This book is for business architects. "Expert systems based on ontogenetic maps" opens the possibilities to deal with the objective knowledge included in the ontogenetic maps for decision making. Unicist expert systems are second opinion systems to ensure the quality of business decisions in the field of diagnoses, strategies and business architecture. The unicist expert system uses ontogenetic maps that allow evaluating the functions involved and their validity, considering the threshold of "energy" that is necessary for each process. Every function is a business object in itself that has to be consistent with the rules of the unified field of the business and the evolution laws. The nature of adaptive systems in business demands the existence of catalysts, to accelerate processes and entropy inhibitors to maintain the focus of the energy that is being used. Catalysts and entropy inhibitors are necessary when a business process needs to generate additional value. Without them, the trend towards the actual value generation prevails. This book presents a real application of the expert system and its over-simplification in a "5-click Strategy" to be used in selling processes of differentiated products or services. The functionality of an expert system is its use to provide a second opinion diagnosis - to validate diagnoses, strategies and architecture -that integrates the necessary ontogenetic maps to define the possibility of developing successful actions.

International Encyclopedia of Human Geography, Second Edition, Fourteen Volume Set embraces diversity by design and captures the ways in which humans share places and view differences based on gender, race, nationality, location and other factors—in other words, the things that make people and places different. Questions of, for example, politics, economics, race relations and migration are introduced and discussed through a geographical lens. This updated edition will assist readers in their research by providing factual information, historical perspectives, theoretical approaches, reviews of literature, and provocative topical discussions that will stimulate creative thinking. Presents the most up-to-date and comprehensive coverage on the topic of human geography Contains extensive scope and depth of coverage Emphasizes how geographers interact with, understand and contribute to problem-solving in the contemporary world Places an emphasis on how geography is relevant in a social and interdisciplinary context

Encyclopedia of Infant and Early Childhood Development, Second Edition, provides a comprehensive entry point into the existing literature on child development in the fields of psychology, genetics, neuroscience and sociology. Featuring 171 chapters, across 3 volumes, this work helps readers understand these developmental changes, when they occur, why they occur, how they occur, and the factors that influence development. Although some medical information is included, the emphasis lies mainly in normal growth, primarily from a psychological perspective. Comprehensive and in-depth scholarly articles cover theoretical, applied and basic science topics, providing an interdisciplinary approach. All articles have been completely updated, making this resource ideal for a wide range of readers, including advanced undergraduate and graduate students, researchers and clinicians in developmental psychology, medicine, nursing, social science and early childhood education. Cutting-edge content that cover the period of neonates to age three Organized alphabetically by topic for ease of reference Provides in-depth scholarly articles, covering theoretical, applied and basic science Includes suggested readings at the end of each article

This book brings a new spatial analysis to gang territories through the concept of the gang assemblage- the variety of actors, contexts, and practices that create and maintain these spaces. This conceptualization helps overcome the tendency of gang literature to succumb to the gang territorial trap, the tendency to assume gang territories are fixed and static containers of gang life. Drawing on multi-sited qualitative fieldwork in central Canada, interviews with gang and non-gang-affiliated residents, police, and administrators show gang territories being made material through a wide variety of daily embodied practices. Recognizing the role of multiple actors encourages a relational ethics of accountability between bodies, practices, and place that challenges the often-naturalized connections between race, space, and crime. Understanding gang space as enacted through embodied material practices provides an alternative way to think through, trace, and disrupt these associations.

Contemporary philosophy of science analyzes psychology as a science with special features, because this discipline includes some specific philosophical problems – descriptive and normative, structural and dynamic. Some of these are particularly relevant both theoretically (casual explanation) and practically (the configuration of the psychological subject and its relations with psychiatry). Two central aspects in this book are the role of causality, especially conceived as intervention or manipulation, and the characterization of the psychological subject. This requires a clarification of scientific explanations in terms of causality in psychology, because characterizations of causality are quite different in epistemological and ontological terms. One of the most influential views is James Woodward’s approach to causality as intervention, which entails an analysis of its characteristics, new elements and limits. This means taking into account the structural and dynamic aspects included in causal cognition and psychological explanations. Psychology seen as special science also requires us to consider the scientific status of psychology and the psychological subject, which leads to limits of naturalism in psychology.

Written and edited by international leaders in the field, this book has, through two best-selling editions, been the place to turn for authoritative answers to your toughest challenges in clinical immunology. Now in full color and one single volume, the 3rd Edition brings you the very latest immunology knowledge - so you can offer your patients the best possible care. The user-friendly book and the fully searchable companion web site give you two ways to find the answers you need quickly...and regular online updates keep you absolutely current. Leading international experts equip you with peerless advice and global best practices to enhance your diagnosis and management of a full range of immunologic problems. A highly clinical focus and an extremely practical organization expedite access to the answers you need in your daily practice. Cutting-edge coverage of the human genome project, immune-modifier drugs, and many other vital updates keeps you at the forefront of your field. A new organization places scientific and clinical material side by side, to simplify your research and highlight the clinical relevance of the topics covered. A multimedia format allows you to find information conveniently, both inside the exceptionally user-friendly book and at the fully searchable companion web site. Regular updates online ensure that you'll always have the latest knowledge at your fingertips. Includes many new and improved illustrations and four color design. Your purchase entitles you to access the web site until the next edition is published, or until the current edition is no longer offered for sale by Elsevier, whichever occurs first. If the next edition is published less than one year after your purchase, you will be entitled to online access for one year from your date of purchase. Elsevier reserves the right to offer a suitable replacement product (such as a downloadable or CD-ROM-based electronic version) should access to the web site be discontinued.