Operations Research Methods

The theory of R-trees is a well-established and important area of geometric group theory and in this book the authors introduce a construction that provides a new perspective on group actions on R-trees. They construct a group RF(G), equipped with an action on an R-tree, whose elements are certain functions from a compact real interval to the group G. They also study the structure of RF(G), including a detailed description of centralizers of elements and an investigation of its subgroups and quotients. Any group acting freely on an R-tree embeds in RF(G) for some choice of G. Much remains to be done to understand RF(G), and the extensive list of open problems included in an appendix could potentially lead to new methods for investigating group actions on R-trees, particularly free actions. This book will interest all geometric group theorists and model theorists whose research involves R-trees.

Understanding mechanisms of gene regulation that are independent of the DNA sequence itself - epigenetics - has the potential to overthrow long-held views on central topics in biology, such as the biology of disease or the evolution of species. High throughput technologies reveal epigenetic mechanisms at a genome-wide level, giving rise to epigenomics as a new discipline with a distinct set of research questions and methods. Leading experts from academia, the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries explain the role of epigenomics in a wide range of contexts, covering basic chromatin biology, imprinting at a genome-wide level, and epigenomics in disease biology and epidemiology. Details on assays and sequencing technology serve as an up-to-date overview of the available technological tool kit. A reliable guide for newcomers to the field as well as experienced scientists, this is a unique resource for anyone interested in applying the power of twenty-first-century genomics to epigene

In this 2002 volume, political psychologists take a hard look at political psychology. They pose and then address, the kinds of tough questions that those outside the field would be inclined to ask and those inside should be able to answer satisfactorily. Not everyone will agree with the answers the authors provide and in some cases, the best an author can do is offer well-grounded speculations. Nonetheless, the chapters raise questions that will lead to an improved political psychology and will generate further discussion and research in the field. The individual chapters are organised around four themes. Part I tries to define political psychology and provides an overview of the field. Part II raises questions about theory and empirical methods in political psychology. Part III contains arguments ranging from the position that the field is too heavily psychological to the view that it is not psychological enough. Part IV considers how political psychologists might best connect indivi

Multiple-conclusion logic extends formal logic by allowing arguments to have a set of conclusions instead of a single one, the truth lying somewhere among the conclusions if all the premises are true. The extension opens up interesting possibilities based on the symmetry between premises and conclusions, and can also be used to throw fresh light on the conventional logic and its limitations. This is a sustained study of the subject and is certain to stimulate further research. Part I reworks the fundamental ideas of logic to take account of multiple conclusions, and investigates the connections between multiple - and single - conclusion calculi. Part II draws on graph theory to discuss the form and validity of arguments independently of particular logical systems. Part III contrasts the multiple - and the single - conclusion treatment of one and the same subject, using many-valued logic as the example; and Part IV shows how the methods of 'natural deduction' can be matched by direct pr

Homological algebra, because of its fundamental nature, is relevant to many branches of pure mathematics, including number theory, geometry, group theory and ring theory. Professor Northcott's aim is to introduce homological ideas and methods and to show some of the results which can be achieved. The early chapters provide the results needed to establish the theory of derived functors and to introduce torsion and extension functors. The new concepts are then applied to the theory of global dimensions, in an elucidation of the structure of commutative Noetherian rings of finite global dimension and in an account of the homology and cohomology theories of monoids and groups. A final section is devoted to comments on the various chapters, supplementary notes and suggestions for further reading. This book is designed with the needs and problems of the beginner in mind, providing a helpful and lucid account for those about to begin research, but will also be a useful work of reference for s

Grahame Clark's book examines the development of prehistoric archaeology at Cambridge and the achievements of its graduates, placing this theme against the background of the growth of archaeology as an academic discipline worldwide. Prehistory in Cambridge began to be taught formally in 1920 and emerged as a full tripos soon after the Second World War. From the outset it focused on the aims and methods of archaeological research, providing in addition for combinations of study options ranging from early prehistory to the archaeology of the major civilisations of the Old World and the protohistory of Northern Europe. The measure of its success is shown by the achievement of Cambridge graduates at home and overseas in both the study and the field. A significant outcome of their work has been the widespread recognition of archaeology as a subject of broad educational value, not merely for undergraduates, but for human beings the world over.

