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This monograph presents the results of over 10 years of paleontological and geological survey in the Baynunah Formation of the United Arab Emirates. Exposed widely in western Abu Dhabi Emirate, the Baynunah Formation and its fossils provide the only record of terrestrial environments and evolution in the Arabian Peninsula during the late Miocene epoch (12-5 Ma).This volume describes new fossils collected since 2002, presented systematically by taxon, and including mammals, reptiles, and invertebrates, as well as fossil trackways. The discoveries are framed within the results of new geological, geochemical, and geochrononological analyses, providing an updated and synthetic view of the age, environments, and biogeographic relationships of this important fossil assemblage.

This volume deals with chemical modification, structure-property relationship, biological interaction and biomedical applications of chitosan and its chemically modified derivatives. The chapters of this volume provide an overview of the structural comparison of chitosan with other sugar-based biopolymers, a different type of strategy used in chemical modification of chitosan to interact with metal ions and to enhance antimicrobial activity. The chapters further discuss the development of functionalized chitosan hydrogels, films, scaffolds and composites that have the potential to be used in food packaging, enhancing saltiness, biosensors and wound dressing. In addition the fabrication and biological properties of chitosan and its derivatives-based nanofibers are presented. Another important aspect covered in this volume is that of the interaction of chitosan with blood, platelet-rich plasma and stem cells. Finally, this volume presents the current challenges in the development of biomedical products based on chitosan and its derivatives. The volume will be of interest to chemists, material science, biological science and biomaterial scientists can able to understand structure-property relationship, biological interaction and biomedical applications of chitosan and its derivatives.

This book contains the research report of the DFG Research Unit FOR 1845 (2014-2020) of the Universities of Bremen and Hannover. The thematic focus lies on speeding up ultra-precision machining technology by following a holistic approach to high-performance cutting. This includes ultra-precision milling at high spindle speeds (>10000 rpm), precision tool setting mechanisms for multi-cutting-edge diamond milling tools, magnetic levitation technology for high velocity feed axes, and dedicated control strategies for error identification and compensation at high speeds. Furthermore, automation and measurement aspects of the machine setup process especially for precision balancing of the spindle rotors are presented. Finally, it is demonstrated that how the developed technologies may be integrated into a common machine tool setup.  The target audience primarily comprises research experts and practitioners in production engineering, but the book may also be of interest to graduate students alike.

This volume highlights the latest advances, innovations, and applications in the field of fibre-reinforced concrete (FRC), as presented by scientists and engineers at the RILEM-fib X International Symposium on Fibre Reinforced Concrete (BEFIB), held in Valencia, Spain, on September 20-22, 2021. It discusses a diverse range of topics concerning FRC: technological aspects, nanotechnologies related with FRC, mechanical properties, long-term properties, analytical and numerical models, structural design, codes and standards, quality control, case studies, Textile-Reinforced Concrete, Geopolymers and UHPFRC.After the symposium postponement in 2020, this new volume concludes the publication of the research works and knowledge of FRC in the frame of BEFIB from 2020 to 2021 with the successful celebration of the hybrid symposium BEFIB 2021. The contributions present traditional and new ideas that will open novel research directions and foster multidisciplinary collaboration between different specialists.

As drivers of climate action enter the fourth decade of what has become a multi-stage race, Net Zero has emerged as the dominant organizing principle. Hundreds of corporations and investors worldwide, together responsible for assets in the tens of trillions of dollars, are lining-up for the UN Race to Zero. This latest stage in the race to save civilization from heat, drought, fires, and floods, is defined by steering toward zeroing out greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.Settling Climate Accounts probes the practice of Net Zero finance. It elucidates both the state of play and a set of directions that help form judgements about whether Net Zero is going to carry climate action far enough. The book delves into technical analyses and activates the reader's imagination with narrative accounts of climate action past, present, and future. Settling Climate Accounts is edited and authored by Stanford University faculty and researchers. The first part of the book investigates the rough edges of Net Zero in practice, exploring questions of hedging risk, Scope 3 emissions, greenwashing, and the business of asset management. The second half looks at states, markets, and transitions through the lenses of blended finance, offsets, debt, and securitization. The editors tease out possible solutions and raise further questions about the adequacy and reach of the Net Zero agenda. To effectively navigate the road ahead, the editors call out the need for accountability and ask: who is in charge of making Net Zero add up?Settling Climate Accounts offers context and foundation to ground the rapidly evolving practice of Net Zero finance. Targeted at seasoned practitioners, newly activated leaders, educators, and students of climate action the world over, this book embraces the complexity of climate action and, in so doing, proposes to animate and drive hope.

