Operations Research Methods

Text mining is a new and exciting area of computer science research that tries to solve the crisis of information overload by combining techniques from data mining, machine learning, natural language processing, information retrieval, and knowledge management. Similarly, link detection – a rapidly evolving approach to the analysis of text that shares and builds upon many of the key elements of text mining – also provides new tools for people to better leverage their burgeoning textual data resources. The Text Mining Handbook presents a comprehensive discussion of the state-of-the-art in text mining and link detection. In addition to providing an in-depth examination of core text mining and link detection algorithms and operations, the book examines advanced pre-processing techniques, knowledge representation considerations, and visualization approaches. Finally, the book explores current real-world, mission-critical applications of text mining and link detection in such varied fields a

Storage and Commodity Markets is primarily a work of economic theory, concerned with how the capability to store a surplus affects the prices and production of commodities. Its focus on the behaviour, over time, of aggregate stockpiles provides insights into such questions as how much a country should store out of its current supply of food considering the uncertainty in future harvests. Related topics covered include whether storage or international trade is a more effective buffer and whether stockpiles are more useful in raw or processed form. Several chapters are devoted to analysing such government programmes as price bands, buffer stocks, and strategic reserves. This material is in the domain of applied welfare analysis with public finance. Because the theory presented is sufficiently general, it should be of interest to macroeconomists studying aggregate inventories or savings and to those in operations research studying inventory and pricing policies of large firms.

Optimization is concerned with finding the best (optimal) solution to mathematical problems that may arise in economics, engineering, the social sciences and the mathematical sciences. As is suggested by its title, this book surveys various ways of penetrating the subject. The author begins with a selection of the type of problem to which optimization can be applied and the remainder of the book develops the theory, mainly from the viewpoint of mathematical programming. To prevent the treatment becoming too abstract, subjects which may be considered 'unpractical' are not touched upon. The author gives plausible reasons, without forsaking rigor, to show how the subject develops 'naturally'. Professor Ponstein has provided a concise account of optimization which should be readily accessible to anyone with a basic understanding of topology and functional analysis. Advanced students and professionals concerned with operations research, optimal control and mathematical programming will welc

Polar Lows which provides a comprehensive review of our understanding of the small, high-latitude weather systems known as polar lows. These often vigorous depressions are a hazard to maritime operations and high-latitude communities, yet have only been investigated in detail since the 1960s. In this volume the authors describe the climatological distribution of these lows, the observational investigations into their structure, their operational forecasting and the theoretical research into why they develop. They also discuss the experiments carried out with high-resolution numerical weather forecast models that have shown that some polar lows can be predicted a day or more in advance. The book has been written by a number of experts within the field and has been carefully edited to form an integrated, cohesive volume. It will be of value to researchers in meteorology and climatology, as well as professional weather forecasters concerned with polar regions.

A concise history of the crusades - whose chief goal was the liberation and preservation of the 'holy places' of the middle east - from the first calls to arms in the later twelfth century to the fall of the last crusader strongholds in Syria and Palestine in 1291. This is the ideal introductory textbook for all students of the crusades. Professor Richard considers the consequences of the crusades, such as the establishment of the Latin east, and its organisation into a group of feudal states, as well as crusading contacts with the Muslim world, eastern Christians, Byzantines, and Mongols. Also considered are the organisation of expeditions, the financing of such expeditionary forces, and the organisation of operations and supply. Jean Richard is one of the world's great crusader historians and this work, the distillation of over forty years' research and contemplation, is the only one of its kind in English.

Storage and Commodity Markets is primarily a work of economic theory, concerned with how the capability to store a surplus affects the prices and production of commodities. Its focus on the behaviour, over time, of aggregate stockpiles provides insights into such questions as how much a country should store out of its current supply of food considering the uncertainty in future harvests. Related topics covered include whether storage or international trade is a more effective buffer and whether stockpiles are more useful in raw or processed form. Several chapters are devoted to analysing such government programmes as price bands, buffer stocks, and strategic reserves. This material is in the domain of applied welfare analysis with public finance. Because the theory presented is sufficiently general, it should be of interest to macroeconomists studying aggregate inventories or savings and to those in operations research studying inventory and pricing policies of large firms.