The tithe is a levy characteristic of the agrarian ancien regime, and is of great interest to historians of traditional societies such as pre-1789 France and other countries of Europe and Latin America until the beginning of the nineteenth century. Measured and recorded from year to year, the tithe forms an indicator which, albeit very approximate, is nevertheless extremely valuable in revealing the trends in agricultural production (grain, wine, stockbreeding ,etc.) over periods of years, decades or centuries. The book is in two parts. The first, by Joseph Goy, deals with theoretical questions and the methods used for research on the tithe and other associated dues. The second part, by Emmanuel Le Roy Ladurie in collaboration with Marie-Jeanne Tits-Dieuaide, presents an overview of the conclusions reached from the study of secular fluctuations in the product of the tithe and in other revenues from the land. These results, relating to the long period from the fourteenth to the nineteen

This collection of articles, written by European, American and British scholars, clarifies problems of style and chronology in the music Schubert composed during the last decade of his life. Althought O. E. Deutsch's documentary biography and memoirs set new milestones in Schubert research, they left some problems of chronology unanswered. Some of the essays in this volume examine or re-examine these problems, using different methods. Robert Winter, in the longest essay, proposes numerous re-datings of works composed between 1822 and 1828 which result from a careful examination of types of paper and watermarks. Other contributors point out the limitations of applying stylistic criteria as the basis for the dating of individual works. The articles touch on all areas of Schubert's output, with the emphasis on his songs, theatre music, and orchestral and chamber works. Althought this book will be of primary interest to musicologists, and others interested in Schubert, the essays concerned

The book is a study of the police and criminal justice in eighteenth-century France, and of the crimes and disorders the authorities had to contain. It is concerned with two provinces - the Auvergne, in the mountainous centre, and the Guyenne, the hinterland of Bordeaux and is based on extensive archival research in administrative records, police reports and the transcripts of trials. Part one examines the means of repression available to the government: the national police force, the maréchaussée, and the police court of summary justice, the prévôté. It looks at the recruitment and discipline of policemen, their duties, methods of operating and efficiency; it also examines the treatment of beggars and vagabonds, the procedures of criminal justice, the evidence put before the judges and the punishments handed down. Part two studies the thefts, assaults, murders, riots and rebellions of the two provinces, particularly in the light of fashionable hypotheses about changing patterns of cr

There has been an increase in interest worldwide in fusion research over the last decade and a half due to the recognition that a large number of new, environmentally attractive, sustainable energy sources will be needed to meet ever increasing demand for electrical energy. Based on a series of course notes from graduate courses in plasma physics and fusion energy at MIT, the text begins with an overview of world energy needs, current methods of energy generation, and the potential role that fusion may play in the future. It covers energy issues such as the production of fusion power, power balance, the design of a simple fusion reactor and the basic plasma physics issues faced by the developers of fusion power. This book is suitable for graduate students and researchers working in applied physics and nuclear engineering. A large number of problems accumulated over two decades of teaching are included to aid understanding.

This volume collects seven of Marc Nerlove's previously published, classic essays on panel data econometrics written over the past thirty-five years, together with a cogent essay on the history of the subject, which began with George Biddell Airey's monograph published in 1861. Since Professor Nerlove's 1966 Econometrica paper with Pietro Balestra, panel data and methods of econometric analysis appropriate to such data have become increasingly important in the discipline. The principal factors in the research environment affecting the future course of panel data econometrics are the phenomenal growth in the computational power available to the individual researcher at his or her desktop and the ready availability of data sets, both large and small, via the Internet. The best way to formulate statistical models for inference is motivated and shaped by substantive problems and understanding of the processes generating the data at hand to resolve them. The essays illustrate both the role

A unified approach to the study of domestic animals is an important step in achieving a proper understanding of the nature of domestication. In this book, the author has successfully brought together data from many different fields. It emphasises the importance of domestic animals to the development of human civilization and demonstrates how human control of domestication may result in the planned production of distinct kinds of domestic animals, bred specifically to improve food production, build up alternative methods of land use or provide new laboratory animals for use in scientific research. The text concentrates on the importance of changes in animal behaviour to the process of domestication and describes how one of the characteristics of domesticated animals is a lack of the same kind of perception of their surrounding environment as is shown by wild animals. New results and ideas are presented and the book demonstrates how the practical application of a theoretical strategy for

How do you predict the parameters of future solar cycles? What is the role of dynamo theory in the cyclic activity of the Sun and similar stars? And what are the implications of chaos theory for stellar cycles? This book answers these questions and offers a timely review of studies in the cyclic activity of the Sun and other stars. This authoritative reference shows the importance of reliable predictions of the parameters of future solar cycles, and carefully explains the methods currently used to determine these (with special reference to the maximum of cycle 22). Some of the latest research into solar cycles is clearly presented; this includes helioseismology, observations of the extended activity cycle and the polar fields reversal, and contributions from dynamo theory and chaos theory. For graduate students and researchers, this monograph provides a much-needed synthesis of our understanding of activity cycles in the Sun and other stars.

