This book is an inspirational introduction to modern research directions and scholarship in nonlinear dynamics, and will also be a valuable reference for researchers in the field. With the scholarly level aimed at the beginning graduate student, the book will have broad appeal to those with an undergraduate background in mathematical or physical sciences.In addition to pedagogical and new material, each chapter reviews the current state of the area and discusses classic and open problems in engaging, surprisingly non-technical ways. The contributors are Brian Davies (bifurcations in maps), Nalini Joshi (integrable systems and asymptotics), Alan Newell (wave turbulence and pattern formation), Mark Ablowitz (nonlinear waves), Carl Weiss (spatial solitons), Cathy Holmes (Hamiltonian systems), Tony Roberts (dissipative fluid mechanics), Jorgen Frederiksen (two-dimensional turbulence), and Mike Lieberman (Fermi acceleration).

This is an introductory textbook about nonlinear dynamics of PDEs, with a focus on problems over unbounded domains and modulation equations. The presentation is example-oriented, and new mathematical tools are developed step by step, giving insight into some important classes of nonlinear PDEs and nonlinear dynamics phenomena which may occur in PDEs. The book consists of four parts. Parts I and II are introductions to finite- and infinite-dimensional dynamics defined by ODEs and by PDEs over bounded domains, respectively, including the basics of bifurcation and attractor theory. Part III introduces PDEs on the real line, including the Korteweg-de Vries equation, the Nonlinear Schrödinger equation and the Ginzburg-Landau equation. These examples often occur as simplest possible models, namely as amplitude or modulation equations, for some real world phenomena such as nonlinear waves and pattern formation. Part IV explores in more detail the connections between such complicated physical systems and the reduced models. For many models, a mathematically rigorous justification by approximation results is given. The parts of the book are kept as self-contained as possible. The book is suitable for self-study, and there are various possibilities to build one- or two-semester courses from the book.

This book is an inspirational introduction to modern research directions and scholarship in nonlinear dynamics, and will also be a valuable reference for researchers in the field. With the scholarly level aimed at the beginning graduate student, the book will have broad appeal to those with an undergraduate background in mathematical or physical sciences. In addition to pedagogical and new material, each chapter reviews the current state of the area and discusses classic and open problems in engaging, surprisingly non-technical ways. The contributors are Brian Davies (bifurcations in maps), Nalini Joshi (integrable systems and asymptotics), Alan Newell (wave turbulence and pattern formation), Mark Ablowitz (nonlinear waves), Carl Weiss (spatial solitons), Cathy Holmes (Hamiltonian systems), Tony Roberts (dissipative fluid mechanics), Jorgen Frederiksen (two-dimensional turbulence), and Mike Lieberman (Fermi acceleration).

This is a monograph written for the young and advanced researcher entering the field of wet granular matter, and is keen to understand the basic physical principles governing this state of soft matter. It treats wet granulates as an instance of a ternary system, consisting of the grains, a primary, and a secondary fluid. After addressing wetting phenomena in general and outlining the basic facts on dry granular systems, a chapter on basic mechanisms and their effects is dedicated to every region of the ternary phase diagram. Effects of grain shape and roughness are considered as well. Rather than addressing engineering aspects such as existing books on this topic do, the book aims to provide a generalized framework suitable for those who want to understand these systems on a more fundamental basis.

A discussion of the fundamental changes that occur when dynamical systems from the fields of nonlinear optics, solids, hydrodynamics and biophysics are scaled down to nanosize. The authors are leading scientists in the field and each of their contributions provides a broader introduction to the specific area of research. In so doing, they include both the experimental and theoretical point of view, focusing especially on the effects on the nonlinear dynamical behavior of scaling, stochasticity and quantum mechanics. For everybody working on the synthesis and integration of nanoscopic devices who sooner or later will have to learn how to deal with nonlinear effects.

Informal science is a burgeoning field that operates across a broad range of venues and envisages learning outcomes for individuals, schools, families, and society. The evidence base that describes informal science, its promise, and effects is informed by a range of disciplines and perspectives, including field-based research, visitor studies, and psychological and anthropological studies of learning. Learning Science in Informal Environments draws together disparate literatures, synthesizes the state of knowledge, and articulates a common framework for the next generation of research on learning science in informal environments across a life span. Contributors include recognized experts in a range of disciplines-research and evaluation, exhibit designers, program developers, and educators. They also have experience in a range of settings-museums, after-school programs, science and technology centers, media enterprises, aquariums, zoos, state parks, and botanical gardens. Learning Science in Informal Environments is an invaluable guide for program and exhibit designers, evaluators, staff of science-rich informal learning institutions and community-based organizations, scientists interested in educational outreach, federal science agency education staff, and K-12 science educators.