technical and immunological problems the experts are facing involved in the care of these patients.The authors of this book represent a team of true global experts on the topic. In addition to the knowledge shared, the authors provide their personal clinical experience on a variety of different aspects of organ donation and transplantation.

Zeolites are hydrated aluminosilicate minerals of the family of microporous solids. According to the US Geological Survey, there are about 40 naturally occurring zeolites, forming in sedimentary and volcanic rocks. The most commonly mined forms include clinoptilolite, chabazite and mordenite. There are over 200 synthetic zeolites. For their abundance, natural and synthetic zeolites are widely used in the industry, agriculture, water treatment, wastewater treatment and as dietary supplements to treat diarrhea, autism, cancer and other. This book Zeolites and Their Applications deals with several aspects of zeolite morphology, synthesis and applications. The book is divided into three sections and structured into nine chapters. The first section includes the introductory chapter, the second section explains mineralogy, morphology and synthesis of zeolites and the third section focuses on the different applications of both natural and synthetic zeolites. So, in this book, the readers will obtain updated information on mineralogy, morphology, synthesis and application of zeolites. Scientists from different scientific fields reported in this book their findings.

Circadian clocks are endogenous and temperature-compensating timekeepers that provide temporal organization of biological processes in living organisms. Circadian rhythms allow living organisms to adapt to the daily light cycles associated with Earth's rotation and to anticipate and prepare for precise and regular environmental changes. This book discusses the fundamental advances of how the circadian clock regulates critical biological functions as well as the cellular and molecular mechanisms controlling circadian rhythm in living organisms. It also provides new insights into and sheds new light on the current research trends and future research directions related to circadian rhythm. This book provokes interest in many readers, researchers and scientists, who can find this information useful for the advancement of their research works towards a better understanding of circadian rhythm regulatory mechanisms.

Global wheat consumption in the 2016/2017 season is forecasted to reach a record high 736m tonnes, showing a growth of 25% in the last 15 years. This raises the question which outlets the wheat is going into, what the growth of these outlets is, which regions or countries have grown the most, and where do we see future potential. Strong competition of other feed grains like corn is expected to slow the growth of wheat used for feed in the next years, and in the future, companies involved in the grain supply chain and feeding industry will need to be flexible enough to continue to meet this fast-changing demand for feed grains. For feed producers, this means they need to be able to access supplies of different grains from different origins to allow for the cheapest composition of their feed, while grain suppliers need to be able to continuously best engage with global trading opportunities to originate grains in various regions and move them to demand regions as cost-effectively as possible.

Asthma is a severe and growing threat affecting both children and adults in both developing and developed world, currently affecting approximately 8% of US population. It is becoming increasingly recognized as a syndrome constituted by airway obstruction, airway hyperresponsiveness, and airway inflammation with different causes, associated risk factors, and underlying pathophysiology. The advances in basic and clinical research of asthma have accelerated over the past 20 years with increasing diagnostic tools, especially biomarkers, that led to specific characterization of individual patient's asthma pathophysiology, or disease "phenotype" and "endotype," which allowed precision medicine therapies, including new asthma biologics. This book aims to update the paradigm shifts in precision medicine of asthma diagnosis and management, driven by underlying phenotypes or endotypes.

In this book, with the involvement not only of clinical psychiatrists but also of neurobiologists, specific issues of psychotic disorders (mainly schizophrenia and mood disorders) are reviewed. The focus of attention ranges from therapeutics to the new frontiers of epigenetics. A special focus is on the individual reactions to psychosis (ranging from psychological ones to treatments and neurobiological basis). Because of the rapid development of neurosciences, which are showing common underling factors to different phenotypical expressions of mental illness, we are facing an enormous growth of biological data, which is not always easy to interpret. The risk is to forget that we are relating to other individuals, with their stories, and, most of all, with their environmental resources and interactions. The contributions to this book will range from individual experience (a personal history of illness) through some aspects of individual management of illness (insight), from correct use of available psychosocial resources to the environment-gene relationships (epigenetics).

