String

Jack Boss takes a unique approach to analyzing Arnold Schoenberg's twelve-tone music, adapting the composer's notion of a 'musical idea' - problem, elaboration, solution - as a framework and focusing on the large-scale coherence of the whole piece. The book begins by defining 'musical idea' as a large, overarching process involving conflict between musical elements or situations, elaboration of that conflict, and resolution, and examines how such conflicts often involve symmetrical pitch and interval shapes that are obscured in some way. Containing close analytical readings of a large number of Schoenberg's key twelve-tone works, including Moses und Aron, the Suite for Piano Op. 25, the Fourth Quartet, and the String Trio, the study provides the reader with a clearer understanding of this still-controversial, challenging, but vitally important modernist composer.

Beethoven's middle-period quartets, Opp. 59, 74 and 95, are pieces that engage deeply with the aesthetic ideas of their time. In the first full contextual study of these works, Nancy November celebrates their uniqueness, exploring their reception history and early performance. In detailed analyses, she explores ways in which the quartets have both reflected and shaped the very idea of chamber music and offers a new historical understanding of the works' physical, visual, social and ideological aspects. In the process, November provides a fresh critique of three key paradigms in current Beethoven studies: the focus on his late period; the emphasis on 'heroic' style in discussions of the middle period; and the idea of string quartets as 'pure', 'autonomous' artworks, cut off from social moorings. Importantly, this study shows that the quartets encompass a new lyric and theatrical impetus, which is an essential part of their unique, explorative character.

This book provides an introduction to (1) various zeta functions (for example, Riemann, Hurwitz, Barnes, Epstein, Selberg, and Ruelle), including graph zeta functions; (2) modular forms (Eisenstein series, Hecke and Dirichlet L-functions, Ramanujan's tau function, and cusp forms); and (3) vertex operator algebras (correlation functions, quasimodular forms, modular invariance, rationality, and some current research topics including higher genus conformal field theory). Various concrete applications of the material to physics are presented. These include Kaluza-Klein extra dimensional gravity, Bosonic string calculations, an abstract Cardy formula for black hole entropy, Patterson-Selberg zeta function expression of one-loop quantum field and gravity partition functions, Casimir energy calculations, atomic Schrödinger operators, Bose-Einstein condensation, heat kernel asymptotics, random matrices, quantum chaos, elliptic and theta function solutions of Einstein's equations, a soliton-bla

本書分為5 章，分別為“基本概念”，“運算符與表達式”，“String 類”，“方法、構造器與變量”，“類與接口”。通過以上方面介紹那些常見、常用卻少為人知的Java 知識。雖然內容相對基本，但都不是容易解答的。目前更多的開發人員（不乏多年開發經驗者），也僅僅停留在Java 表面的層次，而本書，將更深入一層地去討論Java 的話題，令讀者耳目一新，知其然，更知其所以然。

本書共分13章。第1章：從C到C++，幫助讀者系統複習C++，同時使本書也適用於只學過C語言的讀者。第2章～第4章的內容包括：String類、向量類模板Vector、鏈表類模板和適配器，主要為在自定義STL框架下描述數據結構奠定基礎。第5章～第13章的內容包括：二叉樹、堆、樹、圖、二叉搜索樹、平衡二叉搜索樹、B樹、散列、排序和性能分析，主要是在定義STL框架下描述的數據結構。 本書既可以作為高等院

Punctuated by a string of "surprising events" and even alarming incidents in the crucial "sunset era" of Donald Tsang, the second Chief Executive of the Hong Kong SAR, how shall we rate Tsang's performance during this 7-year term? This weighty monograph offers an authoritative academic critique of the HKSAR Government’s performance in various policy areas and state–society interactive topical dimensions under the Tsang years from 2005 to 2012. By inviting contributions from a number of scholars specialising in different research disciplines, the volume in 18 chapters covers a lot of key issues and public policy areas that constitute a very rich combination of analytical narratives from multi-disciplinary perspectives. The massive coverage of this book, while exemplifying the criticality of Tsang's era when handling challenges of these aspects, will provide readers with a thorough assessment of the government during the Tsang years in a broader comparative context and on a contemporar