A major new professional reference work on fingerprint security systems and technology from leading international researchers in the field. Handbook provides authoritative and comprehensive coverage of all major topics, concepts, and methods for fingerprint security systems. This unique reference work is an absolutely essential resource for all biometric security professionals, researchers, and systems administrators.

Mobility, Space, and Resistance: Transformative Spatiality in Literary and Political Discourse draws from various disciplines-such as geography, sociology, political science, gender studies, and poststructuralist thought-to posit the productive capabilities of literature in political action and at the same time show how literary art can resist the imposition and domination of oppressive systems of our spatial lives. The various approaches, topics, and types of literature discussed in this volume display a concern for social issues that can be addressed in and through literature. The essays address social injustice, oppression, discrimination, and their spatial representations. While offering interpretations of literature, this collection seeks to show how literary spaces contribute to understanding, changing, or challenging physical spaces of our lived world.

The book is needed for several reasons. Bariatric surgery is one of the most clinically effective and cost effective services in any field of medicine, and is growing in popularity, and the non-specialist family practitioner, allied health professional and pharmacist need to know exactly what it involves. Bariatric surgery is in everyone's interest - whether medic or patient, as it offers improvement in diabetes, heart disease, sleep apnoea, fatty liver and many cancers, whilst reducing benefits, housing costs and the general burden on the economy. There is a lot of flawed thinking on surgery in primary care, with only a minority of family practitioner specialists making the majority of referrals, whilst many are denying their patients access because of their own misconceived ideas. A 'back to basics' book will help tackle the negative views surrounding the topic, and improve the volume and quality of referrals. Very often patients turning up to obesity centres have been given poor advice, and inappropriate treatment, and arrive with little or no idea what to expect.  Many medics prioritise other conditions first, overlooking the underlying cause, i.e. obesity. Basic education on obesity and co-morbidities is fast becoming essential.

This book presents contributions on a wide range of computational research applied to fields ranging from molecular systems to bulk structures. This volume highlights current trends in modern computational chemistry and discusses the development of theoretical methodologies, state-of-the-art computational algorithms and their practical applications. This volume is part of a continuous effort by the editors to document recent advances by prominent researchers in the area of computational chemistry.  Most of the chapters are contributed by  invited speakers and participants to International annual conference  "e;Current Trends in Computational Chemistry"e;, organized by Jerzy Leszczynski, one of the editors of the current volume. This conference series has become an exciting platform for eminent theoretical and computational chemists to discuss their recent findings and is regularly honored by the presence of Nobel laureates. Topics covered in the book include reactive force-field methodologies, coarse-grained modeling, DNA damage radiosensitizers, modeling and simulation of surfaces and interfaces, non-covalent interactions, and many others. The book is intended for theoretical and computational chemists, physical chemists, material scientists and those who are eager to apply computational chemistry methods to problems of chemical and physical importance. It is a valuable resource for undergraduate, graduate and PhD students as well as for established researchers.

Liminality has become a key concept within the social sciences, with a growing number of publications devoted to it in recent years. The concept is needed to address those aspects of human experience and social life that fall outside of ordered structures. In contrast to the clearly defined roles and routines that define so much of industrial work and economic life, it highlights spaces of transition, indefiniteness, ambiguity, play and creativity. Thus, it is an indispensable concept and a necessary counterweight to the overemphasis on structural influences on human behavior.This book aims to use the concept of liminality to develop a culturally and experientially sensitive psychology. This is accomplished by first setting out an original theoretical framework focused on understanding the 'liminal sources of cultural experience,' and second an application of concept to a number of different domains, such as tourism, pilgrimage, aesthetics, children's play, art therapy, and medical diagnosis. Finally, all these domains are then brought together in a concluding commentary chapter that puts them in relation to an overarching theoretical framework. This book will be useful for graduate students and researchers in cultural psychology, critical psychology, psychosocial psychology, developmental psychology, health psychology, anthropology and the social sciences, cultural studies among others.

