springer netherlands springer jan 2012 (522 résultats)

Taschenbuch. Etat : Neu. Neuware -Crystal oscillators have been in use now for well over SO years-one of the first was built by W. G. Cady in 1921. Today, millions of them are made every year, covering a range of frequencies from a few Kilohertz to several hundred Mega hertz and a range of stabilities from a fraction of one percent to a few parts in ten to the thirteenth, with most of them, by far, still in the range of several tens of parts per million.Their major application has long been the stabilization of fre quencies in transmitters and receivers, and indeed, the utilization of the frequency spectrum would be in utter chaos, and the communication systems as we know them today unthinkable,'without crystal oscillators. With the need to accommodate ever increasing numbers of users in a limited spectrum space, this traditional application will continue to grow for the fore seeable future, and ever tighter tolerances will have to be met by an ever larger percentage of these devices.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 260 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Etat : Neu. Neuware -The chaptersof this book area selectionof paperspresented at a joint conference on Law, Ethics and Finance was held at the York University Schulich School of Business, 16¿18 September, 2010. Thisbook highlights with empirical data the strong interplay on ethics in organisational efficiency and entrepreneurial activity, and the role of legal settings and governance in facilitating ethical standards.It ishoped these papers encourage future scholars to continue to investigate the role of law and corporate governance in mitigating corruption and facilitating integrity in management,entrepreneurship and finance. Previously published in the Journal of Business Ethics, Volume 95 Supplement 2, 2010¿Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 272 pp. Englisch.

Taschenbuch. Etat : Neu. Neuware -The aim of this book is to conduct a critical survey of the main tools devised for the synthetic measurement of globalization processes. To this end, the first part of the book discusses the meaning of the concept considered, highlighting the different and often contradictory interpretations put forward in its regard in the literature. Subsequently analysed are the passages and issues that must be addressed when constructing an instrument intended to measure a social phenomenon of such complexity as globalization. Stressed in particular is that the researcher¿s subjectivity is repeatedly involved in these passages, so that no instrument can have objective validity. Given these premises, the book presents the principal tools employed in attempts to measure globalization, starting with those whose unit of analysis is the state. In this regard, particular space is devoted to indexes which take a multidimensional approach to the concept of globalization. There follows a comparison among the results obtained using these indexes, and criticisms are made of the ways in which the latter have been constructed. A limitation, or if one wishes a paradox, concerning such tools is that they measure in relation to states a process which has as one of its principal features the fact that it extends beyond the confines of states. For this reason, the final chapter considers whether globalization can be measured with different units of analysis ¿ in particular people and cities. The books concludes with discussion of the general limitations of globalization indexes.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 152 pp. Englisch.

Taschenbuch. Etat : Neu. Neuware -A ¿science of cities and regions¿ is critical for meeting future challenges. The world is urbanising: huge cities are being created and are continuing to grow rapidly. There are many planning and development issues arising in different manifestations in countries across the globe. These developments can, in principle, be simulated through mathematical computer models which provide tools for forecasting and testing future scenarios and plans. These models can represent the functioning of cities and regions, predicting the spatial demography and the economy, the main flows such as journey to work or to services, and the mechanisms of future evolution. In this book, the main principles involved in the design of this range of models are articulated, providing an account of the current state of the art as well as future research challenges.Alan Wilson has over forty years working with urban and regional models and has contributed important discoveries. He has distilled this experience into what serves as both an introduction and a review of the research frontier. Topics covered include the Lowry model, the retail model, principles of account-based models and the methods rooted in Boltzmann-style statistical modelling and the Lotka-Volterra approach to system evolution. Applications range from urban and regional planning to wars and epidemics.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 116 pp. Englisch.