This book deals with the methods of X-ray production at a level which is accessible to advanced undergraduates and researchers who use X-rays. It also discusses the fundamentals of these physical properties from an experimental viewpoint which is not covered in more specialised texts. The book begins with a survey of work carried out before 1945. Continuous and characteristic spectra are discussed followed by a description of techniques used in their study. Further studies of production, absorption and scattering in atomic and nuclear processes are described, including a completely new chapter on X-ray production by protons, alpha-particles and ions. The concluding chapter surveys some more advanced fields of study. It will be very valuable to all research and industrial physicists working with X-rays who need to know about their fundamental properties in more detail. In this second edition SI units are used throughout and the material reflects the changes in the use of X-rays and the

Recent research suggests that the application of the old concepts of pasture management developed in Europe, USA and South Africa have been unsuccessful in the Tropics; in some areas under-utilisation has resulted in poor animal output and low economic returns, whereas in other areas overgrazing has resulted in soil erosion and weeds. This book sets out to examine the problems involved in the utilisation of tropical and subtropical pastures and to explain how pastures may be managed to meet the requirements of both plants and animals for growth and replacement. Following an overview of the livestock systems of the tropics, the effects of grazing animals on the edaphic, biotic and climatic environment of the pasture are described. The response of the animals to the available pasture are discussed in terms of pasture attributes of nutritive value and sward structure, selectivity and grazing behaviour. Methods for attaining continuity of forage supply are also described. The author, Profe

This volume collects seven of Marc Nerlove's previously published, classic essays on panel data econometrics written over the past thirty-five years, together with a cogent essay on the history of the subject, which began with George Biddell Airey's monograph published in 1861. Since Professor Nerlove's 1966 Econometrica paper with Pietro Balestra, panel data and methods of econometric analysis appropriate to such data have become increasingly important in the discipline. The principal factors in the research environment affecting the future course of panel data econometrics are the phenomenal growth in the computational power available to the individual researcher at his or her desktop and the ready availability of data sets, both large and small, via the Internet. The best way to formulate statistical models for inference is motivated and shaped by substantive problems and understanding of the processes generating the data at hand to resolve them. The essays illustrate both the role

In this 2002 volume, political psychologists take a hard look at political psychology. They pose and then address, the kinds of tough questions that those outside the field would be inclined to ask and those inside should be able to answer satisfactorily. Not everyone will agree with the answers the authors provide and in some cases, the best an author can do is offer well-grounded speculations. Nonetheless, the chapters raise questions that will lead to an improved political psychology and will generate further discussion and research in the field. The individual chapters are organised around four themes. Part I tries to define political psychology and provides an overview of the field. Part II raises questions about theory and empirical methods in political psychology. Part III contains arguments ranging from the position that the field is too heavily psychological to the view that it is not psychological enough. Part IV considers how political psychologists might best connect indivi

Ever since the seminal work of Goppa on algebraic-geometry codes, rational points on algebraic curves over finite fields have been an important research topic for algebraic geometers and coding theorists. The focus in this application of algebraic geometry to coding theory is on algebraic curves over finite fields with many rational points (relative to the genus). Recently, the authors discovered another important application of such curves, namely to the construction of low-discrepancy sequences. These sequences are needed for numerical methods in areas as diverse as computational physics and mathematical finance. This has given additional impetus to the theory of, and the search for, algebraic curves over finite fields with many rational points. This book aims to sum up the theoretical work on algebraic curves over finite fields with many rational points and to discuss the applications of such curves to algebraic coding theory and the construction of low-discrepancy sequences.

This book, first published in 2001, explores two shifts in the paradigms of governance in Western bureaucracies. They are the widespread use of privatisation, private firms and market methods to run core public services, and the conscious attempt to transform the role of citizenship from ideals of entitlement and security to notions of mutual obligation, selectivity and risk. Considine examines the most important service of the modern welfare state - unemployment assistance - to explain and theorise the nature of these radical changes. He undertakes research in the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Australia and New Zealand, four countries which have been among the boldest reformers within the OECD, yet each adopting different models. Each case is a break from the standards of responsible democracy and legal-rational bureaucracy, with at least one government opting for a commercial paradigm based on targets and economic incentives and another opting for a model based on network governan

The application of time series techniques in economics has become increasingly important, both for forecasting purposes and in the empirical analysis of time series in general. In this book, Terence Mills not only brings together recent research at the frontiers of the subject, but also analyses the areas of most importance to applied economics. It is an up-to-date text which extends the basic techniques of analysis to cover the development of methods that can be used to analyse a wide range of economic problems. The book analyses three basic areas of time series analysis: univariate models, multivariate models, and non-linear models. In each case the basic theory is outlined and then extended to cover recent developments. Particular emphasis is placed on applications of the theory to important areas of applied economics and on the computer software and programs needed to implement the techniques. This book clearly distinguishes itself from its competitors by emphasising the techniques