This book investigates Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) with a payload capacity of one metric ton for transportation. The authors provide a large variety of perspectives-from economics to technical realization. With the focus on such heavy-lift cargo UAS, the authors consider recently established methods for approval and certification, which they expect to be disruptive for unmanned aviation. In particular, the Specific Operations Risk Assessment (SORA) and its impact on the presented technological solutions and operational concepts are studied. Starting with the assumption of an operation over sparsely populated areas and below common air traffic, diverse measures to further reduce operational risks are proposed. Operational concepts derived from logistics use-cases set the context for an in-depth analysis including aircraft and system design, safe autonomy as well as airspace integration and datalinks. Results from simulations and technology demonstrations are presented as a proof of concept for solutions proposed in this book.

This interdisciplinary volume collects contributions from experts in their respective fields with as common theme diagrams.Diagrams play a fundamental role in the mathematical visualization and philosophical analysis of forms in space. Some of the most interesting and profound recent developments in contemporary sciences, whether in topology, geometry, dynamic systems theory, quantum field theory or string theory, have been made possible by the introduction of new types of diagrams, which, in addition to their essential role in the discovery of new classes of spaces and phenomena, have contributed to enriching and clarifying the meaning of the operations, structures and properties that are at the heart of these spaces and phenomena.The volume gives a closer look at the scope and the nature of diagrams as constituents of mathematical and physical thought, their function in contemporary artistic work, and appraise, in particular, the actual importance of the diagrams of knots, of braids, of fields, of interaction, of strings in topology and geometry, in quantum physics and in cosmology, but also in theory of perception, in plastic arts and in philosophy. The editors carefully curated this volume to be an inspiration to students and researchers in philosophy, phenomenology, mathematics and the sciences, as well as artists, musicians and the general interested audience.

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a major global public health problem, affecting nearly one in seven adults in the United States alone. It is a disease that integrates chronic illness at several levels, and the progressive condition is associated with high rates of co-morbidity. This text provides a comprehensive, current state-of-the art review of this field, serving as a valuable resource for primary care providers and non-nephrology clinicians that treat patients with CKD. It is comprised of 24 chapters focused on specific aspects of the disease. The first 2 chapters provide a bit of background on the disease, describing the anatomy and physiology of the kidney as well as the definition and epidemiology of the disease. The following 3 chapters discuss the detection, prevention and progression of the disease. The next 6 chapters describe the relationship of the disease with other conditions and most common co-morbidities such as diabetes and hypertension. The chapters, that follow focus on the CKD associated complications and the CKD within special populations such as the elderly and minorities as well as dietary restrictions and drug dosing. The book concludes with discussion on preparation for renal replacement therapy and preemptive organ transplantation as an alternative to dialysis in the management of the advanced CKD. Written by experts in the field, Approach to Chronic Kidney Disease is a comprehensive guide for clinicians, especially primary care providers including residents and fellows in training, who take care of chronic kidney disease patients. It is also a useful tool for researchers dealing with this challenging field. 

This book discusses a number of recent technological and methodological progressions in achieving sustainable agriculture. It covers innovative and economically viable techniques for growers, laborers, consumers, policymakers, and others working to develop food-secure and ecologically sound agricultural practices to benefit humans and the environment. The key topics addressed include the increasing role of biofertilizers in sustainable agriculture, green synthesized nanoparticles for higher crop production rates, eco-friendly plant-based pesticides as alternatives to synthetic/chemical pesticides, use of genomics for improved plant breeding practices, and the use of biochar to increase the water-holding capacity in soil. The book concludes with an overview of satellite-based soil erosion practices to monitor and control the harmful impacts of land degradation, and a discussion of long-term strategies to reduce crop losses due to pest and insecticide damage. The book will be of interest to students and researchers in the field of environmental science, agriculture science, agronomy, and sustainable development.  