This book provides the multidisciplinary reading audience with a comprehensive state-of-the-art overview of research and innovations in the relationship between iron ores and iron ore materials. The book covers industrial sectors dealing with exploration and processing of iron ores as well as with advanced applications for iron ore materials and therefore entails a wide range of research fields including geology, exploration, beneficiation, agglomeration, reduction, smelting, and so on, thus encouraging life cycle thinking across the entire production chain. Iron remains the basis of modern civilization, and our sustainable future deeply depends upon our ability to satisfy the growing demand for iron and steel while decoupling hazardous emissions from economic growth. Therefore, environmental sustainability aspects are also broadly addressed. In response to socioeconomic and climatic challenges, the iron ore sector faces, this book delivers a vision for the new opportunities linked to deployment of the best available, innovative and breakthrough technologies as well as to advanced material applications.

Operations management (OM) is the function concerned with the planning, design, implementation, and control of business operations in the production of goods and services. OM has expanded from its original factory-centric orientation to encompass the service industry and the respective, accompanying supply chains, with a broad, global range of applications, increasing reliance on quantitative analysis, and the development and the use of supporting computer-based information systems and technology. This book highlights some critical aspects and advances in the field of operations management. Topics covered include investigations in the area of sustainable supply chain management; the application of OM principles to the deployment of field laboratories to address epidemics; and novel approaches to applying operations management in response to increasingly diverse requirements, circumstances, and performance criteria.

Air conditioning system is one of the major consumers of electrical energy in many parts of the world today. It represents between 40 and 70% of the energy consumption in commercial buildings. The demand of energy for air conditioning systems is expected to increase further in the next decades due to the population growth, the new economic boom, and the urbanization development. The rapid growth of air conditioning and electricity consumption will contribute further to climate change if fossil and nonrenewable resources are used. More energy-efficient and renewable energy-based air conditioning systems to accomplish space cooling are needed. This book intends to provide the reader with a comprehensive overview of the current state of the art in sustainable air conditioning technologies and focus on the most recent research and development on green air conditioning systems including energy-efficient and renewable energy-based air conditioning systems.

Drone technologies have constantly been developing for over 100 years. The latest models exhibit a previously unseen set of specifications available to the end users. The collective effort of distinguished international researchers, within the field of drone technologies, has been incorporated into this textbook suitable to the broader audience. The book has been edited by Prof. George Dekoulis, Aerospace Engineering Institute (AEI), Cyprus, an expert on state-of-the-art implementations of reconfigurable space engineering systems. The book consists of four main sections, namely, "Introduction," "Drone History," "Drone Design," and "Drone Applications." We hope this book will be beneficial to professionals, researchers, and academicians and, moreover, to inspire the younger generations into pursuing relevant academic studies and professional careers within the drone industry.

Diabetes is a global pandemic where many remedies have been recommended as means of combating the prevalence of this disease. However, dietary control appears to be more effective than others. This book focuses on interventions concerning glycemic control, the oxidative stress-based occurrence of the disease and its prevention, as well as novel remedies. While many books have been published recently on this aspect, the book aims to serve as an update to the scientific community, as well as to those who have been adversely affected by the disease. There are many unexplored territories when it comes to diabetes, and it is hoped that this publication will open up new avenues of successfully curbing its occurrence.

This book is an attempt to bring together current knowledge on the role and importance of organic acids in life processes. There are lots of compounds based on the chemical nature of this functional group, which makes this class of molecules to be present in our lives starting with the human body (Krebs cycle - the core of cellular metabolism) to the products we currently use (food, medicines and cosmetics). No overall consensus is sought in this book, and the following chapters are authored by dedicated researchers presenting a diversity of applications and hypotheses concerning organic acids. The five chapters in this book include general information on carboxylic acids and their applications in life sciences (use in organic synthesis, nanotechnology, plant physiology, plant nutrition and soil chemistry).