Taschenbuch. Etat : Neu. Neuware -Both ¿land-use regulation¿ and ¿territorial collective services¿ have traditionally been accomplished in cities through coercive efforts of public administrations. Recently, land-use regulation and collective service provision regimes have emerged within ¿contractual communities:¿ territory-based organisations (usually, but not exclusively residential) such as homeowners¿ associations.This book examines the problems and opportunities of contractual communities, avoiding both the alarmism and unwarranted apologies found in much of the literature on contractual communities.The central notion is that cases in which coercive action by a public agency was deemed indispensable have been unjustly overstated, while the potential benefits of voluntary self-organising processes have been seriously understated. The authors propose a revised notion of the state role that allows ample leeway for contractual communities of all forms.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 108 pp. Englisch.

Taschenbuch. Etat : Neu. Neuware -One service mathematics has rendered the 'Et moi, .¿ si Javait so comment en revenir. je n'y serais point alle.' human race. It has put common sense back Jules Verne where it belongs, on the topmost shelf next to the dusty canister labelled 'discarded non- The series is divergent; therefore we may be sense'. Eric T. Bell able to do something with it. o. Heaviside Mathematics is a tool for thought. A highly necessary tool in a world where both feedback and non linearities abound. Similarly, all kinds of parts of mathematics serve as tools for other parts and for other sciences. Applying a simple rewriting rule to the quote on the right above one finds such statements as: 'One service topology has rendered mathematical physics . .'; 'One service logic has rendered com puter science . .'; 'One service category theory has rendered mathematics . .'. AIl arguably true. And all statements obtainable this way form part of the raison d'etre of this series.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 280 pp. Englisch.

Taschenbuch. Etat : Neu. Neuware -In the course of the last century a considerable amount of scientific work has been carried out in the Cayman Islands. The results of this (outlined in Chapter 1) are widely distributed in unpublished reports, university theses, various scientific publications and books, many of these sources being difficult to find and some now unobtainable.The purpose of this book, therefore, is to bring all this scattered information together and to present a coherent account of the biogeography and ecology of the Islands, as an easily available reference source and as a foundation on which future work can be based.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 628 pp. Englisch.

Taschenbuch. Etat : Neu. Neuware -In the last few years, derivatives of L-carnitine, such as acetyl-L-carnitine and propionyl-L-carnitine, have been made available to doctors for treatment of specific pathologies. The effects of this family of related carnitine compounds on cardiovascular systems and diseases constitute the major issue addressed in this volume.Although several books on carnitine have been published, a treatise focusing on experimental and clinical aspects of the carnitine family and cardiovascular diseases was lacking. The present book provides the reader with a concise update in this field. The information collected from experts on various aspects of the fascinating compound, carnitine, will be useful for both clinicians and basic scientists.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 416 pp. Englisch.

Taschenbuch. Etat : Neu. Neuware -In this book, the author Joy Cumming draws on knowledge of law, assessment and measurement to provide an original analysis of the inclusion of students with impairment in educational accountability assessments in the U.S., England and Australia. Equitable education of students with impairment is worldwide policy. Educational accountability for improvement of educational outcomes is also a worldwide phenomenon. The U.S., England and Australia are well placed economically and politically to pursue best educational practice for students with impairment and well advanced in both provision and educational accountability systems. Examining these three systems enables an analysis of possible optimal practices to guide other countries. The book identifies three models of impairment in place in legislation, policy and enacted practice for educational accountability with students with impairment. Intentions of legislation and policy reflect a social model of impairment¿while an individual has an impairment, social practice creates the barrier that leads to a disability. In implementation, legislation and policy rely on a medical model of disability¿categorizing disability in medical or specialist terms. In educational accountability practices, it is argued in this book, a third model of disability is created¿a psychometric model, with impairment constructed through overemphasis on standardization of assessment processes. Eight explicit and implicit assumptions that underpin the ways students with impairment are valued in educational accountability are identified and discussed. Three recommendations are made to promote equitable inclusive educational accountability practices for students with impairment, to inform future policy and practice in all countries.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 104 pp. Englisch.