Sir Michael Tippett is widely considered to be one of the most individual composers of the twentieth century, whose music continues to be performed to critical acclaim throughout the world. Written by a team of international scholars, this Companion provides a wide ranging and accessible study of Tippett and his works. It discusses the contexts and concepts of modernism, tradition, politics, sexuality and creativity that shaped Tippett's music and ideas, engaging with archive materials, relevant literature and models of interpretation. Chapters explore the genres in which Tippett composed, including opera, symphony, string quartet, concerto and piano sonata, to shed new light on his major works and draw attention to those that have not yet received the attention they deserve. Directing knowledge and expertise towards a wide readership, this book will enrich the listening experience and broaden understanding of the music of this endlessly fascinating and challenging composer.

Sir Michael Tippett is widely considered to be one of the most individual composers of the twentieth century, whose music continues to be performed to critical acclaim throughout the world. Written by a team of international scholars, this Companion provides a wide ranging and accessible study of Tippett and his works. It discusses the contexts and concepts of modernism, tradition, politics, sexuality and creativity that shaped Tippett's music and ideas, engaging with archive materials, relevant literature and models of interpretation. Chapters explore the genres in which Tippett composed, including opera, symphony, string quartet, concerto and piano sonata, to shed new light on his major works and draw attention to those that have not yet received the attention they deserve. Directing knowledge and expertise towards a wide readership, this book will enrich the listening experience and broaden understanding of the music of this endlessly fascinating and challenging composer.

《第一推動叢書?宇宙系列:大宇之形》內容簡介：廣義相對論研究巨大尺度的物體──例如星體、甚至整個宇宙；量子力學研究甚至整個極小尺度的奇妙現象──如原子世界。弦理論（String Theory）則企圖成為兩者間的橋梁。從微細的“弦”振動開始，弦理論認為我們生活在一個十維的世界中，其中四維是我們日常生活感知的時空，另外六維呢？物理學家發現，1976年出現的「卡拉比-丘流形」（Calabi-Yau Ma

Over the course of an astonishingly long career, Elliott Carter has engaged with many musical developments of the twentieth and now twenty-first centuries - from his early neo-classic music of the interwar period, to his modernist works of conflict and opposition in the 1960s and 1970s, to the reshaping of a modernist aesthetic in his latest compositions. Elliott Carter Studies throws new light on these many facets of Carter's extensive musical oeuvre. This collection of essays presents historic, philosophic, philological and theoretical points of departure for in-depth investigations of individual compositions, stylistic periods in Carter's output and his contributions to a variety of genres, including vocal music, the string quartet and the concerto. The first multi-authored book to appear on Carter's music, it brings together research from a distinguished team of leading international Carter scholars, providing the reader with a wide range of perspectives on an extraordinary musical

Twenty-five years ago, Michael Green, John Schwarz, and Edward Witten wrote two volumes on string theory. Published during a period of rapid progress in this subject, these volumes were highly influential for a generation of students and researchers. Despite the immense progress that has been made in the field since then, the systematic exposition of the foundations of superstring theory presented in these volumes is just as relevant today as when first published. Volume 2 is concerned with the evaluation of one-loop amplitudes, the study of anomalies and phenomenology. It examines the low energy effective field theory analysis of anomalies, the emergence of the gauge groups E8 x E8 and SO(32) and the four-dimensional physics that arises by compactification of six extra dimensions. Featuring a new Preface setting the work in context in light of recent advances, this book is invaluable for graduate students and researchers in high energy physics and astrophysics, as well as mathematici

