Bøker utgitt av Springer International Publishing

This book sheds light on marketing effectiveness and accountability marketing in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Using a multi-method investigation, it includes a knowledge inquiry of marketing knowledge and customer knowledge, a qualitative inquiry utilizing semi structured interviews and thematic data analysis, a quantitative analysis utilizing survey and structural equations modelling, and a case study that employs both narrative (storytelling) data analysis and an accountability audit with a techno marketing SME.   SMEs generally face financial constraints that limit their ability to carry out the marketing function. Addressing this limitation, the author presents conceptual models based on the resource based view and the knowledge based view to show how marketing capabilities can lead to performance improvement in the SMEs. The lessons learnt provide guidance in the practice of marketing for small and medium firms to be more effective in their marketing investments and make wiser marketing decisions. This book will prove useful for both researchers and practitioners by extending knowledge on marketing performance management in the SMEs.

This book constitutes the refereed proceedings of the 15th International Baltic Conference on Digital Business and Intelligent Systems, Baltic DB&IS 2022, held in Riga, Latvia, in July 2022. The 16 revised full papers and 1 short paper presented were carefully reviewed and selected from 42 submissions. The papers are centered around topics like architectures and quality of information systems, artificial intelligence in information systems, data and knowledge engineering, enterprise and information systems engineering, security of information systems.

This book constitutes the refereed proceedings of the 15th International Conference on Graph Transformation, ICGT 2022, which took place Nantes, France in July 2022.The 10 full papers and 1 tool paper presented in this book were carefully reviewed and selected from 19 submissions. The conference focuses on describing new unpublished contributions in the theory and applications of graph transformation as well as tool presentation papers that demonstrate main new features and functionalities of graph-based tools.

The second edition of this atlas focuses on imaging methods and techniques, new diagnostic concepts and therapeutic approaches in management of pancreatic neoplasms. Although interest in pancreatic pathology is very high in the radiological and gastroenterological communities, less is known about it than about, for example, liver pathology. Diagnosis depends on the structure of the pancreatic lesion, which can be directly visualized in US, CT or MR images.The book's focus is very much on the imaging and pathological appearances, with most of the text concentrated at the beginning of the book followed by images gallery. A comprehensive overview is provided of typical and atypical presentations and diverse aspects of common and rare pancreatic tumors, including ductal adenocarcinomas with dedicated chapter to ductal adenocarcinoma downstaging, neuroendocrine neoplasms, cystic pancreatic neoplasms and intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasms. The Verona "e;Pancreas Centre,"e; the first institute of its kind in Italy and one of very few in the world, pursues an interdisciplinary approach to treating the problems of this organ, focusing on the patient, on research, and on teaching. A dedicated center that can look back on 40 years of tradition, many of its respected specialists have made essential contributions in surgery, gastroenterology, oncology, pathology, and radiology. Given its scope, this atlas will be an invaluable asset, helping radiologists understand the underlying pathology and helping pancreatic pathologists understand the imaging translation.

Drawing on theories of whiteness, stigma, identity formation and identity work, this monograph aims to explore the ways in which racial categories continue to structure the lives of professionals of colour in South Africa. Using a Bourdieusian lens, it draws on personal narratives of professionals in the fields of accounting, engineering and industrial psychology, examining how stigma and whiteness continue to constrain their identity development in the public, professional and personal spaces they inhabit.Examining the unique post-Apartheid situation of South Africa, this book will be valuable reading to scholars interested in the intersection of race, professions and organisation.