This book deals with the methods of X-ray production at a level which is accessible to advanced undergraduates and researchers who use X-rays. It also discusses the fundamentals of these physical properties from an experimental viewpoint which is not covered in more specialised texts. The book begins with a survey of work carried out before 1945. Continuous and characteristic spectra are discussed followed by a description of techniques used in their study. Further studies of production, absorption and scattering in atomic and nuclear processes are described, including a completely new chapter on X-ray production by protons, alpha-particles and ions. The concluding chapter surveys some more advanced fields of study. It will be very valuable to all research and industrial physicists working with X-rays who need to know about their fundamental properties in more detail. In this second edition SI units are used throughout and the material reflects the changes in the use of X-rays and the

This book sets out a generative structuralist conception of general theoretical sociology; its philosophy, its problems, and its methods. The field is defined as a comprehensive research tradition with many intersecting subtraditions that share conceptual components. The focus is on formalization and unification as processes that can help advance the state of theory today. An integrative philosophy of the field is set out in terms of a process worldview, with a focus on generativity in explanation and a conception of the structure of theories as hierarchical meaning control systems. This philosophy is implemented in two phases. In the first phase, Professor Fararo defines the core problems of theoretical sociology in the context of setting out and illustrating the logic of a nonlinear dynamical social systems framework. A critical analysis of the outcome of this phase then leads, in the second phase, to formal treatments of action principles and structural analysis. A variety of tradit

Popular and scholarly works on the Elizabethan stage have long familiarised readers and playgoers with the main features of a typical Shakespearian playhouse, yet medieval stage conditions remain far less well known, despite the amount of research in this area recently. In this survey of findings and theories (some unavoidably controversial), William Tydeman covers central aspects of western European theatre from the Dark Ages to the building of the first public theatres towards the end of the sixteenth century. The book begins by examining the ancient rituals from which drama sprang, the legacy bequeathed by the Roman stage to popular entertainers of the Middle Ages, and the rôle of the histrionic impulse in Christian worship. Subsequent chapters describe in some detail the varying methods of medieval staging - indoors, processional, and al fresco - settings, costumes, and effects, the way performers were chosen and organised, how the plays were financed and how their audiences respon

本書作者強調在案例研究中新興的研究方法，並給出一步步的指導，用他們自己延伸的現實中的實際案例來講解何時、為什麼、怎麼使用這些研究方法進行案例分析。這是一本專為商科師生而寫的研究問卷設計指南，此書英文原版2017年10月由 SAGE出版。這是SAGE繼小綠皮的社會科學研究方法系列取得成功之後，再接再厲最新推出了一套面向商科的研究方法系列叢書(Mastering Business Research Methods) 我社的“格致方法‧商科研究方法譯叢”已出版兩本，分別為《研究訪談》和《問卷設計》。

Cutting-edge research shows how to determine and decrease your true biological age.What if there was a way to measure our biological age? And what if there were strategies to slow down―or even reverse―the aging process? The answers to these questions lie at the heart of the groundbreaking work Dr. Morgan Levine is doing in her lab at Yale.True Age introduces readers to the latest developments in the science of aging and longevity. It provides an in-depth understanding of biological age and the methods now available to estimate our own. It helps us target an individualized plan to eat, exercise, and sleep, as well as pointing to other lifestyle practices like intermittent fasting and caloric restriction that have been shown to slow or reverse the aging process.The goal is to guide every reader toward a personal regimen to keep them as youthful as possible―both inside and out―with low risk, data-driven biohacking. The book gives readers and their doctors unprecedented ways to identify th

本書介紹會話分析的關鍵要素，以及其逐漸變成商科研究分析中一種重要的分析方法。會話分析的對象，包括互動對話中的音頻和視頻記錄，例如電視講話、訪談等。這是一本專為商科師生而寫的研究問卷設計指南，此書英文原版2017年10月由 SAGE出版。繼小綠皮的社會科學研究方法系列取得成功之後，SAGE再接再厲最新推出了一套面向商科的研究方法系列叢書(Mastering Business Research Methods)。我社已經出版的“格致方法‧商科研究方法譯叢”已有兩本，分別為《研究訪談》和《問卷設計》。

