Infertility affects more than one in ten couples worldwide and is related to highly heterogeneous pathologies sometimes only discernible in the germ line. Its complex etiology often, but not always, includes genetic factors besides anatomical defects, immunological interference, and environmental aspects. Nearly 30% of infertility cases are probably caused only by genetic defects. Thereby experimental animal knockout models convincingly show that infertility can be caused by single or multiple gene defects. Translating those basic research findings into clinical studies is challenging, leaving genetic causes for the vast majority of infertility patients unexplained. Nevertheless, a large number of candidate genes have been revealed by sophisticated molecular methods. This book provides a comprehensive overview on the subject of infertility written by the leading authorities in this field. It covers topics including basic biological, cytological, and molecular studies, as well as common and uncommon syndromes. It is a must-read for human geneticists, endocrinologists, epidemiologists, zoologists, and counsellors in human genetics, infertility, and assisted reproduction.

Written by some of the best known POF experts from Germany, one of the leading countries in POF technology, this is the most comprehensive introduction and survey of POF data communication systems currently available. Half a decade after it was first published, this second edition has been completely revised and updated; it has doubled in size. It features recent experimental results, and more than 1000 figures, 600 references and numerous tables complete the text.

Infectious diseases are the leading cause of death globally, particularly among children and young adults. The spread of new pathogens and the threat of antimicrobial resistance pose particular challenges in combating these diseases. Major Infectious Diseases identifies feasible, cost-effective packages of interventions and strategies across delivery platforms to prevent and treat HIV/AIDS, other sexually transmitted infections, tuberculosis, malaria, adult febrile illness, viral hepatitis, and neglected tropical diseases. The volume emphasizes the need to effectively address emerging antimicrobial resistance, strengthen health systems, and increase access to care. The attainable goals are to reduce incidence, develop innovative approaches, and optimize existing tools in resource-constrained settings.

Polymer Optical Fibres: Fibre Types, Materials, Fabrication, Characterization, and Applications explores polymer optical fibers, specifically their materials, fabrication, characterization, measurement techniques, and applications. Optical effects, including light propagation, degrading effects of attenuation, scattering, and dispersion, are explained. Other important parameters like mechanical strength, operating temperatures, and processability are also described. Polymer optical fibers (POF) have a number of advantages over glass fibers, such as low cost, flexibility, low weight, electromagnetic immunity, good bandwidth, simple installation, and mechanical stability. - Provides systematic and comprehensive coverage of materials, fabrication, properties, measurement techniques, and applications of POF - Focuses on industry needs in communication, illumination and sensors, the automotive industry, and medical and biotechnology - Features input from leading experts in POF technology, with experience spanning optoelectronics, polymer, and textiles - Explains optical effects, including light propagation, degrading effects of attenuation, scattering, and dispersion

This book is a comprehensive guide to qualitative comparative analysis (QCA) using R. Using Boolean algebra to implement principles of comparison used by scholars engaged in the qualitative study of macro social phenomena, QCA acts as a bridge between the quantitative and the qualitative traditions. The QCA package for R, created by the author, facilitates QCA within a graphical user interface. This book provides the most current information on the latest version of the QCA package, which combines written commands with a cross-platform interface. Beginning with a brief introduction to the concept of QCA, this book moves from theory to calibration, from analysis to factorization, and hits on all the key areas of QCA in between. Chapters one through three are introductory, familiarizing the reader with R, the QCA package, and elementary set theory. The next few chapters introduce important applications of the package beginning with calibration, analysis of necessity, analysis of sufficiency, parameters of fit, negation and factorization, and the construction of Venn diagrams. The book concludes with extensions to the classical package, including temporal applications and panel data. Providing a practical introduction to an increasingly important research tool for the social sciences, this book will be indispensable for students, scholars, and practitioners interested in conducting qualitative research in political science, sociology, business and management, and evaluation studies.

The classic work on the evaluation of city form. What does the city's form actually mean to the people who live there? What can the city planner do to make the city's image more vivid and memorable to the city dweller? To answer these questions, Mr. Lynch, supported by studies of Los Angeles, Boston, and Jersey City, formulates a new criterion—imageability—and shows its potential value as a guide for the building and rebuilding of cities. The wide scope of this study leads to an original and vital method for the evaluation of city form. The architect, the planner, and certainly the city dweller will all want to read this book.

** WINNER OF THE ENGLISH PEN WRITERS IN TRANSLATION AWARD ** **LONG-LISTED FOR THE 2013 FRANK O'CONNOR INTERNATIONAL SHORT STORY AWARD** **BOOK OF THE MONTH IN THE SKINNY** A soldier with the ability to predict the future finds himself blackmailed by an insurgent into the ultimate act of terror… A deviser of crosswords survives a car-bomb attack, only to discover he is now haunted by one of its victims… Fleeing a robbery, a Baghdad shopkeeper falls into a deep hole, at the bottom of which sits a djinni and the corpse of a soldier from a completely different war… From legends of the desert to horrors of the forest, Blasim’s stories blend the fantastic with the everyday, the surreal with the all-too-real. Taking his cues from Kafka, his prose shines a dazzling light into the dark absurdities of Iraq’s recent past and the torments of its countless refugees. The subject of this, his second collection, is primarily trauma and the curious strategies human beings adopt to process it (including, of course, fiction). The result is a masterclass in metaphor – a new kind of story-telling, forged in the crucible of war, and just as shocking. 'At first, you receive Blasim with the kind of shocked applause you’d award a fairly transgressive stand-up. You’re quite elated. Then you stop reading it at bedtime. At his best, Blasim produces a corrosive mixture of broken lyricism, bitter irony and hyper-realism which topples into the fantastic and the quotidian in the same reading moment.' – M John Harrison 'Perhaps the best writer of Arabic fiction alive...' – The Guardian. 'Bolaño-esque in its visceral exuberance, and also Borgesian in its gnomic complexity... a master of metaphor.' – The Guardian.

This comprehensive reference combines the technological know-how from five centuries of industrial-scale brewing to meet the needs of a global economy. The editor and authors draw on the expertise gained in the world's most competitive beer market (Germany), where many of the current technologies were first introduced. Following a look at the history of beer brewing, the book goes on to discuss raw materials, fermentation, maturation and storage, filtration and stabilization, special production methods and beermix beverages. Further chapters investigate the properties and quality of beer, flavor stability, analysis and quality control, microbiology and certification, as well as physiology and toxicology. Such modern aspects as automation, energy and environmental protection are also considered. Regional processes and specialties are addressed throughout the entire book, making this a truly global resource on brewing.