This book volume crafts an exciting, original account on the changes and requirements on managing human resources within the context of the new normal. Chapters in this book report on current research on the key constructs and processes underlying the management of human resources, both on an organisational strategic level as well as an individual employee level. Chapters compare current research trends in terms of future potential directions for the management of human resources within the context of the new normal. The book also critically evaluates the relevance, applicability and utility of the research findings and theoretical premises in various classical, current and potential emerging issues for research and practice in the smart digital technological world of work for human resource management. This volume approaches the concept of managing human resources with the new normal working context from a number of different angles. The authors have categorized them as conceptualizing human resource management in the context of the new normal (Part I), the critical issues in understanding the dynamics of strategic human resources management (Part II), critical issues in understanding the impact of the new normal on the psychology of employees (Part III), and the impact of the new normal on individuals with special needs (Part IV). The book ends in Part V of the volume, with an integrated reflection and conclusion on emerging issues for research and practice. The primary audience for this book volume is advanced undergraduate and postgraduate students in human resource management, as well as scholars in both academic and new normal working contexts. Human resource management practitioners will also have an interest in this book volume.

This book constitutes the refereed proceedings of the Third International Conference on Next Generation Arithmetic, CoNGA 2022, which was held in Singapore, during March 1-3, 2022.  The 8 full papers included in this book were carefully reviewed and selected from 12 submissions. They deal with emerging technologies for computer arithmetic focusing on the demands of both AI and high-performance computing. 

This book offers a variety of theoretical and methodological approaches to place attachment from a European perspective. Starting from a dynamic, relational, and participatory concept of place attachment, the book discusses place making and place attachment processes through place-based development and community place-driven actions. It also presents examples of creating place attachment through nature- and culture-based contexts and focuses on how sustainable planning and territorial identities enhance place attachment. Finally, this book presents and discusses (re)constructing place attachment within transition processes and through strategic solutions for urban recovery and regeneration of (post)-industrial areas. By considering the social, environmental, economic, and political effects of building, strengthening and maintaining place attachment, this book is a valuable read for all those working with and interested in learning more about place attachment: geographers, landscape planners, sociologists, psychologists, environmental and political scientists, and members of community movements.

This book reconnects energy research with the radical, reflexive, and transformative approaches of Environmental Justice. Global patterns of energy production and use are disrupting the ecosystems that sustain all life, disproportionately affecting marginalized groups. Addressing such injustices, this book examines how energy relates to structural issues of exploitation, racism, colonialism, extractivism, the commodification of work, and the systemic devaluing of diverse 'others.' The result is a new agenda for critical energy research that builds on a growing global movement of environmental justice activism and scholarship. Throughout the book the author reframes 'transitions' as collaborative projects of justice that demand structural change and societal shifts to more equitable and reciprocal ways of living. This book will be an invaluable resource for students, scholars, and practitioners interested in transforming energy systems and working collectively to build just planetary futures.

This book examines new technologies (device and pharmacologic) that have evolved over the past few years in treating peripheral arterial disease. Chapters offer optimal strategies to treat PAD, supported by peer-reviewed data. The pillars of this strategy will focus on (a) changing vessel compliance to allow better lumen expansion, (b) less recoil and dissections, and (c) less bailout stenting. Chapters also review embolic protection devices and apply the adjunctive use of anti-proliferative therapy to maintain good long term outcomes. In addition, the book reviews drug coated balloons and drug eluting stent technologies and other means of drug delivery into the vessel wall. The goal of this book is to discuss all these emerging technologies under the strategy of treating patients with the focus on both acute and long term outcomes. Featuring world renown experts, this book offers a critical and comprehensive overview of the current data and future directions that would pave the way for optimal PAD management.Peripheral Arterial Interventions is an essential resource for physicians, residents, fellows, and medical students in cardiology, radiology, vascular surgery, primary care, and health promotion and disease prevention as well as internal and vascular medicine specialists.

