Concrete Abstract Algebra develops the theory of abstract algebra from numbers to Gr"obner bases, while takin in all the usual material of a traditional... introductory course. In addition, there is a rich supply of topics such as cryptography, factoring algorithms for integers, quadratic residues, finite fields, factoring algorithms for polynomials, and systems of non-linear equations. A special feature is that Gr"obner bases do not appear as an isolated example. They are fully integrated as a subject that can be successfully taught in an undergraduate context. Lauritzen's approach to teaching abstract algebra is based on an extensive use of examples, applications, and exercises. The basic philosophy is that inspiring, non-trivial applications and examples give motivation and ease the learning of abstract concepts. This book is built on several years of experienced teaching introductory abstract algebra at Aarhus, where the emphasis on concrete and inspiring examples has improved student performance significantly.

In this innovative account of the urbanization of nature in New York City, Matthew Gandy explores how the raw materials of nature have been reworked to... produce a "metropolitan nature" distinct from the forms of nature experienced by early settlers. The book traces five broad developments: the expansion and redefinition of public space, the construction of landscaped highways, the creation of a modern water supply system, the radical environmental politics of the barrio in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and the contemporary politics of the environmental justice movement.Drawing on political economy, environmental studies, social theory, cultural theory, and architecture, Gandy shows how New York's environmental history is bound up not only with the upstate landscapes that stretch beyond the city's political boundaries but also with more distant places that reflect the nation's colonial and imperial legacies. Using the shifting meaning of nature under urbanization as a framework, he looks at how modern nature has been produced through interrelated transformations ranging from new water technologies to changing fashions in landscape design. Throughout, he considers the economic and ideological forces that underlie phenomena as diverse as the location of parks and the social stigma of dirty neighborhoods.

This classic text on concrete quality and field practices has been updated to the 2009 IBC® and ACI 318-08. The manual provides the inspector with an... understanding of the scientific principles that underlie sound practices and will assist the inspector in making rational rather than arbitrary decisions. The Concrete Manual provides the guidance and information that inspectors and related professionals need to become more proficient and professional in relating to concrete field practices and inspection. The information provided will increase the technical capabilities of jurisdictional inspectors in the performance of their inspection duties. The Concrete Manual serves as a valuable reference to assist the special inspector in performing the duties and responsibilities of special inspection for reinforced and prestressed concrete construction. A valuable data DVD is included, which contains the entire Concrete Manual in a PDF format. (350 pages)

This workbook provides practical learning assignments for independent study of the Concrete Manual: 2009 IBC® and ACI 318-08 that students can complete... in an unlimited amount of time. Each section contains learning objectives, a summary of key points, illustrations and quizzes to encourage careful reading. (215 pages)

This book introduces the mathematics that supports advanced computer programming and the analysis of algorithms. The primary aim of its well-known... authors is to provide a solid and relevant base of mathematical skills - the skills needed to solve complex problems, to evaluate horrendous sums, and to discover subtle patterns in data. It is an indispensable text and reference not only for computer scientists - the authors themselves rely heavily on it! - but for serious users of mathematics in virtually every discipline. Concrete Mathematics is a blending of CONtinuous and disCRETE mathematics. "More concretely," the authors explain, "it is the controlled manipulation of mathematical formulas, using a collection of techniques for solving problems." The subject matter is primarily an expansion of the Mathematical Preliminaries section in Knuth's classic Art of Computer Programming, but the style of presentation is more leisurely, and individual topics are covered more deeply. Several new topics have been added, and the most significant ideas have been traced to their historical roots. The book includes more than 500 exercises, divided into six categories.Complete answers are provided for all exercises, except research problems, making the book particularly valuable for self-study. Major topics include: *Sums *Recurrences *Integer functions *Elementary number theory *Binomial coefficients *Generating functions *Discrete probability *Asymptotic methods This second edition includes important new material about mechanical summation. In response to the widespread use of the first edition as a reference book, the bibliography and index have also been expanded, and additional nontrivial improvements can be found on almost every page. Readers will appreciate the informal style of Concrete Mathematics. Particularly enjoyable are the marginal graffiti contributed by students who have taken courses based on this material. The authors want to convey not only the importance of the techniques presented, but some of the fun in learning and using them. 0201558025B04062001

This textbook presents the art and science of concrete in a simple, clear, hands-on manner, focusing on the following: Cement and concrete are predicted... to be the premier building material of the 21st Century; Includes unique diagrams, photographs, and summary tables; Updated to include new chapters on non-destructive methods for concrete; future challenges in concrete technology; an increased number of examples of concrete applications; and new developments in durability.