廣義相對論研究的是巨大尺度的物體──例如星體、甚至整個宇宙；量子力學則研究甚至整個極小尺度的奇妙現象──例如原子世界。弦論 (String Theory) 則企圖成為兩者間的橋樑。從微細的「弦」振動開始，弦論認為我們生活在一個十維的世界中，其中四維是我們日常生活感知的時空，另外六維呢？透過物理學家的努力發現，1976年出現的「卡拉比-丘流形」 (Calabi-Yau Manifolds)，一個純粹

你知道下列問題的答案嗎？*物件何時被丟棄？物件被丟棄後，是否立即進行回收？程式設計師可否強迫JVM立即回收物件所占記憶體空間？*sleep()和wait()有什麼區別？resume()負責恢復哪些執行緒的執行？呼叫yield()有什麼作用？*String類別與StringBuffer類別有何區別？Math.random()與Random類別有何區別？*若覆蓋某個類別的hashCode()方法，就必

《高等學校計算機科學與技術教材：C++程序設計教程》前三章為C++基礎內容，第4章為數組，其中三維數組、用字符串類string處理字符串和向量等內容比較新穎。第5章為指針和引用，講述二級指針、函數指針和用指針處理三維數組等內容。第6章為函數，對函數的參數傳遞提出新的觀點，揭示參數傳遞的本質是地址重合，還講述各種類型的變量、結構體、共用體和鏈表等內容。第7章為輸入／輸出流庫，介紹常用的輸入／輸出成員

Black holes are one of the most remarkable predictions of Einstein's general relativity. In recent years, ideas in brane-world cosmology, string theory and gauge/gravity duality have motivated studies of black holes in more than four dimensions, with surprising results. In higher dimensions, black holes exist with exotic shapes and unusual dynamics. Edited by leading expert Gary Horowitz, this exciting book is the first devoted to this new field. The major discoveries are explained by the people who made them: Rob Myers describes the Myers–Perry solutions that represent rotating black holes in higher dimensions; Ruth Gregory describes the Gregory–Laflamme instability of black strings; and Juan Maldacena introduces gauge/gravity duality, the remarkable correspondence that relates a gravitational theory to nongravitational physics. Accessible to anyone with a standard course in general relativity, this is an important resource for graduate students and researchers in general relativity,

Supergravity, together with string theory, is one of the most significant developments in theoretical physics. Written by two of the most respected workers in the field, this is the first-ever authoritative and systematic account of supergravity. The book starts by reviewing aspects of relativistic field theory in Minkowski spacetime. After introducing the relevant ingredients of differential geometry and gravity, some basic supergravity theories (D=4 and D=11) and the main gauge theory tools are explained. In the second half of the book, complex geometry and N=1 and N=2 supergravity theories are covered. Classical solutions and a chapter on AdS/CFT complete the book. Numerous exercises and examples make it ideal for Ph.D. students, and with applications to model building, cosmology and solutions of supergravity theories, it is also invaluable to researchers. A website hosted by the authors, featuring solutions to some exercises and additional reading material, can be found at www.camb

After almost a century, the field of quantum gravity remains as difficult and inspiring as ever. Today, it finds itself a field divided, with two major contenders dominating: string theory, the leading exemplification of the covariant quantization program; and loop quantum gravity, the canonical scheme based on Dirac's constrained Hamiltonian quantization. However, there are now a number of other innovative schemes providing promising new avenues. Encapsulating the latest debates on this topic, this book details the different approaches to understanding the very nature of space and time. It brings together leading researchers in each of these approaches to quantum gravity to explore these competing possibilities in an open way. Its comprehensive coverage explores all the current approaches to solving the problem of quantum gravity, addressing the strengths and weaknesses of each approach, to give researchers and graduate students an up-to-date view of the field.