The analysis of decision making under uncertainty has again become a major focus of interest. This volume presents contributions from leading specialists in different fields and provides a summary and synthesis of work in this area. It is based on a conference held at the Harvard Business School. The book brings together the different approaches to decision making - normative, descriptive, and prescriptive - which largely correspond to different disciplinary interests. Mathematicians have concentrated on rational procedures for decision making - how people should make decisions. Psychologists have examined how poeple do make decisions, and how far their behaviour is compatible with any rational model. Operations researchers study the application of decision models to actual problems. Throughout, the aim is to present the current state of research and its application and also to show how the different disciplinary approaches can inform one another and thus lay the foundations for the in

In this short book, the authors discuss three types of problems from combinatorial geometry: Borsuk's partition problem, covering convex bodies by smaller homothetic bodies, and the illumination problem. They show how closely related these problems are to each other. The presentation is elementary, with no more than high-school mathematics and an interest in geometry required to follow the arguments. Most of the discussion is restricted to two- and three-dimensional Euclidean space, though sometimes more general results and problems are given. Thus even the mathematically unsophisticated reader can grasp some of the results of a branch of twentieth-century mathematics that has applications in such disciplines as mathematical programming, operations research and theoretical computer science. At the end of the book the authors have collected together a set of unsolved and partially solved problems that a sixth-form student should be able to understand and even attempt to solve.

The 21st century has seen the use of media technologies become thoroughly integrated with our daily lives: most of us feel lost without our mobile device in hand, check social media multiple times a day, and turn to digital entertainment in our free time. This shift has spurred the emergence of media psychology: a multidisciplinary approach to studying how people use, process, and are affected by the media and technology they engage every day. This second edition of The Oxford Handbook of Media Psychology brings together leading experts in the field to update what is a rapidly evolving area of study. Returning contributors expand chapters on the history and progress of media literacy, research methods, parasocial experiences, and race and the media, among others. New chapters tackle cutting-edge issues like artificial intelligence, research in media and social justice, the impact of deep-fakes and social media on conspiracy theories, the psychology of fandom, the self as reflected in a

This book, geared toward academic researchers and graduate students, brings together research on all facets of how time and causality relate across the sciences. Time is fundamental to how we perceive and reason about causes. It lets us immediately rule out the sound of a car crash as its cause. That a cause happens before its effect has been a core, and often unquestioned, part of how we describe causality. Research across disciplines shows that the relationship is much more complex than that. This book explores what that means for both the metaphysics and epistemology of causes - what they are and how we can find them. Across psychology, biology, and the social sciences, common themes emerge, suggesting that time plays a critical role in our understanding. The increasing availability of large time series datasets allows us to ask new questions about causality, necessitating new methods for modeling dynamic systems and incorporating mechanistic information into causal models.

Word stress has long presented challenges to phonologists, as they have sought to uncover patterns in its distribution, and devise models to account for its behaviour and formal representation both within single languages and cross-linguistically. In this collection, a team of world-renowned researchers present a variety of viewpoints on the methods and problems involved. Offering fresh perspectives on the topic and its study, this book is specifically concerned with basing theoretical work on broad typological surveys and focuses on the collection, selection and use of data in the analysis of word stress and word rhythm, including their phonetic manifestations. An extensive introduction presents a state-of-the-art review of stress research. The contributors also present StressTyp2, a project in an advanced stage of development, which intends to make publicly available information on word stress in a broad sample of languages and will offer new ways of understanding this key research a

The International Panel on Social Progress (IPSP) is an independent association of top research scholars with the goal of assessing methods for improving the main institutions of modern societies. The IPSP has produced a report consisting of twenty-two chapters in three volumes that distills the research of these scholars and outlines what the best social science has to say about positive social change. Written in accessible language by scholars across the social sciences and humanities, these volumes assess the achievements of world societies in past centuries, the current trends, the dangers that we are now facing, and the possible futures in the twenty-first century. It covers the main socio-economic, political, and cultural dimensions of social progress, global as well as regional issues, and the diversity of challenges and their interplay around the world. The authors offer a cautious optimistic conclusion: multiple ideas for social progress and better policies are already availab

Word stress has long presented challenges to phonologists, as they have sought to uncover patterns in its distribution, and devise models to account for its behaviour and formal representation both within single languages and cross-linguistically. In this collection, a team of world-renowned researchers present a variety of viewpoints on the methods and problems involved. Offering fresh perspectives on the topic and its study, this book is specifically concerned with basing theoretical work on broad typological surveys and focuses on the collection, selection and use of data in the analysis of word stress and word rhythm, including their phonetic manifestations. An extensive introduction presents a state-of-the-art review of stress research. The contributors also present StressTyp2, a project in an advanced stage of development, which intends to make publicly available information on word stress in a broad sample of languages and will offer new ways of understanding this key research a

