Böcker utgivna av Nova Science Publishers Inc

This compilation presents importance research on philosophy. Some topics discussed herein include scepticism, corruption, hope and belief, the conscious and unconscious mind and the soul.

Progress in Education. Volume 55 opens with an examination of current issues in education that may impede progress in the field. A variety of external threats are analyzed, including k-12 and university funding and ideological threats in the form of political forces that may attempt to dictate k-12 curriculum.The research underpinning the following chapter is derived from the authors personal involvement as teacher-educators in leading a Collaborative Action Research project in a New Zealand suburban Christian school. The overarching research question was, How might the Collaborative Action Research process affect teachers professional practice and student learning?The authors explore the concept of optimal best practice situated within the context of secondary school mathematics learning. In particular, they provide a complex methodological conceptualization for the understanding of optimal best practice, which takes into account cognitive load imposition.As new computer and web-based tools present an opportunity to motivate students and improve educational guidance services, this collection describes an online guidance project for secondary school students. The results of this project seem promising for improving the quality of guidance and students decision-making processes regarding their academic futures.The relationship between individuals possession of cultural capital and their musical preferences has been extensively examined in Western society; however, little attention has been given to it in contemporary Chinese contexts. As such, the next study focuses on junior secondary school students preferred musical listening styles, and their perception of how their cultural capital has shaped their musical preferences in contemporary Hong Kong society.Many contemporary classrooms are currently designed to be flexible and open. Such designs reflect those that were trialed in classrooms during the mid-1960s to the late 70s when the open plan classroom became popular. The authors explore this initial open plan movement in the 60s and 70s, investigating some of the changes that influence classrooms today.Following this, the authors illustrate how element interactivity gives rise to different types of cognitive load (intrinsic, extraneous, and germane) when middle school students solve a complex science problem. Analyzing learning tasks in terms of element interactivity assesses their suitability for targeted students, thus lowering the chances of cognitive overload.The final chapter is directed at scholars thinking of undertaking a research project, particularly at post-graduate level, and discusses the concepts of objectivity and subjectivity in educational research. The authors suggest that true objectivity is challenging due to researchers familiarity with the subject matter, however research may still be valid providing researchers accept and acknowledge that this plays its part in their interpretation of the findings.

Crystal structures and their associated electronic features play an enormous role in chemistry, constituting the most fundamental basis for analyzing and predicting properties of solid-state materials. In Crystal Structure: Properties, Characterization and Determination, the authors begin by discussing some of the refining models and X-ray data treatments for single-crystals containing heavy atoms, such as transition metals or lanthanides.Valuable information on crystal structures and microstructures may be obtained from the observation of high-resolution images if conditions associated iwth crystal thickness and defocus values are satisfied. These images include information not only on accurate atomic coordinates of cations but also on the ordered arrangements of oxygen atoms and oxygen vacancies.In the concluding study, measurements of the heat capacity of Y3-xErxAl5O12 (x=0,0.6,1.1,3), and mixed Er3-xTmx Al5O12, (x=0,1,2,3) and Er2HoAl5O12 solid solutions were carried out in the temperature range of 1.9 to 220 K in magnetic fields up to 9T. The findings suggest that heat capacity variations at low temperatures were impacted by Schottky anomalies.

This book is an important and innovative addition to textbooks in game theory. It provides a detailed discourse on the extension of two of the worlds most prominent cooperative game solutions the seminal Shapley value in games with transferrable payoffs and the classic Nash bargaining scheme in games with non-transferrable payoffs to a dynamic framework. The extension of these two classic cooperative solution concepts into a dynamic setting is not just of theoretical interest, but also allows many real-life cooperation situations like global environmental management, nuclear disarmament, disease control, trade disputes and political unions to be analyzed in an effective way. This book provides: (i) A compendium of dynamic optimization techniques used in its analysis; (ii) a detailed disquisition on cooperative dynamic consistency; (iii) the extension of the Shapley Value to a dynamic framework; (iv) the establishment of a dynamic Nash bargaining paradigm; and (v) the incorporation of stochastic elements into the analyses. Interesting solvable examples are provided to illustrate the practicality and applicability of the dynamic Shapley value and dynamic Nash bargaining scheme in dynamic cooperation.

Transesterification is an organic reaction in which the organic group R of an ester is exchanged with another organic group R of an alcohol according to a mechanism called alcoholysis. In this compilation, the authors address the way the transesterification process has become widely popular in biodiesel production, on an industrial scale, by reaction of triglyceride with short-length alcohol (methanol and/or ethanol).Next, Jatropha curcas Linnaeus, a non-edible raw material, is discussed as an attractive alternative for biodiesel production. The heterogeneous acid catalysis of this second-generation raw material is examined, including the mechanisms of esterification of fatty acids and transesterification of the triacylglycerides present in Jatropha curcas L. oil.In biodiesel generation, the transesterification reaction is the main process used for vegetable oils, animal fats, waste cooking oil or micro/macroalgae. Thus, the authors propose that catalysts such as acid and base or enzymes should be used to improve the rate of production.The closing portion of this collection reviews the use of transesterification reactions within laboratory courses of environmental and sustainable chemistry programmes for undergraduate chemistry students over the past 15 years. The authors propose that in the future, these experiments should be revised to include discussions of process sustainability and illustrations of life-cycle analysis approaches to bio-fuel production.

Over the past decade, adipose tissue has received much attention for its immunological properties. Additionally, it has become increasingly apparent that adipose-secreted factors such as leptin, tumor necrosis factor-a, IL-6, adiponectin and more recently, resistin are implicated in some inflammatory and metabolic diseases. As such, Resistin: Structure, Function and Role in Disease opens by discussing resistins therapeutic properties. Because evidence appears to suggest that resistin is a proinflammatory cytokine, resistin may impact metabolic disease.Following this, the authors present experimental and clinical evidence indicating that resistin may have functions related to inflammation and oxidative stress. The circulating resistin level may be also useful as a marker of the effects of exercise.Resistin may also encourage vasculopathy through the promotion of macrophage scavenger receptors and CD36 atheroma macrophages expression, the formation of foam cells, as well as proliferation and migration of vascular smooth muscle cells. This causes endothelial dysfunction, resulting in limited nitric oxide and increased superoxide production.When present in the diseased vessel wall, resistin may orchestrate pro-atherosclerotic events, contributing to atherosclerosis progression towards plaque rupture. Thus, resistin may augment monocyte and macrophage infiltration, interfere in cell cross-talk and modulate the expression of various inflammatory cytokines leading to the acceleration of plaque growth.Based on the known sequential events of obesity preceding severe acute pancreatitis, the authors investigate resistin as a new potential predictive marker of fat necrosis and pancreatitis severity.