This casebook details key information and findings in PET oncology imaging. PET CT has been increasingly utilized in clinical practice for diagnostic evaluation, initial staging and restaging of malignancies, and plays an important role in optimal patient care. Although F-18 fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) is still the dominant radioactive tracer in oncology PET imaging services, a handful of new tracers have recently gained the US FDA approval, such as Ga-68 or Cu-64 DOTATATE for carcinoid/neuroendocrine tumors, and F-18 Fluciclovine (AXUMIN) and PSMA for recurrent or metastatic prostate cancers. Clinical interpretation of PET CT oncology scans is often challenging, due to the specific nature of these positron emission radioactive tracers, variable background tracer activities in different organs/tissues with normal variants, complex tumor biology, and wide-ranged treatment responses, especially with emerging and new molecular and immune therapy agents. This book serves as a hands-on casebook on how to interpret oncologic PET CT studies in clinical services with a special emphasis on phenotypic nature of oncologic imaging.Clinical cases are presented in a way that is familiar to physicians from their training in nuclear medicine services. Each case starts with key clinical information or background, followed by well-displayed PET CT images, along with pertinent questions highlighting the key findings and explanation, as well as the importance in diagnosis and clinical implications on separate pages. Clinical and imaging key findings and final impressions are highlighted throughout along with qualitative and quantitative demonstrations of phenotypic nature of modern PET imaging.Written by two nuclear medicine PET specialists with decades of first-hand clinical experience, this is an ideal guide for nuclear medicine attending physicians, diagnostic radiologists, medical and surgical oncologists, and relevant trainees.

This book aims to introduce recent advances in IoT and its applications for smart environments. The state of the art is reviewed with a focus on the technologies, applications, challenges, and opportunities. At this stage, a comprehensive understanding of the formal and practical applications of IoT in the different scenarios of smart environments is necessary to support future research. Therefore, the main contribution of this book is a comprehensive study of the most recent proposals for smart environments. In addition, this book synthesizes existing information and highlights common threads and gaps that lead to new and complex areas of future research. The book covers a range of major research subjects which will foster future implementations. The topics include smart learning environments, crowdsensing applications, participatory citizen sensing, multimodal perception systems and security challenges. This book seeks to provide a valuable framework for future research projects by expounding the topic to academics, engineers, and industry professionals, which is necessary for the design of future IoT architectures for smart environments.

As a single-source volume on intraoperative neurophysiological monitoring (IOM), previous editions of this celebrated resource amounted to a mission statement from the pioneer generation in intraoperative neurophysiology, converting insights, techniques, and perspectives into tools providing clinical utility for the assessment of the nervous system in patients who could not be assessed by a standard neurological examination. Now directed by a new generation of experts, this thoroughly illustrated Third Edition is updated with new case material, images, videos, practice guidelines, references, and technologies, and is intended for those who encounter IOM in the operating room and intensive care unit, including anesthesiologists, technologists, neurophysiologists, surgeons, and nurses, as well as graduate students and trainees. Offering topical, applicable information, this accessible reference and teaching tool provides practical knowledge to help students, trainees, and team members better understand one another's roles, thereby improving patient safety and care.

This book explores the relationship between the body, ecology, place, and site-specific performance. The book is situated within arts-based research, particularly within embodied inquiry and poetic inquiry. It explores a theoretical foundation for integration of these areas, primarily to share the lived experiences, poetry and dance which have come out of decades of sharing site-specific performances. 

The book outlines post-Soviet style of health management in Central Asia. Regional studies on Central Asia to date have focused on states, politics, religion and inter-ethnic relations but not on the health system within the region. Soviet-style policies have also covered only other aspects relevant for the region. This book highlights the public health situation of the region with a focus on drug abuse, HIV/AIDS in the context of increased mobility, and drug trafficking routes which became even more porous after the break-up of the Soviet Union.Based on a qualitative study, the empirical data in the book was collected during long-term fieldwork conducted in Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan in 2010-2011 as well as shorter stays in Uzbekistan between 2012-2016. The analysis of the empirical material largely draws on the works of Foucault, particularly his concept of biopolitics when analyzing Soviet-style health management that is still practiced in the region. Applying the Foucauldian genealogical method, this study has been structured to trace the genealogy of epidemics to understand the historical path of drug abuse in the region as well as the discursive genealogy of drug politics and drug abuse. Applying the same genealogical method of Foucault, the formative and discursive trajectory of the institution of Uchyot was traced to contextualize the health governance methods that have historical legacy of Soviet-style governance and control of the total population.Drugs and Public Health in Post-Soviet Central Asia: Soviet-Style Health Management is a unique resource for academic specialists, practitioners/professionals, and advanced undergraduate and graduate students in public health, as well as a range of scholars and professionals in sociology, political science, anthropology, and anyone with an interest in the Central Asia region, drug addiction, or HIV. The book also could appeal to international donors in the field of HIV/drug addiction who are working in the region.