Addressing the interactions between the different design and construction variables and techniques this book illustrates best practices for constructing... economical, long life concrete pavements. The book proceeds in much the same way as a pavement construction project. First, different alternatives for concrete pavement solutions are outlined. The desired performance and behaviour parameters are identified. Next, appropriate materials are outlined and the most suitable concrete proportions determined. The design can be completed, and then the necessary construction steps for translating the design into a durable facility are carried out. Although the focus reflects highways as the most common application, special features of airport, industrial, and light duty pavements are also addressed. Use is made of modeling and performance tools such as HIPERPAV and LTPP to illustrate behavior and performance, along with some case studies. As concrete pavements are more complex than they seem, and the costs of mistakes or of over-design can be high, this is a valuable book for engineers in both the public and private sectors.

Concrete Principles provides comprehensive coverage of current practices used in the concrete industry. Step-by-step placement, consolidation, and... finishing procedures for flatwork and structures are featured, as well as formwork and reinforcement requirements. Applicable OSHA regulations and ANSI and ASTM standards are cited throughout. An overview of concrete quality, basic math fundamentals, and concrete cost estimating are also included.

Based on the latest ACI Code, "Concrete Structures" takes a step-by-step approach to exploring the design and analysis of reinforced concrete... structures and elements. It covers concrete technology, analysis and design of reinforced concrete beams, slabs, columns, footings, and walls. It also introduces the different types of reinforced concrete floor systems and the fundamentals of pre-stressed concrete structures. Unique self-experiments, realistic problems and an accompanying CD-ROM help readers further understand concrete's structural significance and potential as a building material. Includes the most recent methods of design and analysis of reinforced concrete structures and is based on the American Concrete Institute Code (ACI 318-05). Easy to follow using a step-by-step, non-calculus approach. Includes a series of experiments readers can conduct on their own to comprehend concrete's structural significance and understand more about concrete as a building material. Practicing architects and engineers, in particular individuals preparing for the licensing exams. People interested in the building design and construction can also benefit from the book as it follows a step by step approach in the design and analysis of concrete structures.

Concurrency provides a thoroughly updated approach to the basic concepts and techniques behind concurrent programming. Concurrent programming is... complex and demands a much more formal approach than sequential programming. In order to develop a thorough understanding of the topic Magee and Kramer present concepts, techniques and problems through a variety of forms: informal descriptions, illustrative examples, abstract models and concrete Java examples. These combine to provide problem patterns and associated solution techniques which enable students to recognise problems and arrive at solutions.New features include:New chapters covering program verification and logical properties.More student exercises.Supporting website contains an updated version of the LTSA tool for modelling concurrency, model animation, and model checking.Website also includes the full set of state models, java examples, and demonstration programs and a comprehensive set of overhead slides for course presentation.   

* One of Java's most powerful capabilities is its built-in support for concurrent programming, a design technique in which multiple concurrent... activities-threads take place inside a single Java program. Thread programming enables developers to design applications that are more responsive to user demands, faster, and more easily controlled. * This book offers comprehensive coverage of this vital aspect of the Java language. The book is completely up-to-date with the new thread model that is now incorporated into the most recent version of the Java Virtual Machine. All Java programmers interested in doing concurrent programming must understand these new concepts. The book approaches the topic from a design pattern point of view. It introduces and summarizes Java's concurrency support, shows readers how to initiate, control, and coordinate concurrent activities, and offers numerous recipe-like techniques for designing and implementing Java structures that solve common concurrent programming challenges. Specifically, the book presents important strategies for avoiding the inconsistencies that can crop up in multi-threaded programs, addresses the concept of "liveness"-how to ensure that all threads in use are kept active simultaneously, examines state-dependent action, and demonstrates effective methods for handling user requests in a multi-threaded environment.