Taschenbuch. Etat : Neu. Neuware -In a new era of global health diplomacy, the most important tool for decision-making is negotiation. Globalization is binding countries, issues and people together as never before. In the domain of public health, traditional international concerns like the spread of infectious diseases have been joined by new concerns and challenges in managing the health impacts of trade and intellectual property rights, and by new opportunities to create effective global public health agreements and programs. To address the major health crises of today and to prevent or mitigate them in the future, countries must seek collective agreement and action within and across their borders. However, the world of international negotiation is not the world in which health decision-makers reside or are most comfortable. The goal of this guide is to provide health policy-makers with practical information and negotiation tools, to help them create better international health agreements and programs.'This is the best book I know to help health professionals develop the negotiation skills necessary to meet the challenges of global health diplomacy. It is filled with wise advice and invaluable tools for success.' Professor Jeswald W. Salacuse, The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, Tufts UniversitySpringer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 200 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Etat : Neu. Neuware -Ce volume propose une étude articulée de Husserl et de Merleau-Ponty qui prend comme perspective la dimension épistémologique de leur philosophie relativement à la biologie. Chacun à sa manière, ils se sont penchés sur le statut ambigu de la biologie et sur l¿épineuse question du naturalisme, à savoir : dans quelle mesure les êtres vivants peuvent-ils être appréhendés comme des ensembles de processus physiques et chimiques La confrontation de leurs deux contributions à la question offre un éclairage qui a conservé toute sa pertinence, alors que le développement de la biologie moléculaire et des neurosciences contemporaines a amené un retour du paradigme naturaliste en biologie. L¿étude débouche sur une mise en perspective avec la théorie biologique de l¿autopoïèse élaborée par F. Varela et H. Maturana. L¿enjeu final est de proposer une théorie de la biologie qui respecte son irréductibilité tout en tenant compte du rôle de plus en plus important que les approches physico-chimiquesjouent dans notre compréhension des êtres vivants.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 236 pp. Französisch.

Taschenbuch. Etat : Neu. Neuware -The aim of this book is to provide an accessible overview for advanced students, resource professionals such as land managers, and policy makers to acquaint themselves with the established science, management practices and policies that facilitate sequestration and allow for the storage of carbon in forests. The book has value to the reader to better understand: a) carbon science and management of forests and wood products; b) the underlying social mechanisms of deforestation; and c) the policy options in order to formulate a cohesive strategy for implementing forest carbon projects and ultimately reducing emissions from forest land use.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 424 pp. Englisch.

Taschenbuch. Etat : Neu. Neuware -Das Husserlbild der Gegenwart ist noch weitgehend gepragt von den erkenntnistheoretischen 'Logischen Untersuchungen', durch die Husserl in weitem MaBe als Begriinder einer neuen objektiven Logik gilt. Mitunter wird er sogar als einseitig orien tierter Rationalist und Aufklarer des 20. J ahrhunderts, als der 'Cartesius unserer Tage' 1 angesehen. Dieses Bild Husserls kann wohl jederzeit durch seine Veroffent lichungen gerechtfertigt werden. Dennoch ist es einseitig und recht vordergriindig, da dabei voll und ganz iibersehen wird, daB auch der Bereich des Emotionalen flir HusserI ein entscheiden gut wie nichts des Interessengebiet darstellt, wovon bislang so veroffentlicht worden ist. Wohl werden in seinen Schriften gclegentlich Fragen der Wertlehre, der Asthetik und Ethik angeschnitten 2, aber eine eingehende Auseinandersetzung mit derartigen Fragen liegt in keinem der veroffentlichten Werke vor. In Wirklichkeit aber war ihm die Begriindung einer echten wissenschaftlichen Ethik immer ein ernstes philosophisches An liegen. Bereits vor den 'Logischen Untersuchungen' beschaf tigte sich Husserl mit ethischen Grundproblemen 3. Welche 1 Vgl. Briick, Maria, Dr. phil, Ubey das Verhiiltnis Hllsserls zu Franz Brentano, vor nehmlich mit Rucksicht auf Brentanos Psychologie, 1933, S. 7. Husserl selbst hat die Phiinomenologie in den 'Cartesianischen Meditationen' (Husscrliana, Bd. I, 1950, S. 196 pp. Englisch.

