A reader-friendly introduction to modern algebra with important examples from various areas of mathematics Featuring a clear and concise approach, An Introduction to Essential Algebraic Structures presents an integrated approach to basic concepts of modern algebra and highlights topics that play a central role in various branches of mathematics. The authors discuss key topics of abstract and modern algebra including sets, number systems, groups, rings, and fields. The book begins with an exposition of the elements of set theory and moves on to cover the main ideas and branches of abstract algebra. In addition, the book includes: Numerous examples throughout to deepen readers’ knowledge of the presented material An exercise set after each chapter section in an effort to build a deeper understanding of the subject and improve knowledge retention Hints and answers to select exercises at the end of the book A supplementary website with an Instructors Solutions manual An Introduction to Essential Algebraic Structures is an excellent textbook for introductory courses in abstract algebra as well as an ideal reference for anyone who would like to be more familiar with the basic topics of abstract algebra.

At last - the first comprehensive and practical guide to the work breakdown structure (WBS) in 45 years! This book offers vital new perspectives on how to apply the WBS to today's different types of projects that produce products, services or results. You'll learn how to use WBS throughout the project lifecycle to plan, control and communicate. Your new insights into the WBS principles, plus checklists and proven action steps, will improve the planning of new projects and help you launch projects more efficiently and effectively.

The brain ... There is no other part of the human anatomy that is so intriguing. How does it develop and function and why does it sometimes, tragically, degenerate? The answers are complex. In Discovering the Brain, science writer Sandra Ackerman cuts through the complexity to bring this vital topic to the public. The 1990s were declared the "Decade of the Brain" by former President Bush, and the neuroscience community responded with a host of new investigations and conferences. Discovering the Brain is based on the Institute of Medicine conference, Decade of the Brain: Frontiers in Neuroscience and Brain Research. Discovering the Brain is a "field guide" to the brainâ€"an easy-to-read discussion of the brain's physical structure and where functions such as language and music appreciation lie. Ackerman examines: How electrical and chemical signals are conveyed in the brain. The mechanisms by which we see, hear, think, and pay attentionâ€"and how a "gut feeling" actually originates in the brain. Learning and memory retention, including parallels to computer memory and what they might tell us about our own mental capacity. Development of the brain throughout the life span, with a look at the aging brain. Ackerman provides an enlightening chapter on the connection between the brain's physical condition and various mental disorders and notes what progress can realistically be made toward the prevention and treatment of stroke and other ailments. Finally, she explores the potential for major advances during the "Decade of the Brain," with a look at medical imaging techniquesâ€"what various technologies can and cannot tell usâ€"and how the public and private sectors can contribute to continued advances in neuroscience. This highly readable volume will provide the public and policymakersâ€"and many scientists as wellâ€"with a helpful guide to understanding the many discoveries that are sure to be announced throughout the "Decade of the Brain."

Covering a wide range of structural concepts and presenting both relevant theories and their applications to actual structures, this book brings together for the first time lightweight structures concepts for many different applications and the relevant scientific literature, thus providing unique insights into a fascinating field of human endeavour. Evolved from a series of graduate courses taught by the authors at the University of Tokyo, the Institute of Space and Astronautical Science, the University of Cambridge and the California Institute of Technology, this textbook provides both theoretical and practical insights and presents a range of examples which also provide a history of key lightweight structures since the Apollo age. This essential guide will inspire the imagination of engineers and provide an analytical foundation for all readers.

AWARDS: Shortlisted for the Guardian Chess Book of the Year Award Runner-up for the English Chess Federation 2009 Book of the Year Award CHESS Magazine: Best Books of 2009 Back in Print! Ever wondered why grandmasters take only seconds to see what’s really going on in a chess position? It’s all about structures, as Grandmaster Ivan Sokolov explains in this groundbreaking book. ‘Winning Chess Middlegames’ addresses the often ignored but extremely important topic of pawn structures, divided into four main types: doubled pawns, isolated pawns, hanging pawns and pawn majorities. With its highly accessible verbal explanations and deep analyses of top-level games, this book helps you to solve the basic problems of the middlegame: space, tension and initiative. Club players studying this book will:greatly enhance their middlegame skills, develop an accurate feeling as to which particular positions suit their style and acquire new strategic and practical opening knowledge. Ivan Sokolov explains matters profoundly, honestly and objectively including lots of inside stories from top-level chess, neither sparing his colleague grandmasters nor himself in his comments. With a foreword by British Grandmaster Michael Adams.

The investigative assault upon the enigmatic asphaltenes has recently resulted in sig nificant advances in many varied disciplines. Taken individually, each discipline exposes certain facets of asphaltenes, but each, alone, can never reveal asphaltenes from all van tages. Even seemingly narrowly focused issues such as the molecular structures of asphal tenes, or the colloidal structures of asphaltenes require a confluence of many lines of investigation to yield an understanding which differs from truth by diminishing uncer tainty. An holistic treatment of the asphaltenes is a powerful approach to evolve further their understanding. For example, examination of asphaltenes at the highest resolution yields molecular structure. A slight increase in scale probes asphaltene colloidal structure. Weaving together asphaltene studies performed at different length scales results in a fabric which envelops an encompassing vision of asphaltenes. At the same time, the interfaces of these hierarchical studies provide additional constraints on imagination, more than investi gations at individual length scales alone. These considerations shaped the timing, format, and the content of our book. The editors are very appreciative of the diligence and hard work manifest in each of the contributed chapters herein. We thank the contributing authors for making this project a success. Oliver C. Mullins Eric Y. Sheu vii CONTENTS I. Asphaltenes: Types and Sources ...................................... .