This edited volume is a compilation of 30 articles discussing what constitutes food for health and longevity. The aim is to provide up-to-date information, insights, and future tendencies in the ongoing scientific research about nutritional components, food habits and dietary patterns in different cultures. The health-sustaining and health-promoting effects of food are certainly founded in its overall composition of macronutrients and micronutrients. However, the consumption of these nutrients is normally in the form of raw or prepared food from the animal and plant sources. The book is divided into four parts and a conclusion, and successfully convenes the well-established information and knowledge, along with the personal views of a diversified group of researchers and academicians on the multifaceted aspects of nutrition, food and diet. The first part reviews the scientific information about proteins, carbohydrates, fats and oils, micronutrients, pro- and pre-biotics, and hormetins, along with a discussion of the evolutionary principles and constraints about what is optimal food, if any. The second part discusses various kinds of foods and food supplements with respect to their claimed benefits for general health and prevention of some diseases. The third part brings in the cultural aspects, such as what are the principles of healthy eating according to the traditional Chinese and Indian systems, what is the importance of mealing times and daily rhythms, and how different cultures have developed  different folk wisdoms for eating for health, longevity and immortality. In the part four, various approaches which are either already in practice or are still in the testing and research phases are discussed and evaluated critically, for example intermittent fasting and calorie restriction, food-based short peptides, senolytics, Ayurvedic compounds, optimal food for old people, and food for the prevention of obesity and other metabolic disorders.The overreaching aim of this book is to inform, inspire and encourage students, researchers, educators and medical health professionals thinking about food and food habits in a holistic context of our habits, cultures and patterns. Food cannot be reduced to a pill of nutritional components. Eating food is a complex human behavior culturally evolved over thousands of years. Perhaps the old adage "e;we are what we eat"e; needs to be modified to "e;we eat what we are"e;.

This book discusses theoretical backgrounds, techniques and methodologies, and applications of the current state-of-the-art human dynamics research utilizing social media and geospatial big data. It describes various forms of social media and big data with location information, theory development, data collection and management techniques, and analytical methodologies to conduct human dynamics research including geographic information systems (GIS), spatiotemporal data analytics, text mining and semantic analysis, machine learning, trajectory data analysis, and geovisualization. The book also covers applied interdisciplinary research examples ranging from disaster management, public health, urban geography, and spatiotemporal information diffusion. By providing theoretical foundations, solid empirical research backgrounds, techniques, and methodologies as well as application examples from diverse interdisciplinary fields, this book will be a valuable resource to students, researchers and practitioners who utilize or plan to employ social media and big data in their work.

Rapidly growing interest in the role of organic cation transporters (OCTs) and plasma membrane monoamine transporter (PMAT) in central monoamine homeostasis makes this book especially timely, given its thematic alignment with the role of OCTs and PMAT in CNS. This book discusses latest insights into the field laying an emphasis on health, disease and therapeutics. The chapter, "e;General Overview of Organic Cation Transporters in Brain"e;, of this book is available open access under a CC BY 4.0 license at link.springer.com

This user-friendly, pragmatic book discusses the normal and pathological conditions of the appendicular skeleton, with a focus on the preservation of joint function, providing a detailed overview of strategies for both common and complex joint preservation.The first section covers basic topics, ranging from joints homeostasis and biomechanics, to genetics, bio-orthopedics, tissue engineering and 3D bioprinting. The following sections are each dedicated to a specific joint - its functional anatomy, pathologic conditions, diagnostics and treatment.This book is of interest to orthopedists and sports medicine specialists treating common and complex injuries of the joints.

This book presents recent technologies that explore artificial intelligence (AI) and its scope in Internet of Things (IoT) enabled areas for productivity and the betterment of society. The book aims at targeting audiences of several disciplines to share research, suggest solutions, and future trends in the field of AI using IoT. Rather than looking at the field from only a theoretical or only a practical perspective, this book unifies both aspects to give a holistic understanding of the AI paradigm for IoT. The book focuses on timely topics related to the field of AI enabled IoT applications at large. The book consists of four major parts: fundamentals, theoretical discussion, critical applications, and the learning algorithms. These contents shall include the basics, types, tools, and techniques of AI. Finally, applications of AI enabled IoT in several areas are presented including health, security, climate change, agricultural engineering, bioinformatics, biomedicine, smart applications, natural language processing, social and economic implications of AI enabled IoT, as well as robotics, sustainability, risk management, seismic data processing, smart grid management, text analysis, security, privacy, and ethics.

This book paves the road for researchers from various areas of engineering working in the realm of smart cities to discuss the intersections in these areas when it comes to infrastructure and its flexibility. The authors lay out models, algorithms and frameworks related to the 'smartness' in the future smart cities. In particular, manufacturing firms, electric generation, transmission and distribution utilities, hardware and software computer companies, automation and control manufacturing firms, and other industries will be able to use this book to enhance their energy operations, improve their comfort and privacy, as well as to increase the benefit from the electrical system. The book pertains to researchers, professionals, and R&D in an array of industries.