Taschenbuch. Etat : Neu. Neuware -In a way the MOTECC-89 project started in the early sixties at the IBM Research Laboratory in San Jose, California. The six years of post-doctoral research, first with Giulio Natta on conductive polymers, with Michael Kasha on spin-orbit effects, with Kenneth S. Pitzer on high temperature molecules and thermo dynamics and with R. S. Mulliken in the quantum chemistry of small molecules had demonstrated pragmatically the importance of a broad-based research and also let me taste some of the excitement to be derived from interdisciplinarity. Thus when I started to gather a department in the newly opened IBM Research Laboratory in San Jose, California, I purposely named it 'Large Scale Scientific Computation Department,' avoiding reference to chemistry, physics, statistical mechanics or fluid dynamics, which were our main tasks. In the sixties interdisciplinarity was more and more recognized as a most important if not nec essary avenue to cope with the technical needs of our society. However, at that time interdisciplinarity was synonymous with 'team work,' and true interdisciplinarity was a formidably difficult objective. Although I headed an excellent group of scientists with different backgrounds and there was much progress and creativity, still each one of us was more or less conducting his own research in his own field with occasional cross-field partnerships and with some of the computational techniques as our common base. Later, in 1974, I made a second attempt, this time starting a new department at the Donegani Institute, Montedison, in Novara, Italy.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 644 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Etat : Neu. Neuware -A growing body of research has given critical attention to diverse theories and practices of environmental education, and its potential contribution to addressing pressing global issues such as sustainable development and climate change. While much of this work has focused on perspectives and practices in Europe and North America, this book explores environmental learning within formal education, in programmes by non-governmental organisations, and in public education spaces in Monteverde, Costa Rica. The discussion also highlights the need for more research to understand the broader social and economic interactions between such efforts and the communities in which they are located.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 180 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Etat : Neu. Neuware -This book offers a timely analysis, and a novel and nuanced argument about post-neoliberal models of regional governance in non-European contexts. It provides the first in-depth, empirically-driven analysis of current models of regional governance in Latin America that emerged out of the crisis of liberalism in the region. It contributes to comparative studies of the contemporary global political economy as it advances current literature on the topic by analysing distinctive, overlapping and conflicting trajectories of regionalism in Latin America. The book critically explores models of transformative regionalism and specific dimensions articulating those models beyond neoliberal consensus-building. As such it contests the overstated case of integration as converging towards global capitalism. It provides an analytical framework that not only examines the 'what, how, who and why' in the emergence of a specific form of regionalism but sets the ground for addressing two relevant questions that will push the study of regionalism further: What factors enable or constrain how transformative a given regionalism is (or can be) with respect to the powers and policies of states encompassed by it and: What factors govern how resilient a given regionalism is likely to be under changing political and economic conditions Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 212 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Etat : Neu. Neuware -Islam is not only a religion, but also a culture, tradition, and civilization. There are currently 1.5 billion people in the world who identify themselves as Muslim. Two thirds of the worldwide Muslim population, i.e. approximately a billion people, live in forty-eight Muslim majority countries (MMC) in the world¿ all of which except one are in Africa and Asia. Of these MMCs in Africa and Asia, only twelve (inhabited by about 165 million people) have ever achieved a high score on the Human Development Index (HDI), the index that measures life expectancy at birth, education and standard of living and ranks how 'developed' a country is. This means that the majority of the world's Muslim population lives in poverty with low or medium level of human development.The contributions to this innovative volume attempt to determine why this is. They explore the influence of environment, space, and power on human development. The result is a complex, interdisciplinary study of all MMCs in Africa and Asia. It offers new insights into the current state of the Muslim World, and provides a theoretical framework for studying human development from an interdisciplinary social, cultural, economic, environmental, political, and religious perspective, which will be applicable to regional and cultural studies of space and power in other regions of the world.