This collection of articles by well-known experts was originally published in 2000 and is intended for researchers in computer science, practitioners of formal methods, and computer programmers working in safety-critical applications or in the technology of component-based systems. The work brings together several elements of this area that were fast becoming the focus of much research and practice in computing. The introduction by Clemens Szyperski gives a snapshot of research in the field. About half the articles deal with theoretical frameworks, models, and systems of notation; the rest of the book concentrates on case studies by researchers who have built prototype systems and present findings on architectures verification. The emphasis is on advances in the technological infrastructure of component-based systems; how to design and specify reusable components; and how to reason about, verify, and validate systems from components. Thus the book shows how theory might move into pract

The climbing habit in plants has apparently evolved numerous times. Species that climb are well represented in habitats ranging from tropical rain forests through temperate forests to semi-deserts. The Biology of Vines, first published in 1992, is a treatment of what is known about climbing plants, written by a group of experts and covering topics ranging from the biomechanics of twining to silvicultural methods for controlling vine infestations. Also included are detailed accounts of climbing plant evolution, stem anatomy and function, climbing mechanics, carbon and water relations, reproductive ecology, the role of vines in forest communities and their economic importance. The chapters are based on research on herbaceous vines and woody climbers (lianas) in both temperate and tropical zones, deserts and rain-forests and Old and New World areas. Much remains to be learned about the biology of these plants, but this volume provides a substantial foundation upon which further research c

Growth, Maturation and Body Composition documents one of the most remarkable and significant studies in the field of human biology. The Fels Longitudinal Study is the longest, largest and most productive serial study of human growth, maturation and body composition. This book shows how data collected from more than 1000 participants during the past 60 years have been analysed to test a wide range of hypotheses, and describes how the findings have led to the development of improved research methods. Topics covered include the management and analysis of data, prenatal, familial and genetic studies, physical growth, development and maturation, bones and teeth, body composition, and risk factors for cardiovascular disease. With more than 1000 specialized publications of Fels data, the present book provides a unique overview of this fascinating research programme, which will be of interest to a wide range of researchers, including those in the fields of physical anthropology, nutrition scie

This collection of articles by well-known experts was originally published in 2000 and is intended for researchers in computer science, practitioners of formal methods, and computer programmers working in safety-critical applications or in the technology of component-based systems. The work brings together several elements of this area that were fast becoming the focus of much research and practice in computing. The introduction by Clemens Szyperski gives a snapshot of research in the field. About half the articles deal with theoretical frameworks, models, and systems of notation; the rest of the book concentrates on case studies by researchers who have built prototype systems and present findings on architectures verification. The emphasis is on advances in the technological infrastructure of component-based systems; how to design and specify reusable components; and how to reason about, verify, and validate systems from components. Thus the book shows how theory might move into pract

Growth, Maturation and Body Composition documents one of the most remarkable and significant studies in the field of human biology. The Fels Longitudinal Study is the longest, largest and most productive serial study of human growth, maturation and body composition. This book shows how data collected from more than 1000 participants during the past 60 years have been analysed to test a wide range of hypotheses, and describes how the findings have led to the development of improved research methods. Topics covered include the management and analysis of data, prenatal, familial and genetic studies, physical growth, development and maturation, bones and teeth, body composition, and risk factors for cardiovascular disease. With more than 1000 specialized publications of Fels data, the present book provides a unique overview of this fascinating research programme, which will be of interest to a wide range of researchers, including those in the fields of physical anthropology, nutrition scie

The climbing habit in plants has apparently evolved numerous times. Species that climb are well represented in habitats ranging from tropical rain forests through temperate forests to semi-deserts. The Biology of Vines, first published in 1992, is a treatment of what is known about climbing plants, written by a group of experts and covering topics ranging from the biomechanics of twining to silvicultural methods for controlling vine infestations. Also included are detailed accounts of climbing plant evolution, stem anatomy and function, climbing mechanics, carbon and water relations, reproductive ecology, the role of vines in forest communities and their economic importance. The chapters are based on research on herbaceous vines and woody climbers (lianas) in both temperate and tropical zones, deserts and rain-forests and Old and New World areas. Much remains to be learned about the biology of these plants, but this volume provides a substantial foundation upon which further research c