This book explores how vulnerable and resilient communities from SIDS are affected by climate change; proposes and, where possible, evaluates adaptation activities; identifies factors capable of enhancing or inhibiting SIDS people's long-term ability to deal with climate change; and critiques the discourses, vocabularies, and constructions around SIDS dealing with climate change. The contributions, written by well-established scholars, as well as emerging authors and practitioners, in the field, include conceptual papers, coherent methodological approaches, and case studies from the communities based in the Caribbean Sea and the Indian, Atlantic, and Pacific Oceans. In their introduction, the editors contextualise the book within the current literature. They emphasise the importance of stronger links between climate change science and policy in SIDS, both to increase effectiveness of policy and also boost scholarly enquiry in the context of whose communities are often excluded by mainstream research.  This book is timely and appropriate, given the recent commission by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) of a Special Report that aims at addressing vulnerabilities, "e;especially in islands and coastal areas, as well as the adaptation and policy development opportunities"e; following the Paris Agreement.  Coupled with this, there is also the need to support the policy community with further scientific evidence on climate change-related issues in SIDS, accompanying the first years of implementation of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

This book covers all aspects of hypersensitivity to drugs, providing practical information for non-specialist physicians as well as addressing issues of interest to practitioners in different specialties and presenting the expert knowledge required by specialist allergists and immunologists. The opening, general section discusses basics such as clinical manifestations, histopathology, mechanisms, risk factors, drug hypersensitivity in particular populations, and the full range of diagnostic methods. The second part of the book provides concise information on the most important drug classes and guides the reader on how to proceed when patients present with a suspected reaction. For each drug class, the current level of evidence for use of the different diagnostic tools, including skin tests, provocation tests, and in vitro tests, is clarified, and management options, outlined. The inclusion of helpful tables and algorithms is designed to aid in decision making. Drug hypersensitivity is among the more complex allergological issues, and this book will meet the needs of general practitioners, internists, and specialists.

Departing from the idea that political controversies are embedded in the very framework of European integration, this volume focuses on the relationship between politicisation and European democracy. The contributors to this edited volume trace the various ways of understanding 'politicisation' before and beyond the 2019 European elections. The aim is to offer constructive reinterpretations of the concept for further research in the field. Encompassing different approaches, the book shows a plurality of perspectives and provides innovative analytical tools to make sense of the phenomenon of politicisation in the EU context.Assuming that EU politicisation can be seen both as vice and virtue depending on the way in which it takes place, the authors analyse under what conditions it has a positive or negative influence over European democracy. Emphasising that scholars ought to be aware of the normative assumptions underlying the conceptualisation of politicisation, the book illustrates how many of the features in European politics that were intensified during the Covid-19 pandemic were already present earlier.Tracing the Politicisation of the EU will be of interest to students and scholars in EU Studies, Comparative Politics, Media and Communication, Political Theory and Political Sociology.

This edited book explores the many interesting questions that lie at the intersection between AI and HCI. It covers a comprehensive set of perspectives, methods and projects that present the challenges and opportunities that modern AI methods bring to HCI researchers and practitioners. The chapters take a clear departure from traditional HCI methods and leverage data-driven and deep learning methods to tackle HCI problems that were previously challenging or impossible to address.It starts with addressing classic HCI topics, including human behaviour modeling and input, and then dedicates a section to data and tools, two technical pillars of modern AI methods. These chapters exemplify how state-of-the-art deep learning methods infuse new directions and allow researchers to tackle long standing and newly emerging HCI problems alike. Artificial Intelligence for Human Computer Interaction: A Modern Approach concludes with a section on Specific Domains which covers a set of emerging HCI areas where modern AI methods start to show real impact, such as personalized medical, design, and UI automation.

This book covers all forms of Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia (CAH) and provides a comprehensive overview of accompanying reproductive problems. Affected individuals may exhibit low fecundability, infertility, recurrent miscarriages, painful sexual intercourse, sexual orientation changes, etc. If not diagnosed and treated properly, their children may also experience developmental disorders of the external genitalia.  Depending on the defects in enzymes, severity of the mutations and residual enzymatic activities, the clinical presentation may differ from patient to patient. As these disorders are encountered relatively rarely, many cases are either undiagnosed or inappropriately treated.  Given its scope, this book offers a valuable guide for gynecologists, endocrinologists, pediatricians, and professionals in reproductive medicine, as well as GPs, practicing physicians, medical students and residents.