This monograph provides a comprehensive and rigorous exposition of the basic concepts and most important modern research results concerning blockchain and its applications. The book includes the required cryptographic fundamentals underpinning the blockchain technology, since understanding of the concepts of cryptography involved in the design of blockchain is necessary for mastering the security guarantees furnished by blockchain. It also contains an introduction to cryptographic primitives, and separate chapters on bitcoin, ethereum and smart contracts, public blockchain, private blockchain, cryptocurrencies, and blockchain applications.This volume is of great interest to active researchers who are keen to develop novel applications of blockchain in the field of their investigatio. Further, it is also beneficial for  industry practitioners as well as undergraduate students in computing and information technology.

This book preserves and scientifically interprets the African foreknowledge on water resources management. It offers insight into the relevance of the traditional knowledge and practices to modern approaches on sustainable water management. The African continent has partially preserved its natural habitat for centuries. In this book, this knowledge is combined with the current scientific understanding. The traditional practices are categorized as: i) water harvesting, ii) water transportation, iii) water storage and conservation, iv) water treatments, v) myths and folk stories about water management or conservation, vi) water resource management systems, and vii) soil-water-forest conservation/management systems sub-topics. The findings presented here are in line with SDG 6, which aims at ensuring availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all by the year 2030.

This book presents an original empirical study on the linguistic repertoires of post-2008 Italian migrants living in London. The author interrogates how migrants' trajectories and their relation with their homeland's migration history are displayed through the engagement of new multilingual practices, such as translanguaging, and how new identities are negotiated during conversational acts. The book will be of interest to students and scholars of Sociolinguistics and Migration Studies.  

This book provides an essential compilation of relevant and cutting edge academic and industry work on key cybersecurity applications topics. Further, it introduces cybersecurity applications to the public at large to develop their cybersecurity applications knowledge and awareness. The book concentrates on a wide range of advances related to Cybersecurity Applications which include, among others, applications in the areas of Data Science, Internet of Things, Artificial Intelligence, Robotics, Web, High-Tech Systems, Cyber-Physical Systems, Mobile Devices, Digital Media, and Cloud Computing. It introduces the concepts, techniques, methods, approaches and trends needed by cybersecurity application specialists and educators for keeping current their cybersecurity applications knowledge. Further, it provides a glimpse of future directions where cybersecurity applications are headed. The book can be a valuable resource to applied cybersecurity experts towards their professional development efforts and to students as a supplement to their cybersecurity courses.

This book constructs a history of Newtown Creek's industrial expansion during the period that began in the 1840s and continued through the early years of the 20th century. In that period, the production of reagent chemicals and refined materials near the center of modern-day New York City grew steadily, as practitioners, alert to European advances in chemical science, developed and applied increasingly sophisticated technologies. Innovations in methods of production, ready access to domestic and international markets, and sustained growth in volumes of production at Newtown Creek in the late 19th century had profound consequences for the practice of industrial chemistry in the United States and for the economic vitality of the City of New York. Industrial practice progressed from the recovery of animal tissues to the refining of crude petroleum and the production of high-purity copper and other metals from mineral ores. With attention to each company's technical expertise and principal products, this book examines the interdependence of the chemicals- and materials-producing industries that thrived along Newtown Creek's shores. The author recounts Newtown Creek's industrial history alongside the stories of well-known New Yorkers - Peter Cooper, Charles Pratt, John D. and William Rockefeller - and other less celebrated or less notorious characters.This book provides a valuable account of New York's history in the manufacture of reagent chemicals and refined fuels and metals and will appeal to researchers, scholars and historians interested in the early years of industrial chemistry.

