This expansive Dictionary comprehensively covers the field of health economics and closely related fields including epidemiology, pharmacoeconomics, demography, medical sociology, medical statistics and bio-statistics, health policy, health administration and health service management, public health medicine and qualitative and quantitative research.

The first part is devoted to historical notes and an outline of the evolution of different forms of hemodiafiltration, made possible by technological developments in the fields of membranes, machines and fluids. The next section describes the theoretical rationale for hemodiafiltration, providing a detailed analysis of the involved mass separation processes, the hydraulic properties of the dialyzers, fluid mechanics and crossfiltration in hollow fiber hemodialyzers. An outline of different hemodiafiltration techniques, also reporting peculiar transport mechanisms and related technology, is given next, and a section on the clinical effects of hemodiafiltration concludes this book. Including different technologies, the publication offers a complete overview of the technical and clinical possibilities provided by hemodiafiltration in its widest concept, ranging from the molecular basis to the most practical application. It will be a valuable tool for the implementation of hemodiafiltration in daily practice aimed at beginners and experts, scientists and physicians, students and senior faculty members alike.

Offers concise coverage of spices and herbs from basic science to the most recent developments in spice functions and applications. Introduces a new patterning theory of extensive spice use in various types of food preparations.

This publication focuses on various aspects of CRC prevention and screening, starting with a discussion on how a genome fingerprint, coupled with an assessment of environmental risk factors, can help to identify subjects who will benefit the most from screening. A description of novel non-invasive screening tests, which are yielding very promising results owing to their high sensitivity and specificity, is followed by an evaluation of new colonoscopes currently being developed, and an update on the strengths and weaknesses of virtual colonoscopy. A discussion of the current state of chemotherapy and its future as well as of the importance of a combined approach of endoscopy and drug treatment in a high-risk population concludes the presentations.

Imre Lakatos' philosophical and scientific papers are published here in two volumes. Volume I brings together his very influential but scattered papers on the philosophy of the physical sciences, and includes one important unpublished essay on the effect of Newton's scientific achievement. Volume 2 presents his work on the philosophy of mathematics (much of it unpublished), together with some critical essays on contemporary philosophers of science and some famous polemical writings on political and educational issues.

This book contains mainly keywords and general directions to guide the reader what the planets, signs, houses and aspects mean in a broader sense. It may give novices introduction to astrology, but more advanced readers may not find the contents adequate for birth chart interpretation.

s an introduction to the subject of coded modulation in digital communication. It is designed for classroom use and for anyone wanting to learn the ideas behind this modern kind of coding. Coded modulation is signal encoding that takes into account the nature of the channel over which it is used. Traditional error correcting codes work with bits and add redundant bits in order to correct transmission errors. In coded modulation, continuous time signals and their phases and amplitudes play the major role. The coding can be seen as a patterning of these quantities. The object is still to correct errors, but more fundamentally, it is to conserve signal energy and bandwidth at a given error performance. The book divides coded modulation into three major parts. Trellis coded modulation (TCM) schemes encode the points of QAM constellations; lattice coding and set-partition techniques play major roles here. Continuous-phase modulation (CPM) codes encode the signal phase, and create constant envelope RF signals. The partial-response signaling (PRS) field includes intersymbol interference problems, signals generated by real convolution, and signals created by lowpass filtering. In addition to these topics, the book covers coding techniques of several kinds for fading channels, spread spectrum and repeat-request systems. The history of the subject is fully traced back to the formative work of Shannon in 1949. Full explanation of the basics and complete homework problems make the book ideal for self-study or classroom use.

Citation analysis involves the construction and application of a series of indicators of the impact, influence or quality of scholarly work, derived from references cited in footnotes or bibliographies of scholarly research publications. It describes primarily the use of data extracted from the Science Citation Index and the Web of Science, published by the Institute for Scientific Information (ISI)/Thomson Scientific. But many aspects to which this book dedicates attention relate to citation analysis in general,
It provides a wide range of important facts, and corrects a number of common misunderstandings about citation analysis. It introduces basic notions and distinctions, and deals both with theoretical and technical aspects, and with its applicability in various policy contexts, at the level of individual scholars, research groups, departments, institutions, national scholarly systems, disciplines or subfields, and scholarly journals.
Although the major part of the analysis relates to the basic science a domain in which citation analysis is used most frequently this book also addresses its uses and limits in the applied and technical sciences, social sciences and humanities.