John O'Keeffe (1747–1833) was an Irish playwright who began his career as an actor in 1764. His first significant success as a writer was the play The Son-in-Law in 1779, and he was later called 'our English Molière' by essayist William Hazlitt. He moved to London in 1781 - around the same time that his marriage broke down - and wrote a string of successful comic operas and dramatic works, including Wild Oats (1791). However, he suffered from failing eyesight and was nearly blind at the height of his fame. He dictated this memoir, published in two volumes in 1826, to his daughter, Adelaide (1776–1865). In Volume 1, O'Keeffe recounts his childhood in Ireland, his first trip to London in 1762, where he saw the legendary actor and theatre producer David Garrick (1717–79) on stage, and the beginning of his own dramatic career upon returning to Dublin.

John O'Keeffe (1747–1833) was an Irish playwright who began his career as an actor in 1764. His first significant success as a writer was the play The Son-in-Law in 1779, and he was later called 'our English Molière' by essayist William Hazlitt. He moved to London in 1781 - around the same time that his marriage broke down - and wrote a string of successful comic operas and dramatic works, including Wild Oats (1791). However, he suffered from failing eyesight and was nearly blind at the height of his fame. He dictated this memoir, published in two volumes in 1826, to his daughter, Adelaide (1776–1865). In Volume 2, O'Keeffe recounts his years in London, discussing many of his plays and giving a glimpse into theatre life in Georgian England, before moving on to his subsequent retirement and the complications surrounding the publication of his collected works.

First published in 1989, this book is comprised of invited contributions from speakers at the international workshop, Frontiers in Numerical Relativity, held at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, in May 1988. Advances in supercomputer technology and computational algorithms have stimulated rapid progress in attempts to understand, through numerical means, such diverse phenomena as gravitational radiation emission from astrophysical sources, the evolution of inhomogenous cosmologies and its effects on nucleosynthesis, cosmic string interactions, the formation of 'naked singularities' and the cosmic censorship conjecture and the dynamics of black holes. The book should be of interest to researchers and graduate students in the field of general relativity, astrophysics and applied numerical analysis who wish to understand developments in computer studies of general relativity at the time of publication.

Richard Bird takes a radical approach to algorithm design, namely, design by calculation. These 30 short chapters each deal with a particular programming problem drawn from sources as diverse as games and puzzles, intriguing combinatorial tasks, and more familiar areas such as data compression and string matching. Each pearl starts with the statement of the problem expressed using the functional programming language Haskell, a powerful yet succinct language for capturing algorithmic ideas clearly and simply. The novel aspect of the book is that each solution is calculated from an initial formulation of the problem in Haskell by appealing to the laws of functional programming. Pearls of Functional Algorithm Design will appeal to the aspiring functional programmer, students and teachers interested in the principles of algorithm design, and anyone seeking to master the techniques of reasoning about programs in an equational style.

Franz Joseph Haydn (1732–1809) is renowned as one of the most eminent and prolific composers of the classical period of western music. By the end of his life he had become one of the most famous composers in Europe. He developed the musical forms which became the symphony and the string quartet and was also instrumental in the development of the sonata. This volume, first published in 1902 and written by biographer and contributor to the Dictionary of National Biography James Cuthbert Hadden (1861–1914), focuses on Haydn's career and personality rather than his music. Arranged chronologically according to major locations where Haydn visited or lived, Hadden describes Haydn's daily life, character and growing fame in great detail. Based on the first comprehensive biography of Haydn, Carl Ferdinand Pohl's Joseph Haydn, this volume was considered the most complete account of Haydn's life in English at the time of publication.

The theory of 'Monstrous Moonshine' has been a major development in mathematics since 1979. Beginning with remarkable conjectures relating finite group theory and number theory that stimulated an outpouring of new ideas, 'Monstrous Moonshine' deeply involves many different areas of mathematics, as well as string theory and conformal field theory in physics. It has changed the landscape of many fields. This volume consists of 17 papers by research leaders, based on talks presented at a workshop held to mark the anniversary of the 'Monstrous Moonshine' conjectures. The papers, which include surveys of many important developments, will give the reader a view of a wide range of current activity and promising directions for future research.