This collection of essays brings together a selection of some of the most important studies of Professor Ivo Assad Ibri about the work of Charles Sanders Peirce. In the last decades, Prof. Ibri made important contributions to Peirce studies by showing that the various individual aspects of Peirce's work actually form a coherent philosophical system, a metaphysical architecture, as he describes it in his previous book Kosmos Noetos (Springer, 2017). Now this new book brings together a selection of 24 articles and book chapters originally published in both Portuguese and English on different topics and aspects of Peirce's work, such as philosophy of art, heuristic logic, theories of beliefs and habits, objective idealism, pragmatism and pragmaticism. By bringing together this collection of essays in a single publication, Semiotics and Pragmatism: Theoretical Interfaces will be a valuable source for scholars interested in Prof. Ibri's unique contributions to the study of the philosophy of Charles Sanders Peirce. "e;In recognizing Ivo Assad Ibri as one the leading exponents of qualitative interpretations of Peirce in the world today, I refer especially to Ibri's concentration on Peirce's later-phase metaphysical writings. Ibri's expertise will be seen to consist in his precise reformulations of Peirce's full-fledged philosophy, not just pursuing specialized minor topics."e; David A. Dilworth Professor of Philosophy, Stonybrook University"e;Ivo Ibri's collected essays brims with clarifying insights from beginning to end. He manages to reveal plenty of aspects of Peirce's thought from angles the traditional scholarship has not been equipped to notice. How not to miss such kairotic theoretical opportunities and how to exploit them to heuristic advantage is a lesson well taught in this outstanding book."e; Andr De TienneProfessor of Philosophy and Director of the Peirce Edition Project, Indiana University

Sustainable food production is a global challenge with respect to climate change and an ever-increasing world population. Conventional crop production using agrochemicals presents human health and environmental challenges. Rising concerns about environmental sustainability have increased attention toward improved, efficient, and sustainable means of crop production. Various strategies are employed in enhancing crop production to adapt and mitigate climate change and ensure food security. The future of food production relies on improving productivity without compromising long-term productivity and environmental sustainability. Feeding the ever-increasing world population would require concerted efforts by all stakeholders to combat the impact of climate change and numerous ecological challenges facing food production. Hence, innovative technologies and methods are indispensable in mitigating the effects on food security. The book looks at the current challenges and solutions, from an African perspective, regarding food safety and health management, food security and nutrition, climate change and sustainable food production, and forest resources and food security. The target audience is scientists, graduate students, researchers, academicians, and professionals in food production for sustainable development and ecosystem management. This book will also be helpful to policymakers and specialists in framing future feasible agro-ecosystem policies.

This textbook introduces readers to essential tools, techniques and methods for intertemporal and strategic modeling in economics. It presents a variety of analytical models covering both dynamic processes and strategic interaction. Students will learn the basic mechanisms associated with the intertemporal approach, on the one hand, and game theory, i.e., the strategic approach, on the other. In addition, a wide range of applications are explored, including growth models, labor markets, international trade, and individual decision-making. Intended for upper undergraduate and graduate students in economics and related fields with a background in mathematics and calculus, this textbook provides a comprehensive introduction to economic modeling and its applications. By avoiding excessive formalism and exploring straightforward examples and applications, it is optimally suited for graduate courses in economics and finance.

The objective of the book is to provide materials to demonstrate the development of TOPSIS and to serve as a handbook. It contains the basic process of TOPSIS, numerous variant processes, property explanations, theoretical developments, and illustrative examples with real-world cases. Possible readers would be graduate students, researchers, analysts, and professionals who are interested in TOPSIS, a distance-based algorithm, and who would like to compare TOPSIS with other MCDM methods. The book serves as a research reference as well as a self-learning book with step-by-step illustrations for the MCDM community.