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 384 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Etat : Neu. Neuware -Human security is becoming increasingly pronounced in recent years due to changes in the security landscape of world politics. Yet, inter-state relations have continued to dominate security concerns in East Asia. This has, unfortunately, eluded the broader understanding of issues and challenges facing the peoples of East Asia.Home to nations with rapid economic growth and development, East Asia is at the core of what some individuals have termed as the coming Asian Century. Years of economic liberalization and exposure to globalization have permitted the region to achieve high levels of interconnectedness from within and without in unprecedented ways. This has certainly reduced state control and opened up spaces for cross-border human activities. While economic wealth have increased substantially over the years, it has also brought about bigger income disparities, unsustainable safety nets and a surge in social problems from health issues to migratory concerns that threaten the safety and well-being of individuals.Human Security: Securing East Asiäs Future timely examines the fundamental issues causing human insecurities and evaluates the extent of which human security plays a role at the state and regional levels. Covering the different areas of threats to humans and applying case study materials, this volume provides an intellectual mix ofperspectives that captures the relationship between people, state and region. This book will be of interest to those studying traditional and non-traditional security/threats, Asian human development and critical policy analysis.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 272 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Etat : Neu. Neuware -The Ukraine faced two very different kinds of health crises during the twentieth century. First, in the 1930s and 1940s, famine, war and political upheaval caused massive population losses. Previous evaluations of overall losses have given an idea of the scale of these catastrophes but do not distinguish between crisis mortality, birth shortfall and loss through emigration. Based on a painstaking work of reconstitution, this study is the first to provide a detailed estimation of the hecatomb in terms of number of deaths and life expectancy. The famine of 1933 was alone responsible for the deaths of 2.6 million Ukrainians and reduced male and female life expectancies to 7 and 11 years respectively. Once the crises of the 1930s and 1940s were over, the earlier trend in health resumed and mortality declined steadily until the 1960s. At this point, however, a new type of crisis appeared that caused a sustained reversal in the existing trends. Life expectancy for women stopped increasing altogether, while that for men began a relentless year on year regression. Notwithstanding the confusing picture created by the fluctuations of the 1980s and 1990s, the long-term trend is to further deterioration. To understand the factors involved, this study analyses in detail the combined effects of different causes of death at different ages.¿Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 292 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Etat : Neu. Neuware -In this book, the design of two new planar patterns for camera calibration of intrinsic parameters is addressed and a line-based method for distortion correction is suggested. The dynamic calibration of structured light systems,which consist of a camera and a projector is also treated. Also, the 3D Euclidean reconstruction by using the image-to-world transformation is investigated. Lastly, linear calibration algorithms for the catadioptric camera are considered, and the homographic matrix and fundamental matrix are extensively studied. In these methods, analytic solutions are provided for the computational efficiency and redundancy in the data can be easily incorporated to improve reliability of the estimations. This volume will therefore prove valuable and practical tool for researchers and practioners working in image processing and computer vision and related subjects.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 176 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Etat : Neu. Neuware -This is the state-of-the-art report prepared by the RILEM TC ¿Application of Super Absorbent Polymers (SAP) in concrete construction¿. It gives a comprehensive overview of the properties of SAP, specific water absorption and desorption behaviour of SAP in fresh and hardening concrete, effects of the SAP addition on rheological properties of fresh concrete, changes of cement paste microstructure and mechanical properties of concrete. Furthermore, the key advantages of using SAP are described in detail: the ability of this material to act as an internal curing agent to mitigate autogenous shrinkage of high-performance concrete, the possibility to use SAP as an alternative to air-entrainment agents in order to increase the frost resistance of concrete, and finally, the benefit of steering the rheology of fresh cement-based materials. The final chapter describes the first existing and numerous prospective applications for this new concrete additive.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 176 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Etat : Neu. Neuware -In the past decades asset intensive companies have witnessed a number of regulatory changes and especially industry is facing ever increasing competitiveness. To overcome these challenges different asset management methods have been developed aimed to improve the asset life cycle. Especially the design phase and operation and maintenance phase have seen a rise in tools and methods. Smarter design can lead to improved operation. Likewise, improved operation and maintenance leads to lower replacement costs and may provide the basis for better design.This book brings together and coherently presents the current state of the art in asset management research and practice in Europe from a life cycle perspective. Each chapter focuses on specific parts of this life cycle and explains how the methods and techniques described are connected and how they improve the asset life cycle, thus treating this important subject from a unique perspective.