社會研究方法是社會科學的重要基礎。社會研究方法的發展和進步貫穿於社會科學發展的全部歷史過程。當今，大數據、人工智能等科技的發展帶來了深刻的社會影響，社會研究方法的發展也隨之迎來了一個關鍵的歷史時刻。中國社會科學院社會學研究所社會調查與方法研究室決定出版《社會研究方法評論》(Social Research Methods Review)叢書，對已有的方法或方法實踐進行總結和評論，對正在發展的方法做綜述和推進，以及對未來可能的研究方法進行設想和探索。希望通過這一叢書推動方法研究的進一步繁榮，並為中國的社會研究貢獻綿薄之力。本卷主要涉及兩大專題：方法論專題與海外人類學專題。

本書作為SAGE的商科研究方法（Mastering Business Research Methods）叢書中的一本，計劃放入“格致方法‧商科研究方法譯叢”當中。必要條件分析(NCA)是一種新興的數據分析方法，是由本書作者再2016年創立的一種基於識別和檢測數據中心必要非充分條件的研究方法，基本邏輯為：若必要條件存在，則預期結果不一定出現；若必要條件不存在，則預期結果必定不會出現。而以回歸分析和相關性分析為代表的傳統研究方法主要為發現相關結果的充分條件，而缺少依靠必要條件去發現決定結果的必要條件。而這些必要的條件卻是無處不在，必要條件分析法（NCA）是一種尋找和檢驗數據的直觀和直接的手段，可作為獨立研究工具，也可作為其他研究方法的補充。本書為

此本和“分析數量調查的數據”同屬￿sage名為“mastering business research methods series”叢書中的一本，旨在幫助研究生瞭解寫論文時的研究方法。每本書都由教學經驗豐富的教授所寫，為學生提供了數據搜集和分析的詳細方法。叢書裡的每本書都由固定的六個模塊組成：介紹具體的方法、每種方法的假設、與該方法相關的部分、如何使用該種方法、以往研究中使用該方法的實例、方法的優缺點。模板分析是指以主題分析定性數據的特定方式，其在更廣泛的專題分析傳統中發展為一種通用方法，更著重於對真實場景的分析。其不僅可以引導人們進行定性數據分析，也可以用於進行更複雜的研究。本書主要介紹了模塊分析的基本概念、步驟，使用模板分析的案例，

社會研究方法是社會科學的重要基礎。社會研究方法的發展和進步貫穿於社會科學發展的全部歷史過程。當今，大數據、人工智能等科技的發展帶來了深刻的社會影響，社會研究方法的發展也隨之迎來了一個關鍵的歷史時刻。中國社會科學院社會學研究所社會調查與方法研究室決定出版《社會研究方法評論》(Social Research Methods Review)叢書，對已有的方法或方法實踐進行總結和評論，對正在發展的方法做綜述和推進，以及對未來可能的研究方法進行設想和探索。希望通過這一叢書推動方法研究的進一步繁榮，並為中國的社會研究貢獻綿薄之力。本卷共收集了碾碎的整體網研究，由“理想類型”論概念的建構原則，結構與行動的互構機制分析：再論“社會學方法的準則”，大數據大在何處：數據量大的價值及分析策略，生命歷程研究的範式轉變與方法革新――兼論西方生命歷程研究的新進展，從文本到社會知識：基於文本的社會科學研究綜述、社會科學中的因果分析――潛在結果模型、因果網絡模型與ABM，中國公正感研究方法的跨學科比較與方法論反思，質性方法研究空間的潛能與挑戰等九篇文章，對社會學研究具有重大意義。

社會研究方法是社會科學的重要基礎。社會研究方法的發展和進步貫穿於社會科學發展的全部歷史過程。當今，大數據、人工智能等科技的發展帶來了深刻的社會影響，社會研究方法的發展也隨之迎來了一個關鍵的歷史時刻。中國社會科學院社會學研究所社會調查與方法研究室決定出版《社會研究方法評論》(Social Research Methods Review)叢書，對已有的方法或方法實踐進行總結和評論，對正在發展的方法做綜述和推進，以及對未來可能的研究方法進行設想和探索。希望通過這一叢書推動方法研究的進一步繁榮，並為中國的社會研究貢獻綿薄之力。本卷共收集了五城市調查最終調查數據產生始末，從KKV到TTC：近30年美國最有影響力的兩本質性研究方法論著作，基於沙堆模型的國家動力學研究，E問卷實務流程探索與趨勢展望，年齡-時期-世代模型的發展歷程與社會科學應用，定性比較分析(QCA)綜述：內涵、操作與應用，學術研究：瞄準無知的認知行動，打磨田野手藝：北京市A區日結工市場調查反思，新化文印產業研究的過程和思考，有關測量概念的三個故事與一個教訓等十篇文章，對社會科學研究具有重大意義。