The popularity of the Internet has led to rapidly expanding interest in client-server programming by all kinds of businesses and organizations. Many... client and server applications benefit from their design as object-oriented programs with multiple threads of control. An object-oriented language with built-in threads, Java is ideal for concurrent programming and developing multi-threaded applications. Demand for programmers skilled in object-oriented design and concurrency will only grow in the future, making concurrent programming and the Java programming language increasingly important to programming students and professionals. Designed for students and professionals, Concurrent Programming: The Java Programming Language provides a practical, demonstrative introduction to the issues and concepts in concurrent programming, operating systems, the client-server model, and multiple threads. It features numerous Java example programs as stand-alone applications rather than as simple applets, showing readers how to utilize the Java programming language to write programs that use semaphores, monitors, message passing, remote procedure calls, and the rendezvous for thread synchronization and communication. Each example program includes output from one or more sample runs. Multithreading issues such as race conditions, critical sections, mutual exclusion, and condition synchronization are covered. Several thread communication tools used extensively in client server programming--message passing, the rendezvous, and remote procedure calls--are also described. An algorithm animation package, written in Java, is used in several of the example programs. The book concludes with a brief introduction to parallel processing with Java. Concurrent Programming: The Java Programming Language is suitable for a concurrent programming course or as a supplement in an operating systems class. Professional programmers will also find the presentation accessible. All source code for the book is available by anonymous ftp from ftp.mcs.drexel.edu and from the World Wide Web at http://www.mcs.drexel.edu/~shartley/ConcProgJava/index.html.

Humanitarian groups have failed, Fiona Terry believes, to face up to the core paradox of their activity: humanitarian action aims to alleviate... suffering, but by inadvertently sustaining conflict it potentially prolongs suffering. In Condemned to Repeat?, Terry examines the side-effects of intervention by aid organizations and points out the need to acknowledge the political consequences of the choice to give aid. The author makes the controversial claim that aid agencies act as though the initial decision to supply aid satisfies any need for ethical discussion and are often blind to the moral quandaries of aid. Terry focuses on four historically relevant cases: Rwandan camps in Zaire, Afghan camps in Pakistan, Salvadoran and Nicaraguan camps in Honduras, and Cambodian camps in Thailand. Terry was the head of the French section of Medecins sans frontieres (Doctors Without Borders) when it withdrew from the Rwandan refugee camps in Zaire because aid intended for refugees actually strengthened those responsible for perpetrating genocide. This book contains documents from the former Rwandan army and government that were found in the refugee camps after they were attacked in late 1996. This material illustrates how combatants manipulate humanitarian action to their benefit.Condemned to Repeat? makes clear that the paradox of aid demands immediate attention by organizations and governments around the world. The author stresses that, if international agencies are to meet the needs of populations in crisis, their organizational behavior must adjust to the wider political and socioeconomic contexts in which aid occurs.

Here is a timely and important book for anyone concerned about the future of bilingual education in America. Written by Stephen Krashen, the nation's... foremost expert on second language acquisition, it disproves many of the false assumptions and outright distortions that led to the passage of Proposition 227 in California. Now, as some of those same arguments proliferate in other states, Krashen explains the bases for five of these key beliefs, and proves-step-by-step-why they are wrong:Bilingual education is responsible for the high Hispanic dropout rate. In fact, studies show reduced and even no difference in dropout rates when background factors are controlled.Most immigrants succeeded without bilingual education. Krashen argues that many immigrants arrived here having had a de facto bilingual education in their countries of origin; and that until the last half of this century, economic success was not so strongly dependent on school success. The United States is the only nation that has bilingual education. There is ample evidence of bilingual programs not only existing, but also succeeding in countries like Norway and the Netherlands.Bilingual education failed in California. The author explores flaws in the methods of various studies and counters with other reasons why bilingual education students may not thriveNincluding widespread poverty and lack of reading materials.The public is against bilingual education. This argument, propagated by the media, proves false when one examines the biased language used in survey after survey.In its careful delineation of the real issues, Condemned Without a Trial gives educators, administrators, parents, and voters the essential understanding-and evidence-they have heretofore been denied.