Analyzes approaches to the study of complexity in the physical, biological, and social sciences.

Automatic personal authentication using biometric information is becoming more essential in applications of public security, access control, forensics, banking, etc. Many kinds of biometric authentication techniques have been developed based on different biometric characteristics. However, most of the physical biometric recognition techniques are based on two dimensional (2D) images, despite the fact that human characteristics are three dimensional (3D) surfaces. Recently, 3D techniques have been applied to biometric applications such as 3D face, 3D palmprint, 3D fingerprint, and 3D ear recognition. This book introduces four typical 3D imaging methods, and presents some case studies in the field of 3D biometrics. This book also includes many efficient 3D feature extraction, matching, and fusion algorithms. These 3D imaging methods and their applications are given as follows: - Single view imaging with line structured-light: 3D ear identification - Single view imaging with multi-line structured-light: 3D palmprint authentication - Single view imaging using only 3D camera: 3D hand verification - Multi-view imaging: 3D fingerprint recognition 3D Biometrics: Systems and Applications is a comprehensive introduction to both theoretical issues and practical implementation in 3D biometric authentication. It will serve as a textbook or as a useful reference for graduate students and researchers in the fields of computer science, electrical engineering, systems science, and information technology. Researchers and practitioners in industry and R&D laboratories working on security system design, biometrics, immigration, law enforcement, control, and pattern recognition will also find much of interest in this book.

Biomatrix: A Systems Approach to Organisational and Societal Change provides a comprehensive theory of management. It outlines how change in organisations and society needs to be managed in the information age: systemically. It also proposes ideas for new governance models. Part 1 of the book provides an overview of Biomatrix systems theory. Part 2 applies the theory to management, organisation development and transformation. Part 3 applies the theory to dissolving complex societal problems. The book may be regarded as a textbook for management, leadership and governance in the 21st century. Case studies are provided throughout.

Joint replacement is a logical step in the treatment of severe joint pathologies with irreversible lesions resisting conservative therapy. At the spinal level, arthrodesis became, very early, the gold standard of treatment for severe intervertebral disc pathologies. The next logical step was to envision functional replacement, and this step was taken as early as 1956, when the first intervertebral implant was described. However, it took many more years and a great variety of proposed implant designs before clinical applications could be attempted.

This book is open access under a CC BY 4.0 license. This quick-reference handbook offers a concise and practical review of key aspects of the treatment of ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) in the era of primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PPCI). In the context of STEMI, PPCI is the preferred mode of emergency revascularization. Access to PPCI is rapidly increasing and is now routinely practiced in both general and specialist hospitals and there has been a recent emphasis on developing STEMI networks to enhance and expedite the referral pathway. This coupled with concurrent developments to enhance the safety and efficacy of the PPCI procedure has heralded an era where STEMI interventions are increasingly considered an important subspecialty within interventional cardiology. Written by leading cardiologists who have been instrumental in the adoption of PPCI in their respective institutions, the book provides junior and senior cardiologists alike with insightful and thought-provoking tips and tricks to enhance the success of PPCI procedures, which may in turn translate into direct improvements in outcomes. The book is also relevant for healthcare providers and emergency department physicians.