This edited volume brings together debates from the Global South and Global East to explore alternatives to conventional planning in Southern cities. Embracing the evolving post-colonial theory, the volume offers 'fragments' of the urban that provide clues to the larger, often-repeated ontological question that continues to hold: Why and what does theory from the South mean? The chapters derive from and speak to the simultaneously homogenous and heterogeneous South. They focus on presenting the alternative realities of Southern cities as critical analytical lenses that can build up to the theorisation of the Southern urban with a potential to (re)understand the contemporary urban world. The contributions explore locally rooted knowledge systems, premised on social and cultural practices, as possible conduits to evolving planning methods. In doing so, the volume breaks apart the linear modernity that urban theory from the North relies on.Chapters [Chapter-1] and [Chapter-11] are available open access under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License via link.springer.com.

This book deals with recent perspectives on the panel of addiction behavior in a vast amount of population (young and adult). Thanks to the contribution of experts of the topic of addiction the volume will furnish new perspectives to formulate assessment, diagnosis and intervention in response to the increasing variety of addictions. It focuses the assessment of executive functions in substance and behavioral addictions. More specifically, this assessment consists of a new approach not only inherent to the diagnosis, but also to the treatment and prevention of addictions. In fact, there is a strict relationship between executive functions (EF) and addictive behavior: EF plays a remarkable role in significant phenomena for the treatment of addictions, such as craving, relapse and compliance to treatment.

Penile implants have been an effective treatment for erectile dysfunction (ED) for more than 40 years. However, there is now a growing interest in this treatment option, as the number of procedures is expected to increase in the future. This book offers a reference guide for all those practitioners interested in understanding and/or performing this procedure. It will also benefit those in medical education who want to obtain specialized and high-quality knowledge regarding the complexities involved in penile implant surgery.Although the basic description of penile implant surgery is well documented in the literature, a detailed and comprehensive guide with a special focus on the most challenging and controversial aspects is lacking. The few books available on the topic provide a broad overview of prosthetic surgery in general, mainly discuss basic principles, and fail to provide a more detailed perspective.This comprehensive book discusses various aspects of penile implant surgery, ranging from indications to long-term complications. It addresses the most common and serious challenges regarding penile implants, which are rarely discussed elsewhere. The respective chapters were written by internationally respected experts on the controversies of penile prosthetic surgery. The book is intended for all those who plan to specialize in penile implant surgery, which include, but are not limited to, residents and fully trained urologists, as well as fellows and practitioners in sexual medicine and reconstructive urology.

This book provides a guide to the challenges of special economic zones. Focusing on Africa, while also discussing China, Taiwan, Dominican Republic, Malaysia, and South Korea, the impact on economic development of special economic zones is analysed to highlight the successes and failures of these zones. New emerging issues, such as the sustainable development goals and the fourth industrial revolution, are presented as factors that need to be addressed in order for special economic zones to be productive in Africa. The role of foreign direct investments, job creation, industrialization, and regulation is also discussed.Special Economic Zones: Economic Development in Africa aims to set out an empirical framework on how to create effective special economic zones. It will be relevant to researchers and policymakers interested in African and development economics.

This book analyses contemporary capitalism from Brazil and from the Marxian critique of political economy, particularly; the co-dependency of wealth and poverty and of civilization and barbarism; the current tendency towards capital over-accumulation and the specific form assumed by the capitalist crisis in recent decades; the financialisation process of capital accumulation, its effects on the world of labour; and the place that the state assumes in this broad process. Current trends toward increasing social inequality, impoverishment of large sections of the population, precariousness of labour and rising unemployment, environmental destruction, the spread of austerity policies and the suppression of social policies, the rise of the far right (together with the strengthening of racism, misogyny, xenophobia, political and religious fanaticism and all manner of intolerance, etc.), low economic growth, the primacy of the financial dimension of capital accumulation, all need to be understood in their multiple and complex articulations, as fundamental and inherent elements of contemporary capitalism, associating empirical analysis with conceptual construction. Because they are strictly contradictory processes, a dialectical approach is required that reclaims the Marxian legacy, and aims to contribute to updating it, seeking to bring new and relevant elements to the Marxist debate, based on a specific interpretation of Marx's work, and as an immediate empirical basis the Brazilian reality.