The fruit and nut crops are laden with health benefits. As people are becoming more conscious about their health and nutritional uptake, the worldwide demand and consumption of fruit and nut crops are steadily increasing. This has made it hard to keep pace between the rate of fruit and nut production and its consumption. To meet this increasing demand, there is a need to produce improved, better yielding, and high-quality fruit and nut crops. This book intends to provide the reader with a comprehensive overview of the current status and future prospects of fruit and nut crops. Such information covered in this book will directly enhance both basic and applied research in fruit and nut crops and will particularly be useful for students, scientists, researchers, teachers, breeders, policy-makers, and growers.

The new technology and system communication advances are being employed in any system, being more complex. The system dependability considers the technical complexity, size, and interdependency of the system. The stochastic characteristic together with the complexity of the systems as dependability requires to be under control the Reliability, Availability, Maintainability, and Safety (RAMS). The dependability contemplates, therefore, the faults/failures, downtimes, stoppages, worker errors, etc. Dependability also refers to emergent properties, i.e., properties generated indirectly from other systems by the system analyzed. Dependability, understood as general description of system performance, requires advanced analytics that are considered in this book. Dependability management and engineering are covered with case studies and best practices. The diversity of the issues will be covered from algorithms, mathematical models, and software engineering, by design methodologies and technical or practical solutions. This book intends to provide the reader with a comprehensive overview of the current state of the art, case studies, hardware and software solutions, analytics, and data science in dependability engineering.

Zika was an arbovirus not considered relevant until the epidemics of 2007, where in the islands of the Pacific, Yap, Micronesia, and others, and later in the Americas in 2015-2016, it created a significant public health threat. Zika is a flavivirus that has been especially important not just for the high number of cases but also for its related morbidity. In the case of adult population, multiple neurological diseases are already associated and in pregnant women because of its confirmed teratogenic capacity, leading to microcephaly as well as other central nervous system (CNS) birth defects. This book tried to update the significant epidemiological and clinical research in many aspects with a multinational perspective.

Potato is the world's fourth food crop after maize, wheat, and rice and is a staple crop in many diets throughout the world with a high source of proteins, carbohydrates, minerals, and vitamins. Biotic and abiotic stress factors give rise to decrease in yield. That is why improvement of new cultivars resistant to stress factors by conventional and biotechnological methods is extremely important. The most important factor in production increase is the use of healthy seed tubers along with using drought-, heat-, and salt-tolerant cultivars. On the other hand, protection and storage of surplus crops, which are the most important stage in its marketability, are the main problems in potato. In this book, all these issues are discussed, and it is hoped that the book Potato will help growers and researchers in solving problems in potato cultivation.

Pelvic floor disorders, which include urinary and fecal incontinence and pelvic organ prolapse, are highly prevalent conditions in women. In the United States alone, this affects almost 25% of women. These disorders often affect women's daily life activities, their sexual function, their ability to exercise, and their social and psychological life. Pelvic floor disorders are usually diagnosed clinically, but in complicated cases, pelvic imaging and electromyographic studies may be required. This book attempts to discuss the pathophysiology of pelvic floor disorders, its treatment by the use of a new synthetic material, and treatment for recurrent POP. Although there are many books available on this topic, it includes some of the original research work and surgical innovation. We would like to acknowledge all the authors for their hard work in completing this book.

The idea of information on research and development carried out on bamboo has emerged with the paradigm shift in the area of utilization of natural fibres in various industries. Technological advancements in bamboo sustenance have involved chemical and physical modification that has led to products of high-performance index. This book provides the latest research developments in many aspects of bamboo process, manufacture and commercialization potential. Apart from the interest to facilitate a complete assessment of bamboo as well as assist readers in achieving their goals, this book is intended to be of value to both fundamental research and also to practicing scientists and will serve as a useful reference for researchers, agricultural practitioners and organizations involved in the bamboo-based industry.