Colibris

Predicting the future is notoriously difficult. But systematic analysis leads to clearer understanding and wiser decisions. Thinking about the future also makes social scientists focus their research into the past and present more fruitfully, with more attention to key predictors of change.

This book considers how we might think intelligently about the future. Taking different methodological approaches, well-known specialists forecast likely future developments and trends in human life. The questions they address include: How many humans will there be? Will there be enough energy? How will climate change affect our lives? What patterns of work will exist? How will government work at the local, national, and world level? Will inflation remain under control? Why have past forecasts been so bad? The book concludes with a discussion of the intellectual and historical context of futurology and a look at the accuracy of predictions that were made for the year 2000.

The seventy-year-old Soviet tradition of “wages without work” soon turned into “work without wages” when the planned economy began switching to a market system in 1992. Lack of budget discipline, the breakdown of contractual obligations at all levels, and the failure of state agencies to enforce laws among businesses led to pervasive wage nonpayment to workers in both the public and private sectors. In this book Padma Desai and Todd Idson combine econometric rigor, policy analysis, and empirical evidence to analyze wage nonpayment patterns across demographic groups defined by gender, age, and education, and in various occupations, industries, and regions of Russia. They also examine wage nonpayment to Russia’s military personnel, in the wider context of a disintegrating military. Focusing on the roots and scale of wage nonpayment, the book is an indispensable guide to understanding Russia’s economic restructuring and of the social costs of the transition born by the general population.

Among the questions addressed are: How did Russia’s factory managers decide who, among various categories of workers, would not get paid? Did wage denial push people below the poverty line? How did families survive when denied wages? Did strikes lead to reduced wage arrears? The authors describe a variety of survival strategies on the part of Russian families, including informal paid activity, the selling of family assets, home production for consumption and sale, and the receiving of cash from relatives.

Genetic programming, a form of genetic algorithm that evolves programs and program-like executable structures, is a new paradigm for developing reliable, time- and cost-effective applications. The second volume of Advances in Genetic Programming highlights many of the most recent technical advances in this increasingly popular field. The twenty-three contributions are divided into four parts: Variations on the Genetic Programming Theme; Hierarchical, Recursive, and Pruning Genetic Programs; Analysis and Implementation Issues; and New Environments for Genetic Programming.

The first part extends the core concepts of genetic programming through the addition of new evolutionary techniques—adaptive and self-adaptive crossover methods, hill climbing operators, and the inclusion of introns into the representation.

Creating more concise executable structures is a long-term research topic in genetic programming. The second part describes the field’s most recent efforts, including the dynamic manipulation of automatically defined functions, evolving logic programs that generate recursive structures, and using minimum description length heuristics to determine when and how to prune evolving structures.

The third part takes up the many implementation and analysis issues associated with evolving programs. Advanced applications of genetic programming to nontrivial real-world problems are described in the final part: remote sensing of pressure ridges in Arctic sea ice formations from satellite imagery, economic prediction through model evolution, the evolutionary development of stress and loading models for novel materials, and data mining of a large customer database to optimize responses to special offers.

Now in its fourth edition, the bestselling A TO Z OF EVERYTHING is a unique publication. Nothing as comprehensive has appeared before. With subjects from Abbreviations to the Zodiac, some of the book’s sections almost stand up as reference works in their own right: the section on Music encompasses more information than many specialist titles; the section on Cinema includes all films of general interest (and the first and last films of a multitude of stars); History includes a detailed chronology of world events; and the section on Geography is perhaps the place to find a fully comprehensive list of ‘Capitals of the World’, even those of uninhabited Pacific islands.

The section on Famous People, including their pseudonyms and even their middle names, is second to none in its thoroughness. In this new edition, the original topics have been brought up to date. This monumental work of reference is a must-have title for your bookshelf - a pleasure to dip into and a cornucopia of fact.

Journalists from 30 international magazines have judged these ads— more than 800 of them— the best. Taken from print publications, Internet sites, commercials, direct marketing organizations, and packaging design projects, they are the winners, finalists, and high scorers of the Epica competition, Europe’ s premier creative awards show. Drawn from over 6,000 entries submitted from 700 agencies in more than 39 countries, they were all judged on the originality of the creative idea and the quality of its execution.

The 19th annual edition features thousands of color images along with a complete directory of the creative teams behind each entry. It’ s a veritable who’ s who of European talent.

Puteti comanda aceasta carte acum. In 48 de ore cartea este la dumneavoastra acasa, la locul de munca sau la oricare alta adresa.

The vast terrain covering the Earth’s southernmost surface - extending from the islands off the tip of Argentina to the underbelly of the Australian continent - is home to some of the planet’s most awe-inspiring landscapes. In this book, two of the foremost experts on this exotic corner of the world disclose the intriguing and often surprising realities behind Antarctica’s panoramas. Patrick de Wilde, photographer, first ventured into the Arctic circle some twenty-five years ago; celebrated explorer Yves Paccalet’s fierce passion for the Antarctic, which began as a childhood fascination, led him to the South Pole on board the Calypso as part of marine biologist Jacques Cousteau’s team. While there, Paccalet came face-to-face with the Earth’s roughest oceans and iciest landscapes; nevertheless, his experiences bear witness to the triumph of life in these seemingly hostile climates, where seals, albatross, and penguins abound. “Antarctica” offers a breathtaking voyage through the history of the Antarctic and an exclusive look into the future of this largely untouched natural wonderland.

The American Heritage Medical Dictionary is a highly respected source of state-of-the-art information for students and consumers without specialized medical knowledge, as well as for health-care professionals. This unparalleled resource is for anyone who desires the authoritativeness, comprehensiveness, and accuracy of the hardcover dictionary in an especially user-friendly, portable, and compact format.

The clear, concise definitions are up-to-date and highly readable. Many new words have been added, encompassing diagnoses and treatments (microcalcification, bisphosphonate), health-care delivery (concierge medicine), and the generic and brand names of new drugs. Thousands of definitions have been revised to reflect current medical research, practice, and technology. Twelve pages of clearly labeled anatomic illustrations enhance the text. Every clinical specialty is covered, including dentistry, genetics, and veterinary medicine, along with related subjects such as alternative medicine. This book is indispensable for demystifying the complex vocabulary of modern health care.

This gift book brings together watercolors and poetry in celebration of a classically enduring topic - flower symbolism. From the sophistication of a wild orchid’s long leaves and elegant flower to the spontaneity incited by plum blossoms with their thousand petals in tender tones, The Meaning of Flowers is a celebration of the diversity of the natural world. Marrying watercolor, oil, and calligraphy, Fu Ji Tsang offers us an original synthesis of the traditions of East and West, with artistic influences as diverse as Matisse, Monet, and the Chinese master Shitao. Fu Ji Tsang renders bamboo stalks, lotus flowers, olive trees, willows, irises, sunflowers, and peonies in bold brushstrokes and vibrant color. Following the rhythm of the seasons, these flowers and trees are accompanied by poetry from great Chinese writers such as Wang Wei and Western poets including William Shakespeare and Robert Frost, as well as the artist’s personal reflections. The Meaning of Flowers provides true inspiration to artists and nature lovers alike.