Some of the most important questions of the social sciences in the twentieth century have been posed by scholars working at the intersections of social theory and history viewed on a grand scale. The core essays of this book focus on the careers and contributions of nine of these scholars: Marc Bloch, Karl Polanyi, S. N. Eisenstadt, Reinhard Bendix, Perry Anderson, E. P. Thompson, Charles Tilly, Immanuel Wallerstein, and Barrington Moore, Jr. The essays convey a vivid sense of the vision and values each of these major scholars brings (or bought) to his work and analyze and evaluate the research designs and methods each used in his most important works. The introduction and conclusion discuss the long-running tradition of historically grounded research in sociology, while the conclusion also provides a detailed discussion and comparison of three recurrent strategies for bringing historical evidence and theoretical ideas to bear upon one another. informative, thought-provoking, and unusu

An enormous amount of research into British field systems has been undertaken by historical geographers, economic historians and others since H. L. Gray's classic work on English Field Systems was published. Detailed local studies have been legion, generalized explanations of the origins and functioning of field systems few but influential in promoting further studies. This book both synthesises and advances our knowledge of field systems in the British Isles. An introduction by the editors outlines the sources and methods of studies of field systems. There then follow twelve chapters concerned with specific areas within the British Isles. In their own conclusion, the editors consider the problems and perspectives of field system studies in the context of the British Isles as a whole. This chapter is an attempt at generalisation in historical geography, generalization in relation to both existing models of British field systems and putative problems which only further research can reso

This monograph is the first to present the theory of global attractors of Hamiltonian partial differential equations. A particular focus is placed on the results obtained in the last three decades, with chapters on the global attraction to stationary states, to solitons, and to stationary orbits. The text includes many physically relevant examples and will be of interest to graduate students and researchers in both mathematics and physics. The proofs involve novel applications of methods of harmonic analysis, including Tauberian theorems, Titchmarsh's convolution theorem, and the theory of quasimeasures. As well as the underlying theory, the authors discuss the results of numerical simulations and formulate open problems to prompt further research.

This collection explains developments within Beckett studies and why he has emerged as one of the most iconic writers of the twentieth century. It also proposes a new interpretive framework that explores both the expanded canon, which has doubled the volume of his works in the last ten years, and the new methods used to approach it. This book covers all the most recent approaches to the Beckett study, such as archival research, queer theory, mathematical readings of literature, neuro-scientific approaches, translation studies, and disability studies. These new approaches are shown to be relevant and necessary to provide a renewed understanding of the lasting value of Beckett's works.

Looking at the complex relationship between the discipline of history and the writing of lives, this key textbook provides an original and insightful introduction to a growing and increasingly important area of historical scholarship and research. Examining key works that have changed the nature of biography, Barbara Caine also explores the way biographical narrative and life stories have become a central preoccupation for history.Outlining the main features of contemporary historical biography, this is an ideal companion for undergraduate and postgraduate students taking courses on Historiography, Theory and History, Theory and Methods, Historical Methodology, History and Life/Biographical/Autobiographical Writing, and Life-Writing courses on English or Creative Writing degrees.

This book was originally published in 1970. Writing from the viewpoint of a geologist rather than a chemist, the author outlines the geologically important organic compounds and their reactions, as well as the fundamental analytical methods used in organic chemistry. He discusses the occurrence of organic residues in freshwater sediments and sedimentary rocks and evaluates both the importance of these residues in palaeoenvironmental and related problems and their role as biochemical fossils. This book will be of value to anyone with an interest in non-marine organic geochemistry, together with anyone involved in the related areas of organic oceanography, limnology, petroleum geochemistry, coal and oil shale research and the space programme.

Motor development is an integral part of the developmental process. Understanding the organization of the sensory-motor system and its adaptations in response to environmental factors is a vital part of understanding individual development as a whole. This volume describes and discusses human motor development using longitudinal study methods, and from an interdisciplinary perspective. Researchers from a variety of different backgrounds and disciplines provide a broad-ranging analysis of human motor development, from both the practical and theoretical standpoint, in a book which will be of great interest to paediatricians, psychologists, developmental biologists, developmental psychiatrists and neurologists as well as to research scientists in these fields.