The twentieth century witnessed some remarkable discoveries: the 1917 publication of Einstein's general theory of relativity, Carnegie astronomer Edwin Hubble's 1929 discovery of the expansion of the universe, evidence for the existence of dark matter, and the discovery of a mysterious dark energy, which is causing the universe to speed up its expansion. This comprehensive volume reviews the theory and measurement of various parameters related to the evolution of the universe. Topics include inflation, string theory, the history of cosmology in the context of measurements being made of the Hubble constant, the matter density, and dark energy, including observational results from the Sloan, Digital Sky Survey, Keck, Magellan, cosmic microwave background experiments, Hubble space telescope and Chandra. With chapters by leading authorities in the field, this book is a valuable resource for graduate students and professional research astronomers.

Among the many instruments devised by students of mathematical sciences in ancient Greece, the monochord provides one of the best opportunities to examine the methodologies of those who employed it in their investigations. Consisting of a single string which could be divided at measured points by means of movable bridges, it was used to demonstrate theorems about the arithmetical relationships between pitched sounds in music. This book traces the history of the monochord and its multiple uses down to Ptolemy, bringing together all the relevant evidence in one comprehensive study. By comparing the monochord with a number of other ancient scientific instruments and their uses, David Creese shows how the investigation of music in ancient Greece not only shares in the patterns of demonstrative and argumentative instrument use common to other sciences, but also goes beyond them in offering the possibility of a rigorous empiricism unparalleled in Greek science.

本書詳細講解了Java開發的近百個細節，主要內容包括path與classpath、main、基本數據類型、注釋、運算符危機、循環、數組、參數的傳遞、訪問修飾符、私有的意義、構造器、變量、方法重載、垃圾回收、自動封箱與拆箱、繼承、重寫與隱藏、接口、嵌套類型、遮蔽、泛型、System類、Arrays類、Object類、String類等。 本書用生動、形象的語言講解Java開發的關鍵點，使讀者透徹理解

A London-born Wesleyan Methodist missionary, William Arthur Cornaby (1860–1921) spent over thirty years in China, where he edited The Chinese Christian Review, and, from 1905, the Ta Tung Pao, a weekly magazine targeted at Chinese officials and scholars. His many books on Chinese culture and civilisation, including A String of Chinese Peach-Stones (1895) and Rambles in Central China (1896), provide detailed sketches of Chinese rural life and customs. The later China Under the Search-Light, first published in 1901, uses Western clichés about China as a point of departure to offer a more nuanced understanding of the underlying facts and problems specific to Chinese society. In this book, Cornaby discusses contemporary topics such as overcrowding in Shanghai, mandarins, and Buddhism. He also scrutinises newspapers, novels, and aesthetic traditions, offering an elementary introduction to Chinese culture as perceived by a nineteenth-century British missionary.

This book provides an introduction to (1) various zeta functions (for example, Riemann, Hurwitz, Barnes, Epstein, Selberg, and Ruelle), including graph zeta functions; (2) modular forms (Eisenstein series, Hecke and Dirichlet L-functions, Ramanujan's tau function, and cusp forms); and (3) vertex operator algebras (correlation functions, quasimodular forms, modular invariance, rationality, and some current research topics including higher genus conformal field theory). Various concrete applications of the material to physics are presented. These include Kaluza-Klein extra dimensional gravity, Bosonic string calculations, an abstract Cardy formula for black hole entropy, Patterson-Selberg zeta function expression of one-loop quantum field and gravity partition functions, Casimir energy calculations, atomic Schrödinger operators, Bose-Einstein condensation, heat kernel asymptotics, random matrices, quantum chaos, elliptic and theta function solutions of Einstein's equations, a soliton-bla