This volume presents the beautiful memoirs of Euler, Lagrange and Lambert on geography, translated into English and put into perspective through explanatory and historical essays as well as commentaries and mathematical notes. These works had a major impact on the development of the differential geometry of surfaces and they deserve to be studied, not only as historical documents, but most of all as a rich source of ideas.

This book introduces and critically appraises the main proposals for how to understand quantum mechanics, namely the Copenhagen interpretation, spontaneous collapse, Bohmian mechanics, many-worlds, and others. The author makes clear what are the crucial problems, such as the measurement problem, related to the foundations of quantum mechanics and explains the key arguments like the Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen argument and Bell's proof of nonlocality. He discusses and clarifies numerous topics that have puzzled the founding fathers of quantum mechanics and present-day students alike, such as the possibility of hidden variables, the collapse of the wave function, time-of-arrival measurements, explanations of the symmetrization postulate for identical particles, or the nature of spin. Several chapters are devoted to extending the different approaches to relativistic space-time and quantum field theory. The book is self-contained and is intended for graduate students and researchers who want to step into the fundamental aspects of quantum physics. Given its clarity, it is accessible also to advanced undergraduates and contains many exercises and examples to master the subject.

COVID-19 had a global impact on health, communities, and the economy. As a result of COVID-19, music festivals, gigs, and events were canceled or postponed across the world. This directly affected the incomes and practices of many artists and the revenue for many entities in the music business. Despite this crisis, however, there are pre-existing trends in the music business - the rise of the streaming economy, technological change (virtual and augmented reality, blockchain, etc.), and new copyright legislation. Some of these trends were impacted by the COVID-19 crisis while others were not.This book addresses these challenges and trends by following a two-pronged approach: the first part focuses on the impact of COVID-19 on the music business, and the second features general perspectives. Throughout both parts, case studies bring various themes to life. The contributors address issues within the music business before and during COVID-19. Using various critical approaches for studying the music business, this research-based book addresses key questions concerning music contexts, rights, data, and COVID-19. Rethinking the music business is a valuable study aid for undergraduate and postgraduate students in subjects including the music business, cultural economics, cultural management, creative and cultural industries studies, business and management studies, and media and communications. 

This book provides a guide to the principles and practice of living kidney donation. Concise and well-structured chapters discuss the ethics of living kidney donation, medical evaluation of kidney donors, donor nephrectomy surgery, and long-term outcomes of transplantation, along with broader medical issues related to cardiology, surgery, and anesthesia.Living Kidney Donation: A Practical Guide aims to give readers the essential information required for undertaking living kidney donation and is relevant to nephrologists, transplant surgeons, and healthcare professionals working in renal transplantation.

This book provides readers with expert knowledge on the design of fast charging infrastructures and their planning in smart cities and communities to support autonomous transportation. The recent development of fast charging infrastructures using hybrid energy systems is examined, along with aspects of connected and autonomous vehicles (CAV) and their integration within transportation networks and city infrastructures. The book looks at challenges and opportunities for autonomous transportation, including connected and autonomous vehicles, shuttles, and their technology development and deployment within smart communities. Intelligent control strategies, architectures, and systems are also covered, along with intelligent data centers that ensure effective transportation networks during normal and emergency situations. Planning strategies are presented to demonstrate the resilient transportation infrastructures, and optimized performance is discussed in view of performance indicators and requirements specifications, as well as regulations and standards.  

This book constitutes the proceedings of the 19th International Conference on Detection of Intrusions and Malware, and Vulnerability Assessment, DIMVA 2022, held in Cagliari, Italy, in June - July 2021. The 10 full papers and 1 short paper presented in this volume were carefully reviewed and selected from 39 submissions.