This full-color book will inspire you to start solving problems and creating cloud-based applications and games fast, even if you've never done it before. Not just friendly and easy, it's the first cloud development beginner's guide that puts you in control of your own learning, and empowers you to build unique programs to solve problems you care about. Microsoft and author Rob Miles have reinvented the introductory programmer's tutorial, reflecting deep research into how today's newcomers learn, and why other books fall short. This guide is packed with innovations, including its "Snaps" library of pre-built operations that are easy to combine your own unique programs, Cookie Cutter templates give you a flying start, and "Make Something Happen" projects help you build skills by creating your own programs. All example code is provided as a GitHub repository, and Miles's step by step instructions are replicated as screencast videos, hosted on YouTube and linked from the book's website. A

The traditional view of the relationship between business and the arts is very much a one-way affair: organisations may endorse, fund or publicise the arts but the arts have nothing to offer from a business perspective. The Value of Arts for Business challenges this view by showing how the arts, in the form of Arts-based Initiatives (ABIs), can be used to enhance value-creation capacity and boost business performance. The book introduces and explains three models that show how organisations can successfully implement and manage ABIs. Firstly, the Arts Value Matrix enables managers to see how organisational value-drivers are affected by ABIs. Secondly, the Arts Benefits Constellation shows how to assess the benefits of using ABIs. Finally, the Arts Value Map shows how ABIs can be integrated and aligned with organisational strategy and operations. These models lay the foundations for a new research area exploring the links between arts and business.

The traditional view of the relationship between business and the arts is very much a one-way affair: organisations may endorse, fund or publicise the arts but the arts have nothing to offer from a business perspective. The Value of Arts for Business challenges this view by showing how the arts, in the form of Arts-based Initiatives (ABIs), can be used to enhance value-creation capacity and boost business performance. The book introduces and explains three models that show how organisations can successfully implement and manage ABIs. Firstly, the Arts Value Matrix enables managers to see how organisational value-drivers are affected by ABIs. Secondly, the Arts Benefits Constellation shows how to assess the benefits of using ABIs. Finally, the Arts Value Map shows how ABIs can be integrated and aligned with organisational strategy and operations. These models lay the foundations for a new research area exploring the links between arts and business.

In this book, Andrew Harvey sets out to provide a unified and comprehensive theory of structural time series models. Unlike the traditional ARIMA models, structural time series models consist explicitly of unobserved components, such as trends and seasonals, which have a direct interpretation. As a result the model selection methodology associated with structural models is much closer to econometric methodology. The link with econometrics is made even closer by the natural way in which the models can be extended to include explanatory variables and to cope with multivariate time series. From the technical point of view, state space models and the Kalman filter play a key role in the statistical treatment of structural time series models. The book includes a detailed treatment of the Kalman filter. This technique was originally developed in control engineering, but is becoming increasingly important in fields such as economics and operations research. This book is concerned primarily wi

In this book, Andrew Harvey sets out to provide a unified and comprehensive theory of structural time series models. Unlike the traditional ARIMA models, structural time series models consist explicitly of unobserved components, such as trends and seasonals, which have a direct interpretation. As a result the model selection methodology associated with structural models is much closer to econometric methodology. The link with econometrics is made even closer by the natural way in which the models can be extended to include explanatory variables and to cope with multivariate time series. From the technical point of view, state space models and the Kalman filter play a key role in the statistical treatment of structural time series models. The book includes a detailed treatment of the Kalman filter. This technique was originally developed in control engineering, but is becoming increasingly important in fields such as economics and operations research. This book is concerned primarily wi

Demonstrating the ways in which work in a broad range of fields can be pulled together in the analysis of conflict, this book provides the reader with a general introduction to the principles of conflict analysis and lays a methodological foundation for the further development of the interdisciplinary field of peace science. The text begins with an extensive survey of arms race models, from the classic Richardson model to models exploring the effects of factors such as the domestic and international economic environment, public opinion and party politics, and weapons technology and information development. The processes of individual and group problem-solving, in both crisis and non-crisis conditions, are examined, drawing on work in economics, operations research, cognitive science, and artificial intelligence. Building on this diverse body of work, the author moves on to develop a framework for conflict management with which to approach a variety of conflict situations and applies th

Tracing almost 200 years of history, Explaining Tort and Crime explains the development of tort law and criminal law in England compared with other legal systems. Referencing legal systems from around the globe, it uses innovative comparative and historical methods to identify patterns of legal development, to investigate the English law of fault doctrine across tort and crime, and to chart and explain three procedural interfaces: criminal powers to compensate, timing rules to control parallel actions, and convictions as evidence in later civil cases. Matthew Dyson draws on decades of research to offer an analysis of the field, examining patterns of legal development, visible as motifs in the law of many legal systems.