For over 200 years, Antonio Stradivari has been universally regarded as the greatest violin maker who ever lived, yet it is not widely known that he made virtually every kind of bowed- and plucked-string instrument popular in the Baroque period, including lutes, viols, mandolins, guitars, and harps. Stradivari provides a fascinating biography of this legendary maker, based on newly discovered material in church and civic archives, alongside technical descriptions and analyses of many of the maker's workshop materials preserved in the Museo Stradivariano in Cremona, particularly as they relate to extant and lost instruments, baroque stringing and instrument adjustment, and early performance practice. There are separate chapters for each type of instrument, allowing the reader to easily locate information. The book contains tables of measurements of Stradivari's forms and patterns, over 100 black and white photographs and drawings, and colour photographs of 16 of Stradivari's most import

Grounded in knowledge of thousands of programs, this book examines how musical life in London, Leipzig, Vienna, Boston, and other cities underwent a fundamental transformation in relationship with movements in European politics. William Weber traces how musical taste evolved in European concert programs from 1750 to 1870, as separate worlds arose around classical music and popular songs. In 1780 a typical program accommodated a variety of tastes through a patterned 'miscellany' of genres, held together by diplomatic musicians. This framework began weakening around 1800 as new kinds of music appeared, from string quartets to quadrilles to ballads, which could not easily coexist on the same programs. Utopian ideas and extravagant experiments influenced programming as ideological battles were fought over who should govern musical taste. More than a hundred illustrations or transcriptions of programs enable readers to follow Weber's analysis in detail.

Based on lectures given in honour of Stephen Hawking's sixtieth birthday, this book comprises contributions from some of the world's leading theoretical physicists. It begins with a section containing chapters by successful scientific popularisers, bringing to life both Hawking's work and other exciting developments in physics. The book then goes on to provide a critical evaluation of advanced subjects in modern cosmology and theoretical physics. Topics covered include the origin of the universe, warped spacetime, cosmological singularities, quantum gravity, black holes, string theory, quantum cosmology and inflation. As well as providing a fascinating overview of the wide variety of subject areas to which Stephen Hawking has contributed, this book represents an important assessment of prospects for the future of fundamental physics and cosmology.

Recent developments in cosmology and particle physics, such as the string landscape picture, have led to the remarkable realization that our universe - rather than being unique - could be just one of many universes. The multiverse proposal helps to explain the origin of the universe and some of its observational features. Since the physical constants can be different in other universes, the fine-tunings which appear necessary for the emergence of life may also be explained. Nevertheless, many physicists remain uncomfortable with the multiverse proposal, since it is highly speculative and perhaps untestable. In this volume, a number of active and eminent researchers in the field - mainly cosmologists and particle physicists but also some philosophers - address these issues and describe recent developments. The articles represent the full spectrum of views, providing for the first time an overview of the subject. They are written at different academic levels, engaging lay-readers and res

本書（下冊）共9章，從第26～第34章，涵蓋了二叉樹、堆、樹、圖、二叉搜索樹、平衡二叉搜索樹、B樹、散列和排序等主要內容。基于上冊已經包含了C++基礎，模擬的C++新標準中的Vector、List、String等數據結構線性部分，通用算法和迭代器等內容，本書集中討論了數據結構的非線性部分，并利用C++實現了全部算法。 本書可以作為C語言和C+十語言的本科或專科教材，也可以作為計算機愛好者和程序員的

The idea of the unity of mankind did not come easily to the Greeks. Its eventual emergence has been ascribed to various sources, not least to Alexander the Great. Professor Baldry believes that it cannot be attributed to any single individual, but that the true picture is a long and complicated chain of development to which many contributed. In this book Professor Baldry describes this development from Homer to Cicero when, although the traditional divisions and prejudices still remained string, the idea of unity had become part of the outlook of civilised man. He discusses the contribution of thinkers such as Antiphon, Aristotle, the Cynics or Zeno; the influence of great historical movements like the rise of Macedon and Rome; and also the obstacles that stood in the way - the divisions between Greek and barbarian, free and slave, enlightened and unenlightened, even man and woman. This study will interest not only classical scholars but historians and philosophers. In particular Profe

