The purpose of this book is to focus on ethical issues associated with captive breeding programs, especially Species Survival Plans, but to do so while recognizing that these ethical issues can be fully understood only in their broader conservation and social context. While we need to explore concerns regarding the welfare of animals maintained in captivity for breeding programs, we must also recognize that a comprehensive understanding of those ethical dilemmas will require a broader exploration of the role of captive breeding programs in conservation, and also the entire role of zoos and aquariums in modern society..

This new edition offers a variety of clearly written and readily accessible articles from the Smithsonian's highly acclaimed, award-winning publication AnthroNotes. The articles reveal the richness and breadth of anthropology, covering not only the fundamental subjects but also the changing perspectives of anthropologists over the 150-year history of their field. 54 b/w illustrations.

Why does agency -- the capacity to make choices and to act in the world -- matter to us? Why is it meaningful that our intentions have effects in the world, that they reflect our sense of identity, that they embody what we value? What kinds of motivations are available for political agency and judgment in an age that lacks the enthusiasm associated with the great emancipatory movements for civil rights and gender equality? What are the conditions for the possibility of being an effective agent when the meaning of democracy has become less transparent?
($68.00)

The World We Want compares the future world that Enlightenment intellectuals had hoped for with our own world at present. In what respects do the two worlds differ, and why are they so different? To what extent is and isn't our world the world they wanted, and to what extent do we today still want their world? Unlike previous philosophical critiques and defenses of the Enlightenment, the present study focuses extensively on the relevant historical and empirical record first, by examining carefully what kind of future Enlightenment intellectuals actually hoped for; second, by tracking the different legacies of their central ideals over the past two centuries.

For a given electoral system, what average number and sizes of parties and government duration can we expect? Predicting Party Sizes is the first book to make specific predictions that agree with world averages. The basic factors are the numbers of seats in the assembly and in the average electoral district. While previous models tell us only the direction in which to change the electoral system, the present ones also tell us by how much they must be changed so as to obtain the desired change in average number of parties and cabinet duration. Hence, combined with known particularities of a country, they can be used for informed institutional design.
The book is useful to three types of readers: political science students learning the basics of electoral systems and their political consequences; practitioners of politics who consider changing the electoral laws; and researchers intent on connecting electoral and party systems. The book is structured accordingly. Chapters start with advice and recipes for practicing politicians, in non-technical language. The main text gives students an overview of electoral systems, worldwide, and supplies evidence for models that tie simple electoral systems (First-Past-The-Post and List Proportional Representation) to the number and sizes of parties and government duration. Chapter appendices present derivations of these models and other more technical issues of interest to researchers.
($99.00)

Learn with pictures, not words. Most computer books contain over 50,000 words. In Pictures books contain one-tenth as many.

Digital image processing and machine vision have grown considerably during the last few decades. Of the various techniques, developed so far, splines play a significant role in many of them. This book deals with various image processing and machine vision problems efficiently with splines and includes: the significance of Bernstein Polynomial in splines, detailed coverage of Beta-splines applications which are relatively new, Splines in motion tracking, various deformative models and their uses.
Finally the book covers wavelet splines which are efficient and effective in different image applications.

Technical problems often lead to differential equations with piecewise-smooth right-hand sides. Problems in mechanical engineering, for instance, violate the requirements of smoothness if they involve collisions, finite clearances, or stick–slip phenomena. Systems of this type can display a large variety of complicated bifurcation scenarios that still lack a detailed description. This book presents some of the fascinating new phenomena that one can observe in piecewise-smooth dynamical systems. The practical significance of these phenomena is demonstrated through a series of well-documented and realistic applications to switching power converters, relay systems, and different types of pulse-width modulated control systems. Other examples are derived from mechanical engineering, digital electronics, and economic business-cycle theory.
The topics considered in the book include abrupt transitions associated with modified period-doubling, saddle-node and Hopf bifurcations, the interplay between classical bifurcations and border-collision bifurcations, truncated bifurcation scenarios, period-tripling and -quadrupling bifurcations, multiple-choice bifurcations, new types of direct transitions to chaos, and torus destruction in nonsmooth systems.
In spite of its orientation towards engineering problems, the book addresses theoretical and numerical problems in sufficient detail to be of interest to nonlinear scientists in general.
($119.00)

Between Christ and His Angels; and Satan and His Angels.

Many advances have been made recently in metaheuristic methods, from theory to applications. The editors, both leading experts in this field, have assembled a team of researchers to contribute 21 chapters organized into parts on simulated annealing, tabu search, ant colony algorithms, general-purpose studies of evolutionary algorithms, applications of evolutionary algorithms, and various metaheuristics.
The book gathers contributions related to the following topics: theoretical developments in metaheuristics; adaptation of discrete metaheuristics to continuous optimization; performance comparisons of metaheuristics; cooperative methods combining different approaches; parallel and distributed metaheuristics for multiobjective optimization; software implementations; and real-world applications.
This book is suitable for practitioners, researchers and graduate students in disciplines such as optimization, heuristics, operations research, and natural computing.

The Photoshop CS3 Restoration and Retouching Bible is a full-color comprehensive reference to retouching and restoring photographs using Adobe Photoshop CS3. Written by an Adobe Certified Expert and Adobe Certified Instructor in Photoshop CS & CS2, Mark Fitzgerald, the Photoshop CS3 Restoration and Retouching Bible provides training, tips, and techniques for amateur to professional photographers who want to complete expert quality photo restorations and retouchings.
The book begins by reviewing the fundamentals of working with digital images - covering adjusting image brightness and contrast, working with color, understanding RAW and high-bit files, working with layers, and getting organized. Fitzgerald guides readers through all of the relevant Photoshop tools and techniques including a full chapter on creating flexibility with layer masks. A robust four-chapter section on rescuing damaged photos enables readers to bring their damaged images back to life. The final section of the book focuses on adding the final touches to images - retouching, with hands-on examples of retouching portraits and architectural projects.

Teens love it. Parents hate it. Librarians are confused by it; and patrons are demanding it. Libraries have begun purchasing both manga and anime, particularly for their teen collections. But the sheer number of titles available can be overwhelming, not to mention the diversity and quirky cultural conventions. In order to build a collection, it is important to understand the media and its cultural nuances. Many librarians have been left adrift, struggling to understand this unique medium while trying to meet patron demands as well as protests. This book gives the novice background information necessary to feel confident in selecting, working with, and advocating for manga and anime collections; and it offers more experienced librarians some fresh insights and ideas for programming and collections. In 2003 the manga (Japanese comics) market was the fastest growing area of pop culture, with 75-100% growth to an estimated market size of $100 million retail. The growth has continued with a 40-50% sales increase in bookstores in recent years. Teens especially love this highly visual, emotionally charged and action-packed media imported from Japan, and its sister media, anime (Japanese animation); and libraries have begun purchasing both. Chock full of checklists and sidebars highlighting key points, this book includes: a brief history of anime and manga in Japan and in the West; a guide to visual styles and cues; a discussion of common themes and genres unique to manga and anime; their intended audiences; cultural differences in format and content; multicultural trends that manga and anime readers embrace and represent; and programming and event ideas. It also includes genre breakdowns and annotated lists of recommended titles, with a focus on the best titles in print and readily available, particularly those appropriate to preteen and teen readers. Classic and benchmark titles are also mentioned as appropriate. A glossary and a list of "frequently asked questions" complete the volume.