Questioning others is one of the most powerful methods that children use to learn about the world. How does questioning develop? How is it socialized? And how can questioning be leveraged to support learning and education? In this volume, some of the world's leading experts are brought together to explore critical issues in the development of questioning. By collecting interdisciplinary and international perspectives from psychology and education, The Questioning Child presents research from a variety of distinct methodological and theoretical backgrounds. It synthesizes current knowledge on the role of question-asking in cognitive development and charts a path forward for researchers and educators to understand the pivotal function that questioning plays in child development and education.

Questioning others is one of the most powerful methods that children use to learn about the world. How does questioning develop? How is it socialized? And how can questioning be leveraged to support learning and education? In this volume, some of the world's leading experts are brought together to explore critical issues in the development of questioning. By collecting interdisciplinary and international perspectives from psychology and education, The Questioning Child presents research from a variety of distinct methodological and theoretical backgrounds. It synthesizes current knowledge on the role of question-asking in cognitive development and charts a path forward for researchers and educators to understand the pivotal function that questioning plays in child development and education.

The Archaeology of Food explains how archaeologists reconstruct what people ate, and how such reconstructions reveal ancient political struggles, religious practices, ethnic identities, gender norms, and more. Balancing deep research with accessible writing, Katheryn Twiss familiarizes readers with archaeological data, methods, and intellectual approaches as they explore topics ranging from urban commerce to military provisioning to ritual feasting. Along the way, Twiss examines a range of primary evidence, including Roman bars, Aztec statues, Philistine pig remains, Nubian cooking pots, Mississippian squash seeds, and the bones of a medieval king. Her book introduces both archaeologists and non-archaeologists to the study of prehistoric and historic foodways, and illuminates how those foodways shaped and were shaped by past cultures.

The Archaeology of Food explains how archaeologists reconstruct what people ate, and how such reconstructions reveal ancient political struggles, religious practices, ethnic identities, gender norms, and more. Balancing deep research with accessible writing, Katheryn Twiss familiarizes readers with archaeological data, methods, and intellectual approaches as they explore topics ranging from urban commerce to military provisioning to ritual feasting. Along the way, Twiss examines a range of primary evidence, including Roman bars, Aztec statues, Philistine pig remains, Nubian cooking pots, Mississippian squash seeds, and the bones of a medieval king. Her book introduces both archaeologists and non-archaeologists to the study of prehistoric and historic foodways, and illuminates how those foodways shaped and were shaped by past cultures.

This volume brings together cutting-edge experimental research from leaders in the fields of linguistics and psycholinguistics to explore the nature of a phenomenon that has long been central to syntactic theory - 'island effects'. The chapters in this volume draw upon recent methodological advances in experimental methods in syntax, also known as 'experimental syntax', to investigate the underlying cognitive mechanisms that give rise to island effects. This volume presents a comprehensive empirical review of a contemporary debate in the field by including contributions from researchers representing a variety of points of view on the nature of island effects. This book is ideal for students and researchers interested in cutting-edge experimental techniques in linguistics, psycholinguistics and psychology.

In most modern biomedical research projects, application of high-throughput genomic, proteomic, and transcriptomic experiments has gradually become an inevitable component. Popular technologies include microarray, next generation sequencing, mass spectrometry and proteomics assays. As the technologies have become mature and the price affordable, omics data are rapidly generated, and the problem of information integration and modeling of multi-lab and/or multi-omics data is becoming a growing one in the bioinformatics field. This book provides comprehensive coverage of these topics and will have a long-lasting impact on this evolving subject. Each chapter, written by a leader in the field, introduces state-of-the-art methods to handle information integration, experimental data, and database problems of omics data.

Past cases are the European Court of Justice's most prominent tool in making and justifying the rulings and decisions which affect the everyday lives of more than half a billion people. Marc Jacob's detailed analysis of the use of precedents and case-based reasoning in the Court uses methods such as doctrinal scholarship, empirical research, institutional analysis, comparative law and legal theory in order to unravel and critique the how and why of the Court's precedent technique. In doing so, he moves the wider debate beyond received 'common law' versus 'civil law' figments and 'Eurosceptic' versus 'Euromantic' battle lines, and also provides a useful blueprint for assessing and comparing the case law practices of other dispute resolution bodies.