Recent results from high-energy scattering and theoretical developments of string theory require a change in our understanding of the basic structure of space-time. This book is about the advancement of ideas on the stochastic nature of space-time from the 1930s onward. In particular, the author promotes the concept of space as a set of hazy lumps, first introduced by Karl Menger, and constructs a novel framework for statistical behaviour at the microlevel. The various chapters address topics such as space-time fluctuation and random potential, non-local fields, and the origin of stochasticity. Implications in astro-particle physics and cosmology are also explored. Audience: This volume will be of interest to physicists, chemists and mathematicians involved in particle physics, astrophysics and cosmology.

Modern cosmology is a quickly developing ?eld of research. New technical devices and tools supply the community with new experimental data measured with high accuracy. The self-consistent explanation of these data needs t- oretical models that are based on hypothetical predictions of particle theory. In their turn, such predictions imply cosmology for their probe. Speci?c st- ies of the cosmological consequences of particle theory, linking them to their observable signatures, are actual. This boiling kettle of theoretical research and experimental efforts produces ideas that will be preserved for following generations. The aim of this book is to acquaint the reader with some of these ideas, - fering nontrivial ways to probe the physical basis of modern cosmology. An extensive review of the newest ideas in modern cosmology, e. g. , related with the development of the M-brane theory, lies beyond the scope of our book, which is aimed at providing a ?rmly established system of probes for these ideas, linking their predictions to their possible experimental test. We use the framework of in?ationary paradigm to reveal the phenomena that can shed light on the physical origin of the observed Universe, of its matter content and large-scale structure. The crucial role of quantum ?uctuations in creation of our Universe and in possible features, re?ecting cosmological impact of microphysics, is discussed. These features are shown to be accessible to - perimental test in the near future.

Cosmology in Scalar-Tensor Gravity covers all aspects of cosmology in scalar-tensor theories of gravity. Considerable progress has been made in this exciting area of physics and this book is the first to provide a critical overview of the research. Among the topics treated are: -Scalar-tensor gravity and its limit to general relativity, -Effective energy-momentum tensors and conformal frames, -Gravitational waves in scalar-tensor cosmology, -Specific scalar-tensor theories, -Exact cosmological solutions and cosmological perturbations, -Scalar-tensor scenarios of the early universe and inflation, -Scalar-tensor models of quintessence in the present universe and their far-reaching consequences for the ultimate fate of the cosmos.

The title of this book is no surprise for people working in the field of Analytical Mechanics. However, the geometric concepts of Lagrange space and Hamilton space are completely new. The geometry of Lagrange spaces, introduced and studied in [76],[96], was ext- sively examined in the last two decades by geometers and physicists from Canada, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Japan, Romania, Russia and U.S.A. Many international conferences were devoted to debate this subject, proceedings and monographs were published [10], [18], [112], [113],... A large area of applicability of this geometry is suggested by the connections to Biology, Mechanics, and Physics and also by its general setting as a generalization of Finsler and Riemannian geometries. The concept of Hamilton space, introduced in [105], [101] was intensively studied in [63], [66], [97],... and it has been successful, as a geometric theory of the Ham- tonian function the fundamental entity in Mechanics and Physics. The classical Legendre’s duality makes possible a natural connection between Lagrange and - miltonspaces. It reveals new concepts and geometrical objects of Hamilton spaces that are dual to those which are similar in Lagrange spaces. Following this duality Cartan spaces introduced and studied in [98], [99],..., are, roughly speaking, the Legendre duals of certain Finsler spaces [98], [66], [67]. The above arguments make this monograph a continuation of [106], [113], emphasizing the Hamilton geometry.

This monograph is planned to provide the application of the soliton theory to solve certain practical problems selected from the fields of solid mechanics, fluid mechanics and biomechanics. The work is based mainly on the authors’ research carried out at their home institutes, and on some specified, significant results existing in the published literature. The methodology to study a given evolution equation is to seek the waves of permanent form, to test whether it possesses any symmetry properties, and whether it is stable and solitonic in nature. Students of physics, applied mathematics, and engineering are usually exposed to various branches of nonlinear mechanics, especially to the soliton theory. The soliton is regarded as an entity, a quasi-particle, which conserves its character and interacts with the surroundings and other solitons as a particle. It is related to a strange phenomenon, which consists in the propagation of certain waves without attenuation in dissipative media. This phenomenon has been known for about 200 years (it was described, for example, by the Joule Verne's novel Les histoires de Jean Marie Cabidoulin, Éd. Hetzel), but its detailed quantitative description became possible only in the last 30 years due to the exceptional development of computers. The discovery of the physical soliton is attributed to John Scott Russell. In 1834, Russell was observing a boat being drawn along a narrow channel by a pair of horses.

An understanding of quantum mechanics is vital to all students of physics, chemistry and electrical engineering, but requires a lot of mathematical concepts, the details of which are given with great clarity in this book. Various concepts have been derived from first principles, so it can also be used for self-study. The chapters on the JWKB approximation, time-independent perturbation theory and effects of magnetic field stand out for their clarity and easy-to-understand mathematics. Two complete chapters on the linear harmonic oscillator provide a very detailed discussion of one of the most fundamental problems in quantum mechanics. Operator algebra is used to show the ease with which one can calculate the harmonic oscillator wave functions and study the evolution of the coherent state. Similarly, three chapters on angular momentum give a detailed account of this important problem. Perhaps the most attractive feature of the book is the excellent balance between theory and applications and the large number of applications in such diverse areas as astrophysics, nuclear physics, atomic and molecular spectroscopy, solid-state physics, and quantum well structures.