Imacs 2000

This Handbook gives a comprehensive snapshot of a field at the intersection of mathematics and computer science with applications in physics, engineering and education. Reviews 67 software systems and offers 100 pages on applications in physics, mathematics, computer science, engineering chemistry and education.

High communication efforts and poor problem solving results due to restricted overview are two central issues in collaborative problem solving. This work addresses these issues by introducing the processes of agent melting and agent splitting that enable individual problem solving agents to continually and autonomously reconfigure and adapt themselves to the particular problem to be solved. The author provides a sound theoretical foundation of collaborative problem solving itself and introduces various new design concepts and techniques to improve its quality and efficiency, such as the multi-phase agreement finding protocol for external problem solving, the composable belief-desire-intention agent architecture, and the distribution-aware constraint specification architecture for internal problem solving. The practical relevance and applicability of the concepts and techniques provided are demonstrated by using medical appointment scheduling as a case study.

American Life in the 2000s takes a look at the major events that occurred throughout this decade and offers information on the demographics of the United States at the time. Readers will gain an understanding of the politics, conflicts, science, inventions, pop culture, fashion, and sports of the decade, and they will learn about the legacy the 2000s left behind. Features include a glossary, a timeline, references, websites, source notes, and an index. Aligned to Common Core Standards and correlated to state standards. Essential Library is an imprint of Abdo Publishing, a division of ABDO.

The pixelated rectangle we spend most of our day staring at in silence is not the television as many long feared, but the computer—the ubiquitous portal of work and personal lives. At this point, the computer is almost so common we don’t notice it in our view. It’s difficult to envision that not that long ago it was a gigantic, room-sized structure only to be accessed by a few inspiring as much awe and respect as fear and mystery. Now that the machine has decreased in size and increased in popular use, the computer has become a prosaic appliance, little-more noted than a toaster. These dramatic changes, from the daunting to the ordinary, are captured in Computer by design historian Paul Atkinson. Here, Atkinson chronicles the changes in physical design of the computer and shows how these changes in design are related to changes in popular attitude. Atkinson is fascinated by how the computer has been represented and promoted in advertising. For example, in contrast to ads from the 1970s and ’80s, today’s PC is very PC—genderless, and largely status free. Computer also considers the role of the computer as a cultural touchstone, as evidenced by its regular appearance in popular culture, including the iconography of the space age, HAL from 2001: A Space Odyssey, James Bond’s gadgetry, and Stars War and Star Trek. Computer covers many issues ignored by other histories of computing, which have focused on technology and the economics involved in their production, but rarely on the role of fashion in the physical design and promotion of computers and their general reception. The book will appeal to professionals and students of design and technology as well as those interested in the history of computers and how they have shaped—and been shaped by—our lives.

A mobile agent system could be attacked by malicious agents, platforms and third parties. Mobile agents simply offer greater opportunities for abuse and misuse, which broadens the scale of threats significantly. In addition, since mobile agents have some unique characteristics such as their mobility, security problems have become more complicated in these systems. These security problems have become a bottleneck in the development and maintenance of mobile agent systems, especially in security sensitive applications such as electronic commerce. This book introduces the concept and structure of mobile agent systems and discusses various attacks and countermeasures. The emphasis is on the formal modeling and analysis of secure mobile agent systems and their applications.

Multiscale Signal Analysis and Modeling presents recent advances in multiscale analysis and modeling using wavelets and other systems. This book also presents applications in digital signal processing using sampling theory and techniques from various function spaces, filter design, feature extraction and classification, signal and image representation/transmission, coding, nonparametric statistical signal processing, and statistical learning theory.

Two guys named Steve, working in a garage, created a prototype computer designed to be different in a way no one thought possible: It would be easy to use. Those two Steves, one now a billionaire and still at the head of Apple, not only succeeded with that product, but they also broke ground in the business world in ways few thought possible: They proved you could not only have fun at work, but pursuing a capitalist dream could be hip. How did Apple do it? How did it go from making computers that made a difference but not much of a dent in the overall market to creating a device (the iPod) and a music service (iTunes) that has changed the way we buy and experience music? And how did the Macintosh and its successors capture the hearts and minds of computer users so deeply that being a Mac person makes you a member of a special club? That's what this book is all about. As author Jason D. O'Grady shows, Apple is a rare company—one that is not afraid to think about a future that does not exist and turn it into reality. Critics have written Apple off time and again, yet it rises from the ashes to astound the critics and delight its customers. That's not luck or happenstance—it's vision, dedication, and persistence. Besides delighting Apple aficionados, this book will inspire students eager to launch a business career or work in the technology sector. Apple has never been afraid to chart its own path, and readers will learn what makes the company tick.

Both versions cover all introductory IT concepts topics and are appropriate for a full semester course, with or without a lab component. The comprehensive version offers more depth on business systems and societal issues. Designed to accommodate the computer competency needs of students from a broad spectrum of disciplines and interests, this best-selling text/supplements package provides an exceptionally well-illustrated overview of computing concepts and IT applications all in a format that allows instructors the flexibility to meet their courses' education objectives. It strikes a good balance between efficiency of presentation and content that holds students' interest and invites learning. Only topics critical to general information technology competency are covered in order to provide the breadth of topics necessary to the understanding that is applicable today and in the future.