The aim of this book is to teach computer programming using examples from mathematics and the natural sciences. We have chosen to use the Python programming language because it combines remarkable power with very clean, simple, and compact syntax. Python is easy to learn and very well suited for an introduction to computer programming. Python...

The scope of the conference encompassed the theory and practice of all aspects of...

The 7th Workshop on Approximation and Online Algorithms (WAOA 2009) focused on the design and analysis of algorithms for online and computationally hard problems. Both kinds of problems have a large number of applications from a variety of fields. WAOA 2009 took place in Copenhagen, Denmark, during September 10–11, 2009. The workshop...

This book is really the end product of over a decade of work, on and off, on diagrammatic reasoning in artificial intelligence (AI). In developing this book, I drew inspiration from a variety of sources: two experimental studies, the development of two prototype systems, an extensive literature review and analysis in AI,...

Investing in a business application—be it managing one's customers, tracking inventory, coordinating global resources, or just being able to get real-time visibility to cash flow—has never been so important. Gone are the days when companies invested in business applications, such as CRM and ERP, to simply streamline their...

As the demand for data and information management continues to grow, so does the need to maintain and improve the security of databases, applications, and information systems. In order to effectively protect this data against evolving threats, an up-to-date understanding of the mechanisms for securing semantic Web technologies is...

Excel is an extremely powerful tool that is made to handle many varieties of data. Regardless of the job you do, chances are you have had to use Excel at some time in your career, or you will. Regardless of your reason for using Excel, many users never realize the full potential of the software, relegating Excel to not much more than a list...

We know that it is rare in IT departments today that solutions do not have to integrate with other systems and even external entities. Systems just have to be connected to support the complex business processes and levels of automation that the business is demanding. Some of these systems are really at the core of the business. They can...

We wrote this book for business school students who want an in-depth look at how today's business firms use information technologies and systems to achieve corporate objectives. Information systems are one of the major tools available to business managers for achieving operational excellence, developing new products and services,...

Statistical learning — that is, learning from data — and, in particular, probabilistic model learning have become increasingly important in recent years. Advances in information technology have facilitated an explosion of available data. This explosion has been accompanied by theoretical advances, permitting new and...

Ideal for users studying business and key practices, BUSINESS, 11E is a best-selling introductory text featuring current, comprehensive survey of the functional areas of business: management, marketing, accounting, finance, and information technology. Core topics include ethics and social responsibility, small business concerns, and global...

During the financial crisis of 2008, things got scary. Large Wall Street firms were going under, stock prices were plummeting, and layoffs and unemployment rates were soaring. And, all this was happening in the midst of the 2008 presidential election. Talk of another Great Depression was in the air. In fact, polls showed a majority of...