This fully revised and updated edition of The Science of Laboratory Diagnosis provides a concise description of all common laboratory tests available in medical practice with notes on their application, the accuracy of each test, the historical background to the adoption of various tests and their effectiveness in diagnosis.
Well illustrated, with clear headings, tables, flow charts and pathology slides, most in full colour
Provides an accessible reference book in which relevant information can be found easily
Page design facilitates rapid assimilation of principles and key facts
All the chapters have been updated and new material has been introduced to cover recently developed techniques, such as fluid-based cytology, telepathology and proteomics

Academic clinicians, clinical scientists, well-known practitioners of alternative medicine, and authors of popular works on the subject summarize the facts about complementary cardiovascular medicines so that physicians can confidently and knowledgeably advise their patients. The authors comprehensively explain the background for each important alternative therapy, its rationale, the evidence supporting its use, its possible interaction with standard medicines, and, where possible, what is known about its safety and efficacy. The therapies for treating coronary heart disease (CHD) range from the more commonly encountered herbs, vitamins, supplements, and dietary fats and oils, to such less familiar techniques as acupuncture, homeopathy, massage, chelation therapy, meditation, aroma therapies, prayer, and energy therapies. Also included is a value-added CD-ROM that provides an eBook version of the work that can be viewed either on a personal computer or synchronized to a PDA

is an insightful overview of the state-of-the-art in integer programming column generation and its many applications. The volume begins with "A Primer in Column Generation" which outlines the theory and ideas necessary to solve large-scale practical problems, illustrated with a variety of examples. Other chapters follow this introduction on "Shortest Path Problems with Resource Constraints," "Vehicle Routing Problem with Time Window," "Branch-and-Price Heuristics," "Cutting Stock Problems," each dealing with methodological aspects of the field. Three chapters deal with transportation applications: "Large-scale Models in the Airline Industry," "Robust Inventory Ship Routing by Column Generation," and "Ship Scheduling with Recurring Visits and Visit Separation Requirements." Production is the focus of another three chapters: "Combining Column Generation and Lagrangian Relaxation," "Dantzig-Wolfe Decomposition for Job Shop Scheduling," and "Applying Column Generation to Machine Scheduling." The final chapter by François Vanderbeck, "Implementing Mixed Integer Column Generation," reviews how to set-up the Dantzig-Wolfe reformulation, adapt standard MIP techniques to the column generation context (branching, preprocessing, primal heuristics), and deal with specific column generation issues (initialization, stabilization, column management strategies).

Senior physicians, cardiologists, urologists, psychologists, and pharmacologists critically review the relation between heart disease and erectile dysfunction (ED) and explain for the practicing physician the effective new treatment options available for the cardiac patient with ED. The authors detail in concise language the latest thinking about the risk of sexually induced cardiac events, the efficacy and risks to cardiac patients of drugs used to treat sexual dysfunction, and the expert guidelines developed by prominent organizations on the optimal approach to sexual dysfunction in the cardiac patient. They also discuss the physiology of ED and the currently available therapies (sildenafil, tadalafil, and vardenafil) may interact with the cardiac system, and the potential application of newer agents like phosphodiesterase-5 inhibitors to cardiovascular disease.

Fermentation and Food Safety covers the issues and processes that influence and affect the safety of fermented foods. Beginning with an explanation of fermented foods, basic safety issues, and the HACCP system, this contributed volume explores fermented foods associated with food-borne illnesses, including details of specific cases, causative agents, and the underlying reasons for their presence. The book deals individually with relevant chemical and microbiological hazards that may threaten public health, covering severity, rate of occurrence, introduction into foods, foods specifically at risk, and conditions that remove or inactivate these hazards. 'Fermentation and Food Safety' also looks at the impact of currently employed and novel fermentation processes and starters on hazards, with a specific focus on biotechnology issues. This unique reference is pertinent to the safe production of fermented foods at all scales, with all major food groups, and should be a valuable resource for anyone involved in research, processing, safety, or quality of fermented foods.

A variety of approaches are given so the reader can select the methodology best suited. It discusses the fundamental skills, techniques, and tools of auditing, and the characteristics of a good process safety management system. And, since information needed for review in the audit may be scattered or undocumented, it offers suggestions on what to look for and where. Whether your company is large or small, whether you are experienced with auditing or just developing a system, consistent use of the techniques presented can significantly improve your audit and your process safety management.

An old adage says, "God created man in His own image and man has been returning the favor ever since." Philip Yancey realized that despite a lifetime attending Sunday school topped off by a Bible college education, he really had no idea who Jesus was. In fact, he found himself further and further removed from the person of Jesus, distracted instead by flannel-graph figures and intellectual inspection. He determined to use his journalistic talents to approach Jesus, in the context of time, within the framework of history.
In The Jesus I Never Knew, Yancey explores the life of Jesus, as he explains, "'from below,' to grasp as best I can what it must have been like to observe in person the extraordinary events unfolding in Galilee and Judea" as Jesus traveled and taught. Yancey examines three fundamental questions: who Jesus was, why he came, and what he left behind. Step by step, scene by scene, Yancey probes the culture into which Jesus was born and grew to adulthood; his character and mission; his teachings and miracles; his legacy–not just as history has told it, but as he himself intended it to be.