Vector bundles and their associated moduli spaces are of fundamental importance in algebraic geometry. In recent decades this subject has been greatly enhanced by its relationships with other areas of mathematics, including differential geometry, topology and even theoretical physics, specifically gauge theory, quantum field theory and string theory. Peter E. Newstead has been a leading figure in this field almost from its inception and has made many seminal contributions to our understanding of moduli spaces of stable bundles. This volume has been assembled in tribute to Professor Newstead and his contribution to algebraic geometry. Some of the subject's leading experts cover foundational material, while the survey and research papers focus on topics at the forefront of the field. This volume is suitable for both graduate students and more experienced researchers.

本書由淺入深地介紹了C#開發知識。全書共分上下兩篇。上篇為ll章，分別介紹了C#礎知識，變量、數據類型、運算符與表達式．控制語句，集合，面向對象程序，String類，try/catch塊、throw子句、異常涉及的類以及創建用戶自定義異常，基本控件，路徑、目錄、文件及其相關類，ADO.NET數據庫編程，GDI+知識等內容。第ll章是綜合案例，對工資管理系統需求和功能進行分析，并使用C#來實現工資管

本書緊扣標準C++，涵蓋C++的主要語言特性，強調C++標準庫的使用。全書共分8章：第1章簡述C++語言的歷史與演化、編譯器與集成開發環境以及程序的編寫、編譯和運行；第2章介紹c++語言的基本數據類型，常量、變量以及運算符和表達式；第3章講述數組和指針的概念、初始化和使用，介紹標準庫string和vector類型；第4章介紹C++語言的程序流程控制以及編譯預處理；第5章介紹C++語言中有關函數的特

Grounded in knowledge of thousands of programs, this book examines how musical life in London, Leipzig, Vienna, Boston, and other cities underwent a fundamental transformation in relationship with movements in European politics. William Weber traces how musical taste evolved in European concert programs from 1750 to 1870, as separate worlds arose around classical music and popular songs. In 1780 a typical program accommodated a variety of tastes through a patterned 'miscellany' of genres, held together by diplomatic musicians. This framework began weakening around 1800 as new kinds of music appeared, from string quartets to quadrilles to ballads, which could not easily coexist on the same programs. Utopian ideas and extravagant experiments influenced programming as ideological battles were fought over who should govern musical taste. More than a hundred illustrations or transcriptions of programs enable readers to follow Weber's analysis in detail.

This book, first published in 2007, is an introductory textbook on quantum field theory in gravitational backgrounds intended for undergraduate and beginning graduate students in the fields of theoretical astrophysics, cosmology, particle physics, and string theory. The book covers the basic (but essential) material of quantization of fields in an expanding universe and quantum fluctuations in inflationary spacetime. It also contains a detailed explanation of the Casimir, Unruh, and Hawking effects, and introduces the method of effective action used for calculating the back-reaction of quantum systems on a classical external gravitational field. The broad scope of the material covered will provide the reader with a thorough perspective of the subject. Every major result is derived from first principles and thoroughly explained. The book is self-contained and assumes only a basic knowledge of general relativity. Exercises with detailed solutions are provided throughout the book.

An introduction to the theory of orbifolds from a modern perspective, combining techniques from geometry, algebraic topology and algebraic geometry. One of the main motivations, and a major source of examples, is string theory, where orbifolds play an important role. The subject is first developed following the classical description analogous to manifold theory, after which the book branches out to include the useful description of orbifolds provided by groupoids, as well as many examples in the context of algebraic geometry. Classical invariants such as de Rham cohomology and bundle theory are developed, a careful study of orbifold morphisms is provided, and the topic of orbifold K-theory is covered. The heart of this book, however, is a detailed description of the Chen-Ruan cohomology, which introduces a product for orbifolds and has had significant impact. The final chapter includes explicit computations for a number of interesting examples.