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 188 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Etat : Neu. Neuware -This detailed account tells the background story of a privatised monopoly whose sharp practices embroiled a national government in scandal and shocked a nation that prides itself on the strength of its institutions. AWB Limited, the former Australian Wheat Board that in the 1990s was sold into the private sector, paid more than $US200m in kickbacks to the pariah regime of Saddam Hussein in Iraq, exploiting the provisions of the United Nations¿ Oil for Food program by inflating the price of the wheat it sent there to disguise the pay-offs that secured the contracts. The ensuing uproar threatened the careers of key cabinet ministers in the Howard government and contributed to the rise and subsequent election victory of the Australian Labor Party¿s Kevin Rudd.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 160 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Etat : Neu. Neuware -This book examines current issues of fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) composites in civil infrastructure. The contents of this book are divided into two parts. The first part engages topics related to durability and service life of FRP composites and how they contribute to sustainability. The second part highlights implementation and applications of the FRP composites with an emphasis on bridge structures. An introductory chapter provides an overview of FRP composites and its role in a sustainable built environment highlighting the issues of durability and service life followed by a current review of sustainability in infrastructure design.¿Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 296 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Etat : Neu. Neuware -Kinematics is an exciting area of computational mechanics which plays a central role in a great variety of fields and industrial applications. Apart from research in pure kinematics, the field offers challenging problems of practical relevance that need to be solved in an interdisciplinary manner in order for new technologies to develop. The present book collects a number of important contributions presented during the First Conference on Interdisciplinary Applications of Kinematics (IAK 2008) held in Lima, Peru. To share inspiration and non-standard solutions among the different applications, the conference brought together scientists from several research fields related to kinematics, such as for example, computational kinematics, multibody systems, industrial machines, robotics, biomechanics, mechatronics and chemistry. The conference focused on all aspects of kinematics, namely modeling, optimization, experimental validation, industrial applications, theoretical kinematical methods, and design. The results should be of interest for practicing and research engineers as well as Ph.D. students from the fields of mechanical and electrical engineering, computer science, and computer graphics.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 208 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Etat : Neu. Neuware -These chapters on ¿Responsible Leadership¿ represent the latest thinking on a topic of increasing relevance in a connected world.There are many challenges that still remain when it comes to establishing responsible leadership both in theory and practice. Whilst offering conceptualisations for the improvement of leadership is a first and perhaps easier response, what is more difficult is to facilitate the actual change to happen.These chapters will not only generate interest in the emerging domain of studies on responsible leadership, but also will pave the way for future research in this area in the years to come.Previously Published in the Journal of Business Ethics, Volume 98 Supplement 2, 2011¿Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 140 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Etat : Neu. Neuware -This book grounds deliberative democratic theory in a more refined understanding of deliberative practice, in particular when dealing with intractable moral disagreement regarding novel technologies. While there is an ongoing, vibrant debate about the theoretical merits of deliberative democracy on the one hand, and more recently, empirical studies of specific deliberative exercises have been carried out, these two discussions fail to speak to one another.Debates about animal and plant biotechnology are examined as a paradigmatic case for intractable disagreement in today¿s pluralistic societies. This examination reveals that the disagreements in this debate are multi-faceted and multi-dimensional and can often be traced to fundamental disagreements about values or worldviews.