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Earth’s weather and climate are complex nonlinear systems of dynamical/thermodynamical processes that are highly variable on all spatiotemporal scales. The analysis and prediction of those processes and their feedbacks with the other systems of the biosphere (land and ocean), from the viewpoints of both atmospheric science and dynamics/thermodynamics, can improve our knowledge and have a great impact on society. The main aim of this Special Issue was to gather observational, theoretical and modeling studies on the dynamics of the atmosphere and the climate system, as well as on their predictability at different spatiotemporal scales.
An environmental interface is defined as a surface between two abiotic or biotic systems, in relative motion and exchanging mass, heat and momentum through biophysical and/or chemical processes. These processes fluctuate temporally and spatially. The book first treats exchange processes occurring at the interfaces between atmosphere and the surface
Precipitation is a well-recognized pillar in global water and energy balances. An accurate and timely understanding of its characteristics at the global, regional, and local scales is indispensable for a clearer understanding of the mechanisms underlying the Earth’s atmosphere–ocean complex system. Precipitation is one of the elements that is documented to be greatly affected by climate change. In its various forms, precipitation comprises a primary source of freshwater, which is vital for the sustainability of almost all human activities. Its socio-economic significance is fundamental in managing this natural resource effectively, in applications ranging from irrigation to industrial and household usage. Remote sensing of precipitation is pursued through a broad spectrum of continuously enriched and upgraded instrumentation, embracing sensors which can be ground-based (e.g., weather radars), satellite-borne (e.g., passive or active space-borne sensors), underwater (e.g., hydrophones), aerial, or ship-borne.
Cultural heritage is increasingly recognized for its contributions to the transition to climate action, and heritage education can play an important role in developing climate adaptation competencies. These can foster positive dialogs surrounding climate change, shift attitudes and inspire actions. However, achieving these goals requires bridging the gap between policy, practice and local capacity building, as well as integrating a multi- and transdisciplinary approach into traditional higher education curricula and models. Bringing together knowledge, practice and experiences from different disciplinary silos, this book provides a wide set of innovative teaching and learning methods, tools ...
Organizations, both private and public, are now evolving in a globalized "information society" that has been accelerated by digitization. They find themselves drawn into a spiral of transformations fueled by the incessant reinvention of information and communication technologies (ICT) that are changing digital uses and practices. They transform through the mediating action of ICTs, work activities and associated action situations. Platform and Collective Intelligence analyzes a specific declination of an organization that has become irreversibly reticular: the "platform organization". The network, at the heart of this new conception, proposes a model combining cybernetics and computing. The organization can thus be seen as an interface for contact, via its information systems, for employees or citizens, whatever their geographical location. With a view going beyond technocentrism and technological determinism, this book combines collective intelligence and sociotechnics with the platform to arrive at the notion of "organizational experience".
In a fully digitized world and hyper-connected society, artificial intelligence (AI) is developing more and more each day. In the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic, it seems appropriate to examine the real or imagined progress of AI in terms of human health. Like artificial intelligence, health is a field that involves a wide range of research disciplines. In order to better define and understand these social and technical developments, Al, Healthcare and Law brings together the thoughts and analyses of doctors, lawyers, economists and computer scientists. Through a wide range of original overviews of the issues involved, the book addresses questions such as the development of telemedicine, the use of medical data, the increased human perspective or medical ethics, and takes a multi-disciplinary and accessible approach to questioning the relationship between humans and computers, between the intimate and the machine.
For a long time, favelas were a source of fear for tourists visiting Rio de Janeiro. Now that they are more appealing, some have become popular tourist destinations even though they are still regarded as an "off the beaten track" activity. Favela Tours analyzes the factors behind the emergence of tourism in the favelas, places of otherness and authenticity for visitors who come mainly from Western Europe and North America. Based on ethnography of those involved in these practices (guides, residents and tourists), this book describes how the local and global forces are converging to make favelas part of the western tourism system: a mechanism for fabricating and assimilating otherness.
The world is full of traces of the past, ranging from things as different as monuments and factories to farms, eco-museums, landscapes, mountaineering and even woven-grass bridges. These traces must be protected and passed on to future generations. Communicational analysis shows that these traces have acquired the status of heritage by becoming communicative beings imbued with a new social life. Up until the 1970s and 1980s, granting this status was the prerogative of the state. New modes then emerged, increasingly involving social actors and the publicization of knowledge. Today, the heritage recognition of these traces also depends on interpretative schemes that circulate in society, notably through the media. Heritage Traces in the Making is aimed at anyone – researchers, professionals and students – who is interested in how heritage is created and how it evolves.
There are many different ways of generating representations. This includes representations generated by living beings while comprehending reality in order to act; representations generated by the Universe during its extensive unfolding, creating physical elements and living beings; and the direct representation of elements through an animal’s sixth sense. To this list we must now add the creation of artificial consciousness, which generates representations that resemble the mental representations of humans. These representations allow robotic systems to communicate directly with each other. Fundamental Generation Systems develops a theory which presents, from the beginning, the function of this sixth sense called the “sense of informational comprehension”. This sense is understood as an ability to use the informational foundations of the Universe via a dedicated cerebral domain found in every animal.
This book constitutes the thoroughly refereed post-proceedings of the 8th International Workshop on Applied Parallel Computing, PARA 2006. It covers partial differential equations, parallel scientific computing algorithms, linear algebra, simulation environments, algorithms and applications for blue gene/L, scientific computing tools and applications, parallel search algorithms, peer-to-peer computing, mobility and security, algorithms for single-chip multiprocessors.