¿One of the acute insights to emerge from this examination is that deliberation can serve different purposes vis-à-vis different types of problem. In the case of deeply unstructured problems, like the modern biotechnology debate, the aim of inclusion is more appropriate than the aim of consensus. This book highlights the importance of political culture and broader institutional settings in shaping the capacity and propensity of citizens to engage in deliberation and the degree to which governments are prepared to relinquish authority to deliberative mini-publics.'Robyn Eckersley, University of Melbourne, AustraliaSpringer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 356 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Etat : Neu. Neuware -Developed in the context of health sciences education in the late 1960s, problem-based learning (PBL) is now widely deployed as an education methodology. Its problem-solving, collaborative, student-centred ethos is seen as a more appropriate system of pedagogy than earlier ¿chalk-and-talk¿ modes. Focusing on its use in clinical education, this collection of recent scholarship on PBL examines the ways in which PBL is both conceived and implemented in clinical education. The work has a dual emphasis, research-driven on the one hand, while on the other assessing new methodologies to explore how problem-based curricula support the achievement of students¿ learning outcomes in the context of clinical education.The chapters draw on studies that explore PBL both theoretically and empirically. The volume¿s eclecticism capitalises on the growing body of empirical research into PBL evaluations. It balances this with studies analysing the relatively new area of discourse-based research on PBL-in-action, whose focus has been to interrogate the ¿how¿ of student learning in curricula with PBL content.This publication will be of interest to clinical teachers, curriculum designers and those interested in innovations in the scholarship of teaching and learning in PBL curricula.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 280 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Etat : Neu. Neuware -Although modern medicine enjoys unprecedented success in providing excellent technical care, many patients are dissatisfied with the poor quality of care or the unprofessional manner in which physicians sometimes deliver it.Recently, this patient dissatisfaction has led to quality-of-care and professionalism crises in medicine.Inthis book, the author proposes a notion of virtuous physician to address these crises.He discusses the nature of the two crises and efforts by the medical profession to resolve them and then he briefly introduces the notion of virtuous physician and outlines its basic features.Further,virtue theory is discussed, along with virtue ethics and virtue epistemology, and specific virtues, especially as they relate to medicine.The author also explores the ontological priority of caring as the metaphysical virtue for grounding the notion of virtuous physician, and two essential ontic virtues¿care and competence.In addition to this, he examines the transformation of competence into prudent wisdom and care into personal radical love to forge the compound virtue of prudent love, which is sufficient for defining the virtuous physician.Lastly, two clinical case stories are reconstructed which illustrate the various virtues associated with medical practice, and it is discussed howthe notion of virtuous physician addresses the quality-of-care and professionalism crises.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 256 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Etat : Neu. Neuware -Karl Jaspers, who died in 1969, had a profound impact on 20th-century theology and philosophy. His central thesis called for, among other things, a de-centering of philosophy from its Eurocentric roots and a renewal of its dialogue with other traditions, especially Asian ones. This collection of essays includes unpublished work by Jaspers himself as well as testimonies to his life and career by colleagues, associates, and translators, some of who knew Jaspers personally. Readers will also find commentary and interpretation by researchers who have explored Jaspers¿ work for decades, and a biographical account of Jaspers¿ student Leonard Ehrlich, who handled much of Jaspers¿ English translation.The book interrogates Jaspers¿ conceptions of ¿philosophical faith¿, his philosophy of communication, and the prospects for world philosophy in the future. Focusing on philosophical faith, it assesses Jaspers¿ interpretations of key philosophers such as Kant, Hegel, Schelling, Kierkegaard, Nietzsche, and Rosenzweig, as well as examining his personal relationships with Bultmann and Heidegger. Contributors also look at Jaspers¿ philosophies of religion and history, his hypothesis of the ¿axial age¿ (Achsenzeit), and his contributions to metaphysics, periechontology, and economics. Finally, chapters cover Jaspers¿ philosophy of communication and world history. The latter are informed by a burgeoning interest in Kantian ¿Freiheitphilosophie¿ that influenced Jaspers, as well as concerns over the future of humanity. These concerns in part account for Jaspers¿ growing popularity in the Middle East, Eastern Europe, Central/South America, and Asia. Also included are lucid clarifications of the difference between religious and philosophical faith, and the relevance ofcertainty, trust, and communication for a future of mankind.Trained as a psychiatrist, Jaspers practiced this profession before becoming a philosopher and thus had a keen insight into the workings of the human mind even as he challenged the philosophical establishment of his time. It is perhaps this depth to his background that adds to the contemporary relevance of his work.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 472 pp. Englisch.